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330 Chapter 23 Ultrabeat
The Cycle parameter can also determine whether the LFO (waveform) is started from
the beginning (at a zero-crossing point) with each note trigger, or whether it simply
continues oscillating. A Cycle value of Inf (Infinity) forces the LFO to run freely. It is not
reset by incoming MIDI note on messages. When Cycle is set to values under 100, the
LFO will be reset by each new MIDI note on message (Note On Reset).
It’s really a question of taste as to whether or not you choose to trigger an LFO cycle
from the same spot or just allow it to oscillate freely, regardless of phase. The random
element of free-running LFOs can make many sounds fatter. This, however, can come at
the expense of a percussive attack—an often undesirable quality in a drum synthesizer.
Note: You can, of course, use minor shifting of the LFO phase—with the Cycle value set
to Infinity—to your advantage, adding an “analog” character to a drum sound, for
example.
Env 1 to 4
Further modulation sources available to you in the Mod menu include four identically
specified envelope generators. Envelope parameters are described in this section.
Note: In addition to it’s potential use in the Mod menus of various sound parameters,
Env 4 is permanently connected to the Voice Volume. In other words, Ultrabeat has a
“hard-wired” volume envelope generator.
Structure of the Envelope Generators
The default setting of the envelope generators is known as the one shot envelope
mode: after a key is pressed (note on message), the envelopes run their course,
regardless of how long the note is held. This setting is ideal for percussive signals
because it allows simple emulations of the behavior of natural percussion sounds. For
special cases such as sustained pad or cymbal sounds, you can activate a sustain mode
where the envelopes take the lengths of the played notes into account.
Editing the Envelopes Graphically
Before delving into the individual parameters, please take the time to familiarize
yourself with the graphical depiction of an envelope, shown below.
Ultrabeat’s envelope window provides a new type of envelope design, consisting of
Bezier curves in which two segments—attack and decay—make up the entire
envelope.