Moog Music Taurus 3 Bass Pedals - Manual (Page 58)

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Taurus 3 User’s Manual - Glossary
Page 61
Taurus 3 User’s Manual - Glossary
Mixer – A circuit for combining multiple sound sources or signals. The Taurus 3 uses a simple mixer to mix
the ‘A’ & ‘B’ oscillators.
Modulation – Modulation is the use of a control voltage to shape a tone. Modulation has a source, a destination,
and an amount. This could be as simple as the filter cutoff of a VCF (a modulation destination) being
changed by the front panel cutoff control (the source), or as complex as mixing multiple CVs together to
modulate filter cutoff. Modulation is used in synthesis to create complex sounds and add variation.
Noise – A random audio signal having no fundamental, and where all the harmonics have equal strength (more
or less). Noise can be used as either an audio or modulation source. When used as an audio source, noise
can be used by itself to synthesize explosions or wind noises, or can be mixed with other waveforms to
create noise artifacts, such as breath sounds. When used as a modulation source, noise can introduce
instabilities to a sound, such as a ‘pitch cloud’ effect when noise modulates an oscillator.
Note Stack – Term that describes the notes held in memory for the Taurus 3 Arpeggiator function.
Oscillator – A circuit that electronically ‘vibrates’. When used as a sound source, an oscillator is the electronic
equivalent of a vibrating reed, or string. When amplified, an oscillator produces a pitched sound whose
frequency is determined by one or more control voltages. Changes to these voltages correspond to
changes in pitch. An oscillator’s vibration can have different shapes or waveforms, such as a triangle,
sawtooth, or square wave. The Taurus 3 has two oscillators; both oscillators produce sawtooth waves.
Pitch – The subjective perception of sound. A bass guitar generates low pitches, while a flute generates high
pitches.
Pole (or poles) – A term referring to the design of a filter circuit. Each filter pole adds 6dB/Octave of
attenuation to the filter response, so while a single pole filter has a 6dB/Octave response, a 4-pole filter (like
the one in the Taurus 3) has a 24dB/Octave response.
Sample and Hold (S&H) – A circuit that generates a random control voltage at regular intervals. Traditional
sample and hold circuits employ white noise as a signal source, taking periodic samples of this signal
and holding that sample (a voltage level) until the next sample is taken. Since the signal source is noise
(a random audio signal), the output of the S&H circuit is also random. The sampling interval is typically
controlled by a low frequency oscillator (LFO). By adjusting the speed of the LFO, the speed of the S&H
circuit can be varied.
Sound – Audible vibrations of air pressure. For electronic sounds such as those produced by a synthesizer,
loudspeakers are used translate the electrical vibrations into the changes in air pressure which we perceive
as sound.
Subtractive synthesis – A method of creating tones using harmonically rich (bright) source material, and then
removing (or in some cases emphasizing) various frequency components to create the desired sound.
Synthesis – The generation of sound by electronic means, where the programmer/performer has the ability to
change the pitch, volume, timbre and articulation.