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Subtractive synthesis - Wikipedia

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<span>Nomenclature</span> </div> </a> <ul id="toc-Nomenclature-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> </ul> </li> <li id="toc-Method" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-1 vector-toc-list-item-expanded"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#Method"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">3</span> <span>Method</span> </div> </a> <button aria-controls="toc-Method-sublist" class="cdx-button cdx-button--weight-quiet cdx-button--icon-only vector-toc-toggle"> <span class="vector-icon mw-ui-icon-wikimedia-expand"></span> <span>Toggle Method subsection</span> </button> <ul id="toc-Method-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> <li id="toc-Source_Sound" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-2"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#Source_Sound"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">3.1</span> <span>Source Sound</span> </div> </a> <ul id="toc-Source_Sound-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> </ul> </li> <li id="toc-Subtractive_Synthesis" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-2"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#Subtractive_Synthesis"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">3.2</span> <span>Subtractive Synthesis</span> </div> </a> <ul id="toc-Subtractive_Synthesis-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> </ul> </li> </ul> </li> <li id="toc-See_also" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-1 vector-toc-list-item-expanded"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#See_also"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">4</span> <span>See also</span> </div> </a> <ul id="toc-See_also-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> </ul> </li> <li id="toc-References" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-1 vector-toc-list-item-expanded"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#References"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">5</span> <span>References</span> </div> </a> <ul id="toc-References-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> </ul> </li> <li id="toc-External_links" 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href="https://da.wikipedia.org/wiki/Subtraktiv_syntese" title="Subtraktiv syntese – Danish" lang="da" hreflang="da" data-title="Subtraktiv syntese" data-language-autonym="Dansk" data-language-local-name="Danish" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>Dansk</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-de mw-list-item"><a href="https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Subtraktive_Synthese" title="Subtraktive Synthese – German" lang="de" hreflang="de" data-title="Subtraktive Synthese" data-language-autonym="Deutsch" data-language-local-name="German" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>Deutsch</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-es mw-list-item"><a href="https://es.wikipedia.org/wiki/S%C3%ADntesis_substractiva" title="Síntesis substractiva – Spanish" lang="es" hreflang="es" data-title="Síntesis substractiva" data-language-autonym="Español" data-language-local-name="Spanish" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>Español</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-eu mw-list-item"><a href="https://eu.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sintesi_kengarri" title="Sintesi kengarri – Basque" lang="eu" hreflang="eu" data-title="Sintesi kengarri" data-language-autonym="Euskara" data-language-local-name="Basque" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>Euskara</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-fr mw-list-item"><a href="https://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Synth%C3%A8se_sonore_soustractive" title="Synthèse sonore soustractive – French" lang="fr" hreflang="fr" data-title="Synthèse sonore soustractive" data-language-autonym="Français" data-language-local-name="French" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>Français</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-ko mw-list-item"><a href="https://ko.wikipedia.org/wiki/%EA%B0%90%EC%82%B0_%ED%95%A9%EC%84%B1" title="감산 합성 – Korean" lang="ko" hreflang="ko" data-title="감산 합성" data-language-autonym="한국어" data-language-local-name="Korean" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>한국어</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-it mw-list-item"><a href="https://it.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sintesi_sottrattiva_(musica_elettronica)" title="Sintesi sottrattiva (musica elettronica) – Italian" lang="it" hreflang="it" data-title="Sintesi sottrattiva (musica elettronica)" data-language-autonym="Italiano" data-language-local-name="Italian" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>Italiano</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-nl mw-list-item"><a href="https://nl.wikipedia.org/wiki/Subtractieve_synthese" title="Subtractieve synthese – Dutch" lang="nl" hreflang="nl" data-title="Subtractieve synthese" data-language-autonym="Nederlands" data-language-local-name="Dutch" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>Nederlands</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-ja mw-list-item"><a href="https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E6%B8%9B%E7%AE%97%E6%96%B9%E5%BC%8F" title="減算方式 – Japanese" lang="ja" hreflang="ja" data-title="減算方式" data-language-autonym="日本語" 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data-mw-ve-target-container> <div class="vector-body-before-content"> <div class="mw-indicators"> </div> <div id="siteSub" class="noprint">From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia</div> </div> <div id="contentSub"><div id="mw-content-subtitle"></div></div> <div id="mw-content-text" class="mw-body-content"><div class="mw-content-ltr mw-parser-output" lang="en" dir="ltr"><div class="shortdescription nomobile noexcerpt noprint searchaux" style="display:none">Method of sound synthesis</div> <p><b>Subtractive synthesis</b> is a method of <a href="/wiki/Sound_synthesis" class="mw-redirect" title="Sound synthesis">sound synthesis</a> in which <a href="/wiki/Harmonic_series_(music)#Partial.2C_harmonic.2C_fundamental.2C_inharmonicity.2C_and_overtone" title="Harmonic series (music)">overtones</a> of an audio signal are attenuated by a <a href="/wiki/Audio_filter" title="Audio filter">filter</a> to alter the <a href="/wiki/Timbre" title="Timbre">timbre</a> of the sound. </p> <meta property="mw:PageProp/toc" /> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading2"><h2 id="Overview">Overview</h2><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Subtractive_synthesis&amp;action=edit&amp;section=1" title="Edit section: Overview"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <p>Subtractive synthesis relies on source sounds that have overtones, such as <a href="/wiki/Sine_wave" title="Sine wave">non-sinusoidal waveforms</a> like <a href="/wiki/Square_wave" title="Square wave">square</a> and <a href="/wiki/Triangle_wave" title="Triangle wave">triangle waves</a>, or <a href="/wiki/White_noise" title="White noise">white</a> and <a href="/wiki/Pink_noise" title="Pink noise">pink noise</a>. These overtones are then <a href="/wiki/Modulation" title="Modulation">modulated</a> to alter the source sound. This modulation can happen in a wide variety of ways, such as <a href="/wiki/Voltage-controlled_filter" title="Voltage-controlled filter">voltage-controlled</a> or <a href="/wiki/Low-pass_filter" title="Low-pass filter">low-pass filters</a>.