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Scaler by Plugin Boutique 29$

Paul P

By Paul P
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ZincT

ZincT

Posted
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6 minutes ago, LAGinz said:

Has anyone out there used this? I’m a bit intrigued.

The following videos convinced me to add Scaler to my wish list a couple of months ago (they are quite long but stick with it)..

https://youtu.be/JYiHQrrLHuQ  (part 1)

https://youtu.be/cV3srv2Wq3M (part 2)

I already have a ton of plugins similar to this, each with their own strengths and weaknesses, but this seems to be really good for playing around with modal interchange - finding chords or sequences of chords that work to replace existing chords to spice up a sequence. So you can start with a nice but standard chord sequence and develop it into something more interesting. You don't need Scaler to do this but it makes it quicker to experiment with all of the different options.   

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antler

antler

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Seems interesting - I watched a shorter video on it to get an overall feel and was hoping someone would be able to fill in the gaps on something for me. The video I watched mentioned that it can suggest certain chord progressions in a particular style: in demo, the guy clicked on one of the options and a chord progression appeared in the top section of the plugin. Are those more like presets (i.e. you get the same progression each time), or is it something more like 'give me some chords in the style of' and it generates them according to some algorithm?

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Brian Walton

Brian Walton

Posted
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2 hours ago, ZincT said:

The following videos convinced me to add Scaler to my wish list a couple of months ago (they are quite long but stick with it)..

https://youtu.be/JYiHQrrLHuQ  (part 1)

https://youtu.be/cV3srv2Wq3M (part 2)

I already have a ton of plugins similar to this, each with their own strengths and weaknesses, but this seems to be really good for playing around with modal interchange - finding chords or sequences of chords that work to replace existing chords to spice up a sequence. So you can start with a nice but standard chord sequence and develop it into something more interesting. You don't need Scaler to do this but it makes it quicker to experiment with all of the different options.   

Outside of the ridiculioiusly long demo....seems the main thing it lacks is the ability to have built in variable output (wihout using an external arp).

Something like this Program combined with InstaChord type of "strumming/variation" on how the notes within the chord are played would take this to another level.  

 

Going to have to think about this one.  My only real suggetion to Bandlab is getting a tool like this within the interface itself.  

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Matthew Sorrels

Matthew Sorrels

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They are just presets, but it does seem to have the ability to offer alternatives to any chord choice (either you made or you got from a preset progression).  It can also detect chords you play into it and suggest a key/scale combination that works with that.  Seems to have an flexible UI for switching voices and choosing inversions.  I've only played with a bit but I do like it more than others I have.  The UI resizes and is very effective, lots of these MIDI plugins haven't kept up with modern UI styles or are buggy, this seem remarkably stable and cleanly laid out.  The presets are fairly extensive, including traditional "styles" and also some artist based presets (though no one I've heard of).  So far I like the keyboard playback mode the most, where you assign a bunch of chords (from whatever well you want to get them from) to the white keys c2-c3.  So you don't have to worry about playing, you can just "jam" with the progression.  I have other MIDI plugins that have the same feature but this just feel more usable.  Maybe it's because of how easy it is to setup the chords or the quality of the built in instruments (which you don't have to use, you can send it to your favorite synths of course).  The arp modes seem a bit weak (it doesn't play arp'ed chords just single notes) and the strum doesn't have as many options as say instascaler.  So far though I like it.  This class of plugin has a lot of duds, so perhaps my expectations weren't that high.  Will have to see once I get my head around everything it does if I still like it.

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bluzdog

bluzdog

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On 11/18/2019 at 11:33 AM, ZincT said:

The following videos convinced me to add Scaler to my wish list a couple of months ago (they are quite long but stick with it)..

https://youtu.be/JYiHQrrLHuQ  (part 1)

https://youtu.be/cV3srv2Wq3M (part 2)

I already have a ton of plugins similar to this, each with their own strengths and weaknesses, but this seems to be really good for playing around with modal interchange - finding chords or sequences of chords that work to replace existing chords to spice up a sequence. So you can start with a nice but standard chord sequence and develop it into something more interesting. You don't need Scaler to do this but it makes it quicker to experiment with all of the different options.   

This guy's approach to modal chord substitution is fantastic!!! Thanks for posting these videos.

Rocky

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ZincT

ZincT

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4 minutes ago, bluzdog said:

This guy's approach to modal chord substitution is fantastic!!! Thanks for posting these videos.

Rocky

Glad I'm not the only one to think that Rocky! I treat them as reference material now. 

Despite the length of the first video he has somehow manages to distill a lot of theory into a few basic rules.

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Joakim

Joakim

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On 11/18/2019 at 6:07 PM, LAGinz said:

Has anyone out there used this? I’m a bit intrigued.

Yes, I use it all the time. It’s at the core of my workflow, especially when trying to decipher other people’s music (find chords, new progressions, scales etc). The presets can be very inspirational as well, Highly recommended and I’ve tried several similar plugins

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Brian Walton

Brian Walton

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1 hour ago, Yan Filiatrault said:

Just read somewhere else that Scaler 2 will be released soon. Might want to wait.

Already purchased, but you have a link to the source?

Also, a new version is perhaps uncharted territory for PB's own plugins.  V1.1 to 1.8 have all been free updates, some of which added quite a few decent features.  

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