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Topic: PSG Ambient Pads |
Jim Fogarty
From:
Phila, Pa, USA
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Posted 14 Jul 2017 12:24 am |
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Experimenting with my Stage One and a long delay to create ambient pads and textures. I gig and record a lot with singer/songwriters, and this kind of thing can fit well over a moody song, in place of a synth or strings. Cool for soundtrack work, as well.
Just getting my feet wet.......but I dig how orchestral the steel can be, with multiple shifting voices and infinite control over the pitch (you know, theoretically!! LOL)
https://youtu.be/V4QuqhIt_UM |
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Chris Walke
From:
St Charles, IL
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Posted 18 Jul 2017 7:37 am
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Yes. I play with a few local singer-songwriters, and they are often looking for the color & texture of the psg, rather than flashy licks. Which is good. For me. So padding the chords is a big part of my playing.
I don't use delay, but I like a reverb with a pre-delay, sometimes with a long tail. And a phase pedal always gives a nice effect when the moment's right.
A buddy of mine lent me is Strymon Blue Sky pedal. There are some amazing presets in that box. I think you'd find them appealing....but the pricing tag...maybe not so appealing. |
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Jon Light
From:
Saugerties, NY
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Posted 18 Jul 2017 8:12 am
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| Strymon popped into my head too. My El Capistan can go deep into other worldly places. It rarely pertains to stuff I do but it astonishes me where-all it can take you. |
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James Flaherty
From:
California, USA
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Posted 18 Jul 2017 8:18 am
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Hi folks,
I'm just curious. What are ambient pads? Thanks. |
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Chris Walke
From:
St Charles, IL
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Posted 18 Jul 2017 9:36 am
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| James Flaherty wrote: |
Hi folks,
I'm just curious. What are ambient pads? Thanks. |
When I think "ambient pads" I think lush chords, volume swells rather than pick attacks, ethereal, sometimes ghostly sound. The video shows illustrates the idea quite well. |
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Jim Fogarty
From:
Phila, Pa, USA
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Posted 18 Jul 2017 6:52 pm
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| Jon Light wrote: |
| Strymon popped into my head too. My El Capistan can go deep into other worldly places. It rarely pertains to stuff I do but it astonishes me where-all it can take you. |
I'm using a Digitech DL-8 on the video (which has some decent lo-fi sounds), because it was handy, but I'm in absolute LOVE with my El Capistan. I have it on my live board, and I get so much use out of it, there are times I consider buying another. Lots of delays sound good.......but the Strymon FEELS great under your fingers, like an old Echoplex. Their Lex leslie sim is outstanding, too.
Anyway. I'm glad someone commented this. I thought maybe it was so awful that everyone was too embarrassed to say anything. I know it ain't honky-tonk, but....... |
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Stephen Rethmeier
From:
Nashville TN
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Posted 20 Jul 2017 5:46 am
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| Jon Light wrote: |
| Strymon popped into my head too. My El Capistan can go deep into other worldly places. It rarely pertains to stuff I do but it astonishes me where-all it can take you. |
I play in churches a lot and ambient sounds work well for that. I've been on a bit of a quest to find a pedal that could work. The Strymon Big Sky demos seemed really cool, but that pedal is over $400 used. I recently got a Strymon Dig (dual digital delay) to try and that might do what I need. I'm using it this Sunday, so I'll see.
_________________
Williams S12 Ext. E9 keyless, Williams S12 Ext. E9 keyed, Telonics TCA 500C, Quilter Steelaire, Magic Fender clone, 1937 Model 59 Rick 6, 1940 Epiphone 7-string Zephyr, Oahu 6, 8+/- regular guitars, Kawai baby grand, two cats... |
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Jon Light
From:
Saugerties, NY
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Posted 20 Jul 2017 5:58 am
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| Jim Fogarty wrote: |
| ......but the Strymon FEELS great under your fingers....... |
One of my first reactions was that it simply SOUNDS good, sonically, just as a delay, even if one is not interested in echoplexy repeats.
Lately my only needs are a simple delay but I can't bring myself to sell the El Cap because of some of the sound palette stuff I've found on it. The day after I sold it would be the day someone brought me a project for which it would be perfect.
I even found Mellotron-y vibes in there. |
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Bob Hoffnar
From:
Austin, Tx
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Posted 20 Jul 2017 6:20 am
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I was into the strymon stuff until I started hearing the algorithms. I went back to analog. The Strymon El Cap sounds fantastic but you can't dig into it. It reacts in programmed way. The tape sound is just an overlaid sample of noise on top of a digital signal. Once I was able to predict when it would add a little blurp sound to the signal I just couldn't live with it. Also if you like screwing around with oscillations the digital stuff is never quite right.
