Moog Music SUB PHATTY - Manual (Page 12)

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The oscillators, filter, modulators, and other parts are connected in the most useful ways for producing
and modifying electronic signals that result in sounds. Unlike on a modular synthesizer, many connec-
tions between the Sub Phatty’s various parts are hardwired, meaning that it is not possible to change
the routing of the pathways that connect them.
The electrical signals within a synthesizer are either audio signals or control signals, depending on the
pathway they follow. Typically, an audio signal begins with an oscillator and passes through the filter
on its way to the audio output. Control signals are used to change things, like the pitch, timbre, wave-
shape, or loudness of an audio signal.
Any time a signal controls something, no matter whether it’s controlling an audio signal or another
control signal, we say that it modulates it. In synth-speak, you could say that a steering wheel modu-
lates a car’s direction and the accelerator pedal modulates its speed. When you play the Sub Phatty’s
keyboard, the key you press modulates the instrument’s pitch. You can modulate filter cutoff by turn-
ing a knob manually, or you can apply a control signal from a low-frequency oscillator or envelope to
modulate it electronically. It’s worth noting that a control destination can be modulated by more than
one control source.
The diagram below illustrates how the Sub Phatty generates sound. It shows the flow of audio signals,
represented by solid lines, and control signals, represented by dotted lines.
You can control the Sub Phatty using control voltages and MIDI commands. When the Sub Phatty
receives either a control signal from the onboard keyboard or a Note On command from an external
MIDI source, it responds by sending a gate signal to trigger the envelopes and a control voltage (CV)
to control oscillator pitch. The envelopes respond by sending control signals to the amplifier and filter.
Every knob and button on the Sub Phatty transmits MIDI data. This functionality is useful for record-
ing your knob turns and button presses into a computer-based DAW, as well as for controlling external
devices using the Sub Phatty’s front-panel controls. All the settings that make up a patch are called its
parameters, which is simply another name for settings.
VCA
SUB 1
VCO 1
VCO 2
NOISE
EXT. AUDIO
MIXER
EXT
AUD
H. PHONE
AUDIO
AUDIO
OUT
VCO 1
SUB
VCO 1
WAVE
VCO 2
WAVE
NOISE
CORE
VCO 1
CORE
VCO 2
CORE
EXT AUDIO
LVL
VCO 1
SUB LVL
VCO 1
LVL
VCO 1 MOD
& CNTRL
PITCH 1 CV
& MOD
NOTE
SYNC
PITCH 2 CV
& MOD
OSC 1-2
SYNC
FILTER EG
CV & MOD
VCA EG
& CV
RESO-
NANCE
VCO 2 MOD
& CNTRL
VCO 2
LVL
NOISE
LVL
LADDER
FILTER
FILT POLE
SELECT
MULTIDRIVE
MULTI-
DRIVE