Source Audio C4 Synth Pedal

[Quatschmacher]

58 minutes ago, odysseus said:

Hi chaps.  Just made my first serious foray into the C4. Wow!  Loads of great sounds available through Neuro.... many of them created by your good self, Mr. Quatchmacher!  (I enjoyed the Tom Sawyers!)

So... I'm going to get a Hub to make the most of it. What is my best option for a footswitch?  Am I better off going straight for the Soleman or could I get by with something a little cheaper?

Any advice gratefully received!

Depends very much on what you want to do. If you just want to scroll presets up and down then a small, simple switchers will work. If you want to take advantage of the C4’s deep midi capability then a more fully-spec’d controller is in order. 

My advice - buy a Morningstar MC6 - they come up used plenty and are astoundingly powerful whilst being really simple and straightforward to understand and program. You can make it do whatever you want from simple to complex. 

[odysseus]

12 hours ago, Quatschmacher said:

Depends very much on what you want to do. If you just want to scroll presets up and down then a small, simple switchers will work. If you want to take advantage of the C4’s deep midi capability then a more fully-spec’d controller is in order. 

My advice - buy a Morningstar MC6 - they come up used plenty and are astoundingly powerful whilst being really simple and straightforward to understand and program. You can make it do whatever you want from simple to complex. 

Great. I shall investigate. Thanks! 🙂

[Quatschmacher]

I’ve uploaded a bunch of new patches utilising an idea I had when I woke up. I’ve used run a sequence on the modulator sine wave so that it changes the texture of the carrier signal when holding a note. I’ve also used a few of the drum machine ideas I had on the second processor. 

I’ll try and get some clips up later; it’ll require some reshuffling as I’ve run out of space on my free Soundcloud account.

Edited June 19, 2020 by Quatschmacher

[Quatschmacher]

 

8 hours ago, Quatschmacher said:

I’ve uploaded a bunch of new patches utilising an idea I had when I woke up. I’ve used run a sequence on the modulator sine wave so that it changes the texture of the carrier signal when holding a note. I’ve also used a few of the drum machine ideas I had on the second processor. 

I’ll try and get some clips up later; it’ll require some reshuffling as I’ve run out of space on my free Soundcloud account.

Here's one:

 

[Quatschmacher]

Had another mammoth C4 session this weekend. Loads of new patches uploaded.

https://neuro.sourceaudio.net/user/quatschmacher

[Quatschmacher]

Here's something I originally did on my Moog Subsequent 37 but have redone on C4:

Patch is here:

https://neuro.sourceaudio.net/preset/ZzaOJACaMw

[odysseus]

9 hours ago, Quatschmacher said:

Here's something I originally did on my Moog Subsequent 37 but have redone on C4:

Patch is here:

https://neuro.sourceaudio.net/preset/ZzaOJACaMw

Nice work!

Managed to source a cheap Tech 21 Midi Mouse. See how I get on with that, then maybe invest in something more comprehensive...

[Quatschmacher]

I woke up with a cool idea this morning. 

Those of you who follow the FI thread may have seen that I came up with a way to play five-note II-V-I progressions which have all smooth voice leading which changes depending on which direction the roots move (up a 4th/down a 5th). I’ve just thought of a way to get the voice leading to work on the C4’s harmoniser using my MC8. The 3rds and 7ths will be straightforward; the 5ths, 6ths and 9ths will be trickier but I think I can do it.

I think I’ll be able to do my chord inversions idea too. 

Annoyingly I’m going to be busy with other stuff all day so probably won’t be able to get to it until tomorrow or Monday. 

Watch this space...

[Quatschmacher]

I've made loads of headway today in porting my II-V-I progression ideas that I originally developed for the Future Impact over to the C4. I'm using a Morningstar MC8 to control a few things.

