So I tried “processing external audio” through my LP tonight. Plugged my Gibson bass into a distortion pedal and then into the LP - the gain was too low for the signal to compete with the LP audio, so I had to boost the signal quite a bit (used an MXR 10-band EQ; next time I think I’ll try using my Alembic F2-B preamp).
It sounded interesting - I’ll post a soundclip eventually if anyone’s interested. There were some overall volume issues - I was using the “thank you bob” preset, fiddled with the filter decay so that it would go down really slowly, and at first the signal will be loud and clear but then the overall volume would kind of dip. I’m going to have to play around some more, but it was fun! Next I want to try controlling the LP filter with the CP-251…
hieronymous, please post samples.
I’ve really enjoyed all the other music you’ve posted.
I haven’t really accomplished anything since my original post! During the first experiment, I did get sound to emerge, but not particularly good or interesting sounds. I’ve only had one opportunity to experiment since then, but that time I couldn’t get anything to work. I have a feeling it was something simple like a dead battery in the pre-LP siganl chain. When I finally do come up with something, I’ll post again!
After my last post, I finally plugged everything in and pretty much accomplished what I set out to do:
audio in experiment 1
Both tracks are Gibson bass → Z Vex Woolly Mammoth fuzz → compressor → Alembic F-2B preamp → LP audio in
I’m controlling the LP with Roland midi pedals, and the filter is being controlled by attenuated sample-and-hold from the CP-251 - the first track regular, the second smoothed out. You can hear the bass gradually come in on the first track for contrast.
One thing I would change would be to make the attack slower on the second track (the one with the smoothed out S&H). But that’s what experimentation is for, right? Actually, in the time between my first and second posts, I read the manual and learned a lot, especially about the envelope generators. I also finally grasped the difference between the sound the VCO makes vs. the sound the filter makes.
I’m not really doing anything that can’t be done with just the MF-101 and CP-251; in fact, running it through the LP is kind of messier. It was fun though! Any other suggestions for stuff to try?
quite nice! Very smooth sounding!
Thanks guys! I had a few more thoughts after I posted:
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It’s hard to play bass guitar and bass pedals at the same time! I often forget to stomp on the pedals. And it doesn’t help that I don’t get much time to play the bass these days - sometimes I want to go for a note but my eyes are on my feet or vice versa…
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If I could do it again (which I might), I would turn down the bass guitar gain just a smidgeon, so that there was a little more interaction between the bass and the LP.
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The Alembic preamp was key for getting adequate gain into the audio in. I left the tone controls pretty much flat, but turned on the high end boost.
I had a problem with my account, so I haven’t been able to post for over a week! But the kind folks at Moog sorted it out, so I’m back!
Anyway, during my forum absence, I realized a few things. I finally remembered where I saw the article about using the audio in feature on the LP - there’s an article here at Moog Space that talks about it, including how to do it without the LP’s oscillators, so that only the external signal is processed and heard. There’s some really great stuff in that article. So I felt kind of foolish, but then I realized that, with my bass being processed through the LP, it’s almost acting as a 3rd oscillator! So I changed the name and edited the ending just a teensy bit:
the 3rd oscillator
I haven’t come up with anything worthwhile since then, but it was a fun experiment.