Vermona uniCYCLE User manual

Bedienungsanleitung
User Guide
uniCYCLE

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Foreword
An oscillator is not the only sound source in a synthesizer or modular system, but it is surely the most
important one. Because of this, there is a good reason for it to be fully convincing. This was our approach for our
synthesizers PERfourMER, Mono Lancet and ’14 Analogsynthesizer. The very same demand and standards were
true for the development of uniCYCLE.
Being a modular component, uniCYCLE has been equipped with a couple of special capabilities such as hard- and
soft-sync as well as modulation options for its waveforms. As a result, uniCYCLE offers VERMONA’s superior
analogue sound quality and musicality as well as versatile possibilities that can fully unfold in a modular
scenario.
Your VERMONA crew from the
Elektroakustischen Manufaktur, Erlbach

User Guide uniCYCLE
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Unpacking
To ensure top quality, we carefully checked the uniCYCLE module before packaging. Nevertheless, we cannot
fully exclude damage during transportation. Therefore, we kindly ask you to inspect uniCYCLE by yourself, once
you receive the module. In case there is anything unusual about the unit or its packaging, do not hesitate to
contact you dealer or us, to solve the problem.
You should find the following items in the box:
- the uniCYCLE module
- one 16-pole ribbon-cable
- four M-type screws 3 x 6 mm with matching plastic washers
- this operating manual
☛You probably are curious about the sound and possibilities of your uniCYCLE. However,
we recommend you to completely read this manual before trying out the module.
The jumpers on the module’s rear (see "Jumper" on page 11) can only be accessed with the
module not being installed in a frame. It’s worth, knowing their functions in before to set
them up for your needs.

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-12 V
uniCYCLE front and rear

User Guide uniCYCLE
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Setup
uniCYCLE was designed to be mounted and used in Eurorack modular systems. Its power supply, connectors and
dimensions match the typical specifications (VERMONA Modular Case, Doepfer A-100 and compatible systems).
Mounting equals any other Eurorack module:
1. Switch off the power supply! For safety reasons, also remove the detachable power cord from your frame
before mounting the module!
2. Connect the supplied ribbon-cable with its 16-pole connector to the corresponding multi-pin connector on
uniCYCLE’s rear.
⚠︎ The corresponding plug socket is protected against reverse polarity. Therefore, the 16-pole
connector of the ribbon-cable will only fit in one direction into the module. The supplied
ribbon-cable is color-coded at the -12 volts position. Note, that this may differ from other
manufacturers. Therefore, only use the supplied ribbon-cable to connect uniCYCLE to your
frame’s system bus!
3. Connect the ribbon-cable’s other 16-pole connector to an empty plug-socket of your frame’s system bus.
Make sure the color-coded side of the cable points towards -12 volts!

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⚠︎ Connecting the ribbon-cable with reverse polarity can lead to damage of your module or
other modules when powering the system! Double-check the connections before continuing
– safe is safe!
4. Mount uniCYCLE to your modular frame using the supplied screws. To protect the unit’s surface from
scratches, use the supplied flat plastic washers.
5. Reconnect the power cord to your frame and switch on the power-supply.
uniCYCLE is now ready to operate.
☛uniCYCLE offers a highly stable tuning. After a short warm-up-period, the oscillator stays
fully in tune at room temperature. According to its specifications, the unit shall be used in
an environmental temperature between 0° C and 40° C.

User Guide uniCYCLE
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Control Elements
Controls and Switch
With just three controls and a single switch, uniCYCLE can be operated really easy and with high effectiveness.
TUNE qsets the oscillator’s pitch. The available range depends upon the setting of the RANGE eswitch.
FINE wallows pitch-adjustments within a range of plus/minus one semitone.
RANGE ecalls up one of three different frequency ranges covered by TUNE q.
HI TUNE qcovers the full audio range.
OCT TUNE qcovers a range of plus/minus one octave.
LO uniCYCLE works as LFO. TUNE qcovers the full low frequency range.
☛When in OCT-mode, TUNE qoffers a higher resolution around its center setting, allowing
precise tuning of the oscillator. Moving the control further in this mode, the tuning reacts
exponentially until reaching an octave at its furthest position.
PW radjusts the pulsewidth of the three waveforms Square 4, Even 5and Double Saw 6.
In its center position the symmetry is 50%. The far left and far right position means 0% respectively
100%. (see "Waveform Outputs" on page 9).

