Motas Motas-6 User manual

User Guide
document version 1.16 (non-printed)
for firmware version 06020107
September 10, 2018

Contents
1Foreword ................................ 1
2Proper use and maintenance ......................... 2
3Document conventions ........................... 4
4Introduction ............................... 5
5Top panel ................................ 7
6Rear panel ................................ 8
7Quick-start ................................ 9
8Control Overview .............................10
9Parameter pages .............................12
9.1 Parameter page display overview ......................13
10 Modulation................................15
10.1 MIDI / CV Modulations ..........................16
10.2 Global low-frequency oscillators (LFOx) ....................18
10.3 Dedicated low-frequency oscillator (LFO)....................20
10.4 Envelope Generator (EG) .........................22
User Guide v1.16 page i

11 Parameter pages - in depth ..........................25
11.1 Master Pitch ..............................25
11.2 Oscillator 1 ..............................25
11.3 Oscillator 2 ..............................27
11.4 Oscillator 3 ..............................29
11.5 Mixer.................................30
11.6 Low-pass filter 1 .............................32
11.7 High-pass filter .............................33
11.8 Low-pass filter 2 .............................33
11.9 Output stage ..............................34
12 Patch summary ..............................35
13 Load, save and copy patch ..........................36
13.1 Load patch ..............................36
13.2 Save and erase patches..........................36
13.3 Copy/Reset/Randomise patch .......................37
14 Monitor .................................38
14.1 Volume level monitor ...........................38
14.2 MIDI in monitor .............................38
14.3 Oscilloscope ..............................39
14.4 Spectrum analyser ............................40
15 Arpeggiator ...............................41
15.1 Main arpeggiator settings .........................41
15.2 More arpeggiator settings .........................41
15.3 Internal arpeggiator settings ........................42
16 Pattern sequencer .............................43
16.1 Control overview ............................43
16.2 Pattern edit mode ............................43
16.3 Load/save/copy patterns .........................45
User Guide v1.16 CONTENTS page ii

16.4 Sequence edit mode ...........................45
16.5 Load/save sequences ..........................45
17 Vector morphing..............................46
18 Setup..................................47
18.1 Patch settings .............................47
18.2 Tempo settings .............................47
18.3 MIDI channels .............................48
18.4 Modulators ..............................48
18.5 Morph modulators ............................48
18.6 CV/Gate inputs .............................49
18.7 Tuning ................................49
18.8 SysEx data backup............................50
18.9 NRPN control + SysEx ...........................50
18.10 System settings .............................50
18.11 Custom settings .............................51
18.12 Calibration ..............................51
18.13 Calibration values ............................52
18.14 System status ..............................52
18.15 Version info ..............................52
19 Real-time patch change recording .......................53
ISignal path diagram (simplified) ........................55
II Glossary ................................56
III MIDI Implementation Chart ..........................59
IV MIDI SysEx messages ............................62
VSpecifications...............................63
User Guide v1.16 CONTENTS page iii

VI EU Declaration of Conformity .........................64
User Guide v1.16 CONTENTS page iv

1Foreword
Thank you for taking the time to read this user guide.
The synthesizer is the result of many years of development to create a great-sounding instru-
ment with very comprehensive modulation capabilities and an easy to use and responsive interface.
To get the most out of this powerful synthesizer we recommend you study this guide carefully whilst practis-
ing and listening at the same time. You cannot beat hands-on experience!
We hope you will find using an enjoyable experience and discover some great new sounds.
For the latest news and updates please visit our website https://www.motas-synth.uk.
For technical support, general enquiries or user feedback (gratefully received) please email
[email protected]
Whilst every effort has been made to ensure that this guide is as accurate as possible Motas Electronics
Limited will not be liable for any erroneous information. This manual may be updated at any time without
prior notice. Please check the website for updates.
This guide or any portion of it may not be reproduced in any form without the manufacturer’s express
consent.
User Guide v1.16 page 1

