Hey everyone! I hope you are all doing well and staying sane. I was just examining the specs for the Modal Electronics Inc.‘s new synth, the Cobalt8. If you haven’t seen it yet, check out some of the demos on YouTube. I am posting today not to advertise the new synth, neat as it is, but because they were kind enough to include the basic explanation of each of the algorithms the synth includes.
Since some of us, born problem solvers and tinkerers that we are, love to figure out a way to best emulate real world hardware in this amazing software environment, I thought this would be a cool thing to put out here for anyone else in the group who’s also as interested as I am in trying to imitate some of these things. Here is the list from the site:
- VA Sweep: Sweep through sine, triangle, saw, square, pulse (with pulse width) (A), ability to detune the oscillators (or snap to musical intervals) using spread (B)
- VA Crushed: Sweep through sine, triangle and saw shapes (A) with real-time control over bit crushing (B)
- Spread Saw: Spread mode with increased oscillator count, ability to blend between the fundamental and detuned oscillators (A) and more comprehensive spread (B) options (e.g oct up + detuned)
- Spread Square: Spread mode with increased oscillator count, ability to blend between the fundamental and detuned oscillators (A) and more comprehensive spread (B) options (e.g oct up + detuned)
- Spread Triangle: Spread mode with increased oscillator count, ability to blend between the fundamental and detuned oscillators (A) and more comprehensive spread (B)options (e.g oct up + detuned)
- PWM: Classic Pulse Width Modulation with width control (A) and ability to detune the oscillators using spread (B)
- PWM Dual: PWM mode where as the width control (A) changes, the pulse width increases in the first cycle of the wave and decreases in the second cycle. Oscillators can be detuned using the spread (B) control
- PWM Triangle / Square: Alternating triangle and square waves with control over the width of the triangle portion (A) and an asymmetry control (B) that allows every second cycle to have a different triangle width (inverse) to the first
- PWM Saw Eraser: Wave with both a saw and PWM portion, with control over the ratio between the two portions (A) and the width of the PWM portion (B) relative to parameter A
- PWM Triangle Pinch: Triangle wave with pulse width modulation (A) and an asymmetry control (B) which allows every second cycle of the wave to have a different width to the first (can be wider or narrower)
- Hard Sync Saw: Classic hard sync with un-quantised ratio (A) that can be blended with a sub oscillator (B) one octave below the fundamental
- Hard Sync Square: Classic hard sync with un-quantised ratio (A) that can be blended with a sub oscillator (B) one octave below the fundamental
- Hard Sync Triangle: Classic hard sync with un-quantised ratio (A) that can be blended with a sub oscillator (B) one octave below the fundamental
- Fractal Saw: Complex sync with un-quantised control over ratio (A) and and an asymmetry control (B) that allows every second cycle of the wave to have a different sync ratio to the first
- Fractal Square: Complex sync with un-quantised control over ratio (A) and and an asymmetry control (B) that allows every second cycle of the wave to have a different sync ratio to the first
- Fractal Triangle: Complex sync with un-quantised control over ratio (A) and and an asymmetry control (B) that allows every second cycle of the wave to have a different sync ratio to the first
- Reverse Saw: Periodically reverses the direction of the waveform and changes the playback rate (A), asymmetry control (B) changes the period length (I.e the switch point within a cycle)
- Reverse Square: Periodically reverses the direction of the waveform and changes the playback rate (A), asymmetry control (B) changes the period length (I.e the switch point within a cycle)
- Reverse Triangle: Periodically reverses the direction of the waveform and changes the playback rate (A), asymmetry control (B) changes the period length (I.e the switch point within a cycle)
- Window Amp Sync: Applies amplitude modulation to a sine wave using a hard synced waveform. Features an un-quantised sync ratio control (A) and the ability to morph between multiple window shapes (B)
- Metal Saw: Creates ring modulation/amplitude modulation like effects by syncing a waveform to two separate signals, one at the base rate and one at the sync rate. Features un-quantised control over sync rate (A) and ability to balance between the base wave and the modulated signal (B)
- Metal Square: Creates ring modulation/amplitude modulation like effects by syncing a waveform to two separate signals, one at the base rate and one at the sync rate. Features un-quantised control over sync rate (A) and ability to balance between the base wave and the modulated signal (B)
- Metal Triangle: Creates ring modulation/amplitude modulation like effects by syncing a waveform to two separate signals, one at the base rate and one at the sync rate. Features un-quantised control over sync rate (A) and ability to balance between the base wave and the modulated signal (B)
- Ring Mod Saw: Ring mod applied to two saw waves, with quantised ratio control (A) that snaps through a series of useful ratios, and a fine control (B), which cross-fades between these ratios allowing precise control across the whole range
- Ring Mod Square: Ring mod applied to two square waves, with quantised ratio control (A) that snaps through a series of useful ratios, and a fine control (B), which cross-fades between these ratios allowing precise control across the whole range
- Ring Mod Triangle: Ring mod applied to two triangle waves, with quantised ratio control (A) that snaps through a series of useful ratios, and a fine control (B), which cross-fades between these ratios allowing precise control across the whole range
- Ring Mod Triangle / Square: Ring mod applied to a triangle and a square wave, with quantised ratio control (A) that snaps through a series of useful ratios, and a fine control (B), which cross-fades between these ratios allowing precise control across the whole range
- Ring Mod Saw / Square: Ring mod applied to a saw and square wave, with quantised ratio control (A) that snaps through a series of useful ratios, and a fine control (B), which cross-fades between these ratios allowing precise control across the whole range
- Ring Mod Saw / Triangle: Ring mod applied to a saw and triangle wave, with quantised ratio control (A) that snaps through a series of useful ratios, and a fine control (B), which cross-fades between these ratios allowing precise control across the whole range
- Chaos Saw: Un-quantised ring modulation (A) combined with randomisation (B)
- Chaos Square: Un-quantised ring modulation (A) combined with randomisation (B)
- Chaos Triangle: Un-quantised ring modulation (A) combined with randomisation (B)
- Fold Triangle: Triangle wave-folding (A) with DC offset (B)
- Filtered Noise: Noise generator combined with a morphable filter with full control over Cutoff (A) and Morph (B)