Synesia PB7: audio dropout in Cubase fixed

http://dl.dropbox.com/u/4848144/synesthesia_PB7.zip

Bugs:
- Complete silence after preset change in Cubase -> fixed! (Thanks genieg for the help!)

Features:
- New presets added (using overdrive modes (synesthesia menu -> advanced options)).
- Existing presets changed to "Improved" overdrive mode (this results in a little bit more even distribution of overtones). You can change back to "Legacy" mode if you like, but "Improved" is better, trust me on this

Make sure you try out the softclipper input protection, sometimes it can produce a very nice fuzz when driven hard (and oversampled).

Synesthesia Experimental Build PB5 03

This is a new, experimental build of Synesthesia. The file name is different for now so you can test it without disturbing ongoing projects.

Download Link, Synesthesia PB5 03

If you click on the Synesthesia logo and then go into "advanced options" you will see a new list box called "Overdrive" where you can change how aggressively synesthesia generates overtones. This is different than the "drive" parameter and modifies the core behavior of the plugin regarding how many harmonics are generated. Synesthesia employs a strategy that suppresses certain harmonics in order to minimize unwanted artifacts (aliasing). Lately I have realized that this strategy is a bit on the conservative side, so now you can change it if you want.

- Legacy mode will bring you the same sound as previous versions and is a default on all presets (except the linear one)

- Improved is the new recommended default: this mode generates more harmonics without any perceivable aliasing. (Barely measurable on a 120 dB scale). Now this build is experimental for a reason: please check this mode, and indicate if you would be unhappy with the sound of the plugin if the default mode of operation would be changed to this on all presets. Personally I think there is a slight to moderate improvement compared to the legacy mode, but I am really interested about your opinion as well.

- Soft, Hard and Brutal modes are there for you to experiment with, they are not "foolproof" settings for every program with every configuration, but "if it sounds right..."

Light Showers (Electrified)

ioflow piano improvisations -> weldroidized -> exported to loops -> ioflow liveact using monome/rove

ioflow + weldroid: light showers (electrified) from ioflow on Vimeo.

Videos!

Slowly, I'm adding all my releases to youTube to get better "visibility" than what bandcamp or soundcloud offers. For now I am uploading 606 Reasons to Live, but sooner or later all of my tracks will be available (with some nice visuals and in 1080p HD format of course ).

606 Relasons to Live released @ tonAtom!

Weldroid's latest album, 606 Reasons to Live, sees the veteran bitcrusher moving into new sonic territory, while staying true to his unique electro-soundscape storytelling.

Weldroid blends dark, swirling, solemn choirs with airy glass flutes and trilling 8-bit arpeggios, with a touch of in-your-face circuit-bent sawtoothed growl. But in the midst of the harsher static-charged fuzz, serene tones arise: gorgeous, shimmering chords drifting through and wrapping around the lo-fi bubbles and retro blips'n'bloops.

The glitchfactory grooves of "Lady Battery" and "Nitrogen Fairy" are particularly lovely, fading into ambient chords layered over stuttered percussion and snatches of echo-delayed female voice.

606 Reasons to Live is a compelling, hopeful narrative; a pixellated glimpse of wondrous hidden beauty. An ethereal silhouette dancing in mist-shrouded woods; flickering plasma glows trace sensuous curves, revealing the interplay of circuitry and mystique.
(Nightmorph / Joshua Saddler)

Synesthesia PB4 released!

Update 02: Dukane A preset fixed!
Download Synesthesia PB4

What's new:

- Advanced options: configurable pre and post processing limiters (the former to protect Synesthesia from overload, the latter to keep output levels under control). Two algorithms are supported: a soft clipper for darker / more analogue-is sound and a brickwall limiter for transparency.



- Drive slider now controls both static and dynamic waveshaping (depending on the state of the DYN GRAPH switch)
- Red bracket around DRIVE slider indicates input overload (just decrease the drive until it goes away and you're set).



