Yamaha DX7 FM Synthesis Tutorial | FM Envelopes Explained

[@mylescaldwell4455]

This is the secret; your treatment of carriers vs modulators immediately simplified so much about these instruments and that’s in like the first minute. Just find your algorithm, match the volume contour, timbre contour and play with your ratios/detune and you can reverse engineer any sound, and understand it well enough to make new ones. This man is a god

[@_zurhan]

Needed this. Thanks. Subscribed.

[@bobns509]

What is a chronology of yours tutorials so we can follow from some beginning and not jump from one to another with no obvious learning curve?

[@johnutz907]

thanks alot for the great explanation. where can i purchase the oscilloscope?

[@madFame]

You're welcome John. I purchased my oscilloscope second-hand in New Zealand but I believe you can find them on eBay as well. Thanks for watching!

[@scottbirch968]

So the envelopes only modulate amplitude, not frequency for each operator?

[@madFame]

Hi Scott, that's correct. Each operators output can be controlled using its envelope. The effect of the operators output is determined by its role in the algorithm.

[@scottbirch968]

On my old Novation KStation (virtual analogue) I can have FM modulation and apply a pitch EG to the modulating oscillator. I wish FM synths did this too.

[@NunyaB1s]

Major boast "This is the BEST video on..." is validated by the clear and concise advice 1.) Treat the carrier ADSR as AMP ADSR, separating the modulators as overtone generators and 2.) something I'd never heard before but: after your ADSR values are set, focus on the decay rates for most sound design. Those two bits of advice make SO MUCH sense after having struggled for so long to get the sounds I want out of FM synths... and yes, they only make sense if they follow the Yamaha envelope model (decay rates don't exist on the opsix for example.)

[@johnlopez4730]

THANK YOU so much for these DX7 videos. For the past 5 years I have struggled figuring this synthesizer out. I am so used to analog. Your videos are so clear. Now I know whats going on. Thanks a million!!! :D

[@madFame]

Hi John, thanks for tuning in! I started with subtractive synths too and when I got my DX it spent years not being programmed and I didn't use the stock sounds either. I'm glad my tutorial process is working for people who are used to analog/ subtractive synths like yourself. Thanks for getting in touch.

[@khawk2012]

Hi there. I am trying to get the DX7 original patches to work on the Montage. Some values do not show or work. Such as modulation and aftertouch.. How does the modulation and aftertouch work on the DX7.. or are the values set individually?

[@OceanMoonJack]

Mad Fame - these vids are unreal. I've spent hours learning from them - are we ever going to have our FM guru back with us? I bet I aint the only one on YT who misses your presence. Peace and gratitude 🙏

[@madFame]

Thank you for the kind words! I miss making these videos for you all, maybe I can drop a video every now and then soon. Thank you for watching :)

[@OceanMoonJack]

@@madFame Crikey that would be magic, MF. I completely understand how much time this stuff takes, but you really did tap into mode of FM synthesis explanation/tuition in a way that few other online people achieved. It's a real treasure and I've learnt loads. Huge thank you and I hope we see you again on here one day

[@WrvrUgoThrUR]

File this under "Great Explanations".

[@danny5AN]

Hey Mad Fame! I just got into FM synthesis by discovering a DX7 emulator VST called Dexed (maybe I will own a real DX7 someday). Even though the software interface is very different (and intimidating), your videos are really helping me understand how to navigate the basic principles even without a real DX7 to play with! Thank you for doing such a great job, and for opening doors for so many people!

[@madFame]

Hi Danny! I'm glad to hear that and I hope you have fun exploring the true potential of FM synthesis. It's a really underrated technology and doesn't have to be difficult to learn. Thanks for the kind words, it's very much appreciated! 🙏🏼

[@MatheusRobis]

cristal clear explanation

[@benfactor]

Just bought TG77, but mainly cause i really like those 80 rhodes/piano sounds and software sound just didn't do it for me. I only wanted to adjust release, but that proved to be quite a feat until I saw this video. Now as i watch these videos im not overwhelmed anymore about the whole FM programing thing. Many thanks!

[@madFame]

Hi Ray! You're totally welcome . I'm glad the tutorials are helping you to use and and enjoy your synth. Thanks for watching and sharing your comment.

[@rjbush7955]

Another great tutorial madFame. I don't have a DX7 either but I have been using Propellerheads rack extension called PX7. It emulates the DX7 very well. Check it out if you can. With your tubes I've been getting some awesome sounds out of it. Please can one of your tubes explain the Ratio side of things between carriers/modulator, and what their music theory equivalents are. Cheers

[@madFame]

Wow, thanks for the support. I'm glad these videos are having a practical benefit for you and many other viewers. My next video is dealing with frequency parameters and does include ratios, so I'll try my best to cover that for you.

