Sculpture LFO waveforms in MainStage

The LFO Waveform pop-up menus set different waveforms for the LFOs. The table outlines how these can affect your modulations.

Waveform	Comments
Sine	Ideal for constant, even, modulations.
Triangle	Well-suited for vibrato effects.
Sawtooth	Well-suited for helicopter and space gun sounds. Intense modulations of the oscillator frequencies with a negative (inverse) sawtooth wave lead to “bubbling” sounds. Intense sawtooth modulations of lowpass filter cutoff and resonance create rhythmic effects. The waveform can also be inverted, resulting in a different start point for the modulation cycle.
Rectangle	Use of the rectangular waves periodically switches the LFO between two values. The Rectangle Unipolar wave switches between a positive value and 0. The Rectangle Bipolar wave switches between a positive and a negative value set to the same amount above and below 0. An interesting effect can be achieved by modulating pitch with a suitable modulation intensity that leads to an interval of a fifth. Choose the upper rectangular wave to do this.
Sample & Hold	The three Sample & Hold (S & H) waveform settings of the LFOs output random values. A random value is selected at regular intervals, as defined by the LFO rate. The S & H waveform steps between randomized values (rapid switches between values). The S & H Lag setting smooths the random waveform, resulting in fluid changes to values. The S & H from CtrlA setting is controlled by the CtrlA modulation source. For example, you could assign aftertouch as the CtrlA source to trigger S & H modulation of pitch. The term Sample & Hold refers to the procedure of taking samples from a noise signal at regular intervals. The values of these samples are then held until the next sample is taken. Tip: A random modulation of pitch leads to an effect commonly referred to as a random pitch pattern generator or sample and hold. Try using very high notes, at very high rates and high intensities—you’ll recognize this well-known effect from hundreds of science fiction movies.
Filtered Noise	Can be used for chaotic modulations, but it is principally of use in conjunction with the LFO envelope function, where you would introduce a brief modulation at some point in the note phase—for example, to introduce breath in a brass emulation, or to control an organ key click or piano hammer noise. The random nature of the noise waveform means that such modulations would vary slightly each time.

Download the guides:

MainStage User Guide: Apple Books | PDF

MainStage Instruments: Apple Books | PDF

MainStage Effects: Apple Books | PDF

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