Dave Smith Instruments MOPHO SE User Manual

Operation Manual

Mopho SE

Operation Manual

Version 1.1

November 2013

Dave Smith Instruments

1527 Stockton Street

2nd Floor

San Francisco, CA 94133

USA

©2013 Dave Smith Instruments

www.DaveSmithInstruments.com

Tested To Comply
With FCC Standards

FOR OFFICE USE

This device complies with Part 15 of the FCC Rules. Operation is subject to the
following two conditions: (1) This device may not cause harmful interference and
(2) this device must accept any interference received, including interference that
may cause undesired operation.

This Class B digital apparatus meets all requirements of the Canadian Interference­Causing Equipment Regulations.

Cet appareil numerique de la classe B respecte toutes les exigences du Reglement
sur le materiel brouilleur du Canada.

For Technical Support, email: [e-mail]

Contents

Quick Start ................................................................................................ 1

Getting Connected .................................................................................... 3

Basic Operation ........................................................................................ 5

Global Parameters .................................................................................... 9

Oscillators ............................................................................................... 13

Mixer ....................................................................................................... 16

Filter ........................................................................................................ 17

Envelopes ............................................................................................... 18

LFO ......................................................................................................... 19

Sequencer ............................................................................................... 21

Modulators .............................................................................................. 27

Miscellaneous Modulators ...................................................................... 28

Clock ....................................................................................................... 29

Miscellaneous Parameters ...................................................................... 31

Modulation Sources ................................................................................ 33

Modulation Destinations .......................................................................... 34

Using USB .............................................................................................. 36

Using Audio In ......................................................................................... 38

Using Poly Chain .................................................................................... 39

Support ................................................................................................... 42

MIDI Implementation ............................................................................... 44

MIDI Messages ................................................................................... 45

NRPN Messages ................................................................................. 47

Global Parameter Data ........................................................................ 49

Program Parameter Data .................................................................... 51

Sysex Messages ................................................................................. 58

Packed Data Format ........................................................................... 60

Pitch Wheel Calibration ........................................................................... 61

1

Quick Start

Thanks for purchasing your Mopho SE synthesizer! Listen to the sounds,
twiddle some knobs, have some fun!

Please Register!

Please go to www.davesmithinstruments.com and register your synth. If you
purchased directly from us, there is no need to register—we already have your
contact information.

Powering Up

Plug in the power supply, connect (in stereo!) to your mixer/sound system, and
start playing!

Try applying keyboard pressure (aftertouch) and the mod wheel. Many sounds
are fairly simple at first, then come alive when you use the controllers. With
other sounds, you may need to hold the notes a while to let the sound unfold.
Playing in different ways has a big effect on the programs.

Selecting and Editing Programs and Global Settings

You can use the increment and decrement (Inc/Yes and Dec/No) switches to
step through the programs. Use Param 1 to scroll quickly through the programs.
Param 2 changes banks. There are 3 banks of 128 programs.

If you want to edit a program, just turn any knob. The new value will be
displayed in the bottom line of the LCD (the top line displays the programmed
value for handy reference).

After turning knobs, just hit Program
screen, allowing you to change programs again.

Press and hold Program
level parameters such as MIDI channel number, Transpose/Detune, and so on.
The Param 1 knob changes the displayed page and Param 2 or increment and
decrement change the values. These settings are remembered when the synth is
turned off.

Summary

You should be up and running now; for more operation information, read on. Or,
just look up specific parameters for detailed notes. Pages 33 and 34 contain a
handy reference for mod sources and destinations. At some point you should
read through the manual to discover all the little features that you might not
notice at first.

briefly to display the Global menu and change higher

so the LCD goes back to the program/bank

Don’t forget you get a free editor for Mac OS or Windows with your purchase.
Download it from www.soundtower.com/mopho.

I should mention that this manual does not include explanations of basic analog
synthesizer functions. It assumes you already know what an oscillator is, how a
low-pass filter affects the sound, what an ADSR envelope looks like, and so on.

Fortunately, these days it is quite easy to find such resources on the Internet. If
you want to learn the lingo and the basics, just try a search in Google (or the
search engine of your choice), something like “analog synthesizer tutorial.”
You’ll find plenty of good reading material.

Have fun!

Dave Smith

Special thanks to:

The DSI Team: Ashley Bellouin, Carson Day, Chris Hector, Tony Karavidas,
Mark Kono, Andrew McGowan, Joanne McGowan, and Tracy Wadley.

2

Getting Connected

Mopho has several inputs and outputs on its back panel.

Power Input — Connect the power supply included with your Mopho. The

power supply comes with different AC adaptor prongs that enable it to work
almost anywhere in the world. If for whatever reason you need to use a different
supply, it must match the specifications printed on the front panel.

USB—Mopho transmits and receives MIDI data via this standard, Type B, USB

receptacle. See Using USB on page 36 for more information.

MIDI In—To receive MIDI data from another device, connect this to the other

device's MIDI Out.

MIDI Out/Thru—To send MIDI data to another device, connect this to the other

device's MIDI In. This output can also be configured as a MIDI Thru using the
MIDI Out Select parameter in the Global menu.

Poly Chain—Multiple synths can be poly chained for increased polyphony. For

details, see Using Poly Chain on page 39.

Note: When Poly Chain is turned off in the Global menu, the Poly Chain
output simply mirrors the MIDI Out and transmits the same data.

Sustain—Accepts a momentary, normally open or normally closed footswitch

to control sustain or to latch the arpeggiator. See “Sustain” under Global
Parameters on page 9 for more information.

Pedal/CV—This input can be connected to two types of controllers: a standard

expression pedal that has a variable resistor on a TRS (tip-ring-sleeve) ¼ inch
phone plug, or a synthesizer or other device capable of producing a control
voltage. The control voltage range is 0 to 3.3 volts DC, and the input is protected
against higher and negative voltages. For more information, see “Pedal” in
Global Parameters on page 9 and Miscellaneous Parameters on page 31.

Note: This input is heavily filtered for smooth, clean operation, so there
is a limit to the speed at which it will respond.

Audio In—

filter, envelopes, and VCA and

Mopho can be used as a signal processor. Audio is routed through the

—when the signal level is high enough—a gate is

generated. See Using Audio In on page 38.

Audio can also be used to advance the sequencer when Seq Trigger is set to
Audio In. See Sequencer on page 21 for more information.

3

Left Out/Right Out—Mopho’s unbalanced left and right outputs.

Phones—A ¼ inch stereo headphone jack.

4

Basic Operation

If you’re familiar with analog, subtractive synthesis there shouldn’t be anything
that looks terribly foreign or strange about Mopho’s front panel. All of the basic
building blocks are there. But one of the challenges of making a compact synth
is giving the user access to all the parameters within a limited amount of panel
area. Mopho has most of the parameters of the Prophet ’08, plus a couple more,
with a front panel that is more than 55% smaller!

Fortunately, several of the synth components have similar control requirements.
For example, Mopho has two oscillators and both oscillators have identical
control parameters. With a switch to select oscillator 1 or 2, one set of controls
can do double duty. Another set of controls handles most of the parameters for
all three envelope generators. And you can select both oscillators or all three
envelopes to edit a parameter simultaneously in all of them.

Other, less frequently used parameter names appear in light gray above the
corresponding knob or switch. Turn on Shift to access those parameters.

And finally, program-level parameters that are not typically performance
oriented are found in the Miscellaneous Parameters section.

The front panel is arranged so that the basic signal path components are in order
from left to right in the row closest to the keyboard: oscillators into mixer into
filter. (The VCA is the last part of the signal chain, but other than the Amplifier
Envelope, the only other control directly associated with the VCA is VCA
Level, which is in Miscellaneous Parameters.) The second row consists of
various modulators, including envelopes, LFOs, and the sequencer. The
remaining programmable parameters are for turning the arpeggiator and
sequencer on and off, setting the tempo and note value, and the aforementioned
Miscellaneous Parameters.

Non-Programmable Controls

The front panel controls can be divided into two groups, programmable and non­programmable. Everything contained within a gray “module” is programmable.
The non-programmable controls are for things like selecting programs and
transposing the keyboard. Their state—on, off, transposed, whatever—is not
saved along with the program.

Transpose—Allows the keyboard to be transposed in one octave increments

two octaves up or down. When transposed one octave, the corresponding LED
will be lighted, but dim. If the LED is brightly lit, Mopho is transposed two
octaves.

Shift—Used to access the shifted parameters.

5

Program—Press to return Mopho to program mode. Hold to select global mode.

Compare—When editing a Program, press Compare to hear the saved version.

Turn Compare off to return to the edited version. Compare can also be used to
audition write destinations when moving a program.

Write—Press Write to save the program and write any edits to memory. You can

write the program to the same location or choose a different program number
using Param 1; Param 2 chooses the bank. Press Inc/Yes to confirm the write
and Dec/No (or Write again) to abort.

While there is a write pending, press Compare to hear the program in the target
destination prior to saving. Just be sure to turn Compare off before you actually
hit the Inc/Yes switch to save.

Param 1— Used to scroll through programs in program mode. In global mode,

used for scrolling through the global menu items.

Param 2—Used to change banks in program mode and edit the displayed

parameter in edit and global modes.

Inc/Yes and Dec/No—Increment or decrement programs in program mode or

values in edit mode and global mode. Also used to confirm or cancel/abort an
operation.

Push It—Push It is a manual trigger. Its behavior depends upon the Push It

Mode, Note, and Velocity settings, which are programmable. Why is a manual
trigger necessary when there are already 32 other manual triggers (that is, the
keys)? It is surprsingly handy, especially in Toggle mode. It can be used to start
and stop the sequencer or to just latch a droning note on. And that frees up both
hands to twist knobs!

Tap Tempo—With Shift on, Push It becomes Tap Tempo for setting the internal

clock’s BPM.

If Push It is set to Toggle mode and Sequence and Shift are on, tap five times to
set the tempo and toggle the Push It Note on, starting the sequencer. That is, a 4­count to set the tempo and then a tap on beat 1 to start. To stop, turn Shift off
and press Push It again.

Tap Tempo can also be used to change the tempo while a sequence is playing. If
Shift is on while a sequence is playing, tap the button 5 times and the sequence
speed will change to the tapped tempo on the fifth hit. You can continue to tap
the button, slowing down or speeding up, and the sequence tempo will adjust
accordingly. The sequence will average and smooth out any small timing
differences.

6

Modes of Operation

Mopho has three operating modes: program, edit, and global. In program mode,
Param 1, Param 2, and Inc/Dec are used to change from one saved program to
another. As soon as any of the programmable parameters are edited, that
parameter is displayed on the LCD, with the programmed value on the top line,
and the new, edited value on the bottom line. That is edit mode. To exit edit
mode and return to program mode, just press Program.

To enter global mode, briefly press and hold Program until the light goes off and
a global parameter is displayed on the LCD. Param 1 scrolls through the items in
the global menu and Param 2 and Inc/Dec change the values. For more
information, see Global Parameters on page 9.

