This pad is (very) loosely based on a Prophet Rev 2 factory patch F1-P2 All That Glitter which is comprised of two layers pitched an octave apart: the upper layer is a pulse wave pad with its cutoff frequency modulated by a moderately fast square wave LFO (acting as the pulsating ‘glitter’), and the lower pitched layer providing a foundational pulse wave pad sound
Part of the fun of sound design for me is trying to work out how to recreate on one synthesizer a sound made on a very different (source) machine. The challenge is to get somewhere near to the sound you’re aiming for from within the limitations of the (destination) synth you’re programming. Then, whatever results can be used as a start point for your own creations, now utilizing the strengths of the destination synth.
This pad is a somewhat gentler take on that original idea from the Rev 2, with a timbre living a little lower in the frequency spectrum.
p1_Layered_Space_UE.s6 (35.6 KB)
The patch start point is shown below:
In the case of this patch, the upper pulsating ‘layer’ is produced by DDS1 modulated by the DDS Modulator only via LFO 1 which uses Square Waveform. Since we can’t use the filter independently on DDS1, the next best thing for me was to modulate the pitch by an octave. (In the end, I opted to use a considerably slower LFO1 rate in this patch instead of the more rapid clip of the original. Setting LFO1 RATE to around 70-75% is closer to the original REV2 patch feel, and this higher rate really works for me in this patch when the MIX dial is way over to the DDS2 side)
The lower ‘layer’ is produced by DDS2, and is a basic saw tooth pad with the VCA ENV2 set to a moderate attack, long decay and release, and relatively high sustain level. This envelope profile also provides the primary VCF modulation for the patch.
ENV1 is used to bring in the upper layer sound of DDS1 by primarily modulating the MIX level with a generous AH time to give DDS2 the space to provide the initial pad sound.
The VCF is set to Band Pass mode with a moderate HPF cutoff just below the middle of the Freq slider’s range. Drive is set to level 1, and key-tracking is set to maximum.
Modulation:
ENV1 modulates the MIX negatively by around 60%, and moderately affects ENV2-R by around 25% to provide a slightly more convex release curve. The Modulation Wheel is negatively mapped to the MIX also
After Touch modulates the X-Mod amount by around 10-15% to add some instability to the pitch
The Expression Pedal modulates the cutoff frequency positively by around 30%
DDS2, LFO2, VEL and NOTE all affect the LFO 1 rate to minor extents
LFO2 modulates the pitch of DDS2 slightly and affects the VCA and VCF by small amounts. LFO2 also modulates LFO1 phase slightly, with DDS2 modulating LFO2’s rate
Finally, there is a little bit of DRIFT applied (around 20%)
Effects:
There is a generous amount of Long Delay, with the Chorus set to level I
Here’s an example of the patch without any external processing: