EMUSIC-L Digest Volume 29, Number 1 This issue's topics: Effects, pedals, and the Quadraverb (14 messages) Your EMUSIC-D moderator is Joe McMahon. Please send articles to emusic-L@auvm.american.edu (or EMUSIC-L@AUVM.BITNET). Administrative mail should be directed to xrjdm@scfvm.nasa.gov. Digests will be distributed semi-monthly to monthly. For faster response to questions, subscribe to EMUSIC-L@AUVM.BITNET (or emusic-l@auvm.american.edu). The EMUSIC-L discussion group can alo be accessed via bit.listserv.emusic-l on Usenet. Subscribers to this list may send articles to EMUSIC-D@AUVM.BITNET (or emusic-d@auvm.american.edu); they will be reviewed and forwarded to EMUSIC-L. Back issues are available from xrjdm@scfvm.gsfc.nasa.gov. This is a manual operation, so requests for things like "all back issues" will take a long time. ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 1 Jun 91 11:17:55 -0500 From: UUCJEFF@BOGECNVE.BITNET Subject: Reply to Re: Reply to Re: speaking of effects > >You're way behind, Jeff! ;-) Not only have they discontinued the original >MicroVerb, but the MicroVerb II has now been replaced with the MicroVerb III! >It now sports delay, as well as reverb, and is no longer is the 1/3 rack >package, but is now a full width device. The III, that's the one I meant. I saw that it had more patches. Does anyone know much about the LXP-15 Lexicon, other than it lists for a grand? But I am glad I am straight about the difference between the QV and the Midiverb. I doubt a salesman at the music stores would lead me to that information. Jeff ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 3 Jun 91 13:41:00 EST From: MCINTYRE@MSUPA.BITNET Subject: the proper number of effects boxes >From: Nick Rothwell >Metlay reckons that you should have as many effects boxes as instruments. I >tend to agree with him. Only *one* effect box per instrument??? John McIntyre Physics - Astronomy Dept Michigan State University ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 3 Jun 91 12:41:49 BST From: Nick Rothwell Subject: Re: Reply to Re: speaking of effects >The MidiVerb line is non-programmable. You get a bunch of presets, and >you live with them. Also, they are not as capable of as great a variety >of effects, nor can they do as many simultaneously. However, I wouldn't be without my MIDIverb II for anything. It's cheap, and the reverb quality is excellent. I'd happily have another one or two for the clean gated effects and chorusing, rather than a many-effects-at-once box. Nick ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 3 Jun 91 11:09:26 BST From: Nick Rothwell Subject: Re: Speaking of effects ... (I want a Leslie!) >I think I heard that the Quadraverb >could do this (Nick?). Yup, it's got a Leslie algorithm, complete with simulated rotor acceleration. I've never used it, though. (If I were to put my Waldorf through a Leslie it'd never speak to me again...) Nick. ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 3 Jun 91 11:09:11 BST From: Nick Rothwell Subject: Re: multi-effects devices >>(the LXP sits >>on one stereo pair of the MKS-70, the QuadraVerb usually sits on the >>Waldorf) > >Nick, >I'd be interested to hear how you arrived at this. By accident rather than design, as usual... The Waldorf gets the QuadraVerb because PPG's respond well to chorusing, which the LXP-5 can't do. And the MKS-70 gets the LXP-5 partly because we did that for my piece on the Team Metlay sessions, and partly because, well, they go well together. The QuadraVerb and LXP-5 are very different in character, I feel. The QuadraVerb I actually don't like all that much in terms of sound character - it sounds a bit rough and metallic to my ears. But, that's fine for the Waldorf which generally only needs simple processing (chorus, a little EQ, perhaps some delay, which the QV can deliver). The LXP-5, by contrast, sounds warm and beautiful, with quite a rich reverb, although it's a budget unit and hence lacks finesse. The LXP-5 has three internal delays which I tend to use to shape the reverb space by adding artificial predelays and so on. And, it has a wonderful pitch shifter which just, well, works so well with the MKS-70, adding unusual characteristics to an otherwise fairly static sound. I sometimes use the MKS-70 for Emulator-style vocal pads, with the LXP-5 adding reverb an octave higher - it's a lovely effect. Doing flashy pitch-shifting effects on the Waldorf, which already has a flashy, impressive, digital sound, would just be uncouth. I'm also using the LXP-5 on piano. There's a lovely effect Vangelis had years ago, where a solo piano part had reverb on it, but the high-end reverb had a faint LFO pitch modulation, adding a slight synthetic character to it. I've managed to get a similar effect with the LXP-5's realtime modulation facilities. While the MIDIverb II is a beautiful basic reverb, I wouldn't use the QuadraVerb on a piano - too harsh. The LXP-5 works well because of its warmth and smoothness. And, when I can afford it, I'll be getting an LXP-1 to keep it company and fill the gap in my rack... Nick. ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 5 Jun 91 11:30:37 EDT From: Russ Gelinas Subject: Alesis Two questions: Could somebody pleast e-mail me Alesis' address, and is the upgrade to the Quadraverb (to make it a Quadraverb+ ?) worth the $? Sorry if the second question has already been beat to death. Thanks. Russ Gelinas r_gelinas%unhh.unh.edu@mitvma.mit.edu ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 5 Jun 91 12:06:34 EST From: Jamer Subject: pedals Hey! I was just getting into the idea of controlling my quadraverb patches in a wholesome, dynamic way, like with a foot/volume pedal hooked through a pocket pedal -thing. Does anyone have any advice as to compatibility problems between different pedals and the pocket pedal, or any advice as to well constructed pedals that like to be stepped on? Later, Much. ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 5 Jun 91 13:37:00 EDT From: "William R(ay) Brohinsky" Subject: Re: Alesis Alesis Corp. 3630 Holdrege Ave Los Angeles, California 90016 Is it worth $30? Probably, even if you don't use the new features. The new features are (approximately, since I don't have the update appendix to the manual here) multi-tapped delay lines (with programmable distance for each tap), sampling, and ring modulator. The multi-tap is probably easy to conceptualize from the name, but you apparently can send different taps into different effects (although I could be wrong here!) The ring mod uses a set frequency for one input, and the output is all of the frequencies that you've put in shifted up and down by the set freq. If you play an a440, and the freq in (set in the QV) is 100, the freqs that come out are 540 and 340. If you play a complex tone with harmonic relationships, the harmonics are all shifted up and down by the set freq, which effects their harmonic relation (ie, the first harmonic of 440 is 880 [second harmonic, sorry: first partial]. it would be shifted to 980 and 780. but the second harmonic of 340 is 680, not 780, and the second harmonic of 540 is 1080, not 980). This tends to make good bell `klang' sounds. There is some real-time control possible of the set freq (midi-controller), but you can't make your own control signal, so you're limited to how much complexity you can get in output sounds to shift-up and shift-down. (Fun thoughts: set the control freq to 1hz, or up into the audio range where your notes may be near it in frequency.) Otherwise, the only other thing I remember is the sampler, which does up to (something like) 1.4sec. It won't pitch shift the result, just play it back, but you can trigger it from a number of midi sources or by the audio inputs. I like to keep things updated, so the $30 was cheep just to stay current. I can't say I'll get too much use out of the new effects. Maybe they've fixed the noise levels ;-) raybro ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 5 Jun 91 14:18:45 -0500 From: UUCJEFF@BOGECNVE.BITNET Subject: on Quadraverb Plus Doe Quadraverb Plus make some patches that the QV templated on GenEdit won't like? I think so, but maybe should ask the Hybrid Arts people? of Phil? ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 5 Jun 91 14:48:34 CDT From: John Eichenseer Subject: Re: Alesis > Is it worth $30? Probably, even if you don't use the new features. > The new features are (approximately, since I don't have the update > appendix to the manual here) multi-tapped delay lines (with programmable > distance for each tap), sampling, and ring modulator. Lessee... you forgot the resonators. In the resonator setup, you can assign specific pitches to each of the five resonators available, or set the resonators to respond to MIDI data. this is actually a very neat feature; the QV will take an incoming MIDI note, extrapolate the correct pitch (based on A-440), and set one of the resonators to that frequency. You can offset these frequency values, as well. I have played