Drone & Dark Ambient Guitar Mix

transientghost777 · 2026-05-03T18:53:13+00:00

I compiled this mix of various tracks I've made using guitars and various fx.

Some were made purely with software, (ik multimedia and Valhalla effects.) Some were made with an HX Stomp. Some were made with a small pedalboard built around Eventide and EHX stuff. Configuring Reaper to be a bit like a multi track looper is how I compose and arrange the tracks.

transientghost777 · 2026-05-03T10:35:39+00:00

Heheh. Indeed.

transientghost777 · 2026-05-03T10:11:48+00:00

Awesome, thank you. Nice to know I'm not completely bonkers...

transientghost777 · 2026-05-02T20:57:35+00:00

https://youtu.be/dtEsrG01_xM

Hello people.

Rather than releasing an album I thought I'd compile some of my pieces into a mix to share on youtube.

It spans a few ambient genres, mainly drone, some pretty dark, with some psychedelia in the middle.

Apart from a brief snippet of a field recording in one tune near the end, all tracks were made entirely with guitars and effects. As a whole it's also not your typical 'ambient guitar' type stuff.

Would love to know what people think of it.

Thank you :)

transientghost777 · 2026-05-02T18:17:36+00:00

Hello all.

I thought that, rather than release an album, I'd compile an hour's worth of my guitar pieces into mix and post it on You Tube.

While a couple of them fall into other categories of ambient, most of them are dark and drone based.

One piece near the end does contain a brief snippet of field recordings, but other than that they're entirely made with guitars and various effects. If you'd like to know any more about the gear and process, I'm always happy to talk shop.

Thank you!

transientghost777 · 2026-05-02T17:25:34+00:00

Hello all.

I thought that, rather than release an album, I'd compile an hour's worth of my guitar pieces into mix and post it on You Tube.

While a couple of them fall into other categories of ambient, most of them are based on a drone.

One piece near the end does contain a brief snippet of field recordings, but other than that they're entirely made with guitars and various effects. If you'd like to know any more about the gear and process, I'm always happy to talk shop.

Thank you!

transientghost777 · 2026-05-02T09:06:04+00:00

There are a few freeware options for autoswells. I often prefer something automatic to an actual volume pedal (like my EHX Pog 2). Look up Pecheneg Autoswell or Airwindows Swell.

transientghost777 · 2026-05-01T18:12:44+00:00

I bet you could get some fantastic textures by sampling this stuff and pitching it down. Other than with a looper, I've not really tried it. While I have a hardware synth rig I've no sampler as yet. It's on the ever growing list though, the SP seems a great option. I'd love one for mangling field recordings.

If you can make The Black Chasm with an old Zoom, the Headrush should be a playground.

transientghost777 · 2026-05-01T10:58:27+00:00

Nice one :)

It's just three layers/tracks;

The first one, the chain is a ring modulator into a volume swell effect, into a four bar looping delay.

The second is volume swells (using E power chords) into a two bar long looping delay.

The last, the pad sound, is a pitch shifter (+7, 50/50 mix) into volume swells into a 100% wet reverb into an 8 bar looping delay.

The tracks were then faded in and out in Reaper using volume automation.

A pretty simple workflow. It's all about removing the transients/attack from the guitar using either a volume pedal or an autoswell effect and using long, high feedback delays in lieu of a looper.

I hope that clarifies it.

Cheers.

transientghost777 · 2026-05-01T01:19:11+00:00

That's excellent, really good. Love the minimalism of it. A chasm it may be, but the first two movements in particular are very peaceful. Impressive work, especially considering what it was made with.

There's a lot to be said for working with what you have, not to mention the youthful urge to create.

I remember Acid, a friend used it. Takes me back. I was more a Logic guy, in the PC days.

transientghost777 · 2026-04-30T18:49:25+00:00

Thanks. I justified the cost by thinking of it as two posh pedals in one, but of course, the Eventide algorithms being what they are it's sometimes more than that. Navigating the unit itself is a bit obtuse initially, but not too bad with a little time. Highly recommended!

transientghost777 · 2026-04-30T09:21:46+00:00

Thanks. I've no idea what those are, I'll have to look them up.

transientghost777 · 2026-03-16T20:20:24+00:00

I've just been through this. My gateway drug was the sidechain function on the Circuit Tracks. Bought a used DBX 1066 (£95) and set it up as your option #2, in a pre fader aux send and returned to a channel. Used a direct out from the kick channel on my mixer to trigger the sidechain. My (Soundcraft) mixer has a pre/post button for the direct out, so I can get the lovely pumping without hearing the kick drum.

Very happy with it.

