FXpansion DCAM Synth Squad Operation Manual - Manual (Page 20)

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3:2 Oscillator section
This section is a brief overview of Cypher’s oscillator functions. Please read chapter 4 to gain a full understanding of the
oscs’ special capabilities.
Osc
Power
Frequency
indicator
LED
Ring Mod
Filter Mix
Oscillator 1
Blend control
Oscillator
Oscillator
Osc 3
WM from 2
Osc 2
FM from 3
Osc 2
Sync to 1
Osc 3
Sync to 1
Master
tuning
Pitch, Fine & Scale
The pitch of each of the 3 oscillators is scaled against the master tuning (set using the Pitch and Fine controls), using
their respective Scale parameters.
By setting the Harmonic mode on a pitch control’s parameter context menu, each osc’s Scale control can operate in
harmonic pitch ratios instead of semitones, useful when dealing with FM and other audio-rate modulation processes.
Power
Each osc features a Power button to enable it. With the button disabled, the osc is deactivated.
Wave
The shape of each oscillator can be varied continuously between Triangle, Saw, Square and Pulse waveforms, using the
Wave control.
Due to their continuously variable nature, Cypher’s oscs do not feature a dedicated pulse width control – in order to vary
pulse width, you must modulate the Wave parameter in the square/pulse region of its travel.
The waveform of Osc3 can be varied at audio rate by Osc2 using the
WM from control.
FM from & WM from
Audio-rate modulation refers to modulating a parameter at the very fast speeds of audio waveforms, as opposed to the
slower speeds of LFOs and envelopes (known as control-rate modulation). The audio-rate modulation in Cypher is the
result of extremely detailed modelling, and strives to reproduce the complex behaviour that results when modulating
analogue components at audio-rate. Here’s a summary of what Cypher can do in this respect:
• Audio-rate Frequency modulation of Osc2 by Osc3 using the
FM from control on Osc2 (see sections 4:1 and 4:2)
• Audio-rate wave modulation of Osc3 by Osc2 using the WM from control on Osc3 (see section 4:3)
Sync to 1
The Sync to 1 controls in the Osc2 and Osc3 sections allow you to sync these oscs to Osc1’s frequency. Rather than
a simple on/off button for this function, Cypher features a continuous control that provides full ‘hard’ sync at 100% and
variable degrees of sync between 0 and 100%. This feature is covered in detail in section 4:5.
Beat
The Beat control allows you to detune one oscillator against another while keeping the rate of the resulting ‘beating’
constant across the keyboard. This opens up new rhythmic ways of playing sounds with classic detuned-beating
characteristics. See section 4:6 for a detailed discussion of how the Beat control works.
This control also sets the osc’s frequency (or rate) while the Osc is in LFO mode (when the
Low button is enabled).