Neutral Labs Nermal
Destructive distortion with onboard modulator and wild character
14 HP Eurorack module
Nermal is a destructive distortion module capable of subtle saturation, harsh harmonic generation, or total signal mangling. It features an onboard LFO/audio-rate modulator that controls the character of the distortion effect, and accepts external CV for all key parameters. Its sonic behavior is highly dependent on the harmonic content of the input signal, making it unpredictable and rewarding to explore.
Features
- Destructive distortion with multiple saturation flavours
- SCRATCH knob and CV for saturation intensity control
- BITE switch and CV for distortion flavour control with non-binary CV response
- OUCH/F#%! switch for harmonic boost intensity selection
- NIBBLE switch to engage onboard modulator targeting BITE effect
- Onboard modulator with HARD (square) and SOFT (triangle) waveform shapes
- LO/HI switch for LFO or audio-rate modulator operation
- FREQ knob and CV for modulator frequency control
- Three CV inputs (SCRATCH, BITE, FREQ) accepting 0-5V, overvoltage protected
- SCRATCH CV polarity is inverted relative to knob for better use with bipolar audio signals as CV
- BITE LED reflects actual (non-binary) state including modulation depth
- Knobs are bypassed when corresponding CV inputs are patched
Controls & Jacks (14)
- FREQ — Frequency of the internal modulator. Clockwise increases frequency. Range is shaped by the LO/HI switch.
- LO/HI — Modulator base range: LO (top) = LFO range, HI (bottom) = audio-rate range.
- NIBBLE — Engages the onboard modulator on BITE. Bottom = on. Has no effect when the BITE switch is engaged.
- HARD/SOFT — Modulator waveform: HARD (top) = square (snappy on/off), SOFT (bottom) = triangle (smooth fade).
- FREQ CV — 0-5V CV for modulator frequency. Overrides the FREQ knob when patched. Range is still shaped by LO/HI. Audio-rate CV is supported and encour
- OUCH/F#%! — Boosts the BITE effect. OUCH (top) = softer, muffled. F#%! (bottom) = harsher with more high-frequency harmonics.
- BITE — Changes the flavour of the distortion. Bottom = on (more pronounced and quite different). Engaging this supersedes the NIBBLE switch. Disabl
- BITE LED — Indicates the current intensity of the BITE effect. Brightness is non-binary - reflects modulator or CV-driven intermediate states.
- BITE CV — 0-5V CV for BITE intensity (non-binary). Overrides the BITE switch when patched. Audio-rate signals supported. Overvoltage protected.
- SCRATCH — Saturation intensity. With BITE off the effect is subtle; with BITE on it becomes a more dramatic, non-traditional distortion. Disabled when
- SCRATCH CV — 0-5V CV for SCRATCH. Overrides the knob when patched. Polarity is INVERTED vs the knob: 0V = max saturation, 5V = min - so a bipolar audio s
- VOL — Output volume. Use to compensate for level changes introduced by the BITE/SCRATCH effect.
- OUT — Audio output. Level set by the VOL knob.
- IN — Audio input. Harmonic content of the input strongly affects how the distortion sounds.
How-To Guides
- Drum Bus Saturation
- Rhythmic BITE Tremolo
- Audio Rate Harmonic Chaos
- Full Destruction Mode
- CV-Controlled BITE Expression
- Audio Signal as SCRATCH CV
- Analog Bass Saturation
- Slow Modulated Drone Morph
- External Audio Rate FREQ CV Sweep
- Hard Square BITE Rhythmic Gating
Explore the interactive Nermal panel on BleepDex — tap any control to learn what it does.
