Modular Synth Basics #02: CV, Gate, Trigger & MIDI

What are Control Voltages/CV, Gate Signals, Triggers and MIDI data? You'll need (almost) all of them to control your Eurorack modular synthesizer!
I love to hear from you and talk about synths and stuff, so always feel welcome to post a comment or send me an e-mail to:
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[@jozard]

I love the technical and to-the-point approach. just clear and factual without bullshit.

[@angelovicentejr6381]

Many thanks. It's a matter of public service what you are doing here.

[@tuesdaynightmachines]

Glad you like it! Thanks for your comment :)

[@wackenthaljef]

ahahha!! thats right!! thxs TTNM!!

[@stevenjavro2038]

I watched these videos a year ago, and they really helped me. Thank you.

[@Derobla]

This series of videos are like gold. Thanks thanks thanks.

[@garyturner5204]

Thank you very much for creating this video. You clearly define what the differences are. Which is great, a friend asked I am sharing your video with them. :)

[@tuesdaynightmachines]

Thank you! Really glad the video was useful :)

[@GuitarsAndSynths]

Great tutorials so clear and easy to understand. As a newcomer to modular synthesis, I enjoy these tutorials as I learn to build and work with my new system. I keep reading how you need tons of utilities and non-flashy modules like VCAs, switches, matrix mixers, CV tools, etc.

[@tuesdaynightmachines]

Thanks! You don’t necessarily need tons of utilities. It depends on what you want to achieve, but you shouldn’t forget about those simple modules :-)

[@jaguarvssnake]

Thank you so much. I’ve been looking for a video that covers this information and this is by far the best one!

[@justinleokennedy]

Cheers and thanks from two curious dudes in the Arizona State University electronic music studio. We can now use our modular synth!

[@tuesdaynightmachines]

Justin Kennedy Awesome! Have fun :)

[@ScottMFR]

Arizona State University has a modular synth? Cool...

[@WhereinTruthLies]

Thank you so much. I really did need all of this explained to me step-by-step as if I'm a total idiot. Not even being sarcastic, so many "beginner videos" I found just assumed I knew a bunch of these things or would understand it if I just watched them set things up.

[@Justbase]

I love the style with which you teach. Enjoyed!

[@tuesdaynightmachines]

Thank you very much! That’s great to hear 😊

[@highpeakrecordings]

As a complete beginner to modular this is brilliant. Thanks so much.

[@tuesdaynightmachines]

Thanks! That's great to hear! Let me know if you want me to cover a certain topic in a future video.

[@highpeakrecordings]

I was about to say what modules and rack casings you would recommend for a beginner (based on affordability, need etc), but I've just paused your excellent 'Let me show you my (Euro) rack' video to write this comment where you do that.

[@watsfa1228]

thanks for clear and easy to understand explanations.

[@CaperCube]

I'm Super happy that you took the time to make this series of videos! Right now I can't afford modular units, but I'm going to watch these anyways and definitely come back. Thanks man!

[@tuesdaynightmachines]

Thanks a lot for watching! I glad the videos are helpful :)

[@dhmacdonald8605]

Thank you so much for these videos. I'm a complete newcomer to modular synth, so these foundational lessons are extremely helpful.

[@MrGratefulheart]

Bravo, thanks for your very generous service to music.

[@tuesdaynightmachines]

You're welcome! Enjoy the modular craziness! :D

[@shortfilmcollective8009]

THANK YOU FOR MAKING THESE!!!! very nice of you

[@tuesdaynightmachines]

Thanks for watching :)

[@whotheloveisedgar]

short and sweet explanation! Thank you!

[@SebastianPortilloMusic]

Thanks for that video!! It really saves time to get introduced to the subject.

[@tuesdaynightmachines]

Awesome! That’s great to hear :) Enjoy your modular journey!

[@mrkrotosuk]

Great video! Explained exactly what I was looking for in the simplest terms :)

[@jackproctor8055]

Excellent explanation thank you 🙏

[@nairo_music]

wow finally the mystery of modular synthesis is revealed!!

[@tuesdaynightmachines]

+Nairo Music thanks! I hope it is :)

[@badador]

really needed these information, thanks

[@10908070605040302]

great clear tutorials

[@DigitalDesires87]

Awesome! Keep em coming!

[@tuesdaynightmachines]

Thanks! I will :) Let me know if you want me to cover something specific.

[@orientalflux]

cool! thanks a lot!

[@lacyrhoades3715]

This video is even good with the sound off. Thank you!

[@caothanhlan]

many thanks!!! great tutorial!

[@michaelb.3482]

MasterClass Einführung !

