The Triangle Shaper is the first part of BRENSO’s Timbre Section. It morphs the triangle wave to a quasi-sine and a sort of logarithmic waveform. (This last one is quite similar to what you can achieve with FALISTRI when you set both the rising and falling stages to the Log shape.)⁠ The difference is subtle…

USTA allows you to use ANY CV to shift the phase of one sequence in relation to its clock. You can use a DC offset to obtain a more laid-back sound (if you feel like Dexter Gordon), or any random CV to add some non-destructive degree of unpredictability.⁠ INGREDIENTS USTA 2 FALISTRI CGM External FX…

Time to play modal!⁠ The Root Shift is a modulation that takes any incoming CV and shifts the root of your quantization mask. The result is a dramatic change in the song mood, but if you route the same CV to the Pitch Shift modulation, you will transpose the whole scale!⁠⁠ INGREDIENTS 1 USTA 1…

We’ve seen the 333 as an audio mixer, but it does pretty good also with CVs! In this patch, we’ll use the 333 in two ways. One section will multiply the keyboard gate, which we’ll use to trig SAPÈL the main envelope. Another section will mix the keyboard CV with the N+1 values generated by…

Ok, time to deal with external CV modulation! USTA features two independent CV input, whose signal can be internally routed to several destinations (independently per track, of course). Here we take a look at the Pitch Shift destination: the incoming voltage is used to shift the notes. Remember two things: 1) the resulting pitch is…

Blip-blops are fun, but what about playing actual melodies?⁠ The USTA sequencer allows you to quantize your sequence to a selected scale and root note. You can also choose the quantization direction!⁠ INGREDIENTS 1 USTA 1 FALISTRI 1 321 (Optional) DIRECTIONS Set up a basic USTA patch as described in CV, Gate, Length. Set up…

The three sections of the 333 are semi-normalled, meaning that each one is routed to the first input of the following one. If you patch three sources to the second or third inputs of the three separate sections, you can combine the functions of the three -6dB switches, thus making the red section 1/4 lower…

We’ve seen how to change the pattern loop settings, and how to recall other patterns on the fly temporarily, but there’s another option that let you organize your sequences in a fixed form: the Song Mode. INGREDIENTS 1 USTA 1 FALISTRI 1 FUMANA (Optional) CGM and reverb (Optional) DIRECTIONS Set up a basic usta patch…

In this patch, we’ll use the yellow envelope to control the decay of our kick drum. By inverting the envelope and adding an offset (with the 321), you can use it to sidechain other sounds (such as the bass, or the reverb). But what if you want to control the response time of the sidechain…

The Coarse/Fine button lets you change the pitch of quantized voltages by intervals of 1 octave, or the value of the unquantized ones by steps of 0.5V. Add the ‘Esc’ button, and it will become the Fine control: now you can fine-tune your notes by cents of semitones or your raw voltages by 1mV steps. INGREDIENTS…

Stage Loop is a special feature that allows you to repeat a specific section of your sequence. You can define the first stage of this section, the length (up to 16 stages) and the number of repetitions. Whenever the playhead crosses the Stage Loop section, it will start looping, then it will move on to…

Want to add some spice to your groove? It’s time to check the Gate Variation, then! Once you have selected the Gate layer, push the button a second time to access the Variation Index layer, and a third one to access the Variation Range. Here you can define the degree of gate unpredictability per stage!…

In music as in cooking, some degree of unpredictability is always welcome. This patch explores the other two CV layers, called ‘Variation Index’ and ‘Variation Range’. They allow you to add some motion to your sequence, without going too much off the track! INGREDIENTS 1 USTA 1 FALISTRI DIRECTIONS Set up a basic patch as…

What should you do when you have more than two patterns? You can cycle through them, of course, but that may become boring. You can arrange them in a song, but someone might find it stiff.⁠ What about momentarily changing the order of your pattern loop? With #USTAsequencer it’s possible! Just enter the Play Mode…

If you enter Composition Mode, patch a Gate signal to the AUX input, and a pitch CV to the CVA input, USTA will store the notes you are playing on your controller – stage by stage! But the coolest part is that all the features of the Composition Mode are still available: this means that…

Composing a song might require a lot of patience: here’s why USTA features its Composition Mode.⁠ When USTA is not playing (and you are not in any of the menus), just push twice the track buttons: all the gate channels will immediately get high, and you will be able to hear the individual stages one…

