Modal Electronics ARGON8X User manual

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Modal ARGON8X
8 voice polyphonic wavetable synthesiser
User Manual
OS Version - 2.0

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Important Safety Information
WARNING – AS WITH ALL ELECTRICAL PRODUCTS, care and general precautions must
be observed in order to operate this equipment safely. If you are unsure how to operate this
apparatus in a safe manner, please seek appropriate advice on its safe use.
ENSURE CORRECT PSU POLARITY - FAILURE TO DO SO MAY CAUSE PERMANENT
DAMAGE - RECOMMENDED USE WITH PROVIDED POWER SUPPLY
This apparatus MUST NOT BE OPERATED NEAR WATER or where there is risk of the
apparatus coming into contact with sources of water such as sinks, taps, showers or outdoor
water units, or wet environments such as in the rain. Take care to ensure that no liquids are
spilt onto or come into contact with the apparatus. In the event this should happen remove
power from the unit immediately and seek expert assistance.
This apparatus produces sound that could cause permanent damage to hearing. Always
operate the apparatus at safe listening volumes and ensure you take regular breaks from
being exposed to sound levels
THERE ARE NO USER SERVICEABLE PARTS INSIDE THIS APPARATUS. It should only be
serviced by qualified service personnel, specifically when:
• The apparatus has been dropped or damaged in any way or anything has fallen on the
apparatus
• The apparatus has been exposed to liquid whether this has entered the apparatus or not
• The power supply cables to the apparatus have been damaged in anyway whatsoever
• The apparatus functions in an abnormal manner or appears to operate differently in any
way whatsoever.

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Index
00. Introduction
Specification
01. Getting Started
Basic Functions
UI Combinations
Screen Map
02. Connections
03. Synthesis Engine
Oscillators
Oscillator Modifiers
Wavetable Modifiers
Filter
Envelopes
LFOs
Arpeggiator
Sequencer
FX
Modulation
Keyboard/Voice
Joystick + Audio Input
Audio Output + Gain
Settings
04. MIDI
MIDI Implementation Chart
MPE
Polychain
05. Update
06. MODALapp
Getting Started
Main Editor
Preset Manager + Modulation Tab
Sequencer Tab
FX, Keyboard + Settings
Warranty Information
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00
Introduction
Modal ARGON8X is an eight voice polyphonic wavetable synthesiser.
It features four digital oscillators per voice split into two controllable wavetables with one
innovative offline wave modifier available per wavetable with 32 different options to redraw
each wavetables and one modulatable oscillator modifier available per patch with eight
modifier types to choose from.
There are four flexible multi-mode filters and three dedicated flexible envelope generators
for AMP, MOD and FILTER that can be accessed independently or all three simultaneously on
board.
ARGON8X also boasts a hugely powerful “Mod Matrix” with eight assignable slots and four
additional fixed routes, 11 mod sources and 52 destinations.
The 4-axis joystick can be assigned to a huge range of modulation destinations and can be
‘locked’ in place when desired.
There are two Audio rate LFO’s with tempo sync (one poly, one global). Polyphonic LFO can
sync to frequency divisions.
ARGON8X has 12 on board FX; a waveshaping distortion that is followed by three incredibly
powerful, independent and user configurable stereo FX engines that can create sophisticated
Delays, lush Reverbs, Flanging, Phasing, and Rich Choruses to name a few.
The hardware has been manufactured with high-quality components: a powder coated black
steel case, anodised aluminium top panel, endless encoders and a super bright white on black
OLED screen.
Among the many connections, Modal ARGON8X features a USB port to connect your synth
to the MODALapp user interface on a computer tablet or phone. This can be used for preset
design and management as well as updating the firmware on your ARGON8X (please see
‘Updates’ section).

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Specification
Polyphony
• True 8 voice polyphonic with option to polychain any two ARGON8 synthesisers for 16
voice polyphony.
MPE
• Supports MPE-compatible MIDI controllers, allowing you to apply polyphonic control and
expression to individual notes
Oscillators
• 32 high-resolution wavetable oscillators, 4 per voice
• 120 carefully crafted wavetables split into 24 banks of 5 morphable waveform sets
Additional PWM bank and 3 noise/modulation banks accessible on Oscillator 2
• 32 static wavetable modifiers including, de-rez, wave folders, waveshapers, phase shapers
and rectify can be applied to the 120 wavetables to give a mind-boggling array of
permutations and new waveshapes.
• 8 types of oscillator modifier including Phase Mod (FM), Ring Mod, Amp Mod, Hard Sync
and Windowed Sync
• Voice Drift and Width controls that help to create massive stereo soundscapes
Filter
• 2-pole state variable filters, 4 Filter types – ‘Standard’ filters are based on the resonant
filter found in other Modal synthesisers and ‘Classic’ with a more rounded character and
a softer resonance response.
Modulation
• 3 dedicated envelope generators for AMP, MOD and FILTER that can be accessed
independently or all three simultaneously including negative (reverse) versions and
multiple envelope curve options
• 2 Audio rate LFO’s with tempo sync (one poly, one global). Polyphonic LFO can sync to
frequency divisions
• 8 assignable modulation slots and 4 additional fixed modulation routings for common
assignments with 11 modulation sources and 52 modulation destinations
Specification
Sequencer and Arpeggiator
• Polyphonic Real-time and Step sequencer with 512 notes and four recordable/editable
parameter animations (Delay FX, LFO’s, sequencer and arpeggiator can be either clocked
internally or externally)
• Step Sequencer holds up to 64 steps, 8 notes per step, 4 lanes of Parameter-Lock style
animation, Step Input mode, multiple playback modes including gate modes and rest
function
• Built-In sophisticated programmable arpeggiator of 32 steps with rest capability and
random up to 2048 steps before repeating
FX
• Waveshaping distortion
• 3 incredibly powerful independent and user-configurable stereo FX engines for Chorus,
Phaser, Flanger (Pos), Flanger (Neg), Tremolo, LoFi, Rotary, Stereo Delay, Ping-Pong Delay,
X-Over Delay and Reverb that can be arranged in any order
User Memory
• 500 patch memories, all fully editable and ships with 300 factory programs
• 100 sequencer presets that can be linked to any patch for quickly loading arrangements
• 100 FX presets
• 8 Quick Recall slots accessible from the panel for quickly loading your favourite patches
Controls and Performance
• Premium FATAR 61-key Keyboard with velocity and channel aftertouch
• 29 endless encoders, 24 buttons
• 4-axis joystick that can be assigned to a huge range of modulation destinations and
virtually ‘locked’ when desired
• Multiple keyboard modes, Mono, Poly, Unison 2, unison 4, unison 8, Stack 2 and Stack 4
• Glide/Portamento with both legato and staccato modes
• Chord Invert control to easily create chord inversions and variations

