Strymon Archives — AudioTechnology

Say Hello to Nixie 2

Audio Technology — Thu, 16 Nov 2023 01:26:47 +0000

Strymon has announced the release of the Public Beta version of its Nixie 2 pedal management software. We’ll let the folks at Strymon explain more …

For those who aren’t familiar, the original version of Nixie is compatible with BigSky, TimeLine and Mobius, and it works great for deep editing and patch management for those three pedals. However, we’ve always wanted to provide compatibility with a much wider range of Strymon products and add new features that would allow us to streamline our software offerings in general.

Nixie 2 is a brand-new, “built-from-the-ground-up” suite of applications that will eventually become the central hub of your Strymon universe. Soon you won’t need separate apps to manage your pedals – no separate Strymon Update or Impulse Manager for Iridium – you’ll just connect your pedals to Nixie 2 and let it sort you out. It will eventually handle firmware updates, impulse response management, patch import and backups (basically everything), so we’re very excited for the future!

It IS a complex thing though, and it’s taking awhile to get right. We’ve come up with a new communication spec to make sure that everything works properly, but it requires changes to both the software and each individual pedal’s firmware, so it’s a big task. It’s going to take some time for us to reach full compatibility, so please be aware that this initial beta version only supports Cloudburst, Iridium (no IR management yet), BigSky, TimeLine and Mobius. We’ll let you know more about the timeline for all of this stuff when we have something definitive to share.

BEFORE DOWNLOADING NIXIE 2 AND DIGGING IN, please download the newest version of Strymon Update (available here to download) and use it to bring your Strymon pedals to the latest version of firmware before loading Nixie 2 for the first time. Using Strymon Update won’t be necessary for forever, but for now it’s the safest option.

Key features of Nixie 2:

Dial In Your Settings

Now you can manage parameters, presets and firmware updates for your Strymon pedals in a totally new way – right from your computer – and you can see the controls move in real time.

Back Up Your Presets

You can back up the entire contents of your pedals with one button press, so you’ll always have your favorite sounds right where you need them, even if your Iridium gets run over by a truck and you have to replace it.

Connect Multiple Pedals

You don’t have to connect just one pedal at a time – Nixie can talk to a pile of devices all at once, so connect them all and choose which one to manage by the device list on the left side of the screen.

Full Compatibility Coming Soon

A reminder that the first release only supports Iridium, Cloudburst, BigSky, Timeline and Mobius. Compatibility with more pedals is coming soon, so stay tuned!

CONTACT

Amber Technology: 1800 251 367

Website: ambertech.com.au

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Review: Strymon Starlab

Audio Technology — Wed, 09 Feb 2022 01:00:23 +0000

Review: Christopher Steller

Earth to Starlab, do you copy? ‘Well, yes, actually, I do copy… only with an additional LFO, filter, pitch shift and modulation parameters, multiple reverb algorithms to create shimmery, lush, ambient environments, and a string synth waveform generator for added tonal goodness. Is that enough for you?’

The modular synthesizer market has become something of a juggernaut of technology development, with constant releases (especially in the digital realm), and it just keeps growing. With the additional (and inevitable) crossover into the DSP-based effects pedal zone, which is also blooming, manufacturers would be crazy not to combine the two markets into a single product.

Strymon’s latest entry into the modular effects world is its ‘time-warped reverberator’ known as Starlab, featuring a mind boggling collection of parameters, perfect for the current trend in droning, infinite synthesis.

ENTERING THE LAB

My first instinct on a module like this is to crank every parameter to the max (the ‘saturate everything’ theorem). But to test the Starlab’s versatility, I wanted to find out how simply each individual processor could operate. Once you work your way around Starlab, it’s quite easy to isolate sounds via the Dry and Wet controls — the reverb decay, the LFO depth and the delay’s feedback amount — so sections can be brought in and taken out of the mix.

The individual sections of Starlab are reasonably straightforward, but when combining sections, or modulating parameters with external LFOs, etc, the results are often incomprehensibly complex and just as pleasing. Keeping the Decay control, LFO depth and filter settings on zero allowed me to hear the processed signal as a simple delay, with delay time (and a tap tempo button for quick matching) plus feedback controls.

