How could I get a 'Random' Vinyl Crackle Sound?

[Scruffie]

Strange idea it may be to degrade my sound with random noise and hiss but is there any way I could go about getting a random crackle like you'd hear on a old vinyl record... I suppose almost a static sound accross my guitar signal... some kind of random pulse making the signal clip at points?  As opposed to just a light fuzz running over the top.

Something like this sorta sound http://www.freesound.org/samplesViewSingle.php?id=30974 it doesn't have to be as constant but it wouldn't be a problem if it was...

The overall idea is I want to make a Lo-Fi Vibrato but I thought it could be a nice addition to add ontop of it, any suggestions? Or is it just not that feasible to do in a pleasent sounding way.

[ACS]

Doesn't help you specifically, but some things to consider when trying to reproduce this:

- The static/hiss part of it is largely random, but random in not only frequency but also amplitude.  Your solution would need to take this in to account to sound authentic
- The hiss alone would not be enough though - a large part of the character that we associate with an old vinyl record is due to bits of fluff and dust on the record, along with scratches etc.  The thing about these is that the needle hits them on each rotation - therefore, they are NOT random.  Rather, they have a frequency directly associated with the RPM of the record.

Anyway, my thoughts on the matter - hope they help in some way!

[Scruffie]

Oh yeah I had no intention of the effect (if you can call it that) sounding like an actual vinyl recording, just immitiating it in a somewhat fammiliar fashion... it could be a continious click or could clip the sound every few seconds, just something that approximates that sound, I suppose even a tube like saturation could suffice so the harder it's played the more break up that occurs and then just filtering for a lower quality sound... it's more an idea than a specific desire.

[chi_boy]

Random is really hard.  There are pages and pages about random and how random isn't randon even if its random because someone can find a pattern and all that blabbity bla.  Even something that sounds pretty random is tough.

Part of that clip sounds like pinkish noise to me.  I have no idea what would make the pops that sound anything like that. 

One thing I'm planning to breadboard though, is part of this circuit:

http://www.musicfromouterspace.com/analogsynth/NOISECORNUCOPIA/NOISECORNUCOPIA.php




The "Grainy Noise" part may sound like the clip if it works the way I think it does.  The thing I want to eliminate is the bipolar power.  There are comparator chips that can be had and a comparator can be built with an op-amp.  Like I said though, have to get it on the breadboard to see.

Either way, I think the sound you are after is a blend of at least two different sounds layered on top of each other.

Cheers,
George

[Quackzed]

couldn't you just crank up a high noise spec transistor and not feed it any signal, just blend in its noise with a mixer stage? maybee a high pass filter on the end?
or a cheap radio tuned to static into a mixer stage?

[grolschie]

Hook up a turntable to your amp? Or make a mini turntable?   

[Processaurus]

Might be worth a look:

http://www.cgs.synth.net/other/arcwelder/arcweld.html

I too would like a nice crackle, as part of a noise generator.  I also really like S/H noise, that sounds like some of the effects on the original nintendo.  That one, I believe is possible with a shift register based noise generator.

[mikemaddux]

I used to have a Behringer rack processor that had a "Vintager" which did the same thing.  Picked it up for cheap...

[ppatchmods]

my records tend to make the crackles in the same spot every time. that being said, i sample this effect in recordings on a loop and it
sounds random...even when it's not.

[Mark Hammer]

Crackles involves not only noise (random frequency content) but impulse noise (randomly-occurring bursts of random duration).  Doing this digitally will be easiest.

[~arph]

How about building a Super Hard On and modulate the gain pot, with a pseudo random lfo?  
Then run it into a NE751 for automatic level control.. (ALC), so the crackle always has roughly the same volume.

Ok, I'm going to try this tonight.. perhaps even without the compander.. and mix it with a lofomofo..

[Quackzed]

i wonder if it wouldn't be easier to simply record or download some real vinyl scratchyness onto a mp3 player(ipod-lyra etc...)set to repeat ,and to BUILD a little mixer pedal with an added 1/8 " input and a volume control and on/off stomp.
then, you could add any type of 'sound effect' you wanted...
sirens, applause, rain, wind, noise, and simply store them all on your little mp3 player...
seems like a lot of trouble to 'create' all those effects with analog components when you could just use a recorder of some kind...
???I know, I know, wheres the fun in that? 
*phazers do a good wind sound if you have noisy pedals before them.

[ppatchmods]

record it on your looper pedal. not the dl4 because it will erase it when the power is shut off but the jamman will do it.

[Scruffie]

How about building a Super Hard On and modulate the gain pot, with a pseudo random lfo?  
Then run it into a NE751 for automatic level control.. (ALC), so the crackle always has roughly the same volume.

