1The basics: edit a sound and save it

10 min · Classic engine · free

The fastest way to learn synthesis: start from a factory sound, change it by ear, then keep it in your bank.

Load a sound

1. Open the PRESETS tab, tap the PAD category, then Warm Pad. (Faster: the ◀ ▶ arrows on each side of the LCD.)
2. Play a chord: the sound is loaded into the selected part (P01).

Edit it

1. FILTER tab: lower CUTOFF while holding the chord, the sound gets darker. While you turn a knob, the LCD shows its exact value (Hz, ms, %).
2. In AMPLIFIER, raise RELEASE to about 3 s: notes fade out even more slowly after you let go.
3. FX tab: raise the DELAY Mix to about 25 % to add an echo.

As soon as you change something, the STORE LED lights up and the sound name gets a star on the screen (Warm Pad *): the sound is edited but not saved yet.

Save it (STORE)

1. Tap STORE. The STORE window opens.
2. Name: type a name (16 characters max), for example My Dark Pad.
3. CATEGORY: ◀ ▶ to PAD (the sound will be listed with the pads in the category filter).
4. DESTINATION: pick a slot of the USER A bank (U001 to U128). A free slot shows (empty); otherwise the message “The existing sound will be replaced” warns you.
5. Tap STORE: the screen confirms STORED U001 and the LED goes off.

Find and manage your sounds

• PRESETS tab, BANKS column: tap U USER A to see your sounds. The BANK button in the top bar also switches banks.
• Keep two versions: edit your sound and save it to another slot under another name (My Dark Pad 2).
• Update: save to the same slot, the old version is replaced.
• Share PREMIUM: EXPORT creates a .vbrp file (one sound), EXPORT BANK a .vbrb file (the whole bank), to send to another user who opens them with IMPORT.

2From scratch: your first pad

15 min · Classic engine · free

This time we start from a neutral sound to understand what each block does: oscillators → filter → envelopes → effects.

1. Blank sound: PRESETS tab, tap INIT. The sound goes back to neutral: two sawtooths (Osc 1 and a slightly detuned Osc 2), a little chorus and reverb.
2. Thicken (OSC tab): in MIXER, raise Osc 2 to the same level as Osc 1 (80 %). In OSC 2, set Detune to about +10 cents (7 to start with): the two slightly detuned oscillators “beat” and the sound widens.
3. Soften (FILTER tab): Cutoff about 1.5 kHz, Reso about 10 %, Env Amt about 20 %.
4. Let it breathe: in AMPLIFIER, Attack about 0.8 s (the sound fades in), Sustain at maximum, Release about 1.5 s. In FILTER ENV, Attack about 1 s: the filter opens as the volume rises.
5. Add space (FX tab): CHORUS Mix about 40 %, REVERB Size about 70 % and Mix about 35 %. Optional: CHARACTER set to WIDE for an even wider stereo image.
6. Add movement (MOD tab): pick LFO 2, triangle shape, RATE about 0.2 Hz, destination CUTOFF with a small AMOUNT (10 to 15 %): the pad slowly opens and closes.
7. Play held chords, then save with STORE: name Pad Zero, category PAD.

3A rolling psytrance bass

15 min · Classic engine + arpeggiator · free

The typical psytrance bass: very short notes, in sixteenths, around 145 BPM, with a filter snap on every note. We build it, then make it roll with the arpeggiator.

The sound

1. PRESETS › INIT.
2. OSC tab: OSC 1 Wave SAW. In MIXER, Osc 2 to 0 (a single oscillator, tighter) and Sub about 40 % for low-end weight. In VOICE, Voices set to 1 (monophonic: each note cuts the previous one, the sound stays tight).
3. FILTER tab: Mode LP24, Cutoff about 200 Hz, Reso about 25 %, Env Amt about +70 %, Drive about 30 %.
4. FILTER ENV: Attack at minimum, Decay about 150 ms, Sustain at 0, Release about 80 ms. That's the “knock” of each note.
5. AMPLIFIER: Attack at minimum, Decay about 180 ms, Sustain at 0, Release about 60 ms: dry notes that don't overlap.
6. FX tab: CHORUS Mix and REVERB Mix to 0. A bass stays dry, otherwise the low end gets blurry.

Make it roll

1. ARP/PAT tab, CLOCK section: tempo 145 BPM.
2. ARPEGGIATOR section: Mode UP, Octaves 1, Rate 1/16, Gate about 50 %, LATCH on.
3. Move the keyboard down with OCT - to C1 and tap E1 (low E, the classic psytrance key). The bass keeps rolling on its own thanks to LATCH.
4. While it plays, sculpt it: shorter FILTER ENV Decay = more percussive, longer = rounder; higher Reso = more acid; Cutoff sets the brightness.
5. STORE: name Psy Roll Bass, category BASS.

4A psytrance acid lead

10 min · Classic engine · free · follows lesson 3

We turn the bass into a squelchy high line, typical of psytrance build-ups.

1. Load Psy Roll Bass from USER A.
2. FILTER tab: Reso about 70 %, Cutoff about 600 Hz, Env Amt about +50 %. FILTER ENV: Decay about 300 ms.
3. OSC tab: in MIXER, Sub to 0 (useless up high).
4. FX tab: DISTORTION Type ASYM, Drive about 30 %, Mix about 50 %; DELAY Type TAPE, Time about 0.31 s (dotted eighth at 145 BPM), Feedback about 45 %, Mix about 25 %.
5. ARP/PAT tab: Mode RANDOM, Octaves 2, Rate 1/16. With OCT +, go back up to C3 and hold E3 + G3 + B3: the arpeggio picks notes of the chord at random.
6. The build-up move: slowly turn Cutoff up over 8 bars, then drop it at once. To record it into the sound, use AUTO (see the manual, chapter 2).
7. STORE to another slot: name Psy Acid Lead, category LEAD. Your bass stays untouched.

