This recording was the result of a little jamming fun I had whilst testing out my recently re-purchased Doepfer a137-2 Wave Multiplier, which takes Saw waves (and sines/ triangles) and produces "unison"-type effects from them, by phase shifting 4 copies of the original wave. CV control can be used to give the layering some life, and audio rate modulation creates some really interesting effects. The audio input level also has a pronounced effect on the overall sonics, as the comparators used to create the phase-shifted waves struggle to work out what to do when the input drops below a certain level. I, however, kind of like the weird artifacts you get, and have intentionally put a VCA before it, so that these can be swept in and out.

Whilst playing around with this patch I reminded myself just how nice the Cwejman S1 mk2 is when sent through the Vermona Retroverb Lancet. The results remind me slightly of the recordings I have heard of the EMS Synthi, with the various GAIN and DRIVE settings combining with the spring reverb to give the S1 a lovely dark character - almost "vintage", for want of a better word!

Most of the sound manipulation on this recording is achieved by jamming on the various Retroverb controls, but the initial patch was fairly complex too:

1 - Various OSCS and outputs of the S1 are modulated, to bring them in and out rhythmically. The 4ms RCD is used to trigger various envelopes on both the S1 and the Vermona. The LFO on the Vermona is also triggered at various points.
2 - The Saw wave feeding the a137-2 Wave Multiplier is sent via a lovely Oakley VCA, which is modulated by slow envelopes from the 4ms PEG, to fade the a137-2's artifacts in and out. These envelopes also control the amount of audio rate modulation applied to the a137-2 by two different OSCs, at different pitches.
3 - A sharp ADSR is also used to make the a137-2's Saw input spiky and rhythmic at points.
4 - The S1's SYNC is switched on and off during the recording, and the Ring Mod output is also brought in and out. The LPF is manipulated at points to add another level of filtering to the main LPF provided by the Vermona. Self-oscillation on the Vermona - and to a lesser degree, on the S1 - is used towards the end of the recording.
5 - The Vermona's spring reverb mix is manipulated continuously, as is the GAIN, BALLS and DRIVE.
6 - A S+H LFO is triggered rhythmically on the Vermona, and used extensively throughout. Towards the end, whilst in self-oscillation - the Vermona's LFO is switched to SINE, and pushed into audio rate territory to FM the LPF.
7 - The S1's amplitude ADSRs are mixed at different levels during the recording, altering the rhythmic feel, as they are both triggered by different RCD outputs. The RCD itself is modulated (its ROTATE CV input) by random gates from the a149-2, a technique which I find to be more controllable than more exotic modulation sources.
8 - The sequence is provided by the Silent Way Step LFO, and never changes - I know this will probably annoy the listener after a while, but this is meant to show off the scope for devastation in the Vermona/ a137-2/ S1...rather than be a musical work of any kind.

Feel free to skip through the jam to hear the different tones available from this combo!

Hope it is of some interest.