
Human Voices Redux for Omnisphere 2.6
Human Voices Redux is a soundset for Spectrasonics’ software synth Omnisphere. There are 120 patches, and all exclusively about voices: Big choirs, little choirs, lead vocal keys, human beatbox drums, wistful calls and effects, all made with human vocal samples and vox waveforms. Of course there are many beautiful pads, but many phrases have been retuned and granularized, and others turned into rich and unusual drum and percussion patches.
Latest videos:
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Oceans 11 all settings walkthrough - much more than a reverb
0:00 A few demo sounds<br /> 2:27 Overview - power, tails, bypass etc<br /> 5:38 The value of 100% wet<br /> 6:34 The controls<br /> 8:10 Factory reset<br /> 8:55 Programming fundamentals<br /> 14:10 Hall<br /> 17:03 Spring<br /> 19:45 Plate<br /> 22:50 Reverse<br /> 26:09 Echo<br /> 30:35 Tremolo<br /> 34:54 Mod - Chorus<br /> 36:58 Mod - Flerb<br /> 37:36 Mod - Chorus & Flerb<br /> 38:56 Dyn - Swell<br /> 40:24 Dyn - Gate<br /> 43:30 Dyn - Ducking<br /> 45:15 Auto Infinite<br /> 48:15 Shimmer<br /> 51:23 Poly<br /> <br /> The EHX Oceans 11 reverb is a much deeper, weirder and more interesting effects unit than you might expect. It's called a reverb pedal but can happily function as a multi-effects unit with excellent delay and tremolo and passable chorus and flanger. And various reverbs of course. Here I go through all the settings and options in detail and only repeat myself once or twice.<br /> The pedal does has a reputation for complexity, but spend a mere hour here and you'll be completely at ease with all its functions and be suitably rewarded with a huge range of flavors. Don't judge it on a 30-second demo of hall and spring, that is a mere spec of its powers.<br /> Despite the length of this video there are two little things I left out. Double-click the footswitch when in spring reverb mode to simulate "kicking the box" and hearing a little "doiing". And somewhat similarity, if you press and hold the footswitch (in most modes) the reverb will infinitely sustain.<br /> Also be assured that when I say in the video about the green, red and orange LED colors that's what they actually are in reality. Unfortunately in the video they're almost completely washed out - my lighting skills and the idea that "I'd fix it in post" were both inadequate. <br /> As usual this is not a sponsored video. I bought the Oceans 11 with my own money at full price.<br /> <br /> Lots of downloads for supporters on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/richarddehove<br /> Many thanks to my kind patrons who keep this channel ad-free<br /> My website: https://richarddehove.com/<br /> My other channel "IntraCosmos" of long-play dark ambient textures: https://www.youtube.com/@intracosmos -
Complexity not required
For days I've been trying to make an "Oceans 11 - Complete Walkthrough" video, but I keep getting distracted by the sounds. So I gave in and made this first. Originally I was going to just take a few seconds of this but I like drony dirty choiry things and thought you might enjoy it too, especially as it was so simple. The danger with a giant multi-tier stand of vintage polysynths is that you might feel obliged to use several of them at once. Less is more. At about the halfway point (as mentioned in the video) I add in some FabFilter Pro-R "Cathedral" reverb at 50% mix. But there's no other DAW fiddlings.<br /> Since I blab endlessly in the video I won't repeat all the info here but merely add that the FM knob on the DB-01 is very useful but could perhaps be great. Imagine if it could be somehow locked to the chosen scale? Now that would lead to all sorts of good things.<br /> <br /> Lots of downloads for supporters on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/richarddehove<br /> Many thanks to my kind patrons who keep this channel ad-free<br /> My website: https://richarddehove.com/<br /> My other channel "IntraCosmos" of long-play dark ambient textures: https://www.youtube.com/@intracosmos -
Doom approaches
