Keyboard tracking misaligned?

#1

Ok not sure where this should go and how to best put this is wording:

I've set up a simple patch with the main oscillator tuned to C2/65.41Hz however when I send a C2 note over midi I actually hear an D#2/77.78Hz

What's going on here?
I thought something was off for a while, but I just played by ear mostly, but recently when I was trying to make some melodic combinations with other instruments I got annoyed and I realized the Axoloti is tuned upwards somehow.

Really no idea what I'm doing wrong here ..

#2

odd, thats not right.. if you tune the oscillator to C2, and you play C2, you should get G# (not D#)
this is what I (correctly) get when testing with a sine oscillator...
if your not getting G# can you post your patch.

anyway, the reason if you tune to C2, and play C2 , you dont get C2, is oscillators are tuned to E,

or put another way 0 in pitch is E4, it actually best (I find) not to view oscillators pitch as note numbers, and instead view as transposition (i.e. integers) , so when you tune an oscillator to C4, you'll see its a -4 semitone transpose , so sending in C, will be transposed by -4 semis , so G#

why is zero not C, good question... one i 'argued' with Johannes when I first got my axoloti...
unfortunately its down to midi... its a 127 steps, 0 midi = C-1 , 127 = G9 , this then translates to the same range in axoloti of -64 to +63, unfortunately that means 0 lands at E4.
( I think, but not sure, that Johannes, said its similar on the nord modular, but i may be wrong on that)

anyway, I found it counter intuitive initially, until I stopped looking at the note display on the oscillator and instead looked a the integer on the dial :slight_smile:

#3

Hmm, this is indeed quite counter intuitive.

I would've expected hearing a C when playing a C, but this needs a little puzzling to set my oscillators to something that makes sense sonically :wink:

So 'C2' in the osscillator setting basically is played when 'E4' is received over midi?

#4

thats not the way to view it...
view it as, tuning the oscillator to C4, is detuning it by -4 semi tones (to C2, its -28 semis) , so anything you play on the oscillators is now detuned -4 semis. (its because pitch 0 is E, not C)

musically it does make sense, imagine a guitar, its top string is tuned to E... , so at fret 8 it play C.
now if you tune the top string to C, and play at fret 8, you wont get C :slight_smile:

its the same... the oscillators are tuned to E as a reference, not C
it makes no difference if its C , E or something else (its E, for the midi reasons I posted above)

this is probably why most synths dont expose what the oscillator is 'tuned' to, thats internal, they just given you transposition... coarse and fine usually, i guess this is where us keyboard players, get this assumption C = 0 :slight_smile:

#5

Since I initially got these oscillator-settings from the 'getting started' guide I hope @janvantomme will make a revision where this tuning is explained a bit better (with maybe also examples that actually track the keyboard).

Cheers and thnx.

/me back to patching

#6

can you post the patch, it would be a little clearer to me then the confusion...
Im surprised any example, would use the oscillator, tuned to anything other than 0 or octaves... i guess 5ths is ok as well if you want to have the old keyboard auto chords :wink:

#7

Basically I built on top of 'Figure 3.9 — The finished lead sound.' from the 'getting started' guide :slight_smile:

figure3.9.jpg2670x896 107 KB

I now tuned the oscillators to E2/E3/B5 and it's the result I actually intended :wink: