Daily Inspiration for the Sound Designer

For fans of synths, pianos, organs or keyboard instruments of any sort.
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Re: Daily Inspiration for the Sound Designer

Post by Martin Walker »

It's definitely the time for an update for this inspirational thread. Here's a new product, announced only a few days ago (on 28th March , so it's NOT an April Fool joke), that's so unusual that it merits mentioning here.

The Agnew Analog Vacuum Tube Electrochemical Synthesizer: Type 8001

Image

"This is a unique electrochemical synthesizer, generating strange sounds through chemical reactions occurring in the built in reactor cell. The reactor cell acts as a miniature galvanic bath, with a selection of different electrode materials offering a wide range of sounds. The generated electrical signals are then amplified by means of vacuum tube electronics, which include inductor filters and feedback loops to further spice thing up."

It looks stunning, and sounds most intriguing too, but it's still unclear whether this unit, “Handcrafted for a harsh noise artist from Slovenia” is a one-off build or going to be available to others.

Have a look and listen here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TIbCc4o ... e=emb_logo

More info here: https://agnewanalog.com/blog/the-vacuum ... -8001.html

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Re: Daily Inspiration for the Sound Designer

Post by Folderol »

Well that's certainly, ummm, different!
Now if they'd used ECC33, EF39A and 5R4 valves it would look really stunning :lol:

Oh, and definitely with greater warmth :tongue:
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Re: Daily Inspiration for the Sound Designer

Post by Martin Walker »

DRY LIGHTS

In my never-ending quest to search out inspirational material for the sound designer, here's a classic example of what can happen when you team up with an experimental film maker.

"A trip through an electric desert, Dry Lights unfolds in an imagined environment of cacti and canyons, moving from hidden caves to lonely cliffs along pulsating rivers of light.
This experimental film lies somewhere between a site-specific installation and a performance, where choreographed lights meet organic landscapes."

https://vimeo.com/128877443

Xavier Chassaing: Director, Producer, Executive producer, Editing, Lighting, Clarisse rendering, Compositing, Environment TD designer, SFX.

Thomas Vaquié: Music and Sound Design


Wonderful!

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Re: Daily Inspiration for the Sound Designer

Post by Folderol »

That was seriously impressive :clap::clap::thumbup::bouncy:
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Re: Daily Inspiration for the Sound Designer

Post by Eddy Deegan »

Wow... this is stunning :clap:
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Re: Daily Inspiration for the Sound Designer

Post by Arpangel »

N i g e l wrote:I have a few outrageously long reverb presets which I have always thought of as just lush sounding equations.
It was nice to find out that there are some actual, accoustically interesting, gigantic spaces in the real world...

Inchindown oil tank + starter pistol

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lLUcOFwZvyY

This is an old oil storage tank hollowed out from rock and lined with 18" concrete.
Size: 237m x 9m x 13.5m

Better than any, I mean any, artificial reverb could ever be. We still haven’t cracked it.
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Re: Daily Inspiration for the Sound Designer

Post by Martin Walker »

SLAGWERK-101 by Love Hultén

Ok, to once again whet your appetite with something that may sound familiar (a drum machine), but which has been re-imagined in such a designer-friendly way, may I present to you Slagwerk-101.

This is an audiovisual sculpture and a visual element for the stage, based on percussion instruments. A conceptual semi-acoustic drum machine built around mechanics, used with synchronized MIDI backtracks.

Image

Now watch it in action: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JKSme0P ... mb_rel_end

Designed and built by Love Hultén, you can find out more about his many creations at lovehulten.com

Beat that! (pun fully intended ;) )

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Re: Daily Inspiration for the Sound Designer

Post by Drew Stephenson »

David Ford (singer-songwriter and loop pedal pioneer) did a tour a few years ago with a remote control drumkit that he played with his feet. I'll see if I can find a video.
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Re: Daily Inspiration for the Sound Designer

Post by Martin Walker »

Tripods One - Teaser by Moritz Simon geist

Ultimately there are so many of these mechanical drum machines out there that they stand or fall on how interesting or novel their sounds are.

