Foundations
Start with signal flow, modulation basics, and first sound design patches.
- CV vs audio
- oscillator, filter, VCA
- envelopes and LFOs
Foundations
Lesson 03: First Subtractive Patch
Build the classic oscillator-filter-VCA chain and hear the core voice model.
Markdown content
Theory, structure, and practical context are all driven from content files.
Related patches
Concrete repository anchors already exist for this lesson track.
Theory
Subtractive synthesis starts with a harmonically rich source and removes or shapes parts of it.
Oscillator -> Filter -> VCA -> OutputThis patch teaches the most durable modular ideas:
- source
- shaping
- loudness control
- output staging
Why This Patch Matters
Almost every future system in the repository still contains this logic somewhere inside it, even when the patch becomes more complex.
Patch Steps
- Add an oscillator.
- Send it into a filter.
- Send the filter into a VCA.
- Send the VCA into audio output.
- Add an envelope to control the VCA.
Practice
Create three variants:
- bass
- pad
- drone
Patch references
Use the linked patch entries below as concrete repository anchors for this lesson track.
Continue inside Foundations
Adjacent lessons in the same track keep the topic progression coherent.
Hybrid routing overview
The first system diagram connects the modular engine, DAW layer, and visual output layer.