Controlling Frostwave Resonator with CV?

[lukievan]

I have a Frostwave Resonator and I'd like to control it using CV to create pitch-specific synth tones. I have little to no idea how to actually do this. Can I use something like the Arturia Beat Step http://www.arturia.com/evolution/en/pro ... intro.html ? I've seen some vids on YouTube where Ableton Live sends CV to it but I don't have a hardware device that transmits CV. Looks like MOTU's Volta might work but I'd rather not trigger through a DAW anyway. Also, I'm unclear on how to set up the Frostwave and the triggering device, especially since the FW has 4 CV controllable inputs and something like the Arturia only has 2 (CV and gate outputs). Any pointers on how to get started? Thank you!!

[Gregg Juke]

I don't know if you saw this (see link), but maybe digging through the thread may help you: http://forum.moogmusic.com/viewtopic.php?t=499 ...

Supposedly inventor Paul Perry (Frostwave) was keen to talk with people/gave great customer service, so if you could find an e-mail contact for him in Australia, you might get the man himself to help you out. I was unsuccessful in getting an address, but only gave a very cursory look...

GJ

[winky dinglehoffer]

There are a few ways you can go with control voltsage. You can get a CV pedal that outputs 0 Volts at one end of its trav el, and 5 volts or so at the other end. behringer makes an inexpensive one, and there are others. You could use an LFO or noise source (or sample and hold) as modulation, or an envelope generator. You can find such things in modular synth setups, or possibly on other synthesizers, or even a few pedals.

Then there's this: http://www.musiciansfriend.com/accessor ... ulti-pedal I actually have one of these I might end up selling if it interests you.

Perhaps the best place to find paul perry is the Analog Heaven mailing list. He pops up there from time to time.

Tom

[lukievan]

Thanks for the responses. I'm really interested in creating arpeggiated/sequence type stuff, so a sweepable pedal probably won't do me any good. It seems like LFO's may be good to start with. I'll hook up the LFO Output of my Moogerfooger and see what happens and work from there.

[lukievan]

Thanks for the responses. I'm really interested in creating arpeggiated/sequence type stuff, so a sweepable pedal probably won't do me any good. It seems like LFO's may be good to start with. I'll hook up the LFO Output of my Moogerfooger and see what happens and work from there.

....aaaaannnnnd that sounded really cool! I also added the Carrier Out of the Mooger into the Audio In of the Resonator for extra added sonic value. But still - it's kinda one-dimensional, pitch-wise. I guess I need something that will generate more complex step-sequence type waves to make proper melodic arpeggios? Or am I barking up the wrong tree? I know I need one signal to sweep the frequency and another to turn the gate on and off. Right?

[winky dinglehoffer]

If you want to use it as a sound source (as opposed to a sound modifier/filter), and play arpeggios with the oscillating filter, your best bet might be a mid to cv converter coupled with a keyboard that has an arpeggiator and also outputs midi from the arpeggiator (not all do.) If you're just looking for something more complex than a simple saw or square lfo to modulate the filter, something that outputs sample & hold would do the trick. There are also some wave multiplier/frequency divider/wave folder type devices (usually for modular synths) that could take an ordinary lfo & do weird things with it. But a midi to cv converter plus midi keyboard might be more useful to you, and possibly cheaper.

[lukievan]

yeah, that sounds about right - thank you!

[The Scum]

If you're capable of some programming, you can use a microcontroller (like an Arduino) to do MIDI to CV...or anything else to CV, for that matter.

I built one for my Moog Werkstatt, documented here:
https://www.sparkfun.com/news/1617

It's a bit constrained in that it's only got 2 CV outs, and takes some tweaking to get it to do Volt-8ve scaling...not that MS-20 filters are Volt-8ve scaled.

Chris from Moog also demonstrated a different approach to sequencing/arpeggios:
http://www.werkstattworkshop.com/?q=pro ... rsequencer

[lukievan]

Thanks for the post - sounds like a great project if I had more aptitude and a lot more time on my hands. I'll have to settle for the easy way out and find a cheap hardware synth that outputs arpeggio to midi.