- Some bugfixes (don't ask, I don't remember any more :), but some little things has been spotted/corrected)

- Altec 1612b preamp presets
- Dukane Medallion 5 channel presets

Special thanks to Langston Masingale for the measurement data.

Experimental update for Synesthesia

Synesthesia PB3-10 download link

New stuff:
- Compensated trim control
- Optional limiter with visual feedback
- BAE 1074 presets
- Yamaha PM700 presets

Fixed:
- high input levels generating audio mayhem

So, thanks to Langston Masingale some new presets has been added (and some others will follow soon). The ones with the "-EQ" suffix also emulate the frequency characteristics (a kind of "rough" estimation). The "-A" version is the one closest to the measurements, and I have also added some variations as well (-B, -C, etc...).

Also I have realized that high input levels (sub-bass and the like) can result is some serious distortions (not the nice kind ). So now all presets include a limiter that keeps nasty stuff from happening. If you drive the limiter too hard you will get an indication (bright red bracket around the "Drive" slider).

Also, the "Drive" slider has a second function now, if DYN GRAPH is off, it applies an input trim (+/) dB that is compensated at the output. Practically this can be used to control the amount of saturation. When DYN GRAPH is enabled, the slider controls the amount of dynamic saturation (just like in previous versions).

Camp?

Hey folks, this will be (actually, already is) the place to download all your favorite Weldroid releases in 24 bit FLAC format... or actually in any kind of format you wish. Of course all the releases are still and will be available from the respective netlabels, this is more like a collection from where you can download the original uncompressed material (you can even pay for it if you think it makes sense).

All income from the music releases will be spent on equipment and alcoholic beverages, I can promise that. :)

Weldroid Bandcamp WHQ

(Income from VST licences are of course to help the development of future plugins, that is: equipment and alcoholic beverages :)

Synesthesia VST - pay what you like

With all of the bugs eradicated (or - to be more precise - no bugs has been found during some months of testing) it is time to lift the revision of Synesthesia VST to `A`. Actually PA1 is fine too - for the same reason ;-).

Synesthesia is available at the very price you think it is worth, just head to my Bandcamp page and get Synesthesia VST and I will be happy to send you your personalized license key file to the e-mail address you specify at purchase.

Please note that there is a minimum price set to EUR 5 to cover processing/overhead costs.

Righteous Overkill

Stranglehold and Attitude Indicator are now both available at my bandcamp site in up to 24 bit FLAC (lossless) format.

No minimum price specified, grab it for free if you like, or pay what you can if you want to support the just cause of ruthless bitcrushing and saving of innocent melodies :)

Also, if you represent a netlabel and would be interested in releasing a 4-6 track EP somewhere during Q2-Q3 2011 let me know!

Recent music heroes: Weldroid Attitude Indicator (Kahvi)

The following recension by Kert Semm was published at the Recent Music Heroes blog:

Recent music heroes: Weldroid Attitude Indicator (Kahvi)

"Aside every kind of obligatory nucleus-based angular metallic techno beat variations around here you can detect for krautrock-alike Moog-based blurbs in the vein of Tangerine Dream or its members` solo projects (Silicon Man Extraterrestrial), deliciously malicious sonic effects, in-deep-psychedelia-poking-around synth brooding or elemental cosmic layers to overlap and spice up the whole record. One of the best electronic albums of 2010 to date."

A flattering review and very interesting comparisons to say the least (not to mention the score of 9.6 and final recommendation).

Deviant me

CLick around HeRe

Actually, I have been a member since 2006, but haven't used my account much since then. So if you would like to get one of my EP covers in high res, or check my other 3d stuff, this is the place to go!

Synesthesia

This one was in the queue for some months now, so I thought it's time to share some info about it. As always :) the project started out to facilitate my own needs (for a flexible, CPU-light but still high quality saturation/distortion unit), but then it evolved way beyond my original expectations.

