Do a Syntheziser need 6 oscillators to get a 6-voice polyphony

[olimpo]

Do a Syntheziser need 6 oscillators to get a 6-voice polyphony? I've learned that is not, that a single oscillator can produce all the sound needed. But how exactly it is done by the oscillator? it has 6 different circuitry outputs in an analogic one? How does it work in a digital one? Thanks

[jamcat]

Divide down oscillator. There is a single master frequency, and each note has a circuit that divides the frequency by the necessary amount to produce the desired note. It's how the Polymoog and the Solina work.

[BertKoor]

Electronic organs work differently, with not one but twelve frequencies that are being divided by two (one octave down) indeed.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Electric_ ... s_(1930s–)

The polymoog also had 12 oscillators, not one:
https://www.soundonsound.com/reviews/mo ... -retrozone

How does it work in a digital one?

This architecture is not so popular in digital, but it would follow the same principles.

[Viktor [TUC]]

Probably a misunderstanding of how synths are often described.
If a polyphonic synth is described as having a single oscillator, that means it's a single oscillator per voice.

[nix808]

one osc can produce a monophonic voice that changes pitch
-in digital I think it's some sort of multiplex that allows one osc to be polyphonic
certainly one osc is polyphonic digitally

[T-CM11]

-in digital I think it's some sort of multiplex that allows one osc to be polyphonic

It's code + processing/memory hardware.

[DMG68]

There’s an oscillator for each voice, as stated above. You have one set of controls that controls them in a group, so to speak. A 6 note polyphonic synth with 2 (groups of) oscillators actually has 12 oscillators under the hood, with controls for 2 available.

[nix808]

ok hmm
when I build in Flowstone it appears to use one multiplexed osc
-it must be that there is an osc per voice, as described

[olimpo]

many thanks for your answers the guided me to do more research