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Pantheon Documentation

www.Nucleus-SoundLab.com

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab


Welcome

Thank you very much for purchasing Pantheon! Youʼve just purchased a product
that will add flair to your productions and help you learn advanced sound design
features of Reason. Read on for information on installing the product, and for
extensive documentation on each included patch.

Installation

To install Pantheon, simply copy the Refill (Pantheon.rfl) file to your Reason Refill
folder. Note that you will require Reason 4.0+ for these patches to work properly.
Reason 3 will not work.

As far as hardware requirements, anything that can run Reason 4 will work ok.
But keep in mind that some of these patches push the Reason environment very
hard, and this may be difficult on older PCs and Macs. For reference, the first
demo song Elysium runs 10-25% on my 3.0ghz Core 2 Duo CPU. Of course,
this is only using a single-core, as Reason isnʼt multi-processor aware yet.

Patch documentation

The Combinator patches are split up into twelve separate folders. Each holds a
certain class of patch. This will help you quickly find the type of effect you are
looking for.

Below you will find comments on each patch. These comments were written by
the patchʼs designer. The designers initials are at the end of each patch
filename.

JJ= Jeremy Janzen


NH= Nick Hutton
AF= Adam Fielding
SW= Shaun Wallace

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab


FX-Atmo Sequences
Daybreak
Nick Hutton
FX-Atmo Sequences

Rotary 1
Selects which pattern is heard.

Rotary 2
Changes the frequency of the pad sound.

Rotary 3
Changes the chorus feedback level (use when chorus effect is selected).

Rotary 4
Changes the value of the amount of LFO.

Button 1
Turns on the loudness gain.

Button 2
Turns on the mid boost.

Button 3
Turns on the chorus effect for the Moog lead.

Button 4
Turns on the delay effect for the Moog lead.

Modwheel
Increases filter frequency on lead sound.

Design Notes
Tailor made pattern sequence with a Moog lead to play over the top of it.

Lost in Space
Adam Fielding
FX-Atmo Sequences

Rotary 1
Allows for per-semitone transposition of all notes played.

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab


Rotary 2
Controls the amplitude of the formant-based sweeping pad sound.

Rotary 3
Controls the amplitude of the atmospheric drone sound.

Rotary 4
Controls the amplitude of the periodic “beeping” sound.

Button 1
Enables/disables reverb.

Button 2
Enables/disables delay on the “beeping” sound.

Button 3
Enables/disables master EQ.

Button 4
Disables all included sequences, allowing for manual playback/sequencing.

Modwheel
Controls oscillator frequency on the atmospheric drone sound.

Performance Notes
By default, this patch works simply by pressing play and leaving it while tweaking the included
controls. However, if you wish to play your own sequences, trigger the “manual play” button and
sequence your own parts. To make slotting this atmospheric patch into a pre-existing track easier,
the transpose knob can be used to transpose all notes. This may work, but if not then the manual
play option should take care of this. All notes below C6 trigger the pad and droning sound, while
all notes above this point will trigger the “pip” sound.

Design Notes
This is another somewhat melancholic atmospheric patch, although it can be used as a
traditional pad with some minor tweaking. I had wanted to create something that sounded a bit
dark, without sounding harsh to the listener by default. The transpose knob was introduced as a
means to enable the patch to be quickly and easily slotted into a track without too much
modification, although the manual play button was included should the included chords clash
despite transposition.

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab


The Nothing
Adam Fielding
FX-Atmo Sequences

Rotary 1
Controls the noise-mod attack speed on the noise-based sound.

Rotary 2
Controls the noise-mod decay speed on the noise-based sound.

Rotary 3
Controls the base LP filter cut-off frequency on the noise-based sound.

Rotary 4
Controls the base LP filter resonance on the noise-based sound.

Button 1
Enables/disables reverb.

Button 2
Enables/disables delay effects.

Button 3
Enables/disables low cut equalization on the droning sound.

Button 4
Disables all included sequences, allowing for manual playback/sequencing.

Modwheel
Controls oscillator frequency on the noise-based sound.

Performance Notes
By default, this patch works simply by pressing play and leaving it while tweaking the included
controls. However, if you wish to play your own sequences, trigger the “manual play” button and
sequence your own parts. The pitch-bend wheel does not have any effect on the noisy/wind
sound, so you can use this to create creepy shifting sounds with the drone. It is recommended to
use this patch with only one note as any more may result in an incredibly muddled sound. This is
not an issue with the default settings and automatic playback, though.

Design Notes
With this patch I intended to create a feeling of intense isolation with a tundra-like image in
mind. The noise swirl is used to simulate the wind, with some noise-band modulation thrown in
to give it a slightly strange edge. The drone is there primarily to create a sense of incredible

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab


unease – combined with the automatic pitch-bending, it sounds suitably creepy. To round it all
off is an incredibly huge reverb effect, which in particular brings out a sense of scale with the
noise-based synth, though this can be disabled by the user.

Melodic Sequences
Bell Sequence
Jeremy Janzen
Melodic Sequence

Rotary 1
Changes the Matrix melodic sequence played. However, its in use by Rotary 2. (see below)

Rotary 2
Changes the order of the different sequences being played back by modulating Rotary 1. Think
of this as the 'playlist' control of the different sequences.

Rotary 3
Increases the soft-clipping shaper distortion in the Thor device.

Rotary 4
Modifies the timbre of the patch, by modulating the wavetable position of Osc 2.

Button 1
Changes the wavetable completely in Osc 2. This produces a more discordant sound.

Button 2
Activates envelope control of the Comb Filter. This produces a phasey, chorused sound on each
attack.

Button 3
Modulates the Comb Filter with a sine LFO.

Button 4
Turns off all sequencing.

Modwheel
Activates envelope control of the dual BP filters. Totally Changes the character of the patch

Performance Notes

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab


You can play this bell patch in a variety of ways, morphing its tone with the Rotaries 3&4.
Modwheel changes are great for accenting certain notes.

Design Notes
This patch is a demonstration of nested sequencing in Reason. Basically, a set of sequences are
set up in one Matrix sequencer (8 sequences in Matrix 1 in this case). Next a Combinator Rotary
(Rotary 1 in this case) is mapped to Pattern Selection in this Matrix. Finally a new Matrix is
created, which is connected via CV to Combinator Rotary 1. In this new matrix, you can then
draw a curve that will select between the different sequences over time. In this way you could
actually sequence an entire song! But its really cool for chaining together very long sequences,
that would be far too much for the 32-steps in a single Matrix pattern. Try it out!

Brothers
Jeremy Janzen
Melodic Sequence

Rotary 1
Controls the pattern of the left guitar.

Rotary 2
Controls the pattern of the right guitar.

Rotary 3
Toggles between different noise oscillator types for left guitar.

Rotary 4
Toggles between different noise oscillator types for right guitar.

Button 1
Activates a shaper on the left guitar for a new timbre.

Button 2
Activates a shaper on the right guitar for a new timbre.

Button 3
Controls the pattern of the bass guitar.

Button 4
Turns off all sequencing.

Modwheel
Activates a shaper on the bass guitar for a brighter timbre.

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab


Performance Notes
In manual mode, the bass is mapped below C3. Both guitars play in unison using C3 and above.

Design Notes
This is an attempt at physical-modelling with Thor. These nylon guitars are created with the
typical technique of noise routed into a Comb Filter. What’s unique here is that by default the
S&H noise waveform is used, which gives a much more hollow, resonant tone than white noise.
A further advantage is all notes sound slightly different (like a real guitar) with S&H. Try to
experiment with different types of noise or inharmonic tone going through a tuned Comb Filter.

I'm sometimes asked - how do you tune a Comb Filter in Thor? Good question. By ear. Load
up a sine/saw osc, and ramp up the Comb Frequency until its in unison with the sine. This is
similar to tuning a real guitar!

By The Quasaric Coast


Nick Hutton
Melodic Sequences

Rotary 1
Switches between patterns.

Rotary 2
Changes the value of attack of the arp.

Rotary 3
Changes the value of the reverb.

Rotary 4
Changes the volume level of the pad pattern.

Button 1
Turns on the delay.

Button 2
Turns on the chorus.

Button 3
Turns on the gate.

Button 4
Turns off the pad pattern.

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab


Modwheel
Runs each Thor through separate shapers

Design Notes
Pad pattern with a nice emotive lead to play either over the top or on its own.

Carraway Seq
Nick Hutton
Melodic Sequences

Rotary 1
Changes the frequency value.

Rotary 2
Changes the rate of the sequence.

Rotary 3
Changes the tuning of the patch.

Rotary 4
Changes the value of the unison from dry to wet.

Button 1
Switches on the delay.

Button 2
Switches on the chorus.

Button 3
Switches on the unison effect.

Button 4
Switches on the distortion for a warmth effect.

Modwheel
Increases the gate length in the sequencer.

Design Notes
Sequenced patch that you can independently alter the rate and frequency of the sound.

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab


Dancing Arp
Adam Fielding
Melodic Sequences

Rotary 1
Controls the amplitude of the dry output signal.

Rotary 2
Controls the amplitude of the delay output signal. (independent of the dry signal)

Rotary 3
Controls the base LP filter cut-off frequency on the two synths.

Rotary 4
Controls the base LP filter resonance on the two synths.

Button 1
Enables/disables delay.

Button 2
Toggles between 1/16 (off) / 1/8T (on) step lengths on the delay units.

Button 3
Enables/disables chorus effects.

Button 4
Enables/disables delay EQ (low-cut & slight high-boost).

Modwheel
Controls notch filter frequency on all synths.

Performance Notes
This is a manual-arp, meaning that the order in which you play the notes will determine the
sequence in which they are triggered by the contained RPG-8 arpeggiator. Simple chords work
best, and the patch is designed to be used to add a bit of variety to an existing instrument set...
but there's no reason why it can't be used as a basic lead polysynth. Use the independent dry&
delay signal controls to your advantage to adjust the output character to suit your track.

Design Notes
As mentioned above, this was really designed as a means to add a bit of variety and movement to
an existing instrument set. The default settings on the combinator results in the delay units
producing a slightly off-beat rhythmic quality, which when combined with an existing rhythm
section can produce some nice results. The decision to use audio splitters as opposed to

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab


traditional aux sends for the delay signal was mainly to allow the user to tweak each signal to
produce an interesting lead in. By fading in the delay signal first, followed by the dry signal, this
prepares the listener for the instrument change while also doing something a little unexpected.

Distant Travel
Adam Fielding
Melodic Sequences

Rotary 1
Controls the pre-set pattern used for the sweeping pad sound.

Rotary 2
Controls the pre-set pattern used for the simple bass sound.

Rotary 3
Controls the delay filter unit frequency.

Rotary 4
Controls the delay filter unit resonance.

Button 1
Enables/disables delay.

Button 2
Enables/disables phaser on the bass sound.

Button 3
Controls the delay filter mode – off = BP filter, on = LP filter.

Button 4
Disables all included sequences, allowing for manual playback/sequencing.

Modwheel
Controls filter frequency on the main pad sound – higher values = lower cutoff frequency.

Performance Notes
By default, this patch is designed to be run and tweaked – just select “run pattern devices” or
press play in the sequencer track and mess about with the dials to tweak the sound. However, if
you want to sequence your own patterns, select the manual play button and play it. All keys from
C3 upwards trigger the pad sound, and all below trigger the bass sound. Of course, if you wish
you can also modify the pre-existing sequenced patterns contained within the combinator by
unfolding and modifying the patterns manually (devices Seq 1 and Seq 2 control the pad and
bass respectively).

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab


Design Notes
With this patch I wanted to create a rich, nicely rounded sound that would serve nicely as a build
up before a track really kicks off with some drums (why not try out one of the kits?). Combined
with some simple filtering and amplitude automation, this patch can work nicely as a lead-in
patch and, despite being a pattern-based patch by default, with the use of the manual play control
and some minor tweaking by the user there is a lot of room for tweaking.

Fairway Arp
Nick Hutton
Melodic Sequences

Rotary 1
Controls the frequency of the plucked arp.

Rotary 2
Controls the value of attack on the bass arp.

Rotary 3
Controls the relase value for the bass arp.

Rotary 4
Controls the rate of the bass arp.

Button 1
Turns on the delay for the plucked arp.

Button 2
Turns on hold for the plucked arp.

Button 3
Turns on the delay for the bass.

Button 4
Turns on the chorus for the bass arp.

Modwheel
Adds noise to the plucked arp

Design Notes
2 Split arpeggiators bass and solo respectively.

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab


Fingus Arp
Nick Hutton
Melodic Sequences

Rotary 1
Controls the frequency level.

Rotary 2
Controls the amount of resolution applied to the Thor patch.

Rotary 3
Controls the gate length of the arp.

Rotary 4
Controls the spread of the sound.

Button 1
Switches on the delay.

Button 2
Switches on the chorus.

Button 3
Turns the arp off.

Button 4
Sets the arp to hold.

Modwheel
Fades in 3rd Osc

Design Notes
Old skool arp useful for trance and psy music compositions.

Floating Forever
Adam Fielding
Melodic Sequences

Rotary 1
Controls the pre-set pattern used for the pads.

Rotary 2
Controls the pre-set pattern used for the keys.

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab


Rotary 3
Controls the low pass filter cut-off frequency on the pads.

Rotary 4
Controls the low pass filter cut-off frequency on the keys.

Button 1
Enables/disables reverb.

Button 2
Enables/disables EQ on the keys.

Button 3
Enables/disables key delay.

Button 4
Disables all included sequences, allowing for manual playback/sequencing.

Modwheel
Controls oscillator frequency on two of the pad devices to produce strange “squealing” sounds.

Performance Notes
By default, this patch is designed to be run and tweaked – just select “run pattern devices” or
press play in the sequencer track and mess about with the dials to tweak the sound. However, if
you want to sequence your own patterns, select the manual play button and play it. All keys from
C3 upwards trigger the keys, and all below trigger the pads. Of course, if you wish you can also
modify the pre-existing sequenced patterns contained within the combinator by unfolding and
modifying the patterns manually (devices Seq 1 and Seq 2 control the pads and keys
respectively).

Design Notes
This patch was an excuse to combine several nice pad sounds with a smooth, basic key-type
sound to produce a very lush-sounding, hugely spaced out patch. Figuring that the keys would
sound quite dry with the reverb disabled (which may be necessary to help it slot into a pre-
existing song, particularly when played manually), a control for applying delay on the key sound
was added. As such, this patch forms a nice template for an atmospheric section, or can be used
to pad out an existing track section.

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab


FutureScape
Jeremy Janzen
Melodic Sequence

Rotary 1
Rotates through the 5 onboard Matrix sequences.

Rotary 2
Sets the depth of the envelope modulation of the 18db LP filter.

Rotary 3
Sets the filter envelope decay time.

Rotary 4
Sets the amp envelope release time.

Button 1
Adds 3/16 delay.

Button 2
Adds unipulse shaping for a new timbre.

Button 3
Changes the EQ shape.

Button 4
Turns off all sequencing.

Modwheel
Controls the depth of LFO2’s modulation of the LP filter freq. This adds some motion to the
patch.

Performance Notes
This is a sequenced patch with 5 inbuilt patterns. Switch between these with Rotary 1. And use
Button 4 if you prefer to play manually.

Don’t forget the Thor knobs on this one. Using the Filter Freq and Wavetable Pos controls in
tandem with the Combinator controls can produce an infinite variation of tones.

Design Notes
This is another patch that takes good advantage of the versatile Formant wavetable to create a
futuristic plucked guitar tone.

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab


Also note how there is a Matrix curve pattern routed into the Thor as CV1. This is used as a
gating source in the mod matrix. Check out how this works in Pattern 3 of the Matrix - you can
add your own gating patterns to the other Matrix patterns as well.

Happy Mornings
Adam Fielding
Melodic Sequences

Rotary 1
Controls the pre-set pattern used for the percussive sound.

Rotary 2
Controls the pre-set pattern used for the triangle-based synth sound.

Rotary 3
Controls the delay decay time.

Rotary 4
Controls the shaper drive on the triangle-based synth sound.

Button 1
Enables/disables delay.

Button 2
Enables/disables chorus on the triangle-based synth sound.

Button 3
Enables/disables master stereo imager to produce a “wider” sound.

Button 4
Disables all included sequences, allowing for manual playback/sequencing.

Modwheel
Controls tremolo on the triangle-based synth sound.

Performance Notes
By default, this patch works simply by pressing play and leaving it while tweaking the included
controls. However, if you wish to play your own sequences, trigger the “manual play” button and
sequence your own parts. The percussive sounds are triggered using notes from C4 and below,
while notes from C#4 and above trigger the triangle-based synth sound to give you more control
over what is played. By default, this patch works well with some of the other melodic sequence
patches provided and provides some interesting pseudo-percussive support.

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab


Design Notes
As described above, this patch works nicely alongside some of the other melodic patches, which
was my main goal with this particular patch. It is relatively straight forward, with a thin-
sounding triangle-based Thor producing the melodic portion of the patch with a tuned percussive
Thor providing the percussive “support” - I say “support” as it really is the central piece of the
patch as it stands. Simple LFOs were used to provide a bit of movement as far as panning and
space were concerned, and the patch works very nicely on its own in providing a bit of backup to
an existing track.

Harp Sequences
Nick Hutton
Melodic Sequences

Rotary 1
Changes the sequence rate (time).

Rotary 2
Changes the value of unison applied the patch.

Rotary 3
Changes the width of the phaser.

Rotary 4
Changes the rate of the phaser.

Button 1
Turns on the delay.

Button 2
Turns on the chorus.

Button 3
Turns on the unison.

Button 4
Turns on the phaser.

Modwheel
Increases Amp Attack, giving a reversed instrument-like tone.

Design Notes
A sequence of harp like notes using just noise oscillators to create the sound.

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab


I do believe
Nick Hutton
Melodic Sequences

Rotary 1
Changes the value of the free rate of the arp.

Rotary 2
Changes the value of the frequency.

Rotary 3
Changes the value of the resolution.

Rotary 4
Changes the frequency of the bass.

Button 1
Turns on the osc sync.

Button 2
Turns on the wack effect.

Button 3
Turns on the bass.

Button 4
Turns on the delay effect.

Modwheel
Activates shaper on two of the Thors.

Design Notes
Arped UFO patch with a bass and freq effects!

Icicles
Jeremy Janzen
Melodic Sequence

Rotary 1
Sweeps the KBD value of Osc2. See 'design notes' for more info.

Rotary 2
Sweeps the FM depth of Osc2.

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab


Rotary 3
Controls the depth of the filter envelope modulation on filter 2.

Rotary 4
Feeds the raw Comb Filter directly into the amp - bypassing filter2. This is a much harsher
uncontrolled tone. Still, it can be very useful.

Button 1
Creates a new timbre by shifting Osc2 an octave up.

Button 2
Adds slight envelope modulation to the Comb Filter.

Button 3
Toggles Unison FX.

Button 4
Turns off all sequencing.

Modwheel
Adds a high-freq sheen with EQ.

Performance Notes
Icicles is a sequenced-pattern which uses Thor’s sequencer. This means the sequence begins
when you play a note on the keyboard, and starts from the root note that you play. You can also
push Button 4 for completely manual playback.

Design Notes
Its hard to describe exactly whats going on inside Icicles. This is a patch which uses some of the
unique properties of Thor Osc Sync to achieve some very different tones.

The best way to explain it is that when Osc 2 is synced to Osc 1, it doesn't have to be in tune
whatsoever. It could play C1 every time, and the patch would still be in tune - because Osc 1 is
the sync master. *However*, changing Osc 2's tuning gives a timbre change instead. So you can
morph the timbre of the entire patch by changing the KBD control of Osc 2 (which controls the
degree to which Osc 2's tuning follows the keyboard). It isn't possible to control this KBD inside
a Thor using the Mod Matrix, but using the Combinator controls we can. Rotary 1 is mapped to
KBD and can create a wonderful depth of tone thats impossible any other way. I call this
technique Sync Table, because its almost like creating a new wavetable of waveforms using Sync
and tuning.

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab


If you didn't understand the above, don't despair. Its very complex and I hope to create a video to
describe it better in the future.

Morning
Jeremy Janzen
Melodic Sequence

Rotary 1
Changes between the 4 lead patterns.

Rotary 2
Changes between the 4 bass patterns.

Rotary 3
Detunes the bass oscillators for a unison sound.

Rotary 4
Controls the filter envelope modulation depth for the bass LP filter.

Button 1
Mutes the pad element.

Button 2
Mutes the lead element.

Button 3
Mutes the drum elements.

Button 4
Turns off all sequencing.

Modwheel
Modifies the lead timbre by crossfading oscillators.

Performance Notes
This patch is best played back at 110bpm or so.
First, notice that this patch contains loop elements played by Dr. Rex units. This means, to
preview the patch in its entirety, you'll need to either push the preview buttons on the Dr. Rex
units - or, right-click on the Dr. Rex units and choose 'copy Rex loop to Track', to get the loop in
the Reason sequencer.

In manual mode, bass is played below C3. Above C3, there is a velocity split between the pad
(soft) and the lead (hard).

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab


Design Notes
This is one of the more complex patches in the Pantheon library. The great thing about these
types of patches is they instantly inspire. You might not appreciate some of the elements, but its
like a large construction kit you can deconstruct quickly into your own mix.

Its also a great way to analyze other's mixing and routing techniques. For example, here I've
routed the hi-hat element through the same Thor that is playing the lead. This way, it is played
through the same envelopes as the lead. This subtly links the lead and hihat - as well as them
sharing the same Thor delay pattern. Remember that Thor isn’t just a synth, and by using
creative routing it can really spice up the other Reason devices!

NEXTNES
Jeremy Janzen
Melodic Sequences

Rotary 1
Changes between the 3 lead 1 patterns.

Rotary 2
Changes between the 3 lead 2 patterns.

Rotary 3
Changes between the 3 bass patterns.

Rotary 4
Crossfades the mix between dry, and a resonant version created with a BV512 vocoder in EQ
mode.

Button 1
Switches the BV512 between 16-band mode and 4-band mode.

Button 2
Adds some delay to both leads.

Button 3
Turns on digital distortion on the bass. This is more faithful to the original NES sound.

Button 4
Turns off all sequencing.

Modwheel
Sweeps the BV512 vocoder Shift value.

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab


Performance Notes
This is a sequenced patch with multiple patterns controlled by the first three rotaries. You can
also play the patch back in manual mode using Button 4. In this case, the bass plays below C3.
And the both leads play in unison above C3.

Design Notes
Obviously, this is a chiptune patch modeled on the classic NES videogame system. Just for a bit
of background, the NES contained 5 sound channels. 2 pulse, 1 triangle, 1 noise and 1 crude
sample playback channel. In this case, I’ve omitted the noise and sample channel - though of
course you can add your own!

Where did the inspiration come from? I started listening a fair bit to old Contra and Mega Man
tunes, and felt a deep connection. These composers had nothing to ‘hide behind’. Everyone
used the same 5 channels in more or less the same way. So it was a real compositional challenge
to create original music. Its a very pure form of music and one I encourage you to check out!
Have a look at http://slickproductions.org/notsofatso.php to get started listening to some great
NES tunes on your PC.

Ordinary Sync
Jeremy Janzen
Melodic Sequences

Rotary 1
Sweeps the KBD value of Osc2. See Icicles design notes for more info.

Rotary 2
Sweeps the Sync BW value of Osc2.

Rotary 3
Increases the depth of the Wrap shaper.

Rotary 4
Controls the decay time of the Filter Envelope.

Button 1
This changes Osc 2 from the Bell wavetable to Sine Harmonics.

Button 2
Invert the Filter Envelope modulation of the Notch Filter.

Button 3
Increases Amp Release time.

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab


Button 4
Turns off all sequencing.

Modwheel
Fades in Filter Env control of Rotary 1 (see design notes)

Performance Notes
This is another Matrix-sequenced patch. It contains a single sequence. You can also play it
manually with Button 4.

Design Notes
This patch uses the same Sync Table technique as Icicles. One of the most significant additions
here is the Modwheel assignment. Now that you see what cool modulations you can get by
tweaking the KBD control of Osc2, wouldn’t it be amazing to tie an envelope to that? So that on
every note-on, the KBD value would be swept? Unfortunately, its not directly possible to do this
in Thor, since KBD isn’t a modulatable parameter in its mod matrix.

However, we can use a workaround. We can send the filter envelope in Thor out the CV1 output
slot, and then connect that to the Rotary 1 CV input on the back of the Combinator. Since we
*can* directly modulate KBD with the Combinator knobs, this way we can modulate KBD with
Thor’s Filter Env. Since we don’t always want this modulation, it is scaled by the Modwheel.
Fully turning the MW up activates the KBD Env modulation.

