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How to loop to sample


Zergmazter

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Hello everyone.

 

I've learned a lot more than i ever thought i could from a forum and im glad i've found it. I know i've been making a lot of posts lately lol, but i was such a noobie. I think its safe to say im no longer a noobie and im finally a beginner level XW-G1 and P1 player.

 

Ok now back to topic. Im trying to make a perfect loop so that when i sample my sounds for my G1 it sounds perfect! Sadly im terrible at looping so it really hurts my sound quality when i hold my keys for long periods of time. I get 2 major problems when im trying to loop something in audacity. The waves are not aligned at first and i get a 'pop' every time my section loops. If you snap your index fingernail and your thumbs, you get a similar popping sound like i do every time my loop loops.

 

My second issue is when i try to fix the pops. I fade in and fade out the endings and align the waves on zero, however instead of a pop i now get a small moment of silence and you can tell something just looped. Im trying to make it seem as if the sound is constantly coming and not looping when you hear that short silence and starts over.

 

Is there a software that will help me make loops and do that stuff for me so its perfect? Im trying to sample my Alesis QS 8.2 sounds which are amazing, but it weights like a truck so I've dropped it and its damaged. Thank God i can still play the sounds for now...

 

Any help will be greatly appreciated. These sounds+my G1=game over  :D

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Zergmazter, I had exactly the same problem when trying to sample a simple sine wave from the solo synthesizer (the PCM version, P268, has virbrato and I wanted a pure sine). This is the simplest waveform you can get and should be the easiest one to work with. I eventually got rid of most of the pop by adjusting the loop and end points very carefully, but this took a lot of trial and error. There must be an easier way!

 

What I think was happening was that I was not looping to exactly the same point in the wave and this caused a step that resulted in a pop. I had hoped the G1 would do something like cross-fade between the end and loop points so you don't have to align the waves perfectly to create a smooth, continuous loop. If it's difficult to do with a simple sine wave, it would be virtually impossible to get right with a more complex sound.

 

Does anyone know a solution to this problem?

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For looping a pure sine wave as well as many other waves on the G1 I would use the tuned loop method.  This method uses the shortest possible loop section. Use the point editing mode on the G1.  Start by making sure the end point of the sample is set somewhere in the sine wave.  Next, adjust the loop start point beginning at the same location as the end point of the sample. Adjust the loop point backwards using the data wheel.  Listen to the loop as you adjust.  The pitch of the tone created by the loop will gradually drop.   When the proper loop start point is reached, the tuning of the loop will match the tuning of the main body of the sample.  I find that clicks are not a problem with this method but if things don't sound quite right I would tweak the end point and loop point again.  Sometimes the wave level indicator is useful for this.  Press the menu button while in point editing mode to see the level indicator.

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Thanks for the tip, Brad. Especially about using the Menu button to view the sample amplitude at each point. I don't think this is documented in the manual.

 

I've now done a bit of searching on looping techniques and realise that I rediscovered the fundamental looping problem first identified about 30 years ago. It's great how this synthesizer is bringing me up to date.

 

A good intro tutorial on looping techniques can be found here: http://troywoodfield.tripod.com/looptech.html

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The best way I have found to fix loops is to adjust the volume of the end points with an audio editor. The beginning point of the loop goes from zero/no volume up to the loops volume level. The ending point of the loop goes down from the loop volume to zero/no volume. So you basically have the sound very quickly fade in and very quickly fade out to get rid of the pops/noises at the ends of the loop. You can play the WAV file loop with the audio editor looping it to listen to the volume adustments until the pops/noises are gone.

 

Here is an image that has an orange line showing the volume level through out the loop and the 2 drawn in arrows show the points at the loops normal volume level. Not sure how it will show up in post, trying to attach the image also. 

post-2690-0-87495700-1394756356_thumb.pn

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