How To Make a Test Equipment Drum Machine

[@Hainbach]

22 Loops from the Wall of Testequipment: patreon.com/hainbach Learn more about test equipment music: kzbin.info/aero/PLg8dbAM-RNj8uxNdIlIqESk0ghaM8fz1d

[@michaelkonomos]

What I love about your videos is that even though I will probably never own test equipment, your creative process and ear is very instructive. I stopped five minutes in and ran to my DFAM to see what tones I could elicit that might echo what I enjoyed hearing in the test equipment. Doesn’t matter that they weren’t the same, it took me on a journey. Now I’m back to finish the video!

[@Hainbach]

That is my dream of what someone takes away from my vids

[@ConwayBob]

Great! You're one of those people who probably could make music using only a comb, a pack of gum, and a broken lawnmower. Nice sweater, too!

[@Hainbach]

Thank you Bob! I do tend to bang on random things everywhere I go, much to the annoyance or embarrassment of some parts of my family

[@peladoclaus]

macgyver of test equipment

[@mjr2451]

MacGyver of music

[@brianspenst1374]

Never tried a lawnmower but I have made bells from the tank from an air compressor.

[@deejayiwan7]

I heard CERN has a sale of their old gear... just sayin

[@Dancing_Data]

There is only one thing I love as much as your videos, and that is your extensive and colorful range of modular sweaters.

[@FUNKINETIK]

Beautiful sounds- the piece of music at the end mmmhhh so lush. A couple of days ago I listened to ‘Reflections’ by the Supremes, a tune that has always intrigued from childhood. The intro is amazing and ahead of its time . . . the time March 1967. I read that it was the first hit record to have used a synthesizer. . . then it little look deeper found this wasn’t correct. One of the record’s producers heard a Signal Generator being used by an engineer testing equipment and thought it would sound perfect for the tune. It was later in December that year Motown had a Moog System installed.

[@Hainbach]

That is a beautiful nugget of information

[@davedunnonline]

​@@Hainbachhave you heard Silver Apples? They were doing some crazy experimental stuff too in the late 60s with WW2 test equipment

[@axis_8]

Finally eurorack! Finally the wall! Even though these topics don't necessarily land you the most views, this for me is why I subscribe to your channel. And of course studio techniques, and Ciat-Lonbarde... Thank you for sharing!

[@Hainbach]

Thank you! Yeah I love doing them, but of course they only appear to a hardcore crowd. Which I am absolutely fine with.

[@bricelory9534]

That exit track - such beautiful ambience full of machine and nature! I really enjoyed this walkthrough and more technical exposition of your setup - it was really interesting!

[@Hainbach]

Thank you! This was one I enjoyed making, good to hear it resonates

[@PocketOperatorGuy]

This is definitely scientific music! The setup is so industrial! It's so experimental, I love the curiousity behind it. The tones and rhythms the hardware can mimic sounds beautiful. Those effect and patch modules definitely add depth and shape to those tones. The piece you created is so dark and industrial. It sounds so cool!!! Definitely tickles the Psy trance and dark core parts of my brain. LookMumNoComputer would be proud of this Rack!

[@ringsystemmusic]

Something that might help is heat-sinking problem ICs on the Booga. I had to do that to a MOSFET on my Alesis Wedge since it randomly shut down the right channel and it runs like a top now. Appreciating the short return to instructional content!

[@simoantere7283]

Ahh, old school Hainbach!🖤 The filters sound very good.

[@Hainbach]

As I promised Simo 😃! I have a mixture of gear and composition coming up.

[@simoantere7283]

Man of his word I see, not that I'm surprised though! Danke schön herr Hainbach!@@Hainbach

[@dedicatedspuddler7641]

Always impressed with your setup and your music, Hainbach!

[@Hainbach]

Thank you!

[@gucdude]

never gets old hearing that Stockhausen bass drum. love your videos!

[@_c_y_p_3]

You have an authenticity but the sound is actually really good too. i wanna hear this on a system with big giant subs.

[@Hainbach]

Oh it works really well there. I use this I. Theatre and film composing and it’s just so weighty

[@rp8564]

Loved the format if this video! Those plinky plips from the hihat are so great! Are they available as samples?

