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2005-10-05 by brownchonald
I was just curious, how would one make a polyphonic modular synthesizer, using MOTM or comparible modules? It's probably way out there, the idea, but I'm just curious how it would work. Would it work with the new MOTM midi/cv converter? Cole
2005-10-05 by Neil Bradley
> I was just curious, how would one make a polyphonic modular > synthesizer, using MOTM or comparible modules? A lot of MOTM modules. Seriously - just take whatever "voice" you want and multiply it by "n" for the number of voices you want. > It's probably way out there, the idea, but I'm just curious how it > would work. Definitely way out there in price! > Would it work with the new MOTM midi/cv converter? Yes. It has 9 different voice assignment modes, and all but the solo modes are polyphonic. -->Neil ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Neil Bradley "If you owe the bank $100, it's your problem. If you Synthcom Systems, Inc. owe them $100mil, it's the bank's problem." - JP Getty
2005-10-05 by Paul Schreiber
You need: a) a polyphonic MIDI-CV converter. The MOTM-650 has 4 'voices' and can be daisy-chained with another one for a total of 8. b) you need multiple 'sets of voice modules'. The most simple/cheapest would be: 1 MOTM-310 VCO 1 MOTM-490 VCF 1 MOTM-800 EG (same envelope for VCF and VCA) 1/2 of a MOTM-190 VCA You can 'cheat' 1 step above and use a MOTM-440 VCF (because it has the best exponential converter) in self-resonance mode in place of the VCO/VCF, but all you get are sine wave out :) Paul S.
2005-10-05 by Adam Schabtach
> > I was just curious, how would one make a polyphonic modular > > synthesizer, using MOTM or comparible modules? > > A lot of MOTM modules. Seriously - just take whatever "voice" you want and > multiply it by "n" for the number of voices you want. Bear in mind also that you'll have N knobs for each voice parameter--one on each of N modules. So for example if you build a five-voice system, you have to turn five knobs to change the frequency setting of the filters just to vary the "brightness" of the patch. Personally I've found that polyphony is something better handled by non-modular synthesizers. --Adam
2005-10-05 by Terje Winther
>>> I was just curious, how would one make a polyphonic modular >>> synthesizer, using MOTM or comparible modules? >> >> A lot of MOTM modules. Seriously - just take whatever "voice" you >> want and >> multiply it by "n" for the number of voices you want. > > Bear in mind also that you'll have N knobs for each voice > parameter--one on > each of N modules. So for example if you build a five-voice system, > you have > to turn five knobs to change the frequency setting of the filters just > to > vary the "brightness" of the patch. Unless you use CV-control on that parameter. Each setting needs to be set equal before starting though, so I do see your point. If you were to control a polyphonic modular, you would probably need a collective "remote" control panel of common settings, like VCO tuning, VCF cutoff, envelope settings, LFO speed and so forth. I think early Oberheim polyphonics used this method. Terje Winther WintherStormer mailto:wintherstormer@... http://www.notam02.no/~terjewi/synthesizer/
2005-10-05 by JH.
> > > I was just curious, how would one make a polyphonic modular > > > synthesizer, using MOTM or comparible modules? > > > > A lot of MOTM modules. Seriously - just take whatever "voice" you want and > > multiply it by "n" for the number of voices you want. > > Bear in mind also that you'll have N knobs for each voice parameter--one on > each of N modules. So for example if you build a five-voice system, you have > to turn five knobs to change the frequency setting of the filters just to > vary the "brightness" of the patch. > > Personally I've found that polyphony is something better handled by > non-modular synthesizers. Or, turn it into a feature and set up slightly different voices on purpose. Can be slightly different settings on identical numbers, can even be using different modules, like Moog VCF on one voice, 2040 VCF on next voice ... JH.
2005-10-05 by Scott Juskiw
>Or, turn it into a feature and set up slightly different voices on purpose. >Can be slightly different settings on identical numbers, can even be >using different modules, like Moog VCF on one voice, 2040 VCF on >next voice ... This is what I usually do. I have enough VCOs, VCAs, LFOs, and EGs to create some nice four voice patches. But I don't have four of any one filter, so I just use different ones on different voices. Makes for some interesting sounds.
2005-10-05 by Jason Proctor
>You need: > >a) a polyphonic MIDI-CV converter. The MOTM-650 has 4 'voices' and can be >daisy-chained with another one for a total of 8. or an polyphonic gate/cv keyboard like a (4-note) Roland M-184 or (2-note) Synth.com QKB15S. >b) you need multiple 'sets of voice modules'. The most >simple/cheapest would be: > >1 MOTM-310 VCO >1 MOTM-490 VCF >1 MOTM-800 EG (same envelope for VCF and VCA) >1/2 of a MOTM-190 VCA or you could cheat like the Poly-800 and have just one filter :-) another much cheaper option is to sample some notes of the sound you want to make polyphonic, and then play it from your sampler. heresy, but it works pretty well if you take the time to multisample properly.
