Syro Gear Discussion

[cebec]

According to the gearlist 180db_ is made in it's entirely on one of the modulars, in a seperate studio. Quite like the idea of a big spaghetti of modules blasting out the tune

Sounds like there are some drumsamples on top. Wonder if that main kick was also a patch

 

The Serge is capable of some absolutely bowel-emptying kicks, so maybe, yeah...

[amnesia]

you would know :-) I miss my Serge from time to time but love my Buchla and euro.

[amnesia]

I have always believed that Richards strings sounds were either Moog Memorymoog or Sequential Prophet 5 so it was nice to see them listed.

[Hexahedral]

In the Japanese CD package is a version of the list that includes what equipment was used on the bonus track. I will update the spreadsheet linked in the OP tonight with the bonus track information added.

[Hexahedral]

In the Japanese CD package is a version of the list that includes what equipment was used on the bonus track. I will update the spreadsheet linked in the OP tonight with the bonus track information added.

 

Updated spreadsheet: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1S3FoD2h2fa7UDU5Q-yVmdTnaLmAA2nNaE1kl6S9GnEU/pubhtml

 

That explains why there were unused machines listed on the non-Japan gearlist. They are all accounted for now.

[Guest murphythecat8]

 

I'm not sure how putting a sound in a computer would compromise it?

 

That's right, it doesn't. What's a compromise is if you don't get a sound out of your computer, if it 100% originates from the computer. That's why he uses re-amping like everybody else who is concerned with the depth and 3d quality of their sounds. Some of the sounds on Syro are so 3d they're in the room with you.

 

hmmmm...

If he uses only outboard equipment and record everything on tapes without no computer involve, clearly there are advantage.

 

Conversion of a analog signal to digital is detrimental to the sound because you will also need to take that digital signal and make it back to analog using high end DAC ect and no matter how good your DAC/DA, the signal would be better without going thrue all that processing.

 

I didnt bought the vinyl of Syro because I thought everything is going back into a compueter and so that the Vinyl are not printed using tapes but the computer, which make the vinyl playback useless since it already went thrue a bnuch of dacs and DA....

 

Anyone knows if the vinyl cames from the original tapes and the tapes for syro was coming directly from outboard equipment or went into a computer?

[marf]

i cant wrap my head around how he can make those tracks in a daw with like pre recorded bass lines. what if he wants to change something? it's like math. i dont get it.

you could do all this stuff with samplers and modular cv mixer/vca panners for effects sends, but im probably wrongs. its probably in the computer and reamped

[manmower]

 

 

I'm not sure how putting a sound in a computer would compromise it?

That's right, it doesn't. What's a compromise is if you don't get a sound out of your computer, if it 100% originates from the computer. That's why he uses re-amping like everybody else who is concerned with the depth and 3d quality of their sounds. Some of the sounds on Syro are so 3d they're in the room with you.

 

hmmmm...

If he uses only outboard equipment and record everything on tapes without no computer involve, clearly there are advantage.

 

Conversion of a analog signal to digital is detrimental to the sound because you will also need to take that digital signal and make it back to analog using high end DAC ect and no matter how good your DAC/DA, the signal would be better without going thrue all that processing.

 

I didnt bought the vinyl of Syro because I thought everything is going back into a compueter and so that the Vinyl are not printed using tapes but the computer, which make the vinyl playback useless since it already went thrue a bnuch of dacs and DA....

 

Anyone knows if the vinyl cames from the original tapes and the tapes for syro was coming directly from outboard equipment or went into a computer?

 

 

I only had a quick look at the gear sheet but it'll tell you that at least 10/13 tracks were recorded digitally. Combined with the fact that there's a bunch of digital instruments, consoles etc. being used anyway I think your question makes little sense.

[ZoeB]

Conversion of a analog signal to digital is detrimental to the sound because you will also need to take that digital signal and make it back to analog using high end DAC ect and no matter how good your DAC/DA, the signal would be better without going thrue all that processing.

