Filters

Filters are hugely powerful sound design tools and essential to the process of subtractive synthesis. Mark Cousins explores the principles of filtering.

Ask any synthesist where the true character and muscle of any synthesizer lies and there will only ever be one answer – its filters. All the great synthesizers of our time (the Minimoogs, Prophets and TB-303’s of this world) can attribute a large part of their success to the characteristic sound of their filters. Ultimately the sound of electronic music is the sound of the filter ripping, screeching, roaring, murmuring or growling its way through the audio spectrum.

This feature first appeared in Music Tech Magazine issue 11
Filed under Ten Minute Masters

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