Transient

The Transient is a percussion module for the Eurorack format. The Transient can recreate individual drum voices or sound like an entire drum machine or loop is playing, morphing from rhythm to rhythm, or at times sound more like a synthesizer when retriggering samples at audio rates, and creating other special effects. It’s easy to use, introduces new ways to quickly sculpt your beats with endless possibilities, and did we mention… it sounds great too!

More than 250 preset Instruments are built into the Transient to get you going right out of the box, and to help you learn how to achieve certain results. There are also 40 User locations to store your own custom Instrument settings.

Over 400 audio sample provide the foundation of sound in the Transient. These samples focus on classic drum machines and modern analog percussive sounds. There are two voices to play these samples, and sample selection for each voice can be modulated with things like knobs, CV’s, or random values. While internal processing of these sounds is all 16 bit resolution, a 12 bit DAC is used to add more vintage character.

A unique architecture in the Transient allows these digital samples to have similar sound characteristics to what you would expect from analog drum machines or synthesizers, and natural sounds. Natural sounds never repeat in exactly the same way, and the Transient achieves similar results by altering the phase and amplitude of samples.

Percussion instruments typically have a very limited, if any, ability to change their pitch. So instead of changing the playback speed of samples (as most sound modules do), Ring modulation can be applied to alter the perceived pitch and harmonics of a sound.

The sample Mod selection allows different combinations for samples to be Amplitude or Ring modulated, by periodic waveforms, envelope shapes, or other sample waveforms. It is also possible to apply two of these processes simultaneously to a single sample.

Modulation oscillators provide both typical waveforms and new envelope waveforms. That means all envelopes in the Transient are looping. Envelopes do not have adjustable ADSR times like most synthesizers. Instead the total time or frequency of the envelope is adjustable, and so is the phase the envelope or waveform starts at. The modulation oscillator can cover both the LFO and audio range for some really nice results.

Amplitude modulation can be used to apply Fades, Tremolo, Envelopes and Audio-rate modulations to samples.

Ring modulation can be used to change the phase of waveforms, creating subtle changes in repeating samples. It can also be used to change the perceived pitch, and harmonic content of a sample. It can even rectify a sample when ring modulated with itself, or allow two samples to share their “sonic DNA” with each other creating all sorts of new combinations in harmonic content.

The Mixer allows control over the mix of two voices, and the multi-mode filter allows you the sculpt the tones. By applying CV control to these, the voices come alive and begin dancing to the dynamics.

The Digital section can be used to add a little more character to sounds by Companding, Distorting, or Bit Crushing the audio, along with changing the Bit Depth and Sample Rate for each effect.

The Dynamics section provides control of the final output sound level. This can be used as a simple set-and-forget level control, assign a knob to act as volume control, allow external CV’s to control the dynamics, or combinations of these can be applied simultaneously.

Making beats has never been easier!

The Trig In jack accepts a wide range of trigger sources (gates, oscillators, LFO’s, even audio), to play sounds in the Transient. Two CV inputs allow external control voltages to modulate or modify parameters. And of course the Audio Out provides the final audio output.

There are two CV attenuator knobs to scale each CV input source, and two more knobs K1 and K2 that can be assigned to control multiple parameters simultaneously. These K1 and K2 knobs allow you to basically morph between different modulation amounts for various parameters. And finally a Parameter control is used to navigate through the parameters, and adjust parameter values.

In addition to the CV or K1 or K2 modulation sources, a Random generator is also provided as a possible modulation source.