jimmarchi1's forum posts 8022

As stated by others, the Korg Volca FM is a great little DX7 in a box with editing features the original could only have dreamed of.

its more of a DX100/TX81Z... the editing appears to eb LESS comprehensive than the old Yamahas, but it has front panel knobs isntead of menus and pushbuttons, so its faster.... the Yamaha Reface DX7 is very simialr to the volca being 4 operators but its got a TON of waveshapes for them from what I've seen but the control is not knob-based. I kinda recommend a real 6 operator FM synth like a 7, there are great MIDI editors and there's a certain amgic to the old hardware units that software with a full comliment of operators doesn't seem to reproduce. The original DX is midrangey and gritty and the mk2s are bright and crunchy. Nothing quite like those boards. but I definitely recommend FM8 or Sytrus to elarn FM with a visual display. Its not intuitive at all.

In software based samplers I cannot recommend the TAL Sampler enough. it does a alte 80s thing. youc an laod up any waves you want and edit them visually, layer them, filter them. the usual stuff.... but the output is a bit crusher with modes to emualte the response of the Emu Emualtor and early Akai rack samplers. It really puts a verneer of mid-to-late 80s digital skronk allover your custom samples without the ahssle of using an old sampler and fucking with menus and a job shuttle....

I've been watching the feverish revival of the stuff you mentioned as it's a genre close to my heart but 80% of what I've heard lately is nothing complicated.

ditto... even Depeche Mode is no Depeche Mode these days (as much as I like their last 2 records).

I don't know what you'll do with an analog step sequencer if you're not buying any syntesizers with CV input, waste of money until you have a fe synths with CV in.... I eman, you cna sue it over MIDI, but why bother? I don't think you should do to much shopping until you learn a lot more about the tech end of this. loe the SQ1. Great little bidget sequencer.... not particularly useful in my eyesunless you're going to generate control votlage with it and use it as a modualtion source for a mono synth

so do you already play an instrument?

I've enver tried a mdoern orange bass head. The old 200 watt oranges are notoriously meaty bass amps, like a dirtier Hiwatt 200.

I don't kow anything about those so-called portaflexes. As far as I know ampeg stopped making the portaflex tube amps in the 70s and tis a damned shame. My uncle has an old one in rgeat shape, it sounds amazing. Stll on the original tubes I think. He prefers his Eden rig. Go figure. I think the little 350-500 watt heads ampeg is calling protaflexes now are class D heads actually. I ahte that they call the portaflexes. I know they're light and protable, but a portaflex is a tube amp. Even the tube portaflexes they make now aren't really right. The portable bit was about how the ehad flipped up out of the cab and it was like a pun anyway because the cabs were sealed and ported.... and they had like a tone-ring type bass reflex setup, hence flex. Apeg has really lsot their way. Anyway... what the new portaflexes DO remind me of is the B25B head of the 70s. Not in looks but the 50 watt definitely is similar in tube set and features.... like a ebffed up potraflex

go to the store,, try everything

I second Boom's ashdown recommendation. I was really partial to this MAG300 I had for a while. It sounded really nice. Built like a tank, I am sure the combo version is great. All their stuff is great. SWRs really do sound amazing, or they sued to, but I experienced reliability issues with every one I've ever encountered. H aven't touched one since like 2006. Never again.

I also agree that the Markbass stuff is great, even the recent affordable stuff sounds pretty good.

Be sure to try out all these new, Ultra-ompact/light class D heads. I'm telling you, class D technology is really great for bass because of how it handles transients and also its whole methodology is fatastic ebcause it doesn't need buulky ehat sincs or anything. It doesn't get hot at all... Class D is where its at on paper.... in rpactice? Every time I try a class D bass amp I like it. They don't sound like an SVT if that's what you're looking for but they provide loud, honest bass for days. I like d the TC amp a lot, but I am a long-time TC guy so I'm biased. If you're not getting a tube amp then i would be trying all these tiny bass heads at a store before I looked at any old fashioned solid state heads like Ashdown, SWR, etc etc. I know Markbass makes class D stuff, haven't tried them though. I'm telling you,, this class D thing is the future of solid state amplification. Unless you're going to pony up for an old tube amp I would really be looking at class D. I eman, you cna fit this shit in a backpack and borrow a cab at the gg, dude!