Infinite wave shapes at your fingertips when Falistri is used as oscillator! Both generators can morph their rise and fall shape from EXPO to LOG, independently and regardless of their times – at audio rate, this becomes a fully functional wave shaper. INGREDIENTS 1 USTA 1 FALISTRI (Optional) 333 and FUMANA for further sound design…

Virtuous cycle or vicious cycle? In Pattern Mode, it’s up to you!⁠ Each track of the USTA sequencer has 32 patterns of 16 steps each. By editing the First and Last pattern, you can choose the ends of your pattern loop, on the fly!⁠ INGREDIENTS 1 USTA 1 FALISTRI 1 FUMANA 1 333 CGM DIRECTIONS…

Music is not just about notes! For this reason, USTA features a second layer for control voltages, which by default outputs ‘Raw’ CVs, i.e., unquantized. (This setting can be changed, but for now, let’s stick to that.)⁠ In this patch, we demonstrate how CVB can add expressiveness and dynamics to a series of musical events…

Composing and performing are closer than they seem – both in life and in USTA!⁠ Sound by an amplitude-modulated FALISTRI further processed into FUMANA.⁠ INGREDIENTS 1 USTA 1 FALISTRI (Optional) 333 and FUMANA for further sound design DIRECTIONS Set up a basic USTA patch as described in CV, Gate, Length, OR (optional): Set both FALISTRI’s…

Gate, ratcheting, pause? With the USTA sequencer everything is –literally– at your fingertips.⁠ Push the rotary encoders when any Gate layer is selected to switch between the gate colors.⁠ When blue, the encoder defines the time a gate stays high, from very short to an actual tie with the following stage, when green, the gate…

If you want to add some color (pun intended) to your sequence, you just need to push the rotary encoders!⁠ Every CV value of every stage can be played in three ways: in the ‘Blue’ one, #USTAsequencer outputs the generated value; in the ‘Green’ one, USTA slides from the previous stage’s value to the current…

Let’s dive a little bit more into the time domain!⁠ Each of the four tracks of the #USTAsequencer can work at its own internal clock, or with a common external one.⁠ Once the clock is defined, you can select which ratio (multiplication or division) the track should run at: polyrhythms are literally at your fingertips...⁠…

Gate length or stage length? Are they the same thing? Not with USTA. If you are a little confused, fear not! This video explains everything you need to know about these essential concepts.⁠ INGREDIENTS 1 USTA 1 FALISTRI DIRECTIONS Set up a basic USTA patch as described in CV, Gate, Length. Select the GTA layer…

This simple patch explores the main features of the USTA: how to select tracks, how to edit CV, Gate, and Length – but most importantly, how to get your sequence running!⁠ INGREDIENTS 1 USTA 1 FALISTRI DIRECTIONS Set FALISTRI in Synth Voice mode (steps 1-7). Patch the CVA output of Track 1 to the green…

It’s time to push those buttons!⁠ It is true, we added buttons to FALISTRI and SAPÈL so that you can manually trig the envelopes or the S&H. But there’s another reason: if you hold them pushed, you can give to your patch a very dramatic effect by momentarily “freezing” it…⁠ INGREDIENTS 1 FALISTRI 1 SAPÈL…

Random trigs with some SAPÈL self-patching!⁠ In this patch we’ll use the yellow main clock out to control the green one, then we’ll add some cross-patching within the yellow section to achieve some unpredictability.⁠ INGREDIENTS 1 SAPÈL 1 FALISTRI DIRECTIONS Set FALISTRI to the ‘Synth Voice’ configuration (points 1-7). Patch SAPÈL’s yellow Main Clock out…

What about trying some random repetitions? In this patch, a random ratcheting-like effect is obtained by using SAPÈL’s Random Clock to trig the envelope controlling the amplitude, while the clock density (or the ratcheting number) is varied through cross-patching. INGREDIENTS 1 SAPÈL 1 FALISTRI DIRECTIONS Set FALISTRI’s green generator to ‘Loop’ mode. Set the green…

Summer is over, but we still want to play!⁠ In this video, we’ll see how to recreate the classic ‘Bouncing Ball’ patch – using only two FALISTRI!⁠ INGREDIENTS 2 FALISTRI DIRECTIONS Set both generators of the first FALISTRI in ‘Loop’ mode and their time scale to ‘Long’. Set the yellow generator’s ‘Rise’ knob fully counter-clockwise…

