CHERRY AUDIO Sines Synthesizer with Tim Shoebridge User Guide
- June 16, 2024
- CHERRY AUDIO
Table of Contents
- CHERRY AUDIO Sines Synthesizer with Tim Shoebridge
- Product Usage Instructions
- New
- FAQs
- Top Toolbar and Preset Browser
- Oscillators
- Filter
- Envelope Generators
- Modulation Routings
- Mod Destinations
- Keyboard Assign
- Effects
- SECTIONS
- Settings
- Interface
- References
- Read User Manual Online (PDF format)
- Download This Manual (PDF format)
CHERRY AUDIO Sines Synthesizer with Tim Shoebridge
Specifications
- Product Name: Sines
- Manufacturer: Cherry Audio
- Last Updated: 2023.02.21
Product Information
Sines is a synthesizer developed by Cherry Audio. It features a comprehensive set of sound parameter controls, allowing users to have hands-on access to all sound parameters. Sines is designed with a focus on providing immediate access to controls, without hiding them in tabs or menus.
Sines incorporates four of everything, including LFOs, oscillators, and envelope generators, resulting in a wide range of sound programming possibilities.
This user guide aims to explain all of Sines’ parameters and provide different programming methodologies to help users make the most out of this unique and individualistic synthesizer.
Product Usage Instructions
Pre-Purchase Demo Mode
Sines offers a pre-purchase demo mode that allows users to explore its features before making a purchase. This mode provides limited functionality and is intended for evaluation purposes.
Top Toolbar and Preset Browser
The purple strip at the top of Sines’ interface contains various functions and controls:
New
Clicking “New” opens a new blank patch preset. If you have an unsaved patch or have made modifications to an existing saved patch, a dialog will prompt you to save the patch before proceeding. This feature helps prevent accidental loss of unsaved work.
Save
The “Save” button is used to save patches. There are different levels of hierarchy for organizing patches.
Browsing Patches
Sines allows you to browse patches by clicking on the preset field. To select a preset collection, click on the area that displays the collection name or the downward-facing arrow next to it. You can also narrow down displayed patches by selecting categories on the left side.
The “All” category shows presets from all collections and categories, while the “Recent” category displays recently used presets.
Refresh
The circular arrow button to the right of the downward arrow is the “Refresh” button. Clicking this button checks the Cherry Audio server for new or updated presets, ensuring you have access to the latest content.
QWERTY Musical Typing Keyboard
Sines provides an onscreen keyboard called QWERTY Musical Typing Keyboard (MTK) that allows you to play music notes using a standard QWERTY computer keyboard. For more information on how to use this feature, refer to the QWERTY Musical Typing Keyboard section in the user guide.
Oversampling
Sines offers oversampling options. When oversampling is set to any multiple greater than 1x, the “Q” button glows yellow. The audible difference with higher oversampling settings may vary depending on factors such as audio system quality, monitor speakers, and the nature of the current Sines patch.
Help
Clicking “Help” launches your web browser and opens the user guide you are
currently reading. This allows you to access detailed
information and instructions on using Sines.
About Information
Clicking the Cherry Sines logo on the right side of the panel displays information about the product, including the version number and current registered user ID.
FAQs
Q: Where can I find additional support for Sines?
A: You can visit the Cherry Audio forums at https://forums.cherryaudio.com or contact their tech support staff directly at https://cherryaudio.kayako.com/.
Sines User Guide
Last updated 2023.02.21
Sines is a totally unique polyphonic synthesizer experience that isn’t based
on an existing vintage instrument. A quick glance at its controls indicates
that its synthesis architecture is unlike most instruments you’ll encounter.
Its voicing has more in common with “West Coast”-style Buchla and Serge
modular synthesizers of the 70s. Generally speaking, these eschew the
subtractive concept seen in typical analog synthesizers (i.e. simple analog
waveforms are mixed and timbrally modified using a filter). Instead, the
oscillators are mostly used in an additive fashion where complex tones are
formed by modifying basic sine waves via various waveshaping methods to create
highly complex waves. FM synthesis is also used to create complex tones, in
the same manner as the legendary Yamaha DX synths of the 80s (don’t worry, we
made it easy to use!). Though Sines includes a powerful multimode filter, its
super-deep and highly modulatable oscillators allow a vast array of complex
analog and digital-style tones. And as its name implies, all of these
incredible tones originate from basic sine waves!
Cherry Audio Sines User Guide – 1
Sines may appear daunting at first glance, but if you’re familiar with Cherry
Audio’s other instruments, you’ll know that we’re not fans of concealing sound
parameter controls in tabs or hidden menus – we believe in instantaneous
hands-on access to all sound parameters, and Sines is no exception. As a
result, Sines has a lot of controls due to its “four of everything” LFO,
oscillator, and envelope generator implementation.
We’re aware that a number of the oscillator controls may be unfamiliar to
users. We’ll explain the under-the-hood functionality of all these controls,
but the good news is that it isn’t necessarily important to understand exactly
what they do – when creating sounds, the Feedback, Phase, Width, Shape,
Wavefold, and Drive waveshaping controls can very much be used in a creative
and exploratory fashion. With this in mind, each oscillator includes a mini
oscilloscope for instant visual feedback of the effects of all oscillator
controls.
There are a few different ways to approach programming sounds with Sines,
which are relatively easy to understand. In this guide, not only will we
explain all of Sines’ parameters, we’ll also explain a few different
programming methodologies. We hope you enjoy this crazy, singularly
individualistic synthesizer as much as we do! Pre-Purchase Demo Mode
If you haven’t purchased the full version of Sines, it will run in demo mode.
All functions will work, but inharmonic tones will occasionally sound (the LED
next to Demo in the top toolbar will illuminate when the ugly tones are
sounding). We’ve also added a handy button to make purchasing easy, so you’ve
got no excuse! As you might expect, all this demo nonsense disappears once
Sines is purchased. Technical Assistance Cherry Audio’s online store and
automatic updating should make operation a smooth experience, but if you run
into any issues or have questions, you can discuss issues online at the Cherry
Audio forums at:
Cherry Audio Sines User Guide – 2
https://forums.cherryaudio.com/viewforum.php?
f=37&sid=c41abae7a2bbca5797b3c4ad96f2add8 … or you can communicate directly
with our swell tech support staff at: https://cherryaudio.kayako.com/
Cherry Audio Sines User Guide – 3
Top Toolbar and Preset Browser
The purple strip at the top of Sines’ interface is where you’ll load, save,
and create sound presets. It also contains utility functions such as
undo/redo, UI zoom and Focus controls, under-the-hood settings, and more.
Let’s go over them: New- Opens a new blank patch preset. If an unsaved patch
is currently open or you’ve modified an existing saved patch, a dialog asks if
you’d like to save the patch in its current state. This greatly reduces the
possibility of losing an edited unsaved patch.
Save- Use this to save patches. There are a couple of levels of hierarchy:
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Collection- This is the top level of organization, and contains entire “sets”
of presets. The Sines Presets are the main included collection. We also
include a User Presets Collection for storing your own presets, but you’re
free to create your own collections. To create a new collection, click in the
Collection text field (where it says User Presets above) and type a name.
User-created sounds can be freely saved to any collection; we like to keep `em
separated for organizational purposes. Categories- Within each Collection are
a number of sound categories. As with collections, you’re free to create as
many categories as you like. To create a category, click in the Category text
field of the Save dialog window and type a new category name. Patch- A patch
is an individual sound. To save a patch, simply type the name in the Name
field and click Save. Keywords- You can add descriptive words such as
“stacks,” “noisy,” “stringy,” etc., to patches to make them appear when terms
are typed in the Search field. Use commas to separate multiple keywords
entries.
Browsing Patches- Patches can be browsed by clicking the
Importing Presets with drag-and-drop Presets can be imported singly or en
masse (as a single compressed ZIP file) simply by dragging and dropping from
the desktop anywhere on the user interface. If a single .*preset file is
dragged and dropped, the sound is immediately loaded and the standard Save
Preset dialog appears; this lets you save the sound to the instrument’s preset
browser. Note that you don’t have to save the sound to preset browser; if you
just want to hear and play the sound, click the Cancel button in the Save
Preset dialog – the sound will still be loaded. Compressed zip files
containing multiple sounds can also be drag and dropped onto the UI. This
works the same as with single sounds, but instead of the Save Preset dialog,
you’ll see the Import Preset Collection dialog. The
Cherry Audio Sines User Guide – 7
presets will be added as a new collection and available in the categories for
which they were tagged. Zoom Magnifying Glass- Click to resize the Sines
interface. Selecting 100% returns the user interface to native size. MIDI Tab-
Opens the MIDI controllers tab for configuring internal and hardware MIDI
controls. See the MIDI Controllers Setup and MIDI Tab section for full
information. ! (MIDI Panic) – Click to send an all-notes-off message in case
of, “why won’t this thing stop making noise?!?” stuck-note incidents. Tempo
(Standalone Version Only)- Displays Sines’ current internal tempo setting.
Quadra’s internal tempo affects the LFO, Echo, and Arpeggiator sections when
their corresponding Sync switches are enabled. The tempo setting can be
changed by moving the mouse up and down anywhere in the tempo section, or by
double-clicking the number and entering the desired BPM value. The tempo
display only appears in the standalone version of Sines. VST, AU, and AAX
plug-in versions receive tempo data from their host DAW app.
QWERTY Musical Typing Keyboard- Opens an onscreen keyboard allowing a standard
QWERTY computer keyboard to be used for playing music notes. For more
information, see QWERTY Musical Typing Keyboard (MTK) section.
Cherry Audio Sines User Guide – 8
Oversampling Quality (Q)- The Q button sets Sines’ internal oversampling rate;
the higher the setting, the better audio fidelity will be, with the caveat
that more computer processing power will be required. Internal processing can
be set to 1x (same rate as the current sample rate of the host DAW or in the
Settings>Audio/MIDI window for the standalone version) or to 2x, 3x, or 4x the
current sample rate. The sample rate is downsampled at the instrument output
stage to match the current host sample rate. For example, if the current
DAW/instrument sample rate setting is 48 kHz, and oversampling is set to 2x,
Sines’ internal processing runs at 96 kHz, and is then reduced back to 48kHz
at the output stage. If the current DAW/instrument sample rate setting is 192
kHz and oversampling is set to 4x, Sines’ internal processing will run at 768
kHz, and you will very briefly hear the most incredible synthesizer sound
quality ever before your computer explodes (not really).
When oversampling is set to any multiple greater than 1x, the Q button glows
yellow. Dependent on a number of factors (audio system D/A converter quality,
monitor speakers, the nature of the current Sines patch, etc.), you may not
hear a big difference with higher settings.
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Help- Clicking this launches your web browser and opens the help document
you’re currently reading, which is a really meta concept. Cherry Sines logo
(right side of panel)- Clicking this displays “about” information, and shows
the version number and current registered user ID.