Synesthesia is a combined waveshaper / EQ / dynamics processor that is designed to be very light on the CPU, but sounds hi-fi enough to be put on the master buss without hesitation. A special combination of frequency-dependent harmonics generation and oversampling reduces aliasing way below audible levels, allowing smooth coloration of input material free of unwanted artifacts.

Synesthesia features highly flexible - per harmonic definition of distortion / waveshaping characteristics, opening up possibilities to emulate static distortion of many nonlinear devices. It is also possible to use it as a dynamics processor by setting up the dynamic waveshaper curve with respective attack and release time constants.

Some basic facts:
- VST 2.4 effect plugin
- Win32
- 2 ch in / 2 ch out
- All parameters subject to automation except for the distortion characteristics graphs
- Demo is fully functional but injects a burst of white noise every 120 seconds

Download link to revision PB7

(just unzip it to your vst plugins directory)

Download link to Quick-start manual
Download link to Quick-start manual (mirror)

Known limitations:
- no detailed manual (yet)

Roadmap (informational):
- A: all bugs fixed (check)
- B: linear-phase oversampling, RMS detection modes, more presets
- C: hysteresis-based detection, more presets

You can purchase a full license here. Price is `whatever think it is worth to you`, with a minimum set to EUR 5 to cover for overhead costs. You will also get Resurrect, a track of mine released at Soft Phase netlabel as a bonus gift ;-).

I will do my best to fix any errors as ASAP, but all potential customers are encouraged to try the plugin in demo mode first and go ahead with the purchase if - and only if - the demo seem to work without any issue in their environment.

The copy protection itself is based on a keyfile that needs to be placed where the .dll is installed and is tied to the user name alone. No re-authorization will ever be required and one license shall be valid for all future versions.

Forbidden Forest on the new Kahvi VA!

Forbidden Forest has been released as part of the new Kahvi Collective compilation called Secret Games!

Lots of great tracks from uber-talented artists (well and lesser known) a great honor to take part in this massive 1.5 hour "festival of music". Highly recommended!

Splines EP released on Soft Phase netlabel!

“Hungarian musician Weldroid, known for his bionic, bitcrushing releases on Kahvi, debuts on Soft Phase with a new EP. “Splines” is the tale of a mechanical man in search of his maker.

While Weldroid retains his signature robotic elements — pounding electronic beats, glittering circuitry, bone-deep bass, growling horn voices backed by minor ambient drones — there’s a warmer, human side to this album. An underlying natural pulse, the heartbeat of a world in need of saving. The power of hope and steadfast resolve. A lonely android wandering through vast, forgotten caverns, through luminescent pools of coolant, assaulted by chaotic code fragments, blasted by crystal-edged melodies and chilled, stuttering data streams.

Weldroid takes us on a journey through static-filled wastelands, tracking the stumbling footsteps of the mechanical man as he braves windblown grit and harsh sine waves. Glitched rhythms and plastic melodies are his only companions. A burnished bronze city gleams in the distance, at its rusted heart is the promise of restoration. The ancient machinery of “Splines” still throbs and sizzles with purpose, yearning to be awakened.” — Joshua Saddler

Don't open the box

Don't open the box by weldroid

Actually, I quite like this one. One-by one I started adding some selected tracks to soundcloud, and so far it has been an interesting ride. Listens from Japan, New Zealand, South Africa and Greece, hey!

Some more knobs!

New plugin, new GUI!

Stockholm

So, I have moved to Stockholm for some months, don't know if I will have much time for music or DSP, but hopefully things will eventually settle and I can finish the EP in progress (I have the skeleton of the final track, I just need to put it together). Another complication: lately I have been looking at FL Studio and IL's various plugins a lot, feels very fresh and exciting after years of Ableton live, so I decided to "switch" or - at least - to try to concentrate on that platform a bit. Of course my productivity suffers a bit, but well, no pain - no gain :-)

Attitude Indicator wallpaper

Now this release has been in the queue for quite some time, and so I had the time to play around with some of the material rendered for the track images. So if you feel like dressing up your desktop in AI colors there is a 1680 x 1050 sized wallpaper for you over here.