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Specification
Inputs and Outputs
• 6.35 mm / 1/4” TS dual-mono line outputs
• 6.35 mm / 1/4” TRS headphone output
• 3.5 mm / 1/8” TRS stereo audio input
• MIDI DIN In and Out
• 3.5 mm / 1/8” TS Analogue clock sync In and Out
• Class compliant MIDI over USB connection
• 6.35 mm / 1/4” TRS expression pedal input
• 6.35 mm / 1/4” TS sustain pedal input
Enclosure and Display
• Road-ready steel and aluminium enclosure with economical stained bamboo end cheeks
• 1.54-inch large OLED display for instant visual feedback at all times of playing/editing
Power
• Power: DC-9.0V – 1.5A centre-positive
Editor Software
• Free MODALapp software editor available for macOS, Windows, iOS and Android
• MODALapp can also be run within your Digital Audio Workstation (DAW), with VST3 and
AU versions available
Dimensions (L x W x H)
• 855 x 300 x 100 mm / 33.7” x 11.8” x 4”
Weight
• 9 kg / 19.9 lbs

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01
Getting Started
Basic Functions
Powering on
Connect the power lead to your ARGON8X then connect the outputs of the ARGON8X to
your mixer, or if you prefer, connect your headphones. Optionally connect a USB cable from
your computer or tablet device to the ARGON8X for MODALapp communication.
Then power on.
You will see a loading animation on the screen. When the synth has loaded it will change to
show the main patch page.
Screen Control
The Modal ARGON8X interface is designed to be extremely intuitive and easy to use, so that
all the most important parameters are easily accessible and tweakable directly from the top
panel, however, all functions are also accessible and tweakable on-screen using the two
detented encoders.
These two switched-encoders are located either side of the screen are used for screen
navigation and control and can be clicked to either switch mode or trigger / modify the
selected function:
• Page/Param - When this encoder is in ‘Page’ mode (top row of on-screen text) it cycles
through the parameter pages / groups (e.g. Osc1, Osc2, Filter); when it’s in ‘Param’ mode
(bottom row of on-screen text) it cycles through the parameters on that page / group.
Use the switch by clicking the encoder to toggle between the two modes, where the
mode is displayed on the screen with a line at top for ‘Page’ mode and at the bottom for
‘Param’ mode.
• Preset/Edit (/Bank) - This encoder/switch is used to adjust the currently selected value
or ‘trigger’ the currently displayed parameter. When the panel is in ‘Shift’ mode the
‘Load Patch’ encoder is used to select the patch bank number, jumping up or down in
increments of 100.

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Basic Functions
Secondary functions
ARGON8X is a comprehensive and fully featured synthesiser despite its small size. Therefore
there are a number of user interface combinations that are required to access some of the
deeper functions of the synth.
The top panel UI has 4 buttons that can access secondary functions. These are the ‘Shift’,
‘Patch’, ‘Velo’ & ‘Arp’ buttons.
To access the functions labelled in light blue text you may either press ‘Shift’ to latch shift
mode or use it momentarily by holding ‘Shift’ and turning an encoder or pressing a button.
Once let go the panel will return automatically to its regular non-Shift state.
To access the functions on the panel labelled in light grey text (3 buttons bottom left, 3
buttons and 2 encoders bottom right), hold the button in that section that has a light grey
ring (‘Velo’ button or ‘Arp’ button) and press the relevant button. NOTE: These combinations
are momentary, not latch-able.
The ‘Patch/Seq’ button is primarily used to switch the screen to either the ‘Load Patch’ or
‘Load Seq’ param for loading patches or sequences, entering the panel into either ‘Patch’
mode or ‘Seq’ mode. When in ‘Patch’ mode the ‘Save’ and ‘Init’ buttons are used for patch
preset management, however when in ‘Seq’ mode the ‘Save’ and ‘Init’ buttons are used for
sequence preset management. When the white LED above this button is lit, it signifies that the
panel is in ‘Seq’ mode.
When held the ‘Patch/Seq’ button can also be used to select ‘WavMod’s for each wavetable
by turning either of the ‘Wave1’ or ‘Wave2’ encoders, to select the Filter Type by turning the
‘Cutoff’ encoder, to select the ‘Arp Gate’ length by turning the ‘Arp’ encoder or, to dial in
the amount of dynamics processing being applied by the ‘Patch Gain’ function by turning the
‘Volume’ encoder, and to select the Chord Inversion type by turning the ‘Drift’ encoder.
The ‘Init / Rand’ button/functions respond to a button hold.
Navigating and Loading Preset
To navigate through and load patches first press the ‘Patch/Seq’ button to return to the Patch
page and use the ‘Preset/Edit’ encoder to scroll through presets. Click this encoder in on the
desired preset to load it. An asterisk will appear on next to the current preset name to indicate
unsaved edits.
Init Preset
Press and hold the ‘Init’ button, a confirmation message will appear on-screen however the
preset will not be overwritten until saved.
Basic Functions
Randomise Preset
Either when in ’Shift’ mode or while momentarily holding ‘Shift’ press and hold the ‘Rand’
button, a confirmation message will appear on-screen however the preset will not be
overwritten until saved. Randomise is only available for patches.
Save Preset
First press the ’Save’ button to enter the ‘full’ save procedure (setting preset slot and/or name
- see below), or hold the ‘Save’ button to perform a ‘quick’ save (saving preset directly into
current slot with current name).
Once you are in the ‘full’ save procedure, presets are saved in the following way:
Slot Selection
Use the ‘Preset/Edit’ encoder to select the preset bank/number to save into, and press the
‘Edit’ switch to select it.
Naming
Use the ‘Page/Param’ encoder to select the character position, and use the ‘Edit’ encoder
to select the character. Press the ‘Preset/Edit’ switch to finish editing the name. There are a
number of panel shortcuts here:
• Press ‘Oct-‘ to jump to lowercase characters
• Press ‘Oct+’ to jump to uppercase characters
• Press ‘Transpose’ to jump to numbers
• Press ‘Chord’ to jump to symbols
• Press the ‘Page/Param’ switch to add a space (increment all above characters)
• Press ‘Init’ to delete the current character (decrement all above characters)
• Hold ‘Init’ to delete the entire name
Confirming
Press the ‘Preset/Edit’ switch to confirm the settings and save the preset.
At any point during the save procedure hold the ‘Page/Param’ switch to move back a step.
To exit/quit the procedure without saving the preset, press the ‘Patch/Seq’ button.

