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xVox is a pitch shifter, a digital effects module that takes in a note of a single pitch and shifts it to generate musical chords and chord progressions.

A pitch shifter changes the musical pitch of an incoming audio signal. In other words, it can move a musical note up or down without changing the tone. Importantly, the ratios of the harmonics that make up the audio signal are largely preserved so the pitch shifted audio sounds the same, just a higher or lower note. This is different from a frequency shifter which moves all harmonics up or down by some fixed amount often dramatically changing the timbre of a note, which is either a good thing or a bad thing depending on what you are trying to do.

xVox is currently available as a DIY kit and also as a free VCV Rack plugin.

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xVox is a four-voice or four-note pitch shifter. It can take in one note and pitch shift it to generate a four-note chord. xVox does this in real-time so changes in the audio input have an immediate effect on the sound coming out. xVox can also be used as two two-note pitch shifters. There is a built-in envelope generator that allows each output note to be independently triggered. The envelopes can be AD or ADSR and there are a several different trigger modes. 

xVox features
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Front panel
  • 2 audio inputs, primary normalled to secondary.
  • Stereo audio output.
  • 4 VPO and 4 gate/trigger inputs.
  • 4 assignable CV sockets and 2 assignable knobs.
  • Pushbutton rotary encoder and two LED push buttons.
  • 1.5-inch 128x128 RGB OLED display.
Four voice channels
  • Pitch control over each channel depends on pitch-shift mode.
  • Individually triggered or triggered in unison.
Three pitch shift modes
  • Open tuning or quantization to scales, semitones, or octaves.
  • 7th chord pitch shift for root, 3rd, 5th, and 7th.
  • Chord progressions based on circle-of-fifths.
Envelope generator
  • Attack/Decay, ADSR, or OFF
  • Solo, unison, or strum trigger options or on note change.
  • Selectable attack and decay curves
  • Attack and decay times from several milliseconds to minutes
Other functions
  • Sample and hold option when not using envelope generator.
  • Tuner with automatic tuning feature.
  • Filter with controls for HP, LP, and slope.
  • Audio input and output level controls with soft-clipping and AGC.
Color-coded visualizations
  • Piano keyboard shows notes as they are triggered.
  • Spectrum shows real-time harmonics of each voice.
Dimensions
  • 17HP wide
  • 32mm deep.
Power consumption
  • +12V  144mA (133mA with display dimmed)
  • -12V  8.4mA
  • +5V    0mA​

All the sounds on this video, including the introduction and closing clips were made with just xVox and Mutable Instruments Plaits. There are no additional effects modules in the audio chain.
This is the lastest xVox quick start guide and the complete user manual.
xvox_quick_start.pdf
File Size: 338 kb
File Type: pdf
Download File

xvox_user_manual.pdf
File Size: 934 kb
File Type: pdf
Download File

xvox_build_guide.pdf
File Size: 1441 kb
File Type: pdf
Download File

These are all the parts in the complete DIY kit. These are all through-hole parts, and while a steady hand and a hot soldering iron are essential no great soldering skills are required. xVox can easily be assembled in an afternoon. If you get into trouble you can email [email protected] and we will try our best to resolve any problems you are having.
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If you want to "try before you buy" or prefer to work in the virtual world this is the link to the VCV Rack plugin library.vcvrack.com/gregsbrain/xVox

Here are download links for a few VCV Rack patches to get started with:

rand1.vcv produces quite musical random chord progression with some drop chords thrown in for a little variation.

midipoly4.vcv works with an external MIDI keyboard or other MIDI source and lets you play 4 note chords from a single oscillator.
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xvox-vcv-rack-patches.zip
File Size: 4 kb
File Type: zip
Download File

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