PATCH #1: "CLASSIC LEAD"
Earlier this year, Doepfer announced its new Basic System 3 (BS3), the latest in its line of complete, pre-configured Eurorack systems aimed at beginners, experts, explorers and purists alike.
To accompany the system, Doepfer — in collaboration with Stromkult — has designed a comprehensive Patchbook with fourteen different patch ideas for the BS3. Every patch comes with custom-made patch diagrams and a step-by-step-patching manual, making it easy for anyone to recreate and play with these patches.
While the patches were specifically designed for the BS3 and its configuration, most of the patches revolve around basic "building block" modules such as VCOs, VCFs, VCAs, mixers, envelope and LFOs and thus should be able to be recreated on a variety of systems — above all, we hope these patches may inspire you!
You can download the full PDF of the patchbook with all of the patches here (link goes to Google Drive).
Every individual patch is divided into an introductory overview of the patch, a section for the audio path, a section for the control voltage path and a final "play the patch" section with ideas on how the patch could be further tweaked and iterated upon.
PATCH OVERVIEW
This is a classic lead patch that brings enough grit and power to punch through a mix but still works in plenty of situations and plays well over the entire keyboard range.
We mix different sound sources together and subsequently filter them. This is called subtractive synthesis. The filter cutoff and the volume are modulated by different control voltage sources.
Additionally, we create some interesting modulation effects that respond to our playing using the routing and mixing capabilities of the A-138j Janus Mixer.
THE AUDIO PATH
To get a big, complex and rich sounding lead, we combine three waveforms (saw, pulse and sine) from our A-110-1 VCOs. The two voltage controlled oscillators are set to different octave ranges to get a full-spectrum sound and are slightly detuned to add thickness.
We also add a bit of white noise from the A-118-1 noise generator to create some extra grit and sizzle in the high frequencies.
The three waveforms and the noise are sent to the four inputs of the A-138 mixer, allowing us to adjust the volume of each sound using the gain knobs. In this patch example, the sine wave is set to full gain to give a strong fundamental, while the other sources are set to about half.
The output of the A-138 mixer goes into the audio input of the A-108 VCF8 filter. We choose the 24db per octave lowpass filter output with a medium cutoff and the resonance (“Emph.”) turned fully down.
The final stage of our patch is the A-131 VCA, before the signal is sent to our speakers or headphones.
THE CONTROL VOLTAGE PATH
We feed our oscillator’s “CV1” inputs (scaled to 1 volt per octave) with the keyboard/sequencer control voltage so that the pitch of the sound changes when playing or sequencing.
The pulse wave from the second oscillator gets a bit of pulse width modulation (PWM) from the sine wave LFO output of the A-147-4 Dual VCLFO. We send it to the “PW CV”2 input of the A-110-1. PWM adds a little bit more movement to the sound.
The other LFO from the A-147-4 goes into the “CV2” input of the A-108 to modulate its filter cutoff frequency with the “CV2” knob opened just slightly, so that the modulation doesn’t get overwhelming. The „R“ (reset) inputs of both LFOs receive a gate signal from the keyboard/sequencer gate output, which means that the LFO will reset every time we hit a new key.
The keyboard/sequencer gate is also sent to the A-140-2 Dual ADSR “gate” input to trigger both envelope generators at the same time. The first envelope from the Dual ADSR modulates the filter cutoff of the A-108 via its “CV3” input. It’s a quick envelope that adds just a bit of energy by opening the filter each time we press a new key.
The second envelope controls the gain of the VCA via its “CV1” input. Alternatively, you could also use the ”CV2” input and control the modulation depth using the “CV2” knob. The ADSR controls are set to a relatively long envelope.
We use the A-138j mixer for summing, attenuating and inverting control voltages. We feed input 1 with keyboard/sequencer CV. The attenuated output 1 is send to the “CV1” input of the filter. This creates an effect called “filter key tracking”. If we play higher notes, the sound will be brighter. We can also reverse this modulation using the “inv” switch on the A-138j and we can adjust the depth using the “Lev 1” knob.
"PLAY THE PATCH"
Playing with the gain knobs on the A-138 will greatly affect the character of the overall sound, since you are changing its composition by playing with the volume of the patch’s individual parts.
The “range” (octave) switch on the A-110-1 has a big impact on the sound of the patch. In this patch, the A-108 filter has no resonance. By adding just a bit of resonance, the noisiness of the patch is emphasized. Note that adding resonance on the A-108 also attenuates the low end.
The audio level of the filter is set to noon, by turning it up further you can create overdrive effects (compensate on the output!).
Playing with the controls of the second envelope of the A-140-2, you can change the contour of the sound. Turn down the decay and release for a snappier, more percussive sound and turn it up for a big wall of sound.