Intro to Synthesis

Part 1: Oscillators

The oscillator in a synthesizer is the foundational circuit that generates sound. Oscillators generate a
variety of basic waveforms. The shape of these basic waveforms is what gives it a characteristic that
forms the foundation of your synthesized sound.

- Sawtooth: excitement, brightness in the high end. Great for synthesizing sounds like strings
where you want some of that energy and excitement in the upper range
- Square wave: a bit rounder, potentially a bit more vocal, can get very reedy or even horn-
based. Provides a ton of harmonic complexity to then shape further
- Triangle wave – doesn’t sound quite as lively or full as the sawtooth or square wave; a purer,
more dull soundwave.

From a basic perspective: if you want to make something a bit more pure, a bit more dull, start with
the triangle wave; if you’re looking for something a bit more aggressive or raspy, try a saw wave, try a
square wave.

Another kind of oscillator wave form: noise. Many synthesizers have a noise generator. Why use
noise?

- Use the sound of TV static for your composition

- Use noise as a secondary colour: combine it with another wave form to create a bit more
energy and sonic excitement to your sound

Part 2: Shaping Multiple Oscillators

Note: a square wave doesn’t have to be a square. It can be a square, a rectangle, all the way down to a
narrow pulse. Every variation in between will give you a different sound. Taking the pulse width and
modulating it over time is called pulse width modulation. Your synthesizer may have a knob to do
that or there may be ways for you to automate that with sources of modulation.

Pulse width modulation, also known as “PWM”. While a square wave has equal time between
maximum voltage and minimum voltage, a pulse wave is essentially a square wave with an
adjustable amount of time in between each cycle before the the voltage drops from maximum
to minimum. The percentage of time that the signal is high is known as a duty cycle.

Combining Several Oscillators

Some synthesizers will have more than one oscillator stacked on top of one another and played at the
same time. By taking multiple waveforms and stacking them together you can make a bigger, more
harmonically interesting sound.

Pay attention to the range or octave function. It sets the relative octave of the note being played by
that oscillator so you can separate the waveforms and have them fill a different space. As if you have a
vocal ensemble and SATB are all singing the same note, but in different octaves. The range or octave
knob is marked with feet numbers and a feet sign (‘). This goes back to the original synthesizer – the
pipe organ – where the octave was expressed in terms of pipe length (e.g. 16 feet).

In addition to the octave range setting for each of the oscillators, you can usually tune in a more fine-
grained way the pitch of the oscillators as well. Let’s say you have two saw waves at the same eight-
foot range and then detune the second oscillator slightly. Listen and visualize the beating. That
slightly detuned, organic and alive sound is really a hallmark of synthesis. Start in tune, go out of tune,
and come back in tune.

Automatically Modulating Pulse Width Using Separate LFO Signal

Fast Pulse Width Modulation/Slow Pulse Width Modulation

Cf. supra: the pulse width of a square wave may be manipulated (in which case it’s often called a
pulse wave), which can be done manually. It can also be done through modulation: essentially taking
one signal, sending it to another part of the synth, and automatically turning the knob.

Modulation can be done using a low frequency oscillator (LFO), which generates a signal which then
manipulates the pulse width.

A square wave is a special wave that can be shaped in a dynamic and dramatic way, which gives a lot
of character and movement to the sound you create.

Modulating Pitch to Simulate Effect of Vibrato

Like we can use an LFO to modulate the shape of the square wave we can also use that same LFO to
modulate the pitch and use modulation to simulate the effect of vibrato.

Part 3: What’s a Filter?

If the oscillator is the core of the synthesizer’s sound, the filter is going to shape that sound and give it
the character you’re looking for.

Low-Pass Filter

When you lower the cut-off frequency, you make the sound duller. The high-end frequencies are cut
out.

With the spectrum analyser, we looked at what the filter is doing across the sonic spectrum. But it’s
also interesting to look at what the filter does to the wave form.

Low Pass Filter Waveform

We’re gonna start off, open filter, saw wave. As we sweep out all the high frequencies and harmonics,
you’ll see the wave become more and more like a sine wave.

A filter by itself may not be the most exciting sound in the world, but when you add shape to it and
modulation, an interesting sound emerges. One of the first features you’ll want to explore on your
synth’s filter is resonance. Resonance is a way to accentuate the frequencies right at the cut-off
frequencies. It puts a peek, a notch, right at the top of your filter cut-off. It creates a sharpness and
gives a nasal quality.

Resonance

As resonance goes up, it gets a lot of synths a bit out of control. It can be a cool effect, but generally
speaking it will be around the middle range of the knob.

