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Creating a Layered Instrument...Using Xpand!
Perhaps one of the most obvious omissions of Pro Tools is
its inability to make any noise right out of the box, especially
when compared to the likes of other applications that feature
oodles and oodles of included software instruments. Looking
to keep up with the pack, and as a result of their acquisition
of Wizoo, Digidesign has formed the Advanced Instrument
Research group. The first software instruments born of
this union were recently just announced: Xpand! and Hybrid.
If you were lucky enough to survive the infamous Los Angeles
traffic and the bustling crowds of NAMM, you could have
picked up a complimentary Xpand! Installer CD-ROM. Xpand!
is a free plug-in for Pro Tools, and will be included on
the Pro Tools Installer CD-ROM of subsequent releases.
In the meantime, Digidesign plans to ship the Xpand! Installer
CD-ROM sometime soon, for about $10 (all orders are placed
on their website).
Xpand! provides a high-level of instant gratification,
as it is easy to use and comes with over 1,000 presets.
Although Xpand! does not support multiple outputs such
as BFD, MachFive and Battery, it allows up to four individual
parts (sounds) to be loaded as part of the patch. Xpand!
uses sampled instruments along with synthesized tones and
combines wavetable, virtual analog, FM and virtual tone
wheel synthesis to produce its sound.
To get you up and running with Xpand!, we tackle a common
request among sound designers and synth-lovers, and create
a patch that is layered (e.g. comprised of more than one
sound).
For this discussion I have created a stereo Instrument
track, assigned my MIDI controller as the MIDI input and
loaded Xpand! as the first insert.
To load a preset into Xpand!, click on the Librarian menu
and choose a patch. I have chosen 14 E Pianos + Clav > 03
Tremolo Suitcase.
Xpand! provides four slots labeled A-B-C-D, which you can
load individual parts. All four parts can be saved as a
single patch, and saved as a preset, as you would any other
plug-in in Pro Tools (which we will do at the end of this
tutorial).
To add a second part to the patch and create a layered
sound, click on the name field for the slot and choose
a sound. I have chosen Strings > Soft Legato Pad to
layer with the electric piano.
The six knobs running along the top of the plug-in are
called Smart Knobs, and are preassigned for altering various
aspects of the sound for each part such as feel, timbre,
envelope, etc. To select which part the Smart Knobs will
operate upon, click directly on the slot label (e.g. A,
B, C or D), which called the Part Selector.
For example, to slow down the tremolo of the electric piano,
click A (which is the Part Selector for the first part)
if it is not already selected, and use the knob labeled
Tremolo Rate to adjust the speed of the tremolo.
You can also use the list of parts to the left of the Smart
Knobs to select each part. To adjust the parameters for
the entire patch, click GLOBAL and adjust the Smart Knobs.
Using the Edit Page tabs just below the Smart Knobs, you
can specify Mix, Modulation, Arpeggiator and Effect settings
for each part individually.
We are currently viewing the Mix page, and can use the
Level slider to lower the volume of the strings, so that
it supports electric piano rather than competing with it.
Next, Click the Arpeggiator tab and adjust the following
parameters for the electric piano part:
- Activate the Arpeggiator by clicking On
- Choose Play
Order from the Mode pop-up menu
- Set the Pan to R 25 using
the Pan knob
- Adjust the volume using the Level slider so
that the balance between the strings and the arpeggiated
electric
piano is well balanced
As you play chords on your keyboard, the arpeggiator
will kick-in for the electric piano, while the strings
act as
a pad and play through underneath.
Now, we are going to add reverb, but only to the
string part. Click FX tab and make the following
adjustments:
- Turn off the send level for the electric piano part by
moving the FX1 knob all the way down to the
left so that it is at -Inf dB.
- Click the FX 1 button to turn it on, and choose Soft
Hall in the FX Type pop-up menu
- Turn up the send level
for the string part by moving the FX 1 knob to a suitable
level
Congratulations! You’ve just created
a layered patch layering an arpeggiated electric
piano and
a warm string
pad. To save the entire patch as a preset,
Click the Settings menu, and choose Save
Settings As. Type
a name for the
preset and click Save.
To access your preset, simply recall it from
the Librarian menu.
If you don’t yet have Xpand! and are eager to hear
what it sounds like, I have included the patch created
as a result of our time spent together this week (I haven’t
added any other effects other than the slight reverb added
in the plug-in to the strings so that you are only hearing
the handy work of Xpand! and no fancy plug-in effects).
If you are one of the few who already have it, I would
love to know how you are getting along with it, and how
it has stacked up for your needs – does
it sound thin, does it sound rich or is it
just right?
Listen to the patch.
Pro Tools Tidbits for the Week
- Apple is
now shipping Logic
Pro 7.2 which provides compatibility with Pro Tools 7 (DAE).
- MOTU has
announced Ethno,
a software instrument featuring over 8GB of world/ethnic
instruments and sounds (RTAS).
- MOTU has announced Digital
Performer 5 which includes 6 new
software instruments and ongoing support for Pro
Tools.
- M-Audio released
10 new products at
NAMM.
- Solid
State Logic has added PC support for their free LMC-1
compressor plug-in (AudioUnits and VST), but will
still require a wrapper to
use in Pro Tools.
If you have a Pro Tools related question that you would
like me to take a shot at answering or have any feedback,
please send it to scott@audioMIDI.com. I will do my best
to select the questions that seem to stump the most people.
As always, stay tuned to the audioMIDI.com eNews for the latest reviews and new product info.
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