[sdiy] FM bass - most popular algorithm

[Tim Parkhurst]

On 2/4/06, Dave Kendall <davekendall at ntlworld.com> wrote:
> Otherwise great DX7 bass sounds can be occasionally be lacking in low end
> "grunt", because all the operators have been used up in getting the timbre
> and transients right.
>
> The solution is to have a "spare" carrier operator producing an un-modulated
> sine wave.
>
> Give this spare sine wave operator the same EG settings as the carrier(s)
> that define the main amplitude envelope (look at the bottom operator or
> operators in the stack), and set the key scaling to attenuate it as the
> pitch rises, so that you don't unduly affect the tone with higher pitches.
> Adjust the volume of this operator to taste.
>
> This nicely warms up the low end of the bass.
>
> Back when I was mad enough to be really into this sort of thing, I re-mapped
> many great DX7 sounds from ALG 16, 17, and 18 to other ALGs eg, 26, 27, and
> 28 which often had enough complexity to produce exactly the same sound as
> the original, but with the addition of the "spare" operator for warming
> things up.
>
> The "spare sine" trick works very well on other synths too....
>
> Dave ( in DX7 memory lane...)
>
>

Sounds a lot like the trick Yamaha earlier used on the CS-80, where
the sine from the VCO can be sent directly to the VCA, bypassing the
VCF. Pretty smart, those Yamaha guys and gals.

By the way, has anyone here played with the Arturia soft CS-80? Any
good? I know the 'real thing' is always more fun, but I can't afford a
real one (also can't afford the 4 roadies I'd need to carry the thing
around).

Tim (doesn't own a CS-80, but I can dream) Servo
--
"Imagination is more important than knowledge." - Albert Einstein