Post by Owen from Final Fantasy on May 4, 2011 6:34:12 GMT -5
I get asked a lot about what synthesizers and effects processors I use, so I thought I'd go into a little detail about those things, with comments on 'the process'.
It is important to me to keep the process as transparent as possible, thus this post. I don't get discounts from any of these manufacturers, by the by.
VIOLIN
As mentioned on another thread, I use an L R Baggs pickup. I recommend it for any violinist. I would also recommend the David Gage and Barcus Berry pickups. I recommend the David Gage Realist for those of you considering an acoustic-electric violin. I use and recommend Luis & Clark carbon-fibre instruments, especially their violas, for inexpensive high quality acoustic sound-- although they are not wood instruments and play entirely differently-- and they are perhaps too resonant for amplified performance.
It is not 100% necessary that a violinist use a good pre-amp, but it is good to have *something* there to buffer the high impedance signal that comes off a piezo pickup like the L R Baggs. Some good examples are non-true bypass guitar pedals (preferably ones without digital conversion), such as the Ibanez analog delay, the AD-9, which I use and recommend to any violinist, it's a very versatile pedal. I'd also recommend the L R Baggs Parametric DI.
When I do my looping shows, I use a Rane AP-13 preamp. These things are relatively inexpensive but hard to find. It is a rack unit, and I don't recommend anybody make the move to rack gear unless it is very, very necessary. I have tried many other racked preamps, and they all have their good and bad points. I would not recommend spending more than $300-$500 on a preamp.
My effects unit is the expensive but very programmable Axe-FX. Using the Axe-FX I've been able to digitally re-create several analog synth sounds, which use my violin as the source sound. Kick and snare, for example. My sound card is an Apogee Ensemble. I use the Apogee for analog-to-digital conversion and connect to the Axe-FX with SPDIF.
PEDALS
Prior to doing the rack unit thing-- and again, I wouldn't recommend anybody moving into the world of rack gear unless it's absolutely necessary-- I played with a huge number of guitar effects pedals.
For "distorted" violin, there is only one pedal I like, the Z.Vex Box of Rock. I give them as gifts.
For delay-- which is the best thing for a violin-- I recommend the aforementioned AD9, the old and rare Boss DM-2, and the Analogman delay series.
For pitchshifting, I first and foremost recommend the Eventide Pitchfactor. Also good is the Boss PS-3. I wouldn't recommend anything else.
I don't recommend many digital reverbs, or any, but I have used the Boss RV-3 in the past, which is a much nicer sound than the current RV-5. I haven't used it but I bet the Eventide pedal is very expensive and very nice sounding.
I don't want to shit-talk any manufacturers with this post. There are many people who swear by Moogerfooger and Electroharmonix products. But I would advise any violinists looking for effects that you can accomplish pretty much anything with a good delay, the Box of Rock and the Pitchfactor.
MICS
Always a work-in-progress, micing up my tinny Czech violin and my reedy voice.
For my voice, I used a AKG 414 on Has A Good Home, which was a mistake. I used a SoundElux 251 on He Poos Clouds, which was nice, but is kind of noisy. I used a Shure SM7 on the EPs, which I like and still would use. I mostly used the SM7 and a Neumann U87 for my voice on Heartland, but then discovered the Sennheiser 431, which I use now both live and in studio.
For my violin, the best combination I've found is a Coles 4038 up close and a SoundElux 251 (or equivalent) at 1.5 meters away. But those mics are, like, nice mics. Expensive. An AKG 414 in a nice sounding room is just as good.
SYNTHS
I could type forever here. I'll instead just list my top picks. These factor in price as a consideration.
Polyphonic
1. Nord Modular G2
2. Dave Smith Poly Evolver
3. Roland Juno Alpha
4. Moog Opus-3
Monophonic
1. Dave Smith MoPho
2. Moog Source
3. Minimoog Voyager
Note: I do own an ARP 2600 and love it, but it's more of a museum piece than an actual tool.
If you're looking for a digital piano, and weight is not an issue, I'd recommend trying to track down a Yamaha P-120 (and no other P-XXX model) before anything else. If weight is an issue, but you don't need weighted keys, I'd recommend a Nord Wave.
That's all for now.
It is important to me to keep the process as transparent as possible, thus this post. I don't get discounts from any of these manufacturers, by the by.
VIOLIN
As mentioned on another thread, I use an L R Baggs pickup. I recommend it for any violinist. I would also recommend the David Gage and Barcus Berry pickups. I recommend the David Gage Realist for those of you considering an acoustic-electric violin. I use and recommend Luis & Clark carbon-fibre instruments, especially their violas, for inexpensive high quality acoustic sound-- although they are not wood instruments and play entirely differently-- and they are perhaps too resonant for amplified performance.
It is not 100% necessary that a violinist use a good pre-amp, but it is good to have *something* there to buffer the high impedance signal that comes off a piezo pickup like the L R Baggs. Some good examples are non-true bypass guitar pedals (preferably ones without digital conversion), such as the Ibanez analog delay, the AD-9, which I use and recommend to any violinist, it's a very versatile pedal. I'd also recommend the L R Baggs Parametric DI.
When I do my looping shows, I use a Rane AP-13 preamp. These things are relatively inexpensive but hard to find. It is a rack unit, and I don't recommend anybody make the move to rack gear unless it is very, very necessary. I have tried many other racked preamps, and they all have their good and bad points. I would not recommend spending more than $300-$500 on a preamp.
My effects unit is the expensive but very programmable Axe-FX. Using the Axe-FX I've been able to digitally re-create several analog synth sounds, which use my violin as the source sound. Kick and snare, for example. My sound card is an Apogee Ensemble. I use the Apogee for analog-to-digital conversion and connect to the Axe-FX with SPDIF.
PEDALS
Prior to doing the rack unit thing-- and again, I wouldn't recommend anybody moving into the world of rack gear unless it's absolutely necessary-- I played with a huge number of guitar effects pedals.
For "distorted" violin, there is only one pedal I like, the Z.Vex Box of Rock. I give them as gifts.
For delay-- which is the best thing for a violin-- I recommend the aforementioned AD9, the old and rare Boss DM-2, and the Analogman delay series.
For pitchshifting, I first and foremost recommend the Eventide Pitchfactor. Also good is the Boss PS-3. I wouldn't recommend anything else.
I don't recommend many digital reverbs, or any, but I have used the Boss RV-3 in the past, which is a much nicer sound than the current RV-5. I haven't used it but I bet the Eventide pedal is very expensive and very nice sounding.
I don't want to shit-talk any manufacturers with this post. There are many people who swear by Moogerfooger and Electroharmonix products. But I would advise any violinists looking for effects that you can accomplish pretty much anything with a good delay, the Box of Rock and the Pitchfactor.
MICS
Always a work-in-progress, micing up my tinny Czech violin and my reedy voice.
For my voice, I used a AKG 414 on Has A Good Home, which was a mistake. I used a SoundElux 251 on He Poos Clouds, which was nice, but is kind of noisy. I used a Shure SM7 on the EPs, which I like and still would use. I mostly used the SM7 and a Neumann U87 for my voice on Heartland, but then discovered the Sennheiser 431, which I use now both live and in studio.
For my violin, the best combination I've found is a Coles 4038 up close and a SoundElux 251 (or equivalent) at 1.5 meters away. But those mics are, like, nice mics. Expensive. An AKG 414 in a nice sounding room is just as good.
SYNTHS
I could type forever here. I'll instead just list my top picks. These factor in price as a consideration.
Polyphonic
1. Nord Modular G2
2. Dave Smith Poly Evolver
3. Roland Juno Alpha
4. Moog Opus-3
Monophonic
1. Dave Smith MoPho
2. Moog Source
3. Minimoog Voyager
Note: I do own an ARP 2600 and love it, but it's more of a museum piece than an actual tool.
If you're looking for a digital piano, and weight is not an issue, I'd recommend trying to track down a Yamaha P-120 (and no other P-XXX model) before anything else. If weight is an issue, but you don't need weighted keys, I'd recommend a Nord Wave.
That's all for now.
