Install Falcon

UVI Portal

1. Open UVI Portal and Log In to Your UVI Account

UVI Portal lets you register, download, install, activate and update all of your UVI products in a single convenient location. Click one of the links below to download and install UVI Portal for your system:

UVI Portal for macOS

UVI Portal for Windows

If you are a SonicPass member, please refer to this article to download and install your products, including Falcon.

2. Register Your Serial Number and Link it to Your iLok Account

A - Click Redeem Serial at the bottom of the sidebar to start

B - Enter the serial number, then follow the prompt to enter your iLok ID or create an iLok account if you don’t have one

3. Download and Install Falcon by Clicking on the Install Button — Falcon Factory needs to be installed separately.

4. Finish by Activating Falcon with iLok License Manager

Click the activate button in UVI Portal to open the iLok License Manager app.

A - Find the Falcon license in the list

B - Drag and drop it onto your computer in the Local list on the left

Please refer to the UVI Portal Manual for more details.

Startup Screen

Startup Screen

1. Launch Falcon.

The startup screen provides quick access to the program templates as well as recent patches.

2. Select from the options:

The templates cover a range of setups, including many types of synths, samplers, MPE and more. Program templates are a fantastic way to jump-start your creative process. You can even create your own!

• A. Select a template from GETTING STARTED.

• B. Select a RECENT program.

• C. Click NEW EMPTY PROJECT to start from scratch, or select a patch from your Soundware.

Other Options

• The small X button in the upper-left corner closes the screen.

• Uncheck SHOW AT STARTUP to launch Falcon without this screen.

• VIDEO opens Falcon videos on YouTube in your web browser.

• MANUAL opens this manual in your web browser.

Audio & MIDI Devices (Standalone)

Configure I/O

1. Launch Falcon

If you plan to use Falcon in standalone mode, you may need to select which MIDI inputs and audio outputs you want Falcon to use. This only needs to be done the first time you launch Falcon, or if you make changes to your hardware (such as changing your audio interface or controller keyboard), as these settings will be saved and reloaded the next time you start Falcon.

2. Select ‘Audio and MIDI Settings…’ from the Menu

3. Select the Desired Audio and MIDI Devices…

If you intend to use Falcon primarily as a plug-in you can skip this step, as the audio and MIDI settings will be defined by your host DAW.

Device

Select the desired audio interface from the Output menu, click to activate the available output channels, then select the sample rate and buffer size from the menus.

Click to activate the available devices or sources for MIDI input.

All incoming MIDI inputs are merged, but channels remain discrete.

On each Falcon part, select OMNI to listen to all channels, or A1–A16 to listen to a specific channel.

Routing

Falcon can address up to 17 stereo outputs. Use this panel to link Falcon’s outputs with those of your audio interface.

Load Your Soundware

Preset Browsing

1. Launch Falcon.

UVI-Powered Soundware is high-quality sound and instrument content from UVI and partner developers. Soundware and Falcon Expansions are fully supported and seamlessly integrated in Falcon.

2. Double-click EMPTY in the Parts List to open the Library Browser.

To use Falcon Factory (and Soundware) in Falcon you just need to tell it where to find them.

3. Click the FILES tab to switch to the File Browser, and expand its SOUNDWARE section.

You can change the Soundware location, for example to an external drive.

4. Select a Soundware, then a category and a patch. Double-click the patch to load it.

To manage your Soundware location, open the preferences panel of UVI Portal, or the Soundware tab in the preferences panel of UVI Player or Falcon.

NOTE: If you commonly use UVI Player it is recommended that you place your Soundware files and Falcon Expansions in separate directories.

5. Close the browser, and you’re ready to jam!

Synthesis

The following section will illustrate the basics of using Falcon, from loading and saving patches to creating a number of common sounds and instrument setups from scratch. It’s a perfect place to start if you’re new to Falcon and need some quick tips to get going.

Falcon’s synthesis engine offers a wide range of tools for playing, editing, and creating instruments and samples. You can freely mix sounds created with pure synthesis and sample playback even in the same program. Each of Falcon’s oscillator types has a different speciality; only a few of the possibilities are explored here.

Before continuing, check that you have your audio and MIDI devices connected and working properly. Additionally, some of the following examples use programs and samples from UVI Soundware. It’s recommended to have the “Falcon Factory rev2.ufs” Soundware available to follow along with most of the examples.

The Falcon Factory rev2 Soundware is available through UVI Portal and the My Products page on UVI.net.

1. 01 Working with Presets
2. 02 Saving a Program
3. 03 Saving a Multi
4. 04 Make a Simple Synth
5. 05 Make an Arpeggiated Synth
6. 06 Make an Evolving Pad
7. 07 Make an Interactive Wobble Bass
8. 08 Make a Drum Kit from Samples
9. 09 Make a Drum Kit from a Loop
10. 10 Make a Drum Kit with Synthesis

Working with Presets

Loading and Tweaking a Preset

Saving a Program

Saving a Multi

Make a Simple Synth

Make an Arpeggiated Synth

Falcon has numerous synthesis options in addition to the classic virtual analog oscillator we’ve already seen. Let’s explore the FM (frequency modulation) synth oscillator, using one of the factory presets as a starting point.

Make an Evolving Pad

Now let’s build a pad sound, one that evolves over time by using modulation to create movement.

Make an Interactive Wobble Bass

Falcon’s modulation engine provides endless opportunities for customizing and modifying sounds. Let’s create a wobble bass that we can tweak in real time from our MIDI controller.

Make a Drum Kit from Samples

Creating new programs from samples is just as easy as creating a synth-based program. Most of Falcon’s controls are used in the same way whether you’re using synth oscillators or sample files. Let’s create a drum kit from sample files.

Make a Drum Kit from a Loop

Drum loops often provide great source material for building a drum kit, especially if the loop has distinct hits where the different kit elements don’t overlap. By slicing and mapping the hits in the loop, we can easily take a single loop and turn it into a full kit.

Make a Drum Kit with Synthesis

Instead of starting with a looped sample or a collection of sampled drum hits, we can also create entirely new drum sounds from scratch with Falcon’s Drum synth oscillator.

You now have a drum kit built from Drum oscillator presets, with a synth on a layer of its own that can take its own effects (see Interface › Effects); for every Drum control, see Oscillators › Drum.

Effects + Modulation

Falcon has an extensive selection of audio effects and modulation sources that can be configured in both simple and extremely complex ways to achieve powerful effects. Most of these modules work on the same principles and interactions.

If you’ve followed the examples in the previous lessons, you should already be familiar with the basic concepts and use of effects and modulators in Falcon. Here we’ll build on that experience and explore some ways to further enhance your ability to both design sound and get hands-on with your patches.

For a detailed overview of each effect module and modulation source, please consult Effects and Modulators.

1. 01 Using Dual Delay X
2. 02 Using SparkVerb
3. 03 Using Effect Racks
4. 04 Using Macros
5. 05 Using Host Automation
6. 06 Using Step Envelopes
7. 07 Using Multi Envelopes
8. 08 Using OSC

Using Dual Delay X

Dual Delay X is a delay effects module that is capable of a wide range of time-based effects, from classic delays to reverb-like decays to more unusual effects, with an immersive interface to visualize the stereo and phase adjustments being made.

Dual Delay X can produce many classic effects through its time and phase settings. A short delay time with modulation, for example, gives a chorus or flanger, with the modulation, filter and rotation parameters shaping its character — and it can also create sounds you have never heard before. The factory presets in the 08 CREATIVE category give many examples of special effects to explore.

Using SparkVerb

SparkVerb is a unique and versatile reverb with an extraordinarily light CPU footprint, whose frequency-based spectral display shows the decay band by band. A single Size parameter emulates room reflections from 4 m to 50 m while Decay can be shaped globally and with independent low and high frequency multipliers, each with adjustable crossovers.

Using Effect Racks

The Effect Rack is a special kind of effect module that creates a new effects path inline where the Effect Rack module is added, similar to patching in an external rack of effects from a mixing console. Macros can then be added for “front-panel” control of the effects in the Effect Rack’s FX chain.

To see it in action, load a program, then switch to the EFFECTS tab and add an EFFECT RACK.

Using Macros

Macros are intermediary modulation sources which modulate other controls, useful for placing a small number of important controls on the “front panel” of a patch. Any parameter that can be modulated can be assigned to a macro, and a single macro can drive any number of parameters.

Using Host Automation

In addition to Falcon’s extensive internal modulation sources, when using Falcon as a plug-in you can take advantage of your host application’s automation capabilities. Each Falcon instance has 128 automation connections that can be assigned to individual controls.

To make a host automation assignment, right-click a parameter, choose Assign to Host Automation, and choose one of the available items.

Using Step Envelopes

The Step Envelope is a programmable envelope for creating time-based effects, and makes a great programmable pattern sequencer.

Using Multi Envelopes

The Multi Envelope is an envelope with a user-defined shape, consisting of any number of points. This allows for truly customized envelopes beyond classic DAHDSR envelopes, such as sweeps that evolve over a long period of time or looped LFO-like shapes.

You have replaced a keygroup’s amplitude envelope with a drawn, loopable Multi Envelope; for all of its controls and loop options, see Modulators › Multi Envelope.

Using OSC

Using OSC (Open Sound Control)

Open Sound Control is a protocol used to communicate between different computers and other audio devices. OSC is commonly used for remote control of software, such as from a central sequencer that’s driving Falcon installations on multiple networked computers, or for touchscreen control from a wireless mobile device.

Events

We’ve looked at ways to create and apply effects to sounds, and we’ve looked at ways to modulate them; now let’s take a look at Event processors.

Event modules can generally be thought of as MIDI effects, processing incoming MIDI signals or generating them, though with the Script Processor it’s possible to extend that paradigm to include extremely sophisticated creative devices and interface customization.

The most commonly used Event processors are the Arpeggiator, Micro Tuner and MIDI filters like the Chorder, Tonal Harmonizer and Strum. These are easily mastered devices providing great performance utility.

In the following lessons we’ll take a look at a few of these devices and some of the ways that we can effectively implement them in our own projects.

1. 01 Using the Arpeggiator
2. 02 Using the Micro Tuner
3. 03 Using the Script Processor

Using the Arpeggiator

The Arpeggiator is a classic synthesizer effect which modifies the incoming notes and plays them in a programmable pattern to create a dynamic sequence.

Using the Micro Tuner

The Micro Tuner allows the exploration of many unique and interesting temperaments, both modern and classical. It also allows instruments from other musical traditions to be played in their own tuning.

For this example we’re going to create an instance of Falcon in 12-tone Pythagorean temperament with C4 at 256 Hz. Pythagorean tuning is based on a stack of intervals called perfect fifths, each tuned in the ratio 3:2, which gives pure fifths.

Using the Script Processor

The Script Processor module provides custom event processing capabilities, using the Lua-based scripting language UVIScript.

The Script Processor module has two primary sets of controls: the standard controls for interacting with the script itself, and the controls defined by the loaded script (knobs, buttons, menus, and so on).

You have loaded a factory script and written one of your own that logs every note it receives. To go further, see Scripting in Lua, and for the module’s own controls, Event Processors › Script Processor.

Hierarchy

Falcon is a hierarchy of components, structured so that you can focus on the high-level arrangement or drill down to deeper levels as you prefer.

For example, a multi might contain two parts, shown below. The first plays a simple program: a single layer holding a single keygroup, whose only oscillator is a Pluck, routed into a spectrum analyzer on the program. The second plays Brush Stack Dark, from UVI Augmented Piano: several sustain, release and pedal-release layers, each holding dozens of keygroups with one sample per note, a script processor, envelopes and LFOs on the program, and a program effect chain from convolver and EQ to delay and reverb.

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A single Pluck oscillator routed into a spectrum analyzer

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  One layer, one keygroup

  The List view spells the program out: a single layer holding a single keygroup that spans the whole keyboard — the smallest program there is.

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  Program effects

  A Spectrum Analyzer inserted on the program. Everything the program plays passes through it, so it shows the harmonics of the note being held.

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  Layer and keygroup

  The LAYER(S) and KEYGROUP(S) sections are collapsed here; with a single one of each there is nothing else to select.

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  Pluck oscillator

  The keygroup’s only oscillator. Pluck is a string-synthesis oscillator: a short excitation — pitched oscillator, noise or sample — is fed through a filtered delay line. See Oscillators › Pluck.

‹ ›

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Dozens of keygroups make up just one of the many layers of Brush Stack Dark, from UVI Augmented Piano

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  Layers

  Each row is a layer, with its own mute, solo and volume: sustain, release and pedal-release layers, several of each.

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  Keygroups

  The keygroups of the selected layer — one per sampled note, each with its root key and its key and velocity range.

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  Program effects

  Every layer passes through this chain: convolver, EQ, clipper, chorus, phaser, delay and reverb, processed left to right.

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  Program event processors

  A Script Processor handles incoming notes before they reach the layers.

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  Program modulators

  Envelopes for the sustain, the highs, the releases and the sympathetic resonance, a filter envelope, and vibrato and tremolo LFOs.

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  Mappers

  Modulation mappers, which only exist at program level.

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  Layer

  The selected layer, Sustain Royer: play mode, glide, unison and velocity curve, and its own effects, events and modulators — a single Gain effect here.

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  Keygroups

  MULTIPLE SELECTION: every keygroup of the layer is selected, so an edit applies to all of them at once.

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  Mapping

  The selected keygroups laid out across the keyboard, one column per note.

‹ ›

At its simplest, you can launch Falcon, load some instruments or loops, and just begin playing without worrying about how it’s all put together. At the other end, you can craft your own advanced, multi-layered programs from scratch containing dozens or hundreds of oscillators with numerous modulation sources, and then mix many instruments and loops together using multiple parts and effects chains.

The sounds included with Falcon or with partner Soundware contain highly detailed and richly varied programs that don’t require any editing at all. However, Falcon also provides the means to modify and extend sounds, which can be peeled back one layer at a time for increasingly detailed adjustments.

Components

The basic components of Falcon are oscillators, effects, event processors and modulators. These components, described in the following sections, can be combined in near-infinite variations to produce compelling sounds and instruments.

Oscillators

Oscillators generate the sound. Each keygroup holds one or more of them, of two types: sampling oscillators, which play back audio samples, and synthesis oscillators, which generate the sound without samples. For each oscillator type, see Oscillators.

Effects

Effects process the audio signal, from filters, delays and reverbs to analysis tools such as spectrum analyzers. They can be inserted at every level, from a single keygroup up to the master output, and a whole chain can be saved and recalled as a Multi FX preset. For using effects, see Interface › Effects; for each effect type, Effects.

Modulators

Modulators move the values of controls; they never carry audio or MIDI themselves. Internal sources (envelopes, LFOs, macros) come from Falcon itself, and envelopes and LFOs can be created at every level from the master down to the keygroup; external sources include MIDI messages and host automation. For using modulation, see Interface › Modulation; for each modulator type, Modulators.

Event Processors

Event processors transform or generate MIDI before it reaches the oscillators, from arpeggiators and micro-tuners to script processors, which extend Falcon in Lua. They can be inserted at every level from the master down to the layer, but not on keygroups. For using event processors, see Interface › Events; for each event processor type, Event Processors.

General Conventions

Throughout Falcon, some common conventions are used for adjusting and interacting with controls. Shortcuts are written Mac first: Cmd/Ctrl means Command on Mac and Control on Windows, and Alt/Option means Alt on Windows and Option on Mac.

Toolbar

The toolbar is displayed at the top of the window and is always visible in Main, Mixer, and Performance views. Most controls in the toolbar apply globally to the entire Falcon instance.

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  Main Menu

  Opens the Main Menu: loading and saving multis and programs, Undo / Redo / History, UI snapshots, Preferences, and window size. Each command is described under Main Menu below.

• 2
  Undo / Redo

  Reverts or re-applies the last action. You can step back to any previous state with the History panel (available through the Main Menu).

• 3
  Browser Toggle

  Click the folder icon to open the Library Browser and view/load instruments, presets, or loops and sounds into the chosen part — the same as double-clicking the part’s program name. See Which Browser?

• 4
  Changing the View

  The MAIN, MIXER, and PERF buttons change the primary view of the Falcon window. See Main, Mixer and Performance.

• 5
  Show/Hide Sidebar

  The left and right sidebars can be individually hidden or shown. The left sidebar displays the PARTS, TREE, and LIST editors; the right sidebar displays the sidebar browsers. The left sidebar is shown in Main view only.