[@maxmatson1578]

I love you showing more of your sense of humor and joking around in your videos more recently.. keep it up 👍 we appreciate it 🙏✌️

[@Hainbach]

Thank you! In the past I had edited out all those excourses as thought they did not matter, but now I leave them in more.

[@danielleohallisey4218]

You’re getting your money’s worth out of that cardigan! And that test equipment. Rock on!!!

[@pawnotdaw4559]

Sounds and looks amazing. Can’t wait for more Eurorack experimenting with it. I had that very same Tascam in early 90’s and it made very good noises when fed back into inself.

[@BrunoWiebelt]

most esoteric video so far... loving the not understanding because its between your ears

[@bitegoatie]

This is very helpful. Thanks for taking the time to run through all this information, with musical examples. Some of this you have done before, but putting it all in one place brings a certain clarity. A little bit of predictability, to reflect on your question toward the end, is definitely worth having.

[@Hainbach]

Yeah I tried to make it a „summary“ of a few things I learned. Can’t assume people know my videos from 2019 😄

[@tzodearf2596]

I'd like to see your generator that powers all that equipment. Besides that, I bow to your knowledge and patience in putting it all together.

[@nathankellstadt412]

Loved the classic hi-hats. Great video.

[@edgeeffect]

I love the MULTIPLE contrasts between the Test-909 and the piano.

[@Hainbach]

It is my fav combo

[@henryhill92]

Your test equipment-based music is always my favourite music you do, looking forward to an album from this setup!

[@Alchemetica]

The outro track has a wonderful sound and the rhythm/percussion is to die for. ❤

[@Hainbach]

Thank you! This will be on an upcoming album, but it’s now on my Patreon already

[@traitortotheliving]

Love seeing a new test equipment video! Inspiring 🔥❤️

[@JureJerebic]

A lot of the low end tone reminds me of the wam stuff that comes out of the Plumbutter, really great stuff

[@bartektrame8801]

this is insane and magical. or just hainbach

[@isaacnewtech]

It all sounds really badass man. Perfect Berlin techno stuff as well

[@sauce_aux]

I remember plugging in a Heathkit tube oscillator from 1947, into my mixer and cooked the input hahaha you definitely need those passive mixers.

[@Hainbach]

Oh those get hot outputs! I have another mixer for the really hot stuff made for oscilloscopes

[@sauce_aux]

@@Hainbach what do you prefer? Im open to any suggestions. I’m using a crude, homemade passive volume and RC filter. Not ideal, but it keeps stuff from burning up lol

[@liquicrum]

I just scored my first Princeton LockIn Amplifier! 128A. I've increased my HAINBACH!

[@Hainbach]

Congrats, that is a beauty

[@josemurcia9315]

Beautiful. Very inspiring. You could get lost in this thing. Thank you so much for sharing.

[@MisterCross]

Wow!! The sound!! Glorious!

[@Whenthedanissteely]

Awesome video. Maybe a klavis caltrans will help to musically track the oscillators/filters.

[@kotanecrosis96]

Every time that you find another way to create new sounds with your test equipment I’m always inspired to go into my studio and use Noises, Landfill Totems, Lines and Fluss with my pedals and synths to try and see how well I can emulate those sounds. Sometimes I find that I can use other means of achieving those sounds without the plug-ins or in conjunction with the plug-ins and outboard stuff in my studio. Your work is very inspiring and I definitely don’t think I can emulate a test equipment 909, but I’m definitely gonna do some experimenting with bass and percussion. Thank you for another inspiring vid.

[@pillbug2796]

The double-ping effect can be nice if you have variable gate-length, like the fifth mode on the SQ-1.

[@leyetnin1]

Thank you. Very inspiring. You posted a video about pinging the Moogerfooger phaser a while back. I have that set up with the Moogerfooger ring mod and the Clusterflux into two Sherman filterbanks and creates a great drum machine. Need to add some test equipment to that setup.

[@Hainbach]

Oh the Clusterflux, that one passed me by. Awesome unit!

[@leyetnin1]

@@Hainbach The negative and positive feedback on the Clusterflux is special. I'm a contractor for AT&T. There is a ton of old test equipment at some locations, sitting in the rack for years untouched. I'm trying to acquire it. At one location in California there are 15 + rows of 19" racks with old telephony equipment.

