CELLULAR DEGRADATION

Cellular Degradation combines a cellular automaton with a polyphonic tone generator. Each stereo voice of the tone generator corresponds to each column of the cellular automaton’s grid, while each row corresponds to the associated tone generator’s audio parameters. The changing values of the cells from the cellular automata modulate the audio parameters of the tone generators.

The tone generators roughly follow this chain:
Sample playback (at a very low rate, like an LFO) >> SVF (LP/HP Morph) >> Delay Line >> Normalization via Envelope Following >> Feedback and cross-modulation (between left and right channel pair, modulates FM, AM, and sample lookup).

FEATURES:

• Cellular automata that modulates parameters of up to 6 stereo feedback oscillators
• Various rules and parameters for the cellular automata
• Ability to add cell values with mouse clicks and record and playback those clicks
• Various paramaters for the feedback oscillators and modulation amounts for each parameter
• randomize parameter function
• pitch shifting
• stereo width and gain

FRACTAL FILTERS

Fractal Filters uses a visualization of Julia Set fractals to create a set of amplitudes for a 50 band filterbank. It does so by taking a ‘slice’ of the 2D image (either a single row or column) and using that list of values as the filterbank amplitudes. Noise or input audio is sent through the filterbank.

The Q of the filters can go really high as to create tones if desired, and there are scale and tuning options for the filterbank. Additionally, Scala files (.scl) can be dropped onto the ‘Scale’ menu to use custom tunings!

THIS DEVICE IS INTENDED TO BE USED WITH MODULATORS. Otherwise, it will have no dynamics. So map away and have fun!

FEATURES:

• Julia Set fractal with various parameters for changing the fractal
• A X or Y axis listener that applies fractal values to a filter bank
• Slope and msoothing options for the listener values
• Various source options for the filter input
  • White or Pink noise, external input
• Q factor of the filters
• Frequency tuning options for the filters
• Scale options for filter tunings, including ability to use Scala (.scl) tuning files
• dry/wet mix and gain

IMAGE2WAVETABLE

This device is a collaboration between Dillon Bastan and Carlo Cattano.

Turn an image into a wavetable to be used by Live’s wavetable (and others). With the new Ableton Live update users can drop their own wavetables on the native Wavetable Instrument. Simply drop an image, save as wave, and then drop that file onto Ableton Wavetable (must be Live 10.1 or higher!) Oh, and make sure ‘Raw’ is enabled on the Wavetable or it won’t look right!

Super simple device. Could of course be expanded, so have fun doing that if you are inclined.

NOTE: Some transparent background PNGs won’t work! Just save them as jpegs.

FEATURES:

• Ability to export an image file to a wavetable file to be used in Ableton’s wavetable synth or another wavetable synth
• Options to change the number of waveforms in the table and the waveform size

LOGISTIC MOD

The Logistic Mod MaxforLive device for Ableton Live uses the logistic equation for modeling population growth, which exhibits chaotic behavior when the growth rate coefficient (r) is above roughly 3.57.

Chaotic behavior is aperiodic, non-repeating, yet self-similar and fractal. Therefore, the signal will have endless complexity, yet with somewhat familiar repeating patterns from time to time.

If (r) is below 3.57, it goes through a series of period-doublings leading up to the chaotic behavior (starting at r=3 when the first period-doubling appears in a 2 cycle period).

Logistic Mod gives you an alternative for a stepped modulator with a bit more nuanced possibilities, as well as interpolation and smoothing options. Overall a simple device that may be just what you need in a given situation!

MARKOV VARIATIONS

Use the Markov Variations MaxforLive device to transition between Variations (Variations are the new presets/snapshots feature in Ableton Live’s Racks) using Markov Chains.

The device detects the stored variations on an assigned Rack, then it transitions between them with probabilities (using Markov Chain).

You can change the way that a new transition is triggered (either with a mappable button or automatically at a set interval or when detecting transients). There are features for gliding and changing other functionalities relating to probabilities.

Also included is the Note Trigger Map device within the live pack that sends a trigger when MIDI notes are received to a mapped parameter. This is useful if you want to trigger transitions from MIDI notes.

SCREAMING JANUS

Screaming Janus has 2 main components: a simulation of Janus Bunch Oscillators and a corresponding bank of brutal oscillators.

JANUS BUNCH OSCILLATORS:

To best understand what these are I recommend going to this interactive webpage, which is where I was inspired and grabbed the model from.
I will briefly explain (skipping over details) in case you don’t want to read. A Janus Bunch oscillator state is made of two phases. The model can describe synchronization (between the internal phases as well as external oscillators) by coupling both internally and externally.

This allows for very interesting and complex movements of the phases. Additionally for this implementation, the oscillators are given XY positions determined by the two phases and a rotational speed.

Their colors and Z positions are also determined based on the deltas of the phases. So all in all we get from each Janus Bunch oscillator voice: 2 running phases, an XYZ position, and a color value. These are visualized in the center of the device by squares. NOTE: The Janus Bunch oscillators in this device DO NOT CREATE SOUND themselves, but the positions, phases, and colors are used to drive and modulate sound in the brutal oscillators described below.

