Flat Beat Synth Tutorial (Korg MS-20)

Following my Daft Punk synth tutorial, a number of people sent me messages asking for a demonstration of Mr Oizo's "Flat Beat" which was done on a Korg MS-20 and an Akai S1000.
In the video we look at the principals of setting up that sound and why I concluded that he likely created it from a composite of samples, rather than in one pass.
Charles Ferraro's great explanation of the unusual bi-polar nature of EG2 on the Korg MS-20 is here: • MS-20EX pt.2-3 Envelop...
Many thanks for watching and for your ongoing support.
Social:
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[@bunuel3333]

GOOD JOB ALEX BALL. almost there! bravo.

[@AlexBallMusic]

The man himself! Are you able to tell me what I missed?

[@bunuel3333]

good synth sound - good filters and stuff BUT you missed the GROOVE baby !

[@AlexBallMusic]

Ah yeah, agree definitely not quite got the right vibe. Needs more sausage! Can you confirm you sampled it and cut it up? Or was it one take? Thanks for taking the time to drop by, that's very cool of you!

[@bunuel3333]

I sampled small bits (akai S1000) and recreated the groove on my sequencer (back in the says it was demo version of cakewalk express!!) cheers !

[@AlexBallMusic]

Awesome. Thank you so much! We salute your skills.

[@britain2brasil]

Been wondering exactly this for about a week , 🙏🏻. Nicely broken down bro.

[@comicKkrakK]

Love it. Nice work

[@KarlHamilton]

Nailed it

[@mikeprice25]

Behringers K2 recreation of the ms20 is officially on the way... would love to hear a comparison of yours between them

[@AlexBallMusic]

The K2 is a strange choice. Korg have reissued the MS-20 with mini, full size, desktop and software. Plus the originals are still knocking around. Baffled as to why Behringer have cloned it (and the Odyssey) when they're so readily available. Understand synths that haven't been reissued like Oberheims and CS-80s etc.

[@SuperRbert]

Close but no cigar

[@WangleLine]

Now I know why my music sounds like trash. It's the lack of sausage.

[@GodWeenSatan]

Weiner

[@MrMacs90]

Appreciate the hotdog cigar :)

[@AlexBallMusic]

Had to be done.

[@HAZARDOUS88]

That intro and Hotdog cigar is so brilliant lol

[@AlexBallMusic]

Cuba's finest.

[@StudiokillersOfficial]

Goldie Foxx: Love this! The attention to detail in the opening video footage wobble is genius.

[@AlexBallMusic]

Cheers!

[@DivKid]

always love the resonant high pass bass boost trick.

[@ZeroSpectra]

I was absolutely obsessed with this song when it came out, I tried to recreate that sound on just about every synth I bought in the early 2000s, I never realized it was an MS20, but it makes so much sense now that I've seen it done.

[@1stapproach]

Following your Daft Punk synth tutorial this is the second one I discovered, and it is as amazing as the first. I see long nights with little sleep coming when I will have to start digging and trying all of those... :-)

[@cannadineboxill-harris2983]

Hello Again. I hope you Really Like this type of Extended Background Instrument that I have suggested to you and your Bandmates you can still replace the Saxophone Sound from the Pink Panther Theme Tune with their Own extended Singing Word Lyrics Pretty Please Alex Ball. And make their own vocals 4 and a half times Lower Than the original Pink Panther Theme tune to Replace the Saxophone sound In their own extended Word Lyrics because it will be a Very Very Very Very Very Very Very Good Beautiful Pleasure for All of Us theme tune lover’s to hear it in their own vocals can sound 3 and a half times more Lower to Replace the Lead Saxophone of that Particular Theme Tune PLEASE Alex Ball. Thank You and I Like your Singing Voice Very Very Very Very Very Very Very Very Very Very Very Very Very Very Very Very Very Very Very Very Very Very Very Very Very Very Very Very Very Very Very Very Very Very Very Much, Thank You for Your Band’s Music Theme Tune Support X X kzbin.info/www/bejne/h2jRhoesrJV5qbcfeature=shared

[@raistaparta]

Thank you! This is great. I knew the Flat Beat bassline was sampled but didn’t realize how much of a collage it is.

