This walkthrough of Ableton's Vector FM synth digs into the particle physics that drive its granular FM modulation. You can give each new particle a fixed mass or randomize it within a range, and that mass doesn't just shape the sound parameter it's mapped to (like carrier waveform), it also changes how the particle moves and interacts inside the simulation.
The Attractor, shown as a white square at the center of the display, pulls or pushes particles based on a Strength setting, and you can choose whether it acts on positive particles (blue), negative particles (yellow), or both. Magnetism adds another layer by controlling whether oppositely charged particles attract or repel each other, letting you build more complex, self-organizing motion patterns.
Because mass, attraction, and magnetism all interact, tiny tweaks to any one control can send the whole particle field behaving very differently. Start with small moves and watch how the system responds before committing to bigger changes.