Total Kontrol has released Mssiah Mono Synthesizer Controller, a real-time editor which allows control over every parameter found on Mssiah Mono Synthesizer.
The MSSIAH is a MIDI cartridge for the Commodore 64.
It contains a suite of music applications that starts instantly as you insert the cartridge and start up the computer. With these applications you can play the C64′s audio circuit (SID) via MIDI or stand-alone with the internal sequencers.
Mssiah Mono Synthesizer Controller is available as a VST plug-in and standalone application for Windows PC, priced at £10 GBP.
Plogue has released version 1.0.0.3 of Chipsounds, a virtual chipsound synthesizer plug-in which turns your host into a classic video game console, vintage 8bit home computer and even an 80’s arcade.
Plogue chipsounds authentically emulates more than eight vintage 8bit-era sound chips (on top of their variants), down to their smallest idiosyncrasies.
Changes in Chipsounds v1.0.0.3
New presets (around 300 total).
VST/AU parameters (only on first slots).
MIDI Out in VSTi mode (AU later).
Small skin installed but turned off by default (need to choose GUI_small in AriaSetup.xml).
Transpose setting for each slot.
MOS TED chip added (not worth a huge mention).
Various bug fixes.
Chipsounds is available to purchase for PC and Mac (VST/AU/RTAS), priced at 65 EUR excl. VAT. A demo version of Chipsounds is now also available to download (Silence after a 15 minute session; No Save).
Odo Synths has released version 4.0 of 38911 Bytes, a free virtual synthesizer plug-in for Windows.
38911 Bytes is a one oscillator synth. It`s a synthesizer based on Commodore 64 software but it can do a lot more
38911 Bytes v4.0 features
1 oscillator with 4 waveforms (saw, triangle, pulse, pitched noise) ringmodulation waveforms (saw, triangle, pulse). PulseWidth Octaves from -3 to 4.
1 ringmodulation oscillator with 3 waveforms (saw, triangle, pulse) PulseWidth, octaves range -3 to 4 and notes C to B
2 LFOs with 19 waveforms, 16 different BPM rates and manual rate
ADSR with curves for the depth of the LFO.
Low/hi depth button
LFOs can start when hitting a key (GATE), when you hit play in your sequencer (FIRST) and start at any point (FREE).
LFO destinations: pitch, pw , cutoff and resonance.
4×16 step sequencers: 11 BPM rates, manual rate and c64 rate (The BPM rates only work when you set the sequence to BPM mode, in Manual and c64 rates all the sequencers have the same rate).
Andrea Bianchi, a Ph.D. student at the Graduate School of Culture Technology (GSCT) in the Korean Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST), South Korea, wrote in to report about a homebrew music application named Drummer for the Nintendo DS which was presented at the NIME 2009 conference (New Interfaces for Musical Expression).
Andrea writes:
It is basically a collaborative musical instrument, where multiple Nintendo DS users can play individually on their devices in order to collaborate on a track. Tracks can be recorded simultaneously, one per user. The project tries to bridge mobile interfaces with collaborative music instruments (usually constrained by the need of physical proximity among players), in order to create a collaborative instrument for the stage.
The system is based on client-server architecture over a wireless network; every client runs on a Nintendo DS -one of the most popular wireless handheld game devices with touch-screen functionality- while the server computer handles the clients’ requests and plays matching drum sounds with the software synthesizer.
Each user can take advantage of this small and intuitive pen-based device in order to create or customize a drum kit, and then perform together with other users simply by tapping and sliding the pen on the screen.
Sebastian Tomczak offers yet another pack of lovely samples.
I’ve made a C64 sample pack. To be precise, it’s a sample pack, featuring every C and G note from C-2 to G 6 for the main basic waveforms of a Commodore 64 (8580 SID chip). The waveforms are triangle, sawtooth, pulse and noise. The duty cycle for the pulse wave was set to approximately 50%. The samples were recorded from C64 hardware directly using a custom designed interface.
The samples are available for download in wav and mp3 formats.
These tracks were made by the chipsounds beta team and really show the variety of styles and sounds that can be achieved with the software.
The only guideline given was that the music’s chip content had to be made using chipsounds. Artists were free to use whatever other sounds or instruments they wanted.
Plogue has released Chipsounds, a virtual chipsounds synthesizer plug-in for Windows and Mac.
This new product allow any musician to faithfully reproduce the sound and style of vintage video game music and sound effects in a convenient plugin format, usable inside any sequencer or DAW, or as a standalone virtual instrument.
Powered by Plogue/Garritan’s ARIA virtual instrument engine, chipsounds reproduces the idiosyncrasies of the most sought-after classic sound chips, including their most well-known variations, as sonically accurate as possible without adding any non-authentic aliasing or DSP artifacts. Whether musicians are already versed into chiptune/chip music or just interested in those sounds, this is one unique instrument for them.
Research and analysis for this project has been made in house on Plogue’s large collection of cartridges, modified consoles and classic computers and also on the chips themselves using custom made circuit boards and low level 8 bit software code.
Chipsounds simulates the following chips
TIAused in the 2600 & 7800
Accurate Multipulse/Polynomial bit pattern waveforms for those unique combat, engine drones and powerful mix piercing “fake-saw” sound.
2A03and its portable variant, used in the Big N consoles
Accurate pulse width settings (1/8, 1/4, 1/2, 3/4).
Drawable 4bit/32 step bandlimited Waveform.
Huge number custom and classic waveforms to choose from, including the unique triangle sound of the Big “N”.
Short (93/127bit) and Long (32767bit) noise patterns accurately modeled.
