Tuesday 19 February 2019

Tune by 2hp

Tune, unboxed
I needed a 2 HP module to fill the case.
And I wanted a pitch quantizer to experiment with randomly generated melodies.
So I ended up with Tune from 2hp.

2hp is a company that makes module 1 cm wide (or 2 HP).  They have quite an impressive range.
I reckon that a synth exclusively made of 2 HP modules would be a nightmare to operate as the controls are small and would be too close to one another. But I guess it's OK to have one or two in your rack.

What does it do ?
According to 2hp : "Tune is a multi-scale pitch quantizer. It features 11 scales ranging from chromatic to octatonic with everything in between. In addition, the bias control allows the user to transpose the melody to a different octave or starting note."


Bob screws it in place


Pitch Control Voltage (CV) is, in Eurorack standard, one octave per volt.  Add one volt in control voltage and double the frequency of the note.    There is no reference to a specific note (like 0V = C).  The CV gives you an interval : about 83 mV per semi-tone.
Reference or starting note is given when adjusting the tune knob of the VCO when no CV is entered.

So you enter a voltage in Tune and Tune gives you back the closest multiple of 83 mV aligned with the scale of your choosing.  Ain't that cool ?

In action

A touch of sound to finish.



Rampage is giving the tempo of the piece.  The end of cycle signal of each section is used as trigger for the other one : when one envelope ends, the other is triggered to start.  The rise time of the second envelope is controlled by the random generator, hence the variations in time and in the sound.
This patch uses the three available envelopes : two from the rampage and one from the DIY-101.  The two synth sounds are modulated by these envelopes thanks to Veils.
Rings generates the percussive sound in sync with the start of the first rampage envelope.  Variations of the structure parameter are given by the random generator.
All sound generators uses pitch CV coming from Tune.  The input of Tune also comes from the random generator.
Finally, I added a bit of chorus as well as tons of delay and reverb in the final mix.

Sunday 10 February 2019

You can never have enough VCAs !

According to the popular motto : "You can never have enough VCAs !" 
So I bought four of them in a single module from Mutable Instruments.

Veils, unboxed
VCAs are Voltage Controlled Amplifiers and are essentials to shape the amplitude of sounds and other signals.

Not much to add here other than this excerpt from the MI website :
"Veils provides four VCAs with an adjustable response curve.
Veils’ outputs are daisy-chained, allowing adjacent groups of 2, 3, or all 4 channels to be mixed together."


As its becoming crowded inside the synth case, Bob went down and gave me a hand to plug the module on the bus board.

More to come....



Veils, installed