Synths & Sound Design

Tip | Jul 02, 2013 by Mo Volans

Pads can be the basis for a track, though more often than not they are used for atmospheres or break downs. Mo Volans shows how to make them super, whatever the purpose, in Logic or any DAW of choice.

Tip | Jul 01, 2013 by G.W. Childs IV

Who wants hotter, fatter and spicier beats? iZotope's Trash 2 is an ideal companion in such a quest. In this tutorial, G. W. Childs gets gnarly with his beats using Trash 2's side chain feature.

Tip | Jun 30, 2013 by Rich Tozzoli

You've recorded your guitar and now it's time to process and refine the recorded sound. But where to start? Rich Tozzoli discusses using EQ, one of the most powerful ways to filter your sound.

Tutorial | Jun 26, 2013 by Hollin Jones

Mangling, crunching, smashing or gently warming up sounds has never been easier thanks to Cubase 7's suite of plug-ins. Hollin Jones digs in the dirt, sonically speaking.

Tutorial | Jun 20, 2013 by Gary Hiebner

Love Ableton Live, but miss a built-in convolution reverb? In Live 9 you can find both a convolution reverb and use impulse responses to create your own spaces and effects. Gary Hiebner sounds it out.

Tutorial | Jun 18, 2013 by G.W. Childs IV

Let's play sonic word association... "Choir." Did you imagine angelic sounds, or similar? G. W. Childs turns this idea on its head by introducing a 'horror' element using Reason.

Tutorial | Jun 17, 2013 by Darren Burgos

Loops are great. But loops can also become mind-numbingly repetitive, too. Darren Burgos, however, has a solution to adding distinct, musical variations using a MIDI controller and Logic Pro.

Editorial | Jun 15, 2013 by G.W. Childs IV

What came first, the music or the mood? G. W. Childs shares muses over the effect music has on our emotional states and questions whether the music we listen to it is responsible, or not.

Tutorial | Jun 14, 2013 by Gary Hiebner

Melodyne has long been used by musicians and producers looking to pitch correct audio like we're used to doing with MIDI events. Gary Hiebner explores Melodyne's integration in PreSonus Studio One.

Tutorial | Jun 12, 2013 by Noah Pred

Understanding how Ableton's vocoder works will allow you to create, not only robotic voices, but so much more harmonic content. If you're into sound design this is a must-read article!

Tip | Jun 07, 2013 by G.W. Childs IV

A captivating groove can transform a simple head-nodding track into a real hip-shaking anthem. In this tutorial, G. W. Childs shows how Ableton Live can apply some groove goodness to audio.

Tutorial | Jun 05, 2013 by G.W. Childs IV

G. W. Childs draws on experience creating interplanetary sound effects for Star Wars video games for this tutorial on how to make authentic Sci-Fi style radio transmissions in Reason.

Tutorial | Jun 04, 2013 by Joshua Aker

When composing for game, film or other music, it's important to make our sounds stand out from the crowd. Josh Aker (Infinity Blade I & II composer) shows how to create your own BIG & awesome sounds.

Tutorial | May 28, 2013 by G.W. Childs IV

Designing sounds is like using building blocks. By creating 3 simple patches G. W. Childs shows how, in no time at all, you can use Reason to take you into different sonic dimensions.

Tutorial | May 27, 2013 by David Earl

From Halo to Call of Duty, shooters are a popular genre of video game. David Earl takes to the battlefield and uses Logic Pro to create realistic automatic gun effects.