Alesis Quadraverb is an underrated ambient treasure (and why you need two)
ฝัง
- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 27 ส.ค. 2024
- In which I talk about the Alesis Quadraverb and my "Octaverb Technique" - stacking two for gorgeous swashes of ambient reverb and distortion.
SUPPORT THE CHANNEL: / hainbach
CHANNEL MEMBERSHIP: / @hainbach
MY MUSIC: hainbach.bandca...
FASHION: teespring.com/d...
CONNECT: / hainbach
MY SIGNATURE SOFTWARE:
GONG AMP www.audiothing...
WIRES www.audiothing...
MORPHING ROTOR www.audiothing...
TEST EQUIPMENT LIBRARY www.spitfireau...
LOOPER apps.apple.com...
BUY THE GEAR I USE (EU):
redir.love/tho...
BUY THE GEAR I USE (US):
bit.ly/3nsnE9Q
(affiliate links, I get a few % if you buy through them)/
I'm just here for the sweater content.
I love how there's just a little 606 in the background running some hats like crazy.
You go little buddy
or low or high toms perhaps? ;)
I think every video should have a "what does it sound like in a mix" section-something that's severely lacking in most gear videos. Well done as always! You have such a way of getting the most out of these units. I hope these don't go up too crazy in price...
Thank you Sandy! That is too me the most important part, so I always take a day to make a track.
I think that’s because most TH-camrs don’t really make music outside of jamming for videos. Hainbach actually has real music you can listen to outside of TH-cam and it’s stellar.
I agree with that 100%.
ah yes, the time i have waited for. i have been scalping all the used quadraverbs i could get my hands on for 20 years and now i will put them up for purchase at inflated prices, my plan is working out perfectly
Love mine, I use it on everything with almost exactly the same settings as you do (Plate 2, decay, diffusion and density maxed out) and back into a stereo channel in my mixer where the magic happens: I send a TINY bit of the signal back into itself right at the edge of feedback, picking up a lot of harmonics and beautiful stuff in the process. Great video!
Many stereo units allow for "reprocessing". That is, one can take the output of channel A and use it as the input to channel B, where the signal gets processed once more. What often makes it even more interesting is that many such devices assume they will often be receiving a mono input, but feeding it as a stereo out. So, you may be plugged into only channel A, but a somewhat different version of the processed signal comes out of both A and B. What makes this even more interesting is that if one engages in reprocessing, some of what A did is gong to be included in the output of B, and some of what B did/does is also going to form a part of the A output that you are now feeding into B. Naturally, this can make reverbs sound huge and have long decays. Inserting some additional processing between the A output and B input can spice things up.
Try it. It's fun and it's free. Just be aware that sometimes there can be oscillation so keep the volume down until you know things are safe.
This is a fantastic technique, thank you for sharing!
@@Hainbach Glad it interests you. One thing to keep in mind is that, unlike your dual-Quadraverb method, it is usually not possible to set the two channels up differently in a stereo pedal or rack-unit. But within those constraints, one can often get some interesting products. I built myself a barebones FV-1-based unit last week. The chip provides for dual paths, and offers up several default effects. I found that feeding channel A into B resulted in not only more protracted reverb, but more resonant flanging, pleasingly "choppier" tremolo, and "boingier" chorus.
If you want super-deluxe, try selecting reverse-delay. I have done this with several pedals of mine. Keep in mind that when reverse-delay is reprocessed, backwards now becomes forward again, though slightly modified via the several layers of signal conversion. But what makes it even more interesting is the characteristic I noted earlier, in which a mono input shows up in both A and B's outputs. So, A will be reversed, and a bit of A's reversed signal will also show up at B's output. But B's re-reversed output will also show up at A's final output, in addition to its own. This yields a fascinating melange of forward and backward delays constantly overlapping each other at the final output. Simply mesmerizing.
Kudos for having a Korg X-911!
I hope one day Heinbach decides to teach a “learning German” class. I would be all about that.
Guten Tag! First you must turn on your Schwebungssummer und Terzsieb. The we shall make schepprige Beats mit Impulsgeneratoren
@@Hainbach Yeah, but then the vids would be three times as long. ;-)
@@Hainbach amazing xD my kind of fun with the Denglisch
I still own my Quadraverb and Quadraverb IV. I never wanted to get rid of them despite a lot of effects now being “built in” to the recorders.