Focus Button
If you’re using a tiny laptop, the user interface can potentially be hard to
see. With this in mind, the Focus button conveniently blows up Sines’ view to
roughly twice its normal size within the current window size. Unlike the Zoom
“magnifying glass” function, Focus doesn’t affect the current window size. By
default, the patch panel section fills the current window, but the view can be
scrolled vertically and horizontally with a mouse wheel, track pad, or Apple
Mighty Mouse finger-scrolling. Or if you’re still using a single-button mouse,
scroll bars will appear at the window edges when in Focus mode. (Drop us a
line from your AOL account and check out our Myspace page, umkay?) Using Focus
mode couldn’t be easier – just click the Focus button the top menu bar. To
return to standard view, click Reset. There’s also a superfast key shortcut –
on Mac, hold the [COMMAND] key and click the mouse; in Windows, hold the
[OPTION] key and click the mouse. Focus can be reset with the same key
shortcuts.
Preset List Right-Click Functions
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Show File- This displays the selected preset in the Mac or Windows folder
containing it. This is useful for backing up or sending a preset file to
another user. Show In Original Category- Selects the preset within its
category, i.e. the category will highlight in the left preset menu. The Show
In Original Category command only displays if the preset was selected within
the
Cherry Audio Sines User Guide – 11
LFO 1/2/3/4
LFO is short for “low-frequency oscillator.” The four onboard LFOs generate
sub-audio range signals for modulation purposes. The functionality of all four
LFOs is identical. Sync button and Rate knob- The Rate knob defines the speed
of the LFO, from 0.01 to 30 Hz (with Sync button off) or from 8 beats up to
1/64th note triplets (Sync button enabled). The Sync button locks the LFO to
host tempo when using Sines within DAW software, or to the current tempo in
the top menu bar when using the standalone version. The LED at top right
flashes to indicate the current rate, and if you look real close, you’ll
notice that its illumination follows the shape of the current LFO waveform.
(See how cool we are?) Wave button and display- clicking the Wave button or
the display above it opens a popup menu where the following waves are
available:
Sine Triangle Sawtooth Sawtooth Exponential – a sawtooth biased to have more
voltage as it reaches its peak. This is useful as a drum envelope in one-shot
mode. Sawtooth Logarithmic- a sawtooth biased to have less voltage as it
reaches its peak Sawtooth Three-Step – a stepped wave, good for triplet feel
synced modulation. Also a failed 1979 Charlie Daniels Band single.
Cherry Audio Sines User Guide – 12
Sawtooth Four-Step – a stepped wave, good for 4/4, sixteenth-note feel synced
modulation. Ramp Exponential – a sawtooth biased to have more voltage as it
reaches its peak. This is useful as a drum envelope in one-shot mode. Ramp
Logarithmic- a sawtooth biased to have less voltage as it reaches its peak
Ramp Three-Step – a stepped wave, good for triplet feel synced modulation.
Ramp Four-Step – a stepped wave, good for 4/4, sixteenth-note feel synced
modulation. Square Random
Bias button and display- Bias defines the range of the LFO wave’s swing as
follows:
Positive- CV swings from 0V to +5V back to 0V, etc. Bipolar- CV swings from
-5V through 0V to +5V back through 0V to -5V, etc. Negative- CV swings from 0V
to -5V back to 0V, etc.
Click the Bias button or display above to cycle through its three settings.
One Shot- LFOs typically are cycling constantly (that’s why they call ’em
“oscillators”), but the engaging the One Shot button causes the LFO to move
through its cycle a single time when a key is struck. For all intents and
purposes, this converts the LFO to a simple envelope generator (particularly
when the sine, triangle, ramp, sawtooth, expo saw, or expo ramp waves are
selected). Note that the Rate control defines the duration of the single LFO
cycle (and that the Sync button still works, which can be useful).
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Because One Shot mode uses a section of a wave that would normally be
endlessly repeating, in order for them to be most useful, the individual waves
are programmed to have slightly different behaviors. We’ll do our best to
explain how each of them function when in One Shot mode, with Bias set to
Bipolar.
Sine- CV begins at 0V, up to 5V, falls to -5V, returns to 0V and holds.
Triangle- CV begins at -5V, up to 5V, falls to -5V and holds.
Sawtooth waves- CV begins at +5V, falls to -5V and holds. Ramp waves- CV
begins at -5V, rises to +5V and holds. Square- CV begins at +5V,
instantaneously falls to -5V and holds. Random- CV lands on a random voltage
and holds until note retrigger.
If you’re like to experiment with them to gain a better understanding, the
best way is to create a simple one-oscillator patch and modulate oscillator
pitch using the LFO with the One Shot button enabled. Make sure to try each at
positive, bipolar, and negative bias. Retrig- Defines LFO restart behavior
when keys are struck. In normal cycling mode (One Shot disabled), enabling
Retrig restarts the LFO cycle monophonically, that is, if no notes are
currently on and a new note is struck, the LFO cycle restarts. If additional
keys are played, the LFO won’t restart until all keys are released. This may
seem counterintuitive, but it makes sense – imagine a polyphonic patch with
square wave modulation applied to oscillator amplitude (i.e. modulating the
horizontal Level slider). If you played a chord, with each note struck at a
(slightly) different time, the “on/off” mod of each note would be occurring at
a different time, resulting in a sloppy-sounding mess. Having the modulation
“synchronize” in this way generally has far more musical results. Conversely,
if both One Shot and Retrig are enabled, the LFO sweep restarts with every
note played, regardless of previously held notes. This makes sense if you’re
using a One Shot mode LFO as a simple envelope generator controlling
amplitude, pitch, filter cutoff, etc.
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Oscillators
Without a doubt, Sines oscillators are its magic mojo, and its “raison d’etre”
for sounding so unique. Though many of the controls will be familiar to analog
synth users, some are unique, and more importantly, on a conceptual level,
Sines’ oscillators function a bit differently than run-of-the-mill analog
oscillators, dig? Don’t panic, they’re pretty friendly, there’s no math
involved, and you won’t be tested on this.
Oscillator Concept
A sine wave is the most basic sound waveform – it contains only the root tone
and no other harmonics. You’ve likely heard a sine wave in the guise of a test
signal or perhaps bleeping the profanity of lackey actors on those
objectionable reality shows my girlfriend watches. Believe it or not, each of
Sines’ super-duper amazing oscillators creates exactly one of these boring
sine waves (ok, actually each of them can create up to 16 of them depending on
how many notes you’re playing, but stick with us). This is why you don’t see
knobs or switches for sawtooth or pulse waves, etc. in the oscillator
controls. Instead, the basic sine wave is “waveshaped” or otherwise modified
to create tones ranging from slightly-altered sine waves to radically complex
waves, by combining the Feedback, Phase, Width, Shapes, Wavefold, and Drive
controls. Did we mention each oscillator includes a sub (octave-down sine
wave) oscillator and a super oscillator (octave-up sine wave)? Did we mention
that Sines includes four of these crazy oscillators? It should be clear that
these awesome oscillators (awesomillators?) are capable of powerful and unique
waveforms, all continuously variable, and excessively modulatable via Sines
super-deep mod matrix. Unlike a typical analog synth, the Sines oscillators
offer such a wide timbral range that you may not need to apply any filtering
in order to create dark and mellow sounds (we actually contemplated leaving
the filter out altogether, but ultimately decided if would offer greater
sound-shaping capabilities). That said, as with our Dreamsynth instrument, we
added Filter
Cherry Audio Sines User Guide – 15
Bypass buttons for each oscillator in order to simplify combining bright
digital tones with mellow filtered ones. As they say on TV, “But wait, there’s
still more!”… though it doesn’t look like a DX-something-or-other, Sines phase
modulation capabilities and Ratio oscillator tuning mode allow it to function
exactly like an 80s four-op Yamaha DX-style FM synthesizer, further expanding
its tonal palette. And Sines actually goes way further than a classic DX
synth, because the carrier and operator waves can range from basic sine waves
to super-mangled, waveshaped Sines oscillator madness. Presets replicating all
eight “standard” Yamaha four-op FM algorithms are included as starting points
for those familiar with FM synth programming, Now that you’re good and sick of
reading, let’s go through the oscillator controls!
Oscillator Controls
Glide- Also known as portamento, glide causes notes to slide smoothly from one
pitch to the next. The Glide toggle buttons enable glide individually for each
oscillator; glide rate is set globally using the Glide Amount knob next to the
keyboard. Keyboard- Enables keyboard control of oscillator pitch. Generally
these will always be on, but disabling keyboard control is useful in two
situations: · drone sounds where oscillator pitch stays the same regardless of
notes played. · if you’re using an oscillator as a modulation source and you
want its speed to remain constant regardless of keyboard notes played.
(Remember to turn the oscillator Level slider down.) Ratio- Changes oscillator
tuning in precise multiples. This is intended for situations where oscillators
are used in a modulator/carrier arrangement, i.e.,
Cherry Audio Sines User Guide – 16
one oscillator is modulating the Phase control of another at audio-range
frequencies for DX/FM-style synthesis, but the Ratio setting can be freely
combined with the octave range buttons. We’ll explain the DX/FM angle a whole
lot more in the Programming Sines Three Different Approaches section. 32′ /
16′ / 8′ / 4′ range buttons- Sets the coarse pitch range for each oscillator
in standard organ footage settings of 32′, 16′, 8′, and 4′. Only one footage
may be selected. Frequency knob and mod controls- Fine-tune knob with tuning
range of just over an octave up or down. The mod controls above the Freq knob
allow modulation as follows:
Src (Source)- The Src selector button opens a popup menu where the modulation
source can be chosen. The button will illuminate when any mod source is
selected. Via- The Via selector button opens a popup menu where a modifier can
be assigned to regulate the amount of modulation applied. For example, if the
mod source is an LFO, setting Via to Mod Wheel allows the amount of modulation
applied to be varied using a MIDI/USB controller mod wheel. +/- attenuator
knob- Sets a positive or inverted control amount for the mod source. If Via is
used, it sets the maximum mod amount.
Adding Vibrato to all Oscillators at once Having individual modulation
controls for each oscillator allows tremendous flexibility, but adding a
constant or mod wheel-controlled vibrato that’s the same for all oscillators
at once entails a lot of set up. The easy way to mod pitch (or any other
parameter) for all four oscillators at once is to use the Mod Matrix section.
Click the Dest button, choose the All Oscillators category, then the desired
parameter (Frequency, in this case). If you’d like to control the depth with
the mod wheel, click the Via button in the Mod Matrix slot and select
Keyboard>Mod Wheel).
Waveshaping Controls
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The Feedback, Phase, Width, Shape, Wavefold, and Drive controls are all
different types of “waveshapers.” This isn’t a new concept per se; waveshaping
of various types exists to some degree in just about all analog synthesizers,
but very few actually allow you to control it from the front panel. These
controls are the key to Sines’ unique sound palette, and even if the parameter
names don’t look familiar, it’s fun and easy to just play with them until you
hear something you like. And because each oscillator includes a real-time mini
oscilloscope, it’s pretty easy to understand how each of these controls
affects the resulting sound wave.
Feedback- Sets the amount of oscillator signal sent back to the oscillators
wave modulation path. When applied to a basic sine wave, cranking up the
Feedback knob is a simple way to create a sawtooth or ramp wave shape.
