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Chapter 13 Sculpture 236
Sculpture enables you to virtually model the physical consistency and behavior of all
components involved—hence component modeling synthesis.
Limiter
Level
Body EQ
Delay
Filter
Wave
Shaper
Amplitude
envelope
Pickups
String
Objects
This gure shows the signal ow of Sculpture’s core synthesis engine.
Following the stimulation of the string by various objects, the vibration of the string is captured
by two movable pickups—you can view these as being similar, in concept and operation, to the
electromagnetic pickups found on guitars, electric pianos, or clavinets.
The pickups send the signal to the ADSR-equipped amplitude stage, a Waveshaper module, and
a multimode lter. These all serve to sculpt your sound.
Note: All elements described above exist on a per voice basis.
The sum of all voice signals can then be processed by an integrated delay eect. From there,
the signal is sent to an EQ-like module (the Body EQ), which simulates the spectral shape/body
response of your instrument. The resulting signal is then fed to a level limiter section.
A vast number of modulation sources are also available, from tempo-synced LFOs to jitter
generators and recordable envelopes. These can control the string and object properties, the
lter, and other parameters. You can even modulate other modulation sources.
A recordable morph function also allows for smooth or abrupt transitions between up to ve
morph points. A morph point is essentially a collection of parameter settings at a given moment
in time.
Important: The interaction between various sections of the component modeling synthesis
engine is more dynamic and more tightly intertwined than that of other synthesis methods. This
can lead to some truly unique sounds, but sometimes even a small parameter change can deliver
dramatically dierent, and unexpected, results. Sculpture requires a more measured approach to
sound creation than a traditional synthesizer design. Refer to the owchart while learning the
interface and programming.
Sculpture is a performance-oriented synthesizer that benets from the use of controllers,
modulations, and dierent playing techniques. Take time to experiment with all available controls
and parameters when you initially audition some of the supplied sounds, and when you create
new ones of your own.
Several tutorial sections will help you learn about creating sounds with Sculpture.
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Explore Sculpture overview on page 288
•
Basic sound programming overview on page 293
•
Electric bass programming overview on page 303
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Synthetic sound programming overview on page 321
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Explore Sculpture modulation options on page 292