1/11/2024 0 Comments Exs24 logic proHere’s a refresher on creating tracks, using Software Instrument tracks, and more.Īs expected, Logic Pro X’s take on the Mellotron is significantly more able in terms of sound choice, the blend there of, sample sustain length, and more. Where to find the Vintage Mellotron in Logic Pro X You’ll see it in the Instrument Input slot menu on Software Instrument tracks and in your instrument Library panel (use the Y key to open and close the Library from the Main window). While it’ll never sound quite as romantically dirty as the platonic 1960’s setup, Vintage Mellotron sounds amazing and has now become what feels like the secret weapon everyone kind of forgot about. According to Apple, it features “ painstakingly sampled versions of each note from the original Mellotron sound library tapes,” performance quirks included. From 90’s era-sounding MPC loops and crushed indie walls of strings, to lush pads for your chilled out beats and haunting modern-day hip-hop melodies, Apple’s lightweight Vintage Mellotron is not to be overlooked.Īt first glance, the Vintage Mellotron might seem overly basic, but in many ways it’s actually more feature-rich than the original and sounds fantastic. While there are certainly some worthwhile third-party Mellotron instruments out there (as well as similar vintage emulations), Logic’s built-in Vintage Mellotron is worth dusting off for another go. Remember, every note the user is playing back on the keyboard was recorded in real time, by real players, with era-appropriate analog tape, so even the source audio is a major part of what makes both the original machine and its modern-day brethren different from your average digital sampler. From environmental related issues (temperature, humidity, dust, smoke), to not quite pitch-perfect tape head alignment, and tape stretching, there was certainly no lack of character on these machines. Even fresh off the factory line, no two orignal Mellotrons sounded quite the same. This is where the brilliance of the machine - and more applicably its virtual counterpart - really shines for me. The whole thing worked like magic as far as the player was concerned, but on the inside was a brilliant mess of electro-mechanical doodads and capstans that sounded about as great as it did inconsistent. These days it’s as simple as dragging and dropping an audio file on a virtual interface, but back then it was a ballet of gadgets and apparatus ungracefully dancing at the touch of your fingertips. Let’s call it the spiritual precursor to what are now known as digital samplers, the original Mellotron used a series of magnetic tape heads, pressure pads and spring-loaded mechanisms to allow users to play back single sound recordings when playing a key. Within a few years the orignal was appearing on recordings like The Beatles hit “ Strawberry Fields Forever” before losing the convenience battle to smaller, digital gear in the 80’s, and later making a resurgence in the virtual instrument space. The OG Mellotronīased on an electro-mechanical keyboard developed in the UK circa 1963, Vintage Mellotron is a lightweight and yet effective virtual instrument library that offers the retro vibes to LPX users for free. And while seemingly nondescript and deceivingly basic in appearance, Apple’s Vintage Mellotron is one such instrument. Whether it’s the rickety mechanicals lurking in the background of some mad inventor’s keyboard contraption or melted cassette flourishes, quirky sounds of sometimes inexplicable origin can project visuals in our minds and become formidable influences over our creations. Sometimes just understanding what an instrument library is, how it was created or where its roots were planted can come into play. The retro-inspired virtual sampler instrument is one of the most interesting libraries of sounds to get overlooked by some Logic Pro X users, and it comes completely free with the purchase of Apple’s professional DAW suite. A few years back Apple introduced its Mellotron as an EXS24 patch before promoting it to standalone virtual instrument status. While staples like the EXS24 and relative newcomer Alchemy are hard to pass up - whether it be because you have 10+ years of custom instruments on tap or the shear horsepower of the former Camel Audio hybrid synth - there are some lesser known and under-appreciated options that tend to go by the wayside for no good reason. The retro-inspired Mellotron virtual sampler instrument is one of the most interesting libraries of sounds to get overlooked by some Logic Pro X users, and it comes completely free with the purchase of Apple’s professional DAW suite. With so many brilliant third-party instruments and sound libraries out there, it can be easy to forget about Logic’s built-in gear. Today we are exploring Apple’s Vintage Mellotron sampler instrument from Logic Pro X.
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