The main drawback of this type of modulation is that its monophonic - ie. each note-on resets the
envelope. Thats ok for a monophonic bass or lead, but when playing polyphonically, it doesn’t
sound as you’d expect. This is because all CV signals between devices in Reason are
monophonic - they aren’t unique for each voice of the synth. How to fix this? Unfortunately,
there isn’t a way. Only if the Props add the KBD control as a mod-matrix destination could it be
modified by an envelope polyphonically.

Planks of Gambia
Nick Hutton
Melodic Sequences

Rotary 1
Changes the arp pattern.

Rotary 2
Changes the flanger rate.

Rotary 3
Changes the amount of reverb.

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab


Rotary 4
Varies the time of the echo.

Button 1
Turns on the arp.

Button 2
Turns on the flanger.

Button 3
Turns on the reverb.

Button 4
Turns on the gate.

Modwheel
Fades in Sine Shaper.

Design Notes
Arpeggiated patch using an organ sound. Large amounts of reverb possibilities give much space
to the sound. Try using the mod wheel to give an interesting twist to the sound.

Source Sequence
Nick Hutton
Melodic Sequences

Rotary 1
Changes the value of the sequencer frequency.

Rotary 2
Changes the value of the sequencer resolution.

Rotary 3
Changes the value of the sequencer release.

Rotary 4
Changes the value of the bass arp frequency.

Button 1
Turns on the delay (all units).

Button 2

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab


Turns on the LFO.

Button 3
Turns on the Bass arp.

Button 4
Turns off all sequencing.

Modwheel
Fades in Shaper on Sensi Seq, and fades in Noise Osc on Plucked 2.

Design Notes
Sequencer and an arpeggiated, velocity sensitive bass in one combi.

Wavesequencer
Jeremy Janzen
Melodic Sequences

Rotary 1
Adds the dry mix back in (unaffected by Formant Filter)

Rotary 2
Formant Filter X control.

Rotary 3
Formant Filter Y control.

Rotary 4
Formant Filter Gender control.

Button 1
Runs the Formant mix through a digital distortion for some hi-end grit.

Button 2
Turns Unison on.

Button 3
Turns ping-pong delay on.

Button 4
Turns off all sequencing.

Modwheel

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab


Fades in envelope > Formant Filter modulation in Thor 1. This envelope is triggered by the Thor
1 pattern sequencer. You can change the pattern for a different envelope effect.

Performance Notes
This is another Matrix-sequenced patch. It contains a single sequence. You can also play it
manually with Button 4.

Due to the limitations of the preset design (see design notes below), its best to play one note at a
time with this patch, though its not strictly monophonic.

Design Notes
This patch arose from my experiments after playing with a Poly Evolver hardware synth. In
essence, the PE is 4 monophonic synths strung together. I thought, what if I could string multiple
Thor’s together? Since each voice would be an entire Thor, you could do wavesequencer-stuff as
well as very interesting rhythmic textures.

It is possible. You need to use the step sequencers inside each Thor to activate each device
alternately. By setting the sequencer to ‘step’ mode, each time you push a key the step will
increment. One Thor will be on a silent step when the other Thor is on an active step. This is
possible with many more than 2 Thor’s - you could create a 8-voice Thor patch where each voice
was a totally different device!.

As I say above in the Performance Notes, this method has drawbacks. You can’t easily play
chords using this mode, because the step sequencer’s are monophonic. How to fix ths? It isn’t
possible as far as I can tell. Unless the Props add some functionality to the mod-matrix
(Polyphony is already a mod source, but its not possible to map this to control multiple Thor’s
polyphonically).

This is another very hard concept to grasp, and I hope to expand on it with a video demo soon.

Wonder
Jeremy Janzen
Melodic Sequences

Rotary 1
Controls the shaper depth on the lead.

Rotary 2
Sets the level of the drum mix.

Rotary 3
Runs the entire mix through a BV512 in equalizer mode for a variety of resonant peaks. This
controls the crossfade between BV512 and dry.

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab


Rotary 4
Controls the Shift value of the BV512

Button 1
Switches between the 2 Pad patterns.

Button 2
Switches between the 2 Bass patterns.

Button 3
Switches between the 2 Lead patterns.

Button 4
Turns off all sequencing.

Modwheel
Fades out the Lead, while simultaneously turning up the reverse delay on the Drums.

Performance Notes
Each element has two Matrix sequences, controlled with the first 3 buttons. Alternatively, you
can play in manual mode with Button 4.

In manual mode, the Bass plays below C3. Above C3, the Lead and Pad are velocity-split. Velo
values below 100 control the Pad, and values above 100 control the Lead.

Design Notes
This is another complex mix Combinator with a variety of elements. One unique aspect is how
the drumbeat is created. Instead of loading a loop into Dr. Rex, a loop is loaded into NN-XT.
All the slices are accessible in NN-XT. Now they can be sequenced by a Matrix or Redrum! So,
in this way you can use each REX/RX2 loop as a new drumkit instead of a loop.

Yada Yada Seq


Nick Hutton
Melodic Sequences

Rotary 1
Changes the X value of the format filter.

Rotary 2
Changes the Y value of the format filter.

Rotary 3

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab


Changes the gender of the format filter.

Rotary 4
Changes the value of the delay dry/wet.

Button 1
Turns on the phaser.

Button 2
Turns on the chorus.

Button 3
Turns on the sync Osc2 to Osc 1.

Button 4
Turns off all sequencing.

Modwheel
Increases LFO rate which modulates Formant Filter.

Design Notes
Fun vocal sequence using the format filter to it’s fullest.

Ziffle Seq
Nick Hutton
Melodic Sequences

Rotary 1
Changes the frequency of the bass.

Rotary 2
Turns on the bass distortion.

Rotary 3
Changes the value of unison dry/wet.

Rotary 4
Changes the width of the phaser.

Button 1
Turns on the bass delay.

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab


Button 2
Turns off the bells.

Button 3
Turns on the unison effect.

Button 4
Turns off all sequencing.

Modwheel
Activates ADSR tweaks on Bass and Robot Seq. Sweeps Pulse Width on upper lead.

Design Notes
Doubled up bass and bells sequencer with horn like lead.

Percussive Sequences

Artificial Man
Jeremy Janzen
Percussive Sequence

Rotary 1
Changes between the 4 different drum patterns.

Rotary 2
Shifts the BV512 Vocoder formants.

Rotary 3
Runs the entire mix through ping-pong delay.

Rotary 4
Runs the entire mix though a LP filter - and modifies its frequency.

Button 1
Changes the Bass waveform.

Button 2
Runs the mix through a BV512 vocoder in EQ mode.

Button 3

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab


Changes the timbre of the kickdrum.

Button 4
Turns off all sequencing.

Modwheel
Envelope modulates the mix LP filter (see design notes)

Performance Notes
Drums start on C1. Bass starts on F#1 and above.

Design Notes
Artificial Man was my second attempt at a Thor-powered drumkit. I’ve also used a few
Malstrom devices here for a wider palette of sounds. I’ve even used some modulation with
Matrix sequencers to give more motion to the kit.

The Modwheel assignment on this patch is worth explaining. Basically, what happens is that the
entire mix is effected by a filter modulated by a sidechained envelope. The Bass element triggers
the gate of the mix Filter envelope. So every time the Bass is played, the envelope retriggers.
By turning the modwheel up, you change the depth of this modulation. If you don’t hear
anything - remember you’ll need to lower Rotary 4 to a value below maximum or else the filter
has no room to modulate!

Techre Kit
Adam Fielding
Percussive Sequences

Rotary 1
Controls the release time on the snare compressor – lower values result in punchier snares,
higher values result in snappier snares.

Rotary 2
Controls the amplitude of the bassdrum.

Rotary 3
Controls the amplitude of the percussive sound.

Rotary 4
Controls the amplitude of the noise-hats.

Button 1
Enables/disables digital distortion.

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab


Button 2
Enables/disables phaser on the snare.

Button 3
Enables/disables delay on the snare.

Button 4
Allows the user to play/sequence drum tracks manually when enabled.

Modwheel
Controls decay time on the hats – more useful when playing manually.

Performance Notes
By default, this patch will play a standard drum pattern when the “run patten devices” is
triggered, or the sequencer is started. However, the manual-play button enables the user to
produce their own drumbeats using the provided sounds. When enabled, any note up to A#2
produces a bassdrum sound, B2-B3 triggers a snare, C4-A#4 plays the percussive sound and all
higher notes trigger a hat. The decay of the hat can be controlled using the mod wheel, allowing
the user to trigger single clicks or long, open-hat sounds. The provided distortion and phaser
controls also allow for additional variation if required.

Design Notes
The idea here was basically to produce a nice, simple, usable electro-kit that would give the user
a place to start while also allow more creative freedom by disabling the preset patterns. I often
like to use digital distortion and phaser effects (as well as a whole host of other effects) on my
own drum tracks in songs, so thought it would be fitting to include some simple controls for
distortion and phaser effects here. Combined with a nice, simple saw-based bass patch this patch
can provide a solid foundation for fast-paced electro tracks, or when slowed down more moody/
dramatic songs.

Thor Rocks
Jeremy Janzen
Percussive Sequences

Rotary 1
Changes between the 4 different drum patterns.

Rotary 2
Changes between the 4 different bass patterns.

Rotary 3

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab


Changes between the 4 different chord patterns.

Rotary 4
Controls the frequency of a Thor LP filter set across the entire mix.

Button 1
Runs the patch through Scream4 Tape Compression

Button 2
Adds/Removes the Vocal FX element from the patch

Button 3
Changes the Rotary 4 Mix Filter from 12 to 24db

Button 4
Turns off all sequencing.

Modwheel
Runs the entire mix through a 1/4note reverse reverb.

Performance Notes
Note that there isn't really any way to do a proper 'split' patch with this many elements. So in
Manual mode, only the drumkit (not the chord or bass) are playable. To play the chord or bass in
Manual mode, just load up the matching Thor patch separately.

Also note that the chord goes through an additional formant filter using Thor 7. You can tweak
the knobs on that Thor for an altered formant effect. Also, this effected version of the chord is
routed to a different mixer channel. The dry chord is on Channel 5 and the formant chord on
Channel 6. So if you tweak the volumes of these channels you can get a different chord timbre.

Design Notes
Thor Rocks came about as an attempt to create an entire synthesized drumkit using Thor patches.
And not just the usual 808/909 sounds, but new stuff using the impressive power of Thor. Once
this was accomplished, I couldn't resist adding some simple bass and chord elements to the mix.
Overall, I feel that this is the one of the most complex Reason patches I've ever created. This is
the result of at least 8 hours of work. Please give me your feedback on this patch, and if you'd
like to see more patches of this type from Nucleus SoundLab!

If you are looking at the patch structure, and are a little bit stumped - keep in mind that the
Redrum doesn't actually produce any sounds here. Instead, it triggers the different Thor kit
modules. In this way, you can use the Redrum to easily sequence a wide variety of synth-based
percussion sounds. Its a very useful design paradigm.

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab


Do not forget the individual Thor Rotaries and Buttons here. Remember every element has its
own controls, in addition to the central Combinator controls.

Vocode Choice
Jeremy Janzen
Percussive Sequences

Rotary 1
Crossfades between dry and vocoded drummix.

Rotary 2
Crossfades between dry and vocoded bassline.

Rotary 3
Switches between 4 drum patterns.

Rotary 4
Switches between 4 bass patterns.

Button 1
Morphs the drum vocoder settings.

Button 2
Morphs the bass vocoder settings.

Button 3
Adds delay to the drums.

Button 4
Turns off all sequencing.

Modwheel
Shifts the formants of the bass vocoder.

Performance Notes
This is a sequenced drum and bass preset. If you’d like to play it manually, push Button 4. In
this case, the drums are playable below G1 on the keyboard, and above that the bass is playable.

Design Notes
Vocode Choice is a complex vocoder patch. The basic theory is, the bass vocodes the drums, and
the drums vocode the bass. Additionally, the dry signals are still available for both. You can
crossfade the dry signal for either by using Rotary 1 and 2. I’m not sure if I’ve mentioned it yet,

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab


but the crossfade method I use deserves credit to Peff (Kurt Kurasaki), in his article on
Propellerheads.se. I think he explains it better than I probably could so I’ll link to the crossfade
article. Suffice it to say I’ve tried many methods and this produces the best sonic results - even if
its a bit unwieldy to program.

Check out his method for the Equal Power Crossfader here:
h t t p : / / w w w. p r o p e l l e r h e a d s . s e / s u b s t a n c e / d i s c o v e r i n g - r e a s o n / i n d e x . c f m ?
fuseaction=get_article&article=part16

Modulation Sequences
Advance
Jeremy Janzen
Modulation Sequences

Rotary 1
Controls Sync Bandwidth of Osc 2 and 3.

Rotary 2
Controls KBD of Osc 3 (see Icicles design notes)

Rotary 3
Morphs the Oscillator mix.

Rotary 4
This is in use by an LFO to modulate the KBD of Osc 2

Button 1
Activates Unison.

Button 2
Changes the tuning of the patch.

Button 3
Changes the octave of Osc 2.

Button 4
Turns the amplitude gate on/off.

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab


Modwheel
Fades out Osc 3 and turns up the Shaper drive.

Performance Notes
Advance is a gated preset. You can remove the gate using Button 4 for a patch with less
movement.

Design Notes
This is another preset using my Sync Table method. This time around, two Oscillators are
synced, with the first having its KBD value swept by a LFO. The 3rd Osc has a constant KBD
value. You can morph between the two Sync Table Oscillators with Rotary 3.

Bright Lights
Adam Fielding
Modulation Sequences

Rotary 1
Controls the stereo spread of the two sound generators. Setting to 0 produces a mono sound (not
taking delay & unison into account).

Rotary 2
Controls the base low pass filter frequency on the two generators.

Rotary 3
Controls the filter resonance on the two generators.

Rotary 4
Controls the difference in pitch on the second sound generator. Set to 0 to play chords manually.

Button 1
Enables/disables delay.

Button 2
Modifies the amp envelope of all audio generators to produce a slow attack.

Button 3
Enables/disables unison.

Button 4
Disables the sequencers on all generators, resulting in no modulation until re-activated.

Modwheel
Detunes the generator oscillators to produce a slightly discordant sound.

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab


Performance Notes
This patch was very much designed for the purpose of adding a little body and variation to a
track. As such, it works best when played using static chords though, with the semi-tune knob
and step-disable functions can also be played as a regular keyboard-sound if you choose to try it
out. Lower octaves sound muddied and I would not recommend playing chords at lower octaves,
but if you want to try it out as a bass patch then it works quite well in that regard. Higher octaves
produce a sweet, almost bell-like sound but may be harsh without filer modification.

Design Notes
I find patches like this one particularly useful for introducing track sections or simply to add a bit
of variation, so it was designed with this purpose in mind. As such, it has a nice smooth sound
and doesn't take up too much space in terms of frequency-content. The alternating modulation on
both channels was introduced to give it a nice, wide sound to help it distinguish itself from other
instruments around it, but I figured this might not be the best move if you just want it to add a bit
of extra warmth and body, so the “spread” knob was introduced. A nice side-effect was
discovering that it worked quite nicely as a key-like sound when the modulation was disabled, so
that functionality was included by default in the combinator. This might require some filter
tweaking, but there are knobs for that as well to make things a bit easier.

Child's Play
Adam Fielding
Modulation Sequences

Rotary 1
Controls the amplitude of the sine-based sound.

Rotary 2
Controls the amplitude of the pad.

Rotary 3
Controls the master LP filter cut-off frequency.

Rotary 4
Controls the master LP filter resonance.

Button 1
Enables/disables delay.

Button 2
Enables/disables chorus on the sine-based sound.

Button 3

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab


Enables/disables EQ on the sine-based sound. Note that due to the heavy cuts made by this EQ,
this can cause a sudden increase in amplitude.

Button 4
Enables/disables LFO tempo sync on the sine-based sound.

Modwheel
Controls vibrato amount.

Performance Notes
This patch is best played using sustained notes from octaves 2-3, though higher octaves can
sound interesting as well. Anything lower can sound muddied due to the wide range of notes
produced, and while it can be used for simple melodies it was designed with sustained notes in
mind.

Design Notes
I had wanted to produce a very sweet sounding patch with this one, so opted for a mostly sine-
based approach as uneffected sinewaves always have a nice, simple quality about them. This is
carried over to a certain extent with the organ-esque pad giving the whole thing a slightly fun
sound, though when played with unusual chords it can sound slightly odd or even a bit
disturbing, like a haunted funfair of sorts... though this wasn't really something I had in mind, but
it provides a nice flip-side to the “nice” sound I was going for.

Cold Fusion
Shaun Wallace
Modulation Sequences

Rotary 1
Crossfades between Malstrom and Thor oscillators. Great for slight modulations.

Rotary 2
Controls the spread on the Malstrom and the Dry/Wet for the Unison to create a lush stereo
spread.

Rotary 3
Detunes Malstrom and Subtractor Oscillators. The knob in bipolar.

Rotary 4
Controls Scream unit to dirt up the sounds. Works well with Rotary 3 to create fat aggressive
sounds.

Button 1
Enables/disables trance-gate.

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab


Button 2
This increase the detune amount of the unison. Turning this button on in conjunction with
Rotary 2 is can create some wide fat sounds.

Button 3
Enables/disables compression. Compression is used to enhance the bottom end and distorted
nature of the sound.

Button 4
Increase parameter 1 on Scream unit to increase high frequency content. This can help the patch
but through a mix.

Modwheel
Shifts Filter Freq on all synths. Also induces a slight vibrato. Great to add a little flavor to a
performance.

Performance Notes
This patch works the best in the low-mid range. Try using it on top of a distorted DnB style sub
bass. To give the performance an organic feel make sure to automate all of the knobs and have
fun with the modwheel!

Design Notes
I wanted to create fat distorted gate sound. With this idea in mind I mapped all of the knobs and
rotaries to allow the user to custom define how and where the sound is distorted and spread
throughout the signal chain. The chorus unit on Thor does an excellent of blending all of the
various sounds together.

Cosmos
Adam Fielding
Modulation Sequences

Rotary 1
Controls the notch-filter characteristics of the two sound generators – higher values reduce
modulation variation.

Rotary 2
Controls the base frequency of all notch filters within the combinator.

Rotary 3
Controls the delay decay.

Rotary 4

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab


Controls the dry/wet properties of chorus effects – higher values produce a warmer sound, lower
values produce a thinner, more glassy sound.

Button 1
Enables/disables delay.

Button 2
Enables/disables the master equaliser to produce a richer or more rounded sound.

Button 3
Changes the amp env characteristics of all devices to produce a slow attack and long release
when enabled.

Button 4
Enables/disables the compressor to help produce a more consistent output.

Modwheel
Increases the modulation rate when used.

Performance Notes
Due to the very nature of this patch and the strange LFOs used to produce the filter changes, I
would recommend not using this as a melodic patch unless you're after a very specific effect.
Lower octaves produce a very ominous, disturbing sound but higher octaves can sound shrill and
harsh. Octaves 2-4 produce the “best” results, though this is open to interpretation. If you are
finding the modulation a bit much, increase the notch filter frequency and notch LP/HP knobs
and consider cutting out some of the high end outside the combinator. Disabling the compressor
is not recommended as this goes a long way to help smoothing out the output.

Design Notes
“Trippy” was the key word behind this patch. I had originally intended this to make use of a
BV-512 vocoder, but after experimenting with this idea I realised that I liked the original “dry”
version more, so decided to use some odd LFOs and have those really drastically shape the audio
coming out of the Thors. My main purpose in mind with this patch was during a breakdown or
quiet moment – there's enough of a rhythmic element to keep things going, while providing
enough variation to keep things interesting.

Diffuse
Adam Fielding
Modulation Sequences

Rotary 1
Controls oscillator detune on the simple “pulsing” sound.

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab


Rotary 2
Controls the LP filter cut-off frequency on the “pulsing” sound.

Rotary 3
Controls the base LP filter cut-off frequency on the main rhythmic synths.

Rotary 4
Controls the base LP filter resonance on the main rhythmic synths.

Button 1
Enables/disables reverb.

Button 2
Enables/disables chorus effects.

Button 3
Enables/disables drive on the main rhythmic synths – disabling produces a smoother sound.

Button 4
Enables/disables delay on the simple “pulsing” sound.

Modwheel
Controls detune amount on the main rhythmic synths.

Performance Notes
This patch may sound slightly strange when auditioned – this is normal. Pressing play on the
sequencer or selecting “run pattern devices” will cause the LFOs inside the combinator to sync
up correctly. This patch is recommended for playing between octaves 2 and 3, and works well
with simple sustained notes and additional simple melodies or flourishes to add some slight
variation. Releasing all keys and retriggering the device will cause the background “pulsing”
sound to reset, which can be useful during playback.

Design Notes
With this patch I wanted to create something slightly different rhythmically, sounding slightly
chaotic while at the same time forming a solid rhythm. To this end, both “main” Thors use the
same complex LFO, but are both played back at different speeds and panned slightly differently.
The background simple “pulsing” sound was added to really bring everything together and to
reduce confusion, and as such the patch works well when this pulse is slowly filtered in.

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab


DT
Shaun Wallace
Modulation Sequences

Rotary 1
Controls stereo spread of arpeggiated signal.

Rotary 2
Controls stereo spread of non-arpeggiated signal.

Rotary 3
Crossfades between arpeggiated and non-arpeggiated sound source.

Rotary 4
Will change the wav forms of the Subtractor. Changes the index and motion for the Malstrom to
shift between the timbres of the graintable.

Button 1
Enables/disables arpeggiator..

Button 2
Adds a 14db resonant boost in the EQ around 3.5kHz. This will make the sound appear
drastically louder to the human ear based on psychoacoustic principles. (For the full effect move
the freq to 2kHz)

Button 3
Enables/disables compression and maximizer. This acts almost as a birckwall effect to some
extent to create a more aggressive in your face sound.

Button 4
Increases Detune amount on unison. It also detunes the Subtractor's oscillators to a greater
extent. Great to use in combination with button 3 for a heavier sound.

Modwheel
Shifts Filter Freq and resonance on all synths. Will provide a slight pitch shift to Malstrom.

Performance Notes
Finding the right value for the crossfade is essential. The rest of the buttons an rotaries are meant
to help the user fit the sound in the mix. Based on these controls this patch has the potential to
sit up-front in the mix, or sit in the background. Great for aggressive or down tempo genres.
Works best with chords.

Design Notes

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab


I designed the basis of this patch while composing a down tempo song. Later on in the sound
design process I decided it would be fun to give the user control over where the sound sat in the
mix. This patch was yet another example of how good Thor's chorus unit is when used
especially with the Malstrom.

Gluttony
Shaun Wallace
Modulation Sequences

Rotary 1
Controls the octave for arpeggio.

Rotary 2
Crossfades between arpeggiated and non-arpeggiated sound source.

Rotary 3
Controls send amount to delay and unison.

Rotary 4
Boosts stereo spread of arpeggiated sound from 440Hz and above, and cuts it below. Increases
Dry/Wet on unison send for a fat detuned spread.

Button 1
Enables/disables arpeggiator..

Button 2
Enables/disables pre-fader option on send for synth sound.

Button 3
Enables/disables pre-fader option on send for synth sound.

Button 4
Enables/disables EQ to dampen sound.

Modwheel
Increases frequency on synth sound. Great for trance music.

Performance Notes
The crossfade value is essential. What is great about this sound is that it can be simple or
complex depending on the performance. Works great with single notes and chords. Utilizing
buttons 2 and 3 can creates some interesting ambiences and background noises.

Design Notes

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab


I always love complex trance-gate patterns. The signal path is split in two directions. The
volume of the arpeggiated sound decreases the volume of the synth sound for some cool
rhythmic effects.

JP8000 SuperSaw OSC


Shaun Wallace
Modulation Sequences

Rotary 1
Will make the gate speed for each part the same. Used to adjust gate speed.

Rotary 2
Increases audio signal sent to fattener and stereo spread.

Rotary 3
Increases signal of unison unit used to increase stereo image.

Rotary 4
Detunes all oscillators. (unipolar)

Button 1
Switches between different gate speed presets for
each part.

Button 2
Enables/disables trance-gate for part 1.

Button 3
Enables/disables trance-gate for part 2.

Button 4
Enables/disables trance-gate for part 3.

Modwheel
Increases filter frequency.

Performance Notes
Each gate controls a separate part of the sound. Use rotary 1 to make all of the gate speeds the
same and adjust them at once. Use buttons 1-4 to adjust the gate speeds and on/off switches
individually. Have fun with this one!

Design Notes

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab


This patch is meant to resemble the legendary JP8000 supersaw osc. It utilizes 7 detuned saw
waves just like the JP8000. The EQ is meant to sculpt the sound to sound like a JP8000.