2Proper use and maintenance
!
Please read the following instructions
carefully and keep them with the appara-
tus. Do not operate the apparatus until you
have read and understood this section.
Proper use
• Only use a correctly specified power supply oth-
erwise damage may occur to the apparatus and/
or other connected equipment.
• Place the apparatus on a stable surface.
• Never use the apparatus under damp conditions.
Do not expose the apparatus to rain. Use the
apparatus in enclosed rooms only.
• Unplug the apparatus during lightning storms or
when unused for long periods of time.
• Never operate the apparatus or power supply
with wet hands.
• Never place objects containing liquids on or near
the apparatus.
• Do not use the apparatus in extremely dusty or
dirty environments.
• The rear left of the chassis gets warm in normal
use – make sure that adequate ventilation is avail-
able. Do not place the apparatus near heat
sources such as radiators.
• Make sure no foreign objects find their way into
the chassis. If for some reason this should oc-
cur, switch the power off, unplug the device and
consult qualified service personnel.
• Do not expose the apparatus to direct sunlight
as this could damage the display and fade the
finish.
• Do not expose the apparatus to extreme vibra-
tions.
• Refer all servicing to qualified service personnel.
Servicing is required when the apparatus has been
damaged (or potentially has been damaged) in
any way such as power connections damaged,
liquid has been spilled or objects have fallen into
the apparatus, the apparatus has been exposed
to rain or moisture, apparatus does not operate
normally or has been dropped.
• This apparatus, used on its own or with amplifiers,
speakers or headphones, can generate volume
levels that may do irreparable damage to your
hearing.
!
Do not allow the apparatus to get
damp or wet, if this happens turn off the unit
immediately and seek advice of qualified
service personnel.
!
Do not open the apparatus, there
are no user-serviceable parts inside.
!
Only use a correctly specified power
supply otherwise damage may occur to the
apparatus and/or other connected equip-
ment. The power supply must be regulated
12 VDC (±10 %, centre positive) and have
a current rating of at least 800 mA.
This apparatus is designed exclusively to produce
low- frequency audio signals for the purpose of gen-
erating sound. Any other use is prohibited. Motas
Electronics Limited is not liable for damages due to
incorrect use.
Maintenance
• Do not open the apparatus or remove the cover.
Refer all service and repair tasks to qualified per-
sonnel. The interior of the chassis contains no
components that require user maintenance.
• The top and rear panels in the stainless-steel fin-
ish have been treated with a special surface coat-
User Guide v1.16 page 2

ing to reduce the appearance of finger marks.
• Use only a dry, soft cloth (e.g. a micro-fibre cloth)
or brush to clean the device. Never use alcohol,
cleaning solutions or similar chemicals as they
will probably damage the surface finish of the
chassis and/or the markings.
i
The symbol below indicates that this
product must not be disposed of with your
other household waste. Instead, it is your re-
sponsibility to dispose of your waste equip-
ment by handing it over to a designated
collection point for the recycling of waste
electrical and electronic equipment. The
separate collection and recycling of your
waste equipment at the time of disposal
will help conserve natural resources and en-
sure that it is recycled in a manner that pro-
tects human health and the environment.
For more information about where you can
drop off your waste for recycling, please
contact your Local Authority, or where you
purchased your product.
User Guide v1.16 CHAPTER 2. PROPER USE AND MAINTENANCE page 3

3Document conventions
You will find many screenshots taken from
throughout this guide. An example
is show below:
The following document formatting conventions are
used:
•Link (blue text) is a weblink or a link to another
part of this document.
•1(number) refers to an item on the top panel
of the unit.
•A(letter) refers to an item on the rear panel of
the unit.
•this or this shows text you may see on
the display.
•Ishows a symbol you may see on the display.
•TEXT or refers to a push button on
the top panel labelled with that text or symbol.
•TEXT or refers to a rotary knob
on the top panel labelled with that text or sym-
bol.
• refers to the rotary encoder data-entry wheel
on the lower RHS of the front panel.
Tip section highlighted with a ’light-
bulb’ icon.
i
Information section highlighted with
an ’i’ icon.
Advanced information section high-
lighted with a ’gears’ icon. It is not nec-
essary to understand these sections to suc-
cessfully use .
!
Warning section highlighted with a
’warning’ icon. It is important to ensure that
you read and understand these sections.
User Guide v1.16 page 4