I've got the 3rds and 7ths working so that the voice leading is smooth. That is, the 7th of one chord falls a semitone to form the 3rd of the next chord whereas the third of one chord remains at the same pitch to form the 7th of the next chord. I’ve used the harmoniser to do this but implemented it such that the same C4 voice (1-4) plays the same positional note in the chord, i.e. voice 1 always plays the lowest note in the chord, irrespective of what chord tone it might be. This involves using midi to switch the interval of the harmoniser when changing chord. It also involves some octave shifting depending on whether the bass note is moving up a 5th or down a 4th to the next root.

I’ve managed to implement it using only two buttons on the MC8. The first is a momentary button for when you play the dominant chord which inverts the positions of the 3rd and 7th so as to preserve the smooth voice leading. The second button allows you to choose whether the bass moves up-down-up or down-up-down while keeping the voicings played on the same register in both permutations.

The 9ths and 5ths/6ths, I had to do manually via fixed interval offsets as the C4 only allows two automatically harmonised pitches at once.

Here's a first taste. The first clip uses a basic patch and just goes through each voice first showing that it is leading correctly then I put them together. The Soundcloud clips are a using much nicer patches, which I've shared on Neuro.
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1_3JbfarEC6jhpsUD16ITE3EdwWH7V3QP/view?usp=sharing

 

 

Edited June 29, 2020 by Quatschmacher

[GisserD]

Does anybody understand a word of what he just said? 

Hahaha

Top draw peter. Congratulations on your services to all things synth.

[Quatschmacher]

I've managed to create a chord freeze/hold function on the C4! You can hear it both with and without filter envelope retriggering:

https://drive.google.com/file/d/12fNTA5hbrN8mv8Ndg_i12R3QX_AvFpMM/view?usp=sharing

[Jonathan Bee]

@Quatschmacher

I'm struggling to change presets on the C4 using a Tech 21 Midi Mouse into the Soundblox hub v1... will this work/do you know how I can get it to work please? 

[Quatschmacher]

57 minutes ago, Jonathan Bee said:

@Quatschmacher

I'm struggling to change presets on the C4 using a Tech 21 Midi Mouse into the Soundblox hub v1... will this work/do you know how I can get it to work please? 

It’s a bit unusual:

if you are able to send MIDI into the C4 on the USB port then you can use MIDI PC messages to change the onboard patches. 

If you are controlling the C4 via the Hub over TRRS cables then in order to switch the C4’s internal patches you need to send CC messages - can’t remember off the top of my head which but it’s something like 104 and 105 to scroll up and down. (Look in the manual or open the MIDI map from the “devices” tab to check what the CCs are, or set your own.) You can load specific patches with another CC in the low 100s, the value you send determined the patch loaded. There’s a CC for loading the patch engaged and another for loading it bypassed.

If your controller only sends PC messages and you’ve hooked up the C4 to the Hub via TRRS cable then your best bet is to store your C4 presets as Hub scenes (so they are saved on the Hub as opposed to on the C4). These can then be recalled by MIDI PC messages. 

Edited July 4, 2020 by Quatschmacher

[Jonathan Bee]

10 minutes ago, Quatschmacher said:

It’s a bit unusual:

if you are able to send MIDI into the C4 on the USB port then you can use MIDI PC messages to change the onboard patches. 

If you are controlling the C4 via the Hub over TRRS cables then in order to switch the C4’s internal patches you need to send CC messages - can’t remember off the top of my head which but it’s something like 104 and 105 to scroll up and down. (Look in the manual or open the MIDI map from the “devices” tab to check what the CCs are, or set your own.) You can load specific patches with another CC in the low 100s, the value you send determined the patch loaded. There’s a CC for loading the patch engaged and another for loading it bypassed.

If your controller only sends PC messages and you’ve hooked up the C4 to the Hub via TRRS cable then your best bet is to store your C4 presets as Hub scenes (so they are saved on the Hub as opposed to on the C4). These can then be recalled by MIDI PC messages. 

Thanks @Quatschmacher I'll give it another go with fresh eyes and your advice tomorrow 🙂

[Jonathan Bee]

After much faffing I've found I can use the Soundblox Hub with the Neuro Editor (rather than the hub editor) and store presets straight from the cloud to the hub. I couldn't find a way of transferring presets from the C4 to the hub. I'm out of my depth tried to understand how to send midi commands! Either way, now I can use the midi mouse to flick through the presets in the hub.

