Now let’s build a pad sound, one that evolves over time by using modulation to create movement:
- In an empty part, create a new synth keygroup.
- This time, let’s use the Analog Stack synth; press on the oscillator name and choose Analog Stack from the menu to change the synth type.
The Analog Stack starts with the same basic options as the Analog oscillator type, but offers a unified bank of eight oscillators for quickly created stacked sounds. - Press the Power button on oscillators 2 and 3 to enable them. Each oscillator has independent controls for its waveform shape, gain, pan, pitch offset, and so on.
- Let’s change the pitch of oscillator 2’s pitch offset to be +7 Semitones from oscillator 1, and oscillator 3 to be +1 Octave.
- We can also modulate each oscillator independently. To add a new modulation source for the oscillator 2 pulse width modulation, right-click its PWM knob and choose Add Modulation.
- We want to modulate this per-voice, so we will create a keygroup modulation source by choosing Internal > Keygroup > New LFO.
- The new modulation source now appears in the Modulation Editor. If you do not see the Modulation Editor, make sure that its toggle button is enabled at the top of the Edit view, and that it is expanded with the arrow next to its name.
- Play a note and you will hear the LFO modulating PWM; this LFO is modulating it too drastically, though, so let’s edit it. Change the Depth to 0.25, play a note again, and you will hear that its intensity has been reduced.
- We can also slow down the LFO speed (via the Freq parameter), to 0.15 Hz.
- Let’s do the same with oscillator 3 PWM, but with a different LFO. Create another LFO, and set its frequency to be different than the first LFO. This will create a sound that shifts and evolves over time. In this way, we can continue to build up the sound by adding modulation to each oscillator’s parameters, such as pan, phase, or pitch.