Not depressed enough about everything yet? Maybe this can help! Here's the DB-01 synth in a single take with a little help from some pedals. No other music or processing. Sampled voices are from the brilliant 1984 UK movie "Threads" a harrowing, grim and completely believable movie about the lead up and aftermath of a global nuclear exchange. There's no happy ending.<br /> (And yes, for anyone who saw my last video this is exactly the same setup - I was noodling afterwards and this just fell out).<br /> <br /> Lots of downloads for supporters on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/richarddehove<br /> Many thanks to my kind patrons who keep this channel ad-free<br /> My website: https://richarddehove.com/<br /> My other channel "IntraCosmos" of long-play dark ambient textures: https://www.youtube.com/@intracosmos -
The best DB-01 feature you're probably not using
It's the one trick grammy award winning dentists don't want you to know - yet nine out of 10 cats agree!<br /> Seriously though there are functions on some machines that you just never get to unless you go digging. I'm a big fan of the DB-01 arp, especially jamming over the top of existing sequences. And recently I made a huge discovery. Well, actually, a tiny and insignificant realization, but it was that in the DB-01 arp section "PIA" stands for "piano" and "STP" stands for "step". For two years I was guessing at that acronym. A cosmic ray must have nudged a defective neuron aside. Yeah, obvious to you but not me. It turns out that "step" is a fantastic auto-slicing jamming function.<br /> In the comments a while back someone said they enjoyed my "crusty" take on things. That means "a little bit grumpy". I like that. I am a little bit grumpy - about a lot of things. One thing I don't like is demos with too many machines. What tends to happen is that one (or more) machines get latched onto some never-ending-16-step-loopy-thing. Or maybe more than one. I don't like that (but of course I've done it lots of times). I get irritated these days when just one machine is endlessly repeating a 16-step pattern. Did any of the great composers just mindlessly copy bar after bar after bar of the same sludge just to fill out supporting instruments? Of course not. (Although I do like Phillip Glass)<br /> OTOH modern machines usually present you with a 16-step grid. So what can you do?<br /> Which brings us back to STP "step" mode on the DB-01 arp. A single, boring, 16-step pattern can be sliced up on the fly and made into endless variations. Possibly the best use of this is recording it as audio and slicing it up in the DAW. Or perhaps live performance. Whatever you do it's a good way to make 16-steps a lot more interesting.<br /> The quick version of this is to take an empty pattern, go into the randomizer and "randomize all" (the button on the far right). Now you have an unplayable mess. But with the "step" arp (latched) you can probably pick out selected parts and make something coherent. In any case it's entertaining. What do you think?<br /> <br /> Lots of downloads for supporters on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/richarddehove<br /> Many thanks to my kind patrons who keep this channel ad-free<br /> My website: https://richarddehove.com/<br /> My other channel "IntraCosmos" of long-play dark ambient textures: https://www.youtube.com/@intracosmos -
El Capistan V2: New user setup and walkthrough
Strymon's El Capistan tape delay version 2 pedal has configuration options that need to be adjusted if you're using line level instruments or MIDI. There are also secondary sound tweaking controls that can make a huge difference to the sound. Happily everything is either set-and-forget or very straightforward.<br /> This is part one of a two-part tutorial. Part 2 will explore the looper and more advanced MIDI functionality.<br /> <br /> 0:00 Intro<br /> 1:00 Time controls<br /> 2:37 Front panel overview<br /> 3:32 Config overview<br /> 4:35 Input type<br /> 5:34 Spillover<br /> 6:30 Bypass mode<br /> 7:30 Activate MIDI<br /> 9:38 Set MIDI channel<br /> 10:54 MIDI Clock<br /> 12:35 Trails test<br /> 13:06 Clock sync changes<br /> 14:55 Wow & Flutter, Tape Age<br /> 17:44 Secondary functions<br /> 18:38 Tape Crinkle<br /> 19:37 Low End Contour<br /> 20:55 Tape Bias<br /> 22:18 Boost & Cut<br /> 22:44 Secondary defaults<br /> 25:06 Audio outro<br /> <br /> This pedal was bought by me at full price.<br /> <br /> Lots of downloads for supporters on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/richarddehove<br /> Many thanks to my kind patrons who keep this channel ad-free<br /> My website: https://richarddehove.com/<br /> My other channel "IntraCosmos" of long-play dark ambient textures: https://www.youtube.com/@intracosmos -
