Exploring Modulation Pt. 1 // Lyra-8 Organismic Drone Synth Tutorial

This tutorial is about how to modulate the oscillators using the Soma Labs Lyra-8 Drone Synth. It is intended to show the raw waveform possibilities, so there are no FX or hyper LFO used.
Please make sure to keep your volume at a moderate level. Due to the experimental quality of this synth some parts may become noisy to some, and extremely irritable to others.
This is The Soma Labs Lyra-8 Organismic Drone Synth. It is an experimental analog synthesizer that creates cinematic, strange, beautiful, and cerebral soundscapes. somasynths.com/lyra-organismi...

[@RonCavagnaro]

Whoa! Have you checked out the Basic overview of lyra 8? You can find it here >> kzbin.info/www/bejne/bnjdhIdtrpaZhMU

[@marcinlacfik8813]

Instrument that industrialists craved for decades!!!!

[@CinematicLaboratory]

I'd say this is the untamed sound of FM'd FM, FM'd by FM and finally FM'd by the final output. The musical side of the machine is cool too.

[@PodOfHeat]

What an instrument ❤

[@RonCavagnaro]

Ohhh yes its so good

[@alexb5391]

Great video Ron, love playing with these! Just wanted to note that before you flicked the switch down at 7:15, voices 3, 4 were modulating 5, 6, and 5, 6 were modulating 7, 8, that's why when you played at first it didn't sound like it was modulated much. So when that switch is down, 1, 2 and 3, 4 can cross-modulate, and 5, 6 and 7, 8 can cross-modulate. If it's up, there is one closed modulation loop, with each pair of voices modulating the next one.

[@RonCavagnaro]

Ah thanks I thought it only cross modulated when feedback was on!

[@extraterrestriallover1484]

Ron, many thanks for your tutorials! You've helped me alot to get to know this beast better! It's time to dive even deeper... Luckily, there is no end... best

[@NostalgicRuckus]

Been wanting to see a video like this on the Lyra. Thank you.

[@Lcrymlgy]

The middle switch changes the modulation sources for the 56 group and the 12 group so they become 34 and 78 respectively, thus it generates a closed modulation circuit with all four groups, and that's why nothing really happened when you started modulating 56 until you flipped the switch, because 34 were mostly silent, and you weren't messing with 34 anyway

[@holydiver4728]

Noice !!

[@StatsGod]

Thank you for this. The question I continue to struggle with is how to get the modulation to sound musical. I guess in conjunction with the delay?

[@RonCavagnaro]

It's not meant to be musical I don't think, that is an expansive experimental aspect. Leads to more cosmic sounds than melodical. I enjoy to use it without planning and it adds a sort of orchestral tension over other melodies I have.

[@StatsGod]

@@RonCavagnaro Thanks Ron. And yes, I've thought that too -- maybe the self-mod isn't meant to be, well, nice :) But I've recently pretty much centered on the Lyra-8 (in the process of selling almost everything else), so I'm sort of committed to the idea of making sense of the FM. But I haven't yet found a way to reliably use it to alter timbres in a nice way, without blowing up in volume or just emitting noise...

[@RonCavagnaro]

@@StatsGod it's made for this type of noise, and expected to happen!

[@joelizquierdo8624]

What does 34>55 and 78>12 switch do? I always thought of those switches to modulate between all sections of the unit.

[@joelizquierdo8624]

...like a circle ⭕️

[@Lcrymlgy]

The switch changes the modulation sources for the 56 group and the 12 group so they become 34 and 78 respectively, thus it generates a closed modulation circuit with all four groups, and that's why nothing really happened when he started modulating 56 until he flipped the switch, because 34 were mostly silent, and he wasn't playing with them

[@gnippuz]

What happens if you put MOD Knob to zero ? My Lyra does crossmod even with MOD set to zero. And switching to LFO I hear A LOT of LFO mod even with MOD KNOB set to zero. Is it a normal behaviour ?

[@RonCavagnaro]

Yes if you don't want lfo turn switch to middle :)

[@gnippuz]

@@RonCavagnaro ...well... MOD set to zero must be zero (or at least close to zero)... so I can fade in modulation. The problem is several users has zero mod with mod set to zero while other users (like me) starts with too much mod even with mod set to zero. So imho is simply a very poor calibration of the instruments more than a "feature".

[@Lcrymlgy]

@@gnippuz can you upload a video showing that? Set every switch to neutral except for a pair of voices, and show modulation with you knob at zero There's always a slight amount of modulation, and you can even feel circuit noise modulating slightly. The envelopes also mess with the pitch slightly. It's all in the manual, really

[@DayflightTrok]

I bought the Lyra 8 but sold it because the unpredictable behavior and not storable patches. Also no midi.

[@RonCavagnaro]

Well all of those things are why I keep it! I love the unpredictability, non patch storage, non midi! I have prologue for standard sounds! Lyra is meant for experimentation!

[@DayflightTrok]

Ron Cavagnaro That’s is ok for you but not for me in Live situations. I have nothing against such Crazy products, I bought also geckologic or the NDLR to try it, how to use.

[@RonCavagnaro]

@@DayflightTrok yes I can use deluge to live loop sections it's really nice! Either way I love chaotic synths like this, and I'm glad at least you were able to try it! I am on pulsar waiting list so that's going to be fun!

[@DayflightTrok]

Ron Cavagnaro That’s fine

[@thomasbrown3325]

@@RonCavagnaro I have both; the Pulsar is even more fun than the Lyra.

[@akissparaskevopoulos]

Kitty

[@RonCavagnaro]

Cat on tivoo!!!