the watmm GAS thread

I've been avoiding real DAW usage for many years. I'm finally realizing that making stuff that slams is more satisfying than a fun knob twiddling jam. What's more, they're not mutually exclusive. 

  On 2/28/2020 at 2:05 AM, sweepstakes said:

I've been avoiding real DAW usage for many years. I'm finally realizing that making stuff that slams is more satisfying than a fun knob twiddling jam. What's more, they're not mutually exclusive. 

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I'm not against daws but I never want to program another midi note or micromanage audio snippets again. Kills the vibe so hard. 

I go through phases. I actually kinda want to have a go at proper composition again soon, as I've learned a lot about chord to progressions since the last prog album I made. I don't do piano rolls though, I've always felt more at home with a tracker. 

I've only seen a few videos of the Model:Cycles but what I have seen I really enjoyed.  Same with the Model:Samples.  Fact is, not everyone wants to spend half their time menu diving on a system that needs you to chuck anywhere upto €1500 at it and that can takes years to master.  Plus they look like good stepping stones if you're just starting too.  I didn't enjoy my A4 anywhere near as much until I got my hands on the Digitakt and became a little less overwhelmed with the whole thing.

  On 2/28/2020 at 11:31 AM, chim said:

I'm not against daws but I never want to program another midi note or micromanage audio snippets again. Kills the vibe so hard. 

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I've found that it's fun to jam and record that as it goes, and then cut, fix and arrange things to make a more coherent piece of music. It's two different headspaces but I am trying to make them work well together.

And I think definitely it will get easier to mess around with arrangements and melodies over time once you get used to it.

  On 2/28/2020 at 11:31 AM, chim said:

I'm not against daws but I never want to program another midi note or micromanage audio snippets again. Kills the vibe so hard. 

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I agree but I think there's a sweet spot. For me (right now, anyway) that seems to mean first making the base elements away from the DAW. Then I put on my mixing and editing hat to clean it up, which I'm starting to enjoy as I realize I don't really have to spend that much time on it.

Cutting up individual notes sucks. Moving bars around and being able to surgically remove a minute of wanky, dull tweaking is great. I have been kind of against that in the past, but now I'm finding it liberating.

  On 2/28/2020 at 11:41 AM, modey said:

I go through phases. I actually kinda want to have a go at proper composition again soon, as I've learned a lot about chord to progressions since the last prog album I made. I don't do piano rolls though, I've always felt more at home with a tracker. 

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I also feel way more at home on a tracker. Unfortunately editing is a bit tedious on Renoise when it comes to moving events around in relation to other tracks. I'm trying to use instrument phrases more to help with that. I might give Redux a shot at some point too.

  On 2/28/2020 at 12:59 PM, sweepstakes said:

I agree but I think there's a sweet spot. For me (right now, anyway) that seems to mean first making the base elements away from the DAW. Then I put on my mixing and editing hat to clean it up, which I'm starting to enjoy as I realize I don't really have to spend that much time on it.

Cutting up individual notes sucks. Moving bars around and being able to surgically remove a minute of wanky, dull tweaking is great. I have been kind of against that in the past, but now I'm finding it liberating.

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 After yet another catastrophic drive failure a few years ago I took a break. Eventually I realized I didn't miss all the technical programming and obsession over details. But working in a typical DAW with piano rolls it's way too easy to get lured into that and I've been working that way since forever. It's fine for tweaking in the mixing stage but when you're still churning ideas out the creative process suffers, unless you're like rich and really intimate with a hw sequencer (or tracker) . What I missed was just playing instruments and grooving, which I've been doing solely and want to extend that into a recording workflow. My favorite idea right now is a live/jam setup with readily available instruments (strapped guitar, keyboard in front and standing v-drum kit?) hooked up to a looper.

And now I have Willie's cover of Maniac stuck in my head, on repeat, forever (again). Thank you.

3 hours of pattern building that I streamed a few hours ago.. I knew this thing was versatile but damn, I really discovered tons of tricks today.

^ FM heaven! Super cool piece of kit. 

Once I got a Korg MS-20 I haven't used any other hardware since (except for a generic midi controller). It killed my gear lust as anything else I reasoned I could do on the PC.

Also the accompanying SQ-10 sequencer. Both of those together and you have a self-contained modular synth. The MS-20 mini and SQ-1 are just as good and probably even better for a desktop setting. Only problem I have with it is that it isn't really compatible with other modular components outside of korg because it uses a different voltage parameter.

New guitar day! The pickups are soooo good, really dynamic and sensitive so it's easy to get good muted tones and hammer ons etc. Unfortunately they pick up every stupid thing I do so I feel like a worse player, ha. 

I tried the kyra today in a store on some cheap store’s headphones, controlled by a midi controller...

First impression:

- it’s bigger than I thought it was! 
- the knobs are quite slippery

- it’s very confusing at first but after 10 minutes I managed to turn it on lol 

- jk.... after 10 minutes i learned how to make and how to save a patch but id guess that a manual reading in a must

- 99% of presets sound like a ‘90s psy-ambient bonus track

- this thing is ridiculously deep! I mean crazy deep!!! You can make it sound almost in any way you can imagine

- it’s completely alias-free; I couldn’t make it fart... in a bad way anyway

- onboard efx are good enough but the reverb could be better

- modulation is deep enough 

- filters are beyond sweet! Just beautiful!

but 2.000 euros for cash?! Wow ... maaaaybe but not today 
 

imo Elektron should make such synth! The biggest thing it misses is an elektron sequencer. 

I like that there are four outs on that beast.

  On 3/4/2020 at 2:44 AM, Entorwellian said:

I like that there are four outs on that beast.

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hadn't noticed that, always a great thing. no inputs at all though  heard some good stuff on that Kyra tho.

  On 3/3/2020 at 4:50 PM, xox said:

imo Elektron should make such synth! The biggest thing it misses is an elektron sequencer. 

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that would be too smart and make too much sense. instead they'll release another FM synth next year even more hobbled than the last, the Elektron FM Mono. two modulation algorithms and no filter but it's still got a 16 step sequencer! (no song mode tho) 

I am very sexually attracted to the Kyra...

I got a sheepskin to cover my nasty janky production chair. Feels good!

Going to make some warm sounds now.

flol. Just saw on the picture that the Kyla only has USB 2.0

  On 3/4/2020 at 10:39 AM, Entorwellian said:

flol. Just saw on the picture that the Kyla only has USB 2.0

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Usb 2.0 is good enough for 8 channels of audio. You don’t need v3

€2000 for a VA, that'll be the day... 

I have an OP-1 again, couldn't resist. 

I sold the last one just before the voltage engine and arp were added; they're so good!

Not the sexiest thing in the world but how did I last so long without an Evolution uc-33?! Those things + iPad synths = the business.

That Polyend Tracker is intriguing. 

  On 3/9/2020 at 6:31 PM, psn said:

That Polyend Tracker is intriguing. 

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This looks like obscure devices from 80s offices. I like it.

But why should I get a box that is a tracker? I think the aesthetic demands a beat up old laptop with a clunky MIDI interface and some weird tracker software instead.

  On 3/10/2020 at 2:04 PM, thawkins said:

This looks like obscure devices from 80s offices. I like it.

But why should I get a box that is a tracker? I think the aesthetic demands a beat up old laptop with a clunky MIDI interface and some weird tracker software instead.

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forreal. grab a laptop from 2008-2012 for like $250 and load up milkytracker or renoise to achieve the same result.