late 60s sounds in soft synths, samplers, etc - recommendations

zeppo

New member
Hi, I am a newby. I'm not a skilled musician. I learned how to play guitar and enough songs to have a chord vocabulary to noodle around with, but I never put the time into becoming good. But I do like coming up with my own songs. I just don't bother to perfect them. A sketch is fine for me.

At any rate, I say this to say that the quality of the recording is not a big deal to me right now. I want to set up a basic recording studio for a mac, and presumably garageband, but it really doesn't have to be a quality finished product in terms of fidelity. What is more important to me is the sounds that come out of a keyboard/controller when I play it. The sounds I would love to be able to trigger, at least for now, would be like the instruments/sounds you would find on late 60's Beatles, Stones, Who, Zeppelin records. So though I might hear Beggars Banquet via a cheap radio with a lousy signal, though the fidelity may suck, I still like the sounds I am hearing. So while most posts from newbies about how to build their first recording setup deal with bang for the buck in terms of fidelity. I am happy to deal with improving that aspect of my set up later as long as I can trigger the sounds that inspire me in the meantime.

So I'm wondering what keyboard or packages I can buy that best approximate these-- for better or worse (if you don't like them.) For instance, I would be quite happy with being able to trigger the drum sounds off of The Beatles Let It Be (Naked) cd. Yeah, nothing flashy. Whereas, I don't want anything to do with the drum sounds of any 80's hair bands (no offense intended to those that like that). Same with guitar, base, piano sounds. I would like to be able to select from more natural, raw, basic sounds than from more flashy synthetic stuff (not to mention polka-ish stuff I'll never touch.) Yet it seems like anytime I check out a package, the music store rep will demonstrate 250 samples of the latter, vs one or two of the former.

Any recommendations? Or is there just no demand for this kind of sound so as I'll never find it?

Thanks,
Zep
 
Check out Toontrack products. AFAIK all of their samples of drum kits are raw and unprocessed. I would check out EZ Drummer2 and also the Classic EZX sample pack for starters.

In the Toontrack EZ Keys line they have a sample set of Rhodes and Wurli A-200 and another with Hohner Clavinet D6 and Pianette. I have the Rhodes/A-200 and also the Steinway Grand and they are both excellent sample packs.
 
Thanks, Tiz

I've continued googling around and just now came across Abbey Road Drummer. They offer 60s and 70s kits, which seem to be up my alley. I see these are also included in Native Instruments Komplete, which is of course way overboard in terms of number of sounds I'll ever need. But if it turns out it includes piano guitar and base sounds I like as well, then that could be an option.

I'll look into those sounds you mention. If I can find all the sounds I like, then I'll look at putting some kind of recording setup together to have fun creating on.
 
It took me a while to build up the various sounds that I wanted because I'm fussy about my sounds, especially my electric piano, organ and mellotron sounds and I never found a one size fits all package.
What that has meant is that I've got various VSTis for different sounds. I use real guitars, basses, double basses, drums, percussion and mandolin anyway so the VSTis are to supplement these. I like the B4 which is a Hammond organ with loads of presets of 60s and 70s bands as well as the scope to do your own, the Lounge Lizard which is a grand little Fender Rhodes and Wurlitzer electric piano VSTi, the M~Tron, which is an interesting mellotron {although I'd get Mike Pinder's one if I could afford it}. The orchestral package, Miroslav Philharmonik, has a set of usable pianos. And Sampletank carries other useful old style keyboards like clavinets.
Bear in mind that you'll have to do your own sound shaping.
 
thanks, grim. you must come up with some cool stuff. I'm a total novice, so I can make do with mediocre sounds, but I at least want them to be in the ball park. I found it hard the past finding drum sounds that weren't big huge drum sounds from the 80s. After checking them out yesterday, I think the garageband drums will work for me. Also, I'm still not quite sure yet if I can really use it as a controller for the garageband (conflicting info on the web), but the Yamaha DGX650 keyboard has some sounds that will work fine for me as well. I was thinking about buying it to learn piano on, and if it can also be used as a controller, I may go with it and that would give me some more sound options.
 
