How do you approach sound design? Topic of the day

I have been looking at how this newsletter could become more interactive, partly to take away the worry that I’m not writing enough at the moment; I’ve had quite a lot on my plate recently which has taken over a little bit, life happens as they say; I would also be very interested in people’s thoughts on different topics, see if we can get some collaboration going on in terms of writing, audio and video perhaps.

Such as:

A video focusing on one piece of gear, that belongs to one of the presenters, they are demonstrating its capabilities and talking about how they start a sound design session, the other person, probably me asking questions and as a result we end up with a nice informal conversation (podcast) on that instrument!

I know the ModCaf people will be interested in this especially as we get together each month but what about those in-between times, when inspiration strikes, you reach for a particular instrument, such as a modular rack, start to craft a sound.

The invite goes out to everyone though and whilst I’m happy to travel, there are limitations, so for overseas people we will zoom/meet/teams or whatever and can use OBS for more complex camera and microphone setups.

I’m fascinated by how different people think and how they approach these common challenges. Do you have an idea in your head when it comes to sound design? Or does it grow organically? Do you stumble upon ideas that get you excited and jumping for joy??

Test Chamber

S little while ago I reviewed parts of the epic Test Chamber album and shared some background on the project. The preview on SoundCloud is still present and accessible for you to have a listen.

https://soundcloud.com/user-720876404/modulations-testchamber-preview/s-pRRrI275pYb?si=ba6d729aa5f7464baca745a702780ea3&utm_source=clipboard&utm_medium=text&utm_campaign=social_sharing

The listening party is taking place on the 3rd October. My original post is here:

https://open.substack.com/pub/modulations/p/modcaf-test-chamber-an-album-review?r=2d5k7&utm_medium=ios

I’m excited to be going that evening and if you can get to Aldershot, Hampshire, the land of England, you are more than welcome to attend.

New action camera

I have been reviewing my setup recently and have been looking to get a new action camera that I can chuck anywhere, especially for producing videos on gear, how I use the instruments and so on. I’ve just ordered an Osmo Action 5 with the DJI microphone and I shall be using that for a number of projects I’m working on.

I’ve often used my Insta360 for this but it’s not the right camera for the task, plus although the editing and zoom, position and focus can all be worked on after recording, it does have its downsides. So regular video will be easier and quicker to work with; it’s all about the workflow.

Share your SoundCloud, Bandcamp etc with us

Since I’ve been looking at regular sections for this newsletter, I’m happy to promote your electronic music alongside, those that I’ve found and whatever I’ve released on these platforms to date.

https://on.soundcloud.com/KXxLaMx99t5KJdCv5

My best performing track on SoundCloud at the moment is this one. Produced using an Oxi One, Oxi Coral and a MakeNoise Mimeophon.

Reminds me to dust these off a bit soon and share with you.

Haven’t written about the SeqTrak yet, ooooh, it’s very good and I’ve been using it more as a sound module coupled with my KeyStep Pro.

What have you been tinkering with?

Synth envy

This is not my gear but I came across at an event nearby earlier in the year. They didn’t want to sell it to me and I doubt I could afford it anyway!