u/FineIncrements

Free browser-based algorithmic wavetable generator has a "Multi-X" family that lets you sweep up the harmonic series on a held note - works with Serum, Vital, Pigments, Massive, etc. [RECIPE]

Free browser-based algorithmic wavetable generator has a "Multi-X" family that lets you sweep up the harmonic series on a held note - works with Serum, Vital, Pigments, Massive, etc. [RECIPE]

Hey r/synthrecipes,

Full disclosure up front: I built this. Posting because the core algorithms do something unique, and it's directly useful for sound design.

The tool runs in the browser. You build a wavetable as a timeline of segments - each segment runs an algorithm with parameters that evolve across the segment's frames.

The synth recipe given is about a family of algorithms called Multi-X: Multi-Sine, Multi-Triangle, Multi-Square, Multi-Saw, plus more complex variants like Multi-PWM, Multi-Pulse, Multi-Sync, Multi-Fold, Multi-FM, Multi-Gaussian, Multi-Ramp, Multi-Sinc, Multi-Ripples, Multi-Peak/Trough.

What "Multi" means here: each frame contains N repeating copies of the source shape, packed into the cycle. A "count" is equal to a half-shape. So a Multi-Sine frame with count=8 is four sine cycles inside one wavetable cycle - which is the 4th harmonic of the wavetable's fundamental. A frame with count=16 is the 8th harmonic. Same idea for the other shapes, just with more complex source spectra per unit.

The sweep dimension: every Multi-X algorithm exposes a Start Count and End Count. The segment morphs the unit count from start to end across its frames. So if you set Start Count = 2 and End Count = 16, frame 1 is one copy of the source shape (the fundamental), the final frame is 8 copies stacked, and the intermediate frames crossfade through every integer count in between.

The perceptual result: hold a single MIDI note and sweep WT position. The pitch climbs the harmonic series - fundamental, octave, octave+fifth, two octaves, two octaves+major third, two octaves+fifth, and so on. The fingered note stays where it is at the bottom of the table and gets progressively masked by louder higher harmonics as you sweep up.

This is unusual for a wavetable. Most generators produce tables that morph timbre while keeping perceived pitch roughly constant. Multi-X intentionally does the opposite, and because it works across every algorithm in the family, you can pitch-climb through any source character you want: clean sinusoidal partials (Multi-Sine), buzzy harmonic stacks (Multi-Saw, Multi-Square), FM bells (Multi-FM), formant-shaped peaks (Multi-Gaussian), and so on.

There are also various standalone algorithms unrelated to this recipe.

A recipe to try:

Load a Multi-Sine segment, set Start Count = 1, End Count = 16, export at 256 frames × 2048 samples, load into Serum or Vital as an oscillator. Hold a low C. Now:

  • Harmonic-series arpeggios without an arpeggiator. Modulate WT position with a tempo-synced stepped LFO (steps quantized to 8, 12, or 16). Each step lands on a different harmonic of the held root, so the "melody" is a harmonic-series sequence built into the oscillator itself.
  • Risers that don't require pitch bend. Modulate WT position with a slow upward ramp envelope on note-on. You get a rise up the harmonic series instead of a chromatic one.
  • Drone shifts. Set WT position to a slow random LFO scoped to a narrow range (say frames 60–120). The fundamental stays present underneath while different upper partials rise and fall in prominence. Effectively a harmonic-series shimmer that doesn't repeat.

Link: https://www.fineincrements.com/free-wavetable-generator

Heads up: there's an email gate on the tool page. Enter an email and you're in - no need to subscribe if you don't want, no payment, no account, no export limits. If you'd rather not, totally understand, didn't want anyone to find out about it after a click.

Context if it matters: this started as a companion utility for a wavetable-baed spectral filter plugin I make called Wavefield, and the included algorithms tend to produce Wavefield-friendly spectral motion. But standard .wav output means it works anywhere wavetables work. Happy to answer questions about any of the parameters or take feedback/requests.

u/FineIncrements — 14 days ago