Future Sound Systems OSC2 Recombination Engine // a UNIQUE triple analogue Eurorack oscillator

Published on Apr 10, 2020 DivKidVideo

"Here we have a total unique triple analogue (or analog for our stateside friends) oscillator for the Eurorack format from Future Sound Systems. The OSC2 Recombination Engine has a master ‘Scissor’ oscillator that can audio rate switch, sync and glue waveforms together from separate positive and negative DNA oscillators. The Glue section is a VCA that merges the positive and negative waves at the rate of the Scissor with options for additional level modulation and mixing internal or external sounds with an added input.

It’s a massively varied unit with everything from soft and sweet sines and triangles working independently to a totally mad as a box of frogs noise oscillator and everything in between. Coaxing out digital DX style musical FM has been easy, it’s a total wizard with AM synthesis and the unique wave the waveform level VCAs work. So I look forward to further exploration.

TIMING INDEX // SECTIONS
00:00 hello & patch previews
01:46 Unique feature run down
04:02 Thick bass sound design
04:41 Unique DNA oscillators, VCAs, waveform levels, switching and mixing.
08:07 Scissoring arpeggios
08:20 Modulate everything! LFO central.
09:08 AM synthesis tutorial
12:43 Unique dynamic AM synthesis
13:35 The last breath of a PT Delay …
13:44 A bee in a Prosecco bottle through a sub woofer - through the magic of AM!
14:12 Detuned triangle stacks & synthesising soft harmonic overtones
14:56 A trick to cancel out internal DNA wave switching
16:49 Simple 4 voice drum synthesis
17:30 Complex drum synthesis
18:02 3 note saw chord stacks
18:28 PWM (standard and audio rate)
20:26 Nasal band pass vibe with no filters.
20:51 Dynamic audio rate PWM
21:15 PW Skew tutorial
23:16 Vocal talking oscillators
23:48 Recombination Engine as a complex LFO source
25:45 Mad as a box of frogs noise oscillator
27:39 FM synthesis tutorial (linear & exponential + double modulation)
29:48 Chasing stable ‘DX’ style digital FM tones
30:30 Pushing feedback FM synthesis into noise led to this
31:13 Wavetable like FM and terminator overtones
32:31 Pseudo downsampling / aliasing for a glitchy top end
32:40 Super stereo drones"

"The Recombination Engine from Future Sound Systems is a triple analogue voltage-controlled oscillator Eurorack module with a focus on a novel wave-splicing technique. The Recombination method can produce new, harmonically-rich timbres. Each oscillator is built around a new- generation CEM 3340 VCO chip to ensure ultimate tracking and linearity across the frequency spectrum, as per necessary for several features of the Recombination technique. The OSC2 employs its three VCOs in a master / positive-slave / negative-slave arrangement – the output of which is found at the Glue section. The Scissor section can be used as a master oscillator, which, in the Recombination technique, is used to switch between the Positive and Negative DNA oscillators, dependent on the positive or negative state of the Scissor square-wave. Sinusoidal, triangle and ramp waveforms can be mixed at each DNA VCO through SSI2164-based VCA sections, the mixed outputs of which are switched between at the Glue section in accordance to the Scissor.

The VCOs of the OSC2 also allow for switchable linear or exponential FM and offer very wide frequency ranges between Coarse and Fine tune controls. Both DNA oscillators' VCA sections are accessible through the Mix Outputs, with the level controls operating in a similar fashion to those found on our Cyclical Engine VCO module. At 12 o'clock, each waveform is modulated at full-scale by the applicable positive or negative state of the Scissor VCO's square-wave. At 5 o'clock, each waveform ows through its VCA at full scale. Meanwhile, each waveform is available pre-VCA at the Raw Outputs.

As part of the Scissor section, three modulation busses can be switched on and off. PW Skew ties the pulsewidth modulation bus of the Scissor VCO to the frequency busses of the DNA VCOs. This means that, if the positive region of the Scissor VCO's square-wave is elongated as the pulsewidth is increased, the frequency of the Positive DNA VCO is decreased, so that the positive portion of the Glue waveform becomes "stretched out". The opposite happens to the negative portion of the Glue waveform in this instance, so becomes condensed. This effect is particularly useful for creating formant-type timbres at the Glue output.

CV Lock between the three VCOs ties the exponential frequency bus of the Scissor oscillator to the two DNA VCOs. This is especially useful when using the OSC2 as a standard triple oscillator stack, as found in classic subtractive synthesizers. Sync Lock resets the Positive DNA to the positive portion of the Scissor VCO, and resets the Negative DNA to the negative portion of the Scissor VCO. There is also a switch in the Scissor section to shift the entirety of the OSC2 between low and audible frequency ranges."