<sup id="cite_ref-JMR_1-0" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-JMR-1"><span class="cite-bracket">&#91;</span>1<span class="cite-bracket">&#93;</span></a></sup> </p><p>The technology developed in experimental electronic studios which were primarily focused on <a href="/wiki/Telecommunications" title="Telecommunications">telecommunications</a> and military applications.<sup id="cite_ref-2" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-2"><span class="cite-bracket">&#91;</span>2<span class="cite-bracket">&#93;</span></a></sup> Early examples include <a href="/wiki/Bell_Labs" title="Bell Labs">Bell Labs</a>' <a href="/wiki/Voder" title="Voder">Voder</a> (1937–8).<sup id="cite_ref-3" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-3"><span class="cite-bracket">&#91;</span>3<span class="cite-bracket">&#93;</span></a></sup> Composers began applying the concept of subtractive synthesis beyond the recording studio in concert music. <a href="/wiki/Henri_Pousseur" title="Henri Pousseur">Henri Pousseur</a>'s <i><a href="/wiki/Scambi" title="Scambi">Scambi</a></i> (1957) subjects white noise to filters and uses the resulting sounds to create montages. <i><a href="/wiki/Mikrophonie_(Stockhausen)#Mikrophonie_I" title="Mikrophonie (Stockhausen)">Mikrophonie I</a></i> (1964) by <a href="/wiki/Karlheinz_Stockhausen" title="Karlheinz Stockhausen">Karlheinz Stockhausen</a> uses a tam-tam and a microphone as the primary sound source which is then filtered extensively by two sound projectionists.<sup id="cite_ref-4" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-4"><span class="cite-bracket">&#91;</span>4<span class="cite-bracket">&#93;</span></a></sup> </p><p>Until the advent of <a href="/wiki/Digital_synthesizer" title="Digital synthesizer">digital synthesizers</a>, subtractive synthesis was the nearly universal electronic method of sound production.<sup id="cite_ref-5" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-5"><span class="cite-bracket">&#91;</span>5<span class="cite-bracket">&#93;</span></a></sup> Its popularity was due largely to its relative simplicity.<sup id="cite_ref-6" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-6"><span class="cite-bracket">&#91;</span>6<span class="cite-bracket">&#93;</span></a></sup> Subtractive synthesis was so prevalent in <a href="/wiki/Analog_synthesizer" title="Analog synthesizer">analog synthesizers</a> that it is sometimes called "analog synthesis".<sup id="cite_ref-KC_7-0" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-KC-7"><span class="cite-bracket">&#91;</span>7<span class="cite-bracket">&#93;</span></a></sup> It was the method of sound production in instruments like the <a href="/wiki/Trautonium" title="Trautonium">Trautonium</a> (1930), <a href="/wiki/Novachord" title="Novachord">Novachord</a> (1939), <a href="/wiki/Buchla_Electronic_Musical_Instruments#Buchla_100_series_(1960s)" title="Buchla Electronic Musical Instruments">Buchla 100</a> (1960s), <a href="/wiki/EMS_VCS_3" title="EMS VCS 3">EMS VCS 3</a> (1969), <a href="/wiki/Minimoog" title="Minimoog">Minimoog</a> (1970), <a href="/wiki/ARP_2600" title="ARP 2600">ARP 2600</a> (1971), <a href="/wiki/Oberheim_OB-1" title="Oberheim OB-1">Oberheim OB-1</a> (1978), and <a href="/wiki/Korg_MS-20" title="Korg MS-20">Korg MS-20 </a>(1978).<sup id="cite_ref-JMR_1-1" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-JMR-1"><span class="cite-bracket">&#91;</span>1<span class="cite-bracket">&#93;</span></a></sup><sup class="reference nowrap"><span title="Page / location: 71–4">&#58;&#8202;71–4&#8202;</span></sup> <a href="/wiki/Programmable_sound_generator" title="Programmable sound generator">Programmable sound generators</a> (PSG) relied heavily on subtractive synthesis. PSGs were used in many personal computers, arcade games, and home consoles such as the <a href="/wiki/Atari_ST" title="Atari ST">Atari ST</a>, <a href="/wiki/Mattel" title="Mattel">Mattel</a>'s <a href="/wiki/Intellivision" title="Intellivision">Intellivision</a>, <a href="/wiki/Sega" title="Sega">Sega</a>'s<a href="/wiki/Master_System" title="Master System">Master System</a>, and the <a href="/wiki/ZX_Spectrum" title="ZX Spectrum">ZX Spectrum</a>.<sup id="cite_ref-KC_7-1" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-KC-7"><span class="cite-bracket">&#91;</span>7<span class="cite-bracket">&#93;</span></a></sup> </p> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading2"><h2 id="Nomenclature">Nomenclature</h2><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Subtractive_synthesis&amp;action=edit&amp;section=2" title="Edit section: Nomenclature"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <p>Subtractive synthesis has become a catchall for a method where source sounds are modulated, and it is sometimes applied inappropriately.<sup id="cite_ref-8" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-8"><span class="cite-bracket">&#91;</span>8<span class="cite-bracket">&#93;</span></a></sup><sup id="cite_ref-9" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-9"><span class="cite-bracket">&#91;</span>9<span class="cite-bracket">&#93;</span></a></sup> </p> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading2"><h2 id="Method">Method</h2><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Subtractive_synthesis&amp;action=edit&amp;section=3" title="Edit section: Method"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <p>The following is an example of subtractive synthesis as it might occur in an electronic instrument to emulate the sound of a <a href="/wiki/Pizzicato" title="Pizzicato">plucked string</a>. It was created with a <a href="/wiki/Personal_computer" title="Personal computer">personal computer</a> program designed to emulate an analogue subtractive synthesizer. </p> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading3"><h3 id="Source_Sound">Source Sound</h3><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Subtractive_synthesis&amp;action=edit&amp;section=4" title="Edit section: Source Sound"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <p>First, an <a href="/wiki/Electronic_oscillator" title="Electronic oscillator">electronic oscillator</a> produces a relatively complex <a href="/wiki/Waveform" title="Waveform">waveform</a> with audible <a href="/wiki/Overtone" title="Overtone">overtones</a>. Only one oscillator is necessary, and the number can vary widely. In this case, two oscillators are used: </p> <table> <tbody><tr> <td><style data-mw-deduplicate="TemplateStyles:r1235681985">.mw-parser-output .side-box{margin:4px 0;box-sizing:border-box;border:1px solid #aaa;font-size:88%;line-height:1.25em;background-color:var(--background-color-interactive-subtle,#f8f9fa);display:flow-root}.mw-parser-output .side-box-abovebelow,.mw-parser-output .side-box-text{padding:0.25em 0.9em}.mw-parser-output .side-box-image{padding:2px 0 2px 0.9em;text-align:center}.mw-parser-output .side-box-imageright{padding:2px 0.9em 2px 0;text-align:center}@media(min-width:500px){.mw-parser-output .side-box-flex{display:flex;align-items:center}.mw-parser-output .side-box-text{flex:1;min-width:0}}@media(min-width:720px){.mw-parser-output .side-box{width:238px}.mw-parser-output .side-box-right{clear:right;float:right;margin-left:1em}.mw-parser-output .side-box-left{margin-right:1em}}</style><style data-mw-deduplicate="TemplateStyles:r1096940132">.mw-parser-output .listen .side-box-text{line-height:1.1em}.mw-parser-output .listen-plain{border:none;background:transparent}.mw-parser-output .listen-embedded{width:100%;margin:0;border-width:1px 0 0 0;background:transparent}.mw-parser-output .listen-header{padding:2px}.mw-parser-output .listen-embedded .listen-header{padding:2px 0}.mw-parser-output .listen-file-header{padding:4px 0}.mw-parser-output .listen .description{padding-top:2px}.mw-parser-output .listen .mw-tmh-player{max-width:100%}@media(max-width:719px){.mw-parser-output .listen{clear:both}}@media(min-width:720px){.mw-parser-output .listen:not(.listen-noimage){width:320px}.mw-parser-output .listen-left{overflow:visible;float:left}.mw-parser-output .listen-center{float:none;margin-left:auto;margin-right:auto}}</style><div class="side-box side-box-right listen noprint"><style data-mw-deduplicate="TemplateStyles:r1126788409">.mw-parser-output .plainlist ol,.mw-parser-output .plainlist ul{line-height:inherit;list-style:none;margin:0;padding:0}.mw-parser-output .plainlist ol li,.mw-parser-output .plainlist ul li{margin-bottom:0}</style> <div class="side-box-flex"> <div class="side-box-image"><figure class="mw-halign-center" typeof="mw:File"><span><img alt="" src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/87/Gnome-mime-sound-openclipart.svg/50px-Gnome-mime-sound-openclipart.svg.png" decoding="async" width="50" height="50" class="mw-file-element" srcset="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/87/Gnome-mime-sound-openclipart.svg/75px-Gnome-mime-sound-openclipart.svg.png 1.5x, //upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/87/Gnome-mime-sound-openclipart.svg/100px-Gnome-mime-sound-openclipart.svg.png 2x" data-file-width="160" data-file-height="160" /></span><figcaption></figcaption></figure></div> <div class="side-box-text plainlist"><div class="haudio"> <div class="listen-file-header"><a href="/wiki/File:Subsynth-wave1.ogg" title="File:Subsynth-wave1.ogg">Waveform #1</a></div> <div><span typeof="mw:File"><span><audio id="mwe_player_0" controls="" preload="none" data-mw-tmh="" class="mw-file-element" width="232" style="width:232px;" data-durationhint="2" data-mwtitle="Subsynth-wave1.ogg" data-mwprovider="wikimediacommons"><source src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/36/Subsynth-wave1.ogg" type="audio/ogg; codecs=&quot;vorbis&quot;" data-width="0" data-height="0" /><source src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/transcoded/3/36/Subsynth-wave1.ogg/Subsynth-wave1.ogg.mp3" type="audio/mpeg" data-transcodekey="mp3" data-width="0" data-height="0" /></audio></span></span></div> <div class="description"></div></div></div></div> <div class="side-box-abovebelow"><hr /><i class="selfreference">Problems playing this file? See <a href="/wiki/Help:Media" title="Help:Media">media help</a>.</i></div> </div> </td> <td> <figure class="mw-default-size" typeof="mw:File/Thumb"><a href="/wiki/File:Waveform_1.jpg" class="mw-file-description"><img alt="Closeup view of waveform in the audio sample." src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/8e/Waveform_1.jpg/220px-Waveform_1.jpg" decoding="async" width="220" height="47" class="mw-file-element" srcset="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/8e/Waveform_1.jpg/330px-Waveform_1.jpg 1.5x, //upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/8e/Waveform_1.jpg/440px-Waveform_1.jpg 2x" data-file-width="1676" data-file-height="358" /></a><figcaption>Closeup <a href="/wiki/Oscilloscope" title="Oscilloscope">oscilloscope</a> of Waveform #1.</figcaption></figure> </td></tr> <tr> <td><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1235681985"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1096940132"><div class="side-box side-box-right listen noprint"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1126788409"> <div class="side-box-flex"> <div class="side-box-image"><figure class="mw-halign-center" typeof="mw:File"><span><img alt="" src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/87/Gnome-mime-sound-openclipart.svg/50px-Gnome-mime-sound-openclipart.svg.png" decoding="async" width="50" height="50" class="mw-file-element" srcset="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/87/Gnome-mime-sound-openclipart.svg/75px-Gnome-mime-sound-openclipart.svg.png 1.5x, //upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/87/Gnome-mime-sound-openclipart.svg/100px-Gnome-mime-sound-openclipart.svg.png 2x" data-file-width="160" data-file-height="160" /></span><figcaption></figcaption></figure></div> <div class="side-box-text plainlist"><div class="haudio"> <div class="listen-file-header"><a href="/wiki/File:Subsynth-wave2.ogg" title="File:Subsynth-wave2.ogg">Waveform #2</a></div> <div><span typeof="mw:File"><span><audio id="mwe_player_1" controls="" preload="none" data-mw-tmh="" class="mw-file-element" width="232" style="width:232px;" data-durationhint="2" data-mwtitle="Subsynth-wave2.ogg" data-mwprovider="wikimediacommons"><source src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/e7/Subsynth-wave2.ogg" type="audio/ogg; codecs=&quot;vorbis&quot;" data-width="0" data-height="0" /><source src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/transcoded/e/e7/Subsynth-wave2.ogg/Subsynth-wave2.ogg.mp3" type="audio/mpeg" data-transcodekey="mp3" data-width="0" data-height="0" /></audio></span></span></div> <div class="description"></div></div></div></div> </div> </td> <td> <figure class="mw-default-size" typeof="mw:File/Thumb"><a href="/wiki/File:Closeup_oscilloscope_of_Waveform_2.jpg" class="mw-file-description"><img alt="Closeup oscilloscope of Waveform #2." src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/e1/Closeup_oscilloscope_of_Waveform_2.jpg/220px-Closeup_oscilloscope_of_Waveform_2.jpg" decoding="async" width="220" height="54" class="mw-file-element" srcset="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/e1/Closeup_oscilloscope_of_Waveform_2.jpg/330px-Closeup_oscilloscope_of_Waveform_2.jpg 1.5x, //upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/e1/Closeup_oscilloscope_of_Waveform_2.jpg/440px-Closeup_oscilloscope_of_Waveform_2.jpg 2x" data-file-width="1464" data-file-height="358" /></a><figcaption>Closeup oscilloscope of Waveform #2.