another great solution is a used line6 bass pod (even an HD can be had for peanuts). The classic tube bass amps they mdeolled, aprticularly the SVT? sound pretty decent and you get all those goofy effects too... if you disable the cab and use it with a really clean pwoer amp ito a typical bass cab like a 4x10 youwill be surprised how good it sounds. And these days you could get a class D pedalbaord amp. I had a friend who did a rack with a bass pod and a crown and that rig soudned great but these days you could just use the floor version or the kidney-shaped little pod with a 3 or 400 watt pedalbaord amp and be able to walk to the gig with that in your backpack assuming there's a bass cabinet there. I'm telling you, I was shocked at how nice the bass pod soudned the first time I ehard this guy use it at a gig. He ahd stage volume and sent a direct signal to the PA and the whole thing was just great. it didn't look impressive like a raging SVT, but it was low hassle.... now with iny power amps thata re the size of a a big muff NYC? Its a really nice solution that will give you simualtions of soem classic old school abss tones, a bunch of effects and can travel on th subway with you. And of course you can also get a cab or yourself too, the whole rig will be cheap enough that you can go find a used 2x10 or whatever type of cab you like. Personally? For mdoern bass I like 2x10s with an 18" or 4x10s with a 15". For trashy rock I always played through a straight marshall cabient loaded with bass cone celestions or JBLs... I really dislike cabs with horns, but I dn't like to play slap bass and when i do I am shooting for a really 70s sound like ons telly dan's Peg, not something bright and in your face with pingy pops.

back this up, wait.... you have a mac or you're thinking of using your phone or iPad? You say IOS? I think iPhone/pad. Pretty much everything will run on amc. All those free VST plugins should behave in Logic even though Logic favors their own AAX standard ever since Mac bought it (if i recall).

do you know ANYTHING about music or sound?

Some musicians that are favorites of mine...in no specific order...you could look at all whom I'm following to figure out who all I'm into since I like researching famous guitar rigs to learn how to get this or that sound.

Dean DeLeo

I'm always impressed with the DeLeo brothers and Dean happens to be the nciest guy on earth and a real gear-hound worth talking to

70s bassman head? like a bassman 100....e ven a bassman 50 is not slouch through a PA system.... ampeg B25b... a lot of these newfangled class D ehads sound mighty good. I thought the TC one I tried was tasty as all get out for what it is... check out quilter too

but you're all like:

https://youtu.be/GXCh9OhDiCI

didn't you already make a thread like this and get a pile of great answers?

Unlike a lot of music electronics people, I'm not really a car guy per se, I really loved my mother-ib-laws BMW Z3 and wanted to buy it and get it fully restored to factory condition but when the boy was born it seemed impractical (and I couldn't afford it anymore anyway) so I didn't... hen my practical old honda civic cied I decided to elase cars for a while ebcause my hstory of purchasing nice used cars would bite me in the ass periodically with maintenance that slowly added up to outstrip the eventual trade in value of the car when id ecided tog et a new one. I decided from now on I will just rent every big ticket item, my home and my car and get the nicest thing I cna make the apyments on, rent a different house or car when I am ready. I'm now the sole kid in a bunch of families so I just don't care about building equity ebcause when the baby boomers in my family start passing away my son and I will inherit everyone else's equity. Screw it. In my shoes I don't see why i should keeps tressing myself out with mortgage payments and car laonds that tax my income.

as far as an itnerest in car racing or motorcross or whatever, i would guess Boom is the guy who is into that.... or anyone from the southern united states. its pretty universally popular there. I don't really get it. Have fun though.

I don't even like to drive anymore. I have myself walking distance to the grocery store, farmacy etc and I like the exercise and like not being terrified some teenager or septagenarian will whack the car in a parking lot and get me in trouble with the lein holder....e ven if I still bought cars with cash I would still be sweatin' it. When I had to commute down 295 in DC I felt like iw as taking my life in my hands every day. All bets were off as far as traffic laws during rush hour(s) and the police ltierally turned a blind eye even hen they could see civilians drive up on the shoulder to cut around people or tke their SUVs in a U turn over the median so they could exit on the less congested side and find a shroter route to work on back roads. I think I drove demolition derby every day for over a year!

https://youtu.be/DZtDFIJqRv8

wow, last time you posed here you didn't have a license

https://youtu.be/Ldyx3KHOFXw

surprise surprise, another Ramones inspired, semi-ironic asian girl group

I'm always game for free. Are these compatible with IOS? Thanks.

