This is a set of two effects for the Nebula platform (if you don't know what it is, you might check it out, great way to get some analog flavor 'in the box'-• View forum - Nebula), both of which I think push what can be done with it. Much of the stuff for the platform is for subtle coloring effects etc, and while that stuff is useful, I've always wanted to see its potential as a production tool utilized a little more.
1st effect: Tube Radio LP
Inspired by those really cool Metasonix modular synth style effects that are all built with old tube radio tubes, and no this is not a code word to say that I sampled those, I didn't. I wanted to see if I could get similar sounds by combining an LP filter from a hardware VA synth with an actual tube radio. The filter came first, then an old Bogen PA amp drove the signal into an FM transmitter, and the signal was then plucked from the air by an FM tube tuner. Some dynamics was used in sampling, which is a first here (to do that with a filter style effect), and it made sampling much more time consuming, but the end results were worth it. Basically, at lower input levels you get a fluffy, smooth LP filter effect, with fully variable cutoff and resonance (I believe this itself is also a first). At higher input levels, you start to get distortion, not just from the tube radio, but also the transmitter itself. This especially happens with high resonance where the res peak will generate harmonics that serves to emphasize it a little more. At this point it becomes a growling filter effect.
2nd effect: Tube Radio EQ
Very experimental effect. It's actually more of a frequency specific distortion/harmonics tool. It was custom built for the Nebula platform. It didn't sample any actual EQ. Instead, samples taken from a tube tuner (same was with the LP effect) were creatively mixed with 'dry' samples. So, you have the same controls as you have in an EQ- width, freq, gain- but when you set the freq and width you are actually defining a 'radio band'. Any input signal passing through that band will generate harmonics (from the tube rado), but outside of that band nothing special happens. You can increase gain of this band also and this is a purely digital gain and in some cases is nearly or mostly linear phase. This effect can have many uses. One example- select frequency for the radio band, use gain control to lower/cut it by a few db, then use Nebula's ability to directly increase the level of the generated harmonics upwards by a few db. The result is that you are sucking out some of the fundamental tone for the band you defined, and replacing it with harmonics generated by that defined band. A very tricky and analog sounding harmonic exciter. If you use it in a more straight forward way, as an EQ, you get sound qualities a little like linear phase eq, but also analog tube gear, a unique combination. This one also was made with dynamic samples from the radio, so the effect reacts differently to different input levels. It's a deep tool.
Sound clip examples of the LP, and a couple of free demo programs of the EQ which will work with free Nebula are at the site. Check it out.
http://www.cupwise.com/cup/nebula-release-frequency-tweakers -a/
I have lots of other stuff I've made over the past year and 1/2 up at my site. My first set for Nebula was a large set of tube radio effects all copying the sounds of several old (1950's) tube radios. They each filter the sound in different ways and really make anything going through them instantly sound 'old'. That set was reviewed in a side box in an article about Nebula in the January issue of Sound on Sound. I also have some sets I've made to capture cassette tape sound, and some creative reverbs I've made.
-tim
1st effect: Tube Radio LP
Inspired by those really cool Metasonix modular synth style effects that are all built with old tube radio tubes, and no this is not a code word to say that I sampled those, I didn't. I wanted to see if I could get similar sounds by combining an LP filter from a hardware VA synth with an actual tube radio. The filter came first, then an old Bogen PA amp drove the signal into an FM transmitter, and the signal was then plucked from the air by an FM tube tuner. Some dynamics was used in sampling, which is a first here (to do that with a filter style effect), and it made sampling much more time consuming, but the end results were worth it. Basically, at lower input levels you get a fluffy, smooth LP filter effect, with fully variable cutoff and resonance (I believe this itself is also a first). At higher input levels, you start to get distortion, not just from the tube radio, but also the transmitter itself. This especially happens with high resonance where the res peak will generate harmonics that serves to emphasize it a little more. At this point it becomes a growling filter effect.
2nd effect: Tube Radio EQ
Very experimental effect. It's actually more of a frequency specific distortion/harmonics tool. It was custom built for the Nebula platform. It didn't sample any actual EQ. Instead, samples taken from a tube tuner (same was with the LP effect) were creatively mixed with 'dry' samples. So, you have the same controls as you have in an EQ- width, freq, gain- but when you set the freq and width you are actually defining a 'radio band'. Any input signal passing through that band will generate harmonics (from the tube rado), but outside of that band nothing special happens. You can increase gain of this band also and this is a purely digital gain and in some cases is nearly or mostly linear phase. This effect can have many uses. One example- select frequency for the radio band, use gain control to lower/cut it by a few db, then use Nebula's ability to directly increase the level of the generated harmonics upwards by a few db. The result is that you are sucking out some of the fundamental tone for the band you defined, and replacing it with harmonics generated by that defined band. A very tricky and analog sounding harmonic exciter. If you use it in a more straight forward way, as an EQ, you get sound qualities a little like linear phase eq, but also analog tube gear, a unique combination. This one also was made with dynamic samples from the radio, so the effect reacts differently to different input levels. It's a deep tool.
Sound clip examples of the LP, and a couple of free demo programs of the EQ which will work with free Nebula are at the site. Check it out.
http://www.cupwise.com/cup/nebula-release-frequency-tweakers -a/
I have lots of other stuff I've made over the past year and 1/2 up at my site. My first set for Nebula was a large set of tube radio effects all copying the sounds of several old (1950's) tube radios. They each filter the sound in different ways and really make anything going through them instantly sound 'old'. That set was reviewed in a side box in an article about Nebula in the January issue of Sound on Sound. I also have some sets I've made to capture cassette tape sound, and some creative reverbs I've made.
-tim