Chicken Systems MV Kit Creator User Manual
MV Kit Creator™
Version 1.5, Build 1
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MV Kit Creator™ Table Of Contents
MV Kit Creator™
Table Of Contents
Introduction.......................................
Basic Concepts...................................
Windows and Operation
Main Interface....................................
Main Screen......................................
Pads.................................................
Pad Contents.......................................
Partial/Patch Editor................................
Playback/Auditioning............................
Sound Database...................................
Sound Database Editor.........................
Common Operations
Working With Projects...........................
Importing Samples To Pads......................
Importing Recycle Files........................
Importing Akai MPC............................
Using The Database............................
Extracing .mv0 Files............................
Using the MV Viewer............................
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Menus
File...................................................
Function Buttons.................................
Pads.................................................
Tools................................................
Help...................................................
Other
Preferences.......................................
Tutorials............................................
Support
Troubleshooting...................................
FAQ...................................................
Bug Reports.......................................
Contacting Technical Support...................
Updating............................................
Contact Us.........................................
Credits..............................................
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MV Kit Creator™ Introduction
MV Kit Creator™
Introduction
MV Kit Creator™ is a Mac and Windows
application that creates and edits MV8000/8800 kits (Instruments), and
manages your sounds and samples.
There are three versions: Pro, LE, and
Free. MV Kit Creator Pro contains all the
features described in this document. MV
Kit Creator LE sports many of the Pro
features but imposes several limitations,
such as composing instruments and MV0
export, You can view the other features
but you can’t take advantage of them. MV Kit Creator Free is
purely for demonstration and cannot save anything.
Features include:
* Create new MV-8000 Series Patches (.mv0 les) or modify existing ones
* Easy-to-use drag-drop “Virtual MV” interface. Allows dropping any sample on a pad, from
the desktop/hard drive or included Sound Database
* Operates independently of the actual MV-8000/8800
* Real-time auditioning with included audio streaming playback engine
* Waveform display and Zone/Partial display
* Powerful integrated Sound Database with user-dened categories, keywords, and grouping
* Edit all Roland MV Patch, Partial and Sample parameters, plus full naming ability
* Powerful Functions and Macros allow mapping samples with grace and ease
* Playable via onscreen Pads or via MIDI
* Macintosh and Windows compatible
This document assumes the Pro version in it’s writing. MV Kit Creator Pro and MV Kit
Creator LE can be purchased at SamplerZone.com.
This document is synced to the MV Kit Creator™ version denoted on the cover of this
document. It is a dynamic document and often is revised with every build of MV Kit Creator™.
In this document, the term “right-click” also refers to “control-click” on a Mac. Only “right-click”
will be used. Similarly, “Preferences” is term for different optional parameters that can be set
in the program; on the Mac you will see the word “Preferences”, but on Windows you will see
“Options”. In this document, Preferences will be used. Graphics are all from the Mac, but look
very similar to the Windows version.
Since the Roland MV regards the middle C key on a keyboard (MIDI note 60) as C4, by
default MV Kit Creator™ shows the textual representation of MIDI note 60 as C4. This is the
US representation. However, if you are more used to seeing C3 as middle C (like Kontakt or
EXS24), you can change this in Preferences-General.
If you are a registered owner, you are qualied for free updates for the life of the program.
You can download these from your program using the Check for Update feature, or from the
Chicken Systems Update Area.
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Basic Concepts
Basic Concepts
The fundamental goals of the MV Kit Creator are:
* Create custom drum kits, loops,
and chromatic instruments for the MV8000/8800
* Maintain an organized database
structure of percussive and chromatic
sounds
* Allow a more organized way of viewing
MV-8000/8800 Instruments
* Allow ofine methods to handle and
audition .mv0 les
* Reduce the natural duplication of MV8000/8800 samples due to the monolithic
format
In this document, “MV-8000” will refer to
both the Roland MV-8000 and the MV-8800.
.mv0 les used on both instruments are the
same.
MV Kit Creator™
The term “right-click” is used for both
control clicking on the Mac and right clicking
on both the Mac and Windows.
Also, most of the screenshots in this document are from the Mac - the Windows versions look
very similar so this shouldn’t be an inconvenience.
Lastly, for brevity, the acronym MV Kit Creator™ will be used for MV Kit Creator.
Projects
When you start up MV Kit Creator™, you are always building a Project. (Don’t confuse this with
an MV-8000 Project, which is a song and instrument setup on the MV itself.)
A Project is simply the equivalent of a MV-8000 Instrument, only it can access any WAVE or
AIFF le on your computer, or any sample inside a .mv0 le.
Projects can be saved on your disk as small les, since they reference external samples.
Important Concept: you are NEVER working with a .mv0 le in MV Kit Creator™. When you load
a .mv0 le, you are loading it into a Project. Although a Project is mostly the equivalent of a
.mv0 le, it is a Project and NOT a .mv0 le. When you click the menu File-Save, you are saving
a MV Kit Creator™ Project (.mv8porject).
