The E-MU SP1200 and Akai S950 inside your DAW? The 12 Bit Sound! Can it be done?

Рет қаралды 12,862

Күн бұрын

I bought my Akai sampler in the late 80s and my first SP1200 in 1990 and used them both pretty much every day until I sold them in the early 2000s. Since then I have been trying to capture that sound in my DAW. In this video, I review the WaveTracing SP950, a plugin I use on a daily basis. But can it really replace my old SP1200?
Chapters:
00:00 Intro
00:55 Plugin run-through and a brief history of the SP1200
04:05 Let's try a Disco beat
06:56 On a loop
08:10 Dirty up a Hip Hop beat loop
08:47 The SP950 on some kicks and snares
11:08 Conclusion and Outro
Plugin:
wavetracing.com/products/sp950
For mixing and mastering services feel free to email me at: conan@thecratesmotel.com
Rare breaks for your beat tapes:
thecratesmotel.bandcamp.com/a...
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paypal.me/thecratesmoteluk
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/ thecratesmotel
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Equipment I use:
Headphones:
Audeze LCD-X
Beyerdynamic 770/880/1990
Shure 535
Sennheiser HD25 MKII
Presonus Studio One
RME ADI-2 DAC FS
SPL Phonitor 2
Presonus HP4 (My Grot Box)
Presonus Faderport V2
Arturia Minilab MKII
Novation 49SL MKII
Content Creation:
Presonus Revelator IO24
Earthworks Custom Icon Pro Microphone
Logitech Brio 4k Cam
OC White Ultima Mic Arm

Пікірлер: 79

@PRCRSTNTR Жыл бұрын

Great review 👍🏽 I've been using the SP950 since a few months, couldn't be more happy with it. Todd Terry being my God, I HAD to get that plugin !

@TheCratesMotel Жыл бұрын

Ah another Todd fan. He has probably been my biggest influence as a producer when making House music. Thanks for watching.

@chadpescod-realtor3308 Жыл бұрын

Todd Terry SUPREEEEEEEEME!

@alexturcani3234 Жыл бұрын

Producers on the original unit had to cut the samples size by various means one of which was reducing the spectrum with a filter because the original unit would cut silence before and after the sample, which also coincidentally cuts the resonance which would be undesirable to some as there was no form of dithering back then. This is by far the best representation of the unit in vst form to date.

@TheCratesMotel Жыл бұрын

Absolutely dude. I owned an SP1200 and an S950 and 900 for many years. Thanks for watching.

@legendsflashback 11 ай бұрын

@@TheCratesMotel should have sold them now you would got $25000

@TheCratesMotel 11 ай бұрын

@@legendsflashback yeh I guess, but people didn’t think like that in the early 2000s. It was just gear. People were a little less covetous. It was about what was in your head, not about what gear you had. I think people get caught up in gear a bit nowadays hence the high prices of vintage gear. Prices are crazy. And owning an OG SP doesn’t make people better. Only what’s in their head makes them better IMHO.

@obsididitagain 2 жыл бұрын

Hi man! Just discovered your channel by coincidence, and I'm so glad I did! Love your videos - I really learn something new from them, even after nearly 10 years in the game. Keep up the good work, hope to see them videos coming.

@TheCratesMotel 2 жыл бұрын

Ah thanks man, I appreciate your kind words and thank you for watching

@chadpescod-realtor3308 Жыл бұрын

The difference between this and hardware is indiscernable to me. Excellent video.

@TheCratesMotel Жыл бұрын

I had both the SP1200 and the 950 for many years and I have to agree. Whilst there will be a tiny bit of difference if you ran them side by side, I doubt a single end user (the listener) would turn around and say "That's a plugin". It's close enough, and dealing with all the extra stress and old tech that comes with the hardware...no thanks. I am happy to be in the box.

@MBeats27 Жыл бұрын

i have had this software for over a year now its decent defiantly worth downloading

@TheCratesMotel Жыл бұрын

Yeh man definitely. Thank you for watching.

@OperculumAudio Жыл бұрын

Thank you for this information. I just purchased both their plugins from the website!

@TheCratesMotel Жыл бұрын

Awesome. Enjoy them. Thank you for watching.

