[Editor: In case you didn’t know this… JayE is a Diamond record producer. That means over 10 million copies sold. And this was back when actual units got shipped and not streamed. He might not be making music in your preferred genre, but he is a heavyweight. And it is quite wonderful for me to share his answers with you all]
1. Favourite knob/fader/switch on a piece of gear and why?
The frequency knob on the Memory Moog. It’s a duel knob that has a center knob inside for fine tuning. Really unique and useful for a single knob.
2. Do you have an ‘almost’ perfect bit of kit? What would you change?
My MPC3000, I wish it had CV and Gate out, like the current MPCs (MPCX and MPC One) The 3000 is a beast other than that.
3. What setup do you bring on holiday/tour/commute etc.?
OP1, iPad, and A Pocket Operator.
4. What software do you wish was hardware and vice versa?
That’s a tough question since so many pieces of hardware are now software. So I would have to say, I wish maybe a iZotope RX9 hardware piece of gear would be awesome. I use it a lot to remove elements from vinyl record samples, like removing the vocals to make instrumentals , or just have the drums or the bass stand alone of a sample.. it’s really powerful and would be pretty awesome to have right next to my turntable at all times and move knobs on the fly to remove elements.
5. Is there anything you regret selling… or regret buying?
I sold my OSCar and TR909 a few years back. I really wasn’t using them a lot cause they both had internal issues, that I wasn’t at the time knowledgeable of, but I probably could fix them now on my own, with a bit of help from friends and searching on the internet.
6. What gear has inspired you to produce the most music?
I would say my MPC 3000, it just has an awesome feel and its also the one piece of gear I can be blindfolded and still work with.
7. If you had to start over, what would you get first?
A Juno 60 or 106… I feel like its a perfect synth to learn synthesis and learn to design sounds.. I started off just using presets and a lot of my early boards were too complicated to sound design on the fly… like the Korg Trinity and K2600.
8. What’s the most annoying piece of gear you have, that you just can’t live without?
That’s tough cause if it is annoying, I usually replace it for something non annoying… I guess I would say the ASR10.. I love the sound, but I still have yet to master it.
It has so many pages of options, and every ASR 10 I have had, has been unstable, where the more tweaking you do, it freezes up or crashes, which is annoying… but it is one of the warmest samplers I have ever heard… nothing sounds like an ASR 10 sampler.
9. Most surprising tip/trick/technique that you’ve discovered about a bit of kit?
I recently discovered step sampling on my MPC 3000 I always seen it, but never dove into it.. back then I never found a need for it… and thought it wasn’t practical on how I record, but now I use it a lot.
Artist or Band name?
Jay E
Genre?
HipHop/Pop
Selfie?
Where are you from?
St. Louis.
How did you get into music?
I was a house party DJ that loved music and decided I wanted to make the same kind of records I was spinning.
What still drives you to make music?
New equipment and new music from different genres of music… I rarely listen to hiphop… even though that’s what I’m known for.
How do you most often start a new track?
Lately its been sound designing and wherever that takes me. I used to just start with drums or a melody.. but after 20+ years of making music.. I tend to try new techniques and less obvious ways of starting music making.
How do you know when a track is finished?
When I have a good idea on what the verse and hook sound like. After that I just structure and do breakdowns
Show us your current studio
Best creative advice that you’ve ever heard?
Limit yourself to one or two pieces of gear and it forces you to be creative in a new way.
Promote your latest thing… Go ahead, throw us a link
New sounds are available at JayESounds.com
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