[HN Gopher] Becoming a Synth Dynamo
___________________________________________________________________
Becoming a Synth Dynamo
Author : Tomte
Score : 109 points
Date : 2022-01-17 13:06 UTC (1 days ago)
(HTM) web link (www.syntorial.com)
(TXT) w3m dump (www.syntorial.com)
| iainctduncan wrote:
| One quibble with the article: If you really want a perfect
| playground for learning synthesis, U-he's Zebra 2 is much better
| than Diva (also by U-he). Zebra is fantastic when it comes to
| workflow and flexibility and has a UI that makes how the patches
| signal flow works much clearer.
|
| I have a boatload of both eurorack and softsynths, but when I
| want to get some stuff done in a hurry, or on the move, or just
| prototype, I always wind up reaching for Zebra. Not surprising
| that even Hans Zimmer is a fan, and that guys physical collection
| is astounding.
|
| If you told me I had to produce music with nothing but Zebra 2
| and a sequencer, I could live with that. :-)
| sydthrowaway wrote:
| My question is why bother with learning a special 'synthesis'
| application?
|
| Why can't folks make good sounding music from just code?
|
| One of my favourite genres is EDM, but surely whatever Flume does
| in Ableton could be done in pure code?
|
| This is like authoring a web page in Macromedia Dreamweaver vs.
| HTML/CSS in vim.
| 323 wrote:
| The same reason people use Photoshop instead of command line
| ImageMagick.
| ezconnect wrote:
| The same reason OpenSCAD is less popular than graphical CAD
| softwares.
| adelrune wrote:
| Why bother with learning a special "image editing" application
| ?
|
| Why can't folks make good looking pictures from just code ?
|
| Algorithms implemented in soft synths need to take certain
| things like aliasing into account and if every musicians had to
| bother with that, there would be much less EDM for you to
| enjoy.
| te_chris wrote:
| Have you ever used Ableton?
| snarfy wrote:
| I want a slider I can change in realtime to hear the sound
| change.
| weatherlight wrote:
| You could do that, just like you _could_ write a web app in
| assembly.
|
| stuff like https://sonic-pi.net/#examples does exists, but what
| you start to realize is that, is even the "code first"
| approaches to making music, you are really just generating
| configuration on the fly that's being processed buy some other
| engine underneath, in this case it's Super collider.
| RugnirViking wrote:
| Synthesizing audio, and by extention entire songs with code is
| really hard, try it some time. Sonic-PI seems like a good lib
| for it but its still really difficult - lots of threading
| needed to make layers of different "instruments"
|
| https://sonic-pi.net/
| capableweb wrote:
| People probably could make good sounding music from code, but
| it's harder. When you're making a new patch on your synth, you
| don't want to think about complicated matters like code-as-
| text, you want to be able to turn a knob and hear a difference,
| with each change getting closer and closer to the wanted sound.
| Having to write even one line of code instead of sliding a
| slider up/down would instantly put me out of the flow when I'm
| creating new patches, no doubt. Changing values to some
| specific value instead of kind-of-here-sounds-good-to-me would
| slow down the entire flow as well. Switching between computer
| keyboard and my synth keyboard just to make a small change
| would do the same.
|
| All in all, if you know exactly what you want you could
| probably do it in code, but part of the fun in creating a
| patch, and what helps with creativity, is experimentation, and
| I feel like that would easily get lost when coding with strict
| values and other "computer" syntax that fiddling with a real
| synth just flows together with the rest of the music making
| process.
|
| There is no comparison really between the UX of sitting with a
| computer keyboard in front of a screen, writing/editing syntax
| to hear changes and hearing real-time sounds coming from
| something like Novation Summit together with a good pair of
| headphones, with zero screens involved.
| bmitc wrote:
| There is a scene for live coding music. I've always like this
| example using SuperCollider and Common Lisp:
|
| https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xzTH_ZqaFKI
|
| But against a synthesist with a nice hardware synth or computer
| synths, there's no way coding can compete with the speed and
| dynamic interaction of the interface. I think this is a nice
| example that shows just how fast crafting a simple tune can be
| with a dedicated interface such as the Elektron Analog Four:
|
| https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mm0WuPltadM
|
| Then there's things like AudioMulch that really blur the lines
| between coding, synthesis, and something else:
|
| https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7K_RTS73jSY
|
| A lot of music and synthesis is about experimentation and just
| playing, and that's something that text-based code doesn't
| quite capture well.
| emptybottle wrote:
| Have a look into supercollider and tidalcycles
| eweise wrote:
| I would get a hardware synth. Much more engaging to program than
| looking at a screen. I know people hate Behringer but the fact
| is, they are killing it with their clones of famous synthesizers.
| They sound pretty much like the originals and are inexpensive.
| Here are a few suggestions.
|
| Model D - If you want that 70's Moog sounds
| https://www.sweetwater.com/store/detail/BehringerD--behringe...
|
| PRO-1 - For that 80's vibe. Think Talking Heads, Depeche Mode
| https://www.sweetwater.com/store/detail/BehringerPro1--behri...
|
| Neutron - An original design. Sounds fantastic very flexible to
| program. https://www.sweetwater.com/store/detail/NeutronMod--
| behringe...
| kennywinker wrote:
| If you're going to buy behringer, just buy second hand off
| craigslist/reverb. There's so many of them flying around
| already because people buy them and then upgrade to something
| more powerful - no need to further saturate the secondary
| market.
| weatherlight wrote:
| I feel you should pick up and learn the synthesis architecture of
| the synths you you love the most.
|
| This article/blog goes over VSTs and such, but theres nothing
| quite like sitting with a piece of hardware and learning that
| piece of hardware.
|
| If I had to select a great piece of hardware to learn synthesis
| on, it world be probably the *Elektron
| Digitone*. - It's oscillator is a 4 op FM but the
| rest of the architecture is subtractive. - Its very easy
| to get that 4 OP FM oscillator to do the classic triangle/saw
| square waves, for that more traditional subtractive feel.
| - Its pretty popular and there are loads of high quality
| tutorials - You can construct entire songs on it
| - You can learn to synthesize drum hits, bass lines, etc.
| - Its a 4 track midi sequencer! (4 track internal synth engine
| sequencer) - Multitimbral 8 voices - It's also a
| USB audio device!
|
| (I love this little box) 90% of this track is made with just this
| box.https://soundcloud.com/cassilda_and_carcosa/cirk8
|
| Great demo and overview of different synthesis techniques by
| loopop. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x2Ic9upij-U
| smoldesu wrote:
| To each their own, but starting with FM synthesis over
| subtractive synthesis (particularly when it's an $800 box in
| question) seems to me like a good way to frustrate the average
| person. Now, the Digitone is no DX7 when it comes to
| complexity, but I've always felt like additive/FM synthesis
| just completely went over the layman's head. I love FM
| synthesis for the outright insane stuff that you can build with
| it, but subtractive synths have always filled the knob-
| twiddling hole in my heart. Once you know the basic components,
| you can dial in pretty much anything you can think of with a
| good degree of confidence.
|
| My recommended beginners synth would probably be the Behringer
| Neutron [0]. You can often find it used/on sale for less than a
| third of the price of a Digitone, and it's a design that
| "grows" pretty well for the average learner. You can already
| get a ton of mileage out of default configuration, but then it
| also has a patch bay that would make your Mother-32 turn green
| with jealousy.
|
| [0] https://www.behringer.com/product.html?modelCode=P0CM5
| weatherlight wrote:
| - Thats the trick though, it's a subtractive synth, you can
| completely ignore the FM part. - You'll still need a
| keyboard or a sequencer to use the Neutron and some sort of
| mixer or euro-rack to headphone amp. Thats said, eurorack is
| a lot of fun, and patching cables is a lot of fun.
| pwenzel wrote:
| Personally I'd recommend starting small with an Artruria
| Microbrute. It has one oscillator and no presets. Print some
| preset examples out from Brutal Patches and enter them on your
| own to learn. The manual that comes with has great synthesis
| explanations that aren't too complicated.
|
| It has MIDI and a tiny patch bay. You can expand from there if
| you want. If you need a drum track, get yourself a Pocket
| Operator Rhythm and clock it from the Microbrute.
