Why do I 🖤 Blast Beats so much? 

Thanks. Yeah it's initially a rather niche instrument, by a small manufacturer. I bet most who are into that niche already got one last year when it was new. But I hope to share it to possibly a few more people. One of my favourite machines.

Ha ha, yeah this is my kind of instrument for sure ❤️

@@truecuckoo and you make it sing

Do it! 🤘🏽

❤️❤️❤️

Yeah I know! Dream come true. Thanks ✨

Ooh, nice!

✨

I’m intrigued 🧡

Yeah same, same. Been thinking about it ever since the launch. I love it.

Oh gotta loosen up :D 🤗 thanks!

It's on my todo list! There is now a brand new, rewritten firmware. I'll get to it!

✨🔥 thanks!

Haha yeah I didn’t think about it until people started commenting about it. In this case it’s a reference to the old sound card Soundblaster from the 90’s which had this sick synth chip in it.

facts

He clearly has no idea what an actual blast beat is... 🫤

Ha ha..the only reason I came here. How to make blast beats using a synth

The synth is named Blast Beats. It is using a Yamaha FM synthesis chip commonly referred to as OPL3, from the 90's. The chip was inside the most popular sound card at the time, called SoundBlaster. Hence the "Blast" nod in the product name. For Metal rhythms referred to as blast beats, this dude in the link below has made a remarkable video with good notation and documentation. You can for sure recreate a similar vibe on a synthesiser. But synths are more static compared to acoustic drums. So a lot of work will go to loosening up the sound, and making it more messy and distorted, to be worthy of the Metal Genre. One of my favourite video game series from the 90s is called Thunderforce. It's a shootemup in which, especially in Thunderforce 4, they come pretty close to Metal in the boss fights, with a very similar sound chip. Anyhow, here's a popular video explanation of metal Blast Beats. ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-B4KNXi-SWWc.html

@truecuckoo that's a thoughtful response... I think we are just trying to amuse ourselves with, what is clear to metalheads, the lack of comparison. Thx for this video as always, your mastery of machines is second to none. 😃

@@matthewkinne7662 😉🤘🏽

Haha, thanks 🤗 It's a really special one!

Yeah, sign up and let them know you're interested. Based on interaction they will make a better estimate on how many to build the next batch. It's a small company.

Oh, preordering is available now. Shipping in April.

They have quite unique creations for comparatively little money as opposed to other "fabrique" producers. I got the MegaFM 2, TherapSid, hapiNES-L as well as the Blastbeats.

Yeah! Thanks 🤗

Oh thank you so much Ed! ❤️

Thank you so much 🤗

I bought this machine a few years back because it's tones transported me back to the soundtrack for the video game Secret of Mana.

Yeah it’s definitely an instrument that can go into a lot of territories.

Thank you so much! ❤️

Put some extra efforts into it this time :D

The rhythm section is very limited. It's all about searching for a sweet spot that makes sense in the arrangement you're making. And yeah, the synth tracks, and applying Wiggle randomisation is truly a door opener for a really special place!

@@truecuckoo do you have an Opsix? I forget if that's part of your permanent collection. If you are feeling inspired, I'd love to see how you design a sound similar to the synth parts here!

Thanks man! There are still some sizes and colours available in my merch store. tigernet.no/artist/931457-true-cuckoo

Yeah absolutely! I’ll study the soundtrack of Thunderforce 4 and see how they programmed the boss music, which kind of approaches that territory. Not the same chip, but close enough to get some pointers :D

It's a small, streamlined company that doesn't have a lot of costs to cover. Plus (I'm thinking out loud here) the OPL3 component, as I understand it, is leftovers from the prime time when this was produced in the 90's. Due to the immense popularity back then, much due to the success of the SoundBlaster, they were produced in high quantities, and are not that expensive to get by now. And there's no snazzy OLED UI, or advanced CPU reverb etc. It's very bare bones, saving a lot of money.

@@truecuckooAll your points sound reasonable 👍

Thank you!

Twisted Electrons is a very small company making small runs of niche instruments. I just happen to love these niche products :D Sign up on their email list to get notified when new stock arrives. They sometimes take preorders too.

I’d say if you’re not using the built in sequencer you’re losing 50% of the magic. A lot of these cool glitchy sounds he’s getting out of it are dependent on sequencer tricks/p-locks..

@@tysoncarlson6778 so just use it as a stand alone with its own sequencer is what you're saying?

Yeah it's a small company, and they build them in batches. The estimated numbers are based on a hunch, and on how many people sign up for the "notify when available". Let them know you're thinking about it by signing up to get notified 🖤 One day!

Actually they're taking preorders now. Shipping in April!

@@truecuckoo I just cried a little

I’m using the TX-6. It is a mixer and a multi track audio interface for the computer. teenage.engineering/store/tx-6?affiliate=cuckoo

@truecuckoo thanks. If I get one I'll be sure to use your link. Looking forward to the next interesting piece of gear you share with us

I have reported the issues that I've found during my time with it. The developer is working down my list of issues, and a firmware is forthcoming. I'll continue with my Tutorial once the new firmware is done! The most important when finding bugs is to contribute by filing detailed bug reports on how to recreate the issues, to the developers, so that they can squash the bugs in a firmware update.

It’s a small company doing small batches. Right now they opened up for preorders for their next batch to be delivered in April!

@@truecuckoo how does it stack up compared to Sonicware Mega synthesis I know the blast has true chips but just curious 🧐 cause ya used both and I got a mega on the way

@@SonicVibe the Mega, I’d say, is a bit more organised and dependable. They’re a bigger team and worked on their system and sequencer for many years in many machines. But the wonkyness of the BlastBeats, and direct access to all parameters, which can be recorded into the sequencer, is a big factor in how deliberating it feels, and crazy you can go. And there’s a certain vibe with the real hardware chip that is hard to touch with emulation. Mega sounds good, but not as whacky as a real chip. They’re not the same chips though. But similarities in sound. The Mega can’t sequence deep sound engine parameter locks. It can do top level parameter locks, and preset switching per step, for a more organised way of sequencing. And it has more flexible polyphony.

@@truecuckoo thank you 🙏 for the detailed answer I appreciated your input

THanks. I think that when making music on peculiar and limited hardware like this, you need to have a kind of "mixing engineer" mindset when approaching the arrangements. Try to think of the whole sound spectrum and try to distribute the instruments on the spectrum so that it becomes an even mix. There's a new firmware being beta tested right now with big improvements and new features. Once it's final I'm gonna start making a tutorial.

@@truecuckoo yeah. I am probably not as trained as to think like a mixing engineer, so I just stack a lot of stuff into a DAW and see what pops out. New beta? Cool! I am wondering what kind of improvements and features we are talking about...