Hello all,
Similar to my Spectral Wave Description Chart that was posted in another thread on this forum some time ago, Essay: Spectral Wave Explorations, I am now presenting my Wavetable Categorization Chart for the Virus TI2 here for your perusal.
The Virus TI2’s wavetables are indeed a serendipitous bunch! As you’ve probably noticed by now, they are not numbered, not in alphabetical order, and many have mysterious, enigmatic names. By contrast, dissecting the PPG/Waldorf wavetables was a walk in the park!
With no less than 100 wavetables, the TI offers a huge arsenal of sonic diversity. Complex base ingredients for equally complex sounding patches, sometimes even by using just one wavetable oscillator and only some index modulation, plus some dual Unison or Chorusing to liven things up even more. I have found that most of the wavetables have about four to eight waves posted throughout the table, some of them a dozen or so, and surprisingly, a couple crammed full with about 34 waves, and then one with just two waves!
So, I auditioned each of wavetables in their raw form very carefully in normal wavetable mode and by ear only (no oscilloscope, etc.). Trying different index full-modulation sources, routinely checking individual waves with the interpolation parameter set to coarse, and then subjectively assessing each table’s primary characteristic and real-world usage potential, I then put them into pragmatic categories hopefully making them more manageable for selection as candidates for patch design. To assure consistency, I would routinely recheck my previous auditions as I added more categories. Very tedious and time consuming (but enjoyable and informative!) because of the less wavetables left to audition balanced with the more wavetables left to recheck! Of course, many of the tables could fit into more than one category, but trying to keep things relatively simple, I assigned each table at my discretion to one category only. Auditioning the wavetables in other modes such as Graintable can give different results too, requiring a mode notation if you care to explore things further.
My personal category descriptions are mostly self-evident, but to explain a few- “Carillon” is just a fifty cent word for a group of bells of course; “Chromatic Sweep” here is really any kind of contiguously stepped pitch sweep; “Digital Waves” is any wave that seems like it has more spectra in it than just a normal basic analog wave; “Filter” categories refer to cutoff; “Formant” refers to vocal timbres; “Static Waves” is a table of seemingly unrelated, diverse waves better suited for just single wave selection; and “Wave Sequence” are tables that sound similar to an approximately four-oscillator wave rotation with built-in coarse interpolation.
By necessity, I’ve also included a chart with the wavetable names in their numeric order. An asterisk in either chart denotes that the wavetable has better keyboard coverage, or places middle C where it should be, with an octave shift or two usually downward. (Please note: octave shifting on a keyboard controller does not shift the index of a keytracked wavetable of course, but using the Transpose button on the Virus will have that as a side effect.)
This Wavetable Categorization Chart was put together for my own personal use under my current, somewhat sophomoric level of understanding of synthesis. However, I am confident that you also will find that it does indeed have some merit as presented. You are welcome, of course, to print a copy and adjust the wavetable category assignments to your own preference and to even come up with your own more accurate category descriptions if you like!
Cheers!,
GESchwalm
WAVETABLE CATEGORIZATION CHART
Analog And Digital Waves Sweep
18, 22, 23, 24, 25*, 31, 32, 44*, 56, 71, 73*, 74*, 76*, 87, 91*, 92*, 96, 99
Carillon
8*, 21*, 33*, 34, 36*, 75*, 84*
Chromatic Sweep
5*, 6*, 12*, 13*, 14*, 15*, 52*, 86, 93*, 100*
Digital Waves Sweep
10*, 11, 27, 28, 39*, 42*, 83*, 89*, 97*
Electric Piano
60
Filter Modulation
41, 43, 51, 58, 90
Filter Sweep
19*, 62, 72*, 94, 95
Flute
26
Formant
29, 48, 70*, 77, 78*, 79, 81*, 98
Formant Pitch Sweep
2*, 3, 9*, 63*, 64, 80*, 82
Frequency Modulation
50, 54
Organ
4*, 49
Phase Modulation
38, 55
Piano
16
Pulse Width Modulation
47, 53, 57
Resonance Sweep
7*, 37*, 61
Static Waves
1, 35*, 65*, 66*, 67, 68*, 69*, 85
Waterphone
17*
Wave Sequence
20*, 30*, 40, 45*, 46*, 59, 88
* Denotes Octave Shift.
Note: see Numeric Wavetable Menu Sequence Chart.
NUMERIC WAVETABLE MENU SEQUENCE CHART
1. Sine
2. HarmncSweep *
3. Glass Sweep
4. Draw Bars *
5. Clusters *
6. Insine Out *
7. Landing *
8. Liquid Metal *
9. Opposition *
10. Overtunes 1 *
11. Overtunes 2
12. Scale Trix *
13. Sine Rider *
14. Sqr Series *
15. Upsine Down *
16. Thumbs Up
17. Waterphone *
18. E-Chime
19. Tinkabell *
20. Bellfizz *
21. Bellentine *
22. Robot Wars
23. Alternator
24. Finger Bass
25. Fizzybar *
26. Flutes
27. HP Love
28. Majestix
29. Hotch Potch
30. Resynater *
31. Smooth Rough
32. Sawsalito
33. Bells 1 *
34. Bells 2
35. SportReport *
36. Metal Guru *
37. Bat Cave *
38. Acetate
39. Buzzbizz *
40. Buzzpartout
41. Vanish
42. Overbones *
43. Pulsechecker
44. Stratosfear *
45. Sooty Sweep *
46. Throaty *
47. Didgitalis
48. Evil
49. Chords
50. FM Grit
51. Bellsarnie
52. Octavius *
53. Eat Pulse
54. Sinzin
55. Sine System
56. Clip Sweep
57. Roughage
58. Waving
59. Pling Saw
60. E-Peas
61. Bump Sweep
62. Filter Sqr
63. Fourmant *
64. Formantera
65. Sundial 1 *
66. Sundial 2 *
67. Sundial 3
68. Clipdial 1 *
69. Clipdial 2 *
70. Voxonix *
71. Solenoid
72. KlingKlang *
73. Violator *
74. Potassium *
75. Pile Up *
76. Tincanali *
77. Sniper
78. Squeezy *
79. Decomposer
80. Morfants *
81. Pingvox *
82. Adenoids
83. Nasal *
84. Partialism *
85. TableDance
86. Cascade
87. Prismism
88. Friction
89. Robotix *
90. Whizzfizz
91. Spangly *
92. Fluxbin *
93. Fiboglide *
94. Fibonice
95. Fibonasty
96. Penetrator
97. Blinder *
98. Element 5
99. Bad Signs
100. Domina 7rix *
* Denotes Octave Shift.
Presented by
Rapturenaut Digital Christian Studio
Houston, Texas
"glorifying God through electronic music"