Audio Damage BigSeq2 - Manual (Page 11)

By now, if you’re still paying attention, you’re probably thinking “well, this is all very elaborate and nice, but
what does the Modulation Sequencer actually do?” As we’ve said, the Modulation Sequencer can control the
parameters of the effects block. But before we describe how this actually works, we need to look at the effects
blocks themselves and their parameters. We’ll describe how the Modulation Sequencer controls those
parameters in the section titled “Modulation”, later on. You can skip ahead if you’re feeling impatient.
The Effects Blocks
Each of BigSeq2’s effects blocks has its own set of controls. These controls appear in the panel labeled Effect
on the right side of BigSeq2’s window. The controls for the current effects block appear in the panel; only one
effects block’s controls appear at a time. The current effects block is indicated by the illuminated box in the
Routing panel. Click on the boxes to bring the desired effects block’s control into view in the Effect panel.
Each effects block has two to five knobs for controlling the effect, shown as an arc of illuminated segments in
the panel. The name and value of each parameter is displayed in the lower-right section of the knob. Click and
drag vertically on the knobs to change the associated parameter. Most knobs also have a modulation-depth
slider; we’ll talk more about this slider later on in the section titled Modulation.
Next we’ll look at the controls for each effects block.
VCA
The VCA effects block is BigSeq2’s most important block, and also its most oddly named. Its name is
borrowed from analog synthesizer parlance; the letters “VCA” stand for Voltage Controlled Amplifier. In a
synthesizer, the VCA is typically used to control the overall loudness and shape of the sound. An analog
voltage controls how much a signal is amplified; by changing the shape of the voltage, you change the shape
of the sound. Obviously BigSeq2’s VCA is entirely digital and responds to numbers rather than voltages, but
we chose the name VCA because of its familiarity
1 .
1 Moreover, the term Voltage Controlled Amplifier is slightly misleading. Almost all VCAs found in synthesizers have a
maximum gain of unity; that is, they don’t actually amplify the signal, in the sense that “amplify” means “make louder”.
They make the signal quieter or (at most) pass it without alteration. Hence a VCA would be more accurately described as a
Voltage Controlled Attenuator, but who are we to argue with the terminology chosen and made popular by Dr. Robert Moog?