 

Yeah, I don't think that's true. Run an analogue signal through a ~20kHz lowpass filter, a CD quality ADC, a CD quality DAC, and another ~20kHz lowpass filter, and you've got the original signal back, for the purposes of listening to it with human ears.

[awesomeperson]

Surprised to see a TR9090 instead of the original TR909, at first I thought it was a typo.

[Guest murphythecat8]

 

 

 

I'm not sure how putting a sound in a computer would compromise it?

That's right, it doesn't. What's a compromise is if you don't get a sound out of your computer, if it 100% originates from the computer. That's why he uses re-amping like everybody else who is concerned with the depth and 3d quality of their sounds. Some of the sounds on Syro are so 3d they're in the room with you.

 

hmmmm...

If he uses only outboard equipment and record everything on tapes without no computer involve, clearly there are advantage.

 

Conversion of a analog signal to digital is detrimental to the sound because you will also need to take that digital signal and make it back to analog using high end DAC ect and no matter how good your DAC/DA, the signal would be better without going thrue all that processing.

 

I didnt bought the vinyl of Syro because I thought everything is going back into a compueter and so that the Vinyl are not printed using tapes but the computer, which make the vinyl playback useless since it already went thrue a bnuch of dacs and DA....

 

Anyone knows if the vinyl cames from the original tapes and the tapes for syro was coming directly from outboard equipment or went into a computer?

 

 

I only had a quick look at the gear sheet but it'll tell you that at least 10/13 tracks were recorded digitally. Combined with the fact that there's a bunch of digital instruments, consoles etc. being used anyway I think your question makes little sense.

 

where do you see that 10/13 tracks where recorded on a computer??????

 

Its a fact. if you use a digital signal and make it pass thru a DAC. and use 10 different DAC and do the process 10 times, you will hear a significant difference in the sound.

 

A DAC is not transparent, I buy all my jazz on vinyl. because they were pressed with the analog tapes. a signal that had never seen a DAC.

 

Nowadays, since the artist do everything in the computer with his music recorded with a soundcard which transform analog in digital, vinyl makes little sense imho because the press plant even has to use a DAC to put the signal back to analog. If you have a good dac at home, its better to have the digital copy as the sound will only get one processing.

 

In the hifi world, you can pay up to 10k for a top of the line dac. they all sound different. so if, to be able to press syro, they used a DAC, I dont see any point in the vinyl

[zupiclone]

if it was all done in Reason, nobody would be the wiser. half of it probably was, the gear list is made up, half of the cost listings by tDR

is not exactly 'true' either and they've admitted that. believe it you like.

[ZoeB]

I'm not entirely convinced there is a point to vinyl. It was a pretty good solution for the time, but it's obsolete now. The same with Laserdisc, tapes, and any other analogue medium. I've done a 180 on analogue sound generation, sure. As an artist using an analogue synth, I get to choose all the ways in which it's imperfect. OK, maybe not choose, but at least approve. But with digital media, you get the satisfaction of knowing that what people hear is pretty reasonably close to the imperfections you chose, without too many others added on afterwards out of necessity.

 

Seriously, you can buy vinyl records if you want something to touch and some big artwork, but don't kid yourself that they sound anywhere near as good as CDs or digital downloads.

[marf]

tape adds a nice compression though. im sure they put this to tape in the end as part of mastering.

zupiclone, the list is real, trust the ones who have been paying attention. it is real

[ZoeB]

tape adds a nice compression though. im sure they put this to tape in the end as part of mastering.

Indeed, tape as an effect deliberately chosen by the musician can really add to a piece. See, for instance, that guy here who masters to VHS tapes and back in order to get a specific vibe. But there's an important distinction between using tape as an effect on purpose because you want to, and some copies of your album having unwanted noise because some fans can only afford to buy it on compact cassette. Early Aphex Twin albums, recorded to compact cassette out of necessity, but with the noise consciously kept, admittedly blur this distinction somewhat.