</figcaption></figure> </td></tr></tbody></table> <p><a href="/wiki/Pulse-width_modulation" title="Pulse-width modulation">Pulse-width modulation</a> is applied to both waveforms to create a more complex tone with <a href="/wiki/Vibrato" title="Vibrato">vibrato</a>: </p> <table> <tbody><tr> <td><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1235681985"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1096940132"><div class="side-box side-box-right listen noprint"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1126788409"> <div class="side-box-flex"> <div class="side-box-image"><figure class="mw-halign-center" typeof="mw:File"><span><img alt="" src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/87/Gnome-mime-sound-openclipart.svg/50px-Gnome-mime-sound-openclipart.svg.png" decoding="async" width="50" height="50" class="mw-file-element" srcset="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/87/Gnome-mime-sound-openclipart.svg/75px-Gnome-mime-sound-openclipart.svg.png 1.5x, //upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/87/Gnome-mime-sound-openclipart.svg/100px-Gnome-mime-sound-openclipart.svg.png 2x" data-file-width="160" data-file-height="160" /></span><figcaption></figcaption></figure></div> <div class="side-box-text plainlist"><div class="haudio"> <div class="listen-file-header"><a href="/wiki/File:Subsynth-wave1pwm.ogg" title="File:Subsynth-wave1pwm.ogg">PWM waveform #1</a></div> <div><span typeof="mw:File"><span><audio id="mwe_player_2" controls="" preload="none" data-mw-tmh="" class="mw-file-element" width="232" style="width:232px;" data-durationhint="2" data-mwtitle="Subsynth-wave1pwm.ogg" data-mwprovider="wikimediacommons"><source src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/be/Subsynth-wave1pwm.ogg" type="audio/ogg; codecs=&quot;vorbis&quot;" data-width="0" data-height="0" /><source src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/transcoded/b/be/Subsynth-wave1pwm.ogg/Subsynth-wave1pwm.ogg.mp3" type="audio/mpeg" data-transcodekey="mp3" data-width="0" data-height="0" /></audio></span></span></div> <div class="description"></div></div></div></div> </div> </td> <td> <figure class="mw-default-size" typeof="mw:File/Thumb"><a href="/wiki/File:Closeup_of_pulse-width_modulated_Waveform_1.jpg" class="mw-file-description"><img alt="Closeup of pulse-width modulated Waveform 1." src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/9/9c/Closeup_of_pulse-width_modulated_Waveform_1.jpg/220px-Closeup_of_pulse-width_modulated_Waveform_1.jpg" decoding="async" width="220" height="48" class="mw-file-element" srcset="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/9/9c/Closeup_of_pulse-width_modulated_Waveform_1.jpg/330px-Closeup_of_pulse-width_modulated_Waveform_1.jpg 1.5x, //upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/9/9c/Closeup_of_pulse-width_modulated_Waveform_1.jpg/440px-Closeup_of_pulse-width_modulated_Waveform_1.jpg 2x" data-file-width="1658" data-file-height="358" /></a><figcaption>Closeup of pulse-width modulated Waveform 1.</figcaption></figure> </td></tr> <tr> <td><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1235681985"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1096940132"><div class="side-box side-box-right listen noprint"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1126788409"> <div class="side-box-flex"> <div class="side-box-image"><figure class="mw-halign-center" typeof="mw:File"><span><img alt="" src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/87/Gnome-mime-sound-openclipart.svg/50px-Gnome-mime-sound-openclipart.svg.png" decoding="async" width="50" height="50" class="mw-file-element" srcset="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/87/Gnome-mime-sound-openclipart.svg/75px-Gnome-mime-sound-openclipart.svg.png 1.5x, //upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/87/Gnome-mime-sound-openclipart.svg/100px-Gnome-mime-sound-openclipart.svg.png 2x" data-file-width="160" data-file-height="160" /></span><figcaption></figcaption></figure></div> <div class="side-box-text plainlist"><div class="haudio"> <div class="listen-file-header"><a href="/wiki/File:Subsynth-wave2pwm.ogg" title="File:Subsynth-wave2pwm.ogg">PWM waveform #2</a></div> <div><span typeof="mw:File"><span><audio id="mwe_player_3" controls="" preload="none" data-mw-tmh="" class="mw-file-element" width="232" style="width:232px;" data-durationhint="2" data-mwtitle="Subsynth-wave2pwm.ogg" data-mwprovider="wikimediacommons"><source src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/92/Subsynth-wave2pwm.ogg" type="audio/ogg; codecs=&quot;vorbis&quot;" data-width="0" data-height="0" /><source src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/transcoded/9/92/Subsynth-wave2pwm.ogg/Subsynth-wave2pwm.ogg.mp3" type="audio/mpeg" data-transcodekey="mp3" data-width="0" data-height="0" /></audio></span></span></div> <div class="description"></div></div></div></div> </div> </td> <td> <figure class="mw-default-size" typeof="mw:File/Thumb"><a href="/wiki/File:Closeup_of_pulse-width_modulated_Waveform_2.jpg" class="mw-file-description"><img alt="Closeup of pulse-width modulated Waveform 2." src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/f4/Closeup_of_pulse-width_modulated_Waveform_2.jpg/220px-Closeup_of_pulse-width_modulated_Waveform_2.jpg" decoding="async" width="220" height="52" class="mw-file-element" srcset="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/f4/Closeup_of_pulse-width_modulated_Waveform_2.jpg/330px-Closeup_of_pulse-width_modulated_Waveform_2.jpg 1.5x, //upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/f4/Closeup_of_pulse-width_modulated_Waveform_2.jpg/440px-Closeup_of_pulse-width_modulated_Waveform_2.jpg 2x" data-file-width="1504" data-file-height="358" /></a><figcaption>Closeup of pulse-width modulated Waveform 2.</figcaption></figure> </td></tr></tbody></table> <p>The pulse-width modulated sounds are now combined at equal volume. Combining them at different volumes would create different timbres. The result is a 2-second <b>source sound</b>, which is ready for subtractive synthesis. </p> <table> <tbody><tr> <td><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1235681985"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1096940132"><div class="side-box side-box-right listen noprint"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1126788409"> <div class="side-box-flex"> <div class="side-box-image"><figure class="mw-halign-center" typeof="mw:File"><span><img alt="" src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/87/Gnome-mime-sound-openclipart.svg/50px-Gnome-mime-sound-openclipart.svg.png" decoding="async" width="50" height="50" class="mw-file-element" srcset="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/87/Gnome-mime-sound-openclipart.svg/75px-Gnome-mime-sound-openclipart.svg.png 1.5x, //upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/87/Gnome-mime-sound-openclipart.svg/100px-Gnome-mime-sound-openclipart.svg.png 2x" data-file-width="160" data-file-height="160" /></span><figcaption></figcaption></figure></div> <div class="side-box-text plainlist"><div class="haudio"> <div class="listen-file-header"><a href="/wiki/File:Subsynth-wavemix.ogg" title="File:Subsynth-wavemix.ogg">Combined waveforms</a></div> <div><span typeof="mw:File"><span><audio id="mwe_player_4" controls="" preload="none" data-mw-tmh="" class="mw-file-element" width="232" style="width:232px;" data-durationhint="2" data-mwtitle="Subsynth-wavemix.ogg" data-mwprovider="wikimediacommons"><source src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/7c/Subsynth-wavemix.ogg" type="audio/ogg; codecs=&quot;vorbis&quot;" data-width="0" data-height="0" /><source src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/transcoded/7/7c/Subsynth-wavemix.ogg/Subsynth-wavemix.ogg.mp3" type="audio/mpeg" data-transcodekey="mp3" data-width="0" data-height="0" /></audio></span></span></div> <div class="description"></div></div></div></div> <div class="side-box-abovebelow"><hr /><i class="selfreference">Problems playing this file? See <a href="/wiki/Help:Media" title="Help:Media">media help</a>.