Subject: Taurus Patch Programming #9
Date: Thu, 26 Feb 1998 15:17:14 -0800
From: timkoelm@iconz.co.nz
To: jv1080@emccta.com

Greetings JV/XP'ers!

Welcome to another installment of my patch programming series. I must apologise to those
of you who have been expecting a patch tutorial these past few weeks - my small break
from the list turned into an extended vacation, unfortunately. Anyway, I hope to fit in
a few more posts before University commences.

This week - analog brass patches. Personally, I have a perverse love of analog brass
patches. For me, somehow they sum up eveything that I love about analog synths. They do
tend to polarise people - I have had faint looks of disgust from some of my colleagues
when I call up a thick an' cheesy brass patch on my XP and begin playing away. So I
guess your either going to love or hate these two patches I've programmed, "Phuzzy 2"
and "Power Brass". We'll examine "Phuzzy 2" first.

Being derived from analog synthesis, these patches use simple waveforms, and were very
easy to create. "Phuzzy 2" uses four Jupiter 8 sawtooth waves, but I've created this
patch using two waves, and copied those waves to create a completed four tone patch.
I've detuned each wave by +/-5 cents for movement and stereo depth in the completed
patch. To emphasize this, I've set the "Analog Feel" parameter to 10 and the Stretch
Tune parameter to its maximum value of 3. See my previous posts for more information on
these parameters. The LFO's are inactive for this patch.

I'd say the crux of any analog brass simulation (and certainly a lot of analog lead-
-synth, pad and FX patches) is the correct use of the TVF. In particular, adding a fast
to moderate filter attack (*not* a *zero* attack time) to a wave gives you that
distinctive analog "quack". Try this with any patch with a fast TVA attack - a standard
piano patch, for example: by adding a mushy *filter* attack (using the TVF) the patch
will instantly take on a certain analog character.

So, the use of the TVF is what really gives this patch its analog flavour. I've set the
filter to a LPF type, and added a hint of resonance for a bit of "body". Then, for both
tones, I've set the TVF attack to 14, which gives me the mushy attack. As an added
effect, I've programmed the decay and sustain levels and times of the envelope to give a
filter "swell" while the notes are held. Sustain a chord for a while and you'll be able
to hear this effect - the filter closing and then opening. Try duplicating the TVF
values in the TVA envelope and listen to the difference. This is an important little
exercise in making a distinction between the TVF and TVA (if you're having trouble with
it, that is).

I wanted a bit more beef and buzz to the sound, so I piped the tones through Structure
3. Refer to my previous posts on how to use tones and Structures. For a more obese
sound, crank the booster gain to the desired value. To create maximum stereo depth, I
panned tones 1 and 2 hard-left and tones 3 and 4 hard-right. The resulting stereo depth
is so great, I've used a minimum amount of FX in sweetening the sound.

That's basically "Phuzzy 2" - as you can see, a very simple patch to create and it
sounds great. I liked "Phuzzy 2", but I found its tone to be a bit soft and cuddly, and
it didn't cut through an XP mix very well. So I created another analog style brass patch
that retained the stereo depth of "Phuzzy 2" but which also had a lot more punch. I've
called this patch "Power Brass".

"Power Brass" is a four tone patch, and makes use of layering different timbres to
achieve its effect. Across tones 1 and 2, I've programmed an analog brass sound very
similar to "Phuzzy 2", but the TVF attack time is quicker, and the Structure 2 Booster
gain is cranked to +18dB for maximum balls. The tones are panned to the centre for a
very "in-your-face" sound. At this stage, tones 1 and 2 gave me the "punch" I was
looking for, but I still wanted a degree of stereo depth - the tone was very dry. I
didn't want to simply copy and pan the tones as I did in "Phuzzy 2", and I didn't want
to resort to FX for stereo tricks, so I programmed a workaround.

Across tones 3 and 4, I dialled up a couple o' sawtooth waves, and used the TVF
programming technique outlined above to create a rudimentary synth brass sound. The
waves are detuned heavily against each other, by 10 cents either way. I wanted to retain
my stereo panning options, so by *not* using a Structure, I was able to pan the tones to
the hard left and right of the stereo spectrum. This gave me the stereo depth I wanted
in the patch.

Listening to tones 3 and 4 in isolation isn't a very fun affair - The sound, while
spacious, is thin and weedy...but when layered with tones 1 and 2, the result is a
spacious *and* punchy analog brass sound, which is great fun to play. It doesn't require
loads of FX to make it work either - just some light chorusing and reverb. For those of
you who do want to go completely over the top, try routing the tones through a stereo or
hexa-chorus, or a short stereo-modulated delay.

I hope the techniques I've described here will help you on your own patch creations. No,
the Super JV isn't an analog synth, but with the large assortment of waves (especially
if you've got a relevant expansion board) and extensive programming resources at your
fingertips, you *can* get close to those classic analog textures - and you don't have to
spend megabucks on a "virtual analog" synth to do it.

Any questions, comments, suggestions - mail 'em to me. Enjoy!

Best Regards,

Taurus3

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ps. The accompanying .mid file
    will wipe over patches in
    your user memory area, so
    back-up before loading.

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