Phase- Offsets the oscillator wave start point in relationship to the other
oscillators. This generally won’t sound particularly useful on its own, but
the phase knob is really useful when modulated. It allows the creation of
classic synced oscillator tones, and more importantly, phase modulation is the
key to creating classic Yamaha DX FM-style sounds. This is fully explained in
the Programming Sines – Three Different Approaches section.
Width- This is very similar to the pulse width control you’ve likely seen on
classic analog synths, but unlike a standard pulse width control , the Sines
Width knob isn’t limited to pulse waves – it affects the current waveform
regardless of other parameters choices. Like a pulse width knob, it responds
well to external modulation via an LFO, envelope generator, or an audio-rate
oscillator, if you want to go really nuts.
Shape- Applies a logarithmic (knob turned left from center position) or
exponential (knob turned right from center position) curve to sine wave
values. It can bend waves in a number of ways, but it’s especially useful for
transforming a basic sine wave into triangle wave when set to positive values
around 20%.
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Wavefold- The Wavefold control sets a threshold at some point in the wave, and
“flips” that portion of the wave for dramatic changes in tonality and
harmonics. The best way to illustrate the effect of the Wavefold knob is to
start with an initial patch (one oscillator with no modifiers, i.e. basic sine
wave) and watch the oscilloscope wave while increasing the knob amount. You’ll
see the top curves of the wave “fold” over increasingly and hear harmonic
content grow more intense. Like the Width control, Wavefold is fabulous
destination for subtle or not-so-subtle modulation, and can really mangle
things in a cool way. Drive- As the Drive knob is increased, it pushes the
overall waveshape toward a square wave. This is typically what happens in a
distortion/fuzz box, but unlike a typical distortion device, Drive waveshaping
occurs independently for each note, so you won’t hear the typical stomp box
intermodulation between notes; instead, the waveshape of each note played is
individually altered. The Drive knob has many applications, but it’s
especially useful for creating analog synth-style square and pulse-width
modulation sounds, particularly in combination with the Width control.
Super / Sub Oscillator- The Super Osc and Sub Osc sliders add a sine wave one
octave above and one octave below, respectively. The Super and Sub Oscillators
are not affected by the preceding waveshaping controls, that is, they remain
pure sine waves regardless of the shape of the main oscillator waveform. The
Super and Sub sine waves are really useful for beefing up DX FM-style phase-
modulation patches. Filter Bypass- Toggling this button bypasses the filter
section for the oscillator. This is useful for combining a bright oscillator
sound with a filtered one from another oscillator(s). Utility- Opens a popup
menu with the following handy functions:
Cherry Audio Sines User Guide – 19
Copy Oscillator- This allows copying of all current oscillator parameters to
any other oscillator. Copied parameters include everything from Glide on over
to the Level and Pan sliders, including all modulation settings basically
everything in the wavy stripey sections.
At its most basic, oscillator copying is really useful for copying parameters
to a second oscillator, using the Freq knob to detune a hair, then hard
panning left and right with Pan sliders for a fat stereo sound.
Copy Oscillator Super Pro Tip: Be aware of mod routings when copying
oscillators, because in many situations, you’ll want to use different mod
sources (particularly when oscillators are modulating other oscillators). This
applies to Mod Matrix mod routings as well, because Copy Oscillator has no
effect on the Mod Matrix.
We’ve found the best practice is to click the copy destination oscillator’s
Solo button immediately after copying, in order to A/B with the source
oscillator. In this way, you’ll be able to quickly tell if something doesn’t
sound right, and if there are any discrepancies, the culprit will always be a
mod routing, either at the oscillator mod level, or in the Mod Matrix.
Randomize Oscillator- This applies random parameter settings to all controls
that affect the audio waveform for the current oscillator: Feedback, Phase,
Width, Power, Wavefold, Drive, Super Osc, and Sub Osc. Because Randomize Sound
only affects waveshape settings, it won’t make nutty madness, it’s just a fast
way to automatically create interesting audio waves. Note that Randomize Sound
has no effect on modulation routings, nor will it undo any currently
configured mod routings.
Reset Sound- Resets all current oscillator parameters to nominal values, from
Glide over to the Level and Pan sliders, including all modulation settings –
everything in the wavy stripey sections.
Solo- Click to solo one more oscillators for simplified editing. The Solo
buttons flash to show that they’re active (to help circumvent “WHY WON’T THIS
OSCILLATOR MAKE NOISE?!?” incidents).
Oscilloscope- Displays the oscillator wave in real time. Specifically, the
oscilloscope shows the effects of all controls to its left with the exception
of the range button and tuning knob. As its panel position indicates, the
oscilloscope is before the filter and VCA sections in the signal chain, so its
waveform display isn’t affected by filter settings, and the scope is always
“on” regardless of whether a note is being played. The oscilloscope only
Cherry Audio Sines User Guide – 20
displays one voice at a time (because showing multiple polyphonic voices would
just make a mess and not be very useful). Similarly, wave display width is
unaffected by pitches played – we intentionally optimized the scope display to
be the most useful for visualizing oscillator audio waves (but mark my words,
someone on a forum someplace will complain about it). Level and LED indicator-
Sets the oscillator volume level. The bar meter shows current level, including
modulation, and the LED above the slider shows when the oscillator is
currently sounding. Pan- Sets the panning of the oscillator in the stereo
field. Panning is retained through the rest of the signal chain – the filter
and VCA sections are actually true stereo “under the hood.” The bar meter
shows current stereo field position, including modulation.
Modulation Controls
Parameter modulation controls are above or adjacent to many of the oscillator
controls. These allow modulation of a control from numerous mod sources. The
mod controls are as follows:
Src (Source)- Clicking this opens a popup menu and submenu where the mod
source can be selected. The Src button will illuminate when a mod source other
than None is selected. Via- The Via button lets you select a mod source to
control how much mod is applied to the parameter. It’s only present for the
Pitch Mod and Phase mod sections and in the Mod Matrix. It has number of uses,
but the most typical applications would be:
Assign an LFO in the Source menu and a mod wheel in the Via menu to Pitch Mod
for mod wheel-controlled vibrato. Assign an audio-rate oscillator in the
Source menu and an envelope generator in the Via menu for DX-style FM
synthesis. You’ll find more
Cherry Audio Sines User Guide – 21
info on this in the Programming Sines – Three Different Approaches section.
The Mod Matrix section can be used to apply a Via mod source to parameters
that don’t have one. Check out the Mod Matrix and Modulation Routings section
for more info.
Cherry Audio Sines User Guide – 22
Filter
Sines features a resonant multimode filter, including four lowpass modes,
highpass, bandpass, and notch modes for all manner of sound sculpting.
Controls
Cutoff Frequency and modulation- Sets the frequency where frequency
attenuation begins, i.e. which frequencies are allowed to pass, dependent on
the current Filter Modes setting. The modulation controls above include a mod
source button (Src) that allows selection of a mod source, plus an
attenuverter to set the amount of positive or negative modulation. Filter
Type- These select the overall filter curves. The popup menu can be opened by
clicking on the button or display window:
LP4 (Lowpass)- Allows frequencies below the cutoff frequency to pass, but
blocks frequencies above the cutoff frequency with a 24 dB/oct slope. The “4”
refers to the number of filter poles and because of its steep cutoff, this the
“darkest” of the filters. It also has the most pronounced resonance effect.
LP3 (Lowpass)- Allows frequencies below the cutoff frequency to pass, but
blocks frequencies above the cutoff frequency with an 18 dB/oct slope. The “3”
refers to the number of filter poles LP2 (Lowpass)- Allows frequencies below
the cutoff frequency to pass, but blocks frequencies above the cutoff
frequency with a 12 dB/oct slope. The “2” refers to the number of filter poles
Cherry Audio Sines User Guide – 23
LP1 (Lowpass)- Allows frequencies below the cutoff frequency to pass, but
blocks frequencies above the cutoff frequency with a 6 dB/oct slope. The “1”
refers to the number of filter poles and because of its shallow cutoff, this
the brightestof the filters with the least pronounced resonance effect. HP
(Highpass)- Allows frequencies above the cutoff frequency to pass, but blocks
frequencies below the cutoff frequency with a 12 dB/oct slope. Because they
dramatically remove low frequencies, the highpass setting is useful for
nasally tones with exaggerated high frequencies. BP (Bandpass)- Allows a band
of frequencies in the vicinity of the cutoff frequency to pass, with a 12
dB/oct slope. Notch- Removes a band of frequencies close to the cutoff
frequency and allows all other frequencies to pass. Notch filters are useful
for pseudophaser effects when their cutoff frequency is swept, but that’s
notch-yerproblem. (See what we did there? Come for the synths, stay for the
dad jokes…)
Resonance- Resonance emphasizes sound energy at and around the current cutoff
frequency by adding feedback from the filter’s output back to its input. At
lower settings, this can be used to create mild resonances such as those heard
in acoustic instruments. At extreme settings, it can be used as a sine wave
generator, but be careful as high resonance settings can result in loud,
screamy, dog-spooking (and speaker blowing) occurrences. Envelope Amount- The
Env Amt control applies modulation from the Filter Envelope to the cutoff
frequency. This allows familiar auto filter sweeps. When raising the Envelope
control, you’ll generally want to lower the Cutoff control, as these controls
sum. Please see the Envelope Generators section for more info about the Filter
Envelope. Tracking- This causes the cutoff frequency to increase as ascending
notes are played on a keyboard. The idea behind this is that when set to
positive values, the Tracking control applies a rising CV to the cutoff
frequency in order to maintain the brightness of notes as higher pitches are
played (because actual note frequencies rise as higher pitches are played).
When turned counterclockwise from center, the Tracking control causes the
cutoff frequency to get lower as higher keys are played.
Cherry Audio Sines User Guide – 24
Envelope Generators
Sines includes four almost-identical envelope generators:dedicated envelopes
for the Filter and Amplifier, and two auxiliary envelope generators (Envelope
3 and 4) usable as mod sources for many Sines mod destinations. The dedicated
Filter envelope generator is hardwired to the the filter Cutoff control, and
the Amp Env is hardwired to Sines’ onboard VCA for overall amplitude shaping.
Here’s an overview of how Sines’ envelope generators works:
When a note is played, the envelope generator outputs a dynamically changing
voltage, according to the settings of its four stages. The delay stages waits
for the set duration, then the attack stage defines how long it
Cherry Audio Sines User Guide – 25
takes for the output voltage to rise to maximum. Once the attack stage reaches
maximum amount, it moves to the decay phase, which defines how long it takes
to fall from maximum to the setting of the sustain phase. Unlike the delay,
attack, decay, and release phases, which define times, sustain simply sets the
held voltage following the attack and decay phases – this equates to the
envelope output level while holding down a key. Finally, the release slider
defines the length of time it takes for amplitude to fall back to zero when
the gate input voltage is removed, i.e. when the key is released. Delay-
Defines the length of time prior to the start of the attack phase. Velocity-
Defines how much the envelope affects the filter cutoff frequency via keyboard
velocity. When set to zero, keyboard velocity has no effect on cutoff
frequency. Seting the knob clockwise from center increases the envelope output
voltage as keys are struck harder, setting the knob counterclockwise from
center decreases the envelope output voltage as keys are struck harder.