[@I967]

This is much more complicated than I expected. Such a simple sounding tune, but in reality it's a composition. Thank you for this!

[@watercolourmark]

All I seem to do these days is watch online video of a man with a sausage in his hand?!

[@auxorion]

Who had a sausage in their hand??? I think you're watching the wrong video.

[@watercolourmark]

@@auxorion your eyesight is the wurst.

[@danpreston564]

The envelope behaviour on the MS20 mini is totally different. It’s true that a zero sustain is the same as the set level of the cut off but as you turn the sustain up on the Mini the cut off drops, and by the time you reach full sustain it’s the equivalent of moving the cutoff from 5 down to about 3.5. The envelope behaviour will start at a lower level as you increase the sustain but will return to that start point, not to zero volts. I think. Confusing. Another good video, btw. 😀

[@epicon6]

Finally bought an MS-20 Mini and got to experience this in person :) thank you again for this video! Flat Beat and Oizo’s whole Analog Worms Attack album is one of my absolute favorites!

[@shayusu8317]

.....A raw hot dog? *Subscribed*

[@antongracon3345]

Almost all hot dogs are fully cooked when you buy them in the package. He'll be all right.

[@ZethKeeper]

I'm a genuine fan of your vintage color grading, Alex.

[@ReubenSound]

Man, you're so productive! Great sound from the MS20, it sounds phenomenal through my headphones. The MS10 could really do with the extra EG. Another way the filter could be rhythmically modulated is with an external signal into the filter frequency input jack.

[@AlexBallMusic]

Cheers Reuben. Ah yes, didn't think of trying that. The irony is that I tried the patch out on a VST and it was incredibly easy to do! Yet doing it on the identical synth he did it on, not so much. Be interested if you can nail it on the MS10?

[@wingflanagan]

Well hot DOG! Are you WIENing us off your other videos with all these tutorials? Because I have to be FRANK, I'd like to see FURTER episodes on light music as you get the chance. I don't want to be a WEENIE about it, though; this is not the WURST thing you've made. Quite the opposite - you can definitely cut the MUSTARD with electronic instruments. I just hope you can KETCHUP on your other projects some point, too. I RELISH the thought of another music analysis or re-creation of a film score cue. Have to ROLL with the punches, I guess. Come to think of it, something on German electronica or KRAUTrock might make a nice tutorial, too! :-)

[@DarkSideofSynth]

Are you sure your real name is not Lord of the Puns? ;)

[@KILLAGORILLA7000]

Wing Flanagan haha well played sir

[@romainsegaud1180]

I had high expectations on this flat beat. That's perfect ! Well done Mr Ball \o/

[@NaviRetlav]

I love your tutorials. Please do more thing's like this. Maybe next time something from The Prodigy or Boards of Canada ?

[@Gavinshortall543]

+1 for boards

[@edjwise]

When Futuremusic was talking to Mr.Oizo about making the flat beat track he talked about how he approached the MS20 as something to sample and said he spent hours getting the LFO timing right. He used an S1000 iirc

[@AlexBallMusic]

Thank you - that would make sense!

[@edjwise]

@@AlexBallMusic Looks like November 1999 issue. you can see the cover here, Im not sure about the issue number or how to find it. imgur.com/a/nMVd3eq

[@AlexBallMusic]

Awesome! Thanks. I'll have to see if that's archived somewhere.

[@firestarter5205]

Alex Ball If you find it, please pin it in the comments!

[@gregbrookman]

I remember reading that article too and him talking about taking loads of samples from the MS20 into the Akai.

[@Cadesworth]

This song, man- Awesome bass synth, painfully thin drums which sound like they're coming from a tin can.

[@dreamhyperdrive]

I think the MS 20 is the best synthesizer there's so many things it can do! I have the MS 20 mini and it's so much fun! 😀 thanks very much for the video by the way and it was very informative 👍

[@Gunzee]

I have the single cassette, saved my dinner money for it. It's in a paper sleeve, thick paper but just paper. I really disliked those singles, it gave such a cheap feeling. A very nice remake, it's really close. I've not heard this track for >15 years, guess it's time to dig that tape out. Searching UT is too easy

[@soulandfire9252]

I used to do the Flat Beat riff on my Korg 700s, good emulation

[@Ow_ee]

Awesome mate! Just bought an ms20 mini and flat beat was a deciding factor!