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UI Combinations
Quick Recalls
ARGON8X has 8 Quick Recall slots for quickly loading presets. Quick Recalls are controlled
using the following button combos:
• Hold ‘Patch’ + hold one of the eight buttons on bottom left of the panel to assign the
currently loaded patch to a QR slot
• Hold ‘Patch’ + press one of the eight buttons on bottom left of the panel to load the
patch in the QR slot
LFO
• Turn the ‘Rate’ encoders into the negative range to access synced rates
Oscillators
• Hold the ‘Patch’ button and turn the ‘Wave1’ or ’Wave2’ encoder to control the WavMod
parameters
Filter
• Hold the ‘Patch’ button and turn the ‘Cutoff’ encoder to control the Filter Type parameter
Envelopes
• Hold any of the EG buttons for one second and then turn the ADSR encoders to adjust all
envelopes simultaneously
• Press the ‘MEG’ button when MEG is already selected to latch MEG assign
Sequencer
• Hold the ‘Mute’ button to clear the sequencer notes
• Hold the Anim1 / Anim2 / Anim3 / Anim4 buttons to clear an animation lane
• When the screen is displaying the ‘Linked Sequence’ parameter, hold the ‘Edit’ switch to
set the value to be the currently loaded sequence.
• Hold the ‘Patch’ button and press the ‘Record’ button to enter the Step Sequencer ‘Edit’
Mode, if the currently loaded sequence is in ‘Step’ mode
UI Combinations
Arp
• Hold the ‘Arp’ button and press keys on the internal or an external keyboard to add
pattern notes or press the ‘Rest’ button to add a rest to the pattern
• Hold the ‘Patch’ button and turn the ‘Division’ encoder to control Arp Gate
Keyboard/Voice
• Press ‘Unison’ repeatedly to cycle through the different unison modes; press ‘Stack’
repeatedly to cycle through the different stack modes
• Press ‘Chord’ whilst holding a chord on the internal or an external keyboard to set the
chord mode chord.
• Hold ‘Transpose’ and press a key on the internal keyboard to transpose all notes, where
the central C key is the root note. Press ’Transpose’ with no keyboard interaction to reset
the transpose value back to 0.
• Hold the ‘Sustain’ button for one second when turning on Sustain to enable Sustain
‘Latch Mode’
• Hold the ‘Patch’ button and turn the ‘Drift’ encoder to control the Chord Invert
parameter.
Modulation
• To assign a Mod Slot either hold (momentary) or latch the desired Mod source button -
then set a depth by turning desired modulation destination parameter encoder
• When latched in a Mod Source assign mode pressing the flashing Mod Source button
again will exit assign mode
• Mod source button + ‘Depth’ encoder - set global depth for that mod source
• Press ModSlot repeatedly to cycle through and view all mod slot settings on the screen
• When the screen is displaying a mod slot ‘Depth’ parameter (most easily accessed via
assigning modulation using the panel or via the ModSlot button), hold the ‘Edit’ switch to
clear the mod slot assignment.
• To assign a mod source to an osc’s global frequency destination, use either of the fine
tune controls. ‘Tune1’ will assign to Osc1 tune, ‘Tune2’ will assign to Osc2 tune.

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UI Combinations
FX
• Press FX1 / FX2 / FX3 button repeatedly to change the FX type of the slot
• Hold FX1 / FX2 / FX3 button to reset the FX type of the slot to ‘None’
• Turn the ‘B’ encoder into the negative range for the slot with a Delay FX assigned to
access synced delay times
• Press FX1 + FX2 + FX3 to jump to the ‘FX Preset Load’ parameter
Global Settings
• When the screen is displaying the ‘Reset’ option, press the ‘Edit’ switch and follow the
confirm instructions to reset all global settings to the factory default settings. Please note
that this will also reset the Main Volume and Tempo parameter values.
• Hold the ‘Patch’ button and turn the ‘Volume’ encoder to control the Patch Gain
parameter.
Screen Parameter List
• If a screen parameter is crossed out this means that it is ‘inactive’ (and can’t be controlled)
due to the value or state of other parameters or settings.
• If a screen parameter value is underlined to indicate the currently selected value, you will
need to use the Edit encoder switch to apply newly selected values.

