Zebralette 3 Modulation Section Discussion

[mouren]

A suggestion for possible modulation:

Spline point groups. Would it be possible to group various points of the spline into groups, and then modulate each group using MSEG, LFO, etc?

Thank you! Loving the plugin so far.

[jtsterays]

Maybe because im used to compressors & FL Studio synths but turning up the rate knobs to be faster seems kinda backward to me.

[Urs]

A suggestion for possible modulation:

Spline point groups. Would it be possible to group various points of the spline into groups, and then modulate each group using MSEG, LFO, etc?

This is a frequently asked for thing, but unfortunately we could either morph whole curves or modulate points, but not both. That's because the morphing requires pre-computed data that would be obsolete if points were flexible. And as morphing of curves is the main point of both the oscillator and the MSEG, that's what we do

[marcinrau]

I would have a question and three Ideas for the Modulation as well.

First the question, when I use random as map source for multiple values, is that going to be a random value for each Parameter per note? Pretty sure it is, might be cool to include it in the documentation.

Also regarding the documentation I think the explanation for the local modulation should probably be below or above the Matrix section as it kind of gets lost in the control bar section and doesn't fit there that well anyways.

Generally I think the modulation system is probably enough for the stripped down version as it is still really flexible, but as already mentioned previously I feel like it is very confusing at first or rather not very visual. It took me a few minutes to figure out how it works at all, not because it is super complicated but rather due to the lack of visual feedback. That goes both for the local modulations and even more for the matrix.

Maybe a small dot in the middle of the circle that indicates the local modulation as a sign that there is some kind of modulation from the matrix would already be really helpful. Otherwise you always have to search through the matrix to see if a parameter is modulated, which takes time and can be frustrating.

In addition to that a visual representation of what the modulation is doing to the knob would be amazing. I think best suited would be a little moving indicator in the arc around the knob. That way it would instantly be possible to see which Parameters are currently modulated and what the modulation is actually doing. In my opinion that would increase the workflow by a lot and make the plugin more intuitive, faster and just generally more fun to use.

Optionally moving the modulation depth indicator with the position of the controller, display it as bipolar if the knob is bipolar might also be cool but not nearly as important.

Really hope to see those visual indicators in a future version and am looking forward to getting to know this synth better.

[pdxindy]

I would have a question and three Ideas for the Modulation as well.

First the question, when I use random as map source for multiple values, is that going to be a random value for each Parameter per note? Pretty sure it is, might be cool to include it in the documentation.

Didn't used to be. Unless it's changed, Random is global and all assigned parameters follow the same randomization.

[Urs]

In the ModMatrix, "Random" is per slot IIRC, and in conjunction with S&H it also produces new values each time it's sampled.

[pdxindy]

I have an LFO set to a ramp and modulating Osc Pitch and using the Matrix Modifier to quantize the signal. Satisfied with the result. The thing is, I want to modulate a different parameter and also quantize it and I would like the pattern of steps to match the pitch quantization.

It would be possible but difficult to match a stepped MSEG to the timing of the pitch quantization. Besides that, I have not found a way to sync the quantization of two destinations. So I was thinking about a quantization option to reference the matrix modifier quantization from a different destination. Then I could just point one destination to the pitch quantization to match the two together.

[Urs]

I'm not sure if we will do something like Hive's "in scale transpose" in Zebralette, but for Zebra we have planned actual pitch controller modules. Those operate directly on the key follow signals that affect oscillators, filters and other modules. These pitch controllers (which by default do nothing, i.e. work as things have always been) have built-in quantisation, glide, transpose etc. So with that, one can simply target the tune parameter of a pitch controller and everything will be in scale, regardless of how many modulations add up.

[christian f.]

I'm not sure if we will do something like Hive's "in scale transpose" in Zebralette, but for Zebra we have planned actual pitch controller modules. Those operate directly on the key follow signals that affect oscillators, filters and other modules. These pitch controllers (which by default do nothing, i.e. work as things have always been) have built-in quantisation, glide, transpose etc. So with that, one can simply target the tune parameter of a pitch controller and everything will be in scale, regardless of how many modulations add up.

That would be a huge timesaver !

[blurk]

Not sure if this suggestion belongs in the MSEG section or in the spline editor section, but it would be nice if the MSEG vertical axis could (optionally) have a musical intervals grid.[...]

You can set the Y axis subdivisions to 12

Nice try, but when I looked again at the MSEG in that preset, nope. Several of the steps don't fall on the grid line even though they are musical sounding intervals. My best guess is that this also needs to be logarithmic.

I'm sure full-time sound designers like Howard have their own workarounds, but maybe an affordance to mere mortals would be nice. Certainly nowhere near essential, but nice.

[Urs]

It doesn't need to be logarithmic. It just needs as many steps on the Y axis as there is semitones of modulation depth.

[blurk]

Ah, I think I understand.

[Tuskerfort]

Would it be overkill to ask to use an MSEG (or portions of an MSEG) as an MMAP, perhaps in a similar way that a portion of the wavetable can be used for a filter curve or for spectral decay curves? Or perhaps MMAPs would have the same or similar interface?

Overkill?

In Zebra HZ I find myself using between 2-4 MMAPs every time. They are wonderful. Would like to see this Zebralette 3 goodness spread throughout the Zebra3 interface.

[psychichotline]

..

[jooster]

Could we have a "solo button" for modulators? With several modulators on, I often want to listen to the effect of _this one_ and turn all others off temporarily - a solo button (like in DAW for a channel) would be great.