Oscillator sync

Oscillator sync is a feature in some synthesizers with two or more VCOs, DCOs, or 'virtual' oscillators. As one oscillator finishes a cycle, it resets the period of another oscillator, forcing the latter to have the same base frequency. This can produce a harmonically rich sound, the timbre of which can be altered by varying the synced oscillator's frequency. A synced oscillator that resets other oscillator(s) is called the master; the oscillators which it resets are called slaves. There are two common forms of oscillator sync which appear on synthesizers: Hard Sync and Soft Sync. According to Sound on Sound journalist Gordon Reid, oscillator sync is the least understood feature for many users of a synthesizer. Oscillator sync is a feature in some synthesizers with two or more VCOs, DCOs, or 'virtual' oscillators. As one oscillator finishes a cycle, it resets the period of another oscillator, forcing the latter to have the same base frequency. This can produce a harmonically rich sound, the timbre of which can be altered by varying the synced oscillator's frequency. A synced oscillator that resets other oscillator(s) is called the master; the oscillators which it resets are called slaves. There are two common forms of oscillator sync which appear on synthesizers: Hard Sync and Soft Sync. According to Sound on Sound journalist Gordon Reid, oscillator sync is the least understood feature for many users of a synthesizer. The master oscillator's pitch is generated by user input (typically the synthesizer's keyboard), and is arbitrary. The slave oscillator's pitch may be tuned to (or detuned from) this frequency, or may remain constant. Every time the master oscillator's cycle repeats, the slave is retriggered, regardless of its position. If the slave is tuned to a lower frequency than the master it will be forced to repeat before it completes an entire cycle, and if it is tuned to a higher frequency it will be forced to repeat partway through a second or third cycle. This technique ensures that the oscillators are technically playing at the same frequency, but the irregular cycle of the slave oscillator often causes complex timbres and the impression of harmony. If the tuning of the slave oscillator is swept, one may discern a harmonic sequence.