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tially opened via the CUTOFF pot or was manipulated via other control options. In extreme cases
where the filter is already completely open, the filter frequency cannot be increased regardless of
how high you set the ENV AMOUNT.
Go ahead and spend some experimenting with different ENV AMOUNT, CUTOFF and RESONANCE
settings for the diverse filter operating modes. Also try varying the settings for the amplifier enve-
lope. You will find that with just these few parameters you are able to come up with a vast amount of
sound settings. If you are among the many musicians who are associative listeners, you might say
many of the settings produce sounds reminiscent of stringed-instruments; some sound picked,
plucked or snapped, others sound bowed.
For your next experiment set the amplifier envelope so that you hear a constant level when you
press and hold a note. Now deactivate the filter envelope by setting the ENV AMOUNT to 0. Set Fil-
ter-1Filter-1 to low pass mode and decrease the filter frequency until you just barely hear a muddy
signal when you play notes in the mid-range.
Now play a few higher and lower notes. You will find that the lower notes have a greater overtone
content, whereas the higher notes sound muddier and their volume decreases until the notes are
completely inaudible. You might already suspect what this is all about: As the notes are transposed
ever lower, more portions of the signal fall below the cutoff frequency, whereas with the notes that
are transposed ever higher, more portions of the signal rise above the cutoff frequency and subse-
quently are suppressed until the root note and the last audible portion of the signal is silenced.
To avoid this effect - or if desirable, to amplify it - you have the option of influencing the cutoff fre-
quency via the pitch of the note, i.e. the note number. The degree of influence is determined by the
KEY FOLLOW pot.
Please note that KEY FOLLOW is a so-called bipolar parameter: Its control range is not limited to
the positive end of the spectrum (0 to a maximum of 127). Bipolar controls effect negative values as
well, in this case from the negative maximum of -64 through 0 an on to the positive maximum of
+63. Consequently, if this pot is set to the center position (12 o’clock or 0) the pitch of the notes
corresponding to the keys on your keyboard has no effect on the cutoff frequency. If on the other
hand you turn the KEY FOLLOW pot clockwise towards the positive control range, you will find that
the filter opens up increasingly as the pitch increases with higher notes. At lower notes, the filter
closes down again. If you turn the pot counter-clockwise towards the negative control range, the
KEY FOLLOW effect is reversed. With the Virus, you will encounter this feature - intensity control via
a bipolar parameter - again in conjunction with other modulation sources and targets.
Now experiment as much as you like with different KEY FOLLOW settings and tune the settings via
the CUTOFF pot. And remember to bring all of the other parameters you have encountered thus far
into play.
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