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FILTERS - WHAT ARE THEY AND HOW DO THEY WORK?

Brieflyexplained:
A filter allows you to remove unwanted frequencies and also allows you to boost certain frequencies. Which frequencies are removed and
whichfrequenciesareleftdependsonthetypeoffilteryouuse.
Beforewecanlistthedifferenttypesoffiltersandwhattheydo,thereareafewtermsanddefinitionsweneedtocover.Thesearecrucial
andareusedallthetimesoitisimportantthatyouknowwhatthesetermsareandwhattheymean.
CutofffrequencyThisisthepoint(frequency)atwhichthefilterbeginstofilter(blockorcutout).Thefilterwilllowerthevolumeofthe
frequencies above or below the cutoff frequency depending on the type of filter used. This lowering of the volume of the frequencies, is
calledAttenuation.Inthecaseofalowpassfilter,thefrequenciesabovethecutoffareattenuated.Inthecaseofahighpassfilter,the
frequenciesbelowthecutoffareattenuated.Putsimply:inthecaseofalowpassfilter,wearetryingtoblockthe(higher)frequenciesabove
a certain point and allow the lower frequencies through. In the case of a high pass filter, the opposite is true. We try to cut out or block
frequenciesbelowacertainpointandallowthehigherfrequenciesthrough.Onanaloguesynthesizersthiscutoffwascalledtheslope or
gradient.TheactualterminologywasmoreaccuratelydescribedastheRC(resistor/capacitor).
Analoguesusecircuitryandforthatreasonalone,ittakestimeforthefiltertoattenuatefrequencies,inproportiontothedistancefromthe
cutoffpoint.Todaystechnologyallowsforinstantcutoffasthefilterattenuationisdeterminedbyalgorithmsasopposedtocircuits.That
iswhythefiltersoffanArporOscaretc,aresomuchmoreexpressiveandwarmastheyrelycompletelyontheresistorsandcapacitorsto,
firstwarmup,thentoworkbutinagradualmode(gradualmeaningslopedorcurvedasopposedtoinstant).Dependingonhowwellafilter
attenuatesorthewayitattenuatesgivesusanideaofthetypeofsoundwewillachievewithananaloguefilter.Y ouoftenhearsomeonesay
ThatRolandiswarmmanorMan,isthatArppunchy.ThesearestatementsthatexplainhowaRolandsfilterssoundorhowpotentthe
Arpsfiltersare.So,thespeedatwhichthefilterattenuatesiscalledtheslopeorgradient.
Anotherpointtoraisenowisthatyouwilloftenseevaluesonthefilterknobsonanaloguesynthesizersthathave12dBor24dBperoctave.
That basically means that each time the frequency doubles, the filter attenuates by 12dB or 24dB everything at that frequency. These are
alsoknownas2poleor4polefilterseachpolerepresents6dBofattenuation.Thisishowanaloguecircuitswerebuilt,thenumberofcircuits
beingusedbythefiltertoperformthetaskathand.
IfyoudelveintothefiltersthatEmuprovideontheirsynthesisengines,thenitcouldgointopages,ifIhadtolistthemall.ButfornowI
amkeepingitsimpleandlistingthestandardfiltertypesandwhattheydo.
LowPassLPF
Asmentionedearlier,thisfilterattenuatesthefrequenciesabovethecutoffpointandletsthefrequenciesbelowthecutoffpointthrough.
In other words, it allows the lower frequencies through and blocks the higher frequencies, below and above the cutoff (the frequency at
whichthefilterbeginstokickin).Thelowpassfilterisonemuthaofafilter.Ifyouuseitonabasssound,itcangiveitmorebottomand
deeptones.Ifusedonapadsound,youcanhavethefilteropenandcloseorjustsweepitanditgivesthatniceclosingandopeningeffect.
Y ou can also use this filter cleverly by removing higher frequency sounds or noise that you dont want in your sound or mix. Because it
blocks out higher frequencies at the cut off you set, then its a great tool if you want to remove hiss from a noisy sample or, if you use it
gently,youcanremovetapeorcassettehiss.
HighPassHPF
Thisistheoppositeofthelowpassfilter.Thisfilterremovesthefrequenciesbelowthecutoffandallowsthefrequenciesabovethecutoff
through.Greatforpadsounds,givesthemsometopendandgenerallybrightensthesound.Itsalsoreallygoodonvocalsasitcangivethe
vocals more brightness and you can also use it on any recordings that have a low frequency hum or sound that is dirtying the sound,
although,inthisinstanceitwouldbealimitedtool,asyoucouldalsocutoutthelowerfrequenciesinthesounditself,butstillatoolthathas
manyuses.