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Screen Map
Patch Preset
Load Patch
Save Patch
Init Patch
Randomise Patch
Linked Sequence
Keyboard / Voice
Voice Mode
Glide
Octave
Transpose
Chord Latch
Voice Drift
Voice Width
Sustain
Velo Assign
Velo Depth
AftT Assign
AftT Depth
Note Assign
Note Depth
Expr Assign
Expr Depth
Chord Invert
Osc1
Wave
Bank
Tune
Fine
WaveMod
Osc2
Wave
Bank
Tune
Fine
WaveMod
Screen Map
FX (General)
Distortion
Level
FX-1
Type
A
B
C
D
E
F
Delay Mode
Delay Sync
Swap
FX-2
Type
A
B
C
D
E
F
Delay Mode
Delay Sync
Swap
FX-3
Type
A
B
C
D
E
F
Delay Mode
Delay Sync
Swap
Arpeggiator
Status
Division
Direction
Octave
Swing
Gate
Sequence Preset
Load Sequence
Save Sequence
Init Sequence
Sequencer
Play
Record
Mode
Length
Step Length
Num Steps
Step Mode
Step Overdub
Note Mute
Note Clear
Anim1 Status
Anim1 Param
Anim1 Clear
Anim2 Status
Anim2 Param
Anim2 Clear
Anim3 Status
Anim3 Param
Anim3 Clear
Anim4 Status
Anim4 Param
Anim4 Clear
Loop
Hold
Clock
Tempo
Audio
Main Volume
Patch Gain
Headphone Level
Gain Boost
Audio In Volume
Audio In -> FX
Settings - MIDI
Channel
Omni
Pitchbend Range
MPE Mode
MPE Master Channel
MPE Num Channels
MPE Pitchbend Range
DIN In Filters
DIN Out Filters
DIN Thru
USB Thru
Arp / Seq Out
MIDI-in Oct Offset
MIDI-in Monitor
Settings - UI
Screen Brightness
Screen Switch Mode
Screensaver Idle Time
LEDs Brightness
Keyboard Local
Velocity Curve
Aftertouch Curve
Modwheel Out
Pitchbend Out
X+ Calibration
X- Calibration
Y+ Calibration
Y- Calibration
Centre Calibration
Expr Pedal - Type
Settings - Sequencer
Metronome
Pre-Roll
Quantise
Transport
Settings - General
Clock Source
Global Tune
Polychain Master
Reset Settings
Firmware Version
Osc (General)
Mix
Mode
OscMod
Spread
Filter
Cutoff
Reso
Morph
Type
Filter EG
Amount / Depth
Attack
Decay
Sustain
Release
Type
Amp EG
Amount / Depth
Attack
Decay
Sustain
Release
Type
Mod EG
Amount / Depth
Attack
Decay
Sustain
Release
Type
Assign
LFO1
Shape
Rate
Depth
Mode
Sync
Assign
LFO2
Shape
Rate
Depth
Mode
Sync
Assign
Mod Slot 1
Status
Source
Destination
Depth
Clear
Mod Slot 2
Status
Source
Destination
Depth
Clear
Mod Slot 3
Status
Source
Destination
Depth
Clear
Mod Slot 4
Status
Source
Destination
Depth
Clear
Mod Slot 5
Status
Source
Destination
Depth
Clear
Mod Slot 6
Status
Source
Destination
Depth
Clear
Mod Slot 7
Status
Source
Destination
Depth
Clear
Mod Slot 8
Status
Source
Destination
Depth
Clear
Mod (General)
Note -> Cutoff
Y+ -> LFO1 Depth
AftT -> Cutoff
Velo -> AEG Amount
Joystick
XYLock
Pitch Bend Status
X+ Assign
X+ Depth
X- Assign
X- Depth
Y+ Assign
Y+ Depth
Y- Assign
Y- Depth
FX Preset
Load FX
Save FX

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02
Connections
Headphones
Headphone output on 1/4” stereo/TRS
jack. The volume can be adjusted using
the VOLUME knob or the dedicated
Headphone Level control on the screen.
The headphone output will match the
audio output so it can be either stereo
or mono depending on the current
audio out configuration.
Line Out
Line level stereo outputs on 1/4” TS
dual-mono jacks. The left jack only will
break the stereo circuit and collapse
the signal to mono. These outputs can
be connected to any line level input
for monitoring and recording. The
line output is higher quality than the
headphone output, so always use it
when recording or performing. The
Line out level can be adjusted using the
‘Volume’ knob.
Expression Pedal over standard 1/4”
stereo/TRS jack from an external
expression source.
ARGON8X works best with expression pedals that use
the TRS polarity and have a resistance of 10k or above.
However ARGON8X has a software configuration option
for providing basic compatibility with RTS polarity pedals
as well as for improving the compatibility with different
resistances. If your expression pedal has a polarity switch
we recommend setting it to the ‘TRS’ polarity (the default
setting on most pedals). For setting maximum compatibility
with your expression pedal’s polarity and resistance value,
please see the ‘Settings - Pedal Type’ section. If you are
unable to configure ARGON8X to work adequately with
your expression pedal, you may need to use a TRS Polarity
Adapter. Please note that expression pedals with the TS
polarity will not work with ARGON8X.
Audio In
Audio Input on1/8” stereo/TRS jack.
Sustain Pedal over standard 1/4” mono/
TS from an external sustain pedal.
Note: ARGON8X supports both types of sustain pedal
polarities. “Positive / Normally Open” pedals can be
connected / disconnected whilst ARGON8X is powered
on, however “Negative / Normally Closed” pedals must be
connected before powering on the device and disconnected
after powering off the device in order to work correctly.
If your sustain pedal has a polarity switch we recommend
setting it to the “Positive” polarity. If you are unsure of your
pedal’s polarity type, it is recommended to only connect /
disconnected the pedal whilst the device is powered off.
Clock Sync (In, Out)
Clock Sync In / Out on 1/8” mono/TS
jack. Simply plug into your clockable
gear as desired. (See the Sync section)
Power
Power switch for ARGON8X. Power
via DC-9.0V - 1.5A center-positive PSU
(supplied)
USB MIDI
ARGON8X is a class compliant USB
MIDI device and connects to a USB host
via USB B Connection for MODALapp
communication, MIDI input and MIDI
output. Simply connect ARGON8X to a
USB socket, such as on your computer
or tablet with a standard USB cable and
find ‘ARGON8’ listed as a MIDI port on
your computer or tablet.
MIDI (In, Out)
MIDI In / Out on MIDI 5-pin DIN
cable. These outputs can be used
to communicate with any other
MIDI devices. The MIDI Out can be
set to Thru using MODALapp or
MODALplugin (See the MIDI section)

