[sdiy] How Many Oscillators?

[dreichert at sympatico.ca]

Hi Michael,

Well, that depends on who you are. Three oscillators really is quite plenty for almost anybody (the only really exception is Walter Carlos, who found 8 to be too few, but that's really an exception)

Really what you should be looking for if a broadened rage of sounds is to include 2 or 3 different filter designs.

Look at it this way: using harmonic rich waveforms such as sawtooth or square waves, adding more oscillators really won't provide you with any more useful material with regards to timbre. 

It's how that basic harmonic material is then used (i.e., which harmoncs one filters out) that is key to creating a wide range of sounds, and that is why I feel that an expanded choice of filters is more useful than using extra oscillators.

Just mu opinion anyway...

Cheers,
Dave
> 
> From: "Michael Boracci" <mboracci at nfpcomputer.com>
> Date: 2003/09/26 Fri AM 08:51:38 EST
> To: <synth-diy at dropmix.xs4all.nl>
> Subject: [sdiy] How Many Oscillators?
> 
> Dear Friends,
>     I am planning a modular synthesizer and drawing some functional
> diagrams. In the process I am trying to determine how many oscillators would
> be practical. I have seen common synthesizers with two and three oscillators
> each with a few different choices of waveform.
> 
> In terms of practicality versus sound shaping properties is it unrealistic
> to design around six or even eight oscillators per voice?
> 
> I would appreciate any feedback in terms of existing synthesizers out there
> that I might use as a reference.
> 
> Thanks,
> Michael
> 
> 
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