LFO Section
LFO stands for Low Frequency Oscillator. LFOs are oscillators in the sense that they generate a waveform and a frequency. However, there are two significant differences compared to normal sound generating oscillators:
LFOs only generate waveforms with low frequencies.
The output of the two LFOs are never actually heard. Instead they are used for modulating various parameters.
The most typical application of an LFO is to modulate the pitch of a (sound generating) oscillator or sample, to produce vibrato.
The LFO section has the following parameters:
Waveform
LFO 1 allows you to select different waveforms for modulating parameters. These are (from the top down):
Destination
Waveform
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Description
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Triangle
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This is a smooth waveform, suitable for normal vibrato.
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Inverted
Sawtooth
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This produces a "ramp up" cycle. If applied to an oscillator's frequency, the pitch would sweep up to a set point (governed by the Amount setting), after which the cycle immediately starts over.
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Sawtooth
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This produces a "ramp down" cycle, the same as above but inverted.
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Square
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This produces cycles that abruptly changes between two values, usable for trills etc.
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Random
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Produces random stepped modulation to the destination. Some vintage analog synths called this feature "sample & hold".
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Soft Random
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The same as above, but with smooth modulation.
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The available LFO Destinations are as follows:
Destination
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Description
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Osc
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Selecting this makes LFO control the pitch (frequency) of the sample patch.
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Filter
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Selecting this makes the LFO control the filter frequency.
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Pan
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Selecting this makes the LFO modulate the pan position of samples, i.e. it will move the sound from left to right in the stereo field.
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Sync
By clicking this button you activate/deactivate LFO sync. The frequency of the LFO will then be synchronized to the song tempo, in one of 16 possible timedivisions. When sync is activated, the Rate knob (see below) is used for setting the desired timedivision.
Turn the knob and check the tooltip for an indication of the timedivision.
Rate
The Rate knob controls the LFO's frequency. Turn clockwise for a faster modulation rate.
Amount
This parameter determines to what degree the selected parameter destination will be affected by the LFO. Raising this knob's value creates more drastic results.