At audio rate, FALISTRI’s cascaded frequency dividers can work as sub-octave generators! Patch the EOR output into the first frequency divider input, mix all the (bipolar!) outputs into your 321 and fatten up your sound with every possible blend of three octaves! INGREDIENTS 2 FALISTRI 1 SAPÈL DIRECTIONS [FIRST FALISTRI] Set FALISTRI’s green generator to…

At audio rate, FALISTRI’s cascaded frequency dividers can work as sub-octave generators! Patch the EOR output into the first frequency divider input, mix all the (bipolar!) outputs into your 321 and fatten up your sound with every possible blend of three octaves! INGREDIENTS 1 SAPÈL 1 FALISTRI 1 321 DIRECTIONS Set one of FALISTRI’s generators…

Clock randomness and dummy cables! Normally, the external clock input doesn’t handle fluctuating voltages as trigs. Fear not! You can still use the Gate / CV in to trig your SAPÈL! This works together with the internal clock: if you want total randomness, you can use a dummy cable to block the clock generation and…

What about a FUMANA Feedback AND a spectral transfer – at the same time? In this patch we’ll use the feedback trick to emphasize the modulation of an oscillator over a pink noise. It works great when vocoding, too! INGREDIENTS 1 FUMANA 1 FALISTRI 1 SAPÈL 1 321 1 CGM – Channel 1 CGM –…

Parametric scanning for creative percussion sounds. In this patch we’ll take advantage of two separate envelope outputs of the same FALISTRI channel to shape a pink noise into some percussive sounds. The key element here is the Parametric Scanning function available in the lower section of the FUMANA filter bank! INGREDIENTS 1 FALISTRI 1 SAPÈL…

Creative kick drum sound with FUMANA’s envelope followers! In this patch we’ll process a low sound from FALISTRI through FUMANA’s filterbank, we’ll use a random trig from SAPEL as modulation source and then feed some of the resulting envelopes back into FALISTRI to modulate the tone. INGREDIENTS 1 FALISTRI 1 SAPÈL 1 FUMANA DIRECTIONS Set…

Clock bursts, but without losing the beat! Use the Global Rate of Change to create expressive clock bursts through the Random Clock out – this won’t affect the steady pulse of your main clock.⠀ INGREDIENTS 1 SAPÈL 1 FALISTRI DIRECTIONS Set FALISTRI’s green generator to ‘Loop’ mode. Set the green generator’s Time Scale switch to…

A sort of resonating FUMANA through controlled feedback. In this patch we’ll use a 321 to blend together the signals to be filtered and the fed-back signal. It allows us to control the amount of the two signals and also their phase! INGREDIENTS 1 FUMANA 1 SAPÈL 1 321 1 CGM – Channel 1 CGM…

FALISTRI can work as a self-sufficient synth voice! The four-quadrant multiplier can work as a pretty simple VCA. The yellow unipolar output and the green bipolar one are semi-normalled to the two inputs: this means that the yellow generator can work as an envelope, and the green one as an audio-rate oscillator. INGREDIENTS 1 FALISTRI…

How to make a non-resonating filterbank resonate. In this patch we’ll set two separate feedback loops using the ODD and EVEN outputs and the Direct Out of the CGM Channel. It is possible to flip the phase to get more interesting tones. Add some reverb for instant-70s-psychedelia! Watch out, screaming tones ahead... (This patch draws…

Fluctuating random is not just fluctuating random… Each of the two fluctuating knobs (marked by a dice ⚄) also controls the density of the random clocks. It can be very useful in crowded patches! INGREDIENTS 1 SAPÈL 1 FALISTRI DIRECTIONS Set FALISTRI’s green generator to ‘Loop’ mode. Set the green generator’s Time Scale switch to…

More percussion sounds with FUMANA and various noise sources Fumana’s modulation input welcomes trigs as well, which provide a lovely “woody” tone reminding some kind of lopass gate. INGREDIENTS FUMANA SAPÈL FALISTRI DIRECTIONS Patch SAPÈL’s pink noise to FUMANA’s Main Input. Set all FUMANA’s band faders to the lowest position. Patch SAPÈL’s main clock to…

This patch explores the different behaviors of FALISTRI’s green generator, but at audio rate! When it is is set ‘On Rest’, it will ignore all the incoming trigs until it has reached its ‘Rest’ stage; when its frequency is lower than the master oscillator, it will divide its frequency in a ‘formant-like’ effect. INGREDIENTS 1…

Explore this “hidden feature” of FALISTRI’s green generator! A switch on the PCB lets you choose between two different retrig behaviors: ‘on rest’ retrigs the green envelope only if it has reached its End of Fall; ‘to rise’ simply recalls the rising stage from whichever level the envelope is in, just like the yellow generator.…