I now use a Walrus Audio Belwether delay.
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Bob |
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Peter Freiberger
From:
California, USA
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Posted 20 Jul 2017 8:53 am
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Chas Smith does this sort of thing great. I'm not sure how it works for "Cheatin' Heart", but here's a clip from the show we did with the Man Of Steel players a few years ago.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s4IUQgU0sA4 |
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Joe Ribaudo
From:
New Jersey, USA
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Posted 20 Jul 2017 11:27 am
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| James Flaherty wrote: |
Hi folks,
I'm just curious. What are ambient pads? Thanks. |
I believe the term "pads" originated with polyphonic synthesizers. One tone plays off another to create fat, undulating "atmospheres." It's a convenient way to group synth presets that sound great for lush, moving chords. Calling a pad "Ambient" usually means its purpose is more atmospheric than melodic.
But I'm sure that can be argued upside down and backwards.
_________________
Sho~Bud Super Pro, Fender Concert, NV400, Orange, (LP's, Tele's, Gretsch, Burns, etc...) |
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James Flaherty
From:
California, USA
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Posted 20 Jul 2017 12:19 pm
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| Thanks Joe, now I get it. |
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James Kerr
From:
Scotland, UK
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Posted 20 Jul 2017 2:08 pm
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I have been messing around with this kind of stuff for quite a while now, but where I start from and end up are probably different from others. I don't own any expensive Pedals like those mentioned, all the effects I use are contained in the program I use for recording, Adobe Audition 3, completely Software, no Hardware. Anyone wanting to play out will need a huge Pedal Board & Bank Account.
Also, rather than endlessly playing sounds that go nowhere, I like to assemble mine into a thing you can follow and listen to, a structure if you like. I even make special Instruments just for the Effect, as you will see if you watch the Videos.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rsPQxc59ric
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yL_gjP_mjGM
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YlEbmQ6GrwI
Hope those who watch enjoy.
James. |
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David Mason
From:
Cambridge, MD, USA
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Posted 20 Jul 2017 2:39 pm
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| Quote: |
| The tape sound is just an overlaid sample of noise on top of a digital signal. |
  
For entirely practical reasons (too many instruments, too few heavily-muscled groupies) I have been a fan/user/abuser of modelers for a long time. And while I can trick Line 6, Fender Fuse etc. into behaving adequately, the "architecture" of Digitechs most closely models my own brain. But one issue a lot of makers have is that when they "improve" a product, it may just be hanging more tinsil off the droopy ol' pine tree. Like... the native tone of a Boss RC20XL looper is the epitome of cheap 1960s transistor radio "tone", feeding it an already-processed signal was the only hope. But with the new improved bell-zen-whistles RC50, you can sound that bad eight times over! For two HOURS! Yay.
So, Digitech recently did a ground-up re-engineering from the RP_50 series, the RP155 to RP1000 and the rack 2101 model. To the new RP360 et alia, and it really does do some things very well. But... but... on a large number of amp models, in search for absolute "authenticity"  I guess, they carefully ADDED hums, buzzes, there's overdrive sure but there's also that nasty, barfing-transformer sound that tube amps can make as they're rounding third base heading towards bursting into flames and blowing your whole HOUSE'S main breaker. Somebody, please buy that engineering dept. a matched set of rose-colored Lennon spectacles....  |
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Jim Fogarty
From:
Phila, Pa, USA
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Posted 20 Jul 2017 6:53 pm
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| Bob Hoffnar wrote: |
| I Also if you like screwing around with oscillations the digital stuff is never quite right.. |
Beg to differ. I've owned multiple real-deal Echoplex's over the years, and I find the El Capistan reacts EXACTLY like a 'plex.
Not steel (sorry)), but check out the last 2 minutes or so where I get the El Cap into self-oscillation.
https://www.facebook.com/len.allen.9/videos/10210813893408660/ |
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Godfrey Arthur
From:
3rd Rock
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Posted 21 Jul 2017 1:07 pm
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I like this type playing. Reminds me of Vangelis and taking synthesizer in college.
The fact that steel is able to portamento like a synthesizer lends itself to pads.
Like shoegaze, hypnotic.
_________________
ShoBud The Pro 1
YES it's my REAL NAME!
Ezekiel 33:7 |
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Steve Hinson
From:
Hendersonville Tn USA
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