>Step by step
1. Modulation investigation
1 In this tutorial, we’ll be showing you some common – and not-so-common – modulation sources and how they can be used to add life and motion to your patches. We’ll be using Cherry Audio’s Voltage Modular Nucleus, but much of what we’ll be doing can be done with other synths, too. Let’s fire up Nucleus and hit that New button to clear the rack. 2 If you can’t see your collection of available modules along the left, click the Library button up top to reveal it. We’re going to start with the obvious – an oscillator. Find the Oscillator module in the Library and click the Add button to install one in your rack. Next, find an Amplifier module and add that one too. 3 Let’s make some connections. Run a patch cable from the Oscillator’s Square Wave Output (bottom-centre jack) up to the Amplifier’s Input. Next, run a cable from the Amplifier’s ‘+’ Output up to the 1L(M) jack in the Main Outs panel up top. Now, if you nudge the Amplifier’s Gain knob, you’ll hear your square wave. 4 That’s not too exciting. We could use an envelope generator and that would allow us to trigger notes via incoming
MIDI, but let’s not do that just yet. Instead, bring in another Oscillator module. For the sake of clarity, put it in the row beneath the current Oscillator. Now, set the new Oscillator’s Range dial to ‘LO’. 5 As you might have guessed, this converts our Oscillator into a Low Frequency Oscillator. Run a cable from the new Oscillator’s Sawtooth output (second from left) up to our Amplifier’s CV Amount jack. The LFO now controls (or ‘modulates’) the gain of our Amplifier. Boost your second Oscillator’s Frequency knob to around 1.28 Hz. 6 The Amplifier’s CV Amount knob controls the amount of modulation applied to the gain. Try giving it a twist fully clockwise. Now, you’ll hear a ramp wave – this is why the Oscillator has both ramp and sawtooth outputs, despite them sounding identical when used in the audio range. Set your CV Amount to the 12 o’clock position for silence.
7 Let’s get a little more complex. Go to the Library and grab a Filter module, placing it in the top row between Oscillator and Amplifier. Disconnect the top Oscillator from the Amplifier’s Input and route the Oscillator instead to the filter’s Audio In. Route the filter’s Lowpass Output to the Amplifier’s Input.
8 Let’s crank the Amplifier’s CV Amount fully clockwise. Now, reduce the Filter’s Cutoff knob to around 126Hz. Now, go to the Library and get an Envelope Generator and stick it in the bottom row. Route a cable from the bottom Oscillator’s Square Wave Output to the Envelope Generator’s Gate In jack.
9 Now, run a cable from the Envelope Generator’s Positive Output (on the right) up to the Filter’s Freq Mod 1 jack, and push the Freq Mod knob up to about 77% or so. Reduce the Envelope’s S(ustain) slider to nil, and increase both its A(ttack) and R(elease) to around 500ms.
10 Our Envelope now modulates the cutoff. The Attack determines how long it takes to reach full voltage. The Sustain controls the steady state level. The Decay determines the time that it takes to get from full voltage to the steady state, and the Release determines the fade out time. Grab a Sample & Hold module from the Library.
11 Run another cable from the bottom Oscillator’s Square Wave to the Sample & Hold’s Ext Trig jack, and click the Ext button. This makes the Oscillator the master clock for the Sample & Hold. Patch the Sample & Hold’s Output to the Filter’s Res Mod Input and set the Res Mod knob to around 58%. Resonance is now randomly modulated in sync to the LFO.
12 Grab another Oscillator and switch its Range to 2’. Send its Sine wave to the Filter’s Freq Mod 2, and crank the Mod Amount to 50% for audio-rate modulation of the Cutoff. Cool. Finally, grab a Mini LFO and patch an Output to the new Oscillator’s Freq Mod. Adjust the Freq Mod’s amount and Mini LFO’s Rate to taste. You’re done!