Contact Geoffrey

Notes on the Handsonic vs the Wave Drum · Dec 14, 06:02 AM

not a soundclash though, more like a complementary harmonious relationship. Theres a lot of literature out there about how these two work, and the differences in the OS etc, so I will just talk about how that plays out in my particular corner — that is at the Playhouse, in my studio, and perhaps in future stage performances. I say ‘perhaps’ because I still haven’t defined what my role will be in whatever ensemble I go out with next year, and my Wavedrum has, as yet, to be used in such a context.

The Handsonic has a series of discreet pads, one matched per sound, and although some of these are quite expressive (responsive to velocity, different touches evoke different sounds, some even respond to palm mutes whilst striking other pads etc) they are generally simple and well defined samples. Conversely the wavedrum offers only two playing or striking surfaces, but a wider and subtler range of sounds can be found and effected according to how the player approaches those surfaces. It’s a far more personal response, much more like an acoustic instrument in that it really reflects the player’s individual touch.

The quality of sound in both, as far as I am concerned, is excellent.

I’ve recorded the handsonic extensively, and with a minimum of eq or effects fiddling found it more than usable. Certain sounds seem to have been configured just to sit in the mix well, in that although they seemed a bit crass or obvious when soloed they settled in nicely when laid against a rhythm section. Live, especially at the Playhouse it’s been a simple story, a variety of both authentic sounding and clearly the opposite samples laid out in an intuitive set makes for seamless and effortless grooving — let the hands go, they’ll find a way.

The wave drum is a deeper instrument, and in some ways might require more work when recording. I haven’t tracked it yet, but the woody, authentic nature of so many of the sounds makes me wonder if they will need some attention — thinning with eq for example — to make them sit right in the mix as they should. Nothing wrong with that, it just indicates a sonic world that is actually, in the long run a little more flexible.

The dynamic range of the Wave Drum is huge, much more than the Handsonic. My guess is that this is because the instrument is designed to accommodate hard stick and mallet flailing as well as subtle finger work (the handsonic is emphatically not for sticking)... the caveat is that at low levels the finger work can get lost, especially given that the instrument has a relatively high noise floor, including a wisp of hiss up above 12k or so. That’s a point that gets obviated when doing hard stick or mallet work, and actually this is one of the great pleasures of the instrument. Which surprised me, as I was expecting ‘just,’ a nuance filled hand-drum, and instead a wonderful range of possibility becomes apparent when I work with sticks. Different strokes reveal different sounds and combinations, and different aspects of these same sounds and combinations come to life when using say, hot rods as opposed to mallets, or indeed… plain sticks. When working solo having this kind of complexity to hand is a real help. I’ve been able to generate really driving and powerful, yet variety and colour filled grooves with this instrument. That being said, I’m also aware that there’s a lot more to explore here.

Both of these instruments are effects laden, so I’ve found it useful and relatively painless to get inside the menu and strip off, for example, the big delays (Wavedrum) and gated reverbs (handsonic) on occasion. I am not someone who enjoys searching around inside a menu, I really like to be able to pull an instrument out of its box and use the presets and indeed, spontaneously, tweak on the fly. I’ve done this successfully with both these instruments.

I’ve also found this to be eminently achievable on the new SV-1, but more about that later, let me sit with this instrument for a few more days, and then get an essay together.

______________________________________________________

Sign up for the mailing list and look for a special offer in the next few days.

~~~~~~~~~~~