</i></div> </div> </td> <td> <figure class="mw-default-size" typeof="mw:File/Thumb"><a href="/wiki/File:Combined_waveforms_and_pulse-width_modulation.jpg" class="mw-file-description"><img alt="Combined waveforms and pulse-width modulation." src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/c1/Combined_waveforms_and_pulse-width_modulation.jpg/220px-Combined_waveforms_and_pulse-width_modulation.jpg" decoding="async" width="220" height="48" class="mw-file-element" srcset="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/c1/Combined_waveforms_and_pulse-width_modulation.jpg/330px-Combined_waveforms_and_pulse-width_modulation.jpg 1.5x, //upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/c1/Combined_waveforms_and_pulse-width_modulation.jpg/440px-Combined_waveforms_and_pulse-width_modulation.jpg 2x" data-file-width="1634" data-file-height="358" /></a><figcaption>Combined waveforms and pulse-width modulation.</figcaption></figure> </td></tr></tbody></table> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading3"><h3 id="Subtractive_Synthesis">Subtractive Synthesis</h3><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Subtractive_synthesis&amp;action=edit&amp;section=5" title="Edit section: Subtractive Synthesis"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <p>The combined wave is passed through a <a href="/wiki/Voltage-controlled_amplifier" class="mw-redirect" title="Voltage-controlled amplifier">voltage-controlled amplifier</a> connected to an <a href="/wiki/Envelope_(music)#ADSR" title="Envelope (music)">envelope generator</a>. The parameters of the sound's envelope (attack, decay, sustain and release) are manipulated to change its sound. In this case, the decay is vastly increased, sustain is reduced, and the release shortened. The resulting sound is audible for half as long as the source sound: </p> <table> <tbody><tr> <td><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1235681985"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1096940132"><div class="side-box side-box-right listen noprint"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1126788409"> <div class="side-box-flex"> <div class="side-box-image"><figure class="mw-halign-center" typeof="mw:File"><span><img alt="" src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/87/Gnome-mime-sound-openclipart.svg/50px-Gnome-mime-sound-openclipart.svg.png" decoding="async" width="50" height="50" class="mw-file-element" srcset="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/87/Gnome-mime-sound-openclipart.svg/75px-Gnome-mime-sound-openclipart.svg.png 1.5x, //upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/87/Gnome-mime-sound-openclipart.svg/100px-Gnome-mime-sound-openclipart.svg.png 2x" data-file-width="160" data-file-height="160" /></span><figcaption></figcaption></figure></div> <div class="side-box-text plainlist"><div class="haudio"> <div class="listen-file-header"><a href="/wiki/File:Subsynth-mixenv.ogg" title="File:Subsynth-mixenv.ogg">Enveloped sound</a></div> <div><span typeof="mw:File"><span><audio id="mwe_player_5" controls="" preload="none" data-mw-tmh="" class="mw-file-element" width="232" style="width:232px;" data-durationhint="2" data-mwtitle="Subsynth-mixenv.ogg" data-mwprovider="wikimediacommons"><source src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/d4/Subsynth-mixenv.ogg" type="audio/ogg; codecs=&quot;vorbis&quot;" data-width="0" data-height="0" /><source src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/transcoded/d/d4/Subsynth-mixenv.ogg/Subsynth-mixenv.ogg.mp3" type="audio/mpeg" data-transcodekey="mp3" data-width="0" data-height="0" /></audio></span></span></div> <div class="description"></div></div></div></div> </div> </td> <td> <figure class="mw-default-size" typeof="mw:File/Thumb"><a href="/wiki/File:Enveloped_waveform.jpg" class="mw-file-description"><img alt="Enveloped waveform." src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/f1/Enveloped_waveform.jpg/220px-Enveloped_waveform.jpg" decoding="async" width="220" height="49" class="mw-file-element" srcset="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/f1/Enveloped_waveform.jpg/330px-Enveloped_waveform.jpg 1.5x, //upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/f1/Enveloped_waveform.jpg/440px-Enveloped_waveform.jpg 2x" data-file-width="1612" data-file-height="358" /></a><figcaption>Enveloped waveform.</figcaption></figure> </td></tr></tbody></table> <p>With its new envelope, the sound is run through a <a href="/wiki/Low-pass_filter" title="Low-pass filter">low-pass filter</a>, which reduces the volume of higher overtones: </p> <table> <tbody><tr> <td><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1235681985"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1096940132"><div class="side-box side-box-right listen noprint"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1126788409"> <div class="side-box-flex"> <div class="side-box-image"><figure class="mw-halign-center" typeof="mw:File"><span><img alt="" src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/87/Gnome-mime-sound-openclipart.svg/50px-Gnome-mime-sound-openclipart.svg.png" decoding="async" width="50" height="50" class="mw-file-element" srcset="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/87/Gnome-mime-sound-openclipart.svg/75px-Gnome-mime-sound-openclipart.svg.png 1.5x, //upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/87/Gnome-mime-sound-openclipart.svg/100px-Gnome-mime-sound-openclipart.svg.png 2x" data-file-width="160" data-file-height="160" /></span><figcaption></figcaption></figure></div> <div class="side-box-text plainlist"><div class="haudio"> <div class="listen-file-header"><a href="/wiki/File:Subsynth-nomodfilter.ogg" title="File:Subsynth-nomodfilter.ogg">Low-passed sound</a></div> <div><span typeof="mw:File"><span><audio id="mwe_player_6" controls="" preload="none" data-mw-tmh="" class="mw-file-element" width="232" style="width:232px;" data-durationhint="2" data-mwtitle="Subsynth-nomodfilter.ogg" data-mwprovider="wikimediacommons"><source src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/d4/Subsynth-nomodfilter.ogg" type="audio/ogg; codecs=&quot;vorbis&quot;" data-width="0" data-height="0" /><source src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/transcoded/d/d4/Subsynth-nomodfilter.ogg/Subsynth-nomodfilter.ogg.mp3" type="audio/mpeg" data-transcodekey="mp3" data-width="0" data-height="0" /></audio></span></span></div> <div class="description"></div></div></div></div> </div> </td> <td> <figure class="mw-default-size" typeof="mw:File/Thumb"><a href="/wiki/File:Low-pass_filtered_waveform.jpg" class="mw-file-description"><img alt="Low-pass filtered waveform." src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/89/Low-pass_filtered_waveform.jpg/220px-Low-pass_filtered_waveform.jpg" decoding="async" width="220" height="49" class="mw-file-element" srcset="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/89/Low-pass_filtered_waveform.jpg/330px-Low-pass_filtered_waveform.jpg 1.5x, //upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/89/Low-pass_filtered_waveform.jpg/440px-Low-pass_filtered_waveform.jpg 2x" data-file-width="1612" data-file-height="358" /></a><figcaption>Closeup of low-pass filtered waveform.