Understanding Native Instruments Massive SC (Sidechain) Modulation

This is a really great video explaining how the sidechain function works within NI Massive to provide you with added control over your modulation options.

There are several key features scattered throughout NI Massive that are continually asked about by students and commenters alike. The SC modulation box, found under many of the knobs, is how you work with sidechaining in Massive and this lesson explores exactly how you go about it and how it works. This is an incredibly powerful concept to apply to your production work in your DAW, and now you will be able access it here in Massive as well.

To help illustrate this in the easiest way possible, a Macro controller is used in the SC slot. As you can see, at first the sidechain feature is not active and therefore can simply be used as another modulator slot. But once you click on SC, it changes entirely. If you had a modulation range programmed already, it disappears. And when you attempt to turn the Macro knob assigned, nothing changes.

To engage with sidechaining at this point, you need to select a direction you wish to want to turn the Macro knob. This assigns the minimum and maximum destinations. But now you may want to reprogram the first Modulator, an LFO in the video. This is because the sidechained Macro controller will now control modulation only within the parameters assigned to the LFO itself. So now the Macro knob moves between the min and max points of the LFO modulation ring. This is great tool to find those small bits of sound in more minute modulation setups.

We hope this has helped to shine some light on those little SC boxes in NI Massive. If you have a request for a future post, let us know by dropping a message our way. Thanks for stopping by!

Cheers,
OhmLab