By netGRINDER
Fri Sep 08, 2006 4:30 am
does anyone has a good advice for using the lfo's? I don't know for which sounds/samples it makes sense to works with the lfo function.
thread 1
Since 2.1 came out I have been using the Lfo's on the filters to change the sound and make samples have more "movement".
Since an lfo is just a device that turns up and down a paramater automatically with a controllable rate, you can use it on many of the mpc's controls (at pad level). You can experiment with whatever paramater you want to see just what this can do to a sound. Here are a couple of examples of controlling the filter with the lfo to get you going.
On drums, put a low pass filter on a kick and set the freq to about 50ish and the resonance to 30 or above. Go to the lfo screen and set freq1 to say 60. Then set the rate to 1.00 to start. Play your kick and change the filters to hear what ways they change the sound. Play around with the freq1 knob to hear more or less of this effect. With the time knob turn it up to hear long sweeping filters or short to hear a wabbly effect.
On other samples, lets say a pad sound that lasts a while put a low filter on it. Set the freq to somewhere below 50 and resonance wherever. You can also put another filter or link and try whatever you like for settings. Then in lfo, set the freq1 and freq2 levels somewhere above 50 and the type to saw down. Set the rate to 2.00 this time and hear the pad have a rhythmic repeat every half bar. If you set it to 4.00 it repeats every bar.
When playing with this, i've also noticed that the rate and delay fields in the lfo screen do not go by ms as I used to think. These are actually quarter notes. (ie: 1.00 is one beat, 2.00 is two beats, .50 is a eighth note, .25 16 note and so on).
Also, having two different filters with different values and levels can produce good effects, since one filter will cut off the other and make the sound of the sample change (fat to thin, mid thin fat, or whatever) through the sample playing.
Try messing with different types of samples, filters, lfo types and settings to get really familiar with it and it could give you a few new ideas about sound manipulation with the mpc.
I made a couple of quick audio examples to better illustrate this. (Sorry if they are sloppy or too loud, I did this on my lunch break just for the sake of example).
Here is a pad synth dry played once through
http://us.f13.yahoofs.com/bc/43eb632em1 ... EBEBvgYh6I
Here is the same pad synth played once through with these filter/lfo settings:
Filter 1-
Type: Low Pass
Freq: 53
Reso: 70
Filter 2-
Type: Link
Lfo-
Wave: Saw Down
Rate: 02.00
Filter1: 57
Filter2: 59
http://us.f13.yahoofs.com/bc/43eb632em1 ... EBMpKwHa61
The second example uses an 808 kit playing a 1 kick 1 snare loop, left dry.
http://us.f13.yahoofs.com/bc/43eb632em1 ... EBJi_WOYcJ
Here is the same exact pattern and kit, using these filter/lfo settings:
Kick:
Filter1-
Type: low pass
Freq: 17
Reso: 42
Lfo-
Wave: Triangle
Rate: 00.50
Filter1: 67
Snare:
Filter1-
Type: low pass2
Freq: 63
Reso: 56
Filter2-
Type: Link
Lfo-
Wave: Triangle
Rate: 01.00
Filter1: 72
Filter2: 62
http://us.f13.yahoofs.com/bc/43eb632em1 ... EB.UvXUnEy
Thread 2
Lfo's don't alter sound on their own, they turn values up and down at a certian rate. Think of an lfo as an automated hand (thank you thing) turning a knob or slider up and down at whatever speed(rate) you want in whatever style(waveform) you say. In the mpc you have one free hand(lfo) per pad to assign to whatever you want.
So say you want to make a tremolo effect (volume up and down) on a sample. You would select the sample and go into the program screen, then press F5 to enter the lfo screen.
1. First go to rate, this is how fast the hand(lfo) is going to get turned up and down. It goes by beats synced to the main tempo, so when you set it to 1.0 it goes up and down every quarter note, .48 makes it go up and down every 1/8 note, 2.0 a half note, etc.
2. Next go to the field you want the lfo to turn up and down. In this case it will be level. Turn this up to 100 for the full effect of the lfo to be enabled. You can turn it down to whatever sounds good, but for this example 100 is good. (Remember you can also set the amounts for pitch, level, and filt1&2 to all react to the lfo if you want)
3. Go to the delay field and enter a small number like .24. This will stop the lfo from kicking in for a 1/16 note. So you will get the sample played straight for the first 1/16 note then it will be tremolo'd at the speed you entered in rate.
4. Go to wave. This field is the shape of how the lfo acts. A triangle shape makes the lfo turn up gradually like the upslope of a triangle and then down again at the same rate after the peak hits (like a triangle) again and again. The Sine wave is similar but has more of a rounded shape. Play with these and see what the different shapes do to the lfo.
*For cool filter sweeps and more noticable tricks, set the filter(s) and resonance for the sample, then do the same lfo process as above, but instead set filt1 and(or) filt2's amounts to 100 instead of level. (You can back off the high amounts if you'd like, but at 100 you can really hear what the lfo is doing.)
**Also depending on the type of sample and it's length, the lfo rate, delay and waveform will sound completely different, so experiment with it.
