Hoover sound
Encyclopedia
Hoover sound refers to a particular synthesizer
sound in electronic music
, commonly used in Hard House music and other styles. Originally called the "Mentasm" or "Dominator", the name that stuck was the one likening the sound to that of a vacuum cleaner
.
that can be created with three oscillators, each spaced an octave apart, a heavy use of pulse-width modulation
and a thick chorus effect
. The sound is characterised by its thick swirliness that stems from a fast LFO controlling the PWM and the chorus and was originally created by Eric Persing
for the Roland Alpha Juno
.
It is traditionally created with the Roland
Alpha Juno-2
or rack mount version MKS-50 synthesizer using the WhatThe? patch. Most hoover sounds are generated on this synthesizer as it uses a unique method of PWM, splitting the wave into 4 segments and separately modulating their widths. Where a Juno-2 is not available, Hoover sounds are sometimes produced by using samples
of Alpha Juno-2 Hoovers and Granular synthesis
on these samples . The Hoover has become something of a fetishized item in certain circles of music production (not unlike the sound of the Roland TB-303
).
and Mundo Muzique, and sometimes is referred to as a "mentasm". However, mentasm normally refers to the sound sampled from this tune and re-used.
Another notable use of a record using a hoover sound is Dominator by Dutch techno pioneers Human Resource. This track gained fame in 1991 and became a top 10 hit worldwide. Characteristic for this track was not only the Hoover, but also the over the top rap: "I'm bigger and bolder and rougher and tougher, in other words sucker there is no other... I'm the one and only dominator.. Wanna kiss myself!"
The hoover sound has also appeared on the Prodigy classic Charly and in the song Warp 1.9 by The Bloody Beetroots and Steve Aoki.
The sound can also be heard in Lady Gaga
's popular hit, Bad Romance
.
The sound can also be heard in Combichrist
's "Monster:Murder:Kill
"
. The new Roland Juno G has a few presets that feature the Hoover sound.
Synthesizer
A synthesizer is an electronic instrument capable of producing sounds by generating electrical signals of different frequencies. These electrical signals are played through a loudspeaker or set of headphones...
sound in electronic music
Electronic music
Electronic music is music that employs electronic musical instruments and electronic music technology in its production. In general a distinction can be made between sound produced using electromechanical means and that produced using electronic technology. Examples of electromechanical sound...
, commonly used in Hard House music and other styles. Originally called the "Mentasm" or "Dominator", the name that stuck was the one likening the sound to that of a vacuum cleaner
Vacuum cleaner
A vacuum cleaner, commonly referred to as a "vacuum," is a device that uses an air pump to create a partial vacuum to suck up dust and dirt, usually from floors, and optionally from other surfaces as well. The dirt is collected by either a dustbag or a cyclone for later disposal...
.
The sound
The Hoover is a complex waveformWaveform
Waveform means the shape and form of a signal such as a wave moving in a physical medium or an abstract representation.In many cases the medium in which the wave is being propagated does not permit a direct visual image of the form. In these cases, the term 'waveform' refers to the shape of a graph...
that can be created with three oscillators, each spaced an octave apart, a heavy use of pulse-width modulation
Pulse-width modulation
Pulse-width modulation , or pulse-duration modulation , is a commonly used technique for controlling power to inertial electrical devices, made practical by modern electronic power switches....
and a thick chorus effect
Chorus effect
In music, a chorus effect occurs when individual sounds with roughly the same timbre and nearly the same pitch converge and are perceived as one...
. The sound is characterised by its thick swirliness that stems from a fast LFO controlling the PWM and the chorus and was originally created by Eric Persing
Eric Persing
Eric Persing is a professional synthesist and producer in Los Angeles, California. He is best known as the Founder and Creative Director of the leading music software and virtual instrument company Spectrasonics...
for the Roland Alpha Juno
Roland Alpha Juno
The Roland Alpha Juno series of keyboards were analog polyphonic synthesizers with digitally controlled oscillators manufactured by Roland Corporation in 1985....
.
It is traditionally created with the Roland
Roland Corporation
is a Japanese manufacturer of electronic musical instruments, electronic equipment and software. It was founded by Ikutaro Kakehashi in Osaka on April 18, 1972, with ¥33 million in capital. In 2005 Roland's headquarters relocated to Hamamatsu in Shizuoka Prefecture. Today it has factories in Japan,...
