3 years later, still the most comprehensive tutorial for the FM. The systematic approach and the correct and precise language helped me understand the structure of FM synthesis without "shortcuts" and unneeded simplifications, yet in a very short and concise format. This applies to all other videos in the series. Thank you!
Thanks OS! You really are extremely clever and such a good teacher. I will eventually watch all your Volca FM vids. My game plan is to write down the stages of what you have shown us and turn it into a stage by stage exercise. By writing it down logically and in order it helps stuff to "Sink in!" I mean ....writing with a pen! With little drawings here and there....maybe a bit of colour too. We all like flashing lights and colour! Thanks again
You have the BEST video series on the Korg Volca FM I have seen on RU-vid so far. After watching all your videos now I actually understand this complex little synth and I'm creating some really interesting patches with it. Great instruction, thank you!
Thank you thank you thank you. Thank you so much for this tutorial series. Actual deep and descriptive dives into the corners of this wonderful box of gears and wires!
Bruh, loving these videos, this machine has gone from.what I thought was a basic synth keyboard to a powerhouse of sound and I've o ly watched 3 vids 🤣 got this puppy as part of a set and now I'm overjoyed! Your teaching style is slow and understandable as well man. I'm a complete novice on the technical side of things, so it's making sense to me which is good ✌️ thanks dude, much love
That's great to hear thanks for watching - oh and make sure you check out my editor Synthmata - it might make life easier for you. Just search for it in my videos!
This is still a helpful video for those who are interested in FM synthesis. It is clear, rooted to personnal experience and down to earth, without useless excitement. The fact you summarized everything at the end was also very important, made everything more clear. The voice was way lower -in frequency and volume - than the sounds and sometimes it was difficult to hear both, you had to adjust the volume up or down ^_^ Many thanks!
I studied music to masters degree level and never knew there was a term “burbly” 😜 Seriously though, awesome tutorial series only just discovered. Thanks so much. Cheers. Lee
I just bought this, and wanted to thank you for the explanations. I got the FM to make soundscapes for my animation and some sound effects. seeing how much of a range you can get with the Volca FM, I decided to learn it for future stuff! Glad to have discovered your channel :)
Thank you for providing such a valuable tutorial on fm synthesis. Like a commenter previously stated, now I can approach this little beast with less trepidation.
+80m tekeste great to hear that! There's nothing scary under the hood - it's just a little different to the types of synths a lot of us learn about first. I hope you enjoy tweaking and creating new sounds! Thanks for watching.
OK, this is fantastic stuff. But when I first started watching these, the first thing I started looking for on my volca was the “INlt” preset so I could work along with you. Of course there’s no such thing on this unit so I went and found another video to find out how to do it. I think it would be extremely valuable for those of us working along with your vids to know exactly what your initialized settings are before even getting into the basics of this incredibly complex instrument. Don’t you think?
Hi there; the easiest way to get an initialised patch is to use an external editor which generates one itself -for example the free, browser based editor I've created called "Synthmata" (check the videos on my channel for more details). But to do it manually, in short: set all of the operator ratios to 1, set all of their levels to 0 (except for operator 1), set all the operator envelopes to have rates set to maximum and levels 1, 2 and 3 to max, level 4 to zero... The other parameters should be a sensible default value - 0 or a mid point value. But, doing this all by hand takes ages, so using an editor's initialised patch feature is probably preferable if you can. If not - make sure you save the initialise patch in a slot on the Volca and don't overwrite it! I hope that helps!
First of all, I can't thank you enough for making these videos. They are very helpful. Not to mention the editor. Way to take some initiative on that one. here's my problem. While turning operators on an off I stumbled across a situation where all operators where off but I still had a tone coming out. I tried with and without my controller keyboard connected. the tone is really faint in the middle of the register but if I play all the way up in the highest octave of the keyboard it became really loud. Has anyone stumbled across a phantom tone like this? To be clear I went through each operator and turned them off as well as turning off the level scaling and pretty much everything else I could think of...that sound is still there. What am I forgetting?
I've encountered this on mine, so I think it's a "feature" of the Volca to be honest. If I recall, the loudness altered based on the algorithm I chose, but I might be mistaken. I didn't see it as much of a problem as if the sound is even happening with an operator turned on, it's drowned out. But yeah - that happens on mine too.
