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20 Years of Obsession. One Massive Sound.
The Problem: When Huge Becomes Clutter
When a track needs to feel enormous, it is easy to stack layer upon layer of synths and guitars. The result can become crowded and unfocused. Everything fights for space, yet nothing truly anchors the mix.
You end up with size, but not clarity. Power, but not definition.
The Solution: One Singular Field of Force
The Sound of Love Lost is a pitched synth and guitar hybrid designed to act as a single, harmonically encompassing instrument, that plays a bit like an organ.
Instead of building a climax from multiple tracks, TSOLL gives you one massive sound that carries weight, emotion, and width at the same time.
It defines the climax of the song Love Lost by Isamaya Ffrench and Sam Thomas, features across their album Mantle, and appears throughout Sam Thomas’ wider work.
This is a specialised instrument for moments when you need a wall of sound that still feels intentional.
Compatible with the full version of Kontakt 6.8.0 and above, as well as the free Kontakt Player.
See and hear it in action…
Below are some mp3 preset demos/sound examples, click here for wav.
The Nerd Section
It started life as the dirtiest bass sound that kept creeping further and further up the fretboard, now meticulously sampled for keyboard…
· The Samples: 13 times per note across a full 88 keys and 7 octaves to take full advantage of all the harmonics that can be generated by the velocity-sensitive (or fixed), integrated wah effect.
· The Physics: Each note has 20 seconds of natural sustain, achieved with just the force of the sound itself or by utilising an EBow or sustain pedal: the result being a no-compromise, musical hold and natural tail at every velocity.
· The Path: Each note was recorded on a max-character guitar, with guitar and pickup decisions appropriate to the pitch of the note. After leaving Sam’s distinct pedal configuration, it passed through a blend of choice guitar and bass amps before undergoing yet more harmonic enrichment through hand-picked outboard EQ’s and saturation or tape effects.
· The Blessing: As a final stage the full spectrum was EQ’d, widened, and optimised/blessed by Sam and mastering engineer and audio priestess, Anni Abigail.
· The Range: It stretches from a grounded lo-fi organ-ish sound (Love) to a face-melting, unrelentingly beautiful wall of sound (Lost), perfect for huge ambient drones but versatile too.
· The Dynamics: It is HEAVY when needed, but can also be made sweeter and more ethereal by focusing on the lower velocities or upper registers and making use of the onboard space sliders.
· The Sinking Effect: An A432 slider mirrors the A440 option with the lower tuning plus an inverted stereo field to give the wall a ‘sinking’ phase effect. Fun fact: Love Lost starts in A440 and ends in a blend of 440 and 432.
· The Pairing: V1 of TSOLL has been kept clean and simple so as not to detract from the purity of the sound itself, however try pairing with a sequencer like Futurephonic’s Rhythmizer to take full advantage of the step-wah effects.
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