with this effect a bit, and came up with a couple of really interesting sounds. Hmmmm... I don't think that you can re-route the delay taps. The delay line seemed to be self-contained, as far as I can remember. You CAN play the sample back at different rates, with the pitch shifting determined by incoming MIDI note numbers. However, the pitch-shifting algorithm is amazingly lame, and therefore virtually useless. (waitaminute... there is nothing in this world that is useless...) All in all, I have really enjoyed the upgrade. Now I gotta send it back to get one of those funky input filters installed, so it will quit aliasing like a mo'fo' with mine humble EPS. life; jhno ( () )) ( ((( )) ) ))))) ( )((()) ( ( )) ( ) ) ( ((( ) (()((() John Eichenseer Applied Research Laboratories hatter@ccwf.cc.utexas.edu The University of Texas at Austin ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 5 Jun 91 18:20:12 EDT From: galanter@gambuh.acns.nwu.edu Subject: Quardverb template Jeff, I tried answering your message, but e-mail bounced. My guess, and its only that, is that the QV template works with the QV+, but will not let you get at new parameters. If new parameters are set the template will warn you and then set them to a default, as it thinks they are illegal values. All QV patches should load and be editable, and send-back-able on the QV+. Phil ps what was your other question? Do you have an e-mail address that works? ============================================================================== Academic Computing & Network Services AppleLink: A42 627 Dartmouth Place Advanced Technology Group Manager galanter@nwu.edu Evanston, IL 60208 Northwestern University CompuServe: 76474,154 fax: 708-491-4548 Philip Galanter "Yes, we read NeXT Mail!" ph: 708-491-4050 ============================================================================== ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 5 Jun 91 22:43:25 MDT From: Adam Schabtach Subject: Re: Reply to Re: speaking of effects > > >The MidiVerb line is non-programmable. You get a bunch of presets, and > > However, I wouldn't be without my MIDIverb II for anything. It's cheap, and > the reverb quality is excellent. Despite having a QuadraVerb+ and a MV II, I almost bought a second MV II recently (during a blowout sale here in town). As Nick says, they're very nice-sounding, effective boxes. Also worth mentioning is that the orginal MIDIverb--which is housed in a funny round-cornered plastic box that takes up half a rack space--has the heaviest, nastiest, most wonderful navel-kicking gated reverb programs ever found in a DSP box. It will make an innocent kick drum sample into a lethal weapon. --Adam ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 6 Jun 91 08:46:00 EDT From: "William R(ay) Brohinsky" Subject: Re: Alesis jhno, Query, huh? input filters for a QV to avoid aliasing? Is this an alesis mod? I hadn't heard of a) it, b) a problem with ailiasing. Please expand. (and once you are larger than your computer, then send us a message explaining about the anti-aliasing ;-) raybro *** Nieder mit den tueten! Freiheit Fuer Gummibaerchen! *** ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 6 Jun 91 17:17:55 CDT From: John Eichenseer Subject: Re: Alesis >Query, huh? input filters for a QV to avoid aliasing? Is this an alesis mod? >I hadn't heard of a) it, b) a problem with ailiasing. Please expand. Well, apparently the EPS puts out a lot of super-sonic frequencies. My friend James McCartney said that Keyboard magazine noted this in their sampler review a year or so ago. Anyways, the Quadraverb does not filter the input prior to the A-D stage, and so all these high frequencies can generate some irritating aliasing in the audible range. It seems to me that not all sounds on the EPS will produce this noise, but most will. At any rate, if you send your Quadraverb back to Alesis, they will install an input filter for free. Of course, you have to give up your black box for a couple of weeks in order to do this. Woof. James says that the filter has eliminated the aliasing, but also changed the sound characteristic a little bit (neither better nor worse; just "different"). Whew. I hope y'all appreciate this; instead of expanding, I accidentally contracted to near-insect size, and had to type all of the preceeding by flinging myself 'pon the keyboard like Archy the cockroach. Hope this illuminates, john the small ------------------------------ End of the EMUSIC-L Digest ******************************