[@ringsystemmusic]

@@leyetnin1do keep us updated on how that acquisition goes

[@leyetnin1]

@@ringsystemmusic Will do.

[@leyetnin1]

@@ringsystemmusic At one location there's a nuclear blast alarm rack with ancient Lorain amps, switches, clocks and a beautiful tube amp and speaker to warn the employees of the attack.

[@kauwgomboom]

I somehow missed this video! A great module is the Ladik U-032, which is a triple gate to trigger converter with a cv controlled limiter. Really great when pinging filters because you can dynamically control the voltage of the impulse, giving you velocity!

[@Hainbach]

It seems like Ladik has a module for everything, wonderful!

[@semi788]

Oh man i’ve been doing this a lot lately and im getting crazy electro sounds

[@kerzwhile]

Absolutely Brilliant!! Oh, great sweater! 😊

[@afreezaphorogiancossack2194]

Oh hey Hainbach, I've been working on the same kind of stuff. Would love to compare notes sometime. I'm presently using four lab wave generators and working on more of a texture than a drumbeat, though it may have elements of both. I am finding that the most interesting stuff comes from controlling one wave generator with another, kind of enabling FM synthesis in some instances. Still trying to really get my bearings with this, it is kinda complex LOL.

[@CyanTiger]

Thanks for sharing!

[@HANGINGOUTWITHAUDIOPHILES]

The track at then end of this video is just excellent !

[@FUNKINETIK]

Yep so lush. Hi Jamie, obviously you are a Motown fan, I was listening to Reflections by the Supremes just a couple of days ago, that tune has always intrigued me from childhood. Just found out that an equipment test Signal Generator was used throughout the tune along with tape echo effect, bit ahead of its time for early 1967. : )

[@HANGINGOUTWITHAUDIOPHILES]

@@FUNKINETIKabsolutely. Don’t forget Gordy hired Raymond Scott to make the electronium. That would have been wild if it had worked out

[@FUNKINETIK]

@@HANGINGOUTWITHAUDIOPHILES Couldn’t possibly forget, can’t forget something I don’t know : ) Have heard the name Raymond Scott in the world of synths, thinking he worked with Mr Moog, I’m guessing now, but will definitely look him up. I know that Berry G had a Moog System III installed at Hitsville in Dec 67. Psychedelic Soul is something that is greatly overlooked with Motown in the late 60’s, it being more recognisable for its orchestral, brass and vocal arrangements. Something to look deeper into, as Stevie suggested - I should do myself a favour and educate my mind (quite a trippy tune for it’s time as well)

[@Hainbach]

Thank you Jamie!

[@jamesteej]

This was really inspiring

[@trailsofcables]

Have you checked out the alt firmware for the A-157-1? Looks really cool and might solve your longer trigger issue maybe 🤔

[@dyscotopia]

I just got a minibrute 2s and while I definitely didn't need more cables in my setup, its patchbay converted me from someone who asked "why dont people make music instead of wanking about with silly boxes?" to "wow, you can make some really inspiring sounds by modulating routings" So, while i am not going to go out and buy a bunch of test equipment (i don't even have room left on my desk for the brute) I certainly do better understand the romantic, dare i say erotic, quality of interfacing these esoteric boxes together and making them sing

[@Hainbach]

It is a slope, like with whiskey - one day you are happily downing a Johnny Walker Cola, next you extol the virtues of single malt vs blended, next your holiday consists of visiting every Islay distillery. 😄

[@dyscotopia]

@@Hainbach if I were to find any strange old machine with any kind of routable signal sitting in a thrift store for cheap, I may just have to buy it for the mad scientist aesthetics 😏

[@FUNKINETIK]

I’ve had a MB2S for a couple of years (been a bit limited using it due to living in an ex-ambulance camper) but last few weeks and having that stuff called ‘electric’ I’ve got to understand the brute so much more, also getting hold of a Drumbrute a week ago (for only £106) has made a world of difference… was hoping to get drums set up with modular gear (one day) but I’m more than happy with what the Drumbrute can do (and sound). I think some peeps have struggled with taming the Brute (mb2s) and have said that it has a harsh sound, but yeah it’s all about the modulation : )

[@kaitlyn__L]

@@Hainbachoh no, _I_ have strong opinions about single malt vs blends… and my favourite region… Haven’t visited any distilleries yet so it seems I’m safe. Though I did live near a bunch of them for a time and got tired of all the smoke and the malting, so maybe I’m actually past the deep end? 😱

[@gaderson]

Hmm, should have grabbed some of the weird stuff from SLAC when I worked there summers. They pulled out this enormous oscilloscope that was on it's on cart, with a round CRT maybe 12" across! Or there was a place here in Silicon Valley "Weird Stuff" that would have strange test equipment and other old computer stuff that was fun to wander through. I'm at least planning to play with an old reel-to-reel I found for some inspiration.

