Baud Girl FM-1+VA

A new FM preset's knobs start as brightness, feedback, attack and release; Virtual Analog as cutoff, resonance, filter envelope and filter decay; 8-Bit as drum decay, bass arpeggio, lead arpeggio and lead decay.

• FX, LFO, EDIT, GLO, HOME: lit while you're on their screen.
• ENV: lit while the preset's envelope is on. ARP: steady while the Note Engine is on.
• SEQ: flashes on the beat while the Sequencer is on. REC: flashes on the beat while recording live.
• Keys: light while their note sounds, whoever plays it. In step recording, only the outlined step's notes. In EDIT on an FM preset, the open operator is lit and the other operators that are on blink.

• Back up first, while FM-1+VA is still installed. Her Device Manager (in the browser, over USB) saves two .syx files: all 128 presets, and all 16 patterns with their locks. It can't read an FM-1 running anything else, so do it before you install another firmware, stock included. Also back up before loading a DX7 bank, a preset pack or resetting a bank.
• Installing or updating FM-1+VA keeps your saved presets and patterns. Press SAVE first: anything unsaved is lost. Coming from stock, the global settings may reset; write them down.
• Going back to stock: her docs promise only that your saved presets stay. They say nothing about patterns (which can be 64 steps here and only 16 on stock), so keep the backup. Virtual Analog and 8-Bit presets won't play there, and FM-1+VA's settings go. Reinstall and they come back. You need M-VAVE's own file from its download page.
• Back up in the firmware you are leaving first, with its own tool (above). Anything below marked at risk can be written over; whether an older saved copy survives depends on how often you saved, so do not count on it.
• What installing Baud Girl FM-1+VA does to the firmware you had before. install (her web installer): Her docs: an installation keeps saved presets and patterns; coming from M-VAVE's firmware, the GLOBE settings may come back at factory values; unsaved changes are lost [vendor-doc].
  • Stock V15: Possibly at risk (layout reported or inferred): stock settings (and possibly patterns); stock voices (128 user patches, banks A-D).
  • Felucca: Possibly at risk (layout reported or inferred): project slot A; project slot B; project slot C; project slot D; FM6 patches of the FM6 user presets; user sample slot USR1; user sample slot USR2; user sample slot USR3; user presets 1-16; user presets 17-32; the autosave (the music as you left it); FM6 voice bank B1-B32.
  • SLOOP: Possibly at risk (layout reported or inferred): song section A (a whole project); song section B (a whole project); song section C (a whole project); song section D (a whole project); the music in progress (autosave); user sample slot USR1 (header at 0xA0000); user sample slot USR2 (header at 0xB4000); user sample slot USR3 (header at 0xC8000); user sounds U01-U16; user sounds U17-U32; FM6 patch bank B1-B27; user sample slot USR4 (header at 0xE7000).
  • X0X: Possibly at risk (layout reported or inferred): the whole X0X project (settings, sound, all 32 patterns, song, knob motion); break loops slot 1; break loops slot 2; break loops slot 3; X0X button calibration.
  • JIANT: Possibly at risk (layout reported or inferred): song 1 section A (a whole project); song 1 section B (a whole project); song 1 section C (a whole project); song 1 section D (a whole project); FM6 patches of the FM6 user sounds; song 2: four sections (whole projects); song 3: four sections (whole projects); song 4: four sections (whole projects); song 5: four sections (whole projects); song 6: four sections (whole projects); song 7: four sections (whole projects); song 8: four sections (whole projects); which song is current, every song's rows and scenes; user sounds U01-U16; user sounds U17-U32; the music in progress (RESTORE LAST); FM6 voice bank B1-B32.
