Why can't the A4 do warm pads & chords? [SOLVED]

Elektron Gear Analog Keys/Four
#1

If you set either low pass to 60 or lower, the body disappears and the level heavily attenuates. I then find myself raising the filter to get enough level but then it’s too bright to be a warm sound.

I’ve downloaded countless packs and made hundreds of my own sounds, but the closest I can get is using key tracked resonance on F2 to boost lower mids. But this is unwieldy and still not “warm”.

My assessment points to the filters but I remember reading that the osc waveforms aren’t “true” in lower registers, too. Maybe that applies to low mids also.

I have the AK so will keep it as a controller and for leads, drums and high frequency sounds but I’ll never love it. I am crying out for a really warm chord.

Anyone succeeded or have suggestions for other modern synths that can do this?

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#2

I have to say that this hasn’t been my experience — perhaps we have differing opinions on what constitutes warm, but I’ve absolutely gotten more than satisfactory pads out of my a4(2). I still have yet to record anything into my daw/ computer as I’m still learning it, but I’ve honestly been rather pleasantly surprised with the general tone of it.

I’d honestly been expecting that I’d be making a significant concession for the on board sequencer — it turns out (at least for me) that that concession is nowhere near as significant as I’d been anticipating.

#3

I can’t help you on the A4, I’m sure someone can chime in, but my suggestions for other chord-capable synths would be:

  • Volca Keys (has a fudginess to it that I like, not to everyone’s taste ofc, some would call it cheap, I call it warm)
  • DSI Tetra (It can sound very cold too, but less so than, for example, a nord, and it always manages to impress me)
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#4

Uhhh…
It can definitely do “warm” pads and chords.

Try this on for size.

Perhaps, give us some examples of pads you’d like to emulate, and we’ll help out.

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#5

I have no clue if this helps, but I did this video a while ago and shared the patches.
I think the A4 can do nice pads, but yes, it can be be hard to dial them in sometimes. You have to spend some time to get into the filter sweet spots. And I’m drowning everything in reverb to be save :wink:

34 Likes
#6

Yeah, watching this video in particular helped me out a lot. :slight_smile:

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#7

best A4 demo I’ve heard to date :slight_smile:

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#8

So honestly I cannot answer your question from the technical detail point of view. For my observation the A4 does not have the “appropriate filter path” or let’s say filter curve and characteristics.

I sold my A4 years ago and now focussed with my analogue stuff on the DSI products - Prophet REV2 and OB-6. Wonderfull, warm und liquid pad sounds are guaranteed.

But - beauty is in the eye (or ears) of the beholder.

#9

sigh. So good. So expensive :slight_smile:

4 Likes
#10

I did this some days ago. Not very accurate by I found the chords by accident :slight_smile: The original can’t be reached. At least not by myself :slight_smile:

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#11

You’ve to dispence with something else. The OB-6 is worth every penny / or cent.

But the REV2 otherwise ist the same price range of the A4. Fantastic product.

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#12

Honestly, I think this just comes down to the fact that the synth community is so broad. We have people using the Analog Four for everything from synth pop to techno.

One genre’s warm is another’s cold. From what I’ve gathered, the majority of complaints about the Analog Four’s sound come from those after a more ‘vintage’ sound. I think it’s definitely possible to dial in such sounds, it just takes a little work and a lot of practice. The filters tend to favour more plucky and percussive sounds IMO - which is why I love it so much for ambient and glitchy music. I can see why that might disappoint some people though, particularly if they’re after more conventional pad sounds.

A synth can have unique character or it can please everyone. It can’t do both.

8 Likes
#13

yeah, I sometimes have this thought when I look at my modular case :wink:

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#14

I think so too.
A4 can be difficult. Not full of sweetspots for pads and basses

#15

Thanks for that. Do you have a link to the patches please?

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#16

Sounds good. Those intro chords feel like waiting on the “press X” startup page of a game

@siegef4ce well put. I think the a4 does plucky sounds best by design, they work best with the nature of the sequencer (sound locks, parameter per step etc)

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#17

beautiful stuff!

I feel so on the verge of buying an A4 (mk1) just so I can have a really nice sequencer for my 0-coast :stuck_out_tongue:

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#18

A4mkii is definitely capable of warm and thick pads. I actually find dsi stuff dull due to uninspiring sounding fiters. The new stuff including the ob6 are a pale shadow of their counterparts of old. It should also be noted that the a4 and all dsi’s new line use the same cool audio clone chips for their oscs. So it’s very possible to get very similar sounds out of them, just need to work the synth one way or the other. As for vintage, that’s what my Polysix is for :wink:

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#19

https://www.elektronauts.com/uploads/default/original/3X/9/1/91e1e310e2ecbc772665c5762dbe6662834b4f05.zip

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#20

Since I don’t use my AK for pads, more for the fast and rhythmically sequenced parts, my advice could not hit the nail … but here are my thoughts …

For me a “warm pad” has some depth and fluctuation in the low end, reduced volume in the mid parts, and some fairy dust in the high end …

The A4 VCOs allow pulse width modulation for all waveforms. I would select one VCO to saw (high department) and one square or triangle (low department), have a little detuning and moderate modulation of the pulse width (to get fluctuations).

For standard pads I use LP 12dB, for dark pads LP 24 dB. I think the filters of the A4 can be combined in many ways to achieve the right tone, and should have low resonance and moderate ADSR modulation with a long attack. Keytracking is a good idea.

At the end drown the sound in reverb. Analogue overdrive can give even more warmth.

11 Likes