EXS 24 Logic Sampler Users Group

Nick Batzdorf wrote:
 > I'd recommend AutoSampler from www.Redmatica.com. It does this
> automatically.

Defenitely a good idea.
And in case it's a lot of sampling, I'd also consider their Keymap, which is 
nothing short but excellent for finetuning whatever patches.

A few things though, in case the OP likes or prefers to do it manually:

- Make sure to have long enough samples for a start. I'd say something like 
4-5 seconds (of course depending on the sound). Of course, this would mean 
you'd have to loop them. In case you don't want to go into that, the samples 
need to be even longer. For synth-ish patches, I'd go for looping as they 
could entirely be loaded into your RAM, which is quite better for the 
performance.

- Sample everything for a start, especially on patches that have any sort of 
movement in them. So, yes, if you are really getting rid of the synths, 
without an easy way to possibly repeat the process, sample them 
chromatically. You can still throw the unused files away later on. But as 
storage space is incredibly cheap these days, it's a good idea to have the 
full shebang to start with. Also, make sure to cover the broadest range 
possible (say, from C0 to C6).

- Cut and name your samples properly. The note name should be included. I'd 
go for something like "Patchname_C1.aif" or so. The EXS can do some 
automapping by notenames contained in the filename (unfortunately it's 
completely broken in LogicPro 7, but maybe it's fixed in the next version). 
Don't use flats (b) but sharps (#) only. So a Bb becomes A#. Otherwise the 
EXS (and other samplers) won't automap things.

- Obvious but still: It's a good idea to have some sort of a template in 
Logic. I would name the audio object of the track you record on as the patch 
and check the "use object names for recordings" box in the audio file path 
preferences. That way the basic file name would be right from the start. 
Also, of course, a MIDI track with all the notes you're going to sample is a 
good idea.

- Once you're done with recording, cutting and what not, check out the free 
Loop Editor:
http://www.audiofile-engineering.com/loop_editor.php
It might do the looping job better than the EXS, plus it's working 
destructively, which means the EXS has less work to do.

- As far as the actual EXS patches go: On simple sounds, you may get away 
fine with sample intervals of tritones, on more complexed sounds minor 
thirds might be a better idea and on really complexed sounds you may either 
go for all the white keys or chromatic. Less notes are easier to handle when 
doing the patch but they may degrade the sound too much.

Finally, yes, if you have the money and want to support an excellent 
developer, the Redmatica tools are your best bet to make everything a lot 
easier.

Regards
Sascha