...that can manipulate the spectrum of a sound in, so the dissonant curves for the scale steps would at their minima.
http://sethares.engr.wisc.edu/contents. ... hor1992268
Xen-FMTS looks cool, but synthedit sounds like plastic...
Looking for a microtonal synth...
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- KVRian
- Topic Starter
- 513 posts since 26 Nov, 2009
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- Banned
- 7624 posts since 13 Nov, 2015 from Norway
I was going to suggest Xen-FMTS but if you think it sounds like Plastic, whats the point.
EnergyXT3 - LMMS - FL Studio | Roland SH201 - Waldorf Rocket | SoundCloud - Bandcamp
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- KVRAF
- 2279 posts since 20 Dec, 2002 from The Benighted States of Trumpistan
Use anything that supports Scala tuning files -- Xen-FMTS is a great option, even if you need to bridge it to x64. Google (actually, Duck Duck Go!) is your friend. Or get an additive synthesizer with tunable harmonics.
Failing that, export the midi, run it through a Scala tuning transformer, then re-import the midi. But it's an order of magnitude easier to just find a synth that supports scala tunings.
Failing that, manually grovel through the midi data and re-tune by hand. But it's an order of magnitude to do the previous, and several orders of magnitude easier to just google a synth that supports scala. I've done it, and trust me, it's more pain than it's worth!
Of course, if what you really mean is stretch tuning, which flattens lower registers and sharpens higher, you'll need to search for synths that support stretch tuning. Or grovel through midi data, et cetera. Several Kontakt piano libraries have it, but unless you're Donald Fagen, you don't need it.
Easiest of all, just get used to equal temperament, and make some damn music already. If it's good enough for Mozart and Monk, it's good enough for the likes of us!
Failing that, export the midi, run it through a Scala tuning transformer, then re-import the midi. But it's an order of magnitude easier to just find a synth that supports scala tunings.
Failing that, manually grovel through the midi data and re-tune by hand. But it's an order of magnitude to do the previous, and several orders of magnitude easier to just google a synth that supports scala. I've done it, and trust me, it's more pain than it's worth!
Of course, if what you really mean is stretch tuning, which flattens lower registers and sharpens higher, you'll need to search for synths that support stretch tuning. Or grovel through midi data, et cetera. Several Kontakt piano libraries have it, but unless you're Donald Fagen, you don't need it.
Easiest of all, just get used to equal temperament, and make some damn music already. If it's good enough for Mozart and Monk, it's good enough for the likes of us!
Wait... loot _then_ burn? D'oh!
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- KVRian
- Topic Starter
- 513 posts since 26 Nov, 2009
Do you know any additive synthesizer with tunable harmonics? (I'm not interested in organ type sounds, so this synth should be able to resynthesize or have good factory sounds with more complex presets than the typical glass/organ additive sounds and you should be able to change the tuning of the partials as ratio).Jafo wrote: Or get an additive synthesizer with tunable harmonics.
Easiest of all, just get used to equal temperament, and make some damn music already. If it's good enough for Mozart and Monk, it's good enough for the likes of us!
Also, Mozart was using some kind of meantone variant, not ET.
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- Banned
- 7624 posts since 13 Nov, 2015 from Norway
Maybe Tunefish4?
EnergyXT3 - LMMS - FL Studio | Roland SH201 - Waldorf Rocket | SoundCloud - Bandcamp
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- KVRAF
- 2279 posts since 20 Dec, 2002 from The Benighted States of Trumpistan
Let's see... it's been a while since I worried about this stuff, but I think ISTR that MicroTera let you detune each harmonic. But even if I'm wrong (and I probably am!), any good FM synthesizer, such as FM8 or Dexed, will let you do it -- just use each operator as a harmonic, and detune the ratios to taste. You could also experiment with CSound (look for the Cabbage packaging) or Reaktor. Add some modulations and time-based changes, and you'll have something nice and expressive, not like an organ at all.anomandaris1 wrote:Do you know any additive synthesizer with tunable harmonics? (I'm not interested in organ type sounds, so this synth should be able to resynthesize or have good factory sounds with more complex presets than the typical glass/organ additive sounds and you should be able to change the tuning of the partials as ratio).
Still, that's kind of a side experiment that may or may not help you. I think that what you're really after is some sort of just intonation or similar, right? Scala tuning will let you do that easily. The standard library has several hundred tunings worked out for you, even a few with more than 12 semitones in an octave -- you just use more than one octave on your keyboard to play them. Pretty sweet! I forget which synths let you import Scala tunings, but there are quite a few, so search away. Be sure to mark the key in your midi or DAW for best results.
Hermode tuning is another option which many people like. In it, the synth recognizes what chords you're playing and retunes certain notes in the chord to fit the chord. This way, the E and G in C Major will differ slightly from the E and G in A7. This is more flexible in some ways (especially if you modulate keys), but it kinda clashes against less flexible instruments. Definitely not as useful as I'd wish. I'd imagine it'd be fantastic with well-trained singers, though!
Anyway, finding a synth that speaks Scala is probably your best bet. (Or making friends with the dissonance which is equal temperament.)
btw, any font addicts here who get confused by "Scala"? I know I do!