|
| (Be careful, this is a gateway drug. I learned how to use a
| Microbrute and now I own 168hp of Eurorack modules, a 0-Coast,
| and an Arturia Matrixbrute.)
| kennywinker wrote:
| Microbrute is totally a good starter hardware synth, but I'd
| suggest people strongly consider the Korg Monologue. It has
| no patch bay, so if you're headed towards modular it's maybe
| the wrong purchase - but it's built-in oscilloscope REALLY
| helps visualize what you're doing in a way that I think a lot
| of people would find helpful.
| weatherlight wrote:
| Monologue and Minilogue XD are solid synths :). Those would
| be fantastic "first" synths. Tatsuya Takahashi, and by
| extension, Korg, did a really good job with those.
| erwincoumans wrote:
| Learned something new: Dynamo = a forceful energetic individual.
| For me (being Dutch), a dynamo is an electricity generator, in
| particular powering the bicycle lights :)
|
| I've been dabling in synthesizers for many years ad well, from
| software synths (c64 SID chip, Amiga) to hardware synths (Moog
| Grandmother, Korg Wavestate) and Eurorack. The Electrosmith Daisy
| module (based on STM32) has been a lot of fun learning low level
| DSP techniques , from reverb to loopers, ADSR envelopes and
| oscillators. The article seems to focus on software synths. The
| open source AudioKit Synth One for ipad is nice, as is VCV rack.
| 323 wrote:
| > Dynamo = a forceful energetic individual
|
| Dynamo = dynamic individual
| SeanLuke wrote:
| The term dynamo comes from metaphoric relationship to
| electric generators and the _power_ they produce, not the
| notion of being "dynamic" (a modern usage of the word).
| SeanLuke wrote:
| > For me (being Dutch), a dynamo is an electricity generator
|
| That's what a dynamo is in English as well. But yes, a dynamo
| is also a forceful energetic individual (or thing).
| felizuno wrote:
| $0.02 if you are really passionate it's going to end in Eurorack
| anyways, just start there
| devin wrote:
| I would almost never recommend a beginner start with eurorack,
| no matter how passionate, unless you're talking about using VCV
| Rack or something. Physical eurorack is a money pit, and the
| people who own it are the first people to cop to it. Many
| modular systems I've seen are basically $10,000 worth of
| modules that add up to one well-built desktop synthesizer which
| you could purchase for $500-$1000.
| dharma1 wrote:
| Not to mention euro rack isn't particularly wife friendly and
| doesn't have patch recall!
|
| Maybe get something semi modular to start with, like a
| Behringer Neutron
| IvanGoneKrazy wrote:
| Agreed that Eurorack or modular synthesis isn't something
| that I would recommend for a beginner. Also agree that a
| Eurorack system _could_ be an overly expensive version of an
| existing fixed-architecture synthesizer.
|
| Eurorack's potential, however, is a way to explore synthesis
| after you've learned the basics. It can be a very open
| playground to try synthesis ideas that may not be possible on
| a fixed-architecture system.
|
| To lower the costs of Eurorack, one could buy modules from
| the used market or the DIY method and build from kits if they
| have experience with electronics. The DIY path may also lead
| one to designing and building original Eurorack modules.
| Learn about synthesis and electronics at the same time!
|
| As the above post mentioned, VCV Rack which is a software
| emulation of Eurorack is a free way to see if modular
| synthesis is something that appeals. Other free software
| near-alternatives are Pure Data (https://puredata.info/)
| (sibling of the commercially available Max/MSP), Bespoke
| (https://www.bespokesynth.com/), and SunVox
| (https://warmplace.ru/soft/sunvox/).
| scarecrowbob wrote:
| I love my eurorack gear but holy hell it's by far the most
| expensive way to make the boops beep.
|
| I have a Moog mother that I use when I want to teach folks
| synth stuff, but it'd be a really limited as an instrument.
| georgeoliver wrote:
| I started seriously playing around with synths a year ago, and
| for a while I convinced myself there was no reason to buy
| hardware with all the software that's available.
|
| That didn't last!
| alfiedotwtf wrote:
| If you're just getting into Synthesizers, do yourself a favour
| and install Syntorial!
|
| It blows my mind how only after a few sessions you'll be able to
| reverse engineer patches by ear.
|
| Syntorial is the #1 resource to learn how synthesis works.
| te_chris wrote:
| 100%. Doing a bunch of work in Syntorial is a huge shortcut to
| "getting it". And once you've done that, a synth is a synth is
| a synth. Like driving a car, becomes more, "oh yeah, this
| oscillator is a bit weird/interesting", rather than "wtf does
| this shit do"
| alfiedotwtf wrote:
| Yes!
|
| > a synth is a synth is a synth
|
| ICYMI this is easily displayed with the recent Radiohead
| "Everything In Its Right Place" patch matching on
| r/synthesizers/
| squigg wrote:
| Ableton's online tutorial is also wonderful!
| https://learningsynths.ableton.com/
| xbar wrote:
| Thanks for this. It is really quite good, especially for a
| pure beginner.
|
| I'm a Syntorial fan/user, but I think this Ableton link is
| what I will give to my daughter for her introduction.
| squigg wrote:
| Exactly! Great for the kids - my 9 year old son loves it.
| Even though he's got all the hardware here as well, he much
| prefers giggling away sitting in front of the computer, so
| much easier entry point!
| depingus wrote:
| Wendy Carlos explains synths in under 4m (1970)
| https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4SBDH5uhs4Q
| squigg wrote:
| I had a cynical face on when I clicked this, but I found it a
| great article and I'd agree with all of the advice in it. It's
| pragmatic.
|
| The one part I am on the fence on is on being able to play in
| notes, as opposed to just sequencing them on-screen. The reason I
| am on the fence is that, for me, there is an important question
| missing from the article and that is "What style, or genre, of
| music are you trying to create?". The reason that is important is
| that it can have a big influence on the tools you use to create
| your music - whether that is playing by keyboard then using a
| computer to tidy up your playing, or sitting with a blank piano-
| roll or step sequencer and creating loops ... I'll put that on a
| rough scale from Vangelis-style arrangements epics on the left,
| to synthwave in the middle, to electro and techno on the right,
| with the scale labelled "suitability of drawing patterns on
| screen"
|
| Something I always agree with is that not doing it sitting at the
| computer is important. Not all the time, but it's nice to be able
| to use your gear and a sequencer without using the keyboard and
| mouse - if you are reading HN there's a fair chance you use a
| computer all day, and it's nice that when you are being creative
| you can put the computer to one side and treat it as a giant
| digital recording studio / tape recorder, as you create and make
| music on your synths/grooveboxes/drum machines
|
| My perspective is written as a 50YO who has been making
| electronic music (acid/electro/techno) since I got my first Amiga
| at 17! I still can barely play the keys, but I am master of the
| sequencer. I have most of the classic Roland drum machines and
| analogue synths - I sequence the synths on Ableton mainly but
| program all the drums on the machines themselves as it's so much
| fun, using them to trigger sequences on the 101 and run the arp
| on my JP6 and Poly61. On the flip side, I sometimes wish I could
| play the keys as it would help with variations and chords for
| strings, so I understand the counter argument that I often hear
| from those classically trained
| boffinAudio wrote:
| Another 50-something year old here, also a synthesizerist since
| I was a teenager.
|
| I've found it very, very useful to have a piano in my studio,
| even though I haven't taken lessons - it has been great to
| engage in various Youtube channels and learn proper keys
| playing, fingering, chord construction and so on.
|
| Also, Rick Beato is a god. If you're a synthesizerist but not a
| keyboardist, you need to spend some time with Rick.
|
| https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCJquYOG5EL82sKTfH9aMA9Q
|
| He's gonna teach you things you should know and that WILL make
| you a better musician, especially around the subject of
| keyboarding and playing.
| adriand wrote:
| An alternative is to get a good pad controller. You get a lot
| out of this beyond just playability (such as knobs --
| physical knobs are great for experimentation and fast,
| dynamic changes to things like filters), but it's still
| something that can be played like a piano in terms of
| expressiveness. But it's also something that will easily fit
| on your desk, and the grid layout lends itself to quickly
| memorizing chord patterns.
