The story
This is my first sample instrument, so I wanted to create something simple and light.
I have used short samples and looped them to create a sample instrument that is under 6Mb.
The organ has one set of samples, and a second set of key noises. These can be blended to create a desired noise.
Controls for Tone, Reverb and Chorus allows the organ to create a range of sounds.
The organ still required lots of work, such a recapping and tolex replacing. This organ was toured heavily in the 60s and this I reflected in its condition and collection of scars.
How I created this instrument.
Demo
Interface
Reviews for Little Red Organ
- Sound
- Character
- Playability
- Inspiration
- GUI
Leave a review to let others know what you thought of the instrument!
Not little at all!
The only little thing about this organ is the size of the files! You will definitely be impressed by the deep and warm sound signature of this "little" organ for sure. It's synthy but mellow, and it also has release triggers that can be fully controlled by the minimal yet pleasing-looking GUI. Inside you will also find handy Attack and Release knobs, a Chorus knob, LPF, and a Reverb that makes the sound even better in my opinion.
The note-by-note sampling and the 4 total octaves of range makes it kind of unbelievable that in total it is just 10 megabytes in size. Simply incredible!
A good first pack
For a first sample instrument, the result is very good. It is possible to get a wide variety of sounds with all the controls included in the pack, from a cinematic organ to a beautiful pad. The interface is simple, but beautiful. I consider the dimensions and position of the controls to be adequate. Overall, it's a great first pack.
Very nice organ sound
I just got the Little Black EP and I wanted to try the other instrument from Dean. Again, I really love the sound of this organ, that is different from what I use usually. Thanks a lot for this!
Lots of promise!
For a first virtual instrument, a classic Farfisa organ would not have been my first choice. so full marks to Dean for setting his bar high!
There are two sets of samples: 24 sampled 'every other note' so there's a lot of detail, and 8 key noise samples, which gives 8 audible ranges with noticeable transitions if you listen to them on their own, which only tough reviewers will ever do!
The organ samples are good, each capturing the start and the end of the note (so there's probably more that could be squeezed out of them - like attack and release clicks...). When you hold down a note, then after about a second, there is an unwanted click, and then the sustain loop starts. The loudness of the click varies with the pitch... Two examples: B3 is very noticeable with a bright edge, whilst A3 is a more muted click.
When you get a click that happens with the same timing for every note, and then doesn't happen in the loop, then this means that there's a problem with the loop cross-fade...
Looking at the .dspreset XML file, the reason for this is easy to spot. The loop start point is 29400 samples in, and the loop end point us at 49400 samples, so the same for all of the samples. The cross-fade time is set at 20000 samples. This means that the cross-fade is the same length at the loop time, which is ...too long. Twice as big as it should be, actually. You can see why in my recent blog:
http://blog.synthesizerwriter.com/2022/06/looping-in-decent-sampler-quick-look.html
About half-way through, it shows a 10 second loop with a 5 second cross-fade, and shows why a cross-fade can only be a maximum of half the loop length.
If you change the XML so that the loop cross-fade is shorter:
loopCrossfade="8000"
and save the XML, then all will be well. There will no longer be that troublesome click as the loop starts.
The key click noises are excellent: boxy at the low end, almost 'toy piano'-esque at the top end. Full of character! It is interesting to try listening to just the organ sound without the key noises, and then with the key noises, and you immediately hear how much of a contribution the key noises make!
(Now if this was me, then I'd be trying to turn the key noises into a 'Toy Piano'!...)
The Attack and Release envelope controls change your impression of the size of the organ a lot. Slow times make it feel huge, and adding reverb reinforces this very nicely.
The Chorus effect is effective, but I'm not sure how it compares to the vibrato on the original - I'm not a Farfisa player. Vibrato (and tremolo) are tricky things to get right, despite appearing to be simple on the surface.) Given my preference for too many controls, then you won't be surprised to learn that I would have added rate and depth controls... Of course, it could be that this is already a perfect emulation of the exact rate and depth of the original...
The 'Tone' control, that sets the cut-off frequency of the low-pass filter, is very nicely adjusted so that the rotary movement feels right in context - many first timers don't bother using a translation table to fix the mapping, so I'm very impressed with Dean's attention to detail!
The Reverb effect is fixed to the default 0.7 seconds, and again, I would have liked an extra control... Yep, I'm a stuck record...
Overall then, a very nice first Decent Sampler instrument, with one minor and easily fixed imperfection. It totally succeeds in its aim of providing a 'simple and light' capture of a classic sound, and there's a depth of attention to detail that is often missing in first instruments. I look forward to hearing Dean's next instrument...