Hub-a-dub-dub! 🙂

[Jonathan Bee]

@Quatschmacher I love your 'Chordially Invited' patch! Getting a Kamaal Williams vibe with it...Very cool!

 

Ps I'm playing the Octavbre Sub octave only through it...phat and fruity!!!!

 

Edited July 4, 2020 by Jonathan Bee

[Quatschmacher]

4 hours ago, Jonathan Bee said:

After much faffing I've found I can use the Soundblox Hub with the Neuro Editor (rather than the hub editor) and store presets straight from the cloud to the hub. I couldn't find a way of transferring presets from the C4 to the hub. I'm out of my depth tried to understand how to send midi commands! Either way, now I can use the midi mouse to flick through the presets in the hub.

Hub-a-dub-dub! 🙂

Use the Neuro desktop editor, plug USB directly into the C4, navigate to your onboard C4 patch. Then send a MIDI PC message to your Hub corresponding to the slot you wish to save this preset to then press save on the Hub. Voila, your C4 patch is now stored as a hub scene!

[Quatschmacher]

4 hours ago, Jonathan Bee said:

@Quatschmacher I love your 'Chordially Invited' patch! Getting a Kamaal Williams vibe with it...Very cool!

 

Ps I'm playing the Octavbre Sub octave only through it...phat and fruity!!!!

 

Glad you like it. Did you see I’d managed to create a chord freeze with it? See a few posts up.

[Jonathan Bee]

50 minutes ago, Quatschmacher said:

Glad you like it. Did you see I’d managed to create a chord freeze with it? See a few posts up.

That's wicked! Will be able to do it with the hub set up I'm using?

[Jonathan Bee]

Being able to store more than 6 presets, starting to tweak with the editor, and being able to use the expression pedal now through the hub have really made this pedal 'pop' for me! Also being able to load other peoples patches from the cloud is ace, many of mine are from @Quatschmacher... thanks again! 

It's replaced my Mastotron, Manta, and Sonuus Wahoo... will most likely be selling these soon 🙂

[Quatschmacher]

10 minutes ago, Jonathan Bee said:

That's wicked! Will be able to do it with the hub set up I'm using?

It requires a MIDI controller capable of sending at least 5 simultaneous CC messages. I suggest using your Wahoo, Manta and Mastotron sale funds to buy a Morningstar MC6. They come up used loads.

[Jonathan Bee]

I've been messing around with sending an octave up signal using the 'polyphonic' setting out of output 2 to be separately effected from the lower octave signal I'm sending to output 1, thinking I could do away with my EHX Epitome which usually provides my octave up with it's micro pog circuit. There seems to be a 'warble' on the octave up signal even though envelope/filter/distortion and tremolo are all off. Any ideas why this might be @Quatschmacher? 

[Quatschmacher]

58 minutes ago, Jonathan Bee said:

I've been messing around with sending an octave up signal using the 'polyphonic' setting out of output 2 to be separately effected from the lower octave signal I'm sending to output 1, thinking I could do away with my EHX Epitome which usually provides my octave up with it's micro pog circuit. There seems to be a 'warble' on the octave up signal even though envelope/filter/distortion and tremolo are all off. Any ideas why this might be @Quatschmacher? 

The octave up is by their own admission not the best. Polyphonic pitch has a bit of delay. Have you tried using a monophonic octave up?

[Quatschmacher]

Just hit 2000 downloads (actually missed it). Thanks to my followers. I’d do something to celebrate but am away from my gear for another ten days or so. Looking forward to hearing what you’re all doing with my patches. 

[Jonathan Bee]

2 minutes ago, Quatschmacher said:

The octave up is by their own admission not the best. Polyphonic pitch has a bit of delay. Have you tried using a monophonic octave up?

I'll give a blast later, thanks man 🙂