sonicLAB Fundamental 4 Combines Old-School Synthesis Tools With AI Patching Capabilities

sonicLAB has introduced Fundamental 4, a major update to its sound synthesis application based on early electronic music tools.

According to the developer, “Fundamental feels like something Stockhausen, Xenakis and HAL 9000 might have dreamt up after a bender; recalling the past of electronic music through a dynamic modern interpretation of massive German vacuum oscillator.”

The update pairs old-school sound design features with artificial intelligence capabilities. Here’s a preview of how this work:

Here’s another example, demonstrating how a prompt can be used to create a patch based on the iconic TXH sound logo:

Here’s what’s new in Fundamental 4

  • A built-in AI Large Language Model interface with token based Pay-as-you-go system. No subscriptions.
  • Prompt the AI with direct, emergent or abstact definitions and the generative AI will apply its interpretation to the Fundamental synthesis engine.
  • You can save the AI prompt and its interpretation along with presets.
  • Improvements made on the user interface, easier manual frequency assignment and added graphical components.
  • Fundamental 4 will work with a Fundamental 3 license.

Pricing and Availability:

Fundamental 4 is available now for Mac & Windows, priced at $137.00 USD. The AI tokens are available as pay as you go, and cost $4 for around 150 – 200 AI prompt requests. 

17 thoughts on “sonicLAB Fundamental 4 Combines Old-School Synthesis Tools With AI Patching Capabilities”

  3. Since every time a new version of Fundamental comes out I get emails (and with this AI version I don’t expect them to be nice), I want to make clear that I am not involved in this, nor am I getting compensated for my IP having created Fundamental 1 with Sinan Bokesoy /sonic-lab.

    Here is a fun read about the “attack app” he launched against the iOS music community and me:

    https://forum.loopypro.com/discussion/48857/fundamentalorigins-by-sonicplanet-audio-video-teknolojileri-anonim-sti-free/p2

    1. Wow… This is a plot twist I’d never expected to read.

      For anyone else curious, from Hainbach’s link read from the first page of the thread then use Hainbach’s link on the 2nd page. Then bounce back to page 1 of _that_ thread for Hainbach’s first comment there, _then_ to page 6 for his main statement about stuff & things involving the dev.

      TLDR – 3 years ago the dev was a jerk.

    2. That’s shocking.

      I’ve bought Fundamental 1 on iPad many years ago, did some cut from it got to you? (i mean yeah it would be super small amount, but im just curious).

      Cheers!

  6. Real Soon Now, there will be a sarcastic nickname like “boomer” for the next demographic who can’t easily make the AI leap. The thing is, we’ve all been using “AI” for years. Its called machine learning. AI is just the sales jargon. Now that its in a dead-heat between scientific usefulness and a new tool for thievery, that all-analog studio idea is looking a lot more appealing, huh?

    2. Let us pre-empt that and coin the word `brainer`, to signify that we still actually use our brains to create music instead of substituting creativity by creating more terrible AI slop.

  8. Why do the work when something can do the work for you? That way, all the annoying traps of learning for yourself, trial and error and self-experience is removed. But seriously, this crap will turn young people from “on demand” to “on command” creators. All the mental machinations that promote learning are removed here.

    If I had a top level synth programmer next to me and I wanted to create a complex sound and he showed me the basis of synthesis and then step by step taught me how to do it, then bravo.

    But this is like having that guy there, asking him to do it for you, while you go have a bathroom break so when you return, it’s done. Useless.

    Really couldn’t be a worse idea and to come from SonicLAB is an embarrassment.

  9. You guys must be really old or living under a rock! Learning was the first casualty of the war on education. It is buried alongside practicing, thinking, collaborating ,mastery and musicianship. And just for the record, truth, honesty and caring for people also deceased. 🙂

  10. Fundamental gets stronger, the ai part for me is nothing but a new/interesting way of describing/ decoding thoughts in my head to sounds from my computer. I dontt know sinan personaly or have had any contact with him, but imo he is at the forefront of plugin and computer music design and thought. 🙂

  11. Wireboy: I’m giving AI the moderate stinkeye so far. I much prefer doing 95% of it by hand. That’s where the real fun and the goodie come from. AI has yet to offer me anything that makes shifting paradigms seem worthwhile.

    When the laser first appeared, it was called a solution looking for a problem. This will be the same, until the first couple of shakedown cruises are behind us. Then people will bitch about it turning into SKYNET.

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