Arturia Pigments 6

Pigments 6 is bigger, better and free to existing users!

The latest version of Arturia’s flagship Pigments 6 software synthesizer has a smattering of new features and functions that build on what is already a rather delicious platform. But does it serve up anything innovative to this smorgasbord of sound‑generating engines, or is it just another layer of cream on top of an impressive and colourful pie? Let’s dig in.

The first thing you notice is that there’s very little to notice. Arturia mention something about a refreshed layout, but with version 5 sitting right next to it, I really can’t see any difference bar a few swapped knobs. Arturia did darken the knobs in Light Mode for a bit more contrast, which is welcome, but on the whole it’s unchanged.

A more notable change in the UI is the way it handles modulation. The system is already very slick; you can drag any modulator from the central section onto any modulatable parameter, and it becomes assigned. When you drop it, a little display comes up with a coloured knob that you can use to change the amount of modulation being applied, and you can add as many modulators as you want. However, now you can drop another modulator onto the little modulator amount knob in order to modulate the modulator amount. A smaller knob appears underneath where you can set the amount of modulator modulation. This creates a whole other level of nuance that deepens the sound design experience, although I imagine most users wouldn’t necessarily dig that far down. Sadly, it won’t currently let us modulate the amount that the modulator is modulating the modulator, but we shall see what version 7 brings.

Modal Engine

The biggest new feature of version 6 is found in the strings and beams of the Modal Engine. It’s a physical modelling synthesizer that could easily be an instrument in its own right. You have a choice of two resonators in the rasping of strings or the striking of beams. On either side, you have two exciters, one setting the stage through the initial striking of the resonator and the other providing the bowing through the application of friction.

The new Modal Engine brings the sound of hitting things to Pigments.

You can experiment with different variations of excitement, like enforcing a collision or applying transient sample shaping all the way through to extracting granular occurrences, sniffing around noise maps and messing with friction density. At both ends you can use an audio input to provide the energy for the beam or string model. You have control over the number of partials being used, and you can warp in more harmonics, shape the timbre, push the stereo field, and fiddle with the decay.

The harmonic warping gets really interesting once you disengage the pitch quantiser. This brings in all sorts of percussive and atonal possibilities as the harmonics throw punches at each other. Playing between the friction exciters can be a lot of fun as you collapse the Noise that’s dragging soundscapes out of beams for the twinkling windchimes and warbles of Granular.

The results are quite beautiful, fascinatingly organic, and have buckets of weird, ethereal and experimental vibes. I particularly enjoy the way everything is visualised; the partials, harmonics and the impact of the exciters are all helpfully animated so that you can find the right focal point for your attention.

However, the biggest drag is not in the friction section; it’s the lack of any preset facility. For a synth engine this diverse and interesting there really should be a way you can save and recall your settings for this engine alone. It feels like an oversight that’s more noticeable with every update. There’s so much you can do with each of the sound engines that having the ability to save engine configurations seems like a no‑brainer. As Pigments gets bigger and more complex, the need for this sort of modularity becomes, I feel, more and more apparent.

A case in point would be the Sample Engine. You have the ability to edit and tune samples, filter, bit‑crush, modulate and granulate, but you can’t save that as a thing. The Sample’s Granular processor has gained a Scan function which means that you can set the grains scattering back and forth along the sample. It’s a bit like sprinkling the sample with time dust. Again, this could be an instrument in its own right, and we would benefit greatly from being able to save our work at the engine level.

Filters

Arturia have put significant work into improving the basic multimode filter section. Part of that is the psychological impact of renaming it the ‘Classic’ filter, which automatically makes it feel warmer, but the more important aspect is the appearance of an analogue overdrive to spice up the input and an analogue mode that compensates for the level drop at high resonances. The original digital mode feels quite weedy in comparison. You do have to shave a few dB off the output to keep things under control, but it definitely brings in some more character.

There are two new filter models, the first of which is called the Cluster filter. This pulls in a bunch of peaks to form what looks like a set of sharp teeth. You can select from one to five peaks, use ‘Spread’ to push them apart, and there are numerous modes that place it in the context of different filter modes. It has a somewhat throaty tone and offers a really interesting and dramatic spin on pads and sustained sounds. It would be nice to be able to apply modulation to the number of peaks but that’s currently not a thing.

The second is the Lo‑Fi filter which isn’t as much filtering as destructively downsampling. The cutoff controls the sample rate but is also tied to an optional pre‑ and post‑filter. These two low‑pass filters can offset themselves from the main cutoff to provide some really interesting shaping. It has a very different feel to the bit‑crusher found in the effects section and can add an unusual digital grunginess.

Extras

The new Vocoder. Not just for robot voices...Talking of effects, a new vocoder rears its band‑pass filters in the effects section. You can have between four and 40 bands, control the bandwidth, formant shift and sibilance, and swap between modern, vintage and dirty modes. A Gate control saves us from the rumble of unintentionally open filter bands.

I’m not a fan of vocoders generally, but what I like about this one is how it doesn’t immediately direct you towards vocal clichés. Sure, you can plug in a microphone and use it as the modulator, but you can also route in any of the engines, utility sources or filter outputs and that inspires many more creative uses.

Also new is a modulator called the Voice Modulator that’s popped up in the Random section. It’s a sort of polyphonic step sequencer that sends out a different value for up to eight voices. So, if you tie it to a filter and press a chord, each note will have a different cutoff value. It brings in a lovely amount of variation.

Also within the Random section is a Random type called Random, which is easy to miss because you could have sworn it was there before. Previously, we had Sample & Hold, Turing and Binary, which are all a little bit wordy and overly complicated when really all you want is a good old straightforward bit of randomness. Random is exactly that. You can set the distance between the highest and lowest values, the speed of generation, and polarity, and then have it stepped or smooth, calm or jittery.

One more new feature is the Envelope Follower, which is hidden away in the Combinate section. You can use an audio input or the output of any other section within Pigments and grab the shape of the audio to use as a modulator. It’s a great way to pull rhythms in from other places or to add some personal expression over the shaping of sounds using another instrument.

Conclusion

When taken together, all of these additions, tweaks, and behind‑the‑scenes improvements make for a decent full‑increment update. That, and its being free to all existing users, isn’t going to disappoint anyone.

I am very taken with the Modal Engine. It’s capable of producing elegant sounds and yet somehow manages to circumvent the more complex aspects of acoustic modelling to be a really compelling and discoverable synthesizer. The granular aspects that I often find to be a bit bewildering seem to have found their footing in both the Modal Engine and the Sample Scanning.

The improvements to the Classic filter are very welcome to an analogue fan such as me, although I also have plenty of time for a good bit of sample rate deterioration. The modulation of modulators will make many people smile, and I might have even enjoyed using a vocoder.

There was nothing wrong with version 5 that you could poke a stick at, but Arturia have managed to bring more to the table to make it even better.

There was nothing wrong with version 5 that you could poke a stick at, but Arturia have managed to bring more to the table to make it even better. All it needs now is a preset library for synth engines, and I’d be a very happy synth noodler.