Thanks, kc

I'm still learning even how midi operation functions. I first need to get a controller. was almost set to buy the Yamaha DGX-650, which has some drum and bass sounds that will would work for my needs. I thought that it could be used to control sounds on the computer (Garageband, Abbey Road, etc) as well, but now as best I can tell the USB midi function it has is really just designed to connect with iOS devices in order to exchange files and do some basic interaction with apps like turning iPad sheet music pages, etc. It lacks regular MIDI IN and OUT jacks, which I think I'll need to connect to a common interface if I want to use the keyboard as a sound controller and combine tracks with guitar and vocals (but being totally uneducated, I'm not sure.) Then I came upon the Casio PX-780, which adds MIDI IN and OUT in addition to the USB connectivity offered by the Yamaha, plus another line out, but lacks the on board drums and base (and others) offered by the Yamaha. I wanted to take piano lessons, so my thinking was the Casio saves the need for buying an separate controller keyboard for the other sounds. Casio has a smaller footprint (takes less space), but on the flip side might be more prone to wobble on carpet. Both have weighted graded keys, but the Casio seem a little looser or less smooth on the release so they might have a slight clatter on some keys. Anyway, I'll have to make some decision today since the sale ends.
 
I have a hard time thinking that the Yamaha USB does not send MIDI. You may want to revisit that point.

For the sounds from the keyboard, 99% of the time (it could change), you will need to hook up the analog outputs to an interface inputs as you want to record the keyboard sounds as if it were a guitar, bass, etc. (keyboard output to line in to the interface and is treated just like any other analog device).

I've not seen digital sound transfer between keyboard to DAW via USB. So any sounds you create with the keyboard have to be recorded like a regular instrument to my knowledge. Don't confuse MIDI and sound is the point.
 
The Yamaha USB sends MIDI, but the manual has no mention of its ability to use that midi connection to allow the Yamaha keyboard to control garageband or other sounds that are on a mac. It simply mentions connectivity to iOS devices (iPad, iPod, iPhone). So, not knowing anything about this, it seems odd to me that they wouldn't tout its ability to work as a controller with OS X devices like a Macbook Pro. It makes me think the ease of use for midi is simply in saving midi files to the iOS device or using the iOS apps to play "groovy" pictures while you play, convert the midi to notation, for sheet music, or at best playback already created midi files with garageband sounds, rather than actual control and create on garageband via the yamaha. Perhaps I am wrong. Problem is finding anyone who has actually "done" it.

I only just now came across the threads on casiomusicforums.com that lead me to believe it isn't exactly a cakewalk to use the Casio as a controller for an OS X computer, despite having MIDI IN and OUT jacks in addition to the USB midi that the Yamaha has. I left a couple of posts there, but not sure how quickly I'll get a reply. But if I paying another $100 for a cheap controller will make life significantly easier for me than trying to make either the Yamaha or the Casio work both as a controller and a piano, I'll gladly pay it out for a "plug and play" experience rather than 20 hours of trying to set something up. But it would be nice to dispense with the second device.
 
It took me a while to build up the various sounds that I wanted because I'm fussy about my sounds, especially my electric piano, organ and mellotron sounds and I never found a one size fits all package.
What that has meant is that I've got various VSTis for different sounds. I use real guitars, basses, double basses, drums, percussion and mandolin anyway so the VSTis are to supplement these. I like the B4 which is a Hammond organ with loads of presets of 60s and 70s bands as well as the scope to do your own, the Lounge Lizard which is a grand little Fender Rhodes and Wurlitzer electric piano VSTi, the M~Tron, which is an interesting mellotron {although I'd get Mike Pinder's one if I could afford it}. The orchestral package, Miroslav Philharmonik, has a set of usable pianos. And Sampletank carries other useful old style keyboards like clavinets.
Bear in mind that you'll have to do your own sound shaping.

This, essentially ^^^
 
Kontakts Abbey Road 60's drummer is pretty awesome...the whole series is

Seconded.

The Komplete Elements package is fantastic value for the price, especially as it includes Reaktor Player for synts, Guitar Rig Player for amps, cabinets, and effects, and Kontact Player for sampled instruments including Abbey Road 60s Drummer. Plus you get a £22 (or local equivalent) voucher against your next purchase.

Here are more details about the instrument sounds included.
 
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