4Introduction
is a super-flexible monophonic syn-
thesizer with classic analogue subtractive synthesis
and powerful digital control - giving huge modula-
tion possibilities.
• Fully analogue audio signal path
• Three analogue oscillators (VCOs) with freely mix-
able waveforms:
–triangle (oscillators 1, 2 and 3)
–sawtooth (oscillators 1, 2 and 3)
–variable width pulse (oscillators 1 and 3)
–square and sub-oscillator (oscillator 2)
• Oscillator hard-syncing (multiple options)
• Analogue phase modulation (oscillators 2 and 3)
• Analogue noise souce (white or pink)
• Internal audio feedback or external audio input
• 4 CV/gate inputs for analogue control
• Three independent analogue filters (VCFs) with
flexible routing:
–Low-pass resonant filter (6-pole with selectable
outputs and resonance character adjustment)
–Second low-pass resonant filter (4-pole)
–High-pass filter (2-pole)
• Multiple output distortion options
• Powerful modulation architecture:
–4 global LFOs (Low Frequency Oscillators)
–4 global EGs (Envelope Generators)
–33 parameter-local LFOs
–33 parameter-local EGs
–Four freely configurable modulation
sources from MIDI and CV/gate inputs
• Quick-access buttons to 5 active patches
• Copy/reset/randomise feature
• Full MIDI control and USB MIDI interface
• Oscilloscope and spectrum analyser
• Flexible arpeggiator
• Built-in pattern sequencer
• Non-volatile internal memory for saving 500 patches,
56 patterns, 16 sequences and user settings
• High-resolution OLED graphic display
• Compact high-quality tabletop case
Analogue oscillators
has three analogue voltage-controlled
oscillators (VCOs) with various hard-sync, pulse-width
and phase-modulation options. These are true ana-
logue oscillators and not DCOs. The oscillators, ana-
logue noise source (with white/pink output option)
and an internal feedback routing or external audio
input all feed into a mixer before the filters.
Analogue filters
has very powerful filtering capabili-
ties. There is a 6-pole voltage-controlled low-pass
filter (VCF) with adjustable resonance to self-oscillation
(with selectable 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 and 6-pole outputs),
a 2-pole high-pass filter and a second 4-pole low-
pass filter with adjustable resonance to self-oscillation
(similar in design to the filter from a certain silver
box from the 1980s. . . )
The filters can be chained in parallel or in series and
the outputs are separately mixable giving huge sound-
creation potential. The final audio output has a va-
riety of clipping distortion options.
Modulation
Each analogue-controlled parameter has its own
dedicated LFO and EG. In addition each parame-
ter has dedicated modulation amount settings from
velocity, pitch, the global modulation sources and
the global LFOs and EGs. Secondary ’modulation
of the modulators’ is also possible, for example, a
global modulation source can control the LFO fre-
quency. This allows very flexible and powerful con-
trol of the analogue sound.
Up to four global modulation sources can be freely
User Guide v1.16 page 5

defined from incoming MIDI controller data and/or
analogue signals on the CV/gate inputs.
The internal architecture uses high-
resolution digital signals for the modulation
allowing a total of 37 simultaneous LFOs and
EGs.
User interface
Dedicated analogue rotary potentiometers are
used to access the basic analogue parameter
pages and to allow fast ’tweaking’ in real-time. In
addition uses a rotary rotary encoder
in combination with tactile push buttons for
data entry and editing.
Display
has an OLED (organic light emitting
diode) display with a fast update rate and wide
viewing angle. The display intensity can be ad-
justed.
External connections
has traditional MIDI input and MIDI
output connectors in addition to USB MIDI. USB MIDI
allows faster data transfer to and from a PC and
is recognised as a standard MIDI de-
vice (no special drivers should be needed).
There are four independent analogue CV/gate in-
puts to allow playing/modulation from external ana-
logue sequencers, controllers and modular synthe-
sizers.
The main audio output is monophonic and in ad-
dition there is a mono headphone output (on a
stereo connector).
Other features
has a flexible arpeggiator. There are
global and patch-specific arpeggiator settings. The
play mode, octave range, pattern, note length and
swing can be adjusted and synced to MIDI, CV or
internal clock. A special global mode allows rapid
patch changing as the arpeggiator plays.
The pattern sequencer allows 1-bar patterns to be
entered where each note in each pattern can be
adjusted for pitch, velocity, time, duration, micro-
tune and patch change. Real-time sound param-
eter changes can be recorded and edited too.
Patterns can be arranged into a 2-line simple se-
quence with pattern repeat, transpose, time offset
and patch settings.
More than 500 sound patches can be saved to
non-volatile memory.
There is a useful oscilloscope and spectrum anal-
yser feature that allow the user to study the output
signals on the display.
User Guide v1.16 CHAPTER 4. INTRODUCTION page 6

5Top panel
1sound editing ’parameter’ knobs with LEDs
[x 33]
2quick-access patch-change buttons with
LEDs [x 5]
3OLED display, main volume knob and mon-
itor button
4modulation settings / sequence control but-
tons [x 18]
5rotary encoder and buttons [x 4]for data
entry/options†
6buttons to access other features [x 9]
†Panic combination: pressing the rotary encoder
and simultaneously will turn off all playing
notes and reset controllers. Useful if, for example,
a controller keyboard is unplugged leaving notes
hanging.
User Guide v1.16 page 7

