Sonicware LIVEN Ambient Ø Sound Demo (no talking)
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- Опубліковано 13 лип 2024
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Sonicware LIVEN Ambient Ø Sound Demo (no talking)
▶ Purchase Link* Sonicware LIVEN Ambient Ø (Thomann):
www.thomann.de/intl/sonicware...
▶ Sound Packs for Synths: limbicbits.com
▶ Book "Electronic Music Production": limbicbits.com/book-electroni...
For more information
▶ sonicware.jp/pages/liven-ambient
Sonicware LIVEN Ambient Ø Sound Demo (no talking)
0:00 DAWN (Dark Ambient)
1:14 OPAL Impro
2:29 A.DUB (Ambient Dub)
4:21 VOID Impro
6:16 LIME (electronica)
7:44 OPAL (Ambient)
9:28 BLUE (Outro Impro)
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My online shop with Patch Banks for Ambient, Techno, IDM and Electronica: limbicbits.com
Follow me on Instagram: / limbicbits
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*Disclosure: Some of the links above are affiliate links, meaning I will earn a commission if you click through and make a purchase. This is at no additional cost to you and you'd support my channel.
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▶ Purchase Link* Sonicware LIVEN Ambient Ø (Thomann):
www.thomann.de/intl/sonicware_liven_ambient.htm?offid=1&affid=397
▶ More info: sonicware.jp/pages/liven-ambient
▶ Sound Packs for Synths: limbicbits.com
▶ Book "Electronic Music Production": limbicbits.com/book-electronic-music-production/
My 2 cents and a disclaimer: I've been part of the sound design team for the Ambient Ø, so you might perceive my feedback as a bit biased (and it may well be).
Ambient Ø, as the name implies, is a synth/groovebox crafted for ambient music in its different variations. It doesn't come as a surprise that it's capable of creating great pads. You can choose from different processing algorithms such as wave shaping, FM, wavetable, and subtractive synthesis. It is mainly a wavetable synth, though, but features also a fourth track for sample import to include your field recordings.
The build quality is okay but plastic. Having had several Sonicware units for quite a while now, I can tell you that these are sturdier than you'd expect at first sight. It runs on 6 AA batteries or alternatively with an external PSU. Get a quality pack of rechargeable batteries, and you're good for 3-4 hours of work.
Downsides for me are the lack of a complex modulation matrix, and I wish there were more modulation sources. However, with an AMP envelope, 2 LFOs, plus an additional Modulation LFO, you already get a very solid base. As with the other LIVEN models, I would have appreciated individual outs or at least an EQ for each track-but I guess that's the price for offering a low budget synth. My EQ recommendation is to lower the mids at 300-500 Hz, as it can become too dominant quickly when layering several pads.
You will need some time to learn the different wavetables by heart and how they interact with the different synthesis algorithms.
TLDR: Solid device and a recommendation for ambient productions on a budget or for those who want to travel light. You can do longer ambient sessions just with one unit. My advice would be to invest in a good external effect pedal to layer different hall algorithms.
Thanks for the video! Awesome sounds as always. Do you have a recommendation for an ambient machine which can do similar things but has a nicer UI without too much menu diving?
Great video and review!
Some of the Elektron boxes? @@DrLaemmerbein
@@brokengadget7519 I have a few of them :D Sure, you could get into this terrain with a Digitone for example but it would be more work.
What external effect pedal would be perfect ?..for that?…in your vision?
The other day I woke up thinking "why doesn't someone make a standalone box dedicated to lush pads and soundscapes?" An article about this device popped up, as if someone was peering into my dreams. Preordered instantly. Thanks for sharing some of these amazing noises you've created with it. Can't wait to get mine!
Me also, but I do suffer from chronic GAS. Still, it's very affordable - to me at least. I want to experience hopefully hours of getting lost in exploring the limits of this synth.
Me too - I didn’t talk about it to anyone but was dreaming of such a device then it just popped up. I can’t wait to get mine! This is such a fantastic demo of the unit too! Many thanks!!!
Solar 50 and 42 but way beyond Sonicware LIVEN Ambient Ø price range.
@@303machine Yeah, I checked both of those out, when the 50 was released, and more recently the 42. Something about the sound palette doesn't do it for me.
Just stubbed my toe walking up the hall as this notification made me double-take. Clever Sonicwarers, quietly cornering every niche
my dream synth for this kind of sounds is the elta solar 42, but it is well above the reasonable budget that I can invest in a device, this one seems to be an affordable alternative
Yeah, it gorgeous, but the difference in two grand versus $250 is biiiig.
Nice homage to Aphex Twin's "Stone In Focus" towards the end.
You beat me to it, I recognized it as sounding like an Aphex Twin song, but I couldn’t find the name
First jam sounds like a less intense Lyra-8. And you nailed the Berlin techno chord wash in the second. Bravo!
The sound team at Liven is on another level and so creative. I’ve had a hard time getting on with their gear in the past however
Why’s that?
@@andywatts8654 I found the workflow to be awkward and hard to remember with lots of button combos and shortcuts.
