The gearlust thread part deux: post your GAS

OP-1 GAS
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Like many I do a lot of gear swapping. I just can't seem to be content with what I have, but I think I have finally narrowed down why.

Quite simply, I've lost my musical voice.

So I've been contemplating an acoustic instrument. I used to play the tuba (7 years). What I loved the most is despite being around 4-12+ other guys with pretty much identical instruments (from the school), nobody sounded like me. We all sounded like tubas, but I sounded like me. I sounded like me on several different instruments of different makes. I even sounded like me on the sousaphone.

I just don't get that same feeling with synths and samplers, guitars, or bass guitars, or anything electric. Not even my EWI, as expressive as it is. I can dial in sounds on all these things, but there's just this subtle lack of connection. I love what I do with them, but it's still missing something.

As clichéd as it sounds, it's like my soul isn't connected to the instrument. This isn't a knock on electronic/electric instruments, they are a very valid form of expression for many people and I'm glad for them :)

I'm not going back to the tuba, it's just too large, expensive, and impractical despite knowing the fingerings, clef, having the embechoure, etc. Something low brass (bass clef), or even just valved, would make more sense, since I know the fingerings already, but I'm really leaning towards the something from the violin family and likely the viola. Not as high voiced as the violin and a bit deeper/richer, a little more room on the fingerboard, more portable than the cello; it sounds lovely and seems like it'd be a good fit for me. I've played fretless instruments, so I know I can learn intonation. I have no misconceptions of becoming some amazing virtuoso or anything, I'm 34 years old starting something people start when they're 3 lol... but I'm sure I can become a good player with practice and dedication. And I recall someone around here picked up the cello recently :)

The woodwinds are right out, I've never felt an attraction to any of them >.>

I certainly wouldn't drop my modular, OP-1, guitaring, or ambienting, but the lack of voice is really what I think my GAS has been related to for a long time, now.
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@Kites, if qubasis is 123 and op-1 reads 230 then it is receiving 2x midi clock, so somewhere there is double clock feed to the OP-1. It's easily checked by lowering clock of qbasis to to 100 and check if OP-1 displays 200.

The strange thing is that even though the OP-1’s tape is reading double, it sounds like 123 BPM. It’s interesting because it looks like the tape has compensated for Cubasis by shifting my 4 bar a little back. It’s not perfect when it drops into Cubasis so it can be a pain, but not terrible.


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@krism I’m envious when I read of people playing instruments for years and even growing up in musical families surrounded by instruments their whole lives. That wasn’t really the case with me - although my grandfather was a multi talented musician/artist,mhe lived in the Philippines, and I never got a chance to play with him when I got into music :/. At 30, I think he’s been transferring some of his skills to me through the grave or maybe it’s really something passed down through genetics hehe.

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You know, @KrisM I think an electronic viola may be an even better fit. It can seamlessly integrate into your existing hardware AND give you 100% expression.


My son has been doing violin for 4 years, and despite never studying an instrument of any kind, I know I could play the violin if I wanted to (I’ve mucked around on his instrument, and it’s quite fun). Before watching him learn, I could not have been more intimidated by the violin (or other fretless string instruments), especially because I’m a huge classical music buff. The idea of me playing (even for fun) on a violin was akin to deciding to grow a third eye. Now it seems totally manageable, if I had the desire (maybe it will be a good activity in retirement, if my fingers still work).

I think you will love it and I’m excited for you.
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After scheming over the Yamaha MT120 4 track manual, I noticed a sync output coupled with the 4 tape outputs on the back of the device. The manual doesn’t go to the degree of explaining the sync out, but it notes FSK and setting the dBs for track 4. So maybe I should look into getting a Midi converter to aid transferring to DAW?

How about this then? Or does it need to be strictly FSK?
http://www.ebay.com/itm/221570736356

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I’ve heard electric violins sound pretty good @tribrix but I’ll start with an acoustic instrument. Electrics use a piezo, and piezos don’t impress me on acoustic guitars. They sound close to the instrument, but not quite right imo.


This isn’t really something I’m looking to integrate into anything right now, tbh. But if I continue down the path I could see myself getting an electric or piezo bridge in order to work with effects and such or ease of recording. But for now, I just want to play.

I’m pretty much the only musical person in my immediate family @Kites >.> I kind of wonder if my family had been well off enough to afford another instrument (though I was told ‘tuba’ when checking my embouchure; the school district rented them for $25 a year) , or if I’d had the money immediately after school to afford a tuba, would I still be playing it today. Either way I can’t dwell on such things.

I was in Sam Ash a while back and they had what seemed a decent tuba for $1700 or so, and I messed with the fingerings on it (I still remembered several scales lol…), but I know the one tuba I played for longest (four years) is a $6000+ instrument, perhaps as much as $10000 today o.O That’s a lot of brass.
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Hey @Kites, that syncman looks like just the thing you need, lol


@KrisM I was talking about a violin with pickups, not piezos. I saw this woman performing with a single violin and a bunch of guitar pedals (esp. 2 looper pedals) and it was mind blowingly cool. Still with all the character of a violin but more too, obviously.