6Rear panel
The lettering at the top of the rear panel is printed
upside down so that the user can read the lettering
when peering over from the top of the unit.
Aheadphones out (2 channel mono)
[Stereo 6.35mm phone socket ]
Bmain audio out (mono)
[Mono 6.35mm phone socket ]
Cexternal audio input (leave unconnected for
internal feedback routing)
[Mono 6.35mm phone socket ]
DCV/gate inputs [3.5mm sockets x 4]
EMIDI out [5-pin DIN socket ]
FMIDI in [5-pin DIN socket ]
GUSB MIDI socket for connection to PC
[USB type-B ]
Hpower supply in
[2.1mm. 12V DC, centre positive ]
Jpower on/off push switch
[button in = power on ]
User Guide v1.16 page 8

7Quick-start
1. Firstly ensure that the power button Jis off
and the main volume control 3is set to min-
imum.
2. Plug a MIDI cable from your MIDI keyboard to
the MIDI IN connector F. Turn on your MIDI
keyboard and set it up to send MIDI notes as
you play.
Alternatively connect to your
PC with a USB cable – it should appear as
a standard MIDI device (once powered on).
Use your sequencer or other software to send
note data.
Ensure the receive MIDI chan-
nel matches the send channel number – for
more info see 18.3.
3. Plug a mono audio patch cable from the main
audio out Bto your external amplification
system. Set the gain level low initially, to avoid
any audio pops when is switched
on. Alternatively monitor on headphones A.
4. Plug in the 12V DC power supply into connec-
tion H.
5. Turn on using the power button
J. The display will show the start-up image.
6. Press MONITOR (in the 3group) and
then the right arrow button . The dis-
play will change and show MIDI diagnosics
monitoring information for the incoming MIDI
data if everything is working correctly. If you
don’t see this check your connections and
external settings. For more information on the
MIDI monitoring see chapter 14.
7. Press LOAD (button in the 6group).
and then use the rotary encoder to scroll
through the available presets sounds (in bank
0). As each preset is selected the settings are
loaded in and you should be able to hear au-
dio as you play. For more information on load-
ing sounds see chapter 13. Adjust the volume
level control 3to a suitable listening level.
User Guide v1.16 page 9

8Control Overview
To access the settings (also known as parameters)
that determine the sound you turn a rotary knob
1corresponding to the setting that you want
to change. Each rotary knob 1is associated
with it’s own ’parameter page’. Normally the dis-
play will then change to show the settings for the
parameter page associated with that knob.
Turning a rotary knob 1normally has the side-
effect of also changing the offset value for that pa-
rameter page. Use the ’value lock’ feature to al-
low changing of the active parameter page with-
out changing the offset. Press the VALUE LOCK
button to toggle ’value-lock’ on and off. When
’locked’ the LED will flash next to the VALUE LOCK
button.
Conversely use the ’page-lock’ mode to allow rapid
hands-on changes of parameter basic offsets such
as sweeping filter cut-off, changing oscillator mix
levels etc. without changing the active parameter
page. Press the PAGE LOCK button to toggle
’page-lock’ on and off. When ’locked’ the LED will
flash next to the PAGE LOCK button.
For faster data entry when using the rotary encoder
, push the rotary encoder wheel down at the
same time as turning.
MIDI panic
In the case of any ’stuck’ notes e.g. if a MIDI key-
board is unplugged whilst a note is ’on’, press and
hold the rotary encoder wheel down and then
also press to turn all notes off.
Master volume
Turn the VOLUME to set the output volume
level.
Patch parameter editing
The sound generated by is controlled
by the settings on 33 parameter ’pages’ – each
parameter has its own ’page’ shown on the dis-
play. These are explained in detail in chapter 11. To
access a particular parameter page turn the ap-
propriate rotary knob 1. The active parameter
page is shown by the adjacent flashing LED.
Patch changing
has 5 patches (sound setups) in
memory ready for easy access. To change presets
press one of the preset 2buttons 1,2
,3,4or 5. The corresponding
preset 2LED will be lit to show the active patch.
See chapter 12 for more details.
Load/save/copy
To load or save patches, patterns or sequences
press LOAD or SAVE . To copy patch set-
tings, reset settings or randomise parameter page
settings press COPY . See chapter 13 for more
details.
Monitor
To view signal level, the incoming MIDI signals and
output signals and access the oscilloscope and spec-
trum analyser features use the ’monitor’ feature
MONITOR . See chapter 14 for more details.
Arpeggiator
has a powerful arpeggiator feature
– press ARPEG.. See chapter 15 for more de-
tails.
Pattern sequence
has a pattern sequencer. Press
PATTERN to access the patterns and
SEQUENCE to access the sequencer. See chap-
ter 16 for more details.
Vector morphing
has a vector morphing feature to al-
low smooth transition from the sound parameters
of one patch to another using an external con-
troller. To access the vector morphing feature press
User Guide v1.16 page 10

whilst a preset page is displayed. See chap-
ter 17 for more details.
Setup
To access various global settings and parameters
(such as MIDI receive channel, calibration and mod-
ulation sources) press SETUP . See chapter 18
for more details.
Live sound changes
can send and receive MIDI NRPN mes-
sages to allow external recording and control of
patch settings. See chapter 19 for more details.
User Guide v1.16 CHAPTER 8. CONTROL OVERVIEW page 11

9Parameter pages
The sound generated by is controlled
by the settings on 33 parameter ’pages’ – each
parameter has its own ’page’ shown on the dis-
play. These are listed below and explained in de-
tail in chapter 11. To access a particular parameter
page turn the appropriate rotary knob 1. The
active parameter page is shown by the adjacent
flashing LED indicator.
Use the ’value lock’ feature to allow
changing of the active parameter page
without changing the sound parameters.
Press the VALUE LOCK button to toggle
’value-lock’ on and off. When ’locked’ the
LED will flash next to the VALUE LOCK
button.
The listing below is a summary of each parameter
page starting from the top left of the front panel
moving from left-to-right and then down in rows.
Parameter page summary
•Master pitch page:
MASTER PITCH pitch control of all
3 oscillators
•Oscillator 1 pages:
overall volume level
PITCH pitch control and
hard sync. options
triangle waveform volume level
sawtooth waveform volume level
PWM pulse-width control
pulse waveform volume level
•Oscillator 2 pages:
PHASE MOD phase modulation control
overall volume level
PITCH pitch control and
hard sync. options
triangle waveform
volume level
sawtooth waveform
volume level
square waveform
volume level
SUB sub-oscillator waveform
volume level
•Oscillator 3 pages:
PHASE MOD phase modulation control
overall volume level
PITCH pitch control
triangle waveform
volume level
sawtooth waveform
volume level
PWM pulse-width control
pulse waveform
volume level
•Mixer pages:
noise source volume level
and white/pink option
overall volume level from mixer
and boost option
feedback/external audio
input volume level
User Guide v1.16 page 12

•Low-pass filter 1 pages:
cut-off frequency and
input routing options
resonance amount and
character option
output volume level and
routing options
•High-pass filter pages:
cut-off frequency and
input routing options
output volume level and
routing options
•Low-pass filter 2 pages:
cut-off frequency and
input routing options
resonance amount
output volume level and
routing options
•Output stage page:
output volume level and
clipping options
Use the ’page-lock’ mode to al-
low rapid hands-on changes of parame-
ter basic offsets such as sweeping filter cut-
off, changing oscillator mix levels etc. with-
out changing the active parameter page.
Press the PAGE LOCK button to toggle
’page-lock’ on and off. When ’locked’ the
LED will flash next to the PAGE LOCK but-
ton.
9.1 Parameter page display overview
Although controlling the sound in may
appear to be rather daunting at first given the num-
ber of parameter pages and the large number op-
tions on each page, once you have mastered op-
eration of one of the parameter pages you will un-
derstand most of all the others as the basic opera-
tion is common to all pages.
So let’s start by explaining operation of one of the
parameter pages. Start by reseting the current patch
by pressing COPY and selecting ’reset patch’.
Then turn the low-pass filter 1 cut-off control
to access that parameter page. You should now
see something similar on the display to that shown
in the figure below.
Page title
Each page has a ’destination’ i.e. what aspect of
the synthesizer it controls, and this is labelled at the
top left of the display. In this case it is
lpf-1 :cutoff - the cut-off frequency of
low-pass filter 1.
Basic offset
Each parameter page has a basic offset level that
can be adjusted using the rotary knobs 1or ro-
tary encoder and up and down but-
tons 5. All of the modulation sources (see chap-
ter 10) add (or subtract) from this offset to gener-
ate the final level. The rotary encoder, and
adjust the basic offset for the active page
only when the basic offset is the active editable
item (shown as flashing), otherwise they will control
other parameters. However, the rotary knobs 1
always control the basic offset for their parameter
page (except when ’value-lock’ is enabled).
User Guide v1.16 CHAPTER 9. PARAMETER PAGES page 13