Lagrange
Jeremy Janzen
Modulation Sequences

Rotary 1
Sets the Filter Frequency.

Rotary 2
Sets the Filter Envelope depth.

Rotary 3
Oscillator 3 is setup for Filter FM modulation. This Rotary controls its waveform. By
modifying this, the timbre of the Filter FM can be widely changed.

Rotary 4
Controls the depth of the multi-tap delay

Button 1
Activates Unipulse drive.

Button 2
Rolls off the low-end with a lo-shelf EQ.

Button 3
Turns on mild compression.

Button 4
Turns off the amplitude gating.

Modwheel
Raises the delay diffusion and creates a EQ spike in the delay.

Performance Notes
Lagrange is a gated preset. You can turn off the gate effect with Button 4.

Design Notes
Lagrange uses a brute-force approach to Unison. Instead of a single Thor with Unison, Chorus
or Delay tricks to widen the sound - four seperate Thor’s are used with different fine-tune
settings. This is costly from a CPU standpoint, but creates a massive sound.

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab


Filter FM is the main centerpiece here. Notice how Osc 3, which is providing the Filter FM
source, is Pulse Width modulated as well. Keep in mind when you use Filter FM, you can really
change the timbre by modulating the source Osc in different ways like this.

Lonely Robots
Adam Fielding
Modulation Sequences

Rotary 1
Controls the base LP filter cut-off frequency.

Rotary 2
Controls the LP filter resonance.

Rotary 3
Controls the modulation rate.

Rotary 4
Controls the stereo spread of the dry and delay signals.

Button 1
Enables/disables delay.

Button 2
Enables/disables chorus effect.

Button 3
Enables/disables modulation tempo sync.

Button 4
Enables/disables 7-semitone detune on one of the main synth oscillators.

Modwheel
Controls modulation amount – higher values = less modulation.

Performance Notes
When auditioning this patch with multiple keys, it is recommended to start the sequencer or
select “run pattern devices” on the front of the combinator to sync all the keys up correctly. From
a sequencing point of view, this is not a problem. The patch is recommended for use from octave
2 and upwards – higher octaves produce a sort-of bell type sound that is quite pleasant to listen to
and can work nicely almost as a lead patch if required. Generally speaking, lower octaves are
recommended for chords and higher octaves can be used to play simple melodies to support

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab


these chords if required. Use the mod wheel to control the amount of modulation to add a bit of
variation if required.

Design Notes
I had wanted to create a rhythmic patch using a very clean-sounding synth as the main base, so I
decided to use just one Thor to generate the sound while using a Malstrom (and its unique mod
curves) to control the filter frequency. By using a simple delay device and some heavy panning,
this gives the illusion of more complexity than is actually present – which is great, because it
means that the patch can be used to add a bit of interest to a track while keeping a decent sense
of rhythm. Because of this, it works well with pads to form the introduction of a track before any
kind of beat kicks in. Despite its apparent simplicity, I made sure to include plenty of controls for
the main filter and mod curve to allow for plenty of deviation from the preset parameters.

Morning Plains
Adam Fielding
Modulation Sequences

Rotary 1
Controls the amplitude of an additional oscillator on the primary pulse synth to produce a simple
fifth-chord.

Rotary 2
Controls the filter resonance on the primary “pulse” generator.

Rotary 3
Controls the amplitude of the sweeping delay signal.

Rotary 4
Controls the comb filter resonance of the secondary pulse generator.

Button 1
Enables/disables chorus effects.

Button 2
Enables/disables low-cut equaliser on the primary pulse generator.

Button 3
Enables/disables equaliser on the delay unit to add sparkle and remove low-end.

Button 4
Enables/disables phaser effect on the “backing” pad.

Modwheel

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab


Controls pulse rate.

Performance Notes
Works equally well at most octaves. Playing simple single-note melodies can produce a very
nice, flowing glass effect though the patch was designed with sustained notes in mind. Proper
use of the mod-wheel can produce interesting variations if required, which would be best used
before introducing additional elements into a track. Also, clever use of the “chord” knob can
produce some interesting results if required – if necessary, to change the pitch of the additional
oscillator which this knob controls simply modify the “semi” knob on the 3rd oscillator in the
“Pulse 1” Thor.

Design Notes
The main idea for this patch came from countless hours spent on a train over the past year or so
passing over the very serene scenery of South Yorkshire (well, parts of it). Some simple
movement was introduced to give a sense of motion, while the nice glassy pads and sweeping
atmospherics capture the feeling of passing over a beautiful, almost ethereal landscape quite
nicely. Still, the image is just an idea but it's what led to the use of simple square-LFOs to control
alternating pulses and the heavy use of sine-LFOs to control filter frequencies, panning along
with a phaser to introduce an additional element of interest.

Over The Line


Adam Fielding
Modulation Sequences

Rotary 1
Controls the synth portamento.

Rotary 2
Controls the base LP filter frequency.

Rotary 3
Controls the LP filter resonance.

Rotary 4
Controls the rate of filter/pitch modulation.

Button 1
Enables/disables delay.

Button 2
Enables/disables chorus.

Button 3

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab


Enables/disables EQ.

Button 4
Disables automatic modulation.

Modwheel
Controls oscillator frequency on the synth – this can create some quirky effects.

Performance Notes
This patch makes use of Thor's built in step sequencer, and is monophonic so, as such, all you
need to do by default is press a key and hold it. In terms of key range, this patch tends to sound
correct across all octaves, so this is more of a matter of picking a pitch to suit. It is worth
experimenting with the mod wheel, which can be used to create some interesting “radio-
detuning” effects. If you would rather program filter and pitch changes manually, simply disable
the sequencer using the appropriate button.

Design Notes
A semi-VGM inspired patch, I wanted to create a nice, simple yet “bouncy” type of sequence. As
such, I decided to use filter frequency modulation with a high resonance (by default, at least) to
create something that would instantly imply some sort of motion. The initial synth sound did not
sound quite as full as I originally planned, so I detuned one of the oscillators one octave lower
than the others to give the synth a bit of body. The sound itself is a mixture of sines and saws,
and combined with the heavy filtering produced a suitably pleasant sound. By combining sudden
filter frequency changes with note changes and a bit of portamento, this produced a decent
sliding sound.

Papen
Shaun Wallace
Modulation Sequences

Rotary 1
Sets beginning value for the arpeggiator to change the wavetable and multi-detune type. Also
crossfades volume for crossfade type 1.

Rotary 2
Crossfades volume between the two signal for crossfade type 2.

Rotary 3
Controls arp speed. Great to use in conjunction with rotary 4 to shape the sound.

Rotary 4
Controls arp note length.

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab


Button 1
Enables/disables arpeggiator.

Button 2
Swiches between different crossfade types. Essential for picking the correct rhythmic signal to
fit in the mix.

Button 3
Detunes oscillators for a trancier sound.

Button 4
Enables/disables unison spread for a more digital sound.

Modwheel
Cuts filter frequency and OSC FM boost from the arpeggiators CV signal. *Only works while
arp is on.

Performance Notes
This is a really fun patch to play around with. Just by turning the arp on and off during the
performance you can create different synth sounds. Controlling the crossfades types can add a
nice organic moving element to the sound. Have fun and let loose on this one!

Design Notes
I am a big fan of Rob Papen! I do not mean to copy his trademark arpeggio/sequence sounds
with this patch. I thought it would great to make a sound that is evolving over time and has so
many different timbres and colours with each new note. With Thor's wavetables I do not I could
have asked for a better sound source. This patch is a great example of the power of the
combinator.

Rich Moments
Adam Fielding
Modulation Sequences

Rotary 1
Controls detune (per semitone) on the left channel synth.

Rotary 2
Controls detune (per semitone) on the right channel synth.

Rotary 3
Controls the stereo spread of the two channels – maximum value = maximum spread.

Rotary 4

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab


Controls the base LP filter frequency of the two synths.

Button 1
Disables the third oscillator on both synths, disabling the background pad sound.

Button 2
Enables/disables delay.

Button 3
Enables/disables reverb.

Button 4
Increases filter decay time on both synths.

Modwheel
Controls vibrato amount.

Performance Notes
Use the first two knobs to detune the synth channels to your liking, or use the to produce unusual
chords by modifying them while playing. Plays best between octaves 2 and 4, and can be used to
play single chords with additional melodic flourishes while the filter decay lasts. As this patch
makes use of global filter envelopes, the filter envelope will reset only when all keys have been
released. This can be used to produce sweeping, simple melodies to layer on top of chords.

Design Notes
I'm always fond of patches with an emphasis on stereo content rather than focussing on a simple,
narrow sound so I decided to give users control over the oscillator detune controls off the bat to
produce two distinct notes which, while modulated at different rates, produce simple chords
when played back. Unfortunately, this has the side effect of sounding quite extreme with
headphones so the “spread” knob was put in to help dial this back a bit if necessary. With the
combination of different tunings and varying modulation rates, the idea was to produce a nice
layered sound – something which is, again, further added to with the inclusion of a simple
backing pad which can be disabled if required.

Sizzling Movement
Adam Fielding
Modulation Sequences

Rotary 1
Controls the base panning settings on the two synth channels – maximum value = maximum
default spread.

Rotary 2

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab


Controls the LP filter frequency on all synths.

Rotary 3
Controls the modulation rate on the first synth (“Chord 1”).

Rotary 4
Controls the modulation rate on the second synth (“Chord 1”).

Button 1
Enables/disables delay.

Button 2
Enables/disables chorus.

Button 3
Enables/disables tempo sync on the first modulation channel.

Button 4
Enables/disables tempo sync on the second modulation channel.

Modwheel
Controls LP filter resonance on all synths.

Performance Notes
For this patch to play correctly, it is recommended that you either have the sequencer playing or
you have pressed the “play pattern devices” button in order for the modulation curves to sync up
properly. The patch itself is recommended for playback between octaves 2 and 4, as any higher
octaves can sound shrill without prior tweaking. However, enabling the chorus effects can help to
alleviate this, as can tweaking the LP filter cut off frequencies using the provided controls.
Simple runs can sound interesting, as can changing the modulation rates during playback.
However, for most purposes, the default settings can be used to add an extra element of
movement to a pre-existing track.

Design Notes
With this patch I started with the sole intention of creating a patch that would take advantage of
the unique modulation curves that the Malstrom has to offer, while relying on Thor devices to
produce the actual sound. I have always found the Malstrom modulation curves to offer a great
deal of variety, so this seemed like a logical combination. By having one modulation curve play
twice as fast by default, I was able to produce a nice, yet rhythmic, stereo effect using two Thor
devices based on the same patch.

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab


Starry Skies
Adam Fielding
Modulation Sequences

Rotary 1
Controls the base LP filter frequency on the pulsing synth.

Rotary 2
Controls the amplitude of the sweeping formant-filtered pad.

Rotary 3
Controls the delay filter frequency.

Rotary 4
Controls the delay filter resonance.

Button 1
Enables/disables delay.

Button 2
Enables/disables chorus effects.

Button 3
Selects the filter mode for the filtered delay:- on = LP, off = BP.

Button 4
Enables/disables secondary LP filter on the pulse. This helps to reduce pops during sudden filter
transitions. Turning off during playback is not recommended.

Modwheel
Controls the pulsing synth's LP filter frequency. High values can produce high output levels.

Performance Notes
This patch sounds best at mid-to-high octaves, as lower octaves can sound muddy and lifeless.
Works best with sustained notes, though can also be used to play quirky single-note melodies if
desired though it may be best to disable the delay in this case.

Design Notes
The idea with this patch was to provide the user with a nice, starry sounding pad to add an extra
layer of complexity to a track while remaining rhythmic consistency. By default, it produces a
mellow, spaced out sound but with some minor tweaking can be used to produce a more
consistent, easily controlled sound by design. In fact, by turning the “base LP Mod Freq” mod to

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab


its maximum value, the patch can be used as a simple sweeping pad which can be used to the
user's advantage for track transitions and additional variations.

Straight Addict
Jeremy Janzen
Modulation Sequences

Rotary 1
Sets the LP Filter Envelope Depth

Rotary 2
Sets the Amplitude Modulation amount.

Rotary 3
Controls the amount of Hard Clip Shaper drive.

Rotary 4
Sets the Reverb depth.

Button 1
Adds low-bass boost.

Button 2
Turns Unison on/off.

Button 3
Changes the Shaper type to Wrap.

Button 4
Turns off all ‘sequencing’ (see below)

Modwheel
Increases Unison detune for a fatter sound.

Performance Notes
This isn’t a sequenced patch per se. It uses two LFOs to create a sequenced feel. Button 4
removes these LFOs for a more playable patch with less modulations.

Design Notes
This patch was designed with mostly luck. I was looking for a really evil, dirty sequenced sound
- thats the type of mood I was in. While experimenting with the different esoteric LFO
waveshapes Thor offers, I hit on one that - when combined with high Shaper drive values -

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab


created a dirty sequenced sound. You wouldn’t expect this type of sound to come from
modulating Pulse Width, but actually this has been done with Analog synths for decades.

Since settings PW to either extreme value creates such a thin waveform it turns into silence, you
can use that to your advantage when modulating PW to create sequences. As the PW hits those
extreme ends, it will act almost as an amplitude gate. Try it! With Thor, there are other, easier
ways to accomplish this. But its cool that its still possible this way. Well, at least cool to sound
design nerds like me...

Streetlights
Adam Fielding
Modulation Sequences

Rotary 1
Controls master filter frequency.

Rotary 2
Controls master filter resonance.

Rotary 3
Controls modulation rate on the first synth.

Rotary 4
Controls modulation rate on the second synth.

Button 1
Toggles between LP and HP filter modes on the master filter. On=HP, off=LP.

Button 2
Enables/disables delay.

Button 3
Enables/disables synth equalisation.

Button 4
Enables/disables modulation tempo sync on both pulsing synths.

Modwheel
Controls backing pad frequency.

Performance Notes
For chords, this patch is best used between octaves 3 and 4, allowing time for the filter envelope
to run through. However, this patch can also be used at lower octaves with single notes to

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab


produce a more bassy sound but it is best used for very simple melodies in this case. Higher
notes can produce a harsh bell-type sound which, again, can be used for playing simple melodies
but anything above octave 5 may be unpleasant for the listener without tweaking the master filter
frequency.

Design Notes
This is more of a simple, atmospheric pulsing modulated patch and, as such, was designed to not
only work well in the usual sense of playing prolonged chords but also works well with simple
melodies as mentioned above. To this end, master filter controls were included to allow for
higher pitched notes, and also allowing for simple filter sweeps when played in the usual sense.
Pulse rate controls were included, along with a pulse sync control, to allow some variation on the
part of the user which makes it well suited for transitional sections of songs.

Whispered
Adam Fielding
Modulation Sequences

Rotary 1
Controls the base LP filter frequency of the pulsing synth.

Rotary 2
Controls the filter envelope attack rate of the pulsing synth.

Rotary 3
Controls the amplitude of the noise-based crackling synth.

Rotary 4
Controls the base HP filter frequency of the noise-based crackling synth.

Button 1
Enables/disables delay.

Button 2
Enables/disables chorus effect on the pulsing synth.

Button 3
Enables/disables EQ devices.

Button 4
Enables/disables MClass stereo imager.

Modwheel
Controls frequency of noise oscillators on the crackling synth.

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab


Performance Notes
This patch works best during quiet moments with the default settings, due to the more subdued
nature of the patch and its slow attack time. Works best between octaves 2 and 3, and the filter
envelope is reset only when all keys are released. This can be used to the user's advantage to play
simple melodies at the filter envelope's apex, though it may be worth adjusting the base filter
frequency parameters to prevent an overly harsh or sudden change in output levels.

Design Notes
My main intention with this patch was to produce a nice, simple pulse that would serve well as
an introductory pad before bringing in other song elements – hence the slow attack and less focus
on low-end content by default. This allows the user to bring in other elements such as bass and
pads, either by using amplitude or filter automation, without muddying up the (admittedly sparse
at this point) mix. That's the idea, anyway. As a result, the patch really wasn't designed with
playback in a full mix in mind, though EQ and filter controls were included to allow the user
some degree of scope in shaping the output of the patch to suit their needs rather than obeying
my (somewhat strict) design ideas.

Bass Sequences
Asteroid Pressure
Adam Fielding
Bass Sequences

Rotary 1
Controls LP filter cut-off frequency on the bass synth.

Rotary 2
Controls LP filter resonance on the bass synth.

Rotary 3
Controls the low-gain EQ amount – higher levels = more low-end boost.

Rotary 4
Controls the bass synth decay rate.

Button 1
Enables/disables delay.

Button 2
Enables/disables chorus effects.

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab


Button 3
Enables/disables phaser.

Button 4
Enables/disables pattern sequencer on note trigger.

Modwheel
Controls shaper drive on bass synth – higher values produce a slightly smoother sound.

Performance Notes
Although designed primarily as a bass patch, this patch can be played at higher octaves by
default as a nice pattern-based squelchy synth, though you may want to notch the low-gain if you
plan on using it like this. Otherwise, octaves 2-3 are recommended for bass use with the default
values. Filter frequency automation is essential if you want to make the most of the squelchy
sound this patch has to offer, and the default sequencer pattern can be disabled by using the
“manual” play button if desired.

Design Notes
With this patch I wanted to create a nice, squelchy – almost acid – esque bass patch that wouldn't
sound out of place as a means to ratchet up the tension in an old arcade game (the obvious
influence for this idea is in the patch title). Despite creating a suitable pattern for this purpose, I
also wanted to allow the patch to be used in the main sequencer as a regular patch as limiting the
user to the default sequence would be rather limiting. Thanks to the Thor's self-oscillating filters,
I managed to produce a suitably squelchy patch that, with a little EQ, should work nicely as a
bass patch.

Bass Challenge
Jeremy Janzen
Bass Sequences

Rotary 1
Crossfades between the dry patch and one run through a Formant Filter.

Rotary 2
Morphs multiple parameters of the Formant Filter

Rotary 3
Sets the Envelope Depth of the LP Filter.

Rotary 4
Controls the depth of the Amplitude Modulation.

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab


Button 1
Toggles strong compression.

Button 2
Switches between two Shaper types: Hard Clip and Peak.

Button 3
Increases Amplitude Decay time.

Button 4
Turns off all sequencing.

Modwheel
Fades in Envelope Modulation for the Formant Filter.

Performance Notes
This is a sequenced patch created with Thor’s onboard sequencer. You can turn off the sequencer
by pushing Button 4.

Design Notes
In this patch, we’ve side-chained the envelope of the Formant Filter Thor with the first Thor’s
sequence. How this is accomplished: connect the Step Sequencer Gate CV from the first Thor to
the FF Thor’s CV1 input. Then create a modmatrix line in the FF Thor “CV 1 > 100 > Global
Env Gate”. Now assign a Combinator Rotary or Modwheel to control Filter 3’s Envelope Depth.

Essentially what this does is trigger the Global Env of the FF Thor every time a note is played on
the sequenced Thor. Since Global Env is mapped to Filter 3’s frequency, a frequency sweep is
triggered by each note-on from the sequenced Thor.

Bassist Created
Jeremy Janzen
Bass Sequences

Rotary 1
Controls the amount of Filter FM.

Rotary 2
Controls the BP Filter frequency.

Rotary 3
Controls the BP Filter resonance.

Rotary 4

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab


Sets the depth of the Delay effect.

Button 1
Increases Amp Release time.

Button 2
Changes the patch from monophonic to polyphonic keyboard mode.

Button 3
Runs the patch through a BV512 in EQ mode for resonant peaking.

Button 4
Turns off the Arpeggiator.

Modwheel
Shifts the BV512 formants while Button 3 is active.

Performance Notes
This patch is run through a simple 1/4 note arpeggiation pattern. Push Button 4 to switch to
manual mode.

Design Notes
With this patch, I set out to create a semi-realistic electric bass without using typical comb-
filtering techniques. I stumbled upon an alternative technique thats fairly effective.

You’ll notice the first mod-matrix line in Thor is Filter 2 > Filter 1 FM > Mod Env. This is the
main aspect of the patches timbre. Its easy to forget, not only can we use Oscillators as Filter
FM sources, but also other Filter outputs! So in this case, we have a Formant Filter as the Filter
FM source for the BP Filter! This creates the resonant high-frequency content we want to
simulate a real bass.

Additionally, there is a noise oscillator that bypasses the filters altogether, and provides a bit of
the necessary ‘pick attack’ to a bass like this.

BassTable
Jeremy Janzen
Bass Sequences

Rotary 1
Sweeps the KBD value of Osc2. See 'design notes' of Icicles for more info.

Rotary 2
Controls overall tone by sweeping Sync BW.

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab


Rotary 3
Morphs between a BP and LP Filter.

Rotary 4
Sets the Filter Envelope level for both Filters.

Button 1
Switches between the two Matrix sequencer patterns.

Button 2
Activates Scream4 Fuzz distortion.

Button 3
Runs the patch through a BV512 in EQ mode for resonant peaking.

Button 4
Turns off all sequencing.

Modwheel
Runs the patch through a reverse reverb effect.

Performance Notes
This is a Matrix-sequenced patch. If you’d like to play it manually, push Button 4. Don’t forget
the Rotaries and Buttons on the Thor itself - these provide further useful live modulations.

Design Notes
Here is another application of Sync Table synthesis. I’ve already discussed that a few times, so
instead I’ll focus on Rotary 3.

This control allows us to crossfade between Filter 1 and 2 inside Thor. All we need to do is set
up the filters in parallel, and then create a opposing modulation between their Drive values in the
Combinator mod-matrix. Its a cool modulation if you like two different Filter sounds on your
patch - you don’t have to choose between them, use both!

Belt Rider
Jeremy Janzen
Bass Sequences

Rotary 1
This slightly adjusts both filters 1 and 3 in the Thor device for a very different sound.

Rotary 2

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab


Changes the Matrix melodic pattern played.

Rotary 3
Increases both amp release and reverb depth.

Rotary 4
Increases delay depth

Button 1
Changes Osc 2 from Triangle to Square.

Button 2
Lowers Osc 2 an octave

Button 3
Adds LFO modulation to the Notch Filter 3.

Button 4
Turns off all sequencing.

Modwheel
Increases Soft Clip shaper drive.

Performance Notes
Try the two buttons on the Thor device. By turning Osc 3 on and Osc 3 Mod, you can get really
interesting hi-freq overtones when playing staccato notes.

Design Notes
This patch is all about different tones you can get out of AM modulation. Between Buttons 1/2
on the Combinator and all controls on the Thor, you can get a massive variety of AM Bass tones.

Fire Base
Shaun Wallace
Bass Sequences

Rotary 1
Adjusts Pulse Width of oscillator 2.

Rotary 2
Adjusts Pulse Width of oscillator 3.

Rotary 3
Changes oscillator wave for oscillator 1.

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab


Rotary 4
Detunes oscillators 2 and 3. (unipolar)

Button 1
Decrease the arp starting octave by 1. Great to create double bass lines.

Button 2
Switches between Notch/HP filter. HP filter is recommended for use a double bass line on top
of a thicker bass.

Button 3
Enables/disables Reverb and Stereo Imager units. Give the top end a stereo image boost while
putting the low end in mono.

Button 4
Enables/disables compressor to attenuate the low end and decrease transients.

Modwheel
Boosts filter frequency.

Performance Notes
Excellent in a live performance to switch between single bass notes and double bass lines just by
holding down multiple keys. Make sure the timing for pressing down multiple is the same for a
smooth transition. Can also be used for thick plucky sounds in high end.

Design Notes
A good friend of mine Siamey, makes killer double basslines for trance music. My goal was to
create a patch that could act as a monophonic and double bass line synth in real-time. The notch
filter is used to boost the low end to create a fatter sound.

Gearface
Jeremy Janzen
Bass Sequences

Rotary 1
Crossfades the patch between a dry version and a heavily digitally distorted version.

Rotary 2
Filter Frequency

Rotary 3

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab


Changes the Scale parameter of the Body control on Scream4 (only relevant when Rotary1 is
greater than zero and Button 3 is active)

Rotary 4
Reverb Depth

Button 1
12/24 db switch for the LP filter

Button 2
Turns self-osc on the LP filter - changes timbre significantly.

Button 3
Turns the Body section on in Scream4

Button 4
Turns off all sequencing.

Modwheel
Mono-ize the patch.

Performance Notes
This is a sequenced patch. Sequencing can be turned off and the patch played manually with
Button 4. You’ll have to play it fairly high up on the keyboard, as due to sequencing limitations I
had to lower the octave quite a bit.

