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preenfm2 and preenfm3 / Which parameters on DX7?
« on: January 07, 2016, 09:11:18 AM »
I'm reading Howard Massey's great book "The Complete DX7" to better learn FM. It's really great! But I'm confused on what some of the parameters are called on a DX7 versus a PreenFM2.
On the DX, he keeps talking about coarse freq (op freq on Preen, but it goes to 31 rather than 16?), but then he talks about operator amplitude which goes to 100 on the DX. There's IM, which seems to be modulator amp, which goes to 16 on the Preen. But then there's the envelope, which I think modulates this same parameter between 0 and 1, and I'm not really sure how these interact.
Massey says when you have a 1:1 freq ratio between carrier and modulator and 100 modulator amp (full IM?), you should get a saw wave, and 2:1 and 70 amp (about 10 IM?), you get a square wave. I've been able to get the square wave and something saw-like, and the pulse mod exercises he explains, but more when IM is closer to 6 and envelopes are static. He then describes detuning particular operators in particular algorithm configs as creating beating, phasing, wah-ing, and (if you use audio level fixed freq carrier) as phasing. I'm not sure I hear all the differences between these. I'm curious how much these differences are due to those between FM on the Preen and PM on the DX, or that I'm doing something wrong.
Any help on translating between these two interfaces?
Btw, the Preen sounds AMAZING, such a cool synth, which is why I want to understand all this better. Thanks so much for a great synth!
On the DX, he keeps talking about coarse freq (op freq on Preen, but it goes to 31 rather than 16?), but then he talks about operator amplitude which goes to 100 on the DX. There's IM, which seems to be modulator amp, which goes to 16 on the Preen. But then there's the envelope, which I think modulates this same parameter between 0 and 1, and I'm not really sure how these interact.
Massey says when you have a 1:1 freq ratio between carrier and modulator and 100 modulator amp (full IM?), you should get a saw wave, and 2:1 and 70 amp (about 10 IM?), you get a square wave. I've been able to get the square wave and something saw-like, and the pulse mod exercises he explains, but more when IM is closer to 6 and envelopes are static. He then describes detuning particular operators in particular algorithm configs as creating beating, phasing, wah-ing, and (if you use audio level fixed freq carrier) as phasing. I'm not sure I hear all the differences between these. I'm curious how much these differences are due to those between FM on the Preen and PM on the DX, or that I'm doing something wrong.
Any help on translating between these two interfaces?
Btw, the Preen sounds AMAZING, such a cool synth, which is why I want to understand all this better. Thanks so much for a great synth!