Resonance Sweep

A synthesizer creates a huge amount of sound – even if you play one note, you’ll create a bunch of
upper-order harmonics and frequency content which creates a rich sound. As you filter down, you’re
focusing more and more on that root note that you’re playing. So far we’ve taken a look at a pretty
static example. But half the fun of a synthesizer is to constantly be changing, shaping things in real
time.

Manual Filter Sweep

The easiest thing to do is to use your hand to sweep the filter.

But where things get really fun is thinking about automating it.

- We’ll have a look at keytracking. Keytracking will tell the synthesizer that as you play
higher, the cut-off frequency should be adjusted too. Without keytracking you’ll hear a
consistent filter sound all the way up the keyboard which can be useful, but if you want
something more like how a piano or other keyboard instruments sound, keytracking is useful.
- Another fundamental way to shape your filter is to use an envelope. You can use an envelope
to open and close a filter over time. In the real world, when you play a violin, the sounds you
play have a natural decay over time. If you increase the resonance you can really see that peek
in sound emerging and then sweeping down.
- A final way you can shape your filter is with modulation – an LFO. We’ll create a smooth
pattern of the filter opening and closing.

Using LFO to Modulate Filter

Depending on your synthesizer, this idea can become more complex, more dynamic
and expressive, but generally speaking, if you’re playing a fairly static part, it can be
really expressive and really interesting to the ear to set a relatively slow LFO speed so
you get a subtle movement in the sound.

Using LFO to Modulate Filter During Sequence

Although most synthesizers are built with roughly the same building blocks, it’s really
the filter and the specific design and functionality of the filter that is going to give one
synthesizer a special character that is unique from another.

E.g. MiniMoog Model D with Classic Moog 24 dB Low-Pass Filter

 E.g. Roland Juno-6 with 24 dB Low-Pass Filter and High-Pass Filter

The Juno-6 Filter was featured in the Stranger Things soundtrack.

E.g. Prophet 6 (Dave Smith Instruments)

E.g. MS-20 Korg

Next episode we’ll dive in envelopes. Not just to shape the filter but all aspects of
your synth to fully unlock the power of these wonderful machines.

Part 4: Exploring Attack, Decay, Sustain & Release (Envelopes – pt. I)

Let’s look at envelopes and how we can use them to shape all manners of your synthesizer sounds. An
envelope describes how sound changes over time. Imagine using your hand to sweep a knob.

Closing Filter With Envelope

What we heard was a basic sound getting duller over time.

We closed a filter with an envelope. Generally speaking, envelopes have four parts: attack, decay,
sustain and release (ADSR).

Some sounds have an immediate attack, other sounds have a slower attack.

Immediate Attack, Long Decay

Attack and decay are both a measure of loudness over time (parameter: duration). Sustain is the
relative volume of the sound after the attack and decay portion are finished (parameter: loudness). The
release describes how long it takes for the volume to reach zero once the finger is released from the
keyboard (parameter: duration). Does the sound immediately stop or is there a final, graceful decay to
silence? To have zero release is going to simulate something like an organ. As soon as you lift your
hands off, there won’t be any sound. Generally, release is a nice way to add a bit of a tail to the sound.

Let’s say you have a really long decay down to the sustain level and you take your finger off shortly
after the key’s been hit. As soon as you take your finger off the key, the release is going to start. The
release is going to grab a hold of the volume level that you’re at when you take your finger off.

Part 5: How to Use Amp and Filter Envelopes (Envelopes - pt. II)

A couple of fun sounds that we made with an envelope. Ever heard a reversed guitar? You can do that
with an envelope on your amplifier.

Reverse Effect with Envelope

Slow attack, immediate release, which is the reverse of the way you play a guitar.
Let’s say you don’t care at all about shaping your sound with an envelope and you want it to be full
blast all the time (e.g. synth bassline). In that case (i.e. how to defeat the envelope on your amplifier):
no attack, full decay (which means no decay), full sustain, and no release.

The first thing you want to get right is the attack. Then: after the sound comes in, how present do I
want the sound to be in the mix? That’s the decay.

Extreme examples of envelopes. If you want a clicky, percussive sound: turn the decay all the way
down. Essentially the envelope closes right away with zero sustain. These are super fun if you have an
arpeggiator or sequencer or you’re sending MIDI to your synth to get a repeating pattern going. Then
you can play with it and slightly increase the decay and sustain.

Modulating the Filter with Envelope

Conceptually, one aspect of this that might be hard to wrap one’s mind around at first: the relationship
between where you have your filter knob set and how the filter shapes the amount of high frequencies.