2005-10-05 by Adam Schabtach
> Unless you use CV-control on that parameter. Each setting needs to be > set equal before starting though, so I do see your point. > If you were to control a polyphonic modular, you would probably need a > collective "remote" control panel of common settings, like VCO tuning, > VCF cutoff, envelope settings, LFO speed and so forth. True. And hey, you could devise some way that those settings could be stored and recalled digitally, and you could put it all in a nice case with LEDs and wooden end-blocks and a keyboard and you could call it a Proph-- oh. :-) --Adam
2005-10-06 by Adam Schabtach
> Or, turn it into a feature and set up slightly different voices on > purpose. > Can be slightly different settings on identical numbers, can even be > using different modules, like Moog VCF on one voice, 2040 VCF on > next voice ... Yes. I'm still a few modules shy of being able to do that effectively, though, unless I settle for one VCO per voice--and that seems somewhat silly when I have half a dozen polyphonic synths in the same room. If I had one more VCO I could do three not-bad voices, but I guess polyphony is really not something I've ever expected of my modular. Of course, JH is modestly not mentioning his real solution: build your own polyphonic analog synth, from scratch. :-) --Adam
2005-10-06 by Erik Karl Sorgatz
I'm doing this using a Roland MPU-101 midi-to-cv box, 8 vco's - 2 for each voice into 4 seperate VCA's, all sharing one envelope generator. Next we mix all four voices in a mixer, and THEN into my MOTM 440 with it's own envelope generator, lastly out to a seperate VCA with it's own envelope generator. It's very effective and very FAT sounding! The MPU-101 gives the CV out to each VCO pair, it also provides the gating for each voice's VCA. My system is .com/MOTM hybrid, so I use the .com MIDI converter in the keyboard to drive the Roland MPU-101 and the keyboard's CV buss as well. The keyboard CV/gate buss controls the MOTM 440's envelope generator and the final out VCA's envelope generator. Using this is quite a handful! I used to be able to do this sort of 4 voicing with my Polyfusion much more eassily since the VCO's on the Polyfusion were silent-running, in that after a CV in ceased, the VCO went quiet, and hence there was no need for the seperate VCA after VCOs on each voice. The .com VCO's do not have this feature, in the absence of a CV they go to the 1/12v (or is it 0v?) setting rather than go silent. I have discovered that a negative 1/12v input will silence the VCO's and it might be possible to build something like the old "Byter-Box" to condition the CV inputs with 4 Schmidt-Trigger circuits, to "quiet the VCO's of each voice. Better yet might be to have a quad-CV/gate buss on the keyboard itself. The .com keyboard has dual CV/gate capability, and this can be used to smooth the action, splitting the patch into two-two voice sections..if it had quad-CV/gate (and perhaps a small peak trigger signal for each of the four) the process would be even better. Cheers!
2005-10-06 by Greg Amann
> > the VCO's on the > Polyfusion were silent-running, in that after a CV in ceased, the VCO > went quiet, and hence there was no need for the seperate VCA after > VCOs on each voice. The .com VCO's do not have this feature, in the > absence of a CV they go to the 1/12v (or is it 0v?) setting rather > than go silent. I have discovered that a negative 1/12v input will > silence the VCO > > As far as I can tell, applying 0V to my VCO does not turn it OFF, it just oscillates at such a low frequency that I think it's off. I have never heard of a modular VCO that stops oscillating when a CV is absent (but then, what do I know anyway?). PLL, BFG
2005-10-07 by peng3002
--- In motm@yahoogroups.com, Greg Amann <greg.amann@s...> wrote: > I have never heard of a modular VCO that stops oscillating when a CV is > absent (but then, what do I know anyway?). EMU vco's could function as gated oscillators. It's stalled until it receives a gate, and when the gate is removed the output continues until the waveform completes it's cycle. I don't know of any manufacturers offering this feature in a VCO today. When I was building VCO's awhile ago I experimented with implementing a gate function, but with no success. I probably just need to try harder. Any info on this subject would be greatly appreciated. Feel free to email me privately. peng
2005-10-07 by richard bartz
maybe that ? http://www.emulatorarchive.com/AM/AM20XX/AM2000/am2000.html Am 07.10.2005 um 20:35 schrieb peng3002:
> --- In motm@yahoogroups.com, Greg Amann <greg.amann@s...> wrote: > > >> I have never heard of a modular VCO that stops oscillating when a CV > is >> absent (but then, what do I know anyway?). > > > EMU vco's could function as gated oscillators. It's stalled until it > receives a gate, and when the gate is removed the output continues > until the waveform completes it's cycle. I don't know of any > manufacturers offering this feature in a VCO today. > When I was building VCO's awhile ago I experimented with implementing > a gate function, but with no success. I probably just need to try > harder. Any info on this subject would be greatly appreciated. Feel > free to email me privately. > > peng > > > > > > > > Yahoo! Groups Links > > > > > > >
2005-10-07 by Scott Juskiw
That's a VCA, but there is a VCO with a GATE input: http://www.emulatorarchive.com/AM/AM20XX/AM2200/am2200.html
>maybe that ? > >http://www.emulatorarchive.com/AM/AM20XX/AM2000/am2000.html > > > >>> I have never heard of a modular VCO that stops oscillating when a CV >> is >>> absent (but then, what do I know anyway?). >> >> >> EMU vco's could function as gated oscillators. It's stalled until it >> receives a gate, and when the gate is removed the output continues >> until the waveform completes it's cycle. I don't know of any >> manufacturers offering this feature in a VCO today. >> When I was building VCO's awhile ago I experimented with implementing >> a gate function, but with no success. I probably just need to try >> harder. Any info on this subject would be greatly appreciated. Feel > > free to email me privately. >>