Workshop: Ambient texture w/ Phase Plant
1 Wavetable oscillator
To explore the sonic potential of Phase Plant, we want to create a pad sound for Ambient, Chillout, Downtempo & the like. We‘ll start with an empty preset. First, click in the Generators section and then on the Wavetable module. The wavetable oscillator is already wired ready to play; however, its basic sound is still quite static.
2 Wavetable position
If you click on Frame and move the mouse while holding down the key, you will change the position within the wavetable, resulting in lively sound gradients. Then, click on Default Wavetable. Now, a browser opens where you can try out the different wavetables. We like the Light wavetable from the Evolving folder. 1
3 Modulations
So that we don‘t get a mouse arm when changing the Frame value, we modulate it. To do this, click in the Modulators area and select LFO. Click on the orange + symbol of the LFO and then on the symbol below the Frame field of the wavetable oscillator. Hold down the mouse button and adjust the modulation intensity. 1
4 Sound floats
Click Hz on the LFO and select Sync to synchronize the LFO to the project Tempo. Set Rate to 4/4 and the waveform to Sine. Now you can adjust the volume envelope as you like. Then, activate Unison mode for a denser sound. Increase the number of voices to x4 and adjust the other Unison parameters as shown. 1
5 Second oscillator
For a livelier sound, we bring a second Wavetable Oscillator into play. Move it into the first Group and remove the second one by clicking the X icon. Select the Beast wavetable for the oscillator. Again, we modulate the Frame value, but this time with a Random module that we add in the Modulators section. 1
6 Effects
Adjust this module as shown and create the modulation assignment as already described. Then, activate the Unison mode for Oscillator 2 as well. To make an even more atmospheric sound, we load a Reverb effect in the Effects section in Lane 3. With our pad sound, we can now play wonderfully atmospheric chords.