|
| I would agree that regardless of the type of music you make
| (including techno and related genres, which are among my
| favourites), having a playable instrument will make a big
| difference to your production. A huge part of this is just
| happy accidents. The synth part at around 0:40 in this track
| [1] came about with just pad mashing. A standard part of my
| process is to record the audio output of whatever noodling
| I'm doing on a pad controller, pick out the good parts, and
| loop them. It's way more fun than drawing notes!
|
| [1] https://soundcloud.com/the-track-club/requiem-for-the-
| voicel...
| erwincoumans wrote:
| Can you recommend some pad controller for looping?
| squigg wrote:
| Ableton Push is absolutely fantastic - the original v1
| device is pretty inexpensive as a used purchase, and it's
| still masses of fun. Very well built as well
| erwincoumans wrote:
| Thanks, I'll check it! Does it work without Ableton/DAW
| too?
|
| By the way, I've been using Plinky, a Eurorack module,
| with touch buttons in a grid layout:
| https://plinkysynth.com/
| hazmazlaz wrote:
| It's a MIDI controller, so in order for it to be useful
| it has to be connected to something that can accept MIDI
| inputs.
| squeaky-clean wrote:
| It requires Ableton (there might be unofficial
| integrations with other DAWs). I have an Akai Force which
| is completely standalone, not even a computer needed. But
| I'd honestly recommend Ableton+Push unless someone really
| needs it to be standalone.
| squigg wrote:
| Not sure on how much use it is without Ableton, sorry -
| I'll need someone else to answer that
| heeton wrote:
| Seconding this - the push was amazing for me without a
| big music background, as chord exploration became shape
| based, instead of needing piano knowledge.
| boffinAudio wrote:
| A Deluge [1] or a NORNS+GRID [2] rig is also a good way
| to get the shape-based chord understanding without an
| investment in clavier-thought:
|
| [1] - http://synthstrom.com/
|
| [2] - http://monome.org/
|
| Actually, just the NORNS itself is going to get you
| booted up with some ridiculously fantastic music theory,
| especially if you're the kind that reads the source ..
| boffinAudio wrote:
| I have one of these that I regularly get a kick out of
| smashing on my way to work each day:
|
| https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/birdkids/offgrid-
| make-m...
|
| However I also have one of these that is also amazing,
| just a bit fiddly to wire up to the iPad:
|
| https://www.amazon.de/Keith-McMillen-Instruments-
| Multitouch-...
|
| Of course, and Akai LPD8 is cheaper, but also needs
| fiddling - which is why the OffGrid is my current "pad of
| the day" choice.
| emptybottle wrote:
| Loopy pro on iPad with an optional midi pad controller
| adriand wrote:
| Agree with others that the Push is good; I have a Push 2
| that I love. It's great for chords and melodies because
| the layout is massive (8x8). However, it's somewhat
| expensive (the 2, anyway) and the pads themselves could
| be better in terms of expressiveness/sensitivity. Also,
| it's only worth getting a Push if you have Ableton; as a
| controller for Ableton it really shines.
|
| If you want really expressive pads, which foster dynamics
| and also allow you to do things like finger drumming (I
| really recommend questforgroove.com if that sounds
| interesting to you), the best pad controllers are the
| ones in the Maschine line-up, by Native Instruments. I
| have an MK3 but the more basic versions are also
| apparently very good. The layout is much smaller (4x4)
| but the pads are massive and super sensitive, they are a
| joy to play.
|
| A lot of people also use Launch pads by Novation, I don't
| know much about them, but they are quite popular and they
| are, I believe, on the cheaper side.
| https://novationmusic.com/en/launch
|
| Rumour has it that a Push 3 is not too far away, so keep
| that in mind when considering the Push lineup from
| Ableton.
| smoldesu wrote:
| > Also, it's only worth getting a Push if you have
| Ableton; as a controller for Ableton it really shines.
|
| Quick addendum here: I've got a Push 1 that I cribbed for
| $150 on Ebay a few years ago (a steal at the time!) and
| absolutely loved my time with it/Ableton Live. When I
| switched my machines over to Linux though, Ableton didn't
| follow, so instead I picked up Bitwig and tried using
| that as a drop-in replacement.