[@skiddzie9526]

2:28 "you'll only hear this if you got headphones or speakers" yeah that's usually how it works.

[@AlexBallMusic]

Haha, you know what I mean ;)

[@RBRT02]

best comment ever

[@fritsvanzanten3573]

Some people have an ESP guitar

[@KimStennabbCaesar]

Great tutorial. It very well shows that you don't have to complicate things. Keep it basic folks.

[@StephenMcLeod]

This video made me buy an MS-20.

[@keeganmurrell5638]

Hey Man, please keep on uploading. Your music and style is so flipping inspiring! I even went and bought a mini lab mk 2! One day I hope to make sick stuff like you do!

[@codyharper3824]

Would you be down for doing a video for the layman on what the acronyms stand for, and their function? (e.g. LFO, VCO, ADSR, ect.) Really dig the channel, amazing videos!

[@AlexBallMusic]

Hey Cody, glad you enjoyed it. Justin DeLay at Reverb did a series exactly like that. Just explaining one element at a time. Here's the first episode: kzbin.info/www/bejne/rqq5d3yGqbSmo5o

[@aphexon.]

Cody Harper Lfo- low frequency oscillator, is a signal that can shape/modulate sweeps or rhythmic pulses usually below 30/20 Hz, you can think of it like a phaser or tremolo effect. Vco- voltage controlled oscillator, is controlled by a voltage input, that determines the frequency, Vco are used for Fm- frequency modulation, / Pm phase modulation. Adsr- stands for attack release sustain delay, (envelope) and describe how the sound changes over time, in volume, frequency etc.

[@dextrodemon]

LFO = light fantastic orchestra VCO = virtuous conduct orchestra, adsr = angelic divine shining rochestra. they're japanese ELO cover bands

[@codyharper3824]

@@AlexBallMusic Much appreciated!

[@NeuronalAxon]

YMO = Yellow Magic Orchestra

[@Citracid]

With the korg MS20 vst is the easiest way to behave the original one without sampling since lfo can be key synced and parameters automated. Thank you for this quick tutorial.

[@KristerNielsen]

You got a thumbs up just because of that intro :P

[@retrosound72]

haha yeah :D So cool Alex!

[@AlexBallMusic]

Cheers Marko! 😉

[@cnltaf4532]

Love ya´ channel, it is full of positive energy ;)

[@DownButNotOutYet]

Good thing you had a cup of Vienna sausages handy, programming this track might have been tricky otherwise.

[@flstudiotutorials9467]

For those who want to learn how to create Flat Beat track using just FL Studio default plugins: kzbin.info/www/bejne/bnbdgHSro8h4jdE

[@fishforever960]

Good job

[@keithlane4705]

Can you do the Acen Trip to the moon lead sound that pans left to right ? kzbin.info/www/bejne/p5ewnYSAariYfNE comes in at 2:23

[@herontotem1065]

Yeaaah! For me, to get a better "Quentin Dupieux" sound, you have to replace your sausage by a STEAK (one of the great Quentin Dupieux's movies)! :p

[@thecamster2818]

5:58 Puhuhuhu!!!

[@kennethwedmorelund6449]

The sausages and head-banging-video is such a brilliant "easter egg" !!!!!

[@adpt_music]

Great video. Love your explanations and getting straight to the point. Can't wait to try this on my MS-20.

[@reaktiv1408]

You nailed it! Thank you for sharing, I ll try on my neutron, might sound close

[@Neverkilltime]

Great video! This song will always hold a special place in my heart 👊🏼 much nostalgia lol

[@KoltronZer0]

Dude hell yess I have always wondered how this song was made, I really appreciate you making this!

[@stevehay964]

Yawn... I bought my MS20 in 1983 and I never copied anyone. I experimented. There's no point in copying people. We'd never have new stuff if people just copied things they heard. Try to do something new ferchrisakes.