[@cowboycam2240]

Thank you. Great content.

[@the_real_iceman]

Me: 😃“I just went dawless!” - Hainbach: 😎 “That’s cute. Hold my Booga.”

[@datashat]

excellent werk

[@enceedubya]

hello hainbach - if you still have the chase bliss habit pedal would love to hear some jam with test equipment

[@Klaudio64]

Thanks for sharing this video. So, I seem to have understood that: in order to hear a beautiful, deep and nuanced sound, special amplifiers are needed to be connected to the oscillators or sound generators, is this correct? Bye 😊🔝👋

[@Hainbach]

You just need to ping them with an impulse, so you need a trigger generator like the step sequencers here

[@theh0r5e90]

the last track kind of reminded me of CAN-dizzy dizzy

[@jukpulfer]

okay das herbert grönemeyer cosign kam dann doch sehr unerwartet, gratuliere auf jeden fall!!

[@juliantaylor5956]

Might have to get a lock in amplifier, it’ll look great with my old teletronix oscilloscope

[@Hainbach]

Absolutely

[@swaggerbauer]

Prices sky rocketed for some reason ;))

[@tru7hhimself]

now that you have a test equipment 909, the next challenge is to assemble a test equipment 303.

[@denis_lengart]

Magic and dope!

[@BassFunMusic]

Awesome ♥♪

[@a1o1]

Pulsar-23 seems like the closest synth to get close to some of the test equipment for those of us without the space !

[@Hainbach]

It is! Lovely unit

[@EnginAtik]

Some of those equipment were probably used for signals intelligence, detecting underground nuclear tests, detecting radiation leaks, eavesdropping Soviet communications etc. and now they’re telling about their past experiences in the form of drum beats and music.

[@Crucial_Realm]

I would sell a kidney for that bass test equipment unit.

[@WotanSkyFather]

Hi, I'm Hainback and it's good to have you bach

[@SonicVibe]

crazy cool

[@jackoshi8227]

Those deeeeeeep kicks ❤❤❤❤

[@WeirdEarRaub]

When you refer to the "First of maybe second" voice of the pulsar, what do you mean by that? I assume you mean the Kick/bass drum channel, but wasn't certain, and would like to better understand. Thanks!

[@Hainbach]

Yes, channel one and two!

[@WeirdEarRaub]

@@Hainbach interesting! The bass voice is digital on the pulsar, and I wouldn’t have expected you to have tapped that one as having a great similarity to the test equipment sound… May have to explore a bit more with this in mind! Cheers!

[@LYFoulidis]

Lock-in amplifiers are pulses, so binary/digital waveshapes 😉

[@LYFoulidis]

Lock-in amplifiers are pulses, so binary/digital waveshapes 😉

[@LYFoulidis]

Lock-in amplifiers are pulses, so binary/digital waveshapes 😉

[@dav1dbone]

Probably similar to how the Roland techs prototyped the 808

[@manuelmartinducharne]

What is the power demand for all of this equipment, It's really amazing but you power bill has to be crazy.

[@Hainbach]

This is nothing compared to a dryer or a specked out gaming PC.

[@jonirons]

Will there be a memorial service for the boogas?

[@Hainbach]

My tech called me back after I had made this video and said he might have found a replacement for the proprietary HP chips. Here is hoping they might be saved!

[@elanejoreserva]

For youtube subtitle: It's not Urox, yuri or Ure, it's Euroracks. It's not Brilliant care, it's Bruel and Kjaer. Lol.

[@zlotan666]

danke Hainbach! ich wag mich zwar lieber nicht an Testequipment(aus Platzgründen) Aber wie immer super inspirierend!!!

[@Hainbach]

Das freut mich sehr!

