For decades, the voltage controlled slew limiter has been a staple of modular synthesisers. With its extreme versatility, it can be used to slew control voltages (CVs), create envelopes, as a low-frequency or audio oscillator and much more.
Today, Contour 1 brings a fresh approach to this classic circuit. It delivers much improved performance and control by incorporating modern design techniques.
At its most basic, a slew limiter slows down the rate of voltage change in a signal. On Contour 1, the rising and falling rates can be individually set using sliders and CV modulation.
The gate and trigger inputs allow the module to be used as a function generator: create snappy attack-release (AR) and attack-decay (AD) envelopes, with slope times ranging from 500 µs to 30 seconds. The dedicated gate input makes it easy to generate +10 V envelopes from any signal source. Using the large tactile push button, AD envelopes can be manually triggered. A trigger will also reset the output voltage.
When set to loop mode, Contour 1 will continually re-trigger itself. In this mode, it fulfils the role of a variable-shape low-frequency oscillator (LFO) or temperature-stable voltage controlled oscillator (VCO) in the audio range.
Both the rising and falling slopes can be individually bent, from concave through linear to convex. While doing so, the deviation in slope time, and thus oscillation frequency, is kept to a minimum. Since the bend parameters are separately voltage controllable, boundless modulation possibilities present themselves.
Explore anything from shape-shifting envelopes to rich VCO timbres: Contour 1 will make you re-think what a slew limiter can do.
Analogue voltage controlled bidirectional slew limiter.
Precision circuitry to slew any signal, including pitch CV, accurately.
Separate rise/fall slope bending with voltage control and compensation for minimal effect on slew time.
Real-time visual feedback through LEDs on slew time sliders.
Dedicated gate input in addition to the analogue slew input: easily create +10 V attack-release (AR) envelopes, regardless of the gate amplitude.
Trigger input and push button: reset the slew core and trigger a one-shot attack-decay (AD) envelope through a single trigger signal.
Voltage hold gate input 'freezes' the slew core. Pause envelopes and LFO modulations, or create pulse-width-sensitive sync sounds at audio rates.
Impedance-compensated regular and inverted analogue outputs.
Rise and fall status gate outputs.
Loop switch for variable waveshape temperature-stable VC(LF)O operation. Gate input functions as an oscillation enable input in loop mode.
Capable of 1 volt/octave tracking over several octaves.
Wide slew time range: 500 µs to 30 seconds per slope. Audio range switch setting constricts range to ease tuning.
V/octave trim potentiometer accessible from the front panel.
Highly multifunctional: slew limiter, envelope generator, envelope follower, (gated) VC(LF)O, frequency divider, slope detector and much more.
Precision-milled 2 mm anodised aluminium front panel with high-resolution, non-erasable graphics.
Bullet-proof design: polarised power header and MOSFET protection circuit.
Includes 16-to-10-pin Eurorack power ribbon cable.
Premium mounting hardware: black screws, black nylon washers and matching hex key.
High-quality components and assembly; designed and made in Belgium.
How much is my shipping?
Shipping is automatically calculated before you submit your payment information. Simply add items to your cart and proceed to the checkout page, where you'll be offered shipping options and their prices. In the UK it's normally around £4 for order values under £150, and free above that. Shipping to mainland EU is typically between £7 and £20, depending on the shipping method and the size and weight of the order.
Do you ship to my country?
Almost certainly - the site will give you an estimate of shipping costs if you add an item to the cart and then enter your country and postcode. If you have specific requirements (such as if you prefer UPS over FedEx, for example) then let us know in advance and we'll try to work something out for you.
Shipping methods
We use a combination of Parcelforce, DPD, Royal Mail and UPS for the UK, and for international orders it's either Royal Mail, UPS, DHL or FedEx depending on where you are in the world. If you have a particular preference then try to let us know BEFORE you order so we can look into it for you. Please note that there may occasionally be additional shipping charges if you live in a remote area, depending on what surcharges are applied by the shipper. We'll get in touch to discuss this with you in such cases.
Dispatch times
For UK orders, we normally dispatch the same working day if we get the order before 15:00. If you have a really urgent situation then of course drop us an email before ordering and we'll always do our absolute best to accommodate you.
For international orders, we normally dispatch the same day if we get the order before 13:00 but again, occasionally it might be the next day before we can send it out, and sometimes FedEx or UPS may come a little earlier than scheduled which would also push an order into the next day.
Shipping times
Since April 2020 the couriers we use have suspended guarantees for shipping times, so even though we're paying them for priority services - 24-48 hours for most of the world - in practice it's often an extra day on top and sometimes it can be longer.
There is absolutely nothing we can do about this unfortunately. If you are outside the UK and it's a life-or-death situation where you absolutely MUST have that passive mult for the next day then... it may be better to find a local supplier.
Saturday shipping
If you're in the UK and you order before 15:30 on a Friday then we can send something for a Saturday delivery (NB: this applies to UK mainland addresses only). The success rate with DPD is about 95% so it's worth a punt most of the time. Please note that if you select Saturday shipping on an order placed earlier in the week, we'll wait until Friday to ship it.
Pre-orders
If a product is listed as a pre-order, it means we've ordered it from the supplier but it's not physically in stock yet. The product listing will include an estimated shipping date based on the best information we have from the supplier, but do bear in mind this is subject to change and is not a guaranteed date.
If you place an order containing a mixture of in-stock and pre-order items, we'll normally hold off on shipping anything until the pre-order item(s) have arrived, rather than splitting it into multiple shipments. If you need the in-stock items sooner, we'd recommend placing separate orders. As always, please get in touch if you have questions.