Fascinating how you selected the "main" options by operator to show a quick and objective result with just a few changes. Korg's bad for providing such sucky patches imo. Looking forward to see the rest of this series. Many thanks
+Ruffo I'm glad you enjoyed it. I don't think Korg's patches are bad, I actually like a lot of them, but they do tend towards being "classic FM" sounds, but ironically, FM synths don't need to be like that. I hope you'll enjoy the rest of the series.
Great series of videos! The only thing I'd change is the mix between your voice and the volca out. Your voice is a bit low in comparison and wearing headphones at a reasonable level to hear your voice properly, the volca is just too noisy.
Thanks again for these videos. With every new one, I'm a little less petrified of hitting that "edit" button. One question though. When one presses "edit," does the menu default to the first parameter for the first operator OR, does the FM remember the last parameter altered and go to that? I'm hoping the former because, as a blind user, I can memorise the parameter table but if the FM stores menu position, I'm screwed. Ooh! Another question. I get the "carrier/modulator" concept BUT why then does the FM have six operators? If operators can only either be carrier or modulator, why have more than two?
+Dino Goldie as long as you don't switch patches the edit menu remembers where you last were. However, it's easy to reorient yourself because the parameter knob stops at either end rather than cycling round again, so just turn the parameter knob lots to the right or left to get to the start or end. As to why there are 6 operators? Why does a Mini Moog have 3 oscillators? Because layering is awesome! But the story is actually a little more interesting than that - we'll get to that when we start talking about "algorithms" though :) Thanks for checking out the video and glad they're giving you the courage to dive on in!
+Oscillator Sink Thanks again. How/where do I decide whether an operator is a carrier or a modulator? Edit parameter 1 just appears to turn an operator on/off.
+Dino Goldie so, that's where "algorithms" come in. That's a couple of videos away, but as a spoiler: the card that came with the Volca with the parameters on one side and the "flow diagrams" on the back?.. Check out that card and have a play with the "algorithm" knob.
It seems that once an algorithm is chosen one can stop thinking in terms of "operators". After choosing an algorithm the term "operator" becomes a bit academic and it might be helpful to stop referring to "operators" and instead refer to "carriers" and "modulators". This was something that tripped me and many others up with the DX7. A really bad analogy is buying two vehicles. The word "vehicle" (operator) can mean either a car or a truck. After I choose my two vehicles (a car and a truck) I no longer refer to either as "my vehicle", I refer to either as "my car" (modulator) or "my truck" (operator). "I'm going to take my car into the city." "I'm going to take my truck camping." Not, "I'm going to take my vehicle into the city. " Not, "I'm going to take my vehicle camping."
I like (and hope I use, but I recorded this series a long time ago) "operator x, acting as a carrier/modulator". It's long, but it highlights an important property of the operators: they have exactly the same parameters and properties regardless of the job they are doing. Their behaviour is consistent no matter where they are placed in the algorithm. (Also, it doesn't apply to the DX7, but it's worth noting that other FM engines allow an operator to be both at once, which makes the consistent naming even more important - the Digitone is one example where this applies. To take your analogy to the extreme - I could be driving a car and a truck at the same time, it just depends which exit I take off the motorway). That might be, as you say, an academic way of looking at it, but I do think it's an important concept if you're going to go on to understand algorithms.
@@OscillatorSink "I could be driving a car and a truck at the same time, . . " Schrodinger's cat! I love it. Don't get me wrong, your series is incredibly useful; a whole generation of musicians and producers wish we would have had something like this back in the day. In my original reply I only meant to point out how a lot of us got tripped up by the three terms when the DX7 debuted; as if the UI wasn't tripping us up enough already.
Thank you so much for this great guide! However, if you (or anyone) could say more about your "init" patch so that you and I are starting form the exact same place it would help a noob like me trying to follow along right from the start. I tried following with "Volcanic" but couldn't reproduce the great changes you were getting from the slider (and also got much different effects due to unknown-to-me parameters engaged elsewhere). Thanks!!
Hi there, the easiest way is using my free editor synthmata to send an Init patch, because it's a lot of parameters to change: ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-ysJ_uxxepAY.html it all just runs inside your browser, all you need is some kind of midi interface. Otherwise, off the top of my head, you'll need algorithm 5, all operator ratios at 1, and probably set envelope level 4 to 0, all the other levels to maximum, all envelope rates near maximum.... There's some other stuff, that'll be the main things though. But like I say - just use the free editor if you can!
Hello. How did you get different info in the display? Mine does not show this. Can you explain how to reach these parameters? Thank you in advance, Thumbs up and another subscription. Your videos are high quality in terms of images and content.