[@DouglasBurton]

After going through about 10 videos about this topic I'm happy to have found yours, you put it into words and examples that finally made it click for me.

[@madFame]

Hi Douglas, thank you for watching and sharing your kind words. I'm glad my video content and format has made FM synthesis easier for you and many others to understand. At the end of the day I'm just a musician and I want to make and play great sounds, I hope these videos help you too. Thanks again!

[@MarkSomosoMusic]

Your the best. Thanks for the tutorial. ?..

[@mitraproject8834]

thanks a lot man, I bought a DX7 a couple of years ago, but never used except for internal patches, because that algorithms were just scaring to me! now I start figuring out something...thanks again, just subscribed.

[@madFame]

You're welcome, thanks for subscribing! I'm glad you're on your way to programming your DX. The best part about making this video series is knowing that the DX series will have new life brought to them through creative users like yourself learning from these tutorials. All the best!

[@zwcharbin]

讲得太好了！

[@joshtomlinson8169]

I’m trying to copy this over to my reface and it seems as if the system is slightly different where you have to mess with the eg level and eg rate together to modulate things like decay, is that accurate or am I being dumb? The concept translates well enough but the graph is still operating differently on the reface

[@chauld]

two thumbs up

[@whereitwas3892]

Awesome videos thanks so much

[@madFame]

You're welcome Frank, thank you for subscribing! Much appreciated

[@kedamono2562]

Lmao i thought this series was dead. Really cool

[@madFame]

Back in the game! Haha, plenty more videos to come. Thanks for watching

[@PrimitiveBaroque]

Hey these are so good. The best intro to FM synthesis because you give hard principles to model your sounds. I just got a Volca FM and this is helping me alot. Thank you!

[@madFame]

Glad you like them! Thanks for watching :)

[@boimesa8190]

why does it seem like you have after touch on? Everytime you release a note there seems to be a tiny click after (when you dont have any release onyour carrier...)??

[@madFame]

@Boi Mesa It could be the physical sound of the key or just the way the envelope is closing.

[@nestormurrietachavez8586]

The sysex on patreon?

[@boimesa8190]

at 1:51 when i have operator 2 which is identical to operator 1 modulate OP1 (i have an init CART) i don't get a saw wave :S ??? How come?? Do i need to change the pitch orr..??

[@madFame]

@Boi Mesa To make a sawtooth you need a 2-op stack (the modulator should have a feedback loop) and these values in place: Carrier Output Level = 99, Frequency = 1.00 Modulator Output Level = 75, Frequency = 1.00, Feedback = 7.

[@boimesa8190]

@@madFame yeah i just realized it doesn't become an actual saw but that it's just an estimation ;) great vids dude!!

[@henriquestaino2465]

Dude, your videos are great! Thank you so much

[@madFame]

Glad you like them! Thanks for tuning in!

[@rawl747]

Sweet patch. I'll have to try it on my DX7. I noticed the oscilloscope image and wanted to ask, is this something that you have edited onto the main video image? I am guessing you haven't found a o-scope that small to mount on your DX7. But if that is the case, I want one too! I have a nice older Tektronix o-scope but it is a rather large beast. About the size of a desktop PC. I look forward to your next video and am subscriber #190. Cheers, Rawl747

[@rawl747]

I saw below that you are suing a Jye Tech o-scope. Would you please tell us which model?

[@madFame]

Yes, the o-scope is a little DIY Jyetech unit - model is DSO138. Its a great little unit and perfectly capable of tracking audio waveforms for synths. I believe they are a DIY kit but I purchased mine second-hand and it was already assembled. It runs on 9V (center positive) and I also purchased an RCA adapter to connect an audio cable to the BNC socket.

[@rawl747]

madFame thanks so much for your reply.

[@p07a]

Great video, really helpful! Especially about the Modulator needing to have a longer release so it doesn't run off to early compared to the carrier. I don't have a DX7, but I have a Volca FM. I wanted to exploit R1 and L1 to delay a sound after the keypress. I noticed that if I set L1=0, R1 would not have any effect. So I set L1 to somewhere slightly inaudible so I could exploit R1 to delay the sound. In this video, as far as I've noticed, you didn't seem to have that problem. And as far as I know, people say the Volca FM emulates the DX7 pretty accurately. Do you have any idea?

[@madFame]

Hi there great question. The way you're using your envelopes sounds correct. Does this occur all of the time or just in a particular sound you're working on? Also, is this happening with a Carrier or Modulator (both?). There may be a limitation in the Volca itself or there may be another parameter value that is forcing your envelope to respond this way. Unfortunately, I don't own a Volca to try and replicate it but if you could show the envelope values you're using that may help to figure out what's happening.