[@tuesdaynightmachines]

Vielen Dank! Freut mich sehr, dass die Videos immer noch aktuell sind :)

[@ilsennodipoi]

This is so well done that you feel TTNM must be german! Which I am not I might add.

[@tuesdaynightmachines]

Damn, you got me! Oh well, better get back to my Sauerkraut. Enjoy the rest of the videos :)

[@buzzfunk]

Good Stuff man!

[@tuesdaynightmachines]

Thanks! :)

[@TheWhoopProject]

Thanks!

[@josepheno2807]

Just think of CV/GATE has a monophonic alternative to MIDI. It lets one device communicate with another but it does so using voltage instead of a digital signal. The advantage is that there's almost no latency, so timing is significantly tighter with CV vs. MIDI. The disadvantages are calibration issues; V-scale issues; monophonic only; and you'll need an analog sequencer to really take advantage of the power. -BaconTastesGood Gearslutz forum user

[@inthefade]

I'm familiar with the principles of working with eurorack modular and have many semi-modular synths, but I've never encountered something with trig in until borrowing the DFAM, and there is no midi! So I was wondering if I could simply use a short gate for this. I presume I can, based on this. Thanks for this simple and helpful video!

[@theboytheycalljonny1]

Thank you!

[@tuesdaynightmachines]

You're welcome :)

[@cultydj6461]

Thanks a lot

[@tuesdaynightmachines]

You're welcome :) happy that the videos are useful!

[@gian-5454]

Is it possible to use a guitar or bass signal to controle a modular system? Maybe it' s a stupid question but i m really a beginner

[@tuesdaynightmachines]

+gian - no problem! Ask away :) you can use the amplified guitar sound to modulate the modular synth signal or you could use an "envelope follower" module which tracks the volume of the guitar and creates CV from it.

[@gian-5454]

+The Tuesday Night Machines great!! thank's for the answer and the video!!

[@Croot_Music]

Not a stupid question.

[@paulstrahan4670]

@@tuesdaynightmachines You could also use a guitar to midi converter to control your setup via midi instead of a keyboard

[@matthewreed2614]

helpful about cv signals , because i just want to create a mod interface with a tr-06 drum machine that triggers cv, i dont want a bunch of melody (still learning )

[@Degear-ls5lw]

I have a question. I have a synth which has a gate input and a pitch input (korg monotron delay) and i want to build my own keyboard. I tried Linking the +3V to the gate input through a potentiometer which changed the pitch. But i can't get the pitch input (i suppose that is CV input) to work witha potentiometer, so i am still confused about how cv and gate exactly work. I thought CV is the voltage you put in and gate is just connecting two points so that the sound works, so on a keyboard you have both working together.

[@sebastiennesp1978]

Not only have you confirmed my thoughts that I need to get into Modular and therefore dedicate my life to synth-crack, I chatted to a DJ friend who now is similarly obsessed, are you Satan..?

[@tuesdaynightmachines]

+ian jones Great news! Another child for the dark lord!

[@tothefinlandstation]

How is it possible to set an envelope to retrigger on each new note if there's no space between the notes? E.g. I press one key on the keyboard and without releasing that key press another one, but have the filter and/or amp envelope retrigger at the start of the second note?

[@tuesdaynightmachines]

It depends on how your MIDI-CV interface handles this. If it sends a new gate on each key press then you just need an envelope module that has a retrigger input (e.g. Doepfer A-140).

[@tacetfive]

what is difference between Gate set voltage? What happens when I use 10V Out on one module and 6.4 V In on another module?

[@tuesdaynightmachines]

A gate usually goes on and off, or rather from 0V to a set voltage and back. A constant voltage is always at a certain level. The voltage level you need depends on the situation, for example triggering an envelope generator, advancing a sequencer or doing stuff with a comparator set to a specific voltage.

[@mathias841]

But what is the ''env gate'' input on the crave ?

[@tuesdaynightmachines]

It's probably the input that triggers the ADSR(?) envelope, which is usually done by a gate signal.

[@mathias841]

@@tuesdaynightmachines yes I figured that out, was just confused because enb and gate have each their output but are together as an input. Thanks !

[@massimookissed1023]

Env gate input will cause the envelope generator to run. Env output is the envelope-shaped CV output. Gate output goes high while the envelope is active.

