Specifications

SUBTRACTOR SYNTHESIZER
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✪ With the Noise Generators default settings, this will sound much
like colored noise. But by changing (lowering) the Noise Generator
Decay parameter, so that the noise modulates only the attack por-
tion of the sound can produce more interesting results. You could
also use a combination of noise and Osc 2.
Ring Modulation
Ring Modulators basically multiply two audio signals together. The ring modu-
lated output contains added frequencies generated by the sum of, and the differ-
ence between, the frequencies of the two signals. In the Subtractor Ring
Modulator, Osc 1 is multiplied with Osc 2 to produce sum and difference fre-
quencies. Ring modulation can be used to create complex and enharmonic, bell-
like sounds.
1. Select an Init Patch by selecting “Initialize Patch” from the Edit
menu.
Save any current settings you wish to keep before initializing.
2. Activate Ring Modulation with the button in the lower right corner
of the oscillator section.
3. Activate Osc 2.
You need to activate Osc 2 before any ring modulation can happen.
4. Turn the Osc Mix knob fully to the right, so that only the sound of
Osc 2 is heard.
Osc 2 provides the ring modulated output.
5. If you play a few notes while varying the frequency of either oscilla-
tor, by using the Semitone spin controls, you can hear that the tim-
bre changes dramatically.
If the oscillators are tuned to the same frequency, and no modulation is ap-
plied to either the Osc 1 or 2 frequency, the Ring Modulator won’t do much.
It is when the frequencies of Osc 1 and Osc 2 differ, that you get the “true”
sound of ring modulation.
The Filter Section
In subtractive synthesis, a filter is the most important tool for shaping the overall
timbre of the sound. The filter section in Subtractor contains two filters, the first
being a multimode filter with five filter types, and the second being a low-pass fil-
ter. The combination of a multimode filter and a lowpass filter can be used to
create very complex filter effects.
Filter 1 Type
With this multi-selector you can set Filter 1 to operate as one of five different
types of filter. The five types are illustrated and explained on the following pages: