randy's Recent Posts
Yes, good idea.
The name length limit is due to a problem with Audio Units. AU plugins don't let the entire name get longer than 32 characters. Since i wanted a cross-platform format, I had to add the same restriction for the .mlpreset files.
It might be possible to add a "long name" field to the patches, and create a shorter AU preset name automatically-- but This might cause other problems. I'll have to look into it.
I can probably fix the dot thing. It's bad practice to put dots in a filename on Mac or Windows. But I could translate them into something else.
The problem with both of these fixes is that the file name no longer matches the patch name, making the files potentially harder for to you find in the long run.
The real fix is that operating systems should lose the concept of "file", but I can't do much about that right now.
I woke up this morning to a dead website. The culprit turned out to be a simple lack of disk space. We are back online, fired up and ready to go again -- sorry for any inconvenience.
I mean, I have to implement the feature. I'll do this some time, maybe for 1.3.
"ridiculous small"? it's all relative. My biggest monitor is 1680x1050. So, I like small plugins.
I'm working on the resizing feature though.
Hi Lee,
It was my pleasure. Thanks for the note and keep in touch!
Yup, I can do that.
So... yup! You can use the expo input to get expo FM. The next question is, what can you use for the modulation signal? There's the LFO, and also ENV2 in repeat mode. Each only has frequencies up to 220 Hz or so. That's by design, so that the potential for aliasing is limited.
Linear FM is what the OSC does internally. with linear FM the pitch of the modulated wave stays constant. You can also add linear FM using the linear pitch input to the OSC.
You can add exponential FM using the expo. pitch input, the "1.0 per octave" input.
"Is the pitch patched to the index to be mixed?" I don't understand the question.
I think Aalto's layout is pretty clear as far as what signals are controlling what. For applications and patch ideas, you can check the manual, or indeed, other modular synth manuals.
I did the thesis project that eventually became the Soundplane while at the University of Victoria in British Columbia, Canada. So, even though all this travel is making me a bit crazy, I'm happy to be heading to BC this week to catch up with some friends and give two more demos. Please excuse the late notice, as here are the dates and locations:
Victoria, Tue Nov 15
UVic School of Music, MacLaurin building [Rm. B016] 4:30-5:30pm
Vancouver, Thur Nov 17
SFU / Woodwards complex, 149 West Hastings St., room 3420, 4:00-5:00pm
The Canadian Electroacoustic Community (CEC) is an organization supporting electronic music in Canada, celebrating its 25th anniversary with a nationwide tour this Fall. I'm grateful to be included in the programs for both the Victoria and Vancouver events! Both days will include other demos, talks, and lots of great music. Find out more about the CEC Anniversary Tour here: [cec.sonus.ca].
Two great stops wrapped up the tour this week, first at USCB and then at CalArts. Many thanks to hosts Drs. Matt Wright at MAT UCSB and Ajay Kapur at Calarts. My brain and vocal cords got a bit of a workout answering all the great questions from people at each event -- the level of interest and knowledge that students brought in was really high.
Taking questions helps me out a lot by letting me get a handle on things I need to explain better. The Soundplane's discrete keys over a more continuous surface is one example. People naturally wonder to what extent the keys make the surface non-continuous or influence the playing style. I'm writing down some notes about this and what else to put in the "most excellent hi-res demo video" I'll be working on soon.
Some other highlights of the trip: getting to see the UCSB Middle Eastern Ensemble perform Egyptian and Iraqi music, amazing tacos at Señor FIsh in Eagle Rock, and more sun in two days than I'll get all the rest of the winter back in Seattle. I'll be zipping back to OAK up the I-5 tomorrow, then flying home, and after a day of rest I look forward to sending another update from the lab.
aww, thanks!
No, there wasn't any introduction price for Mac users.
yup, understood.
Yes, it's going to be someday-- I'll see if I can get it in for 1.3.
Thanks Valery for the workaround. I'm going to investigate a built-in solution for 1.3.
On Saturday I brought the Soundplane prototype over to Robotspeak in San Francisco's Lower Haight, where there was a really great and attentive crowd. We played with the Soundplane and Max/MSP, and the alpha version of Aalto for Soundplane. Here's part of the introduction taped by Jack Hertz:
I also brought some copper foil tape and with my laptop's built-in audio interface, made a simple capacitive distance sensor showing the basic principle the Soundplane is built on. I hope this demo showed some possibilities for exploring DIY sensors. When I get time, I would like to post some more detailed instructions on working with this simple technique.
Thanks all for coming, for asking the good questions, and to Robotspeak for hosting me! It was great to meet some more of my interweb friends in person.
Sounds like a bug, I will look into it for version 1.3.
Granted! but not until 1.3. Thanks for the nice feedback.
Good! Enjoy. I need to do a better job of pointing people at it.
If you live in the Seattle area, I invite you to come check out a Soundplane prototype this Saturday at the PNW Synthfest!
It's in Shoreline, WA, and runs from 10-5 or so. Details are here: mostlymodular.com. Brian is going to bring a Pro-One and we'll hook it up to the Soundplane one way or another. Stay tuned for movies of this analog encounter.
Quick work update: I've been working to finalize the materials we will be using for the surface laminate. I'm also implementing a new dynamic calibration filter in the client software. What I have now works, but I know there's a lot more sensitivity I can get out of the data I'm receiving from the hardware. I really want people to be able to feel that ASAP.
I promised I'd post a picture or two, so here I am actually doing that. My day started at Brewed Awakening in Berkeley, home of a regular morning meeting of electronic music luminaries and a damn fine Americano. Perrin Meyer, David Wessel and Adrian Freed were in attendance. Don Buchla popped in for a cup of coffee, laid hands on the Soundplane and pronounced it a worthy object. Unfortunately he had to go before I could show him Aalto. Another time, I hope.
The next demo is at Robotspeak in San Francisco, this Saturday at 4. If you're in SF, stop by!
Did you find the manual?
More good ideas. Doing a good UI for the configuration would take a while, but I could do the folder thing pretty quickly, and that seems very useful.
Of course I'm working hard on getting the Soundplane into production. But meanwhile, people are doing great stuff with Aalto!
Mark Mosher sent this video of Aalto, controlled with the Percussa AudioCubes. It really shows off Aalto's drone capability with a super Forbidden-Planet-style patch.
SoundsDivine just released the Chaos Ripple patch bank for Aalto. More info here: [soundsdivine.com] Some of these patches make timbres come out of my synth that I haven't heard before. And they represent a wide range of sounds. Great job!
Finally, I'd like to point out the ongoing and interesting stuff coming out of the Aalto Soundcloud page. It turned into a really thriving group where there's great new stuff almost daily, from simple sound examples to finished tracks. People are getting their modular funk on. Here's the most recent entry:
are you or are you not somehow related to Android Samba Girl. by jumpy gunderson
Thanks for this! I will definitely be adding some automation features with 1.3. I need to gather all the ideas and look at what set of them makes sense to do.
I forgot to mention, the VST version does not have this problem!
Hmmm, I hear you. What if I could map a MIDI command to next patch / previous patch? Would that be enough?
The thing is, I don't have a concept of "banks," so if I tried to allow random access into the entire list of patches, saved automation would get screwed up if you added more patches in between. But with next / previous you could automate a show.
Hi, welcome aboard!
This has been a known bug for too long. Unfortunately it has been very hard to fix. Thanks for your patience.