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Basimilus Architecture for Industrial-level Chainsaw Synthesis





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Like the rest of the Iteritas spiritual siblings, Manis Iteritas Alia is a voice module that speaks in frenzied, fascinating synth tongues, varied and versatile, requiring the musical equivalent of a linguistic anthropologist to dissect. Okay, it’s not quite that complicated, but calling it “a voice module” really sells short this 10HP module’s distinctive sonic attributes. Its 6-oscillator architecture is borrowed from Basimilus Iteritas Alia, reimagined with exclusively sawtooth waves, a new interface, and a slew of power tool-like mangling mechanisms. Its Latin namesake might be understood as “haunted oscillator,” while the team at Noise Engineering ensures it’s “pangolin approved.” Its bevy of tone-shaping features and deep CV connectivity promise a world of gritty, aggressive voicing configurations, impressing Sweetwater’s synthesists with its range of applications. Leads, basses, drums, and all manners of detuned mayhem are just the beginning of Manis Iteritas Alia.





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Sawtooth-fueled, destructive voicing





Sonic diversity is clearly one of Noise Engineering’s strongest suits, making it all the more impressive that Manis Iteritas Alia can yield such intriguing, unique voicing, despite sharing a sizable portion of its DNA with another module. The multimode tone control comprises three versatile foundations, all of which can be toggled at any time: 6-oscillator additive synthesis (Skin), the same thing with the addition of a pitch envelope (Liquid), and a pair of two 3-operator phase-modulated oscillators (Metal). No matter your route, you’re guaranteed to find yourself on the invigorating, rocky cliffside of a ferocious sonic vista.





Once your baseline is established, a series of sound-sculpting tools take these aggressive voices to unimaginable heights. The Saw Mod, for example, acts on the oscillator’s amplitude to yield an undulating aurality you might find in the orbit of PWM or sync mod, but it’s achieved through its own operation. Texturizing comes in many flavors, but the bipolar Profundity knob supplies an out-of-phase oscillator for voicing manipulation, varying from chorus-like shimmer to unruly, randomly-modulated sample rates. A convenient range switch lets you quickly toggle between Bass, Alto, and Tenor registers by setting the lowest note the oscillators will produce. Throw in the momentary Hit switch and a vast swath of CV connectivity for modulating every parameter, and you’ve got yourself a truly menacing modular voice. Of course, we can’t talk about the MIA module without addressing its piece de resistance: the Smash parameter. Replacing a wavefolder, the aptly named “wave destroyer” utilizes a modulus function to elicit unimaginable dimensions of gnarly, harmonic-rich soundscapes.





World of Alia: hot-swappable sound for that somebody





In the world of Noise Engineering, “modularity” is a term regularly tested and pushed well beyond the conventional envelope. The Alia series represents the company’s latest variation on the theme, “What if our modules could be, themselves, modular in their sonic output?” In other words, the 10HP Alia modules can have their entire functions rewritten through hot-swappable firmware via USB connectivity and the Noise Engineering customer portal to completely switch up your Eurorack vibe. Three shades of their vaunted Iteritas sonics are available: the ferocious percussion power of Basimilus Iteritas; the otherworldly, machinated techno-synths of Manis Iteritas; or the additive phase-modulation magic of Debel Iteritas. With one module, the firmware for the others is free and ready to swap whenever you need a distinct spin on your synth palette.





Noise Engineering: unbridled passion for modulation magic





From the beginnings of humble happenstance to transcending the physical-digital divide to produce compelling, innovative hardware and software instruments, one crucial element has consistently remained as Noise Engineering’s cornerstone: integrity. The company wholeheartedly understands how infinitely personal your relationship to sound can be, so each instrument ? physical or virtual ? brims with a distinctive character. Additionally, every module provides maximum room for personalized control while retaining its defining attributes that give Noise Engineering’s designs their unmistakable sonic identity. Whether you’re new to Eurorack or a dyed-in-the-wool synthesist, you can rest assured knowing that the creative team at Noise Engineering crafts each aural opportunity with care, one waveform at a time.





Noise Engineering Manis Iteritas Alia Features:


10HP module delivers unique, sawtooth-based synth voice for leads, drums, basses, and more


Dynamic A/D envelope control lets you craft unusual shapes for subtle and surprising accentuation


2-pole lowpass filter utilizes pitch-tracking with bimodal low-frequency gating for crafting snarling, bass-heavy lows


Saw Mod elicits distinct timbral intensity to produce PWM-style aural textures


Smash function elevates wavefolding to a full-on wave-destroyer to generate punishing sonics


Multimode tone generation yields 3 distinct flavors of 6-oscillator synthesis with pitch envelope and phase modulation


3-way range selector sets the lowest note in 2-octave increments for easily adjustable voicing


Hit switch lets you momentarily trigger the module to expand performance possibilities


Extensive CV control of every parameter lets you experiment and integrate the module’s unique voicing architecture for endless expressivity


Alia-series module allows you to instantly swap firmware with other series modules for multitudes of sound-design options with a single module