Exploring Serum’s comb filters

Serum’s toolset can help you play around with resonators and explore the mechanics of the sound

01

Turn on Serum’s noise generator, then select the ARP White noise waveform. From there, set the Level to zero and click the N button on the filter module to route the noise generators output into the filter. Be sure to turn off all other oscillators and sub-oscillators, so the noise is isolated.

02

Start by setting Env 2 to a very short decay, and use it to modulate the volume of the noise. Since Serum’s amp envelope (Env 1) comes after the filter, give it a full sustain and a long release. The amp envelope’s release time affects the duration of high-resonance comb filter tones.

03

Begin your experiments by selecting Cmb + from the Flanges submenu of Serum’s filter options. Then increase the Resonance to a very high amount, adding feedback to the comb delay. Increase the level of the Noise generator until you hear it, then set the cutoff to 262 (approximately Middle C) and turn keyboard tracking on.

04

Many of the comb filter modes include additional filtering in the Filter Variation section (the center knob in the bottom row). As you audition different comb filters, both + and -, be sure to adjust this knob to hear the secondary LP and HP modes. Try the ‘Flg’ types too, as they have a slightly different sound to them.

05

Also included in the Flanges submenu are an array of resonant phaser modes. These have a more bell-like tone than the flanger and comb options. The last set of Phaser filters also include additional filtering via the Filter Var knob, so be sure to test those as well.

06

Serum’s extensive EQ, filtering, and effects tools are great for sculpting the tone further. Note that Serum’s filter effect includes the same array of types as the synthesiser filter, so this can be useful for more exotic physical modeling effects. If you’re starting out with a string-like tone, why not try using one of the distortion effects?