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  Tempo

  Falcon’s current TEMPO, from 10 to 400 bpm. Double-click to enter a value, or click and drag up/down. Every tempo-synced parameter in Falcon follows it. When Sync To Host is enabled, the Tempo cannot be edited manually.

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  Tap Tempo

  Tap the TAP button repeatedly at a consistent tempo to enter the tempo by feel rather than typing a value.

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  Sync To Host / AutoPlay

  Enabling SYNC TO HOST causes Falcon to follow an external tempo source — the host application’s tempo when used as a plug-in, or MIDI Beat Clock when standalone. Enabling AUTOPLAY causes Falcon to play and stop along with the host. AutoPlay is not shown in standalone mode. For a loop’s own auto-play, see Parts.

• 9
  Play / Stop

  The PLAY and STOP buttons manually start and stop Falcon’s playback. When AutoPlay is enabled they also reflect the host application’s transport state.

• 10
  Global Tune

  GLOBAL TUNE adjusts the tuning for all parts, using the A above Middle C as a reference. Global Tune defaults to 440 Hz, and is adjustable from 392 Hz to 493.88 Hz.

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  Global Volume

  GLOBAL VOLUME adjusts the output volume for the Main Outs.

‹ ›

Main Menu

The Main Menu opens from the menu icon at the left of the toolbar (1). Point at a command to see what it does.

Status Bar

The status bar is displayed at the bottom of the window and provides quick, at-a-glance information.

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  Version

  The installed version of Falcon is displayed on the left side of the status bar.

• 2
  Workspace

  Store and recall the UI settings of the left and center panes as a workspace, up to 8 slots. Click the button to select a workspace; Shift-click to save the current state into a workspace; Shift+Cmd/Ctrl-click to delete the workspace. The number of a saved workspace is lit in blue. NOTE: Workspaces and Snapshots both manage left/center panel state, but they operate independently.

• 3
  Hover Help

  The center of the status bar displays contextual help as you use Falcon — for example “Global Volume” when hovering over the output volume knob, or “Oscillator tune in semitones” when hovering over the Oscillator module’s Coarse Tune knob.

• 4
  Performance Summary

  The right side of the status bar displays a performance summary for the current multi: memory usage, CPU usage, and the number of voices currently playing.

‹ ›

Main

The Main view is the primary view for creating and editing parts in Falcon, and the instruments and samples that those parts contain.

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  Toolbar

  Always-visible top bar with Main Menu, browser toggle, view selector, sidebar toggles, tempo and transport. See Toolbar for full details.

• 2
  Center Pane

  Primary working area for viewing and editing parts — the Info, Edit, Effects, Events, Mods and Mappers tabs are displayed here.

• 3
  Left Sidebar

  The LEFT SIDEBAR hosts the Parts, Tree, and List editors for navigating the multi.

• 4
  Right Sidebar

  The RIGHT SIDEBAR hosts the sidebar browsers for loading programs, presets and samples.

‹ ›

Parts

The Parts List, in the left sidebar, lists every part of the multi and selects the one displayed and edited in the center pane. Part settings are independent of the program loaded in the part, and are saved with the multi — or with your host session when Falcon is used as a plug-in.

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  Parts List menu

  Actions for the selected part: Empty selected Part, Load Program in selected Part and New Program in selected Part.

• 2
  Add / remove parts

  The + and − buttons add and remove parts. To reorder parts, press and hold a part and drag it.

• 3
  Multi Controls

  The name of the loaded multi. Double-click it to open the File Browser and load a multi, or use the previous/next buttons to step through the multis in the same folder.

• 4
  Global Volume / Tune

  The same Global Volume and Global Tune as in the toolbar, with the output meters of the Main Out.

• 5
  Program name

  The loaded program; an asterisk marks unsaved changes. Double-click to open the Library Browser, or Shift-double-click to show it in the FILES tab of the right sidebar — either one opens at the program’s location. Right-click for Empty Part, Delete Part, Duplicate Part, Load Program, Reload Program (discards the changes since the last save) and New Program.

• 6
  Previous / Next program

  Steps through the programs in the same folder.

• 7
  MIDI Input

  The part’s MIDI input (A1, A2, …), incremented automatically for each new part. Press and hold to change it; Omni listens on all ports and channels, and shows an asterisk.

• 8
  Mute / Solo

  Mute or solo the part. Alt/Option-click to mute or solo only that part; Cmd/Ctrl-click to mute or solo every part except the one clicked.

• 9
  Output meters / MIDI indicator

  The part’s output level. The MIDI indicator flashes whenever the part receives MIDI on its input.

• 10
  Octave / Semi

  Transpose the part’s incoming MIDI in octaves and semitones.

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  Audio Output

  The part’s audio output; new parts go to the Main Out. Press and hold to route it to another output.

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  Volume / Pan

  The part’s output level and stereo placement.

‹ ›

Additional controls on the part row, for loops and for the part color:

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  Unsaved changes

  The asterisk after the program name: the program has unsaved changes.

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  Auto Play

  Triggers the loop when Falcon’s playback starts.

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  Play

  Lights while the loop is playing, and starts or stops it manually.

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  Part color

  Click the color bar on the right of a part to choose its color.

‹ ›

Drag the right edge of the Parts List to widen it; the controls rearrange so that more parts fit at once.

Tree

The Tree shows one part as a hierarchy of nodes, following Structure: from its program down to each keygroup and oscillator. Its two sections, INSTRUMENT (the nodes) and INSPECTOR (the details of the selected node), are collapsed or expanded with the arrow left of their name; drag the Inspector’s top edge to change its height.

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  Instrument

  The nodes of a single part, plus a few global nodes. Choose the part from the Part Selector menu in the upper right.

• 2
  Node visibility toggles

  Show or hide Effects, Event Processors, Modulation Sources, and Aux FX buses and sends. Master, Host Automation, Part, Program, Layer, Keygroup and Oscillator are always shown.

• 3
  Navigating the tree

  Press a node to select it and show its details in the Inspector. Press the arrow left of a node to expand or collapse it; hold Alt/Option to expand all of its children too.

‹ ›

The node selected in the Tree also drives the other views — the Edit tab, the Effects tab and so on — which makes it the quickest way around the layers, keygroups, effects and modulation assignments of a large program. Double-click a node to jump to its main editor: an effect opens in the Effects tab, a modulation source in the Mods tab.

For a node’s options, select it and press the menu icon in the upper left, or right-click the node.

The Inspector lists the selected node’s properties. Double-click a value to type a new one, or drag it up or down. Most properties also appear in other views, such as the Edit tab or the Mixer, but some “under-the-hood” properties are shown only here.

List

The List gives a detailed rundown of one part and its program, in four sections that follow the same hierarchy: Part, Program, Layer(s) and Keygroup(s). Drag its right edge to widen it; each section collapses or expands with the arrow left of its name.

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  Part section

  The settings of the selected part — the same as in the Parts List.

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  Part Selector menu

  Chooses which part all four sections show.

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  Program section

  The settings of the program loaded in the part — the same as the Program section of the Edit tab.

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  Program menu

  Creates, loads, reloads, saves and protects the program. See Program Menu below.

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  Previous / Next Program

  Steps through the program files in the current folder.

‹ ›

Layers and Keygroups

The Layers section lists every layer of the program, and the Keygroups section every keygroup of the selected layers. What you select here is what the Edit tab shows, which makes it easy to work on one layer or a few keygroups of a large program.

• Press a name to select it; hold Cmd/Ctrl to select several. Press the empty space below the last row to deselect all — with nothing selected, the Edit tab shows a composite, and edits apply to every layer or keygroup.
• Right-click a column header to choose which settings are shown as columns, and drag a header left or right to reorder the columns. In the Keygroups section, press a column name to sort by it, and press again to reverse the order; drag a column’s right edge to widen it.
• The Layer menu edits layer rules and cuts, copies, pastes and duplicates layers; the Keygroup menu cuts, copies, pastes and duplicates keygroups. See Adding, Moving and Deleting Keygroups.
• The Add and Remove buttons add a layer or keygroup, or remove the selected ones.

Program Menu

The Program section’s menu manages the program file. Point at a command to see what it does.

Info

The Info tab is the “front panel” of the selected program: its macros, its description and images, and a playable keyboard.

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  Script button

  When the program’s script defines a custom interface, that interface is shown by default; the Script button switches between it and the standard view.

• 2
  Edit Mode

  Press EDIT to rearrange the macros: drag a control to move it, double-click a label to rename it, or right-click for more edit commands.

• 3
  Program Information (i)

  Shows the program’s description — modwheel assignments, what the macros do, playing tips. You can write and save descriptions for your own programs. UVI Soundware programs also show images; when there are several, the < and > arrows cycle through them.

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  Macros

  The controls assigned to macros, for quick access to the program’s important settings. See Modulators › Macro.

‹ ›

At the bottom of the Info tab, the keyboard plays the program when clicked. The program’s key range is highlighted and the keys outside it are darkened; keys used by keyswitch layer rules are shown in blue. A Script Processor can also set its own key colors.

Edit

The Edit tab is organized into stacked sections — Program, Layer, Keygroup, Oscillator, Mapping Editor and Modulation Editor — that can be individually shown, hidden, collapsed, or expanded. The first four form the program hierarchy: a program contains layers, a layer contains keygroups, and a keygroup contains oscillators. See Structure for details.

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  Section Headers

  PROGRAM, LAYER, KEYGROUP, OSCILLATOR, MAPPING EDITOR and MODULATION EDITOR. Click the arrow on the left of a header (or double-click the header) to collapse or expand the section.

• 2
  Show/Hide Sections

  Each section can be shown or hidden using the corresponding buttons in the upper-right toolbar of the Edit tab.

• 3
  Parameters View

  Each of the four hierarchy sections contains a Parameters view that displays its controls. The parameter view can be shown or hidden by pressing the toggle in the section header.

• 4
  Lanes

  Additional lanes — Effects, Event processors, Modulation sources, Mapper editors — can be toggled per section using the corresponding buttons in the section header. Each lane is a condensed view of its full tab, showing only modules saved at that level of the program hierarchy.

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  Module Tabs

  Each module appears as a tab. Click the tab name to show/hide its controls. The POWER button on the left of the tab enables/disables the module; the X button on the right deletes it. Press and hold on the module name to choose another module in its place.

• 6
  Add Module (+)

  Press the plus (+) button to add a new module to the lane from a menu of available modules. NOTE: For Effects and Event lanes, left-to-right order indicates signal flow. For Modulations and Mappers lanes the order is not significant. See Mods.

‹ ›

Program

The Program Editor configures program-wide playback parameters.

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  Gain & Pan

  Sets the output level and stereo placement for the entire program. These are distinct from the Part gain and pan settings and are saved with the program.

• 2
  Streaming

  Toggles whether samples in the program are streamed from disk. When it is off, the program’s samples are loaded fully into memory. See Preferences › Streaming.

• 3
  Octave & Semi

  Transposes incoming MIDI to the program. OCTAVE shifts in octaves, SEMI in semitones.

• 4
  Polyphony

  Sets the default number of simultaneous voices available for each layer in the program. To override this on individual layers, see Custom Polyphony in the Layer section. Keeping polyphony as low as practical reduces processing load, especially with per-keygroup effects or modulators.

• 5
  Note Polyphony

  Sets the maximum number of simultaneous triggers of the same note. A setting of zero is a special value indicating UNLIMITED.

‹ ›

Layer

The Layer Editor configures playback behavior for the selected layer(s).

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  Gain & Pan

  GAIN and PAN set the output level and stereo placement for the selected layer(s).

• 2
  Play Mode

  Determines what happens when additional notes are triggered while another note is held. POLY modes play multiple notes simultaneously; MONO modes play only the last triggered note.

• 3
  Portamento

  With POLY PORTAMENTO or MONO PORTAMENTO there is a glide from the previous note to the new one. GLIDE TIME sets the duration. The glide mode menu next to it chooses Constant (always the same time) or Proportional (longer for wider intervals). MONO PORTAMENTO SLIDE always starts from the pitch of the previous note, even if released first.

• 4
  Unison Voices

  Sets the number of voices triggered with each note received; the default is 1. When using multiple voices, the Unison modulation sources (External › Other) can modulate parameters per voice — for example Keygroup Pitch or Pan — for a richer sound.

• 5
  Custom Polyphony

  Sets the maximum polyphony for the layer. A setting of zero is a special value indicating no layer-specific limit (the program polyphony applies).

• 6
  Velocity Curve

  Maps incoming velocity values. Default is NORMAL (1:1). Right-click to choose Constant velocity (a fixed velocity, double-click to set it) or Velocity Curve, or one of the presets: MAX (always 127), HARD (you must play harder to reach high velocities), NORMAL and SOFT (soft playing already gives high velocities). Drag the curve up or down to shape it, or double-click to enter a value.

‹ ›

The curve displays incoming velocities on the X axis, and triggered velocities on Y. Drag the curve up or down to shape it, or double-click and enter a value:

• Values between -1 and 0 cover the range between the Hard and Normal presets.
• Values between 0 and +1 cover the range between the Normal and Soft presets.
• Values above +1, up to 127, set a constant velocity; exactly +1 is the Soft preset.

Keygroup

The Keygroup Editor configures triggering behavior for the selected keygroup(s).

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  Gain & Pan

  GAIN and PAN set the output level and stereo placement for the selected keygroup(s).

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  Trigger Mode

  Determines what event triggers the keygroup. ON: note-on (default). OFF: note-off. OFF + E: note-off, amplitude follows the current envelope level. OFF + V: note-off, amplitude follows the note-off velocity. OFF + VE: combines envelope and note-off velocity. The Off variants help match the amplitude of release samples to the preceding note.

• 3
  Trigger Sync

  Determines how the keygroup is played back once triggered. IMMEDIATE: triggered immediately. NEXT BEAT: triggered at the start of the next beat. NEXT BAR: triggered at the start of the next bar. The Next Beat/Bar options are useful with tempo-synced event processors such as the Arpeggiator, or with tempo-synced loops.

• 4
  Exclusive Group

  Marks keygroups as mutually exclusive — the classic use case is a hi-hat group where a closed hi-hat cuts off the open hi-hat. 32 exclusive groups are available per layer. A setting of zero indicates no exclusive group assignment.

• 5
  Latch

  When LATCH is enabled, notes are held (latched) indefinitely when triggered; to release the note, play the same note again.

‹ ›

Oscillator

A keygroup contains one or more oscillators. The Oscillator Editor sets the playback and pitch parameters common to all oscillator types.

Oscillators are chosen from a single panel that drops from whichever control opened it. Press the + button on the oscillator bar to add one, or press and hold — or right-click — an oscillator slot to replace what is already in it. The same panel opens from the Tree view, by right-clicking a keygroup and choosing Add Oscillator….

The panel lists every oscillator in columns under its category heading, SAMPLING and SYNTHESIS, each entry an icon and a name. The oscillator the slot already holds is highlighted. A card along the bottom describes whichever entry the pointer is on — its icon, its name, its category and a one-line description — and falls back to the current oscillator when the pointer leaves the list.

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  Edit All Oscillators

  With EDIT ALL OSCILLATORS enabled, the parameters below are edited simultaneously for every oscillator in the keygroup. Disable to edit each oscillator individually by selecting its tab.

• 2
  Trigger Mode

  When the keygroup contains multiple oscillators, TRIGGER MODE chooses which is triggered. ALL: every oscillator on every note. CYCLE: round-robin in fixed order — with oscillators A, B and C the order is always A-B-C, A-B-C. RANDOM CYCLE: each oscillator triggers once per cycle in random order, with no direct repeats across cycles — B-A-C, A-C-B, then C-B-A. RANDOM: a single random oscillator each note — A-C-C-B-A-B-B-C-A.

• 3
  Gain

  Sets the output level for the selected oscillator(s) within the keygroup.

• 4
  Coarse / Fine Tune & Pitch

  COARSE TUNE and FINE TUNE set the oscillator’s pitch in semitones and cents — static, not modulatable. The PITCH control can be modulated and covers ±4 octaves. Typical use: Fine Tune to correct a sample, Coarse Tune to shift up/down the keyboard, Pitch to modulate with an LFO or envelope.

• 5
  Note Tracking

  Determines how incoming notes are transposed. 100% transposes 1:1 relative to the root key. 200% doubles the transposition (G4 root, G#4 played → sounds like A4). Negative values invert (-200%, G#4 → sounds like F4). 0% gives a constant pitch regardless of note.

