Roland SVC-350 11 Band Analog Vocoder Demo zibbybone 2026-09-24 | Roland SVC-350 11 Band Analog Vocoder Demo
Roland SP-555 D-Beam Fun zibbybone 2024-02-10 | Before this machine was picked up by its new owner, I thought I'd give it a little spin.
Pentaphonic BassStstion 2 zibbybone 2024-01-27 | At one of the synth meets I host each year, we asked anyone with a BS2 to bring theirs so we could do this experiment.
Processing External Audio Through Roland SH-5s VCA triggered by LFO zibbybone 2022-05-01 | Running a drum pattern from a Roland TR-8S into the SH-5's external input then having the SH-5's VCA triggered by the SH-5 LFO2. Lastly, I also modulate the VCF as well.
Happy 909 Day! 2020 zibbybone 2020-09-10 | Thought I'd make a quick (and sloppy) video for 909 day. Am I the only one that uses the 909's External Instrument Mode? I'm using that to play a bass line on the Jupiter 6. 909's trigger out is driving the SH-101's arpeggiator. Yeah, I need to get those pots cleaned on the 909.Hope to see y'all soon!
Ultimate Support HyperMount QR on Apex Stand Issue zibbybone 2020-02-10 | The HyperMount seems to wobble a bit when mounted on the Apex Stand. Anyone have this issue and know of a solution?
Behringer Neutron & DSI OB-6 noodle zibbybone 2018-10-06 | I finally got a chance to play with my Neutron and made a simple patch with its LFO modulating the wave shape of OSC2. Added in some moody poly synth with the OB6. The Neutron is being played via MIDI by my Roland JD-Xi using one of its preprogrammed arpeggiator sequences.
Nord Drum 2 as Polyphonic Synth Module zibbybone 2018-09-08 | Upon arriving to KnobCon 7, my friend Winston showed me that he was able to turn the ND2 into a polysynth by using a MIDIBro in the data flow. Each voice of the ND2 is on their own MIDI channel and the MIDIBro merges them together.So I went back to my room and grabbed my MiniBrute to use as a MIDI keyboard controller and decided to do a little improve while he tweaked the ND2's parameters via his Digitakt.
Having Fun with Digitone’s FM Synthesizer zibbybone 2018-07-13 | I just received my new Elektron Digitone yesterday and I’ve been enjoying the synth engine so much, I haven’t even learned to program patterns. I love how there’s a “Harmonics” feature that you can change the operators’ waveform from a basic sine wave to something more complex and rich in harmonics. You can even use an LFO to sweep the waveform creating quasi wavetable like timbres. I chose algorithm 2 which has 2 audible operators, each with a modulator and you can mix between the 2. The “Y” part has instant attack and “X” fades in.
Roland System 8 V1.20 FM Oscillators zibbybone 2018-06-29 | Roland just released a new upgrade to the System8 synthesizer adding 2 set of oscillator variants. Variation 3 adds six 2 operator choices and Variation 4 add six 5 operator choices. To demonstrate these new features, I have an arpeggiator running while I select the different FM choices while also adjusting the AMP release time which not only affects the amplitude of the overall sound, but modulates the oscillator’s “color”. You are hearing a single oscillator (OSC2 is muted) and a little bit of the Sys8’s built-in reverb. I accidentally hit one of the program buttons and changed the patch just before getting to Var4, FM5 Type F. I didn't feel like re-shooting the video. My oligopolies.
Oberheim OB-8 LFO Keyboard Tracking Improv zibbybone 2018-06-07 | I hadn't played with my OB-8 in a while and came up with this sound while tinkering around. This is straight out of the OB-8 with no external FX.
DSI OB-6 Variable State Filter Demonstration zibbybone 2018-03-10 | With the constant "should I buy a Prophet 6 or OB-6?" posts in synth-related FaceBook groups, I thought I'd make this video to show what sold me on the OB-6. Both the P6 & OB6 are fine machines and I already own vintage OB-X, OB-Xa and OB-8 synths, the OB-6's variable state filter is not available on any other analog polysynth.
Roland TR-727 Factory Demo zibbybone 2017-07-16 | Load the factory patterns and track by holding TRACK and PATTERN A buttons while powering on unit.
Roland TR-707 Factory Demo zibbybone 2017-07-16 | Load the factory patterns and track by holding down TRACK and PATTERN A buttons while powering on unit.
Gnarly Akai AX60 VCO modulation to VCF zibbybone 2017-06-10 | The underrated Akai AX60 is one of the few polysynths that allow you to modulate the VCF with the VCO. The AX60 is in UNISON mode with its arpeggiator triggered by Kawai R-100 drum machine. Filmed with iPhone 6s using Roland Go:Mixer interface.