Attack- Defines the length of time for voltage to rise from silence to max
amplitude when a key is played. Decay- Defines the length of time for voltage
to fall from the attack stage maximum to sustain stage setting. Sustain- Sets
the amplitude of held notes level following attack and decay phases. Release-
Defines the length of time for amplitude to fall from sustain level to silence
when a key is released. You may have notice that Sines’ Filter, and auxiliary
envelopes 3 and 4 include a Delay stage for “pausing” the onset of the
envelope generator, but the Amp Env does not. Since the Amp Env acts upon the
entire sound, a delay control would delay the entire sound from playing,
potentially making Sines feel broken. We couldn’t figure out a practical
reason why anyone would want this, so we left it out. (That said, given Sines’
immense Mod Matrix, there are a number of ways you could make this happen if
you really wanted to!)
Cherry Audio Sines User Guide – 26
Modulation Routings
Sines allows a huge amount of modulation possibilities, configured with “mod
boxes” adjacent to controls or using its super-flexible four-slot Mod Matrix
section. Like other Cherry instruments, all controls are on the front panel
and instantly viewable with no hidden pages or tabs.
Parameter Mod boxes
Many of Sines’ parameters include a dedicated adjacent mod source button and
attenuverter. Source (Src) button- Click to open a popup menu that selects the
modulation source. If the button is dim (gray), no modulation source is
currently selected. The button illuminates when a mod source is selected. (The
attenuator still needs to be increased or decreased from its center position
to apply mod.) Via button- The Via button is only found in the Pitch Mod,
Phase, and Mod Matrix sections. It allows a mod source to dynamically control
how much modulation is occurring. When using a Via mod source, the Mod
Attenuverter sets the maximum mod amount. Via is typically used for mod wheel-
controlled vibrato (set Pitch Mod section Src to LFO, and Via to Mod Wheel),
or when creating FM synthesis-style patches (set Phase section Src to an
oscillator, and Via to an envelope generator). Pitch Mod and Phase are the
only Parameter Mod boxes that include Via routings, but just about any Sines
parameter can have its mod depth set up with a via control in the Mod Matrix
section. Keep on reading! Mod attenuverter knob- Sets the amount of mod
applied to the parameter for the currently chosen mod routing. The Mod
attenuverter knobs are bipolar, so center position is off; turning the knob to
the right applies positive modulation, and turning to the left applies
negative modulation.
Cherry Audio Sines User Guide – 27
The current mod source is visible in the popup tooltip flag when the mouse is
hovered over the Src button (You can set how quickly the tooltips display
after mouse hover by clicking Settings gear icon>Interface>Tooltip Delay in
the top purple tool bar). Note that modulation only occurs withing the
existing control range; that is, a given control cannot be modulated past its
minimum or maximum knob/slider setting.
Mod Matrix
Here’s where things get heavy. Sines includes a four-slot mod matrix that
allows modulation of almost every single Sines parameter. It works exactly
like the individual Parameter Mod boxes explained above, but instead of
Cherry Audio Sines User Guide – 28
being tied to the parameter of an adjacent control, each Mod Matrix slot
includes a destination parameter. Source (Src) button- Click to open a popup
menu that selects the modulation source. If the button is dim (gray), no
modulation source is currently selected. The button illuminates when a mod
source is selected. (The attenuator still needs to be increased or decreased
from its center position to apply mod.) Via button- The Via button allows a
mod source to dynamically control how much modulation is occurring. When using
a Via mod source, the Amt attenuverter sets the maximum mod amount. Via is
typically used for mod wheel-controlled vibrato (set Pitch Mod section Src to
LFO, and Via to Mod Wheel), or when creating FM synthesis-style patches (set
Phase section Src to an oscillator, and Via to an envelope generator). Pitch
Mod and Phase are the only Parameter Mod boxes that include Via routing
controls, but just about any Sines parameter can have its mod depth set up
with a Via control in the Mod Matrix section. Amount (Amt) attenuverter knob-
Sets the amount of mod applied to the parameter for the currently chosen mod
routing. The Amt knobs are bipolar, so center position is off; turning the
knob to the right applies positive modulation, and turning to the left applies
negative modulation. Modulation from two or more sources can be routed to the
same parameter by combining the Parameter Mod boxes and Mod Matrix (or
multiple Mod Matrix slots). All modulation will be additively summed.
Sines Controls and Knob Rings/Bars
Almost all of Sines’ knobs and sliders include an illuminated knob ring, or in
the case of sliders, an illuminated “amount bar.” These indicate the current
control value, including any incoming modulation, either from hardwired mod
sources, the dedicated parameter knob boxes adjacent to controls, or from mod
routings configured with the Mod Matrix. Because they clearly display
modulation, they’re really helpful when setting initial control amount,
optimal modulation depth, and mod median point. Plus they look real cool!
Mod and Via Sources
Cherry Audio Sines User Guide – 29
Following is a list of mod sources. The Mod Sources list is identical for Parameter Mod boxes and the Mod Matrix. The Via sources list is also identical. Read these very carefully, because they took ages to type !!$#%!
MOD SOURCE CATEGORY
LFOs LFOs LFOs LFOs ENVELOPES ENVELOPES ENVELOPES ENVELOPES OSCILLATORS
OSCILLATORS OSCILLATORS OSCILLATORS KEYBOARD KEYBOARD KEYBOARD
MKEOYDBOSAORUDRCE CATEGORY
MOD SOURCE
LFO 1 LFO 2 LFO 3 LFO 4 FILTER ENVELOPE AMP ENVELOPE ENVELOPE 3 ENVELOPE 4 OSC
1 OSC 2 OSC 3 OSC 4 MOD WHEEL PITCH BEND KEYBOARD CV VMEOLDOCSIOTUY RCE
Cherry Audio Sines User Guide – 30
KEYBOARD KEYBOARD KEYBOARD SIGNALS SIGNALS SIGNALS SIGNALS SIGNALS
CHANNEL PRESSURE POLY AFTERTOUCH ARPEGGIATOR WHITE NOISE PINK NOISE MONO RANDOM DC POLY RANDOM DC +10V DC
Mod Destinations
DESTINATION CATEGORY
ALL OSCILLATORS, OSC 1, OSC 2, OSC 3, OSC 4 ALL OSCILLATORS, OSC 1, OSC 2, OSC
3, OSC 4 ALL OSCILLATORS, OSC 1, OSC 2, OSC 3, OSC 4 ALL OSCILLATORS, OSC 1,
OSC 2, OSC 3, OSC 4 ALL OSCILLATORS, OSC 1, OSC 2, OSC 3, OSC 4 ALL
OSCILLATORS, OSC 1, OSC 2, OSC 3, OSC 4 ALL OSCILLATORS, OSC 1, OSC 2, OSC 3,
OSC 4 DALELSTOISNCAITLILOANTOCRAST,EOGSOCRY1, OSC 2, OSC 3, OSC 4
DESTINATION
RATIO FREQUENCY FEEDBACK PULSE WIDTH SHAPE WAVEFOLD DRIVE
SDUEPSETRINOASTCIOILNLATOR
Cherry Audio Sines User Guide – 31
ALL OSCILLATORS, OSC 1, OSC 2, OSC 3, OSC 4 ALL OSCILLATORS, OSC 1, OSC 2, OSC
3, OSC 4 ALL OSCILLATORS, OSC 1, OSC 2, OSC 3, OSC 4 LFO 1, LFO 2, LFO 3, LFO
4 LFO 1, LFO 2, LFO 3, LFO 4 FILTER ENVELOPE FILTER ENVELOPE FILTER ENVELOPE
FILTER ENVELOPE FILTER ENVELOPE FILTER ENVELOPE AMP ENVELOPE AMP ENVELOPE AMP
ENVELOPE AMP ENVELOPE AMP ENVELOPE ENV 3, ENV 4 ENV 3, ENV 4
DESTINATION CATEGORY
SUB OSCILLATOR LEVEL PAN RATE LEVEL ATTACK DECAY SUSTAIN RELEASE DELAY
VELOCITY ATTACK DECAY SUSTAIN RELEASE VELOCITY ATTACK DECAY
DESTINATION
Cherry Audio Sines User Guide – 32
ENV 3, ENV 4 ENV 3, ENV 4 ENV 3, ENV 4 ENV 3, ENV 4 FILTER FILTER FILTER
FILTER VCA ARPEGGIATOR GLOBAL/KEYBOARD GLOBAL/KEYBOARD GLOBAL/KEYBOARD
DISTORTION DISTORTION DISTORTION MOD FX MOD FX
DESTINATION CATEGORY
MOD FX
SUSTAIN RELEASE DELAY VELOCITY CUTOFF RESONANCE ENV AMOUNT TRACKING LEVEL RATE
UNISON DETUNE GLIDE AMOUNT BEND DEPTH DRIVE TONE LEVEL RATE DEPTH
DESTINATION
FEEDBACK
Cherry Audio Sines User Guide – 33
MOD FX DELAY DELAY DELAY DELAY DELAY REVERB REVERB REVERB EQ EQ EQ EQ EQ EQ EQ EQ
FEEDBACK TIME FEEDBACK DAMP SPREAD MIX DECAY DAMP MIX 100 Hz 200 Hz 400 Hz 800
Hz 1.6 k 3.2 k 6.4 k 12.8 k
Cherry Audio Sines User Guide – 34
Arpeggio
An arpeggiator is basically a step sequencer that plays each note of a chord
individually in a pattern across one or more octaves. Sync- Engaging the Sync
button locks arpeggio timing to master tempo. When engaged, the Rate knob
snaps to note values ranging from 1/64th note triplet to 8 beats. Sync mode
locks to the tempo in the top toolbar when using the Sines standalone version
or the current project tempo when the plug-in version is used in a DAW. Rate-
Sets the rate of the arpeggiator, from 0.25 to 30 Hz (with Sync disabled).
Pattern and display- Click to open a popup menu defining note play order:
Up- Plays notes in order from lowest to highest. Down- Plays notes in order
from highest to lowest. Up-Down- Plays notes from lowest to highest then back
to lowest again (the highest and lowest note will be play twice in a row) Key
Order- Plays notes in the order they are struck.
Cherry Audio Sines User Guide – 35
Random- Randomly plays notes within the current range. Range and display-
Selects the number of octaves the pattern will play before repeating. On/Off-
Enables and disables the Arpeggio section. Seriously, why do I type this
stuff? Hold- When engaged, arpeggios continue to run without having to
continuously hold down keys. This allows you to play a series of chords
without the arpeggiator stopping as keys are released. Be aware that it will
not stop until you disengage the button again. Mapping Hold to a sustain pedal
or button on a MIDI controller can be useful for conveniently toggling the
arpeggiator on and off, plus you can wave your arms around fruitily, like it
was 1982 and you’re in Duran Duran. (Just think, someone actually hired me to
write this crap and miraculously I remain employed.)
Cherry Audio Sines User Guide – 36
Keyboard Assign
The Keyboard Assign section determines how notes are assigned to synthesizer
voices. Max Voices- Sets the maximum number of notes that can sound
simultaneously, from 2 to 16. You may want to reduce the max voices if you’re
using an older computer. Poly 1- This is the standard polyphonic mode. If the
number of notes played exceeds the current maximum setting, it uses a
sophisticated allocation scheme to steal the most recently played notes. In
use, this means if you’re holding a bass note with your left hand, it won’t
disappear while playing chords and melodies with your right hand. Poly 2- Poly
2’s allocation is optimized for use with Sines’ glide function. Generally
speaking, implementing polyphonic glide can be a tricky proposition (because
we don’t know whatcher gonna play next), but Poly 2 mode does a pretty swell
job of “knowing” which notes to glide from and to when holding notes while
playing melodies, regardless of whether notes are played legato or separately.
If the number of simultaneous notes you’ll be playing in a passage, we
recommend setting the Max Voices control accordingly. For example, if you’re
consistently playing triads, set Max Voices to 3. Chord Memory- Allows chords
to be memorized and played with a single key. To memorize a chord, click the
Chord Memory button. The button flashes
Cherry Audio Sines User Guide – 37
to indicate that it’s in learn mode. Play a chord up to 16 notes (hey, we
don’t know how many fingers you have); when the last note is released, the
button illumination turns solid and the chord is memorized. The Max Voices
number display will show how many notes are in the memorized chord. To disable
Chord Memory mode, click the button again.
Chord Memory only works in Poly 1 and Poly 2 modes; its button goes dim if one
of the mono modes is selected.
Note that Chord Memory isn’t just for “chords” per se; it can be used for
octaves, fifths, or any desired combination of notes.
Single- One note can be played a time with one voice sounding. The Max Voices
display changes to 1 and its button is disabled when Mono Single is selected.
Uni and Unison Detune knob- One note sounds at a time. Multiple voices will
“stack” according to the current Max Voices setting. The Uni button should be
used in conjunction with the Unison Detune knob which “spreads” the tuning of
the oscillators for fat sounds. Note that the setting of the Master section
Analog Drift knob will add to the overall amount of oscillator detune.
Note that the Detune knob has no effect in Poly 1 and Poly 2 modes. Use the
Master section Analog Drift knob if you’d like to add some global
detuning/analog vibe.
Note Priority (Single and Unison modes only)- These three buttons define how
voices responds to incoming note data when Mono Single or Mono Uni modes are
selected.
Last- The most recently played note takes priority.
Low- The lowest note played takes priority.
Hi- The highest note played takes priority.
Multi Trigger (Mono modes only)- Defines triggering behavior for the Filter
Envelope and Amplitude envelope generators. When Multi Trigger is enabled in
any of the mono assign modes, the envelopes retrigger from the beginning every
time a new key is pressed. When Multi Trigger is disabled, the envelopes will
only retrigger if no other notes are currently held; this is known as “single
trigger” or legato mode. Single trigger mode is useful for emulating the
sounds of some acoustic instruments – for example, the sound of plucking a
note on a guitar, then sliding on the string to different notes without
plucking again. Multi Trigger mode generally feels more responsive
Cherry Audio Sines User Guide – 38
to play and is useful for more aggressive passages – in guitar lingo,
something like picking every single note.
Cherry Audio Sines User Guide – 39
Effects
Sines features studio-quality effects including distortion, mod effects, delay
(including our nifty Stardust tape delay algorithm), and reverb (with our
awesomely huge Galactic algorithm.) Best of all, effects parameters are fully
modulatable using the Mod Matrix section.
Distortion
Sines distortion effect operates in dual-mono mode; that is, it doesn’t
stereoize incoming mono signals, but incoming stereo imaging is maintained –
the stereo image isn’t summed to mono. You can hear this for yourself by
setting up a patch with two or more oscillators and moving the Pan sliders.
On/Off- Enables and disables distortion effect. Select (Sel) button- Selects
effect mode.
Tube- This is the mellowest distortion mode. Use it to add just little bit of
vintage hair to sounds. Grunge- Loud, aggressive, and raunchy, like
Soundgarden. Fuzz- Also aggressive and raunchy, but more fizzy and vintage,
like uh… In-A-Gadda-Da-Vidda (baby). Sample Crush- This actually changes the
sample playback rate – going all the way down to 500 Hz (not kHz, but Hz!), so
it can make a real mess. Tone & Level- Not a distortion effect at all – in
fact the Drive knob is disabled in this mode, but the Tone knob is usable as a
flexible pre-other-
Cherry Audio Sines User Guide – 40
effects one-knob tone control. Drive- Amount of distortion. Tone- Relative
brightness of tone. Level- Overall volume; this doesn’t affect the amount of
distortion. Increasing drive will cause an overall volume increase, Level can
used to balance things out.
Mod FX
Mod FX features chorus, flanger, and rotary speaker modes. Mod Effects operate
in stereo, that is, incoming mono audio will be stereoized, but dry panned
audio will maintain its pan position. On/Off- Enables and disables distortion
effect. Select (Sel) button- Selects effect mode.
Chorus Flanger Phaser Rotary Speaker
Chorus and Flanger are very closely related, with the general difference being
that Flangers use a shorter time range and some amount of feedback (which
intensifies the “jet-flyby” effect), whereas choruses utilize a comparatively
longer delay, and no feedback. Rate- Sets the modulation speed from 0.01- 8
Hz. The LED light will flash to show the curent rate. When in Rotary Speaker
mode, the Rate knob acts as a two-position slow/fast switch. Settings from
0-50% will be slow, and 50% to 100% will be fast. When the rate is changed,
the rotary effect accelerates
Cherry Audio Sines User Guide – 41
and decelerates just like a real rotary speaker. The mod wheel or other mod
sources can be assigned to alternate the speed setting using the Mod Matrix.
Depth- Sets effect depth, i.e. the amount of modulation. The Depth is disabled
in Rotary Speaker Mode. Feedback- Sets the amount of internal feedback when in
Flanger mode. Because chorusing and rotary speakers doesn’t make use of
feedback, the Feedback control is disabled when in Chorus or Rotary Speaker
modes.
Delay
A handy and DAW sync-able delay with multiple effect modes. The delay operates
in dual mono so incoming stereo imaging (i.e. panning oscillators) is
maintained – the stereo image is not summed to mono. It can widen the stereo
image of incoming mono or stereo signals by using the Spread knob described
below. On/Off- Enables and disables delay effect. Sync- Enabling the Sync
switch locks the delays time to master tempo. When engaged, the Time knob
snaps to note values ranging from 1/64th note triplet to 8 beats. Sync mode
locks to the tempo in the top toolbar when using the standalone version or the
current project tempo when using the plug-in version in a DAW. Time – Sets
delay time, from 1 to 2000 ms. If the Sync button is enabled, time settings
snap to synchronized note values (see preceding Sync switch). The ms display
always shows the exact delay time in milliseconds. Mix- Balances the level of
dry and wet signal. Select (Sel) button- Selects effect mode.
Cherry Audio Sines User Guide – 42
Stereo Delay- A standard, clean sounding delay. Ping Pong Delay- Echoes
alternate between audio channels. Tape Delay- Reproduces the effect of a
vintage “space echo” tape delay. Feedback- Routes the output to the input for
additional repeats. Damp- Attenuates high frequencies as the knob amount is
increased. Not only does this create more natural sounding decays, it also
reduces the “stacking” effect that occurs with high feedback levels. Spread-
This subtracts delay time from the left channel and adds time to the right
channel, creating a wide stereo effect, as well as preventing echoes from
“piling up” in the center of the image. Note that the subtracted and added
delay effectively offsets the overall delay time setting with each repeat, so
long delays combined with high feedback settings can become off time (just
back off the Spread knob a bit to fix).
Reverb
A smooth, studio-quality stereo reverb. The stereo implementation allows it to
be used to stereoize mono (i.e. centered) sounds, but panning positions are
retained. On/Off- Enables and disables reverb effect. Mix- Balances the level
of wet/dry reverb signal. Reverb Type- Allows selection of Spring, Room,
Plate, Hall, and Galactic reverb algorithms. In case you’re wondering,
Galactic mode is a mega large,
Cherry Audio Sines User Guide – 43
super vibey, super-spacey algorithm that you’ll dig. Decay- Sets the length of
reverb release time/size of room. Damp- Attenuates high frequencies as the
knob amount is increased.
Graphic EQ
Ok, who else gives you a cool graphic EQ on a synth? This is an eight-band EQ
with 12 dB of cut or boost for each band, across the master output of the
entire synth. If you’ve created a patch by stacking a ton bunch of pure sine
waves in different octaves and tunings (such as the Templates>Harmonic Series
factory preset), the bass can get pretty large – the graphic is nice for
getting that under control. On/Off- Enables and disables EQ effect. Band
Sliders- Cuts or boost up to 12 dB at 100, 200, 400, 800, 1600, 3200, 6400,
and 12,800 Hz. (Try modulating these with an LFO in the Mod Matrix!) Remember
that all effects parameters can be modulated via the Mod Matrix, so you can
get all crazy and Hainbach-y.
Cherry Audio Sines User Guide – 44
Master
The Master section controls affect the entire instrument globally. All Master
settings are saved with individual patches. Drift- Applies a random amount of
independent tuning drift to the synth oscillators and filter frequencies for a
more authentic analog character. We generally recommend always leaving it
turned up a bit, with one exception. If you’re recreating DX FM synthesis
sounds, you may want to turn it all the way down, for vintage-correct,
exactly-perfect modulator/carrier interaction. Pitch- Sets the overall tuning
for the entire instrument up or down by one semitone. Limiter- This is a
switch that applies a transparent limiting effect to help prevent overloading
and clipping. Volume and output meters- Controls the overall instrument
volume. You’ll want to optimize the output to avoid clipping using the Master
Volume knob as well as the oscillator Level sliders. Try to keep these out of
the red or you may experience ugly digital clipping.
Cherry Audio Sines User Guide – 45
Left-Hand Controls
The Left-Hand Controls section includes standard “performance” controls as
follows: Glide Amount- Also known as “portamento,” glide delays the voltage
change between pitches for a sliding effect. Glide is individually enabled or
disabled using the Glide buttons in each oscillator section; the Keyboard
Assign Glide knob sets the glide speed globally. Lower values = faster glide
times, higher values = slower glide times. Glide works in all voice modes. If
you’d like to use glide polyphonically, it works best (i.e., most predictably)
in Poly 2 mode. Bend Depth- Sets the maximum amount of bend via a USB/MIDI
controller pitch bend wheel. Maximum bend depth is an octave. Octave Shift +/–
Transposes the overall tuning for the entire instrument up or down in octave
increments. The green center LED is the nominal setting. Pitch wheel- Standard
pitch bender with a range specified by the adjacent Bend Depth knob. The pitch
wheel can be moved onscreen with a mouse or
Cherry Audio Sines User Guide – 46
with a MIDI/USB pitch bend wheel or joystick. Mod wheel- The mod wheel can be
moved onscreen or with a MIDI/USB mod wheel or joystick. It outputs a constant
control signal that can be used by selecting Keyboard>Mod Wheel with any of
the mod Src button menus.
