OP-1 & Ableton Jam – “Salt Shaka” By AfroDJMac

Sunday Synth Jam:  AfroDJMac demonstrates what he does when he’s not unleashing his weekly free live rack –  jamming with Ableton Live and his Teenage Engineering OP-1.

Here’s what he has to say about this jam and working with the Teenage Engineering OP-1:

I made this track by using my new OP-1 in Ableton. The OP-1’s built in FM radio gave me a Salt n Pepa sample of “What a Man” (totally random); and that sample was chopped into a bunch of tiny, barely recognizable pieces for many of the sounds.

One I particular like is a high pitched synth like melody that is featured at around 5:10. I created this sound by looping a super tiny portion of the Salt n Pepa sample, so that it just created a glitchy high pitched tone. I then used one of the knobs to changed the length of that loop which changes the pitch of the note.

I also used a bunch of the OP-1s synth sounds too. I grabbed another sample of a Hues Corporation record, created some sounds with the OP-1, made the bass and drums using Ableton’s Instruments, and I used my latest Ableton Live Rack (noises, risers, swooshes) to add some atmosphere.

After collecting a bunch of interesting sounds and developing a groove, I put the song together on the fly in this video. The footage features Long Island’s beautiful Southard’s Pond as well as a brief cameo from my homey SuperKid.

There’s been a lot of talk about the OP-1, and as a guy that has had one for about two weeks, let me tell you I love it. Call me a hipster if you must, but this thing has been inspiring me, encouraging me to work in different ways, and has an awesome grittiness to it. I haven’t mastered using it, but I am excited to unlock its potential; it goes surprisingly deep. I’ll try to document my journeys with it.

Happy Fourth of July!

The OP-1 has gotten a lot of flack because of the combination of its diminutive size and not so diminutive pricing – but early users seem to be loving it.

10 thoughts on “OP-1 & Ableton Jam – “Salt Shaka” By AfroDJMac

  1. FM radio………$10

    Sample bank……….$20

    OP-1……..$799

    Used Access Virus……$799

    Choice of weapon…….priceless

  2. MIDI Controller: $100
    Used EMU Ultra: $200
    Used Emu Proteus 1000: $100
    Used Dell PIII Laptop: $50
    Capable sequencer (Renoise, EnergyXT, Open source…): Free to $100

    You just reiterated the point that new gear sucks, has no soul, and all the creativity in the world cant save you from being as hip as the music you make. If it makes you happy then more power to you. I just personally dont believe in imposed limitation, hence why Im not supportive of the OP1 or the Machinedrum. I think I can make that decision for myself. I choose limited setups, but have more power than most current gear but thats my choice, not the manufacturer's. (However, put more RAM in that bitch and Im sold. IM TALKIN TO YOU, ELEKTRON)

    'Freedom is like drink. If you have any, you may as well take enough to make you happy' -Dooley

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