  • Melodee: Possibly at risk (layout reported or inferred): shared user presets U289-U378; shared user presets U379-U384; shared user presets U109-U126; project A: patterns, song, sounds, motion, recordings; project B: patterns, song, sounds, motion, recordings; project C: patterns, song, sounds, motion, recordings; project D: patterns, song, sounds, motion, recordings; shared user presets U145-U288; shared user presets U073-U090; shared user presets U091-U108; shared user presets U001-U018; shared user presets U019-U036; shared user presets U037-U054; shared user presets U055-U072; shared user presets U127-U144.
  • FoMni: Possibly at risk (layout reported or inferred): FoMni button calibration.
  • AMB-1: Possibly at risk (layout reported or inferred): AMB-1 panel calibration.
  • ChoralRoot: Possibly at risk (layout reported or inferred): 32 imported DX7 voices; CZ-1 bank A (16 tones); CZ-1 bank B (16 tones); CZ-1 bank C (16 tones); CZ-1 bank D (16 tones); CZ-1 bank E (16 tones); CZ-1 bank F (16 tones); CZ-1 bank G (16 tones); CZ-1 bank H (16 tones); last global-save session; favourite marks, chord/bass type and filter; 128 saved sounds with their complete engine patches; recorded loop 1; recorded loop 2; recorded loop 3; recorded loop 4; recorded loop 5; recorded loop 6; recorded loop 7; recorded loop 8; recorded loop 9; recorded loop 10.
  • GHOULBOX: Possibly at risk (layout reported or inferred): project A; project B; project C; project D; FM6 patches for user sounds; user sample slot USR1; user sample slot USR2; user sample slot USR3; user sounds 1–16; user sounds 17–32; music in progress (RESTORE LAST); FM6 voice bank B1–B32.
  • M-VAVE FM-1 Open: Possibly at risk (layout reported or inferred): Open USER project 1; Open USER project 2; Open USER project 3; Open USER project 4; Open USER project 5; Open USER project 6; Open USER project 7; Open USER project 8; Open USER project 9; Open USER project 10; Open USER project 11; Open USER project 12; Open USER project 13; Open USER project 14; Open USER project 15; Open USER project 16; Open device preferences; Open shared sample audio. Open’s sixteen USER projects and device preferences are likely to be lost when installing Baud Girl, and its sample bank is also at risk. Her installer and package footprint have not been read, so these losses remain possible rather than source-proven. Export all projects and device samples before leaving Open.
  • FM-106: Possibly at risk (layout reported or inferred): older stored user bank, if present (Beta4 does not store new edits). A valid user bank stored by an earlier FM-106 build can still be present and readable in Beta4; the bank risks listed here, if any, apply if it exists. FM-106 Beta4’s new user-sound edits are only in memory: panel save, delete and librarian bank commit do not store them, even when they report success. Read the unit into the librarian and export both user banks before switching or powering off; those exports omit sequence notes, locks and extended controls.
  • Hortator: Possibly at risk (layout reported or inferred): project A; project B; project C; project D; user samples USR1; user samples USR2; user samples USR3.
  • OberVave: Possibly at risk (layout reported or inferred): pattern 1; pattern 2; pattern 3; pattern 4; pattern 5; pattern 6; pattern 7; pattern 8.
  • Polly: Possibly at risk (layout reported or inferred): Optional QY70 style bank; All four Polly songs; Polly shared memory 1; Polly shared memory 2; Polly shared memory 3; Polly shared memory 4; Polly shared memory 5; Polly shared memory 6; Polly shared memory 7; Polly shared memory 8; Polly shared memory 9; Polly shared memory 10; Polly shared memory 11; Polly shared memory 12; Polly shared memory 13; Polly shared memory 14; Polly shared memory 15; Polly shared memory 16; Polly button and encoder calibration.
  • Skiff: Possibly at risk (layout reported or inferred): project A; project B; project C; project D; user sounds’ own FM6 patches; user sample USR1; user sample USR2; user sample USR3; user sound bank 1; user sound bank 2; last session; shared 64-pattern pool.