|
| Now, Bitwig is a pretty dang good DAW (I could write an
| entire essay's worth on why I love it), but what _really_
| knocked my socks off was DrivenByMoss ' extentions[0]:
| this guy wrote an impressively expansive Bitwig plugin
| that lets you use the Push as something other than a
| generic MIDI controller. What's more is that I think I
| actually prefer the DrivenByMoss workflow to Ableton's.
| Partially because of Bitwig's modularity and partially
| because of the degree of control on display, you can do
| some outright stupid stuff with Bitwig+Push that isn't
| really possible on Live. It really is some of the most
| fun I've ever had making music.
|
| [0] http://www.mossgrabers.de/Software/Reaper/Reaper.html
| geocrasher wrote:
| Rick Beato _is_ awesome. If you enjoy him, you should check
| out Pat Finnerty.
|
| https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCnLozCO8w7uJODg8_iAGaVw
|
| He has a series called "What makes this song stink" which is
| just gold. And there are some digs at Beato all done in good
| friendly fun.
| hahamrfunnyguy wrote:
| I am a synth fan, and I agree with some of what's presented in
| the article. I think the author's approach overcomplicates things
| though. Subtractive synthesis is pretty intuitive. I started with
| a Korg Poly 800. The onboard battery was dead which meant no
| patch storage and no sound because everything was zeroed out by
| default. The guy at the music store showed me how to create a
| quick patch and get some sound out of it.
|
| Other than this brief demo, I knew nothing about synthesis at the
| time and didn't even have a manual. Turns out, it wasn't really
| needed because the process was simple and the front panel clearly
| explained what everything did.
|
| My advice would be yes, start with subtractive synthesis but
| don't feel guilty about using a preset. Pretty soon you'll know
| your way around the basics. You can always go to the manual or
| other patches for reference. I think there is little value in
| front-loading a lot of knowledge that you will soon forget.
|
| Front panel of Poly 800:
| http://bristol.sourceforge.net/poly800.shtml
| boffinAudio wrote:
| All of this is great advice to this 30+ year veteran of
| synthesis. One thing I'd add: instead of buying new synths, buy
| effects (pedals or rack or whatever). You'd be surprised how
| amazing the difference can be between a synth and a synth+foot
| pedals .. its like upgrading the signal flow by taking on another
| module.
|
| Also, if you're getting into synths and haven't encountered
| VCVRack yet, you are in for a huge treat: http://vcvrack.com/
|
| Get it, install it, log in and tick all the boxes for every free
| module in the list. There is nothing quite like starting a new
| VCVRack project and having close to a thousand new modules to
| play with and experiment around with.
| squigg wrote:
| Good call out - I was also going to make a comment about the
| importance of effects, but as the article is trying to keep
| things simple, I didn't want to complicate matters!
|
| The Valhalla DSP effects are fantastic value, and SuperMassive,
| my absolute favourite, is also free as in beer. I suspect Sean
| reads HN https://valhalladsp.com/
| speed_spread wrote:
| If only Valhalla effects came in Linux VST version... I've
| been futzing around with linvst but it's a horrible kludge
| (and still doesn't work). I'd happily pay the regular
| buckaroos for a few professional plugins. Maybe these could
| get delivered through Steam?
| erwincoumans wrote:
| There is this open source CloudSeed reverb, which has a C++
| and C# version, I prefer the C++ one. With some knob
| fiddling it gets closer to infinite reverbs, like in
| Valhalla and Strymon Big Sky clouds.
|
| https://github.com/ValdemarOrn/CloudSeed
|
| I guess it can be compiled for Linux with some kung fu
| build skills. I ported it over to Electrosmith Daisy STM32,
| which is very cool too: https://www.electro-smith.com/daisy
| ecocentrik wrote:
| It's really a shame that more developers don't compile
| their VSTs for Linux. The good news is that if you look
| around there are plenty that do and give you everything you
| need to make music on Linux.
|
| https://www.kvraudio.com/marketplace/linux/new-to-kvr-
| market...
| Applejinx wrote:
| Got to say I sympathize with those that don't. All of
| mine including legacy stuff support LinuxVST (2.4) but it
| doesn't look like the KVR marketplace has me listed.
