Alternate tuning...

[bunnyman]

Well, now that the Phatties have alternate scale tuning, is there any way we can get it for our Voyagers? Rudi?

[c7sus]

VX-351 > CP-251 > Voyager pitch CV input.

Any scale you want, including reversing the keyboard entirely.

[bunnyman]

True, but I don't have a CP... Plus, if it were software enabled, 1, it'd free up that much more CV for other fun. I *have* done the KB CV > Attenuator > Osc on my modular, but due to not being able to turn off the internal KB CV on the Voyager, it won't work w/o the CP. 2, like on the Phatty, you could have multiple tunings stored and instantly obtainable. 3, The Phatty tuning allows you to scale each step by cents, so you can do more than equal temperament. W/ the CV setup, it's super easy to get quartertones (just attenuate the CV by 1/2), but they'd still be equally spaced. You still wouldn't be able to do mean tone, or just intonation...

[danceorganic]

Please do a software Alternate tuning for the voyager, I am on the new 3.5 hardware/software Voyager, and the Moog LP...

Considering the Voyager is the "flagship" synth it would be nice to shoot out a version for it

[zorbas]

Not to be Debbie Downer, but besides the ability to play quarter-tones and other unattainable note divisions, can't these alternate tunings and scales be attained by simply learning the intervals of these scales? Being monophonic, it's not like you're able to create chords that you otherwise couldn't (like on a stringed instrument). Learn some theory and you're set...or am I missing something?

[narrowcaster]

Not to be Debbie Downer, but besides the ability to play quarter-tones and other unattainable note divisions, can't these alternate tunings and scales be attained by simply learning the intervals of these scales? Being monophonic, it's not like you're able to create chords that you otherwise couldn't (like on a stringed instrument). Learn some theory and you're set...or am I missing something?

Attaining notes outside 12-tone equal temperament (12-TET, built in to the synth) or other equal temperaments (attainable with existing CV methods) is the whole point. For example, if you want various just intonation scales (say 7-limit scales for very pure minor intervals and tritones, or 11-limit scales for neutral thirds and sevenths) that can't be done with CV attenuation because the intervals are not evenly spaced. The same holds true for many historical European temperaments -- they are not generally based on evenly-spaced intervals. This isn't about learning new combinations of pitches available in 12-TET, but about scales built on frequencies outside of that structure altogether. So it doesn't help to learn the intervals if your instrument is unable to play them consistently and accurately This kind of capability is useful for anyone who plays traditional musics based on something other than 12-TET, and it's also useful for people who are into more contemporary experimental music since tuning theory and alternate tunings have been important there since at least the 1940s. It's also useful as a teaching/leaning aid, since tuning theory is becoming increasingly important as an area of theory for people to learn.

And being able to retune is important not just for chords, but because some kinds of melody just won't sound right unless the melodic intervals are tuned in a certain way. For example, a sitar is usually played monophonically, but a lot of the musical effect comes from its ability to play far beyond 12-TET. Synthesizers that can do this have similar melodic abilities. And outside of that, if you are playing your monosynth with other instruments that are tuned outside of 12-TET, this kind of software is the only way to get it in tune with them. There's already a fairly old program called Scala that offers extensive support for alternate tuning on a range of synthesizers (some support it and some don't, but the feature has been around for decades), so it's great not only that Moog is getting into this area but also that their package seems to support existing Scala data.

[GovernorSilver]

Well, now that the Phatties have alternate scale tuning, is there any way we can get it for our Voyagers? Rudi?

This was the first question on my mind as well.

Sure, for manual playing of ethnic melodies, one could just use the pitch wheel, touch plate, or some other continuous CV controller (eg. Walking Stick) in conjunction with the keyboard to hit the desired pitches.

OTOH, If the Voyager OS were updated with the same tuning features as the Phatty OS, we could have a MIDI sequencer or arpeggiator drive the Voyager with fast patterns of notes that are tuned to, say, an Arabic or Indonesian scale - that would be pretty cool.