Overview #
QSynth allows you to explore waveforms and synthesized sound. Let’s dive in!
In the center of the screen, you will see a sound wave visualization. As students use QSynth, they will visually see how the sound changes as they manipulate each component of this waveform.
QSynth Tone Controls #
To the left, you have four tones you can select from.
By default, these four tones will sound together when users play a key on the keyboard. Later we will discuss how to manipulate the sound of each tone to create, or synthesize, new sounds!
Click the colored label of the tone, and note how the options on the right change color to match.
The SPEAKER button to the left of each tone allows you to mute and unmute tones as needed.
The PAN dial to the right of each tone allows the user to place the sound in the speakers to the left, right, or anywhere in between! Use headphones or quality speakers to hear this effect in detail.
ZOOM allows the user to change how much of the waveform is shown in the visualization area. Click and drag to the left or right on the horizontal or vertical axis to adjust.
Manipulating QSynth Tones #
Now, let’s look at the options on the right side of the screen.
Here, we can manipulate the selected tone. Each of the dials on the right side of the screen can be controlled by clicking and dragging left or right. Let’s dive in to each dial:
- Waveform allows the user to select the type of waveform for the active tone. There are four types of waveforms: sine, square, sawtooth, and triangle. Each waveform has a distinct sound quality that can be altered further by adjusting the remaining dials.
- Moving down the right column, Amplitude adjusts the height of the waveform, which alters how loudly the tone is produced.
- Phase adjusts the left or right placement of the waveform, which adjusts how it matches with the other tones during playback.
- Harmonics changes the fundamental of the tone, allowing the user to stack tones starting from different fundamental pitches, creating harmonies and overtones during playback.
- And finally, Detune adjusts the exact frequency of the waveform to detune the pitch by as much as a half step.
Adjusting the Sound Profile #
Now, let’s look at how you adjust the sound profile using the faders at the bottom of the screen.
Just below the waveform visualization, you’ll notice you can switch the sound profile to “ON.” This allows you to visualize the sound profile instead of the waveform:
- Volume affects the overall volume of the tone or tones selected. This is not reflected in the visualization, but rather affects playback overall.
- Attack alters the amount of time it takes for the tone to reach its maximum volume setting. The higher the slider, the longer the attack.
- Decay alters the amount of time it takes the tone to drop the volume to the sustain point determined by the next slider. The higher the slider, the longer the decay period.
- Sustain alters the volume at which the tone will remain while the key is held down. The higher the slider, the closer to the maximum volume setting the tone will remain.
- Release alters the amount of time for the volume of the tone to return to zero after the key is released. The higher the slider, the longer the tone will last after the key is released.
And finally, let’s look at playing a note on our QSynth keyboard! Selecting a key on the keyboard will produce a synthesized sound comprised of all the tone sets that are not muted. Each tone will be produced with the specific settings the user has created. Note that the octave of the keyboard can be changed by selecting one of the small yellow arrows on the left and right side of the keyboard.
Opening and Saving your QSynth #
Now that you know how to operate the waveform editing tools, let’s take a quick look at the Menu options for saving and organizing your sounds:
- NEW – creates a brand new QSynth sound
- OPEN – will open a previously-saved sound
- SAVE – will save your current sound