nope, not most of them, they're meant for computers, I like the VST format because it works in a lot of DAWs, has been aorund forever and likes PC and Mac sosessions will transfer if you haven't printed those virtual instrument tracks and you jump on a mac somewhere and wanna open a song... you aren't going to be making music on your phone or tablet exclusively right? I mean, you CAN? but as far as i can tell its limiting at this time. It seems like its still tricky to integrate your hardware with that too... I've ehard of people using their iPads heavily in live scenarios but I've never actually seen it done ('I know a guy who has a buddy who uses his iPad for everything' or 'I saw you a youtube video of this one dude, let me send it' )and I don't know of a lot of records that were made withlive musicians or hardware electronic instruments integrating with a phone or tablet. I guess you coul, but why would you want to? This is an area where smaller tech is NOT usually better tech. Tiny controls and conenctions will probably impede your workflow and when ding this stuff solo you wanna be streamlined. You're the writer, performer, producer, engineer.... you can et bogged down really easily fiddling with stuff and not making music

anyway, you would have to tell us what your setup looks like so far tog et some more advice that makes sense

Wow. Lengthy list. What are the bare essentials needed to compose? Is there a flowchart? Synthesizer, drum machine, etc..? Thanks for the response.

you need ideas, patience and a blank page to COMPOSE music... but I guess you meant something else, like what do you need to record a polished song? that depends on you. When I reviewed Peak I did one demo song using nothing else even for drums, but not everyone will have the aptience and skillset to do that. To the ebst of my knowledge Daniel Miller did Warm Leatherette with 1 synth and a microphone in his bedroom with a borrowed 4 tack. I would say you will want a DAW to record and sequence in that you feel comfortable with, a good subtractive monosynth that can do retro bass tones, a subtractive polysynth with at least 6 voices, a drum machine, maybe an FM synth and... that might do ya to get started.

I don't have a flowchart on electronic music gear but I do have one on procrastination:

http://dobrador.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/04/241575967482133813_XOvFnoeT_f.jpg

basic but imformative

but I wasn't saying those synths are all must haves, maybe just must-tries in my book! you might want some guitar effects and some studio basics like decent hardware compression (the affordable units by FMR audio and Alesis are pretty great) and maybe a reverb processor with a good rep and an 80s sound, but its not essential with somany plugins out there... what's your setup like so far? how are you writing your songs? on a battered piano, an acoustic guitar or right into a sequencer??? everyone's workflow is going to eb different with electronic music because the instruments are meant to be flexible... you probably want to just start with a handful of isntruments and processors and really learn what they all do before getting carried away. Stay away from those factory presets and learn everything about your synths

software for free:

TAL U-No, Bassline and Elektro

DigitalSuburban Dexed (if you can't buy a DX7 or similar)

Phutura

Superwave

U-He Tyrell

umm

look at my software list on my equipboard.... I don't use thiss hit all the time but I use it and I won't lsit it if its not pretty decent! I am way into the synthpop end of electronic music so I'm a good resource

whoa... no idea who those poeole are, but synthsesizers are synthesizers and I also love 80s synth pop and make this sort of music but I was alive and buying records then... to me the ARP Odyssey Reissue at such a low price point is a must have... in other affordable, bang-for-buck sutffs?

NOVATION PEAK http://equipboard.com/posts/novation-peak-review

Studio Electronics SE1

Yamaha DX7, TX81Z or SY77

Novation Bass Station II, circuit monostation or Arturia Mini Brute

Ensoniq ESQ1 or SQ80 for gritty stuff

Korg SQ-1 sequencer or similar old school sequencer with MIDI and CV/Gate in and out

Korg Volcas, all are good, I particularly love the Volca Bass, the dedicated kick machine and the FM seems pretty cool if you don't wanna spend on or hassle with an old yamaha... people like all of them, to me Bass and Kick are the jam

Cyclone Analogic Bass Bot if you like acid house...

