INTRODUCTION TO FM SYNTHESIS 

Another way to explain fm synthesis is to show how it occurs in the real world. Eg. when you strike a bell, cymbal or guitar string, the energy travels through the metal as transversal waves that bounces of the edges and intermodulates in much same way as a fm algorithm.

This and the Andrew Huang tutorial, best FM descriptions for everyone (not just beginners)

Thanks for the shoutout, Bo. Excellent in-depth video. Your visual style is noteworthy, too.

The way I've tried to understand FM is to just examine one operator (OP) and one modulator (MOD). The OP is the part we hear, starting with a pure sine wave with the first gen FM synths, like the DX7. The MOD is a bit like vibrato, but higher frequency. As the frequency rises, more harmonics are introduced. This is in a way the opposite of an analog subtractive synth, which starts out with harmonically rich waveforms, then using the filters to remove some of the harmonics. The complicated part is how the envelopes of the MODs interact. The algorithms (ALG) are different recipes for how the OPs and MODs affect one another. You can stack 6 sines with no MOD interaction to create a simple drawbar organ model. I think from memory this is ALG 32 on the DX7 (or Dexed, Korg Volca FM). I can't remember exactly why, but ALG 14 is great for bass. One method I used to use was just change OPs and see what happened. Occasionally this led to some very happy accidenta. One positive of FM is that it is difficult to get tired of it. You could study it for years and still not reach the bottom of its sonic potiential. A good antidote to GAS (Gear Aquisition Syndrome).

Perfect timing, I grabbed a second hand Volca fm just the other day to dip my toe in the fm waters 😊 . Love these types of videos from you @BoBeats!

Hey men, as a french who dont really speak very well english. I understood everything thanks to your good diction. Thanks a lot !

This was great Bo. Clear and practical.

Hey Bo I've been playing music for 7 years and producing for 2, and your videos have greatly helped to not be afraid of and understand synthesis, plus your reviews are the best, Thanks!

I've been composing music and making beats for quite a while. Thank you for explaining this and introducing me to something I should have learned about years ago.

Haven’t seen your new uploads in my recommended lately, I saw this and immediately clicked. I’m an fm fanboy as of recently, so this is great content.

You're an absolute savior, I learnt quite a lot and own a MODX so it's just perfect :) Thank you Bo, very nice video!

You are an amazing human being. Bless your soul, sir.

Fantastic breakdown of FM. Thank you for making this!

Very digestible, Thanks BoBeats--now I will be able to tell all of my non-music geek friends about the difference between carriers and modulators, phase and amplitude envelopes! They will love it!

Thanks Bo. Got me motivated to explore more of my Montage 7...

I've used FM a lot and it really isn't as nightmarish as people think it would be. The most important part that people ignore is the level scale. If you want a balances sound in all the ranges you should learn how to use it. It's a bit like a keytrack but more flexible and useful as it has curves and sometimes a break point. It's best to start at the break point, which may be centre by default, as this area changes the least with level scale amendments. This is because this is the start point and as we get further away the curve can have a wider range. So get the tone right at the centre. Now go to the highest range and change the levels scales (it's basically another amplitude amount of the carrier/ modulator) and try decreasing some of the weird and annoying digital sounds you may have. This makes for a smoother and more natural sound. In the lower range increasing the same digital sounds can add much needed harmonics to make the sound less muddy, and add a lot of phasing modulation which sounds good. You could also use level scale as a type of EQ. You could have one carrier/modulator to be used specifically for each side of the level scale.

Great video! Thanks a lot for sharing. Keep on with these great tutorial videos. Interesting idea to think about FM as a kind of modular synthesis approach. It never occurred to me but now as you say it ... I have to go experiment with my MODX now :-)

Great video, Bo. I love my MODX 8, especially the FM engine. Still, I wish there were more videos like yours that go into some of the finer points of programming the beast.

Perfect intro! Thanks!

Thanks heaps ! i have always loved FM synthesis because it is beautiful complex digital sound that is quite unique , i just got the Plogue chipsynth MD and this video was very helpful !

Great Video. Thanks for your easy explanations 🙌🏽

Such a clear, excellent demo/tutorial on a much misunderstood subject !

I love this video. It definitely took a lot of the mystery out of FM synthesis, which always made me not even want to get into it. Great work!

thank you for this! it's all starting to make sense!

