Ring (and/or Balanced) Modulation for the modulator masses

[lordgalvar]

I just failed with some of my facts in my brain haha. Kinda getting things mixed up.

I knew phase cancelation never works 100% (Cadillac did it in their radios by recording tire noise for a while and it worked kinda...). I guess I was kind of wondering about the "perfect case" I guess.

Unlatching the carrier makes total sense and is the simplest answer, haha. The Frostwave one gets around that by including a blend to go between internal and external carriers. Totally makes sense. Should give it another shot! I guess I was hoping for the octave up and DC in my head (when just working through the problem in theoretical situations). Got some routing problems/thoughts to work out!

ARP just listed the CMOS switching as digital in their service manual haha. (The only reason I said that). Makes sense either way (and parallels the BBD/CCD argument with clock signals and the like).

Thanks for the help!

[Chankgeez]

I don't understand half of what you guys are talking about, but I bet it sounds amazing when put into practice!!!

[sylnau]

That thing sound great!

[Eivind August]

Hey, Crochambeau and Galvey, great talk. Now combine your knowledge and make a ringmod.

[lordgalvar]

Hahaha, crochambeau would out design me with a flick of his soldering iron.

I'm just a hack that can make things lego style sometimes haha...and have free time to read/confuse myself.

A list of Pedal/Table Top Ring Mods (bored and everyone has to work on Christmas haha):

Alesis ModFX Bitrman

TYPE: digital
Bananana GROWL 567
Black Cat Ring Modulator
Carlin Ring Mod

-TYPE: Transistor Gate
-CO RANGE: N/A
-CO WAVE: N/A
CG Products XR1-E

-TYPE: IC
-CO RANGE: Hi 8Hz - 18000Hz // Lo 0.15Hz - 60 Hz
Copilot Android
Copilot Planetoid
Copilot Robotuum
Craig Anderton Ring Modulator
Death by Audio Crash Modulator
Death by Audio Space Ring

-TYPE: Diode Ring
DOD Gonkulator
DOD Gonkulator Reissue
Dr. Blankenstien Illumiringer
Dr. Scientist Bitquest!

-TYPE: digital
Dwarfcraft HAX

TYPE: IC
CO RANGE:
CO TYPE:
BLEND: 100% Wet/Dry (Some Balance Issues)
EXP/CV: Frequency
OTHER: Dirty Preamp
POWER: 9v DC
Electro Harmonix 40v Big Box Reissue Frequency Analyzer

TYPE: IC
CO RANGE:
CO TYPE: Sine (I think)
CO INSERT: No
BLEND: 100% Wet/Dry
EXP/CV: none
OTHER: Switched LPF
POWER: 40v DC
Electro Harmonix AC powered Frequency Analyzer

TYPE: IC
CO RANGE:
CO TYPE: Sine (I think)
CO INSERT: None
BLEND: 100% Wet/Dry
EXP/CV: none
OTHER: Switched LPF
POWER: AC
Electro Harmonix Frequency Analyzer XO
Electro Harmonix Frequency Analyzer Nano?
Electro Harmonix Ring Thing

-TYPE: digital
EOwave
Eventide stuff ... Though that ain't fun haha.
Fairfield Electronics Randy's Revenge v.1
Fairfield Electronics Randy's Revenge v.2

TYPE:
CO RANGE:
CO TYPE: Square/Sine
BLEND:
EXP/CV:
OTHER:
POWER: 9v DC
Frostwave Blue Ringer
Frostwave Blue Ringer v.2

TYPE: IC
CO RANGE:
CO TYPE: Square-Sine Hybrid (I think)
CO INSERT: Yes
BLEND: 95% Wet/Dry (My best guess)
EXP/CV:
OTHER: Mic preamp, Blendable internal CO/external CO
POWER: 16v DC
Gigahearts Lovetone workalike.
Heavy Electronics Saturn

TYPE: IC
CO RANGE:
CO TYPE: Square-Sine Hybrid (I think)
BLEND: 100% Wet/Dry (Some Balance Issues)
EXP/CV: Frequency (exp only)
OTHER: FET preamp
POWER: 9v DC 200ma
Hexe The Carrier
Hexe The Carrier V.2
Hexe The Carrier V.3
Industrialectric 4046m
Jen/Gretsch HF Modulator
Korg Toneworks

-TYPE: Digital
Lastgasp Art Laboratories Sick Pitch King
Lastgasp Art Laboratories Sick Pitch King Jr.
Lastgasp Art Laboratories Toxic Plant
Lovetone Ring Stinger
M.A.S.F. Swan Song
M.A.S.F. Swan Song V.2
Maestro/Oberheim Ring Mod
Melos Ring Mod
Metasonix TM-1

TYPE:
CO RANGE:
CO TYPE:
CO INSERT: Yes
BLEND: 100% Wet only when balanced
EXP/CV:
OTHER: Tube Based Waveshaper
POWER: 15v AC
Montreal Assembly CA Ring Modulator
Moody Way (Carlin)
Moog Minifooger Ring Mod

-CO RANGE: 90Hz - 1500Hz
Moog Moogerfooger MF-102 Ring Mod

-CO RANGE: hi 60Hz - 4000Hz // Lo 2Hz - 103 Hz
Mythfx Infinium
Parasit Studios Corruptor

-TYPE: IC
Parasit Studios King Corruptor

-TYPE: IC
Rastop Bass Ring Modulator
Rastop Ring Modulator
Seppuku/Audioslime Hystersis
Snarling Dig Mold Spore
Studio Electronics ModMax Ring Modulator
Subdecay Vitruvian Mod

