Noise Engineering Basimilus Iteritas Alia
Six-oscillator drum voice from kicks to cosmic metal
10 HP Eurorack module
Basimilus Iteritas Alia is a parameterized digital drum synthesizer with roots in analog synthesis, built around six tonal oscillators and one noise oscillator in additive, pitch-envelope, or FM configurations. Its controls span waveform morphing, harmonic spread, a dynamic wavefolder, and per-oscillator envelopes, enabling everything from sub-shaking kicks and snappy snares to metallic textures and synth leads. The module is part of the Alia platform, allowing firmware swapping to any other Alia firmware via USB.
Features
- Six tonal oscillators plus one noise oscillator in three switchable synthesis configurations
- Skin mode: six-oscillator additive synthesis for tonal drums and synth stabs
- Liquid mode: additive synthesis with pitch envelope for punchy kicks
- Metal mode: pair of 3-operator phase-modulated oscillators for metallic and alien sounds
- Morph control blends continuously through sine, triangle, saw, and square waveforms
- Harmonic control adjusts per-oscillator decay times and amplitudes for a wide range of tonal structures
- Spread control adjusts oscillator frequency spacing from purely harmonic to inharmonic
- Dynamic infinifold wavefolder with amplitude compensation and automatic multi-stage expansion
- Fold top quarter mixes in pulse train for additional harmonic content
- Attack control adds noise when left of center, produces analog-style pop at center, slows attack when right of center
- Variable sample rate tied to fundamental oscillator frequency for musical aliasing
- Envelope output (0V to +5V) mirrors internal envelope shape for modulating other modules
Controls & Jacks (23)
- Pitch — Encoder for adjusting pitch. Press and turn for coarse semitone adjustments, or just turn for fine tuning. Calibrated for 1v/octave tracking
- Morph — Morph knob and CV control the waveform of all oscillators, blending continuously through sine, triangle, saw, and square. Offsets the CV inp
- Spread — Spread knob and CV control the frequency spacing of the oscillators, allowing the overtone series to vary from purely harmonic to very inhar
- Fold — Fold knob and CV control the infinifold section. For the first 3/4 of range sets the threshold of the folder. In the top quarter, a pulse tr
- Out — Main audio output. Low-impedance source with variable output level (max ~14V peak-to-peak) depending on parameterization.
- Attack CV — CV input for attack envelope control. Range: 0V to +5V. Knob offsets this input.
- Attack — Attack knob adjusts the attack envelope for all oscillators. When left of center, noise is added. At center, produces a classic analog-style
- Morph CV — CV input for waveform morphing. Range: 0V to +5V. Knob offsets this input.
- Decay CV — CV input for decay envelope control. Range: 0V to +5V. Knob offsets this input.
- Pitch CV — CV input for pitch control. Range: -2V to +5V, calibrated for 1v/octave.
- Env Out — Envelope output that mimics the envelope shape of BIA's internal envelope. Range: 0V to +5V.
- Decay — Decay knob adjusts the decay envelope for all oscillators. Offsets the CV input.
- Harmonic — Harmonic knob and CV control the harmonic decay of the oscillators. Fully left produces a single harmonic tone. As increased, more harmonics
- Bass/Alto/Treble — Changes the pitch of the voice. Each switch position offsets the pitch by two octaves.
- Harmonic CV — CV input for harmonic decay control. Range: 0V to +5V. Knob offsets this input.
- Fold CV — CV input for wavefolder control. Range: 0V to +5V. Knob offsets this input.
- Skin/Liquid/Metal — Selects the synthesis algorithm. Skin: six-oscillator additive. Liquid: six-oscillator additive with pitch envelope. Metal: pair of 3-operat
- Hit — Manual button to activate the envelope.
- Spread CV — CV input for oscillator spread control. Range: 0V to +5V. Knob offsets this input.
- Trig — Trigger/gate input to activate the envelope. Threshold around +1.8V.
- Alia
- iquid
- Morph — Morph knob and CV control the waveform of all oscillators, blending continuously through sine, triangle, saw, and square. Offsets the CV inp
How-To Guides
- Simple Kick
- Simple Snare
- Simple Hat
- Simple Clap
- Supersaw Synth Lead
- Not-Quite-FM Bass
- Alien Metallic Texture
- BIA as Envelope Modulation Source
- Audio Rate Trigger Drone
- Full Drum Kit via CV Morphing
Explore the interactive Basimilus Iteritas Alia panel on BleepDex — tap any control to learn what it does.