[seismologist]

I have a Frostwave Resonator and I'd like to control it using CV to create pitch-specific synth tones. I have little to no idea how to actually do this. Can I use something like the Arturia Beat Step http://www.arturia.com/evolution/en/pro ... intro.html ? I've seen some vids on YouTube where Ableton Live sends CV to it but I don't have a hardware device that transmits CV. Looks like MOTU's Volta might work but I'd rather not trigger through a DAW anyway. Also, I'm unclear on how to set up the Frostwave and the triggering device, especially since the FW has 4 CV controllable inputs and something like the Arturia only has 2 (CV and gate outputs). Any pointers on how to get started? Thank you!!

You want to aim Beatstep's GATE at the Resonance input of the FW and BS's CV at the corresponding Frequency input. FW CV is +/- 10V across the board, and I doubt the Beatstep output is that hot, so you'll probably have to turn the Resonance knob on the FW up a bit until you hear that the Beatstep Gate is pushing it into self-oscillation.

I would probably use the Hi-pass side of the FW for this, leaving the Low-pass available for filtering of the generated tone. Or use cable splitters and hit both filters simultaneously.

On the Frostwave, incoming CV is always added or subtracted from its physical knob settings, so just run your sequence and turn knobs until it sounds cool.

[lukievan]

Thanks so much for that mini-tutorial; it was exactly what I needed to know! I think I need to get my hands on a Beatstep before purchasing - just to make sure it'll work.

From the manual:
These are the electrical signals sent by the BeatStep CV and Gate jacks:
? Control Voltage: 1 Volt/octave, from 0V to 7V
? Gate output: 8 Volts

I have a Frostwave Resonator and I'd like to control it using CV to create pitch-specific synth tones. I have little to no idea how to actually do this. Can I use something like the Arturia Beat Step http://www.arturia.com/evolution/en/pro ... intro.html ? I've seen some vids on YouTube where Ableton Live sends CV to it but I don't have a hardware device that transmits CV. Looks like MOTU's Volta might work but I'd rather not trigger through a DAW anyway. Also, I'm unclear on how to set up the Frostwave and the triggering device, especially since the FW has 4 CV controllable inputs and something like the Arturia only has 2 (CV and gate outputs). Any pointers on how to get started? Thank you!!

You want to aim Beatstep's GATE at the Resonance input of the FW and BS's CV at the corresponding Frequency input. FW CV is +/- 10V across the board, and I doubt the Beatstep output is that hot, so you'll probably have to turn the Resonance knob on the FW up a bit until you hear that the Beatstep Gate is pushing it into self-oscillation.

I would probably use the Hi-pass side of the FW for this, leaving the Low-pass available for filtering of the generated tone. Or use cable splitters and hit both filters simultaneously.

On the Frostwave, incoming CV is always added or subtracted from its physical knob settings, so just run your sequence and turn knobs until it sounds cool.

[seismologist]

From the manual:
These are the electrical signals sent by the BeatStep CV and Gate jacks:
? Control Voltage: 1 Volt/octave, from 0V to 7V
? Gate output: 8 Volts

Glad to help. I use the Frostwave with Ableton > MOTU Ultralite, which is <5V, I believe. So you should be in good shape... only questions would be if gate length is adjustable and if there's a way to calibrate tuning on the Beatstep.

[lukievan]

Oh very cool. Are you using the Frostwave to produce pitched tones. or running other audio through it as a filter?

Glad to help. I use the Frostwave with Ableton > MOTU Ultralite, which is <5V, I believe. So you should be in good shape... only questions would be if gate length is adjustable and if there's a way to calibrate tuning on the Beatstep.

[seismologist]

Both. Kind of a complicated homebrew setup within Ableton using lot of samplers to send CV... I can attest that Silent Way works great, though, and makes stuff like this easy.

Oh very cool. Are you using the Frostwave to produce pitched tones. or running other audio through it as a filter?

Glad to help. I use the Frostwave with Ableton > MOTU Ultralite, which is <5V, I believe. So you should be in good shape... only questions would be if gate length is adjustable and if there's a way to calibrate tuning on the Beatstep.