Now I’m re-inspired to pull this gear out and run my keyboards through them. I love getting validation that my love for my older gear isn’t completely foolish. :-)
9:49 - That sound is epic. Always been a fan of Rhodes pianos for it's smooth tones but your reverb technique takes it to another place.. There's fury, grit and rage in that signal!!
I could listen to Hainbach say 'Alesis Quadraverb' all day long.
Been rockin’ mine since 1993!
00:00 - It's good to have you back too.. Nice, calming and entrancing musical tech journeys from yesterday, today and tomorrow.
Love this video. I've used the Alesis in pretty much every synthesis project I've done in the last 20 years. 😂👍 I'll never quit it.
Perfect for people wanting to make "I am sitting in a room".
you don't even need the room!
I thought about that too, just gotta feed one reverb into the other and then keep feeding them back upon themselves. Only problem is the concept is way more interesting the way Lucier did it.
Holy cow! Just had a major flashback. When I first started making music, I used my older brothers 4-track and his Quadraverb. Taj Mahal was the jam!
"Holy cow" really sounds like Taj Mahal!
Literally got my hands on one of these last night. Sat with the mother-32 to test it. Test turned into an adventure into a sonic wonderland. Cant wait to spend more time with it.
omg, that little track at the end brought back some really fond memories the Artificial Intelligence albums.
all over Amber too
aaaand new price rise for old alesis equipment! I was planning to get one, have to rush now
@georg walt Smart. 😏
I think equipment in general is selling for silly money these days...need to be patient and pick them up when everyone has got bored with them!
Been riding for awhile tbh. I bought mine for about €60 2 years ago. I am looking for another but prices are stupid now.
@georg walt so you're the devil. cool
Here is a fun trick.... Find an old cheap 1970s delay (or?) that has a lot of "hiss" because the psu filter caps are going bad.
Don't plug anything in... just amplify the hiss noise, and send it through other reverb and delays.
I love the distorted sound.
me too, its like an ice shower
I inherited one from my dads live FOH Setup and I'm amazed how juicy and lush the sound is. The Chorus Reverb Preset is my go-to. I put it on everything, but especially on Snare, Toms and Piano it's very nice (I'm a bit 80s addicted)! It doesn't pushes your instruments in the back of a mix, but it makes them richer
Thank you @Hainbach, that was a great video!!! I remember going to a professional studio on 2010 to mix and master the one and only EP my then duo Mass Movement put out. The engineer had a Quadraverb in his rack and despite having been in a few studios I'd never heard of it. He used it on all the tracks but we first noticed it when added it to the brerakdown of one and it just transformed it and the transition out of it into beautifully distorted swirling sound. I didn't realise they were so cheap, I hope they stay that way as I would definitely like two in my studio when I'm healthy enough to make music again.
the desync on audio and video was just the best!
Wow, what great video. Gorgeous reverb and still not too expensive. Such an expansive world of sound in that magic 80s box. The jam around 12:00 reminds me of the stuff Cabaret Voltaire were doing mid- late 80s.
Excited to hear your take on reverbs! This has inspired me to go deep and far away
thanks for this, I bought a Quadraverb a year ago and was struggling to find inspiration with it, this video pushed me in the right direction. I've gone from thinking I should get rid of it to thinking I need another!
I worked a factory in Burbank Ca that made these and other Alesis products. I worked with Brian (Head) Weltch and James (Monkey) Schaffer from Korn. They got me the job there (we were from Bakersfield and in different bands and moved to Burbank) in 1989 . We were paid to listen for problems in the equipment because we were Musicans. I never thought of getting one of these but now I do...
It was my live keyboard rig reverb for many years. Indeed underrated. These days I don't have one, but, I do use 2 REV500 Yamahas and a Lexicom MPX500 v2.x. I have used, and still do, some very nice modern plugins, some UAD ones and some others. The REV500s and the MPX do something that is just them, just like my old Alesis :). Good on you for showing them off.
You did a video on my Quadraverb! The very first (and one of my very favorite) effects units I have ever purchased. You might be surprised to hear that many have called me crazy for loving this verb so much. I've had it for over a decade and have always been content with just the one, what have you done!!!?? Love you man.
I just took a quick look, these have become much harder to find. Also cost much more than the $50 I paid for mine.
I love my Quadraverb, I frequently pair it with the MidiVerb II to achieve similar results. Thanks for diving into this one.
Some folk out there comment on why anyone would ever use two Quads - Hainbach, you demonstrate perfectly why! - You can also throw in A Digitech TSR12 or 24 through the effects loop or through a separate channel in the mixer to refine reverbs and also the different eqs. I have a few spare Quads, GTs, TSR12 & 24s, if anyone's interested ?
I could have listened to you exploring that groove for hours
Wow that combination sounds beautiful and frightening simultaneously. Like a bear.
Hey something I recognize! 😂 Had one of those hooked up to our theremin. When set right it sounded like a Cthulhu mytho coming for you.
Ah, the good old Quadraverb, who would've thought we'd still be talking about it in 2022?!
Hello Hainbach I found your channel because I bought a bunch of Alesis IRs from past to future reverbs and was searching - AND THEN I FOUND THIS great channel - love the ping videos and all the crazy stuff you do :-) SUBSCRIBED!
I have the Quadraverb GT (basically same unit with some guitar overdrive effects) but doesn’t have the Taj Mahal setting stored. Could someone please share the factory settings for that preset? I believe it has some chorusing on the plate 2?
Love my Quadraverb. Haven't used it in quite a while. Will have to change that ;)
Same here. Mine got the QC-sticker (handwritten!) from 1989. I got it used for 50,- and I instantly fell in love. I tried to take impulse responses of the reverbs but eventually gave up as the possibilities are so overwhelming.
I love my plugin reverbs but there is something about the Quadraverb that can't get replicated. It gives so much depth and 3D. They knew how to make great reverbs back then.
I have an alesis quadraverb routed to the Q20 which was their 97’ attempt at the lexicon market.
It has an octoverb preset so I have a dodecaverb 🎉!
WOWWW The moment with the Juno is amazing !!!
Alesis reverb algorithms have always been my favorite. They have so much character *especially the Quadraverb* I have one that's a bit beat up now but it sings like nothing else.
the quadraverb is such a nice reverb especially with a touch of input gain .
Thanks to this video I picked one of these up for $130, and got it into an aux on my mixer. I’m loving that input distortion on stereo tape mixes! Thanks for the amazing content and heads up on this ambient sleeper!
When you make music it is really good and knowing that you made it somehow makes it even better. I request to see you make music more with that fascinating equipment you have. Watching you use your talent is what I like seeing the most. Also, I could listen to you talk forever and never get tired of it.
I just bought one. I am so excited for it to come!
08:50 Hainbach doing a convincing NIN impression.
This even goes for the often regarded to as lowly effects processors like the Midiverbs as well, these boxes are amazing for what they're capable of. I'd never considered stacking them personally but now I'm wanting to give it a try. I need another rack now though lol
My first reverb was a Quadraverb GT. This brings back memories. My first explorations into ambient recording were guitar into Marshall JMP-1 into Quadraverb GT recorded direct using the cab sim on the Marshall, and then when I mixed I'd send to a Lexicon Reverb, which was a great way to add a bit of extra shine to it all. It's often hard to get two reverbs to work well together, but that setup was really nice. My JMP-1/GT was more or less my "real" sound/tone, and the Lexicon was what placed it into the same space with the Drums, Sax, Keys, or whatever else I was recording with back in those days.
Reverb + distortion (or distortion + reverb) = pure joy
A little history on this device, the algorithms for the Quadraverb were modified to make the algorithms used in the QuadraSynth. You can also find the Quadraverb in a different format in the Alesis Wedge, their version of the Lexicon MRC / LXP-1/LXP-5 in one box.
YES. Been waiting on tenterhooks to hear you explain Quadraverb into Quadraverb. 🖤
I still have both my Quadraverbs. I used the Taj Mahal preset a lot in my shoegaze band back in the early 90s.
@Pete Testube sadly, I didn’t have a Midiverb II to compare. I’ll have a root around the internet to see if I can find anything on how that programme is comprised, as I’m interested to know myself.
There are new displays for quadraverbs on ebay for cheap. The installation is super easy and requires no soldering. Thanks for a nice video!
We've got a pair of these - used to use live on guitars in the 90s with "this Picture' -
That track that comes in around the 10 minute mark is great!
Great technique! I love bringing new life to old tech. Thanks!
I just found one of these and now I'm excited to play with it
Ah my old Quadraverb Plus from the mid 1990s brought me so much joy, both in the studio and on stage. It wasn't the cleanest sounding processor even back then but boy oh boy did it ooze character! I also had a Midiverb 4 and Wedge which both sounded technically better than the Quadraverb Plus but what they gained in audio quality, they lacked in character. I traded in the Quadraverb Plus and Midiverb 4 in for a Yamaha 03D with ADAT card but kept the Wedge for a while longer. Great video by the way and keep up the great work!