AY-3-8910and its numerous clones 8912/8913/8914/2149F, used in Intv, ZX, ST, Arcades
Emulation of Sync Buzzer Envelope Looping tricks.
Accurate logarithmic 4Bit DAC.
POKEYused in 400/800 series computer and Arcades
Fat and accurate Multipulse/Polynomial bit pattern waveforms with clock desynchronization.
SN76489ANand its SN76496 SN94624N predecessor, used in the ColecoVision, SMS, BBC, TI99, PCjr, Tandy and Arcades
Basic and RAW, the purest chip there is.
Different NOISE patterns for all variants, all emulated.
UVIused in the Arcadia 2001
A rarity that can prove effective in the grinding department with its logical anding of pulse and noise patterns (As used in the Arcadia 2001 and MPT-03).
P824Xused in the Odyssey 2
Obscure chip that oddly only plays the scale of E5 (slightly detuned).
And the subtle psychoacoustic sound of screaming at the start of its noise pattern.
SIDincluding 6580 and 8580, used in the C64
The most important sound chip of the 80’s gaming era.
Variable Pulsewidth, SAW, Triangle, 8bit noise and even combined waveforms.
Most waveforms are actually SAMPLES of the real thing for 100% accuracy, especially for the combined waveforms.
VIC-Iused in the VIC20
This chip is very underhestimated gem with tolally unique sounding waveforms.
Newly discovered “Robotic” waveforms are emulated.
Rough, nasty noise pattern too.
Chipsounds is available for PC and Mac (VST/AU/RTAS) for the introductory price of $75 USD until November 1, 2009.
Arduinos are awesome – with one simple controller, you can make almost anything! What new things can you make with Arduino? We've teamed up with the creative folks at Evil Mad Scientist Laboratories and the Arduino Team on an Arduino contest to find out.
The rules are simple: to enter you must make a new Instructable that involves the Arduino IDE. You can use any hardware that you like, or none at all. Be sure to provide the code you used so that others can follow in your footsteps. Make something amazing and win a sweet Meggy Jr RGB from Evil Mad Science or an Arduino Mega from the Arduino Team to power your next project!
So what are you waiting for? Document a project you've been meaning to write up, or make something new! We can't wait to see what it is.
Rockstar Games has launched the Beaterator and MySpace Music Challenge, a contest for the recently released music application Beaterator for PSP system. The aim of the Challenge is to highlight emerging artists using the Beaterator platform as a tool for music production. The Challenge winner will receive a cash prize of $5,000!
Artists that are chosen as semi-finalists will have the opportunity to have two songs featured on the Challenge promotion page, where MySpace Music and Rockstar Games fans will be able to check out the competition and vote on their favorite songs. The first song will be your “featured song” — the one that you feel best represents your sound. The second song will be one that you create using Beaterator, which can be an original track, remix, or other song that showcases your use of the Beaterator software. The winning artist or band will receive $5,000, have their winning track featured on the PlayStation®Network – which is visited by millions of PlayStation owners every day, and they will also have the opportunity to be featured on the MySpace homepage.
Beaterator is a music-making application for PSP system that acts as a portable 8-track music studio. In addition to the 3,000 included loops, it features a drum machine, full keyboard, synthesizer and sequencer; as well as the ability to import any sound via either a Memory Stick Duo™ or the PSP system’s built-in microphone. This is a true portable music studio.
Modulate This has turned 4 years old! In year 3 the blog experienced non-linear growth in page views and subscribers.
Congrats, Mark! Love the blog.
If you’ve never checked Modulate This! before make sure you do. This blog on electronic music production and sound design is a wonderful source of articles, videos, downloads etc.
cl516 turns a Studio Electronics Omega 8 into a drum machine.
Rather than play the usual handful of musical hooks, I thought wouldn't it be useful if it was drum loop time.
Well, long gone are my TR-909, TR-808, Machinedrum, Xbase09, MFB-502, and I haven't picked up those D16 plugins yet. So I decided, why not use the Omega 8?
For our sixth instalment, our musical microscope has fallen on drum 'n' bass. This may be a genre that had its big moment in the mainstream more than a decade ago, but it continues to thrive and its influence is felt on the likes of grime, dubstep and ghettotech.
Gijs Gieskes uses the video ram of a Sega as an audio source.
The video ram of the sega gets slowed down by a binary counter, so it can be used as a audio source.
There are 3 oscillators that control a multiplexer, the multiplexer connects 1 out of 8 patch cables to the binary counters input, so there are some nice changing patterns in the sound. Another multiplexer is connected to the same oscillators and makes some extra connections to glitch some more video.
There is a magnetic patch bay for the video ram, and the sega controller on the front can also be connected with magnets or metal wands. The original idea was that the device can be used for drums, buts more a synth.. In another version i will probably build a small sequencer into it..
I will probably mainly use it for exhibitions, it is allot of fun to play with, because you control the sound and the video at the same time.
Orange Tree Samples' official blog will include articles, tutorials, videos, product demonstrations, artist interviews, and much more.
Subjects include everything from tips and tricks for using Orange Tree Samples libraries to instructions on how to create your own sample libraries! "Fresh Squeezed" will also discuss the sample library industry's latest technologies as well as explore sampling in pursuit of greater realism. Hopefully this will prove to be a useful resource for Orange Tree Samples customers as well as sample library users and computer musicians in general.
Send an Email or use social networks Twitter, or Facebook. Listen to some tunes at SoundCloud, or subscribe to the RSS feed to get all the lastest news in your news reader.
