Try a MicroFreak in five minutes
Play it, browse sounds, swap the oscillator, open the filter and start the arpeggiator: a first taste of the instrument.
This is a model of the MicroFreak running the original Arturia firmware, written from Arturia's manual. Its sounds are written for the model (they are not Arturia's factory presets), but the controls do what the real ones do. Five minutes, no experience needed. A few names (wavetables, FM, low-pass) will make sense in the later lessons; for now, just listen.
- What the MicroFreak feels and sounds like to play
- How different its oscillator engines are from each other
- What the filter and the arpeggiator add, in under five minutes
The steps6 steps
- Play a few notes: click the keys on the model, or press A S D F on your computer keyboard.
Stuck?
Click or tap the keys at the bottom of the model. Your computer keys A, S, D, F and G play notes too.
- Browse sounds: turn the Preset knob (scroll the mouse wheel over it, or drag). Each turn loads the next sound. Play a note after each one.
Stuck?
Scroll over the round knob next to the screen. Then play a key.
- Change the engine: turn Type a few steps, playing a note each time. Each position is a different oscillator: wavetables, FM, a plucked-string model, speech and more.
Stuck?
Drag or scroll the Type knob, the first of the four oscillator knobs, then play a key.
- Open and close the filter: turn Cutoff while a note is playing. With the low-pass filter, down takes the brightness away and up lets it back in.
Stuck?
Hold a key (click and hold) and drag the Cutoff knob.
- Start the arpeggiator: press Arp | Seq (it lights), then hold a chord on the keys. The MicroFreak plays the notes one after another by itself.
Stuck?
Press the Arp | Seq button, then click and hold two or three keys at once (use the computer keys for a chord).
- Change the speed: turn Rate (the knob in the arp section) while it plays.
Stuck?
Rate is the knob in the arp section.
That is the core of it: a flat touch keyboard, a digital oscillator with a deep list of engines, an analog filter, and a pattern maker built in. The lessons go from here to the mod matrix, the sequencer and samples. The What it does page lists what the MicroFreak leaves out.
On the real MicroFreak
On the real synth the keys are flat capacitive pads with no moving parts, and they also read how much of your finger is touching. A fingertip sends about 30% of the pressure range, and more of the finger sends more. The output is mono, with a headphone jack, and a USB port that carries both power and MIDI. For reliable touch keys, Arturia recommends its included grounded power supply.
Where the model differs
The model's sounds are original ones written for it. Mouse and touch give it a fixed key pressure, so the pressure feel is only on the real keyboard.
Questions2
Is this the real MicroFreak sound engine?
No. It is a model written from the manual, close enough to learn the controls on. It is not Arturia's code, and the real synth will sound different in detail.
Do I need a MIDI keyboard?
No. Click the keys on the model, or use your computer keys: A to ; play notes.