Use the rotary knobs 1for smooth fine
control of the parameter page offset. Use
the and buttons to jump set
amounts in offset.
Push the rotary encoder and turn
at the same time to change values in larger
steps for rapid sound adjustments.
Page options
Some parameter pages have additional options.
For pages with a single option and
cycle back and forth through the single option set-
tings. For pages with two options the button
cycles through option 1 whilst the button
cycles through option 2.
In the example shown the single option is for the
source of the audio input to the filter, in this case set
to the main mix. You can only change the page
option when the active editing item is the basic of-
fet (shown by flashing value at the bottom right-
hand of the display) otherwise con-
trol other parameters (more on this later!).
Current values
At the far right of the screen a horizontal bar shows
the current level of the destination signal in real
time. The current value is the sum of the basic off-
set for the page with all the modulation signals (see
chapter 10 for explanation of the modulation op-
tions).
If the controlling signal rises above the maximum
of the destination then an ’up’ arrow kis shown
instead of the bar, and if the controlling signal falls
below the minimum a ’down’ arrow lis shown
instead of the bar.
The horizontal arrow next to the solid vertical bar
shows the current position of the rotary knob 1.
i
When the parameter page displays
modulations not active
the current value will follow the basic offset,
since all the modulations amounts are set
to zero.
i
The current value bar tries to fol-
low the parameter page value in real-time.
However, if the modulation is very fast this
display will not be able to ’keep-up’ and so
you will only see a snapshot of the value at
that point in time.
Current preset
has 5 preset patches. The current
patch for editing is shown as a number in the bot-
tom left corner (patch 1 in this case). In addition
a corresponding preset 2LED will be brightly lit.
When the arpeggiator or pattern sequencer changes
the played preset patch the LED for that preset will
be dimly lit, whilst the patch for editing will still be
brightly lit. To change presets press one of the pre-
set 2buttons.
User Guide v1.16 CHAPTER 9. PARAMETER PAGES page 14

10 Modulation
Modulation means changing parameter values from
a modulation source. This could be a freely-changing
modulation with time, such as from a low-frequency
oscillator (LFO) that is not synchronised or modula-
tion that is synchronised to the start of a key press,
such as from an envelope generator (EG) triggered
by a note-on event.
Conventional analogue synthesizers typically have
a small number of LFOs (from 1 to 3 or so) and
EGs (usually 1 or 2) that are used for modulation.
In some cases the modulation sources have fixed
destinations (such as a dedicated EG for output
level) or can be set to only a limited number of des-
tinations (such as filter cut-off frequency or pitch).
is different – every parameter has its
own dedicated LFO and dedicated EG in addition
to dedicated modulation amount settings from ve-
locity, pitch, 4 global LFOs, 4 global EGs and 4 ex-
ternal modulation sources (MIDI or CV input)! This
powerful architecture allows complete freedom to
modulate and control almost every aspect of the
sound generation. You can freely set the mod-
ulation for every parameter separately if desired
or have coupled modulation between parameters
using the global modulation sources, if you wish.
Each parameter page allows you to set the levels
and routings of the various parameters that deter-
mine the sound, but things get a lot more interest-
ing once some modulation is used. Modulation al-
lows creation of interesting sounds that change in
character over time.
i
Perhaps the most common ’modu-
lation’ used in synthesizing sounds (and of-
ten not really considered as modulation)
is simply applying an envelope modula-
tion to the output signal level. With this
’modulation’ the volume increases once a
key is pressed and decays away once the
key is released. Without this modulation
a constant sound volume would be heard
whether or not a key was pressed.
Each and every parameter page has dedicated
modulation control amounts from 9 sources:
IMIDI/CV note-on value
KMIDI note velocity
GMIDI/CV global modulation M1
HMIDI/CV global modulation M2
IMIDI/CV global modulation M3
JMIDI/CV global modulation M4
lfox choice of global LFO x = 1–4
lfo dedicated LFO for
each parameter page
egx choice of global EG x = 1 – 4, or
dedicated EG
The modulation amount can be zero (for no mod-
ulation), positive or negative. The actual modula-
tion signal applied to the parameter page value
is the product (i.e. multiplication) of the modula-
tion amount and the modulation source signal at
that point in time. All of the modulation signals are
added together with the parameter page basic
offset value to give the resulting value for the pa-
rameter page value.
User Guide v1.16 page 15