FOURCUBE Protake

The FOURCUBE protake is the result of 7 years research and development. It all began when I noticed that many software synths produced signals that were far from ideal from the point of a studio engineer. There where clicks and pops all over the place, an-harmonic distortions, and many other artifacts that lead to listener fatigue. It was clear it was not going to be a simple matter to address all these issues.

For software to produce results comparable to the very best analogue modular synths is a big ask. Subtractive synthesis has so many issues that it is not an ideal starting point, so it was decided to use additive methods. This is a firm theoretical starting point, but it sets its own problems. The computations can either be fast and inaccurate, or very slow and accurate. Inaccuracy was not a suitable foundation for a top end product, accuracy is a necessity. For many years, this foundational code has been honed using SIMD assembly code until it is fast enough for a production synth, and running on all hardware post 2010. The filters are naturally 24dB/Oct, and sound just as one would want, full, rounded, resonant to the point of oscillation, all without clicks or pops. There are 4 oscillators and 4 SV filters, which can be run in serial or parallel, and supporting envelops and LFOs, and modulation units. The envelope generators are key to the articulation of the Protake. They involve novel computations to assist in interpreting the midi score in a way that minimizes clicks, and maximizes expression, driven using the hidden "sens" parameter in an intuitive manner. This interacts with voice stealing to render a virtuoso performance, as though a top musician was interpreting the given score. The adjustments are small, but very noticeable to the performer, because the instrument responds in a way that sounds very natural, and lends itself to expressive techniques. Beneath the hood, the top level is written in JPP, an in house functional language. It is based on work on quantum functional languages I started in 1991. It is a revolutionary language, designed for writing large applications in.

Without doubt, the most inspiring use is exploring the range of expressive possibilities of the Protake. It is no secret that the power of music to touch emotions is related to the expressiveness of each tone. When playing on the Protake, it feels like it has an unbounded amount of expressive power, and it is teaching you how to reach deeply into the world of emotion and spirituality that it unlocks. Synths can be used for many genres, but now they are reaching a point of maturity when they can surpass the expressiveness of any instrument. Right now the world needs music more than ever. Give a gifted musician/composer an instrument that is able to touch peoples emotions in such a deep way, and perhaps the world can be set on a better course?