‹ ›

Sample Editor

For sample-based oscillator types, the Sample Editor displays a waveform editor and additional controls specific to audio files and loops. (For synthesis oscillators, see Oscillators.).

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  Waveform Display

  The waveform of the loaded sample, zoomed to fit by default. If the oscillator has no sample, drop one here from the FILES tab of the right sidebar or from the Finder (Mac) / File Explorer (Windows). Hold Alt/Option while scrolling to zoom horizontally, Shift to zoom vertically. Drag the display’s bottom edge to make it taller; its width follows the center pane, so drag the sidebar border to widen it.

• 2
  Time Ruler

  The duration of the sample. Right-click the ruler to switch its format between Samples, Beats and Seconds.

• 3
  Sample Info

  Overlays details about the loaded sample on the waveform: file location, bit depth, sample rate, number of channels, duration and file size, plus the loop details if the sample is looped.

• 4
  Parameters

  Shows or hides the parameters specific to the oscillator type. See Oscillators.

• 5
  Start / End Markers

  Drag the S and E markers, at the left and right edges of the waveform, to set where playback begins and ends within the file.

‹ ›

Editing

To edit the sample, click and drag to select a time range, then right-click for the editing commands: CUT, COPY, PASTE, UNDO, REDO, SELECT ALL, DESELECT ALL, CROP, DELETE, NORMALIZE, SILENCE, REVERSE, FADE IN, FADE OUT, PLAY SELECTION, SNAP SELECTION TO NEAREST ZERO-CROSSING, SET START MARKER USING CURRENT POSITION and SET END MARKER USING CURRENT POSITION. The same menu also holds a Zoom submenu and REVEAL IN FINDER (Mac) / REVEAL IN EXPLORER (Windows).

CHANGE PLAYING DIRECTION TO REVERSE plays the sample backwards; CHANGE PLAYING DIRECTION TO FORWARD restores it. SET AS ONE SHOT plays the entire sample on every trigger, whatever the keygroup’s amplitude envelope — a natural fit for drums and percussion; DISABLE ONE SHOT returns to standard playback.

To apply one of Falcon’s effects to the sample permanently, select some audio, choose APPLY FX, choose the effect, set its parameters and press OK. The effect is rendered into the sample, not applied in real time. Save the sample to keep the result, or choose Undo to discard it.

When several keygroups are selected, a Batch menu appears, which applies an action — normalizing, applying an effect — to every selected keygroup at once.

Looping

To add a loop, select part of the sample, choose CREATE LOOP and pick a loop type:

• FORWARD: the looped section plays forward; when playback reaches the loop end, it resumes from the loop start.
• ALTERNATE: the looped section plays alternately forward (loop start → loop end) and in reverse (loop end → loop start).

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  Loop Markers (L / R)

  Drag the L and R markers to set where the loop begins and ends.

• 7
  Loop Crossfade (X)

  Crossfading the looped section makes a loop sound less looped and smooths out clicks at the loop point. ENABLE XFADE turns the crossfade on, DISABLE XFADE off; while it is on, drag the X marker to set the length of the crossfade, and drag the point on the crossfade curve to shape it. PRINT CROSSFADE writes the crossfade into the sample.

• 8
  Looped Release

  What happens when a note is released. ENABLE LOOPED RELEASE: the loop keeps playing until the release phase is over. DISABLE LOOPED RELEASE: playback continues past the loop end until the release phase ends or the end marker is reached. DELETE LOOP removes the loop.

‹ ›

Saving Samples

On sampling oscillators, the module’s Preset File menu (see Module Preset Menu) adds commands for the sample itself:

• SAVE SAMPLE: saves the sample file in place.
• SAVE SAMPLE AS…: saves the sample to a new file.
• SAVE SAMPLE WITH PLAYBACK OPTIONS: saves the sample file in place, and writes the sample and loop start/end markers into it.
• SAVE SAMPLE AS WITH PLAYBACK OPTIONS…: saves the sample to a new file, with the sample and loop start/end markers written into it.

To reveal the sample file on disk, right-click the sample and choose REVEAL IN FINDER (Mac) / REVEAL IN EXPLORER (Windows).

Mapping

The Mapping Editor displays the arrangement of the program’s layers and keygroups. A program can contain anything from a single keygroup in a single layer covering the entire key and velocity range, to many layers each holding dozens of keygroups assigned to very small ranges.

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  Mapping area

  The key range runs horizontally and the velocity range vertically. Each keygroup is a block covering its key and velocity range; when the program has several layers, they are stacked on top of each other.

• 2
  Selection details

  Root key, key range, velocity range and other details of the selected keygroups. Edit them in the usual manner — double-click to type a value, or scroll. With several keygroups selected, an edit applies to all of them.

• 3
  Mapping menu

  Opens the Mapping Editor’s menu of edit commands, also available by right-clicking anywhere in the mapping area. See Adding, Moving and Deleting Keygroups.

‹ ›

Pressing a key on the piano keyboard triggers the note, and plays any keygroup assigned to that key. The vertical position sets the velocity: press closer to the bottom of the key for higher velocities, closer to the top for lower ones.

To adjust a keygroup’s key or velocity range, select it, then click and drag any of its edges. Hold Cmd/Ctrl before you start dragging to fade the range instead; a dashed line inside the keygroup marks where the fade begins.

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  Navigation toggles

  HIGHLIGHT PLAYED KEYGROUPS flashes keygroups as they are triggered; MIDI SELECT selects them as they are triggered.

• 5
  Importing samples

  Drag one or more samples from the FILES tab of the right sidebar or from your desktop to create keygroups. Where you drop sets the new keygroup’s key range: the closer to the top of the velocity range, the wider the key range. Hold Alt/Option while dragging to open the custom import dialog instead.

  

  MAPPING METHOD chooses how each file is assigned — NOTE NAME, BLACK KEYS and others, many of them read from the file name or other metadata — and describes the selected one. DESTINATION LAYER picks the layer that receives the samples, or a new one.

• 6
  Zoom and resize

  Zoom horizontally with the + and − buttons in the lower right, or resize the editor vertically by dragging the Mapping Editor toolbar up or down.

‹ ›

Adding, Moving and Deleting Keygroups

The Mapping Editor’s menu holds all of its edit commands. To open it, right-click anywhere in the mapping area, or press the menu button towards the left end of the Mapping Editor toolbar. Point at a command to see what it does.

Keygroup Templates

A keygroup template is a snapshot of a keygroup in its entirety, including all of its oscillators, effects and modulators — a starting point for new patches, or a shortcut when building complex parts.

To create one, select the keygroup in the Mapping Editor and choose Save Keygroup Template from the Mapping Editor’s menu. Name the template and click Save. To overwrite an existing template, save it again under the same name.

The new template is offered in the Create Keygroup and Create Keygroup in New Layer submenus, and can be added to any program from there.

• A template always holds exactly one keygroup: several keygroups cannot be saved into one template, nor saved as templates in one operation.
• If Save Keygroup Template is grayed out, select the keygroup in the Tree instead.
• To rename, organize or share your templates, open the folder where they are saved: ~/Documents/UVI/Falcon/User Presets/Keygroups.

Layer Rules

Layer Rules dynamically change which of a program’s layers a note triggers — to switch between legato and staccato articulations, for example, or to cycle through several variations of the same note for a more realistic performance.

To open the Layer Rules Editor, choose Edit Layer Rules (Cmd/Ctrl+E) from the Mapping Editor’s menu. The rules are listed on the left, and the program’s layers under Targets on the right.

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  Root Rule

  The rule every sub-rule belongs to. Right-click it to add a sub-rule, or to delete the rule.

• 2
  Rule Type

  What the root rule uses to choose between its sub-rules — here, Key Switch. The menu is available once the rule has sub-rules; each type is described below.

• 3
  Sub-rules

  One per layer or group of layers, each with the condition that selects it — here the key switch notes C0 and D0. Select a sub-rule to set its condition and its targets.

• 4
  Learn

  Key Switch rules only: listens for the next note you play and uses it as the sub-rule’s key switch.

• 5
  Condition

  Sets the sub-rule’s condition — for a Key Switch rule, the note. Its value is shown in the sub-rule’s name.

• 6
  Targets

  The program’s layers. Tick the ones the selected sub-rule triggers: here the C0 sub-rule plays the Sustain layer, and D0 plays Staccato.

‹ ›

1. Click No rule, right-click to add a new rule and choose Add root rule.
2. Right-click the root rule and choose Add sub-rule, once for each layer or group of layers the rule chooses between.
3. Choose the root rule’s type (see below), such as Key Switch. The type menu is available once the rule has sub-rules.
4. Select each sub-rule, set the condition that triggers it, and choose its layers under Targets.

For example, a Key Switch rule with two sub-rules, the first set to C0 and the second to D0, plays the first sub-rule’s layers after C0 is pressed and the second’s after D0.

Sub-rules can have sub-rules of their own, which branch the triggering logic further. To remove a rule, right-click it and choose Delete rule.

Effects

The Effects tab displays every audio effects path, from the effects on the master output down to those on a single keygroup. Within one node, effects process from top to bottom. Between levels, audio flows up, from the keygroup to the master. See Structure. For each effect, see Effects.

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  Navigation breadcrumbs

  Choose which effects path you are viewing. Press a node’s name to show its effects, or the arrow to its right to go to one of its child nodes — for example, one of the program’s layers. Selecting a node in the Tree does the same.

• 2
  Aux Sends

  With the aux FX nodes shown in the Tree, each node that has aux sends shows them: send level, mute, and pre/post-fader for each aux bus.

• 3
  Preset Browser

  Drag an effect from the FX tab of the right sidebar into the chain to add it.

• 4
  Tempo Sync

  Effects with time-based parameters, such as delays or tremolo, show a TEMPO SYNC button next to the Preset File menu, which locks them to Falcon’s tempo; their time settings then read in note and bar values.

‹ ›

• Add an effect with the + button in the upper right, or by dragging it from the FX tab of the right sidebar.
• Reorder effects by pressing and holding an effect’s header and dragging it to a new position.
• Replace an effect by clicking its name and choosing another from the menu.
• Enable or disable an effect with the POWER button left of its name, and delete it with the X button at the far right.
• The Modulation and Keyboard sections can be shown or hidden with the buttons in the top right.

Aux FX

There are two aux effects sections, each with at least four independent aux buses:

• Master aux FX, fed by sends on each part of the multi; saved with the multi.
• Program aux FX, fed by sends on each layer and keygroup of the program; saved with the program.

To view and add aux effects, choose the aux bus from the navigation menu of the Program or Master node. The master aux FX and their sends also appear in the Mixer.

To add an aux bus, right-click the Program or Master node in the Tree and choose Add Aux. The new bus comes after the existing ones, and each layer and keygroup of the program (each part of the multi, for a master aux) gets a send to it. To remove an aux bus, right-click it in the Tree and choose Remove Node, or select it and press Delete; its sends are removed with it. Each section keeps at least four aux buses, and a send cannot be removed on its own. Aux buses are named by position (Aux 1, Aux 2, …), so removing one renumbers the buses after it. Both edits can be undone. In the List, the Keygroups section has a program aux send column for each program aux bus.

A program saves only the aux buses that hold effects, with their sends; when it is loaded, they return to their positions, and empty buses are added back up to four. A multi saves all of its master aux buses.

Multi FX

A Multi FX preset saves and recalls all the effects of the current node as one group, so a complex chain can be recalled instantly. Multi FX presets are saved and loaded from the Multi FX preset menu, and its POWER button enables or disables all of the node’s effects together. Clear Multi FX in the Multi FX preset menu removes all of the node’s effects.

Events

The Events tab displays every MIDI event processing path, from the master event processors down to those on a single layer. Event processors are not added to keygroups, since they generally address events that span several keygroups. Signal flows from top to bottom. For each event processor, see Event Processors.

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• 1
  Navigation breadcrumbs

  Choose which event path you are viewing. Press a node’s name to show its event processors, or the arrow to its right to go to one of its child nodes — for example, one of the program’s layers.

• 2
  Tree navigation

  Selecting a node in the Tree also shows its event processors.

• 3
  Preset Browser

  Drag an event processor from the EVENT tab of the right sidebar into the chain to add it.

• 4
  Modulation / Keyboard Sections

  Show or hide the Modulation and Keyboard sections.

• 5
  Add Event Processor (+)

  Adds an event processor, chosen from the menu.

‹ ›

• Reorder event processors by pressing and holding a header and dragging it to a new position.
• Replace an event processor by clicking its name and choosing another from the menu.
• Enable or disable an event processor with its POWER button, and delete it with the X button in its toolbar.

Modulation

The Modulation Editor displays modulation assignments and sources, and is the central place for editing modulation generators.

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  Selected parameter

  When you select a parameter, its node and name appear here. For example, selecting the layer gain knob displays “Layer > Volume”.

• 2
  Modulation Assignments

  The top half of the editor lists every modulation assignment of the selected parameter.

• 3
  Modulation Source Editor

  The bottom half displays the controls of the selected modulation source.

• 4
  Show/hide source editor

  Shows or hides the Modulation Source Editor.

‹ ›

Modulation flows from the top of the hierarchy (Master) down through the Part, Program, Layer and Keygroup levels to the oscillators. A modulation generator created at the Master level can therefore target any parameter of the Falcon instance, while one created at the Keygroup level only reaches parameters within its own keygroup. See Structure.

Understanding Modulation Sources

A modulation source generates a control signal that modifies other controls; on its own, it does not affect Falcon’s output. It only has an effect once it is assigned to a control, and where it sits in Falcon’s hierarchy determines which controls it can be assigned to.

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  Assignment tabs

  A parameter can have any number of modulation assignments. Enable or disable each one with the POWER button on the left of its tab, or remove it with the X button on the right.

• 6
  Source name

  The node, name and type of the modulation source — for example, “Keygroup > Amp. Env DAHDSR” for a keygroup DAHDSR envelope named Amp. Env. Press and hold the name to choose a different source.

• 7
  Ratio

  How much the source affects the parameter: +1 to −1 (+100 % to −100 %) for most parameters, +48 to −48 semitones for pitch.

• 8
  Invert

  Flips the modulation range. For custom shapes, use the Modulation Mapper Editor (below).

• 9
  Sub-Modulation

  Every assignment has a SUB-MODULATION source that modulates the primary source’s ratio. It is enabled, removed, replaced and scaled the same way as the primary source. For example, an LFO on an oscillator’s pitch with the mod wheel as sub-source gives a vibrato whose depth follows the mod wheel.

‹ ›

Assigning Modulation, MIDI and Automation

Right-click any parameter to assign it a modulation source, a MIDI controller, a macro or a host automation slot. Point at a command to see what it does.

Add Modulation ▸ Edit Modulations Clear Modulations

Assign to Host automation ▸ Unassign Host automation

MIDI Learn MIDI Unlearn

Assign To Macro ▸ Delete Macros assignment

OSC ▸

Modulation Add Modulation

Creates a new assignment, from an existing modulation source of the keygroup, layer or program, from a new one (Add New), or from an external source such as MIDI CC or channel aftertouch. See External Sources.

Modulation Edit Modulations

Opens the parameter’s current assignments in a pop-up next to the parameter.

Modulation Clear Modulations

Removes every modulation assignment of the parameter.

Host automation Assign to Host automation

With Falcon used as a plug-in, links the parameter to one of Falcon’s 128 host automation slots, so the host application’s automation can control it.

Host automation Unassign Host automation

Removes the host automation assignment.

MIDI MIDI Learn

Assigns a MIDI CC to the parameter: choose one from the window that opens, or move the control on your MIDI controller. Choose Clear in that window to remove the assignment.

MIDI MIDI Unlearn

Removes the MIDI CC assignment.

Macros Assign To Macro

Assigns the parameter to one of the program’s macros, or to a new one (Add new Macro), for quick control from the Info tab.

Macros Delete Macros assignment

Removes the parameter from its macro.

OSC OSC

Shows the parameter’s Open Sound Control path, and Copy OSC path in clipboard copies it for use in another application. The OSC server is set up in Preferences › OSC.

A few parameters can be automated but not modulated. Right-clicking one of them opens the MIDI/AUTOMATION CONTROL dialog instead, where a MIDI or host automation source can be assigned.

Modulation Mapper Editor

The Modulation Mapper Editor sits between the source and the parameter it modulates, and remaps the control signal to the mapper’s shape.

