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Chapter 3 ES2 96
Create ES2 FM sounds
In the ES2, oscillator 1 is always the carrier, and oscillator 2 the modulator. In other words,
oscillator 2 modulates oscillator 1.
The FM Start setting is great for familiarizing yourself with linear frequency modulation (FM)
synthesis.
Use FM Intensity and Frequency to create new sounds
Load the FM Start setting to hear an unmodulated sine sound, generated by oscillator 1.
Oscillator 2 is switched on and set to produce a sine oscillation as well, but its level is set to
0: Drag the small square in the uppermost corner of the Triangle to change the settings.
Do the following:
m Adjust the intensity of the frequency modulation by slowly moving the wave selector from
Sine to FM. You will hear a typical FM spectrum, with the carrier and modulator set to the
same frequency.
m Alter the modulator frequency (oscillator 2) by adjusting Fine Tune from 0 c to 50 c. You’ll hear a
very slow frequency modulation, which can be compared to the eect of an LFO. The frequency
modulation, however, takes place in the audio spectrum. It is adjusted in semitone steps by the
frequency selector. Check out the entire range from −36 s to +36 s for oscillator 2. You’ll hear a
broad spectrum of FM sounds. Some settings will remind you of classic FM synthesizer sounds.
m Select other waveforms for oscillator 2. Sine is the classic, standard FM waveform, but other
waveforms lead to interesting results as well, especially the Digiwaves.
m You will achieve further interesting results by altering the carrier (oscillator 1) frequency.
Check out the entire range, from −36 s to +36 s here, as well. The odd intervals are especially
fascinating. Note that the basic pitch changes when you do this.
Control ES2 FM intensity with an envelope and FM scaling
In the FM Envelope setting, you can control the FM intensity with an envelope, generated by
Envelope 2. The modulation target is the range that falls between Sine and FM in the oscillator
wave selector. The rst Router channel is used for this modulation routing. You can control a
wider range by using additional modulation routings, which have been pre-prepared for you. All
you need to do is set their values. Because these modulations work without velocity sensitivity,
you can set them in the Editor view by moving both the lower and upper fader halves to their
topmost positions.
Do the following:
m Set the second modulation routing to 1.0. You’ll hear how the modulation now “wanders”
through a broader sound range.
m Set modulation routings 3 and 4 to a value of 1.0 as well, and listen to the increase in the
sound range.
m After these drastic augmentations to the modulation range, the sound becomes uneven across
the keyboard. In the lower and middle ranges it sounds nice, but in the upper key range the
FM intensity appears to be too severe. You can compensate for this eect by modulating the
Osc 1 Wave target by keyboard position (kybd) in modulation routings 5 and 6. This results in a
keyboard scaling of the FM intensity.
m Because the sound range is so vast (due to the four modulations), two modulation routings
are required to compensate for this. Set the lower slider halves to their lowest positions. Good
keyboard scaling is essential for any FM sound.