[@empirix]

Sounds like Tom from the beuro, regardless, thanks for the videos, cheers

[@tuesdaynightmachines]

Who is Tom from the buero? :D

[@empirix]

+The Tuesday Night Machines you ;)

[@shreyasbaggy]

Hi there, nicely explained video here. I’m curious about voltage nucleus 2 by cherry audio. Could you make a tutorial of how to use the voltage nucleus synth please? Namaste from India. :)

[@firhk]

THANK YOU FOR THIS VIDEO! But I have a tricky question for you: if I understand, there is a link between the keyboard and the oscillator as well as between the keyboard and the VCA via gate and envelope generator!!! But why do we need to 2 links, instead of just having a link between the keyboard and the oscillator, with the oscillator sending all the information to the VCA, instead of going by the gate and the envelope generator? Why 2 ways of reaching the VCA from the keyboard? Why not just one way of reaching the VCA from the keyboard, and that way being the oscillator?

[@tuesdaynightmachines]

Because of flexibility. Pitch and Gate CV are two very different things and if the gate/env CV would also directly control the VCO's volume from the keyboard, you'd have a regular non-modular synth ;-) Also, there are things like velocity, pitch bend, mod wheel, etc. which all have their own CV channel as well. So it's not just Pitch and Gate CV you have at your disposal, but a bunch of others too, being generated by the keyboard or MIDI-CV interface.

[@firhk]

Ok I see! It's that I saw from many sources that VCO were the ones creating sound as if they were the only source of a signal, but now according to you, I feel like a sound can be created by different sources including VCO, gate/env and many others. Is that right? And do different sounds from different sources in the synth are somehow mixed together in the VCA ? (By the way thank you for the quick response, you're really awesome!!!)

[@tuesdaynightmachines]

The VCOs provide a constant stream of waveform sound. So for example one ongoing BRRRRZZZZZZ from a sawtooth wave ;-) That's it. If you want different pitches, you send pitch CV into the VCO of course, but if you want volume changes (like hitting a keyboard key and then having the sound fade out), you'll need a VCA, usually controlled by an envelope's CV. Then you've got your filters which subtract frequencies from a waveform sound, which can also be controlled via CV (e.g. keyboard velocity controlling filter frequency, etc.). So that original constant BRRRRRZZZZ sound will be like ... bbBBBrrrzwwwffnngwee... hahaha ... well ... so with subtractive synthesis, our VCO offers a base sound and we use other modules/effects to shape the sound. Like a woordworker, starting with a big block of wood and carving stuff off until you get a small wooden statue ... check the beginning of first Modular Synth Basics video again and you'll see that non modular synths often behave the same way, containing the same "modules", but hardwired.

[@anonymousbrowser4448]

how do you control a filter's frequency ?

[@tuesdaynightmachines]

+Eden Puder with your fingers or the magic of CV! :)

[@anonymousbrowser4448]

Do you have any suggestions for good cv sequencers ?

[@InkyDaCaT]

Okay matey....novice question here...so if I have two monostations with 2 sets of cv and gate...I can use cv and gate into neutron as anything?? Its just on off electric right..I mean I can experiment???Please help bud lol

[@tuesdaynightmachines]

Yes, you should be fine to patch those CV/Gate signals into pretty much any input :) experiment ahead!

[@InkyDaCaT]

@@tuesdaynightmachines lets the craziness begin...Thank you!

[@SpiritMoleculeManiacPsychoPro]

possible to use a clock for triggering? or how to clock a lfo?

[@tuesdaynightmachines]

LFOs usually run free (but can be synced to a clock or reset by triggers sometimes). Clock pulses are just triggers and triggers are mostly just very short gates. It's all the same electricity.

[@dreeminde]

Is it correct that I understand the trigger as functioning like a gate when the button is pressed, but it turns off much faster without waiting for me to release the button?

[@tuesdaynightmachines]

@@dreeminde Exactly 👍 The trigger is just a small "blip". It's easier and cheaper to make than a gate and it's usually enough to trigger drum sounds, or sounds that don't need a sustain part in their envelope.

[@dreeminde]

@@tuesdaynightmachines Thanks 🙏

[@callumissocoollikf]

So if using a Midi to CV, would i need to still patch that into a VCO to get a signal?

[@tuesdaynightmachines]

Yes, MIDI-CV just converts the note data to CV. What you do with that CV is up to you then. Patching it into a VCO pitch input will change the pitch, but you can also patch it into filter cutoff or anything else really to control parameters with pitch CV.

[@callumissocoollikf]

Right thankyou, is it a fairly standard thing for VCOs to have a CV input? also people mention stack-able patch cables, could you have the same key stroke controlling multiple different VCOs?

[@tuesdaynightmachines]

+callumissocoollikf yes, VCO stands for Voltage Controlled Oscillator, so it should have a CV (Control Voltage) input :) Stackables copy signals so that you can indeed use them for multiple purposes at the same time.