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03
Synthesis engine

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Oscillators
ARGON8X features 28 banks of unique morphable waveform sets located on either Wave 1
(first 24) or Wave 2 (first 24 plus an additional 4). It has a total of 32 oscillators inside.
• Wave1: This encoder allows you to sweep continuously through the selected wavetable.
Holding Patch and turning this encoder will select the WavMod type for this wavetable
set.
• Wave2: This encoder allows you to sweep continuously through the selected wavetable.
Holding Patch and turning this encoder will select the WavMod type for this wavetable
set where available (PWM and noise banks are not modulatable in this way)
• Tune1: Turning this encoder allows us to control the coarse tuning of Wave1 (Tune) at
desirable intervals +/- 2 octaves.
• Tune2: Turning this encoder allows us to control the coarse tuning of Wave2 (Tune) at
desirable intervals +/- 2 octaves.
• Fine1: Holding the ‘Shift’ button and (or when latched in shift mode) turning this
encoder allows us to control the fine tuning of Wave1 (Fine) +/- 100 cents.
• Fine2: Holding the ‘Shift’ button and (or when latched in shift mode) turning this
encoder allows us to control the fine tuning of Wave 2 (Fine) +/- 100 cents.
• Bank1: Holding the ‘Shift’ button and (or when latched in shift mode) turning this
encoder allows you to select which bank of waveforms you want on Wave 1.
• Bank2: Holding the ‘Shift’ button and (or when latched in shift mode) turning this
encoder allows you to select which bank of waveforms you want on Wave 2 (there are 4
extra banks for PWM and noise on Wave 2).
• WavMod1: Holding the ‘Patch/Seq’ button and turning the Wave1 encoder selects which
of the 32 wavetable modifiers you want to apply to the wavetable on oscillator 1.
• WavMod2: Holding the ‘Patch/Seq’ button and turning the Wave2 encoder selects which
of the 32 wavetable modifiers you want to apply to the wavetable on oscillator 2 (cannot
be applied to the PWM or noise banks).
• Spread: This introduces additional oscillators to achieve unison or stacked octaves and
intervals. In the first half of the dial, Wave 1 and Wave 2 are split into individual oscillators
and spread out over the frequency spectrum to create a fat unison sound. This effect is
increased up to the center position. Past half way, the oscillators arrange themselves into
intervals. A huge variation of chords can be created with this control in conjunction with
Wave1&2 detune.
Note: The average level of the sound will be lower when using the ‘Spread’ control.
This is because the combining oscillators are phasing in and out and not constantly re-
enforcing each other as they would if the spread is set to zero.
Oscillators
• Glide: Holding the ‘Shift’ button and (or when latched in shift mode) turning this
encoder controls the speed with which the oscillators change their pitch, ‘sliding’ from
one note to the next one pressed. Positive values will achieve normal always active glide
and negative amounts will achieve fingered glide and will only glide if another note is
already held. Envelopes will be retriggered with every note when the glide control is
centred. Moving the control in either direction will enable legato mode, where envelopes
are triggered only for the first note in a note stack.
• Mix: This encoder allows you to balance the volume between each wave. All the way to
the left you will hear only Wave 1, All the way to the right you will hear Wave 2. In the
centre you will hear a balanced blend of both waves.
• Audio In: Holding the ‘Shift’ button and (or when latched in shift mode) turning this
encoder allows you to select the volume of the Audio Input. This will default to 0 on
boot.
• OscMod: Turning this encoder controls the oscillator modifier amount where either Wave
1 is the carrier and Wave 2 is the modulator or the modifier is applied directly to Wave 1.
• Mode: Holding the ‘Shift’ button and (or when latched in shift mode) turning this
encoder selects which of the 8 oscillator modifiers you want to use.