But I hear you on the acoustic interest. I really want to learn how to play piano, plain piano.
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The pickups are typically piezo transducer -based, but there are also electrostatic tranducers so maybe she was using those. I will say I have seen a video of a street musician using a purely electric violin, a Line 6 amp, and a Boss stompbox looper and it sounded pretty good still.

Apparently there are contact mics available for use on nicer instruments so you can avoid possibly damaging them. But they are $700+ o.O

Plenty of time to get it all sorted out, though :)
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tribrix thanks, I’ll need to do some further investigating with the syncman.

I want to learn to play piano too! Or at least music theory.

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contact mikes are piezo’s

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@KrisM Low Leaf was in Lyon a week ago. I fell in love with harp. Didn’t know such instrument could sound funky !

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This performer was using one of these, with guitar pickups:


http://www.amazon.com/Cecilio-CEVN-1BK-Electric-Silent-Fittings/dp/B003F1HVDU/ref=sr_1_1?s=musical-instruments&ie=UTF8&qid=1412889613&sr=1-1&keywords=electric+violin

There’s no resonating body to mic, like a solid body guitar, so piezo’s would be little use without a ton of gain.
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they are indeed, I wasn’t too clear there. A big difference with all these types is in the mounting (under bridge, top of bridge I think, top…) . And also apparently electrostatic transducers still use the piezoelectric effect anyway, just different materials…

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ah, a little education for me today, I wasn’t aware. I had a false sense of how guitar pickups work.

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electric guitar pickups work basically like the power plant supplying you electricity. Metal vibrating through a magnetic field generates an electric current. Acoustic instruments use microphones or piezoelectric process (most common I believe) to pick up vibrations, and then amplifies the signal. An acoustic instrument uses the whole body to amplify the sound and projects it with the sound board.


Though apparently I was a bit off, they do have purely electric violins with magnetic pickups, too @Tribrix. You just have to use strings with ferrous metal cores.
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@Krism Out of curiosity have you ever used a Nord Lead 3? There are many keyboard synths out there which will allow you to assign physical controls (keytracking, velocity, aftertouch, etc…) but none with the same simplicity as the Lead 3. It is as simple as double-clicking the control corresponding to the control you want to assign as a source and turning any parameter knob you desire. It becomes an extremely expressive instrument with this ease of use. The Prophet 12 has a similar modulation assignment, but I have not owned one and therefore could not recommend one.

I mean… just something that popped in my head when I read your post. I don’t want to talk you out of trying a new instrument.

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I can get really expressive playing control out of my EWI, @Lymtronics, that’s not at the heart of the issue. What I’m after is a direct, intimate connection between human and instrument that I, personally, just don’t feel with anything electric. The electric stuff sure is fun, though.


I just hope this realization I’ve had is actually a realization, but I suppose I’ll only know if I try.

Thanks for the heads up, though, all the same. That does sound nice like a nice mapping scheme for setting up some nice real-time modulations.
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@KrisM I totally get where you’re coming from. I recently tried a few Greek Bouzouki’s and hot damn did I connect with that instrument.


I’ve always played a healthy amount of spanish, middle eastern, and greek sounding phrasing on guitar. I didn’t realise just how amazing the “real thing” would feel. I found some mode on the fifth fret, don’t know as much music theory as I’d like but playing guitar for years has given me a good sense of intervals, and I just ripped that thing up. I seriously can’t wait to get one.

Maybe try a bunch of instruments, you never know which one will really hit you. Not that viola isn’t a great idea.

I have 2 carbon fiber acoustics, one is fretless (again, searching for that mid east flavour and microtones). Adapting to it was not bad.

I think it makes a lot of sense of to find instruments you truly connect to as part of a musician’s creative path. Even if it’s impossible to be an expert on everything you will undoubtedly find much inspiration through that deep connection.
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Solaris.


And I want to find either an alternative to a Nuke controller, or an affordable (i.e. not £400 with defunct software) to play with NeuronVS, which is now free to download for Mac owners who have a suitably ancient VST host (2.1 rather than 2.4?).

Plus replacing the two beasts I miss most, the Access Virus TI and Moog Voyager. That’s the GAS for synths. There’s also finding an affordable Godin Freeway SA, as I sometimes play guitar synth and have two Freeways (EMG and Floyd) already, nice familiar controller.
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I can get really expressive playing control out of my EWI, @Lymtronics, that's not at the heart of the issue. What I'm after is a direct, intimate connection between human and instrument that I, personally, just don't feel with anything electric. The electric stuff sure is fun, though.

It’s weird, I never connected with an acoustic instrument. Tried the guitar and flute, although I wasn’t allowed to play what I wanted - Drums. I’ve always had my “voice” when it comes to electronics. I’ve always been able to get a personal signature sound no matter what I work on, BUT the OP-1 is that instrument i REALLY connected with. I feel I have what you are looking for with the OP-1 and it’s a beautiful thing. It’s an extension of my creativity.