| Maybe they don't count free/OSS stuff?
|
| There are whole little communities that do, but you have
| to dig for 'em. I recently joined Unfa's patreon
| (reviewer and popularizer of OSS and Linux music-making
| gear) and joined his discord server. Only to discover
| they had an emote of my face, due to my OSS plugin making
| and because they liked my catchphrase 'I'm Chris from
| Airwindows and hey... you can do this!'
|
| And so you can. The stuff is out there, and if you look
| around it's absurd what you can do. My favorite
| discoveries lately are Bespoke, and the Surge Synth
| ecosystem (hugely impressive and helpful to other OSS
| projects of all types)
|
| But you'll find it's a bit of a media freeze-out as far
| as people TELLING you any of this is happening. I can
| attest that if you do compile your stuff for Linux,
| you'll hear almost nothing about it, including from the
| folks you are supporting. I've got a Mediafire mirror for
| my stuff that tracks downloads across all my updates.
| Signed MacOSX bundle supporting M1 machines, 3023
| downloads. LinuxVST, 325 downloads.
|
| You do Linux support because you care about it as a
| concept, not because you're going to get any benefit from
| it. It doesn't pay, it costs (in dev time that won't be
| compensated, any more than if you were developing one of
| the little libraries upon which all the Internet
| depends). You have to have other work lined up to support
| you while you do the added Linux support.
| boffinAudio wrote:
| Check out the Zynthian, it is a monster of an FX box and
| has a lot of quality stuff built in - plus, it has the
| ability to host VST's and in fact is set up to do that out
| of the box for the PianoTec VST's, so it may not be that
| difficult a stretch to get Valhalla running under Zynthian,
| too .. and once it is, you'll find yourself in a whole
| universe of power. ;)
|
| http://zynthian.org/
| ecocentrik wrote:
| Zynthian looks cool but it runs Linux on Raspberry Pi 4,
| so it probably won't be any easier trying to get Windows
| plugins to run it than on a Linux desktop system.
| boffinAudio wrote:
| IMHO, adding an FX pedal to a synth rig is one of the
| easiest, simplest ways to upgrade that synth and give it a
| new echelon of dynamics.
|
| I also have to say that the Zynthian is probably one of the
| best modules for this you can find, but that would definitely
| be a degree of complexity higher than the article tries to
| maintain. Still, an amazing FX box that really pushes the
| value of the F/OSS FX/DSP community (http://zynthian.org/)
| ehayes wrote:
| A dynamo is great and all, but how do I become a Lord of Synth?
| https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WXgNo5Smino
| cousin_it wrote:
| > _narrow your scope and focus on one synth... make sure it's
| subtractive._
|
| For my part I went with physical modeling first. It quickly gives
| results that are almost impossible with subtractive. Here's a
| track where I made all sounds using Apple's Sculpture (mallets,
| an acoustic guitar, and something like a bowed flute):
| https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qkUs-BdxtN8
|
| I wish there were more synths like this, where you could design
| sounds of imaginary physical objects. There's Sculpture, there's
| Mutable Instruments stuff, and then everything else is a notch
| below in sound or versatility. For awhile I was toying with the
| idea to make a new open source synth for bowed and wind type of
| sounds, but realistically I don't have the skills.
| SeanLuke wrote:
| I think physical modeling is a poor choice.
|
| The advantage of subtractive synthesis is that each of its
| elements (oscillators, filters, amplifiers, modulation,
| effects) has an impact on the sound more or less independent of
| the others, and so their parameters can be understood and
| modified independently of the others.
|
| In other techniques, notably FM and physical modeling, the
| parameters and elements are very tightly coupled and nonlinear:
| the particular effect of parameter X changes depending on the
| setting of parameter Y. As a result you can't study the pieces
| separately, but instead must understand the dynamics of the
| entire system as a global unit. This is what made FM nearly
| impossible for musicians to wrap their heads around: and it
| also plagues physical modeling.
|
| The other problem with physical modeling is that there are
| _many_ physical modeling methods and architectures, and
| learning one doesn 't help all that much with regard to the
| others.
___________________________________________________________________
(page generated 2022-01-18 23:02 UTC)