7

OSC 1

FEEDBACK/

EXT. IN GAIN

FEEDBACK/

EXT. IN VOLUME

FEEDBACK

SUB 1 VOLUME

SUB 2 VOLUME

VCA

PAN

L

R

VOLUME AUDIO OUT

NOISE VOLUME

SUBOSC

OSC 2

SUBOSC

NOISE

FILTER

OSC

MIX

AUDIO IN

MOPHO SIGNAL FLOW DIAGRAM

(Modulation routing omitted for clarity)

8

Global Parameters

Display

MIDI Clock Setting

Internal

MIDI clock is neither sent nor received

MIDI Out

MIDI clock is sent

MIDI In

MIDI clock is received

Midi In/Out

MIDI clock is received and transmitted

Mopho’s Global parameters affect all programs globally. Examples include
MIDI channel and fine tune. To edit the Global parameters, hold down the
Program
the global parameter and Param 2 knob and increment and decrement buttons
change the value.

Transpose: -12…+12—Master Transpose control, 0 is centered. Steps in

semitones.

Fine Tune: -50…+50—Master Fine Tune control; 0 centered. Steps in cents (50

cents = 1/2 semitone).

MIDI Channel: ALL, 1…16—Selects which MIDI channel to send and receive

data, 1 to 16. All receives on all 16 channels.

Clock: see table—Sets the clock status.

MIDI Parameter Send: NRPN, CC, Off—Changes to the values of Mopho’s front

panel controls are transmitted via MIDI as Non-registered Parameter Number
(NRPN) controllers or as Continuous Controllers (CC). Transmission of
parameters can also be turned off. See MIDI Implementation on page 44 for
details.

switch until Global Parameter is displayed. The Param 1 knob changes

Note: NRPNs are the preferred method of parameter transmission, since
they cover the complete range of all parameters, while CCs only handle
the main parameters.

MIDI Parameter Receive: All, NRPN, CC, Off—Sets the method by which

Mopho receives parameter changes via MIDI. As with transmission, NRPNs are
the preferred method, though some controllers may only be able to send CCs.

MIDI Control: Off, On—When On, the synth will respond to MIDI controllers,

including Pitch Wheel, Mod Wheel, Pedal, Breath, Volume, and Expression.

MIDI SysEx: Off, On—When On, the synth will respond to received MIDI

SysEx messages, and will transmit them, when prompted, to the MIDI Out. See
Sysex Messages on page 58 for details.

9

MIDI Out Select: Out, Thru—MIDI Out can be switched to MIDI Thru to

daisychain multiple MIDI devices.

Poly Chain: Off, Out 1, Out 4, Out 5, Out 8, Out 12, Out 16

—Used to expand the
polyphony via the Poly Chain output and one or more DSI synths—Mopho,
Tetra, or Prophet. See Using Poly Chain on page 39 for more information.

Local Control: Off, On—When on (the default), the keyboard and front panel

controls directly affect Mopho. When off, the controls are transmitted via MIDI
but do not directly affect the “local” synth (that is, Mopho). This is primarily
useful for avoiding MIDI data loops that can occur with some external
sequencers.

Audio Out: Stereo, Mono—Mopho defaults to stereo operation. When set to

Mono, this parameter defeats all pan settings and modulation, effectively
making each of the outputs a mono output.

PotMode: Relative, Passthru, Jump—The rotary controls on Mopho’s front

panel are a mixture of “endless” rotary encoders and potentiometers or “pots.”
The pots are identifiable by their lined knobs and the fact that they have about
330°of travel. There are three pot modes to determine how the synth reacts when
the programmable parameters are edited. (Master volume is not programmable,
so these modes don’t apply.)

When set to Relative, changes are relative to the stored setting. In Relative
mode, the full value range is not available until either the minimum or maximum
value and the respective lower or upper limit of the pot’s travel is reached.

For example, the Resonance parameter has a value range of 0 to 127. Let’s say
the physical position of the Resonance pot is the equivalent of a value of 100. If
you switch to a program that has a stored Resonance setting of 63 and turn the
pot all the way up, it will only go to 90. To get to the maximum value of 127,
you first have to turn down until the value is at the other extreme and the pot is
at the limit of its travel (in this case, 0 and fully counter-clockwise,
respectively).

In Passthru mode, turning the pot has no effect until after the edited value equals
the preset value (that is, until the edited value “passes through” the stored
value).

Jump mode uses an absolute value based upon the position of the pot when
edited: turn a pot and the value jumps immediately from the stored value to the
edited value.

Sustain: Norm +, Norm -, Arp +, Arp - —A momentary footswitch connected to

Mopho’s Sustain input can be used either as a sustain pedal or to latch the

10

arpeggiator. Mopho can be configured for use with either normally open (+) or

Display

Pedal Routing

FootCtrl

Routed to the Foot Control Modulation

Breath

Routed to the Breath Control Modulation

Expressn

Routed to the Expression Modulation

Volume

Controls Master Volume

LpFilter

Routed to the low-pass filter

LpF Half

Routed to the low-pass filter, but with half the range

normally closed (-) footswitches. When set to Arp+ or Arp-, the footswitch will
act as a sustain pedal when the Arpeggiator is off.

Pedal: see table—Sets the destination for the Pedal/CV input. Note that this

input is heavily filtered for clean operation, so there is a limit to the speed it will
respond to changes.

The input will also accept control voltages in the range of 0 to 3.3 volts DC. It is
protected against higher or negative voltages.

MIDI Pressure: Off, On—When On, the Mopho will respond to received MIDI

pressure (aftertouch) messages and will transmit pressure from the keyboard to
MIDI Out.

Velocity Curve: 1…4—Sets one of the four velocity curves for the keyboard to

adjust the velocity response to your playing style.

Pressure Curve: 1…4—Sets one of the four pressure curves for the keyboard to

adjust the aftertouch to your playing style.

Arpeggiator Latch Mode: Normal, ReLatch—Sets one of the four pressure

curves for the keyboard to adjust the aftertouch to your playing style.

Basic Patch—Press the Write button to load a basic patch into the edit buffer.

The patch will not actually be written to the current program location unless
intentionally written to memory in program mode using the Write button.

Reset Globals—

Mopho does not have a full hardware reset, but select this
parameter and press Write to reset the global parameters to their factory
defaults.

Balance Tweak: -14…14—Adjusts the left/right output balance by

approximately +/- 4 dB.

MIDI SysEx Dump: see table—Allows dumping of Programs in SysEx format

via MIDI. Also enables the translation of Mopho Keyboard programs into
formats readable by other DSI synths. Tetra’s voice architecture and voice

11

program parameters are basically the same as the Mopho Keyboard’s. The

Display

MIDI Transmit Operation

Current Program

Dump current program

Current Bank

Dump all 128 programs in current bank

All Banks

Dump all programs in all 3 banks

Current Prog P08

Dump the current program in Prophet ’08 format

CurrentProgMopho

Dump the current program in desktop Mopho format

CurrentProgTetra

Dump the current program in Tetra format

Current Bank P08

Dump the current bank in Prophet ’08 format

CurrentBankMopho

Dump the current bank in desktop Mopho format

CurrentBankTetra

Dump the current bank in Tetra format

desktop Mopho’s Feedback Gain is not programmable, so some tweaking of that
control may be necessary to match the sound to the keyboard. And the Prophet’s
voice architecture is almost identical, but lacks the sub octave generators and
feedback.

Press Write to start transmission. This feature is handy for saving Programs on a
computer in SysEx format, or for sending them to another Mopho via a direct
MIDI connection. The dumps include Program and Bank numbers, so when
received, the programs will be stored in the same location.

12

Oscillators

Sawtooth

Triangle

Saw-Triangle

Square

The Oscillators section contains the primary controls for Mopho’s two digitally
controlled analog oscillators or DCOs. “Digitally controlled” does not mean the
oscillators themselves are digital, just that the oscillators’ frequencies are under
digital—rather than voltage—control. The advantage to that is that the tuning is
exceptionally stable over a ten-octave range without having to compensate for
variables like temperature. The audio signal path is still completely analog.

Oscillator Select—Choose oscillator 1, oscillator 2, of both. When both 1 and 2

are selected, changes made to the other oscillator parameters affect both
oscillators.

Frequency: C 0…C 10—Sets the base oscillator frequency over a 10 octave

range, from 8 Hz to 8KHz, stepping in semitones. C3 is middle C, the first
octave is 0 (C0, C#0, etc.), the second octave is 1 (C1, C#1, etc.), and so on.

Fine Frequency: -50…+50—Fine tune control with a range of a quartertone up

or down. Zero is centered. Steps are in cents (50 cents = 1/2 semitone).

Shape Select: Sawtooth, Triangle, Saw-Tri, Square, Off—Selects the oscillator

waveshape. If none of the shapes are lighted, the oscillator is off.

Pulse Width: 0...99—Sets the pulse width or duty cycle of the square wave. A

value of 50 results in a true square wave with equal alternating high and low
levels. Increasing or decreasing the value from 50 causes the waveshape to
become asymetrical. Lower values narrow the postive-going portion of the

13

wave, higher values widen it. At the extreme values, the pulse goes completely

50

Pulse Width

0 99

Oscillator 1

Oscillator 2

Oscillator 1

synced to

Oscillator 2

flat, which allows for some interesting possibilities with pulse width modulation.

Glide: 0...127—Sets the oscillator glide (portamento) rate. Glide can be set

independently for each oscillator. Low values are faster. See also “Glide Mode”
in Other Oscillator Parameters.

Sub Octave: 0...127—Controls the level of a square wave pitched one octave

below oscillator 1 or two octaves below oscillator 2.

Other Oscillator Parameters

These additional, less performance-oriented oscillator controls are found in the
Miscellaneous Parameters section.

Oscillator Sync: Off, On—Turns oscillator hard sync on. With sync on,

whenever oscillator 2 resets, oscillator 1 is forced to restart.

Tip: Try routing an envelope or the mod wheel to oscillator 1 frequency
for the familiar sync sweep sound.

Oscillator 1 Keyboard Tracking: Off, On—Turns keyboard tracking off or on

for oscillator 1.

Oscillator 2 Keyboard Tracking: Off, On—Turns keyboard tracking off or on

for oscillator 2.

Oscillator 1 Wave Reset: Off, On—When Wave Reset is off, the Mopho’s

oscillators are free running, which is how analog synths typically behave. That
is, the oscillators are running whether a note is being gated on or not. When the
amplifier envelope is set for a fast attack, this can cause a soft, but detectable,
pop or click at the beginning of a note because the note might be gated on at a

14

point in the wave’s cycle other than a zero crossing. The first cycle to play might
be truncated. For some sounds, like monophonic basses, this may actually be
desirable. It adds a bit of randomness to the attack that can make it sound, for
lack of a better word, more organic. When Wave Reset is on, the wave is always
reset to zero—the start of its cycle—when a note is gated on.

Oscillator 2 Wave Reset: Off, On—See “Oscillator 1 Wave Reset” above.

Oscillator Slop: 0...5—The amount of random oscillator frequency tuning slop.

The analog oscillators in Mopho are very accurate, and will not drift. This works
great for accurate sounds, and allows precise de-tuning. Oscillator Slop allows
subtle amounts of frequency drift. For larger amounts, use a random LFO or
white noise mod.

Glide Mode: FixRate, FixRate A, FixTime, FixTime A—Determines how the

oscillators respond when Glide is on.

FixRate: The time to transition between notes varies with the interval between

the notes; the greater the interval, the longer the transition time. The glide rate is
fixed.

FixRate A: The same as FixRate, but glide is only applied when playing legato.

That is, glide only occurs when a note is held until the next note is played. This
effectively allows glide to be turned on and off from the keyboard.

FixTime: Glide is set to a fixed time, regardless of the interval between notes.

