Chapter 2
I tried to show you in chapter 1 that LimeLite has a huge sound variability with all its samples and sample module parameters. You can spend many hours with a simple drum pattern just playing around with the knobs in the sample module sections and discover interesting and new sounds all the time. But there is so much more...
Just as in the previous chapter, let's begin with a very basic drum pattern.
Select snapshot 9 "Spam 1". Don't you think that even your grandmother could come up with a beat like that? Before falling asleep go over to the next snapshot 10 "Spam 2".
It is still the same beat pattern but the sound is so much richer and powerful. Ok, go back to the previous snapshot 9 "Spam 1" and I will guide you step by step from grandmother's beat to the power beat.
First, switch NORM on in the OUT section. As mentioned before, this makes the sound thicker.
Now, activate the PULP section. In chapter 1, we used PULP to generate a ringing sound that is synchronized to the kick (--> snapshot 7 "Phone 2"). Here, the effect is similar in that PULP generates additional sound. It is just not a ringing sound but a noisy "whoosh". You can change this sound back to a ringing tone by turning the OSC (=oscillator) button in the PULP section to full left.
Keep that in mind for later, when I discuss the PULP section in more detail. For now, turn the OSC button back to full right. Now, add the flanger effect by activating the XFX and MIX sections.
The effect is very strong and turns the loop into a metallic wishy-washy mixture.
Attention, now comes an important technique that I use very often in my loops: Effects can be turned on and off with a MOD sequence.
Activate the MOD pattern in the sequencer window to see the pattern that is used for the modulation.
Switch on the MIX button in the MIX section...
...et voilà. The flanger effect is now only activated for the selected steps in the MOD pattern.
Here is another example for this technique: snapshot 11 "Spacetrain 1". To hear the difference, turn the MIX button in the MIX section on and off.
This snapshot also has a nice pitch modulation that is best heard for the hi-hat. Select snapshot 12 "Spacetrain 2". It's the same loop without the ufo effect and the HAT section set to solo mode. Turn on and off the MAGIC section and you will hear who is responsible for the pitch shifting business.
Just another example for the MIX modulation technique: snapshot 13 "Nervous Insect". Turn on and off the MIX switch in the MIX section. You hear that even very strong effects can be tamed with a modulation sequence to add character to a loop. One more thing to mention here is that in this snapshot the MIX contribution is modulated gradually. You can turn the modulation to a binary modulation, i.e. either on or off, by clicking on the bar below the MIX button.
The MIX modulation technique is not only useful to change the sound of a loop, you can also use it to add subtle variations to the drum pattern. The "slice" effect is especially useful for this.
Select snapshot 14 "Popcorn 1". First, take a look at the POD section. Set it to solo mode. It generates a nice tick-tock sound. This is achieved by mapping the VEL (velocity) values of the POD sequencer pattern to cut (filter cutoff).
Change this setting to "--" and turn the CUT knob to the center position (12 o clock). Annoying, isn't it? So, in case you missed this in chapter 1, let me stress once again that sample parameter modulation can turn annoying noise into interesting rhythmic elements.
Ok, set the VEL mapping back to "cut", decrease the cutoff frequency a bit (~10:30) and activate the other sample modules ("un-solo" the POD sampler). This loop is very static and hard to listen to for a longer time...
Go to the next snapshot 15 "Popcorn 2". It is still the same loop but now, the MIX modulation is used to gradually fade in and out the "slice effect" that varies the drum pattern.
The type of pattern variation is determined by the position of the small square in the XFX module. Furthermore, the horizontal bar in the XFX section chooses between two different pattern maps. Set this bar to the leftmost position and you will hear that another pattern variation is used.
You should play a bit more with this rhythmic effect modulation. Turn off the MIX button in the MIX section so that you can hear the pattern variation all the time. Now, place the small square in the XFX section at different positions until you find a pattern variation that sounds interesting (and turn off the POD section if the tick-tock gets on your nerves). Activate the MIX switch again, and check the result. You can also draw a new pattern in the MOD sequencer. Time to experiment a bit on your own.
You see, there are many possibilities to add variation (sound and rhythm) to your loops with MIX modulation. In the next chapter I will show you the parameter recording feature for effects and then, the time of static loops will be over once and forever.
Resume:
In this chapter you have learned about:
- Sample parameter modulation
- MIX modulation