Alpha Juno-2
Roland Alpha Juno
The Roland Alpha Juno series of keyboards were analog polyphonic synthesizers with digitally controlled oscillators manufactured by Roland Corporation in 1985....
or rack mount version MKS-50 synthesizer using the WhatThe? patch. Most hoover sounds are generated on this synthesizer as it uses a unique method of PWM, splitting the wave into 4 segments and separately modulating their widths. Where a Juno-2 is not available, Hoover sounds are sometimes produced by using samples
Sampling (music)
In music, sampling is the act of taking a portion, or sample, of one sound recording and reusing it as an instrument or a different sound recording of a song or piece. Sampling was originally developed by experimental musicians working with musique concrète and electroacoustic music, who physically...
of Alpha Juno-2 Hoovers and Granular synthesis
Granular synthesis
Granular synthesis is a basic sound synthesis method that operates on the microsound time scale.It is based on the same principle as sampling. However, the samples are not played back conventionally, but are instead split into small pieces of around 1 to 50ms. These small pieces are called grains...
on these samples . The Hoover has become something of a fetishized item in certain circles of music production (not unlike the sound of the Roland TB-303
Roland TB-303
The Roland TB-303 Bass Line is a bass synthesizer with built-in sequencer manufactured by the Roland corporation from late 1981 to 1984 that had a defining role in the development of contemporary electronic music.-History:...
).
History and popularization
The hoover sound is believed to first have appeared in a commercial production in "Second Phase - Mentasm", produced by a collaboration between Joey BeltramJoey Beltram
Joey Beltram is an American DJ and record producer, best-known for the pioneering recordings "Energy Flash" and "Mentasm"....
and Mundo Muzique, and sometimes is referred to as a "mentasm". However, mentasm normally refers to the sound sampled from this tune and re-used.
Another notable use of a record using a hoover sound is Dominator by Dutch techno pioneers Human Resource. This track gained fame in 1991 and became a top 10 hit worldwide. Characteristic for this track was not only the Hoover, but also the over the top rap: "I'm bigger and bolder and rougher and tougher, in other words sucker there is no other... I'm the one and only dominator.. Wanna kiss myself!"
The hoover sound has also appeared on the Prodigy classic Charly and in the song Warp 1.9 by The Bloody Beetroots and Steve Aoki.
The sound can also be heard in Lady Gaga
Lady GaGa
Stefani Joanne Angelina Germanotta , better known by her stage name Lady Gaga, is an American singer and songwriter. Born and raised in New York City, she primarily studied at the Convent of the Sacred Heart and briefly attended New York University's Tisch School of the Arts before withdrawing to...
's popular hit, Bad Romance
Bad Romance
"Bad Romance" is a song by American recording artist Lady Gaga. It was released as the lead single from her third extended play , and second major release The Fame Monster . Written by Lady Gaga and produced by RedOne, the track was inspired by Gaga's fear of negative love relationships and the...
.
The sound can also be heard in Combichrist
CombiChrist
Combichrist is a Norwegian Aggrotech band formed in 2003 by Norwegian Andy LaPlegua based in Atlanta.-Formation:The first material LaPlegua wrote was a few powernoise/techno crossover tracks under the moniker DRIVE...
's "Monster:Murder:Kill
Making Monsters
-DVD Track listing :-Charts:...
"
Hoover replacements
Although the original hoover sound was created with a Roland Alpha Juno2 there are several replacements to choose from that include, but are certainly not limited to, the Alpha Juno 1, Alpha Juno 2, MKS-50 (Rack version of the Alpha Junos), and the JP-8000Roland JP-8000
The Roland JP-8000 is an analog modeling synthesizer released by the Roland Corporation in 1997.- Overview :The Roland JP-8000 was released in early 1997 to compete with the other analog modeling synthesizers of the period such as the Access Virus, Clavia Nord Lead the Korg MS2000 and the Yamaha AN1x...
. The new Roland Juno G has a few presets that feature the Hoover sound.
Virtual Instruments
software synthesizers can create similar sounds. Here is a selection of them:- Pro-Sounds PS-1
- Audjoo Helix
- JBM Hoovermaker
- JxPlugins JX220
- Lennar Digital's Sylenth1
- Native Instrument's Massive
- Reaktor using the Staubsauger ensemble
- reFX JunoX2
- reFX Vanguard
- Rob Papen's Predator
- Tone2 FireBird
- Tone2 Gladiator
- Tone2 ElectraX
- Image-Line SytrusSytrusSytrus is a software synthesizer included in the music production program FL Studio. Image-Line also released its VSTi and DXi versions.-Features:...
- Audiooxygen Gemini
External links
- A Hoover patch for Native Instrument's Massive
- An original Hoover sound bank for Native Instrument's Kontakt and EXS-24
- Reverse-engineering the rave hoover - includes some technical analysis of the sound