Readers send in details of their own synth patches and how to play them...

Last month's hint to send patches for as yet unfeatured synths has prompted sufficient readers for us to produce the feature with no patch for the Yamaha DX7, which certainly makes a change. Patches for every type of synth are always welcome, so send your favourite sound settings (preferably on an owner's manual patch chart including a blank one for artwork purposes, plus a brief description) to: Patchwork, E&MM, (Contact Details).

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JEN SX1000 - 'Solara'

Tim Xenon, Norwich

Perhaps the cheapest monophonic on the market, the SX1000 Synthetone possesses just one VCO but is nevertheless capable of providing some surprisingly useful sounds, aided and abetted by two envelope shapers.

Just one of five patches submitted by Tim, Solara is a bright, organ-like sound that particularly impressed us, though we liked it even better when the LFO amount was reduced from 7 to 3, and the VCA release time increased from 2 to 4.

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KORG POLYSIX - 'Synth Choir'

A Horrell, Bristol

An impressive and mellow choir patch has been manipulated on the Polysix by A Horrell, and should prove useful for atmospheric background chords. The bass end can be cleaned up by reducing the Resonance setting to 5, and a perhaps more realistic vocal envelope implemented by reducing the sustain from 10 to 5. This allows the sound to 'settle' in much the same way a voice does when it latches on to the exact pitch after an initial slight wavering (here represented by the Attack and Decay slope). Human vocalists rarely hit perfect pitch first time!

Cut Off and Release settings are best tweaked to taste, and bear in mind the potential for adding some subtle vibrato or tremolo effects as the sound fades for additional authenticity.

(Click image for higher resolution version)

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YAMAHA CS30 - 'Rhythm Sequins'

Ann Carroll, Dublin

Yamaha's versatile (but sadly no longer produced) CS30 has been cleverly set in this patch to provide what can only be described as an 'auto rhythm section'. The built-in eight-step analogue sequencer is utilised to control the accents ot a simple pulsing rhythm rather than to provide a melody.

Ann suggests setting the controls as shown and then fine-tuning the sound, beginning with the Noise (ie. turn all volume controls down except for the Master, Noise, and VCA1). Start the Sequencer and rotate the eight controls, beginning, if you like, with Step 1 only. Note that at about 2 the sound should resemble a bass drum 'thud', and at 4, more of a snare shot. Practically no sound is produced with the control turned fully anticlockwise, which may prove useful for programming rests. At this stage, check VCF1 for optimum settings. The sequencer pitch controls can then be manipulated to provide simple rhythm patterns: basic one-bar pattern in 4/4 would be 2/0/4/0/2/0/4/0/.

Once the rhythm is set, add VCO2 at VCF1. Notice that VCO2 is made to pulse by the sequencer, and that the higher the sequencer control is set, the more accent the pulse is given.

Remember that the sequencer can be programmed to act as a half bar (two sequences per bar), one bar, or two bars (one beat per sequencer pitch control). Thinking of it in those terms should help if you want to link the synth to an external drum machine or sequencer. However, you should also remember that although the noise will be affected by the control being set at 0, VCO2 will still be triggered and the Clock Speed will need to be adjusted accordingly when the sequencer is set to be anything other than 'one bar'.

The pitch of the rhythm pattern (VCO2) is triggered from the keyboard. VCO2 is set to 'fade' slowly by EG3, and its envelope is accented by the sequencer at VCF2.

(Click image for higher resolution version)

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MEMORYMOOG - 'Human Chorus'

Ghiozzi Maurizio, Italy

Another newcomer to Patchwork, the MemoryMoog is considered the grand master of Moogs. Ghiozzi's patch is programmed to reproduce a human chorus, and he adds that it's necessary to keep the Octave key in the -1 position, and to play from C2 to F5 on the keyboard.

Not having a MemoryMoog lurking in the depths of our studio (hint hint, Moog people!), we'll have to let the patch speak (sic) for itself...

(Click image for higher resolution version)