What is pulse wave modulation on the driver?

[Tausendberg]

I don't know if I'm being daft but could anyone please either point me to or give me a simplified explanation for what pulse wave modulation on the driver actually does? I don't know why, but I just feel like it's a tad incomprehensible to me.

[LBH]

PWM is modulation for the wave widths. It has a relationship with the pulse width you can set above the PWM inputs. All waveforms in the 3 oscilators for the driver except the Sine wave can be affected both by the pulsewidth knob and by using the drivers PWM inputs.

If you have a scope/ osciloscope - (i have one in my DAW) - then you can put it on and get a visual of what happens.

You can test the Squarewave, the Triangle and the Saw wave.
I don't know if originally it was only the pulsewave/ Squarewave that could be modulated this way, but i think so the name PWM (Pulse Width Modulation) taking in consideration.

If you for instance take the squarewave, and then adjust the pulse width knob in the driver, then you get different kind of pulsewaves - each with different sound. A clean symmetric squarewave has a pulsewidth of 50%. A pulsewidth less than 50% is assymetric.

This pulse width can also be modulated width modulators like for instance an envelope and a LFO using the PWM modulation inputs. The pulsewidth is then so speak a dynamic result between the PWM modulation amount you set, and the pulsewidth you set.
If a pulsewidth is zero at a point, then you hear noise or nothing.

If you for instance use a LFO triangle on 50% width as a modulator, then you get a even change of the modulated drivers oscilators waveforms.
(Notice you also have a PWM option in the LFO to modulate the LFO's waveform. It's possible to make complex modulations.)

Also try to modulate the driver PWM width a envelope or whatever using different settings.

A scope help to make things visual. So i recommend you use one to understand what's going on better.

Hope you can understand me and this helps you.

[Tausendberg]

Thank you very much, my DAW also comes with a scope so I will look into it shortly.

[Tausendberg]

Been playing around with the Modular V a lot, one question though, I'm not sure if it's a bug or if I'm doing something incorrectly, but it appears that the pulsewidth modulation knob doesn't seem to affect square waveform oscillators 2 or 3, what could be the reason for that?

[LBH]

Been playing around with the Modular V a lot, one question though, I'm not sure if it's a bug or if I'm doing something incorrectly, but it appears that the pulsewidth modulation knob doesn't seem to affect square waveform oscillators 2 or 3, what could be the reason for that?

Driver 1 affect OSC 1-3.
Driver 2 affect OSC 4-6.
Driver 3 Affect OSC 7-9.

All works for me. The second and third OSC in every driver section is affected like the first OSC in each driver section.

I can't tell you a coarse, why it should'nt work for you, unless you can't hear or don't use the oscilators somehow. So be sure the oscilators has an active impact on the sound somehow.

As i can't see your settings i can't tell if you are doing something incorrect. More info - especially a screenshot if possible could be nice.
I can only suggest you try things out as simple as possible first to be sure. Check one OSC and one Waveform at a time.
Lets hear how that turns out.

[Tausendberg]

https://www.dropbox.com/s/e29azh487nu90ch/1.jpg?dl=0

https://www.dropbox.com/s/7x2ux5s7qa0ejqe/2.jpg?dl=0

So here are two images showing exactly what's happening. As described, oscillator 1 reacts to the pulse width wheel being turned while oscillator 2 does not but behaves instead as if it was completely turned down.

Unless I'm missing something, I tried to cut down as many possible sources of interference.

UPDATE:

Wait, it appears to be some kind of glitch, perhaps only related to Studio One. This whole time I've been controlling Pulse Width modulation using my hardware controller but when I use the mouse to manipulate the pulse width controller, then it behaves predictably. Maybe for some reason Studio One and Modular V don't play together well...

UPDATE 2:

In case anyone else has this problem and wants to know how I worked around it... Essentially I used MIDI Learn and assigned two different CCs (in my case 18 and 40) to the controllers themselves and then used Studio One's Control Link to connect my hardware knob to the MIDI messages. It works out error free this way because this way studio one just drives the MIDI message while Modular V essentially "turns" the knob.

[LBH]

Glad it works for you.

Yes it's true, that when using automation/ hardware controller in a DAW, then you actually can set a individual Pulse Width for all 9 OSC's using the automation parameters - Width 1-9.
Only assigning a control to Modular's visible Pulse Width control will only affect one OSC. Each OSC need a a control to be assigned when using hardware controller and automation parameters.

