Synthesizers-part 2 (Malstrom and Thor)

Alright, so last time we got into the knob-tastic world of synthesizers and did a little bit of programming our own patches using the Subtractor.

Today, we're just going to take a little bit more time to talk about synths and take a look at the other synth instruments that are available in Reason.

So, we are pretty familiar with the Subtractor. Do you remember what type of synthesizer the Subtractor is?

Analog synthesis (aka "subtractive synthesis") was the classic, old school way that synths worked. This method of synthesis used actual electrical signals as the basis of the sounds it made. Some of the most famous makers of early analog synths included Moog, ARP and Roland. Here is a picture of the Roland Juno 106, one of the first "affordable" synths on the market:


This is one of the all-time most used synth. It is one of the classic sounds from the 80's. You've probably heard it on hundreds of songs.

As technology progressed, instrument makers started using different methods of synthesis that allowed for more complex sounds. The next big one was called FM Synthesis, or Frequency Modulation Synthesis. Using this method, you could basically take two signals and have one mathematically alter the other. Don't worry, we're not going to get too deep into this, but just know that the sounds were more advanced and allowed people to try to create synth patches that resembled the sounds of instruments. That's when you started to hear cheesy synth horns and strings on pop songs.

After that, things started to get Digital. With digital synthesis, you had a lot more options and a number of synthesis methods came out. One of these was Granular Synthesis. With Granular Synthesis, you are basically taking a sample of an actual audio sample (say a flute sound), and then breaking it up into hundreds of little tiny snippets, or grains. Then, using the different controls, you can reconfigure and mess with all these grains and create completely orignal, crazy new sounds.

This brings us back to Reason:


The Malstrom pretty much uses Granular Synthesis as the way it creates its sounds, though it is laid out very similarly to the Subtractor. Like the Subtractor, it uses two oscillators at the starting point of its sounds. However, if you go through the different patterns, you see that it's not using simple waveforms, but the names of actual instruments as the basis of its sounds. Plus, using the Index sliders you can determine what part of the sample you want to work with.

The third and newest Reason synth is the Thor.

This guy is pretty intense and sounds AWESOME. Basically, instead of using two Oscillators to create its sounds, it uses 6. It also has 6 filters. This guy is incorporating several styles of synthesis at once and allowing for highly detailed and complex sounds.

So, start comparing these different synths and seeing the kinds of sounds they all make. Some are definitely better than others for different styles of music. But they're all tools available for you to use and combine to create your own original sounds.