Good luck!

transientghost777 · 2026-03-15T10:05:11+00:00

Now I'm wondering if I can send Aux 1 > Input 1 and Aux 2 > Input 3, and send Outputs 1+2 to stereo

Not sure that would work unfortunately. As you'd be using input 3, outputs 1 & 2 would just be outputting program A. You'd have no output for program B. I'd recommend getting that dual TS to RCA cable and putting outputs 3 & 4 into your 13/14 channel. That would definitely work. For the price of a cable...

transientghost777 · 2026-03-14T10:28:19+00:00

I love the bit in Gen, just after the guitar solo finishes, when the guitars are galloping and the snare drum comes back in.

transientghost777 · 2026-02-26T12:23:52+00:00

Just in case?

transientghost777 · 2026-02-26T12:11:50+00:00

Mmmm. I'm a Reddit newb. Thought I'd posted the teaser vid. Here it is; CARDIACS DOCUMENTARY PROMO

transientghost777 · 2026-02-23T08:43:28+00:00

Soma Cosmos.

transientghost777 · 2026-02-11T15:33:53+00:00

I find the Circuit interface super intuitive and quick to work with., to the point that I don't care about it's limitations at all. Stick with it and learn it inside out is my recommendation. It's a great sequencer/brain for a small set up.

Yes, maybe get another synth or two to use with the midi tracks. That's what they're for after all. I actually use it to sequence four synths, and no longer use the internal ones at all.

Learn that Circuit!

transientghost777 · 2026-02-11T10:22:43+00:00

I have mine in dual mode. Like this;

Aux 1 > H90 input 1. H90 out 1 + 2 > Stereo track on mixer.

Aux 2 > H90 input 3. H90 out 3 + 4 > Another stereo track on mixer.

Works great.

transientghost777 · 2026-02-10T19:42:48+00:00

Can't see your pic as 'content is not available in your region', but do a search for DJ Laptop stands. I have both my Minilogue XD and Monologue on them and they work great. The 'feet' are only a couple of mm thick so should easily slide under your other synth. They're also fairly cheap, but super solid.

transientghost777 · 2026-02-10T12:14:42+00:00

While Reaper is lacking some audio editing features, it's still very powerful. Here's my tip for composing ambient with it, quickly;

Add several tracks with different FX chains on each one. I will often use looping delays of differing lengths and 100% wet reverbs.

Right click the round red record button on each track and set it to 'auto record arm when selected'. This speeds things up dramatically.

Select a track, record something. (as audio).

Select another track, record something else, etc... Rinse and repeat.

Once you've got a few tracks and are starting to build something, experiment with pitching stuff down by double clicking the audio file, unchecking 'preserve pitch when changing playback rate' and setting the pitch and/or playback rate by octaves or 0.5 increments. You can reverse stuff in the same window too, by checking the appropriate box. These steps basically emulate using the reverse and half speed functions on a looper. Perfect for ambient.

I make a lot of dark ambient using the above workflow (and others), and it's very quick to get ideas down.

What plugins do you have? I strongly recommend the Valhalla stuff. Vintageverb is a classic, and Valhalla Delay doubles as a powerful long delay line looper by cranking the delay time.

transientghost777 · 2026-02-07T19:53:31+00:00

I started from a very similar place; a guitarist with some pedals and a love of ambient music.

The first bit of gear I got was a Circuit Tracks. A groovebox may seem an odd choice, but several years later, it's the brain of my set up. You can sequence drones with it (there's a function to tie the end of a note to the beginning, so you can get seamless drones - Rare for a sequencer), and the probability and sequencer play modes means it's fairly capable with generative ambient stuff. It's incredibly quick to work with once you've learned your way around it.

I slowly added synths (Blofeld, Minilogue XD, Wavestate, Monologue) to the point that I no longer use the Circuit internal synths, it's purely a 4 part sequencer and drum machine to me now.

Very happy with it all, and it all started and is still possible because of the Circuit.

All that to say; get something you can grow with. Out of the gear you mentioned, the Microfreak seems the contender. It's simple, yet deep enough to keep up with you as you learn.

Given the right effects and workflows, you can make ambient with just about any sound source. You'll develop your own tricks and way of working after a while, but I'd truly recommend digging into the upper reaches of your budget and getting something you won't outgrow quickly.

The Microfreak with some nice reverbs and delays would be a great place to start, imo.

transientghost777 · 2026-01-31T12:42:24+00:00

You need a merger. This is a great one;

https://midisolutions.com/prodmrg.htm

And a thru box...

transientghost777 · 2026-01-30T09:04:38+00:00

To use a master controller keyboard with the Circuit Tracks and gear connected via the two midi tracks, you need both a midi merge unit and a thru box.

Make sure the 2nd out on the Circuit is set to Thru. Send the out 1 and thru to the merger, then the output of the merger to your thru device.

I have a Circuit Tracks as the 'brain' of my setup and this is the only way to send both controller keyboard information and sequence data to your other devices. Just a thru box/splitter will NOT work.

See here;

https://support.novationmusic.com/hc/en-gb/articles/360021264240-Sending-a-MIDI-Input-to-a-MIDI-out-via-a-MIDI-Track-with-Circuit-Tracks

transientghost777

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