Synthesizer

The combination of modules that is the basis for nearly all subtractive synthesizers.

Voltage control defines the synthesizer and differentiates it from separate components such as amplifiers, oscillators, filters, etc.

The synthesizer generates and modifies electronic waveforms in the audio spectrum. Unlike traditional acoustic instruments such as violin, percussion, etc., the electronic medium is highly flexible. Instead of physically altering the material of typical instruments, such as bracing a guitar to change its resonance, synthesizers can only need to change electrical or digital values to make new sounds. This makes them much more fluent than traditional acoustic instruments. It also means they can create sounds that aren't physically possible. Finally, players can explore the variety of sounds much more quickly and easily.

When synthesizers first entered the underground music scene in the early 1960s, constructing them was difficult. Knowledge of engineering specific to making sound waves was scarce and components were not ideal for making music. Furthermore, people didn't have references - they didn't know what they wanted to build. In the 21st century, however, synthesizer design is commonplace and many sources of information from people to websites share the basic as well as the secrets. It's even possible to construct playable synthesizer instruments in your own home with less than $100 in parts.

Synthesis techniques

In electronic music synthesizers the main techniques to create and shape sound are:

• Subtractive synthesis starts with a rich sound wave and subtracts frequencies using filters (e.g., Moog synthesizers).
• Additive synthesis builds complex sounds by adding together simpler waveforms, typically sine waves (e.g., Hammond organ).
• FM synthesis is the modulation of one waveform by another to create complex harmonic content (e.g., Yamaha DX7).
• Wavetable synthesis uses tables of pre-recorded waveforms and allows smooth transitions between them (e.g., PPG Wave).
• Granular synthesis splits sound into small grains and manipulates them to create new textures (e.g., Xenakis' UPIC system).
• Physical modeling simulates the physical properties of musical instruments using mathematical models (e.g., Yamaha VL1).
• Sample-based synthesis uses recorded samples of real instruments or sounds, which can be manipulated (e.g., Akai MPC series).
• Phase distortion is similar to FM synthesis but uses different phase modulation techniques (e.g., Casio CZ series).

See also

• Sampler
• Synthesizer books
• Learning to play a synth

Further reading

• The new complete synthesizer by David Crombie, Omnibus Press, 1986, ISBN 0711907013
• Analog Days: The Invention and Impact of the Moog Synthesizer by Trevor Pinch, Harvard University Press, 2004, ISBN 0-674-01617-3

External links

• Interactive Learning Synths, Ableton