Volca FM2 is a new and improved version of the original Volca FM hardware with 6 voices, a MIDI output, new reverb effect and presets and more — both modeled after the sound engine of Yamaha’s legendary DX7, so much so that they can run its thousands of patches directly.

If you think the DX7 is just an outdated synth from the 80s, think again. Many modern flagship synths use the same exact principles to generate tones only FM synths can.

In this video, I’ll take a look at the differences between Volca FM2 and the original Volca FM, a beginner-friendly look at what VolcaFM can do, and even a more advanced look at how to program your own FM patches:

TIMELINE:

0:00 Intro

1:40 FM2 vs OG FM

4:15 Overview

7:05 Effects

8:20 Velocity

8:45 Transpose

9:15 Modulator attack decay

10:05 Carrier attack decay

10:50 LFO basics

11:35 Algorithms

12:55 Program random

13:45 Unison

14:20 Sequencer

15:50 Arpeggiator

16:40 Motion Seq

18:10 MIDI Seq

19:00 Act/Warp Step

20:30 Diving deeper

21:00 Dexed-Synthmata

21:50 FM Synthesis

25:20 Freq ratios

25:45 Modulators

27:45 Envelopes

31:15 Key velocity

31:55 LFO routing

33:30 Pitch env

33:50 Level scaling

34:05 Feedback

35:35 Pros & cons

38:45 Playing 16 patterns