Tuning CV pitch control ?
In the attached image, you can see that I'm trying to control the pitch of an oscillator via a CV sequencer. I want to be able to play notes that are perfectly in tune (with standard tuning), and also be able to play notes that don't conform to standard tuning. Is there an easy way to do this, or do I have to use an external tuner and manually check every pitch in the sequence to get it right? I know there's a "Pitch Detector" module, but as far as I can tell, that module doesn't actually display pitch of the signal, rather it "detunes" the signal to match standard tuning. I was hoping that I could set 12 divisions on the CV Sequencer, and then calibrate the modulation depth just right to find the perfect amount that would keep it in tune as long every step is snapped to the 12 divisions on the Y axis. I tried doing this with an external tuner and found it very difficult and tedious to get it in tune, and gave up before I got it right. Has anyone tried this before and discovered the correct modulation depth needed to keep the notes in tune? Or is there a better way to do this? I'm hoping to find a relatively efficient way to have the option to either "stick to the grid" with standard tuning or go off-grid for detuned notes. And I can't just use the standard MIDI input from Drambo's main sequencer because I am also creating complex rhythms using clock pulses and gates in this patch.
EDIT: Aha! 0.13 depth is close to 1 octave; 0.25 is close to 2 octaves; 0.38 is as close as I could get to 3 octaves, but it's very far out of tune; 0.5 is 4 octaves and even further out of tune.
Comments
Use a CV quantizer in between the CV sequencer and the oscillator.
Set the scale on the CV quantizer to 0.125.
0.125 is an octave so for two octaves it's 0.25 etc. etc.
0.5 is four octaves.
You can snap the cv sequencer to grid for precise tuning and if you want
non standard tuning remove the snap to grid and tune by ear.
What you could also do is add a Scale offset module before the CV quantizer and use the offset to change the root note.
CV sequencer>Scale offset>CV quantizer>Oscillator
Thanks @gravitas. When I enter the numbers manually, it seems like anything more than two decimal digits of precision is rounded off, so if I enter .125 it turns into .12 - at least, that's what it displays in the interface visually, and to my ears it seems like there was no discernible difference between .12 and .125.
Also I gather that you send the output of the CV quantizer to the note input, not as a modulation source for tuning - is that correct?
@aaa Don't worry, the rounding only happens in the display for cosmetic reasons. Numbers you enter will be used in full precision.
Yes, I would also route the pitch CV into the Oscillator's pitch input (the musical note) although functionally it makes no difference.
For me personally one octave is usually enough so I set the Y-Grid in the CV Sequencer to 12 and modulation depth for the pitch to 0.125.
If I need two octaves I set the Y-Grid to 24 and modulation depth to 0.25.
This way each grid division perfectly matches one semitone.