Product Overview
For decades, the voltage controlled slew limiter has been a staple of modular synthesisers. With its extreme versatility, it can be used to slew control voltages (CVs), create envelopes, as a low-frequency or audio oscillator and much more.
Today, Contour 1 brings a fresh approach to this classic circuit. It delivers much improved performance and control by incorporating modern design techniques.
At its most basic, a slew limiter slows down the rate of voltage change in a signal. On Contour 1, the rising and falling rates can be individually set using sliders and CV modulation.
The gate and trigger inputs allow the module to be used as a function generator: create snappy attack-release (AR) and attack-decay (AD) envelopes, with slope times ranging from 500 µs to 30 seconds. The dedicated gate input makes it easy to generate +10 V envelopes from any signal source. Using the large tactile push button, AD envelopes can be manually triggered. A trigger will also reset the output voltage.
When set to loop mode, Contour 1 will continually re-trigger itself. In this mode, it fulfils the role of a variable-shape low-frequency oscillator (LFO) or temperature-stable voltage controlled oscillator (VCO) in the audio range.
Both the rising and falling slopes can be individually bent, from concave through linear to convex. While doing so, the deviation in slope time, and thus oscillation frequency, is kept to a minimum. Since the bend parameters are separately voltage controllable, boundless modulation possibilities present themselves.
Explore anything from shape-shifting envelopes to rich VCO timbres: Contour 1 will make you re-think what a slew limiter can do.
Analogue voltage controlled bidirectional slew limiter.
Precision circuitry to slew any signal, including pitch CV, accurately.
Separate rise/fall slope bending with voltage control and compensation for minimal effect on slew time.
Real-time visual feedback through LEDs on slew time sliders.
Dedicated gate input in addition to the analogue slew input: easily create +10 V attack-release (AR) envelopes, regardless of the gate amplitude.
Trigger input and push button: reset the slew core and trigger a one-shot attack-decay (AD) envelope through a single trigger signal.
Voltage hold gate input 'freezes' the slew core. Pause envelopes and LFO modulations, or create pulse-width-sensitive sync sounds at audio rates.
Impedance-compensated regular and inverted analogue outputs.
Rise and fall status gate outputs.
Loop switch for variable waveshape temperature-stable VC(LF)O operation. Gate input functions as an oscillation enable input in loop mode.
Capable of 1 volt/octave tracking over several octaves.
Wide slew time range: 500 µs to 30 seconds per slope. Audio range switch setting constricts range to ease tuning.
V/octave trim potentiometer accessible from the front panel.
Highly multifunctional: slew limiter, envelope generator, envelope follower, (gated) VC(LF)O, frequency divider, slope detector and much more.
Precision-milled 2 mm anodised aluminium front panel with high-resolution, non-erasable graphics.
Bullet-proof design: polarised power header and MOSFET protection circuit.
Includes 16-to-10-pin Eurorack power ribbon cable.
Premium mounting hardware: black screws, black nylon washers and matching hex key.
High-quality components and assembly; designed and made in Belgium.
Technical Specs
Shipping Details
How much is my shipping?
Shipping is automatically calculated before you submit your payment information. Simply add items to your cart and proceed to the checkout page, where you'll be offered shipping options and their prices. In the UK it's normally around £4 for order values under £150, and free above that. Shipping to mainland EU is typically between £7 and £20, depending on the shipping method and the size and weight of the order.
Do you ship to my country?
Almost certainly - the site will give you an estimate of shipping costs if you add an item to the cart and then enter your country and postcode. If you have specific requirements (such as if you prefer UPS over FedEx, for example) then let us know in advance and we'll try to work something out for you.
Shipping methods
We use a combination of Parcelforce, DPD, Royal Mail and UPS for the UK, and for international orders it's either Royal Mail, UPS, DHL or FedEx depending on where you are in the world. If you have a particular preference then try to let us know BEFORE you order so we can look into it for you. Please note that there may occasionally be additional shipping charges if you live in a remote area, depending on what surcharges are applied by the shipper. We'll get in touch to discuss this with you in such cases.
Dispatch times
For UK orders, we normally dispatch the same working day if we get the order before 15:00. If you have a really urgent situation then of course drop us an email before ordering and we'll always do our absolute best to accommodate you.
For international orders, we normally dispatch the same day if we get the order before 13:00 but again, occasionally it might be the next day before we can send it out, and sometimes FedEx or UPS may come a little earlier than scheduled which would also push an order into the next day.
Shipping times
Since April 2020 the couriers we use have suspended guarantees for shipping times, so even though we're paying them for priority services - 24-48 hours for most of the world - in practice it's often an extra day on top and sometimes it can be longer.
There is absolutely nothing we can do about this unfortunately. If you are outside the UK and it's a life-or-death situation where you absolutely MUST have that passive mult for the next day then... it may be better to find a local supplier.
Saturday shipping
If you're in the UK and you order before 15:30 on a Friday then we can send something for a Saturday delivery (NB: this applies to UK mainland addresses only). The success rate with DPD is about 95% so it's worth a punt most of the time. Please note that if you select Saturday shipping on an order placed earlier in the week, we'll wait until Friday to ship it.
Pre-orders
If a product is listed as a pre-order, it means we've ordered it from the supplier but it's not physically in stock yet. The product listing will include an estimated shipping date based on the best information we have from the supplier, but do bear in mind this is subject to change and is not a guaranteed date.
If you place an order containing a mixture of in-stock and pre-order items, we'll normally hold off on shipping anything until the pre-order item(s) have arrived, rather than splitting it into multiple shipments. If you need the in-stock items sooner, we'd recommend placing separate orders. As always, please get in touch if you have questions.
