1U & 3U Eurorack Modules • Eurorack Recreation of Jeff Mills' The Bells

This patch is my attempt at recreating the iconic bell tones from Jeff Mills' The Bells, using Eurorack modules to craft a layered, harmonically rich sound. The bells are complemented by deep chord stabs and driving 909 drums to create a cohesive techno track. The focus was on achieving the right timbre for the bells using ring modulation and detuning, along with real-time modulation for expressive performance.

You can watch the full jam and patch in action on YouTube: https://youtu.be/6IWTLMUS95w

Would love to hear your thoughts on how close this gets to the original or any suggestions for improvements!

Patch Notes:

Bells:

• The bells are the core of this patch and were designed to emulate Jeff Mills' The Bells. Two timbral variations were created and live-switched using the DPW Designs Switch

Main Bell:

• Two Allscillators in sine mode, ring-modulated with Manic, and carefully detuned to balance the sidebands and recreate the iconic timbre of The Bells.
  Notes played: F, G#, and A4, with all oscillators tuned to C.

Filtered through a Doepfer SEM Filter and processed with reverb from FX Aid for spaciousness.
Secondary Bell:

• A square-sine waveform from an Allscillator, offering a simpler harmonic variation while maintaining a complementary tone.

Chord Stabs:

• Created using two Allscillators tuned a minor third apart.
  The lower oscillator utilized its Sub output at -2 octaves, a 25% duty cycle pulse wave that adds harmonic weight with:
  The fundamental at -2 octaves.
  The first harmonic at -1 octave.
  Higher harmonics contributing to the layered quality of the stabs.
  Played as a stab pattern with the notes E and A# on the KeyStep Pro.

Sound Design:

• PWM saw waves from the Allscillators, combined with the Sub output, were mixed through Rabbit Hole and Curiouser for warmth and harmonic richness.
  Filtered through a Doepfer Wasp Filter and processed with stereo delay from Venus Instruments Veno Echo.
  The filter cutoff and delay mix were modulated in real-time using an Apollo View IoU voltage offset.

Drums:
Kick, Clap, Ride, and Open Hat sourced from 909 samples, triggered via Sound Forces Samples II.
The kick was processed through Rabbit Hole Tube Distortion and FX Aid to craft a rumble with sidechained reverb.
The clap and ride were sent through VCAs (Curiouser), with decay lengths controlled by envelopes from Fuji.

Gear List:

Oscillators: Allscillator x 3 – Apollo View
Ring Mod: Manic - DivKid & Apollo View
Filters: SEM & Wasp – Doepfer
Effects: FX Aid – Happy Nerding, Veno Echo – Venus Instruments, Pico DSP - Erica Synths
Modulation: IoU – Apollo View, Fuji – Vostok Instruments
Switching: DPW Designs Switch
Distortion: Rabbit Hole – Apollo View
Sampler: Sound Forces Samples II
Sequencer: KeyStep Pro – Arturia

This was a fun experiment to recreate such a legendary sound. Let me know how close you think it gets or if there are other techniques I should explore to improve the patch!

Statistics: Posted by ApolloView — Fri Jan 10, 2025 11:03 am — Replies 3 — Views 114

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