Working with modulators

• 57 0

  Message de Michael le …
  The next screenshot is due to E-mu's soundfont World Combo.
  
  https://images2.imagebam.com/63/2d/ce/e3865b1325393682.png " />
  It is a very interesting soundfont, however because of the modulators the presets sound very dull. I would like to alter this. It's hard for me to figure out how these modulators actually work and how I should change the parameters. Can someone give me some information about it?
  ModulatorsPolyphone.png
• BO 276 13

  Message de bottrop le … 1
  better find yourself another soundfont; the World Combo.sf2 Instruments have too few Samples to make them sound better.
  to learn the use of modulators, just load a simple soundfont in Polyphone and try, try, try.
  regards bottrop
• 57 0

  Message de Michael le …
  Thanks,
  
  Though this brings me to another possible problem.
  
  If you open this World Combo soundfont or another one from E-mu with so many modulators with Polyphone you will notice they all sound bad because of those modulators. This can be because:
  
  - They're originally developed for E-mu samplers. The file format for these samplers use other parameters for its modulators than soundfonts.
  - Polyphone doesn't read the modulator parameters correctly.
  - There's no standard. It can be soundfonts can sound differently on several players or editors.
  
  I discovered Falcosoft Soundfont MIDI player  It uses a so-called bassmidi output mode. This seems to be a good soundfont MIDI player.
  
  20 years ago I had a SoundBlaster Live! soundcard in my computer and its software also contained some MIDI-files + soundfonts. When I play these MIDIs and its soundfonts with any mediaplayer supporting soundfonts they don't sound as they should be. The one from Falcosoft comes close but still isn't 100% as it should be.
• ZI 187 0

  Message de ziyametedemircan le … 1
  At first glance, my analysis is as follows:
  
  CC21 to CC24 have no function. These are for external control.
  
  Channel pressure is for aftertouch keyboards. This probably does not affect normal sound quality. It's about Vibrato.
  
  (It doesn't matter if you delete what I've mentioned so far.)
  
  Those affecting the sound quality are: Note-on velocity => Filter-Cutoff.
  
  Modulator # 10 is the opposite of a 2.01 version soundfont player's standard response. So the velocity decreases, the frequency increases. I don't know why they use it.
  
  The modulator # 3 does the opposite.
  This modulator reduces the frequency as the velocity decreases. (This is something it should be.) But its value is normally -2400 and -5000 is a bit too much for that.
  
  Also, in order to use them here, they must have reset these modulators separately in the instrument section.
  Because standard modulators are present in the instrument section by default.
  
  If these two modulators are used one after the other:
  -5000 + 2400 = -2600.
  There won't be much of a change in this case.
  Only at low velocities will the frequency be slightly reduced.
  
  Even if you delete all of them, you won't notice much.
• 57 0

  Message de Michael le …
  Dear all,
  
  Thank you for replying to my questions. I really appreciate it.
  
  However it's still hard to figure out how to make use of modulators. It's all written in de Soundfont 2.01 specifications, though it's hard for me to focus and really understand what's been written in there.
  
  Ethan Winer's Cello 
  Early Patches Cister 
  
  Maybe you can help me by taking these soundfonts as an example:
  
  The cello soundfont preset contains multiple instrument layers of the same cello just to achieve when the velocity drops down the volume envelope attack decreases but also the release increases.
  
  https://images2.imagebam.com/2f/b2/24/4f441e1331702597.png " />
  The cister soundfont preset contains many instrument layers, each one set to a range of a few velocity values. Only to achieve an adjusted cut-off in relation to the velocity.
  
  https://images2.imagebam.com/13/0e/15/b85f3a1331703215.png " />
  Both soundfont can be programmed more efficiently by making use of modulators. Can you tell me which modulators and which parameters I should use then. I hope it helps me to understand how to make use of modulators in general.
  
  Thanks a lot!!!
• BO 276 13

  Message de bottrop le …
  that Cister soundfont is a big joke, the Cello soundfont only a small joke (and almost as efficient as can be).
  indeed you can change a sound a little using modulators, but if you have only MezzoForte samples, it is impossible to make them sound ForteForteForte or PianoPianoPiano.
  regards botrop
• 57 0

  Message de Michael le …
  There's nothing wrong with the cello soundfont, however I want to know how can I make it so by using modulators it contains only one instrument layer?
  
  The same story with the cister soundfont. How can I make it sound just the same by keeping just one instrument layer and make use of modulators due to the cut-off dependend of the key velocity?
  
  Which parameters do I have to enter? What's the range of the full spectrum? How are the primary and secondary modulators connected?
• ZI 187 0

  Message de ziyametedemircan le … 1
  Unfortunately, the creator of Cister sounfont does not allow modifications to it.
  Typing filter-cutoffs by hand was a lot of trouble.
  However, all this work could be done with a single layer and a single modulator.
  
  the attached picture shows the use of filter-cutoff with velocity. (in the instrument section)
  (-2400 is the default value; you can increase this value up to -24000.)
  filMod2.png
• 57 0

  Message de Michael le …
  I don't get how it works
  
  Does it mean when pressing the keys on its maximum velocity (128) the filter passes everything below 19901 Hz and when there's key pressure on its minimum velocity the filter passes 19901 - 2400 = 17501 ?
• ZI 187 0

  Message de ziyametedemircan le …
  Test with higher values. for example -12000
  
  The values there are on cents. I don't know how many cents are equal to how many hertz.
  Normally 12000 cents should have 10 octaves. (Or it can be 13500 according to the fC definition.)
  
  But the Fluid-synthesizer in the Polyphone doesn't produce the same result as other software-synthesizers.
  So you should try and test to find an average value.

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