JPTR-FX Add Violence on synth and drums (no talk)
Add Violence is a fuzz pedal but I prefer the sub-heading from JPTR-FX "Planetary Disorder Unit". With just three knobs and a switch they've managed to create a very tweak-worthy machine. At first I put an EQ in front of it but soon took it away - the pedal does a better job by itself. An EQ after might be better but I haven't got that far yet. I've only been using this for a day and was so impressed by the sound I thought I'd better record it before any of the magic evaporated.<br /> I bought this as a pre-order a few months back and am sorry to say I'm the kind of guy who constantly messages "Are we there yet?" Sorry JPTR-FX, my excuse is I'm keen. In truth I wasn't expecting too much. I've tried a lot of overdrive, distortion and fuzz pedals and at least half of them are woeful on synth. I don't know what it is but some of them do almost nothing except add an annoying insect-like buzz. So I was overjoyed at Add Violence - it loves synths and drum machine. Even better, it's silent. My dearly beloved Dark Glass B3K overdrive fizzes and hisses like crazy, but the Add Violence is silent. And when jamming I was torn between constantly turning up the volume and being worried I was going to vibrate the cones to destruction - this thing can really amplify the low harmonics.<br /> There's still more to explore with this pedal since you can open it open and turn it into an octave fuzz. Until then I hope you enjoy this sample of its powers. I was going to blab and blather on this video but the sound seemed to warn me off - the dirt and filth must remain pure. Instead I added a few sampled quotes just to add a little color. Other than them the sound is as you see it: raw from the DB-01 into the Add Violence and a little delay every now and then from the Boss DM-2W. With the LXR-02 I took one channel from the stereo out into the pedal, the other straight into the DAW, then centred both, so the original dry sound is still there. The on-screen waveform is from the effected channel only.<br /> If you like this format - no talk with a few little sample enhancements - please let me know so I can do more, especially since you're one of the good and true people who've read the full description :)<br /> <br /> 0:00 Drums 1<br /> 2:32 Doom keys<br /> 3:46 Drum 2<br /> 4:49 Arp<br /> 5:18 Pattern 1<br /> 5:47 Arp 2<br /> 6:31 Doom keys 2<br /> 7:22 Drum variations<br /> 8:25 Pattern 2<br /> <br /> Lots of downloads for supporters on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/richarddehove<br /> Many thanks to my kind patrons who keep this channel ad-free<br /> My website: https://richarddehove.com/<br /> My other channel "IntraCosmos" of long-play dark ambient textures: https://www.youtube.com/@intracosmos -
Two DB-01s visit the fairy grotto
How "sweet" can the DB-01 sound? Can they gently float through the fairy grotto sprinkling magic pixie dust? Well it's certain they didn't want to, and they fought against the visit the whole time, and wouldn't play with the fairies at all unless they had help from some heavy effects. In the end they were probably rightly regarded as a couple of intruding goblins, but they behaved themselves and might yet get another invitation.<br /> Here we have three short little sketches. Each DB-01 gets the effect next to to it: The Strymon Timeline on the left and either the Strymon El Capistan V2 or the DBA Rooms reverb on the right. Absolutely no other effects or processing are used. The Keystep-37 is central to the setup and you'll notice the different key modes on the DB-01 in each piece, either "key" which means the Keystep is playing the unit directly, or "arp" which means the Keystep is triggering the DB-01's own arpegiator. This gets most interesting where the Keystep is in strum mode and each strum note is in turn activating a restart on the arpegiator.<br /> The MIDI chain is simply out of the keystep into the left DB-01 then MIDI Through to the right DB-01. All three units (and the Timeline) are receiving their own feed of an external MIDI clock (the ERM MIDI Clock).<br /> <br /> 0:00 Silky's Theme <br /> 1:41 Midnight<br /> 2:56 Dame Slap<br /> <br /> Lots of downloads for supporters on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/richarddehove<br /> Many thanks to my kind patrons who keep this channel ad-free<br /> My website: https://richarddehove.com/<br /> My other channel "IntraCosmos" of long-play dark ambient textures: https://www.youtube.com/@intracosmos -