Roland MS1 sampler, cheap, available, able to LOFI the shit outta sounds... if not that then look at the sampling octapad or the boss dr sample

korg micro korg, jack of all trades, master of none

Roland late 80s racks, realtivelycheap and great if you don't want 100% hand on control all the time.... MKS50, MKS80, MkS70, many others suck though

Korg Poly800 or Poly61

Roland JP8000/8080 if you like supersaws and 90s club sounds

any access Virus

Boss DR55 (early depeche mode)

Emu drumulator

Moog Taurus or Sub Phaty or Subsequent 37

maybe a roland D05, haven't gotten a demo unit yet to speak with authority

brains and education

somewhat spendy stuff?

emu emulator II or emax

DSI prophet, any of them ('08, rev2, 6 and 12) and the recent DSI/Oberheim OB6

DSI evolver of polyevolver

DSI Pro2

anything old and oberheim, especially an Xpander for synth pop, a DM fave... try a Novation Peak 1st

Roland Jupiter 6 or Juno 106

Korg Wavestation

Roland's new modular setup or Moog's Mother

emu sp1200

DSI tempest

Oberheim DMX...

I can't speak specifically about the Aira stuff, I'm not to into any of it but the TR8, but generally I have no trouble mapping hardware in FL these days. I've been with ths software since it was clled Fruity Loops and it was just a virtual sampler and step sequencer limited to 9 patterns with no playlist feature... for real. Its become a really easy MIDI solution ofr most jobs, one of the fastest and easiest going these days. I am not quite clear on what you are trying to do though. Do you want to set up your groove box on a MIDI input as a real time controller for FL automation and VSTs??? Or are you trying to automate in FL and then send those CC messages to the Aira gear so you don't have to be tweaking knobs by hand when you're recording?

th fender tour had a very hershey's shocolate world or jurassic park quality when I did it

So?!

ed roman is a dick but his stock is amazing.... Norman's is a classic place, but top dollar.... check out the awn stores in LA, the sunset strip is loaded with amazing stuff or it WAS back when I frequented LA

you know what gets me about this guy? he is like "listen to this, help help!" but doesn't patronize anyone else's music, doesn't soundcloud friend us nothing.... never has a word of criticism or suggestion for anyone else, needy, selfish.. and he's an excuse maker and whiner, get in teh trenches or get out. Its a comunity of musicians out here in the big wide world and we all have financial hurdles and issues finding help and reaching an audience inthe crazy modern world... we're all in it together or we're all drowning alone

that's normal, worse on some amps than on others... its a ground thing, you're part of the grounding of the whole circuit. Passive basses do it too but it doesn't tend to be very loud because of the amp voicing unless you're a bass fuzz guy ;-) Youc an try a different model guitar amp. Perhaps you're being a bit of a gainiac? The more dirt you play with the louder it will seem with abss or guitar. its being raised in elvel while your paks are being clipped off by distortion so its like lwoering the guitar signal and raising the ground buzz signal. N one can hear it in a band setting. Mics barely pick it up. The audience can't ehar it. Its pretty faint. if you are so gained out that its coming up on microphones consider less distortion. Less isn't actually more, but everything in the recording chain is adding a little harmonic distortion down the pike (even the mic diaphragm) so you might want to dial it back a hair so the buzz isn't coming up in your microphones. You will fidn your dirty sound probably souds more powerful in the mix too...

https://youtu.be/NrYNm-YnlTc?t=56s

oh, the otehr solution, the one I use? is I enver take my left hand off the strings.... no-brainer, right? it also prevents rando feedback and squawking when you have a rest, so you're not getting a weird Em feedback over a song that's in like F major! If you wanna elt go of the strings, try activating a pedal tuner to mute it... or turn the damned guitar volume control down? always works too... and stop picking your hand up between chords, you don't want to make string squeaks but you also don't want to release compeltely, tis a waste of energy.

I wonder if tampering with a company's hold music is considered to be an itnernational felony because its a type of cyber-crime?

I was only sort of poking fun at hsi country, this dude at microsoft DID just mention to em they were shortstaffed and couldn't hire enough kids to shag all the win10 complaints! But this? THIS?! HAHAHAHAHAHAHA

you get what you pay for... just use google for knock-off, free youtube lessons ;-) I'm sure one is just as good as another.

Roger? Roger's lessons are worth paying for. You can pirate most of his stuff if you want something for nothing. Try one of thsoe torrent programs and make sureyou virus scan a lot. I tried his warm up CD out for free many years ago via napster or soulseek when that was going on but found I to be worth investing in. Didn't want to screw him over, especially since Iw as using it commercially with recording clients.

