Documenting a Patch
A patch is archived only when someone else can recall it exactly; parameters, versions and dependencies have to travel with it.
Related
Open a project three months later and the same patch sounds wrong: the plugin has been updated, the wavetable is a different revision, the sample path is broken. Documentation is not about writing things down; it is about recalling the sound on another machine.
Five things travel with a patch
| Item | What to record | Why it matters | How to keep it |
|---|---|---|---|
| Parameters | Oscillators, filter, envelopes, effects | They are the skeleton of the sound | Preset file plus a parameter sheet |
| Modulation | Source, target, depth, curve | It sets movement and feel | Matrix screenshot or table |
| Dependencies | Wavetables, samples, third-party presets | One missing file changes everything | Names with version and checksum |
| Environment | Plugin build, firmware, DAW | Updates alter algorithms | Note it in the preset description |
| Audio | Fixed MIDI and a render | The ear is the final check | Same folder as the preset |
Three levels of detail
The smallest unit is the preset file, which only guarantees parameter values. The middle level is a project snapshot, carrying MIDI, automation and the effect chain. The largest is a written note covering intent, replaceable parts and known issues. For sessions and collaboration, aim for the middle level at least, because automation often lives in the project rather than the preset.
Naming and versions
Name files with patch, version and date, starting at one point zero: a change in character raises the major number, a parameter nudge raises the minor. Add one line with each save saying what changed and why. Avoid final, new or good; three months on, nobody can tell them apart.
When a recall fails
Check plugin and firmware builds first, then the names and checksums of wavetables and samples, then global settings: polyphony, glide, tuning, effect sends. Automation is the usual omission, especially when controller numbers were remapped. Across machines, check the sample rate too: some oscillators change their anti-aliasing with the rate, and the timbre follows.
Listen in the library
All tracks from midicn-lib — inline badge is the license tier (C1 commercial / C2 non-commercial / C3 study only).
Along the same line
Sources
- Sequential Circuits，Prophet-5 用户手册（厂商文档）— 预设保存与调用
- MIDI Association，MIDI 1.0 Detailed Specification — 控制器与音色消息
- Gordon Reid，Sound On Sound Synth Secrets — 参数与调制路由