#2168

I think a pamela’s and a minimal sequencer is a great idea! I have a mimetic digitalis that gets used a lot. combine them with a s&h module and/or a sequential switch of some sort, and you have a lot of flexibility. a s&h and sw can also be used for many more things…
I could also see some kind of effect be very fun in there. a mimeophon or desmodus versio perhaps?

#2169

So I was just messing around with a Dixie II+ and put a fixed offset/voltage into it’s FM1 input. If I set the FM1 input to exponential the pitch of the Dixie changes with the voltage but if I set it to linear the pitch changes with the movement/change of the voltage. Why is this happening? Is this caused by AC or DC coupling (which of the two?)? And does anyone know why this is done and why this happens for linear FM but not for exponential FM?

#2170

I don’t have a Dixie myself, but yes, it is probably DC coupled for exponential FM and AC coupled for linear FM. The reason is this:

A DC voltage into an exponential FM input just transposes the oscillator tuning without disrupting tracking. (V/OCT is itself an exponential FM input, with the attenuation carefully calibrated.)

So for example, with nothing plugged in and the oscillator going at 100Hz:

Add DC voltage to exponential FM, attenuated to where the frequency is now 120Hz. Then add +1V to the V/OCT input and the frequency is 240Hz – one octave up, as expected.

But if you add DC voltage to linear FM, attenuated to where the frequency is 120Hz, and then you add +1V to the V/OCT input, you’ll have a frequency of 220Hz, which is less than an octave.

Normally you want linear FM to be AC coupled to prevent dynamic FM depth from messing up your tuning. Otherwise, you will need a separate highpass filter to block DC.

But exponential FM can’t be dynamic without disrupting the tuning anyway, so it’s left DC coupled so you can use envelopes/LFOs/etc. to modulate the frequency.

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#2171

Thanks for the very clear explanation!

Would this also matter with regards to the asymmetry and imperfections of the modulating waveform? If for example your saw isn’t a perfect saw (which for an analog oscillator it never is) I can imagine this would introduce a slight pitch offset if it weren’t AC coupled?

#2172

Yes, AC coupling helps with asymmetrical waveforms too.

On the Shapeshifter, the internal FM is direct, so if you modulate with an exact 1:1 ratio but a sawtooth wave, you get a kind of warble, and if you use something like the Basic Rectified bank which has a heavy DC offset, it messes with tuning. But if you patch Output 2 into the external FM input, which is AC coupled, it settles down a lot :slight_smile:

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#2173

Hey all, I’m trying to get the most of this module but kinda hitting a wall past using it for really pretty tuneable pings - i’m really interested in using it to process audio (as in the divkid tutorial/demo) but i haven’t been having much luck, i’m not sure if its audio quality or not dialing it in well enough? that aisde, i’m curious if anyone could offer some tips or tricks to getting the most out of this thing, i’m on the fence about letting it go and would love to get more use form it

thanks!

1 Like
#2174

Pinging it for pretty stuff is definitely my fave use for it.

But another that’s fun is rolling a drum sample into it and then using it to generate envelopes (which then either recreate the sample in synthesized instruments, or using trigger delays add additional stuff etc).

The trick for the above, in my experience, is making sure the sample has a broad spectrum to begin with: one kick drum down low, one cymbal up high, something in the middle. It’s difficult to pull apart the low tom from a bass drum, for example.

Another useful utility to include here is a comparator–use the individual bandwidth envelopes but run them through a comparator to help clean up the trigger generation.

Other fun things:

create a sort of formant filter effect by animating the spread of the bands.

messing with stereo image by having small changes on wide bands but sending odds to the left and evens to the right

It’s fun, but also gigantic. It rotates in and out of my rig all the time. Usually stays in long enough that I find myself using those pingable bands “too much” and then take a break from it.

3 Likes
#2175

I love mine and they way it just sits in that sinewave to whitenoise corridor. This might be a bit of a narrow sound pallet for some but then again it can do great things to external sources.
It has a really thorough manual too. I love the sound of the Wendy Carlos scales on this. They fit the sound in a nice but eerie way.
My question would be to find out how to sequence a repeating pattern of cw/ccw turns of the twist knob to get a tune going over the locked drone. Can this be done in way that jumps over some of the inbetween steps? My beginner collection of modules is a bit light on control and sequencing. Would a simple cv sequencer work for this?
Also I’m hoping this would pair up nicely with a zadar to get different pitches coming in and out in interesting ways. I sort of have this (zadar) pencilled in as my next purchase.