I don't understand where you are starting from. At the beginning of the video your screen says "Init". When I hit EDIT button it starts me off with whatever preset I have selected, but you seem to be starting from scratch. Can you explain how you set up before this video begins?
Best way is to use the Init patch in synthmata: ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-ysJ_uxxepAY.html That'd also be a quicker way to edit the patches too.
Any chance you would release the “init” sine wave patch? The one you use in the tutorial videos I mean; so I can follow along as you make the sound design alterations. That way I can try mimicking the parameter changes as you go. Thanks. Great videos dude! P.S. I tried rewatching the series a couple times, and I could have sworn you mentioned the source or method; but I was unable to find it.
you can get something like it with algo 1 with 3->6 disabled and 1 and 2 set to: EGr1_99 EGL1_99 EGr2_00 EGL2_00 EGr3_00 EGL3_00 EGr4_99 EGL4_00 LSbP_50 LSLd_00 LSrd_00 LSLC_03 LSrC_03 OrS_00 ANS_00 hus_03 OLUL_99 OSCN_00 FrEC_00 FrEF_00 detu_00
i have a problem knowing how did you get to the simple sine wave i turn all the carriers in cero and then i increment only one carrier and i dont hear anything
I'm just beginning to try and understand this. Recently got one. Q: is what your doing there, with the changing of freq & so on the same as scrolling through the different Algorithms [carriers & mods]? It would obviously be easier to not have to "edit".. but I guess that's why I'm asking. It definitely makes a difference & some really cool effects. Thanks for your already given great advice!
Not really, I talk about what the algorithms are in another video and it's not really the same at all. The good news is that I made a free editor if you're tired of scrolling through parameters: ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-ysJ_uxxepAY.html
Is it possible to accidentally make the patch sound out-of tune by messing with oscillator frequency? How do I make sure that the "C" key will actually be playing C note when pressed for example?
If the operator ratio is a power of 2 (so 1, 2, 4, 8, etc.) it'll be "in tune". If you modulate an operator with an operator where there's a simple ratio relationship between them, then things should stay in tune. Outside of that - it might be out of tune.
hey there. it’s a phenomenal tutorial series on volca fm. got one for myself around 3 years ago along with a couple of other devices from volca series, and just now managed to search for a proper tutorial to understand this one in particular. and i gotta say these videos got everything i needed in a super accessible format. thanks, really appreciate! i gotta question - i’m trying to replicate your sound with a “burbly” character that you got closer to the end of this video, where you cover the detune feature - 14:29 - to use it as a starting point for some of my ideas to develop further. i’m getting close, but something is missing for sure. could you share what are the setting for all the parameters you used in this very patch, if it’s possible, of course? I followed the link to your website and there are some patches for volca fm shared there, maybe this one is listed somewhere in the list there? thanks in advance once again, great work on these vids, man!
Hey, I don't have the 'finished' patches from these videos, but it sounds like a basic 2 op patch (for example just use operators 1 and 2 on algorithm 5). It sounds like a 2:1 relationship, so set the carrier (operator 1) coarse frequency to 2, and the modulator (operator 2) coarse frequency to 1. Set the level of op 1 to full and the level of op 2 to around 90 to start, but use your ears. Then the big trick is to apply detune to the modulator. If you have a midi interface, I'd recommend using my free editor, synthmata as it can give you a nice starting point (setting your envelopes appropriately etc.).
@@OscillatorSink thanks for the quick respond! i think i’ve set all the FreC, FreF, OLevel, Detune parameters as well as Algorithm correctly, following the video across the timeline and paying attention to the values where they are shown. Envelope-related values are all almost straight 90-99 as from what I am able to hear. the question left however is about all the parameters of these two operators that are left behind the scenes - LSBP, LSRC, LSLD, LSRD, LSLC, ORS, ANS, etc. Is there anything special to those values worth paying attention to? thanks again!
@@OscillatorSink thx, will try this out. there’s a few more episodes from this series I haven’t watched yet, i suppose those must be the ones that touch these parameters. appreciate your feedback and educational contribution. subscribed and will be definitely diving into more content that’s on this channel and on your website from now on
Followed the same steps you did. got total different results. Would be nice if they would have a sine wave preset would safe a lot of time.. If you have an ipad you get a visual patchmaker for the FM. Too bad i don't own a ipad..