THE BRUTAL OSCILLATORS:

This is what we hear in the device. Each brutal oscillator voice corresponds with an associated Janus Bunch oscillator. Here is roughly the signal path of each brutal oscillator voice:

• The original signal comes from the 2 running phases of the associated Janus Bunch oscillator. These are sent through a cosine function to create a stepped sine wave (which is more aliased and has more harmonics). Both of the resulting sine waves are panned hard left and right.
• Next, the signal is cross-modulated (optionally) by the previous frame’s sum of all of the brutal oscillators.
• Next, the signal is cross-modulated (optionally) by the previous frame output of the voice
• Next is a highpass and then lowpass filter
• Next is a stereo delay line with different times for the left and right signals respectively
• Next is a brutal wave-shaping of the signal
• Next is the feedback for the delay, which has an option for being with the wave-shaped signal or the signal right after the delays.
• Ends with a tanh function and gain reduction

There are parameters on the device for applying modulation to the following parameters:
Delay time Left and Right, Feedback amount Left and Right, Highpass and Lowpass filter cutoffs, Gain.

The modulation sources include the Janus Bunch oscillator positions, colors, and phases as well as a static spread between each voice.

• FEATURES:
• Janus Bunch oscillator bank modulating a band of brutal feedback oscillators
• Various parameters for the janus oscillaotr model
• Various parameters for the signal path of the brutal oscillators
• Various modulatable parameters for the feedback oscillators

SPECTRAL ATTRACTORS

Spectral Attractors uses a physics simulation and a phase vocoder. The phase vocoder sounds whatever spectral content is in the current “state”. The “state” is attracted to up to 4 other spectral “states” called “attractors”, which attract the state via the physics simulation with two different modes:

(1) FFT Mode: physics simulation is in 12288 dimensions (a bit higher CPU as a result) in which every FFT frequency bin amplitude, phase value and previous frame value for both left and right channels is a dimension, which results in a complex soundscape and combination of spectrums.

(2) 2D Mode: physics simulation is in 2 dimensions, in which attractors are spread out on a 2D plane based on their spectral differences. The sounding “state” then depends on how close it is to the attractors in a 2D space, resulting in spectra closer to the original attractor states. This mode also includes an option for either interpolating or crossfading based on distance to attractors.

Attractor states are selected by taking “snapshots” of audio in a buffer, which can either be a dropped sample or recorded live from routing audio from another track in Live. Additionally there are parameters for controlling the physics dynamics and real time frequency domain pitch shifting.

FEATURES:

• Basic physics simulation which affects the spectral content of the phase vocoder
• Various spectral snapshots obtained from sampling to morph between
• Function to randomonly grab different spectral snapshots from a buffer
• various modes of spectral morphing
• pitch shifting
• Attack and decay smoothing of spectral morphing
• Panning and gain

STRANGE MOD

Strange Mod is a MaxforLive device for Ableton Live that uses several Strange or Chaotic Attractors to produce a moving 3D coordinate.

The coordinate may be mapped to various parameters in Live similar to an LFO.

The difference is that chaotic attractors do not repeat the exact same progression, although each has its own structure.

So you can get tons of endless variety while having similar flows for each attractor.

This is a simple device and there have been many implementations of chaotic attractors (especially Lorenz) in sound/music, have fun exploring!

SWARMALATORS N

A sequel to ‘Swarmalators T’, except this version is a MIDI effect that outputs MIDI notes! Swarmalators applies the ‘Swarmalators’ model to control MIDI note outputs. More info is in the link below about Swarmalators. Because Swarmalators’ positions and internal oscillators are all interconnected, they offer different dynamic possibilities from swarming to harmonic synchronization. The Swarmalators’ XY positions can be mapped to the note out parameters like pitch, velocity, and duration.

There are also various scale options for the pitches, as well as a mode that detects the pitches of a drum rack. The device can create generative melodies, harmonies, and drum patterns.

More info about Swarmalators: here

FEATURES:

• Particle system of swarmalators model and controls for the model
• MIDI Note output when swarmalators complete an oscillation period
• Modulatable note output options
• Various scale options including one for drum racks
• MPE output options

SWARMALATORS T

Swarmalators applies the ‘Swarmalators’ model to a bank of oscillators as modulation. More info is in the link below about Swarmalators. Because Swarmalaotrs’ positions and internal oscillators are all interconnected, they offer different dynamic possibilities from swarming to harmonic synchronization.

The internal oscillators of each Swarmalator is applied to basic LFO shapes, which together with the XY positions can be mapped to the audio oscillator parameters. The audio oscillators additionally have tuning options (Scala files can be used for custom tunings, including microtonal ones!), FM, and resonant lopass filtering.

This allows for sonic possibilities from lush textures, to glitchy and harsh soundscapes, as well as generative melodic and harmonic patterns.

FEATURES:

• Particle system of swarmalators model and controls for the model
• bank of FM oscillators with waveshape selection and various modulatable parameters