10 Soundware Releases Mixer Feedback Model Y EM-90A K Kontakt Instruments
By Guest |
Somerville, Massachusetts-September 10, 2012-
10 Soundware, a new extensional sound design imprint of 9 Soundware, has released its
debut product, Mixer Feedback model Y EM-90A K.
Mixer Feedback model Y EM-90A K by 10 Soundware is a sound set for
Native Instruments Kontakt 5. Designed by Taichi Furudate, these
patches are based on audio captured from a no-input mixer, an
instrument contrived by connecting the output of an audio mixer with
its input to incite feedback. The first in a series of four titles,
each centered on a different mixer, this release features an extremely
rare, antiquated (presumably dating back to the early 1970's), and
idiosyncratic model by a Japanese manufacturer.
As a member of a duo, Shimettainu, whose instrumentation consists
solely of no-input mixers (even signal processors are not used in
their performances), Taichi Furudate's prowess in the art of mixer
feedback is extreme. Repurposing audio mixers as oscillators and
tweaking onboard settings, he induces gradational shifts between
timbres such as squealing, serrated noise akin to low pitched sawtooth
waves, and many others, ranging from euphonic to discordant, sonorous
to shrill. More radical forms of interaction with his sounds involve
methods such as tampering with cables and on/off switches.
The timbres generated by the mixer used in Mixer Feedback model Y
EM-90A K can be described as "like a vintage analog synthesizer",
according to Taichi Furudate. He also characterizes the feedback as
"uncontrollable". Perhaps the most peculiar in the design behind this
particular model is the onboard drum machine (patches based on its
loops, along with their corresponding Standard MIDI Files, included).
Also present is a spring reverb, which can be excited by beating the
large, heavy mixer. Despite its limited usability as a conventional
mixing device, apparent with the absence of pan pots (separate
switches for the left and right outputs provide the only means of
panning), the by-product of its very limitations is its suitability as
a no-input mixer, allowing for performance techniques not possible
with other models.
The sound design executed in Kontakt 5 transposes mixer feedback to
the realm of synthesis. The sampler's formidable tapestry of DSP tools
were savvily exploited to contort the captured audio to synthesizer
paradigms (tuned patches based on seamlessly looped tones and drum kit
presets) and into noise instruments, yielding patches ranging from
stunningly simple to stupendously intricate. As a universal feature
within the sound set, MIDI cc#1 was programmed to trigger vivid
timbral transformations.
The 87.2 MB download includes 50 .nki files, 201 WAV files
(24-bit/44.1 kHz), and 8 .mid files.
Mixer Feedback model Y EM-90A K is available now for $49.99 at
Kontakt is a trademark of Native Instruments GmbH. All other
trademarks property of their respective holders.
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