What does this mean? It means that when you use MV Kit Creator™, feel comfortable working
with Projects. When you want to output to .mv0, select Export to .mv0 under File.
Each Project has a name, which is printed in main screen at the top of the interface. You can
rename it using Tools-Rename Project or right-click on the Project name itself.
For more information on Projects, go to the Project chapter in this document.
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MV Kit Creator™ Basic Concepts
Building Instruments
The purpose of a Project is to build an Instrument (that is, an .mv0 le) to use in your MV-
8000. You use the Pads on the Main Interface to arrange samples in the fashion you want them
to appear.
You can import samples using a variety of methods - dragging samples from outside or inside
your application, using the database, using right-click menus, or importing an entire .mv0 le.
The Sound Database in particular is well integrated into MV Kit Creator™ and offers an excellent
way to organize and build your Instruments.
For more information on importing samples to build Instruments, go to the Importing Samples
To Pads chapter in this document. For more information on the Sound Database, go to the
Sound Database Editor chapter in this document.
Playing Back Projects/Instruments
MV Kit Creator™ comes with an integrated multisample streaming playback engine. “Streaming”
means that it does not rely wholly on loading samples into memory like the MV-8000 does, but
plays the sample back from the disk as needed. This is very handy as it reduces load time to
nothing, and you are more able to build and work with instruments without the engine trying to
“keep up”.
This is the rst generation of the streaming engine, and as a result simply plays back
the samples and reproduces the tuning, looping, level, and playback attributes. Realtime
parameters such as Envelopes, LFO’s, Filtering, and similar partial parameters will not be
reected when playing the pads via MIDI or by clicking on the Pads. The streaming playback
engine has not been developed to that point yet, although we are working toward it and will be
implemented in later versions of this software.
For more information on Playback, go to the Playback/Auditioning chapter in this document.
Editing Partial and Patch Parameters
The MV-8000 has a full complement of parameters that affect your sounds, and the MV Kit
Creator™ is fully able to edit these parameters. For more information on editing Partials,
Patches, and other parameters, go to the Partial/Patch Editor in this document.
Saving MV-8000 .mv0 Files for use in the MV-8000
When you are all done and happy with your Project, it should be time to export it to a .mv0 le
to use in your MV-8000. Use File-Export to .mv0 to create a new .mv0 le from your Project.
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Main Interface
MV Kit Creator™
Main Interface
Look familiar? Looks like your MV-8000? It is
one!
Getting some caveats over with, this type of
interface is nice to look at but is generally
inefcient because of large amounts of space
unused and buttons we do not use. But, it is
what it is and it’s nice to look at.
The Main Screen is at the top of the
screen. This includes the Zones and several
important parameters. You can drop samples
on each Zone and right-clicking and clicking
each Zone exposes varies functions. Solo
and Mute labels allow you to solo and mute
specic Zones. Indicators are to the far left
that show you when the Zone is played via
the Pad or via MIDI.
The Function Buttons reside below this, allowing access to ve common windows (Pad Contents,
Partial/Patch Editor, two Sound Database views, and Preferences) to appear.
Eight Sliders appear below this. They do... nothing. But they slide and you can have fun with
them on days when you have nothing else better to do. Maybe one day we’ll hook them up to...
something.
Below this to the left are the Pads, separated into 6 Pad Banks. You can switch the Pad Banks
by selecting the proper button on the left.
Clicking on the Pads plays whatever is programmed into them. Right-clicking on a Pad exposes
several pertinent functions.
To the right of the Pads is the Graphical Wave Viewer. This shows the current sample being
played, or if none are played, it just shows the screen contents as they exist on the MV-8000
itself. Since it is understood that you can play several samples at once in MV Kit Creator™, this
simply shows the last one in the chain that was played. If you are playing MV Kit Creator™ via
MIDI, you might consider turning this viewer off in Preferences.
The Load button above the Pads reloads the current state of all the PadBanks into the internal
player. When importing individual samples MV Kit Creator may not update the player, so clicking
Load is a “free” thing to do and always completely updates the player so it is playing accurately.
Most of the time, when you load a .mvo le or a .mv8project, the player is updated.
There is also a MIDI Channel control and a Transpose control. You can change the reception
MIDI Channel by clicking on the MIDI Channel number. For Transpose, lower it by a semitone
by clicking on the <- button and raise it by clicking the -> button. Hold down SHIFT increments
or decrements by an octave, and you can reset it to 0 by clicking on the Transpose amount
number.
Lastly, there is a VIEWER button, which displays the MV Viewer dialog.
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MV Kit Creator™ Main Screen
Main Screen
The Main Screen shows the current Project Name, what Pad is currently selected and showing,
and the contents of each Zone.
Each Zone has the following information:
* A MIDI or Pad-Play indicator. This shows when the pad is stuck and released, via MIDI or
via clicking it on the interface.
