Myristica - Playing with my Dik (Mik) - A tribute for 40 years of love and psychedelic inspiration.
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- Опубліковано 18 жов 2022
- Before early Hawkwind could afford a VCS3 synthesizer (hear it at the start of Silver Machine particularly) they had to improvise their sounds. The (then) roadie Dik Mik obtained a valve operated Audio Generator (ironically, they were used for testing thermionic valves). He hooked it into a WEM Copicat, and a Wah pedal to get the spacey sci-fi psychedelic sounds. I have always loved this bizarre sound, and tried to emulate it with 9 or 10 different synths, but nothing has ever quite done so (to this day ! ). I have looked for years for the very same model he had, but never found it.
( I understand he customized/modified it too ! ).
So, I luckily found a NEW old stock valve operated model, as close as I could find, from 1972.
This has been linked to a Boss MD-200 to emulate his Wah-Pedal, and the delay is from a Boss DD-200 on "Tape" setting to emulate the WEM Copicat. I think it needs a fuzz/distortion pedal ?
Best I could do at first attempt.
UPDATE :
I have come to the conclusion that Dik-Mik's TECH Audio Generator was highly modified, not just the un-geared frequency dial, and that he was using HOME-MADE electronics as well, as I have read.
So, no chance at all of ever replicating.....
Seen Dik Mik play this instrument live with Hawkind...incredible!!
Been trying to do this on a Behringer D Synth. Not even close but my friend I did the track for was impressed. seems I'm going to be hunting down a valve audio generator myself. Amazing. Thanks for sharing :)
Hi Glad you like it. It is up for sale if you are interested. I could put it on Ebay for you. S
Sounds good though Steve, interesting observation about distortion not quite touching it!
Thanks buddy...... I have just ordered a Sonicake Fazy Cream Fuzz pedal. Only £21.00 with delivery, but it sounds wonderful with a guitar !
I am hoping that will add some grunge to the Audio Generator too. I am now certain that Dik modified his, it is obvious from the photos .
I have just e-mailed Radiomuseum about swapping the main pot for one that works like a cut-off dial on a synth. The risk of that is that if a hi-fi engineer rips it to bits, and then it does not work, I will have butchered a BRAND NEW - OLD STOCK, 50 year old, vintage valve operated scientific piece, and that would be kind of sacrilege in a way... I may just forget it.
ua-cam.com/video/uqdDb2xazV8/v-deo.html £21.00 delivered.
That will be spot-on for my axe if nothing else. Be Kurdt Cobain for a day......LOL
Nope, it don't sound like this, hope the fuzz pedal works lol.....
ua-cam.com/video/1CYedvFAyVc/v-deo.html
It sounds a lot better after some kind soul has given it a thumbs up actually !!! ;-)
I am interested.....where did you get the noise generator?
Ebay UK . It only produces a sine wave and a square wave, and it is VERY awkward to use., as the main frequency knob is "accuracy geared" so it takes about 3 turns or more, to do the same as the cut-off dial on a synthesizer would do. Very annoying in other words !!!
Dik-Mik, or some engineer, obviously altered his to sweep the frequency range at great speed. If you are wanting to make convincing spacey/Hawkwind sounds, get a Moog Mother 32 and a good digital delay pedal, for starters. No keyboard is necessary. The device can easily be set into "drone" mode. I.e a tone will always play, and you can fiddle with the knobs until you get the right sound.
PS, there is NO NEED to use the Mother 32 patch leads, or sequencer, to get great sounds, I use neither. The Boss DD200 is a great STEREO
delay pedal to get. It simulates stereo panning even from a mono signal. The Shimmer Delay setting is particularly brilliant.
Thanks..... I was wondering about the Mother 32. I have one but never quite saw it as a noise generator. I will give it a go...Cheers!
@@roysummers1026 Oh great, preaching to the converted then LOL. It is my go-to Hawkwind machine when the mood grabs me. I do not understand patch lead synths, or pins on a VCS3/Synthi A ( nor could I afford one ) so the tiny Mother 32 is ideal . It is a toss up which I like the most, that or the Novation MiniNova.
@@hawkboy451 I tried out the M32 yesterday.....great it was. I used valhalla delay and shimmer verb. Great knob twiddling. I will post it sometime soon. Thanks for the inspiration!