Soundtoys Tremolator - Manual (Page 9)

9
Some Information on Amplitude Modulation…
Tremolo is really nothing more than amplitude (volume) modulation. On a standard
guitar amp this is usually just a knob that says, you guessed it, “Tremolo”. Usually
this has a fixed speed and you can simply adjust the depth. But in its basic form all
tremolo is the same: the volume goes up and down, up and down, at some predeter-
mined rate.
The thing that is cool about amplitude modulation is that it can be used in creative
ways to really alter the dynamic character of a sound. You can create syncopated
beat like effects, volume wiggles, slow floating waves, fast ripples and some very
cool dynamic changing effects based on the dynamics of the input signal. Lastly, at
really fast speeds, amplitude modulation sounds a lot like a ring modulator creating
clangorous, “side band” effects that can be ultra neat and groovy sounding. I think
we may have been watching too many late night “Leave it to Beaver” shows…
Anyway, as you can guess, there is a lot you can do with amplitude modulation and
Tremolator is just the tool to allow you to get all these cool effects. It’s the best
damn Tremolo box you’ll find this side of…this side of…well, lets just say it’s the best
damn tremolo unit this side of anywhere…period!