Here's a tip for anyone interested in getting arpeggiated sounds from Crystal.

You can use a modulation envelope as an arpeggiator. Assign a modulation envelope (the source) to a voice's pitch (the target) in the modulation matrix. Then drag the points around in the modulation envelope to control the pitch. The pitch will follow the envelope, and if you turn on "Loop" and "Sync", and set all the shape menus to the right of the modulation envelope to "Flat", you'll get a repeating arpeggio which plays in sync with the song's tempo.

Watch the parameter display (below the Poly button) and it will show you +/- half steps as you drag a point in the modulation envelope. For example, if you drag it all the way down, the parameter display will show -12, meaning one octave down. You may have to hold the shift key down while dragging a point to get a precise value.

Using this technique you can get some fancy arpeggios. As an example, see the "By the Numbers" preset (in the wave sequences section). This uses modulation envelope 1 to arpeggiate voice 1.

- Glenn

Cool. I was playing around with this and it was taking some time for me to get the hang of it. But it's a nice feature.

BTW, finally got CM. The tutorial inside was very good.

Something that is interesting is how the complex (and simple) modulations can produce remarkably subtle changes in timbre over time. This is something my band does with music, play simple constructs that develop and repeat with minor variations. It's a great way to use a pad or to use with a more assertive pad.

For awhile I was mostly drawn to Crystal's more bombastic features but of late enjoy the ambiences and spaces it can produce.

I know it gets said over and over here at KVR, but this synth is amazing. It is the synth I've always dreamed of having, but so much more. I'm absolutely addicted to it, and I still can't believe it's free. Sometimes life is so sweet.

Yes, it's one fine synth for sure! Just wish it could be more CPU friendly. Thanks for the tip Glenn, and at worse I can always render my big cool arpeggios to .WAV I guess.