Scaler 2

DM60

DM60

Well-known member
I put this in the composing thread as it looks to be a pretty good tool to assist. I have personally been struggling to create more interesting music and this tool look pretty good.
Scaler 2

Guitarist demo:



Anybody use or thoughts? Price is pretty good.
 
I don't use it. Looks like this would be fun and creative. I like how it offers keyboard and fretboard info, as well as note/chord ID along with suggested progressions. I also like the ease of dragging selections from one instrument to another. When I'm doodling around on guitar, I like the process of searching for 'the next chord' which will really connect and propel me forward, and searching again for 'the next chord' until I've completed the composition. I like the rush I get from plowing through it and having it all come together into a neat resolution. This would take that excitement away from my approach but still, it might just speed things up and I might get used to that too. The price seems quite reasonable.
 
I play melodies in my leads. Relative harmonics. Scale execution during a rake is one thing. But its just a lil flash. The meat is to come from the melody you create on the fly. Look to the common notes or chords played in the song. That makes up your finger 'race track'. Only thing left to do ....is drive

Its all major and minor. 'D' D-minished and shit.
 
DM60 said:
I put this in the composing thread as it looks to be a pretty good tool to assist. I have personally been struggling to create more interesting music and this tool look pretty good.
Scaler 2

Guitarist demo:



Anybody use or thoughts? Price is pretty good.
Click to expand...

Great after you play with your song - what then? Keep churning out songs and replacing parts? Also the Song he works on is pretty bland.
 
It's definitely interesting and might be fun to use if a person became blocked but an advanced song writer wouldn't need it and for a beginner it would be a crutch and possibly hinder advancement. I could be wrong but it's not something I will use.
 
DM60 said:
I put this in the composing thread as it looks to be a pretty good tool to assist. I have personally been struggling to create more interesting music and this tool look pretty good.
Scaler 2

Guitarist demo:



Anybody use or thoughts? Price is pretty good.
Click to expand...

Scaler is my single most powerful tool and by a long, long shot. Nothing in my career of cue creation has even remotely been as prominent. It is, however, not a toy, as it can be complex. It also requires learning the plug-in as it is, without a doubt, not plug-and-play. It can push those with a modest comprehension of music theory into a new world of understanding. One can go in and out of the traditional composition box with ease. It will suggest or set up modulation transitions and can easily take things in wonderful new directions. It's a genuinely bottomless, endless source of information. He's produced a complete tutorial series that explains things easily and understandably.

It's simply the plug-in of the century, and I continue to be amazed at what he charges for it. The only plug-in I have that just couldn't be replaced.
 
markmann said:
It's definitely interesting and might be fun to use if a person became blocked but an advanced song writer wouldn't need it and for a beginner it would be a crutch and possibly hinder advancement. I could be wrong but it's not something I will use.
Click to expand...
Well, everyone is, of course, different with their workflow and what is and isn't an acceptable writing tool. I also completely support you because it's not a tool you would use.

However, as someone who has created cues for television and film for 23 years now ( I dunno if that makes me advanced or not :) ) Scaler, on absolutely no imaginable level, is a crutch. It can take me to places I never would have gone, period. It could be something as simple as a single chord suggestion in an already pre-conceived chord sequence or a modulation sequence for something already well into being finished. It can suggest alternative voicings for an already finished cue. It can suggest alternate inversions for existing cues, or it can suggest a complete pattern based on endless input information. It also requires constant input from the composer as it doesn't simply serve up an AI-created "song." That territory is more in line with the Reason+ Chord Sequencer. It is also a tool that's taken my music composition knowledge to a whole new level.

I certainly get it might not be for everyone but a crutch; it is decidedly not. :)
 
In the past, I will use the Beatles for example, those guys had a lot of crutches, aka people to assist them as they learned. Helping them decide BPM, key and key changes, so forth and so on. Even pitch correction software I use to show me where I am not where I should be (a third view), so I can go correct it. I don't have the ear, but I know once I run the correction, there a problems.

In our world of Home Recording, these tools should be consider a poor man's "team assistant", just like the Beech Boys had the Wrecking Crew and producers and, and and.

I think using these types of plugins don't negate having to learn, but helping get out of a closed loop so that one can expand. I think I will purchase if nothing more than to see if I can get my compositions to a higher level. Maybe not, but for $50, it is very well worth a try.
 