[marf]

im talking about 1 inch reel to reel tape. check ya email

[awepittance]

 

Seriously, you can buy vinyl records if you want something to touch and some big artwork, but don't kid yourself that they sound anywhere near as good as CDs or digital downloads.

fidelity wise I agree, but in the case of Syro the vinyl was mastered by the same guy who did Minipops all the way through, not so on the Cd, all tracks besides 1 were mastered by a different person. In my mind the vinyl sounds drastically better, it sounds less compressed, the bass drums have more transient punch especially on tracks like Produk (that bassline and bass drum on the CD sort of get in the way of eachother)

 

If you dont care to buy the vinyl, Id recommend at least getting a good quality rip of the vinyl to hear what Im talking about.

[ZoeB]

im talking about 1 inch reel to reel tape. check ya email

 

The same applies. Recording to one inch reel to reel tape for that specific effect is fine, but I'm glad it's no longer a format consumers have to put up with, and even artists only use it out of choice now, not necessity. It's nice for the artist to have the option between a recording being pristine, clear digital or warm analogue. Both are fine choices, and it's nice that the artist rather than the consumer gets to make the choice.

[Guest BunnyRabbit]

if it was all done in Reason, nobody would be the wiser. half of it probably was, the gear list is made up, half of the cost listings by tDR

is not exactly 'true' either and they've admitted that. believe it you like.

I do like.

 

It would in fact be an even greater achievement if it was half done in Reason.

 

Anyway, I guess the Dave Noyze interview will be part of this ruse.

[ascdi]

 

I buy all my jazz on vinyl.

 

 

Ok.

 

I'm assuming the foundation of a lot of these tracks are "jams" or more skeletal hardware compositions processed and edited after the fact. Considering that RDJ claims he's constantly disconnecting and reassembling his studio I agree—seems unlikely that he'd keep everything wired up in "XMAS_EVE configuration" for very long.

[Audioblysk]

 

 

Seriously, you can buy vinyl records if you want something to touch and some big artwork, but don't kid yourself that they sound anywhere near as good as CDs or digital downloads.

fidelity wise I agree, but in the case of Syro the vinyl was mastered by the same guy who did Minipops all the way through, not so on the Cd, all tracks besides 1 were mastered by a different person. In my mind the vinyl sounds drastically better, it sounds less compressed, the bass drums have more transient punch especially on tracks like Produk (that bassline and bass drum on the CD sort of get in the way of eachother)

 

If you dont care to buy the vinyl, Id recommend at least getting a good quality rip of the vinyl to hear what Im talking about.

 

 

I don't believe you. I'll accept proof in form of FLACs from the record in .zip so I can compare side by side

[Guest skibby]

i was surprised that in the noyze photo theres a dx7 and the dx7 aint on the gear list.

 

was that noyzes dx7 i guess?

[pizza]

i was surprised that in the noyze photo theres a dx7 and the dx7 aint on the gear list.

 

was that noyzes dx7 i guess?

yes

[Audioblysk]

Why are people doubting the gearlist.

This guy is 100% more dedicated to making the music he hears in his head than pretty much anyone I know, why is it so hard to believe that someone who is moderately wealthy (assumed), known for groud-breaking tracks and making most musicians look lazy, holes themselves away with their machines and family to make music and live life would use Reason of all things and then put up a fake gear list with their album. He's a fetishist for gear and sound - that much is obvious and has been for a while

 

My opinion is that Richard is done goofing about with what people perceive in his music and is being honest about his craft. Even if you could amass the hundreds of thousands of dollars of gear on that list, nobody could sound like him, besides him. He may put on the regular AFX-pisstake by saying his 5 year old pirated software and made an album, but I really don't think he's lying about his production such and might even be a little proud to show everyone just how deep his obsession and passion goes for making the sounds in his head.

 

I used to see a ton of mystique with Richards productions, and to some extent, there still is a lot of mystery. But also, I have realized it's just a very creative, driven and talented guy who REALLY cares about his own musical world and expression. The amount of work is what separates him from other producers aside from the equipment.

 

I'll get off his jock, but seriously, this album is great and the gear list makes sense.

[awepittance]

 

i was surprised that in the noyze photo theres a dx7 and the dx7 aint on the gear list.

 

was that noyzes dx7 i guess?

yes

 

hi Steinvord