Creative Ways to Use the Pitch Shifter Device in Bitwig Studio

Tutorial | Jul 15, 2019

In this video, I show various ways to utilize the pitch shifter device in Bitwig Studio. I demonstrate how adjusting the pitch knob and grain size can create pitch effects, delay effects, and even a phaser effect. I also explore using the pitch shifter device in combination with other devices, such as the stereo splitter and mid-side split, to create unique stereo effects. Additionally, I discuss using the pitch shifter device for reverb and the possibility of layering multiple pitch shifters for interesting results. Overall, I hope this video provides inspiration for incorporating the pitch shifter device into your own music production.

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Questions & Answers #

Maybe you dont watch the video, here are some important takeaways:

Questions: #

1. How does the pitch shifter device in Bitwig Studio work?

   The pitch shifter device in Bitwig Studio dissects the sound into different sections and pitches each section up or down, depending on the settings. It can create pitch effects, delay effects, granular effects, and even be used as a phaser. The pitch knob adjusts the pitch, while the grain knob controls the size of the sections being pitched. The mix knob allows for blending the original and processed signal.

2. How can the pitch shifter device be used as a phaser?

   To use the pitch shifter device as a phaser, you can set the mix knob to a small amount and modulate the pitch knob slightly. This will create a phased effect on the sound, similar to a traditional phaser effect. By adjusting the modulation and mix settings, you can customize the phaser effect to your liking.

3. What are some creative uses for the pitch shifter device?

   There are several creative uses for the pitch shifter device. One interesting technique is to use two pitch shifter devices in a chain, with one pitch shifter pitching the signal up and the other pitching it down. By using a macro knob to control the grain size, you can create unique granular effects that add texture and complexity to your sound. Additionally, the pitch shifter can be used in stereo effects by utilizing the stereo splitter and applying different settings to the left and right channels. This allows for widening the stereo field and creating interesting spatial effects. The pitch shifter can also be used in conjunction with other effects like reverb or delay to add additional textures and variation to the sound.

4. Can the pitch shifter device be used in combination with other effects?

   Yes, the pitch shifter device can be used in combination with other effects. It can be placed before or after a reverb effect to add textural elements to the reverb sound. It can also be used within the VEDFX box or TANKFX section to create unique variations and textures. Additionally, multiple instances of the pitch shifter can be used together to create complex and interesting effects. By experimenting with different effects chains and settings, you can discover new and innovative sounds for your tracks.

Transcription #

This is what im talking about in this video. The text is transcribed by AI, so it might not be perfect. If you find any mistakes, please let me know.
You can also click on the timestamps to jump to the right part of the video, which should be helpful.

[00:00:00] Hey, welcome back to another video.
[00:00:07] At first I want to thank you all my new Patreons that donated to the channel.
[00:00:11] Thank you for that, it's much appreciated.
[00:00:15] And in this video I want to show you a small, a pretty quick tip about how you can misuse
[00:00:22] or use the pitch shifter device of Bitwig Studio.
[00:00:27] And we have the strum loop here and I'll play it quickly for you.
[00:00:33] So just a regular small 80s strum loop.
[00:00:37] And when we use this pitch shifter device here from Bitwig, you can see we have a pitch
[00:00:44] knob and a grain and one mix knob so we can mix and dry the wet signal.
[00:00:51] And if we turn this up, so plus 12, so we have some kind of pitch effect.
[00:01:05] And you can hear that the pitch shifter device is dissecting the sound into different sections
[00:01:11] and tries to pitch each section up a bit.
[00:01:15] So it sounds at least that way.
[00:01:18] And we can influence the size of the section with the grain knob here.
[00:01:31] And again here it almost sounds like a delay.
[00:01:34] And you can use this pitch shifter device as a delay if you want.
[00:01:56] If you use the mix knob and just small amounts of the pitch here, it almost sounds like a
[00:02:02] phaser.
[00:02:09] So when you modulate the knob here just a little bit, then you have basically a phaser
[00:02:15] effect.
[00:02:21] Another thing I do with the pitch shifter is just to use it twice and use one chain
[00:02:29] device and then we just put all these two pitch shifters inside this chain device.
[00:02:37] And now we can define a macro knob and use it to pitch at least one pitch shifter up,
[00:02:47] 12 semitones and the other pitch we pitch it down.
[00:02:55] So what this does is we pitch the signal up one octave and then we pitch it down again.
[00:03:02] But we end up at the same note basically but we have all these grain effects applied to
[00:03:11] the sound.
[00:03:14] And just use a macro knob for the grain size.
[00:03:32] Another interesting use case is to use one of these stereo splitters from Pitwick.
[00:03:56] So you have the left and the right channel and put each channel, you use one of these
[00:04:06] chain devices here.
[00:04:09] And now you can use different settings for the right and the left channel.
[00:04:30] And maybe use again a chain device, put the splitters inside so we have a mix knob.
[00:04:44] And this way you can come up with some nice stereo effects and widen your stereo field
[00:04:50] easily just by using different settings on the left and the right channel.
[00:04:56] And yeah, maybe you can even go a bit further and use the mid side split so we have the
[00:05:05] mid and the side channel and use chain device on the side and the mid and use different
[00:05:15] settings there again.
[00:05:33] As you can hear you can create pretty weird stereo and yeah effects with just using the
[00:05:44] stereo split and the mid split.
[00:05:46] But you also can use it as a device for, yeah, let's say a reverb.
[00:05:54] So you can use a reverb and put the reverb in front of this effect.
[00:06:06] Or you can use it inside the VEDFX box or in the TANKFX section here.
[00:06:32] Just to have some additional textures to the reverb.
[00:06:48] Yeah, or you can use it in front of the reverb and then just delay the complete effect of
[00:06:57] the, yeah, of the grain size effect here.
[00:07:09] And you can also just use multiple of these.
[00:07:28] So just by duplicating these multiple times you can create pretty interesting.
[00:07:55] So the pitch shifter device is not only for shifting sounds up and down, you can also
[00:08:00] create granular effects or delay effects or even can use it as a phaser.
[00:08:08] So many, many use cases for this small device.
[00:08:14] I hope I gave some inspiration for your new track and yeah, try it out.
[00:08:24] That's it for this video.
[00:08:25] Thanks for watching and I see you in the next one.
[00:08:28] Bye.
[00:08:29] [Music]