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Wiard (Re: [SergeModular] Re: greetings serge users/a request for o

Wiard (Re: [SergeModular] Re: greetings serge users/a request for o

2001-06-01 by Sebastian Kuehnl

Hi Bill, Peter,

----- Original Message -----
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From: <sonic@...>
To: <SergeModular@yahoogroups.com>
Sent: Thursday, May 31, 2001 2:24 AM
Subject: [SergeModular] Re: greetings serge users/a request for
opinions.I.M.O


: I dont think that is totally fair on himself or the Wiard .
: certainly the serge & the wiard are flexible & endless in
: possibilities (according to money & imagination) . Both systems are
: complex , but I had no problem doing 2 shows , 1 with Tortoise , 1 as
: EAR the day my Serge arrived . The catalogue , common sense & basics
: of knowledge will have you in atleast at a cool level straight away .

Anyone interested in Wiard please note that quite some usage and technology
information in the manual PDFs, the patchsheet JPGs and different webpages
(official and DIY) are as of now outdated and misleading.


: Plus you'll only get more & more from these systems . One thing I'd
: say for Serge is the massive range of modules . The Wiard is very
: cool too , but Serge has the undeniable edge . I.M.O. , lots of the
: Wiard ideas are very Buchla > Serge > lineage.

Or S. and W. being two branches from Buchla, or S. itself having initially
been low-end mix from Buchla and Moog ideas... the view at module design/
inspiration is really a matter of opinions where details matter. There was
some weeks ago a thread about these three systems. Grant Richter's reply to
my then writeup did not reach the list completely.
The most significant similarity is that to the synthesis core of all Buchla
instruments from the Music Easel on; nonlinear waveshaping and Vactrol
filters. However the Buchlas had through zero FM added in the waveshaping
path and the filters had a one-pole filter-and-VCA-combo option ("frequency
gating") but no resonance.

:
:
: He doesn't say this to
: > discourage me from being interested in the Wiard but only to be
: > honest and to help me make better decisions. The Wiard system
: > and the MOTM (for a well-rounded small modular setup) cost
: > around $3500 give or take. My top choice currently is Serge and I
: > was considering the ANIMAL panel and the TKB to
: > control/sequence it. The ANIMAL looks powerful but I'm
: > wondering if the DTG will provide enough envelope
: > sophistication to make the music I do (ambient
: > landscape/space -- with a sonically strange and unsettling event
: > here and there).
:
: You cant have too many modulation sources with the Serge .I would
: think the 70 min. cycle available from the uni slope gens. would be
: very usefull in soundscape /ambient work ?

The Wiard system has a much narrower frequency range than the STS Serge:
general rolloff at 20KHz is -6dB/oct; the slowest oscillation from any of
the modules is somewhat like a half or three quarter minute I think (VCO
"low" range).

The Envelators can be set to act as whole number dividers (with pulse- and
slewed output) within their frequency range. The 8bit output of the Wavecity
will apply the more aliasing (introduce audible stepping) to very low
frequency input the more "hilly" (think of many many ups and downs - up to
128 waves per transform function) the transform is, and apply the more
aliasing to high frequency inputs (now perceived as noise) the "smoother"
the transform is.


BTW how are the 256 steps in the Wavecity interpolated?


Sebastian Kuehnl





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Re: Wiard (Re: [SergeModular] Re: greetings serge users/a request f

2001-06-01 by Sebastian Kuehnl

Hi Chris,

----- Original Message -----
From: "C. Whitten" <chris@...>
To: <SergeModular@yahoogroups.com>
Sent: Friday, June 01, 2001 7:21 PM
Subject: Re: Wiard (Re: [SergeModular] Re: greetings serge users/a request
for opinions.I.M.O)


: Sebastian.....and others,
: very interesting posts about the Serge filters and your thoughts on the
: Wiard system. If I might add a couple of simplistic points...
: I see what you are saying about the Serge filter characteristics but
: wouldn't it make sense to offer a 'fatter' filter for those times when you
: want to patch a VCO, VCF, VCA type sound. I think when people have
mentioned
: the filters it was really in the context of the Serge being so complete in
: every other way.
: Comparing Wiard to Serge (and my only experience of Wiard is online so to
: speak), the beauty of Serge is that anyone with a little modular
experience
: can put together very simple patches straight away. The Wiard just looks
so
: complicated to me. I want to be able to see where to stick my cables to
get
: a simple patch going without having to figure out new terms like mixolator
: or envolator.
: Finally, sometimes I find the more complex a patch and the more cables and
: modulation I employ the more the sound disappears up it's own arse.
: The great thing about Serge and why I would always recommend it is that it
: can be so simple and yet so deep.
: CW
:

Accepted - but for both Wiard and Serge stuff one has to wait several
months. Some free hours during the wait are well spent learning some about
what one is going to acquire. So the spontaneity point doesn't ring true to
me personally. I've never touched a Wiard yet, mine is still in the make, so
all my knowlege is from theory too, like yours.

However I would agree with your argument if extended to ergonomics: it
certainly takes some time until one intuitively knows which jack is which on
the Wiard 5x4 jackboard (which has other advantages).

For example, the Mixolator is really SO simple: imagine that your average
crossfader had two opposing outputs. That's all for x-fading, panning and
attenuating. The ringmod function is more like a bonus (as I said it's not
the best sounding around).

Sebastian Kuehnl


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