When a low frequency output from the modulator is fed into the carrier, it produces a tremolo effect by slowly changing the carrier's level over time, as we would get with normal subtractive modulation of an oscillator's amplitude. The carrier signal determines the pitch of the note produced, and the modulator determines the shape or timbre. An operator can be used as a sound source (carrier) or as a modulator. Each operator has the software equivalent of its own oscillator, amplifier and envelope. The basic structure is a series of identical components called operators. Unlike analogue synthesizers, where the waveforms (saw, square, sine etc) are often the main focus of the controls, FM, like additive synthesis (a rare type which uses multiple sine waves to recreate sounds), is much more concerned with harmonics/partials and the spectrum of the sound. The difference is that the FM used in synthesizers lowers these waves to audible frequencies, and the decoding is dispensed with. The FM (Frequency Modulation) in FM tone generators such as the DX7 is based on the same principal as FM broadcasting - an electrical wave called the carrier is modulated by another called the modulator, and this combined signal faithfully conveys the original content of the broadcast when decoded.
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