After Later Audio - Pixie (Plaits)

After Later Audio's Pixie is a clone of the Mutable Instruments Plaits oscillator.

Like its role model, the clone of the legendary digital oscillator offers 16 synthesis shapes, each editable in three parameters. CV inputs allow a variety of modulations. True to its predecessor, it is even possible to jump back and forth between synthesis forms. On top of that, a low-pass gate and a mod envelope have been implemented. - Wildly clanging "Richard Devine drums" are therefore already possible with this module alone. The sound is, compared to the Plaits predecessor Braids, clearly more high-resolution.

The synthesis forms of the Pixie, called models, are divided into two banks of eight algorithms each:

• Bank 1: Models for tonally playable sounds.
• Bank 2: models for noisy sounds and drums

(A listing of the synthesis algorithms can be found below).

For tuning the Pixie, a coarse potentiometer is provided whose control range can be varied. More precisely, ranges from 14 semitones to eight octaves are feasible.

Each synthesis algorithm can be edited by means of timbre, morph and harmonics potentiometers. The operation of the parameters varies depending on the selected program. Simplified, the whole thing can be described as follows:

Timbre: Influences the spectral content of sounds. - Should a sound be dark and thin or bright and massive?

Morph: Serves timbre variations.

Harmonics: Controls frequency spreads or the ratio of different components of a sound program.

Complementing the 1V/octave input, which allows Pixie to be played over a range of eight octaves, is a trigger jack. Incoming signals trigger the integrated decay envelope, exciting physical and percussive sound programs, and activate the low-pass gate. Alternatively, the LPG can be controlled via level CV input. Response and decay are editable.

Frequency, timbre and morph can be influenced by CV paths with bipolar attenuators. If no external modulator is connected, the internal decay envelope is used. Harmonics parameters and synthesis algorithm selection are also voltage controllable, but there are no attenuators and no normalization to the mod envelope here. If the trigger input is busy, Pixie switches between sound models only once per attack. - Very cool for IDM drums.

In addition to the main output, there is also an aux audio tap. At it, depending on the selected sound program, either a by-product, an addition such as a sub-oscillator signal, or a variation of the set sound is output.

Features:

• Classic: Two VA waves that can be detuned against each other, based on the analog model.
• Waveshpr: An asymmetrical triangle is processed by Wave Shaper and Wave Folder.
• Two Op. FM: Two sine wave oscillators, connected as modulator and carrier plus feedback.
• Formant: Simulation of formants and filtered waveforms by multiplication, addition and synchronization of sine wave segments.
• Harmonic: Additive program that uses harmonically related sine waves.
• Wavetable Oscillator: Four banks of eight-by-eight waveforms accessed via rows and columns, with or without interpolation.
• Chords: Generates chords with four notes played by VA or wavetable algorithm.
• Vowel: A set of vowel and speech algorithms.
• Cloud: A sawtooth swarm consisting of eight envelope-equipped oscillators.
• Fltd Noise: White noise with variable clocking, processed by a resonant multimode filter.
• Prtcl Noise: Digital noise processed by an all-pass or band-pass network.
• String: Inharmonic String Modeling
• Modal: A resonator excited by trigger input or particle noise. - Quasi a mini-ring.
• Kick: Analog bass drum model
• Snare: Analog snare drum model
• Hi-Hat: Analog Hi-Hat model