-TYPE: Digital
Way Huge Ringworm

TYPE:
CO RANGE: 30Hz - 4000Hz
CO TYPE: Sine (I think)
CO INSERT: No
BLEND: 100% Wet/Dry
EXP/CV: EXP (frequency)
OTHER: LFO CO Modulation (Step, Env, Sine, Square, Random)
POWER: 18v DC
Wilson Mycelium
Yamaha MagicStomp

-TYPE: Digital
Zoom

-TYPE: Digital
Zvex Ringtone
Zvex Super Ringtone

A list of Rack Ring Mods:

Bode Ring Modulator
Boss GX 700
Boss SE 70
DACS FREQue
DACS FREQue II
Vermona RM-1

Other Ring Mods:

Buchla Music Easel
Dewtron kit
Synthrotek Passive Kit
Trogotronic 666

A list of Modular Ring Mods:

Addac 602
Analogue Solutions RM
Bubblesound LVL+RM
Buchla 285e
Delptronics
Division 6 Morpheum
Doepfer A-114
Doepfer A-114v
Dwarfcraft Devices HAX
EMW Ring Modulator
Erica Synths Fusion
Intellijel UMOD II Ring Modulator and Logic
Mutable Instruments Warps
Pittsburgh Modulator
Pulp Logic Primitave Ring Modulator
Serge
Studio Electronics Sci-Fi

Other pedals that just get really fast modulation and claim ring modulation (or ring mod like) (not a criticism, just used the ring mod is mentioned in their information...usually phasers do this):

Blackout Crystal Dagger
Blackout Sibling
Electro-Faustus Guitardämmerung
infanem Compact Faye Sing B
Recovery Motornatic
Seppuku Hysteresis

Honorable Mention/Other Oddities:

Copilot Caracol
Green Ringer
Holowon Thermal Wave

Jury is out

Effector 13 Handroid

Let me know if there are any to add to the list!

[crochambeau]

Bah, you give me too much credit. I do have a ring mod in the works, but it's down a ways on the priority list (and behind a couple things that will take me some time to bring about).

In rack mount: Vermona RM-1

[Chankgeez]

Bah, you give me too much credit. I do have a ring mod in the works,

Honorable Mention/Other Oddities:

Green Ringer

[lordgalvar]

Bah, you give me too much credit. I do have a ring mod in the works, but it's down a ways on the priority list (and behind a couple things that will take me some time to bring about).

In rack mount: Vermona RM-1

Nah, I just have very little experience and that little bit is over 10 years fallow (and related to the oil industry and metallurgy...so mechanical haha).

And glad you saw that thread shout out Chankgeez haha!

[Chankgeez]

LG, you should cross-check your ring mod list against FXDB.

Rastop apparently makes a ring mod and a bass ring mod. Apparently has envelope-control too. The sound samples on his website are really short and not that impressive. I'm interested in stuff like that though.

Also, the never produced Mu-Tron VII apparently would've had a ring mod in it.

Also, listen to this bad boy:

[lordgalvar]

I actually did...was just trying to weed out some of the impossibilities (but I did run across that Mu-Tron VII....dang, too bad it was just a prototype).

I forgot about Rastop. Ran across him a long time ago...saw one of his effects for sale once, but never really looked much into it...I guess the bass would refer more to the env frequency than the ring mod? because...yea...

Like there is one called Vulcan Argonaut that was Harmonic Percolator + Ring mod + something else...they made like 4 and jad fair owns one...haha...I just kinda quickly picked out the ones the stuck out from FXDB...lots of phasers in there though too.

I didn't even look into the rack and table top ones on there...

What do you think the best way to measure the actual range of a carrier osc is (functionally) since most of the time it can't be heard without the carrier...just for information sake...should I use an oscilloscope and just take a picture with the modulator being set at like Low E (open string 6) on the lowest frequency carrier setting and the highest E (12th fret open string 1) on the highest frequency carrier setting just for an overall comparison? I guess it might be easiest to find out the wave form of each too (like perfect sine, slanted sine, almost square, etc). That would be the functional range I guess without inserting an external carrier.

Would that even be useful (it might be too much work honestly)?

Or just do a comparative report?

Or does no one care but me? haha

[Chankgeez]

I do know that I want the same kind of ring modulator as Jad Fair though. That's be pretty sweet. Too bad there're only a few.

Looks like it has a bit of a certain period Seppuku thing goin' on graphically.

[lordgalvar]

That thing looks sweet...I dunno, they say they do custom...but it would be a risk. Their only distro only ships within Denmark. I'm curious about it and the only reason they discontinued it (and replaced it with a normal fuzz) is because of the transistors from the harmonic percolator...

Seems like they could just replace it with something else...or talk them into making one with a green ringer? haha...mostly want to know about their ring mod though...

eh, effffffffffffff it...

I'll just do it myself.

[Chankgeez]

[goroth]

If any of you ring mod homies want to hit that Danish ring mod I'm happy to be an intermediary and negotiate with the treacherous Danes. Or like, get them to ship it to me and I'll ship it to you. Not that Sweden is in Denmark. Well, not for the last few centuries anyway. More that it's no great hassle shipping within Scandinavia.

This thread just makes me want to put Randy back on my board. But I'm using the BitQuest for ring mod currently. It's great. But Randy is greatest.

[Chankgeez]

Thanks for the kind offer, goroth. I'm gonna pass for now though.

I've got a Swedish ring mod on the way in the form of a Moody Sounds Moody Way. I'll report on it here when it arrives and I've spent some time with it. I'm hoping to get it to sound like the Swedish Chef from the Muppets:



Yeah, the ring mod on the BitQuest isn't too bad. Not as great as Randy's, of course, but pretty good for a multi-effector. BitQuest is a mo' versatile pedal overall though.