[@p07a]

Hi! I have a video on my channel that's half an hour long of me walking through the patch. Here's a short clip of it: instagram.com/p/BWZgF0pjMAa/?taken-by=p07a I think it happens with only the carriers. I have not test out with the Modulators (since this patch is making use of 6 OPs all as carriers, I'm delaying OPs one after another to create this fake arpeggio). I didn't script the video (on my channel), so when I was walking through the tutorial, I realize that R1 doesn't do anything unless I set L1 to ... say... 50 (which is almost noticeably audible). Maybe I'll downloaded Dexed and see if that's the case there as well. I don't own a Dx7.

[@p07a]

Here's an earlier draft of the same sketch: instagram.com/p/BWZb_ojDk36/?taken-by=p07a You notice that the notes aren't evenly spaced. I realized this is because of the OSC Rate Scale, or Velocity mod sense. Both of which affects the rate of the operators depending on the note you play (higher note means shorter R1, stronger velocity means shorter R1). I realized that and disable those things but still seeing R1 being affected by L1 being 0 or some small values.

[@madFame]

Thanks for the links, great patch! I'm in the middle of editing the next video dealing with Frequency programming and I'm using ALG32 just like in your video. Here's the patch: ALG32 ALL OPs ON ALL OPs Output Level = 99 ALL OPs EG LEVEL= L1=0 L2=0 L3=99 L4=0 OP1 Frequency = .50 EG RATE = R1=99 R2=99 R3=99 R4=45 OP2 Frequency = 1.26 EG RATE = R1=99 R2=50 R3=99 R4=45 OP3 Frequency = 3.00 / Detune = -2 EG RATE = R1=99 R2=45 R3=99 R4=45 OP4 Frequency = 3.78 EG RATE = R1=99 R2=40 R3=99 R4=45 OP5 Frequency = 4 / Detune = +5 EG RATE = R1=99 R2=33 R3=99 R4=45 OP6 Frequency = 4.48 EG RATE = R1=99 R2=37 R3=99 R4=45

[@p07a]

It looks like a cool patch! I haven't patched it, but after reading it, I'm expecting you're doing some sort of additive analysis.

[@MorganOliver77]

I understand how amplitude modulation works but what does "tone" mean in this context? When applying the envelope to a modulator it affects the "tone", but tone is vague and this video doesn't really explain how the envelope works on modulators?

[@madFame]

@Morgan Oliver - I'm not sure what you're referencing by "amplitude modulation" in the context of FM synthesizers but to answer your question about tone it's this: When a modulators output level is high then it has a greater effect on the carrier or modulator beneath it. The higher a modulators output level the more sideband frequencies are generated - this is the "tone" I'm talking about. Just like a tone control you can brighten and darken a sound by increasing and decreasing a modulators output. Check out my algorithm video for an in-depth look at operator function as carriers and modulators bit.ly/2Sp2Xdn

[@MorganOliver77]

@@madFame thanks for the reply. I think i meant amplitude (volume) envelope not modulation. Yes i went away and thought about tone more. On an electric guitar the tone pot makes it sound brighter with more treble. And I can hear how the envelope on the modulator alters how 'bright' the sound is. Im not sure what you mean by sideband frequencies but I get the idea. I have had my DX 7 for about a week now and really learning a lot about sound in my attempts to program it! Your videos are great! I have created some of your custom patches :)

[@MorganOliver77]

So I went away and read up about sideband frequencies and how they relate to FM synthesis. Again thanks for your videos, I'm learning so much!

[@madFame]

@Morgan Oliver - That's fantastic! I love hearing about how my viewers are learning and also finding out more on their own, well done. I hope you enjoy your DX and hopefully my videos will help you enjoy it more. Thanks for watching and sharing your thoughts.

[@MorganOliver77]

@@madFame also hello from a fellow New Zealander!

[@renzotorr537]

May you tell us what Osciloscope are you using?

[@madFame]

Hi Renzo, It's a Jyetech digital oscilloscope. Runs on 9volts and cost about $20USD. It's a great little unit, I use it with all of the time when I'm programming.

[@renzotorr537]

Thanks dude, I'm trying to find Osciloscopes but couldn't find any one except from those that are extremely powerful compared to what we do on sound haha. Greetings from Argentina dude, your videos are great and how you made an interface for them and animate them, is really really good. I cannot believe you have

[@renzotorr537]

ohhhh btw, you should make a video on the Linear and Exponential functions! That would be really helpful

[@madFame]

Kia ora from New Zealand, it's great to have you on board! I highly recommend the Jytech oscilloscopes, they are really simple and useful (and inexpensive!). Thanks for your support Renzo.

[@madFame]

Great suggestion, it's on the list!

[@mranghelion]

Hi mad fame can you explain a little more about envelopes EG , i mean the dx EG is more sophisticated than a regular adsr so it needs to be an vid in detail , and how to make for example a pad , string , a lead or different and strange kinds of EGs ..greetings man