In the filter section of your synthesizer there is usually a knob called envelope or EG intensity, and
that determines how much the envelope impacts the setting of the filter knob. As you turn up that
envelope knob, you’re adding to wherever the filter cut-off is set. So if it’s set at a maximum of two
and you add three on the envelope dial, what you’re saying is: the maximum setting for my filter knob
is five. You’re adding more high frequencies to your filter. Remember that you’re adding high
frequencies when you turn up the envelope.

Low Cut-Off / High Envelope Modulation on Filter

What’s happening there is the volume envelope is saying: start the sound right away. But the filter
envelope is saying: not so fast, we’ll get brighter over time. The two envelopes are going to work
together. If you have no release on your sound the envelope on the amplifier cuts off immediately,
even if you have a bunch of release dialled in on your filter.

Bear in mind: the two envelopes are going to work together. So if you have no release on the envelope
of the amplifier, even if you have a bunch of release dialled in on your filter envelope, you’re not
going to hear that decay.

No Release on Amp Envelope

The filter envelope is shaping the frequency content and then that sound is going into the amplifier and
the amplifier actually has control over what you hear. The filter envelope tells the synth what you’d
like it to sound like, and the amplifier determines what you actually hear.

High Release on Amp – Short on Filter

If you set your amp envelope release long enough and your filter release shorter, you can hear that
filter sweep down before the sound dies.

Depending on your synthesizer you may be able to take the envelope from your filter or amplifier and
apply them to other aspects of your sound.
Remember, the filter envelope manipulates the frequency spectrum and the amp envelope
manipulates the volume.

A couple more uses of envelopes. Depending on your synthesizer, you may be able to take your
envelope from your filter or amplifier or additional envelopes and apply them to other aspects of your
sound. E.g. to the frequency or pitch of your sound. What you can hear is the filter envelope has an
immediate attack and short decay. Start the note a little above the pitch and quickly get back down to
the base pitch.

Using Envelope to Modulate Pitch Long Decay

Another thing you can do with envelopes: shape your square waves into all manners of pulse widths,
also known as pulse width modulation.

Part 6: Modulation and LFO

Modulation is the idea of using signals generated within your synthesizer to change or shape various
aspects of the sound that you’re producing over time. When we talk about modulation, we usually start
with an LFO – low frequency oscillator. The oscillators that generate sound where previously
discussed. A low frequency oscillator is also a circuit that generates a wave form. The difference
between an LFO and a regular oscillator is the ‘low frequency’ part. Just like a normal oscillator, an
LFO generates a wave form – only at a lower frequency. The most basic LFO wave form is a sine
wave. A very smooth, continuous signal. When you use an LFO with a sine wave you get a smooth
ramp up and down.

Using LFO Sine Wave to Modulate Filter

We can do it slowly, or fast.

Quick sidenote: in this synthesizer (Korg MonoPoly, but its set-up is similar to that of other
synthesizers) the modulation wheel is connected to the LFO, the idea is that you have the LFO
generating its wave, and the amount that you dial up the modulation wheel determines how much of
that LFO is influencing, in this case, your filter cut-off.

This allows you to dial in and out that LFO, that modulated sound in your playing and it can become
very expressive really quickly. One of the cool things about LFO’s is that like others oscillators they
can generate multiple different wave forms. Sine wave, saw wave…

Using Slow LFO Ramp Down Saw Wave

Using LFO to Modulate Pulse Width (Ramp Up Saw Wave)

Using LFO to Modulate Pulse Width (Square Wave)

Using LFO Ramp Up Saw Wave to Modulate Filter

Using LFO Square Wave to Modulate Filter

Generally speaking – but it’s always good to experiment – it is useful to use sine wave-LFO’s at pretty
slow speed to do gradual modulations of things like the filter, to add just a little bit of movement over
time. And to use a square wave at a faster tempo to replicate the sound of a sequenced bass-line, or a
delay.

Using LFO Square Wave to Modulate Filter for Delay Effect

If you have the filter envelope set up with a long decay, the added effect of the LFO replicates the
sound of delays that are getting more dull as they drift away over time.

LFO Sine Wave to Modulate Pitch Vibrato

Another typical application of an LFO is pitch vibrato. We can recreate that using a sine wave LFO at
a relatively quick speed and then dialling in the amount of modulation with the mod wheel.

Let’s take it further, change the shape of the LFO and slow it down to create some classic siren and
synth effect sounds.

Using Slow LFO Ramp Down Saw Wave

A third interesting way to use an LFO is to modulate the wave shape of a square wave. That’s called
pulse width modulation.

Some tips on this: with a sine wave LFO at a median speed you can replicate the sound of a chorus
effect. That trick works better on higher register sounds vs. lower register sounds.

If you set your LFO pretty slow to modulate the pulse width of your square wave you can get an
organic change in timbre that is subtle but adds an interesting movement to the sound.