Transitions and FX / Uplifters etc
Hi all, I wanted to ask what people here generally use in their NS2 compositions for things like: transitions / upsweeps /uplifters /one-off background effects.
I'm more of a 'notes/melodies/rhythm track' composer and I have been noticing that my things are often lacking in this department. I can imagine adding some cool transitions in my head but when I go through hundreds of Obsidian presets I never really find what I want, as those that are there (Uplifter etc) all seem a bit 'one-use' and not matching to my projects.
Do people make their own transition effects with Slate samples as a base, or do you play a single note with a synth patch and then automate a ton of filters and FX on it, (for example, a basic white noise synth and then play some notes and automate the hell out of it for a transition) or do you generally have a library of external samples that you import and stick wherever you want them? (for example I once used a very early PC music software that had a few samples of jet planes taking off which I could tweak and which worked in loads of situations 
)
I've seen a ton of tutorials that use audio samples from your own project, with added massive reverb and then that rendered to audio and reversed and lined up to the moment of transition but that seems like a lot of work in NS2 (being not so 'audio-file-based') and I wondered if there was a quicker/more flowing way.
I'm just curious about other people's workflow in this area.
Many thanks for any advice / ideas you may have, including any 'go-to' Obsidian and/or Slate presets you regularly use for transitions ( I'm all for keeping things 'in-house' :lol) (are there any jet-plane sounds
Cheers, I love this community 
Comments
There’s probably a million free samples of risers and transitions on the web. Just get some of those and assign to Slate or Obsidian. Add more fx on top of them if you want and you’re good. I’d use Obsidian because it will stretch the sample over the full range of the keyboard so you’ll have a different pitch and texture on each key. Plus you can add fx right within the patch.
@anickt great tip, thankyou!
Simple uplifter: 1* Obsidian: osc1 set to noise through Filter 1; Filter 1 set to LP. Turn all other oscillators off. Automate the filter cutoff upwards over 4 bars from 0% to 80% for an uplifter transition. Or automate the filter cutoff downwards over 4 bars from 80% to 0% for a downlifter transition. Add fx, increase the reso of filter 1, change the filter type to BP or HP, increase the voices, add a synced square wave bipolar lfo to Filter1 cutoff (or Osc1 volume). Increase the number of voices. Add a bitcrusher effect. Experiment & have fun.
Or
For risers I like to find a sound - any sound - smother it completely in a really long reverb (fully wet), sample it, edit out of the sample the original note’s sound (so I only have the really long reverb tail), load it into Obsidian, trigger it and automate up its pitch by 12 notes (or 24 notes) over 4 or 8 bars. Add fx, sweep the filter, add voices, add another reverb, experiment & have fun.
Or
More uplifters: Find a sound - any sound but percussive sounds sound good for this, maybe layer them too - push it (or them) through a long reverb(fully wet), sample it, edit out of the sample the original hit’s sound), reverse what’s left (so the sample plays quiet to loud), load it in to Obsidian, trigger it. Feel free to add fx. Flangers & Phasers with delays, chorus, bitcrushers, ensemble: experiment! Have fun.
Or
Buy a sample pack (or hunt for free samples). Load in to Slate or Obsidian, trigger it. Feel free to add fx. Flangers & Phasers with delays, chorus, bitcrushers, ensemble: experiment! Filter sweeps! Have fun.
😁👍
Here are 250 free transition samples from SampleRadar to get you started:
https://www.musicradar.com/news/sampleradar-250-transition-tools-samples
Have a look around SampleRadar. Constantly updated, literally thousands of free samples (all legit, nothing stolen - they’re the guys behind the samples given on the Computer Music magazine’s disks every month)
@TakkAtakk totally awesome info - thanks a million!
Yeah I have a feeling the CD of software plus samples (including jet plane) which I used nearly 20 years ago actually came on a Cd from a computer music magazine....
Awesome stuff @TakkAtakk.
Another bonus of loading your resample into Obsidian instead of Slate is that you can use the pitch bender to add even more movement.
You can also resample the actual part before the break and pitch shift it (ala tape stop or whatever you like).