Design Notes
Here I was attempting to create a patch in the style of my DataBank patches for NI Massive. I
wanted to create a really huge sequenced bass patch, using two seperate Thor’s for left/right
channel. The Thor’s are nearly identical, but they sound so richly different mostly because of the
non-linear properties of the Ladder Filter. You can see how high the filter Drive is set - this is
integral to the overdriven sound of the patch.

The other main aspect of the patch is the digital distortion provided by Scream4. What I’ve
done is sequence the distortion to fade in on only a certain part of the sequence. This fade is
actually done with a Thor Global Env. See line 4 of the mod-matrix in the first Thor for more
info. What happens here is that the Global Env is sent out on CV 1 to the Scream4. How much
modulation is controlled by CV 3 - coming from Matrix 2. Finally the Global Env is triggered
by CV 2 - coming from Matrix 1.

After all that, its possible to sweep through Scream4 Damage settings using a Thor envelope,
anywhere you want in a sequence, with any depth. Its a powerful sound design idea I’ll be likely
exploring later on in a video.

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab


Individual Massive
Jeremy Janzen
Bass Sequences

Rotary 1
Changes the LP Filter frequency.

Rotary 2
Changes the LP Filter resonance.

Rotary 3
Changes the LP Filter Envelope depth.

Rotary 4
Morphs the settings on the Formant Filter.

Button 1
Runs the patch through the Formant Filter in Filter slot 2.

Button 2
Turns on Scream4 Body resonance.

Button 3
Changes the keyboard mode to monophonic.

Button 4
Turns off all sequencing.

Modwheel
Switches between Tape and Tube Distortion in Scream4. This isn’t a regular Modwheel
assignment that represents a continuous change of settings - rather it acts as a switch. Modwheel
100% down = Tape. Modwheel 100% up = Tube.

Performance Notes
This is sequenced patch using Thor’s step sequencer. You can also play it manually using Button
4.

Design Notes
Here is something I bet you thought wasn’t modulatable - the ‘arrows’ in Thor that signify
whether Filter 1’s output goes into the Amp or continues on into Filter 2. It is however very
much modulatable. In this way, Individual Massive can either run straight out the LP Filter or
continue on into the Formant Filter. Its a great use of a Combinator Button!

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab


Liberty
Jeremy Janzen
Bass Sequences

Rotary 1
Adds Shaper drive to increase the brightness of the patch.

Rotary 2
Controls Filter Envelope depth.

Rotary 3
Controls the octave Osc 3 plays in.

Rotary 4
Sets the Reverb depth.

Button 1
Changes from a 24db LP Filter I to a 24db LP Filter II. This has the effect of a nice bass boost.

Button 2
Toggles Unison on/off.

Button 3
Turns Filter self-oscillation on/off. This really changes the timbre of the patch depending on
whether Button 1 is off or not.

Button 4
Turns off all sequencing.

Modwheel
Turns up infinite decay on the Reverb. Its a great effect for a breakdown or the end of a track.

Performance Notes
This is a Thor Step-Sequenced patch. The note you play determines the rootnote of the
sequence. Push Button 4 to play manually.

Design Notes
Liberty is a beautiful bass sequence inspired by my favorite video game of all-time: Deus Ex. I
actually came up with the sequence by accident when I fumbled my mouse in the step sequencer
and activated some 'wrong' values. Well, as is often the case with music, they were actually the
'right' values and ended up creating a sequence that reminded me very much of a bassline in
Deus Ex.

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab


The incredible tone of this bass is mostly derived from driving the Ladder Filter very hard. Don't
forget to try different drive values when you are playing with Thor's filters! It can make a
dramatic difference with the right combination of settings.

Partialize
Jeremy Janzen
Bass Sequences

Rotary 1
Controls the amount of Shaper Drive.

Rotary 2
Sets the LP Filter frequency.

Rotary 3
Sets the LP Filter resonance.

Rotary 4
Sets the LP Filter Envelope depth.

Button 1
Changes the Shaper type from Hard Clip to Wrap.

Button 2
Raises the Amp Release value for the bass.

Button 3
Turns stereo delay on the drumloop.

Button 4
Turns off all sequencing.

Modwheel
Morphs the bass phaser.

Performance Notes
This patch includes a Dr. Rex drumloop. To hear it, you’ll need to either push Preview on Dr.
Rex, or right-click Dr. Rex and choose ‘Copy REX loop to track’.

Design Notes
The Shapers in Thor are very interesting and powerful. One thing to note is that even with Drive
set to 0, some Shaper types still modify the sound. In this case, the Hard Clip algorithm
completely changes the timbre of the patch, even with Drive set at 0. When Button 1 is pressed,

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab


the Shaper is changed to Wrap, which *doesn’t* modify the timbre when set to 0. Its worth
experimenting with the different shapers at different drive values so you get a feel for what they
can do.

Patchbank
Jeremy Janzen
Bass Sequences

Rotary 1
Rotates through the 8 inbuilt Matrix sequencer patterns.

Rotary 2
Changes the Filter frequency.

Rotary 3
Changes the Filter resonance.

Rotary 4
Changes the Filter Envelope depth.

Button 1
Runs the patch through Scream4 Tube distortion.

Button 2
Toggles Unison on/off.

Button 3
Changes from LP 24db II to LP 24db I.

Button 4
Turns off all sequencing.

Modwheel
Morphs multiple phaser settings.

Performance Notes
This is a Matrix-sequenced patch with many inbuilt sequences. With this many sequences, its
easy to scroll through, hear a few inspiring notes and then program your own sequence.

Of course, Button 4 lets you play manually.

Design Notes

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab


PatchBank is mostly a showcase for an extreme number of inbuilt sequences, but its also quite a
nice bass patch. Most of the goodness comes from that lovely PPG 27 Formant wavetable (you
may have noticed I like it?). Make sure to try the Thor Rotaries here. Thor Rotary 1 controls the
depth of an envelope modulation of the wavetable position. It really changes the character of the
patch so be sure to try it.

Psi Prism
Jeremy Janzen
Bass Sequences

Rotary 1
Controls Soft Clip Shaper drive.

Rotary 2
Fades in huge atmospheric Multi-Tap Delay - with increased diffusion for extra ‘spacey-ness’.

Rotary 3
Crossfades between Saw and Square Oscs.

Rotary 4
Controls Filter Drive (see design notes below)

Button 1
Turns Noise Osc on/off.

Button 2
Adds a Notch Filter to the Filter 3 slot on Thor. Note that this Notch’s frequency is controlled by
Matrix 2.

Button 3
Toggles Unison on/off.

Button 4
Turns on/off all sequencing.

Modwheel
Fades in Pulse Width modulation for Osc 2. Keep in mind if you have Rotary 3 all the way left,
nothing will happen as the PW mod only happens on the Square Oscillator 2 - which would be
mixed out in this case.

Performance Notes
This is a Matrix-sequenced patch. You can turn off all sequencing with Button 4. For a snappier
attack - almost a pluck - try Thor Button 1.

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab


Design Notes
This is a good example of simple patch design with Thor. Here, we have a Saw and a Square
oscillator, as well as Noise. Basic stuff, right? Very. But, what we can do with these simple
parts doesn’t *sound* simple.

I’ve talked about overdriven Filters before, and this is an excellent example. Filter 1 is
overdriven to the point where Resonance doesn’t do anything anymore (!!). Try it! Use Thor
Rotary 2 - which is mapped to Filter resonance. Nothing. Now turn Combinator Rotary 4 down
to about half and move Thor Rotary 2 again. Whoa! Resonance is higher the lower drive is!

I don’t pretend to understand the exact interaction between all these controls. The point is that
there is alot of non-linear algorithms at the heart of Thor, and we can harness these at times to
create infinite variations in timbre. Just play with different positions of the two Rotaries I
mention above and you’ll see what I mean.

Robotics Bass
Adam Fielding
Bass Sequences

Rotary 1
Controls the amplitude of the “dry” bass signal.

Rotary 2
Controls the amplitude of the split vocoded signal.

Rotary 3
Controls the pre-shaper low pass filter frequency.

Rotary 4
Controls the post-shaper low pass filter frequency, which is then fed directly into the audio
splitter.

Button 1
Enables/disables delay.

Button 2
Controls the delay filter mode – off = BP filter, on = LP filter.

Button 3
Enables/disables chorus effect.

Button 4

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab


Increases the vocoder decay time when enabled to produce a more varied sound. Be careful with
this though – maximising this can produce an unpleasant, overdriven sound.

Modwheel
Controls phaser feedback level to produce a more obvious phased sound on the vocoded channel.

Performance Notes
Bearing in mind that this is a sequenced patch, use the legato controls to your advantage –
retriggering notes provides a greater amount of flexibility, while also allowing for simple “single
key” bass lines. Also, although this is designed as a bass patch, played at a higher octave this can
be used as a simple modulated synth patch.

Design Notes
This patch was designed to be used as a simple “one key” bass patch to slot into a track if
required. Of course, just because that's what I originally had in mind doesn't mean it necessarily
has to be used that way – by controlling the dry and vocoded signal levels and playing it as a
standard bass patch, this can be used to produce some interesting results. Combined with a
reverb unit and automate the decay time and this patch can work nicely as a transitional sound to
bridge the gap between an intense song section and a more mellow song section.

Bass

Base Squadron
Shaun Wallace
Bass

Rotary 1
Increases FM values on Thor and Subtractor to colour the top end of the sound.

Rotary 2
Controls detune-type for mutli-oscillator on Thor.

Rotary 3
Detunes fine-cent values on oscillators.

Rotary 4
Boosts detuned sound through chorus unit. Controls the detune amt and dry/wet of the chorus
unit in Thor.

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab


Button 1
Increases sin octave for a slight boost the colour of the FM values used in Thor.

Button 2
Enables/disables tape saturation for thicker darker sound.

Button 3
Enables/disables EQ to dampen/soften sound.

Button 4
Enables/disables chorus unit.

Modwheel
Shifts filter freq and res values to slightly increase harmonics. Mainly used for subtle variations
to the timbre.

Performance Notes
Great for use in trance bass lines. Take full advantage of the rotaries and buttons to create the
correct detuning for the sound. Decrease delay feedback if the sound does not sit in the mix
rhythmically. Can also be used for thick plucky sounds in high end.

Design Notes
Thor is capable of some great trance bass lines. I used a combination of resonant and non-
resonant filters to create a thick lush sound. The FM in Thor's mod matrix is key to giving
sounds a nice high end boost. There are controls on the combinator and Thor to take advantage
of this.

Busy Bass
Adam Fielding
Bass

Rotary 1
Controls the amplitude of a mixer channel containing high-end content to give a “sharper”
sound.

Rotary 2
Controls the shaper drive parameter of the generators to give a more distorted sound.

Rotary 3
Controls 2 EQ units – the minimum value produces a flatter sound, maximum value produces a
more crisp/boomy sound.

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab


Rotary 4
Modifies the filter decay envelope on one of the Thor units to produce a more drawn out attack
with regards to the higher frequency content.

Button 1
Enables/disables chorus effect.

Button 2
Increases the signal drive on the main bass sound generator, producing a distorted/overdriven
effect.

Button 3
Enables/disables unison send on the main mixer to provide a “warmer” sound.

Button 4
Enables/disables compressor to provide a more easily manageable output signal.

Modwheel
Controls chorus amount on both generators so, if the chorus effect is enabled, this can produce a
more discordant sound.

Performance Notes
Try automating or playing with the first rotary in particular, to add some variety to the overall
sound – the added high frequency content gives it a more edgy/harsh sound, so during more
intense moments it's worth cranking this up. The mod wheel chorus effect produces some
interesting variations as well. I find this bass patch works better for simple bass lines than
complex, melody-centric bass lines.

Design Notes
With this patch I attempted to create a well rounded patch with enough variation to make it well
suited for a variety of styles. To this end, the “bass 2” Thor device contained within produces
quite a harsh sound, especially when the shaper drive is cranked up. Of course, being a bass
patch I also tried not to overcomplicate matters – with both highs and lows covered, a patch like
this could be tricky to slip into a track. This is why I included the “frequency mod” dial – turn
this dial down and the sound is much easier to manage in terms of mixing.

Gesture
Shaun Wallace
Bass

Rotary 1
Crossfade between 24db and 6db LP filter. Increases filter drive in a bipolar mode.

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab


Rotary 2
Boost filter resonance.

Rotary 3
Increases detune and stereo spread.

Rotary 4
Reduces compressor threshold. Useful shaping transients.

Button 1
Enables/disables Thor's delay and chorus.

Button 2
Puts 648Hz and below in mono.

Button 3
Increases soft limiter amount to increase softer sounds.

Button 4
Increases compressors attack to shape transients.

Modwheel
Decreases filter frequency. Reduces comb filter affect.

Performance Notes
Can be used in many genres. Adjust compression to taste. Turn rotary 1 to a value of 127 for a
nice lead sound.

Design Notes
This patch is a mix between a trance bass and a bass guitar. I used the comb filter to give the
source a more natural feel. While this patch is rather it really sits well in a mix and has a nice
smooth low end character.

Mr. Anderson
Shaun Wallace
Bass

Rotary 1
Sends both sound sources to be modulated by the vocoder.

Rotary 2
Sends sound 1 to modulate vocoder.

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab


Rotary 3
Sends sound 2 to modulate vocoder.

Rotary 4
Increases number of vocoder bands. FFT (512) will create a slight phaser effect.

Button 1
Disables delay.

Button 2
Disables chorus.

Button 3
Creates feedback loop for vocoder. Will increase the resonance in the bass frequencies.

Button 4
Sound source 1 goes from polyphonic to mono.

Modwheel
Decreases filter frequency and boosts resonance. *Beware of random boosts in resonant
frequencies from the vocoder; although this could be used to great effect! :)

Performance Notes
Can be used in many genres. Great to utilize MW in performance to increase the unpredictability
of the patch. Hold notes for some interesting timbre shifts due to the vocoder. Utilize the first 3
knobs to create the right timbre for the mix.

Design Notes
This patch patch was named after the infamous character from the Matrix. The patch utilizes
resonant filter to give both a smooth and powerful low end; with a unpredictable high end due to
the resonance. The swirling and slightly chaotic nature of the sound comes from the vocoder.

Resonometer
Shaun Wallace
Bass

Rotary 1
Changes shaper type on Thor.

Rotary 2
Changes damage type on Scream.

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab


Rotary 3
Increases Subtractor volume, for added sub bass.

Rotary 4
Increases chorus LFO amount and filter frequency for timbre shift.

Button 1
Enables/disables Thor's shaper.

Button 2
Enables/disables Scream unit.

Button 3
Cuts high frequencies.

Button 4
Increases dry/wet of delay set to low MS value to fatten sound.

Modwheel
Decreases filter frequency. Increases oscillator 2 detune amount.

Performance Notes
Open MW on high notes for an ethnic timbre. Cuts through a mix great through distortion and
resonance, great to use high energy types of music for quick rapid fire bass lines.

Design Notes
This patch was an experiment in creating a dirty resonant bass sound. Chorus and delay were
utilized to fatten up the sound to create a powerful timbre. The subtractor was utilized to create
sub sin tones to round out the bottom end of the patch.

Scream Base
Shaun Wallace
Bass

Rotary 1
Controls volume before the compressor. Can create a huge fat brick walled type hoover sound.

Rotary 2
Controls volume after the compressor. Use in tandem with rotary to mix sound.

Rotary 3

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab


Increases distortion.

Rotary 4
Changes distortion type.

Button 1
Adds further limiting and soft clipping to the sound. Can round out dynamics.

Button 2
Increases detune and dry/wet values on several unison units to slightly detune and boost the
stereo image.

Button 3
Enables/disables EQ to treat harsh tones from too much distortion.

Button 4
Increases low end.

Modwheel
Increases frequency. Uses in performance for hoover type effect.

Performance Notes
Great for Drum and Bass. The high end can be used as a piercing lead sound to cut through a
mix. Great for portamento leads and basses. Utilize MW in performance to create a hoover type
sound. Increases all of the knobs while the delay creates a very drastic pumping effect.

Design Notes
I wanted to create a patch that had attitude and a distorted yet controlled low end. Several unison
units and distortion and compressors were used to make this patch mix ready. I really like
hoover type bass lines, but the problem it is hard to control the tremolo of the sound. I
programmed the mod wheel specifically to allow the user to control this aspect of the sound.

TBase
Shaun Wallace
Bass

Rotary 1
Increase dry/wet of delay unit, set on a low ms value, to fatten the sound.

Rotary 2
Increases send amount for both sources. The FX sends are meant to fatten up the sound through
detuning and stereo imaging.

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab


Rotary 3
Oscillator volume. Controls the high end colour of the sound.

Rotary 4
Sub-Oscillator volume. Controls the thick sub bass frequencies.

Button 1
Enables/disables Thor's delay.

Button 2
Increases detune amount of unison.

Button 3
Increases FM amount for the non-sub bass oscillator to drastically colour the sound. Adds a nice
high end buzz.

Button 4
Increases FM amount for the sub bass oscillator to drastically colour the sound. Adds a nice high
end buzz. Great to use if button 3 is turned off.

Modwheel
Boosts frequency.

Performance Notes
Excellent for trance bass lines. Sounds great in the very low registers as well Hold high notes
and move MW for a nice sci-fi sound.

Design Notes
This patch was inspired by the bass sounds of 90's dance music; simple yet highly effective. I
used resonant filters in a transparent manner to give the patch the right tone. This is another
example of using Thor units to create a thick and rich sound that carries a very strong character.

Tech Bass
Adam Fielding
Bass

Rotary 1
Controls the amplitude of the dry bass signal.

Rotary 2
Controls the amplitude of the distorted bass signal.

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab


Rotary 3
Controls the tone variation of the distorted bass signal.

Rotary 4
Controls the frequency variation of the distorted bass signal.

Button 1
Enables/disables delay.

Button 2
Enables/disables chorus.

Button 3
Enables/disables master bass/high boost EQ.

Button 4
Enables/disables phaser on the distorted bass signal.

Modwheel
Controls LP filter cut off on the dry bass signal to produce a muted effect.

Performance Notes
Being a bass patch, naturally it tends to sound better when played at lower octaves. However,
higher octaves can be used to produce a more bell-like distorted sound, so it depends on how you
want to use the patch. At lower octaves, the distorted signal takes on a more “rumbling” sound,
with higher notes affecting the overall clarity of this signal. Simple bass sequences tend to sound
better, though if you plan on using the patch as a rapid-fire bass sound you may wish to disable
the delay.

Design Notes
I really wanted to create a sort of garage-sounding bass sound, but with a bit of meat to it and a
bit of dirt. To this end, I modified a detuned, almost percussive patch to produce the bass element
of the sound, and routed this through a Scream4 to produce a nasty, distorted sound. This helps
the patch to cut through a mix, especially with a bit of careful equalisation. However, on its own
it sounds nicely rounded with the distortion disabled, so an option in the form of dry/distortion
level knobs was provided to allow for this. The higher-pitched bell sound was a nice side-effect
of using the original percussive patch, so that's mostly down to it being a fortunate accident than
a design decision.

The Big One


Adam Fielding
Bass

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab


Rotary 1
Controls the drive on all generators. Produces a different characteristic than the “overdrive”
button.

Rotary 2
Controls the stereo spread of the two generators.

Rotary 3
Controls the tuning difference on both audio generators.

Rotary 4
Controls the LP filter decay on both audio generators.

Button 1
Enables/disables overdrive to produce a very harsh, gritty sound.

Button 2
Enables/disables chorus effects.

Button 3
Enables/disables compressor to keep levels consistent while playing.

Button 4
Enables/disables additional unison device to produce a “thicker” sound.

Modwheel
Controls vibrato.

Performance Notes
Play using low octaves and watch everything in the room start shaking. Perfect for drum and
bass tracks, or for use as a basic bass drone. Naturally, it sounds a bit puny when played at higher
octaves... but at lower octaves it's perfect for annoying the neighbours.

Design Notes
No patch set would be complete without a big bass patch, so I wanted to make something simple
and effective that would work in any drum and bass track. With additional stereo controls to
tweak, there's plenty of scope for variation and fatness provided here. Although it is designed to
be played at lower octaves, with a bit of a low cut and some creative use of effects this could be
transformed into a gritty lead, especially when combined with the overdrive provided. As always,
just because it's been designed as a bass patch doesn't mean you have to use it that way.

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab


FX/Atmos

Haloed
Adam Fielding
FX-Atmo

Rotary 1
Controls the amplitude of the booming percussive sound.

Rotary 2
Controls the amplitude of the crackling sound.

Rotary 3
Controls the decay amount of the reverb. The reverb must be enabled for this to have any effect.

Rotary 4
Controls the LFO rate on the crackle, which in turn controls the filter sweep and panning.

Button 1
Enables/disables reverb.

Button 2
Enables/disables equalisers on individual elements.

Button 3
Enables/disables EQ on the reverb. This cuts the lows and boosts the highs when enabled,
providing a less muddied and more “spacey” sound.

Button 4
Enables/disables LFO tempo sync on the crackle.

Modwheel
Controls percussive filter frequency to produce a brighter “boomy” sound.

Performance Notes
This instrument can only be played one way, with MIDI input acting as a trigger. Simply hold
down a key to hear the effects and release the key to stop playback.

Design Notes
With this patch I wanted to create a simple patch that would work well as the introduction for a
loud, fast, synth-heavy industrial track. Combined with a droning bass sound, this can be used to
heighten tension before letting rip with some snappy drums and juicy synths. At least, that's the

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab


idea I had in mind. As such, the boomy percussion provides an epic quality (especially when
combined with the reverb) while the crackle can be brought in to heighten tension.

Most Awful
Jeremy Janzen
FX-Atmo

Rotary 1
Adds Scream Distortion via send effect.

Rotary 2
Changes the Scream frequency.

Rotary 3
Changes the Phaser frequency and the Scream tone

Rotary 4
Modifies the reverse delay depth.

Button 1
Adds strong compression.

Button 2
Completely changes the wavetable for a different timbre.

Button 3
Turns on Scream4 Body resonance.

Button 4
Attaches an envelope to the Scream4 damage parameter, giving it an attack and decay.

Modwheel
Raises the modulation rate of the Phaser. The maximum is *very* fast.

Performance Notes
This is a FX sound, meant for mostly one-note-at-a-time ambiences.

Design Notes
With Most Awful, I set out to make exactly that - the ‘Most Awful’ sound I could imagine at that
moment.

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab


Have a look at Button 2. Using it, you can completely change the wavetable loaded in Osc1.
You can’t do this inside Thor with the mod-matrix, but you can using Combinator controls. So
keep that in mind if you are using the wavetable Osc. You can create a completely different
timbre by simply switching the wavetable.

Oxygen
Adam Fielding
FX-Atmo

Rotary 1
Controls the LP filter resonance on the main pad sound.

Rotary 2
Controls the noise-mod attack rate on the noise-based sound.

Rotary 3
Controls the noise-mod decay rate on the noise-based sound.

Rotary 4
Controls the delay decay rate.

Button 1
Enables/disables delay.

Button 2
Enables/disables equalisation.

Button 3
Enables/disables chorus effects on the main pad sound.

Button 4
Enables/disables additional filter resonance on the noise-based sound.

Modwheel
Controls the LP filter frequency on the main pad sound.

Performance Notes
Due to the nature of this patch having quite a low, droning-type sound it is recommended to keep
playback limited to two or three notes maximum between octaves 2 and 3, although higher
octaves may provide some room for manoeuvring in this regard as there will be less in the way
of low frequency content. Long, sustained notes are recommended to give the patch time to fully
“open up” and play through, although the noise mod controls can assist to a certain degree with

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab


shorter notes along with using the mod-wheel to control the low-pass filter frequency on the
main pad.

Design Notes
This patch was designed around a theme of pretty much all-encompassing calm/stillness. The
low-droning pad sound was designed to pretty much completely envelop the listener with the
default settings left intact, with the noise-sweep there to give a bit of sizzle to an otherwise very
low-mid heavy patch. It's not really well suited as a normal pad, and was designed primarily as
more of an effects-patch to give a song section an extra bit of atmosphere if needed, though it can
be played as a pad if required.

Terrors
Adam Fielding
FX-Atmo

Rotary 1
Controls the shaper drive parameter on the “screeching” synth.

Rotary 2
Controls reverb decay time. This requires the reverb to be active to have any effect.

Rotary 3
Controls the amplitude of the screeching sound.

Rotary 4
Controls the amplitude of the crackling/”whisper” sound.

Button 1
Enables/disables reverb.

Button 2
Enables/disables bitcrush distortion effect.

Button 3
Enables/disables reverb EQ. This requires the reverb to be active to have any effect.

Button 4
Enables/disables delay on the screeching sound.

Modwheel
Controls oscillator frequency on the screeching synth sound – this produces different timbres
when the drive parameter is set to higher values.

