One Synth Challenge #119: Waverazor 2 by Tracktion (Jasinski Wins!)

[Ranoka]

https://soundcloud.com/ranoka/fragile-reversal

[Edit] I wanted to thank ontrackp for making the video explaining the audio and filter routing, without that I think I would've been scratching my head for even longer also thanks to Jas for his tutorial on adding modulators, that helped as well!
Also extra special thanks to Exponent for his detailed suggestions and feedback on the preview version of my track I shared on Slack!
Good luck everyone, finishing something is an achievement, I though we would get less than 20 entries this time but we got a few more!

Waverazor was very challenging, I spent the first half of the month learning the synth and most of the second half making sounds. I ended up rushing at the end, I hope the mix is ok!

Made for KVR OSC #119 MOK Waverazor 2
FL Studio 20.1.1 64bit - Windows 10
30 instances of Waverazor - all made from init.

- FL Native:
Fruity parametric EQ 2 x6
Fruity Reverb x6
Fruity Balance x6
Fruity Delay x2
Fruity Limiter x4
Fruity PanOmatic x6
Maximus

- Visualisers:
SPAN
Youlean Loudness Meter 2
Wave Candy

[Leonard Bowman]

They say that two heads are better than one.

Presenting
Passacaglia in D Minor
composed by J.T.'s Penrose and Leonard Bowman

https://soundcloud.com/anotherbenjamin/ ... in-d-minor

A note from J.T.’s Penrose: A passacaglia is a type of theme and variations form that is based around a melody that is repeated (usually in the bass voice) endlessly throughout the piece. Unlike many styles of theme and variation pieces, our passacaglia leaves the melody largely intact and instead varies up the harmonic structure by switching between homophonic and monophonic sections, as well as altering the rhythms and harmonic progressions that overlay the incessant melodic bass line. We really hope you enjoy this piece.

Technical Details
Composed in MuseScore
Humanized using Director Musices http://www.speech.kth.se/music/performance/download/
Produced in REAPER, with
37 instances of WaveRazor
2 instances ReaVerb
Voxengo SPAN and MLoudnessAnalyzer for metering.

For more details on the organ, the reverb, and the artwork, as well as all patches used, check out:
https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/ ... sp=sharing
I've tried to share some of what went into making this organ there, but if you have more questions just ask.

We hope you enjoy!

Oh, and some bonus art

[Leonard Bowman]

Some thoughts on WaveRazor.

It is a cool concept. Something that needs to be explored.
The interface makes exploration really hard.

The wave slicing power is neat, but the aliasing ruins a lot of the effect. If I want aliasing, I'll probably reach for Mr. Alias. If that could be smoothed out, then the things that make WaveRazor unique would feel useful.
What I would like to see is something that focuses on that slicing power, with vastly simplified routing and modulation. Then exploration would be possible, and things would be more practical from a general user's point of view.

I didn't dive into this instrument, because I knew I would have to leave it after a month. Even from the limited experience I've had, I don't think I would buy this over another synth on the market just for its wave editing right now.

Some feature requests, because what WaveRazor needs is obviously more controls
Instead of tuning waves by octave, tuning them by harmonics would be a welcome addition. You can still get there with cents and semitones, but remembering 386.31 isn't all that practical.
Alternate tunings. You have a very experimental-looking and -sounding synth. Why does it only play in 12-note equal temperament? I think just intonation could pull some really interesting things out of this synth.
Absolute detuning. Less useful, but I would have liked that when making my voix celeste stop. Supporting .TUN would also allow an absolute pitch offset.

Edit: adding some more practical things that would improve workflow.
Randomization. This synth is about making sounds no one has heard before. Randomization of parameters is a great way to get there.
Copying. There are several parameters, and unifying things across oscillators or filters is a bit of a burden.

[zarf]

My just in time entry!
https://soundcloud.com/zarf/zarf-lonely-wave-glitch
I found waverazor very interesting and very promising and a total pain to use. My track involves lots of tweaked presets due to time available and difficulty of using the synth.
32 Waverazors in Ableton
Ableton Eqs, compressors, delays, reverbs, multiband compressors
toTape,OTT & Loudmax 3rd party fx

Edit: OK, not quite in time, but I hope the 1 minute past deadline can be forgiven

[RichardSemper]

Edit: OK, not quite in time, but I hope the 1 minute past deadline can be forgiven

You were in fact in time, just took a minute to post on the forum, so no probs!

[zarf]

Edit: OK, not quite in time, but I hope the 1 minute past deadline can be forgiven

You were in fact in time, just took a minute to post on the forum, so no probs!

Great news, thanks. I fell asleep before posting last night (in UK) and woke up with 7 minutes to upload and post. Argh.... Phew

[RichardSemper]

Here is a zip file of 18 patches I created wih the WaveRazor:
https://www.dropbox.com/s/jisuqmfnxpkrv ... r.zip?dl=0
I have designed them so that each can produce a wide range of sounds using only the front panel controls, most of which are assigned to useful basic parameters.

Although they will be of little use to OSCers right now, it is my hope that MOK can include them in the factory bank, so they will be available in the LE version. This might help make the synth more accessible to newcomers. @r_mok

What I would like to see is something that focuses on that slicing power, with vastly simplified routing and modulation. Then exploration would be possible, and things would be more practical from a general user's point of view.

