VC-2 in XT is fantastic, but...

[EJ2]

Greetings all,
I finally set up an XLR mic to the VC-2 card in my XT. Quickly going through the Presets was like a kid having fun in a free candy shop. All of the sounds knocked me out. However, and this could be due to my inexperience with vocoders, I noticed audible artifacts when depressing the keyboard before speaking/singing into the mic. Some of it I can nail down as FXs spillover. On most of the presets these initial sounds were evident. The room was quiet - no fans, no machines, no other equipment running. So what can this be? And how can I compensate or correct these initial artifacts bleeding in before I start speaking/singing into the mic? Anyone with VC-2 or vocoder experience have suggestions?

Next point:
From the Roland video demos, I had the impression that I could play XT patches/grooves etc. at the same time I use the VC-2's vocoder. So, you can imagine my dismay when I discoverd that all of the rhythm kits, grooves, harmonies etc. from the XT cannot be used in real time along with the V-cards (including the VC-1 D50) built in. I have to load up the VC-2 card to use the vocoder effects and this shuts down the V-Synth section..... bummer. Am I missing something here?

Thanks for any suggestions.
Cheers,
Eric

[jcthemc]

he was using 2 v synths... i beleive or one of the MV groove boxes

ahh to tame this amazing beast of a synth!!!

[EJ2]

Thanks, Guys,
I somewhat thought that more than one system was operating. Just wondering whether he had some sampled loops within the VC-2 that he was layering? The demo is a bit misleading. One thing about the Karma demos - what you hear is what you get. Same with the new OASYS. I guess the XT operates in Patch Mode only - no performance/multi mode.

Thanks for the tip on the noise gate. Makes sense to me. I was thinking something along those lines, so I just checked the manual and there is a "NOISE SUP" noise suppressor. I'll have to fiddle around with the "threshold level" and "release time".

[Cromio]

I've searched around the Roland Sites but I don't find it
can someone help me?

[Artemiy]

I myself only heard VC-2 demos from the NAMM videos at SonicState. Anyone knows of any audio demos or interactive flashes?

[DodgingRain]

I dunno but the video I saw he was obviously using an XT and a V-synth, looks the same in this video as well. You have to remember that the v-synth is excellent for playing loops as well.

[robinez]

i've tried the vocoder in the xt to see if i can hear the artifacts. It's true, with some patches you can hear some artifacts. However, these are just the bleeding of the carrier sound through the fx channels. By tweaking the patch you can easely get rid of these artifacts. It's normal behaviour of a vocoder with these settings. Indeed you can use a gate on the insert of your audio channel where the vocoder sounds are sent to. This way you can use the excelent presets from the card without the 'bleeding' of the carrier sounds.

I'm stunned about the quality of the vc2 vocoder. I have multiple vocoders in my studio, like the supernova 2, virus c, waldorf Q, vokator, orange vocoder, etc. but none of them are even close to the quality of the vc2 vocoder sounds. This card is incredible.

the sounds from the roland demo video are indeed loops played by a different machine. He took drumloops from the songs he's playing on the vocoder, these songs are classics from the 80's and 90's like Whodini - the freaks come out at night, Zapp - so ruff, so tuff, etc.

i've tried to reproduce the same demo at home with my gear, i've copied the loops from the original songs and sang the same lines he did on the video. The result is the same (even i can't sing). This show in my opinion how good the vocoder card is.

just one question;
In the demo he uses a preset called banshee. Someone on this forum said that it was a default preset in the vc2 card. However, in the included vc2 card in my vsynth xt, there is no patch called banshee. Is it downloadable from any place (like the guy in the video demo on the roland website says)?

[rcmusic]

yep, i'd like to have this patch too (banshee). that's strange they use patch for demo that ar not included when you buy the vc-2. anyway it's a very very very good card. thanx Roland

[rcmusic]

just got a mail from tonee mcguire ( XT demo at namm), a really cool and talented guy. he has made new patches for the vc-2, like the banshee one. roland should post them for download....just a little patience.

[EJ2]

That's great RC. I've been messing around with VC-2 in my XT. This is an awesome addition to the V-synth. The "bleed through" can be dealt with using the "Noise Sup" p. 25-26.

For those of us who have little to no experience with vocoders, VC-2 is just the cat's meow.

Cheers,
Eric

EJ2 BLOG - http://spaces.msn.com/members/EJ2/

[robinez]

very good news indeed.

for gating and compressing i have also found a menu where you can set the noise gate and compressing values. so it's very configurable

_____________________
To hear my songs please check my website.

[miditutor]

Hey Everyone,
I'm that guy you all keep talking about. Thanks for all your kind words. For those with un-kind words... oh well ha-ha. Anyway, the "Banshee" patch was a sound I made for the V-Synth XT prototype but could NOT be included in the patch build because of the name Banshee (a real product). It IS available, however, as part of my new patches on www.miditutor.com under downloads as "TM-ECODER". If you like the Banshee patch, also try the one called "TM-TUBELESS". It's like having a talkbox without having to deal with the dreaded TUBE. I hope you enjoy them.

Thanks again

Tonee

Don't Worry! We can help.
www..miditutor.com

[groovecake]

I am not entirely happy with how the VC-2 sounds with my V-Synth. I am running a Sure Beta 58 with a 1/4" adapter on the cord directly into the V-synth. My VC-2 easily distorts and isn't extremely intelligible. Of course I have messed with the gains and the mic settings but haven't really solved anything.

Can anyone advise how they are setting up the VC-2 (what mic, how they are routing it, etc.)? I am sure this thing should be the best Vocoder out there, but I haven't got it to sound like it yet.

Thanks!

Mitch

[EJ2]

I'm that guy you all keep talking about. Thanks for all your kind words....

Hey, Tonee,
Thanks for dropping in. I'm the one who started this thread. Since doing so, I've had a chance to get a little more into the V-Synth XT and I'm loving it, even if I'm still trying to reorient myself back to Roland. I've been heavily involved with developing "Karmafied" Combis (performances) for the Korg Karma.
Anyway, I appreciated your demos. They helped me decide to jump on the XT band wagon. Of course there are a few things I'd like to see done differently, but the bottom line with me is SOUND and XT has it. I've already started developing a bank of VC-1 sounds tweaked from my own D50 material. As for the VC-2, I'm blown away. This is an incredible resource for the electronic musician.
Thanks also for the link to the downloads of your creations.
Cheers,
Eric

EJ2 BLOG - http://spaces.msn.com/members/EJ2/

[robinez]

Hi Tonee,

great to have you on board on this forum. I've had to admit. Your namm demo was the most impressive demo i've ever seen. It convinced me right away to buy the vsynth xt.
The vc2 is an incredible piece of magic. Even i can sing now with the help of the vc2. I'm using it all the time to complement the productions i'm making.

I've downloaded the patches, thank you very much for sharing that with us.

_____________________
To hear my songs please check my website.