That sound at 10:27! Sounds like the Terminator soundtrack!So good!
I could never afford a quadraverb but many years ago I saw Karina ESP and he was playing a guitar through 4 midiverbs and the amazing ambient sounds he got from taping the strings and simple things like that simply "blew my mind" and, as well as buying some of his CDs, I went out and got myself a used microverb II and a few years later I got myself a Zoom reverb too... the microverb on "infinite space" and the zoom on "millenium" was THE best live "ambientification engine" I've ever had.
You're banging my drum! Bang for bang arguably the best FX unit ever made. I sold one and then had to buy another because I just couldn't beat that sound. It's hard to pinpoint, it just sounds wonderful! 😎
When I was a kid in the early 90s, and just learning to play guitar, I always wanted a Quadraverb! My friend and I used to go into the local music store and just sit messing with one for a good hour or so at least. Never did get the chance to pick one up, but I might do after my memory being refreshed by this video. ;-)
Hope you're well, Hainbach.
EDIT: Just remembered, once when we were "trying out" the Quadraverb, the sales assistant tried to sell us a Zoom 9002 instead, ever tried one of those?
Still Gold, Alesis’s number one product imo. Absolutely love those warm effects and chaining inside the Quadraverb 2, don’t confuse it with anything else this unit is easily producing quality in $2500 efx’s.
Was just gonna say the title is a bit misleading. Great video but the alesis verbs are probably the most well known for ambient/the warp guys used it/ shoegazers used it. The guy that made Valhalla plugin said he modeled it after the alesis boxes. Love the detail you go into and great examples.
In 1993 someone gave me a tip. He said: "You have to make sure that it is a QV Plus. You can see it on the display when you switch it on." Mine are now all QV +, they have really great extras. Maybe I'll do a video too.
Ahhh yes, the Alesis SumTingVERB series... some of the presets on a MIDIVerb2, and still today unmatched in those sounds. Yamaha SPX Sum#... Always a reason to get the Gemini power conditioner the PL-01, the one with the lights that pull out and shine lights on your rack modules!! Never was satisfied with the actual ability of it to condition power, so I’ve learned to make ‘em way better. Save a ton of cash too and so use the leftover space inside for a few DIs and special signal transformers to match impedances, so it’s a great EMI handling and power conditioner custom job that settles all the hums and grounding issues. Gotta have the lights! Thanks for sharing all you do, you’ve been doing this since 1996?! That’s the year I learned to use my mothers Tascam porta 7 4 track!! Thanks so much again!
I recently got one too and have been loving it. I think mine has a dead battery which sometimes causes it to glitch out upon flipping through presets at start, but simply holding BYPASS and PROG while turning it on alleviates this. Honestly for me it's a nice added feature!
The Dynacord VRS 23 in your Studio is a Killer Reverb too ! Glad to have two of them !
The Demo with the Juno Bassline and the 606 envokes instant Carpenter (Precinct?) Vibes!
Had Midiverb 3 when I was 16. My first verb and turned out to be a winner. Midi to delay time on the midi verb 3 is amazing. Worth a go :) thanks for this. Always a treat
Wow. I have one of those in a box in my garage. I think I will dig it out. These things take an AC power supply as I remember, because I kept losing it and they were expensive to replace.
I've heard about these for years. I'd love one!
if you're ever looking for maximum "charecter" in rack reverbs, check out the Yamaha R-1000. it has so few taps that it's practically a delay
Interesting take. I have one, and I always loved it, but it's been in storage for a bit. That said, I never noticed it being "practically a delay". I do wish I could find this video, just to make sure it wasn't a dream, where one of my favorite dub techno producers STL showed his setup where he had to R1000s for stereo.
DONT MAKE THE PRICES GO UP DAMNIT
Yeah had one of these back in the day, really good reverb. Compared to the Lexicon 224 (which was ridiculously expensive) it stood up well and offered more variety. My main reverb in the early 90s.
Chaining verbs in the DP4 is sick too
Great content as usual Mr. Hainbach! I'm an avid collector of studio rack gear, never enough room tough... Not a big fan of how the preamps saturate on the quadraverbs, but I appreciate the creative way you are using the hardware outboards. More studio tips please! : )
I have a heap of Alesis racks, they really are fantastic fx units, and so overlooked!