Cherry Audio Sines User Guide – 47
Programming Sines – Three Different Approaches
By its nature, Sines is a unique combination of traditional synthesis
parameters combined with some unusual oscillator parameters and ways of making
the oscillators interact that might not be obvious at a glance. After using
Sines for a while, it became clear that there are a few different ways a user
might approach programming sounds. The good news is that with its allcontrols-
visible-at-once user interface and oscillator oscilloscopes, it’s easy to get
your head around and quickly make all manner of nifty (and dynamically
variable) racket!
Approach #1 – Stacking Sine Waves
Generally known as “additive synthesis,” the concept is that much like prime
numbers, any audible sound can be synthesized by combining sine waves at
different pitches and amplitudes. Over the years a few commercial synthesizers
have utilized additive synthesis (notably the Digital Keyboards Synergy and
the Kawai K5), but additive never really took off, because it can take a lot
of sine waves (and thus a lot of programming) to create complex sounds. With
that said, there’s one VERY popular synth that exclusively used additive sine
waves: the venerable Hammond B3/C3 tone wheel organ, which generated a whole
bunch of sine waves via mechanical tone wheels spinning in a magnetic field,
and allowed control of their levels via drawbars.
Thus you might not guess by looking at it, but Sines is capable of making
bang-up organ sounds. It might not seem as if four oscillators creating sine
waves would offer many tonal options, but remember that each oscillator
includes an adjustable sub sine wave (one octave down) and super sine wave
(one octave up), so it’s really like having 12 individual sine wave
oscillators. Although each of these waves isn’t individually tunable, this
isn’t a big limitation in use, because you’ll typically want the sine waves
tuned to standard even harmonic series intervals, such as octaves, fifths,
major thirds, or minor sevenths. The Templates>Harmonic Series factory preset
is an excellent starting point – oscillator 1 contains root notes, oscillator
2 contains fifth intervals, oscillator 3 contains higher root notes, and
oscillator 4 contains dominant seventh intervals. Many tonal colors can be
achieved with different combinations of the main oscillator Level sliders
along with the Sub Osc and Super Osc level sliders. (For those of you using
Cherry Audio’s
Cherry Audio Sines User Guide – 48
Voltage Modular, the Harmonic Series patch is essentially a recreation of the
Buchla-inspired Additive Oscillator module.)
The Filter section can also be used, but if you’re using pure sine waves,
there isn’t much content to filter, so the filter will behave largely as a
volume control for harmonics.
Finally, there’s nothing stopping you from using the oscillator waveshaping
controls to alter and enrich timbral content, but remember that the
waveshaping controls only affect an oscillator’s primary waveshape; the Sub
Osc and Super Osc waves are always going to be pure sine waves.
Approach #2 – Standard Subtractive Synthesis (With Mondo Oscillators)
If you’ve already begun creating sounds, you’re probably already using Sines
this way, that is, as a four-oscillator synth running through an analog-style
filter. The good news is that if you’re familiar with standard analog synths,
you don’t need to know much more – just twist the Feedback, Phase, Width,
Shape, Wavefold, and Drive knobs until you land on something you like and
treat it like any other analog synth. Because Sines oscillators don’t have
controls for directly creating analog-style waves, here are some tips for
nailing classic analog oscillator tones:
Sawtooth/Ramp waves- To “bend” a sine wave into a saw or ramp wave, simply
crank up the Feedback knob in either direction. If you’d like a little more
high-frequency “hair,” rotate the Width knob clockwise from center, or add
some Drive (or hey, do both, we’re all in show business here!). The waveform
won’t necessarily look correct on the oscilloscope, but it will sound
authentic (and remember that the waveforms from some of the classic analog
synths look pretty funky when you actually view them on a scope!).
Square and Pulse waves- Spot-on square and pulse waves can be created by
turning the Shape knob fully to the left and the Drive knob fully to the
right. The Width knob will function just like a standard analog synth pulse
width control, and pulse-width modulation can be created by modulating the
Width knob using an LFO (click Src>LFOs>LFO 1), and turn up the small mod
amount knob to around 25%.
Triangle waves- Starting with a pure sine wave and turning the Shape knob up
to around 12-15% results in a waveform very close to a traditional triangle
wave.
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Oscillator Sync- Like a lot of other Sines sounds, we accidentally discovered
a great way to nail analog sync sweep-type tones. Any combination of
oscillators can be used, but for this example we’ll use Oscillators 1 and 2:
Set Oscillator 1 coarse pitch to 4′. Set Oscillator 1 Phase mod Src to
Oscillator 2 (click Src>Oscillators>Oscillator 2) Set Oscillator 1 Phase mod
Via (click Via>Envelopes>Envelope 3) Set Oscillator 1 Phase mod amount around
-6% Turn Oscillator 1 Drive knob all the way up. Set Oscillator 1 horizontal
Level slider almost full up and Oscillator 2 Level slider to zero. Set
Oscillator 2 coarse pitch to 16′. Set Oscillator 2 Feedback knob all the way
up. Set Envelope 3 Attack at zero, Decay around 4000 ms, Sustain at zero and
Release at zero.
White Noise- A very pure white noise tone can be achieved by modulating
oscillator phase using the output of the same oscillator. Suffice to say, the
nice thing about this is that you don’t have to burn up multiple oscillators.
For this example, we’ll use Oscillator 1:
Set Oscillator 1 Phase mod Src to Oscillator 1 (click
Src>Oscillators>Oscillator 1) Set Oscillator 1 Phase section mod amount knob
all the way up or down
Approach #3 – Phase Modulation / DX-type FM Synthesis
With its four oscillators, phase modulation between oscillators, and ratio
tuning increments, Sines absolutely nails classic Yamaha DX-style “frequency
modulation” synthesis. We know a lot of folks get stomach cramps, clammy
hands, and other non-specific symptoms when the topic of FM synthesis arises,
but trust us, it’s relatively easy with Sines (and SO much easier than an 80s
synth with up/down buttons and a tiny numeric LED display). Before we go any
further, allow us to clarify perhaps the largest nomenclature foulup in the
history of synthesis…
FM synthesis is short for “frequency modulation synthesis.” On the most basic
level, FM synthesis uses one oscillator running at an audio frequency
Cherry Audio Sines User Guide – 50
(“modulator”) to modulate another oscillator (“carrier”). If you’ve ever used
a low-frequency oscillator to modulate the pitch of another oscillator for
vibrato effects, it’s exactly the same thing, except that the modulation
oscillator is running at a much higher frequency. Because it’s running at such
high speed, the resulting audio isn’t heard as vibrato, but as a change in
overall timbre.
The Boring and (Sort Of) Important History of Frequency Modulation vs. Phase
Modulation Synthesis
Using an oscillator running at audio rates to modulate another oscillator
makes some nifty sounds but the result is somewhat inharmonic in nature; that
is, it inherently sounds a bit sour and out of tune. Great for space lasers,
not so great for “Saving All My Love For You.” The big spoiler is that Yamaha
FM synths don’t generate sound via true FM synthesis – they actually use phase
modulation instead. Phase modulation is roughly similar, but instead using an
audio-rate sine wave to modulate an oscillator’s pitch, phase modulation
modulates the carrier oscillator’s phase relationship to the modulating
oscillator.
The best analogy would be to think of frequency modulation as moving the
carrier oscillator up and down, whereas phase modulation moves the carrier
oscillator from side-to-side, shown in the diagram above. The important
takeaway is that phase modulation sounds much more in tune and musical, and
offers a wider timbral range.
Cherry Audio Sines User Guide – 51
Why Yamaha didn’t refer to their revolutionary synthesis as phase modulation
(or PM) remains a mystery of the ages, but Sines is capable of both true
frequency modulation synthesis and phase modulation, so you can try each for
yourself and see what we’re talking about.
From here on out, we’ll refer to this DX synthesis thing as “phase modulation
synthesis.”
Phase Modulation Basics
Generally speaking, there were two “levels” of Yamaha FM synths – “four
operator,” and “six operator,” often abbreviated to “four-op” and “six-op.” An
“operator” is just another word for an oscillator, so a four-op synth
contained four oscillators, and a six-op synth contained six oscillators.
Naturally, a sixop synth (i.e. DX7) was capable of more elaborate sounds than
a four-op instrument, but in reality, the two extra oscillators usually didn’t
make that much difference.
These oscillators were arranged into various configurations where some would
be modulators (like a real fast LFO) and others would be carriers (sound
sources). These configurations are called “algorithms.” In some algorithms,
most of the oscillators would be carriers, in others, modulators were stacked
with other modulators, etc. If you’ve ever seen a DX instrument, the little
icon diagrams across the top was a “cheat sheet” showing the configuration of
all available algorithms; four-op instruments had eight algorithm choices and
most six-op instruments had 32. As you may have guessed, certain algorithms
lend themselves to different types of sounds, but the good news is that you
can get a lot of mileage out of just a couple of algorithms – in fact, you can
get a heck of a lot of different sounds by just modulating one oscillator with
another.
Phase Modulation Synthesis with Sines
“Are these clowns ever gonna tell us any useful information!?!?” Stay with us,
we’re getting there! We’ll take this in two steps: first we’ll show how to
create a knucklehead-simple one-oscillator-mods-another-oscillator “two-op”
phase modulation synthesis, and then we’ll haphazardly toss you into the
digitally abyss of all eight standard four-op algorithms.
In our basic phase modulation patch, we’re going to set up Oscillator 2
(modulator) to modulate the phase of Oscillator 1 (carrier).
Click the New button in the upper-left corner to initialize Sines Click the
Src button above Osc 1’s Phase section, and select Oscillator 2
Cherry Audio Sines User Guide – 52
(Src>Oscillators>Oscillator 2) At this point, if you hold a note and turn the
little Phase mod amount attenuator, you’ll hear something that sounds very
much like a DX7. Instead of manually twirling the knob to and fro, let’s
modulate the amount of Oscillator 2 phase mod with an envelope generator:
Click the Via button above Osc 1’s Phase section, and select Envelope 3
(clickVia>Envelopes>Envelope 3) Set Oscillator 1 small Phase mod amount knob
around 12% Set Envelope 3 Attack at zero, Decay around 2400 ms, Sustain at
zero and Release at zero Aaannnd it’s 1983 all over again… we told you DX
synthesis was easy! Now try playing around with both oscillators’ Ratio
controls – a cavalcade of classic DX goodness awaits. If you find something
you like, use the Utility button above the oscilloscope to copy Oscillator 1
to Oscillator 3, and Oscillator 2 to Oscillator 4, pan Oscillator 1 hard left
and Oscillator 3 hard right, and dial in the Drift knob (in the bottom right
Master section) to taste. Instant stereo FM fwangery.
Shown above are the eight algorithms available in vintage four-op DX synths.
Each colored box represents an operator (i.e. an oscillator). The green
operators boxes on the bottom are carriers (sound generators), and the red
boxes on top are modulators (mod oscillators affecting the timbre of carrier
oscillators). You’ll find patch templates for all eight algorithms in the
Templates preset folder. These are strictly intended as starting points.
