4ms Company Matthias Puech Ensemble Oscillator, User Manual

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Free scale group
The Free scale group imposes no restrictions on the allowed intervals. Like the 12TET group, the scales don’t have to
repeat every octave. This group can contain any type of scale, including microtonal and experimental scales.
Learn Mode: Advanced Concepts
The Ensemble Oscillator has thirty slots for scales, all of which come factory programmed. You can replace any of the
factory scales with your own custom scale. This process is called "Learning" a new scale. Read the Create Your Own Scale
in Learn Mode tutorials (pages 9–10) before continuing with this section.
Root Note and Intervals
If you follow the tutorial to learn a new scale using the knobs, you’ll notice that the root note of the new scale is set to the
current root note at the moment you enter Learn mode. You also can set the root note by entering Learn mode in a slightly
different way: instead of tapping Learn , hold down Learn and turn Add Note . You'll hear a single tone change in pitch as
you turn the knob. Release Learn when you’ve found the pitch you want, then continue with the procedure as normal.
When adding notes using the Pitch and Learn jacks, the root note will always be the first note you enter.
However the scale is entered, the first two notes define the first interval of your scale. The next note defines the second
interval, etc. Rather than storing the notes that you entered, the Ensemble Oscillator stores the intervals.
Changes to Controls in Learn Mode
The Scale knob and switch no longer select the scale to load but instead select where the new scale will be saved. If the
Scale switch is flipped to 12TET at the moment you enter a new note, the resulting interval will be quantized to the nearest
semitone. By flipping the switch between Free (or Octave) and 12TET , you can quantize some of the intervals and leave
others un-quantized. Note that if you save a scale into the 12TET group, all the intervals will be quantized.
The Detune , Balance , Spread , and Cross FM knobs and jacks are disabled in Learn mode. The other jacks and knobs
work as normal: Twist and Warp modify the waveshape, and the Root jack offsets notes as they’re entered. Be aware if you
have CV patched into the Scale jack because it effects where the scale is saved.
Coarse Tuning
As described in the tutorial, you can fine-tune the last note you entered by holding down Learn and turning Fine Tune . You
can also coarsely tune the last note. First, hold down Learn and turn Fine Tune . While still holding down Learn , turn Add
Note and the pitch will change by larger amounts. Note that if you turn the Add Note knob while not holding down the Learn
button, the pitch will jump by a large amount if you proceed to fine-tune the note.
Using Other CV and Gate Sources
You can use any CV and trigger or gate source patched into the Pitch and Learn jacks, a keyboard or sequencer is not
required. For instance, you could run a slow LFO into Pitch and use a clock (or manual gates) to add notes. If the Scale
switch is set to 12TET, your scale can be quantized without needing an external quantizer module.
Failure to Save
When you press Learn to save your scale, it normally will flash green to indicate the new scale was saved into the slot and
group set by the Scale knob and switch. If the Learn button does not flash green, the scale couldn’t be saved because it
wasn’t valid. To be valid, a scale has to have at least two notes which are at least 10 cents (1/10th of a semitone) apart.
Free group factory scales Intervals Comments
Slot 1 Perfect fifths spiral the circle of fifth that does not repeat every octave
Slot 2 Whole tones M2, repeat First mode of limited transposition
Slot 3 Messiaen #2 m2, M2, repeat Second mode of limited transposition
Slot 4 Messiaen #3 M2, m2, m2, repeat Third mode of limited transposition
Slot 5 Messiaen #4 m2, m2, m3, m2, repeat Fourth mode of limited transposition
Slot 6 Bohlen-Pierce 13 steps per tritave The scale repeats every 3x the frequency
Slot 7 Bohlen-Pierce major
triad
1, 7, 11, repeat The scale repeats every 3x the frequency
Slot 8 Bohlen-Pierce minor
triad
1, 5, 11, repeat The scale repeats every 3x the frequency
Slot 9 Wendy Carlos alpha 78 cents
Slot 10 Wendy Carlos beta 63.8 cents
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