Vongon Paragraphs User manual
User Manual
Version 1.1
Contents
Overview -------------------------------------------- 3
Front Panel ----------------------------------------- 4
Specifications -------------------------------------- 5
Circuit Diagram ------------------------------------- 6
Voltage Controlled Filter (VCF) --------------------- 7
Envelope Generator ---------------------------------- 8
Drive ----------------------------------------------- 10
CV (Control Voltage) -------------------------------- 10
MIDI ------------------------------------------------ 11
Powering -------------------------------------------- 12
Extended Warranty ----------------------------------- 12
Contact --------------------------------------------- 12
Presets --------------------------------------------- 13
Change Log ------------------------------------------ 17
Thank you for supporting Vongon! We are a small operation based in
Oakland, California. All products are assembled and tested with care and
attention in our studio. We catalogue audio and video demos of our
devices on our website at (www.vongon.com) and instagram
(@vongonelectronics). If you have questions, suggestions, or just want
to say “hello”, please email me at [email protected]
Thank you!
- Ryan
2
Overview
Paragraphs is a hi-fidelity device that applies an alternate structure
to your sound. Through a smoothly evolving gradient of your
instruments timbre, you will find new ways to re-animate your guitar,
synthesizer, or drum machine.
Plainly, Paragraphs is an analog four-pole resonant low pass filter
with an attack, decay (AD) envelope generator designed with focus on
simplicity and flexibility.
Low Pass Filter
The heart of the filter circuit is the AS3320 analog chip — a modern
replica of the same component used in analog classics like the
Sequential Prophet 5, Pro-One mono-synth, Elka Synthex, and the
LinnDrum. Cutoff spans the full audio spectrum and resonance starts to
self-oscillate at about seventy percent.
Modulation
The envelope generator offers modulations in an uncommonly wide range
of frequencies — starting as low as 0.05 hz for slowly evolving 20
second long cycles, and reaching up to (and past) the audio threshold
at 300 hz for a wave shaping effect similar to sounds found on west
coast style synthesizers (“think Buchla”).
Flexible Gain Stages
Paragraphs accepts instrument and line level signals. Dedicated
controls for input (drive) and output level make it easy to move
between a crystal clear clean tone and and a clipping fuzz. A
multi-color LED provides a visual representation of the signal level.
Red indicates clipping. Orange flashes indicate the start of overload.
Green indicates the presence of signal at or below the nominal level.
CV and MIDI
Inputs for Control Voltage (CV) and midi are available to remotely
trigger the envelope generator. This enables your Paragraphs to stay
in rhythmic synchronization with external systems like midi
sequencers, euroracks, and digital audio workstations.
3
Front Panel
1) Output Level - Output gain.
2) Drive - Input gain.
3) Drive LED - Signal level LED, Three colors to indicate internal
signal level (red, orange, green).
4) Rise - Length of time it takes for the envelope generator to rise to
maximum level.
5) Fall - Length of time it takes for the envelope generator to fall to
minimum level.
4
Front Panel (continued)
6) Multiplier - A constant value multiplied by rise and fall time. This
is effectively a “rate” knob that adjusts the overall speed of the
envelope generator.
7) Lin, Exp - Lin (linear) and exp (exponential). Toggle the shape of
the envelope generator to rise and fall linearly or exponentially.
8) BYPASS - True bypass latching foot switch.
9) TRIG - Soft touch footswitch used to manually trigger the envelope
generator.
10) Cycle, Hold, Once - Toggle the mode of the envelope generator.
11) Res - Resonance amount, when the knob is at ~70% the filter will
begin to self oscillate.
12) Amount - The amplitude of the modulation source, or how much the
cutoff is affected by the envelope generator.
13) Cutoff - Base cutoff frequency of the low pass filter.
14a) IN - 1/4” mono audio input. Line level and instrument levels.
14b) OUT - 1/4” mono audio output. Line level and instrument levels.
15a) 9VDC - Standard power input for effects pedals, 9VDC center
negative 2.1mm barrel jack. Consumes a maximum of 100mA.
15b) CV - 1/8” mono minijack input for voltage triggers with 5 Volt
threshold.
15c) MIDI - 1/8” stereo minijack midi input wired for a “type b” midi
adapter.