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  Mapper editor

  Without a mapper, the source is mapped to the parameter 1:1, shown as a linear ramp from the lowest value to the highest.

• 11
  Mapper selector

  Choose an existing mapper from the menu, or press ADD to create one. Mappers can also be loaded from and saved to disk, renamed and deleted.

• 12
  Size and Range

  SIZE sets the horizontal axis of the graph, RANGE the vertical axis.

• 13
  Drawing the shape

  Click and drag in the graph to draw the shape. Hold Alt/Option to draw a straight line, or right-click for preset shapes and functions.

• 14
  Interpolated

  When enabled, the mapper moves smoothly from one value to the next; when disabled, it jumps, which gives a stair-stepped result.

• 15
  Integer

  Constrains the mapper’s output to integer values.

‹ ›

Modulation Source Editor

The Modulation Source Editor displays the controls of the selected modulation source or sub-source; each source type is described in Modulators. Its toolbar adds a few controls for moving between sources.

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  Modulation Quick View

  Opens a menu to browse, select and create modulators, in three sections — Keygroup, Layer and Program, top to bottom — each with its own Add New submenu.

  
• 17
  Modulation ribbon

  Every modulator of the selected keygroup, layer and program, left to right, marked with the hierarchy icons. Browse, select, toggle, create and delete modulators here; hover over the ribbon and use the scroll wheel to move along it. A source added with + is not assigned to anything yet: assign it from a parameter’s right-click menu.

• 18
  Tempo Sync

  Shown for modulators that support TEMPO SYNC: the metronome icon locks the modulator to Falcon’s tempo, and its time settings then read in note and bar values.

‹ ›

Mods

The Mods tab displays every modulation source, from the master modulation sources down to those of a single keygroup. For each modulation source, see Modulators.

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  Navigation breadcrumbs

  Choose which modulation sources you are viewing. Press a node’s name to show its sources, or the arrow to its right to go to one of its child nodes.

• 2
  Tree navigation

  Selecting a node in the Tree also shows its modulation sources.

• 3
  Preset Browser

  Drag a modulation source from the MOD tab of the right sidebar to add it.

• 4
  Tempo Sync

  Sources that can follow the tempo, such as an LFO’s rate, show a TEMPO SYNC button next to the Preset File menu.

• 5
  Power / Rename

  The POWER button left of the name enables or disables the source; the X at the far right deletes it. Double-click the name to rename it — descriptive names such as “Amp. Env.” and “Filter Env.” help tell sources of the same type apart.

• 6
  Modulation / Keyboard Sections

  Show or hide the Modulation and Keyboard sections.

‹ ›

• Add a modulation source with the + button in the upper right, or by dragging it from the MOD tab of the right sidebar.
• Replace a source by clicking its name and choosing another from the menu.
• Assign a source by right-clicking a control and choosing it under Add Modulation; existing sources are listed first, and a new one can be created on the spot. See Assigning Modulation, MIDI and Automation.

Mappers

The Mappers tab displays all modulation mappers of the program. How a mapper reshapes a modulation is described under Modulation Mapper Editor.

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  Navigation breadcrumbs

  Press a node’s name to show its mappers. Unlike the other tabs, the Mappers tab has no arrow to go to a child node.

• 2
  Tree navigation

  Selecting a node in the Tree also shows its mappers.

• 3
  Adding mappers

  Press the + button in the upper right to add a mapper, or drag one from the sidebar browsers. Each mapper is enabled or disabled with its POWER button, and deleted with its X button.

‹ ›

Which Browser?

Falcon loads programs, multis, samples and presets from several places. This manual calls them:

Library Browser

The Library Browser searches, previews and loads presets and sounds from your UVI Soundware and Falcon expansions, and from your own files.

To open it, press the Browser Toggle in the toolbar, double-click a program name or an empty part in the Parts List, Mixer or Performance view, or choose Load Program from the Main Menu. The LIBRARY tab searches your Soundware and expansions; FILES switches to the File Browser.

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  Library

  Searches your UVI Soundware and Falcon expansions.

• 2
  Files

  Switches to the File Browser, for your own files and folders.

• 3
  Search

  Type a search term; the matching results appear under PRESETS. The buttons at the far right switch between searching presets (keyboard icon) and sounds (waveform icon), and the star shows only your favorites.

• 4
  Presets

  The results. Double-click a preset to load it. Click the NAME column to reverse the sort order; right-click the column headers to add or remove columns.

‹ ›

The tags in three tiers — TYPE, TIMBRE and SOUNDWARE — narrow the results; click a tier’s title to expand or collapse it. The INFO panel shows details about the selected result, with the AUTOPREVIEW switch, the preview volume, and AC (auto-close), which closes the browser once a preset is loaded.

File Browser

The File Browser browses, searches, auditions and loads files: programs, loops and samples, and multis when it is opened to load a multi. The FILES tab of the right sidebar works the same way in a single column, for quick drag-and-drop of any file type (see Sidebar FILES Tab).

Browsing Files

The File Browser is the FILES tab of the browser window: open the Library Browser and click FILES. Its sidebar lists DEVICES — every disk and volume, network volumes included — PLACES, your favorite folders, and SOUNDWARE, every mounted Soundware.

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• 1
  Library

  Switches back to searching: instead of browsing a location, you type a search term and get matches from every indexed location. See Search below.

• 2
  Soundware

  Every mounted Soundware, whether mounted on demand or at startup (see Preferences › Soundware). Right-click a Soundware’s name for VERIFY SOUNDBANK INTEGRITY, where available: it checks that the file was not corrupted while being downloaded or moved between disks.

• 3
  Original Tempo

  Auditions an audio file at its original tempo rather than at Falcon’s current tempo.

• 4
  Display Info

  Shows or hides the panel in the lower half of the browser, with information about the selected file.

• 5
  Load as Layers

  Adds each program you load to the current one as new layers, leaving the current program’s effects, modulators and so on untouched — for example, to gather several articulations of an instrument in one part and switch them with layer rules. When disabled, a loaded program replaces the current one.

• 6
  Auto Close

  Closes the browser when OK is pressed or a file is double-clicked. Otherwise it stays open until you press CLOSE or Escape.

‹ ›

Choose a location in the sidebar to display its contents; files and subfolders open in columns to the right. To load the selected program or audio file, double-click it or press OK. You can also drag a file onto a part in the Parts List, or below the last part to load it into a new part. CLOSE or Escape closes the browser without loading; EMPTY unloads the program or sample of the selected part.

AUTO LOAD loads the audio file selected in the browser into the selected part; AUTO PLAY plays it, to audition it without loading.

Right-click a file or folder on disk to REVEAL IN FINDER (Mac) / REVEAL IN EXPLORER (Windows); a file you can write to also offers DELETE FILE.

Search

Instead of navigating to a folder, you can search for files matching your criteria. The locations searched are the folders marked INDEXED in Preferences › Soundware.

Results appear as you type, in four types:

• INSTRUMENTS: program files;
• LOOPS: looped audio samples;
• SOUNDS: non-looped audio samples;
• FAVORITES: presets and sounds tagged as favorites.

Highlight SEARCH in the sidebar to see all types at once, or a type’s name to see only that type; you can switch between types after entering a term, and typing more words narrows the results. Besides the name, the results can show the type, tags, fav, folder and volume (the Soundware) columns: right-click a column header to choose the columns shown, and drag a header to reorder them. Press a column name to sort by it, and press again to reverse the order. To clear the results, delete the search term, or close the browser.

Loading a Multi

To load a multi, double-click the multi name in the Parts List, or choose Load Multi from the Main Menu. The File Browser then loads only multis. Loading a multi clears the current one and replaces all of its settings, unless APPEND MULTI is enabled: the loaded multi’s parts are then added to the current multi, leaving its master effects, modulators and so on untouched.

Sidebar FILES Tab

The FILES tab of the right sidebar is one of the sidebar browsers, shown in the Main, Mixer and Performance views; show or hide the sidebar with its toolbar button, and drag its left edge to resize it. It works like the File Browser, in a single column: expand or collapse a folder with the arrow left of its name, or double-click it to go one level down, and double-click .. (Parent Folder) to go back up. The sidebar menu button opens a menu of your Soundware, Places and Devices, and of the path from the current folder up to the top; choose / to return to the top level. In the SOUNDWARE section, click a Soundware’s name to expand or collapse its contents.

For auditioning, AUTO PLAY plays audio files as they are selected, the PLAY / STOP button next to it starts and stops playback manually, and the VOLUME slider sets the playback level. AUTO LOAD loads the selected sample into the selected keygroup — handy to swap the sample of a keygroup whose key and velocity ranges are already mapped.

Favorites

Presets and sounds can be tagged as favorites, and folders you use often can be added to Places.

• Presets and sounds: right-click a file inside a Soundware, in the File Browser or the sidebar FILES tab, or any file in the search results, and choose Add to favorites; a ★ appears next to its name. Remove from favorites removes the tag. Your own presets and sounds are tagged from the search results, so their folder must be indexed (see Preferences › Soundware). To list your favorites, sort the search results by the fav column.
• Favorite Places: right-click a folder on disk in the sidebar FILES tab (under Devices or Places) and choose Add to Favorite Places; it then appears under Places in every browser. You can also drag a folder onto the Places section. Remove from Favorite Places removes it.

Sidebar Browsers

The sidebar browsers, in the right sidebar, browse and load files and the presets of each module type. Show or hide them with their toolbar button, and drag their left edge to resize them. Each is a tab, from left to right:

• FILES — the file system (see Sidebar FILES Tab).
• SEARCH — the library search
• OSC — oscillators
• FX — effects
• MULTIFX — multi effects
• EVENT — event processors
• MOD — modulation sources

Each tab lists the modules of its type and, under each module, its factory and user presets, organized in folders nested as deep as needed.

The OSC and FX tabs draw that list as a tree, with a search field and a row of category buttons above it. Typing narrows the tree to the modules that match, and the match is made against more than the module name: every module carries its own keywords, so searching for “chorus” also reaches Thorus and “granular” reaches Grains. The category buttons filter the tree as well, and more than one can be active at once — Sampling and Synthesis on the Osc tab, and Delay, Reverb, Modulation, Filter, Equalizer, Amp / Stereo, Drive / Distortion, Dynamic, Pitch, Analysis, Effect Rack and Miscellaneous on the FX tab. With exactly one category selected the sub-category level disappears and its modules are listed directly. The FX tab adds a Legacy group at the end, collapsed.

The MOD, MULTIFX and EVENT tabs instead draw their modules as a grid of icon tiles, with a search field, a row of category buttons and, under the grid, a strip naming the module the pointer is on and describing what it does. The tiles can be moved through with the arrow keys, and the preset list sits below the grid, separated by a divider you can drag. On the Event tab the first level is the event processors themselves; choosing Script Processor reveals, under the list, a row of script-category symbols that narrow it, with a legend naming the one the pointer is on, and user scripts are filed under User whatever folder they were saved in.

Which form a tab takes, and how long the browsers remember your filters, is set in Preferences › General.

To load a preset, drag it to where it belongs: an oscillator preset onto the Mapping Editor, an effect preset onto a channel strip in the Mixer, a modulation source preset onto any control that can be modulated. A target that can accept the preset highlights as you drag over it.

Module Preset Menu

Every module — oscillator, effect, event processor and modulation source — saves and loads its own presets, so its settings can be reused in other programs. Each ships with factory presets, and you can add your own. The preset controls sit in the module’s upper right:

• The PRESET MENU shows the name of the current preset; press it for a menu of the module’s factory and user presets.
• The PREVIOUS PRESET and NEXT PRESET buttons step through them.
• In the PRESET FILE menu, SAVE PRESET saves a user preset and LOAD PRESET loads one from any location on disk. User presets can be organized into subfolders, as many levels deep as you need. COPY TO CLIPBOARD and PASTE FROM CLIPBOARD transfer the module’s settings, and on sampling oscillators the menu adds the commands described under Saving Samples.

Mixer

The Mixer works like a traditional mixing console, with gain, pan, output assignments, and effects assignment and editing. The top half displays the selected effect; the bottom half, a channel strip for each part, aux and the master.

12

• 1
  Add / remove parts

  The + and − buttons, at the right of the Mixer, add and remove parts. Drag a part’s name to reorder it.

• 2
  Section toggles

  Show or hide each section of the Mixer: PARTS, AUXES, MASTER, FX and AUX SENDS.

‹ ›

The part channel strips carry the same settings as the Parts List, laid out as a mixer. Double-click a part’s name to open the Library Browser, or right-click it for Empty Part and Load Program.

Mixer Effects

• Add an effect with the + button of any channel strip, or by dragging an effect preset from the FX tab of the right sidebar onto that + button. The new effect is selected and its controls appear in the effect editor above — the same module as in the Effects tab.
• Replace an effect by pressing and holding its name and choosing another, or by dragging an effect preset onto it.
• Bypass an effect with the button next to its name, by Shift-clicking its name, or with its POWER button in the effect editor.
• Remove an effect by pressing and holding its name and choosing Empty, or with its X button in the effect editor.

Auxes

The Mixer also shows the master aux buses, four by default (see Aux FX). Each part’s channel strip has a send to each of them, with an enable/bypass switch on the left and a pre/post-fader switch on the right; sends are post-fader by default. With more than four aux buses, scroll the sends to reach the others. The aux channel strips are like the part strips without the part-specific settings, and always output to the Main Out.

Master

The Master channel strip takes effects like the parts and auxes, and its fader is the Global Volume.

Performance

The Performance view gives a bird’s-eye view of all parts at once: an overview when there are many parts, or quick access to part settings during a live performance.

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• 1
  Part settings

  The same controls as in the Parts List. When the Parts column is narrow, some of them are hidden.

• 2
  Keyboard / Velocity Range

  Restrict the part’s key and velocity range, independently of the program’s layers and keygroups. Drag the ends to adjust, drag the middle to move the range, or hold Alt/Option while dragging to apply a fade.

• 3
  Keyswitch

  A note that switches the part on when played — to toggle between articulations of one instrument, such as staccato and legato strings. Playing one part’s keyswitch switches the other keyswitched parts off. Tick the checkbox to enable it, then double-click the note name to set the note.

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Preferences

Falcon’s general settings are set in the Preferences window: choose Preferences from the Main Menu. The window has four pages: General, Streaming, OSC and Soundware.

General

Streaming

Rather than loading whole samples into memory, Falcon can read (stream) them from disk as they play, which balances the load between your computer’s RAM and its disks: it uses less memory, and lets you play more samples than your RAM could hold. Streaming performance depends directly on the speed of the disk: the faster, the better. The default settings suit most uses. To turn streaming on or off for a program, see Program.

OSC

Open Sound Control (OSC) is a protocol for communication between computers and other audio devices, designed for networked devices. Any app or device that supports OSC can control Falcon remotely. To find a parameter’s OSC path, right-click it and open the OSC submenu (see Assigning Modulation, MIDI and Automation). For general information on OSC, see opensoundcontrol.org.

Soundware

Each search path is a folder that Falcon scans for Soundware, with three toggles of its own.

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• 1
  Search path

  A folder Falcon scans for Soundware. You can set several.

• 2
  Change folder

  Click the folder icon to point this search path to another folder.

• 3
  Indexed

  The folder is included in the browsers’ search.

• 4
  Recursive

  The folder is scanned with all its subfolders, not just the folder itself. Meant to be used with Auto-mount. This can significantly increase Falcon’s startup time.

• 5
  Auto-mount

  Every ISO or UFS Soundware (UVI Soundware comes as .ufs files) found in the folder is mounted at startup. Falcon’s startup time grows with the number of UFS Soundware auto-mounted.

• 6
  Remove

  Removes the search path from the list. The folder itself is not touched.

• 7
  Add folder

  Adds a search path: browse for the folder you want Falcon to scan.

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Sampling Oscillators

Falcon includes 10 sampling oscillators each equipped with a unique feature set suited for a variety of tasks from basic playback, loop slicing, to advanced time stretching and granular processes.

All of them share a set of controls in the module header. The gears button shows or hides the oscillator’s parameter panel, leaving just the waveform display; the choice is remembered and applies to every sampling oscillator (out of the box the panel starts hidden on Sample and shown on the others). The info button overlays the loaded sample’s details: its path, bit depth, sample rate and channel count, its length in seconds, frames and megabytes, and its start/stop and loop markers or One Shot status. The module menu adds SAVE SAMPLE and SAVE SAMPLE AS…, each with a “with playback options” variant that writes the oscillator’s start, end and loop settings into the file. Dropping an audio file anywhere on the editor loads it into the oscillator.

