Here are this weekend’s deals from the 4Pockets camp. The offers end February 12th.
- Copperhead Synth – $14.99 to $9.99
- Euclidean Sequencer – $12.99 to $8.99
- Progressions – $12.99 to $8.99
- AudioScope – $14.99 to $9.99
Copperhead
Copperhead is an AUv3 digital subtractive synthesizer plugin which draws its influence from the vintage synthesizers of the early 80’s. Only now we have multi-note polyphony, a build in arpeggiator, and a host of integrated audio effects. Copperhead features a custom String Machine, the ability to design your own custom waveforms, as well as supporting oscillator sync and various cross modulation effects. Cross modulation is a type of FM synthesis which can be used to morph simplistic waveforms into something far more aggressive and interesting.
At the heart of Copperhead are its two oscillators, which support all your traditional waveforms (SINE,SQR,SAW,TRI), as well as SuperSaw, Trapezium, and other user definable types. The app features pulse width modulation and supersaw, as well as a customisable string engine and the ability to create your own oscillator types.
The Voltage Controller Filter supports the usual LP, HP, BP and Notch filters in series or parallel configuration, as well as a couple of unusual ones like Formant which allows you to sweep your cutoff to create interesting vowel sounds.
Copperhead also features twin LFO’s with random and one shot functionality. It also supports Cross, Ring and FM modulators, in addition to low and high shelf filters.
One of the great features is the integrated audio gate, which allows you to generate stuttering audio right out of the box. Combined with effects such as Chorus, Overdrive, Delay, Reverb and Auto Pan / Tremelo, and the ability to specify effect order, you have a lot of control over your sound.
If that wasn’t enough, we also include a 32 step sequencer, with various mono and poly modes with direct control control of various synth elements.
4Pockets have a built-in Preset Manager which groups presets into banks and groups, which supports drag and drop for easy import/export of presets. You can also access your favourites from a special popup menu, or via the built in quick search facility. Copperhead now ships with over 550 presets which cover just about every instrument category you would ever need.
Euclidean
Euclidean Sequencer is an alternative incarnation of the classic step sequencer that has become very popular in the modular realm. It is based on Euclidean rhythms developed by computer scientist Godfried Toussaint in 2004. Euclidean rhythms have their roots in Greek mathematician Euclid’s algorithm, which involves using the greatest common divisor of two numbers to place hits in a sequence as evenly as possible across a set timing divisions.
In practice this is actually simpler than you might think, and Euclidean Sequencer is a great way to auto generate complex musical sequences with no prior knowledge of how it actually works.
Euclidean Sequencer is an AUv3 plugin that can be loaded inside any popular host application that has flexible MIDI routing.
You can define up to 4 Euclidean rhythm parts, each part is referred to as a band. The bands are labelled A-D and colour coded RED, ORANGE, GREEN and CYAN. Together these 4 bands create a pattern, and you can create up to 16 seperate patterns per song patch.
Since each band can specify its own note sequence and output MIDI channel, you can create some quite sophisticated rythms patterns, driving 4 seperate instruments at once. Even better you can seamlessly switch patterns to create even longer evolving sequences. Patterns follow a specified key, scale, or defined chord.
You can even use MIDI input to automatically make note sequences conform to the currently playing chords.
Progressions
Progressions is an AUv3 MIDI plugin for your favourite DAW. It can be used to generate a unique set of chords that are unrelated to traditional scales, which become predictable and repetative over time. Instead, Progressions uses a unique way of mathermaically generating a series of related chords using only a root note and mode (major or minor). Chord sequences are limited by the selected complexity and freedom levels, which mimic the way traditional composers of old would wander away from tonality and back again.
The complexity level start off at Basic, which uses only the most common chords (I, IV, V and relative minor ii, iii, and vi triads). As you progress through the levels, you can add parallel majors and minors, sus and dom chords etc. At level 3 we start to introduce 6th and 7th chords, and then 9ths chords, all the way to 11ths, 13ths, Quartals and all their variations.
The freedom level allows us to specify how far to drift away from tonality (the root), even allowing you to create never ending randomized soundscapes.
Progressions allows you to quickly randomize a toolbox of chords, that can be played in a variety of modes (block chords, arpeggiated, or strummed). These can be synced to a host application, triggered remotely or pieced together into a song.
Song mode allow you to change play modes on the fly as well as being able to control many features of the app in real time.
Progressions supports open and closed chords with selectable voicings. It has an intelligent algorithm that attempts to align top notes of chords, add additional bass, and open chord padding to give equal weight to chords with only 3 notes. You can even play with rootless voicings.
The Humanize section allows you to control chord and note timings, as well as set velocity variations to ensure things don’t get too robitic.
Progressions also features an integrated arpeggiator and strummming pattern editor. You can load up to 6 arp and 6 strum patterns at the same time and seemlessly switch between them manually, remotely, or using song mode.
If you run multiple instances, Progressions allows you to sync your chord pads, song chain, arpeggiator / strum patterns between instances.
Progressions can be loaded as a MIDI plugin or as an Instrument for those programs that don’t support MIDI plugins (such as GB). Additionally when loaded as an instrument, you can use either internal sounds (soundfonts) or send MIDI directly to other MIDI instruments.
AudioScope
AudioScope is an invaluable audio plugin for mixing and mastering with a toolbox of additional mixing aids. It was originally created as a method for comparing your mix to a reference track and seeing exactly what frequencies to tweak in order to obtain a desired match. This alone is incredibly useful for creating the feel of a particular genre of music, by tweaking your mix to match.
AudioScope is so much more than this! It includes a great visual mixer which enables you control your entire mix from a single window inside your DAW. You see a top-down visualisation of your entire mix and stereo balance. You can save up to 3 compare mixes and quickly switch between them. You can also save up to 12 snapshots of stereo positions and levels, then morph between them. All of this functionality is available via MIDI, so with one simple CC command, you can switch out one mix for another or engage a snapshot. You are able to group your drums and other elements so that the mix doesn’t become overwhelming, allowing you to focus on a subset of key elements if you wish. AudioScope also includes a suite of tools to adjust EQ, compression, and overall balance of your mix.
The way AudioScope works is unique, with a quick and easy workflow: Insert an instance of AudioScope on each of your track’s Insert Effect slot and name the track. Now simply open one of the instances and you have the ability to control all tracks from a single window.
AudioScope is equiped with its own shelf and peak filters, EQ and lookahead compressor (with side-chain).
For more information these and other 4Pockets apps, click here:
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