Instead of using the Phase knob mod controls, all of the oscillator phase mod
routings have been
Cherry Audio Sines User Guide – 53
configured in the Mod Matrix. This is because algorithms 2, 3, 4, and 6 route
a single modulator to multiple carriers, which isn’t possible using the mod
boxes above the panel knobs. The important controls you’ll want to play with
are the Ratio knobs, and the Mod Matrix Amount knobs, which determine how much
modulation signal gets to the carrier oscillators. We’ve set the mod Amount
knobs to 10% in the templates, but you’ll most likely want to modulate their
depth by configuring envelope generators in the Via slots. If you run out of
envelope generators, remember that LFOs set to One Shot mode can be used to
create simple envelope generators (particularly the various permutations of
saw and ramp waves). As you’re checking out the various algorithm templates,
also notice that the oscillator Level sliders in each template correspond to
the green carrier oscillators in each template: green=audio source (Level
slider turned up), red=mod source (Level slider turned down).
Cherry Audio Sines User Guide – 54
MIDI Controllers Setup and the MIDI Tab
Assigning internal and external hardware controls adds a whole new dimension
of control and musicality to patches, and it’s really easy to do. The MIDI Tab
is where all controller assignments can be viewed and tweaked. First we’ll
show how to assign an external hardware controller to a Sines control, then
we’ll go over all parameters in the MIDI Tab.
Basic External Hardware Control Assignment
This is the quick, “I just want to assign a hardware control right now!,”
section. We recommend reading this whole section to best take advantage of
Sines’ cool MIDI control assignments. In this example, we’ll assign a hardware
slider control to the Filter section Cutoff Freq knob.
Cherry Audio Sines User Guide – 55
Begin by right-clicking on the Cutoff Freq knob in the Filter section and
selecting MIDI Learn. A transparent purple overlay appears over the knob
indicating that it’s in learn mode. Now move the desired hardware control
device. The purple overlay disappears and the hardware control will move the
onscreen knob. If you get cold feet (or accidentally put the wrong control
into learn mode), learn mode can be aborted by right-clicking and selecting
Stop Learning. This is the basic procedure for assigning hardware controllers
to almost any Sines control.
When in MIDI learn mode, any previously assigned controller numbers will show
in squares. These indicate the MIDI continuous controller number of the
Cherry Audio Sines User Guide – 56
assigned hardware control (these are also displayed in the MIDI library tab at
left). Once a MIDI controller has been assigned, in addition to real-time
control of a Sines parameter, you’ll also be able to record and play back
controller data from a DAW.
The MIDI Tab
This is command central for all MIDI controller assignments. Here you’ll be
able to see information about all currently assigned controllers and adjust
control ranges.
To view or hide the MIDI Tab, click the MIDI button in the top toolbar.
MIDI Learn button- This is almost exactly the same as enabling MIDI learn mode
by right-clicking a control. Click the MIDI Learn button to enter learn mode
(all controls turn purple). Unlike right-clicking on specific knobs, where
Sines automatically exits controller assignment mode, clicking the MIDI Learn
knob “stays on” to enable assignment of multiple hardware controls. This is
handy for quickly assigning a bunch of continuous controls or the buttons of a
grid-style controller.
Cherry Audio Sines User Guide – 57
To assign multiple controls, click MIDI Learn, click an on-screen control,
move the desired hardware knob or slider, continue clicking and assigning
onscreen controllers until all desired controls are assigned, then click Stop
Learning to exit learn mode. Remember that a single hardware
knob/slider/button isn’t limited to controlling just one parameter – a single
hardware controller can simultaneously operate as many controls as you’d like.
New Mapping Type- This popup menu selects whether newly assigned MIDI mappings
will be global (affects all sounds and doesn’t change when different presets
are selected) or saved with individual presets.
MIDI Tab Columns Name- Displays the name of the parameter being controlled.
Type- There are five possible types of controller automation in Sines:
Note- Notes played on a MIDI keyboard controller, expressed as C-1 to G9
CC (MIDI Continuous Controller)- The standard 128 MIDI controller numbers as
defined in the MIDI spec. More specifically, these are the controllers
transmitted by hardware knob and slider controls. MIDI CC’s can be used to
control parameters in real-time or recorded and played back within DAW
software. MMC (MIDI Machine Control)- The MIDI control protocol for tape
machine-style transport controls. Back in the dark ages, this was used to
control wonky old Tascam and Fostex reel-to-reel monsters, but it’s useful if
your MIDI controller has tape-style transport control buttons.
Pressure- Some keyboard controllers transmit controller data when keys are
pressed and released as they’re held down; this is known as a “pressure” or
“aftertouch.” The vast majority of keyboard controllers with aftertouch
transmit “mono” aftertouch only; in other words, aftertouch data is the sum of
all keys to one single data stream.
The Touch Sensor section allows super fast assignment of aftertouch control to
basic Poly Synthesizer and Lead Synthesizer controls, but this can be used to
control any Sines parameter. Key- This allows keys of the computer QWERTY
keyboard to at as button controls for Sines’ onscreen controls.
Value- Displays the specific automation controller. In the case of a Note this
would show a MIDI note number (C-1 to G9, for a MIDI CC, this would be the
Cherry Audio Sines User Guide – 58
MIDI CC controller number, etc. Clicking on the value opens a pop-up menu
where all values are displayed and can be selected. Preset- This slider works
in conjunction with the New Mapping Type menu. In the left position (gray
background), the MIDI mapping is global (affects all sounds and doesn’t change
when different presets are selected), in the right position (lavender
background), the MIDI mapping is saved with, and only affects the current
sound preset. The Preset switch is super nifty, because it means MIDI mappings
can easily be changed to global or per-preset status at any time. (A lot of
folks asked us for this feature.) Min- Sets a limit on the lowest value any
automation control can set a mapped controller to. This actually recalibrates
the range of the automation controller to the remaining parameter range. Max-
Sets a limit on the highest value any automation control can set a mapped
controller to. This actually recalibrates the range of the automation
controller to the remaining parameter range.
Super Tricky Min-Max Tricks- Not only can parameter ranges be limited via the
Min and Max knobs, mapped control destinations can be completely inverted by
setting the Min knob all the way up and the Max knob all the way down (or
anywhere in between). Limiting and inverting parameter ranges with the Min/Max
controls is particularly useful when multiplexing a single hardware control to
operate multiple parameters. Along with the Curve control, the customization
possibilities are super flexible.
Curve- These allow the customization of how incoming MIDI CC controls affect
the movement of Sines’ onscreen controls, ranging from exponential to linear
to logarithmic curves.
MIDI Tab Column Configuration Right-Click Menus
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Right-clicking anywhere in the top row (Name, Type, Value, etc.) displays the
column configuration menu. Checking/unchecking these allows hiding and display
of each column. This has no effect on assignments.
MIDI Tab Parameters Right-Click
Right-clicking on an assigned parameter opens the menu above. MIDI Learn- This
is used to change the controller assigned to a particular parameter. Unlearn-
Deletes the selected automation parameter. Unlearn All- Deletes all controller
assignments for the patch. Sines will display a warning dialog prior to
deletion in order to thwart potential unlearnrelated disasters.
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Using MIDI Polyphonic Expression (MPE)
Sines supports MPE, short for “MIDI Polyphonic Expression.” It’s a specialized
MIDI protocol enabling multidimensional controllers for controlling multiple
parameters of individual notes. MPE specifies the MIDI messages used for three
dimensions of control, regardless of how a particular controller physically
expresses them. MIDI channel 1 is used as a master channel for global pitch
bend, aftertouch, etc.; MPE utilizes MIDI channels 2-15 for the remaining
controller data. To enable MPE mode, MPE needs to be be enabled in the
Settings menu. Click the Settings gear icon in the top purple toolbar, then
the Interface tab, then check the Enable MPE mode box. Exit out of the
Settings window and click the MPE icon in the top tool bar.
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Sines displays this fanciful graphic in the Synth Voice Assign section when
MPE is enabled:
Cherry Audio Sines User Guide – 62
Do not enable MPE mode if you’re not using an appropriate MPE controller.
Sines will not play correctly with a standard USB MIDI controller. Do not
taunt happy fun ball!
MPE Control Tab
Pitch Bend check box and Range controls- At the top of the tab is a checkbox
which enables pitch bend; to its right is the pitch bend range control. Its
default setting is 48 semitones (four octaves). For best results you will need
to match this number with your MPE controller’s pitch bend setting (most MPE
controllers default to 48 semitones).
Cherry Audio Sines User Guide – 63
Show/Hide Button – Clicking the Show button in the MPE panel highlights all of
the available MPE mappable control sliders for the Sines with blue overlays
atop panel controls. Click the Hide button to hide them.
To map a control slider, right-click or [OPTION]+click (Windows) /
[CONT]+click (Mac) the slider you wish to map. This reveals the controller
mapping menu. Select MPE Assign. Options are: X (Pitch) Y (Timbre) Z
(Pressure) Note: Some MPE controllers such as the Roli Seaboard may have as
many as five dimensions of expression. Sines utilizes the three standard
dimensions: Pitch, Channel Pressure, and Timbre. Also, not all MPE controllers
are equipped with a master/global pitch bender. Once mapped, the Name and
Parameter will be visible in the MPE tab. A yellow square indicator (X,Y,Z)
also appears atop each of the mapped controls.
Cherry Audio Sines User Guide – 64
MPE Tab Columns
Right-clicking any of the column headers opens a popup menu allowing each
header to be shown or hidden. Name- Displays the name of the parameter being
controlled. Parameter- Displays and allows selection of the three controller
types: X (Pitch), Y (Timbre), and Z (Pressure). Absolute- Sets the Amt/Range
of the controller to absolute or relative control. Bipolar- Enables bipolar
controller, i.e. the ability to add and subtract the parameter amount, as
opposed to positive only. Amount/Range- Sets the intensity of control range.
If set to Absolute mode, two knobs appear for min/max settings. Curve- These
allow the customization of how controller data affect the movement of Sines’
onscreen controls, ranging from exponential to linear to logarithmic curves.
Click and drag on the red line and pull up or down to adjust the curve.
MPE Tab Parameters Right-Click
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Right-clicking on an assigned parameter opens the menu above. Remove- Deletes
the selected MPE controller parameter. Remove All- Deletes all MPE controller
assignments for the patch. Sines displays a warning dialog prior to deletion
in order to thwart potential disasters.
MPE Mappable Parameters
Below are all mappable Sines MPE parameters. Only polyphonic parameters (i.e.
parameters that independently affect individual notes) can be mapped with MPE.