Sample

A no-frills workhorse sample oscillator, ideal for basic soundboards and traditional sample playback. The Sample display can be interactively resized and provides editing functions such as crop, normalize, silence, reverse and fade in/out along with the ability to apply any of Falcon’s effects in-place. Due to Falcon’s ability to efficiently stream samples from disk you can manage tens of thousands of samples at once without a massive RAM footprint.

SAMPLE START (0–100 %) sets the starting point for playback when the sample is triggered, as a percentage of the time between the Sample Start and Sample End markers in the sample file (see: Interface › Sample Editor).

The INTERPOLATION MODE sets the quality of the transposition. Choosing Lo-fi will reduce the amount of processing needed to transpose the file compared to Standard mode, and likewise choosing Best will increase the processing overhead. (For other styles of transposition, try the other sampling oscillators as well.).

When ALLOW STREAMING is enabled, the sample will be streamed from disk if the program has Streaming enabled. When disabled, the sample will always be played from memory and not streamed from disk, even if Streaming is enabled for the program.

REVERSE sets the sample playback mode to reverse.

MultiSample

MultiSample plays a whole set of samples from one oscillator. A mapping file describes the zones — each one a sample with its own key and velocity span, its round-robin take and its layer — and the oscillator sends every note to the zone that matches it. It is the oscillator UVI’s own instruments are built on. The editor is read-only: a mapping is authored as a file, and Falcon has no way to write one back, so the editor loads a mapping and shows it, and the zones are changed in the file itself.

Click the file name beside MAPPING to choose a mapping, or drop a .dmap, .sfz or .xml file anywhere on the editor. The readout at the right of that row counts the zones of the layer on display, gives its position among the layers (for example layer 3 / 12), and reports how many samples could not be found.

The zone map below plots the zones of the displayed layer, key from left to right and velocity from top to bottom, on the same axes as the Mapping Editor. Round-robin takes that share a span are drawn as one zone, marked with their count (×4); zones still loading are drawn dimmer, and zones whose sample is missing are outlined in red. While you play, the map highlights the column of each held key and marks its velocity, so you can see which zone the note lands on. Hovering a zone shows the sample it holds, its key and velocity span, its round-robin index, its base note, tuning and gain, how many takes share the span, its maximum sample start and its velocity shelf, and whether it is purged, not found or still loading.

LAYER chooses which layer the map shows, one at a time. The arrows step through the layers and wrap around; clicking the layer name opens a menu of all of them. Layer names that use slashes, such as Sustain/Close/Soft, are grouped into submenus on each slash, which keeps a mapping with hundreds of layers navigable. A badge reads PURGED when the whole layer has been dropped from memory, PART PURGED when only some of its zones have. The editor has no per-layer solo or mute: which layer plays is decided by the note, or by the program’s script.

INTERPOLATION sets the quality of the transposition — Lo-fi, Standard or Best — as it does on the Sample oscillator.

ROUND ROBIN chooses which take is played when several zones share the same key and velocity span: First always plays the lowest-numbered take, Cycle advances through them in order, and Random picks one at random.

Dynamics

MODE chooses how the velocity layers are played. Velocity picks a single layer per note, as a conventional keymap does. Continuous and Velocity XFade instead treat the layers as a ladder and crossfade between the two that bracket the current position, so the timbre moves continuously rather than in steps.

MORPH (±100 %) sets the position on that ladder. In Continuous mode it is the position itself; in Velocity XFade it offsets the position the note’s own velocity sets. It is a per-voice control read afresh on every block, so it keeps moving the timbre of a note that is already held — assign it to a controller, to aftertouch or to MPE pressure.

RANGE (0–100 %) restricts how far down the ladder Morph reaches, leaving the softest layers out of play, and CURVE (0.25–4) shapes how quickly it travels. Both are available only when Mode is not Velocity.

Vel Gain

RANGE (0–90 dB) sets how much quieter the softest velocity is than the hardest, and CURVE (0.25–4) shapes that fall, 1 being a straight line in decibels. KEY TRK (±6 dB) adds to the range for every octave above middle C, so the top of the keyboard can be made more or less dynamic than the bottom.

Slice

Ideal for rhythmic and percussive material, the Slice oscillator can divide samples into discrete keygroups to be resequenced. Adjust transient sensitivity manually or use embedded markers like those found in REX files. Sliced files can be exported by drag and drop in several ways, including as a Falcon patch, discrete WAV files or a MIDI sequence.

Tempo

To set the loop’s tempo, choose its SIGNATURE — 2/4, 3/4, 4/4, 5/4, 6/8 or 7/8 — and enter the loop’s duration in BARS (0–99) and BEATS (0–99). The BPM field is read-only and updates as you change the other tempo parameters.

If you’d like to play back the loop at a multiple of its original tempo, use the TEMPO FACTOR menu for coarse speed adjustments, choosing /4, /2, x1, x2 or x4.

Detection

The Detection MODE setting determines whether to use slices already saved in the file (Imported) or the slices you’ve defined (User markers). Loops in UVI Soundware will have imported slices, as will common loop formats such as REX and Apple Loop files.

If you choose to create your own slices, use the SENSITIVITY knob (0–1) to automatically detect and create slices; it is only available with User markers selected. At the far left, slices will be created only by very prominent beats and there will be a small number of slices; at the far right, slices will be created by more subtle variations in the sample and there will be a larger number of slices.

To add a slice manually, double-click in the space between the sample’s waveform and the time ruler. You can also add multiple slices at once on divisions of the musical grid by right-clicking, choosing ADD MARKERS WITH GRID SETTING, and choosing a beat division such as eighth note.

Existing slices can be moved by clicking and dragging anywhere along the slice. To protect a slice from being edited, right-click the slice and choose LOCK. The slice can be ignored by right-clicking it and choosing MUTE, or it can be removed entirely with DELETE.

Playback

A single slice can be auditioned by clicking anywhere on its waveform. When a slice is selected, you can also use the forward/back AUDITION buttons to audition the next/previous slice; the left and right arrow keys are shortcuts for those two buttons. The Audition play and stop buttons can be used to play back the entire file. When AUTO PLAY is enabled, the loop will be triggered when Falcon’s playback begins. (This button is the same as the AutoPlay button in the Parts List.).

SYNC determines how the loop interacts with Falcon’s tempo and playback position. When set to “position,” the sample is played back at Falcon’s tempo and also locks to its playback position; in “tempo” mode, only the tempo is matched. When set to “off,” Falcon’s tempo and playback position are ignored and the sample is played back at its original tempo.

In all Sync modes, the START control sets the slice where playback begins when the loop is triggered, with zero being the first slice in the loop. The SPEED parameter adjusts the loop’s playback tempo, up to 50% faster or slower.

For MAP, see: Exporting and Converting the Loop.

Extension

When the loop’s playback tempo is slower than its original tempo, you can choose to extend the slices so that the loop is still continuous. With the Extension section’s AUTO button enabled, extension of the slices will be configured automatically. When disabled, use the AMOUNT (0–200 %) and TIME (0–100 %) parameters to fine-tune how the slices are extended.

Envelope

You can also optionally enable a slice envelope. When enabled with the ENVELOPE button, the ATTACK (0–100 ms), HOLD (0–2 s), DECAY (0.01–2 s) and SUSTAIN (0–100 %) parameters adjust an amplitude envelope that is applied to each slice as it is triggered.

Exporting and Converting the Loop

The entire loop can be exported as a new audio file with the WAV button. When you press on it and drag, it creates a new audio file that can be dragged to your host application or desktop. The new audio file is created with all of the current settings applied: tempo, envelope, etc.

Or, to export the slices with each as an individual audio file, choose EXPORT and specify the folder where the samples will be saved. To save a program with the slices mapped to individual keys, press on the PART button and drag it to the Parts List or to the desktop or other folder.

If you would prefer to create a new layer in the current program rather than a separate program, press the MAP button in the Playback section. This will Mute and MIDI Mute the original layer, and create a new layer with the slices mapped to individual keys.

This will also change the audio drag & drop button to a MIDI button. When you press on it and drag, it creates a MIDI file that can be dragged to your host application or desktop. The MIDI file triggers the slices in their original order and timing, which you can then edit for new arrangements of the slices.

Spectral Stretch

Spectral Stretch plays a sample through a phase vocoder, which separates the speed of playback from the pitch: the sample can be slowed to a crawl, held on a single spectrum, or run in time with the host, while the pitch of the note still follows the keyboard. Transient detection and stereo phase locking keep rhythmic and stereo material intact at stretch ratios that would otherwise smear it.

The sample editor sits above the controls, which are grouped into sections; when the panel is narrow the sections wrap onto several rows rather than shrink. Start and Speed are the two controls available as modulation destinations, the rest of the panel being set once for the oscillator.

Playback

START (0–100 %) sets the position in the sample where playback begins when a note is triggered.

SPEED (0–4x) sets how fast playback travels through the sample. The pitch is unaffected, so lowering the speed stretches the sound in time rather than transposing it. Below a hundredth of normal speed the voice freezes: the analysis position is held, and the spectrum under it goes on sounding for as long as the note lasts.

Sync

SYNC sets how Speed is read. Off leaves it continuous. Ratio snaps it to eleven musical ratios spanning two octaves either side of unity — 1/4, 1/3, 1/2, 2/3, 3/4, 1, 4/3, 3/2, 2, 3 and 4 — and the Speed knob shows the fraction in place of a number. Tempo applies the same snap and multiplies it by the ratio between the host tempo and the sample’s own tempo, so the sample keeps time with the session.

The sample’s own tempo is set with the TEMPO (0–300) field. A Tempo of 0 means “not set”, in which case the tempo stored in the sample file’s metadata is used instead.

STFT

GRAIN (40–200 ms) sets the length of the analysis window. Short windows follow attacks closely at the cost of low-frequency detail, while long ones resolve steady tones and low registers but blur transients. When the sample is transposed, the window covers a different length of it.

Stereo

The STEREO menu sets how the phase relationship between the left and right channels is handled. Off leaves the two channels independent. Every other entry locks them together and names the channel the others are locked to — Mid, Left, Loudest, or PCA, which follows the dominant direction of the stereo signal — so a stereo image survives the stretch instead of drifting apart.

Phase

The PHASE menu chooses how the phase of each analysis frame is carried over to the next, which is what decides how coherent the stretched sound stays:

• CLASSIC: each frequency band is advanced on its own, as in the original phase vocoder.

• LOOSE: neighboring bands are summed together, so a partial and the bands around it stay in step.

• LOCKED: the peaks are located and the region around each one is rotated as a block.

• LOCKED SOFT: the same peak locking, with the deviations around each peak scaled rather than discarded.

• COHERENT: the phase is reconstructed across time and frequency at once, holding transients and tonal material together; this is the default.

• COHERENT DIFFUSE: the same, with random phase below the noise floor for a more diffuse, textural result.

• COHERENT FULL: the same with no threshold at all, every band passing through the reconstruction.

Transient

The TRANSIENT menu sets what happens when an attack is detected: Off ignores them and stretches straight through, Reset restarts the phase so the attack comes out sharp, and Hold freezes the phase across it.

THRESH (0–100 %) sets how much spectral movement counts as an attack, low values catching a great deal and high values only the sharpest. PER BIN applies the handling to the frequency bands where an attack was found rather than across the whole spectrum. Both are inactive while the Transient menu is set to Off.

Stretch

A real-time, low-CPU pitch-shifting sample oscillator. Stretch can adjust pitch up to ±2 octaves while maintaining sample duration. Freely adjust sample start time, playback mode and tempo analysis. Use the Solo Mode button to switch between discrete monophonic and polyphonic pitch-shifting algorithms.

The Stretch oscillator will pitch-shift the sample ±2 octaves from its root key. Beyond that range the pitch will be constant, even if the keygroup’s key range extends further.

SAMPLE START (0–100 %) sets the starting point for playback when the sample is triggered, as a percentage of the time between the Sample Start and Sample End markers in the sample file (see: Interface › Sample Editor).

Additionally, when LEGATO MODE is enabled, if a new note re-triggers the sample, playback will continue from the current sample position but at the new pitch. With Legato mode disabled, playback will always begin from the sample’s start position.

Sample Tempo

Although the speed of sample playback is constant across its key range, enabling SYNC will sync the sample’s playback speed to Falcon’s tempo. Set the sample’s base tempo with the TEMPO (0–300) field, which can be modified with the TEMPO FACTOR (x0.25–x4, continuously variable) and TEMPO FINE (±50 %) controls. A Tempo of 0 means “not set”: when a sample is loaded, Falcon substitutes the tempo found by its own analysis, or failing that the tempo stored in the sample file’s metadata, and writes the resolved value into the field.

Analysis

To fine-tune the pitch-shifting, adjust the GRAIN SIZE (10–100 ms) and SENSITIVITY (0.1–10) parameters. For highly rhythmic or percussive material, try increasing Sensitivity for better transient preservation. Additionally, if a sample contains a solo instrument, try enabling SOLO MODE for the best pitch-shifting; for polyphonic samples, turn off Solo Mode.

Grains

Falcon’s most advanced granular engine, rebuilt for deep sound design. Explore Classic, Cloud, and Pitch scheduling modes, a fully parametric grain envelope, and per-grain filtering with formant control for intricate textures and rhythmic motion.

Grain Scheduling Mode

• CLASSIC: periodically spaced grains

• CLOUD: randomly spaced grains

• PITCH: pitch-periodic grains

Waveform Display

LINK enables Loop Start link to Transport Position. Click the left blue line or drag the START (0–100 %) to set the loop start point. Click the right blue line or drag the SIZE (0–100 %) value to set the loop end point.

LOOP, at the left of the same bar, sets what the play head does when it reaches the end of the loop: None ignores the loop and reads on to the end of the play zone, Fwd returns to the loop start, and Fwd-Bwd turns round and reads back the other way. The loop is the region set by START and SIZE (or by POSITION when LINK is on), whether or not the sample carries a loop of its own.

Transport

POSITION (0–100 %) determines the starting point for grain playback within the audio sample. This is the central point around which grains are generated. SPEED (0–10) sets the speed at which the main Position marker moves through the sample, with 0 as static and higher values faster.

DIRECTION (−1 to 1) sets the direction of playback, from +1 for fully forward to −1 for fully reverse.

Grain

RANDOM PAN (the left icon of the title bar): enables randomization of the pan position for each grain. The voices are panned in a more structured, alternating pattern when disabled.

ATTACK (the right icon of the title bar): enables triggering of the very first grain instantly when a note is played, rather than waiting for the first period to elapse. This provides a more immediate attack.

CENTER GRAINS (the icon left of Wrap Grains): Position names the middle of each grain instead of its start, so every grain is pulled back by half its own length. Because the offset follows the grain size, grains stay centered on Position as the size is modulated.

WRAP GRAINS AT LOOP (the icon between Center Grains and Attack): a grain that runs into the end of the loop wraps back to the loop start instead of reading on into the material past it. Where Loop Mode moves the play head, this moves each grain; it does nothing when Loop Mode is None, and is grayed out there.

SIZE (0.002–2 s) (in Classic and Cloud mode) sets the duration of each individual grain in seconds. Shorter grains sound more textural and abstract, while longer grains are more recognizable as snippets of the original sample. FORMANT (−12–12 st) (in Pitch mode) shifts the resonant character (timbre) of the sound without changing its fundamental pitch. This can make a sound source sound like it’s coming from a larger or smaller body.

PERIOD (0.001–2 s) sets the base time interval between the start of successive grains.

Size and Period are both tempo-syncable: with the module’s sync button engaged they read in bars and beats rather than in seconds, and follow the host.

PITCH CORRECTION chooses how transposition is compensated — None, Grain size or Period.

The LINK button beside PERIOD (not the Link button on the waveform bar) sets the period to half of SIZE and grays out the Period knob.

DENSITY (0.1–10) sets how many grains overlap. In Classic and Cloud mode it divides the PERIOD, so 2 doubles the grain rate; in Pitch mode it multiplies the grain length relative to the pitch period. The output level is compensated as Density rises.

WIDTH (±100 %) modifies the steepness of the envelope’s attack and decay. Negative values result in a wider, softer envelope, while positive values create a narrower, more percussive sound.