Joseph Hanna said:
Scaler is my single most powerful tool and by a long, long shot. Nothing in my career of cue creation has even remotely been as prominent. It is, however, not a toy, as it can be complex. It also requires learning the plug-in as it is, without a doubt, not plug-and-play. It can push those with a modest comprehension of music theory into a new world of understanding. One can go in and out of the traditional composition box with ease. It will suggest or set up modulation transitions and can easily take things in wonderful new directions. It's a genuinely bottomless, endless source of information. He's produced a complete tutorial series that explains things easily and understandably.

It's simply the plug-in of the century, and I continue to be amazed at what he charges for it. The only plug-in I have that just couldn't be replaced.
Click to expand...
Joseph, that's quite an endorsement and well stated. Like I said, I could be wrong and I probably am :-)
 
DM60 said:
In the past, I will use the Beatles for example, those guys had a lot of crutches, aka people to assist them as they learned. Helping them decide BPM, key and key changes, so forth and so on. Even pitch correction software I use to show me where I am not where I should be (a third view), so I can go correct it. I don't have the ear, but I know once I run the correction, there a problems.

In our world of Home Recording, these tools should be consider a poor man's "team assistant", just like the Beech Boys had the Wrecking Crew and producers and, and and.

I think using these types of plugins don't negate having to learn, but helping get out of a closed loop so that one can expand. I think I will purchase if nothing more than to see if I can get my compositions to a higher level. Maybe not, but for $50, it is very well worth a try.
Click to expand...
I can't reconcile $50.00 with the power of this plug-in. It doesn't compute. It could be $300.00, and I wouldn't change my mind. As mentioned, however, this is a plug-in that requires time. It's almost an instrument in and of itself, and wrangling it into a smooth process is an investment. Not hard, mind you, but it's not like a new reverb plug-in with presets. Ultimately, it's as deep as you want/need it to be.

I don't know what "level" your compositions are currently, but they'd have to be pretty high to realize Scaler didn't advance that ball :)
 
markmann said:
Joseph, that's quite an endorsement and well stated. Like I said, I could be wrong and I probably am :-)
Click to expand...
Ha :) There's no right or wrong here. I don't know if Plug-in Boutique offers a demo of Scaler, but if they do, it might be worth a look. It's a powerful tool. The only caveat I'd submit is that it takes a couple of days to start understanding everything. A demo might provide for time challenges.
 
Pulled the trigger a few days ago. It does have a learning curve and if you have no idea of music theory might be a little daunting, but I would like to say, for $50, it is an incredible tool.

I was looking for something to get me out of my boring rut and i think this might do the trick. One thing I really like, when it is suggesting chords, if gives you a chord chart in tab notation for the guitar. That is a really nice touch.

So far, and I am just starting to work with it, I can see this could really help me push through my staleness.
 
I love Scaler (which I use more than Scaler 2, it's just less resource heavy and does what I use it for quicker/easier). I basically throw an instance of Scaler on all of my MIDI tracks right from the get-go. I use it as a simple MIDI Guitar/Bass/Piano instrument while writing. I use it to figure out what Scale/Key that I might be in (or want to be in) as I'm not the best with Theory. I use it to try new Modes that I might not have tried otherwise. I use it to understand my Fretboard more. It does much, much more than what I use it for, and I haven't taken the time to learn all the ins and outs of what I could be using it more for, but for what I use it for and what I paid for it ($19 when it first came out?) it's used on all of my songs since it was released. Love it.
 
Yea, I am thinking, if I learn to use it, it could level up my composing results. Really a very cool tool.
 
Something like that for reference would be huge. A database with the proper names and positions sounds like an invaluable resource.
 
Update on my Scaler journey. For those stuck in a rut, I have to say this little tool has really been a new lease on song creation. Once you get the hang of it, the flow for creation is really nothing short of great.

The one feature I really like since I am not a guitar player, once I have my chord progression, it shows you the guitar chords and multiple position. Then I can add the guitar in and it also helps me figure out the bass lines.

Probably not for you guys who have been playing forever, but for me, to compose and then arrange, great tool. Like having a PhD in music sitting next to you giving you suggestions.

I am mainly posting for those looking to improve their composing and arrangement skills (read expand).
 
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