Classic 70s synth sounds

[dellstar07]

It was great to find On The Run, Hoedown, Rubycon & Phaedra as presets on my Maxibrute  thank you Arturia! Why can I never find the amazing Hawkwind silver machine intro or the even earlier Masters of the Universe anywhere on the internet.. i need that space rock rushing wind white noise that builds so you think you are an astronaut at launch. Just don't have the synth knowledge to create it

[DrJustice]

Ah yes, this is classic stuff! For that Silver Machine noise sweep, start with an Init patch, then:

 - Switch off VCO 1 in the MIXER section so that both LED are dark
 - Switch on noise in the MIXER section so that both LEDs are lit and turn the noise up to 3 o'clock
 - In the VCF 1 STEINER filter section, set Cutoff to 9 o'clock, set Resonance to a little less than 3 o'clock and set Steiner Out to 3 o'clock
 - In the VCF 2 LADDER filter section, set Cutoff to 9 o'clock, set Resonance to a little more than 3 o'clock and set Ladder Out to 3 o'clock
 - In the WHEELS section, set Mod Wheel to Filter Cutoff

Now you can hit a key and adjust the engine thrust level with the Mod Wheel.

Since we're now hearing the Steiner filer, try turning down Steiner Out, and instead turn up Ladder out to sample the flavour of the Ladder. Next, try to turn up both filters for double the engine power if you dare! Further space vehicle propulsion research should include trying out the band pass (BP) modes of the filters, and then maybe the 12dB slope settings as well. You have now acquired a propulsion technology level far beyond that of the 70s. Search the Parameter Space to find your own optimal settings for the best interpretation. Before you know it you'll be worthy of piloting any of Fleet Admiral Brock's vessels.

If you want the LFO swept sound like in the very opening of Silver Machine:

 - In the MOD matrix, assign LFO 1 to both Steiner cutoff and Ladder Cutoff, set the Mod Amount to 60 for both
 - In the LFO 1 section, select the triangle or sine waveform and set Rate to 1 o'clock

You can now use both Mod Wheel and LFO 1 rate for the initial unstable vortex drive sound. The Hawkwind crew may (propbably!) have used an oscillator for that - in fact, from the mixing it sounds as if the LFO swept sound and the noise are two different synths. The MatrixBrute can do both in the same patch, but we can use the tuned noise to much the same effect for now.

The next level of advancement would be to assign a Macro knob to control how much LFO 1 affects the sound, so that you can perform the complete takeoff sequence from Silver Machine:

 - In the Mod matrix, assign macro knob 4 (M4, bottom row) to LFO 1 AMT and set the Mod Amount to max (+99)

Edit: Also check out preset H13.

Good luck on your voyage Captain, and remember to watch out for stray black holes!

[robst247]

Hawkwind, you say? Are there mortal men still dwelling in these dread lands that know of that bedraggled band of yore and dare to speak its name? I have to confess that I am so ancient that I was actually present at more than one Hawkwind concert back in the early 70s, though much of what transpired was, ahem, obscured by clouds ... of the drug-induced variety. I seem to remember a bare-breasted lady in a fur coat screaming like a banshee. Now who would that have been?

On the theme of classic 70s synth sounds, can someone please MatrixBrutally recreate the Tony Banks sounds on my favourite Genesis song: 'Riding the Scree' from the immaculate 'The Lamb Lies Down on Broadway', 1974, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rlepn7295xo. ?

IMHO, this is Tony Banks at his best. And Phil Collins' drumming is fantastic. Also check out his skin-beating with his seventies' jazz fusion side-project Brand X, with the stunning Percy Jones on fretless bass ('Unorthodox Behaviour', 1976, and 'Moroccan Roll', 1977 are sublime). Robin Lumley (second cousin of the gorgeous Joanna) played some great analog synth and other keyboards on those albums too. I was fortunate enough to see Brand X perform in the legendary Marquee Club in Soho in 1976 (I believe), when I stood but two yards in front of Phil's drumkit. If only I could step in a time machine and go back ... [sigh]

I got a silver machine.
It flies side ways thru' time
NOT

[dellstar07]

Dr Justice   Many thanks for the detailed information and i managed to get a decent sound with your instructions. I also tried H13 rocket launch which never got off the launchpad! If I ever get a decent patch I will share!  Thanks again.

Flying is Trying is Dying......

[jneumann]

2018-06-24: I am updating this with a better "Riding the Scree" patch. This is much closer in sound (more like simple square wave), and uses the aftertouch to bend up a minor third. Also, I made the mod wheel turn open the filter and add vibrato to get the "cat howl" sound used at the end of the first part of the solo (think "Waiting Room").

%%%%% (old post below) %%%%%
Tony Banks used an ARP Pro Soloist for that solo (and many others). The aftertouch is used for the pitch bends. There's at least one good youtube video demoing it.

 I just got my Matrix Brute a coupe weeks ago. I put together a generic sort of sound that works for a lot of the Genesis stuff. It coudl use improvement to simulate the "resonators" on the ARP, and I didn't include the aftertouch pitchbend (because frankly I don't like the aftertouch on the MB). You can use the mod wheel to fade out the filter at the ends of phrases like Tony. This might be a good starting point for Scree patch.

Hawkwind, you say? Are there mortal men still dwelling in these dread lands that know of that bedraggled band of yore and dare to speak its name? I have to confess that I am so ancient that I was actually present at more than one Hawkwind concert back in the early 70s, though much of what transpired was, ahem, obscured by clouds ... of the drug-induced variety. I seem to remember a bare-breasted lady in a fur coat screaming like a banshee. Now who would that have been?

On the theme of classic 70s synth sounds, can someone please MatrixBrutally recreate the Tony Banks sounds on my favourite Genesis song: 'Riding the Scree' from the immaculate 'The Lamb Lies Down on Broadway', 1974, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rlepn7295xo. ?

IMHO, this is Tony Banks at his best. And Phil Collins' drumming is fantastic. Also check out his skin-beating with his seventies' jazz fusion side-project Brand X, with the stunning Percy Jones on fretless bass ('Unorthodox Behaviour', 1976, and 'Moroccan Roll', 1977 are sublime). Robin Lumley (second cousin of the gorgeous Joanna) played some great analog synth and other keyboards on those albums too. I was fortunate enough to see Brand X perform in the legendary Marquee Club in Soho in 1976 (I believe), when I stood but two yards in front of Phil's drumkit. If only I could step in a time machine and go back ... [sigh]

I got a silver machine.
It flies side ways thru' time
NOT

[jneumann]

Here are a couple Abacab album patches. "Abacab" is the title track patch, the one that is played with 5ths and 4ths. It takes advantage of the MB's ability to distort without having an external distortion pedal.
"Dodo" is for the goofy solo after "Meanwhile, lurking by a stone in the mud...". Use the mod wheel to adjust the amount of pitch "scoop" before the first note in each legato phrase.
Enjoy!