Here's one that I feel works very well indeed. It's a refreshing change not to hear slavish copying of existing instruments :thumbup:

https://vimeo.com/182052276

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Re: Daily Inspiration for the Sound Designer

Post by Folderol »

Put it on Britain's got talent :lol:
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Re: Daily Inspiration for the Sound Designer

Post by Drew Stephenson »

I like that one. :)
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Re: Daily Inspiration for the Sound Designer

Post by Martin Walker »

The 1000 OSCILLATOR MEGADRONE Is Complete! The KiloDrone Is ALIVE
1000-oscillator.jpg
Yes, our old friend Look Mum No Computer (aka Sam Battle) is back, still as mad as a March Hare, but oh so entertaining. Most of the last four months during lockdown he's been slogging away building 100 panels, each containing 10 oscillators, and has now completed this 2 metre tall 4 metre wide synthesizer with 1000 oscillators, to answer the age old question! How many is too many?

Now you've just GOT to click on this link to hear it in action, haven't you? :)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c3wk9WWTfNs

Brilliant!

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Re: Daily Inspiration for the Sound Designer

Post by N i g e l »

:thumbup:
A humungus sound !
Made me feel like I should be stressing out in Hans Zimmer soundtrack kind of way ?

& also why the DX7 was digital !
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Re: Daily Inspiration for the Sound Designer

Post by Folderol »

Completely nuts - but very enjoyably so. I actually like that sort of slow resolution from noise to a smooth note.

Mind you, it's theoretically possible for one instance of Yoshimi to sound 9216 - No, I'm not going to try it :lol:
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Re: Daily Inspiration for the Sound Designer

Post by Drew Stephenson »

Utterly ridiculous.
And brilliant. :)
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Re: Daily Inspiration for the Sound Designer

Post by Arpangel »

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pYiJkkS37Eg

Talk about inspiration, this little box is truly amazing, really beautiful sounds.
Shame it’s not still available, be good to try and make something similar, in modular, somehow?
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Re: Daily Inspiration for the Sound Designer

Post by Martin Walker »

Arpangel wrote:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pYiJkkS37Eg

Talk about inspiration, this little box is truly amazing, really beautiful sounds.
Shame it’s not still available, be good to try and make something similar, in modular, somehow?

Both boxes here sound fascinating, but the Hologram Microcosm does seem to be available (albeit in short supply to pre-order) so I expect you're referring to the SUIKO ST-50.

Here's another Hainbach video dedicated to it:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rzo9ebsFd6Q

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Re: Daily Inspiration for the Sound Designer

Post by BJG145 »

...cool, I've been looking covetously at the ST-20 recently, but I hadn't clocked the ST-50...

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Re: Daily Inspiration for the Sound Designer

Post by Drew Stephenson »

How to lose 20 minutes of your day: https://www.thisiscolossal.com/2020/11/ ... 35f46e0b0b
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Re: Daily Inspiration for the Sound Designer

Post by Martin Walker »

ELECTRONICOS FANTASTICOS! Barcoders Jamming!

OK - here's a wonderfully wacky way to open our musical minds.

Barcoder: generates sounds by connecting scan-signals of a barcode scanner to a powered speaker directly not a cash register.
barcoders.jpg
Now click on this link to enjoy the action: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bOfpQt4KFCc

Enjoy!

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Re: Daily Inspiration for the Sound Designer

Post by Folderol »

Weird!
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Re: Daily Inspiration for the Sound Designer

Post by resistorman »

Oh man, that is good...
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Re: Daily Inspiration for the Sound Designer

Post by tea for two »

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Re: Daily Inspiration for the Sound Designer

Post by Luke W »

Martin Walker wrote:ELECTRONICOS FANTASTICOS! Barcoders Jamming!

OK - here's a wonderfully wacky way to open our musical minds.

Barcoder: generates sounds by connecting scan-signals of a barcode scanner to a powered speaker directly not a cash register.
barcoders.jpg
Now click on this link to enjoy the action: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bOfpQt4KFCc

Enjoy!

Martin

Amazing :lol:

The shirts were the winner for me there.
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