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Chapter 23 Ultrabeat 319
The Filter Section
The output signals of both oscillators, the ring modulator and the noise generator are
passed on to Ultrabeat’s central filter section (if they haven’t bypassed it through use of
the various Filter Bypass buttons). The filter section offers a multimode filter and a
distortion unit.
The order that sounds are passed through the filter and distortion unit is determined
by the red arrow found at the “equator” of the filter section. Repeated clicking on the
arrow switches between the
▲
(distortion, then filter) and
▼
(filter, then distortion)
settings.
Note: A description of Ultrabeat’s filter parameters and a discussion on the basic
concepts of subtractive synthesis and analog filters follows. If you’re new to
synthesizers, please read the “Synthesizer Basics” chapter for more information.
The Multimode Filter
A click on the word Filter in the upper middle section activates or deactivates the
multimode filter. In a deactivated state (the word Filter is gray: red when active), all
synthesis engine signals pass the filter unprocessed and are forwarded to the distortion
unit.
The multimode filter offers the following filter types: lowpass (LP), highpass (HP),
bandpass (BP), and band rejection (BR).
You can switch between the filter types by pressing the corresponding button directly
beneath the word Filter.
The names of the individual filters illlustrate their function: A lowpass (LP) filter allows
frequencies lower than the Cutoff frequency to pass. It removes (cuts) the highs of a
sound, making it darker and less bright.
A highpass (HP) filter allows frequencies higher than the Cutoff frequency to pass. The
lows of the sound are cut.
A bandpass (BP) filter allows a frequency band centered around the Cutoff frequency to
pass. Frequencies that lie further away (the lows and highs outside the band) are
filtered out. A sound with a lot of mid frequency content results.