Basic Technique

• Waveshaping is simply the processing of an input waveform by a nonlinear input/output transfer function, as depicted in Fig. 13.

  Figure 13: The processing of a sinusoidal input by a waveshaping function of the form $f(x) = (x + x^3) / 2$.

  

• In general, waveshaping transfer functions are only dependent on current values of time (i.e., the functions are “memoryless”).

• In altering the input waveform, new spectral components are created where they didn't exist before, as shown in Fig. 14.

  Figure 14: Input and output spectra for the waveshaping process depicted in Fig 13 above.

  

• Linear systems do not change the spectral content of a signal. Thus, this process is inherently non-linear.