Tides accepts V/Oct pitch CV for musically-calibrated frequency tracking alongside exponential FM

Tides has two CV inputs that affect frequency: a standard exponential FM input (attenuverter-scaled, responds to any voltage) and a dedicated V/OCT input that follows the standard Volt-per-octave scale used for pitch tracking. The V/OCT input means Tides can be driven by a MIDI-to-CV converter or keyboard and track pitch accurately as a VCO. The FM input provides additional modulation on top of the V/OCT pitch. Having both inputs allows simultaneous pitch tracking and frequency modulation — useful when Tides is used as an audio-rate tone generator.

Examples

Patch a MIDI-to-CV module’s pitch output to Tides V/OCT. Play notes: Tides follows the pitch. Simultaneously patch an LFO to Tides FM input (with attenuverter at low amount) for vibrato. Tides now acts as a vibrato VCO.

Assessment

What distinguishes the V/OCT input from the FM input on Tides, and in what use case would you patch to both simultaneously?