ENVELOPE MODE, under the envelope display, chooses the window each grain is shaped by. Parametric is the continuously variable shape the three controls below draw. Triangle, Hanning, Welch and Squared are exact windows that those same three controls still reshape; Triangle and Welch cannot be reached by the parametric shape, whose curve is always flat at the edges.

PEAKINESS (±100 %) controls the curvature of the envelope. Higher values create a sharper, more defined peak, while lower values result in a smoother, more rounded shape. SYMMETRY (±100 %) adjusts the shape of each grain’s volume envelope. Negative values create a fast attack and slow decay (like a plucked string), while positive values create a slow attack and fast decay (reversed sound). These three controls can also be adjusted by click-dragging the ENVELOPE DISPLAY above.

Band Limit Grains

Click the icon button to enable a dedicated band-pass filter that is applied to each individual grain. BAND WIDTH (1–100 %) controls the width of the per-grain filter. Lower values create a narrow, resonant peak, while higher values allow a wider range of frequencies to pass through.

BAND CENTER (0–100 %) sets the center frequency of the per-grain filter. This allows you to isolate specific tonal characteristics from the source sample for each grain.

Variation

JITTER (0–100 %) introduces a small amount of random variation to the timing of each grain’s trigger, making the sound less robotic and more organic.

POSITION (0–1 s) adds a random offset to the start position of each individual grain. Higher values will grab grains from a wider area around the main Position, creating a more varied texture.

BIPOLAR (the icon above that knob) lets the random offset run both ways. Off, the variation only ever pushes a grain later, so the average read point sits half the variation past Position; on, grains scatter to either side and the average stays on Position.

PITCH (0–12 st) introduces random pitch deviation to each individual grain, measured in semitones. Useful for creating dissonant clouds or subtle chorusing effects. REVERSE sets the probability (from 0 % to 100 %) that an individual grain will play in reverse, independent of the main playback Direction.

SKIP (0–100 %) sets the probability that a scheduled grain will be skipped entirely. This can be used to thin out the texture in a random way.

DURATION (0–100 %) adds randomness to the length of each grain. At 0%, all grains have the exact same duration. Higher values create more variety.

Voices

VOICES (1–8) sets the number of simultaneous grain streams (or playheads). Increasing this number creates a rich, layered unison or chorus effect.

SPREAD (0–10 s) spreads the playback position of the unison voices around the main position.

TIME SPREAD (0–100 %) staggers the grain onsets of the unison voices across the grain period. It has no knob on the panel and is reached from the parameter list.

DETUNE (0–50 cents) applies a small amount of pitch difference between the unison voices, thickening the sound. PAN controls the stereo width of the grains. At 0%, the sound is mono. At 100%, grains and unison voices are spread across the entire stereo field for a wide, immersive effect.

IRCAM Granular

IRCAM’s premier granular oscillator divides an audio sample into grains and recombines them for realistic pitch-shifting or soundscape generation. Adjust Grain parameters such as Size, Density, Jitter, Position, Speed, Direction, Loop Mode, Pitch Variation and Correction Method.

The GRAIN section configures the shape of the grains.

SIZE (5–500 ms) sets the duration of the grains. DENSITY (0.1–10) determines how many grains will be played at once, with 1.00 representing standard playback. With values less than 1.00, there will be silence between the grains with a rhythmic result similar to tremolo; with values over 1.00, there is increasingly more overlap of grains with a harmonic result similar to a chorus or sometimes a ring modulator. JITTER (0–100 %) varies the consistency of grain playback timing.

FADE (0–100 %) sets the amount of the grain affected by the fades of the grain envelope’s attack and decay, as a percentage of the full grain size. At the default 100%, the full grain can be faded, which results in a triangle-shaped envelope. At less than 100%, there is a plateau in the middle, resulting in a more trapezoidal envelope.

SYMMETRY changes the skew of the grain window by balancing the grain envelope attack and decay, as percentages of the grain size:

• 0%: set an attack of 0% and decay of 100%; this results in more percussive grains.

• 50%: set an attack of 50% and decay of 50%; this is the standard, balanced window.

• 100%: set an attack of 100% and decay of 0%; this results in reversed grains.

WINDOW sets the shape of the window (an envelope applied to the signal when creating grains); choose from Triangle, Hanning or Welch curves, or Squared.

PITCH VARIATION (0–1200 cents) adds randomization to the pitch of each grain, from minor variations of a few cents to an entire octave.

PITCH CORRECTION sets how grains are transposed. Transposition is done by resampling, which on its own shortens each grain as the pitch rises; this control chooses what is adjusted to compensate. GRAIN SIZE scales the read window with the transposition, so the grain length you hear and the grain rate both stay as set, and each grain simply covers more (or less) of the source. PERIOD leaves the read window as set, so the grain length you hear scales with the transposition, and the period between grains is scaled by the same amount to preserve the overlap. Transposition is clipped to ±48 semitones.

Position

The POSITION section controls determine the playback position in the sample file.

POSITION (0–100 %) determines the starting point for playback, as a percentage of the duration between the sample start and end markers. With Speed set at or near zero, this can be used to manually scrub to any location within the file. POSITION VARIATION adds randomization to the current position, with a range of zero to 500 ms from the current position.

SPEED sets the scrubbing speed factor, with 1.00 as normal speed, zero as staying in place on the current grain, and 10.00 as 10x faster. DIRECTION sets the direction of scrubbing, from +1.0 for fully forward to −1.0 for fully reverse.

If there is a loop in the audio file, the Loop Mode sets how it will be handled:

• NONE: The loop will be ignored.

• FORWARD: The looped section is played forward; when playback reaches the end of the loop, playback begins again from the loop start point.

• FORWARD-BACKWARD: The looped section is played alternately forward (from the loop start to loop end) and reverse (from loop end to loop start).

IRCAM Multi Granular

A multi-voice implementation of the IRCAM Granular oscillator which can be used to great effect to achieve a range of complex unison sounds. Includes the same control set as IRCAM Granular with an additional section to control voice quantity, position and spread.

This module adds a VOICES section and two Grain settings (DURATION VARIATION and REVERSE, described below) not found in IRCAM Granular.

The VOICES section sets the voice-specific settings. VOICES (1–8) sets the number of unison voices. With a single voice, the result will be similar to the standard IRCAM Granular oscillator.

The other Voice controls set relative variations for each voice; TIME SPREAD (0–100 %) adjusts the timing of each voice’s trigger, and POSITION SPREAD (0–10,000 ms) adds a random variation to each voice’s starting position within the sample file. DETUNE (0–50 cents) spreads the unison voices in pitch symmetrically around the played note.

Grain

The GRAIN section shapes the grains themselves. Most of the GRAIN parameters are the same for the IRCAM Multi Granular oscillator as the IRCAM Granular oscillator; for details, see: Oscillators › IRCAM Granular.

• SIZE (5–500 ms)

• DENSITY (0.1–10)

• JITTER (0–100 %)

• WINDOW

• FADE (0–100 %)

• SYMMETRY (0–100 %)

• PITCH VARIATION (0–1200 cents)

• PITCH CORRECTION

DURATION VARIATION (0–100 %) sets the amount of grain size variation. Enabling Reverse will reverse the individual grains (not the overall playback direction, which is controlled with Direction).

Position

The POSITION parameters are the same for the IRCAM Multi Granular oscillator as the IRCAM Granular oscillator; for details, see: Oscillators › IRCAM Granular.

• POSITION (0–100 %)

• RANDOM (0–500 ms) — the same Position Variation control as IRCAM Granular, labeled Random here.

• SPEED (0–10)

• DIRECTION (−1 to 1)

• LOOP MODE

IRCAM Scrub

Similar in use to IRCAM Granular, IRCAM Scrub offers random-access scrubbing, speed and directional control but uses the same top-quality algorithm found in IRCAM Stretch. As with IRCAM Stretch, this requires more processing power than the standard granular oscillator.

Playback

The Playback parameters are the same for the IRCAM Scrub oscillator as the IRCAM Granular oscillator; for details, see: Oscillators › IRCAM Granular › Position.

• SPEED (0–10, default 1.00)

• POSITION (0–100 %, default 0) — unlike IRCAM Granular, where Position sets a grain center subject to the position variation controls, Scrub’s Position is an absolute read-head location, re-evaluated whenever you change it.

• DIRECTION (−1 to 1, default 1 for forward playback).

Analysis

The Analysis parameters are the same for the IRCAM Scrub oscillator as the IRCAM Stretch oscillator; for details, see: Oscillators › IRCAM Stretch › Analysis.

• WINDOW (40–200 ms)

• PADDING (x1, x2, x4)

• OVERLAP (3–8)

Remix

Remix mode separates the signal into 3 discrete components and allows you to mix and automate their levels. Enable it with the power switch in the Remix header, then set the level of each component — SINE (harmonics), NOISE and TRANSIENT — from −inf to +12 dB, 0 dB being unity. With Remix disabled the three sliders have no effect, and the Transient level additionally requires the TRANSIENTS option to be enabled.

Options

The Options parameters are the same for the IRCAM Scrub oscillator as the IRCAM Stretch oscillator, except that Scrub has no Legato option; for details, see: Oscillators › IRCAM Stretch › Options.

• TRANSIENTS (enabled by default)

• ENVELOPE

• STEREO

• SHAPE

IRCAM Stretch

Similar to the Stretch oscillator, but implementing IRCAM’s high-quality phase vocoder for time-stretching and pitch-shifting with transient and envelope preservation. Requires more processing power than the standard pitch-shifting algorithms used in other oscillators but with a significant quality improvement.

Playback

SPEED (0–10, default 1.00) sets the playback rate factor, with 1.00 as normal speed and 10.00 as 10x faster. Very low settings approach a freeze but never quite reach one — the stretch ratio is clamped at 1000x, or 0.001x real time. START (0–100 %) sets the starting point for playback when the sample is triggered, as a percentage of the time between the Sample Start and Sample End markers.

Sample Tempo

Set the sample’s base tempo with the TEMPO field (0–300), then scale it with TEMPO FACTOR (x0.25–x4, continuously variable) and TEMPO FINE (±50 %). SYNC chooses whether playback follows Falcon’s tempo (“ TEMPO ”) or ignores it (“ OFF ”).

Tempo defaults to 0, meaning the sample’s tempo is unknown. In that state Sync has no effect and Speed, Tempo Factor and Tempo Fine act directly as a playback-rate multiplier; once you enter a tempo, playback is scaled by the ratio between it and the target tempo.

Analysis

WINDOW (40–200 ms, default 92 ms) sets the length of the analysis window; the FFT itself is the next power of two above it. PADDING (x1, x2, x4; default x1) sets the amount of frequency oversampling, enlarging the FFT beyond the window. As oversampling is processor intensive, it’s recommended to apply as little as is necessary to reduce unwanted artifacts — often, none will be needed. OVERLAP (3–8, default 4) sets how far the analysis windows overlap: the analysis hop is the Window divided by the Overlap, so higher values give smoother results at the cost of proportionally more processing. 8 is the highest quality, 4 is usually indistinguishable from it, and 3 may introduce small artifacts.

Remix

Remix mode separates the signal into 3 discrete components and allows you to mix and automate their levels. Enable it with the power switch in the Remix header, then set the level of each component — SINE (harmonics), NOISE and TRANSIENT — from −inf to +12 dB, 0 dB being unity. With Remix disabled the three sliders have no effect, and the Transient level additionally requires the TRANSIENTS option to be enabled.

Options

• TRANSIENTS: Transient preservation; helpful for highly rhythmic or percussive samples.

• ENVELOPE: Envelope preservation; helpful for avoiding unwanted pitch artifacts with some samples.

• STEREO: Phase locks between stereo channels.

• SHAPE: Shape preservation; helpful for preserving the character of voices and other monophonic sounds.

• LEGATO: New voice playback position will start where currently playing voices are located.

The module menu adds one entry specific to this oscillator, EXPORT WITH STRETCH/PITCH APPLIED, which renders the sample through the phase vocoder at its current settings and writes the result to a WAV file.

Synthesis Oscillators

Falcon includes 18 synthesis-oriented oscillators including featured Additive, VA, analog stack, percussion, noise, organ, FM, Texture, wavetable, west-coast folding and a physical string modeling oscillator.

8o8 Bass Drum

Recreate the legendary analog bass drum with Falcon’s circuit-modeled 808 oscillator. From soft thumps to hard-hitting punches, precise Tone, Decay, and Pulse controls deliver iconic kick sounds perfect for any rhythmic foundation.

Set the playback mode with: KICK for machine emulation with short variable decay and true trigger, or BASS for longer fixed decay and reinit before trigger.

Select the TRANSIENT setting: Soft, Normal or Punchy.

TONE (0–100 %) adjusts the high end of the sound. DECAY (0–100 %) adjusts decay.

TRUE TRIGGER enables true trigger in Kick mode.

Decay and True Trigger are only available in Kick mode; Bass mode uses its own fixed decay and both controls are grayed out.

Additive

An easy-to-use additive oscillator inspired by classic subtractive synthesis, with additive twists like partial stretching, frequency shifting, fractional order filtering, even/odd harmonic control, continuous morph from square to saw and more…

MAX PARTIALS (1–256) sets the maximum number of harmonics. For example an A2 note has 200 harmonics for a sampling frequency of 44.1 kHz. It can be used either for sound design to limit the spectrum or to control the amount of CPU which is proportional to the number of partials.

Frequency

STRETCH (0–100 %) sets the amount of inharmonicity (partial stretching) of the partials. This is similar to the one present in stiff-stringed instruments like the piano or the guitar, great to spice up static spectrums thanks to the dispersive behavior.

DISSONANCE (0–800 %, 100 % being the untouched harmonic series) disturbs the harmonic series according to the law.

fn = f * (1 + n * dissonance).

• At 100% the partials are harmonics: f * (1 2 3…).

  • At 200% we only have odd harmonics: f * (1 3 5 7)

• At 50% the partials are harmonic but interlaced with the odd partials of its (missing) sub-octave: f * (1 3/2 2 5/2 3) = f * (1 2 3…) + f/2 * (3 5 7…).

• For irrational amounts, the partials are inharmonic.

QUANTIZE DISSONANCE snaps the Dissonance value to the nearest multiple of 25 % or of 16.67 %, whichever falls closer, so that the partials keep to simple ratios instead of landing on an inharmonic spacing.

FREQ. SHIFT (0–20,000 Hz) transposes the spectrum by a fixed amount in Hertz, making all the partials inharmonic.

Timbre

SLOPE (±100 %) sets the Slope / Tilt of the Spectrum.

• The default position decays as 1/f and generates a sawtooth wave.

• At +100% the spectrum is flat, generating a bipolar impulse-like train.

• At -100% generates a parabolic wave decaying as 1/f^2 (or, when even harmonics are omitted, a wave with the same spectrum as a triangle, see the Even/Odd parameter).

• EVEN/ODD (±100 %) controls the levels of even and odd harmonics.

  • At +100% removes even harmonics and generates a square wave by default

  • At -100% removes odd harmonics and results in the same waveform at the octave e.g. (2f 4f 6f …) = 2(f 2f 3f …)

• HARM. SHIFT simulates transposition of the spectrum up to +48 semitones, but forces the resulting partials to stay in harmonic relation with the fundamental frequency. This can be compared to (soft-)hard-sync of analog oscillators. Below one semitone the value is displayed in cents, and in semitones from one semitone upward.

Comb/PWM

FREQUENCY (0–100 %) sets the relative frequency of a comb filter applied to the harmonic series of the oscillator.

This is useful to simulate PWM (Pulse Width Modulation) by sweeping the frequency of notches in the spectrum. DEPTH (±100 %) sets the amount of cancellation of the Comb Filter; it is bipolar, so positive and negative amounts cancel complementary sets of partials.

Filter

CUTOFF (20–20,000 Hz) sets the cutoff frequency of the fractional order filter. Q (0.5–100) sets the resonance of the filter (available according to Filter Type). ORDER adjusts the order / slope of the filter. This includes fractional filter slopes from 0.0 to order 8.0 (48 dB/octave) that cannot be achieved with traditional filters. TYPE sets the type of filter: LP-BW, BP-BW and HP-BW are Butterworth low-pass, band-pass and high-pass (no Q), while LP-Res, BP-Res and HP-Res are their resonant counterparts.

Unison

VOICES (1–3) sets the number of unison voices.

BEATING (0–10 Hz), when Unison is activated, sets the fixed amount in Hertz that partials are shifted.