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab


Performance Notes
By default, this patch doesn't really have a normal tonal-sound. As such, it works at producing
strange (and harsh) sounds equally well using chords and single key-presses. With the drive
parameter decreased, it produces a less harsh-sounding tone and, with the use of the mod wheel,
can produce various timbres as well. But, by default, this is strictly an atmospheric-type patch
and as such may need some tweaking to slot into a pre-existing mix.

Design Notes
With this patch, I had intended to create a screaming atmospheric-type sound that would suit a
creepy big-reveal in a horror-flick. As such, metallic tones were my main focus which is why I
decided to use a Thor patch with extreme sine-shaping by default. This shaper type has a knack
for producing dissonant, nasty and almost metallic-type sounds, so it was well suited to
producing something horror-oriented. The crackling/whisper sound was added to give the overall
sound a more creepy feeling, and so what's here is a harsh, creepy sounding patch that might
require a bit of additional filtering to slot into a normal track, but with the shaper controls can be
rounded off to sound a bit more palatable. But that's not what I was after, and the default settings
convey this.

The Floor Cracks Open


Adam Fielding
FX-Atmo

Rotary 1
Controls the amplitude of the “crackling” atmospheric channel.

Rotary 2
Controls the amplitude of the simple “droning” channel.

Rotary 3
Controls reverb decay – requires the reverb to be enabled to have any effect.

Rotary 4
Controls the base LP filter frequency on the “droning” sound generator.

Button 1
Enables/disables reverb.

Button 2
Produces a more distorted sound on the “droning” channel when enabled.

Button 3
Enables/disables reverb low-cut. Requires the reverb to be enabled to have any effect.

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab


Button 4
Enables an additional oscillator on the “crackling” generator to produce an extra layer of noise.

Modwheel
Controls the shaper drive on the “crackling” generator to produce a more distorted sound.

Performance Notes
As this is an effects patch, this really shouldn't be used for playing complex melodies. With the
droning sound, this would suit any song introduction – automate the drone and crackling channel
levels to increase tension. Introduce a pad or choir as the atmospheric sounds sweep over the
listener and you've got a pretty epic track introduction.

Design Notes
The main idea behind this patch was to create a sense of unease with the listener – the “falling
rocks” Thor patch used forms the backbone of the patch, with the droning saw being used to
complete that ominous sound. The main “theme” behind this patch was that of a motorist driving
beside a steep incline in the dark, with a sense of isolation and unease underpinning the scene
before slipping over the edge. With an extra filter on the end this would suit both a dark, tense
filmscape-esque track or a brooding soundscape leading into the meat of a track... or as basic cue
in its own right.

Guitar/Plucked
Grinding
Shaun Wallace
Guitar and Plucked

Rotary 1
Controls wave form of oscillator 1.

Rotary 2
Controls waveform of oscillator 2.

Rotary 3
Controls dry/wet value for the unison set up on a send bus. Controls amount of source being sent
to unison and delay.

Rotary 4
Sub-Oscillator volume. Controls the thick sub bass frequencies.

Button 1

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab


Increases compressor ratio to reduce more of the attack.

Button 2
Changes shaper type of hard clip to bipulse.

Button 3
Decreases compressor threshold to allow for a more dynamic sound.

Button 4
Enables/disables detune on the unison unit.

Modwheel
Reduces filter 1 frequency and changes wavetable patch.

Performance Notes
Bread and butter analog inspired synth sound. Can be used in all ranges. Automating rotaries 1
and/or 2 during the performance can yield some interesting results.

Design Notes
This patch is an example of the beauty of simplicity. I concentrated on creating a nice sound by
just using the oscillators. Then I moved to the filters and envelopes. The compressor was used
to slightly decrease the attack and bring up the softer sounds. In essence this is essentially part
of the magic of analog tape.

Juno Rep
Shaun Wallace
Guitar and Plucked

Rotary 1
Controls noise to oscillator cent modulation.

Rotary 2
Increase filter envelop amount.

Rotary 3
Controls spread values of Malstrom units.

Rotary 4
Controls panning settings on delay units used as fatteners.

Button 1
Softens attack values for amplitude envelope.

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab


Button 2
Decreases sustain values for amplitude envelope.

Button 3
Boosts sustain values for filter envelope.

Button 4
Softens attack values for filter envelope.

Modwheel
Modifiers timbre of the oscillators and frequency of the filters to change to help the sound cut
through the mix.

Performance Notes
The sound is excellent in all registers. It works best as a plucked sound, but can make for a nice
trance bass too. Arpeggios are your friend when it comes to this sound. Depending on the usage
of the sound, adjust the spread rotaries to fit the sound in the mix.

Design Notes
This was the patch where I found out how beautiful the Malstrom sounds when run through
Thor's chorus. The noise oscillator is used to control to modulate the pitch of the oscillators.
The colour of the noise osc is mapped to velocity.
This give the sounds a very rich organic analog nature. This patch is one of my personal
favorites.

Pizzi
Shaun Wallace
Guitar and Plucked

Rotary 1
Adjusts phase and detuning of Subtractor's oscillators. (bipolar)

Rotary 2
Adjusts PM and detuning of Thor's oscillators. (bipolar)

Rotary 3
Increases amount sent to psychoacoustic delay units.

Rotary 4
Controls dry/wet and detune amount for the unison unit used on the master out. Can create a rich
stereo spread.

Button 1

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab


Increases FM values to add harmonics to the high end.

Button 2
Drastically boosts high end frequencies to help sound cut through the mix. Turn on if the patch
is used as a lead sound. *Will not work if button 3 is turned off.

Button 3
Enables/disables EQ to drastically colour the sound.

Button 4
Enables/disables delay unit used on master out. *This is a normal delay.

Modwheel
Boosts frequency of filters.

Performance Notes
There are several values mapped to velocity to allow for a human performance. Open the MW
on the lower registers for a very unique bass tone. This patch works well with dance and down
tempo genres.

Design Notes
Inspired by Faithless Insomnia and psychoacoustics. Several delay units were set around the
values of 80 ms. That is the value that human ear starts to think the delay is an echo. This
creates a rich VA type sound. I wanted to use velocity as a mechanism to give the sound a very
organic feel. Due to the special delay units and velocity mapping there is a very beautiful vibrato
in the resonance of the sound.

Qlass
Shaun Wallace
Guitar and Plucked

Rotary 1
Crossfades between the two sound sources.

Rotary 2
Increases filter decay envelope to create a brighter sound.

Rotary 3
Increased FM filter amount to add brightness to the sound.

Rotary 4
Increase octave value for FM modulator.

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab


Button 1
Increase chorus amount for sound source 1 to detune it.

Button 2
Enables/disables stereo imaging.

Button 3
Increases FM amount form Osc3 (sin) to Osc1 (noise) within Thor's mod matrix. Will slightly
increase the rate at which the noise oscillator will modulate other parameters.

Button 4
Increases the range at which noise oscillator will modulate the cent value for oscillator 2. a

Modwheel
Boosts filter frequency, cuts resonance, and changes wavetable position. Increases overall
brightness.

Performance Notes
The default preset for the sound has a very dark and subdued tone. This combinator has
thousands of possibilities
for generating different tones by utilizing FM in various parts of the signal chain. Depending on
the tone of the sound this patch can be used in a multitude of genres.

Design Notes
I wanted to create a nice digital plucked sound whole retaining an analog feel. I used a noise
oscillator to control the cent values for other oscillators. FM and wavetable oscillators were
utilized to generate the digital feel of the sound. Getting the parameters just right was key to
sculpting the digital nature of the sound.

Keyboard Splits
Analog Combis
Nick Hutton
Keyboard Splits

Rotary 1
Changes the value of attack for the right split trumpets.

Rotary 2
Changes the value of release for the right split trumpets.

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab


Rotary 3
Changes the value of the reverb dry to wet.

Rotary 4
Changes the value of the analog drift.

Button 1
Turns on the delay.

Button 2
Turns on the chorus.

Button 3
Doubles the trumpet.

Button 4
Spreads the strings.

Modwheel
Fades in LFO Modulation of Filter.

Design Notes
Classic analog combination of trumpet and strings split over the keyboard, left hand does the
strings right the trumpet.

Anassis
Nick Hutton
Keyboard Splits

Rotary 1
Changes the value of Drone Frequency.

Rotary 2
Changes the value of Drone Resolution.

Rotary 3
Changes the value of the Moog lead frequency.

Rotary 4
Changes the value of the Moog lead resolution.

Button 1

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab


Turns on the delay for the Drone.

Button 2
Turns on the delay for the Moog lead.

Button 3
Turns on the chorus for the Drone.

Button 4
Turns on the chorus for the Moog lead.

Modwheel
Fades in LFO modulation of bass element.

Design Notes
Split of long build up drone sounds with a lighter 70’s style lead on the upper level.

Dreaming of Snowfields
Adam Fielding
Keyboard Splits

Rotary 1
Controls the LP filter cut off frequency on the keys.

Rotary 2
Controls the LP filter cut off frequency on the pad.

Rotary 3
Controls the rate at which the panning of both channels “sweeps” - lower values result in slower,
more subtle sweeps.

Rotary 4
Controls the decay time on the delay units.

Button 1
Enables/disables delay.

Button 2
Enables/disables chorus effects.

Button 3
Enables/disables individual channel equalisers.

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab


Button 4
Enables/disables low-cut equalisation on the delay units.

Modwheel
Controls vibrato on the pad.

Performance Notes
This patch is best played using octaves in close proximity to the C3 split – anything below this
split plays an organ-type pad sound, while anything above plays a nice, warm key-type sound.
Lower octaves produce more of a droning sound, which can be useful when the LP filter cut off
frequency on the pad is lowered, enabling it to be used as more of a bass sound. It would be
useful in this case to also disable the EQ (third button), though it all depends on what you're
using the patch for. Higher octaves can cause the key-sound to produce incredibly piercing, shrill
sounds so it is best to stick to C3-C5 with the key section.

Design Notes
With it being an unusually cold day when I created this patch, I decided to create a patch
indicative of a wintery atmosphere by utilising, perhaps rather bizarrely, a couple of “warm”
Thor patches. The enveloping organ sound gives the patch a real sense of envelopment which,
when combined with the keys, produces a really nice, open atmosphere. The LP filter controls
were introduced to give the user a bit of control over the tone produced by the combi patch, with
one use detailed above in the performance notes.

Driftwood
Nick Hutton
Keyboard Splits

Rotary 1
Changes the value of the phaser frequency.

Rotary 2
Changes the value of the phaser width.

Rotary 3
Changes the level of the LFO.

Rotary 4
Changes the rate of the LFO.

Button 1
Turns on the delay effect “A”.

Button 2

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab


Turns on the chorus effect.

Button 3
Turns on the delay effect “B”.

Button 4
Turns on the flanger.

Modwheel
Fades in LFO modulation of lower element, and stereo-effect on higher element.

Design Notes
Drifting Pad and lead combination with interesting LFO effect that creates a false distortion
when fully engaged.

Eastern Ethics
Nick Hutton
Keyboard Splits

Rotary 1
Controls the volume of the instruments.

Rotary 2
Controls the volume of the tabla.

Rotary 3
Controls the percussion frequency.

Rotary 4
Controls the percussion resolution.

Button 1
Turns the tabla A on (when Dr Rex preview buttons are engaged).

Button 2
Turns the tabla B on (when Dr Rex preview buttons are engaged).

Button 3
Turns the tabla C on (when Dr Rex preview buttons are engaged).

Button 4
Switches between the sitar and dulcimer solo.

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab


Modwheel
Increases filter frequency of lower element.

Design Notes
This is a live performance instrument specifically aimed at Indian music. The preview buttons on
all of the Dr. Rex instruments must be engaged before starting. By doing so you can then switch
between the various tabla settings whilst playing either a sitar or dulcimer with the right hand.
The left hand controls the Tamper.

Endospheres
Nick Hutton
Keyboard Splits

Rotary 1
controls the amount of gate applied to the pads.

Rotary 2
controls the rate of the gate.

Rotary 3
controls the value of the wow feedback.

Rotary 4
controls the rate of wow.

Button 1
Turns on the pad delay.

Button 2
Turns on the chorus.

Button 3
Turns on the lead delay.

Button 4
Turns on the wow.

Modwheel
Morphs the oscillators in the higher element.

Design Notes
Split atmospheric pads and lead ideal for ambience scoring.

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab


EXP
Shaun Wallace
Keyboard Splits

Rotary 1
Crossfades between the Malstrom's dry signal and the Malstroms signal sent through Thor.

Rotary 2
Increases the stereo image of the audio signal from Thor.

Rotary 3
Increases the stereo of the Malstrom only signal.

Rotary 4
Drastically boosts reverb settings to create a lush almost underwater texture.

Button 1
Increases dampness of reverb.

Button 2
Changes Thor LP filters from 12db to 24 db.

Button 3
Switches from LP to BP filter on Malstrom.

Button 4
Decreases decay time of reverb.

Modwheel
Boosts filter frequency, cuts resonance, and changes wavetable position. Increases overall
brightness.

Performance Notes
Notes below C3 will trigger the arpeggiator. Notes above that will allow the user to play short
lead sounds. This patch works extremely well in trance and down tempo genres. Using large
chords can create some very nice results.

Design Notes
I wanted to created simple yet effective performance patch. The bass sound was designed to be
clean and simple so it could fit into most genres. The lead sound has an extra bit of bite to sit to
help it sit in the mix.

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab


Hofot
Nick Hutton
Keyboard Splits

Rotary 1
Changes the value of the small reverb unit.

Rotary 2
Changes the scale of the scream unit.

Rotary 3
Changes the dry/wet value of the main reverb.

Rotary 4
Changes the amount of the echo effect.

Button 1
Turns the small reverb on.

Button 2
Turns the distortion on.

Button 3
Turns the main reverb on.

Button 4
Turns the echo unit on.

Modwheel
Increases noise on the bass and fades in LFO > Filter modulation on the lead.

Design Notes
A split combi with an arp on the left side and a solo on the right.

Imaginings
Nick Hutton
Keyboard Splits

Rotary 1
Changes the volume of Osc 1.

Rotary 2
Changes the motion of Osc 2.

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab


Rotary 3
Changes the solo volume.

Rotary 4
Changes the chord reverb.

Button 1
Turns on the loudness.

Button 2
Turns on the high gain.

Button 3
Turns on the distortion for the solo.

Button 4
Turns on the phaser for the solo.

Modwheel
Increases the Index and Filter Frequency of the Malstrom patch. Adds a stereo filter effect to the
Subtractors.

Design Notes
Chords split with a lead subtractored sound a flavour of an older Reason era with no Thor in
sight.

Isobelle Parks
Nick Hutton
Keyboard Splits

Rotary 1
Changes the frequency amount.

Rotary 2
Changes the insert amount.

Rotary 3
Changes the rate of the arp.

Rotary 4
Changes the mode on the RPG-8.

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab


Button 1
Turns on the delay.

Button 2
Turns on the chorus.

Button 3
switches between differing gate lengths.

Button 4
Turns on hold.

Modwheel
Increases Amp Release time on the Arp. Fades in LFO > Filter modulation on the bass pad.

Design Notes
An arpeggiated patch with a lead on the split left channel.

Nightly Nightly
Nick Hutton
Keyboard Splits

Rotary 1
Changes the frequency of the bass pattern.

Rotary 2
Changes the bass pattern itself.

Rotary 3
Changes the distortion amount.

Rotary 4
Changes the type of distortion applied to the patch.

Button 1
Turns on the bass delay.

Button 2
Turns on the bass chorus.

Button 3
Turns on the prophet delay.

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab


Button 4
Turns on the distortion unit.

Modwheel
Fades in LFO > Filter modulation on the bass. Fades in shaper on the lead.

Design Notes
Running bass pattern with a prophet inspired lead that plays over the top.

Pazel
Nick Hutton
Keyboard Splits

Rotary 1
Changes the value of the bass frequency.

Rotary 2
Changes the bass resolution value.

Rotary 3
Changes the mode of arp played.

Rotary 4
Changes the rate the arp is played at.

Button 1
Turns on the bass delay.

Button 2
Turns on the bass chorus.

Button 3
Turns on the arp.

Button 4
Switches between the octaves on the RPG-8 unit.

Modwheel
Fades in LFO > Filter modulation on both elements seperately.

Design Notes
Split keys with arp on the left and prophet string pads on the right.

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab


Rosas
Nick Hutton
Keyboard Splits

Rotary 1
Changes the phaser rate.

Rotary 2
Changes the flutter rate.

Rotary 3
Changes the value of the distant reverb (dry-wet).

Rotary 4
Changes the amount of echo heard on the lead.

Button 1
Turns on the phaser.

Button 2
Turns on the flutter effect.

Button 3
Turns on the distant reverb.

Button 4
Turns on the lead echo unit.

Modwheel
Performs a FM Morph on the lead.

Design Notes
Split patch with a Iberic type pad on the left and a echoed organ key on the right.

Sans Deux
Nick Hutton
Keyboard Splits

Rotary 1
Changes the bass frequency.

Rotary 2
Changes the arp rate.

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab


Rotary 3
Changes the frequency of the lead arp.

Rotary 4
Changes the LFO rate for the lead arp.

Button 1
Turns on the bass delay.

Button 2
Turns on the bass gate.

Button 3
Turns on the delay for the lead arp.

Button 4
Turns on the chorus for the lead arp.

Modwheel
Fades in LFO > Filter modulation on bass.

Design Notes
Split two tone arpeggiators one bass the other lead with time and frequency rotaries.

Summer Daze
Nick Hutton
Keyboard Splits

Rotary 1
Slight level boost to the pads.

Rotary 2
Changes the rate of the gate.

Rotary 3
Changes the amount of band pass filtering applied to the lead.

Rotary 4
Changes the rate of lfo interplay with the solo.

Button 1
Turns on the low cut.

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab


Button 2
Turns off the gate.

Button 3
Turns on the delay.

Button 4
Turns off the lfo which is applied to the lead.

Modwheel
Fades in Chorus effect on lead.

Design Notes
Split pads and lead patch with a lazy summer day feel.

The Kerrala Connection


Nick Hutton
Keyboard Splits

Rotary 1
Changes the level of the pads.

Rotary 2
Changes the level of the solo’s.

Rotary 3
Changes the value of the dry/wet for the reverb.

Rotary 4
Changes the eq applied to the solo’s.

Button 1
turns solo1 on.

Button 2
turns solo2 on.

Button 3
Turns on the delay.

Button 4
Turns on the eq for the solo.

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab


Modwheel
Increases Shaper drive on bass. Activates LFO > Filter modulation on lead.

Design Notes
Indian inspired pad and leads ensemble.

Traffic
Nick Hutton
Keyboard Splits

Rotary 1
Changes the value of the phaser frequency.

Rotary 2
Changes the amount of gate applied to the pads.

Rotary 3
Changes the rate of the gate.

Rotary 4
Changes the amount of analog drift applied to the pads.

Button 1
Turns on the pads delay.

Button 2
Turns on the phaser.

Button 3
Turns on the chorus.

Button 4
Turns on the lead delay.

Modwheel
Speeds up filter modulation of lower element. Drifts pitch on higher element.

Design Notes
Mellow gated pad and solo split with true analog drift style and ambient lead.

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab


Keyboards and Polys
A Pleasant Release
Adam Fielding
Keyboards & Polys

Rotary 1
Controls notch filter frequency on the main bell sound.

Rotary 2
Controls the LP filter cut-off frequency on the formant-shaped backing sound.

Rotary 3
Controls the reverb decay length.

Rotary 4
Controls the amplitude of the backing formant-shaped sound.

Button 1
Enables/disables reverb.

Button 2
Toggles between short/long release on the bell sound.

Button 3
Enables/disables delay.

Button 4
Enables/disables EQ devices to provide a less muddied, more rounded sound by default.

Modwheel
Controls LP filter cut off frequency on the main bell sound.

Performance Notes
This patch is recommended for use between low to mid-hi octaves, as higher octaves can
produce a shrill sound or can sound very quiet as a result of the synths used. Can be used to play
both simple and complex melodies, and works particularly well with short runs ended with a
sustained note. Experiment with the formant level knob to suit your track, and the main notch
filter knob can be used to produce some interesting phasing-esque effects.

Design Notes

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab


This patch was once again inspired by a well known electronic artist whose ambient, spacey
pieces I have been a fan of for quite a while. I wanted to create a simple, yet elegant and spacey
bell-like sound that wasn't too harsh to listen to while sitting nicely in any mix. Getting the bell
sound to sit correctly was tricky in itself, so the formant backing pad was introduced to give it a
bit of body without compromising the simple nature of the patch, and to introduce a nice organic
sound to the otherwise very nice, but almost sterile patch.

Boundless Ocean
Shaun Wallace
Keyboards and Polys

Rotary 1
Stereo Delay send for Thor.

Rotary 2
Stereo Delay send for Malstrom.

Rotary 3
Timbre shift for Thor. Modifies oscillator PM and shaper drive.

Rotary 4
Timbre shift for Malstrom. Modifies motion and index.

Button 1
Different delay unit 1 values. (Short/Long taps)

Button 2
Different delay unit 2 values. (Short/Long taps)

Button 3
Switches between LP/BP filters for the stereo delay.

Button 4
Changes chorus values for Thor and Chorus/Flanger unit.

Modwheel
Increases overall brightness to help the sound cut through the mix.

Performance Notes
This sound is great in all ranges. It excels particularly well in arpeggios that run through many
octaves. The key to this match is matching the timing of the delays to the arpeggio to get an
excellent rhythmic result. If used as based turn feedback down on delays.

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab


Design Notes
I wanted to simple a simple yet effective poly synth patch. Several different timbres are utilized
through the oscillators to an organic sound. This further enhanced by applying several LFO's to
various parameters to make no two notes sound exactly the same.

Cream
Shaun Wallace
Keyboards and Polys

Rotary 1
Increases panning and dry/wet for the fattener to create a wider more varied stereo image.

Rotary 2
Modifies various chorus parameters to detune the sound in a transparent manner.

Rotary 3
Increases values for stereo imager.

Rotary 4
Decreases LP slope from 24db to 6db for a brighter softer tone.

Button 1
Adds a chorus unit after the fattener.

Button 2
Changes ms values on delays for fattener. Changes affect of fattener and stereo width.

Button 3
Increases sustain values for all envelopes and adds in some feedback to the fattener to create a
slight combing effect.

Button 4
Increases release values to create a pad/lead sound.

Modwheel
Shifts filter frequencies from LP to HP for a brighter tone.

Performance Notes
This sound is great in all ranges. It excels particularly well in arpeggios that run through many
octaves. Make to test out the various timbre shifting parameters along with modifying the
envelopes to get the right sound.

Design Notes

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab


This utilizes Thor's wavetables. Oscillator pitch is modulator by LFO's for an analog feel. I
wanted to make a simple patch with a big sound. The various fattener and stereo imaging effects
were implemented to achieve this result.

Deadspace
Shaun Wallace
Keyboards and Polys

Rotary 1
Sends audio to the fattener through a send bus.

Rotary 2
Detunes oscillators. (unipolar)

Rotary 3
Increases unison detune amounts.

Rotary 4
Controls volume for sub oscillator.

Button 1
Enables/disables chorus unit after the fattener.

Button 2
Increases feedback on delays used in the fattener to create a comb effect.

Button 3
Enables/disables reverb.

Button 4
Adds stereo image to the sub oscillator.

Modwheel
Decreases attack while increasing releasing.

Performance Notes
This patch works well as a lead or layered with simpler sounds. It can add a lot of flavor to a
mix. Open up the MW for an instrument change. :)

Design Notes
This patch was inspired by some of the quirky sounds you can get out of a subtractor. Combined
with the possibilities of Thor you have a quirky sci-fi polysynth sound.

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab


Dream Keys
Adam Fielding
Keyboards and Polys

Rotary 1
Controls the LP filter frequency on the keyboard sound – use caution with this, setting this too
high can produce an unpleasant distorted sound.

Rotary 2
Controls the LP filter frequency of the pad sound.

Rotary 3
Controls reverb decay – requires the reverb to be enabled to have any effect.

Rotary 4
Controls the amplitude envelope decay time on the keyboard sound.

Button 1
Enables/disables reverb.

Button 2
Enables/disables stereo imager device, producing a “wider” sound.

Button 3
Enables/disables delay on the pad sound.

Button 4
Enables/disables delay on the keyboard sound.

Modwheel
Controls vibrato on the pad sound.

Performance Notes
With the reverb enabled, this is well suited for a mellow track section and can be played like any
other keyboard patch. Holding down the keys can produce a nice big pad sound to accompany
the keys, so this is something to take into account when performing/sequencing sections.
Disabling the reverb enables the instrument to sit better in a mix, and modifying the filter
frequencies can help it stand out if necessary. Plenty of variation is possible with this patch.

