A new instrument: Roland's VP-330 Vocoder Plus (strings and human voice now, the vocoder later) #45

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opened 2026-10-12 21:26:54 +00:00 by bcox · 0 comments

bcox commented

2026-10-12 21:26:54 +00:00

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Ben asked on 2026-10-12 which Roland families are missing entirely, and for an issue for this one. Everything below is from recollection, with no manual read; issue #20's list was wrong in several places for the same reason, so read the manuals first and correct this.

The VP-330 (1979) is recalled as three things under 49 keys: a string section, a "human voice" choir section, and a ten-band vocoder, all through an ensemble. The first two need no sound from outside and could be built now; they are a divide-down tone generator (engine/divide_down.h) through voicing and, for the choir, formant filters, then the ensemble.

Strings: recalled as close kin to the RS string machines' (see that issue), with an attack and a release.
Human voice: recalled as male and female choirs at two footages each, the tones passed through fixed formant filters, with a vibrato that can be delayed.
Ensemble: a bucket-brigade chorus, which is most of what the instrument is known for.
Vocoder: the keyboard's tones as the carrier and a microphone as the modulator, through banks of band-pass filters and envelope followers. Not for now. It wants sound from outside, which is issue #17; Ben said on 2026-10-12 that it may be considered once there is audio input. The SVC-350, the rack vocoder with no tone generator of its own, would go with it then.

To decide and to find out:

Whether its strings and choir are an instrument of their own or a setting of the RS family's. They are recalled as sharing the tone generator and the ensemble; the choir's formant filters are what is new.
The formant filters' centres and widths, and the ensemble's figures, which want the service notes' schematics.
What the Mk I and Mk II did differently.
When the vocoder comes: its band filters are also the choir's question over again, and an envelope follower exists already on the 2600.

It has no ROM, no memory and no MIDI.

Ben asked on 2026-10-12 which Roland families are missing entirely, and for an issue for this one. **Everything below is from recollection, with no manual read**; issue #20's list was wrong in several places for the same reason, so read the manuals first and correct this. The VP-330 (1979) is recalled as three things under 49 keys: a string section, a "human voice" choir section, and a ten-band vocoder, all through an ensemble. The first two need no sound from outside and could be built now; they are a divide-down tone generator (`engine/divide_down.h`) through voicing and, for the choir, formant filters, then the ensemble. - **Strings**: recalled as close kin to the RS string machines' (see that issue), with an attack and a release. - **Human voice**: recalled as male and female choirs at two footages each, the tones passed through fixed formant filters, with a vibrato that can be delayed. - **Ensemble**: a bucket-brigade chorus, which is most of what the instrument is known for. - **Vocoder**: the keyboard's tones as the carrier and a microphone as the modulator, through banks of band-pass filters and envelope followers. **Not for now.** It wants sound from outside, which is issue #17; Ben said on 2026-10-12 that it may be considered once there is audio input. The SVC-350, the rack vocoder with no tone generator of its own, would go with it then. To decide and to find out: - Whether its strings and choir are an instrument of their own or a setting of the RS family's. They are recalled as sharing the tone generator and the ensemble; the choir's formant filters are what is new. - The formant filters' centres and widths, and the ensemble's figures, which want the service notes' schematics. - What the Mk I and Mk II did differently. - When the vocoder comes: its band filters are also the choir's question over again, and an envelope follower exists already on the 2600. It has no ROM, no memory and no MIDI.