[Edit: this post , and the two above, are about the 4ms Spectral Multiband Resonator - merged in from a separate thread]

#2176

It takes some work, experimentation, and reading the manual repeatedly to get the most out of SMR. The scales are important for getting interesting tonal relationships going. I frequently lock resonance and channels, and lock out notes to shape the output. It’s usually more interesting running your own samples or patches into SMR, rather than using the normalled white noise. Even if you just want the filters to resonate–using different colors of noise can lead to some nice places. The two output channels can also create a shifting stereo image from a mono input, with some modulation. @Zedkah yes, you can sequence the channel and spread controls precisely with a sequencer.

1 Like
#2177

I’m not totally opposed, but I think I prefer versatile “single-function” modules at this point.

Haven’t heard of this one, I’ll check it out. OCHD looks great too, but seems like it be hard to control.

Definitely want to get a mimeophon at some point, but effects are kind of low priority for me. Mimetic Digitalis has such small HP! Does it have much of a learning curve as far as getting familiar with it?

#2178

Does anyone have experience with the Joranalogue Fold 6?

It looks quite versatile especially for its size.

#2179

Yup, OCHD cannot be clocked, so you will have to do that by ear.
If you need modulation to be clocked, both Tides and Stages are great and better than they might sound on paper. Stages is a swiss-knife of modulations, from 6 clockable LFOs to a mix of LFOs and enevlops, S&H you name it. Im scooping a second one soo.
Tides (beside also doubling as an OSC) is very interesting as, among other things, you get 4 clocked LFO / enevlops that you can make bouncing around.

1 Like
#2180

Is the fold 6 out yet? The demos sound great for it; the sound seems like it becomes more malleable than what I’ve experienced with other similarly sized wavefolders.

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#2181

I just racked Fold 6. It’s a great size and price and it does what it says on the tin. Setting aside the bullet points, it’s about “the sound”, and that’s a subjective matter that can be as difficult as you choose to make it.

1 Like
#2182

IMO: Don’t acquire modules for vague reasons like “to round out my system”. If you can’t get specific, you’re not ready.

PNW is always a safe investment provided you have no trouble reading the screen.

The Dixie oscillators are fine, but there’s nothing particularly interesting about them. So many other options to choose from. (Tyranny of choice.)

ZADAR is probably never going to be a very satisfactory audio rate oscillator. It may not run any faster with an external trigger than it already can set internally to loop, but you should be easily able to test this with your Maths: set rise and fall fully counter-clockwise, set the curvature fully clockwise, engage cycle, and patch the EOR (or EOC—whichever side you’re using) to a Zadar trigger channel. Adjust rise, fall and/or curvature to slow down the square wave you’re getting from Maths.

Regarding sequencers: you can never have too many, but they bring little magic on their own. They’re simple, dumb things. (Or they’re mind-bogglingly complex-but-still-kind-of-dumb things.) Tirana is a perfectly handy utility sequencer, but there are more interesting ways to go, such as the Befaco Muxlicer (just one example), which would get you more steps and a lot more functionality, while remaining super hands on. A lot of folks like the outboard Arturia Keystep Pro or Beatstep Pro products (cheap and versatile). Regardless, yeah, it’s good to have some automation around.

2 Likes
#2183

No, it’s very easy to learn and use. It has a few two-button combinations that are used for saving/loading patterns (you can store eight of them), randomizing all steps, or setting all steps to zero. Other than that, it’s very straight forward and self-explanatory. What you see is what you get: four channels of 16 steps CV sequencing, all clocked from the same source, with individual input for next step, X-axis, Y-axis, random step and pattern reset. Just select a step and dial the knob to set a value. Pushing down and turning the knob adjusts value with coarse tuning in semi steps.

#2184

@Rodrigo - jumping in to say I have one of these intellijel-format adapters that I don’t need (I sold my case) that I’d be happy to send to you

1 Like
#2185

That’d be sweet. I’ll drop you a dm.

#2186

Hmm, interesting point. From my experience the Dixie II+ is actually a very good oscillator when starting out because it’s very versatile. It can do pretty much anything a normal oscillator might be able to do and most of it without additional modules. Want to try FM? It can do linear and exponential. Want to try changing the FM depth, it has an attenuator for that onboard. Want to try sync? It has soft and hard sync. Want to try PWM? It has a knob and CV input with an attenuator. Wat to use it as an LFO? It has an LFO mode. Plus it has a sine out, which not all oscillators have, and a sub out as well. And they are readily available. And they are of course also of very good quality and very stable over a broad pitch range.

I got one when I started because of all these properties, it allowed me to learn about all of these things without requiring much else. That’s been several years ago and I still use them (I have several now :P) every day :slight_smile:

4 Likes
#2187

I’m looking for a sine oscillator with CV control over octave (in addition to V/O - as in quantizing automatically to octave). Anyone know of any modules that check these two boxes?