8
GETTING STARTED
Erase Routine
It is best to start with a cleared memory. To Reset the Phonogene and start fresh
you need to enter the Erase Routine, where you may erase Splice markers and the
Audio Buffer (aka Loop, aka Recording, aka Sample). To erase all Splices, press and
hold SPLICE button (18) until the REC LED (17) starts flashing. All Splices are erased
once the REC LED begins flashing. While still holding SPLICE button, and with the
REC LED still blinking, the audio buffer may be erased as well by pressing REC button
(16) once. If you do not press REC button, then your recorded audio will remain, and
only the Splices will be erased. The Phonogene will continue to play the loop until you
erase, and you should release the SPLICE button as soon as you have completed your
desired Erase Routine.
Signal To Be Captured!
The Signal IN (2) has a gain control (1) that accommodates modular synthesizer sig-
nals as well as line level sources. Early electronic music composers often recorded
pure sine waves to tape at different frequencies and amplitudes, and then edited and
spliced these sounds into the musical phrases, but this was largely because there did
not exist the means to control the electronic sounds. Laboratory instruments were
being used as musical instruments, and these tools lacked the vast controls needed
for musical expression. The arrival of the VCO, VCA and Sequencer made complete
control of Frequency and Amplitude possible, on a time scale determined by the com-
poser. Honestly, the most interesting source material for the Phonogene is not your
synthesizer, but instead every other sound that surrounds you, so grab a microphone
or patch into the internet and find some seemingly mundane sound to massage into a
gorgeous, jumbled up symphony of micronoise.
Recording Time and Quality
Audio Buffer is 2MB, nonvolatile, high number of fast read and write cycles. Nonvola-
tile means the Phonogene remembers both samples and splices on power down. The
high number of read and write cycles is key to longevity of the module, high speed
read and write cycles allow for short sample times, making the microsound possible.
Because the record and playback frequency is continuously variable from 88.2khz to
5.5khz by the VARI-SPEED control (8, 9, 10), the longest possible recording or loop
length, is determined by the speed of Playback/ Record. Therefore, long recordings
may be achieved, but at the cost of a lower sample rate, meaning the resulting re-
cordings will be of lower sound quality. A “Mid-Fi” setting may be achieved by setting
VARI-SPEED at around 50%, so that BOTH VARI-SPEED and Splice Indicator LEDs (6 &
7) are OFF. This records with good quality, a 2 second record length, and allows for a
good range of speed variation. Playback will be stopped while you record.
Signal OUT
That the Phonogene exist within the modular system is a huge advantage. Many
Analog Synthesis techniques and processes will work well with the Phonogene. Crea-
tive filtering, especially Low Pass and Band Pass, will prove very useful in controlling
the textures, clicks and aliasing of the Phonogene. Amplitude Modulation, Echo, Reverb
are also commonly suggested post processing techniques in microsound and granular
synthesis.
