Electro-Harmonix CRASH-PAD, CRASH-PAD-DISPLAY Instructions

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CRASH PAD

Electronic Crash Drum

Congratulations on your purchase of the Crash Pad, a faithful reissue of the
Electro-Harmonix Crash Pad drum synthesizer first released in 1980. The Crash
Pad uses analog synthesis techniques–such as resonant filter sweeps of a noise
source–to create a range of drum sounds from cymbals to snares to otherworldly
oscillation sweeps. Trigger the Crash Pad from the on-board push button or an
external, non-MIDI, electronic drum pad. Pass external sounds through the
resonant filter via the auxilliary input. Use the expression pedal/CV input for
external control over the filter in real-time.

- CONTROLS -

SWEEP Controls – Together, these three knobs control the Crash Pad’s filter

frequency sweep:

START Knob – Sets the starting point of the frequency sweep. Filter
sweeps can begin anywhere from 250 Hz at full counterclockwise to 7.5
kHz at full clockwise.
STOP Knob – Sets the end point of the filter’s frequency sweep.
Sweeps can end anywhere from 50 Hz at full counterclockwise to 7.5
kHz at full clockwise.
TIME Knob – Controls how long it takes to sweep from the START
frequency to the STOP frequency. As TIME is turned clockwise, the
sweep time slows down. Sweep time ranges from 40 ms to 4 seconds.

SENS. Button – Controls the sensitivity of the Crash Pad to an external trigger.
Sensitivity is high in the down position and low in the up position. We
recommend you start with the high setting because smaller amplitude pulses are
required to trigger the Crash Pad as compared to the low setting. Additionally,
the amplitude of the external trigger signal changes the Crash Pad’s output
volume and start frequency to a limited degree so that hitting your drum pad
harder may produce a louder output signal.

RESONANCE Knob – Adjusts the resonance (or Q) of the low pass filter. As
you increase RESONANCE the filter’s Q increases. The filter begins to self­oscillate at around 3 o’clock on the RESONANCE knob.

VOLUME Knob – Controls the volume of the output signal. As VOLUME is
turned clockwise, the output volume increases.

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DECAY Knob – Each time the Crash Pad is triggered, an internal volume
envelope is activated. The DECAY knob sets the time it takes for the volume
envelope to fade out the triggered sound. With DECAY at full counterclockwise,
the envelope produces very fast click-type sounds. Turn up DECAY to maximum
to allow the Crash Pad’s output to ring out for a lengthy 6 seconds.

POWER LED – Lights up when the Crash Pad is powered up.

TRIG LED – Briefly lights when the Crash Pad is triggered from either the

onboard push button or an external trigger.

PUSH BUTTON TRIGGER – The white button at the center of the logo. This
push button triggers the Crash Pad. Push this button to create amazing sounds.

OUTPUT Jack – This ¼” jack is the audio output from the Crash Pad. The
output impedance varies from 100Ω to 25k. Please note: when powering from
a battery, inserting a plug into the OUTPUT jack turns on the Crash Pad. Remove
the plug from the OUTPUT jack to prolong battery life.

EXT. TRIG Jack – This ¼” jack is the input for an external trigger. The Crash
Pad triggers on positive going pulses or clock signals ranging from 3V to 15V or
+/- 3V to +/-8V. Nearly all types of gate, clock and trigger signals that fall within
this voltage range will trigger the Crash Pad. Some examples of acceptable
trigger signals include electronic drum trigger pads, an electronic pulse (as
produced by the EHX Clockworks), a clock generator (as produced by the EHX 8
Step), gate signals from synthesizers such as V-Trigger, or sync signals from
drum machines. The input impedance is 2M.

AUX IN Jack – This ¼” jack is the auxiliary input for an external sound source.
The signal present at the AUX IN jack connects to the Crash Pad’s resonant filter
and then into the Crash Pad’s volume envelope. When a plug is inserted into the

AUX IN jack the Crash Pad’s internal noise source is disconnected from the filter.
The input impedance is 10M.

The AUX IN jack allows external instruments and sound sources to be filtered by
the Crash Pad, turning it into a useful resonant filter effect in its own right. Use
control voltage (CV) or an expression pedal in conjunction with an external
sound source to expand the Crash Pad’s filter effect even further.

EXP. PED Jack – Connect an expression pedal with a TRS plug to this jack to
control the filter sweep with your foot. Additionally, the EXP. PED jack can be
connected to a CV source using a TS plug; the acceptable control voltage range
is 0V to 5V. Some suggested Expression Pedals: EHX Expression Pedal, M-Audio®
EX-P, Moog® EP-2 and EP-3, Roland® EV-5 or Boss® FV-500L. The polarity of the
expression pedal’s plug must have SLEEVE connected to the heel position
(usually GND), RING connected to the toe position, and the TIP connected to the
wiper. Although the nominal expression pedal impedance is 10kΩ, most other