Low-pass gate vs standard VCA + filter: one pluck pattern

This prototype uses the same four-note pluck source for both chains. The standard chain uses a fixed low-pass filter plus a VCA amplitude envelope. The LPG approximation links the same decay contour to both gain and cutoff, so the note gets quieter and darker together.

Listen

Standard VCA + fixed LPF

Low-pass gate approximation

A/B stereo file: standard left, LPG right

Visual comparison

Waveform, RMS, and spectral centroid comparison

First-note brightness summary

Chain	Early centroid	Late centroid	Brightness drop	Peak RMS
standard vca filter	2494	2487	0.3%	0.2737
low pass gate	2570	1525	40.7%	0.2743

Practical application

In a beat, use the LPG version for a syncopated mallet, rim, or modular bongo layer: it leaves space because the high frequencies tuck themselves away during the decay. In an ambient loop, repeat sparse LPG plucks into delay/reverb; the linked darkening makes the repeats feel less like static MIDI notes and more like small struck objects receding into the room.

Data files: pluck_rms_spectral_centroid.csv and comparison_summary.json.