Design Notes
The main keyboard sound was heavily inspired by a certain well known electronic artist (the
patch name “VAN-tri” might be a bit of a clue there), and combined with the pad can be used to
produce beautiful sections without any additional accompaniment. By default, it is well suited as

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab


an atmospheric patch – but with some slight modifications can be used as a regular keyboard
patch as well to play melodies over the top of any sort of backing (according to taste, of course).

Foundation
Shaun Wallace
Keyboards and Polys

Rotary 1
Increases attack time.

Rotary 2
Increases release time.

Rotary 3
Detunes oscillators.

Rotary 4
Increases stereo spread.

Button 1
Reduces amplitude sustain to 0.

Button 2
Turns frequencies 787Hz and below to mono.

Button 3
Decreases filter envelope amount.

Button 4
Turns on tape saturation.

Modwheel
Increases resonance and softens the sound.

Performance Notes
Great for lead sounds, but also for backing sounds if the portamento is turned off and attack
turned down. Open the MW for great arpeggios and smooth leads.

Design Notes
This patch is inspired by old analog madness. I wanted to create a rich n thick multi-purpose
sound. Detuned oscillators and distortion were used to colour the sound.

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab


Gaia Beseached
Shaun Wallace
Keyboards and Polys

Rotary 1
Shifts wavetable position.

Rotary 2
Crossfades between different wavetables. Will change audible harmonics.

Rotary 3
Increase dry/wet of unison unit for rich stereo spread.

Rotary 4
Adjusts parameter 1 and damage control on Scream unit to colour sound.

Button 1
Adds in an extra wavetable for extra harmonics.

Button 2
Adds in an extra wavetable for extra harmonics.

Button 3
Increases detune of unison unit. Use in combination with rotary 3.

Button 4
Enables EQ to darken the sound. Important to use to reduce brightness form the added
harmonics.

Modwheel
Darkens the sound through a reduction in filter frequency and a boost in wavetable position.

Performance Notes
This patch for ambient leads and patches. Excellent for use in moody music. Can work well in
break downs for more energetic genres. The polyphonic portamento works well with harmonies
and slow melodies.

Design Notes
This patch was an experiment in applying FM to various parts of the signal chain in Thor while
using wavetables and additive synthesis methods. The combination of these three synthesis
methods creates a very organic sound with realistic shifting timbres.

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab


Good Times With VGM
Adam Fielding
Keyboards and Polys

Rotary 1
Controls the amp env release time on the main chip synth.

Rotary 2
Controls the arpeggiator note trigger rate.

Rotary 3
Controls the LFO rate on the main chip synth, which in turns controls amplitude modulation.

Rotary 4
Controls the arpeggiator note playback mode.

Button 1
Toggles between no attack time whatsoever and a slight attack on the main chip synth to produce
a smoother sound without pops.

Button 2
Enables/disables delay.

Button 3
Enables/disables LFO temp sync.

Button 4
Enables/disables chorus.

Modwheel
Increases amplitude modulation rate using the base LFO rate as a starting point.

Performance Notes
Despite allowing for rapid arpeggiated chords, this patch can also be used as a simple chip-style
lead with some slight LFO rate modifications and enabling the delay, both of which are default
combinator controls on this patch. However, when played with chords it is best to stick with
simple chords, otherwise the chord sound is to the arpeggiator – unless this is an effect you are
deliberately going after. For this purpose, the patch doesn't really work below octave 2 as it
produces a muddly, dull sound which makes it hard to distinguish between notes. Modifying the
release time can go a small way in alleviating this, though.

Design Notes

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab


As the name and sound suggest, this patch is based on a particular sound I used to be quite fond
of on old 8-bit machines such as the Spectrum, Commodore 64 and even through to 16-bit
machines such as the Atari ST. In an attempt to conserve already limited channels, musicians
would neglect to use chords and would instead use very rapid arpeggiated chords which
produced a very interesting sound, replicated to a certain extent here. However, despite this being
my original intention I didn't want to lock the user into using the patch only in this way and so
LFO controls were included to allow the patch to be used as an old-school sounding lead
instrument. Some liberties have been taken, and the patch allows for polyphonic playback, but as
a pleasant sound with old VGM leanings it certainly fits the bill.

Good Vibes
Shaun Wallace
Keyboards and Polys

Rotary 1
Crossfades between bells and synth lead.

Rotary 2
Increases detune amount of unison unit.

Rotary 3
Increases filter resonance on Malstrom.

Rotary 4
Increases filter B frequency on Malstrom to add breath and colour to the lead sound.

Button 1
Increases volume. Use if the sound is too soft because the crossfade value. Also adds body to the
distortion to colour the sound.

Button 2
Turns off damage on scream unit.

Button 3
HP filter applied on scream unit to soften the sound.

Button 4
Enables sin wave on lead.

Modwheel
Shifts filter frequency, FM amounts, and index amounts to completely change the timbre.

Performance Notes

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab


Excellent for leads and harmonies. The two sound sources are vastly different but work well
together. Using the crossfade is key to find a good combination.

Design Notes
Everyone has heard millions of bell patches. I wanted to create the same bell patch but layered
with a soft portamento lead. The EQ's and distortion are used to help gel the two sound together.

Grit
Shaun Wallace
Keyboards and Polys

Rotary 1
Detunes Subtractor's oscillators. (bipolar)

Rotary 2
Increases detune amount and dry/wet for the unison unit to create a rich stereo spread.

Rotary 3
Increases filter FM on Thor and Subtractor for some extreme grit.

Rotary 4
Controls hiss on foldback distortion unit.

Button 1
Enables/disables reverb.

Button 2
Enables/disables EQ for high end boost.

Button 3
Enables/disables EQ for low end fix.

Button 4
Bypasses foldback distortion unit.

Modwheel
Reduces frequency to reduce hiss.

Performance Notes
Excellent for heavy distorted leads and basses. Distort and mangle to taste!

Design Notes

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab


This patch is a gritty in your bass bass/lead sound. Distortion and EQ are utilized to create this
monster. I always have a special place in my heart for angry sound synth patches, this one is no
exception.

Kalm
Shaun Wallace
Keyboards and Polys

Rotary 1
Crossfades between two sound sources.

Rotary 2
Sound source 1 FX send.

Rotary 3
Sound source 2 FX send.

Rotary 4
Controls dry/wet of unison and panning on fattener units to create stereo spread.

Button 1
Increases reverb dampness.

Button 2
Creates feedback loop for chorus/flanger unit in mixer.

Button 3
Creates feedback loop for fattener in mixer.

Button 4
Creates feedback loop for unison unit in mixer.

Modwheel
Creates vibrato in resonance.

Performance Notes
Great for keys. Can be used for arpeggios or leads. Use the buttons to get the right timbre for
the sound.

Design Notes
This patch is an experiment in creating an ethnic chiptune sound. I know it sounds crazy, but
throw this on some old video game music and you will get the picture. Simple tones and FM

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab


were used to great affect to mold the sound. Tri and Square used together in FM always produce
some excellent tones.

Mellow Hammer
Shaun Wallace
Keyboards and Polys

Rotary 1
Dry/Wet value for distortion.

Rotary 2
Shifts filter frequency and filter FM amounts.

Rotary 3
Increases drive on the format filter for distorted ahhs and oohs.

Rotary 4
Controls send amount to the unison unit and the high end stereo boost in the stereo imager.

Button 1
Volume fix if the sound is too soft as a result of rotary 1.

Button 2
Creates a distorted wah-wah effect.

Button 3
Switches the comb filter type. (positive or negative)

Button 4
Enables/disables stereo imager unit.

Modwheel
Creates a nice lead sound. Modifies format filter.

Performance Notes
Excellent for use in many ranges. Works well in harmonies and soft leads.

Design Notes
This patch is a cross between a polysynth and a key type sound. The playing style and distortion
can have a drastic affect on how the listener perceives the sound.

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab


Mercury
Adam Fielding
Keyboards and Polys

Rotary 1
Controls the amplitude envelope decay on the main key sound.

Rotary 2
Controls the amount of chorus effect applied to the main key sound.

Rotary 3
Controls the amount of low-cut equalisation to apply – this has no effect if the “tape” distortion
is disabled.

Rotary 4
Controls keys LP filter frequency.

Button 1
Enables/disables delay.

Button 2
Enables/disables tape distortion.

Button 3
Enables/disables unison effect on the delay signal – this has no effect if delay is disabled.

Button 4
Enables/disables compression on the key sound.

Modwheel
Controls FM amount on the key-sound oscillators to produce brighter tones.

Performance Notes
Despite the key-like nature of this patch, it is recommended for use between octaves 2 and 3,
using octave 1 to provide additional bass tones if required. Higher octaves can sound incredibly
shrill and unpleasant without additional filtering, so if you want to use higher octaves it is
recommended that you lower the LP filter cutoff frequency on the key-type sound and possibly
disable the tape distortion. Simple, slow melodies work best with this patch, particularly with the
delay unit enabled.

Design Notes
The main point of this patch was to create a nice, simple, crunchy sounding key-type sound that
would work in an atmospheric context with a slow filter-based fade. To this end, an FM-based

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab


Thor was used to produce the main key tone which, without any modification, sounds relatively
simple yet playable. With the inclusion of the tape distortion and compression to provide the
keys with a bit of drive and snap respectively, the patch can create some nice, pure sounds when
used with simple chords and melodies.

Nostalgia
Adam Fielding
Keyboads and Polys

Rotary 1
Controls the LP filter cutoff frequency on the first key channel.

Rotary 2
Controls the LP filter cutoff frequency on the second key channel.

Rotary 3
Controls the amplitude envelope release on both key channels.

Rotary 4
Controls the stereo spread of the two key channels – higher values produce a wider sound.
Minimum value removes all stereo spread.

Button 1
Enables/disables chorus on the first key channel.

Button 2
Enables/disables chorus on the second key channel.

Button 3
Enables/disables second key channel semitone-detune. When enabled, second key channel is
detuned by 5 semitones.

Button 4
Enables/disables master EQ to cut low-end and (slightly) boost high-end.

Modwheel
Controls LP filter resonance on both key channels.

Performance Notes
With the default parameters, this patch is best used to play simple single-key melodies. The patch
sounds “right” using a wide range of octaves, though higher pitched notes emphasise the slight
detuning that occurs over time. Disabling the five-semitone detune on the second key channel
and modifying the filter frequencies and chorus effects can have a profound effect on the output,

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab


so it's worth experimenting with the controls if you have any other use in mind. With a bit of
tweaking the patch can be used to play complex melodies and can be treated as a more bog-
standard “key” patch. This can also be used to play unusual chords which, combined with the
detuning aspects of the patch, can produce quite a sad, lonely sound.

Design Notes
Another sine-based patch here. My intent was to create a patch that would work equally well
during quiet sections as it would during more intense/busy song sections. My intended use of this
patch is to play simple melodies, which can be repeated and used as a central theme throughout a
track. Given the specific nature of this intent, I decided to allow the user to have more say over
what it should be used for so provided per-channel settings for filter frequencies and chorus
effects, while also providing stereo controls for mixing purposes. With a bit of modification this
patch can be used pretty much as you see fit due to the nature of it being almost entirely
sinewave-based, lending it an added element of diversity.

Oceana
Shaun Wallace
Keyboards and Polys

Rotary 1
Detunes oscillators (unipolar) and changes detune type

Rotary 2
Increases FX send to fattener.

Rotary 3
Increases stereo spread of both sound sources.

Rotary 4
Changes oscillator wave.

Button 1
Increases reverb send for sound source 1.

Button 2
Increases reverb send for sound source 2.

Button 3
Adds a resonant filter boost to sound source 1.

Button 4
Adds a resonant filter boost to sound source 2.

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab


Modwheel
Darkens the sound.

Performance Notes
Excellent for pads and harmonies in trance. Open and close MW during transitions.

Design Notes
I was listening to Oceanlab a lot when I made this patch. I wanted to make one the lush
synth sounds they use in so many of their productions. Using the multi-oscillators
and modulating them with a noise osc was the key to developing this sound. One my
favorites from the refill.

Ogge
Shaun Wallace
Keyboards and Polys

Rotary 1
Detunes oscillators for part 1.

Rotary 2
Detunes oscillators for part 2.

Rotary 3
Selects oscillator wave forms for part 1.

Rotary 4
Selects oscillator wave forms for part 2.

Button 1
Increases unison unit detune.

Button 2
Increases unison unit dry/wet.

Button 3
Boosts filter frequency for part 1.

Button 4
Boosts filter frequency for part 2.

Modwheel
Increases filter frequency.

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab


Performance Notes
Great for bass, pads, harmonies, and arpeggios. Open MW for a simple lead sound. Adjust
detune settings for the type of sound used.

Design Notes
This is one of many multi-part patches. I created multiple instances of the same oscillator and
slightly detuned them all for a lush trance sound. Although, with this patch the user can either
keep both parts the same or make them different. The reverb is run through a unison to create so
added movement in the resonance of the sound.

Plush
Shaun Wallace
Keyboards and Polys

Rotary 1
Crossfade's between sound sources.

Rotary 2
Modifies filter FM and wavetable position to increase upper harmonics.

Rotary 3
Increases distortion and adds a slight resonant boost.

Rotary 4
Controls dry/wet of unison for a lush stereo image.

Button 1
Adds detune to the unison unit.

Button 2
Enables/diables EQ to cut brittle high end frequencies.

Button 3
Turns Scream body and EQ on/off. Useful when used to colour the sound.

Button 4
EQ boost to adds to the highs and cut mid-lows.

Modwheel
Adds in synthetic tones.

Performance Notes

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab


Sounds great in all registers. Highly sensitive to velocity. For a lusher sound make sure to
increase release on the filter and amplitude envelopes.

Design Notes
This patch was initially a very soft and subtle sound. I then mapped velocity to various
parameters to create a realistic e-piano sound. I really love the smooth sound of the rhodes; it's
no surprise the tone made it's way into this patch.

Procession
Adam Fielding
Keyboards and Polys

Rotary 1
Controls the key-synth LP filter cut-off frequency.

Rotary 2
Controls the key-synth LP filter resonance.

Rotary 3
Controls the reverb decay rate – this requires the reverb to be enabled to have any effect.

Rotary 4
Controls the amount of detune on the saw-based synth.

Button 1
Enables/disables reverb.

Button 2
Enables/disables chorus effect on the key synth.

Button 3
Enables/disables unison on the key synth.

Button 4
Enables/disables phaser on the saw-based synth.

Modwheel
Controls key-synth vibrato amount.

Performance Notes
This patch works equally well with chords and melodic sections, as well as runs – though for the
latter you may have to alter the reverb decay amount or disable it altogether. Sustained notes
allow the saw-based synth to open up which, when combined with the reverb, creates a lush,

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab


spacious sound that complements the initial key-synth very nicely. If the patch doesn't fit right
away, try experimenting with the filter and unison settings – this can affect the timbre more than
you might expect. Works well across all octaves, though higher notes produce a more-obviously
synthesised sound than lower octaves.

Design Notes
Here I had set about creating a patch that would work well either as a simple key-type patch or as
an almost pad-type patch based primarily on wavetable oscillators in the enclosed Thor devices.
From this start, I decided to go for a more “epic”, almost celebratory patch by complementing
the initial key-synth with a rich, sawtooth-based patch that wouldn't interfere with the keys. A
unison was added to the main key-synth to give it a nice sheen that would help it sit well with the
then added reverb and saw.

Roads to Perdition
Shaun Wallace
Keyboards and Polys

Rotary 1
Increases tape saturation. Has interesting effect since an increase compresses and colours the
reverb signal.

Rotary 2
Controls unison dry/wet and detune amount for lush stereo spread.

Rotary 3
Adjusts portamento time.

Rotary 4
Boosts frequency and reverb amount. Great for giving the sound a different sense of space.

Button 1
Enables/disables reverb.

Button 2
Enables/disables oscillator sync. *Drastically changes sound.

Button 3
enables/disables portamento.

Button 4
Switches comb filter type. (positive or negative)

Modwheel

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab


Decreases filter envelope attack.

Performance Notes
Great for low moody pads and dark leads. Adjust portamento to taste. Hold for long and short
notes for different sounds.

Design Notes
Thor's greatest strength lies in it's diversity. This patch is a shining example of how FM in Thor's
mod matrix can drastically alter a sound. I used FX to boost the stereo image and slightly distort
the sound to make a patch that was extremely dark and moody.

SGXair
Shaun Wallace
Keyboards and Polys

Rotary 1
Detunes Subtractor oscillators and adjust phase.

Rotary 2
Increases unison dry/wet amount for a stereo spread.

Rotary 3
Drastically changes distortion settings. *Maximum level induces pumping.

Rotary 4
Increases unison detune amount.

Button 1
Enables/disables delay unit.

Button 2
Adds unfiltered oscillators into Thor's signal chain, nice boost of harmonics and timbres.

Button 3
Enables/disables reverb.

Button 4
Enables/disables small boosts and cuts in the EQ to boost presence.

Modwheel
Decreases PM amount on Thor, and cuts filter frequency and boosts resonance on Subtractor.

Performance Notes

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab


Excellent for leads and fast arpeggios. Make sure to utilize the legato functions as they work
extremely well with the delay.

Design Notes
This patch was inspired by a fellow musician SGX. He has a incredible song called Coactive,
that utilizes a similar lead made on a Subtractor. I decided to make a similar patch on the old
Sub and a new one on Thor to re-imagine this classic portamento lead sound.

Silent Juno
Shaun Wallace
Keyboards and Polys

Rotary 1
Crossfades panning and filter envelope decay values to change attack transients of the sound.

Rotary 2
Adjusts sound source 2 dry/wet for send aux.

Rotary 3
Increases spread value in the Malstrom.

Rotary 4
Increase Thor and Malstrom filter frequency.

Button 1
Detunes Thor and Malstrom oscillators.

Button 2
Increase unison detune amount.

Button 3
Enables/disables delay with comb effect in Thor.

Button 4
Boosts filter 1 frequency on Thor.

Modwheel
Increase filter resonance and shifts Malstrom timbre and oscillators.

Performance Notes
Great for leads and complex arpeggios. Timbre and sound are highly dependent on the note
range being played. Useful in any genre.

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab


Design Notes
Great classic synth sound. This patch is another example of how Maltrsom sounds just sublime
run through Thor's chorus unit. I wanted to give the user different options on how to spread the
various timbres of this patch across the stereo spectrum.

Sines of Life
Adam Fielding
Keyboards and Polys

Rotary 1
Controls the amp decay envelope on the sine generators.

Rotary 2
Controls the LP filter frequency of the instrument.

Rotary 3
Controls the LP filter resonance of the instrument.

Rotary 4
Controls the amplitude of the thin triangle sound played on a sustained note.

Button 1
Enables/disables delay.

Button 2
Modifies the delay filter type – on = LP filter, off = BP filter.

Button 3
Enables/disables stereo imager device, producing a “wider” sound.

Button 4
Enables/disables low-cut equaliser.

Modwheel
Controls instrument vibrato.

Performance Notes
Bearing in mind that the instrument itself makes use of fifth-chords by design, simple melodies
work best here. Sustained notes will continue playing the thin triangle sound that comes in.
Sounds best when used with second & third octaves, though there is nothing stopping you from
experimenting with higher (and lower) notes.

Design Notes

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab


A deceptively simple patch this one, but produces a very nice warm sound to fill in those quiet
spots. Combined with a large reverb, this can produce a very spacey sound that completely wraps
the listener. I've always had a soft spot for simple sinewave-based sounds as well, and was a
great excuse to throw in a sine-related pun.

Starstruck
Adam Fielding
Keyboards and Polys

Rotary 1
Controls the LP filter cut off frequency on the main “squelchy” key sound.

Rotary 2
Controls the LP filter resonance on the main “squelchy” key sound.

Rotary 3
Controls the amplitude of the secondary “body” key sound.

Rotary 4
Controls the amplitude of the unison signal split from the main “squelchy” key sound.

Button 1
Enables/disables delay.

Button 2
Enables/disables chorus effects.

Button 3
Enables/disables master equalisation.

Button 4
Toggles between 16/4 voice mode on the unison signal split from the main “squelchy” key
sound.

Modwheel
Controls the detune width between left and right channels on the main “squelchy” key sound.

Performance Notes
With the default settings, it is recommended that this patch be played between octaves 2 and 3
due to the high default LP filter resonance on the “squelchy” synth. Higher notes can sound shrill
by default and may be unpleasant for the listener, though some minor filter tweaks may be
enough to correct this. Use the mod wheel to produce some more discordant variations if
necessary. Lower octaves can be used to produce more ominous sounding results.

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab


Design Notes
I had originally envisioned this patch being more of a “plucked” type sound, but after altering
some of the envelope settings on the main synth patch I decided that it would work best as more
of a key-type sound with an additional Thor to provide some body support. As such, what turned
out was a nice, squelchy/bouncy sounding key sound. Some panning variation was applied to the
support synth to give a bit more of a sense of movement and variation out-of-the-box so to speak,
along with some slow detuning on the main key synth.

Sullen Echo
Shaun Wallace
Keyboards and Polys

Rotary 1
Crossfades between sound sources.

Rotary 2
Increase audible effect of compression. *Maximum value will induce pumping effect.

Rotary 3
Increases sustain value for amplitude envelope.

Rotary 4
Increases release release for all envelopes.

Button 1
Turns on Scream unit's body and EQ.

Button 2
Enables/disables echo/delay.

Button 3
Softens attack for a more intimate sound.

Button 4
Enables/disables Scream unit.

Modwheel
Boosts higher frequencies.

Performance Notes

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab


Great for leads and slow moving arpeggios. Open the MW to use as a lead that will cut through
the mix. Recommended for down tempo genres. Works well as an evolving sound with rotary 4
turn to the maximum value.

Design Notes
I wanted to make a patch that was minimalist in it's tone. Something simple that would work
well in down tempo genres, hence the multi-tap delay.

Thalmine
Shaun Wallace
Keyboards and Polys

Rotary 1
Widens pan settings for 2 of the psychoacoustic delays.

Rotary 2
Widens pan settings for 2 of the psychoacoustic delays.

Rotary 3
Increases amount of audio signal being sent to psychoacoustic
delays. Will increase the ambience of the sound.

Rotary 4
Controls dry/wet and damp value of reverb. Turn to the max to create metallic and vocal
resonances.

Button 1
Increases stereo image for sound source 1.

Button 2
Increases stereo image for sound source 2.

Button 3
Mutes ambient sound source.

Button 4
Increases feedback of 2 of the psychoacoustic delays for a slight comb filtering effect.

Modwheel
Boosts filter frequency and resonance.

Performance Notes

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab


Hold down one key while playing arpeggios yields excellent results. Great for dark and moody
pads, harmonies, and arpeggios. Velocity sensitive.

Design Notes
I am a big fan of the Metroid video games and especially their music. This patch was inspired by
the dark and moody world of Metroid. I use delays built around a value of 80 ms to induce a
psychoacoustic boost in ambience to the sound.

Silent Juno
Shaun Wallace
Keyboards and Polys

Rotary 1
Changes oscillator 1 wave form.

Rotary 2
Changes oscillator 2 wave form.

Rotary 3
Changes oscillator 3 wave form.

Rotary 4
Decreases filter and envelope decay to create short ambient tones. Use in conjunction with
button 4.

Button 1
Increases oscillator 1 octave. Will have have slight affect on FM values.

Button 2
Boost filter resonance.

Button 3
Increases diffusion on reverb and enables/disbles stereo imager.

Button 4
Cuts amplitude release. Great for short ambient sounds.

Modwheel
Increases filter frequency and cuts resonance.

Performance Notes
Excellent for pads, harmonies, and slow arpeggios in down tempo and ambient genres.

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab


Design Notes
This patch was inspired by the ambient sounds from the Above & Beyond album Tri-State. The
patch is rather simple. FM is used sparingly to increase the harmonics. Changing the waveforms
of the oscillators can create some nice subtle variations in texture.

Urgent Call
Shaun Wallace
Keyboards and Polys

Rotary 1
Changes arpeggiators values for octave and synced rate. Only has a slight affect.If the
arpeggiator is attached to control the Gate and the CV this will have a have more drastic effect
on the sound.

Rotary 2
Increases unison detune amount.

Rotary 3
Crossfades between Thor and Subtractor.

Rotary 4
Decreases release values.

Button 1
Turns arpeggiator on.

Button 2
Increases unison dry/wet. Use in combination with rotary 2 for house sounds.

Button 3
Enables/disabes Scream unit.

Button 4
Adds EQ boost. Turn on if patch is used as a lead sound.

Modwheel
Adds a nice distorted buzz to the sound. Decreases filter frequency and increases amplitude
modulation.

