Massive is a powerful synthesizer capable of producing a wide array of sounds. In today’s walkthrough, we’ll use it to construct a blasting laser cannon (as we like to call it). This type of sound has become very popular in electronic music – especially Dubstep.
Take a listen:
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The nice thing about the laser cannon is that it’s really easy to create! Get started by pulling up a blank Massive patch.
Step 1 – Set up Oscillator 1
Set Oscillator 1 to a smooth square waveform. Turn your Wt-position, Intensity and Amp all the way to the right.
Step 2 – Shape your Envelope (4 Env)
Max out your Decay Level and shorten your Release slightly.
Step 3 – Set up LFO 5
Set your Ratio to 1/8th and choose a saw wave as your waveform. Be sure to sync your LFO to your master tempo to get quantized measurements for your Ratio.
Step 4 – Route LFO 5 to the pitch modifier on Osc 1
After routing, raise the pitch (on LFO 5) up an octave (+12.00).
Now you should have a cannon blasting synth awaiting your production needs.
Try beefing it up by adding some tube saturation to an FX insert. Follow that up with a chorus effect and you’ll get a really wide sound. Try automating your LFO Ratio to change the speed at which your cannon blasts.
You could also try adding a Sample & Hold effect on insert 1. This will turn your cannon into something entirely different.
Summary
Be sure to save presets as you explore different sound design possibilities. Often times, this process will take you in unexpected directions and you’ll undoubtedly stumble on sounds that you may want to revisit at another time.
We hope you found this tutorial helpful. Check in regularly for more great articles from LoopGalaxy.com!
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