A chip synth built on the Ricoh 2A03 console sound chip, with a cartridge slot for the Famicom expansion chips.
Inlets
MIDI
1
Outlets
Audio
2
The console alone is two pulse voices with the four hardware duty cycles, a triangle that sits under the lowest held note, a noise channel on the top keys and a 1-bit delta sampler on the bottom keys. Slot in a cartridge and its voices join the pool and take notes first, with the console pulses joining when they are all busy; on the VRC6 the sawtooth goes first. The envelope counts in frames per volume step over sixteen levels, so a fast attack snaps and a slow one climbs audibly. The emulation is NSFPlay's, driven register by register. Cord a PianoRoll, a Riff or a DNA into the MIDI inlet.
Parameters
Cartridge
The chip in the slot. 2A03 is the bare console; VRC6 adds two pulses and a sawtooth, MMC5 two pulses, FDS one wavetable voice, N163 four wavetable voices, 5B three fixed squares and VRC7 six two-operator FM voices. Changing it silences held notes.
Region
NTSC or PAL console. Clock, pitch tables and envelope tick follow, so PAL runs slightly slower and darker.
Duty
Pulse width for the console, VRC6 and MMC5 pulses: 12%, 25%, 50% or 75%.
Attack
Frames per volume step on the way up. 0 starts a note at full volume.
Decay
Frames per volume step on the way down to Sustain.
Sustain
The level a held note settles at, 0 to 15.
Release
Frames per volume step after the key is lifted.
Triangle
Tri layer: puts the console's triangle channel under the lowest held note at the same pitch. It has no volume control, only on or off.
NoiseKeys
Noise keys: C7 and up play the noise channel instead of a tone, stepping through the sixteen hardware periods as you go up.
Buzz
Switches the noise into its short-loop mode, a metallic rattle instead of a wash.
Wave
The wavetable the FDS and N163 play: SIN, TRI, SAW, SQR or ORG.
Patch
One of the VRC7's fifteen built-in FM instruments, by number.
Sample
A sound for the delta channel, crushed to 1-bit. Keys below C2 fire it at the sixteen hardware playback rates, pitched down from B1.
DpcmLoop
Loop: holds the sample round while its key is held.
Level
Output level.
BendRange
How far the pitch wheel reaches at full travel, in semitones. Two is the common default; zero ignores the wheel.
Recipe
Cartridge lead
Cartridge VRC6, Duty 25%, Attack 0, Decay 6, Sustain 10, Release 3, Tri layer on. Cord a Riff into the MIDI inlet for the line and put a Kick with 4/4 on underneath. Drop a short drum hit into Sample and play it from B1 on a PianoRoll.