</figcaption></figure> </td></tr></tbody></table> <p>To better emulate the sound of a plucked string, the filter's <a href="/wiki/Cutoff_frequency" title="Cutoff frequency">cutoff frequency</a> is lowered. </p> <table> <tbody><tr> <td><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1235681985"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1096940132"><div class="side-box side-box-right listen noprint"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1126788409"> <div class="side-box-flex"> <div class="side-box-image"><figure class="mw-halign-center" typeof="mw:File"><span><img alt="" src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/87/Gnome-mime-sound-openclipart.svg/50px-Gnome-mime-sound-openclipart.svg.png" decoding="async" width="50" height="50" class="mw-file-element" srcset="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/87/Gnome-mime-sound-openclipart.svg/75px-Gnome-mime-sound-openclipart.svg.png 1.5x, //upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/87/Gnome-mime-sound-openclipart.svg/100px-Gnome-mime-sound-openclipart.svg.png 2x" data-file-width="160" data-file-height="160" /></span><figcaption></figcaption></figure></div> <div class="side-box-text plainlist"><div class="haudio"> <div class="listen-file-header"><a href="/wiki/File:Subsynth-modfilter.ogg" title="File:Subsynth-modfilter.ogg">Final sound</a></div> <div><span typeof="mw:File"><span><audio id="mwe_player_7" controls="" preload="none" data-mw-tmh="" class="mw-file-element" width="232" style="width:232px;" data-durationhint="2" data-mwtitle="Subsynth-modfilter.ogg" data-mwprovider="wikimediacommons"><source src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/5c/Subsynth-modfilter.ogg" type="audio/ogg; codecs=&quot;vorbis&quot;" data-width="0" data-height="0" /><source src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/transcoded/5/5c/Subsynth-modfilter.ogg/Subsynth-modfilter.ogg.mp3" type="audio/mpeg" data-transcodekey="mp3" data-width="0" data-height="0" /></audio></span></span></div> <div class="description"></div></div></div></div> </div> </td> <td> <figure class="mw-default-size" typeof="mw:File/Thumb"><a href="/wiki/File:Final_waveform.jpg" class="mw-file-description"><img alt="Final waveform" src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/fc/Final_waveform.jpg/220px-Final_waveform.jpg" decoding="async" width="220" height="47" class="mw-file-element" srcset="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/fc/Final_waveform.jpg/330px-Final_waveform.jpg 1.5x, //upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/fc/Final_waveform.jpg/440px-Final_waveform.jpg 2x" data-file-width="1678" data-file-height="358" /></a><figcaption>Closeup of final waveform</figcaption></figure> </td></tr> <tr> <td><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1235681985"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1096940132"><div class="side-box side-box-right listen noprint"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1126788409"> <div class="side-box-flex"> <div class="side-box-image"><figure class="mw-halign-center" typeof="mw:File"><span><img alt="" src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/87/Gnome-mime-sound-openclipart.svg/50px-Gnome-mime-sound-openclipart.svg.png" decoding="async" width="50" height="50" class="mw-file-element" srcset="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/87/Gnome-mime-sound-openclipart.svg/75px-Gnome-mime-sound-openclipart.svg.png 1.5x, //upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/87/Gnome-mime-sound-openclipart.svg/100px-Gnome-mime-sound-openclipart.svg.png 2x" data-file-width="160" data-file-height="160" /></span><figcaption></figcaption></figure></div> <div class="side-box-text plainlist"><div class="haudio"> <div class="listen-file-header"><a href="/wiki/File:Subsynth-arpeggios.ogg" title="File:Subsynth-arpeggios.ogg">Some arpeggios</a></div> <div><span typeof="mw:File"><span><audio id="mwe_player_8" controls="" preload="none" data-mw-tmh="" class="mw-file-element" width="232" style="width:232px;" data-durationhint="14" data-mwtitle="Subsynth-arpeggios.ogg" data-mwprovider="wikimediacommons"><source src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/05/Subsynth-arpeggios.ogg" type="audio/ogg; codecs=&quot;vorbis&quot;" data-width="0" data-height="0" /><source src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/transcoded/0/05/Subsynth-arpeggios.ogg/Subsynth-arpeggios.ogg.mp3" type="audio/mpeg" data-transcodekey="mp3" data-width="0" data-height="0" /></audio></span></span></div> <div class="description"></div></div></div></div> </div> </td></tr></tbody></table> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading2"><h2 id="See_also">See also</h2><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Subtractive_synthesis&amp;action=edit&amp;section=6" title="Edit section: See also"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Additive_synthesis" title="Additive synthesis">Additive synthesis</a>&#160;– Sound synthesis technique</li> <li><a href="/wiki/Minimoog" title="Minimoog">Minimoog</a>&#160;– Analog synthesizer manufactured by Moog Music</li> <li><a href="/wiki/MicroKorg" class="mw-redirect" title="MicroKorg">MicroKorg</a>&#160;– Synthesizer released in 2002<span style="display:none" class="category-annotation-with-redirected-description">Pages displaying short descriptions of redirect targets</span></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Modular_synthesizer" title="Modular synthesizer">Modular synthesizer</a>&#160;– Synthesizer composed of separate modules</li> <li><a href="/wiki/Korg_MS-20" title="Korg MS-20">Korg MS-20</a>&#160;– Patchable semi-modular monophonic analog synthesizer</li> <li><a href="/wiki/Novachord" title="Novachord">Novachord</a>&#160;– Keyboard electronic music synthesizer (1939–1942)</li> <li><a href="/wiki/Steiner-Parker_Synthacon" title="Steiner-Parker Synthacon">Steiner-Parker Synthacon</a>&#160;– Monophonic analog synthesizer</li> <li><a href="/wiki/OSC_OSCar" title="OSC OSCar">OSC OSCar</a>&#160;– synthesizer manufactured by the Oxford Synthesizer Company<span style="display:none" class="category-wikidata-fallback-annotation">Pages displaying wikidata descriptions as a fallback</span></li></ul> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading2"><h2 