[@lorenzoferrando7291]

Beatiful! But that Synthi AKS???

[@Hainbach]

It’s my love

[@afreezaphorogiancossack2194]

3:30 LOLOLOL okay, so I bought them because they were cheap too lolol I admit it. Actually only a little cheaper than a Eurorack setup nowadays, really. Consumes a lot of power too, and heats up the room. But if you want true analog hardware then you are on the ground floor!

[@Rr0gu3_5uture]

And here's me still making drum sounds with an old SH-101 and AJ-2 like an amateur, lol!

[@geminidefect]

proof that your donated sweaters found a nice home.... lol! jk... love the repurposing of gear. Now if we could only take all the weapon systems of the world and make MUSIC, NOT WARS!!!

[@Tripwelleverday]

Insane how much did all that cost ???

[@Hainbach]

Much of the test equipment was cheap excluding repairs. Probably about 2500 for the test stuff, 2500 for the Eurorack. Add another 1k for repair and cables.

[@DesertCow1000]

This is fucking lit 💯🖤😎

[@kevinsim1402]

Dope !

[@RegebroRepairs]

I can use (and have used) my audio interface and my Nord Modular as test equipment, but not my TR-909. I need to come up with a way to do that. 😀 Well, I could always use it as a clock generator, but that's a bit obvious.

[@Hainbach]

But it will be fun! BTW I almost went with your "We got 909 at home" as the thumbnail caption :-)

[@RegebroRepairs]

@@Hainbach Glad you appreciated it!

[@nunofernandes4501]

This is beautiful! I just wonder how high your average electricity bills are... :D

[@finngrim9763]

Yo Hainbach! Ziemlich sicher kann man am Doepfer A-157 auch kurze Trigger ausgeben lassen. Wenns mit der Standard-Firmware nicht geht dann probier mal die Custom-Firmware von Rusche. Die ist sowieso unabdingbar. Check das mal aus ;)

[@Hainbach]

Hab ich kurz drüber geguckt, in der Rusche läßt sich tatsächlich die Trigger länge einstellen. Auf der to do!

[@finngrim9763]

Hihi, liebe Grüße vom Metasonix R-54-Käufer aus Dachau, bleib wie du bist! Die Firmware hats in sich ;) kannst ja mal ein Video zu dem Sequencer machen, der kriegt eh viel zu wenig Aufmerksamkeit@@Hainbach

[@bazedjunkiii_tv]

these are some juicy saturated drum sounds. boom.

[@swaggerbauer]

I've got an 8006A, too... same problem. After half an hour or so it gets to an uncomfortably high temperature and i need to switch it off for a while. i'm not an electrician or anything so .. always wondered if that's a common problem or just my unit here is faulty. seems normal then. anyone else by any chance? need to have it modded somehow to include cooling ?

[@Hainbach]

It needs space up top and below then it should be fine. Problem is that it used many proprietary HP chips which makes it difficult to repair

[@swaggerbauer]

@@Hainbachthank you :) always a nervous moment when stuff gets hot 🔥

[@temporoboto]

💙

[@endorphinsmusic]

"horse feeling"

[@nym053]

Well, it's not always sad not being able to hear the lowest and highest frequencies. I'm pretty sensitive to those. Especially the high ones. They can be really harsh. Just in general in the everyday life. Scraping of metal, screeches, echo-location from small bats, small children screaming and crying (especially the girls), and just sudden bursts of sound with a lot of high frequencies in them. Often around night time (but not always) I often have this problem with hearing this very subby frequency that has a very wavy movement to it. It can be really distracting. I live in a small apartment building, so maybe it's from televisions, humidifiers, something entirely different or a combination of it all. Could also be when the state is testing the war-sirens (or what they're called) at night. But that happens in the sub sonic spectrum, so that shouldn't be possible for me to hear. In the day time I've noticed sub frequencies from cars and airplanes that can be disturbing. But doesn't seem like it's coming from those around midnight and later. I live in a town. I also occationally notice this extremely high frequency noise that I can barely hear. It seems to be coming from the upper part of my left brain. Just right now I can focus in on it and the sound appears. It's very subtle. Maybe those lower frequencies are also coming from within my brain. Could be blood flow, or certain brain waves. But I don't know haha. I do have ADHD and ASD, so that could be why I notice these kinds of things.

