Topic: Ambient 1-bit music
Has anyone ever given a try to creating ambient music using 1-bit methods?
Got some examples to link to?
- garvalf
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Re: Ambient 1-bit music
Yerzmyey made this: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6kcSdlOEizc
He said there is only the beeper (no AY), and some postprocessing. Maybe it's not true 1-bit because of the after effects, but anyway...
- utz
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Re: Ambient 1-bit music
I made this thing some years ago. Timestretched 1-bit sounds. It's more drone than ambient though.
Aside from that, I don't think there's much "real" 1-bit ambient out there. Which is very unfortunate, I think somebody should definately give it a try!
4 2016-01-17 22:35:00 (edited by Shiru 2016-01-17 22:36:16)
Re: Ambient 1-bit music
I would say that 1-bit ambient music is currently restricted with the fact that just a few few engines allow to have slow attack, and dynamically changing sound. Ambient is usually full of 'slow' sounds.
And random idea regarding that - try to combine pin-pulse engine (QChan-like) with Phaser synth. This would allow to have pseudo-volume envelopes and some kind of dynamics in the timbre. I think we have never attempted this, yet.
The thing that Yerzmyey did is more accessible now, though, something like that certainly can be made with the 1-bit VST synths.
5 2016-01-17 23:49:50 (edited by utz 2016-01-17 23:53:44)
- utz
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Re: Ambient 1-bit music
Indeed, you have a good point there.
I've experimented a little with combining pin-pulses with Phaser-like synthesis. It certainly leads to some interesting results (overtones and such). However, volume balance is a problem, so the effect tends to be quite subtle. I haven't yet managed to get it right.
There's also another interesting idea by Alone Coder, based on a kind of wavetable synthesis, or duty cycle modulation, if you will:
Alone Coder wrote:
I make a series of long impulses between natural divisions of the
period.For example:
- 128,256 (I list the positions where the phase is changed) gives a
simple meander.
- 85,92,128,128+85,128+92,256 gives lighter sound with acute 3rd, 5th,
7th harmonics. Sadly we can't avoid even harmonics but we can minimize
them.
- 21,92,128,128+21,128+92,256 gives even lighter sound with more power
in higher harmonics.
Edit: Just saw your post in /sinclair. Too tired now, will check it out tomorrow.
- AtariTufty
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Re: Ambient 1-bit music
I'd forgotten about those two pieces of 1-bit expansion. Both amazing 
- AtariTufty
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Re: Ambient 1-bit music
Came across this new ambient album today which I think is great
Obviously not 1-bit but definitely worth a listen.
Re: Ambient 1-bit music
garvalf wrote:
Yerzmyey made this: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6kcSdlOEizc
and Utz's song are incredible. I've always had a thing for ambient/drone music. Done with 1-bit engines makes them even sweeter.