id="References">References</h2><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Subtractive_synthesis&amp;action=edit&amp;section=7" title="Edit section: References"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <style data-mw-deduplicate="TemplateStyles:r1239543626">.mw-parser-output .reflist{margin-bottom:0.5em;list-style-type:decimal}@media screen{.mw-parser-output .reflist{font-size:90%}}.mw-parser-output .reflist .references{font-size:100%;margin-bottom:0;list-style-type:inherit}.mw-parser-output .reflist-columns-2{column-width:30em}.mw-parser-output .reflist-columns-3{column-width:25em}.mw-parser-output .reflist-columns{margin-top:0.3em}.mw-parser-output .reflist-columns ol{margin-top:0}.mw-parser-output .reflist-columns li{page-break-inside:avoid;break-inside:avoid-column}.mw-parser-output .reflist-upper-alpha{list-style-type:upper-alpha}.mw-parser-output .reflist-upper-roman{list-style-type:upper-roman}.mw-parser-output .reflist-lower-alpha{list-style-type:lower-alpha}.mw-parser-output .reflist-lower-greek{list-style-type:lower-greek}.mw-parser-output .reflist-lower-roman{list-style-type:lower-roman}</style><div class="reflist"> <div class="mw-references-wrap"><ol class="references"> <li id="cite_note-JMR-1"><span class="mw-cite-backlink">^ <a href="#cite_ref-JMR_1-0"><sup><i><b>a</b></i></sup></a> <a href="#cite_ref-JMR_1-1"><sup><i><b>b</b></i></sup></a></span> <span class="reference-text">Réveillac, Jean-Michel. <i>Synthesizers and Subtractive Synthesis 1</i>. <a href="/wiki/Wiley_(publisher)" title="Wiley (publisher)">John Wiley &amp; Sons</a>, 2024.</span> </li> <li id="cite_note-2"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-2">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text">Iverson, Jennifer. “Fraught Adjacencies: The Politics of German Electronic Music.” <i>Acta Musicologica</i>, vol. 92, no. 1, 2020. 94f.</span> </li> <li id="cite_note-3"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-3">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text">Dudley, Homer, Richard R. Riesz, and Stanley S. A. Watkins. “A Synthetic Speaker.” <i>Journal of the Franklin Institute</i> 227, no. 6 (1939): 739–64.</span> </li> <li id="cite_note-4"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-4">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text">Manning, Peter. <i>Electronic and Computer Music</i>, Oxford University Press, Incorporated, 2004. 70, 158.</span> </li> <li id="cite_note-5"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-5">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text">Bates, Jon. "The History of the World: Part One, Subtractive Synthesis". <i><a href="/wiki/Amiga_Format" title="Amiga Format">Amiga Format</a></i>, no. 4, 1989 Nov 01, 1989/11/01/, pp. 98.</span> </li> <li id="cite_note-6"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-6">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text">Lane, John, et al. “Modeling Analog Synthesis with DSPs.” <i>Computer Music Journal</i>, vol. 21, no. 4, 1997. 23.</span> </li> <li id="cite_note-KC-7"><span class="mw-cite-backlink">^ <a href="#cite_ref-KC_7-0"><sup><i><b>a</b></i></sup></a> <a href="#cite_ref-KC_7-1"><sup><i><b>b</b></i></sup></a></span> <span class="reference-text"><style data-mw-deduplicate="TemplateStyles:r1238218222">.mw-parser-output cite.citation{font-style:inherit;word-wrap:break-word}.mw-parser-output .citation q{quotes:"\"""\"""'""'"}.mw-parser-output .citation:target{background-color:rgba(0,127,255,0.133)}.mw-parser-output .id-lock-free.id-lock-free a{background:url("//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/65/Lock-green.svg")right 0.1em center/9px no-repeat}.mw-parser-output .id-lock-limited.id-lock-limited a,.mw-parser-output .id-lock-registration.id-lock-registration a{background:url("//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/d6/Lock-gray-alt-2.svg")right 0.1em center/9px no-repeat}.mw-parser-output .id-lock-subscription.id-lock-subscription a{background:url("//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/aa/Lock-red-alt-2.svg")right 0.1em center/9px no-repeat}.mw-parser-output .cs1-ws-icon a{background:url("//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/4c/Wikisource-logo.svg")right 0.1em center/12px no-repeat}body:not(.skin-timeless):not(.skin-minerva) .mw-parser-output .id-lock-free a,body:not(.skin-timeless):not(.skin-minerva) .mw-parser-output .id-lock-limited a,body:not(.skin-timeless):not(.skin-minerva) .mw-parser-output .id-lock-registration a,body:not(.skin-timeless):not(.skin-minerva) .mw-parser-output .id-lock-subscription a,body:not(.skin-timeless):not(.skin-minerva) .mw-parser-output .cs1-ws-icon a{background-size:contain;padding:0 1em 0 0}.mw-parser-output .cs1-code{color:inherit;background:inherit;border:none;padding:inherit}.mw-parser-output .cs1-hidden-error{display:none;color:var(--color-error,#d33)}.mw-parser-output .cs1-visible-error{color:var(--color-error,#d33)}.mw-parser-output .cs1-maint{display:none;color:#085;margin-left:0.3em}.mw-parser-output .cs1-kern-left{padding-left:0.2em}.mw-parser-output .cs1-kern-right{padding-right:0.2em}.mw-parser-output .citation .mw-selflink{font-weight:inherit}@media screen{.mw-parser-output .cs1-format{font-size:95%}html.skin-theme-clientpref-night .mw-parser-output .cs1-maint{color:#18911f}}@media screen and (prefers-color-scheme:dark){html.skin-theme-clientpref-os .mw-parser-output .cs1-maint{color:#18911f}}</style><cite id="CITEREFCollins" class="citation book cs1">Collins, Karen. <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://books.google.com/books?id=gnw0Zb4St-wC&amp;pg=PA10"><i>Game Sound: An Introduction to the History, Theory, and Practice of Video Game Music and Sound Design</i></a>. MIT Press. p.&#160;10. <a href="/wiki/ISBN_(identifier)" class="mw-redirect" title="ISBN (identifier)">ISBN</a>&#160;<a href="/wiki/Special:BookSources/9780262033787" title="Special:BookSources/9780262033787"><bdi>9780262033787</bdi></a>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&amp;rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Abook&amp;rft.genre=book&amp;rft.btitle=Game+Sound%3A+An+Introduction+to+the+History%2C+Theory%2C+and+Practice+of+Video+Game+Music+and+Sound+Design&amp;rft.pages=10&amp;rft.pub=MIT+Press&amp;rft.isbn=9780262033787&amp;rft.aulast=Collins&amp;rft.aufirst=Karen&amp;rft_id=https%3A%2F%2Fbooks.google.com%2Fbooks%3Fid%3Dgnw0Zb4St-wC%26pg%3DPA10&amp;rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3ASubtractive+synthesis" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-8"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-8">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text">de Poli, Giovanni. “A Tutorial on Digital Sound Synthesis Techniques.” <i><a href="/wiki/Computer_Music_Journal" title="Computer Music Journal">Computer Music Journal</a></i>, vol. 7, no. 4, 1983. 14.</span> </li> <li id="cite_note-9"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-9">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text">Stefanakis, Nikolaos, et al. “Sound Synthesis Based on Ordinary Differential Equations.” <i>Computer Music Journal</i>, vol. 39, no. 3, 2015. 