Creative LFO Techniques (1k & 2500 Specific)

2.1 has added a Sparq to the 1k. Are you taking full advantage of all it has to offer, I know I'm not! That brings me to the LFO's! Do you incorporate them into your production?

There are enough creative & talented people on here to discuss their LFO methods. Describe how you use the LFO's and when. (If you use them at all?)

I'm mostly midi based, although I use vocal samples from time to time. I'm look'n to expand my horizons and add something to the bag of tricks!

Chop'n is not a problem, I just want a different / new way to flip 'em.

Break it down. . . . . . . (2500 users as well)

-Putter :wink:

Yeah i used the LFO in the latest track I was doing. I don't find muchj use for the volume and pitch settings, you just get a different sort of tremelo and viobrato - depending on what shape lfo you are using.

For those that don't know: Basically your LFO (Low Frequency Oscillator) just creates a wavefore, then you adjust the parameters that you want to modulate at that frequency, eg. have your pitch going up and down in time with the slowly oscillating sine wave or square wave or whatever.

Lfos really come into their own with filters, thats where it gets interesting. Have a repeating sort of filter sweep. Like in the last track I made, I used the lfo to make the sample sort of slowly throb in time with the beat.

Thanks for the response. That's fairly creative. I used it on a vocal sample and it gave the voices like a wah effect. It was interesting to hear it from the 1k. I usually add my effects when mixing, more filters and LFO effects available. I've added a bit of delay with it to a synth track and it totally created a new sound. I don't even remember the settings, just experimenting.

I haven't used it for real, i experimented though... maybe time to check out what it really does huh?

i think theyre most usefull with a sample with long releases, sexy amp env curves, or looped ends, get the lfo to warp the sample tail, like use a downward sawtooth lfo on the pitch set to a fast-ish setting, but add a delay to the lfo, say 00.12, 00.24 or longer to do virtual t-table stops,

or fast ripple effects...lfo doesnt have much effect below 00.12....
but can add robot effects to broadband eq samples.

i rarely use long lfo's, say over 00.24, 00.48, 00.72 -all on beat.

or 00.33 , 00.66 to be more off-time or 3/4 with the beat... 'cos i like them to add life (i mean an element of change or unpredictability) to stuff as opposed to regular beat oriented patterns,

the squeares great for pitch enhancement, it can add vocodey octaves if fast enough ie: < 00.12 as it tremolos the pitch rapidly.

i really could do with a LFO 'sync on/off' Fkey though, and two lfo's like the bigger mpc's. and the lfo to be rate controlled by something like the env, etc.

i like using them with pitch at like 5 repeating at maybe .48. this gives the bass a more full warble.

i also like using them with filters on single note hits. check out my song bandit on my myspace - the opening guitar utilizes the lfos.

i've used as a rumblebass control by sweeping the LowPassfilter2 cutoff with the selfoscillationg resonant filter set to max.
another nice effect is to use it to tempogate a loop or a vocalsample
LFOs, audioin and the self oscilating filters are my absoulte favorite features with the 2.10

*edit*
typo

ive been using it on percussion that repeats a lot. like shakers etc
i set the wave to random and the period very long. and set the pitch to 1 or 2 tops. this way each time the same is triggered, its pitch is just a little tiny bit different. it helps keep stuff from sounding too sample-y for when that is what i want. actually maybe it aint doing $hit and im just imagining it who knows

i use the filter envelopes a lot now too, but that's a different topic

Great feedback peeps. Looks like I'll have to spend some more time experimenting. This is good and bad. Good that it adds knowledge and inspiration, bad that it takes away from other projects. Its sort of like down time.

Now filter envelopes on the MPC, I've never used that funcion either. Filters, yes. FX, yes. Filter envelopes, nahh, not yet. Anyone else dig'n on the filter envelopes?

Good thread. It nice to get some interesting ideas for the lfos, people have mentioned a few good ones. Nice to see a simple but useful thread on here without shit talking.

Antonym wrote:i like using them with pitch at like 5 repeating at maybe .48. this gives the bass a more full warble.

i also like using them with filters on single note hits. check out my song bandit on my myspace - the opening guitar utilizes the lfos.

nym: I have to say ,before and after,and bandit are well produced tracks,I'm amazed as far as Lfo,I can't say how I would benifit using it right now.

thanks DJ -T, i appreciate it.

tiger vomit - great idea on that percussive lfo tip, i'm gonna try that. immediately.

Great feedback peeps. Looks like I'll have to spend some more time experimenting. This is good and bad. Good that it adds knowledge and inspiration, bad that it takes away from other projects. Its sort of like down time.

putter - i wouldn't worry about making it down time. the first time i ever experimented with LFOs was on that track Bandit. just throw it into a project you're already working on and see what comes out. Bandit without the wah on that guitar was ok, and i liked the beat, but afterwards? it was one of my favorites.

don't use learning time as down time, just go go go...haha

Yeah, I like to use the LFO's for both of the previously mentioned applications: Percussion (usually shakers and hats) and Bass.

Yeah on my last track I used the Q-link to slightly vary the pitch of some hats, doh! Using the lfo is a much more elegant way. Its funny, on the mpc, you can use alot of different methods to get to a similar end, find the best/quickest/easier is half the battle/fun

filter envs are decent doods,

i often set the amt up to 40+ ish,set time to be very quick to come down from the top, set a bandpass filter cut-off frq somewhere in the lo-middle with res about 50+, then trigger some dirty long-ish samples, these flt envs can give off a lot of physicality.