[@AlexBallMusic]

Well if you took a second to look before you commented Steve then you'd see I've put out two albums in the last year and countless pieces of original music, many using the MS-20. This video was a specific demonstration on how to make a specific sound as people has asked for it. The clue is in the title. Yawn.

[@auxorion]

You know, I always avoid doing wub wub sounds with synths that can't tempo sync to the DAW.. but watching this, I realize that's stupid. I can just edit the parts together in the DAW! (I also hadn't realized how good the MS-20 is for these sounds... very cool)

[@colourbasscolourbassweapon2135]

that what i do when i make dubstep

[@chatmcbaconsonfranklinjone6288]

dope but not really nailed it. the lfo is slight different

[@floppydisk921]

I hate how you probably spilled hot dog water on your ms-20

[@AlexBallMusic]

Not a drop. No MS-20s were harmed in the making of this video.

[@imothy]

to me it sounds like instead of playing with the LFO he's got the pattern sequenced out and he's playing with the envelope attack, but yes its probably sampled. Also it has a nice late shuffle to it.

[@AlexBallMusic]

The man himself confirmed it was sampled and chopped in this very comments section.

[@rdean150]

New to your channel and easy sub, good stuff right here! Out of curiosity, is that a mini or vintage? I dont own one but those keys look full sized. And likewise, those sliders look bigger than my SH-01A, is that a 101 you're casually reaching over? Fantastic video btw, can't wait to check out your other content!

[@AlexBallMusic]

Thanks. That's an original MS-20 Mk I from 1978 and an original SH-101 below it. All my synths are vintage except my Prophet REV2.

[@rdean150]

@@AlexBallMusic Mad props. And you play them with impressive skill and aplomb as well. Don't know how it took me so long to find this channel!

[@hubzcaps]

Blasting shit in my car. Lol

[@epicon6]

Thaaaaaank you for making this!! You made my day!

[@juniqbeatz1323]

they didn't use the lfo. they played the speed changing wobble by hand while controlling the filter

[@AlexBallMusic]

If you read the pinned comment which is Quentin Dupieux himself, he confirmed that he recorded samples from his MS-20 into an Akai S-1000 and sequenced them on his computer using a demo version of Cakewalk. So it wasn't performed live at all, as I suspected.

[@Lars-ze2xf]

And I thought it was a Moog sound.

[@simonburns1055]

The wibbly wub wubs lol

[@alexgryn85]

Thumbs up for the sausages

[@raulsardeni2372]

The sausage in the hand tho

[@pascaldeshayes5459]

Super disappointed that you did not wear your Daft Punk Norwegian pullover on that one. The rest is brilliant.

[@essenceoftheanimal]

f'ing great! and the feeling you must have got when you told the deli you wanted some hotdogs (for such an obscure reason) must have been priceless! nice work!!

[@zink9698]

that spot on as you can be

[@miscible21]

Dude, more of this please!

[@lightningslim]

I wish I still had my MS-20!

[@iKiWY]

This, this I love, I absolutely love

[@Leandrob13]

I stayed because of the British accent and the fancy meat cigar.

[@AlexBallMusic]

Worth the entry price alone.

[@jeplarson6519]

hot dog cigar babyyy

[@Yagulyau]

Mr.oizo lol

[@MuhnMaxVicinelli]

Nice!

[@Joejoegopro]

but how do you make that french kick and snare so punchy

[@THEREALDATALORD]

Fine channel you got here... would be a shame if someone...subscribed....

[@kalebtowne]

I wonder if all ms20s sound different like all roland tr808s sound different

[@marcoxmas89]

Now I wanna challenge you... :D You need to do the Gary's lead synth patch of the " regular show - gary's synthesizers battle" That lead is amazing hehe

[@DashGlitch]

Instant like and sub :D

[@JZ5U]

Phat as fuck!

[@jedcappelli3206]

He could have also just used an external LFO, one that was syncable and able to be triggered.

[@AlexBallMusic]

He's answered it in the pinned comment. He sampled the MS-20 and chopped it up.

[@jedcappelli3206]

@@AlexBallMusic oh he did??? Nice! Analog Worms Attack!!! I bought that CD when it came out. Excellent forensic sound design analysis on your part!