FixTime A: The same as FixTime, but glide only occurs when playing legato.

Pitch Wheel Range: 0...12—Sets the bend range, in semitones, of the pitch

wheel. The setting is the range in the positive or negative direction. For
example, a setting of 7 lets you bend a note up or down by a fifth.

Key Assign: Low Note, LowRetrig, HighNote, HighRetrig, LastNote,
LastRetrig

—Key Assign (aka note priority) determines what note gets priority
when more than one note is played on the keyboard or via MIDI. Low-note
priority is most common in vintage synths and is often used for playing trills by
holding a note and repeatedly tapping a lower note. LowRetrig causes the
envelopes to be retriggered with each keystroke. HighNote and HighRetrig are
similar to the low note settings, except that the highest note is given priority.
And LastNote and LastRetrig give priority to the last note played.

15

Mixer

The Mixer section balances the levels of the outputs of the Oscillators section
and noise generator, and the Audio In/feedback loop before routing the summed
signals to the low-pass filter.

Mix: 0...127—Mixes the outputs of oscillators 1 and 2 in varying amounts. A

setting of 0 is equivalent to 100% oscillator 1 and 0% oscillator 2. A setting of
127 is just the opposite. A setting of 64 is a 50/50 mix of both oscillators.

Feedback Level/External Volume Level: 0...127—Left Out is normalled to

Audio In. (The Voice Architecture diagram on page 8 details Mopho’s signal
routing.) If nothing is plugged in to the Audio In jack, increasing the Feedback
Level causes more and more of the left output signal to be fed back into the
audio path pre-filter. As the level increases, so does the effect of the feedback.

When an audio cable is inserted in Audio In, the feedback loop is broken and the
audio is processed by Mopho’s filter and VCA. In conjunction with the gain
control, Audio In will accept a fairly wide range of signal levels from low-level
sources like guitars to hotter, line-level signals. For more information, see Using
Audio In on page 38.

Feedback Gain/External Input Gain: 0...127—Feedback Gain boosts the level

of the feedback signal and is interactive with and dependent upon Feedback
Volume. If Feedback Volume is set to 0, then Feedback Gain has no effect.
(There is no feedback signal to boost.) However, Feedback Gain combined with
higher levels of Feedback Volume can result in effects ranging from pleasing
distortion to squirrelly harmonic weirdness.

This control is also used to boost the gain of signals processed via Audio In. For
line-level signals, additional gain is typically unnecessary. For low-level signals,
such as those from passive guitars or basses, External Input Gain boosts the
signal to more useful levels.

Noise: 0...127—Controls the volume of the white noise generator.

16

Filter

Mopho features a selectable 2- or 4-pole, low-pass filter.

4-Pole—Selects the filter configuration. When lighted, the filter is in 4-pole

mode. A 4-pole, low-pass filter rolls off frequencies above the cutoff frequency
at a slope of 24dB/octave. When the light is off, the filter is in 2-pole mode and
has a slope of 12dB/octave and a more gradual rolloff of the higher frequencies.

Frequency: 0...164—Sets the base filter cutoff frequency over more than 13

octaves. This control steps in semitones when turned slowly, but smoothly
controls the filter without steps when turned at a faster rate.

Resonance: 0...127—Emphasizes a narrow band of frequencies around the

cutoff frequency. In 4-pole mode, high levels of resonance can cause the filter to
self oscillate. In 2-pole mode, resonance is much more subtle.

Audio Mod: 0...127—Controls the amount of audio from oscillator 1 used to

modulate the filter cutoff frequency. For filter-only audio, set the oscillator Mix
to 127, oscillator 2 Shape to Off, and oscillator 1 Shape to the desired
waveshape. This is useful for bell-like FM sounds. A wide range of sounds can
also be made using Audio Mod with the oscillators routed normally through the
filter.

Key Amount: 0...127—Sets the amount of modulation from the keyboard to the

filter cutoff. A setting of 64 will step the filter in one semitone increments for
each note, 32 would be quartertones, and so on.

17

Envelopes

Mopho has three 5-stage (Delay + ADSR) envelope generators. Two are
dedicated—one to the filter and the other to the amplifier—and the third is
assignable to any modulation destination.

Envelope Select—Selects the envelope to edit. When all three are lighted, the

other envelope parameters control all three envelopes simultaneously.

Amount: -127...127—Sets the amount of modulation from the envelope to the

destination: filter, amplifier, or the selected destination for envelope 3. The
modulation amount can be positive or negative, allowing for inverted envelope
control. (For the VCA, the range is 0-127, since you can't have a negative gain
on a VCA!)

Delay: 0...127—Sets a delay between the time the envelope is gated on and

when the Attack portion actually begins

Attack: 0...127—Sets the attack time of the selected envelope(s).

Decay: 0...127—Sets the decay time of the selected envelope(s).

Sustain: 0...127—Sets the sustain level of the selected envelope(s).

Release: 0...127—Sets the release time of the selected envelope(s).

Velocity: 0...127—Sets the amount of key velocity used to modulate the

envelope amount.

Other Envelope Parameters

There are two additional parameters for envelope 3 in the Miscellaneous
Parameters section.

Envelope 3 Destination—Sets the destination modulated by envelope 3. See

Modulation Destinations on page 34 for a list of possible destinations.

Envelope 3 Repeat: Off, On—When on, causes the delay, attack, decay, and

sustain portions of Envelope 3 to loop for as long as the envelope is gated on.
With repeat on, envelope 3 can even be used as a sort of complex LFO.

18

LFO

Mopho has four low frequency oscillators (LFOs). The LFOs can be free­running, synced to keystrokes, or synced to the sequencer and MIDI clock. To
edit the LFO parameters, choose LFO in the Modulation section.

LFO Select: 1, 2, 3, 4—Chooses the LFO to edit.

Tip: The four numbered lights above the Frequency knob pulse at the
frequency of the corresponding LFO. This can be a great aid in knowing
which LFO to select for editing.

Destination—See Modulation Destinations on page 34 for a list of possible

destinations.

Amount: 0...127—Sets the amount of LFO routed to the destination.

Shape: Triangle, Reverse Sawtooth, Sawtooth, Square, Sample and Hold—The

waveshape of the LFO. Sample and Hold generates a random value that changes
once per cycle.

Frequency: 0...150—Sets the LFO frequency. Speed ranges from slow (30

seconds) to very fast—at 90 (8 HZ, C-2) and above the speed steps in semitones,
up to 150 (261 Hz, middle C).

Note: Some of the analog functions may not respond well to the fastest
LFO speeds, due to speed limitations of the control voltages; but they
will certainly generate some interesting sounds.

Clock Sync—When on, the LFO syncs to the sequencer and clock—either the

internal clock or an external MIDI clock. When synced to the internal clock,
BPM and Clock Divide both affect LFO frequency. When synced to an external
clock, the external clock rate and Clock Divide affect the LFO frequency.
Editing Frequency shows the values in the following table.

19

Display

Timing Sync

32 Steps

Sequence speed divided by 32; one LFO cycle takes 32 steps

16 Steps

Sequence speed divided by 16

8 Steps

Sequence speed divided by 8

6 Steps

Sequence speed divided by 6

4 Steps

Sequence speed divided by 4

3 Steps

Sequence speed divided by 3

2 Steps

Sequence speed divided by 2

1.5 Step

Sequence speed divided by 1.5

1 Step

One cycle per step

2/3 Step

Two cycles every three steps

1/2 Step

Two cycles per step

1/3 Step

Three cycles per step

1/4 Step

Four cycles per step

1/6 Step

Six cycles per step

1/8 Step

Eight cycles per step

1/16Step

Sixteen cycles per step

Tip: Use Clock Sync to modulate a parameter in time with the sequencer.
For example, an LFO set to a triangle wave and a frequency of 16 steps
can modulate the filter frequency for a sweep that is perfectly synced to
the sequencer.

Key Sync—When on, the LFO is re-started each time a new note is played. Key

Sync is set independently on each LFO.

20

Sequencer

1 2 3 4

1

2

3

4

5 6 7 8 9

Steps

v = step value

Dest. 1

Dest. 2

Dest. 3

Dest. 4

10 11 12 13 14 15 16

S
e
q
u
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c

e

For many musicians, the term sequencer has become synonymous with MIDI
sequencer; that is, a computer-based application or dedicated hardware device
for recording and playing back notes and performance gestures via MIDI. But
sequencers were around long before MIDI. Mopho’s sequencer is much more
like the original analog sequencers typically associated with modular synthesizer
systems. The sequencer comprises four 16-step sequences that play in parallel.
Each sequence can be routed to a chosen destination, and each step in a
sequence can be set to a different value used to modulate that destination.

Strictly speaking, Mopho’s sequencer does not play notes, nor does it transmit
MIDI data. If none of the sequence destinations are routed to oscillator
frequency, the sequencer may not even affect the pitch. In Mopho terms, a
sequence is just a series of events at timed intervals that changes the value of
one of the synth’s parameters in discrete steps. Because the four sequences play
in parallel, up to four parameters can be affected by each step, one per sequence.
For the most part, the sequence destinations are the same as the modulation
destinations, which is appropriate: a sequence is just another modulation source.

For each sequence step, the envelopes are gated on for half the step’s duration.
The duration varies according to the BPM and Clock Divide settings (or the
MIDI clock, if synced to an external source). The envelope settings of the
current program ultimately determine how long each step plays, though, and
longer (more legato) or shorter (more staccato) effects can be achieved by
editing the envelope rates.

Mopho’s sequencer is a gated sequencer. That means it requires a note to be
gated on—that is played from the keyboard, the Push It button, or via MIDI—in
order for the sequencer to run. There is no dedicated start or play button and it

21

does not respond to MIDI start/stop/continue messages, but it can still sync to an

1 2 3 4

1

2

3

4

5 6 7 8 9

Steps

v = step value; R = Reset

Dest. 1

Dest. 2

Dest. 3

Dest. 4

10 11 12 13 14 15 16

S
e
q
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c

e

external clock. Simply turn on the sequencer and then play and hold a note to
start. Or use the Push It button’s toggle feature to latch a note on with one push
and release it with another; in this case, the Push It button is essentially a
Start/Stop control.

Reset and Rest

Sequences have a maximum of 16 steps, but they can have fewer—from 1 to
15—using Reset. (Sequences of 16 steps reset automatically.) Reset appears
immediately after the highest value setting for a step. Setting a step to Reset
causes the sequence to jump back to the first step and continue playing.

Reset is set separately for each of the four sequences, so it must be set at the
same step in all four sequences to shorten all the sequences equally. The
following illustration shows an example in which all the sequences are eight
steps in length.

Tip: Using Reset while programming a sequence can be helpful. For
example, when programming a specific melodic line, start by shortening
the sequence to four or eight steps until those steps are set, and then
gradually move the reset point to lengthen the loop until the desired
number of steps is playing.

Sequences do not have to be the same length, however, which makes for some
very interesting, less repetitive patterns, particularly when sequences are set to
odd and even numbers of steps.

22

Sequence one has an additional value, Rest, that appears in the list after Reset.

