Triangle

Oscillator waveform · triangle

Harmonic content Odd harmonics only, dropping off very steeply.

A sine wave with corners. Almost as smooth as sine, but the small kinks at the peaks add a quiet set of odd harmonics, giving triangle a slightly more present body without becoming bright. It is the polite cousin of square — hollow, woody, gentle. Good for sub-bass when sine feels too invisible, and for soft leads where a saw would be too harsh.

Typical uses

In the curriculum

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

Other waveforms

Compare triangle against the other oscillator shapes:

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

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