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CV Inputs
By using the INPUTS section, uniCYCLE’s functions can be modulated by control voltages.
1V/OCT tThis input allows control over the oscillator’s pitch with accurate octave tracking. The principle
corresponds to all common VCOs in eurorack: incoming control voltages change the pitch by one
octave per volt.
This input is usually connected to the so-called key-CV, deriving from a keyboard, a step-sequencer
or a MIDI/CV-interface.
There is a jumper on the module’s rear for setting up if and how uniCYCLE received the key-CV
from the system bus. (see "1V/OCT" on page 11)
EXP FM yThis CV-input modulates uniCYCLE’s frequency. It works with an exponential characteristic. By
using this input audio-frequency sources the perceived pitch will change.
LIN FM uThis CV-input works with a linear characteristic. As long as the modulation intensity doesn’t
force uniCYCLE’s frequency below zero, there is no perceived pitch change with audio-frequency
sources.
PWM iThis CV-input modulates the pulsewidth/symmetry of the three waveforms Square (4), Even
(5) and Double Saw (6). The modulation will be added to the manual PW rsetting.
There is a jumper on the module’s rear for selecting if the pulsewidth-modulation will only affect
the square wave (4)(see "PW" on page 11)

User Guide uniCYCLE
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Sync Inputs
uniCYCLE offers two inputs for being synchronized to external sources. One input is for hard-sync Ho, the
other for soft-sync Sa.
H - SYNC oThe hard-sync input Howorks with signals with positive flanks like square-waves from oscillators,
trigger- and gate-signals. With each incoming flank uniCYCLE’s waveforms will be abruptly reset
and started from zero. As a result the shapes will be cut and deliver more or less hard tones.
Beside classical sync-sounds, the Hinput ocan be used for restarting the waveforms with gate-
signals.
SYNC - S aThe soft-sync input Saworks with waveforms from oscillators, gate-signals or even d.c. voltages.
If the ratio between the signal applied to the Sinput aand uniCYCLE’s frequency is integer,
the oscillator locks in and generates pure waveforms. With ratios not being integer, the resulting
waveforms are being cut, similar to hard-sync. The result of soft-sync also depends on the level of
the incoming signal.

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Waveform Outputs
Each of uniCYCLE’s six waveforms offers an individual audio output, located in the OUTPUT section.
You will find the standard waveforms Sine 1s, Triangle 2dand Saw 3fto the left. To the right, you will
find the waveforms Square 4g, Even 5hand Double Saw 6jthat can be modified by the PW
control ror modulated by the PWM input i.
☛The waveform shapes Even 5hand Double Saw 6jcan be excluded from the PW/
PWM-function by setting the corresponding jumper (see "PW" on page 11)
4gThe width of the Square 4gwave can be varied between 0% and 100%. With PW rbeing
set to its center position, the pulsewidth is 50%. At settings of 0% resp. 100%, the waveform is
inaudible.
☛ Mirrored pulsewidth settings, e.g. 25% and 75%, deliver identical acoustic results. This is
also true for the waveform shapes Even 5hand Double Saw 6 j.
5hEven is the opposite of the Square curve. Beside the base frequency it only offers even harmonics,
while Square only offers odd harmonics. By using the PW rcontrol resp. PWM imodulation,
the harmonic content of the waveform is altered. Settings of 0% and 100% for the PW rcontrol
produce a sine-like fundamental note .