1 2 3 4

1

2

3

4

5 6 7 8 9

Steps

v = step value; R = Reset

Dest. 1

Dest. 2

Dest. 3

Dest. 4

10 11 12 13 14 15 16

S
e
q
u
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n

c

e

1 2 3 4

1

2

3

4

5 6 7 8 9

Steps

v = step value; r = rest; R = Reset

Dest. 1

Dest. 2

Dest. 3

Dest. 4

10 11 12 13 14 15 16

S
e
q
u
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n

c

e

Rest prevents the envelopes from being gated by the corresponding step, so a
rest in sequence one affects all four sequences. If the sequences are the same
length, rests will occur in the same place in all four sequences as they loop. If
the sequences are different lengths, the rests in sequence one apply to whatever
the current step happens to be in sequences two through four, resulting in a more
random-sounding pattern (which can be really cool). In the following example,
sequence one is 16 steps long and rests occur at steps 2, 6, 9, and 12. However,
sequence two is only eight steps long, so rests occur at steps 2 and 6 the first
time it plays through and then at steps 1 and 4—corresponding to steps 9 and 12
in sequence one—the first time it repeats. As sequence two loops, the rests will
continue in the same alternating pattern.

Programming the Sequencer

Programming the sequencer is easy, but there are a few things to consider before
you start. Most importantly, what do you want the sequence to do and what
modulation destinations will provide the results you’re seeking? For example, is
the sequencer going to control oscillator frequency? One sequence can control
the frequency of both oscillators or one sequence can control oscillator 1 and
another sequence can control oscillator 2 for harmonies or countermelodies. A
typical application of the sequencer might have sequence one routed to the
frequency of both oscillators, sequence two routed to filter cutoff, sequence
three routed to filter resonance, and sequence four routed to amplifier envelope
amount for accents. Many of the factory programs have sequences programmed,
so you can refer to those to see how certain effects are being achieved.

23

To program a sequence:

1. Turn the sequencer on.

2. Choose Sequencer in the Modulation section.

3. Choose the sequence to program: 1, 2, 3, or 4.

4. Play a note to start the sequence playing.

To avoid having to hold a key down, set the Push It Mode (Misc.
Parameters) to Toggle. Then use Push It to start and stop the sequencer.
You may also want to change the Push It Note, the BPM, and the Clock
Divide.

5. Choose a destination for the sequence.

6. Use the Step and Value controls to enter the desired values.

As the sequence loops, you will hear your edits.

7. Choose another sequence and follow the same basic steps until you’re

happy with the results.

8. Dont forget to write your edits to memory! Sequences are saved with

the related program. Just press Write and then Yes to save the program
and sequences.

More Sequencer Parameters

The previous section covers the basics of sequencer programming, but there are
some additional parameters that affect the sound and user interaction with the
sequencer.

Slew

In modular analog synthesizers, a lag processor or slew limiter is used to create
a time-varying change—a smooth transition—between successive, discrete
control voltage levels. The rate of change is called the slew rate and one
common application is to create a glide (aka portamento) effect between notes.

Among the possible destinations for Mopho sequences two and four is a
sequence-only parameter called Slew. Slew behaves a little differently from the
other modulation destinations, in that it is not really a destination at all; instead,
it affects the sequence above it. That is, if Slew is the chosen destination for
sequence two, it controls sequence one, and Slew in sequence four controls
sequence three.

24

In Mopho’s sequencer, Slew sets the slew rate between the previous step’s value
and the current step’s value when the step is gated on. Confused yet? This
should help: let’s say sequence one is routed to oscillator frequency and
sequence two to Slew. Increasing the Slew value for step four will cause the
oscillator frequency to glide from the step three value when step four is gated
on. The higher the Slew value, the slower the slew rate. And the slew rate can be
different for each step. But its not just for oscillator glide. Slew can be applied to
any of the destinations. For example, sequence three could be routed to filter
cutoff with Slew in sequence four used to create a less abrupt transition from
one step to the next.

Note: Depending upon the BPM and Clock Divide settings, the slew rate
can actually exceed the time the envelopes are gated on, causing a step in
the affected sequence to not reach its set value. For example, if Slew is
applied to oscillator frequency, high Slew values may cause a step to
sound flat or sharp. If that’s not what you want, simply reduce the Slew
value.

Sequencer Trigger Modes

The Sequencer Trigger mode determines how the sequencer reacts to triggers
and what constitutes a trigger. Sequencer Trigger is found in the Miscellaneous
Parameters section. The different modes are:

Normal–A note on, from either the local keyboard or via MIDI, causes the

sequencer to play from the first step. The sequencer resets to step one each time
a new note is played. Each sequence step gates the envelopes.

No Reset–As above, but the sequencer does not reset to step one for each note

played. The sequencer is effectively free running.

No Gate–The keyboard gates the envelopes, but the sequencer does not. The

sequencer resets to step one each time a new note is played.

NoGateNR–As above, but the sequencer does not reset to step one for each note

played. Again, the sequencer is effectively free running.

Key Step–Striking any key or playing a note via MIDI advances the sequencer

one step.

Audio In–Steps the sequencer and gates the envelopes when a signal at Audio In

exceeds a preset threshold. External Volume does not affect the trigger and can
be set at minimum. External Gain does boost the signal prior to the threshold
detector and so will affect the triggering. And the level of the input signal will
also have an effect.

25

Syncing an LFO to the Sequencer

One very useful way to modulate a parameter in sync with a sequence is using
an LFO with Clock Sync. A setting of 16 Steps for LFO Frequency with a
triangle wave selected and routed to the filter will provide a clean filter sweep
over a 16-step sequence, perfectly in sync! This is much easier (and smoother)
than manually programming a sequence to sweep the filter.

26

Modulators

Modulators lets you configure the modulation routing and amount for Mopho’s
four general-purpose modulation slots.

Since each Mopho modulation source has a single destination, the four general
purpose modulators provide a way to send a mod source (such as a sequence or
LFO) to additional destinations, with a different amount. There are also
additional mod sources available here, such as Noise, allowing a wide variety of
possibilities.

To configure a general-purpose modulation slot, select Modulators and choose
the appropriate modulator: 1, 2, 3, or 4. Then use the Source, Destination, and
Amount parameters to route the modulation as desired.

Source—Selects a modulation source. See Modulation Sources on page 33 for

possible sources.

Amount: -127…+127—Sets the amount of modulation.

Destination—Selects a modulation destination. See Modulation Destinations on

page 34 for a list of possible destinations.

27

Miscellaneous Modulators

There are certain standard controllers that Mopho consigns to dedicated
modulators, things like mod wheel, pressure (aka aftertouch), and velocity. The
most obvious benefits to doing this is it provides a shortcut to setting up
commonly used controllers and it frees up the four general-purpose mod slots
for other, more Mopho-specific applications. Select Misc Mod in the
Modulation section to get started.

Source: Mod Wheel (MIDI CC#1), Pressure, Breath Controller (MIDI CC#2),
Velocity, Foot Controller (MIDI CC#4)

source can also be changed using the 1-4 button, though the 1-4 LEDs do not
change.

Note: There is a global parameter called Pedal for routing an expression
pedal to various controllers or directly to the filter cutoff. See Global
Parameters on page 9 for more information.

Destination—Chooses the destination to which the modulation source is routed.

See Modulation Destinations on page 34 for a list of possible destinations.

—Selects the modulation source. The

Amount: -127…+127—Sets the amount of modulation.

28

Clock

Mode

Behavior

Up

Plays from lowest to highest note.

Down

Plays from highest to lowest note.

Up Down

Plays from lowest to highest and back to lowest.

Assign

Plays notes in the order keys were pressed.

Random

Randomly plays notes.

Plays keyed notes and the same notes one octave higher, from
lowest to highest.

Plays keyed notes and the same notes one octave higher, from
highest to lowest.

Plays keyed notes and the same notes one octave higher, from
lowest to highest and back to lowest.

Plays a keyed note, then the same note one octave higher, in
the order keys were pressed.

Randomly plays keyed notes and the same notes one octave
higher.

Plays keyed notes and the same notes one and two octaves
higher, from lowest to highest.

Plays keyed notes and the same notes one and two octaves
higher, from highest to lowest.

Plays keyed notes and the same notes one and two octaves
higher, from lowest to highest and back to lowest.

Plays a keyed note, then the same note one and two octaves
higher, in the order keys were pressed.

Randomly plays keyed notes and the same notes one and two
octaves higher.

The Clock section contains the controls for the internal clock tempo and the note
value for the arpeggiator and sequencer (and LFO, when Clock Sync is on).
There are also switches to turn the arpeggiator and sequencer on and off.

Arpeggiator—Turns Mopho’s arpeggiator on and off. The tempo and note value

are determined by the BPM and Clock Divide settings. Arpeggiator Mode is set
in Miscellaneous Parameters. The different modes are:

2 Octaves Up

2 Octaves Down

2 Octaves Up Down

2 Octaves Assign

2 Octaves Random

3 Octaves Up

3 Octaves Down

3 Octaves Up Down

3 Octaves Assign

3 Octaves Random

Briefly hold the Arpeggiator switch down to latch the arpeggiated notes. (The
light will blink when latched.) The latched behavior is determined by the
Arpeggiator Latch Mode setting in the Global menu. (See “Arpeggiator Latch
Mode” in Global Parameters on page 9 for more information.) In Normal mode,

29

playing additional notes while latched adds them to the notes already playing. In

Display

Tempo

Timing Division

Half

BPM/2

Half note

Quartr

BPM

Quarter note

Eighth

BPM x 2

Eighth note

8 half

BPM x 2

Eighth note, half swing timing

8swing

BPM x 2

Eighth note, full swing timing

8 trip

BPM x 3

Eighth note triplets

16th

BPM x 4

Sixteenth note

16half

BPM x 4

Sixteenth note, half swing timing

16swng

BPM x 4

Sixteenth note, full swing timing

16trip

BPM x 6

Sixteenth note triplets

32nd

BPM x 8

Thirty-second note

32trip

BPM x 12

Thirty-second note triplets

64trip

BPM x 24

Sixty-fourth note triplets

ReLatch mode, removing your hands from all keys and then playing an
additional note or notes causes the latched notes to be released and the newly
played note(s) to be latched on. As long as at least one key is held, pressing
additional keys will add to the arpeggio.

The Arpeggiator can also be latched with a footswitch connected to the Sustain
jack. See “Sustain” in Global Parameters on page 9.

The Arpeggiator (and Sequencer) can also sync to MIDI clock from an external
sequencer or other device. See “Clock” in Global Parameters on page 9 for
more information.

Sequencer—Turns Mopho’s gated sequencer on and off. See Sequencer on

page 21 for more information.

BPM: 30…250—Sets the tempo for the sequencer in BPM (beats per minute).

The accompanying light flashes on the beat. When syncing to an external MIDI
clock source, the BPM control has no effect.

Clock Divide—Sets the note value for each sequencer or arpeggiator step

relative to the BPM. Also affects the LFO frequency when LFO Clock Sync is
on. Clock Divide works with both internal and external clock sources. The
following table lists the Clock Divide values.

Note: BPM is based on quarter notes, so clock divisions are relative to a
quarter-note beat. For example, when Clock Divide is set to Eighth, two
notes or steps will play per beat.

30

Miscellaneous Parameters

Miscellaneous Parameters groups together programmable parameters that do not
conveniently fall into any obvious section or, if they do, are parameters that are
less frequently used. They are important, but generally not required for
performance.

Voice Volume: 0…127—Sets the volume of the current program to match

volumes between programs.

Note: There is enough gain in the synth voice that with some settings,
some mild clipping distortion may be heard. If this happens, try lowering
the Voice Volume, and/or the Amp Envelope Amount (or Amp Envelope
Velocity).

