Music Lesson: Using MIDI Controllers with VST Drum Machines

Okay, so what I was doing there was using these two external MIDI controllers to control a VST drum machine inside Live.

Control Over Sound Parameters

I had control over some of the sound character and the actual parameters associated with the individual sounds. This includes:

• Pitch of the individual sounds
• Decay
• Volume
• The ability to trigger sounds

Submixer Setup

Over here, I've got a submixer set up:

• Each of the individual sounds has the ability to have:
  • Reverb
  • Delay
  • Another effect, such as:
    • Panorama
    • Compression
    • Filter

All of the sounds are being treated individually, giving me a huge amount of control over the VST instrument that exists within Live.

Benefits of This Setup

This setup enables me to perform in a more interesting, more hands-on way. It also opens up more creative possibilities.

Additionally, it's considerably cheaper than going out and buying an original hardware TR909 and an analog mixing console, which would require routing all of the outs through that and processing everything using real hardware.

Conclusion

So let's have a look at how that's all done.