That's an excellent point; I stand corrected. Maybe I should stick to Debussy...Also, Mozart was using some kind of meantone variant, not ET.
Wait... loot _then_ burn? D'oh!
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- KVRAF
- 3054 posts since 25 Apr, 2011
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- KVRist
- 455 posts since 16 May, 2012 from Antwerp
My preferences are:
- Madronalabs Aalto
- Madronalabs Kaivo
- Aalto is full-keyboard microtonal, semimodular and comes with an incredible Buchla-style complex oscillator.
The interface - with the gap - is extremely handy once you get used to it, which, in my case, took about ten minutes to start and next some three days to start getting it into my fingers and go 'wow' for its workflow.
Aalto's sound is all but plasticky and it ranges from 'normal' to complete chaos with everything in between.
It has become my favourite synth in a short while.
- Kaivo is quite new to me. I discovered already that it is *not* a Chromaphone clone - Chromaphone is also microtonal - but I cannot tell much from experience with it yet as I purchased my copy about a month ago.
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Harmor is of course also very good. But, my personal opinion, it has been designed specifically for FLStudio. I can use it in Cubase, but it 'feels' very FLS.
- Madronalabs Aalto
- Madronalabs Kaivo
- Aalto is full-keyboard microtonal, semimodular and comes with an incredible Buchla-style complex oscillator.
The interface - with the gap - is extremely handy once you get used to it, which, in my case, took about ten minutes to start and next some three days to start getting it into my fingers and go 'wow' for its workflow.
Aalto's sound is all but plasticky and it ranges from 'normal' to complete chaos with everything in between.
It has become my favourite synth in a short while.
- Kaivo is quite new to me. I discovered already that it is *not* a Chromaphone clone - Chromaphone is also microtonal - but I cannot tell much from experience with it yet as I purchased my copy about a month ago.
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Harmor is of course also very good. But, my personal opinion, it has been designed specifically for FLStudio. I can use it in Cubase, but it 'feels' very FLS.
Windows 7, Cubase 9.5 and some extra plug-ins | Takamine EN-10C and PRS Mira
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- KVRian
- 1277 posts since 9 Jan, 2013 from morf
Man is least himself when he talks in the first person. Give him a mask, and he'll show you his true face
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- Banned
- 4491 posts since 8 Jul, 2008 from UK
Didn't the original zeta have this ?
If it did, i've no idea if the V2 version has it, but I definitely have a memory of one synth I own having microtonal options.
Sure it was zeta !!! ?
If it did, i've no idea if the V2 version has it, but I definitely have a memory of one synth I own having microtonal options.
Sure it was zeta !!! ?
Don't trust those with words of weakness, they are the most aggressive
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- KVRAF
- 5818 posts since 9 Jul, 2002 from Helsinki
From what I could gather (which, I'm afraid, was not exactly everything 
) from the linked document, a simple linearly scaled modulation of the harmonics might not suffice, but Linplug Spectral allows morphing between spectras using pitch as modulation source. It also lets you design the waveforms as 256 harmonics (additive style) and supports .tun files.
You might not find a synth that does exactly what you want, but Spectral might get close, and it's anyway quite an astonishing synth worth testing.
) from the linked document, a simple linearly scaled modulation of the harmonics might not suffice, but Linplug Spectral allows morphing between spectras using pitch as modulation source. It also lets you design the waveforms as 256 harmonics (additive style) and supports .tun files. You might not find a synth that does exactly what you want, but Spectral might get close, and it's anyway quite an astonishing synth worth testing.
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- KVRian
- 659 posts since 7 Oct, 2005
Image Line Morphineanomandaris1 wrote: Do you know any additive synthesizer with tunable harmonics? (I'm not interested in organ type sounds, so this synth should be able to resynthesize or have good factory sounds with more complex presets than the typical glass/organ additive sounds and you should be able to change the tuning of the partials as ratio).
https://www.image-line.com/plugins/Synths/Morphine/
But it's not the synth you search. No microtunung support.
Synthmaster has very basic additive oscillator (8 partials, each detunable). It's a different approach.
Spectral is a good choice. And all other mentioned synths.
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- KVRAF
- 2279 posts since 20 Dec, 2002 from The Benighted States of Trumpistan
Dammit, now I'm obsessed. Here is a converter from Scala .scl to mts sysex files, which some DAWs can import. See this topic for details. I'm kinda SOL due to DAW incompatibility, but it might help somebody else.
FWIW, a lot of piano tuners seem to like a 1/9- or even 1/10-comma meantone scale; both play well with ET, but gives a certain amount of that JI goodness. The Scala distro has a gazillion variants on, well, everything, but I think the most immediately useful files are mean10.scl, meannine.scl, ji_12.scl and young*.scl (a nice meantone).
Good luck to all! Err, any.
FWIW, a lot of piano tuners seem to like a 1/9- or even 1/10-comma meantone scale; both play well with ET, but gives a certain amount of that JI goodness. The Scala distro has a gazillion variants on, well, everything, but I think the most immediately useful files are mean10.scl, meannine.scl, ji_12.scl and young*.scl (a nice meantone).
Good luck to all! Err, any.
Wait... loot _then_ burn? D'oh!
