>Step by step

1. Creating a riser effect in Zebra CM

1

We might have a new GUI to work with, but the initialise process remains. Open the Zebra CM plugin, in your favoured DAW, and select Initialize form the drop-down menu, located at the top/centre of the plugin.

2

Our Riser patch will not be based around any specific tonal pitch, so we need to reduce the volume of Osc 1, which is currently producing a saw wave. Locate the Volume control for Osc 1, to the left of the waveform display, and reduce the value to zero.

3

Now we need to increase the volume of the White Noise, by locating the Noise section, and placing the Volume control at the 12 o’clock position, which should read 100 in the display. Check that you have the White Noise selected, identified by the upper-left icon in the Noise section.

4

Zebra CM is equipped with a handy feature that allows the broadening of the White Noise signal, across the stereo spectrum. This is particularly useful for a more impactful sound in a commercial track. Simply select the Stereo button, within the Noise section.

5

We now have a relatively full-on white noise sound; we can limit the amount of upper frequencies that we’re hearing by using the low pass filter. Move to the Filter section and place the Cutoff control at the 12 o’clock position. This should make the sound dull, for the moment.

6

We’ll use Envelope 2 to shape our filter cutoff. Locating the Env 2 section, adjust the Attack and Decay pots to their maximum amounts. You may well want to adjust these later, as they will directly control the motion of filter cutoff.

7

The Attack and Decay phases of Env2 are controlling the movement of our Riser, but we don’t want any sense of sustain as the Riser reaches its peak, so we need to reduce the Sustain amount on Env 2 to zero. This will unsurprisingly eliminate any sense of sustain.

8

You’ll probably have noticed that our Riser does not appear to change yet; this is because we need to direct Env2 in the direction of the filter, as a modulation source. Revisit the Filter section, and increase the value of the Env2 pot to around 40, on the display. This pot is user assignable, but Env2 is selected by default.

9

We should now be hearing a basic filter sweep, derived from the modulation of Env 2. However, we want to create further movement. We can do this by employing LFO1 to change the volume (amplitude) of our patch. Locate the LFO Section, ensuring that LFO1 is selected, and switch the waveform to Sqr lo-hi via the drop-down menu.

10

Switch the LFO Sync status from a value of 1/8 note to a value of 1/4 note. With each cycle of the LFO Square wave, we’ll get an overall effect that is off the beat, much like an off-beat hi-hat pattern.

11

We’re still not hearing the effect of the LFO on our patch, so now revisit the Noise section and place the volume pot at a value of around 40, which is the 9 o’clock position. This has the immediate effect of making the sound much quieter. Don’t panic – we’ll reinstate some of that volume in the final step.

12

Finally, select LFO1 from the dropdown menu below the Volume pot. Then click and drag upward, on the small dot to the right of the main pot which will set a modulation amount. Set this to a value of around 30, which should induce a pulsing effect into our patch, for a real sense of build. All rise!