Roland TR-808 triggering Juno 60, SH-101 & SCI ProOne zibbybone 2017-05-28 | Yesterday, someone on a FB Synth group asked to see an 808 using all three trigger outs, so I obliged with a quick, but sloppy video. Since I still had the requested gear set up, I thought I'd make a more interesting video for public viewing. Yeah, the Stranger Things theme has been covered to death, so I thought I'd change it up a bit. All instruments are dry except the SH-101 running through Strymon BigSky's "Chorale" reverb.Filmed live, straight to iPhone via Roland GO:Mixer
Oberheim TVS-1 Final Jam zibbybone 2017-04-21 | I sold my Oberheim Two Voice last week and decided to give it one last quick jam before sending it off to its new owner. I'm using the Arturia KeyStep to sequence the SEM on the right and playing the left SEM from the keyboard. The audio out is then run into the Roland Fantom X6 to use its built-in FX (delay, in this instance).
ARP Quadra - 1st Improv zibbybone 2017-04-17 | I just got this Quadra last week and haven't had time to dig into it until today. This is an interesting electronic instrument comprised of 4 parts: Bass, Strings, (paraphonic) PolySynth and (mono) Lead Synth.
Roland TR-606 through Aira Bitrazer & Demora FX modulated by Moog CP-251 zibbybone 2016-12-24 | Further experimentation led to this video. Here we have the 606 running through two effect units. The 606's Low Tom trigger out is triggering the Bitrazer's Bypass and the 606's High Tom is triggering the Demora's Bypass giving delay effect on the back beats. Then I run the Moog's LFO into various control voltage inputs on the effect units to add to the mayhem. Oh, and after the 5 minute mark, there's a bonus: my 9 year-old was messing with this rig while I was tearing things down and I liked something he did, so I wired everything back up and tweaked it.
Roland TR-707 through Aira Scooper modulated by Korg SQ-1 zibbybone 2016-12-23 | Running the 707 into the Scooper and messing with the Scatter, Pitch Shifter and Filter using the SQ-1 step sequencer which is sync'd using the trigger out from the 707.
Empress System 8 zibbybone 2016-11-05 | I got a couple of new toys yesterday: Empress Reverb and Roland System 8. Here's a little improv/experiment running my Yamaha CP-70 electric grand through the Empress' "Ghost" mode with arpeggio accompaniment from the Roland System 8.More videos of both to follow, so stay tuned whether you like this video or not ;)
Akai Tom Cat First Tweak zibbybone 2016-11-04 | Musician's Friend offered the Akai Tom Cat for $100 as their "Stupid Deal of the Day" the other day. I figured "why not" and it didn't disappoint. The kick is pretty aggressive. Some of the knobs don't seem to have any effect, though I haven't RTFM yet. It would have been nice to have individual outs, but it's a solidly built machine. Super slim.
Roland TR-909 Factory Song zibbybone 2016-09-09 | If you hold "Track 1" and "Pattern 1" buttons while switching on the TR-909, the factory patterns and song will load into the drum machine. Be sure to back up your own patterns and songs before this process since it will clear the memory.
Drum Machine Sound Test - LinnDrum vs DMX vs DrumTraks zibbybone 2016-05-10 | I don't have factory toms in my LinnDrum or DMX, so I didn't bother doing a comparison. I tuned all of the DrumTraks sounds to either 7 or 8 (on scale of 1-15) to match as close as possible to the other 2 machines. I tried to center-tune the DMX's sounds as much as possible. I was a bit rushed in the making, so I didn't bother with trying to match volume levels.
JL Cooper Sound Chest II Digital Drum Module zibbybone 2016-04-30 | Here's a quick demonstration of the rare JL Cooper Sound Chest II digital drum module. It comes with with its own EPROMs of standard drum kit sounds and is supposed to be able to use EPROMs from Linn, Oberheim and Simmons drum machines and modules. Sounds can be triggered either by MIDI or drum pads via trigger inputs. In this video, I'm using a Roland Fantom X6's rhythm programmer to trigger the SC2's sounds via MIDI. Front panel controls allow you to adjust volume, pitch, tuning via dynamics, filter via dynamics and decay.
Lexicon Vortex Demo zibbybone 2016-02-09 | This is mainly a functionality demo for this recently sold effect unit. The Vortex allows the user to morph between two multi-effect settings with a push of a button or foot switch. In this demo, I run a Kawai R-50e drum machine through the unit and switch through the different effect modes. Towards the end of the video, I do some basic editing of some of the effects' parameters.Recorded using Zoom Q4 video recorder with direct audio input.