This is the idea behind creating my BASIC patch:
This patch is set up with 1, 4 and 8 segment oscillators with basic shapes. The dials are used to modulate main envelope parameters, filter and filter envelope and delay level, while the x-y pads modulate the delay parameters. There is also a chorus on/off switch. The idea is to have all the usual parameters set up so that the novice can focus on the wave slicing in the centre window without having to worry about all the routing.

[RichardSemper]

Asked previously if there is a forum where ideas can be discussed, indeed there is:
https://shrine.mok.com/

I have tried a number of times to register for this site, but all i get is a dialog box saying 'mok says' with just an ok button. I have a list of bugs/quirks (separate from this post) which i would like to submit.

After spending considerable time with Waverazor over the month I have the following comments and observations:

- It seems that this synth is unique in two important respects:
The Oscillator concept of slicing and modulating waves
The sheer depth and breadth of the modulation system and number of parameters

While i now have a fair grip on how to program patches with it there is still a great deal more to explore, for example latching different envelope parameters, chaining and modulating filters and effects, exploring more wave combinations etc.

- I like the fact that it has a nice front panel with the 12 macro knobs and 2 x-y pads. This gives scope for creating very versatile patches, with excellent up-front modulation capability.

- The Manual - With such a steep learning curve I think the manual needs to be much more helpful. At the moment it reads more like a glossary section i.e. listing parameters and their function. What is really needed is a number of step by step guides on how to perform basic editing operations, with appropriate diagrams.

- The Editor - is complex, but logical, and handles a complicated modulation system quite well. It does take time to master and it is very easy to trip up and get a bit lost. A number of suggestions have been made which may help with the workflow here. I have listed some from the forum with a few suggestions of my own:-

- Ability to type in values for parameters in addition to moving the dials
- Copying and pasting of parameters eg Oscillator, Envelopes, Filter settings, Fx settings etc.
- Preset saving for individual modules.
- a convenient way to group parameters (i.e. wave segments) or multiple selection for editing.
- Right-click options for assigning modulation parameters
- it would be nice if you could drag FX in the efx bank from one slot to the next
- collapse/expand - especially in the matrix tab. Maybe have a separate tab for the macro control modulators.

A couple of thigs for wish list:-

- Oscillator detuning
- MPE
- Add a reverb to the effects

Overall I have enjoyed playing with this synth despite the initial learning curve which took some dogged determination to overcome. I would love to see it develop further and achieve its true potential.

[Taron]

Well, not a lot of tracks (wonder why?! Haha)... but it's done: I've VOTED!
I wouldn't have called it easy listening, but it was quite easy to go through the tracks even with care. A few gems in there for sure, but they all suffer the same thing...well... the thing.
Looking forward to the next round, whatever it will be!?

[bjporter]

High Quality mp3 audio zip file download: here

[r_mok]

Asked previously if there is a forum where ideas can be discussed, indeed there is:
https://shrine.mok.com/

I have tried a number of times to register for this site, but all i get is a dialog box saying 'mok says' with just an ok button. I have a list of bugs/quirks (separate from this post) which i would like to submit.

Egad, sorry about that! The registration on mok.com has been fixed. Many thanks for the comments, and will look forward to exchanging ideas. Cheers! - Rob

[Auplant]

I liked TheNeverScenes track, darnit

Will there be a soundcloud playlist?

[Eauson]

[*]

I liked TheNeverScenes track, darnit

Will there be a soundcloud playlist?

https://soundcloud.com/kvrosc/sets/one- ... llenge-119

[Taron]

Huh, yeah, where is NeverScene's track??? Now I'll have to scour the thread...

[DavidCarlyon]

Some thoughts on WaveRazor.

It is a cool concept. Something that needs to be explored.
The interface makes exploration really hard.

The wave slicing power is neat, but the aliasing ruins a lot of the effect. If I want aliasing, I'll probably reach for Mr. Alias. If that could be smoothed out, then the things that make WaveRazor unique would feel useful.
What I would like to see is something that focuses on that slicing power, with vastly simplified routing and modulation. Then exploration would be possible, and things would be more practical from a general user's point of view.

I didn't dive into this instrument, because I knew I would have to leave it after a month. Even from the limited experience I've had, I don't think I would buy this over another synth on the market just for its wave editing right now.

Some feature requests, because what WaveRazor needs is obviously more controls
Instead of tuning waves by octave, tuning them by harmonics would be a welcome addition. You can still get there with cents and semitones, but remembering 386.31 isn't all that practical.
Alternate tunings. You have a very experimental-looking and -sounding synth. Why does it only play in 12-note equal temperament? I think just intonation could pull some really interesting things out of this synth.
Absolute detuning. Less useful, but I would have liked that when making my voix celeste stop. Supporting .TUN would also allow an absolute pitch offset.

Edit: adding some more practical things that would improve workflow.
Randomization. This synth is about making sounds no one has heard before. Randomization of parameters is a great way to get there.
Copying. There are several parameters, and unifying things across oscillators or filters is a bit of a burden.

I think you hit the nail on the head. I didn't dive in, because i knew i would have to invest real time. which i would be happy to do - if i was going to use it all the time at the end. But as you said, there are key things which need to be fixed.

i do think there is something really special at the heart of this synth. but i concur with all of your observations and suggestions - in particular the aliasing is a big problem. also, there needs to be a better workflow with slicing and modulation. Good post.

This synth can do incredible things, just feels like it needs fine tuning