This results in natural built-in Amplitude Modulation (with no LFO involved) whose frequency can be controlled by the Beating frequency. (Only possible with additive synthesis.) DETUNE (0–40 cents) sets the detuning in cents of each unison voice. PHASE SPREAD (0–100 %) offsets the start phases of the unison voices either side of the common start phase, spanning a quarter of a cycle at the default 100 %; with a single voice it has no effect.

Global

KEEP BASS forces the fundamental frequency of the oscillator to be preserved. Some spectral modifications like Comb or HarmShift may result in cancellation of the fundamental frequency, which is not always desired; KEEP BASS retains the fundamental frequency as a reference point while the remaining parts of the spectrum are being processed.

RAMP TIME (0–1000 ms) sets the Ramping time between amplitude changes.

START PHASE (0–100 %) sets the phase at which the partials start when a note is triggered. The whole series is shifted by the same amount rather than delayed, so moving it changes the shape of the waveform: at the default 0 % every partial starts as a sine, and a quarter of the way round they line up into a sharper, more impulsive attack.

Analog

A virtual analog oscillator outfitted with a traditional selection of waveforms including Sine, Saw, Square, Triangle, Noise and Pulse. Includes pulse width modulation, sync control and a robust unison section supporting phase, tuning and spread control on up to 8 voices.

The Analog section contains the primary oscillator controls. WAVEFORM sets the shape of the waveform; choose from saw, square, triangle, sine, noise, or pulse. PWM (1–99 %) (pulse width modulation) sets the pulse width of the square wave and shifts the symmetry point of the saw, triangle and sine shapes, and is often modulated with an LFO. On the pulse shape (a train of short positive and negative impulses) it sets where in the cycle the negative impulse falls. It has no effect on noise. Its usable span narrows as the played pitch rises. START PHASE (0–100 %) adjusts the point in the waveform at which playback will begin, and POLARITY reverses the polarity of the waveform.

The Hard Sync section determines the phase sync between voices. When SYNC is enabled, voices are phase-synced to a control oscillator that is not displayed or heard; SHIFT (0–36 st) sets the amount of drift from the control oscillator. Modulation can carry it past the top of that range, up to a ceiling of 72 semitones.

The Unison section sets the number of voices and how they will be modified. VOICES (1–8) sets the number of simultaneous voices, and STEREO toggles between mono and stereo. Neither of the two can be modulated, and because Stereo changes the oscillator’s channel configuration, switching it stops any notes currently sounding; a change of Voices leaves them running. PHASE SPREAD sets the style of phase spread for the voices: Uniform spaces the start phases evenly, Exponential clusters them towards the first voice, and Random offsets each voice randomly per note. When stereo is enabled, the STEREO SPREAD (0–100 %) knob controls the amount of stereo spread and the menu chooses its style: Uniform ramps the pan positions evenly across the voice pairs, while Hard pans each pair fully left and right. The DETUNE knob (0–100 %) and menu adjust the amount and style of pitch adjustment applied to each voice: Standard reaches ±50 cents at full amount, while Large scales the detuning by voice pair as well, so the outermost pair of eight voices reaches several hundred cents.

Analog Stack

An 8-voice implementation of the Analog oscillator designed to facilitate rapid layering. Each voice utilizes the same basic engine found in the Analog oscillator, replacing the Unison and Sync sections with Pan and Gain to facilitate spatial and level mixing and a pitch section for subtle to extreme voice detuning.

Each oscillator has a subset of the controls available on the full Analog oscillator: ENABLE/DISABLE, WAVEFORM SHAPE, PWM (1–99 %), PHASE (0–100 %), and POLARITY. For details on those parameters, see: Oscillators › Analog.

Additionally, oscillators 2–8 carry a sync button that locks their phase to oscillator 1; oscillator 1 has none, since it is the reference.

The Mixer section adds GAIN (−inf to 0 dB) and PAN controls for balancing the level and stereo placement of each oscillator.

The Transposition section has four controls for adjusting each oscillator’s pitch: OCT (−2 to 2) and SEMI (−12–12 st) for MIDI transposition, and CENT (±100 cents) and PITCH for audio transposition. Pitch is an unclamped offset in semitones that also serves as a modulation destination, with a modulation range of ±48 semitones.

Bowed String

A bow and string emulation, Bowed String provides in-depth control over numerous articulation modes, capable of creating a variety of tones.

Bow

This section controls the bow action of the instrument. FORCE (0–2 N) sets how the bow pushes the string and VELOCITY (−1 to 1 m/s) controls bowing speed. VEL›F (0–100 %) and VEL›V (0–100 %) set MIDI velocity modulation amount of force and velocity. DYN. FRICTION (0–50 %) controls the friction factor of the bowing action. POSITION (1–49 %) sets the bowing position of strings. HYSTERESIS, enabled by default and reached from the parameter list rather than the panel, gives the friction model its stick-slip memory: the string holds onto the bow until the static friction limit is passed, then keeps sliding until it can grip again, which is what gives the attack its grain. Disabled, the string is taken as gripped again at every instant, for a smoother and more uniform attack.

String

This section controls the string parameters of the instrument. Choose INSTRUMENT type: Violin, Viola and Cello from the menu, and select the STRING — Highest, High, Low or Lowest — from the menu. TENSION (x0.5–x2) multiplies the tension factor of the string, and displays the resulting tension in newtons for the selected instrument — on Violin, x0.50 to x2.00 spans 28.6 N to 114.2 N. INHARM. (0–100 %) sets the inharmonicity amount when bowing happens; it scales the modeled string’s bending stiffness, so 0 % gives the ideal harmonic series and higher values progressively sharpen the upper partials.

Articulation

MODE sets the articulation mode from the menu: Constant, Sautillé, Fast Martelé, Staccato, Tremolo, Detaché, Accentue, Bouncing and Manual to play. Additional parameters vary by mode:

• Constant — no stroke parameters; the bow keeps a constant force and velocity.

• Sautillé — Stroke Frequency, Stroke Pulse Width, Stroke Phase Offset.

• Fast Martelé — Stroke Duration, Stroke Pulse Width, Stroke Attack, Stroke Release.

• Staccato — Stroke Duration, Stroke Pulse Width.

• Tremolo — Stroke Frequency

• Detaché and Accentue — no stroke parameters; Accentue is the mirror of Detaché, starting above the target bow velocity and falling to it.

• Bouncing — Stroke Frequency, Stroke Pulse Width, Stroke Phase Offset, Bouncing Damp.

• Manual — Manual Bow; you bow the string yourself by modulating this position, with velocity and force derived from its movement.

Articulation Parameters:

• STROKE FREQUENCY (0.1–10 Hz) sets the stroke speed/frequency.

• STROKE PULSE WIDTH (5–100 %) sets the length balance of the stroke up and down.

• STROKE PHASE OFFSET (0–100 %) sets the stroke start point.

• STROKE DURATION (0.005–0.5 s) sets the length of the stroke.

• STROKE ATTACK (0–100 %) sets how abruptly the stroke reaches full bow speed, shaping the rise curve rather than its length.

• STROKE RELEASE (0–100 %) sets how abruptly the stroke comes to a stop, shaping the fall curve rather than its length.

• BOUNCING DAMP (0–100 %) sets the damping factor of the bouncing stroke.

• MANUAL BOW (0–100 %) for manual control of the bow.

Stroke Duration and Stroke Freq can also be locked to the tempo. With the sync icon in the module header enabled, they are read as note values instead of seconds and hertz, ranging from 32 bars down to 64th-note triplet, synced to Falcon’s tempo.

Damping

Sets the damping factor of the instrument body. DECAY (0.1–1000 s) sets the decay time of the low frequencies. DAMP (0–100 %) changes the amount of viscoelastic damping relatively. AIR (0–100 %) changes the frequency of the air radiation relatively.

Mix

Sets the BRIDGE VOLUME (0–100 %) and BOW VOLUME (0–100 %) individually.

Drum

Designed for the creation of rhythmic and percussive sounds, Drum utilizes both a pitched oscillator and noise generator. Both pitched and noise oscillators sport discrete AD amplitude envelopes with the former providing pitch modulation. EQ and distortion are available in the master section for broad shape control.

The pitched oscillator begins with a WAVEFORM SHAPE; choose from sine, triangle, saw, or pulse. Set the base pitch of the oscillator with FREQUENCY (20–20,000 Hz), and then use the PITCH MODULATION controls to further adjust it. DEPTH (−96 to 96 semitones) sets the amount of modulation, and RATE determines how quickly that pitch range is modulated. The SHAPE of the modulation can be exponential (a steady fall to zero over the Rate time), sine (traditional up and down LFO), or noise (low-pass-filtered noise whose cutoff is set by Rate); Shape also determines how Rate reads out — in Exponential it is displayed as a decay time (up to 10 s), in Sine it spans 0–2,000 Hz and in Noise 0–20,000 Hz.

The AMPLITUDE ENVELOPE is a simple AD envelope, with ATTACK (0–10 s) and DECAY (0.01–10 s) parameters.

Noise

The Noise generator provides a FILTER. The Filter type can be set to low-pass, band-pass, or high-pass, and both FREQUENCY (20–20,000 Hz) and Q (0.1–10,000) can be adjusted.

The AMPLITUDE ENVELOPE offers ATTACK (0–10 s) and DECAY (0.005–10 s; the noise decay can be shorter than the pitched oscillator’s 0.01 s minimum). Additionally, you can choose a DECAY STYLE of exponential or linear; exponential decay is more rapid at first, while linear decay is a constant rate.

Mixer

The MIXER (0–100 %) sets the relative levels of the oscillator and noise generators, reading out as a pair of gains for the two sources. When centered, the two are mixed together in equal amounts; drag the slider up or down for relatively more or less of each sound source — fully down is the oscillator alone, fully up the noise generator alone.

Master

The Master section provides overall adjustment and effects for the oscillator: EQ GAIN (−40–40 dB), EQ FREQUENCY (20–20,000 Hz), DISTORTION (0–100 %), and VOLUME (−40–40 dB).

The three frequency controls — the oscillator’s Frequency, the noise filter’s Frequency and EQ Freq — display the nearest note name and its cents deviation alongside the value (for example 1.00 kHz reads as B4 +21 cents), and accept a note name typed in directly. All three also follow the played note: the noise filter and the EQ bell are transposed by the same interval as the pitched oscillator, so the drum keeps its timbre as it is played up and down the keyboard.

The VEL SENS group sets velocity sensitivity (0–100 %) independently for three destinations, each on its own slider: O for oscillator volume, P for oscillator pitch modulation, and N for noise volume.

The whole editor is a drop target: dragging a Falcon oscillator preset (.preset or .btosc) onto it loads that preset.

FM

A four-operator FM oscillator which can be used in either ratio or Hz modes and is arrangeable in one of 11 configurations. Additional operator controls include Fine Ratio/Freq Multiplier, Snap Ratio (which quantizes modulation frequencies to harmonics) and Start Phase.

There are four operators. Each operator has a RATIO (1–40) which defines its frequency relative to the base frequency. At 1.0, the frequencies are the same; at 2.0, the frequency of the operator is double the base frequency; and so on.

The HZ toggle changes the operator from a relative ratio frequency to an explicit frequency set in Hz.

The FINE control provides fine tune adjustment of +/- 1200 cents. If HZ mode is enabled, RATIO and FINE are replaced by FREQ (0–2), which sets the frequency, and FREQUENCY MULTIPLIER, which picks its decade (1 Hz to 10 kHz); the resulting frequency is Freq × Multiplier, from 0 Hz up to 20 kHz, and either can be typed in directly in Hz or kHz.

The LEVEL (0–20) control sets the output level for each operator. Depending on the topology chosen, this control will instead adjust the modulation index for operators B, C, and D.

Master

The relationship between the operators and how they modulate each other is chosen with the TOPOLOGY menu. Additionally, operator D can be fed back into itself, with the FEEDBACK (0–100 %) knob setting the amount.

The PHASE (0–1) control sets the start phase for the operator.

The SNAP toggle locks RATIO to harmonic intervals (e.g. x1, x2, x3 etc.). In HZ mode this control is disabled.

FM Explorer

FM Explorer is a three-operator FM oscillator built for exploring the space between algorithms rather than picking one from a list. Operator A is the carrier, B and C modulate it, and a single MORPH control sweeps the routing from one series chain, through both modulators running in parallel, to the other series chain. Morph is a parameter like any other, so the topology itself can be modulated.

Two displays draw the waveform each modulator produces from its own Warp, Shift and Shape settings. The display between them diagrams the routing as lettered blocks for the three operators, with the connections colored by the operator they come from and a loop drawn out of any block that is feeding back on itself.

Wave

SHAPE (0–100 %) shapes the waveform of both modulators, from a sine at 0 % to a saw at 100 %.

PUNCH (0–100 %) does two things at note on. It adds a fast decaying burst of FM index on top of Depth, over six cycles of the played note clamped to between 6 and 80 ms, and it aligns the operators’ start phases: at 100 % they all start together for a hard transient, at 0 % they are spread apart.

The oversampling menu — No Overs., 2x Overs., 4x Overs. and 8x Overs. — trades processing for a cleaner top end. It is a fixed setting rather than a modulation target.

Operator B and Operator C

WARP (0–100 %) crossfades the operator continuously across three whole-number frequency ratios, so its partials stay harmonic the whole way across: B travels x1 → x2 → x3, and C travels x2 → x3 → x5.

SHIFT (±1200 cents) detunes the operator against the played pitch, by up to an octave either way.

FEEDBACK (0–100 %) feeds the operator back into itself, taking it from a clean tone towards noise as it is raised.

Routing

MORPH (±100 %) sets the topology. At −100 % the operators run in series as B → C → A; at 0 % both modulate the carrier in parallel; at +100 % they run in series the other way, as C → B → A. Every setting in between is a blend of the two.

DEPTH (0–100 %) sets the FM index feeding every modulation path at once, and is the oscillator’s main brightness control.

Output

BALANCE (0–100 %) mixes the two modulators into the output alongside the carrier, which is always heard at full level.

RING MOD (0–100 %) ring-modulates the two modulators against each other after the FM stage, for inharmonic and metallic tones.

Harmonic Resonators

3 mixable exciter sources (transient, texture, and noise) combine to drive a 6-channel resonator bank with per-channel control over coarse and fine tuning, and coupling.

Exciters

TRANSIENT oscillator defines the attack portion of the sound. To load an AUDIO SAMPLE, press on the menu above the.

waveform image and choose from the menu of factory presets. GAIN, PITCH (−24 to 24) and TRACKING (0–100 %) set the sample gain, pitch and pitch tracking.

TEXTURE oscillator defines the sustain portion of the sound. To load an AUDIO SAMPLE, press on the menu above the waveform image and choose from the menu of factory presets. GAIN, PITCH (−24 to 24) and TRACKING (0–100 %) set the sample gain, pitch and pitch tracking. START (0–100 %) determines the starting point for playback, as a percentage of the duration, and RANDOM (0–100 %) adds randomization to the sample start position.

NOISE generator adds static noise to the sound. GAIN (−inf to 0 dB) and DENSITY (0–100 %) set the noise level and amount; at low Density settings the noise thins out into sparse crackle at a constant loudness. CUTOFF is a one-knob low-pass/high-pass filter: at the center it reads Off, turning it counter-clockwise sweeps a low-pass down, and clockwise sweeps a high-pass up.

Each of the three exciters has its own on/off button, and its GAIN covers −inf to 0 dB.

The TILT EQ (−6–6 dB) combines both low and high-shelf EQs into a single knob; turn clockwise for high-shelf, counter-clockwise for low-shelf; while the small knob below sets the cutoff frequency (20–20,000 Hz) utilized by both.

The AMP ENV is a three stage envelope that sets the ATTACK (0–10 s), HOLD (0–10 s) and DECAY (0.005–10 s) of the sound. Hold can also be set to UNTIL RELEASED, below its minimum value, which holds the exciter at full level for as long as the note is held. Note that this envelope shapes the exciters — the length of the resonated tail is set by the Resonator Bank’s own Decay.

Resonator Bank

The 6 bands each offer control of:

• ON/OFF (power) button

• LEVEL adjusts the band level, from −inf to +6 dB.

• COARSE (−24–24 st) to set the filter frequency in semitones.

• FINE (±50 cents) to fine-tune the filter frequency in cents.