Name—The lower line of the LCD displays the name of the current program.

Use the Name parameter to edit the name. When Name is selected, a character
blinks to indicate that it is active. To edit the character, use the Value knob, the
Param 2 knob, or the +/Yes or -/No switches. Use the Param 1 knob to edit
another character.

Oscillator Sync, Keyboard Tracking, Slop, Glide Mode, Pitch Wheel Range,

Key Assign are described under “Other Oscillator Parameters” in

and
Oscillators on page 14.

Sequence Trigger isdescribed under “Sequence Trigger Modes” in Sequencer

on page 25.

Arpeggiator Mode is part of the Arpeggiator description in Clock on page 29.

Envelope 3 Destination and Envelope 3 Repeat are described under “Other

Envelope Parameters” in Envelopes on page 18.

VCA Level: 0…127—Sets a base level for the VCA (Voltage Controlled

Amplifier). This essentially allows the VCA to be bypassed for programs that
drone.

Note: If VCA Level is on full, Envelope Amount has no effect. For
normal operation from the keyboard, VCA Level should be set to 0. For

31

droning sounds, or possibly when using Mopho to process external audio,

Display

Mode

1 Voice

Classic, two oscillator, monophonic mode

All Voices

All available voices in unison

All available voices in unison with increasing
levels of detuning among the voices

turn the VCA Level up.

Push It Mode: Normal, Toggle, Audio In—When set to Normal, Push It responds

like a key: press it and a note plays, release it and the note ends. But when set to
Toggle, Push It

turns the note on with one press and off with a second press.

This is handy for making a note drone or for latching a gated sequence on.

Somewhat related, the Audio In setting will generate a gate from Audio In.
When the audio signal gets above a certain fixed level, the gate will go on.
When it drops below that level, the gate will go off.

Push It Note: C0…C10—Sets the note that plays when Push It is pressed.

Push It Velocity: 0…127—Sets the MIDI note-on velocity.

Unison On/Off—Why does a monophonic synthesizer need a Unison switch?

Because it might be poly chained to another DSI synth, the Tetra being the
obvious choice—five voices of analog power, in a very small footprint!

Unison Mode—Sets how voices are allocated and tuned when unison is on.

AllDetune1-3

32

Modulation Sources

Display

Source

Off

No source selected

Sequence1

Sequence 1

Sequence2

Sequence 2

Sequence3

Sequence 3

Sequence4

Sequence 4

LFO 1

LFO 1

LFO 2

LFO 2

LFO 3

LFO 3

LFO 4

LFO 4

Filt Env1

Filter Envelope

VCA Env 2

Amp (VCA) Envelope

Envelope3

Envelope 3

PitchBend

Pitch Bend

Mod Wheel

Mod Wheel

Pressure

Pressure (Aftertouch)

MidBreath

MIDI - Breath Controller

Midi Foot

MIDI - Foot Controller

Midi Exp

MIDI - Expression

Velocity

Keyboard Note Velocity

KeyNumber

Keyboard Note Number

Noise

Noise

EnvFollow

Audio In Envelope Follower

Peak Hold

Audio In Peak Hold

33

Modulation Destinations

Display

Destination

Off

No destination selected

Osc 1 Freq

Oscillator 1 Frequency

Osc 2 Freq

Oscillator 2 Frequency

OscAllFreq

Oscillator 1 and 2 Frequency

Osc Mix

Oscillator Mix

NoiseLevel

Noise Level

Osc1 PulsW

Oscillator 1 Pulse Width

Osc2 PulsW

Oscillator 2 Pulse Width

Osc All PW

All Oscillators Pulse Width

Low Pass

Lowpass Filter Frequency

Resonance

Resonance

Audio Mod

Audio Mod Amount

VCA Level

VCA Amount

Output Pan

Stereo Pan Position

LFO 1 Freq

LFO 1 Frequency

LFO 2 Freq

LFO 2 Frequency

LFO 3 Freq

LFO 3 Frequency

LFO 4 Freq

LFO 4 Frequency

LFOAllFreq

All LFO Frequencies

LFO 1 Amt

LFO 1 Amount

LFO 2 Amt

LFO 2 Amount

LFO 3 Amt

LFO 3 Amount

LFO 4 Amt

LFO 4 Amount

LFOAll Amt

All LFO Amounts

Env 1 Amt

Envelope 1 Amount (Level)

Env 2 Amt

Envelope 2 Amount (Level)

Env 3 Amt

Envelope 3 Amount (Level)

EnvAll Amt

All Envelope Amounts (Levels)

Env1Attack

Envelope 1 Attack Rate

Env2Attack

Envelope 2 Attack Rate

Env3Attack

Envelope 3 Attack Rate

EnvAll Att

All Envelope Attack Rates

Env1 Decay

Envelope 1 Decay Rate

Env2 Decay

Envelope 2 Decay Rate

Env3 Decay

Envelope 3 Decay Rate

EnvAll Dec

All Envelope Decay Rates

Env1Releas

Envelope 1 Release Rate

Env2Releas

Envelope 2 Release Rate

Env3Releas

Envelope 3 Release Rate

EnvAll Rel

All Envelope Release Rates

Mod 1 Amt

Modulator 1 Amount

Mod 2 Amt

Modulator 2 Amount

34

Mod 3 Amt

Modulator 3 Amount

Mod 4 Amt

Modulator 4 Amount

Fback Vol

Feedback Volume

Sub Osc 1

Sub Oscillator 1 Level

Sub Osc 2

Sub Oscillator 2 Level

Fback Gain

Feedback Gain

Slew

Sequencer Slew*

*Appears as a destination in sequences 2 and 4 only.

35

Using USB

Mopho’s USB 2.0 port enables bidirectional MIDI communication with a
computer. A MIDI interface and MIDI cables are not necessary, just a USB
cable. Mopho is a Class Compliant USB device. That means it does not require
any additional drivers to be installed to communicate with a Mac or Windows
computer.

Mopho transmits and receives MIDI data via USB, but does not transmit audio.

Note: MIDI In and USB should not be used at the same time, as
overlapping messages from different sources may cause Mopho to
respond unpredictably. MIDI Out and USB can be used at the same time
and transmit the same data. Poly Chain Out is an independent MIDI bus
and can be used regardless of the “normal” MIDI connection.

USB Notes

Under Mac OS X, Mopho will appear as a MIDI port when connected via USB
and can be configured using the Mac’s Audio MIDI Setup application (typically
found in Applications/Utilities).

Under Windows XP, the first time Mopho is connected via USB, the “Found
new hardware” alert appears and Mopho is automatically installed—somewhat
misleadingly—as “USB Audio Device.” If there is already another Class
Compliant USB device installed, Mopho will show up as “USB Audio
Device(2)” (or 3 or 4 or...).

To determine which USB Audio Device is Mopho:

1. Open the System Control Panel

2. Click the Hardware tab.

3. Click Device Manager.

4. Expand “Sound, video, and game controllers.”

5. Right-click any “USB Audio Device” and choose Properties from the

pop-up menu.

The General tab of the USB Audio Device Properties window displays the
Device Type, Manufacturer, and Location. For Mopho, the Location should read
“Location n (DSI Mopho).”

36

Windows Vista and Windows 7 behave the same as XP, but the device name is
DSI Mopho rather than USB Audio Device.

In Windows, if you unplug the USB cable and plug it back in while a program
has the Mopho port open, you may have to resync. That usually means going to
the USB Audio Device (or DSI Mopho) Properties, as in the procedure above,
and clicking OK. If Mopho is no longer listed in the Device Manager under
“Sound, video, and game controllers,” power Mopho down and back up again
while it is connected via USB. It should be detected on power up.

37

Using Audio In

The Audio In jack on Mopho’s rear panel can take audio from a variety of
sources, including line level signals and guitars. But what happens to it once its
inside and how do you get it out again? Simply plugging a guitar in does not
mean you will actually hear something when you play it.

Mopho’s basic audio signal path goes from oscillators to mixer to filter to VCA.
Audio In goes into the mixer. (Mopho has no pitch detection capability, so the
oscillators cannot track the pitch of the incoming signal. A pitch-to-MIDI
converter is needed to play the synth from a guitar.) So the External Volume
level must be up for Audio In to work. But you probably still won’t be able to
hear it. There are two potential obstacles in the audio signal path: the filter and
the VCA. If the filter’s cutoff frequency is turned down, audio does not pass
through. And if the VCA Level (Misc. Parameters) is down or nothing is gating
the amplifier envelope, no audio will pass through the VCA. The two most
obvious ways around the VCA are to turn the VCA Level up, essentially
bypassing the VCA, or use the sequencer to gate the envelopes. (You could also
use the keyboard to gate the envelopes, but then you start to run out of hands!)

There are two programs in Bank 1 demonstrating ways in which to use Audio
In. Ext In Env Filt (Bank 1 Program 127) is a simple envelope filter. VCA Level
is turned all the way up, allowing the audio to pass through the VCA. Both
oscillators are turned off; if they were on, you’d hear them droning because
VCA Level is turned up. Modulator 1 Source is set to EnvFollow (envelope
follower) and the destination is set to Low Pass (the filter). That means the level
of the incoming audio controls the filter’s cutoff frequency. Resonance is also
set at a moderate level, so you should hear a nice, squirty, blat at the peaks. For
low-level signals like a passive guitar or bass, you will probably need to turn
External Gain up to make it work properly.

The other program, Ext In Sequence (Bank 1 Program 128) uses the sequencer
to gate the envelopes for a pulsing, rhythmic effect. Press Push It! to latch the
sequencer on. Noise level is up, providing little percussive noise bursts. The
oscillators are still turned off. LFO 1 is synced to the sequencer and controlling
the VCA’s output panning. Sequence 1 is controlling filter cutoff. Again, you
may need to turn up External Gain for low-level signals. You can have a ton of
fun playing with just Mopho and patches like this, but if you sync to an external
sequencer or delay or both, things really get interesting!

38

Using Poly Chain

Mopho’s Poly Chain output enables it to be connected to other DSI synths for up
to 17-voice polyphony. Products that can be chained include the Tetra, Prophet
'08 (module and keyboard), desktop Mopho, and a second keyboard Mopho. It
will not chain with the Evolvers and Poly Evolvers due to the different voice
structures.

Note data from Mopho’s keyboard is intelligently processed so that, when one
synth’s maximum polyphony is reached, additional notes are passed through the
Poly Chain output and routed to the next synth in the chain. All that is required
is a single MIDI cable for each of the chained synths and a mixer for combining
the audio outputs.

Tetra is the best candidate for poly chaining with the Mopho Keyboard; the
voice architecture and programmable parameters are identical. The desktop
Mopho or Prophet ’08 will also work, but there are some differences between
these synths and the Mopho Keyboard:

 The desktop Mopho’s Feedback Gain control is not programmable and may

need to be tweaked manually to match the Mopho Keyboard. Programs that
don’t use feedback sound the same on both models.

 The Prophet does not have feedback or sub octave generators.

 Both the Prophet and Tetra have two layers for stacked and split programs;

Mopho does not. When Prophet or Tetra programs are loaded into Mopho,
layer B is ignored.

You should have the same programs loaded into all the chained synths. The
easiest way to do that is to use the Dump command in the Global menu to dump
the programs via MIDI from one synth to the other(s).

