We can change the integer value of F with the Coarse knob, make finer adjustments with the Fine knob, and offset by a number of Hertz with the Detune knob. So, if you’re playing an A3 which is 440Hz, F = 1 would be 440Hz, F = 2 would be 880Hz, F = 3 would be 1320Hz and so on. This denotes the ratio of the frequency to the root note. This very, very fast vibrato gives us the change in timbre we’re hearing, and we can change the timbre of the sound by adjusting the tuning of Operator 2.Īt the top left of each operator panel, there’s a display which by default reads ‘F = 1’. However, while an LFO is a low-frequency oscillator that typically functions in the sub-20Hz range, Dexed’s operators work in the audible frequency range. So, what’s happening here? Essentially we’re using Operator 2 to apply vibrato to Operator 1, just like applying an LFO to an oscillator’s pitch in an analogue-style synth. What’s more, it’s capable of loading DX7 patches, making it a fantastic free source of classic tones.

What made the synth so popular is that it featured some of the greatest presets of all time, and it can be heard on countless pop hits and film and TV soundtracks of the 80s and 90s.ĭexed is an open-source DX7 clone plug-in, and although its interface is still a little on the menacing side, it’s a vast improvement over that of the original hardware.

The instrument only had a two-line LCD alphanumeric display, and while using a liquid-crystal display might sound impossibly futuristic and glamorous, its extremely limited capacity to display information would have made the DX7 a lot more time-consuming to program than modern FM softsynths. That said, programming patches on the quintessential hardware FM synth, 1983’s Yamaha DX7, would have been a slog. Frequency modulation synthesis has something of a reputation for being complicated and difficult to master, and while FM synths can definitely be intimidating, they’re really quite straightforward once you’ve got your head around the basics.

Dx7 syx patches