* A Solo/Mute function. Clicking the S solos the Zone and mutes the rest. Clicking the M
mutes or unmutes the Zone.
* The name of the sample assigned to that Zone. “<empty>” means no sample is assigned
to that Zone. Clicking on this area enables you to choose another sample (WAVE or AIFF) to
occupy this area. Right-Clicking allows importing or deleting of that Zone.
* LoVel, HiVel, and Volume from left to right. Vels are 0-127, Volume is -96db to +12db.
The ve function labels on the bottom are for the ve Function Buttons below them.
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Pads
MV Kit Creator™
Pads
Just like the MV-8000, MV Kit Creator™ has
6 Pad Banks of 16 Pads each. Each PadBank
corresponds to 16 consecutive keys on a
keyboard, starting with A0 (MIDI note 21,
MV Kit Creator™ regards middle C as C2).
When clicking on a Pad (or accessing it via
MIDI), the basic setup of that Pad appears
on the Main Screen. This includes the sample
assigned to each of the 4 Zones, the velocity
values, and the volume.
When you click on a Pad, it becomes the
Current Selected Pad. It is on this pad that you perform operations on (with the exception of a
drop from an external source or from the database).
There several different ways of assigning samples to Pads:
* Drop sample les from outside the application onto a Pad.
* Drop samples from the Sound Database or Sound Database Editor onto a Pad.
* Right-click on a Pad and choose Import Sample..., from there you choose which Zone
you are importing to, and then you choose Browse... or a sound from the Database.
* Click on a Zone on the Main screen
Each Pad can hold it’s own set of Partial parameters.
Edit Partial...
Clicking this right-click option displays the Partial/Patch Editor page, and allows you to edit the
Partial assigned to that Pad.
Import Sample
Import any samples into one of the 4 Zones of the Pad. You can Browse for a samples, or
choose one that is already in your Sound Database.
Delete Sample
Clear one of the Zones of the sample assignment. Note: this does not delete the sample le!
(Thankfully.)
Reset Velocities
In Preferences - General, there are 4 Velocity modes. Using this right-click option automatically
sets the Zones to the selected Velocity Mode.
MV Kit Creator™ LE Limitations: You can import samples using Browse... and
by dropping samples from outside the interface, but you cannot import from
your database. You can only play a Pad by clicking on it; MIDI is disabled.
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MV Kit Creator™ Pad Contents
Pad Contents
The Pad Contents dialog allows you to view
the status of all the Pads with one look. You
can display this screen by hitting Ctl-F1 on
the Main Interface, or by clicking on the
Menu-Functions-Pad Contents menu.
On Mac, this appears as a Drawer window on
the right side of the interface. You can close
it by hitting F1 again, or by clicking on the
Close icon on the far right side of the dialog.
On Windows, this appears as a oating
window. You can close it by hitting Ctl-F1
again, or clicking on the Close icon.
Selecting one of the nodes selects the
appropriate Pad.
The Zones list the current Velocity setting
and the Root Key.
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Patch/Partial Editor
MV Kit Creator™
Partial/Patch Editor
Just like the MV-8000, MV Kit Creator™ has 6 Pad Banks of 16 Pads each. Each PadBank
corresponds to 16 consecutive keys on a keyboard, starting with A0 (MIDI note 21, MV Kit
Creator™ regards middle C as C2). When clicking on a Pad (or accessing it via MIDI), the basic
setup of that Pad appears on the Main Screen. This includes the sample assigned to each of the
4 Zones, the velocity values, and the volume.
Patch
This page matches the Patch Editor
page in the MV-8000. Parameters
are editable with the knob or the
text eld below the knob.
Patch Control
This page matches the Control
page in the MV-8000. Parameters
are editable with the knob or the
text eld below the knob. For the
grid, simply click on the desired
parameter and type in the correct
value. Valid values are -63 to +63.
Partial General
This page matches the Partial
General page in the MV-8000.
Parameters are editable with the
knob or the text eld below the
knob.
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MV Kit Creator™ Patch/Partial Editor
SMT
This page is similar to the SMT page in
the MV-8000.
You can replace the samples by rightclicking on the pulldown menu under
the Enabled checkbox on each Zone.
Parameters are editable with the knob
or the text eld below the knob. The
Velocity Graph is editable via the
mouse and the text elds to the right
of them.
Amp
This page matches the Amp page,
under Partial Edit, in the MV-8000.
The Envelope Graph is editable via the
mouse and the text elds to the right
of it. Parameters are editable with the
knob or the text eld below the knob.
Filter
This page matches the Filter page,
under Partial Edit, in the MV-8000.
The Envelope Graph is editable via the
mouse and the text elds to the right
of it. Parameters are editable with the
knob or the text eld below the knob.
LFO
This page matches the LFO page,
under Partial Edit, in the MV-8000.
Parameters are editable with the knob
or the text eld below the knob.
Please remember that the many LFO
parameters are related to the Patch
Control page parameters.
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