Learning your way around the various windows is perhaps one of the biggest keys to success with Absynth. Starting with a new sound, here are some keys to navigating and creating your sounds.
Programming sounds
Start with the Patch window. Here is where you specify and connect the basic modules of your program. There are three columns (A, B, and C), each with an oscillator, filter, and effect. Concentrate on the oscillator and filter. Choose an appropriately interesting waveform, apply a filter, and consider how you use the additional columns to thicken the sound and create sonic interest.
Visit the Envelope window next. You have separate envelope control over each oscillator amplitude, as well as just about any other parameter you wish. Experiment with amplitude envelopes and filter frequency envelopes. You can copy and paste envelopes from the edit menu (inside the program window). Filter frequency envelopes and amplitude envelopes often match up. Then consider pitch envelopes as an additional way to create interest.
The LFO window is probably your next stop. You can have three LFOs, each assignable to three channel (individual sound) parameters and two master (overall output) parameters. The LFO effect is specified in a percentage, and frequency is specified in the period length (the amount of time it takes for one cycle). A period length of .1 is 10 Hz. (invert 1/period to get frequency) Also note that you can assign MIDI control of depth and rate for each LFO. This type of control is fairly crucial for creating interesting sounds.
The Perform window has many tabs. Of particular interest to us is the MIDI tab that allows you to set Key Velocity messages to control various synth parameters – generally Oscil amplitude and Filter Frequency. The Assignments tab allows you to set external MIDI Continuous Controllers to Absynth Macro Controls. It is easiest at this stage to use the Listen feature for assigning CCs.
Saving a sound
Use the Attributes window to categorize your Absynth sound to make it easier to find. At least choose Absynth 5 sound, and then some sub-types that help to distinguish it. Choose Save or Save As… from the File menu. Sounds are stored in your Documents folder -> Native Instruments -> Absynth 5 -> Sounds. You load saved sounds from the Browser window.
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