+pyrox yes, the lack of an initial patch is annoying, but take a look at my video on "Synthmata" on this channel - you might find that I've made a visual editor just for you ;)
+pyrox you're welcome. If nothing else, it's a convenient way to grab an initialised patch - the initialised patch in synthmata is what I use in a lot of these videos.
+pyrox I hope you enjoy using it. It's actually had a number of upgrades since I did that video. I'm also using it in the "patch building" videos (but I recommend watching the Understanding Sound Design ones first because they'll make more sense after that).
Is there anywhere to find like text files for patches? I dont have the midi/computer at the moment to import patches but would like to try programming some with a cheatsheet lol
Not a dumb question - I built an initial patch which was just that starting sine. If you have a USB-midi interface, then my Web based editor can send that same patch to your Volca: synthmata.com/volca-fm/
Love the explanations! However, I am trying to figure out how you are producing a simple sine wave (rather than one of the on-board presets) so that i can play along on my Volca FM and make it happen myself. :/
If you have a midi interface so you can hook your Volca up to your computer, then check out this video with the editor I made, you can use this to set up an initial patch: ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-ysJ_uxxepAY.html Otherwise, try setting your algorithm to 6, turn off operators 3, 4, 5 and 6 and set operator 1's level to full and operator 2's level to 0.
i'm trying to follow along with my volga FM but. I saved an initial patch which I renamed and muted all but operator 1 & 2 but they sound nothing like yours (I used a the drum hit sound as saving means overwriting one of the programmes and I like this one the least!) could you explain how I would 'initialise' the programme so I could follow along.. i'm really excited to try using those modulator operators later to make long evolving ambient notes. (but I need a simple sine wave to start)
If you have a midi interface the easiest option would be to go to this page (on Chrome browser) and use it to send init patch to your Volca. synthmata.com/volca-fm/ Otherwise: Set algorithm to 32, set the EGR1 and EGR4 to about 80, set EGL1 to 100, set FreC to 0, 1 or 2 and everything else to zero (repeat for each oscillator). (it might also be easier to do the editing of the patch from synthmata as well - less parameter traversal).
@@OscillatorSink sweet. i spotted you using that in another video and have saved it when you mentioned it. it looked much easier to use then the similarly named menus; i keep getting impatient going back an forth adjusting the envelope and changing the wrong values. I'm am properly amazed at the sound the FM makes and am really glad i got one (it was expensive for me) but I can hear long life in it,. even if the menus are a bit hieroglyphic . !
+Tomasz Włazinski thank you. I believe in this video its algorithm 5, but pretty much any algorithm where operator 2 is modulating operator 1 would work the same - just turn off the other operators. If you need an easy way to get an initialised patch to follow along with, check out my video on "Synthmata" which is my free editor for the Volca FM that runs right in the browser!
Hey so i downloaded your init patch to try and mirror what you're doing in each lesson, and off the bat the OLVL parameter on Ops1 & 2 doesn't seem to change when i adjust the slider value, except maybe get a bit louder at the very top. Am i missing something? Thanks again for the videos :)
+SeniorBeatBox ah, that is probably because of the algorithm. By default the Init Patch is algorithm 32, but in general, unless I specify otherwise you'll need to use algorithm 5 to play along at home. For these first few lessons you'll also want to turn off everything but operators 1 and 2. Sorry that isn't at all clear from the video, ironically it'd become easier to understand a little later on in the Algorithms video, but when I'm talking about operator 1 being the carrier and operator 2 being the modulator, you need to look for an algorithm where 1 is at the bottom and is connected to 2 just above it (as is the case with algorithm 5). But yes, in short - use algorithm 5. That's my fault, I should make that clearer. I'll go through the video descriptions ASAP and add that detail in.
Just got one yesterday as I mentioned before and let the exploration begin! One quick question though - is it normal I can hear the background hum in the headphones connected directly to Volca FM? Something like constant B-E chord/ditone which doesn't seem to be affected by volume or any other parameter?
+Łukasz Bieliz are you running it on batteries or a PSU at the moment. That sounds like a noisy power supply to me. Try it on batteries and see if it goes away would be my suggestion.
Oscillator Sink it's on batteries and checked on 3 different headphones connected directly to volca. The hum still there. Same with the proper 9v 1700mA psu from my microkorg s. Actually that tone comes from the built-in speaker with headphones plugged out as well. That annoying sound seem to blend somehow when I connect volca fm to my external speakers through the mixer but still - when I'm on the headphones I got this impression like I forgot to turn off the fan in the bathroom. Doesn't seem to be right.