Performance Notes
Classic keys sound. Arpeggiator provides slight modulation when the mod or pitch are moved.
Attach the arpeggiator to the gate and CV inlets to have some fun!

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab


Design Notes
The Subtractor has been great synth for creating organ and e-piano sounds. With this patch I
want to capitalize on the Subs potential. The Thor patch was designed to give the sound extra
harmonics and timbre to create a lush and interesting sound.

Leads
Alien Lead
Adam Fielding
Leads

Rotary 1
Controls the comb-filter base frequency.

Rotary 2
Controls the comb-filter base resonance.

Rotary 3
Controls the split-unison signal amplitude. Higher values produce a more rounded sound, and is
well combined with the chorus enabled.

Rotary 4
Controls the unison detune amount. This will have no effect if the unison signal amplitude is 0.

Button 1
Enables/disables delay.

Button 2
Modifies the comb filter type – off = +, on = -.

Button 3
Enables/disables chorus effect.

Button 4
Enables/disables high-boost equaliser.

Modwheel
Controls comb filter sweep rate.

Performance Notes

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab


Although the instrument is polyphonic, for the purposes of being used as a lead in the traditional
sense it is best to play one key at a time. However, with some filtering it can be used as a strange
sounding pad if needed. Works well at high octaves as well as low, so performance depends
mostly upon context.

Design Notes
Here, I tried to produce a cutting lead sound that sounded distinct and had a bit of movement,
which naturally led me to experimenting with comb filtering. By modifying the base comb filter
frequency and resonance, this gives the user control of how “alien” they want the sound to be. I
had not originally intended to leave this as a polyphonic instrument – however, during testing I
found that it worked quite nicely as a very strange sounding pad, so decided to leave it as such.
A deceptively versatile patch, although it was originally designed as a simple “sharp” lead.

Busted
Shaun Wallace
Leads

Rotary 1
Adjusts portamento time.

Rotary 2
Boosts filter resonance and wavetable position for a sharper tone. Decreases parameter one on
the Scream Unit.

Rotary 3
Increases damage and distortion of sound. Will eliminate soft resonance.

Rotary 4
Changes distortion type.

Button 1
Enables/disables portamento.

Button 2
Enables/disables Scream EQ. Boosts highs and cuts mids.

Button 3
Enables/disables EQ. Boosts mids.

Button 4
Enables/disables stereo imager. Widens higher frequencies and thins lower frequencies.

Modwheel

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab


Decreases distorted attacked transient.

Performance Notes
Timing is everything with this patch. Make full use of the portamento and legato features. Make
sure to time the changes in the melody with the movement of the wavetables to take full
advantage of the sound; and most of all just have fun with it! :)

Design Notes
This patch is smooth lead, with a distorted attack transient. I absolutely love portamento leads;
this is patch no exception to my wrath. By mapping the envelopes to the wavetable positions the
patch has a nice transition between harmonics. This makes for avery organic lead that grabs the
listener's attention.

Clazic
Shaun Wallace
Leads

Rotary 1
Decreases low end and boosts 9kHz for psychoacoustic effect. Have rotary at maximum to help
the sound cut through a mix..

Rotary 2
Controls send value to Scream unit for sound source 1.

Rotary 3
Controls send value to Scream unit for sound source 2.

Rotary 4
Decreases damage value to 0.

Button 1
Enables/disables frequency boost at 9kHz.

Button 2
Enables/disables body on Scream unit.

Button 3
Switches between tape/feedback algorithms for Sream unit.

Button 4
Only allows through the distorted signal sent to the FX bus.

Modwheel

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab


Creates funky tremolo.

Performance Notes
This is a great lead to cut through a mix. Good in high energy genres. Tweak distortion settings
depending on the feeling of the melody.

Design Notes
The patch was inspired by analog leads. A simple buzzy simple rich in tone and texture. The
tape saturation on the Scream is essential for colouring the low end. The EQ utilizes a drastic
boost around 9kHz to make the sound feel as if it is sitting on top of your head. 250Hz is also
cut to enhance this effect.

Deus Ledd
Shaun Wallace
Leads

Rotary 1
Detunes ambient backing.

Rotary 2
Crossfades between lead and ambient backing.

Rotary 3
Decreases attack. Use in combination with rotary 2 to make an ambient pad or lead.

Rotary 4
Increases dry/wet and decay of reverb.

Button 1
Enables/disables portamento.

Button 2
Enables/disables 8kHz boost. This creates an image of the sound above the listener's head.

Button 3
Switches between hall and echo reverb algorithm.

Button 4
Enables/disables reverb.

Modwheel
Boosts frequency of filters to cut through mix.

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab


Performance Notes
Great for any genre. To cut through the mix open. Mixing the sounds together will allow you to
play intimate leads or subtle pads.

Design Notes
This is one of my favorite patches. This smooth organic lead was created by experimenting with
FM in unorthodox ways. I added the background pad sound to enhance the feeling and subtly of
the patch.

Futurecarbon
Adam Fielding
Lead

Rotary 1
Controls the filter frequency of the delay filter.

Rotary 2
Controls the portamento of the lead synths.

Rotary 3
Controls the LP filter cut off frequency on the first lead synth.

Rotary 4
Controls the LP filter cut off frequency on the second lead synth.

Button 1
Enables/disables delay.

Button 2
Enables/disables phaser on the second lead synth.

Button 3
Controls the delay filter mode – off = BP filter, on = LP filter.

Button 4
Enables/disables chorus on the first lead synth.

Modwheel
Controls oscillator frequencies on the second lead synth.

Performance Notes
This lead has been designed specifically to be played between octaves 2 and 3. Higher octaves
produce a somewhat harsh, shrill sounding lead although lower octaves can produce interesting

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab


droning sounds. Due to the nature of the patch, it is not designed to play chords though by
modifying the portamento controls it can be used to play complex arpeggiated chords if required,
though is designed to be used as a big, simple lead to provide some kind of impact.

Design Notes
This patch was heavily inspired by the nice, big, epic mostly square-based leads you sometimes
hear in futurepop records, though this was based around one futurepop band in particular. The
main bulk of the lead is supplied by, no surprises, a square based lead Thor, with some crispy
high-end provided by a saw-based simple backing Thor. There are subtle panning changes to
give the patch a bit of movement, and a phaser has been introduced to fulfil a similar purpose
although – given the original idea behind the patch – a switch has been provided to control the
phaser as it's not something you tend to hear in the source material on which it was based.

Medevil Lead
Nick Hutton
Leads

Rotary 1
Changes the amount of attack.

Rotary 2
Changes the frequency level.

Rotary 3
Changes the amount of reverb.

Rotary 4
Changes the echo time.

Button 1
Mutes lead A.

Button 2
Mutes lead B.

Button 3
Turns on and off the reverb.

Button 4
Turns on the echo.

Modwheel
Fades in a shaper on one Thor, and a vibrato-like effect on the other.

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab


Design Notes
2 leads in one either a classic organ lead with lots of space ehanced echo or a reedy
thin lead.

Model C Leads
Nick Hutton
Leads

Rotary 1
switches on and off the chorus.

Rotary 2
switches on and off the delay.

Rotary 3
Changes the value of the frequency.

Rotary 4
Changes the value of the resolution.

Button 1
Turns on lead 1.

Button 2
Turns on lead 2.

Button 3
Turns on lead 3.

Button 4
Turns on polyphonic mode.

Modwheel
Raises the filter cutoff and brings in LFO > Filter modulation.

Design Notes
Three classic Moog inspired leads based on the Model C Mini Moog. Either to be used in true
monophonic form or poly with effects added for increased sonic styling.

Old School
Shaun Wallace
Leads

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab


Rotary 1
Adjusts panning of delays. Used to make stereo delay.

Rotary 2
Delay dry/wet values.

Rotary 3
Increases portamento time.

Rotary 4
Increases FM to add harmonics to the high end.

Button 1
Enables/disables stereo delay.

Button 2
Enables/disables reverb.

Button 3
Enables/disables portamento.

Button 4
Enables/disables EQ to sculpt sound.

Modwheel
Reduces frequency while slightly boosting filter drive. Creates a warm subtle texture

Performance Notes
Great for any classic lead in any genre. Hold down a key and play a melody to take advantage of
the legato features. Velocity increases filter drive.

Design Notes
I love old school square leads. They are in almost every imaginable genre. In order to give the
lead and old school feel I mapped velocity to the filter drive and EQ'ed out around 1kHz to
reduce some of the buzz Thor has in its oscillators. The purpose of this is to create a smooth
warm saturated sound.

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab


Predator on the Loose
Shaun Wallace
Leads

Rotary 1
Detunes oscillators. (unipolar)

Rotary 2
Increase detune amount of dry/wet of unison for a lush stereo spread.

Rotary 3
Increases panning and width of fattener effect.

Rotary 4
Increases release time.

Button 1
Increases chorus feedback on Thor to colour sound.

Button 2
Increases voice count on unison to 16.

Button 3
Increases feedback in delay units to induce a comb filter effect.

Button 4
Increase comb filter drive on Thor.

Modwheel
Decreases filter frequency.

Performance Notes
Great to use as a solo lead or as a polyphonic lead. Works really well with 3 note chords. Holds
low notes for resonant filter sweep.

Design Notes
This patch is inspired by RCPX's Predator. I designed this patch to have a strong attitude that
could cut through a mix. The delay fattener, unison, and filter drive values were essential in
sculpting the sound.

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab


Prophet 6
Shaun Wallace
Leads

Rotary 1
Sends audio signal to fattener.

Rotary 2
Sends audio signal to unison and spread.

Rotary 3
Increases FM from one filter to another. Adds nice harmonics to cut through mix.

Rotary 4
Increases FM amount from oscillator b to filter. Creates a very buzzy sound.

Button 1
Enables/disables oscillator sync.

Button 2
Hards pans delays, and slightly boosts detune amount on unison.

Button 3
Tunes 2nd Thor 1 octave down for sub-osc.

Button 4
Enables/disables delay.

Modwheel
Boosts filter frequency.

Performance Notes
Great for classic synth leads and electronic genres. The portamento is turned rather high by
default, adjust to taste. It is always fun to hold a low note and then play the melody two or
octaves above for a killer solo.

Design Notes
Inspired the Sequential Circuits Prophet 5. Called the patch Prophet 6 because it utilizes 6
oscillators. The modulation values and audio is routed between the two Thors to resemble that of
the Prophet 5.

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab


Razor
Adam Fielding
Leads

Rotary 1
Controls the shaper drive on the main lead synth.

Rotary 2
Controls the portamento on all synths.

Rotary 3
Controls the amplitude envelope release time on all synths.

Rotary 4
Controls the delay filter frequency.

Button 1
Enables/disables chorus.

Button 2
Enables/disables delay..

Button 3
Toggles between monophonic and polyphonic key modes.

Button 4
Controls the delay filter mode – off = BP filter, on = LP filter.

Modwheel
Controls oscillator detune on both synths – combined with the shaper, this can produce
interesting distorted results.

Performance Notes
By default, this patch is set as a monophonic synth, so simple one-key lead melodies are the way
to go with the default settings. However, with a bit of tweaking (reducing the shaper drive,
toggling the key mode, adjusting the portamento) it can be used for other purposes as well.
Sounds good when played back at most octaves, so this is more of a case of picking an octave to
suit – lower octaves can produce simple droning sounds, higher octaves produce more “soaring”
lead type sounds which, when combined with higher portamento settings, can be used to create
simple sliding lead sections.

Design Notes

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab


I often like to use nice, big distorted lead sounds/monosynths in more synthpop-type tracks as a
solo during a bridge section or during a chorus, so this patch is really an attempt to create
something distorted that would work well in a solo – hence the focus on overdriven synths and
the included portamento control. However, I didn't want to restrict users to just using it as I
originally intended so I included a couple of options to broaden the scope a bit so, with a bit of
tweaking, you can use this patch (originally designed as a lead) as a nice, simple pad or as a
basic key-type patch.

Silk n Smooth
Shaun Wallace
Leads

Rotary 1
Slightly decreases damage control.

Rotary 2
Crossfades between short and sustained sounds.

Rotary 3
Changes instrument 1 into a plucked sound.

Rotary 4
Changes instrument 2 into a plucked sound with a buzzy resonance.

Button 1
Enables/disables body on Scream unit.

Button 2
Adds high pitched sin wave to filters to increase harmonics.

Button 3
Enables/disables 1kHz cut for ambient genres.

Button 4
Enables/disables stereo image boost.

Modwheel
Small filter reso sweep.

Performance Notes
Works well with short notes. Induces slight buzzing in high notes due to FM and overdrive.
Notes in the lower octaves have a different character to them.

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab


Design Notes
I wanted to create a soft lead for ambient music. The distortion is used to allow the sound to cut
the ambient background sounds of down tempo genres.

Tearing Lead
Adam Fielding
Leads

Rotary 1
Controls the base filter frequency on all comb filters.

Rotary 2
Controls the portamento amount on all synths.

Rotary 3
Controls the shaper drive amount on all synths. Higher values produce a harsher, more distorted
sound.

Rotary 4
Controls the detune spread on left and right channels.

Button 1
Enables/disables delay.

Button 2
Toggles between positive and negative preset comb filter modes. Off = positive, on = negative.

Button 3
Enables/disables chorus effects.

Button 4
Toggles between monophonic and polyphonic key modes. Off = monophonic, on = polyphonic.

Modwheel
Controls comb filter resonance on all synths.

Performance Notes
By default, this patch is set to a monophonic keymode, so if you plan on playing more than one
note at a time then it is recommended that you change this using button 4. Also, it may be worth
altering the portamento settings using the slide knob – this may produce unwanted/unexpected
results with chords. The mod wheel is used to increase comb filter resonance, and produces an
almost springy timbre at high settings. This may be good for adding some variation or
movement. The patch was designed with low-to-mid octaves in mind, so anything from octave 1

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab


to 4 should sound fine. Anything above this may sound harsh, but modifying the base comb filter
frequency and drive settings may go some way to alleviating this.

Design Notes
This is the lead patch I had originally intended to create when I created the Quasar patch, which
is based on the same Thor framework but with a significantly different feature set, as can be
heard simply by listening to the two patches. This is a much grittier patch, well suited for cutting
through a mix. I love the sound produced by extreme comb filtering, so including a resonance
control as the mod wheel function seemed like a logical choice as, while it does sound cool, it's
not really something most people would want to use (or listen to) all the time.

The Trance Arp


Adam Fielding
Leads

Rotary 1
Controls the saw tooth amplitude decay.

Rotary 2
Controls the HP filter frequency.

Rotary 3
Controls the HP filter resonance.

Rotary 4
Controls the filter-sweep speed – higher values result in a quicker sweep.

Button 1
Modifies the arp octave mode. On = 2 octaves, off = 1 octave.

Button 2
Modifies the arp playback mode. Off = low to high, on = low to high to low.

Button 3
When turned on, modifies the gate release on the arp to produce a more drawn out sound per-
note.

Button 4
Enables/disables delay.

Modwheel
Controls arp rate.

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab


Performance Notes
Simple chords work best here – use the filter knobs for a smooth fade in, and make use of the arp
rate control when coming up to the end of a song section to add a bit of variation. Best to stick to
the first four octaves as anything higher can produce a very harsh sound that might not go down
too well with the listener.

Design Notes
The traditional trance arp – saws at dawn. Personally, I'm not a huge fan of traditional anthemic
trance, but I'd be lying if I said I hated arpeggiated sawtooths. Use with caution and remember
that just because the device has an RPG-8 present doesn’t mean that you have to use it all the
time – add a bit of variation when sequencing and stir things up. And nobody said it had to be
used for high-tempo dance tracks, either. Sometimes a little cheese goes a long way.

Uillean
Shaun Wallace
Leads

Rotary 1
Increases portamento time.

Rotary 2
Increases damage control to dirty up sound.

Rotary 3
Increases reverb settings for a more natural distant ambience.

Rotary 4
Increases harmonics.

Button 1
Turn on for authentic bagpipe performance.

Button 2
Switches between two different Scream units.

Button 3
Enables/disables stereo image boost.

Button 4
Enables/disables high and low end boost.

Modwheel
Filter frequency and resonance shift. Very slight, use to simulate randomness

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab


of live performance.

Performance Notes
C4-C6 for realistic tones. Hold notes C2-C4 while performing lead for realistic drones. Use
MW to simulate realistic performance abnormalities.

Design Notes
This patch was created through pure experimentation. Upon further inspection the key to the
sound is the oscillator sync. It creates the buzzy tone needed to have some semblance to
bagpipes. The comb filter also provides slight colouring to the sound as well. The unorthodox
envelopes are also key to simulating the correct timing shifts in timbre.

Ultimate
Shaun Wallace
Leads

Rotary 1
Increase FM amount to Thor's filter 3.

Rotary 2
Detunes oscillators. (unipolar)

Rotary 3
Increases stereo image through boost in dry/wet for unison. Increases spread value for Malstrom.

Rotary 4
Adjusts portamento time.

Button 1
Enables/disables delay and reverb FX.

Button 2
Enables/disables extra LP and BP filters in serial.

Button 3
Decreases detune amount for unison. Use in conjunction with rotary 3.

Button 4
Enables/disables portamento.

Modwheel
Decreases low end frequencies and volume.

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab


Performance Notes
Great for high energy genres. Great for leads and arpeggios in all ranges, but particularly shines
in the higher regions.

Design Notes
There ain't nothing like a super saw in the morning. Well it can get old after awhile simulating
so many different types of super saws. I chose to use various saw waves from Reason's synths
and then apply FM to them to create a very dirty tone.

Zeta
Shaun Wallace
Leads

Rotary 1
Adjusts portamento time.

Rotary 2
Changes oscillator wave form for part 1.

Rotary 3
Changes oscillator wave form for part 2. (Sub oscillator)

Rotary 4
Increases sub oscillator volume.

Button 1
Enables/disables portamento.

Button 2
Detunes part 1 oscillators.

Button 3
Detunes part 2 oscillators. (sub oscillator)

Button 4
Increases filter FM value. Has a nice buzzy tone.

Modwheel
Adds high end hiss through boosting resonant frequencies in the fiilters.

Performance Notes
A detuned searing lead. Excellent for droning sounds in lower octaves. Great for use in any high
energy genre.

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab


Design Notes
The patch was inspired by the classic sound of Cakewalk/RGC Audio's z3ta+. Z3ta+ often uses 6
oscillators and has a killer 6 voice chorus unit. This sound was modeled to have 6 detuned
oscillators and thick chorused sound. The second Thor acts as a sub oscillator to create a thick
lead sound.

Pads
Airwave
Shaun Wallace
Pads

Rotary 1
Detunes oscillator 1 and changes detune type on part 1.

Rotary 2
Sends parts 1 and 2 to stereo fattener.

Rotary 3
Increases spread on stereo imager for part 1.

Rotary 4
Increases spread on stereo imager for part 2.

Button 1
Send part 1 to reverb.

Button 2
Send part 2 to reverb.

Button 3
Resonant filter boost for part 1.

Button 4
Resonant filter boost for part 2.

Modwheel
Boosts filter frequency.

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab


Performance Notes
Trance and down tempo pads. Automate MW for dramatic build ups.

Design Notes
The patch was inspired by Rank 1 - Airwave. I love the slowly rising detuned pad sound. This is
not meant to copy the sound but to create a similar moving texture. Utilizes multiple Thor units
for custom detuning methods.

Angelus
Adam Fielding
Pads

Rotary 1
Controls the main filter frequency.

Rotary 2
Controls the main filter resonance.

Rotary 3
Modifies the mix between the two main generators – higher settings put more emphasis on the
formant-shaped pad, lower settings put more emphasis on the more-rounded pad.

Rotary 4
Controls the base formant-shaped pad “gender” parameter.

Button 1
Enables/disables delay.

Button 2
Enables an extra oscillator to automatically play fifth-chords.

Button 3
Switches between a high-pass and low-pass main filter. On = HP, off = LP.

Button 4
Increases overall amplitude when turned on.

Modwheel
Controls tremolo amount on the secondary rounded-pad.

Performance Notes
Long, sustained notes and simple chords are your best bet here – given the slow attack and long
release, this is well used to give a track some extra body. It is not well suited to rapid melodies

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab


but works equally well at higher octaves as it does at lower octaves. It does, however, work well
with single-note simple melodies if required and can produce a very pleasing sound this way.

Design Notes
My original thinking behind this pad was to produce a semi-vocal pad. By using sweeping
formant filters I wanted to produce a pleasing, gentle atmosphere that would work well as an
introductory sound or to give a track a gentle atmosphere. Without wanting to place to much
emphasis on the formant-shaped pad, I gave the user the ability to control the mix between the
two sound generators quickly and easily. Automating this knob can produce an evolving sound
along with the gentle sweeping filters.

Autumn Strings
Jeremy Janzen and Shaun Wallace
Pads

Rotary 1
Crossfades between the two sets of Malstrom devices.

Rotary 2
Morphs Shift values on the first Malstrom set.

Rotary 3
Raises the volume of the ‘hi’ Malstrom device in set two.

Rotary 4
Changes Reverb depth.

Button 1
Engages a Comb Filter on the entire mix. Its a subtle comb though, just adds a bit of sheen to the
sound.

Button 2
Turns mix Unison on/off.

Button 3
Turns on LFO-driven amp modulation that sounds like bowing.

Button 4
Runs the mix through a BV512 in EQ mode.

Modwheel
Fades in a 1/4 note Reverse Delay.

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab


Performance Notes
Velocity is very important to playing this patch. Attack is mapped to velocity, so hard hits will
have faster attack. Also, we don’t normally discuss this modifier, but don’t forget to try
Aftertouch on this patch too.

Design Notes
I began this as an attempt at a really expansive string patch using Malstrom. I used multiple
Malstrom devices with different index and shift values to create a massive sound. Unbeknownst
to me, Shaun was also working on a similar patch he called Million Strings. Shaun’s patch was
similar, but much darker in tone due to different filtering.

In the end, what I did was combine the patches. I used most of my own modulation ideas, and
Shaun’s FX and Filtering. As for how we set up our Malstrom’s, Rotary 1 crossfades between
my setup and Shaun’s. All in all its a very balanced patch capable of many different beautiful
string timbres.

Coastal Shifter
Adam Fielding
Leads

Rotary 1
Controls the dry signal amplitude.

Rotary 2
Controls the filtered delay signal amplitude.

Rotary 3
Controls the master LFO rate, which is responsible for automatic filter sweeps and panning
variations.

Rotary 4
Controls the sawtooth-pad level – higher settings produce a richer sound, lower settings produce
a more rounded sound.

Button 1
Modifies the delay filter mode – on = LP, off = BP.

Button 2
Enables/disables the stereo imager to produce a wider sound.

Button 3
Syncs the master LFO to the current tempo when enabled.

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab


Button 4
Enables/disables master equaliser to produce a more rounded sound.

Modwheel
Controls delay filter frequency.

Performance Notes
A lush pad here that is designed to be played with long sustained notes – if played any other way,
the pad does not fully evolve and you might as well be using a different patch unless, of course,
the initial saw/wave combination works. Low-to-mid octaves work best, and the patch works
equally well in higher-tempo and downtempo tracks.

Design Notes
The main focus of this patch is the slowly shifting and semi-evolving sound played on sustained
notes. By using two Thor devices and automating the amplitude of the two, while also having a
basic saw slowly fade in and out I wanted to create a sound that would produce a dreamy
atmosphere when sustained. Additional filter and delay controls were included to mess around
with the aesthetic, and to allow for further user-based variation.

Communicate
Adam Fielding
Pads

Rotary 1
Controls the LP filter cutoff frequency on the digital distortion channel.

Rotary 2
Controls the base comb filter frequency on the main pad.

Rotary 3
Controls the base comb filter resonance on the main pad.

Rotary 4
Controls the filter envelope attack time on the main pad.

Button 1
Enables/disables reverb.

Button 2
Enables/disables compression on the main pad.

Button 3
Enables/disables shaper drive effect on the main pad.

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab


Button 4
Enables/disables chorus on the main pad.

Modwheel
Controls LP filter cutoff frequency on the main pad.

Performance Notes
This pad works well when played at both high and low octaves, producing a different
characteristic with both though was designed to be played primarily between octaves 2 and 3. By
modifying the filter attack time, the pad can be used to play simple melodies especially with the
reverb unit disabled. Modifying the comb filter frequency & resonance can have a drastic effect
on the output, so it's worth experimenting with this if you have a slightly different sound in mind.
Simple sustained notes work best with the default parameters

Design Notes
This patch was based around a relatively simple idea of producing a very slightly metallic-
sounding pad with a great sense of space and scale. To this end, both comb filters and digital
distortion were applied to both instruments to produce a slightly metallic sound, while by default
employing a large reverb with a large low-frequency cut-off to produce a great sense of scale.
The actual theme came from the idea of a forgotten satellite slowly drifting in space, with a slight
sort of 80s sci-fi feel to it.