Ok, I'm going to try this tonight.. perhaps even without the compander.. and mix it with a lofomofo..

I thought of the Super hard on when I was thinking of ideas but I wasn't sure how well it would come out, let me know how that goes.

Might be worth a look:

http://www.cgs.synth.net/other/arcwelder/arcweld.html

I too would like a nice crackle, as part of a noise generator.  I also really like S/H noise, that sounds like some of the effects on the original nintendo.  That one, I believe is possible with a shift register based noise generator.

That looks perfect, like a LFO that isn't just a constant signal...

I think random was too strong a word if you will from the replies, I wasn't expecting to sound like that clip, I was just using it as an example for what I meant, I in no way expect this to sound actually like a record, I still have my old Vinyls and know that it's not just a random occurence of life that they click and that it's the stylus on the vinyl.

I just want something that it is made to immitate it, no matter how poorly, say a 386 distorting now and then, combined with something like Processaurus posted so it's slightly mixed up and not constant, sort of like a mini loop without the loop.

my records tend to make the crackles in the same spot every time. that being said, i sample this effect in recordings on a loop and it
sounds random...even when it's not.

Yeah exactly, it sounds random.. my playing isn't going to be an actual record so it isn't gunna click in the same places every time... I think i've just explained my idea a bit badly...

But anyway thanks for the ideas so far! They've helped me to understand what I want a bit more.

[CynicalMan]

For those of you playing through computers:
www.izotope.com/products/audio/vinyl/

[Jaicen_solo]

Duude, I produced that exact sound when I experimented with the SHO circuit. I made a random repeating CMOS sequencer driving an LDR in place of the 5K pot. It makes an interesting click~scratch~~~~Click~scratch kind of sound. My guess is that if you hook up the circuit to a sequencer like the vanishing point you could get a repeating vinyl type of sound fairly easily. Perhaps a 2n222 noise source could be added too, with some sort of filtering.
This is the basis of the sequencer I used, tweak the values to get the right patterns going
http://milkcrate.com.au/_other/sea-moss/02_arp.gif

[petemoore]

Hook up a turntable to your amp?
 An input wire/connector, a phono needle, a drug-store packer-bag, put some ''vintage lint'' in with the needle for dampening and a bit of fluff-tone, try the needle through a pinhole in the bag for more output.
 

[Scruffie]

Duude, I produced that exact sound when I experimented with the SHO circuit. I made a random repeating CMOS sequencer driving an LDR in place of the 5K pot. It makes an interesting click~scratch~~~~Click~scratch kind of sound. My guess is that if you hook up the circuit to a sequencer like the vanishing point you could get a repeating vinyl type of sound fairly easily. Perhaps a 2n222 noise source could be added too, with some sort of filtering.
This is the basis of the sequencer I used, tweak the values to get the right patterns going
http://milkcrate.com.au/_other/sea-moss/02_arp.gif

Fantastic! I thought it wouldn't work when I thought of using the SHO originally but that sounds perfect especially if ~arph experiences simmilar results with his experiment.
Cheers Guys.

[Processaurus]

Duude, I produced that exact sound when I experimented with the SHO circuit. I made a random repeating CMOS sequencer driving an LDR in place of the 5K pot. It makes an interesting click~scratch~~~~Click~scratch kind of sound. My guess is that if you hook up the circuit to a sequencer like the vanishing point you could get a repeating vinyl type of sound fairly easily. Perhaps a 2n222 noise source could be added too, with some sort of filtering.
This is the basis of the sequencer I used, tweak the values to get the right patterns going
http://milkcrate.com.au/_other/sea-moss/02_arp.gif

Very cool!  Respect.  That sounds like a great effect.  I've imagined some sort of lo-fi oriented multi-effect for inventing new, bad sounds, that would make a great crackle section.

I in no way expect this to sound actually like a record

Absolutely, having abused vinyl plug-ins for the first years I had a computer, I kind of cringe now when I hear it, like the comic sans serif of audio effects, unless it's kind of tongue in cheek.  A noise generator that is less overt and identifiable is much more interesting.

[solderman]

Crack up the runoff part of an old vinyl record. Build a circuit to mix the sound from your record player with the guitar signal. Tap the record randomly with your foot while playing the guitar. There you are.  

Seriously
The suggestion above sounds really good.

Here Is the schematics I used to build a sequence controlled tone generator that feed the carrier of a ring modulator and then mixed it with the guitar signal. I haven't yet come up with a good solution to have the tone generator only produce a tone when there is a guitar tone to mix with. (Now it sounds all tha time.) Working on it though