If you use my free editor at synthmata.com/volca-fm/ that can send you an Init to work with (and also save you searching for parameters). You just need a USB midi interface and a Chrome based browser (Chrome, Edge, Opera, etc.) - it all runs in the browser.
Thanks, can you give a scale for the hange in semitones like detunte is, as example, 0,3 cent for all exept octave. Thats what I m badly missing and KORG seems not to be able to answer this question to my shop. Next, if i remember well the DX7 will set the modulators in relation to the carrier. so 0,5 is a octave below carrier. here this seems to have no relationship to the carrier. can you confirm?
+Tigrar I'm not totally sure what you're asking for your first question, sorry... In terms of the second question - the ratio of the operators is relatively to an 8' range (in the old tradition of organs). The ratio of the operators are relative to this range, and not affected by the relationship between the operators (ie the fact that the operator is a modulator doesn't make a difference, a ratio of 2 would still represent the same frequency no matter where it is in an algorithm). This behaviour is the same on the Volca FM and the DX7 (and all the DX synths). The confusion might be that the lowest ratio on the Volca is 0 and not 0.5 - but the two are equivalent in terms of the sounds. Sorry I couldn't answer your first question, but if you could clarify it, I could give it another go, but hope the rest of it helped.
I like them both. I think the Volca is incredible for being essentially a dx7 for 150 quid. The Digitone is a great implementation of FM, but far away from that classic Yamaha setup, paired with an incredible sequencer.
Getting mine tommorow, quick question tho Is there a way to go to a "clean" patch to start making my own sound from scratch? similiar to shift + play on the monologue? cheers
+NEOANGIN there isn't. I've actually mentioned this to some people at Korg as something that I thought was an oversight. I have made my own "Init" patch which I leave saved to slot 30, perhaps I'll do a video describing it if that strikes you as being useful?
Just came here to ask if you could show how to prepare the init patch just to make things easier in upcoming episodes and look - somebody already mentioned that would be helpful. Maybe episode 1.6 would be good idea then :)
+Łukasz Bieliz I'll probably do it after the next couple of episodes because by then we'll have discussed the main points pertinent to building a good Init patch. So... Probably 5.5.
How did you achieve the “init” patch? I feel like having an initialized patch, it could help me learn better. I’m having trouble trying to follow along because I don’t have that basic patch and I can’t figure out how to revert a patch to that basic sine wave.
If you have a midi interface: synthmata.com/volca-fm/ can give you an init patch - this is the editor I built to make working with the Volca easier - it's free and runs in the browser. Otherwise algo 5, turn off operators 3-6, turn down the level of operator 2 is an OK starting point, but there may be other parameters that you need to "zero" as well.
@Log Head you'll have to do it by hand based on the second part of my reply. Algorithm 5, turn off operators 3-6, turn down the level of operator 2. You'll also want to set up your envelopes to be organ-like so, Level 4 to 0, other levels to max, rates all near max but a little below.
@@OscillatorSink oh gosh I missed that second part of your first reply! Thank you so much! I appreciate the speedy reply! I’m working my way through the series, I’ll continue to inquire with things as I have questions! Thank you again!
+Jacob Eby you certainly can, and I will do a video on what I like to have in an Init patch, but check out my video on Synthmata to see a really easy way to get one!
Oscillator Sink just watched more in depth about this synth (cuckoo's long video) and this synth is definitely amazing! I want to look into that as well, it sounds very amazing. Thank you for all you're doing for everyone!
+80m tekeste it's set on algorithm 5, but any of the algorithms where operator 1 is a carrier being modulated by operator 2 will get you to the same sounds. Check out the algorithm card that came with the Volca FM.
Thank you for the info and your patience for such novice question. The FM is is my favorite after the Keys, and am really appreciative of your demos. I feel there is more joy enstored for me from the FM, after understanding additive synthesis ( or is it Frequency modulation synthesis?) I notice a parallel patter for the operators on #5. There is a yellow looper bracelet on the side of operator 6 and 5. Does that mean the modulator is being modulated by the output of the the resulting modulation?
What you're seeing there is operator feedback. In some cases it's an operator modulating itself, or it could be an operator swinging back into an earlier one. How much this feedback is happening is governed by the FDBK parameter in the "All Operators" section. I'll talk about it more in another video, but try it with a modulator feeding back into itself with a low pitch - it can be a great way to introduce a similar kind of richness that you'd get from a filter with it's resonance turned up when used carefully. I'm glad the series is helping you enjoy the Volca FM! Thanks for watching.
