6.0

Mixers and Audio Objects
174
Just in the middle between Cutoff and Resonance you will
find three switches named 1/3, 2/3 and 3/3. An engaged
switch can be deactivated by clicking on it again. To learn
what they do, deactivate these switches, pull down all
waveform sliders but noise, turn Cutoff quite down and
raise Resonance slowly till the noise gets a distinct whis-
tling character. When you now play different keys on your
MIDI keyboard you will notice that the pitch of this whis-
tling is not affected by the notes you play. Now activate 3/
3 and play some notes again. You will hear that you can
now almost play the whistling like any other waveform.
This is done by controlling the Cutoff by the note you play.
It will not exactly track the notes you play, but don’t worry.
These are the inaccuracies that make a digital synthesizer
that is calculated inside a computer sound like an analog
synthesizer made out of resistors, transistors and di-
odes—parts that react to temperature and thus always
have some kind of uncontrollable “life”. With the other
settings 2/3 and 1/3 the Cutoff will not track the notes
played as closely as with 3/3.
Let’s jump to the sliders on the right side of the Percusor:
A (stands for “Attack”), D (stands for “Decay”), S (stands
for “Sustain”) and R (stands for “Release”). They control
the volume curve of the sound: the higher the attack time
(A), the longer it takes the sound’s level to raise from zero
to full level when you press a key. Continue to hold the key
and the sound’s level will fall down to the sustain level set
with the sustain slider S in the decay time set with the D
slider. The higher the decay time, the longer it takes the
sound’s level to fall from full level to sustain level. As long
as you hold the key, the sound’s level will then stay at the
sustain level. As soon as you release a key, the sound’s
level will fall from sustain level to zero in the release time
specified with R slider. The higher the release time, the
longer it takes the sound’s level to fall from sustain level to
zero when you release a key. So, while A, D and R adjust
times, S adjusts a level. Please note that your sound will
die to zero in the decay time even when you hold a key if
sustain level is set to zero.
But ADSR sliders are not only used to control the level
curve of the sound, they can also be used to move Cutoff
automatically up or down from the position you set. Please
note that you will not see the Cutoff control itself moving,
but you will hear the appropriate effect. To hear it, turn
Cutoff half way up, locate ADSR Int below the right side of
Cutoff and turn it up. As you press a key, you will hear a
change in timbre as you would move Cutoff manually.