Understanding and Using your moogerfooger® MF-107 FreqBox™ TABLE OF CONTENTS Introduction.................................................2 Getting Started Right Away!.......................4 Basic Applications......................................6 FreqBox Theory........................................10 FreqBox Functions....................................16 Advanced Applications.............................21 Technical Information...............................24 Limited Warranty.......................
Welcome to the world of moogerfooger® Analog Effects Modules. Your Model MF-107 FreqBox™ is a rugged, professional-quality instrument, designed to be equally at home on stage or in the studio. Its great sound comes from the state-of-theart analog circuitry, designed and built by the folks at Moog Music in Asheville, NC. Your MF-107 FreqBox is a direct descendent of the original modular Moog® synthesizers.
the complete user’s manual to unlock its fullest potential. Included in this manual is a section describing the theory of operation, a tour and explanation of the front panel controls and rear panel connections, and tips on usage both basic and advanced. A section describing the product’s technical specifications and information about your limited warranty is at the end of the manual. The Story Behind the FreqBox Back in 2004, I had an idea for an oscillator that could hard sync to any input signal.
GETTING STARTED RIGHT AWAY! We have never known musicians who don’t want to try a new effect out before reading the entire manual, so here is a quick guide to get you started with your new FreqBox: 1) Inspect the carton and its contents: The MF-107 comes with the Moogerfooger, a +9VDC, 300 mA, tip-positive power supply, and this manual.
) Set levels: Turn on your amplifier. Make sure the Bypass indicator is RED. Play your instrument and adjust the volume of the amplifier so it is at a comfortable level. Press the Bypass switch and the Bypass indicator will change to GREEN which means the effect is active. 6) Play: Now play a little on your instrument. If necessary adjust the Drive control to match the level of the effected signal to the bypassed signal. ***The most predictable results will come from playing single note riffs or melodies.
BASIC APPLICATIONS The following are diagrams of basic settings of the FreqBox. They are good staring points for learning how to use the FreqBox. For each setup, set the knobs on your FreqBox to the position shown. Adjust the Drive and Output Level controls to match your input signal. Make sure the Bypass LED is GREEN to hear the effect. Basic Sync Setup: This setup is best used with an expression pedal plugged into the Freq. input and clean, single note lines.
Sync+FM This setup is the same as the previous, but adds a dose of FM, which gives the sound an extra bit of growl, especially when the frequency of the VCO is swept with the Freq control, or an expression pedal plugged into the Freq Input. Figure 4 - Sync+FM AutoSyncSweep This setup uses the dynamics of your playing to modulate the frequency of the VCO using the envelope follower. Hard playing causes the frequency to go up and you get more sweep of the VCO from the envelope follower.
Drone This is a fun setup for modal jams or morning ragas – it uses just the sound of the VCO set to one frequency, tuned to the key that you’re playing in. If you’re in A, just tune the VCO to A with the Freq control. The drone sound can be fattened up if detuned a little bit from a bass note in the key. Setting the Mix control is important for a nice balance between the instrument sound and the VCO sound.
FM Gongs This is a setup that just uses FM for sounds somewhat reminiscent of gongs. It works well with slow, guitar-like signals plucked and allowed to fade out. Don’t play too hard or the gongs may sound flatulent. Figure 8 - FM Gongs FM sizzler This is a weird one – good for otherworldly synth-type sweeps. An expression pedal controls the VCO frequency.
Electro Drumz This setup requires an extra patch cable for connecting the envelope follower out into the Envelope Amount input. For the best results, Play a sound with a strong attack and a quick fade, like a very muted guitar Figure 10 - Electro Drumz string plucked hard with a pick. This gives a REALLY sharp sweep of the VCO frequency by the envelope follower so that you can make really percussive sounds. The brightness of this percussive sound is controlled by how hard you play.
the vibration in the sound. Different instruments playing the same pitch sound different, like an oboe and a violin playing A440. That’s because musical sounds generally have many frequency components. They're called harmonics, or overtones, or partials.
VCO Waveforms The timbre of the VCO is determined by its waveform. As defined earlier, a waveform is related to the timbre, and the number of harmonics in a sound. In many musical sounds, waveforms are really complex, and change a lot over time, often both in frequency, timbre and amplitude. This is not so with the raw signal of a VCO. Unlike most musical instruments, a VCO is always vibrating. It will vibrate without changing frequency, timbre, or amplitude with no change at its control input.
yet bright. Pulse waves contain all harmonics, but the amplitude of the harmonics varies with pulse width. A triangle wave is a symmetrical waveform (figure 12D). As it turns out all symmetrical waveforms have only odd harmonics. With a triangle wave the amplitude of the harmonics decrease much faster than a square wave (exponentially), which gives it a much mellower sound, closer to a sine wave than a square wave.
FM FM stands for frequency modulation. The term modulation refers to any process in which one waveform is changed in response to the contour of another waveform. Frequency modulation refers specifically to modulating the frequency of an oscillator. With a VCO, modulation is performed with control voltages. A very slowly, repetitively changing CV can modulate VCO frequency up and down and sounds like vibrato. If this signal is sped up to an audible rate (faster than 20Hz), the sounds produced are complex.
produce some wild and unpredictable results. Experimentation is key to discovering new timbres! VCA VCA stands for Voltage Controlled Amplifier. A VCA is an amplifier with the output level set by a CV. A low value CV (close to zero) turns off the output. As the CV increases, the output level increases too. This is used to control the loudness of a signal.