Crystal Gardens
Adam Fielding
Pads

Rotary 1
Controls LP filter cut-off frequency on all synths.

Rotary 2
Controls LP filter resonance on all synths.

Rotary 3
Controls the detune amount on two of the four synths to produce simple chords – values range
from 0 to 12 semitones.

Rotary 4
Controls the base pan levels on the main mixer – higher values result in more extreme sounding
pan sweeps.

Button 1
Enables/disables delay.

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab


Button 2
Enables/disables chorus effects.

Button 3
Enables/disables master EQ, which is used to cut low-end and boost high-end content.

Button 4
Modifies the delay filter mode – on = LP, off = BP.

Modwheel
Controls vibrato amount.

Performance Notes
This patch only really works with sustained note as it has been specifically designed for this
purpose. Simple melodies can be played to produce a pleasant lead-in effect, but it works best
with simple chords between octaves 3 and 4. Lower octaves can sound a bit muddy, and higher
octaves can sound shrill and unpleasant without additional filtering.

Design Notes
This patch is a very basic attempt at creating a semi-shifting sound, seen in a smaller scale in
other pad patches contained here. By making exclusive use of the wavetable oscillators,
automating the positions using simple LFOs which, in turn, are used to control the amplitude of
the various channels in the mixer (both amplitude and panning), this creates a very pleasant,
shifting glass-type sound that seems to encapsulate the listener. The same patch is duplicated
across 4 Thors, which can be easily modified by the user should they wish to try using different
wavetables.

CS 80 Pad 101
Nick Hutton
Pads

Rotary 1
Changes the value of the frequency.

Rotary 2
Changes the chorus rate value.

Rotary 3
alternate between a bass or treble focus.

Rotary 4
enhance the true analog experience with an analog drift rotary.

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab


Button 1
turn on/off the delay.

Button 2
turn on/off the chorus.

Button 3
turn on/off the unison effect.

Button 4
turn on/off a phaser effect.

Modwheel
Increases the LFO1 > Filter rate.

Design Notes
This patch emulates as closely as possible the special routing of Yamaha’s classic CS 80 synth.
With 2 oscillators routed to 2 separate filters and an analog drift mode helps one to recreate those
special analog pad sounds that this classic synth is famous for.

Dawn of Time
Adam Fielding
Pads

Rotary 1
Controls the panning on the “body” pad – higher values spread the channels out to produce a
wider sound.

Rotary 2
Controls the amplitude of the main rich/sparkly pad.

Rotary 3
Controls the amplitude of the accompanying “body” pad.

Rotary 4
Controls the master LP filter cut-off frequency.

Button 1
Enables/disables reverb on the main rich pad.

Button 2
Enables/disables EQ cuts on the rich pad to reduce harshness & muddiness.

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab


Button 3
Enables/disables chorus on the “body” pad.

Button 4
Enables/disables delay on both pads.

Modwheel
Controls reverb decay – higher mod wheel values reduce the decay, allowing the user to pull
back the decay as needed.

Performance Notes
Given the huge nature of this pad, in its default state it serves well when there isn't much else
going on – so, this makes it ideal for introductions and breakdowns. If you want to use it for any
other purpose, it is recommended that you disable the reverb if necessary and consider dialling
back the master LP filter cutoff frequency. This produces a more rounded sound that will help it
sit better in a track setting. As this is a pad, sustained notes are recommended. High octaves can
sound shrill and a little discomforting, so mid-high octaves are recommended here.

Design Notes
A lot of the pad patches included alternate between warm pads that are easily tweaked and
smooth, evolving pads. This is a simple “epic” pad, designed with the soul purpose of taking the
listener away. However, that's not always handy and so I included full control over reverb and
LP filter parameters from the get-go, so the pad can be shaped into something a bit more usable
if this isn't what you have in mind. But, with all the parameters set to their default values, it
certainly matches what I had in mind and suits the name.

Electric Sky
Adam Fielding
Pads

Rotary 1
Controls LP filter cut-off frequency on the “saw” pad sound (Pad 1).

Rotary 2
Controls LP filter resonance on the “saw” pad sound (Pad 1).

Rotary 3
Controls the amplitude of the first “saw” pad. (Pad 1)

Rotary 4
Controls the amplitude of the second “atmosphere” pad. (Pad 2)

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab


Button 1
Enables/disables reverb.

Button 2
Enables/disables delay on the “atmosphere” pad. (Pad 2)

Button 3
Toggles between no oscillator detune and a 7-semitone detune on the 3rd oscillator of both pads.

Button 4
Enables/disables reverb EQ.

Modwheel
Controls oscillator frequency on the “saw” pad sound (Pad 1) and notch filter frequency on the
“atmosphere” pad (Pad 2).

Performance Notes
This patch is very much designed for long, sweeping atmospheric sections and, with the nice
evolving atmospheric pad that comes in, it is best suited for this purpose. Mid to mid-high
octaves are recommended for best sounding results, and the mod wheel can be used to introduce
some very interesting (and, when used carefully, curiously nice sounding) screaming-sounds as
well as creating a phaser-type effect once the atmospheric pad has taken over the output. Simple
sustained notes are recommended and can be used with the “VII” button to create some
interesting passing chords.

Design Notes
I really wanted to create quite a melancholic sounding patch here that would take the listener on
an interesting journey. Starting off with a basic sawtooth-based pad as a building block and
modifying the filter envelope to produce a simple sweeping effect, I then added an atmospheric
element and played with the shaper drive to produce an almost electrical effect when the pad
comes right in (hence the name of the patch). When combined, the two pads created such a rich
sound that I decided to leave it at that and not add any effects other than a simple reverb so as not
to ruin the “pure” sound. The mod wheel effects were added to allow for more of an atmospheric
effect than a musical effect, and in a full track it probably wouldn't work particularly well. As an
introductory pad or leading onto bigger things though, I am extremely pleased with how it turned
out.

Emota
Adam Fielding
Pads

Rotary 1
Controls the LP filter resonance on the main pad.

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab


Rotary 2
Controls the notch filter frequency on the sweeping pad sound.

Rotary 3
Controls the LP filter frequency on the formant-shaped sound.

Rotary 4
Controls the delay decay rate.

Button 1
Enables/disables delay.

Button 2
Enables/disables master equalisation.

Button 3
Enables/disables chorus effects on the sweeping & formant-shaped sounds.

Button 4
Enables/disables phaser effect on the sweeping pad sound.

Modwheel
Controls filter sweep rates and phaser sweep rate.

Performance Notes
This pad works well with a wide range of note values, with lower octaves producing a more
rounded sound and higher notes producing a more pronounced, clean-cut sound. Due to the
attack time, it is recommended that this patch be used with long, sustained notes which make it
well suited as a support patch for an existing melodies. As such, complex melodies and runs are
not recommended. Disabling the equalisation produces a far more “boomy” patch which may not
sit easily in a normal mixing scenario.

Design Notes
With this patch I wanted to create a sort of simple, yet somewhat emotional pad-type sound that
would work well as part of an existing atmospheric track or on its own as a more reflective pad
for visual media. With this broad idea in mind I set about combining three different elements –
the first was the main body of the patch, with the “secondary” elements provided with a nice
formant-based Thor patch and a rich, sweeping synth sound to complement the two. The main
pad produces an sustained, semi-bell-like sound whose simple tones give the other two support
synths space to breath.

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab


Euphoric Pad
Adam Fielding
Leads

Rotary 1
Controls the amplitude of the sweeping-filtered pad sound.

Rotary 2
Controls the amplitude of the sawtooth-based pad sound.

Rotary 3
Controls the base filter frequency for the sweeping-filtered pad sound.

Rotary 4
Controls the filter resonance for the sweeping-filtered pad sound.

Button 1
Enables/disables delay.

Button 2
Enables/disables low-cut equaliser to remove low-end.

Button 3
Enables/disables phaser on the sawtooth-based pad sound.

Button 4
Selects the filter mode for the sweeping-filtered pad sound:- on = LP, off = BP.

Modwheel
Detunes the generator oscillators to produce a slightly discordant sound.

Performance Notes
This pad produces some very “sweet” tones when played at higher octaves, and can also be used
to produce some ominous drones at lower octaves. Select your octave based on context, and the
short attack time on this pad also means it can be used as more of a melodic instrument as well,
though you may need to disable the delay if this is your intention. Perfect for providing extra
atmosphere or simply acting as a background sound while using the “low cut” button to prevent
it from muddying your mix.

Design Notes
The idea behind this patch was simply to create a dreamy, spacious patch that listeners could
easily get lost in. By using phasers and sweeping filter frequencies to create variation, and
allowing the user to add some slight discord using the mod wheel, this seemingly straight-

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab


forward patch can be tweaked to provide either a nice, welcoming sound or something a bit more
ominous. But, as the name suggests, it really was designed for the former... which is why I
encourage you to try experimenting for yourself.

Good Morning Beautiful


Adam Fielding
Pads

Rotary 1
Controls the base filter frequency on the “sweeping” sound.

Rotary 2
Controls the filter sweep rate and wavetable shift rate of the “sweeping” sound.

Rotary 3
Controls the base filter resonance on the “sweeping” sound.

Rotary 4
Controls reverb decay.

Button 1
Enables/disables reverb.

Button 2
Enables/disables chorus.

Button 3
Enables/disables EQ on the individual synth elements.

Button 4
Enables/disables stereo imager to produce a wider sound.

Modwheel
Controls vibrato on the “sweeping” sound.

Performance Notes
This patch was designed with playback between octaves 2 and 4 in mind, with lower octaves
producing a much more bass-heavy sound. For this reason, it is recommended that chords are
played at higher octaves while lower octaves are reserved for bass support if required. The sweep
rates are also synced to the song's tempo, so it might be worth adjusting the morph rate if you are
planning on using the patch at slower speeds, though this really depends on what you're planning
on using it for.

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab


Design Notes
This patch is another one of those “image”-based ideas that came to me while thinking about
overlooking a vast, countryside landscape in early morning haze. So, very much a dreamy
concept which translated into slowly shifting wavetable oscillators and slow (yet obvious) filter
sweeps as the keys are held down. To support this is a rich pad that comes and goes over the
course of a few seconds as the main shifting synth continues to do its thing. I decided to leave the
chorus off by default to give it a nice, clean sound. I decided to provide controls mainly focussed
on the sweeping pad as this is really the main focus of the patch itself – the second pad is
important, but what you're most likely to pick up on is the main sweeping pad as the second pad
comes and goes relatively quickly.

Guardia
Adam Fielding
Pads

Rotary 1
Controls the LP filter attack on the atmospheric sound.

Rotary 2
Controls the notch filter frequency on the atmospheric sound.

Rotary 3
Controls the formant Y value on the formant-shaped secondary pad sound.

Rotary 4
Controls the reverb decay time. This requires the reverb to be enabled to have any effect.

Button 1
Enables/disables reverb.

Button 2
Enables/disables chorus effects.

Button 3
Enables/disables delay effects.

Button 4
Enables/disables EQ devices.

Modwheel
Controls base LP filter frequency on the formant-shaped secondary pad sound.

Performance Notes

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab


Due to the droning/low-heavy nature of the atmospheric patch sound, it is recommended that this
patch is used with simple chords between octaves 2 and 5. Octaves 4-5 in particular produce a
more pleasant, almost bell-like sound while lower octaves produce a broader, slow-building
sound with the default settings. This patch would suit a track introduction well with both
monophonic and polyphonic usage, but may require some additional filtering/equalisation to slot
into a pre-existing track section.

Design Notes
With this patch, my main goal was to produce something big and breathy with some sort of
evolving aspect. The long filter sweeps and shifting formant-based pad are one aspect of this,
along with the huge spacey reverb and densely layered atmospheric pad. While it was designed
with more atmospheric-use in mind (ie as part of a breakdown or introductory passage), as
mentioned above with a little tweaking it can work just as well as a dense pad.

Infection
Shaun Wallace
Pads

Rotary 1
Sends audio signals to fattener.

Rotary 2
Increases FM value sent to filters.

Rotary 3
Increases value for sub-oscillator

Rotary 4
Detunes oscillators for parts 2 and 3.

Button 1
Detunes oscillators for part 1.

Button 2
Increases pulse width of square waves.

Button 3
Swiches sub oscillator wave for saw to square.

Button 4
Increases detune amount on unison.

Modwheel

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab


Slight boost in frequencies.

Performance Notes
Excellent when layered with other sounds. Has a strong character yet sits in mix nicely.

Design Notes
Inspired by that machine, the Access Virus. The EQ is used to sculpt the sound to resemble the
dark yet moody tones of the Virus. The Virus uses 9 oscillators for it's unison. These 3 different
Thor units are set up to simulate this set up.

Liquid Nebula
Adam Fielding
Pads

Rotary 1
Controls the amplitude of the low, droning signal.

Rotary 2
Controls the master filter frequency.

Rotary 3
Controls the master filter resonance.

Rotary 4
Controls the amount of detune on the main sawtooth-based sound. Higher values give a more
“watery” sound.

Button 1
Enables/disables reverb.

Button 2
Toggles between HP/LP master filter. On=HP, off=LP.

Button 3
Enables/disables master chorus effect.

Button 4
Enables/disables unison on “brassy” sound.

Modwheel
Controls vibrato – more noticeable with reverb disable.

Performance Notes

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab


This patch has been designed with sustained notes played between octaves 3 and 4 in mind, due
to the additional low bass-sound and the range of notes produced by a single note. Lower notes
can produce a muddied sound, and higher notes can produce a harsh, hissing sound. However,
with the use of the master filter this can be used to compensate should you wish to experiment
with higher octaves. Use the saws detune knob to add a bit of variation if necessary, and scale
back the bassy drone if it does not sit well in the necessary context.

Design Notes
With this patch I intended to create a very big sounding, thick atmospheric pad that would sound
suitably impressive from the get-go. There are 3 main components – the slightly wavering saw
based pad that forms the bulk of the high end, the brassy/watery pad that forms the bulk of the
mids and a deep, droning bass patch that forms the lows. These are spread across a range of
octaves to produce a nice big sound, while LFOs are used to modulate the detune amount of a
unison device connected to the brassy pad to give it more of a “liquid” characteristic, which in
turn is the main reason behind the naming of the patch.

Not Alone
Adam Fielding
Pads

Rotary 1
Controls the amplitude of the split-unison signal on the second formant pad.

Rotary 2
Controls the LP/HP mix parameter on the primary “hissing” pad – lower values produce a
“duller” sound.

Rotary 3
Controls the amplitude of the introductory formant pad-type sound.

Rotary 4
Controls the filter frequency of the main delay sends.

Button 1
Enables/disables delay.

Button 2
Enables/disables the phaser on the main “hissing” pad.

Button 3
Enables/disables the stereo imager device on the main mixer output to produce a wider sound.

Button 4

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab


Selects the filter mode for the filtered delay:- on = LP, off = BP.

Modwheel
Controls filter frequency and formant filter parameters on the contained synths – increased mod
wheel values produce a more “breathy” sound.

Performance Notes
This pad works particularly well with chords played in the second octave while simple melodies
are played at higher octaves. If played this way, melodies should be kept as simple single-note
affairs – anything more complex may sound confused. Lower-pitched chords can sound slightly
strange, though produce a more ominous sound. Higher octaves produce a simpler, almost
glassy-type sound that sounds thinner than when played at lower octaves.

Design Notes
A lot of my pad and FX patches are based around scenes or locations, and this is no different –
the main “theme” behind this one was the idea of overlooking a cityscape at night, alone. I
wanted to create something that would wrap the listener up while adding a sort of semi-human
element, so formant filters featured quite heavily in the “backing”. The initial hiss kind of gives
it a slightly epic quality, and also means that the patch would work particularly well with a LP
filter slowly teasing this extra sparkle into the track. This track once again makes use of LFO
controlled formant-filter parameters and phasers to produce a slowly shifting sound, while
allowing the pads to sweep around each other.

Quasar
Adam Fielding
Pads

Rotary 1
Controls the LP filter cut off frequency on all synths.

Rotary 2
Controls the comb filter resonance on the sweeping synth sound.

Rotary 3
Controls the delay decay time. This requires the delay to be active to have any effect.

Rotary 4
Controls the shaper drive on the sweeping synth sound.

Button 1
Enables/disables delay.

Button 2

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab


Enables/disables chorus.

Button 3
Enables/disables phaser effect on the delay signal. This requires the delay to be active to have
any effect.

Button 4
Enables/disables master equalisation.

Modwheel
Controls oscillator frequency on the sweeping synth sound.

Performance Notes
Long, sweeping chords are what this patch is best suited for. This gives time for the comb filter
envelope to play through, to produce a full sweeping sound. Lower octaves (mainly between 2
and 3) produce a nice, rounded sound while higher octaves (between 4 and 5) produce a brighter
sound. Lower octaves can produce some interesting droning effects which might be useful for
semi-lead purposes. Experimenting with the mod-wheel can produce some interesting effects,
especially with sustained notes and slowly decreasing mod-wheel values.

Design Notes
The number one word I would use to describe this patch would be “sweeping”. I had originally
intended to create a lead patch using the “comber” Thor patch as a basis for this, but instead
ended up changing the amp envelope settings and playing chords rather than simple lead-
sections. So, it turned into more of a pad sound. The additional synth was added to round the
overall dry sound off nicely, and to further the sweeping theme I decided to add a phaser to the
delay signal (although this can be disabled if required). I decided to have the delay signal and
secondary-pad signal pan based on a simple sinewave LFO, adding a bit of extra movement to
the sweeping nature of the sound.

Space & Time


Shaun Wallace
Pads

Rotary 1
Crossfades between Malstrom dry and Malstrom Thor signals.

Rotary 2
Sends Thor audio signal to stereo imager on bus for a nice wide boost.

Rotary 3
Sends Malstrom dry signal to stereo imager for a nice wide boost.

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab


Rotary 4
Increases various reverb settings to drastically increase the ambience of the sound. Useful when
patch is used in trance or ambient genres.

Button 1
Increases dampness of reverb.

Button 2
Switches between LP 12db/24db filter types on Thor.

Button 3
Switches between LP and BP filters on Malstrom. Also boosts frequency setting of Malstrom's
filters.

Button 4
Decrease decay of reverb.

Modwheel
Boosts filter frequencies.

Performance Notes
Excellent for pads in almost any genre. Best suited for trance. Can act as a soft lead in the higher
octaves. Adjust reverb settings base on genre usage.

Design Notes
Custom trance pad sound utilizing the incredible duo of Thor and Malstrom. This patch utilizes
Thor's chorus unit and careful osc detuning to create a surreal trance pad.

Valkyrie
Adam Fielding
Pads

Rotary 1
Controls the amplitude of both pad mixer channels – lower settings = louder pad 1, quieter pad 2.
Higher settings = louder pad 2, quieter pad 1.

Rotary 2
Controls the shaper drive on pad 1 to produce a distorted sound.

Rotary 3
Controls the master filter frequency.

Rotary 4

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab


Controls the master filter resonance.

Button 1
Enables/disables delay.

Button 2
Enables/disables chorus.

Button 3
Enables/disables reverb.

Button 4
Toggles between LP/HP mode on the master filter. On = HP, off = LP.

Modwheel
Controls filter frequency on pad 1 and formant filter gender on pad 2.

Performance Notes
Single notes at lower octaves can produce suitably big sounding drones, though for chords this
pad works best between octaves 2 and 4 with room for extra melodic flourishes on single notes at
higher octaves if required. To help the pad sit in a mix, it might be worth disabling one (or both)
of the delay/reverb effects as well as modifying the base filter parameters.

Design Notes
I quite liked the “harsh” sound sometimes produced when using the “wrap” shaper mode in Thor,
so decided to use this to create an almost horn-type sound with one of the pads without it
sounding too harsh. My intent was to create a sombre, yet quite epic sounding pad so added the
backing formant-based pad to help pad things out (no pun intended) and give the combinator a
bit of body. Shaper controls, along with master filter controls were provided to allow the user to
either emphasise the unique shaper sound or to use it as more of a subtle effect.

Vangelis
Shaun Wallace
Pads

Rotary 1
Increases amount of signal sent to stereo delay for the regular oscillator.

Rotary 2
Increases amount of signal sent to stereo delay for the sub oscillator.

Rotary 3
Increases volume of regular oscillator.

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab


Rotary 4
Increases volume of sub oscillator.

Button 1
Enables/disables master reverb.

Button 2
Increases filter 1 and 3 FM in different combinations Adds nice amounts of high end and
harmonics.

Button 3
Increases filter 1 and 3 FM in different combinations. Adds subtle harmonics.

Button 4
Enables/disables chorus unit on bus.

Modwheel
Decreases filter frequency.

Performance Notes
Excellent for use in ambient and trance genres. Adjust the mix for the oscillators on rotaries 3
and 4 to get the proper sound. Great for soft leads and pads. Adjust vibrato in Thor's mod matrix
if sound is too detuned for the song the patch is in. (LFO 1 controls vibrato)

Design Notes
Inspired by the man himself. An ambient pad sound with proper vibrato. Anyone who touches a
synthesizer owes it to themselves to listen to his music.

Where Are You


Adam Fielding
Pads

Rotary 1
Controls LP filter cut-off frequency on the secondary synth.

Rotary 2
Controls LP filter cut-off frequency on the “choral” synth.

Rotary 3
Controls the amplitude of the secondary synth unison signal.

Rotary 4

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab


Controls the reverb decay time.

Button 1
Enables/disables reverb.

Button 2
Enables/disables chorus effects.

Button 3
Toggles between no oscillator detune and a 5-semitone detune on the 3rd oscillator of both pads.

Button 4
Enables/disables reverb EQ.

Modwheel
Controls oscillator frequency on the “choral” pad sound.

Performance Notes
This patch sounds best with chords played between octaves 2-4, with additional higher notes
played around octaves 3-5 depending on the sound you're after. The mod wheel can be used to
create some interesting mournful sounds that gently glide the pad into position. Low notes can be
used to produce an ominous, droning sound if required while higher notes produce a more
“angelic” sound. Use of the mod-wheel is recommended for use with notes in octaves 3-4 in
particular, as the effect is harder to distinguish at higher octaves.

Design Notes
With this patch I wanted to create an almost angelic, choral patch. To this end, I used two Thor
synths – one to produce the choral “ahhs” based heavily on noise oscillators, and the other to
produce a nice synth cushion for the “vocal” pad. This second pad was based on a pad patch, and
modified to make use of triangle analog oscillators rather than sawtooth oscillators to give a
smoother, more rounded sound. The two complemented each other nicely, and a unison was
added to the secondary pad to provide an extra bit of warmth without using the chorus effects on
the two Thor devices (though the user can enable this effect if they wish).

Yellatine Pad
Nick Hutton
Pads

Rotary 1
Changes the volume of pad 1.

Rotary 2
Changes the volume of pad 2.

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab


Rotary 3
Changes the phaser’s width.

Rotary 4
Changes the level of feedback on the chorus unit.

Button 1
Turns on the loudness.

Button 2
Turns on the hi gain.

Button 3
Turns on the phaser.

Button 4
Turns on the chorus.

Modwheel
Activates a shaper on one element and increases LFO > Filter modulation on the other element.

Design Notes
Massive pads blended together to form developing textures.

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab


Credits and Legalese

Jeremy Janzen: Planning, Concept, Patches, Documentation.


Email: jeremy@nucleus-soundlab.com

Additional patch content, and documentation by:

Shaun Wallace
Email: swallace21@gmail.com

Nick Hutton

Adam Fielding
http://www.adamfielding.com

Art and Combinator Backdrop by:

Danny Adler
http://www.sgxmusic.com

Demo Songs by:

Daniel Stawcyzk
David Villalobos
Miguel Catalao
Reminiscence
ReasonGroove
Richard Hider (Tonal Axis)
Adam Fielding
Tom Pritchard

You can use the included patches and sounds in your own music royalty-free.
You may not use the demo songs included for any commercial purposes
whatsoever. Contact the author if youʼd like to arrange something with them.

You may not redistribute/sell the included sounds - either raw, resynthesized,
effected, mixed or treated in any way.  You may not redistribute/sell the included
sounds as part of a virtual instrument.  You may not use these sounds as part of

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab


a application or computer/video-game package, to be triggered by the
application/game itself at runtime.  You may not create loops from these sounds
for any type of redistribution. If you like these sounds and want to recommend
them, please link back to my site.

Please do not copy or share this product! Nucleus SoundLab is a very small
business that lives off the honesty of its customers. If you like our products,
support us and weʼll continue to share our creativity with you at a fair price.

Copyright 2009 Jeremy Janzen and Nucleus SoundLab

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