I have this crazy diea for you... you're in India, right? WIndows 10 ahs been giving me grief since the switch. I have to call Microsoft every other update! Call centers? They're in India. you're studying computers.... perfect fit! I know they're hiring. iw as talking to a call center manager after one aprticularly difficult series of calls adn he mentioned they can't get enoughs taff to handle all the issues with hese win10 updates, man. Get a part-time job! In your field!

referce bands, for GnR like your name suggests? gibsons... real gibsons

the second one, uses some mini moog, mks50, drumulator (filtered), live shaker and re-sampling to achieve results tht the peak didn't so on its own but 90% or more peak

I warned you, but his methods are effective. I was a REALLY awful singer and not just a bad singer before I was introduced to the Roger Love method.

he's a bit irritating, but his methods work well for pretty much any type of singing but Opera...

http://rogerlove.com/

hes not a miracle worker though, you cna hoen what you have but you can't change the whole character of your voice... if you don't have a great singing voice Roger will only make it the ebst it can be, which doens't mean you wind up sounding great... but learning to breathe, move your mouth the right way, control your chest voice and ehad voice (and lern to seamlesly go ebtween them and combine them) and doing plenty of warmups before singing are all good places to start.

I love sodas of all kind but the sugar gives me zits even at my age! once in a while thing for me, usually in a rum and coke at a bar

if you don't need MIDI the Carl Martin is ULTRA RELIABLE because its the only preset-style type looper that can activate different pedal groupings that is also done with analog logic circuits programmed via those mini dip-switches.... in the price range its probably the ebst option because its built like a tank and doesn't have anything going on in it that's likely to suffer a total systems failure for no obvious reason while you're playing! I wanted MIDI implementation so i got tempted by the Mooer and Joyo but heard enough horror stories that I just shook up all the gear in ym RIG to be MIDI stuff.

a 303 is really different than anything you already have, must be a real change of pace... check out the Novation Peak next time you're shopping. Just sent my demo unit abck to novation a couple weeks ago and I'm scounging up money to buy one right away.

Terry, you don't drink coffee? I have like 4 beverages I will drink regularly: Coffee, Beer, Red Wine and water... those are listed in order of frequency/quantity of consumption

welcome again

wait, Muzak as in elevator/phone-hold music? I thought that was generally just boring arrangements of classic songs? do you get a good health insurance package working for Muzack?

and what experience do you have besides Muzak? tell us more about yousrself... are you classically trained, is your primary isntrument piano/keys? do you coem from am emgineering background, did you grow up in teh 80s as a syntehsist, smapler guy? do you thrash around on a bet up old strat? do you have a cat named Mittens who writes all your best arrangements?

also, there's a 'hello I'm new here' thread already in the General forum, if we had normal forum powers worked out for mdoerators I would move this for you ;-)

this is, at least from where I am sitting, one of the strangest introductions anyone's made on the forum on a number of levels! that said, welcome. If you have any questions? I'm a moderator and I do the heavy duty, in depth gear articles (not the roundups, that's Mason, I do the product reviews). I'm a composer, guitarist, piano player, synthesist etc. Classically trained. Mostly do music for fun these days, but occassionally will contribute to a friend's project or do a remix for someone's dance music. I have a lot of stuff and have owned even more than you cna iamgine, so if you have a question about a gadget you're unfamiliar with, especially something old? I'm generally your guy. I followed your soundcloud link and I msut've followed you at some point, which emans you probably followed me. Huh, no recollection, but it must have happened.

yeah, just knocking something out is easily the ebst way to get on track, the elss you do it the harder it is to develop an idea... I'll wait for an diea, but even if tis weak I'll do soemthing with it to keep those msucles from getting weak. I foud that when I stopped writing after I got amrried when i was ready to write agin I found it too be really arduous so I'll never do that again.

you're still a teenager in my eyes until you're 21 or 22... not specifically you, I meant the plural you, young adults in general

dJ-woki? what is that all about?

and Nikhil, apart from maybe broadening your horizons I am trying to get you to slow the fuck down in general.... you're just so hasty with music like a teenaged boy who hired a timesquare hooker.

10 days is like a drop in an ocean, we ae talking about a lifetime chore... this isn;t computer prgramming that has syllabus and a duration of classes, even composers at juliard and the royal college spend their entire lives learning

glib