Gear Junky

In my previous posts, i've only skimmed the surface of some of the techniques and inspirations behind the creation of Ambient Toolkit Vol 1 . In this post, i'm going to reveal some of the equipment used in the making of the sample pack and the specific purpose that some of the equipment serves.

 First of all ,like most producers, i use a combination of analogue and digital.Analogue gear is still important when trying to create unique sounds and the original sound sources of a lot of my samples originate from analogue drum machines,found sounds,guitars,bass,synths ,hardware processors and microphones to record all this stuff.Personally, i like some subtle noise in the signal chain.I think it gives some depth to the sounds and conjures up the feeling of a living sound that has existed in the real world.I think that years of listening to analogue sound ,from the first ever recordings up to now,has almost pre- determined how us humans and music lovers perceive sound.I believe that we instinctively feel subtle nuances like slight hiss(not too much) ,natural reverb and echo as they place the sound and us in a real environment.Any way, let me crack on and reveal some of the older analogue equipment i used.

Out Board Kit List

Akai MPC 1000
                          I love this machine for creating beats on the fly,no quantisation as i like to create a slightly wonky feel for most of the beats i create.

Akai S1000 and S3000 XL
                        Probably most producers will think these machines are outdated and cumbersome but for me they have a magic sound to them.I put a lot of one shots and beats through these samplers for processing and it helps give the sound a slightly damaged ,crusty feel.I also love the timestretching on these for an early 90's vibe.

Joe Meek VC3 Optical Compressor
                         Good for recording any type of vocals,i use this to process synth sounds and beats.I get extra punch on beats in particular when using this.Great little unit,can be picked up on e bay cheaply.

Electro Harmonix Pedals
                         I've always used these pedals as a guitarist and use them even more as a producer.Big Muff,Holy Stain,Pulsar even the Poly chorus add subtle noise and character to sounds.