EarthQuaker Devices Data Corrupter Modulated Monophonic Harmonizing PPL

Data Corrupter®
Modulated monophonic harmonization PLL
The Data Corrupter is a monophonic analog harmonization PLL with modulation. It takes your input signal and brutally amplifies it into an overwhelming square wave fuzz tone which is then multiplied, divided and modulated to create a wild, yet repeatable three-voice guitar synthesizer.

The Master Oscillator is the central nervous system at the heart of the Data Corrupter cyberpunk hive. It feeds your input to the signal collector in its original octave (Unison), one octave down (-1) or two octaves down (-2) for maximum compatibility with your preferred instrument and frequency range . Once you've chosen your input octave, the Data Corrupter will perform its calculations and spit out an analog synth frequency, which can be changed for portamento or vibrato sounds by the frequency modulator! From there you can mix any of the eight Subharmonic intervals up to three octaves below the input and mix in a square wave fuzz tone for maximum data corruption.

The Master Oscillator (1) is the central nervous system at the heart of the Data Corrupter cyberpunk hive. The three-position switch on the main oscillator control panel titled Root feeds your input to the signal collector in its original octave (Unison), one octave down (-1) or two octaves down (- 2). Use the Main Oscillator Root Switch to fine-tune the Data Corruptor's tracking response for maximum compatibility with your preferred instrument and frequency register. Once you've chosen your input octave, the Data Corrupter will perform its calculations and spit out a synthesized frequency, the octave and / or interval of which can be selected via the master oscillator's eight-position rotary switch.

The Voice Mixer oscillator control (2) adjusts the mix of the main oscillator.

The frequency modulator (3) applies pitch-bend modulation to the master oscillator. In Glide mode, you will hear a smooth portamento as each note slides into the next. In Vibrato mode, the pitch modulates up and down for a retro sci-fi laser effect.
The Subharmonic (4) assimilates the input signal into one of eight lower octave programs between one and three octaves below the original. For a more stable lower octave, set the subharmonic root switch to the Unison position, which splits the input signal from the square wave and removes the frequency modulator from the subharmonic signal path.

To free the cracked machine lurking in the mainframe, set the sub-harmonic root switch on the oscillator and try not to look away as the malware you just installed changes your input signal in the sum and the difference of the main oscillator and the subharmonic with the frequency modulator. applied to the upper and lower octaves.

If you think you are brave enough, set the Subharmonic Root Switch to Oscillator and try experimenting with different Master Oscillator and Subharmonic programs to wind up the doomsday clock and get closer and closer to the Singularity. Adjust the subharmonic control of the Voice Mixer to set the lower octave volume.

Finally, (or is it?) The Square control (5) located at the top left on the Voice Mixer blends into a fuzzy square wave take of your input in its original octave. That's it. These aren't the droids we're looking for. Moving forward.
Nerd talk
The heart of this pedal is based on a CMOS Phase Locked Loop (PLL) integrated circuit. In a nutshell, the PLL takes your input signal and compares its phase and frequency to an oscillator, generates an output proportional to their difference and then sends it back to the oscillator. This then causes the oscillator to lock onto the input signal and generate a synthesized frequency. Pretty cool, isn't it? This synthesized frequency is called the master oscillator on the Data Corrupter.
Design Notes
This device is inspired by the Electrax Synthax and the "Basic Frequency Synthesizer" by Ray Marston. Neither were really meant to be guitar effects pedals and a lot of work went into creating the Data Corrupter to provide excellent tracking and long sustain. We think you'll find it more expressive and precise than virtually any other PLL-based effect pedal.