SECTIONS
OSC 1/2/3/4 OSC 1/2/3/4 OSC 1/2/3/4 OSC 1/2/3/4 OSC 1/2/3/4 SOESCCT1IO/2N/3/4
PARAMETER
RATIO FREQUENCY MOD DEPTH FREQUENCY FEEDBACK MOD DEPTH FEEDBACK
PPAHRAASEMEMTOEDR DEPTH
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OSC 1/2/3/4 OSC 1/2/3/4 OSC 1/2/3/4 OSC 1/2/3/4 OSC 1/2/3/4 OSC 1/2/3/4 OSC
1/2/3/4 OSC 1/2/3/4 OSC 1/2/3/4 OSC 1/2/3/4 OSC 1/2/3/4 OSC 1/2/3/4 OSC
1/2/3/4 FILTER ENV, ENV 3/4 FILTER ENV, ENV 3/4 FILTER ENV, ENV 3/4 FILTER
ENV, ENV 3/4 FILTER ENV, ENV 3/4
SECTION
PHASE WIDTH MOD DEPTH WIDTH SHAPE MOD DEPTH SHAPE WAVEFOLD MOD DEPTH WAVEFOLD
DRIVE MOD DEPTH DRIVE LEVEL MOD DEPTH LEVEL PAN MOD DEPTH PAN DELAY VELOCITY
ATTACK DECAY SUSTAIN
PARAMETER
Cherry Audio Sines User Guide – 67
FILTER ENV, ENV 3/4 AMP ENV AMP ENV AMP ENV AMP ENV AMP ENV FILTER FILTER FILTER FILTER FILTER MOD MATRIX MOD MATRIX MOD MATRIX MOD MATRIX
RELEASE VELOCITY ATTACK DECAY SUSTAIN RELEASE CUTOFF FREQ MOD DEPTH CUTOFF FREQ RESONANCE ENV AMT TRACKING MOD SLOT 1 MOD DEPTH AMOUNT MOD SLOT 2 MOD DEPTH AMOUNT MOD SLOT 3 MOD DEPTH AMOUNT MOD SLOT4 MOD DEPTH AMOUNT
Popular MPE Controller Devices
Following is a list of popular MPE controllers as of 2022. We’re sure your
Sweetwater rep is just dying to sell you one (and follow up that sale with
endless phone calls: “Hi, this is Tad! How are those velcro cable wraps
workin’ out for ya?”)
Cherry Audio Sines User Guide – 68
Roli – Seaboard Sensel – Morph Expressive E – Osmose Keith McMillen
Instruments – K-Board Pro 4, QuNexus Red Haken Audio – Continuum Fingerboard
Roger Linn Designs – Linnstrument Artiphon – Instrument 1
Cherry Audio Sines User Guide – 69
QWERTY Musical Typing Keyboard (MTK)
If you don’t have a MIDI keyboard attached to your computer, the standard
QWERTY computer keyboard can be used to play notes – we’re pretty sure you’ve
got one of those! We’ll refer to this as the “MTK.” Following is a list of MTK
keyboard modifiers and functions:
Opening and Closing the MTK – click the circular keyboard icon in the top
toolbar. To close the MTK, click the keyboard icon in the top toolbar, or
click the X in the top right corner. Play Notes- To trigger notes, simply
press the corresponding computer keyboard key or mouse click the onscreen
keys. Adjust Currently Visible MTK Range- Slide the purple scroll bar
horizontally to adjust the currently visible keyboard range. Adjust Overall
Visible Keyboard Range- Clicking and dragging the right edge of the MTL window
allows the overall size of the window to be adjusted. This lets you view more
or less of the onscreen keyboard. Note that the MTK window’s borders cannot
exceed the overall outside dimensions of the Sines window.
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Shift Range Up/Down Octave- Click the Oct- and Oct+ buttons at the top left
and right of the onscreen MTK. The current range is displayed above the
keyboard. Shift Range Up/Down Semitone- Click the Step- and Step+ buttons at
the bottom left and right of the onscreen MTK. The current range is displayed
above the keyboard. Hide/View Controllers- Clicking Control at the far left
hides and displays velocity, bender, mod, and sustain control parameters.
Hiding the control view makes more space available for the keyboard. Set Note
Velocity- Move the purple Velocity bar to adjust the output velocity of notes.
Pitch Bend- To pitch a note or notes, press the + or – computer keyboard keys
while playing a note. Notes will bend up to an octave. Notes can also be
pitchbent by clicking the mouse in the Bend area. Mod Wheel- To add mod wheel
modulation, press the number keys from 0-9 (above the character keys) while
playing a note. The modulation amount will vary from none (0) to full
modulation (9). Note that modulation will “stick” at the selected number; to
disable modulation, click the 0 key. Mod can also be engaged by clicking the
mouse in the mod bar area. Sustain- The Sustain button mimics the
functionality of a standard sustain pedal. Click the [TAB] key to engage
sustain, or [SHIFT]+[TAB] to lock it. The Sustain button can also be engaged
by mouse clicking it. Reset- Initializes all MTK parameters including keyboard
range and control parameters.
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Settings
Clicking the settings gear opens a window with multiple tabs for configuring
various “under-the-hood” settings. These are mostly set-and-forget kind of
parameters – all the stuff you’ll want to tweak is on the front panel, as it
should be.
General
Add Undo For Control Changes With The Mouse- Enabling this allows undo of
knob/slider/button adjustments. You’ll want this on if you want the ability to
undo all aspects of patch editing and programming. Create A Log File For
Usage- This creates a text doc of all of Sines’ internal and routines during
use. It is mainly intended for our tech staff should you experience any
issues. Clicking Show Log Folder opens the folder containing Sines log file
docs. Load Last Preset On Startup (Standalone Only)- Automatically loads the
last preset used when Sines standalone version is started. Preset Folder-
Displays the current location of Sines’ sound presets. This can be changed by
clicking and typing in the field.
Browse… – Displays the current location of preset folder in the file manager.
Set Default- Sets the current displayed Preset Folder path as the default
location Clear Cache Files- Deletes all log files, temporary sounds, and the
image cache.
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Interface
Allows customization of Sines’ user interface settings.
Reset To Default Window Size- Resets the Sines workspace to 100%. Use this to
reset the window size if Sines’ workspace somehow becomes too large for your
display and can’t be resized.
Tooltip Delay- Tooltips are those informative bits of text that pop up when
hovering over a control (go ahead and try it, we’ll wait…). The Tooltip Delay
setting defines how long you must hover before the tooltip pops up.
Knob Movement- Defines which how mouse movements related to turning onscreen
knobs. It defaults to Vertical Drag, but can be changed to Horizontal Drag, or
Rotary Drag if you’re one those folks that cut their teeth on the Steinberg
Model E VST back in 2000.
On Control Double-Click- Defines what happens when the mouse is double-clicked
on a control. If Edit Value is selected, an exact number can be entered by
typing the number and hitting [ENTER] or [RETURN]. If Sets Default Value is
selected, double-clicking a control resets it to its default value.
Mouse Wheel Adjusts Control Value- Enabling this lets you adjust knob, slider,
and switch values by moving the mouse wheel. This works great with a standard
mouse wheel, but you’ll want to disable it if you’re using an Apple Magic
Mouse (which will move the control AND scroll the window).
Show Tooltips When Adjusting Controls With Mouse- Displays parameter
tooltips/values when the mouse is hovered over a control or as a control is
moved with mouse button down.
Show Tooltips When Automating Controls- Displays parameter tooltips/values
next to controls a if a control is moved via an assigned MIDI controller or
automation.
MIDI Program Changes Should Change Current Preset- Allows MIDI program change
messages to change Sines patches.
Ask To Save Modified Presets- This opens a dialog window asking if you’d like
to save changes if a patch has been edited and a new patch is selected. If
you’re the type that likes to click through presets and tweak a control here
and there, it can be annoying to have a window pop-up
Cherry Audio Sines User Guide – 73
asking if you’d like to save every time you switch presets – if you’re that
person, keep this off. Remember MIDI Mappings For New Plug-in Instances- When
enabled, Sines remembers all MIDI Tab controller settings.
Account
Settings for your personal login information and account. Email- Displays the
email address of the current login. Update Login Info- Clicking this opens the
same email and password login screen you’ll see when initially launching
Sines. Click here for information about soft rock superstars, Loggins and
Messina. View Account Settings- This opens your personal account page on the
Cherry Audio Store website containing information about modules purchased and
more.
Software Update We often fix bugs and make improvements; below are options
defining how Sines handles updates.
Check For Update- Click this to see if an updated version of Sines is
available. Status: Automatically Install Updates- Updates are automatically
downloaded and installed. Ask Before Installing Updates- By default, Sines
automatically downloads new versions of modules when available. Checking this
box defeats automatic updates and will ask if you’d like to install updates
when they become available.
We’ll never make changes that can potentially “break” existing patches
Cherry Audio Sines User Guide – 74
but we recommend enabling Ask Before Installing Updates if you’re using Sines
for live performances or other mission-critical situations. Never Install
Updates- Sines never automatically installs updates. Show Updates On Toolbar-
Checking this will display an icon in the toolbar next to the logo letting you
know there’s an update available.
Show Notifications From Cherry Audio- We occasionally will fire off inapp
advertisements; disabling this checkbox will hide them. We hate repetitive,
annoying ads as much as you do, so we won’t use this feature too often. When
we do, it’ll be for something super cool (like a killer sale), so we recommend
leaving it on.
Audio/MIDI
Settings for audio and MIDI hardware input and output. This tab is only
visible in the standalone version of Sines.
Output- Use this drop-down menu to choose a physical audio output source. This
defaults to Built-In Line Output, i.e. your computer’s onboard system audio,
but you’ll get better fidelity with an external professional audio interface.
The biggest audible difference is usually reduced background noise or hum, but
external audio hardware also offers greater flexibility in terms of number of
inputs and outputs and built-in mic or lowlevel instruments pres (i.e.
electric guitars). These are especially useful if you’re using Sines’ external
inputs to process sound. The Test button will produce a brief sine wave when
clicked; this will help with troubleshooting, aka, “WHY THE HECK ISN’T THIS
MAKING ANY NOISE?!?” Sample Rate- This sets Sines’ global sample rate. Lower
sample rates offer better performance, but if you have a fast computer, high
sample rates may offer slightly improved fidelity. Audio Buffer Size- As with
any digital audio app, this defines performance vs. note latency, and will
largely depend upon computer CPU speed. A professional external audio
interface will almost always exhibit
Cherry Audio Sines User Guide – 75
better performance than “built-in” system audio. Lower settings will result in
less latency (in the form of faster response to notes played), but will
increase the chances of audio gapping or crackling noise. Active MIDI Inputs-
Displays all available MIDI input sources, i.e. keyboards, pad controls, MIDI
knob/fader control surfaces, etc. Check boxes to enable one or more devices.
If notes aren’t playing when using Sines in standalone mode check to make sure
your USB/MIDI controller is checked in this area.
Cherry Audio Sines User Guide – 76
References
- Cherry Audio LLC
- docs.cherryaudio.com/cherry-audio/instruments/dreamsynth/midi-controllers
- docs.cherryaudio.com/cherry-audio/instruments/mercury-4/midi-controllers
- docs.cherryaudio.com/cherry-audio/instruments/sines/eg
- docs.cherryaudio.com/cherry-audio/instruments/sines/midi-controllers
- docs.cherryaudio.com/cherry-audio/instruments/sines/programming
- docs.cherryaudio.com/cherry-audio/instruments/sines/settings
- Loggins and Messina - Wikipedia
- Cherry Audio Forums - Instruments