It could be nice if a switch was added Modular V to allow this when using the mouse to control, as it give more possibilities, but also so it was possible when running Modular in stand alone mode. As it is now you can't control all 9 OSC's Pulse Width's in Stand alone mode. It's only possible using the VST automation parameters.

I too use Studio One and it's Control Link, and i also have Novation Automap options. In both i can assing the parameters Width 1-9 to a control on my hardware controller.
When using Automap the parameter is assigned to the hardware control i want to use.
When using Control Link my controller is mapped to the Control Link. In the mapping process i use Studio One's linking system.
To assign the Pulse Width to a hardware controller you'll need something like Studio One's Control Link, Automap or other things that makes it possible to assign a automation parameter to a hardware control. Not all have that option i think.

You can't use Modulars MIDI learn. That is only possible for the parameters you see on Modular. So for instance you can't assign the Pulse Width for OSC 2 and 3 to a control using Modulars MIDI learn.
And if you in standalone mode try to modify the Pulse Width control on a preset where you in your DAW have made a different pulse width setting for OSC 1,2 and 3, then you will set the pulse width to the same value for all 3 OSC's.

So it would be nice if Arturia made all automation parameters availble (on the standalone too), so all parameters was assignble to a hardware controller using Modulars own Midi Learn, and also so it was possible to modify all preset's made in a DAW when in stand alone mode, and to make it possible to create all possible preset's in stand alone mode.

I hope the upcomming updates will have fixed all things in Arturia's synth's. I hope they have checked everything for the new updates. I would'nt mind if i had to install the new updates beside the old, if that's needed to make them work better, and to be able to keep ones old work.

[Tausendberg]

Hey! You're right, so that's what was causing it, the VST has parameters 'Width 1' through 'Width 9' but no specific parameter to control all 3 from the driver and vice versa there's no way using midi learn to control the individual oscillators. That does touch upon, in my opinion, a weakness of Studio One in that they don't let you attach multiple variables to the same hardware control. You can have multiple hardware controls for one parameter but not vice versa. That's somewhat inconvenient for example with the Oberheim because LFO and LFO with midi sync on are two separate VST parameters and I would prefer to control the LFO, whether it's synced to midi or not, from the same parameter but I haven't figured out a workaround for that, it doesn't seem like MIDI Learn can assign multiple parameters to a single control message either...

And on another note, I do hope we get a Modular V update. Seems like we're overdue for one considering the last Modular V update was close to 8 months ago. I hope they make it bigger, I know it's unusual but one of my monitors is vertically oriented (1200 X 1920) and would be able to accommodate an even taller Modular V.

Thank you for your insights!

[LBH]

Your welcome. Thanks to you too.

It's a Modular V issue not a Studio One issue.

You can assign more parameters to a single control in Studio Ones Control Link. Just add the parameters to the control. Click on the "Wrench" symbol. Then you can add and remove targets as you please. (EDIT: You can also select  parameters one after another, on a plug-in, activate a hardware control, and connect them via the arrow in the Control link window each time.)
You can for instance add the Width 1 to 3 for a single control.

You can also link Control link controls and even reverse them etc... Control link  needs saveable  templates and more pages, but in many ways  it's a great system.
Also remember you can create Multi instruments in Studio One Professionel.  Using that you can even add parameters from more instruments to a single control. Normally you can't do that.  Lot's of possibilities.

The only problem is you can't select the 9 width parameters on Modular V.  You could if you on each driver Pulse Width control had a switch to select the OSC you wanted to control, or at best had switched for it on the OSC's or if you had a Pulse width control on each OSC.
But it's more like a real Moog Modular that the driver control more OSC's at a time. However, when you have the 9 witdth in the automation parameters, then the authentencity is allready gone.
Alternatively Modular V should only have automation parameters for the 3 drivers, and control Pulse Width like on the stand alone version.
But 9 width parameter give more possiblities - also in organizing.


I know there are Arturia updates upcomming. You can find a video where you see MINI V with possibilty to choose more sizes.  Also the Browser is changed. If more is changed i don't know. Also i don't know how many plug-ins are changed. But i do hope it's all of them.

See this post: http://forum.arturia.com/index.php?topic=87387.0

[Tausendberg]

Woah woah woah, what you're telling me is pretty huge if it's true but I even asked over on Presonus's forum if multiple VST parameters could be assigned to a single hardware control and admittedly, it wasn't a Presonus employee who told me it was impossible, but I was told by other users that it was impossible and nobody said otherwise.

I hate to ask this of you but could you walk me through the process of assigning multiple parameters to a hardware control in studio one please? Step by step? Cause I'm not quite seeing what you're talking about, like, the 'wrench' for example.

Edit: I am using Presonus Studio One Professional V 3.2.1

I don't know exactly which 'wrench' you are referring to but when I click on the little triangle that assigns a control to a parameter then it unassigns the previously held parameter from the control.

[LBH]

We can try.

Have you read about Control Link in Presonus manual, and have you mapped your Hardware controller like guided in the manual?
Else do that.
In this video you can see something about mapping your contrlloer globaly for control link in studio one and other things. Can't recall.
It's  for Studio One 2, so only functions for that is included. But the global mapping and other things is still used.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hjX5zjJv4Y8

Then:
I can suggest you try to load a track with a multiinstrument. You find Some in Studio Ones browser.

When this is loaded you see that 8 parameters is already set up for the 8 visible knobs.
When you have mapped your controller for Control Link and assigned it to this macro controls, then you can use your hardware controller to control them.

Over the first knob you see 3 symbols. At the left one for the view you are in, at the right one for the structure set up of the multiinstrument, and in the middle a wrench for going to the parameter set-up window.

In the parameter window you can add many parameters for a single control. You can also select a way for a control to behave under Trans.

Over the virtual keyboard you can see what instruments there are in the multiinstrument. If you click on on of the lines the instrument open, so you can modify the sound.

In the first view where you see the control knobs you can click the arrow just under the buttons and open for Control Links X/Y controls.

________


Another example:

Drag Modular V to a track of it's own.

If you for instance on the left of the track click on the number for the track or click on the symbol just under the recording in the mixer channel for your Modular, then a window open that have the same controls as mentioned above.

If you click on the wrench over the first knob you open the parameter window. In there you find all the parameters for the Modular just like in the multiinstrument.

You can now for instance select knob 1 and add for instance width 1-3 for that knob. You can even select differnt modes under how the knob shall effect witdh 1, 2 and 3 under Trans. (You could also control both LFO 1 and LFO 2 on SEM with one knob and even reverse the polarity for one of them.)

When you have mapped you hardware Controller for Control Link and then activate this knob and then move a mapped control on you harware controler, then you'll see the contol link macro control and you harware control in the control link display , and then you can link them together by pressing the link arrow between those in the display.
(You can see the Control link display on the top left of Studio One or make it visible in the active window by clicking the technical symbol at the top right of the open control window next to the active controller drop down menu. Also be sure you have selected the mapped controller you wan't to use in that drop down menu.)

This is one way to do it. Allways eksperiment and read more about it. You can do things more ways than one.


If you wan't to you can now drag another plug-in to the same track and combine the instruments. Now this instruments parameters is availble in the parameter window too. And you'll be able to control More synths parameters at a time using the same hardware control knob. Just add the parameters in the parameter window as explained in the first example.
____


It's important to know that you can only control the control surface you have open.
So if you wan't to control parameters on two synth at the same time, then you'll need to combine the instrument - use a multinstrument.

So you can for instance link a parameter from one synths own GUI on one track and another parameter from another synths own GUI on another track to the same hardware control using the "normal" Control link displays arrow tool. Then your control are on both parameters, but you will only be able to control one synth at a time.
And linking this way not using the macro controls you can't add more than one parameteron a synth  for a single hardware control, Perhaps that's what you was told on the Studio One forum.
To add more parameters in the same synths for a single hardware control you need to use the Control Link macro controls and assign parameters likr explained in the examples above.


INFO: You cam also create FX links for FX using splitter and so on like you can for instruments in multiinstruments. But that's another thing you can research.

If you need a more step by step guiding, then please start creating a example and then ask me what to do from there. Perhaps you only wan't one step at a time.


Enjoy.

[Tausendberg]

No, this is perfect, thank you for the education!

[LBH]

Great.
Your welcome.