@hettovennik2887 2 жыл бұрын

Brilliant. Was on my list already, testing DQ5010 currently. i'll surely get both being a 90's 'House Head' ;-)

@TheCratesMotel 2 жыл бұрын

Yes I have the DQ to test as well. I haven’t got around to it yet. Thank you for watching.

@Dexton0742 2 жыл бұрын

I’ve been using this one now for a while. It’s pretty much a staple for me in kicks these days. But I try it on just about everything tbh. Also yesterday I just got their new DQ5010 I think it is. Great too

@TheCratesMotel 2 жыл бұрын

Thanks for watching dude. Yes the DQ is great. I will probably make a video about that at some point, using them together.

@Dexton0742 2 жыл бұрын

@@TheCratesMotel Yeah that’d be nice. Checked out some of your releases too btw. Good stuff

@TheCratesMotel 2 жыл бұрын

@@Dexton0742 Ah thanks dude

@Reggi_Sample Жыл бұрын

Thank you my bro. You also plugged me in with Tal dac with the presets. How does the plugin showed here compare? This seems better for that specific sound with the speed settings. We also need more of the top 5 plugins section.

@TheCratesMotel Жыл бұрын

This is close to the SP1200 ring sound. Obviously it is not exactly the same as an SP1200 or S950, but it's close enough for me personally.

@ashfaq1999 6 ай бұрын

Great video.

@TheCratesMotel 6 ай бұрын

Hey thanks man, I appreciate that. Thanks for watching.

@ashfaq1999 6 ай бұрын

@@TheCratesMotel Most Welcome 🤝

@legendsflashback 11 ай бұрын

8:00 imperfect is perfect

@TheCratesMotel 11 ай бұрын

Exactly.

@SuperJg1975 5 ай бұрын

Did you ever test the RX 950 Plugin ?

@TheCratesMotel 5 ай бұрын

I have tested it but I never made a video. Decent plugin. I use it a lot.

@billB101 Жыл бұрын

The SP950 doesn't have the slight low end boost you get with the Sp1200. It's also not just the sound, IMO it's the timing of the SP1200 that makes the machine. I've tried the SP950 over full drum busses and it's kinda OK, but it just doesn't give me that instant SP magic. Been looking at the Isla S2400 though, now that looks interesting.

@TheCratesMotel Жыл бұрын

You can never truly emulate a piece of equipment like the 1200, that is true. I used the SP1200 for a long time though and this gets you close enough. No end user is going to say to me “That’s not an SP1200” because 99.9% of them don’t care lol. The timing thing is a bit of a myth. It wasn’t the swing, that’s easy to replicate. The real magic was that you had to chop by ear, so there would always be a slight space at the start of samples. As for the low end boost, it was a bit of an illusion. On a spectrum analyzer you can see there’s not actually a bass boost, it’s actually a thing called mirror frequencies. The slight roll off in the highs gave the impression of more bass. But I do agree, that whilst you can almost get there, enough to fool most people, you’ll never totally emulate it. But this way I can do it all on my laptop and not have to carry around an SP and a crate of floppy discs. Thanks for watching.

@billB101 Жыл бұрын

@@TheCratesMotel We'll have to disagree here to be honest, the SP definitely thickens up content sampled though it, and it's not just high end loss. Add to that the sequencer timing ( not just swing ) and it's why it's now an undeniable classic ( with a price to suit. ) That's not all down to chopping by ear. I sold mine in 1996, thought the new wave of sequencer was the way forward, and it was to some extent, but damn do I miss it. Still have a Roland W30 though, now there's another 12 bit classic that has real weight to the low end and a sequencer that chuggs too. ;)

@TheCratesMotel Жыл бұрын

@@billB101 Yeh cool man, everyone is entitled to their own opinions of course. I just have no nostalgia for the older units. You’re an exception, you actually used the unit. Most of the people nowadays who have this misguided nostalgia never even used the units lol. The one that makes me laugh is when people refer to the SP1200, MPC60 etc as analog units hahaha I tried the 2400 out for a week btw. Yeh it was ok but it didn’t really do much for me. Not enough to warrant the price and waiting list anyway.

@michaelgermany6279 Жыл бұрын

What is that “hip hop” drum loop u used called?