Wow this is cool! I’ve had my DX7 for a few months now and getting into it further has always kinda scared me, but now I’m gonna go for it! Thank you so much for this video, Mr Bob Eats! I’m gonna make some dope synthwave!

Great explanation as always Bo, it’s really helped! :)

Thank you, very informative and helpful... Just got Volca FM recently, and that definitely is quite a journey to say the least :D

16:28 Italian moment! Great video, it's been very useful for me, thanks!

This video is genuinely amazing. Please make more content like this!

So far the best FM tutorial

hey man thanks for the excellent explanation in this video !

Yo this was the perfect intro thank you!

I have a Volca FM and I found this useful thank you!🎹🎧💫✨👽👍✌

Thank you!! This video really help me to understand FM synthesis♥️♥️

This video is soooooo good.

Thank you very informative

Thank you so much! You have a great charisma in teaching! :)

I have a Digitone and I found this video to be very helpful; thank you.

fantastic lesson!

항상 감사드립니다.

Great, simple intro. Inspired me to do more work with the MOD-7 engine in my Kronos.

Thanks a lot ! Great video

Thank you Bo for the well done explanation. I had a Yamaha DX21 in 1991 as my first synth. I always said "This thing is made like a tank but whoever designed the language was a sadist!" LOL! I eventually got something easier- A yamaha CS6X with the DX7 exp card and voice editor....menu diving is not one of my favorite hobbies.

Thank you, Bo for this presentation. I'm currently considering buying an OPSIX, and your video is really helpful.

This is the best hardware FM system I've ever seen. I still prefer FM8, but cool keyboard for sure.

Hi I have found your video really useful to learn more about the FM Synthesis. This method was also used in some arcade, console and PC videogames in form of the YM2151, YM2612 or YM3812 yamaha sound chips used during 80s and 90s. They bring me such good memories of my childhood...

This is a great video explaining something rather arcane quite well. It also is why I stick with FM synths with presets..lol

14:44 these chords reminds me of a Tron Soundtrack made by Daft Punk called Solar Sailer, what a lovely progression !

Hoooooly I still have so much to learn (and understand) about patches on a DX100

great introduction to fm synthesis, would help me a lot with my fm synthesizer, if i only had one :(

Amazing ❤️

Brilliant job Bo :)

With mad fame, best video on fm

This was an immensely helpful video! I already had a good idea about a lot of these concepts individually, but this video helped me understand how to use all these techniques in unison to create some cool sounds. Great video.

Love the hair man

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Thanks! Now I can easily design sound in my dx7

The explanation in this video is exceedingly clear and useful. Just what I need before trying to figure out my new DX7 V that came with my Arturia V7 collection. Thank you. If I wasn't such a thrifty old guy (aka cheap), I'd become a patron. Well, maybe I will anyway. You deserve it. I'll think about it. - Regards

I hope one day we get some crazy DX synth with like 10 operators and a knob per function interface....but such a synth would need to be bigger than an OB-Xa.

Fantastic video! I recently got the Dirtywave M8 and want to learn its FM synth engine. This video is a great starting point. Thank you.

The Volca FM is better than I thought once I used the Synthmata online editor. I've made sounds in Dexed and sent them to the Volca FM but they don't quite sound the same. I think the best solution is to do the midi out mod. Make a sound with Synthmata. Save it to Dexed. Sounds like hard work but I feel you'll be able to get the best out of the Volca FM this way in terms of making original sounds.

Bro your background music gets me every time I think I’m hearing trippie redds love scars

Additive synthesis and subtractive synthesis is like the inductive logic and deductive logic of creating sounds.

Oh shit your the guy who made the circuit soundpacks i bought

Tack. Volca FM är billig men många gånger vet jag inte vad jag håller på med. Väldigt lite info som visas samtidigt

A really good tutorial and ease of understanding. This is good info, helped me better understand FM and also the additional resources Bo points out are a great help. Clear, concise, and straight to the point. Bo has done it again! Bo makes a good point here, the carriers need to be highlighted by a different color in the MODX in the number block, this would help in ease of workflow in creating a new sound in FM on the MODX. This would seem like a simple change that could be made by a future update that would greatly improve the MODX especially for folks like me.

Hey Bo, great presentation on FM synthesis....your intro is so dead on. Some of us know very little about synthesis....like almost nothing lol You did such a great job of introducing and explaining the FM format so that anyone unfamiliar could understand it.... Excellent work!

I will never say Moe Dee X (for more weird synth pronunciations check my IG & Stories: instagram.com/bobeats)

Really good shit

nice!

Here are two different questions: - Which Synthesizer should I use to manually change the amplitude, waveform and frequency of the single harmonics? - Is there even a way of hearing real sawtooth waves, if speakers always need some time to reset their position?

Is it Frequrency modulation or freaky modulation?

What a great in-depth introduction to FM synthesis Mr Beats, and not a Digitone in sight hehehe ...... ;)

Well. The first problem with FM synth (that is 80:s 90:s Yamaha) is the meny diving. Like my Yamaha V50 and SY77. You are cutting big corners with that app. Anyway. I'm enjoy your contents. As always.

I've been considering Akemie's Castle for my eurorack. We're talking 5-voice polyphony potential in 38 hp! Not too shabby, but since the Castle has no heads-up display, I wonder if the dial-based interface might actually make FM tougher?

Crazy thing about Fm is even through Bo kept it simple my head still exploded :/

Thanks for the intro video. On the MODX/Montage, can VCFs etc. be used on the FM sounds?

At first I thought that was a mega display and I was like: Dude, what a great idea! LOL

Are there times you wanna hear the modulators?

WOW, how your Channel explodes :) I kneel down in front of your sucess!

Here you use the MODX but will this translate to my DX9? It has less options I believe. Bought it to support a friend, but really want to learn to create sounds.

Me personally find claim "FM synthesis is difficult/complex" is at least controversial. Any synthesis if it's not trivial (like just passing saw or square through LPF/HPF/BPF/etc) is difficult. For example, If you're passing oscilator through a distortion or a saturator, even if it's just a regular hard clipper or tube amp (emulated or physical) with just one parameter "drive" it depends a lot on the phase response and frequency response of the signal what you'll get as a result. It means that if you'll put an allpass filter between a generator and a distortion you would hear the diffirence if and only if the distortion is not bypassed. If you're mixing two oscillators and they're detuned, it will cause filtering because their phases are not aligned. Chorus, flangers and reverb also create a lot of phase cancellation along the spectrum, etc.

Hi, where shall i start as a beginner ?

This fm synthesis is so interesting. What's some of the best fm synths to get? I'm looking for one I have my eye on hydra synth you think that can do fm well?

Great demo and explanation. One thing still not sits well in my brain is what exactly the modulator oscillators modulating in the carrier? I do understand when you use LFO to modulate pitch (it modulates.. pitch). In modular synth its very clear what each module modulating because you manually patch it. But in case of FM synth the modulation parameter is usually can't be changed (like in DX7 or Dexed) right? So what does it modulating? Is it the frequency (like the name FM suggests :/) but then isn't it just adding to frequencies on top each other basically addictive synth? I mite said a bunch of nonsense so sorry in advance still very new to synths. Thanks :)

Me watching this to try to figure out Fm so I can start making music on an old soundcard with Yamaha OPL3 chip and it's 2 operator synthesis. (thought there's is also a 4op mode but that also eats a sound channel)

I still have my rmx1.

Here is a link to Manny's FM-X Tutorial series: ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-YWvSglv3iEA.html&feature=emb_logo&ab_channel=Dr.Synth

The yamaha-link in the resources had (slightly) changed. Is a dead link now.

BO BEATS. I read this Bob Eats at first 🤔 🎶

To make a long story short: it's basically up to experimentation lol there's no way to predict how the modulations would work outside using pure sinewaves and even then when there are too much of them it becomes impossible again

I have that same espresso maker!

How to make a Bass, I mean Drone, Pad Bass type sound. Happens to me all the time. 😆

oh shit my name is Beau and i make beats too.. Guess ill watch your vid and subscribe.

i watched the whole thing twice and still dont understand anything help

But what does Bob eat?

Frequency modulation (phase modulation) and vocoders have something in common (modulator and carrier). What happens when you run a fart through a vocoder? A: fart modulation!

Hard to want to subscribe when you've got a ridiculous amount of adds but thx for what I could get threw

my fm synthesizing sounds like a robot with hershey squirts

See you later ... operator.