Chill Music Ideas with Roland Jupiter 6 through Boss TE-2 Tera Echo Pedal zibbybone 2016-01-25 | First we have a new music idea using a triangle waveform "bell-pad" sound from the Jupiter 6 running through the new Boss TE-2 Tera Echo pedal with Elektron SPS-1 UW Machine Drum providing the rhythm. After that is a smooth jazz chord progression I came up with in the late 90s while I adjust the speed of the LFO that modulates the VCA and PWM. Bass provided by Moog Taurus 3 synthesizer pedals.
Moog Sub37 through MF-108M ClusterFlux zibbybone 2016-01-05 | A fellow member of the "Synthesizer Freaks" FaceBook page was wondering what a Moog FreqBox would sound like through a ClusterFlux. My FreqBox is currently missing, so I asked if a Sub37 would be OK and replied as long as it is only a single oscillator. So I filmed an arpeggiated single oscillator though the 108M, but that actually comes in at 1:35 in this video. I thought it'd be more fun to start the video off with a fat bass line being chorused and mangled.Sorry about the video being out of focus. I used my ZoomQ3HD to make the video since it has 3.5mm stereo line input, but doesn't have any kind of focus and doesn't do well with subjects up-close.
Akai XR10 16 Bit PCM Drum Machine Demo Song and Preset Kits zibbybone 2015-12-01 | Released in the late 80s, the XR10 was Akai's first drum machine chock full of processed 80s dance goodness. Enjoy!
Fun with Roland V Synth Presets zibbybone 2015-11-21 | I picked up one of these bad boys the other day and have been having fun with a few of the factory presets. I can't wait to dig into the machine and create my own sounds - with the touch screen, it doesn't seem like it will be too difficult.
Cybernet zibbybone 2015-11-14 | Before the Internet became popular, there were BBSs (Bulletin Board Systems). Back in 1992, one of my friends created his own BBS with over 12 phone lines so that over a dozen people could connect at once. With my Roland W-30 digital sampler, SVC-350 Vocoder and CDs (Information Society, Queen, Deborah Sasson w/ MCL) and my Tascam 246 4 track, we created this audio simulation of what it would be like to log in, check email and news boards and chatting with other users. My friend posted fliers with a phone number to call to hear this recording and more information on how to subscribe.
MicroBrute Dark Ambient & Boss Space Echo Self-Oscillation zibbybone 2015-08-25 | A fellow VSE'r was asking how to get those spacious ambient sounds from his MicroBrute, delay and reverb. Instead of jumping on my trusty Strymon pedals (the best for big ambient sounds), I decided to use a couple of cheaper FX units: a Boss RE-20 Space Echo (about $150 used) and my first reverb unit from the 80s: the Alesis MicroVerb II (less than $100 used).Not trying to do much more than a simple tutorial here, one of the key things is to set long delay times on your echo pedal and "Hall" setting with 100% wet sound on your reverb.The 2nd part of the video is just me messing with the echo time and intensity of the Space Echo running through the 100% wet reverb.Enjoy!
Roland JD-XA Analog Drums zibbybone 2015-07-26 | Just like its older brother, the JD-800, the JD-XA does not have any on-board drum sounds (the JD-Xi has over 400 drum samples). So here's a quick video making simple drum sounds from noise and/or resonant low pass filter with each of the JDXA's four analog voices.
Roland JD-XA Heaven zibbybone 2015-07-24 | "Heaven" is the first preset on the JD-XA. It's a great sounding patch that combines 4 voice poly-stacked analog parts along with a couple of digital parts. You can really hear the Fairlight "ARR" digital sample as aftertouch is applied. Looks like I might need a sturdier stand (it's a laptop stand that suited well for the SH-01 Gaia that used to sit there). I little bit of Yamaha CP-70 electric grand piano through Eventide Space reverb pedal mixed in. More videos to come!
Matrix 12 Improvs through Eventide Space zibbybone 2015-07-09 | Last week, someone asked about purchasing my Matrix 12. So I got it off the top tier to take photos. While I had it down, I thought I'd dig into some of its unique programming ability (EGs controlling LFO speed and such). You'll probably want to use headphones on this video - I've had some complaints about clipping in other vidz, so the audio is a little lower. I might make another video before putting it back on the rack - so much easier to program when it's down right in front of you. Enjoy!
BeatStep Pro Demonstration at Arturia Clinic in Dallas 5/26/15 zibbybone 2015-05-28 | On May 26, Arturia's US sales rep, Sean Weitzmann, put on a clinic demonstrating the BeatStep Pro, V Collection and Keylab 88 hosted by Audio DAWg in Irving, TX. Of all the items presented at Winter NAMM 2015, the BeatStep Pro is what I'm most excited about. This is a long overview (20+ minutes), with low audio and not-the-greatest video, but if you're interested in the BSP and not able to attend any of the clinics, this will be worth watching. The BSP is leaps and bounds beyond the original BeatStep. MIDI IN & OUT, 2 sets of CV/Gate outs, 8 trigger outs, 2 analog clocks, USB - the BSP has everything covered.
