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Chapter 14 Ultrabeat 385
Create an LFO-modulated “Ultrabeat” kick drum
You can create bass drum sounds that are uniquely “Ultrabeat.” Try modulating pitch with an LFO
instead of an envelope, for example.
1 Start with the Standard Tutorial sound at a pitch of A#0 (Osc 1 Pitch), and choose LFO 1 as the
Mod source in the Osc 1 Pitch section.
2 Set the degree of modulation by dragging the blue Mod slider to a value of A3.
3 Set LFO 1 to a low number of Cycles (25 to 35), a high Rate (starting with 70 Hz and higher) and a
medium value for Decay (set the Ramp knob to about −190).
4 Experiment with the LFO waveform and you’ll discover that you can attain dierent nuances in
the character of the bass drum attack.
5 Modulate the Asym(metry) parameter with the same LFO, and also vary the Slope and
Saturation values.
This method enables you to create very dierent bass drum sounds with a single oscillator, one
LFO, and one envelope (for volume). The character of the sounds can range from soft to punchy,
and the degree of tonality in the sound can be adjusted to taste.
Note: The bass drum sound described is listed as Kick 3 in the Tutorial Kit, at a pitch of D1.
Use the second oscillator (with similar settings or with a sample), or use the lter and the ring
modulator—the sky’s the limit as far as your imagination is concerned, so go ahead and create
that next “gotta have it” drum sound.
Note: You can nd an “emulation” of the legendary 808 bass drum in Kick 4 in the Tutorial Kit, at
a pitch of D#1.