• What the next firmware does to Baud Girl FM-1+VA's data.
  • Stock V15: Possibly at risk (layout reported or inferred): Baud Girl patterns (16, with locks). Carried over: Baud Girl presets (128) (her Virtual Analog and 8-Bit presets will not play on stock).
  • Felucca: Possibly at risk (layout reported or inferred): Baud Girl presets (128); Baud Girl patterns (16, with locks).
  • SLOOP: Possibly at risk (layout reported or inferred): Baud Girl presets (128); Baud Girl patterns (16, with locks).
  • X0X: Possibly at risk (layout reported or inferred): Baud Girl presets (128); Baud Girl patterns (16, with locks).
  • JIANT: Possibly at risk (layout reported or inferred): Baud Girl presets (128); Baud Girl patterns (16, with locks).
  • Melodee: Possibly at risk (layout reported or inferred): Baud Girl presets (128); Baud Girl patterns (16, with locks).
  • FoMni: Possibly at risk (layout reported or inferred): Baud Girl presets (128); Baud Girl patterns (16, with locks).
  • AMB-1: Possibly at risk (layout reported or inferred): Baud Girl presets (128); Baud Girl patterns (16, with locks).
  • ChoralRoot: Possibly at risk (layout reported or inferred): Baud Girl presets (128); Baud Girl patterns (16, with locks).
  • GHOULBOX: Possibly at risk (layout reported or inferred): Baud Girl presets (128); Baud Girl patterns (16, with locks).
  • M-VAVE FM-1 Open: Possibly at risk (layout reported or inferred): Baud Girl presets (128); Baud Girl patterns (16, with locks). The factory-sample write runs by itself right after the Workbench installs Open, before any project save. The source-built V12 bank erases 0x8D000–0x9FFFF without another sample question. The shipped Workbench asset was not compared with the source.
  • FM-106: Possibly at risk (layout reported or inferred): Baud Girl presets (128); Baud Girl patterns (16, with locks).
  • Hortator: Possibly at risk (layout reported or inferred): Baud Girl presets (128); Baud Girl patterns (16, with locks).
  • OberVave: Possibly at risk (layout reported or inferred): Baud Girl presets (128); Baud Girl patterns (16, with locks).
  • Polly: Possibly at risk (layout reported or inferred): Baud Girl presets (128); Baud Girl patterns (16, with locks).
  • Skiff: Possibly at risk (layout reported or inferred): Baud Girl presets (128); Baud Girl patterns (16, with locks).
• Who reads whose data. Other firmwares reading Baud Girl FM-1+VA's data: Stock V15 reads and uses Baud Girl FM-1+VA's Baud Girl presets (128) (her Virtual Analog and 8-Bit presets will not play on stock). What Baud Girl FM-1+VA reads of other firmwares' data: Baud Girl FM-1+VA reads and uses Stock V15's stock voices (128 user patches, banks A-D). Everything else of another firmware's looks empty or foreign to the reader.
• Every way each write can happen, for all mapped firmwares: the flash atlas's table. Read in each firmware's source (closed ones: their docs or third-party reports); nothing was tested on a unit.

• Coming to FM-1+VA from an open-source firmware: not documented either. Back that firmware up with its own editor first.
• On Version 93 or older? M-VAVE's own updater can't see the FM-1. Update FM-1+VA first.

Up to Version 94, SEQ switched the sequencer on and off, there was a drum grid, and an Overdub Rec setting. From Version 96, SEQ only shows the pattern, holding PLAY is the switch, the drum grid is gone and recording always adds.

Mapped from Baud Girl's public docs for Version 101 (baudgirl.com/work/FM-1+VA/manual/101) on 2026-10-13. FM-1+VA is closed source and has no licence to redistribute it: get it only from the author. Every line is graded as the author's own documentation, with its section of the docs in baudgirl.json. This is an independent guide written in our own words, not affiliated with Baud Girl or M-VAVE. M-VAVE and FM-1 are trademarks of their owners.