Roland System 1M Ver. 1.20 Update Additional Waveforms zibbybone 2015-05-22 | One of the things that sold me on buying the Sys1M was the 1.20 update for the Sys1 keyboard synth with its additional waveforms. I was a bit disappointed when I received the Sys1M and learned the 1.20 update for the Sys1 keyboard was not compatible with the module. Fortunately, Roland released the update only 2 weeks after the module became available. Version 1.20 also expands the patch memory from 8 patches to 64 (8 banks of 8 patch slots). So here are more goodies you get to enjoy with the System 1M!
Roland System 1M Audio External Audio Input Demo zibbybone 2015-05-22 | This was WAY more complicated than what I wanted it to be. I was thinking it'd be cool to run a drum machine through the Sys1M's filter and FX. The Sys1M does not have an envelope follower, so it has to be triggered. I run 16th note trigger pulses from the 606 to the 101's external sync. The 101's CV&Gate are run into the Sys1M to trigger the unit and send CV to the filter cutoff. Added a little Jupe 4 through Strymon BigSky and some SH-2 bass.
Roland System 1M and System 100M together zibbybone 2015-05-19 | This video is mostly about controlling an external LFO via keyboard CV and have it modulate filter, amp and pulse width. The first clip is 100M's LFO modulating 1M's filter. 2nd clip showcases the 100M's VCO through the 1M's filter. Both of these clips also feature TR-8 rhythms and sequencing from the Arturia MicroBrute. Last clip demonstrates external LFO from 100M modulating the 1M's amplifier section.
First Day with Roland System-1M zibbybone 2015-05-13 | Just received the new module today and have yet to fully explore its capabilities. Most of this video is the Arturia MicroBrute running though the System 1M's filter and FX. The Roland TR-8 is supplying the beat and master clock MIDI OUT to the MicroBrute's MIDI IN. The MicroBrute's sequencer is triggering both its own synth and the System 1M via CV/Gate OUTs. The MicroBrute's LFO (synced to MIDI) CV out it running into the Sys1M's Filter LFO Input. Audio from the Sys1M is fed into the TR-8's external audio input and the headphone out is running right into the Canon T3i's microphone input (hence the distortion in a few spots). Stay tuned for more videos to come.
Roland JD-Xi Summer Madness Ad Lib zibbybone 2015-04-14 | Not meant to be a cover. Just a quick demonstration of how the JD-Xi can be used for something other than the EDM crowd it's being marketed towards. As you can see, building the groove is very easy - never having to stop the sequencer. I used the SH-01 Gaia to program the electric piano part (got to have full size keys for playing chords with notes so close together). Rest of the groove programmed with the JX's minikeys. Then, I ad lib some lead with the Gaia. Sorry about the flubbed notes - not a key I'm used to improving on. Audio from JD-Xi was routed into the Gaia's external input, then the mixed output from the Gaia ran straight into the Zoom Q3HD camera.
Roland JD-Xi Vocoder Demonstration zibbybone 2015-04-06 | If you can't abide the mini keys, you'll be glad to know you can program patterns with external controller. I'm using a Roland Fantom X6 to play the JD-Xi via MIDI.One weird/bad thing about using the vocoder/autotune - you lose the analog synth when vocoder/autotune is engaged.
Roland JD-Xi Filter Sweeps zibbybone 2015-04-06 | The JD-Xi's sequencer records your knob movements. Here is demonstrate a simple 4 bar filter sweep with a little PPG Wave 2.2 improving on top.
Roland JD-Xi Voice Transform 8 Year Old zibbybone 2015-04-06 | Who needs a VT-3? The JD-Xi has plenty of voice transforming power plus MORE effects!
Using a Step Sequencer to Modulate a Synths Filter zibbybone 2015-02-23 | I created a rhythmic pattern on the MFB Urzwerg Pro sequencer which is modulating the Roland Juno 60's filter via its External VCF Control jack on the back. A Roland SBX-10 Sync Box is providing the master clock which is feeding a DIN Sync 24 lead to the TR-808 and MIDI clock to the Urzwerg. There is a constant stream of sixteenth note programmed on the 808's Accent and its trigger out is feeding the sync input on the SH-101 (off camera) which is providing the arpeggiated bass line. The SH-101 is fed through a EHX Talking Machine which I am also controlling its formant filter with an EV-5 expression pedal. The Juno 60 is being processed by an Eventide Space reverb pedal.Filmed with Zoom Q3HD camera with direct audio running out from Tascam MM-1 headphone output.