It is possible to make the two sections of FALISTRI interact with eachother: in this patch, the yellow generator’s Loop state is activated by the green envelope, which controls its frequency and amplitude as well. INGREDIENTS FALISTRI (2) DIRECTIONS (First FALISTRI) Set the green generator to ‘Loop’ mode and its time scale to ‘fast’. Patch…

A simple but effective way of creating clock bursts with SAPÈL. Use the unquantized S&H to modulate the clock rate, and the probability distribution to regulate the clock density. INGREDIENTS 1 SAPÈL 1 FALISTRI (For sound generation) DIRECTIONS Set up FALISTRI to the plain ‘Kick Drum #1’ configuration, without CV over the yellow ‘Fall’ level.…

Use FUMANA with FALISTRI and SAPÈL to create cool percussion sounds! FUMANA can transform a simple noise source into many different percussion sounds – at the same time! In this patch we’ll go through a handful of possibilities: claves, shakers and cymbals. INGREDIENTS 1 FALISTRI 1 SAPÈL 1 FUMANA DIRECTIONS Set both FALISTRI’s generators to…

Another way of adding some spice to your patterns! Use SAPÈL’s S&H to modulate the Fall time of FALISTRI’s envelope: when applied to some white noise, it will provide a sort of open/closed HiHat sound. INGREDIENTS 1 FALISTRI 1 SAPÈL DIRECTIONS Patch SAPÈL’s white noise to 4QM input 2. Set FALISTRI’s yellow generator to ‘Transient’…

Add some dynamics to your patterns through FALISTRI’s MAX out! This patch uses both SAPÈL’s clocks: the main one provides the steady pulse by triggering FALISTRI’s green envelope, the random one trigs the yellow envelope which adds some extra accents: the two envelopes are blended through the MAX output. INGREDIENTS 1 FALISTRI 1 SAPÈL DIRECTIONS…

This time we’ll get a more spicy ratcheting-like effect! SAPÈL’s n+1 output provides voltages tuned in octaves. If the target oscillates below audio rate, it will simply double its frequency, with interesting ratcheting effects. INGREDIENTS 1 FALISTRI 1 SAPÈL DIRECTIONS Set FALISTRI’s green generator to ‘Loop’ mode. Set the green generator’s Time Scale switch to…

Get some ratchets out of that envelope! FALISTRI’s frequency divider provides gates out of incoming trig signals. In this patch, they are used to automatically change the generator’s mode, from transient to cyclical, and back. INGREDIENTS 1 FALISTRI 1 SAPÈL DIRECTIONS Set FALISTRI’s green generator to ‘Loop’ mode. Set the green generator’s Time Scale switch…

Some bell-like sounds with two FALISTRI together! The left Falistri generates an articulated modulation thanks to its MAX output, the second one provides a ringing tone with a sort of exponential FM, modulated by Sapèl. INGREDIENTS 2 FALISTRI 1 SAPÈL DIRECTIONS (First FALISTRI) Set both generators to ‘Loop’ mode. Set their Time Scale switch to…

Here are some behaviors of FALISTRI’s four quadrant multiplier! Its two inputs are normalled to the yellow unipolar and the green bipolar outs. This means that if the green generator is used as audio oscillator, the yellow one controls its amplitude. INGREDIENTS 1 FALISTRI 1 SAPÈL DIRECTIONS Set the green FALISTRI’s generator to ‘Loop’ mode.…

Here are some behaviors of FALISTRI’s four quadrant multiplier! Its two inputs are normalled to the yellow unipolar and the green bipolar outs. This means that if the green generator is used as audio oscillator, the yellow one controls its amplitude. INGREDIENTS 1 FALISTRI 1 SAPÈL (for additional modulations) DIRECTIONS Set the green FALISTRI’s generator…

Get a simple but heavy synth kick drum out of your FALISTRI! By using the green generator as oscillator and patching the yellow attenuverted in its V/oct input, you will generate a very snappy drum sound with controls over decay time, pitch modulation and tone! Add some SAPÈL for a wilder sound. INGREDIENTS 1 FALISTRI…

Infinite wave shapes at your fingertips when Falistri is used as oscillator! Both generators can morph their rise and fall shape from EXPO to LOG, independently and regardless of their times – at audio rate, this becomes a fully functional wave shaper. INGREDIENTS 1 FALISTRI 1 SAPÈL (for pitch variations) DIRECTIONS Set one of the…