Help re-creating a sound/sample.

[Notuern]

Can anyone shed some light on the sound/effect in this part of Michael Jackson's Smooth Criminal?

I have a song idea which would be awesome with the same kind of effect, but i just cant seem to nail it at all.

http://dl.dropbox.com/u/876568/mjsound.mp3

Im definitely hearing a chiff sound(The attack of a panflute.), a harmonized xylophonesque sound.. but thats about it really.
I heard that all keyboard/synth-sounds on the album was created using the Roland D-50 if that gives you guys any hints on how to achieve this sound.

 

[vespiz]

Yah, sounds a bit like a D-50 to me, 2 tones/oscs tuned a fifth apart. Other than that.. eh.. try some modern Roland gear, they have a lot of old D-50 sounds in them.

 

[Notuern]

The thing is that i own a Kurzweil K2000V2 SMP-K(Which basically is a very evolved D-50.), so i should be able to reproduce the sound as long as i understand whats really going on.

 

[vespiz]

Really difficult to say without trying anything, but I think you're on the right track. Try messing with HPF rather than LPF to make it brighter.
(I've never used a K2000...)

 

[Notuern]

BUMP!

Hmm.. im hearing a steel drum or something now as well, and im starting to believe that there is some time stretched thing going on.

 

[vespiz]

I really dunno.. That's a pretty busy part! Most likely something from the D-50 and maybe layered with DX7. Why not try to add a short steel drum sound on the attack part and a "chiffy" sound for the sustain?

D-50 sounds are a bit grainy (but good!), maybe that's why it sounds time stretched??

 

[Notuern]

Yeah, its really hard to tell whats going on.. but its a very unique sound and it bugs the hell out of me that i need something very similar.

And yeah, thats true, the D-50 might be adding some of that time stretched grit.. im going to mess around a bit more on my kurzweil to see if i get anywhere near it, but as it seems like right now it will be easier to recreate it in reaper by cut'n'pasting different samples. ;X