48.</span> </li> </ol></div></div> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading2"><h2 id="External_links">External links</h2><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Subtractive_synthesis&amp;action=edit&amp;section=8" title="Edit section: External links"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <ul><li><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="http://alsamodular.sourceforge.net">AMS</a> – A free software synthesis program for <a href="/wiki/ALSA_(Linux)" class="mw-redirect" title="ALSA (Linux)">ALSA</a>.</li></ul> <div class="navbox-styles"><style data-mw-deduplicate="TemplateStyles:r1129693374">.mw-parser-output .hlist dl,.mw-parser-output .hlist ol,.mw-parser-output .hlist ul{margin:0;padding:0}.mw-parser-output .hlist dd,.mw-parser-output .hlist dt,.mw-parser-output .hlist li{margin:0;display:inline}.mw-parser-output .hlist.inline,.mw-parser-output .hlist.inline dl,.mw-parser-output .hlist.inline ol,.mw-parser-output .hlist.inline ul,.mw-parser-output .hlist dl dl,.mw-parser-output .hlist dl ol,.mw-parser-output .hlist dl ul,.mw-parser-output .hlist ol dl,.mw-parser-output .hlist ol ol,.mw-parser-output .hlist ol ul,.mw-parser-output .hlist ul dl,.mw-parser-output .hlist ul ol,.mw-parser-output .hlist ul ul{display:inline}.mw-parser-output .hlist .mw-empty-li{display:none}.mw-parser-output .hlist dt::after{content:": "}.mw-parser-output .hlist dd::after,.mw-parser-output .hlist li::after{content:" · ";font-weight:bold}.mw-parser-output .hlist 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abbr{color:var(--color-base)!important}@media(prefers-color-scheme:dark){html.skin-theme-clientpref-os .mw-parser-output .navbar li a abbr{color:var(--color-base)!important}}@media print{.mw-parser-output .navbar{display:none!important}}</style><div class="navbar plainlinks hlist navbar-mini"><ul><li class="nv-view"><a href="/wiki/Template:Sound_synthesis_types" title="Template:Sound synthesis types"><abbr title="View this template">v</abbr></a></li><li class="nv-talk"><a href="/wiki/Template_talk:Sound_synthesis_types" title="Template talk:Sound synthesis types"><abbr title="Discuss this template">t</abbr></a></li><li class="nv-edit"><a href="/wiki/Special:EditPage/Template:Sound_synthesis_types" title="Special:EditPage/Template:Sound synthesis types"><abbr title="Edit this template">e</abbr></a></li></ul></div><div id="Sound_synthesis_types" style="font-size:114%;margin:0 4em"><a href="/wiki/Synthesizer" title="Synthesizer">Sound synthesis</a> types</div></th></tr><tr><td class="navbox-abovebelow" colspan="2"><div> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Frequency_modulation_synthesis" title="Frequency modulation synthesis">Frequency modulation</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Linear_arithmetic_synthesis" title="Linear arithmetic synthesis">Linear arithmetic</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Phase_distortion_synthesis" title="Phase distortion synthesis">Phase distortion</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Scanned_synthesis" title="Scanned synthesis">Scanned</a></li> <li><a class="mw-selflink selflink">Subtractive</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Additive_synthesis" title="Additive synthesis">Additive</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Distortion_synthesis" title="Distortion synthesis">Distortion</a></li></ul> </div></td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="navbox-group" style="width:1%"><a href="/wiki/Sample-based_synthesis" title="Sample-based synthesis">Sample-based</a> or <a href="/wiki/Sampler_(musical_instrument)" title="Sampler (musical instrument)">Sampler</a></th><td class="navbox-list-with-group navbox-list navbox-odd" style="width:100%;padding:0"><div style="padding:0 0.25em"> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Wavetable_synthesis" title="Wavetable synthesis">Wavetable</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Granular_synthesis" title="Granular synthesis">Granular</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Vector_synthesis" title="Vector synthesis">Vector</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Concatenative_synthesis" title="Concatenative synthesis">Concatenative</a></li></ul> </div></td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="navbox-group" style="width:1%"><a href="/wiki/Physical_modelling_synthesis" title="Physical modelling synthesis">Physical modelling</a></th><td class="navbox-list-with-group navbox-list navbox-even" style="width:100%;padding:0"><div style="padding:0 0.25em"> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Banded_waveguide_synthesis" title="Banded waveguide synthesis">Banded waveguide</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Digital_waveguide_synthesis" title="Digital waveguide synthesis">Digital waveguide</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Direct_digital_synthesizer" class="mw-redirect" title="Direct digital synthesizer">Direct digital</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Formant_synthesis" class="mw-redirect" title="Formant synthesis">Formant</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Karplus%E2%80%93Strong_string_synthesis" title="Karplus–Strong string synthesis">Karplus–Strong string</a></li></ul> </div></td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="navbox-group" style="width:1%"><a href="/wiki/Analog_synthesizer" title="Analog synthesizer">Analog synthesizer</a></th><td class="navbox-list-with-group navbox-list navbox-odd" style="width:100%;padding:0"><div style="padding:0 0.25em"> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Graphical_sound" title="Graphical sound">Graphical sound</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Modular_synthesizer" title="Modular synthesizer">Modular</a></li></ul> </div></td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="navbox-group" style="width:1%"><a href="/wiki/Digital_synthesizer" title="Digital synthesizer">Digital synthesizer</a></th><td class="navbox-list-with-group navbox-list navbox-even" style="width:100%;padding:0"><div style="padding:0 0.25em"> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Analog_modeling_synthesizer" title="Analog modeling synthesizer">Analog modeling</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Scanned_synthesis" title="Scanned synthesis">Scanned synthesis</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Software_synthesizer" title="Software synthesizer">Software synthesizer</a></li></ul> </div></td></tr></tbody></table></div> <!-- NewPP limit report Parsed by mw‐web.codfw.main‐697b7966c5‐zwgj8 Cached time: 20241126192004 Cache expiry: 2592000 Reduced expiry: false Complications: [vary‐revision‐sha1, show‐toc] CPU time usage: 0.482 seconds Real time usage: 0.658 seconds Preprocessor visited node count: 2211/1000000 Post‐expand include size: 26039/2097152 bytes Template argument size: 629/2097152 bytes Highest expansion depth: 16/100 Expensive parser function count: 10/500 Unstrip recursion depth: 1/20 Unstrip post‐expand size: 35446/5000000 bytes Lua 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