[@JH-lo9ut]

I have similar experiences. I also have very acute hearing and ADHD. I thought I had suffered some hearing loss due to working with loud equipment for many years, plus going to lots of concerts and raves, listening to loud music in headphones etc. I had my hearing tested and It turns out I have no loss of hearing at all, and I can hear higher and lower frequencies than most people. It's just that I tend to hear everything, and it is exhausting if not painful.

[@nym053]

@@JH-lo9ut yeah, it's difficult when your focus is all over the place. But when in a situation where you're actually motivated enough to narrow your focus and become single-minded, then you tend to get hyperfocus. That's why your hearing is so well in hearing tests, because it's so "distracting" that it gives you intense focus on it 😆

[@JimmyNuisance]

I am number one.

[@PaulBoos]

I thought of you yesterday when I saw an Hewlett-Packard Signal Generator at a thrift store... (For $299 though I didn't feel like taking a chance on it.)

[@Hainbach]

Yeah that is a high price - would pass on it too

[@temporoboto]

I think I paid $150 for a HP 651B, but that was 5 years ago.

[@curtishoffmann6956]

Advantage: It's cool. Disadvantage: The monthly electric bills.

[@legionnairegonk4425]

Expect a collaboration phone call offer soon from Martin Gore...😁

[@Hainbach]

He has bought tapes and vinyl from me in the past, made me very proud.

[@richsackett3423]

I had no idea of the nationwide electronics cooling fan shortage currently savaging Germany. Our thoughts and prayers that relief comes soon.

[@Hainbach]

The thing is all word generators after the 8006A have loud as hell fans. That makes them not so usesable in the studio, and the 8006A so attractive.

[@richsackett3423]

@@Hainbach You're a force of nature. We out here are in perpetual awe. Cool music idea from your demo: How the cool kick drum sound morphed into an upright bass sound and back. In a jazz context, the upright bass is essentially a kick drum with strings. It provides the pulse, rather than the drums. You can fake your way though a whole evening of material you don't really know as long as you can thump jazzily.

[@pauloalxrod2]

My brain hurts now

[@andywatts8654]

It sounds like a ten-oh-ten…

[@crunchyfrog555]

I'm so glad you've done this as I saw it as a kind of natural evolution from getting test equipment. I haven't got the money (beign disabled) but what I've done is buy an AE modular and expanded it somewhat, and used old electronics kits and small circuits to add into the modular. It's abit similar but not quite as good. But it's FUN. And that's the point. You can stumble across some weirdness or greatness. I think you had the correct approach - get something and invetigate it thoroughly first on it's own merits (as tyou did with your test equipment) and then work on combining it with other things. Of course modular gives you some structure and also shortcuts a lot of the sillier work.

[@Hainbach]

Exactly! So much is discovered in stumbling upon it. Glad you found a process that works for you

[@crunchyfrog555]

@@Hainbach I love the serendipity of trying new things out.

[@BearbearbearbearbearbearRarrrr]

Yas queen…

[@thebkstank2095]

The booger is a fragile unit? I literally scrape them under my chair.

[@CashMattock]

Cheater! Just kidding… I will never succumb to eurorack but this video really shows how test equipment can be appreciated in a more practical way which I have to celebrate.👏👏👏

[@enriquepageperez1305]

Saw this guy call you a Hipster - he was using FL studio and still couldn’t throw in a single bar that could be considered a banger 🤣 - Meanwhile, you’re doing music with world war 2 equipment 😭. Sometimes it’s not so bad to be the hipster 🤣

[@glebpalamarchuk9087]

Ah yes, sounds of electric doom 909 is famous for, and for as cheap as 100 times the price of the original

[@Hainbach]

Well it was not about the sound, but rather the programming. I go into that a bit later in the video. And this is whole setup is about the price of a TR-909 used now.

[@glebpalamarchuk9087]

​@@Hainbachreally? It is surprising to hear... I guess the real value is in finding all of these in working condition and actually putting all of them together, but you can't really put a price tag on that. Thank you for your work, big fan!

[@VanWinger]

Rip 8006A

[@richsackett3423]

Really having a rough time keeping track of who the robots are these days.

[@Hainbach]

When it doubt, it’s „We“.