The Poly Chain parameter is in the global menu. On the Mopho Keyboard, set
Poly Chain to the number of additional voices that will be chained: Out 1 (for
poly chaining a Mopho), Out 4, Out 5, Out 8, Out 12, or Out 16. Refer to the
illustration on page 40 for examples of the Poly Chain settings on the slave
units.

You can now virtually ignore the slave unit or units, since the controls on the
master will control all units as if they were a single synth. This includes saving a
program; if you save an edited program on the master, it will also save the
program on the slave(s).

39

Note: If syncing to an external MIDI clock, set MIDI Clock (Global
menu) on the master and any intermediate units to MIDI In/Out. Set the
last instrument in the chain to MIDI In.

When Poly Chain is set to Off, the Poly Chain MIDI out jack simply duplicates
the MIDI out jack.

40

9 Voi c e s:

MIDI
In

Prophet

In

Pol y

Ch ain

Out

Mopho Kybd.

Ou t 8

MIDI
In

Pol y

Ch ain

Out

Tet ra

InOut4

9 Voi c e s:

MIDI
In

Tet ra

In End

Pol y

Ch ain

Out

Mopho Kybd.

Ou t 8

MIDI
In

Pol y

Ch ain

Out

Tet ra

InOut4

6 Voi c e s:

Pol y

Ch ain

Out

Mopho Kybd.

Ou t 5

MIDI
In

Mopho

13 Vo ices:

Pol y

Ch ain

Out

Mopho Kybd.

Out 12

MIDI
In

Pol y

Ch ain

Out

Tet ra

InOut8

MIDI
In

Prophet

In

13 Vo ices:

Pol y

Ch ain

Out

Mopho Kybd.

Out 12

MIDI
In

Pol y

Ch ain

Out

Tet ra

InOut8

MIDI
In

Pol y

Ch ain

Out

Tet ra

InOut4

MIDI
In

Tet ra

In End

MIDI
In

Tet ra

In End

5 Voi c e s:

Pol y

Ch ain

Out

Mopho Kybd.

Ou t 4

2 Voi c e s:

Pol y

Ch ain

Out

Mopho Kybd.

Ou t 1

MIDI
In

Mopho

41

Support

Troubleshooting

Here are a few suggestions for resolving problems that may occur.

The sequencer has stopped running.

Make sure Clock in the Global menu is set to Internal.

Some of the programs sound different.

Check the Mod Wheel position. The Mod Wheel can do a lot more than just add
vibrato. Also, some of the programs use the sequencer to shape the sound so
make sure Clock in the Global menu is set to Internal.

There is a ground hum in the audio output.

USB can cause ground loops, so try to resolve any grounding issues between the
computer and Mopho. Or use MIDI, which is opto-isolated.

Mopho is behaving erratically.

This is almost always caused by a MIDI data loop. Make sure that any MIDI
Thru functionality is turned off on the MIDI interface/hardware or in the MIDI
software application (sequencer or whatever). Disconnect all Mopho’s MIDI
connections—MIDI and USB cables—and see if the problem persists. You can
also monitor the MIDI traffic with MIDI Monitor (Mac OS) or MIDI-OX
(Windows) to see if Mopho is being overrun with duplicate messages.

An oscillator or the filter sounds strange or out of tune.

Hold Compare and press Osc Shape to run the calibration routine.

Note: It is not necessary to run the calibration routine on a regular basis.
You should only run it if you are experiencing problems.

Still experiencing a problem with Mopho? Reset the Global parameters (in the
Global menu).

Contacting Technical Support

If you are still having a problem with Mopho, contact Technical Support at
[e-mail]. Please include your Mopho’s serial
number, the version of the operating systems (Main and Voice displayed on
startup), and the purchase date.

Note: If you have not already reset the Global parameters and run the
calibration routine (see Troubleshooting above), you should do it before
contacting Technical Support. It’s probably the first thing they’ll ask you
to do.

42

Warranty Repair

Dave Smith Instruments warrants that Mopho will be free from defects in
materials and/or workmanship for 1 year from the date of purchase. Please
register your product online at www.davesmithinstruments.com to establish the
date of purchase. (This is not a requirement for warranty service, but it will help
expedite the process.)

Please contact [e-mail] to determine the best course
of action for getting your Mopho repaired. For your own protection, as well as
ours, please do not return any product to Dave Smith Instruments without a
return authorization (RA) number. To issue an RA number, Technical
Support needs:

 Your name

 Your return address

 Your email address

 A phone number where you can be reached

 Your Mopho’s serial number

 The date of purchase and where purchased

If you need to return your instrument for repair, you are responsible for getting it
to DSI. We highly recommend insuring it and packing in the original packaging.
Damage resulting from shipping a product with insufficient packaging is not
covered by warranty.

43

MIDI Implementation

Display

MIDI Clock Setting

Internal

MIDI clock is neither sent nor received

MIDI Out

MIDI clock is sent

MIDI In

MIDI clock is received

MIDIn/Out

MIDI clock is received and transmitted

Mopho receives MIDI data according to the mode controls under GLOBAL. In
addition, there is interaction between some of the Program parameters that
determine the overall response of Mopho to MIDI data.

Following are the Global parameters that affect response to MIDI:

MIDI Channel: ALL, 1…16 — Selects the MIDI channel to send and receive

data, 1 to 16. All receives on any channel.

Clock: see table — Selects the MIDI clock status as follows:

MIDI Parameter Send: NRPN, CC, Off —

front panel controls are transmitted via MIDI as Non-registered Parameter
Number (NRPN) controllers or as Continuous Controllers (CC). Transmission of
parameters can also be turned off.

MIDI Parameter Receive: All, NRPN, CC, Off — Sets the method by which

Mopho receives parameter changes via MIDI. As with transmission, NRPNs are
the preferred method, though some controllers may only be able to send CCs.

Changes to the values of Mopho’s

MIDI Control: Off, On — When On, the synth will respond to MIDI controllers,

including Pitch Wheel, Mod Wheel, Pedal, Breath, Volume, and Expression.

MIDI SysEx: Off, On — When On, the synth will respond to received MIDI

SysEx messages, and will transmit them, when prompted, to the MIDI Out.

44

MIDI Messages

System Real-time Messages

Status

Description

1111 1000

MIDI Timing Clock

Received Channel Messages

Status

Second

Third

Description

1000 nnnn

0kkkkkkk

0vvvvvvv

Note Off. Velocity is ignored

1001 nnnn

0kkkkkkk

0vvvvvvv

Note On. Note off if vvvvvvv = 0

1010 nnnn

0kkkkkkk

0vvvvvvv

Polyphonic Key Pressure

1011 nnnn

0vvvvvvv

0vvvvvvv

Control Change; see “Received Controller
Messages” table following

1100 nnnn

0ppppppp

Program change, 0-127 for Programs 1-128
within current Bank

1101 nnnn

0vvvvvvv

Channel Pressure

1110 nnnn

0vvvvvvv

0vvvvvvv

Pitch Bend LS Byte then MS Byte

Received Controller Messages

Status

Second

Third

Description

1011 nnnn

1

0vvvvvvv

Mod Wheel — directly assignable controller

1011 nnnn

2

0vvvvvvv

Breath Controller — directly assignable controller

1011 nnnn

4

0vvvvvvv

Foot Controller — directly assignable controller

1011 nnnn

7

0vvvvvvv

Volume — Combined with Master Volume and
Voice Volume

1011 nnnn

74

0vvvvvvv

Brightness — Added to low-pass filter cutoff
frequency

1011 nnnn

11

0vvvvvvv

Expression Controller — directly assignable
controller

1011 nnnn

32

0vvvvvvv

Bank Select — 0 - 2 select banks 1 - 3; others
ignored

1011 nnnn

64

0vvvvvvv

Damper pedal — holds envelopes in Sustain if
0100 0000 or higher

1011 nnnn

123

0vvvvvvv

All Notes Off — clear all MIDI notes

1011 nnnn

121

0vvvvvvv

Reset All Controllers — clears all MIDI
controllers to 0, MIDI volume to maximum

Notes: 0kkkkkkk Note number 0 — 127

0vvvvvvv Value

nnnn Channel number 0 to 15 (MIDI channel 1-16). Ignored if MIDI

channel set to ALL

See sections below for additional Continuous Controller (CC) and Non­registered Parameter Number (NRPN) messages received.

45

Transmitted Channel Messages

Status

Second

Third

Description

1000 nnnn

0kkkkkkk

0000000

Note Off.

1001 nnnn

0kkkkkkk

0vvvvvvv

Note On.

1011 nnnn

0vvvvvvv

0vvvvvvv

Control Change; see “Transmitted Controller
Messages” table following

1100 nnnn

0ppppppp

Program change, 0 – 127 for Programs 1 – 128
within current Bank

1101 nnnn

0vvvvvvv

Channel Pressure

1110 nnnn

0vvvvvvv

0vvvvvvv

Pitch Bend LS Byte then MS Byte

Transmitted Controller Messages

Status

Second

Third

Description

1011 nnnn

0000 0001

0vvvvvvv

Mod Wheel

1011 nnnn

0000 0010

0vvvvvvv

Breath Controller – when assigned to Pedal/CV

1011 nnnn

0000 0100

0vvvvvvv

Foot Controller – when assigned to Pedal/CV

1011 nnnn

0000 0111

0vvvvvvv

Volume – when assigned to Pedal/CV

1011 nnnn

0100 1010

0vvvvvvv

Brightness – when assigned to Pedal/CV

1011 nnnn

0000 1101

0vvvvvvv

Expression – when assigned to Pedal/CV

1011 nnnn

0010 0000

0vvvvvvv

Bank Select – 0 to 2

1011 nnnn

0100 0000

0vvvvvvv

Damper pedal – sends 0 if off, 0100 0000 when
on

1011 nnnn

0000 0111

0vvvvvvv

Volume knob

Notes: 0kkkkkkk Note number 0 - 127

0vvvvvvv Value

nnnn Channel number 0 to 15 (MIDI channel 1-16). Ignored if MIDI

channel set to ALL

See sections below for additional Continuous Controller (CC) and Non­registered Parameter Number (NRPN) messages transmitted.

46

Additional Continuous Controllers

(CCs) Transmitted/Received

Parameter

CC#

Osc 1 Frequency

20

Osc 1 Freq Fine

21

Osc 1 Shape

22

Glide 1

23

Osc 2 Frequency

24

Osc 2 Freq Fine

25

Osc 2 Shape

26

Glide 2

27

Osc Mix

28

Noise Level

29

Sub Oscillator 1

30

Sub Oscillator 2

31 Filter Frequency

102

Resonance

103

Filter Key Amt

104

Filter Audio Mod

105

Filter Env Amt

106

Filter Env Vel Amt

107

Filter Delay

108

Filter Attack

109

Filter Decay

110

Filter Sustain

111

Filter Release

112

VCA Level

113

Amp Env Amt

115

Amp Velocity Amt

116

Amp Delay

117

Amp Attack

118

Amp Decay

119

Amp Sustain

75

Amp Release

76

Parameter

CC#

Env 3 Destination

85

Env 3 Amt

86

Env 3 Velocity Amt

87

Env 3 Delay

88

Env 3 Attack

89

Env 3 Decay

90

Env 3 Sustain

77

Env 3 Release

78 BPM

14

Clock Divide

15

The following table details how CCs are mapped onto Mopho’s controls. They
are transmitted when MIDI Parameter Send is set to CC in Global, and
recognized when received when MIDI Parameter Receive is set to either CC or
All in Global.