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Oscillators Modifiers
ARGON8X features 8 oscillator modifiers to change how the oscillators cross modulate each
other. In all of the modifiers Wave 1 is the carrier and Wave 2 is the modulator.
• Phase Modulation
Effect: The phase of Wave 1’s oscillators are modulated by Wave 2’s, distorting the shape
of the waveform and producing complex frequencies. Phase Modulation is an expanded
version of “FM” found on our CRAFTsynth range
Control: Controls the Phase Modulation depth (how much Wave 2 affects the phase of
Wave 1).
Tip: For more harmonic results it is recommended to set Wave 2’s detune value to either
Octaves or Fifths. For complex waveforms the sound can get extreme fairly quickly, in
these cases a lesser PM depth is recommended.
• Ring Modulation
Effect: Wave 1’s oscillators are multiplied with Wave 2’s causing new frequencies (known
as sidebands) to be produced that are the sum and difference of those in the original
signals.
Control: Crossfades between the Dry and Ring Modulated signal on Wave 1.
Tip: For more harmonic results it is recommended to set Wave 2’s detune value to either
Octaves or Fifths. For sounds more akin to Amplitude Modulation set the crossfade value
at halfway.
• Amp Modulation:
Effect: Applies amplitude modulation to Wave 1 and Wave 2’s oscillators producing
new frequencies known as sidebands whilst retaining the original frequencies of the
wavetables
Control: Crossfades between the dry and amplitude modulated signals
Tip: Use ratios such as fifths and octaves for the most harmonic results
• Hard Sync:
Effect: Oscillator sync is performed on Wave 1, with a sharp jump occurring at the phase
reset. Wave 1 is synced to an internal master counter tracking the current playing note,
with the slave frequency being controlled via the “Osc Mod” control. This allows sync
effects to be created without having to use Wave 2’s tuning
Control: Controls the sync slave playback rate (how much faster Wave 1’s audible
oscillators are playing back in relation to the master counter).
Tip: This style of Sync is the version found on many synthesisers and works best on
harmonically rich waves, for classic kinds of synced sounds try using this effect on the
Square and Sawtooth waves (Wave Bank = 1, Wave 1 CC = 94 or 127).
Oscillator Modifiers
• Wind Sync:
Effect: Oscillator sync is performed on Wave 1, with an amplitude window applied
over the waveform to smooth the jump at the phase reset. Wave 1 is synced to an
internal master counter tracking the current playing note, with the slave frequency being
controlled via the “Osc Mod” control. This allows sync effects to be created without
having to use Wave 2’s tuning.
(Note: As the window is always applied to the waveform, this modifier will have an
impact on the sound regardless of whether the control is set to zero, this can act like
filtering with waveforms that have a lot of variation towards their edges).
Control: Controls the sync playback rate (how much faster wave 1’s audible oscillators
are playing in relation to the master counter).
Tip: Window Sync is particularly useful for smooth sync effects on simple waveforms.
• Shaper:
Effect: Crossfades between several subtle waveshaping distortion curves which are
applied to wave 1, producing varying harmonics and altering the shape of the base
wavetable
Control: Controls which shaping curve is being applied.
• Inverter:
Effect: Inverts the phase of the the wavetable (i.e inverts a positive value to a negative
and vice versa), which can create sharp discontinuities in the waveform
Control:: Controls where in the wavetable to apply the phase inversion
Tip: The effect tends to be strongest when the wavetable value to invert is furthest away
from the zero crossing of the wavetables
• Sync RM:
Effect: Applies classic two oscillator Hard Sync, where Wave 1’s oscillators are slaved to
Wave 2’s oscillators frequency, with blend-able ring modulation of the master and slave
also possible.
Control: Crossfades between the dry and amplitude modulated signals
Tip: As the Oscillators are Synced, inharmonic tuning ratios between Wave 1 and Wave 2
can be set but the output will remain harmonically linked

30 31
Wavetable Modifiers
ARGON8X has 32 static wavetable modifiers that can be applied to both Wavetables
independently. These are applied offline and effectively redraw the waveforms by applying a
process to them. Available modifications are:
• Derez 1: Applies a sample rate reduction effect to the wavetable
• Derez 2: Applies slightly more sample rate reduction
• Derez 3: Applies the most sample rate reduction out of the 3 different types
• Crush 1: Reduces the bit depth of the wavetables
• Crush 2: Further reduces the bit-depth of the wavetables
• Resample 1: Applies a naïve down-sampling algorithm, reducing the amount of detail in
the waveforms
• Resample 2: Applies slightly more down-sampling
• Resample 3: Applies the highest amount of down-sampling
• Simplify 1: Reduces the amount of high frequency partials in the wavetables
• Simplify 2: Reduces more high frequency partials than Simplify 1
• Dual Rectified 1: Alternates between a fully rectified version of the signal played back
at a faster rate and a zero value for the first half of the waveform and then mirrors the
response for the second half
• Dual Rectified 2: Alternates between a fully rectified version of the signal played back at
a faster rate and a zero value for the first half of the waveform and inverts the phase of
the first half for the second half of the wave.
• Triangle Fold: Boosts the amplitude of the waveform and wraps back around whenever
the signal would clip with a triangular curve
• Sine Fold Hybrid: Boosts the amplitude of the waveform and wraps around whenever
the signal would clip with a sinusoidal curve, with some additional wave-shaping applied
• Shaper 1: Applies an amplitude wave-shaping algorithm to the wavetables
• Shaper 2: Applies a different variation of wave-shaping effect
• Shaper 3: Applies another different wave-shaping effect
Wavetable Modifiers
• Cubic Phaseshaper: cubes the read curve of the wavetable creating a different variation
of its shape
• Scrunch Phaseshaper: reads through different portions of the wavetable at varying rates
• Half Sine Phaseshaper: reads through the wavetableusing a half of a sine wave
• Rise Over Run Phaseshaper: reads through half of the wavetable at a slower rate then
originally stored and then reads through the other half faster
• Rubber: Plays through the wavetable shape several times at varying rates and stores
them into a single wavetable
• Window Amp Sync: modulates the amplitude of the wavetable with a half sine window
that is played 4.5 * faster than the fundamental
• Resonance Sync: Uses a half wave rectified version of the wavetable (that only keeps the
positive values of the signal) to modulate the amplitude of a sine wave playing back at
8.5 * the fundamental
• Half Rectified: Applies half wave rectification to the wavetable, keeping only the positive
values of the signal
• Half Rectified Inverted: Applies half wave rectification to the wavetable, keeping only
the negative values of the signal
• Shaped RM: Applies a wave shaped variation of ring modulation to the wavetable, using
a sine wave playing back at 2.5 * the fundamental as the modulator signal
• Symmetrical Signs: all values in the first half of the waveform are set to positive, whilst
all values in the second half are set to be negative.
• Mirror: Plays through the waveform twice but mirrors the result for the second half of
the wave
• Half Reverse: Alters the playing direction of various parts of the wavetable at different
positions
• Digital Wrap: Boosts the amplitude of the wavetable and whenever it passes the
maximum range the value jumps to a different polarity.
• Sign Subtract: Subtracts the current wavetable value from its sign value, where sign is
+1 if the wavetable value is positive and -1 if the wavetable value is negative

