NI Reveals New Massive X Details & Audio Demos

The latest Native blog going behind the scenes in the development of Massive X is here and this time it's all about oscillators. Hear the new audio demos and get the inside track...  

We recently posted about part one of a new blog series that Native Instruments is running covering the development of Massive X, the total rewrite of the company's flagshp software synth. You can read part 1 here: https://ask.audio/articles/massive-x-ni-reveals-behind-the-scenes-details Now, part 2 has arrived and it's all about the heart of the synth - its oscillator section. You can read the full blog using the link at the bottom of this page, but if you're in a hurry, here's a few choice extracts.

Massive X

"In the first MASSIVE X Lab, we gave you a rough overview of the instrument. This time we’re going much deeper – specifically, into the wavetable oscillators. Their powerful modes and sub-modes allow a lot of sonic variety, even when using the simplest wavetables. This is what we'll show with these two short videos. Bear in mind that they use quite simple wavetables, and feature absolutely no additional effects or processing, and offer just a tiny glimpse of the possibilities."

MASSIVE X features two wavetable oscillators. Both offer identical options, and have three Saturn controls. One always controls position, and displays the current wave shape in the center. Dialing clockwise and counterclockwise scrolls through the wavetable – you’ll see the wave respond accordingly. The behavior of the other two controls varies from mode to mode.

So, we have wavetables and modes. But that’s not the end of the oscillator section – in all modes, both wavetable oscillators can also be modulated by two dedicated phase modulators (each with six possible waveforms), and by an Aux modulator. The Aux modulator can take its source from another wavetable oscillator (so one can phase modulate the other), from the Insert Oscillators (see the first MASSIVE X Lab), or anything else you can send to the Aux via the audio routing system.

This combination of wavetables and modes gives you countless ways to create dynamic, exciting new sounds – and that’s before any additional processing, routing, or modulation is applied.

Hollin Jones was classically trained as a piano player but found the lure of blues and jazz too much to resist. Graduating from bands to composition then production, he relishes the chance to play anything with keys. A sometime lecturer in videographics, music production and photography post production, Hollin has been a freelance w... Read More

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