NRPN Messages

The Non-Registered Parameter Number (NRPN) MIDI messages are used to
transmit and receive both global and program parameters. They are transmitted
when MIDI Parameter Send is set to NRPN in Global, and received when MIDI
Parameter Receive is set to either NRPN or All in Global.

47

The messages are handled in standard MIDI format using the NRPN CC

Transmitted NRPN Messages

Status

Description

1011 nnnn

Control Change

0110 0011

NRPN parameter number MSB CC

0vvv vvvv

Parameter Number MSB

0110 0010

NRPN parameter number LSB CC

0vvv vvvv

Parameter Number LSB

0000 0110

NRPN parameter value MSB CC

0vvv vvvv

Parameter value MSB

0010 0110

NRPN parameter value LSB CC

0vvv vvvv

Parameter value LSB

commands in running status byte format. Below is the format used for
transmitting a NRPN parameter:

The parameter number can be found in the two tables below, one for Global
parameters, and the other for Program parameters. The parameter numbers and
the parameter values are broken into two 7-bit bytes for MIDI transmission; the
LSB has the seven least-significant bits, and the MSB has the seven most­significant bits, though in most cases the MSB will be zero or one, and never
more than two.

When receiving an NRPN, all messages do not necessarily need to be
transmitted, since the synth will track the most recent NRPN number, though it
is usually good practice to send the entire message above.

Once an NRPN is selected, the synth will also respond to NRPN Data Increment
and Decrement commands, which some controllers utilize. Finally, it responds
to one RPN (Registered Parameter Number) command, the RPN/NRPN Reset
command, which can be handy for resetting the currently selected parameter to a
known state.

48

Received NRPN Messages

Status

Second

Third

Description

1011 nnnn

0110 0011

0vvvvvvv

NRPN parameter number MSB CC

1011 nnnn

0110 0010

0vvvvvvv

NRPN parameter number LSB CC

1011 nnnn

0000 0110

0vvvvvvv

NRPN parameter value MSB CC

1011 nnnn

0010 0110

0vvvvvvv

NRPN parameter value LSB CC

1011 nnnn

0110 0000

0xxxxxxx

NRPN parameter value Increment

1011 nnnn

0110 0001

0xxxxxxx

NRPN parameter value Decrement

1011 nnnn

0010 0101

0111111

RPN parameter number MSB CC - Reset NRPN

received)

1011 nnnn

0010 0100

0111111

RPN parameter number LSB CC - Reset NRPN

received)

Param

NRPN

Range

Description

0

384

0 - 24

Master Transpose; 0 = -12 semitones (1 octave), 12
= 0 (no transpose), and 24 = +12 semitones.

1

385

0 - 100

Master Fine Tune; 0 = -50 cents, 50 = 0 (centered),
100 = + 50 cents

2

386

0 - 16

MIDI Channel; if = 0, data received on all MIDI
channels. Otherwise = channel number 1 - 16.

3

388

0 - 3

MIDI clock select*

3 Use MIDI clock In, and retransmit MIDI clock out

4

390

0 - 2

Parameter Send*:

2 Off

5

391

0 - 3

Parameter Receive†:

3 Off

6

394

0 - 1

MIDI Controller Send/Receive Off/On

7

395

0 - 1

MIDI Sysex Send/Receive Off/On

parameter number (when both MSB and LSB

parameter number (when both MSB and LSB

Global Parameter Data

The following table shows the Global data that is sent and received on global
parameter dumps, and the corresponding NRPN number when sent/received
individually.

0 Use Internal clock, don’t send MIDI clock
1 Use Internal clock, send MIDI clock
2 Use MIDI clock In

0 NRPN
1 CC

0 All
1 NRPN only
2 CC only

49

Param

NRPN

Range

Description

8

406

0 - 1

MIDI Out Select*:

0 MIDI Out

1 MIDI Thru

9

387

0 - 6

Poly Chain*:

6 Out 16

10

389

0 – 1

Local Control* Off/On

11

400

0 - 1

Audio Outputs:

1 Mono

12

404

0 - 2

Pot Mode:

2 Jump

13

397

0 - 3

Damper Polarity:

3 Arpeggiator latch, normally closed

14

396

0 - 5

Pedal Destination:

5 Filter Frequency/2

15

393

0 – 1

MIDI Pressure Send/Receive Off/On

16

399

0 – 3

Pressure Curve

17

398

0 - 3

Velocity Curve

18

Basic Patch

19

Reset Globals

20

403

0 - 28

Balance Tweak*

0 Off
1 Out 1
2 Out 4
3 Out 5
4 Out 8
5 Out 12

0 Stereo

0 Relative
1 PassThru

0 Sustain, normally open
1 Sustain, normally closed
2 Arpeggiator latch, normally open

0 Foot Control
1 Breath Control
2 Expression
3 Volume
4 Filter Frequency

*Received, but not sent.

†Sent, but ignored when received.

50

Program Parameter Data

Param

NRPN

Range

Description

0 0 0 - 120

Oscillator 1 Frequency, 0 - 120 in semitones (10
octave range)

1 1 0 - 100

Oscillator 1 Fine Tune; 0 = -50 cents, 50 = 0
(centered), 100 = + 50 cents

2 2 0-103

Oscillator 1 Shape

4 - 103 Pulse Wave, Pulse width 0 - 99

3 3 0 - 127

Oscillator 1 Glide

4 4 0 - 1

Oscillator 1 Keyboard Off/On

5

114

0 - 127

Sub Oscillator 1 Level

6 5 0 - 120

Oscillator 2 Frequency, 0 - 120 in semitones (10
octave range)

7 6 0 - 100

Oscillator 2 Fine Tune; 0 = -50 cents, 50 = 0
(centered), 100 = + 50 cents

8 7 0 - 103

Oscillator 2 Shape

4 - 103 Pulse Wave, Pulse width 0 - 99

9 8 0 - 127

Oscillator 2 Glide

10 9 0 - 1

Oscillator 2 Keyboard Off/On

11

115

0 - 127

Sub Oscillator 2 Level

12

10

0 - 1

Sync off/on

13

11

0 - 3

Glide Mode:

3 fixed time auto

14

12

0 - 5

Oscillator Slop

15

93

0 - 12

Pitch Bend Range

16

13

0 - 127

Oscillator 1 - 2 Mix

17

14

0 - 127

Noise Level

18

116

0 - 127

Feedback/External Audio Volume

19

110

0 - 127

Feedback/External Audio Gain

20

15

0 - 164

Filter Frequency, steps in semitones

21

16

0 - 127

Resonance

The following table lists Mopho’s voice parameters. The parameter number in
the program and edit buffer dumps are different than the NRPN numbers as
seen; this was to maintain NRPN compatibility with the Prophet ’08 as much as
possible.

0 Oscillator Off
1 Sawtooth
2 Triangle
3 Sawtooth/triangle mix

0Oscillator Off
1 Sawtooth
2 Triangle
3 Sawtooth/triangle mix

0 fixed rate
1 fixed rate auto
2 fixed time

51

22

17

0 - 127

Filter Keyboard Amount

23

18

0 - 127

Filter Audio Modulation

24

19

0 - 1

Filter Poles 0: 2-pole; 1: 4-pole

25

20

0 - 254

Filter Envelope Amount; -127 to +127

26

21

0 - 127

Filter Envelope Velocity Amount

27

22

0 - 127

Filter Envelope Delay

28

23

0 - 127

Filter Envelope Attack

29

24

0 - 127

Filter Envelope Decay

30

25

0 - 127

Filter Envelope Sustain

31

26

0 - 127

Filter Envelope Release

32

27

0 - 127

VCA Initial Level

33

30

0 - 127

VCA Envelope Amount

34

31

0 - 127

VCA Envelope Velocity Amount

35

32

0 - 127

VCA Envelope Delay

36

33

0 - 127

VCA Envelope Attack

37

34

0 - 127

VCA Envelope Decay

38

35

0 - 127

VCA Envelope Sustain

39

36

0 - 127

VCA Envelope Release

41

29

0 - 127

Voice Volume

42

37

0 - 166

LFO 1 Frequency; 0 - 150 un-synced frequencies

151 Sequence speed divided by 32

166 Sixteen cycles per step

43

38

0 - 4

LFO 1 Shape

4 Random

44

39

0 - 127

LFO 1 Amount

45

40

0 - 47

LFO 1 Mod Destination; See Modulation Destination
list below

46

41

0 - 1

LFO 1 Key Sync Off/On

47

42

0 - 166

LFO 2 Frequency; same as LFO 1

48

43

0 - 4

LFO 2 Shape; same as LFO 1

49

44

0 - 127

LFO 2 Amount

152 Sequence speed divided by 16
153 Sequence speed divided by 8
154 Sequence speed divided by 6
155 Sequence speed divided by 4
156 Sequence speed divided by 3
157 Sequence speed divided by 2
158 Sequence speed divided by 1.5
159 One cycle per step
160 Two cycles per three steps
161 Two cycles per step
162 Three cycles per step
163 Four cycles per step
164 Six cycles per step
165 Eight cycles per step

0 Triangle
1 Reverse Sawtooth
2 Sawtooth
3 Pulse (square)

52

50

45

0 - 47

LFO 2 Mod Destination; See Modulation Destination
list below

51

46

0 - 1

LFO 2 Key Sync Off/On

52

47

0 - 166

LFO 3 Frequency; same as LFO 1

53

48

0 - 4

LFO 3 Shape; same as LFO 1

54

49

0 - 127

LFO 3 Amount

55

50

0 - 47

LFO 3 Mod Destination; See Modulation Destination
list below

56

51

0 - 1

LFO 3 Key Sync Off/On

57

52

0 - 166

LFO 4 Frequency; same as LFO 1

58

53

0 - 4

LFO 4 Shape; same as LFO 1

59

54

0 - 127

LFO 4 Amount

60

55

0 - 47

LFO 4 Mod Destination; See Modulation Destination
list below

61

56

0 - 1

LFO 4 Key Sync Off/On

62

57

0 - 47

Envelope 3 Mod Destination; See Mod Destination
list below

63

58

0 - 254

Envelope 3 Amount; -127 to +127

64

59

0 - 127

Envelope 3 Velocity Amount

65

60

0 - 127

Envelope 3 Delay

66

61

0 - 127

Envelope 3 Attack

67

62

0 - 127

Envelope 3 Decay

68

63

0 - 127

Envelope 3 Sustain

69

64

0 - 127

Envelope 3 Release

70

98

0 - 1

Envelope 3 Repeat Off/On

71

65

0 - 22

Mod 1 Source; See Modulation Source list below

72

66

0 - 254

Mod 1 Amount; -127 to +127

73

67

0 - 47

Mod 1 Destination; See Modulation Destination list
below

74

68

0 - 22

Mod 2 Source; See Modulation Source list below

75

69

0 - 254

Mod 2 Amount; -127 to +127

76

70

0 - 47

Mod 2 Destination; See Modulation Destination list
below

77

71

0 - 22

Mod 3 Source; See Modulation Source list below

78

72

0 - 254

Mod3 Amount; -127 to +127

79

73

0 - 47

Mod 3 Destination; See Modulation Destination list
below

80

74

0 - 22

Mod 4 Source; See Modulation Source list below

81

75

0 - 254

Mod 4 Amount; -127 to +127

82

76

0 - 47

Mod 4 Destination; See Modulation Destination list
below

83

81

0 - 254

Mod Wheel Amount; -127 to +127

84

82

0 - 47

Mod Wheel Destination; See Modulation Destination
list below

85

83

0 - 254

Pressure Amount; -127 to +127

53

86

84

0 - 47

Pressure Destination; See Modulation Destination
list below

86

85

0 - 254

Breath Amount; -127 to +127

88

86

0 - 47

Breath Destination; See Modulation Destination list
below

89

87

0 - 254

Velocity Amount; -127 to +127

90

88

0 - 47

Velocity Destination; See Modulation Destination list
below

91

89

0 - 254

Foot Control Amount; -127 to +127

92

90

0 - 47

Foot Control Destination; See Modulation
Destination list below

93

96

0 - 4

Unison Mode:

4 All voices detune3

94

96

0 - 5

Key Assign Mode:

95

99

0 - 1

Unison; off/on

96

111

0 - 120

Push It Switch Note Number

97

112

0 - 127

Push It Switch Velocity

98

113

0 - 2

Push It Switch Mode:

2 Audio In

101

91

30 - 250

BPM tempo

102

92

0 - 12

Clock Divide:

12 Sixty-Fourth note triplets

0 1 voice
1 All voices
2 All voices detune1
3 All voices detune2

0 Low note priority
1 Low note priority with re-trigger
2 High note priority
3 High note priority with re-trigger
4 Last note hit priority
5 Last note hit priority with re-trigger

0 Normal
1 Toggle

0 Half Note
1 Quarter Note
2 Eighth Note
3 Eighth Note half swing
4 Eighth Note full swing
5 Eighth Note triplets
6 Sixteenth Note
7 Sixteenth Note half swing
8 Sixteenth Note full swing
9 Sixteenth Note triplets
10 Thirty-second Notes
11 Thirty-second Notes triplets

54

103

97

0 - 14

Arpeggiator Mode:

0 Up

14 Random 3 Octaves

104

100

0 - 1

Arpeggiator; Off/On

105

94

0 - 5

Sequencer Trigger:

5 Audio In

106

101

0 - 1

Gated Sequencer; Off/On

107

77

0 - 48

Sequence 1 Destination; See Modulation Destination
list below

108

78

0 - 48

Sequence 2 Destination; See Modulation Destination
list below

109

79

0 - 48

Sequence 3 Destination; See Modulation Destination
list below

110

80

0 - 48

Sequence 4 Destination; See Modulation

Destination list below

120 - 135

120 - 135

0 - 127

Sequence Track1, steps 1-16

127 Rest

136 - 151

136 - 151

0 - 126

Sequence Track 2, steps 1-16

126 Reset

152 - 167

152 - 167

0 - 126

Sequence Track 3, steps 1-16

126 Reset

168 - 183

168 - 183

0 - 126

Sequence Track 4, steps 1-16

126 Reset

184 - 199

184 - 199

32 - 127

Name characters 1-16, in ASCII format

1 Down
2 Up/Down
3 Assign
4 Random
5 Up 2 Octaves
6 Down 2 Octaves
7 Up/Down 2 Octaves
8 Assign 2 Octaves
9 Random 2 Octaves
10 Up 3 Octaves
11 Down 3 Octaves
12 Up/Down 3 Octaves
13 Assign 3 Octaves

0 Normal
1 Normal, no reset
2 No gate
3 No gate/no reset
4 Key Step

0 to 125: Normal sequence step value
126 Reset

0 to 125: Normal sequence step value

0 to 125: Normal sequence step value

0 to 125: Normal sequence step value

55

The following tables list the values used with the program parameters to specify

Mod Destinations

Value

Off

0

Osc 1 Freq

1

Osc 2 Freq

2

Osc 1 and 2 Freq

3

Osc Mix

4

Noise Level

5

Osc 1 Pulse Width

6

Osc 2 Pulse Width

7

Osc 1 and 2 Pulse Width

8

Filter Frequency

9

Resonance

10

Filter Audio Mod Amt

11

VCA Level

12

Pan Spread

13

LFO 1 Freq

14

LFO 2 Freq

15

LFO 3 Freq

16

LFO 4 Freq

17

All LFO Freq

18

LFO 1 Amt

19

LFO 2 Amt

20

LFO 3 Amt

21

LFO 3 Amt

22

All LFO Amt

23

Filter Env Amt

24

Amp Env Amt

25

Env 3 Amt

26

All Env Amounts

27

Env 1 Attack

28

Env 2 Attack

29

Env 3 Attack

30

All Env Attacks

31

Env 1 Decay

32

Env 2 Decay

33

Env 3 Decay

34

All Env Decays

35

Env 1 Release

36

Env 2 Release

37

Env 3 Release

38

All Env Releases

39

modulation destinations and sources.

56

Mod 1 Amt

40

Mod 2 Amt

41

Mod 3 Amt

42

Mod 4 Amt

43

External Audio In Level

44

Sub Osc 1 Level

45

Sub Osc 2 Level

46

Feedback Gain

47

Slew*

48

*Appears as a destination in sequences 2 and 4 only.

Mod Sources

Value

Off 0 Sequence Track 1

1

Sequence Track 2

2

Sequence Track 3

3

Sequence Track 4

4

LFO 1

5

LFO 2

6

LFO 3

7

LFO 4

8

Filter Envelope

9

Amp Envelope

10

Envelope 3

11

Pitch Bend

12

Mod Wheel

13

Pressure

14

MIDI Breath

15

MIDI Foot

16

MIDI Expression

17

Velocity

18

Note Number

19

Noise

20

Audio In Envelope Follower

21

Audio In Peak Hold

22

57

Sysex Messages

Universal System Exclusive Message (Device Inquiry)

Status

Description

1111 0000

System Exclusive (SysEx)

0111 1110

Non-realtime message

0vvv vvvv

If MIDI channel is set to 1 - 16, 0vvvvvvv must match (unless MIDI Channel
= ALL); always responds if 0vvvvvvv = 0111 1111.

0000 0110

Inquiry Message

0000 0001

Inquiry Request

1111 0111

End of Exclusive (EOX)

Status

Description

1111 0000

System Exclusive (SysEx)

0111 1110

Non-realtime message

0vvv vvvv

If MIDI Channel = ALL, 0vvvvvvv = 0111 1111. Otherwise 0vvvvvvv =
Channel Number 0 - 15.

0000 0110

Inquiry Message

0000 0010

Inquiry Reply

0000 0001

DSI ID

0010 0111

Mopho Keyboard ID (Family LS)

0000 0001

Family MS

0000 0000

Family Member LS

0000 0000

Family Member MS

0jjj nnnn

Main Software version: jjj - Minor rev; nnnn - Major rev

0000 0000

Voice firmware version LS

0000 0000

Voice firmware version MS

1111 0111

End of Exclusive (EOX)

Request Program Dump

Status

Description

1111 0000

System Exclusive (SysEx)

0000 0001

DSI ID

0010 0111

Mopho Keyboard ID

0000 0101

Request Program Transmit

0000 00vv

Bank Number, 0 - 2

0vvv vvvv

Program Number, 0 - 127

1111 0111

End of Exclusive (EOX)

Mopho keyboard responds with:

Mopho will respond by sending out the Program Data in the format described
below in Program Data Dump.

58

Request Program Edit Buffer Dump

Status

Description

1111 0000

System Exclusive (SysEx)

0000 0001

DSI ID

0010 0111

Mopho keyboard ID

0000 0110

Request Program Edit Buffer Transmit

1111 0111

End of Exclusive (EOX)

Request Global Parameter Dump

Status

Description

1111 0000

System Exclusive (SysEx)

0000 0001

DSI ID

0010 0111

Mopho keyboard ID

0000 1110

Request Global Parameter Transmit

1111 0111

End of Exclusive (EOX)

Program Data Dump

Status

Description

1111 0000

System Exclusive (SysEx)

0000 0001

DSI ID

0010 0111

Mopho keyboard ID

0000 0010

Program Data

0000 00vv

Bank Number, 0 - 2

0vvv vvvv

Program Number, 0 - 127

0vvv vvvv

256 bytes expanded to 293 MIDI bytes in “packed MS bit” format (see
page 60.)

1111 0111

End of Exclusive (EOX)

Mopho will respond by sending out the current Program edit buffer in the format
described below in Program Edit Buffer Data Dump.

Mopho will respond by sending out the current values of Global Parameters in
the format described below in Global Parameters Data Dump.

59

Program Edit Buffer Data Dump

Status

Description

1111 0000

System Exclusive (SysEx)

0000 0001

DSI ID

0010 0111

Mopho keyboard ID

0000 0011

Edit Buffer Data

0vvv vvvv

256 bytes expanded to 293 MIDI bytes in “packed MS bit” format (see
page 60.)

1111 0111

End of Exclusive (EOX)

Global Parameters Data Dump

Status

Description

1111 0000

System Exclusive (SysEx)

0000 0001

DSI ID

0010 0111

Mopho keyboard ID

0000 1111

Main Parameter Data

0vvv vvvv

42 nibbles (LS then MS) for 21 Global parameters. Global Parameters
are listed starting on page 49.

1111 0111

End of Exclusive (EOX)

Note: The Global Parameters Data Dump is not recognized when received; it is
only transmitted when requested. NRPN messages are used to change Globals.

Packed Data Format

Data is packed in 8 byte “packets”, with the MS bit stripped from 7 parameter
bytes, and packed into an eighth byte, which is sent at the start of the 8 byte
packet.

Example:

Input Data Packed MIDI data

1 A7 A6 A5 A4 A3 A2 A1 A0 1 00 G7 F7 E7 D7 C7 B7 A7
2 B7 B6 B5 B4 B3 B2 B1 B0 2 00 A6 A5 A4 A3 A2 A1 A0
3 C7 C6 C5 C4 C3 C2 C1 C0 3 00 B6 B5 B4 B3 B2 B1 B0
4 D7 D6 D5 D4 D3 D2 D1 D0 4 00 C6 C5 C4 C3 C2 C1 C0
5 E7 E6 E5 E4 E3 E2 E1 E0 5 00 D6 D5 D4 D3 D2 D1 D0
6 F7 F6 F5 F4 F3 F2 F1 F0 6 00 E6 E5 E4 E3 E2 E1 E0
7 G7 G6 G5 G4 G3 G2 G1 G0 7 00 F6 F5 F4 F3 F2 F1 F0
8 00 G6 G5 G4 G3 G2 G1 G0

This explains why it takes 293 MIDI bytes to transmit 256 Program data bytes.

60

Pitch Wheel Calibration

The pitch wheel is calibrated at the factory and, generally speaking, should not
have to be calibrated again. If, however, you find that your Mopho is not tuned
to concert pitch when the pitch wheel is centered and the global transpose is set
to 0, try performing a wheel calibration.

To calibrate the pitch wheel:

1. With the pitch wheel held all the way down, hold COMPARE and press

RPEGGIATOR.

A

The display should read “Wheels Calibrated Low.”

2. With the pitch wheel centered, hold C

The display should read “Pitch Wheel Calibrated Mid.”

3. With the pitch wheel held all the way up, hold C

EQUENCER.

S

The display should read “Wheels Calibrated High.”

The pitch wheel is now calibrated.

OMPARE and press OSC.

OMPARE and press

61

62 63 64

Dave Smith Instruments

1527 Stockton Street

2nd Floor

San Francisco, CA 94133

USA

www.DaveSmithInstruments.com