32 33
Filter
ARGON8X has 4 state variable 2-pole resonant filters to choose from: Standard, Standard
Notch, Classic and Classic Notch (all capable of morphing from low pass, through band pass /
notch, to high pass).
• Cutoff: This parameter controls the low-pass filter cutoff frequency. This affects the
cutoff frequency of the filter, from 0Hz up to 22kHz.
• Reso: This parameter controls the amount of resonance of the filter.
• Morph: This encoder allows control of the shape of the filter: note that the filter is low-
pass by default.
- At its minimum value you have a low pass filter;
- We move through a sort of low-shelving;
- At its midpoint we have a band-pass filter or notch filter;
- At its maximum value a high-pass filter.
TIP: With this feature at lower settings you can dampen the low frequencies while
maintaining a rich high-end texture.
• Type: Holding the ‘Patch/Seq’ button and turning the Cutoff encoder selects the current
type of the filter. The filter types available are:
- Standard
- Standard Notch
- Classic
- Classic Notch

34 35
Envelopes
ARGON8X now provides 3 updated separate 4-stage Envelope Generators (i.e. envelopes),
one for the filter (FILT-EG), one for the amplifier (AMP-EG) and one for modulations (MOD-
EG). With negative amounts only the attack, decay and sustain levels are inverted, the release
phase will still tend to 0.
The envelope generator represented on the encoders can be selected using the 3 dedicated
buttons to the right of the envelope depth encoder.
• Attack: This parameter controls the time passing from the moment you press a key (i.e.
‘MIDI Note On’ message) until the sound reaches its maximum value.
• Decay: This parameter controls the time passing for the envelope to drop from its
maximum value to a sustain level (see below).
• Sustain: This parameter controls the level of the sustain phase (i.e. the volume of the
sound while keeping the key pressed for AMP-EG). If there are no modulations active, this
volume keeps constant until you release the key. (The envelope then enters the ‘release’
phase)
• Release: This parameter controls the time passing from the moment you leave a key (i.e.
‘MIDI Note Off’ message) until the sound reaches silence.
• Depth: This controls the envelope depth amount of the selected envelope generator (i.e.
FILT-EG, AMP-EG or MOD-EG.) This gives bi-polar control of the amount of modulation
the envelope has over its destination/s.
• Type: There are 8 envelope types. These types are stored per-patch and each envelope
type is independent so you can have a different type for MEG, FEG and AEG in the same
patch. You can find these settings at the bottom of the AEG, FEG and MEG pages on the
screen.
- Expo - classic exponential curve - suited for most sound types
- Snappy - fast attack and decay time curves - best suited for percussive material
- Soft - smoother attack and release time curves - best suited for pads
- Linear - simple linear ramp for each envelope stage - best suited for modulation
- Expo Long – Expo curve with double the maximum time for each stage of the envelope
- Snappy Long – Snappy curve with double the maximum time for each stage of the
envelope
- Soft Long – Soft curve with double the maximum time for each stage of the envelope
- Linear Long – Linear curve with double the maximum time for each stage of the
envelope
Long variants possess a maximum release time of 10 seconds.
Envelopes
• FILT-EG, AMP-EG, MOD-EG: These buttons selects which envelope generator the above
controls are representing.
Pressing the MOD-EG button again latches the assign mode - you will notice the LED
blinking to indicate you are in assign mode. Press again to exit assign mode.
TIP: Holding down any of the EG select button and changing the ADSR parameters will
alter all three envelopes simultaneously and is a useful shortcut to quickly change all
envelopes at once.

