Ableton Forum

Very nice video:
using ableton live to send CV signals.
http://www.vimeo.com/4263336

I can't seem to find the frostwave shown in the video... seems to be out of production.
What alternatives can you recommend and what else do I need to get this cv-controlling going?

Cheers

If you want to do midi-to-cv then you probably want to look at either MOTU's Volta or Expert Sleepers' Silent Way and a compatible audio interface. As far as what you want to send cv to, well, there's a huge range of synth and fx options to look at.

I hoped this little thing was cheap... is there anything comparable to that small frostwave available on the market? I don't even know what and where to look for.. guitar shops?

I haven't looked at your video clip, but which Frostwave unit is it? Yes, Frostwave is perhaps gone for good, but there are tons of boutique fx out there. Go browse Analogue Haven or some such retailer. You can always just use the audio end of things for now and worry about going cv later.

The frostwave resonator was a small CV controlled filter unit.
I believe the MuRF Moogerfooger offers CV controlled filtering:-

http://www.moogmusic.com/moogerfooger/? ... uct_id=111



You could also take a look at the Jomox resonators, although I don't believe they offer CV control:-

http://www.jomox.com/products.php?lang=2&category=3



Kenton make a USB/MIDI/CV unit:-

http://www.kentonuk.com/products/items/ ... solo.shtml

It's called frostwave resonator. Looks really cheap, only a few knobs and some jacks for the cv-input.

What about this one:

DOEPFER MCV4
Doepfer MCV4 MIDI-to-CV-Interface, to trigger monophone Synthesizers with MIDI
http://www.thomann.de/gb/doepfer_mcv4.htm

Still I don't know what I could use to generate the sounds and what are the pros and cons of a midi2cv vs. live2motu-cvoutput solution (shown in the video)?

#1thelark wrote:It's called frostwave resonator. Looks really cheap, only a few knobs and some jacks for the cv-input.

What about this one:

DOEPFER MCV4
Doepfer MCV4 MIDI-to-CV-Interface, to trigger monophone Synthesizers with MIDI
http://www.thomann.de/gb/doepfer_mcv4.htm

Still I don't know what I could use to generate the sounds and what are the pros and cons of a midi2cv vs. live2motu-cvoutput solution (shown in the video)?

Ok, so the Resonator was modelled on an MS-20 filter, which gives you a reference point to look at other filter fx. I don't know another MS-20 filter off the top of my head but I'm sure someone else has attempted this. Moog's MF-101 or the Jomox T Resonator booster69 mentions are both well known filter fx. The MF-101 does have cv inputs as well.

As for generating the sounds... I assumed you wanted to run whatever noise you're creating in Live into an external filter, so like Operator, drum loops, whatever. Otherwise you'll need a hardware synth or drum machine or something to run through the effect.

I think the advantage of Silent Way or Volta is that it's cheaper to get into because most people already have the hardware - i.e. an audio interface.

thelark,
the frostwave resonator is an audio effect... it's not a midi-cv converter. it is being controlled by cv.

the guy in the video is using software to turn audio signals into cv signals which are output from his audio interface just like regular audio signals. At the moment only dc-coupled soundcards allow this, but Expert Sleepers are developing a work-around which would allow almost any soundcard to send CV signals.

I would recommend expert sleepers 'silent way' over motus 'volta' ... for a start it's a fifth of the price, and to me it seems like more progressive software. I also really like the dev and the other tools he makes.

if you have synths/audio fx that can accept CV signals...I think using a software solution like 'silent way' with a soundcard is the best option. midi has a very limited resolution, and with the silent way or volta you have much more control over the kind of signal you are sending...

http://www.expert-sleepers.co.uk/silentway.html ---software for sending CV
http://www.expert-sleepers.co.uk/siwaacencoder.html ---solution for allowing your soundcard to send CV if it's not dc-coupled.

I don't only want to send cv but I'd also need a audio-generating device such as the frostwave....
What would be the cheapest way do achieve this kind of cv-control and analogue sounds?
Doepfer have many different parts, can I combine the midi2cv device with anything else to get similar sounds (still that Doepfer-combo would not be the cheapest solution, I guess)?

What should I look for on ebay or classifieds to generate those analogue sounds and have cv-control?

If you go the MIDI-CV converter route make sure the DACs are at least 12-bit for a smooth CV signal.

#1thelark wrote:I don't only want to send cv but I'd also need a audio-generating device such as the frostwave....
What would be the cheapest way do achieve this kind of cv-control and analogue sounds?
Doepfer have many different parts, can I combine the midi2cv device with anything else to get similar sounds (still that Doepfer-combo would not be the cheapest solution, I guess)?

What should I look for on ebay or classifieds to generate those analogue sounds and have cv-control?

I would recommend a used Roland SH-101 ... it's a classic analogue monosynth. Very reasonably priced. an exceptional synth imo.
http://www.vintagesynth.com/roland/sh101.php
it's got cv input as standard, but it's also possible to modify the sh-101 ... I would suggest looking into the nova mod
http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&q=sh ... =&gs_rfai=
also look into the analogue solutions mod
http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&q=an ... =&gs_rfai=
and the circuitbenders mod
http://www.google.com/search?q=sh+101+c ... =firefox-a
you could do the mods yourself for free, or hire someone...

if you want to look into analogue FX... off the top of my head ...you could check out the moogerfoogers by moog. They sound lovely, and come to life with cv modulation...
they're not cheap.


as for sending CV signals, My choice would be using Silent Way by expert sleepers along with a dc-coupled soundcard, or look into this solution if you don't have a dc-coupled soundcard:
http://www.expert-sleepers.co.uk/siwaacencoder.html


edit: actually, i just checked ebay for sh-101s and I see they've gone up in price quite a bit. Certainly not cheap, but...they are good synths. But ya, at that price point probably not what you're looking for.

If you can use a soldering iron, I just finished building one of these: http://www.paia.com/midi2cv.asp. Well, I just finished the PCB, I'm finishing up an analog synth that it will be installed with.

If you want something pre-built, check out http://synthtech.com/motm650.html.

dum wrote:
as for sending CV signals, My choice would be using Silent Way by expert sleepers along with a dc-coupled soundcard, or look into this solution if you don't have a dc-coupled soundcard:
http://www.expert-sleepers.co.uk/siwaacencoder.html

theire AC interface is a bit weardo like.. it just works because it gets asymetrical at the syntheziser end...

so theire circui is actually the one for asymetric signals..
The symetrical signal is only needed when you want to use bridge rectifiers to be able to work with smaler lags ..
would be actually interesting to see how much the difference actually is..maybe a spice analysis


i did many experiments with that in the past.. i modified some soundcards that cant do dc by bridging the outputcaps..


you can build interface circuits with reaktor pretty easily with independend tuning for each key... also for HZ/volt synths..


probably that applies to mfl aswell :-/

i would start here http://www.expert-sleepers.co.uk/siwacompatibility.html to see if you can easily get into this whole CV thing.

but can i ask; what is it about the video that piques your interest? if its just linking external hardware up to ableton than there other, simpler ways to get into it.

there are alot of inexpensive old synths with audio and/or midi ins..

swishniak wrote: but can i ask; what is it about the video that piques your interest? if its just linking external hardware up to ableton than there other, simpler ways to get into it.

there are alot of inexpensive old synths with audio and/or midi ins..

I've never used any analogue audio gear before, so this is all new to me.
I like the direct approach from simple waveforms in live to a small external box which creates the audio. From what I've read here there are users in here that don't use midi at all. If I get it right that's because midi causes so much trouble, probably compared to older computers which are said to have "tight" midi timings.
Well, I can't tell exactly (please tell me the true reasons for avoiding midi if you can), but I guess the "cv-technique" shown in the video is just one way to avoid midi and get the sounds you want without massive cpu-power and complicated vst-plugins...