• COUPLING (0–100 %) to set the coupling amount in Reflect and RotCirc (aka Circular Rotation) modes; it has no effect in Parallel mode.

DECAY (20–20,000 ms) sets the filter decays of all bands.

SCALE (0–100 %) controls how much each band’s decay follows its own tuning: at 0 % a band tuned an octave up rings half as long as one at the played note, at 100 % every band rings for the full Decay time whatever its tuning.

DAMPING (0–100 %) adjusts the high frequency damping of each band, sweeping the damping corner from 440 Hz at its lowest setting up to 20 kHz at its highest. MOD DEPTH (0–20 cents) sets the filter modulation depth in cents.

MIX (0–100 %) balances the raw exciters against the resonator bank’s output, and WIDTH (0–200 %) adjusts the stereo width of the result.

COUPLING MODE sets the relationship between the filter bands:

• PARALLEL mode: processing all bands in parallel (or independently).

• REFLECT mode: a weighted sum of each resonator’s energy is fed back into all the others.

• ROTCIRC: rotates a small fraction of energy from each band to the next (circularly).

Noise

A robust noise oscillator offers 15 unique noise shapes including Band, S&H, Static I, Static II, Violet, Blue, White, Pink, Brown, Lorenz, Rossler, Crackle, Logistic, Dust and Velvet. Dynamic shapes provide additional control such as Static Density and Logistic Chaos.

The NOISE TYPES are laid out on a grid; select a name to choose the noise type. A single VALUE (0–100 %) control sits alongside the grid and takes its label from the selected type, which also determines what it does:

• Band → BANDWIDTH, the width of a band-pass tracking the played note, inverted: 0 % is one octave wide, 100 % narrows it to 1/64 octave (the most resonant setting).

• SampleAndHold → RATE, 20 Hz to 20 kHz.

• Static I and Static II → DENSITY, 1 Hz to 20 kHz. Static I draws its inter-arrival times from a uniform distribution, Static II from an exponential one (a true Poisson process).

• Crackle → COLOR, which sets the chaos coefficient of the crackle generator, inverted: 0 % is the most chaotic, broadband setting, and raising the knob thins the output out until it settles into a periodic tone.

• Logistic → CHAOS, sweeping the logistic map through its period-doubling region into full chaos.

• Dust and Velvet → DENSITY. The law is squared, so most of the useful range sits towards the top of the knob.

• Violet, Blue, White, Pink, Brown, Lorenz and Rossler have no second parameter; for these the knob reads NONE and is disabled.

STEREO switches the oscillator between mono and stereo. In stereo, the left and right channels are generated independently, giving fully decorrelated noise. Because it changes the oscillator’s channel configuration, switching it stops any notes currently sounding, and it cannot be modulated.

Organ

A drawbar-style organ oscillator with 9 bars representing different harmonics traditionally used on pipe organs. Organ provides discrete Gain and Pan controls for each partial and a percussion section with Fast/Slow and Harmonic controls. Pair with the rotary effect for a classic organ sound.

There are nine drawbars, each representing a different harmonic, labeled with the traditional pipe sizes originally used on pipe organs: 16’, 5 1/3’, 8’, 4’, 2 2/3’, 2’, 1 3/5’, 1 1/3’ and 1’. The 8’ drawbar is the base note, and each doubling or halving of the pipe size represents an octave downward or upward. For example, when a C3 is triggered, 8’ plays C3, 16’ plays C2, and 2’ plays C5.

Each drawbar has GAIN (0–8, the traditional drawbar detent scale) and PAN controls. The Gain slider is used in the traditional drawbar style, where pulling it towards you (in this case, downward) increases the gain for that harmonic. Per-drawbar panning is a Falcon addition rather than a feature of the original instruments.

The PERCUSSION section adds a percussive harmonic, when enabled with the ON button. This harmonic is chosen with the HARMONIC knob, which selects one of the same nine pipe sizes as the drawbars (16’ to 1’), and the FAST mode toggle sets its decay speed — 300 ms when enabled, 630 ms when not. This additional harmonic decays quickly, even when notes are otherwise sustained, and in the manner of the original instruments it only re-triggers once all keys have been released.

Phase Shaper

Sculpt bold and evolving timbres with advanced phase distortion. Shape waveforms using Symmetry, Inflexion, and Fuzz controls, unlocking everything from subtle warmth to aggressive digital chaos. A powerful tool for creating complex textures and cutting-edge tones.

Enable RANDOM PHASE for random phase start.

Adjust the SWING (0–100 %), SYMMETRY (0–100 %), SHAPE (±100 %), SCALE (0–100 %) and FUZZ (0–100 %) to shape the waveform and phase.

INFLEXION (0–100 %) sets the period of a ripple added to the phase, from many fine wobbles at low values to a single broad bend at the top, and DEPTH (0–100 %) sets how strongly that ripple bends it. Neither affects the pitch of the note.

OVERSAMPLE sets the amount of oversampling applied — None, 2x, 4x, 8x or 16x.

The eight PRESETS buttons each load a factory starting point: SawTooth, Square, Pulse, DoubleSine, SawPulse, SawToothResonance, TriangleResonance and TrapezoidResonance.

Pluck

Pluck is a physically inspired string synthesis module, aimed toward synthetic sounds with a natural decay. A short excitation waveform is triggered and fed through a filtered delay line; the characteristics of the decay are determined by the waveform, filter style, and other adjustments.

There are three sources for the initial excitation: a pitched oscillator, a noise oscillator, and an audio sample. You can blend the levels of each sound source with the MIXER section’s SAMPLE, SYNTH and NOISE sliders, each covering −inf to 0 dB. Noise starts fully down, so raise it before using the Noise controls.

Sample

To load an AUDIO SAMPLE, press on the menu above the waveform image and choose from the menu of factory preset samples. Alternatively, you can load your own audio file by dragging and dropping it onto the sample area. NEXT and PREVIOUS buttons are also present, for browsing samples. START sets the sample start time. DETUNE provides sample pitch control of +/- 48 semitones. KEYFOLLOW sets how much the played key transposes the sample; at zero the sample always plays back at its original pitch, and at 100 % it tracks the keyboard. INTERPOLATION MODE chooses the quality of sample playback, from Lo-fi, Standard or Best. Standard is ideal for most scenarios.

Pick

The Pick parameters adjust the character of the plucking point. Enable the PICK FILTER to add a picked simulation to the string excitation; set the position on the string with PICK POSITION (0.02–0.5) and the intensity of the picking with PICK DEPTH (0–100 %).

Contour

SHAPE (−1 to 1) adjusts the relative roundness or thinness of the Synth and Noise exciters; negative values are rounder, and positive values are thinner. The Sample source is left untouched. ROLLOFF (20–20,000 Hz) is a low-pass filter of the excitation sources.

DYNAMICS (0–30 dB) sets the range of high frequency attenuation between the minimum and maximum note-on velocity. At lower velocities, more high frequency attenuation is applied.

Synth

EXCITATION BRIGHTNESS (0–100 %) shortens the Synth exciter pulse, brightening the attack much as narrowing a pulse width does. It has no effect on the Noise or Sample sources.

Noise

The noise exciter is normally injected for the first period of the note only, which is what gives Pluck its plucked character. Enable SUSTAIN to inject it for as long as the note is held instead, turning the string into a continuously driven one — closer to a bowed or blown tone. It has no audible effect while the Mixer’s Noise slider is fully down.

Finger

With a HARMONIC RATIO of 1.00, the fundamental of the triggered note is played; above 1.00, a harmonic note above the base note is played. The value is a ratio relative to the base note: 2.00 is one octave higher than the fundamental, and so on. Just as with a physical string, not all ratios will produce a clear harmonic tone. Some more commonly used ratios include whole integer values (1.0, 2.0, etc.) and simple integer ratios such as 1.5 (3/2), 1.33 (4/3), and 1.25 (5/4). Additionally, a ratio of 1.01 is useful for simulating a palm-muted string, which is also where the control starts working: below 1.01 the finger is lifted off the string entirely and the ratio is ignored. HARMONIC DAMP (0–100 %) sets how firmly the string is damped at that harmonic node: at zero the Harmonic Ratio has no effect at all, and raising it brings the harmonic out by canceling the partials below it.

When STRETCH is enabled, each sample is either processed through the delay and filter or passed through unprocessed. Increasing the Stretch value (0–100 %) will increase the likelihood of samples passing through unprocessed. With more unprocessed samples, the result is a slight buzzing sound which is useful for noise or drum sounds.

Tuning & Coupling

By default, one plucked string is simulated; for two strings, change the STRINGS value. When there are two strings, the COUPLING MODE determines how they interact and the COUPLING amount (0–100 %) is interpreted by that mode, as described below.

• SERIAL: The two strings are in series, with the first feeding the second through a fixed amount; here Coupling sets which of the two you hear rather than how much they interact. With Coupling at 0 %, only the first string is heard; at 100 %, the first string is not directly heard, and only the second string (excited by the first) is heard. A Coupling of 100 % results in a slower attack time, similar to a cello.

• BRIDGE: Both strings share a common bridge, each one being excited by the other’s energy through cross feedback. Coupling shapes the bridge filter rather than the amount fed to it: the exchange is strongest at 0 % and softens progressively as Coupling rises.

• BEATING: Strings are coupled through a rotation matrix, causing the sound to beat at a few Hz. As Coupling increases, the beating will be faster. Detuning the second string also has an impact on the depth and complexity of this beating.

• INHARMONIC: Similar to Beating, but the beating frequency is in the audible range. This can result in bell-like or plate-like sounds, similar to a ring modulator.

To tune the second string relative to the first, set COARSE TUNE to the interval in semitones (up to +2 octaves) and FINE TUNE in cents (up to 20 cents).

STEREO (the switch at the top right of the String section) spreads the two strings across the left and right outputs instead of summing them to mono. It is only available with Strings set to 2, and because it changes the oscillator’s channel configuration, switching it stops any notes currently sounding.

Some string materials, such as steel piano strings, are more inharmonic than others, such as nylon guitar strings. INHARMONICITY (0–99.99 %) controls the amount of stretch of the string partials from the harmonic series.

Decay

DECAY (0.1–1000 s) and RELEASE (0.1–100 s) set the durations for the amplitude envelope decay time, the latter taking over once the note is released. BRIGHTNESS (0–100 %) highlights or attenuates a high frequency shelf for the decay, and DECAY CUTOFF (20–20,000 Hz) sets the cutoff for a low-pass filter. DECAY TYPE chooses the damping filter used in the string loop, from LP1, MA, MA2 or Shelf.

BRIDGE LOSS sets an amount of additional high frequency dampening applied, in dB per cycle of the string. On physical strings, high frequencies dampen more quickly than lower frequencies; applying some additional dampening can help make the decay sound more natural. It is unavailable when Decay Type is set to MA.

DECAY TYPE chooses the filter type used to dampen the decay:

• MA: The classic damping mode as used in the pioneering Karplus-Strong paper on plucked-string synthesis.

• MA2: A linear phase damping filter that is more controllable than the MA filter.

• LP1: The MA and MA2 have a gentle dampening and may be too bright for some uses. LP1 is a more progressive filter that dampens high frequencies more than MA or MA2. Conversely, LP1 may dampen too much for some sources, but is a good fit for sounds like muted basses.

• SHELF: Compromises between MA and LP1; high frequencies are not dampened as much as with LP1, but the filter curve is more progressive than the MA or MA2 filters.

Which of the decay controls are live depends on that choice. MA has a damping of its own and takes none of them, so Brightness, Bridge Loss and Decay Cutoff are all inert. MA2 is shaped by Brightness and Bridge Loss but has no cutoff frequency to set, leaving Decay Cutoff inert. Only LP1 and Shelf use all three.

SupraSaw

Build massive, epic sounds by stacking up to 24 sawtooth oscillators. With Detune, Stereo Spread, and Blend controls, craft lush pads, soaring leads, and monumental textures, the ultimate choice for huge, anthemic sound design.

OSCILLATORS (1–24) sets the number of the oscillators. The AIRY button sets how the saws themselves are generated: off keeps them free of aliasing, while on lets the fold-back through for the grainier, brighter top end of the vintage supersaw machines, and rolls off the low end below the played note. MODE determines the oscillators’ pitch configuration: Normal stacks them all around the played pitch, Center -12 and Center -24 drop the center oscillator by one or two octaves, Octave +12 raises alternating side oscillators by one octave, Octave +24 raises them alternately by two octaves and by one, Fifth raises alternating side oscillators by a fifth or an octave, and the combined entries — Ctr -12 / Oct +12, Ctr -24 / Oct +12, Ctr -12 / Oct +24, Ctr -24 / Oct +24, Fifth / Ctr -12 and Fifth / Ctr -24 — apply both at once.

BLEND (0–100 %) adjusts the balance of the center and side oscillators. DETUNE (0–100 cents) and CURVE (±100 %) set the pitch interval of the oscillators. The KEYTRACK button scales the detuning with the played pitch: the amount is as set at C3, and grows or shrinks by 20 % of that value for every octave above or below it.

PHASE SPREAD (0–100 %) varies the start phase of the oscillators. STEREO SPREAD (0–100 %) sets the stereo spread of the oscillators.

MOD DEPTH (0–50 cents) and MOD SPEED (0.1–10 Hz) add pitch modulation.

Texture

A dual sample-based oscillator that allows you to create complex and varying textures using key-tracked band-pass and peak filtering, mix, pitch, playback modes, stereo controls and randomness. Includes hundreds of built-in samples as starting points for your sonic adventure.

Press on the waveform menu to choose from one of the many factory preset waves or use the next/previous buttons to browse. Additionally, you can load your own audio files by dragging and dropping them onto the waveform area.

The oscillator employs four built-in filters on the mixed output of the two slots, applied in this order: band-pass (the left section), high-pass, low-pass, then peak (the right section).

MODE is a column of four buttons per slot that sets sample playback direction: Forward, Forward Looped, Backward or Backward Looped.

GAIN (−12–12 dB), PITCH (−24 to 24) and PAN set the sample gain, pitch and stereo position for each slot.

LEGATO (triplet icon) enables legato mode for both slots: while a note is already sounding, each new note resumes from the playback position that note has reached instead of restarting at the Sample Start point.

MIX (0–100 %) sets the balance of two samples, and WIDTH (0–200 %) sets the width of the stereo image of the mix output.

SAMPLE START (0–100 %) determines the starting point for playback, as a percentage of the region between the sample’s start and end markers — measured back from the end marker in the Backward modes — and RANDOM (0–100 %) adds randomization to it, the two wrapping around once their sum passes 100 %.

Click the icon at left of the Width label to ENABLE the BP filter. FREQUENCY (20–20,000 Hz) sets the filter frequency, the note name corresponding to the frequency is also displayed, for example, 2.00 KHZ (B5). BANDWIDTH (0–100 %) sets the filter’s shape, narrowing the band as it is raised.

Click the icon at right of the Width label to ENABLE the PEAK filter. FREQUENCY (20–20,000 Hz) sets the filter frequency, the note name corresponding to the frequency is also displayed, for example, 2.00 KHZ (B5). GAIN (−20–20 dB) control for boosting or cutting the frequency. Q (0.1–10) control sets the filter’s shape.

HIGHPASS (10–22,000 Hz) sets the cutoff frequency of the high-pass/low-cut filter. LOWPASS (10–22,000 Hz) sets the cutoff frequency of the low-pass/high-cut filter.

VOSIM

A tribute to vintage vocal synthesis, VOSIM offers 2 different oscillator modes: Formant and Phonem, providing dedicated controls for each synthesis type.

FORMANT mode uses formant resonant oscillation. FORMANT (20–4,000 Hz) sets the base frequency of the formant and RESONANCE (0–100 %) sets the amount of resonance.

PHONEM mode uses vowel oscillation. The first knob — unlabeled, with the current vowel shown in large type beneath it — selects from AA, AE, AO, AW, AX, AY, EH, ER, EY, IY, OW, OY, UH, UX and Y. FORMANT SHIFT (−12–12 st) sets the frequency, MORPH TIME (0.01–1 s) sets the transition time when changing the vowel while holding the note. NUM FORMANTS (2–5) sets the formant count.

PULSE WIDTH (0–100 %) adjusts the formant width (duration).

MOD. TYPE sets the pitch modulation source, NOISE or SINE. MOD. DEPTH (0–1200 cents) sets the amount of the modulation. MOD. RATE (4–15 Hz) sets the speed of the modulation.