Specifications
●1/4” mono input/output jacks
●2.1mm DC Connector
●5.7” x 4.7” x 1.5” enclosure dimensions
●true bypass
●input impedance: 1MΩ
●output impedance: <1kΩ
●power supply: 9 to 9.6 VDC
●current draw: 100mA max
5
Circuit Diagram
6
Voltage Controlled Filter (VCF)
The VCF is an analog four-pole resonant lowpass filter. The cutoff
frequency control spans the entire audio spectrum. The res (resonance)
amount control can range from none to self oscillation. The character
of the filter reacts to the amount of drive. When the filter is in self
oscillation the drive can be used to balance the input signal with the
oscillation of the filter. It can be fun to try playing a duet with
the drone of the filter while it is self oscillating.
note on resonance: You may hear a slight drop in volume as the
resonance is increased. This is expected because the filter is
emphasizing the cutoff frequency, causing all other frequencies to
drop in volume. The output level can be used to makeup for the volume
drop.
7
Envelope Generator
The envelope generator is a rise, fall (also known as attack, decay)
waveform generator. The rise, fall, and multiplier controls interact
with each other to determine the rate of the envelope. Rise and fall
have a range from 1 millisecond to 10 seconds.
Multiplier scales both the rise and fall time from x1 to x0.01, this
can be used to change the overall rate of the envelope while
maintaining the ratio of rise and fall times. The amount control
determines how much of the envelope is sent to the VCF.
8
Envelope Generator (continued)
There are three modes: cycle, hold, and once. Cycle loops infinitely
regardless of the TRIG status. Hold starts rising when TRIG is pressed,
and stays high until TRIG is released, which causes the envelope to
start falling. Once will play only one cycle of the envelope waveform
when the TRIG is pressed.
There are two envelope shapes, lin (linear) which is good for
consistent looping cycles like classic tremolo sounds and exp
(exponential) which sounds great when used rhythmically.
9
Drive
The drive knob adjusts the amount of amplification on the input signal.
Paragraphs is designed to work with instrument to line-level signals.
The 3-color LED can be used to make sure you are operating in the
desired range. Red indicates clipping. Orange flashes indicate the
start of overload. Green indicates the presence of signal at or below
the nominal level.
CV (Control Voltage)
The CV connection is a voltage trigger that can be used to activate
the TRIG switch when the Paragraphs is in hold or once mode. A voltage
pulse at or above 5 Volts will cause a TRIG start, if the Paragraphs is
in hold, the TRIG will remain as long as the voltage pulse is present.
10
MIDI
The MIDI connection can be used to activate the TRIG switch when the
Paragraphs is in hold or once mode. The paragraphs listens for a “Note
On” and “Note Off” event on all midi channels (1-16), key numbers
(0-127), and velocity values (0-127).
The MIDI input is a 1/8” stereo jack that is wired for a Type B midi
adapter. If you are unsure what type of adapter to use, you can
purchase one directly from Vongon on our website.
MIDI
Signal
MIDI
Connector
Stereo
Minijack
Current
Source
Pin 4
Tip
Current
Sink
Pin 5
Ring
Shield
Pin 2
Sleeve
11
Powering
Paragraphs was designed to operate using your typical center negative,
regulated 9-9.6 VDC power supply. The pedal is protected against
reversed polarity and overvoltage conditions. Always check your power
supply for proper voltage and polarity before connecting. There is no
battery connection inside the pedal.
Extended Warranty
Vongon will repair or replace any malfunctioning product for a period
of 1 year after purchase date. Problems resulting from modifications
or misuse may cancel this warranty. The owner will cover all shipping
expenses. This warranty applies only to the original owner of the
product. Proof of purchase might be required.
In general, the best thing to do is to contact us as soon as possible
with a description of the symptoms, even if the warranty is expired.
Contact
For all inquiries, please email [email protected]
12
Rhythmic
Plucks
Use the “once” mode
to trigger the
envelopes with the
TRIG switch
Ramp
Reverse tremolo
sound
14
Slow Bloom
Great for textural
playing
Tremolo to
Ringmod
Use the multiplier
to sweep from
tremolo into ring
modulation
15
Ramp with
Drive and
Resonance
Turn up the drive
to get a different
response from the
filter, notice on
res can be mixed
much higher without
overpowering the
input signal.
No Input
Resonance
Feedback
Synth
WARNING: Turn down
the output level,
this is LOUD.
Create try sweeping
the amount and
multiplier to get
many different
textures of noise
and droplet-like
sounds.
16
Change Log
Version
Changes
1.0
Initial commit
1.1
Added presets
17
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