In this video we recreate that classic filter‑tracking pitch illusion — the one where the filter cutoff moves musically, but the oscillator pitch stays fixed.
Used by Joe Walsh (Life’s Been Good) and Edgar Froese (Stuntman era), it’s a brilliant trick for drones, sequences, and experimental lines.

You’ll learn how to build it from scratch on the Multipoly, including the key technique that keeps the pitch locked while the filter “plays” the melody.

⏱️ Timestamps
0:00 – Intro
0:20 – What the effect is & musical examples
0:30 – Why the pitch stays fixed while the filter moves
0:37 – Starting from an initialized patch
0:46 – First step: removing key tracking
0:53 – Why setting pitch slope to zero doesn’t work
1:02 – Korg & Dan Phillips explanation: why slope affects portamento
1:12 – The correct solution: using note‑number offset
1:19 – Keeping pitch fixed across the keyboard
1:28 – How the note‑number controller cancels pitch tracking
1:36 – Doing it at the tuning level for multi‑oscillator patches
1:44 – Setting controller = note number
1:53 – Value = 60 to match key position
2:00 – Demonstration: fixed pitch across the keyboard
2:07 – Moving on to the filter envelope
2:15 – Adding two saws + detune
2:25 – Filter tracking: the heart of the effect
2:39 – Full key tracking explained
2:43 – Watching the cutoff rise on the display
2:50 – Tweaking cutoff + resonance by ear
3:03 – Dialling in the musical “filter pitch”
3:16 – Dropping the oscillators an octave
3:26 – Adding chorus, tape echo, and reverb
3:44 – Trying to match the exact Froese pitch
3:53 – Why it’s tricky to get the exact note
3:59 – Balancing resonance, cutoff, and tracking
4:06 – Getting close to the Stuntman tone
4:15 – Self‑resonance option
4:32 – Closer to the musical tone
4:39 – Almost resonating in tune
4:47 – The drone underneath the filter tone
4:56 – Alternative method: apply tuning offset to one oscillator only
5:03 – Using other oscillators for additional layers
5:14 – Asking for note suggestions
5:22 – Thanks to Dan Philips (Korg) for the technique
5:30 – Outro

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Watch the video on YouTube.