5An evolving vocal pad (Wave engine) PREMIUM

20 min · Vibranium Wave engine

The Wave engine plays wavetables: 16 waveform frames in a row, scanned with the position. Moving the position changes the timbre continuously. We build a pad whose “vowels” glide on their own while you hold the chord.

The oscillators

1. Tap ENGINE until the LCD shows Vibranium Wave: the first factory sound, Init Wave, loads (a single oscillator, ANALOG table).
2. OSC tab, OSC 1 selected: in WAVETABLE, ▶ to 6 VOX (the vowels a-e-i-o-u). Drag your finger in the 3D view, or turn POSITION, while playing a note: each position is another vowel. Leave it around 20 %. The FRAME panel shows the frame being played.
3. Still on OSC 1, further along the page (› MORE): Pos Env about 50 %. The MOD envelope will slide the position on every note.
4. Tap OSC 2 then ON: table 5 FORMANT, Position about 30 %, Fine about +9 cents (slight detune), Level about 60 %, Pos Env about 60 %.
5. End of the OSC page, UNISON: 2 voices, Detune about 30 % to thicken.

Filter and volume

6. FILTER tab: LP12 mode (softer than LP24). Drag the orange handle of the curve: left/right sets the Cutoff, up/down the resonance. Aim for 2.5 kHz and 20 % (shown at the top of the curve).
7. Further along (› MORE), AMPLIFIER: drag the envelope points. Top point to the right for a 1.2 s attack; middle point all the way up (Sustain 100 %); bottom-right point for a 2.5 s release. Values are shown above.

Movement

8. MOD tab, MOD ENV → POSITION: attack 2 s, decay 4 s, sustain 50 %. It sweeps the oscillators' position, scaled by their Pos Env.
9. LFO 1 → POS: tap the drawing until TRI, Rate about 0.15 Hz, Amount about 25 %, Dest set to POS: a slow back-and-forth that never stops.
10. FX tab: CHORUS Mix about 30 %; DELAY Type TAPE, Time about 0.45 s, Mix about 20 %; REVERB Size about 80 %, Mix about 40 %.
11. Hold a chord for several seconds: the vowel opens, glides, then breathes with the LFO. STORE: name Vox Drift, category PAD.

6A techno track in the sequencer PREMIUM

30 min · Multi mode, Drums engine, MIDI sequencer

A techno loop at 130 BPM: kick, clap, hi-hat, bass and a “dub techno” chord with echo. Then we bring it to life by muting and bringing back tracks.

Set up the instruments

1. ARP/PAT tab › CLOCK: tempo 130 BPM.
2. MULTI tab: switch to MULTI. Turn ON parts P01, P02 and P03.
3. P01 = drums: tap the P01 card to select it, then ENGINE until Vibranium Drums and ◀ ▶ to the Dancehall 808 kit. KIT tab: KICK Decay about 0.5 s (the 808 rings too long for techno) and Punch about 60 %; set the Dub sends to 0 for a dry sound. Save it (STORE, Techno Kit).
4. P02 = bass: select P02, load Deep Sub Bass (or your Psy Roll Bass from lesson 3, with the arpeggiator set back to OFF).
5. P03 = chord: select P03, load Chord Stab. FX tab: DELAY Type TAPE, Time about 0.35 s (dotted eighth at 130 BPM), Feedback about 50 %, Mix about 30 %; REVERB Mix about 30 %.

Write the loop

1. Menu ☰ › MIDI sequencer. On the ruler at the top, drag over bar 1 to set the loop area (yellow) to one bar; ⟲ CYCLE must be on.
2. Track 1: tap the empty area of bar 1 to create a region, then double tap it to open the piano roll. Each column is a sixteenth (16 per bar), the C1, C2… markers are on the left. With the Drums kit, the note picks the instrument:

3. Tap ►: the drums loop. Vary the hi-hats: select a note, then VEL. − to soften it (every other one softer = groove).
4. Track 2 (bass): a region on bar 1, then A1 notes on sixteenths 3, 7, 11, 15: the bass answers the kick on the off-beats, length 1/16.
5. Track 3 (chord): an A minor chord A3 + C4 + E4 on sixteenths 4 and 11, length 1/16. The TAPE echo fills the space between them.
6. Open MIXER: lower track 3 a little (about −6 dB) and check that no meter turns red.

Bring the track to life

• Build up: mute every track except the kick with M in the headers, then bring them back one by one every 4 or 8 bars: hi-hat, bass, chord.
• The break: mute the kick (M) for 4 bars, leaving the chord and its echo, then bring it back: works every time.
• Play on top: select a free track (P04 with a lead sound), tap ● and play the keyboard during the loop; Q 1/16 then tightens the notes.
• Make it longer: widen the loop area to 4 bars and create more regions (a bass variation on bar 4, for example).
• Save: SONGS, type Techno 130, SAVE. The song keeps the sounds, the mix, the tempo and the notes.

7Cheat sheet

Formula: dotted eighth = 45 ÷ tempo (in seconds); eighth = 30 ÷ tempo; sixteenth = 15 ÷ tempo.

Drums (Drums engine, any octave): C kick · C# rim · D and E snare · D# clap · F# closed hi-hat · A# open hi-hat · G# percussion · F G A B toms.

To go further, every parameter is described in the manual.