That H3000 in the rack together with Quadraverbs is definitely not just a coincidence.
It’s a wonderful if noisey combination
makes me want to chain some reverbs on my DAW and see what happens
Enjoy!
Yeah, can’t wait to put Blackhole on top of blackhole on top of blackhole.
Valhalla Shimmer chained with Valhalla Shimmer!
That's actually pretty fun and a fairly decent way to make ambient music. Also sprinkle some delays and other effects in there and boom, or should I say, whoosh, ambient music.
adding some 6REV from the Reaktor3 user library set to ‘far away’ preset to pretty much any other reverb is a good idea.
Yesterday I discovered a live stream mix I did a year ago on analog gear. Not so much because I'm an analog fan, but I had this old gear sitting around as spare so I could set it up permanently for a while... turned out the reverb on the vocals was an Alesis PicoVerb... which was surprisingly fitting. It doesn't sound like a real room or something, but it just does the job. I love the way you use the QuadraVerb here. But since I sold most outboard gear, I'd be interested in recreating this using plugins.
I use a Vermona Retroverb, Quadraverb & Oto BAM - all recommended. Would love an old URSA Major, lexicon 224 or 480 but the initial outlay and maintenance costs are pretty steep. Not a fan of Strymon Big/Blue sky for the reasons Hainbach stated - sounding too detached from the source and too much like an effect. Great video as always Mr Hainbach - always informative and inspirational! Thank you for the hard work.
LOVE that jam! Great job as always!
This is exactly what I've been trying to do this mixing reverb and distortion together, looks like I'm going to buy two Quadraverbs, for some reason I overlooked this having not much luck with Alesis devices
Bought a QV half a year ago. I wanted a stereo reverb that could function as a send on my mixer, and thought that an old rack module might be cheap now that everyone uses daw. I love it! Haven't tried overdriving it, looking forward to that. Thank you for another great video, I love your content:))
Amazing sounds. That distortion too!
I have a Midiverb III which I honestly don't use. I will definitely try to stack it with my standard reverb, tc electronic M-One XL!
Those where absolute top shelf units in early 2000, dreamed about them
I think it sounds even better than the strymon stuff tbh
I used the quardaverb as a guitarrist in my rack, but unfortunately it died suddenly anyhow. But now I saw your video, and as always it a pleasure to see it. I have a korg drv 1000, it is only reverb but it is also a Geheimtipp.
Yeah, it was the standard in the studio, in the eighties and nineties, when I was doing it for real. They were sought after and expensive, back then.
I love my Quadraverb, and I'll never sell it! I'm lucky to have the "Quadraverb+" that has an upgraded ROM, too. Now I guess I need a second one LOL
I have 2 Quadraverb + for sale.
You 'could' have 3
Hehehe.
Nothing much better than the Quadraverb.
That sounds awesome
These are great. I had snare rev prog back in le day which was the closest I ever god to a Sony DRE-2000
Sounds great.
Hi Hainbach. Amazing vid and even more amazing sounds. Thanks for sharing. Any chance to get the settings for the Zoo Major Hall .... Would be very cool. Love to hear from you... All the best. Cheers!
It’s the plate 2 with maximum diffusion, low boost, high boost, max rev time
@@Hainbach Thank you very much, Sir. I'm well amazed to receive an answer from you. Very highly appreciated!! You really rock!!
Cool video ! I spent the late80'-90's using Alesis. I'm powering up my MidiVerb 4 today! Might bust out my Tascam 488 - 8-track cassette.
I had no idea that this was staring me in the face even back in the '90s.
The Quadraverb/Midiverb were the go-to for many of us live bands playing in the 90s because they were affordable and "good enough". Used them in guitar rigs, on PA mains, etc. These being so common back then is why I don't like the sound of them anymore. Still sounds a bit too 90s glassy-fizzy to my ears... not as bad as an SPX90, but there.
Fun fact: The Kurzweil K2000 onboard FX was a quadraverb chip.
I have Quadraverb GT, Midiverb 2, Digitech DSP256, TSR-24, Lexicon LXP-15II, Roland DEP-5 and other ... Reverb in Quadraverb I like the least. You definitely need to try the neighboring cheap Reverb of the same era. Any of those that I listed has a beautiful sound for ambient... especially DEP-5, DSP256 ....But Quadraverb has amazing Rotary (Leslie) modulation preset