BandPassBPF
Thisisagreatfilter.Itattenuatesfrequenciesbelowandabovethecutoffandleavesthefrequenciesatthecutoff.Itis,ineffect,alowpass

andahighpasstogether.Thecoolthingaboutthisfilteristhatyoucaneliminatethelowerandhigherfrequenciesandbeleftwithaband
of frequencies that you can then use as either an effect, as in having that real mid range type of old radio sound, or use it for isolating a
narrowbandoffrequenciesinrecordingsthathavetoomuchlowandhighend.Sure,itsnowreallymadeforthatbutthewholepointof
synthesis is to use tools because thats what they are, tools. Breaking rules is what real synthesis is all about. Try this filter on synthesizer
sounds and you will come up with some wacky sounds. It really is a useful filter and if you can run more than one at a time, and select
differentcutoffsforeachone,thenyouwillgetevenmoreinterestingresults.
Interestinglyenough,bandpassfilteringisusedonformantfiltersthatyoufindonsomanysoftsynths,plugins,synthesizersandsamplers.
Emuareknownforsomeoftheirformatfiltersandthetechnologyisbasedaroundbandpassfilters.Itisalsogoodforthinningoutsounds
andcanbeusedonpercussivesoundsaswellascreatingeffectstypeofsounds.Ioftengetemailsfromprogrammerswantingtoknowhow
theycangetthatoldradioeffectortelephonelinechateffectorevenNASAspacedialoguefromspacetoHouston.Well,thisisoneofthe
tools.Useitandexperiment.Y ouwillenjoythisone.
BandRejectFilterBRFalsoknownasNotch
Thisistheexactoppositeofthebandpassfilter.Itallowsfrequenciesbelowandabovethecutoffandattenuatesthefrequenciesaroundthe
cutoff point. Why is this good? Well, it eliminates a narrow band of frequencies, the frequencies around the cutoff, so, that in itself is a
greattool.Y oucanusethisonallsoundsandcanhaveadistincteffectonasound,notonlyintermsofeliminatingthefrequenciesthatyou
wanteliminated,butalsointermsofcreatinganewflavourtoasound.Butitsrealpotencyisineliminatingfrequenciesyoudontwant.
Because you select the cutoff point, in essence, you are selecting the frequencies around that cutoff point and eliminating them. An
invaluable tool when you want to hone in on a band of frequencies located, for example, right in the middle of a sound or recording. I
sometimes use a notch filter on drum sounds that have a muddy or heavy mid section, or on sounds that have a little noise or frequency
clashinthemidsectionofasound.
Comb
Thecombfilterisquiteaspecialfilter.Itderivesitsnamefromthefactthatithasanumberofnotchesatcertaindistances(delays),soit
lookslikeacomb.TheCombfilterdiffersfromtheotherfiltertypes,becauseitdoesntactuallyattenuateanypartofthesignal,butinstead
adds a delayed version of the input signal to the output, basically a very short delay that can be controlled in length and feedback. These
delays are so short that you only hear the effect rather than the delays themselves. The delay length is determined by the cutoff. The
feedbackdepthiscontrolledbytheresonance.
This filter is used to create a number of different types of effects, chorus and flange being two of the regulars. But the comb filter is more
thanthat.Itcanbeusedtocreatesomeincredibledynamictexturestoanexistingsound.Whenwetalkofcombs,wehavetomentionthe
Waldorfsynthesizers.Theyhavesomeofthebestcombfiltersandthesoundstheyaffectaresodistinct,greatforthatfunkymetalliceffect
orsizzlingbrighttextures.
Parametric
Thisisalsocalledtheswepteq.Thisfiltercontrolsthreeparameters,frequency,bandwidthandgain.Y ouselecttherangeoffrequenciesyou
wanttoboostorcut,youselectthewidthofthatrangeandusethegaintoboostorcutthefrequencies,withintheselectedbandwidth,bya
selected amount. The frequencies not in the bandwidth are not altered. If you widen the bandwidth to the limit of the upper and lower
frequencies ranges then this is called shelving. Most parametric filters have shelving parameters. Parametric filters are great for more
complexfilteringjobsandcanbeusedtocreaterealdynamiceffectsbecausetheycanattenuateorboostanyrangeoffrequencies.
Well,IhopethishashelpedtodemystifytheconfusingworldoffiltersforyouandIsuggestthatyouignorethefiltersonyoursynthesizers,
be they hardware or software, at your own peril, because they are truly powerful sound design functions. But if you want a whole book
dedicated to equalisation and filtering then I suggest you have a look at EQUncovered This book has received excellent reviews and well
worthexploring.