[@callumissocoollikf]

right thank you so much, it's so much quicker and easier speaking to a real human

[@callumissocoollikf]

Is the CV in on a VCO sometimes called an fm in or is that a different thing?

[@Croot_Music]

What benefits do you gain from having negative and positive voltages exactly? Can someone give me a practical/common example of how it can be used?

[@tuesdaynightmachines]

One example would be simple „math“. If one voltage is too high, you can use a negative voltage to subtract from it and get a lower voltage. Or think about controlling fiter cutoff. Usually you turn the cutoff knob down and use a positive envelope to open it. Using a negative envelope CV you could leave the cutoff knob high and close the filter with the envelope, which creates a different sound effect.

[@schaunsworld2754]

how do i set my oxygen61 to pro tools mp9

[@tuesdaynightmachines]

What? :D

[@schaunsworld2754]

im trying to play my midi in pro tools

[@tuesdaynightmachines]

Oh, okay. I'm afraid I don't really know Pro Tools, but I'd assume that you just need some software instruments/VSTs that you can play with a MIDI keyboard.

[@theprstc]

trolling 101

[@FfmFist]

Geht das auch mal auf deutsch?

[@tuesdaynightmachines]

Leider nein. Aber poste ruhig deine Fragen hier :)

[@ExpertSleepersLtd]

An odd choice to start this video with a discussion of MIDI. Many people (possibly the majority) have no MIDI at all in their modular. It's a very limited technology compared to the resolution and timing accuracy offered by CVs.

[@tuesdaynightmachines]

You are certainly right, but I think that many people who are new to modular synths are somewhat familiar with MIDI and less so with CV. Also, I personally always wanted to integrate my modulars with my other gear, so a MIDI-CV interface is important to me. I know about your Expert Sleeper products and think they're great, but since I don't use a computer in my setup, I haven't tried them out yet.

[@ExpertSleepersLtd]

***** Fair enough. I wasn't going for a sales pitch here, by the way - it was a personal comment. Given the infinite possibilities offered by an analogue modular it seems a shame to immediately tether it to a slow 7 bit digital interface. People can use whatever works for them, of course, but I certainly wouldn't want people to come away thinking that they have to use MIDI (or indeed, any kind of external controlling device) to use a modular.

[@agustin0genoud]

Hi! mi name is agustin from argentina, the series of videos are great and very very useful! i came back to this video because i have a question. I'm buying a pittsburgh System 10.1+ ( pittsburghmodular.com/system-101-plus/ ) and i was trying to get another module to have other controls of the synth, i was thinking in the peaks module from Mutable Instruments (mutable-instruments.net/modules/peaks) but (this is my first modular synth sorry if this one is a silly question) it says it needs a trigger signal input to modulate, how can i create this signal? it could be any signal output into this trigger input? can i get it from the pittsburgh synth? i was thinking in a general control module with a lot of options, but that trigger input got me thinking if maybe this is not what i need, do you have any suggestions? thanks a lot again! the videos are great

[@tuesdaynightmachines]

agustin0genoud A trigger can often just be a gate (from a keyboard or a square wave LFO, for example), i.e. something with a fast rising edge. Some modules might trigger twice though with a gate signal, once at the rising edge and once a the falling edge. I don't know about the Peaks, but you're probably fine with gates. Otherwise, you could generate a proper trigger with a really fast decay/release envelope from an envelope generator, or from a trigger sequencer of course. But, as I said, I assume that the Peaks works well with gates too.

[@ExpertSleepersLtd]

Disappointing to see MIDI presented as the only option for controlling modular. What is this, 1983?

[@tuesdaynightmachines]

Well, it is unfortunately the only "standard", apart from direct CV control. I'm happy to see more CV-capable gear in the past couple of years though. Still, MIDI is everywhere and most people who are new to modulars will be somewhat familiar with it (you and me already talked about this a year ago further below). If people want more precision, they should definitely look into the ES stuff, which I mention in the video about Clocks & Sequencers. However, since this is a series of short videos about the "basics", I'm not going to cover everything there is to know. I rather want to give the viewers a foundation of knowledge, upon which they can build by doing their own in-depth research. :)

[@devinthierault]

are you Welsh or German or something else. You sound exactly like John Cale.

[@tuesdaynightmachines]

Devin Tariel I'm German. Funny that Welsh apparently sounds similar :D

[@mortarmopp3919]

A good textbook definition, but would've been more useful with some practical examples.

[@tuesdaynightmachines]

Thanks! There are so many practical examples out there. For instance my "Patch from scratch" videos :)