[@onni9472]

Very good cover

[@yrussq]

WOW! That had my fastest like! :) Nad Quentin in the comments! ANd everybody happy! What a wonderful orthodox Christmas! :)) MC and HNY from Russia! Shweeet! :))

[@mynameisChesto]

I'd love to hear Rock 'n Roll on the MS20 by Daft Punk

[@MaximilianDevice]

Not jet ... but ok

[@MarshalArnold]

Nice work! Learned a few things about my MS-20! Many thanks 😁👍

[@johnb2908]

haha love it

[@adamwhite1934]

I don’t know if anyone else mentioned it in the comments, but I remember reading in a music magazine that it wasn’t sampled and cut up, he spent an entire day recording lfo knob twiddling to get the right sound.

[@AlexBallMusic]

Mr Oizo himself is the pinned comment. He confirms it was chopped up.

[@adamwhite1934]

Just come back to this to reproduce on my new full size and saw you replied. Damn, all these years I thought he spent all day recording slightly off lfo wubs and picked the one that worked. Guess you really can’t trust the media.

[@RichRobinson]

Bravo!

[@stoatystoat174]

This tune speaks to the core of my bones 🤗. thanks for having a good look at it

[@richardrivez]

70% real

[@robertsyrett1992]

Utterly delightful!

[@soviut]

Could you not use an external LFO that is clock-synced and use it's voltage to control the filter cutoff?

[@RJ1J]

Hearing the real Korg just on YT is soooo much better than the VST. Anyone disagree?

[@fullfunk]

run from a 24bit card to a tube amp then a tape delay then back to pc then we talk

[@RJ1J]

@@fullfunk Interesting. I have a lot of top UAD plugs. Do you think they might be able to add back the richness and super liquid high peaks sounds? I just hear something so flat and lifeless compared to this vids.

[@ronlaboa1]

@@RJ1J I bought an ms20 after using the KLC ms20 and they are similar in behaviour but the sound differs :)

[@kimfromnewyork]

Superb!!!

[@Inception1338]

Dope!

[@CharlesFerraro]

Daaaang thank you for the shoutout! 1:30 A way to possibly check if a sound is sampled would be to chop out the phrase in question, flip it's polarity, and align it with a segment containing the same phrase. The idea is that if they cancel, you have a sample. I've had okay results with this while trying to isolate tracks. It's not full proof, and many factors can come into play like master bus compression making the same phrase sound different depending on instrumentation for example. All that said, we can assume you're right that Oizo sampled a phrase and looped it. No need to go through the strenuous effort to check. All in all another excellent tutorial, Alex. Great editing on both the camera work and recreating Flat Beat!

[@AlexBallMusic]

Cheers Charles. Shout out was entirely relevant and useful! Sample - Yep, that's a good trick. Slightly different question here, it's definitely a one bar loop, but it was whether the notes within that one bar were all individual samples recorded one at a time and stitched back together. (Rather than performed in one pass).

[@CharlesFerraro]

Ah ya I see what you’re saying. Yeah it’s surprising, as another commenter pointed out, your vid proves that it’s much more of a collage than you’d expect.

[@AlexBallMusic]

Amazingly, Quentin Dupieux (Mr Oizo) has actually commented on this video and confirmed it was sampled into an Akai S1000 and sequenced in Cakewalk Express. So now we know!

[@CharlesFerraro]

I wonder if it's not an increase in the LFO rate then, but rather rapid note retriggering that makes up that fourth bar of the phrase.

[@SjN7HETIK]

thank u friend, u nice n very brave, impossible to get exactly the same, so u made the best possible imo

[@ninjak13]

If you made a video with tutorials for music from ed banger records you would make my day

[@natukashii1]

Great work! Is the bassline rhythm right though? It feels like it's all played an 8th note late in relation to the drums. Eg- the 2nd note of the bassline should come an 8th note before the snare hit. Not at the same time as it. Geeky enough for you?

[@AlexBallMusic]

Think it starts on the right beat, it's just the rhythm of mine isn't quite the same as the original. It's a degrees of shuffle type question and mine is a little too straight.