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Posted 20 hours ago

1010music Blackbox Compact Sampling Studio

£42.495£84.99Clearance
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ZTS2023
Joined in 2023
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LFO per voice with the option for beat sync. This applies to sample, clip, granular, and slicer modes

I think that 1010 really missed the mark with this thing by marketing it as a "compact sampling workstation." They really should market it as it was originally intended, which is as a device to use WITH a modular system to capture ideas on the fly. and loop them. The new year is only 12 days old. Even if it is still tranquil in the music tech world, there is still a lot of development going on behind the scenes. This is shown in the latest forum post by 1010music. Andreas’ thoughts are always a pleasure for me to read, not least because he always sends us music to transform our mood. So let’s begin there, because whether or not you need a Bluebox, I think you’ll be glad to have these. -PK This cookie stores user-like settings for the chat system provider, which are required for our online chat service. Trusted Shops It looks a bit crude on first impression – as you turn it on, the brash and utilitarian design underlines this. But when you touch it, there’s a solid sense of quality to the materials. A minute or so with the interface, and it becomes clear that in this straight forward, no-nonsense approach is conscious design choice. The raw pixels and squared menus give it some retro-digital flair.

Preset mode grants access to the micro SD card for loading, saving and naming files. When you save a preset, it contains everything except the WAV files, which are referenced and reloaded from other directories on the card. A preset contains pad configurations, sequences and song information. There's no way to save kits, pads or sequences separately. Then, beta 3.0 brings a makeover for the internal sequencer. Each sequencer cell now has 4 layers for making separate parts and switching them in a quantized manner. The new song mode can launch sequences along with the specified layer. In this way, you can chain patterns and create complex arrangements. New MIDI sequences The action centres around a crisp, colour 3.5-inch LED touchscreen. This is flanked by four endless encoders, two on each side, which take on different roles depending on what screen you're looking at. There are no actual drum pads, so any finger drumming is also done on-screen, or on a suitable MIDI controller. The screen isn't pressure or velocity sensitive, so a large Velocity slider accompanies the on-screen 4x4 grid so you can set the velocity of any notes being recorded. Pressing the grid button in the upper left corner of most control panels lets you switch PADS or SEQS directly without returning to the main screen From the sample section, you also access deeper editing functions such as an envelope per sound, a filter, start- and end-points for loops, time-stretch parameters, and so on. The shaping is more geared for sculpting your sample to work in a mix, and less about creative effects. The filter acts like an EQ that blends between states. The lower you go, the deeper the thuds and greater the cutoff. Aim high, and you’ll lose the rumbling deep ends and position your sample in the cleaner forefront. The amp envelope is used to trim what’s already there, so if your bass sound doesn’t snap on its own, don’t expect the decay, sustain, and release to fix that for you. Just watch your source material, and these tweaks will serve you well for their intended purpose.

I could not get used to the interface - most of the time you just touch the screen, but then some things are controlled by the knobs. I almost always found myself touching the screen before remembering to turn a knob. It is built beautifully, it is incredibly versatile and it sounds great but unfortunately after about two weeks I just didn't feel compelled to use it anymore. Create dynamic sounds by controlling level, pitch, ADR, loop points, the granulator, effects and more using MIDI control surfaces and an internal LFO. It took me about ten minutes to unbox the Bluebox (oh, snap), make myself a cup of coffee, run the four outs from my Prophet 12 into two Bluebox stereo ins, figure out how to arm for recording and then actually record something. It’s silly easy. I was almost left a bit underwhelmed, thinking – “Hookay. What now? I’m like … what? Done?” And I suppose if I’d been happy with the results, I _would’ve_ been done. But obviously, with all these options available, there was plenty left to explore. Synchronized layersIf you only want to give your mix some room, though, the onboard delay and reverb are both good. They’re crisp and clean with lots of options that can take you from the ordinary to the crazy. But their role is clear – even if you can be experimental, their purpose is to create space where it’s needed and save the funkier explorations to any favorite effect you got lying around. The frequencies Honestly I could have lived with #1-9 if I hadn't experienced #10. Again, I REALLY wanted to like this thing and give it a forever home. Further, they have redone the MIDI output section. This is now handled entirely by the SEQ cells. Each one can have its own individual MIDI output channel. The 4 layers per sequence will all use the same MIDI output channel. Then, there’s the master EQ which now allows you with four bands to hone your mix into something that can compete with any digital competitor. It’s a fantastic way to get the mix ready for the club or just prepare it for final mastering, if you want to make sure it’s as clean as can be on its own, before you take it to a more high end context. While it can be sequenced externally, this is not why I bought it. It also has a looper function but I have other devices for that too. I bought this as a portable groovebox (with a powerbank) and because of the interface, I don't find it inspiring.

Loading samples is easy enough and and I have had good results sequencing with Cirklon. I still find editing samples a bit fiddly but everyone else seems to think editing is easy so maybe it is just me. Each pattern has its own time signature and number of steps, and has a refreshing maximum of 128 steps if you’re going for the traditional 4 / 4 thump. Split up the time signature and you can go plenty further, as long as your playing allows it – slow leads, evolving pads, meditative jazz chords.So for some, this is going to be a no-brainer. Maybe you just need a way to mix your live jams and record the results for further explorations elsewhere. Maybe you don’t like DAWs. Or you’re just curious. Desk space is tight but you take mixing and recording seriously. Control of the edit position in the text edit window. You can finally change the beginning of a file or preset name. Have to involve external effects in a send/return loop as the onboard effects are limited and mostly useless

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