Next, bringing up the LFO depth gives modulation of the delays, with selectable waveforms and speed control. The LFO’s Target switch selects delay, pitch or filter to be modulated, giving some stunning results. A very quick turn of the Decay knob feeds a slow, pitch-modulated delay into the reverb and we’re suddenly floating away in a dreamy haze.

REVERB SECTION

The reverb section controls are spread out around the panel with the Size/Pitch knob at the top adjusting actual reverb length (giving you that tape speed change sound when adjusted quickly), while the Texture switch selects one of three different reverb structures, described from the manual as:

Sparse: Granular-sounding reverb that can create interesting effects with staccato inputs, or produce a clean reverb with sustained inputs.

Dense: Plate-like reverb with a fast response and dense reflections that can venture into ambient territory at high decay times.

Diffuse: Slow-building, atmospheric wash that excels at ambient, swell, and even reverse-like textures.

NEED TO KNOW

Strymon Starlab
Time Warped Euro Rack Reverberator

PRICE

A$999
CONTACT

Amber Technology: 1800 251 367 or ambertech.com.au
PROS

Quality sound
Amazing control
CONS

Pricey
SUMMARY

The best of Strymon’s shimmery, complex reverbs will find a home in primo Euro Rack setups everywhere. The extent of the control available is as mind expanding as the epic reverb tails. Starlab and a step sequencer is all you need to submerge yourself in the vast modular ocean.

HARMONICS SECTION

The Harmonics section, with its Shimmer and Glimmer controls, offers pitch shifting (Shimmer) and harmonic modulation (Glimmer) to further enhance movement of the reverb environment and create more ghostly tones. Shimmer offers up to an octave above and below the original input (set in intervals with a button hold and knob turn), and has a Regen button, which gives more of a feedback build in the wet signal; while using Glimmer’s High Band button emphasises the upper frequencies to the point of harshness.

The results of these parameter changes vary based on the Texture type selected (the three reverb algorithms as described above). If ‘Sparse’ is selected, a more alternating left/right movement is created, which is great for a big, stereo field; while ‘Dense’ is a more traditional tail; and ‘Diffuse’ has a slow build up. All of these types benefit from some experimenting with the Decay control, especially when you are chasing huge, ambient atmospheres ie. maximum output for minimum effort.

FILTER SECTION

The Filter can be switched between a simpler low/high damp and a 24dB/octave LPF, with variable resonance for the effected signal only. This is a surprisingly useful tonal control for the overall output of the signal.

KARPLUS TUNNEL

Finally, the Delay/Karplus section’s Karplus bit: the most unusual feature of this effect module. Karplus-Strong string synthesis is a form of physical modelling that simulates hammered or plucked strings, and also certain simple percussion instruments, developed by the eponymous Messers Karplus and Strong, in an American university. With a button press and knob turn in the delay section, Karplus/Strong mode is activated. The Tap/Trig button will give you a short or long note, depending on hold duration, and the Size/Pitch and In Gate inputs become CV and Gate ins for using an external sequencer or keyboard.

Starlab can also store four presets, referred to as Favourites, which can be selected from the front panel or externally.

STAR GAZING

I whiled away the hours with Starlab being fed different left and right waveforms by a Pittsburgh Primary Oscillator (the fragments and timbre waveforms), triggered by a simple four-step sequence, with two extra LFOs from another module for some slow parameter movement. It was something of a religious experience. The first external LFO controlling the speed of the internal LFO, and the second controlling Shimmer depth… quite heavenly! Next, I’ll break out the MPU-101 MIDI/CV converter for some serious parameter control with Logic Pro X, for the proverbial ‘swine wallowing in effluent’ experience.

MODULAR VISION

Visiting the Modular Grid website for an hour or two really brings home the size and scope of the modular market, offering a bewildering array of products for all genres and budgets, but Strymon is definitely responsible for the more popular effects available. Just watch a few synth videos on YouTube and a healthy number of these will be utilising a Big Sky reverb pedal to create amazing soundscapes. Starlab? Just imagine a Big Sky or Night Sky with 18 control inputs. Hell, yeah!

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