@TheCratesMotel Жыл бұрын

If you mean the slower one, it’s Stone Fox Chase by Area Code 615. Classic BBoy break.

@michaelgermany6279 Жыл бұрын

@@TheCratesMotel yup that’s it thanks man.

@alexdawson7851 Жыл бұрын

Have you seen the new RX1200 plugin? Would love to hear you thoughts on that

@TheCratesMotel Жыл бұрын

Hey, yes I have. I have been trying it out all weekend. I like it. I will probably do a video on it at some point, although I sold my SP many years ago so I won’t be doing a comparison video. But does it sound good? I think so yes. I like it. Thanks for watching.

@alexdawson7851 Жыл бұрын

Do you like it better than the SP950?

@TheCratesMotel Жыл бұрын

@@alexdawson7851 not yet, but it’s growing on me. Obviously one is only an effect whereas the RX1200 is a whole instrument. It’s definitely growing on me. I use Battery 4 in SP1200 mode but I can see RX1200 being my new workflow VST drum sampler possibly in the future.

@thedropwithesedoc 10 ай бұрын

Is this available on pro tools?

@TheCratesMotel 10 ай бұрын

I’m not sure dude. I don’t think so.

@designatedpiledriver8216 Жыл бұрын

The sp950 is very good

@TheCratesMotel Жыл бұрын

Yes man, definitely. Thank you for watching.

@justbeatsnoname6004 2 жыл бұрын

You should do the god particle master review. & include some plugins to go along with the god particle.

@TheCratesMotel 2 жыл бұрын

Thanks for watching dude. Yes I have heard quite a lot about the plugin. I must try it out.

@justbeatsnoname6004 2 жыл бұрын

@@TheCratesMotel awesome. Don’t just try it out by itself. Showcase some plugins that go with it.

@justbeatsnoname6004 2 жыл бұрын

@@TheCratesMotel I’ve been using the SPL vitalizer bass soft knob with it and the other knobs.

@Rhuggins Жыл бұрын

Might be cook on some reverb plugins

@TheCratesMotel Жыл бұрын

Thanks for watching dude. Yes, it absolutely is!! Especially the non linear style verbs. Really crunchy. Good shout.

@legendsflashback 11 ай бұрын

8:11 nice edit

@TheCratesMotel 11 ай бұрын

Thanks dude

@saren6538 Жыл бұрын

nice video .. but some things just need to be left alone...sp1200 being one of them :)

@TheCratesMotel Жыл бұрын

I agree with you to a point. I owned an SP1200 for many years and the machine holds a very special place in my heart. However, there are a ton of people who will never get the chance to own one and this plugin gives them an insight into not only the SP but also the S950. That can’t be all bad. Thanks for watching dude.

@davidscott2095 Жыл бұрын

Have you tried the Espi 1200 software?

@TheCratesMotel Жыл бұрын

Hey buddy, thanks for watching. I have tried it briefly, but not in depth in any way. Is it good? It's just an app right?

@davidscott2095 Жыл бұрын

@@TheCratesMotel I am not sure. I just saw it featured on YT and IG. They had producers like DJ Scratch and a few others commenting on the sound and it is the absolute closest sound to the original SP1200 around. Although the SP950 is pretty good as well. JFilt (Very Sick Beats) did a video on this and it sounded pretty close as well. Thank you for the video.

@TheCratesMotel Жыл бұрын

@@davidscott2095 I’ll have to check it out in a bit more detail. Cheers dude.

@river718 Жыл бұрын

I’ve been using the SP950 plugin with my MPC X for about two years now and when I compare it my Isla Instruments S2400 it’s surprisingly very close…

@TheCratesMotel Жыл бұрын

Awesome. Yes I love it. Thanks for watching brother.

@PhatMc Жыл бұрын

Is it compatablle with mpc software g

@TheCratesMotel Жыл бұрын

@@PhatMc Hey bro. There’s a VST2 version and that’s compatible with the MPC software.

@PhatMc Жыл бұрын

@@TheCratesMotel where can I find that U able to hitw with a link g

@TheCratesMotel Жыл бұрын

@@PhatMc Hey bro, actually it looks like their newer/current version is only VST3. I didn’t realise, my bad. I guess we will all have to wait until MPC software supports VST3. It also means I can’t update my version, damn.