This would make a VERY good early-00's jungle/atmospheric DnB box, for sure.
Couldn’t agree more. A nice spacey dub chord and some amen breaks and you are cookin’.
Absolutely. LTJ Bukem dream machine.
I was just going to comment that Sonicware now just need to invent a time machine to go back to the late 90s and sell these to all of the Atmospheric Jungle / DnB producers everywhere - you beat me to it
@@eddievanheinous666 or bring all those classic early digital rack synths & romplers back into modern interfaces!
The Liven workflow seems pretty divisive, but I bet they could come up with a different funky format for desktop synth modules focused on specific patch structures.
One hell of a company
Indeed. Their customer service is fantastic.
Pleasantly surprised by the variety of those tracks.
if this gets more people making music vs other nefarious things humans do, I'm down.
Nice demo.
10:50. Just when everything was making sense.... you took away all my self-confidence...
Nine inch nails deep cut..
This sounds crazy good. Hyped! Amazing introduction, LB!
Very tempting because of its small size, quick and easy workflow, quality sounds and samples, and an affordable price.
Nice to hear you went nice and dark on some of the sound design 👌 Picking up some BoC - Geogaddi \ Tomorrow's Harvest here and there, I like 😁
Thanks for your comment! Yes, the ambient Ø certainly triggered some dark ambient memories here and there ;). Looking forward to your contribution, too!
Brother u got the best topdown videos in the galaxy. Amazing. Plus ur demoes are top of the food chain
great ambient demo ! the sounds are very nice
Great sounding device and an awesome presentation! 🤩🙌
This thing sounds huge. Great job
Excellent machine!
And the demo, a delight! ❤
I'm surprised they still manage to create so many different digital synths and samplers with the same workflow. They feel like the evolution of Volcas with more features overall. I hope they can someday dip their toes on analog gear.
I assume it is the same hardware with different software and printing on the case. Clever approach, but wouldn't work with analog.
@@minimal3734 Maybe they can release another line of synthesizers with similar casing but with analog circuitry. I wouldn't mind if they don't do analog but it would be a pleasant surprise. I think I'm gonna keep buying more Livens in the meantime. I'm interested in Texture Lab atm.
I think it would be super-cool if they released a higher-end product capable of switching between their different devices, maybe with a touch screen to show parameters and a more advanced multi-part sequencer.
ELZ aside, this may be the best sounding Liven yet.
Fantastic demo. Thank you.
wonderful demo! sounds like some of my favorite ambient artists like Larajji and Woob!!!
Really lovely sounds!
O man the gas ⛽️ is real
This sound great ! Thanks for the vidéo 🙂
This is NICE. Also i'm waiting for dancehall groovebox from you guys.
I am not Sonicware, so I can't give you an answer to that. Maybe you'd like to ask them directly.
It's fascinating to me how there's so many mini-synths now. I guess Dave Smith was just ahead of his time with the first form-factor of the Evolver and everything. Though these modern ones all have some kind of basic input built-in, rather than assuming MIDI like those early DSI boxes.
I was thinking that about the Volcas years ago, but these Liven boxes are even more similar to the early DSI ones.
Dave Smith (RIP) was definitely ahead of his time. I had the good fortune to work with him as a sound designer when he was a co-founder of Seer Systems and put out the "Reality" software synth. Got a chance to see the "Evolver" prototype just before the 2001 NAMM show at his warehouse in Northern California. At the time, he said he wanted to leave software instruments to go back to analog hardware so he could "obtain the higher quality of analog amps and filters without being limited by a SoundBlaster computer sound card." Few people know that he also helped to develop MIDI. Great person who was iconic.
@@vstpluginsonicxtc so cool that you got to work with him! I absolutely agree about high quality VCAs and VCFs. A real VCF just sounds special against a simulation, even with a good sound interface.
MIDI is probably the number one thing I’m grateful to him for :) being able to just plug one synth into another, versus the configuration and host requirement of USB MIDI, is a godsend to my ADHD.
Amazing sounds!
Three videos in, GAS is very real. Ya’ll are going to crush with this release 💪🏼
Cool machine. Lots of nice sounds!
excellent demo!
Earlier releases didn't do the thing for me to be honest, but wow this thing will be part of my set up, what a character!❤
I've been close to pulling trigger on so many but ended up going with other gear. i am buying this though. I have a wavestate and that is like this kinda... but way beefier... however.. i can't power it by batteries. this thing is just what i want to take on the go. it sounds great too. just by sound alone it is punching above its price point.
This has great prospects and with my liven and samplers, my ambient future looks rosy
Omggggg Right up my alley
Georgeous!
Pre-ordered before hearing actual sounds... now I'm even more excited! What the actual **** is this monster!?
I love it… I’m definitely getting one of these, sign me up
It’s coming out strong with that Bladerunner style intro track
"Lime" is golden!
Doesn't dissimilar to an Elektron Monomachine with different digiwaves loaded (I use a Moog wavetable set in mine) - particularly the dubby chord and oddball ambience stuff. I'd imagine they'd play rather well together. Nice.
