Modulate This! - Electronic & Experimental Music Tech, Technique, & People

Absynth 5 Soundscape Using Field Recordings, Wavemorphing, and Audio Mod for Envelope Following

I few days back I posted a soundscape to soundcloud called “Which One is Mine”.

Which One Is Mine by MarkMosher

Absynth 5 has a feature called Audio Mod which lets you take audio input from a DAW and use it as control voltage of sorts.  Sort of like the digital equivalent of what was shown in yesterday’s post from Marc (DJ Not So Much) “Using Ableton to Provide Control Voltage for a Moog Slim Phatty”.

I used Absynth and Ableton Live to create this sound scape which made up of synthesis, and real-time processing of audio from field recordings. The first recording is a Morse code key I recorded at a train museum in Cape Cod. The second is a recording I made of crowd noise at a University of Colorado basketball game.

I wanted to mention that Absynth 1 was the first virtual synth I bought back in the day. I’ve kept up with it all these years and upgraded to 5 right away when it came out (see this vid showing off some Absynth 5 features). It’s still one of my most used synths so I’m happy to see that it’s winning in the readers poll.

Note: You can get Absynth on sale for $99 for one more day till Nov 29th as part of Native Instruments holiday sale.

PRODUCTION NOTES
I created a custom patch in Absynth 5. I'm sending MIDI notes from an Ableton Live clip to Absynth. This causes Oscillator A to play a fractalized waveform that is morphed by a stepping envelope.

 

Oscillator B is set to "Audio In" and I'm routing field recording samples playing in Live audio clips to this Oscillator.

Oscillator C is a single hybrid waveform. This oscillator's Amp, Pitch and Morph params are modulated live audio signals routing through Oscillator B using "Audio Mod". The first audio clip is the field recording of the Morse code key. The second clip is the crowd sound. The pulsing nature of the sound during the crowd section is a result of AMP envelope on Oscillator B.

Enjoy,

Mark Mosher
Electronic Music Artist, Boulder CO
www.ModulateThis.com
www.MarkMosherMusic.com

New Lower Price on Zoom H2 Portable 2-Track SD Recorder

I just saw that zzounds.com has lowered their price on the Zoom H2 recorder to $179! I have one of these and highly recommend it. It's very inexpensive yet has a great set of features for the price.

Here is a summary of features:

• It weighs 4 ounces.
• 4 mic capsules onboard for 360° recording in a W-X/Y configuration.
• The H2 records on Secure Digital (SD) media and a 512MB SD card is included. With a 4GB SD memory card, the H2 provides up to 2 hours recording at 96kHz, 6 hours at 44.1kHz, or up to a staggering 138 hours in MP3. Store your recordings on a PC or Mac with its USB 2.0 port. And you can use its time stamping function for reference during production.
• Use the H2 as a USB Mic for recording directly to a computer.
• Comes with earbuds, an 1/8 inch stereo to RCA cable, a mic clip adapter, tripod stand, USB cable, an AC adapter and a 512MB SD card.

Here are some thoughts on how you can use this little beast:

• Field recording for found sound
• Record band practice
• Use it as a song writing tool
• Record meetings and notes
• Use it as a USB mic (great for podcasters)

Conclusion:
The inclusion of all the accessories and the ability to use this as a USB mic make it this a no brainer buy at this price if you are in the market.

Links:

• Buy on ZZounds

Mark Mosher
www.modulatethis.com
www.markmoshermusic.com

M-Audio MicroTrack 24/96 - Mobile digital recorder for musicians, sound designers, podcasters - Save $99.66

Get the M-Audio MicroTrack 24/96 2-Channel Mobile Digital Recorder on Musicians Friend and save SAVE $99.96.

Whether you are a musician,  sound designer, or podcaster - one of the most important features to consider when buying a portable digital recorder is audio quality. Consumer level voice recorders and devices (such as mp3 players and PDAs) are fine for note taking, but they don't have the audio quality, or the support for pro mics that are required for pro results.

The M-Audio's Micro Track 24/69 is a high-fidelity 2-channel digital recorder that is a great choice for musicians on the go, those into podcasting, and sound designer who want to grab sounds at remote locations, then import the recordings into their digital audio editing software. Check out these features:

M-Audio MicroTrack 24/96 2-Channel Mobile Digital Recorder Features:

• 2-channel WAV and MP3 recording and playback
• Storage via convenient CompactFlash or microdrives
• Drag-and-drop file transfer to PC and Mac via USB 2.0
• Separate left and right input level controls with signal and peak indicators
• Professional balanced 1/4" TRS inputs with mic/line switch
• Dual microphone preamps with phantom power for studio microphones
• 1/8" TRS input with 5V power for use with stereo electret microphone (microphone included)
• S/PDIF coaxial input for digital transfers
• Monitoring via RCA line outputs or 1/8" stereo headphone output
• Stereo output level control
• LCD screen
• Navigation, record, hold, pause, delete, menu, and power buttons
• Software for editing and file format conversion
• 64MB CompactFlash card included
• Powered via USB, rechargeable lithium-ion battery or power supply (both included)

M-Audio MicroTrack 24/96 2-Channel Mobile Digital Recorder Specifications:

• MP3 recording: 96 to 320kbps at 32, 44.1 or 48kHz
• PCM recording: 16 or 24-bit at 32, 44.1, 48, 88.2, or 96kHz
• Battery life before recharge: 7 hours playback; 4-5 hours recording via line in or dynamic mic; 3 hours recording with phantom power engaged
• Compatibility: WAV, MP3
• PC requirements: Windows 2000, XP; USB 1.1 or 2.0 port
• Mac requirements: Mac OS X 10.3.9 or greater; USB 1.1 or 2.0 port
• 2-7/16"W x 4-1/3"H x 1-1/8"D
• 4-13/16 oz. without card; 5-1/4 oz. with card

Mark
www.newecho.com