Sine

Oscillator waveform · sine

Harmonic content Only the fundamental frequency. No overtones at all.

A perfectly pure tone with no overtones — the shape that every other periodic waveform is, mathematically, made of when many sines are added together at different amplitudes and frequencies. A sine by itself sounds almost invisible in a mix: round, smooth, no presence in the upper frequencies. That is exactly why it is useful where you do not want a sound to fight — deep sub-bass under everything, fundamentals for thick layered patches, gentle sub-octave layers beneath brighter shapes.

▸Typical uses

Sub-bass under brighter layers
Bell-like leads when shaped with envelopes
Pure tones for tuning and reference
Sub-octave reinforcement in stacked patches

▸In the curriculum

Lessons that explicitly use, or naturally lean on, the sine waveform:

Bass · BS1
Pick a wave

Do: A/B sine, saw, and square over the bed.

Result: A clean sub.

▸Other waveforms

Compare sine against the other oscillator shapes:

Triangle Sawtooth Square Pulse Noise

Hear sine alone, then watch the filter eat its harmonics. The PatchPond studio loads any oscillator waveform with one click.

Open studio →

Sine

▸Typical uses

▸In the curriculum

Pick a wave

▸Other waveforms