What a surprise!
Still waiting for my ELZ1 Play to be dispatched and Sonicware delivers another Liven that I might have to get my hands on, as well as the Texture Lab. This company is on it right now.
sonicware are the most innovative company in the scene, I have three of the Liven series and the price to performance ratio is incredible!! Please make a mlti timbral VA synth!
They’re really milking that box
This one was made specifically for Limbic Bits.
3:22 beautiful … do i sample or buy ?? A jungle beast
@limbicbits waiting for your 2 cents, from the sounds alone I'd think you love this thing
Later that day, I promise
Factor in two extra items to purchase if any of these Japanese based Sonicware synths are wanted.
Firstly a PSU, it would not cost any more than $10 for them to supply one as standard but you'll likely end up scuttling around paying $20 to $30 to even power on one of these units.
THEN of cause notice there is no direct USB to computer socket, so you won't be fixing it up to a DAW or even downloading updates UNLESS you go out and secure a Midi Interface unit.
A decent one of those such as a ESI M4U is over $100.
Though of cause there are cheaper ones around $50.
If you do purchase cheaper ones you may also have to flaff around installing a ASIO4ALL USB Audio Driver on to your computer as well.
Like how difficult would it have been for them to add a USB to computer socket?, even $100 cheapo no name keyboards these days have them.
Maybe $10 to fit one as standard, but yet again Sonicware want you all have to run around buying up extra gadgets, (unless you already have a Midi Interface), to even update the synths firmware.
From what I can see out of all the Sonicware models only the $430 Sonicware SmplTrek sampler/drum machine has a USB socket.
This Sonicware Liven Ambient 0 only has 5 pin din midi in/out, there is no USB socket.
It seems to me then there is quite a bit of INDIFFERENCE from the start with this Japanese based outfit.
Perhaps that’s why it’s v.0? 😎
Preordered it straight away. I don't know anything about ambient music/sound design but if this is even half as fun and addictive as Liven XFM, Texture Lab or Mega Synthesis, I'm in for a great time.
I like the Liven form factor and build quality. Decksaver make really good protective covers for the Liven range (and a bunch of other devices) so I'd recommend getting them.
I still really need sonicware to bring out a Liven drumsynth. Also, a Liven Bass with two instances of the wavetable synth replacing that crappy PCM drum machine would be awesome too.
Anybody got any recommendations for a cheap (6-8 stereo channel) mixer to pull my Liven instruments together? Nothing fancy, just with DJ style low/high pass controls per channel and aux sends for FX.
Yamaha MG102 is a good soundimg decent mixer
@@totalSLACK Thanks. I'll look into that.
interesting :)
awesome sounds. Really interested in getting this, can they be saved as presets or don you have to build the sound each time?
The sounds can be stored in patterns. There are three synth tracks and one noise track per pattern. And there is storage for 16 patterns in 8 banks
@@limbicbits thanks for the quick response, much appreciated. I just placed a preorder. So cool
I want this machine 😋
I already pre-ordered one. But! Why no USB connectivity?
GAS is very real. 😲
The siren first made me lie down on the floor. Damn war outside the window... 😢
Sorry for that - it's actually a flood alert recording from my home town and I haven't thought of a possible different perception
9:28 OH NO YOU DIDN'T!!!! 😃😃😃
🪨
😂😂
Can you play all 4 sounds at the same time on the keys… like layered??
I was tempted by this, then I realized my trusty Roland MC-101 can be configured in the exact same manner as this device, except it has USB, more FX and sample time. I forgot that I even bought some ambient and drone soundpacks a couple of years ago, so I already have presets to start with. Lesson learned...check your old gear every time you start lusting over new stuff.
🤔
so are you guys going to release a new box for every subgenre of electronic music or what
actually, I am not Sonicware, so they might have a better answer for you.
Sounds really nice.. Can't get my head round the power supply though. Would it work with a myVolts Ripcord 9V DC to USB power?
It should (good idea, btw)
Yeah I can't see why not.. Thanks..
Arghhh, just sold mine!@@limbicbits
@@noodlingaround2023 You'd propably have to add a right size barrel adapter. From the website: EIAJ3 Standard, Inner Diameter: 1.7mm, Outer Diameter: 4.75mm, Polarity: Center + - Compatible with power supplies designed for the Korg Volca1.
What kind of processing does this have? Straight out of the box?
Straight out of the box but with some minimal EQing on two of the seven clips (lowering down the mids at 300-500 hz a bit)
@@limbicbits Thanks! Wow it sounds good, 👍 to you and sonicware
What is the proper name for this? Is it Ambient Naught, Ambient Euu (like the scandinavian letter ø) or something else?
Ambient 0
“Ambient Zero” I believe.
Zero
Typically in recording, Ø means “phase”
Ambient Phi
Please More demo...sample import, presets, workflow...gas is rising but....
I guess there will be more in-depth demos by other users and collaborators such as @chrislodymusic that will cover your questions and do a way better job than I would when it comes to tutorials.
Kangaroo paws?
Yes! Good catch
Want