Modulation Overview
Comprehensive Overview of Modulation on the S4
Modulation is the process of affecting the value of a parameter using a control source. These control sources are called modulators. Different modulators are available to choose from on the S4, allowing for many different creative use cases and combinations of mappings.
Modulation Basics
Modulation can be applied to any parameter on the S4, enabling dynamic and expressive control. A modulator has no limit on mapping destinations. Modulators always exist in groups of four slots, and several areas of the S4 architecture include dedicated modulators:
4 Modulators per Track
4 Modulators in Perform View
4 Modulators in Scene View
4 Modulators in Mix View
Each group of modulators operates independently within its context, providing flexible modulation options across the system. See the Data Structure section for a more complete overview.
Modulator Identification
Within each group of four modulator slots on the S4, individual modulators are distinguished by color and [ACTION] button:
Blue (Triangle)
Yellow (Square)
Green (Hexagon)
Red (Circle)
These colours are consistently used throughout the interface to represent each modulator in a group, and aid (together with the [ACTION] button) to identify which slot the modulator belongs to.
The modulator group itself is identified by the icon in the header (top left corner), indicating whether the modulators belong to a Track, the Perform View, or the Mix View. See the Display Interface section for details.
Modulation Transport
There are two behaviours for controlling how modulators respond to the S4 play state:
Always: In this mode modulators will always be running, whether or not the S4 is playing or not. This can be useful for using the S4 with live input. This is the default behaviour.
When Playing: This mode makes modulation follow the play state of the S4. When the S4 is stopped, modulation will be stopped as well.
Accessing these options can be done by navigating to the Config Menu:
Tap [CONFIG] to open the Config Menu
Use the SELECT encoder or the [ACTION] buttons to navigate to the METER option
The Modulation Transport options can be found under MODULATORS RUNNING
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