FREQBOX FUNCTIONS Here is a block diagram of the FreqBox signal and control path: Figure 14-Block Diagram of the FreqBox The input is passed through a unity gain buffer, and then connected to the bypass circuit. In bypass, the buffered input signal is connected directly to the output. In effect active mode, the buffered input signal is passed to the drive circuit. The drive circuit feeds the mix direct VCA, the envelope follower, VCA for the FM input to the VCO, and the sync input to the VCO.
The VCO signal is then routed to the mix effect VCA. The Mix control sets the ratio of the direct to effect signals, and the output level control sets the overall output level when the effect is active. The Front Panel Bypass Switch: The Bypass switch is a rugged yet smooth acting switch that can be used as a stomp switch or manually activated switch for toggling between bypass mode and effect active mode. When the effect is bypassed, the Bypass LED will be red.
compressed and the envelope follower is not as responsive to the dynamics of your playing. It is perfectly OK to use the FreqBox with the Drive control all the way up. Output Level: The Output Level control is used for balancing the loudness of the signal when the effect is active with the loudness of the signal when the effect is bypassed. When first setting up to play, adjust the drive level first for optimum drive signal level, then adjust the output level so it is balanced with the bypass signal.
envelope follower CV is applied to the VCO frequency. Note that the envelope follower CV is ADDED to the setting of the Freq control. The VCO frequency can be swept by the envelope follower CV over 8 octaves, more than the Freq control on the front panel. Be aware that the setting of the Env. Amount control depends a great deal on the setting of the Drive control, as it is the drive signal that is used to extract the dynamic information.
voltages or expression pedals corresponding to the five controls: Freq, Wave, Env. Amount, FM Amount, and Mix. All of these inputs accept an expression pedal like the Moog EP1 or EP2 with tip-ring-sleeve plugs, or a CV on standard tip-sleeve cables. All inputs are added to the setting of the front panel controls.
ADVANCED APPLICATIONS Using w/ other effects The FreqBox is a natural for using with other effects. It is the perfect type of signal to run into a filter, because it can produce the basic waveforms used for subtractive synthesis. Filter effects include the MF-101 Lowpass Filter, the MF-103 12-Stage Phaser, and the MF-105 MuRF (Multiple Resonant Filter Array). A MF-104 Analog Delay is also a good choice, as it has some really nice filter characteristics and delay can really fatten up the VCO sound.
Using the FreqBox with a CP-251 Control Processor Sample and Hold Sync Figure 16 - Sample and Hold Sync This setup patches the Sample and Hold output of the CP-251 to the Frequency input. The setup is pretty much otherwise the Basic Sync Setup. It illustrates the use of CVs to modulate the FreqBox parameters. This one is pretty nice for pseudo-arpeggiated sparkly sounds. You can easily substitute other time-varying CVs such as the LFO triangle wave for further exploration of this idea.
pulse-width modulation or PWM. The rest of this setup is the basic sync setup, the PWM adds a cool shifting, swirling sound to the VCO. W/ Voyager/VX-351 Many folks will want to use the FreqBox as an extra oscillator in their analog setup, such as a Voyager with the VX-351 CV Expander. The Freq control input is set at the factory to change the VCO frequency one octave per volt change at the input (commonly called 1V/Octave).
TECHNICAL INFORMATION NOTE: The following information is intended for use by people who understand analog electronic circuitry and have enough practical experience to interconnect sophisticated electronic equipment correctly. POWER: The MF-107 works on +9 volts DC and uses a max of about 200 milliamperes of current. Use only the power supply supplied with the MF-107 or the exact equivalent.
LIMITED WARRANTY Moog Music warrants that its products will be free from defects in materials or workmanship, and shall conform to specifications current at the time of shipment, for a period of one year from date of purchase. During the one-year period, any defective products will be repaired or replaced, at Moog Music’s option, on a return-to-factory basis. This Warranty covers defects that Moog Music determines are no fault of the user.
MF-107 SPECIFICATIONS DESCRIPTION: Analog effects module containing a VCO with continuously variable waveform which can be hard synced and/or Frequency modulated by the input signal and an Envelope Follower that can modulate the VCO frequency. FRONT PANEL FEATURES: DRIVE rotary control - adjusts the gain of the audio input to the effect. OUTPUT LEVEL rotary control - balances the level of the FreqBox’s signal when the effect is on with the bypassed signal when the effect is off.
GENERAL SPECIFICATIONS: CASE: Black panel with hardwood sides – classic analog appearance. DIMENSIONS: 9” x 6” x 2-1/2” NET WEIGHT: 2 lb SHIPPING WEIGHT: 4 lb, including power adaptor and instruction manual POWER REQUIREMENTS: 120 volt, 5W. 220 volt power adaptor available on special order MOOG MUSIC Inc. 2004E RIVERSIDE DRIVE ASHEVILLE, NC 28804 Phone: (828) 251 0090 FAX: (828) 254 6233 Email: info@moogmusic.com WEB SITE: http://www.moogmusic.com ©2007 Moog Music Inc.
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