36 37
LFOs
ARGON8X features two individual low frequency oscillators. LFO1 is global and LFO2 is
polyphonic.
Both LFO1 and LFO2 can be set to Retrigger, Single and Free mode and have these
parameters:
• LFO1: This button enters and exits assign mode for LFO1
• LFO2: This button enters and exits assign mode for LFO2
This is how we route the LFO’s to parameters in the matrix. Once in this mode, simply
turning the knob for the parameter that you would like the LFO to modulate, you will see
the LED above the button begin to flash to indicate you are currently in an assign mode.
• Rate: This parameter controls the speed of the LFO.
LFO1 in a positive amount is free rate meaning the LFO will never retrigger. In negative
amounts it is synced to the project tempo at various subdivisions.
LFO2 in a positive direction is free rate for the first half then snaps to divisions of the main
frequency of the note being played. This allows the LFO frequency to run into the audible
range and maintain harmonious modulations. A massive array of effects can be achieved
in this way, including AM and FM. In negative amounts the first half of the dial is synced
to the tempo and the second half is synced to divisions of the main frequency of the note
being played
• Shape: Holding the ‘Shift’ button and (or when latched in shift mode) turning this
encoder controls the given LFO Shape. This allows you to continuously sweep through the
four available LFO waveforms (i.e. sine, sawtooth, square and sample & hold).
• Depth: This parameter controls the depth of the given LFOs modulation.
• Mode: Holding the ‘Shift’ button and (or when latched in shift mode) turning this
encoder selects the Retrigger Mode. The modes are:
Retrigger - In this mode, each new keypress restarts the LFO and it the continues to run -
particularly useful for Unison/Stack sounds.
Free - In this mode LFO 2 is never reset, so it could be at any phase when a note is
pressed.
Single - In this mode, the LFO will start when a new key is pressed, complete cycle and
stop, but will not retrigger when a new note is triggered and one is already held.
Arpeggiator
ARGON8X features an intuitive programmable arpeggiator. The speed of the arpeggiator is
controlled by the current clock which can either be received from the sync in port, external
MIDI or from the internal clock in ARGON8X.
For arpeggiator ‘hold’ functionality please use the Sustain ‘Latch Mode’ as described below.
• Arp: The Arp can be enabled / disabled by pressing this button. Holding this and entering
notes using the keys or over USB or MIDI connection will input notes to the Arp. Rests
can be input by pressing the Arp Rest button while entering notes.
• Division: Turning this encoder allows you to select the clock division of the Arp
• Mode: Holding the ‘Shift’ button and (or when latched in shift mode) turning this
encoder allows you to select the octave range and direction of the Arp.
• Swing: Holding the ‘Arp’ button and turning this encoder allows you to dial in swing
to the Arp. This setting is bi-polar allowing us to nudge every other note backward or
forward in time.
• Arp Gate: Holding the ‘Patch’ button and turning the Arp encoder allows you to set Arp
Gate length.
• Sustain ‘Latch Mode’: Holding ‘Velo’ and holding the ‘Sustain’ button for one second
will enable Sustain ‘Latch Mode’ - press and release a note / chord to sustain it, press a
new note / chord to overwrite the existing one. This also provides the classic arpeggiator
‘Hold’ functionality.
Note. Programmed patterns in the arpeggiator are temporary and are not saved per patch.
They will remain until reprogrammed or until the unit is power cycled.

38 39
Sequencer
ARGON8X has an extremely powerful sequencer on board, that can be configured in either
real-time or step modes. Both modes feature four recordable / editable parameter animation
lanes, allowing you to add parameter motion to your sequences over time.
NOTE: Most screen only sequencer parameters can be found on the Seq page of the screen
menu. To navigate to this, Scroll the Page/Param left screen encoder in Page mode to the Seq
page. Click the left screen encoder to enter Param mode and scroll through the parameters.
• Play: This button starts and stops the sequencer.
• Record: This button allows you to record enable and disable. See below for record
behaviour in real-time and step modes.
• Mode: This is a screen only parameter that sets the current sequence to either real-time
(default) or step modes.
NOTE: switching a sequence from real time to step mode (or vice versa) will initialise the
sequence, as the two modes are not compatible. Once a sequence is saved as a step
sequence, it will always load in step mode.
• Mute: This button mutes all notes in the sequence. Hold the ‘Mute’ button to clear all
the sequencer notes in the currently selected sequence.
• Tempo: Turning this encoder selects the tempo of the internal clock.
• Length: Holding the ‘Shift’ button and (or when latched in shift mode) turning this
encoder allows you to select the length of the selected sequence.
• Quantise: Holding the ‘Arp’ button and turning this encoder allows you to select an
input quantise value for the sequencer.
• Seq Loop: Allows you to loop certain parts of the sequencer. When the button is first
pressed is the loop start point and when it is released becomes the loop end point. When
a loop is active pressing the button again will disable the loop.
When the sequence is configured in real time mode, the looped portion is quantised to
1/16th of the total sequence length.
• Seq Hold: Holds the current sequencer step and repeats it, like a beat repeater. When
the button is released the sequencer carries on from the location it should have been
before the step was repeated so it will still be in time.
In real-time mode a ‘step’ is a 16th of the total sequence length, on release, the
sequencer carries on playing from the current position
Sequencer
• Linked Sequences: This is a screen only parameter that allows you to link a sequence
to a specific patch. This loads this sequence every time its linked patch is loaded. You
can access this easily by pressing the Patch button and using the Page/Param encoder to
scroll all the way to the right. Simply input the desired sequence number for that patch
or select ‘Off’ for no linked sequence. Like any other patch parameter, the patch must be
saved in order to retain the linked sequence number.
Tip: When selecting a Linked Sequence, hold the Preset/Edit switch to select the current
sequence.
Real-time Mode
The Real-time sequencer boasts a 512-note capacity and will record notes as you have played
them in making this the ideal sketchpad for your musical ideas.
• Recording: Pressing record starts the sequencer recording. If the sequencer is not
running when this is pressed and pre-roll is disabled, the sequencer will start. By default,
a metronome will play whilst the sequencer is recording.
Up to four parameters can be recorded while recording, one for each animation lane.
Tip: You can enable or disable the metronome in the MODALapp or on-screen on the
Settings – Seq page.
• Length (Shift + Tempo): Allows you to select the length of the selected sequence.
• Quantise (Arp + Tempo): Allows you to select an input quantise value for the
sequencer. This setting is global and can be found on the screen on the Settings – Seq
page.
Holding the Shift button and (or when latched in shift mode) holding the Anim1 / Anim2 /
Anim3 / Anim4 buttons clear their respective animation lanes.
The Sequence position LED will always cycle 1 - 16 over the current sequence length. Eg. if
sequencer is set to 4 bars; it will take 4 bars for the sequencer LED to scroll from 1 to 16 (i.e.
not steps) If sequencer is running, any sequencer length changes will only take affect at the
beginning of a bar.