Evolvor for AudioCubes Screenshot
Requirements
Evolvor for AudioCubes requires one or more AudioCubes. To get any interesting effects going we recommend a set of 4 cubes. You can sign up to buy your cubes at http://land.percussa.com/live-pricing/
When you have AudioCubes, you have to update them to the latest firmware version, to make sure they can detect each other in a network (called topology detection). Get the latest firmware at http://www.percussa.com/downloads
Basic Concept and How Evolvor Works
Before reading further, you should read about the basic concept of evolvor and sign up to receive the software at http://land.percussa.com/audiocubes-evolvor/.
AudioCubes Evolvor is a simple lightweight MIDI LFO generator, which can generate 4 LFO signals, based on breakpoint functions (curves) you can design yourself in the software. Curves are summed to create the signals, based on the location and orientation of the AudioCubes.
The basic workflow is to connect one cube to your computer, which acts as a base station. You can then turn on other cubes without connecting them with a cable, and just put them next to this base station cube which stays connected. It will then detect the cubes you add to the “cube network” automatically.
Once this is done and the cubes all see and detect each other (they are next to each other and are communicating) you can assign colours to them and give each of them a different envelope / curve / low frequency oscillator waveform.
Finally, you can set their lead / follow behaviour (which cubes should sum other cubes’ LFO signals with their own), enable the oscillators (RUN checkboxes) and set cycle times (frequencies) for each of them.
To send the MIDI out for each of the cubes you choose the MIDI Output port you need to use for your favourite software or hardware synthesizer, at the bottom of the screen, as well as the MIDI channels you want to use.
Cube / Low Frequency Oscillator Settings
AudioCubes Colour Picker and Envelope Editor
Each cube is automatically linked to an envelope / curve / low frequency oscillator in the software. The top of each cube panel has a colour editor which you can use to assign colours to the cubes, for visual reference.
There is an editor for the curve at the top of the panel for the cube or oscillator you want to work with, as well as a checkbox to enable the oscillator (RUN) and a numeric display and dial to change the cycle time of the oscillator (= inverse of frequency). A button to clear the envelope is also available. To add points to the curve editor you can just click and drag, to remove points you can SHIFT-click them.
You can set a cycle time for each of the curves (envelopes) in the software, which determines the speed / frequency of the low frequency oscillators (LFOs).
Under each of the curve editors at the top of the screen there is a thin red bar with a black marker that scrolls from left to right when the oscillators are running (click the RUN checkboxes to make the oscillators run). This indicates the position of playback through the curve. You will notice that the position will move faster from left to right if the cycle time is reduced of the oscillator (= frequency is increased).
Cube Leading / Following
AudioCubes EVOLVOR Lead/Follow panel
Cubes can follow or lead. When leading, they just play back their own LFO waveform and send that to the MIDI out port as MIDI CC messages as the cubes are added to the cube network. When you take the cubes out of the network they stop sending the data.
When cubes are following they will add the LFO waveforms from other cubes to their own waveform, when you put them next to other cubes. Again, when you take them out of the network of cubes, they will stop sending. You can configure different cubes as leaders and followers to generate completely different variations of LFO waveforms. The more cubes are followers, of course the more chaotic the whole sound will become as multiple LFO Control signals are adding up to each other. You can watch which LFOs are adding up to other LFOs using the SOURCES checkboxes in the user interface of the software.
Using Evolvor with AudioCubes
The envelopes being played back can be controlled using AudioCubes: smart musical blocks, which you can put on your table and which can see each other’s location and orientation, and which are capable of displaying a colour (up to 4096 colour combinations). More info about AudioCubes and their many applications is available at http://www.percussa.com/
AudioCubes Evolvor Output Waveform Display
Each of the AudioCubes is linked to an LFO waveform automatically in Evolvor without having to configure anything. The AudioCubes let you easily and quickly experiment using the different LFO waveforms in Evolvor. You can add and remove LFO waveforms / oscillators by adding and removing AudioCubes, and you can mix and match LFOs by mixing and matching AudioCubes.
Using this one-on-one hardware user interface, you don’t have to look at the screen of your laptop anymore, there is no need for lots of clicking and pointing to experiment and play with LFOs, and you will discover fantastic new sounds using your favourite software and hardware synths, and put them through a whole new use and give them a new life.
Connecting and assigning AudioCubes
The moment you connect your first AudioCube, it will be assigned to Cube1 panel. As you turn on your other AudioCubes (and leave the first one connected with a cable), and you put them next to the first one, they will go from red to the colour that has been set in the software (when you first start the software 4 random colours have been assigned to the 4 cube panels).
So the basic startup method is, connect first cube, leave connected, turn on cube 2, 3, and 4 and place them next to the first cube (you can put them all in one row, they don’t have to be all next to the first cube as long as they can all see each other).
If you turn a cube off and then back on and put it back in the network, we recommend that you click the REASSIGN CUBES button – this will re-assign your four cubes to the editing panels labeled CUBE1 … CUBE4. You normally don’t need this feature, but it’s available in case you changed your cube setup or had to switch some cubes around for some reason.
Loading and Saving your work
Load / Save buttons for Evolvor
At the top left, you can save your settings, including velocity and semitone patterns, to a settings file, which is a simple text file containing all the data. This file is small and can be viewed and edited with a text editor if necessary and is easy to share online. You can load your settings file easily using the LOAD button.
More Information
In case you have questions or suggestions, feel free to post them using the form below.
For a screencast of Evolvor, please see http://land.percussa.com/audiocubes-evolvor/
Where to download
Evolvor is available from the Evolvor Application page at http://land.percussa.com/audiocubes-evolvor