Fairfield Circuitry Roger That - probing for sounds on synth (no talk)
Not many pedals are designed to be played. Usually you just dial in a sound and then play or tweak something else. The Fairfield Circuitry 'Roger That' wants to be tweaked. Its controls can be very sensitive for something so brutal. Here I don't try to give a "showcase" of sound but more a feeling of what it's like to tweak the pedal. Sometimes tiny movements give drastic changes, other times you sweep a knob and nothing much happens. I was initially very excited for the CV input but it often seemed to have little effect. OTOH an external LFO (or perhaps Schlappi Engineering's similarly conceived Interstellar Radio) would probably be a much better CV source.<br /> There's no nice stuff here, it's all grinding tones and noise and it gets worse (better?) as it goes along until it ends with a Throbbing Gristle style tribute. But I like the Roger That. It's hardcore distortion generated in a new way and without the high noisefloor which usually comes with traditional distortion. Good raw material for sampling and looping.<br /> Roger That was bought by me with my own money at full price. Fairfield did include a handwritten postcard though so that was nice.<br /> And by the way, you know the (British) slang meaning of "Roger That" don't you? :D<br /> <br /> 0:00 Mild tweaking<br /> 2:15 With CV<br /> 3:10 Slow sequence<br /> 3:56 FM drone<br /> 5:45 Robot gas<br /> 7:51 Slow sequence 2<br /> 9:16 Random awfulness<br /> 11:20 Gristle time<br /> <br /> Lots of downloads for supporters on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/richarddehove<br /> Many thanks to my kind patrons who keep this channel ad-free<br /> My website: https://richarddehove.com/<br /> My other channel "IntraCosmos" of long-play dark ambient textures: https://www.youtube.com/@intracosmos

Altair-4 soundset for ArcSyn
“Altair-4” is a soundset for SPC ArcSyn. It contains 100 patches widely varied between synchronized bass, leads and percussion; characterful drones; long self-generating textures and ambiences; special effects; stingers; drums and sci-fi leads. Every patch has a variation on the modwheel – be sure to try it! Celebrating five years of ArcSyn.

Metal clunks from the song "Fear"
In my dark-ambient song “Fear Has Brought You Here” I use a lot of hard metal clanks and clunks. They were recorded by me hitting a big empty metal skip with other bits of metal and a hammer. In this sample set you’ll find 60 metal hits and scrapes, including all the sounds used in the song. You can download the first 16 samples as a free taster.

Drum samples from the DB-01
Erica Synths DB-01 is primarily a bass synth but can also double as a heavy hitting drum machine. In this sample set you’ll find 78 kicks, zaps, thumps, noise hits and distorted growls suitable for heavy electronica or further mangling into deeper weirdness. You can download the first 16 samples as a free taster.

Dystopia soundset for ArcSyn
“Dystopia” is a soundset for SPC ArcSyn. It contains 101 patches of horror, tension, torment and sci-fi textures designed for cinematic, space music, ambient, gaming, sampling and horror. Rich intersection modulations are heavily randomized for constantly shifting texture. You’ll also find related keys, pads and special effects. It’s the deepest dive yet into the complex beauty of ArcSyn.

Sputnik soundset for ArcSyn
ArcSyn by SPC software is an incredibly deep VST synthesizer. Its combination of unusual oscillators, filters, noise sources and LFO sequencer makes it capable of some unique sounds. “Sputnik” is a collectioon of 100 sounds from subtle keys and pads to complex textures and syncronized basses.

Get both albums on CD
There's nothing like real-world physical media. Sure you can listen to the tracks on Youtube (or Bitchute), and download high-quality MP3s from any of the major music stores, or from this site direct, but if you're a collector then you'll want actual CDs.
I still have a small number of CDs of my first and second albums available. Click the button below to get both CDs for US$20. The price includes both albums and delivery anywhere on the planet. When ordering don't forget to include your preferred name and address! After ordering you'll receive an email confirmation. The CDs will be sent within 48 hours.
Both albums (including delivery) for $20: