Electro-Harmonix Forty-five thousand User's Reference Manual
User Reference Manual
Thank you for purchasing the
Electro-Harmonix 45000 Multi-
Track Looping Recorder. Please
read this manual in order to famil-
iarize yourself with this unique
instrument’s layout. It was written
to be a reference guide that you
TABLE OF CONTENTS
can keep close by. The sound is
wonderful but the key is your cre-
ativity. The 45000 will take your
music to new creative heights.
INTRODUCTION 2
QUICK START GUIDE 3
THE RECORD TRANSPORT 5
TRACKS, TRACK SELECTION AND TRANSPORT 7
ANALOG CONTROL AND I/O 9
DIGITAL I/O AND POWER 10
MEMORY CARD AND USB 10
IN-DEPTH LOOK AT RECORDING TRACKS 12
IN-DEPTH LOOK AT OVERDUBBING TRACKS 15
IN-DEPTH LOOK AT MIXDOWN 16
MIDI AND MIDI SYNC 17
FCC COMPLIANCE
Note: This equipment has been tested and found to comply
with the limits for a Class B digital device, pursuant to part 15
of the FCC Rules. These limits are designed to provide reasonable protection against harmful interference in a residential
installation. This equipment generates, uses and can radiate
radio frequency energy and, if not installed and used in
accordance with the instructions, may cause harmful interference to radio communications. However, there is no guarantee that interference will not occur in a particular installation.
If this equipment does cause harmful interference to radio or
television reception, which can be determined by turning the
equipment off and on, the user is encouraged to try to correct
the interference by one or more of the following measures:
• Reorient or relocate the receiving antenna.
• Increase the separation between the equipment and receiver.
• Connect the equipment into an outlet on a circuit different
from that to which the receiver is connected.
• Consult the dealer or an experienced radio/TV technician
for help.
Modifications not expressly approved by the manufacturer
could void the user’s authority to operate the equipment
under FCC rules.
©2013 Electro-Harmonix. All rights reserved. 45000 and
Electro-Harmonix and logo are trademarks of New Sensor/
Electro Harmonix. Product and company names used within
the manual are trademarks of their respective companies.
45000 Manual Version 1.0
MIDI NOTES & TIPS 18
USING MIDI TO CONTROL THE 45000 19
SIGNAL PATH DIAGRAM 21
Introduction
A Little History
In 1983, Electro-Harmonix released what would become a legendary
and more importantly, revolutionary, musical instrument… the 16
Second Digital Delay. Aside from being the first looper ever invented,
it helped change the way music was created while presenting individual musicians with a way to manipulate their creations instantly.
The concept of looping, as we know it today, was an entirely new
dimension in musical expression in 1983 and the 16 Second Delay
was an instant hit.
In 2004, the music public demanded the 16 Second’s re-release,
and it once again became an all-time classic.
Electro-Harmonix then followed up in 2006 with the 2880 Super Multi-
Track Looper. It has since become a mainstay for many serious looping
enthusiasts, whether used on stage or in the studio. The 2880 was a
powerful and interactive instrument following a traditional recording
layout, so it felt instantly familiar. However, there were significant differences that go well beyond the recording world. At the very least it
was a multi-track recorder but when viewed as a whole, it was a multifaceted performance instrument with significant advantages in both
live performance and as a personal recording instrument.
The 45000 Multi-Track Looping Recorder takes the 2880 and builds
upon it, adding key features such as the ability to store and recall up
to 100 loops on one SD card and an output dedicated to monitoring.
The Legacy Continues
The uniqueness of the 45000 is the ability to layer multiple
tracks and manipulate them. A special mix down track
allows you to create a spatial stereo pair while freeing
up previous tracks to add more instruments. Very complex interactive tracks can be completed quickly with
the ability to sound unique and totally original. This is
a very spontaneous instrument.
The Electro-Harmonix 45000 records at the industry
CD standard of 44.1 kHz /16 bit uncompressed
digital audio. What you record is what you get,
without the degradation or artifacts that compressed audio usually presents.
Building upon the original concept of the 16
Second Delay, while taking into consideration
the demand for more complex possibilities, the
45000 is more of everything. True world standard audio fidelity, as much creative time as
any musician would need, and an ease of use
that is instantly familiar.
The 45000 uses world-class audio converters,
while offering uniformity in syncing and integration with any user’s current equipment.
Storage is on popular and easy to obtain SDHC flash
cards that range from 4 to 32 gigabytes. All audio files
may be downloaded to your computer for backup as well
restoring to the 45000 for use at a later time. Additionally
musicians can import their own audio files and play them
back or manipulate them on the 45000 as if the 45000
itself recorded the files.
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Quick Start Guide
L INPUT R
CLIP
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LOOP
SD CARD
How to Record a Multi-Track Loop
1. Plug your instrument into either the LEFT or RIGHT INPUT
jacks and adjust the corresponding INPUT knob so that
the Clip LED (Light Emitting Diode) barely lights up on your
loudest notes.
2. Connect the MONITOR OUT jack to an amplifier or mixer,
turn up the HEADPHONE knob to approximately 50%.
3. Plug the AC Adapter into an AC outlet and insert its output
plug into the power jack on the rear panel of the 45000.
4. Raise the DRY OUT Fader so that you can hear your instrument.
5. Raise the TRACK 1 Fader to hear your recording when you
finish.
6. Make sure the QUANTIZE LED is off.
7. If you do not want to hear the CLIX metronome, turn the
CLIX LEVEL knob down to zero, otherwise adjust to taste.
The tempo of the CLIX is adjusted using the TEMPO slider.
8. Set the TEMPO slider to 50% or your preferred tempo is
listening to the CLIX.
9. Press the NEW LOOP button to put the 45000 into recordready mode. You should see the RECORD LED blink.
10. Press the RECORD button to immediately start recording.
Play your instrument. The 45000 will record onto TRACK 1.
11. When you are finished playing, press either the RECORD
or PLAY button to stop recording. Pressing RECORD will
stop recording and stop the 45000. Pressing PLAY will
loop the 45000 back to the beginning, put the 45000 into
OVERDUB mode and automatically continue recording
onto TRACK 2. To exit OVERDUB mode, press the RECORD
button. You could also press NEW LOOP to end recording
and begin playback immediately.
12. If you want to record on another track, press the TRACK
SELECT button to cycle through the 4 tracks. The track LED
that is lit indicates the track that is enabled for recording.
How to Overdub onto a Track
1. You can continuously overdub onto any one of the tracks.
2. Record a New Loop onto TRACK 1, as done above in the
How to Record a Multi-Track Loop section.
3. Hit the TRACK SELECT button until TRACK 1 is lit.
4. Move the TRACK 1 Fader to 100%. When in Overdub mode,
the track’s volume slider acts like a Feedback control on
a delay pedal. For example, if the TRACK 1 slider is set to
50%, each time the loop cycles, the volume of the previously recorded audio on TRACK 1 will be halved.
5. Press the RECORD button, both the RECORD and PLAY LEDs
will light up. This means you are in Overdub mode. Since
TRACK 1’s LED is lit, you are overdubbing onto TRACK 1.
How to Record 2 Tracks
Simultaneously (aka Stereo):
1. Press the STEREO MODE button. Its LED will light and you
will notice that a pair of TRACK LEDS lights, either 1 & 2 or
3 & 4.
2. After inserting your instrument(s) into the LEFT and RIGHT
INPUT jacks, adjust the INPUT Level knobs so that the CLIP
LEDs barely light.
3. Press the NEW LOOP button to put the 45000 into record
ready mode. The RECORD LED will blink steadily.
4. Press the RECORD button to begin recording immediately.
5. To stop recording, hit either the RECORD or PLAY buttons.
3
Pressing RECORD will stop record and playback. Pressing
PLAY will cycle the loop back to its beginning and begin
overdubbing onto Tracks 3 & 4 immediately, the loop continues playing.
How to Record a Quantized Loop
1. Press the QUANTIZE button to enable Quantize mode. Its
corresponding LED will light up.
2. Turn the CLIX LEVEL knob up so you hear the metronome
beat coming out of either the MONITOR or Headphones
output.
3. Press the NEW LOOP Button. The RECORD LED blinks.
4. At this point you will hear the metronome beating at the
tempo set by the TEMPO Slider. You can adjust the tempo
by moving the tempo slider up or down. Up will give you a
faster tempo; down will be a slower tempo.
5. Press the RECORD button. The 45000 will not immediately
begin recording but instead will give you a 4-Beat count-in,
where beat 1 occurs when you press RECORD. On the 5th
beat, after the count-in, the 45000 will begin recording.
This is beat 1 of the loop recording.
6. For a Mono recording, TRACK 1 LED will blink rapidly during
the 4-Beat count-in. When making a Stereo recording, both
the TRACK 1 and 2 LEDs will blink rapidly during the 4-Beat
counting.
7. Once the TRACK 1 LED goes solid, the 45000 is recording.
8. To stop recording, press either the RECORD or PLAY buttons.
Press RECORD or PLAY within the first 2 beats of the current
bar and the 45000 will truncate the loop length to the end
of the previous bar. Press RECORD or PLAY during the 3rd
or 4th beats of the current bar and the 45000 will finish
recording the current bar then stop recording. For example,
if you want to record a 2 bar loop, you can press the PLAY
button during the 3rd and 4th beat of the second bar or
within the first 2 beats of the third bar. The QUANTIZE LED
will blink rapidly until it finishes recording the loop.
How to Mixdown Your Tracks
1. At anytime, you can mix your 4-Tracks down to one stereo
Mixdown track. For now let’s start with the 45000 in Idle
(stopped) mode. If the 45000 is Playing or Overdubbing a
loop, hit the PLAY button to stop it.
2. Press the Mixdown button once and its LED will light solid.
You are now in Mixdown mode.
3. Assuming the Mixdown Track has not been previously recorded, move its volume slider down to its bottom position. You
can continually Overdub any of the 4 tracks onto the Mixdown
track; the Mixdown Fader acts like a feedback control.
4. Press the PLAY button. Your loop will play back. Move the
Volume and Pan controls of the 4 tracks to your preferred
settings. You can adjust the Volume and Pan controls as
much as you like when recording the Mixdown track.
5. When you are ready to record the Mixdown track, press the
RECORD button. You will immediately begin recording your
mix onto the Mixdown track.
6. To stop recording the Mixdown track, press either the PLAY
or RECORD buttons.
7. Move the Mixdown slider up, move all of the track sliders
down and press PLAY to hear the newly recorded mix.
8. Please Note: The original audio on the 4 tracks remains
after completing a mixdown. The mixdown operation does
not erase the 4 tracks.
9. Please Note: The Dry Input signal is not recorded to the
Mixdown track, only audio that was previously recorded
onto the 4 tracks will be recorded to the Mixdown track.
How to Backup your Audio Files
to a Computer
1. Make sure both your computer and the 45000 are powered up.
2. Connect the 45000 to your computer with a standard USB
cable.
3. As long as your computer is running Windows XP or later or
Mac OSX, the computer will automatically recognize the SD
card inside the 45000 and treat it like a removable disk.
4. Open up the SD card’s window, you will see at least 1
folder: LOOP00. Each loop that you record on the 45000
will be recorded into a LOOPxx folder. If you have recorded
loops in many different loop locations, each location will
have its own folder.
5. Inside the LOOPxx folders you should see 6 files: TEMPO.
TXT, TRACK1.WAV, TRACK2.WAV…TRACKM.WAV. You can
copy any or all of these files to your hard drive. If you are
planning on restoring one of the loop folders back to the
45000 at some point, it is recommended that you copy all 6
files and store them together in a folder on your hard drive.
6. To disconnect the 45000 from the computer, follow the
proper ejection procedure for the computer you are using:
For Windows, go to the “Safely Remove Hardware” icon
down in the lower right corner of the screen. Select
the USB Mass Storage Device and hit the STOP button.
Alternatively in XP or 7, setup the 45000’s CF Card for
“Optimize For Quick Removal.”
For Mac OSX, go to the Finder, drag the SD Card icon to the
Trash.
How to Restore your Audio Files
from a Computer
1. Make sure both your computer and the 45000 are powered up.
2. Connect the 45000 to your computer with a standard USB
cable.
3. As long as your computer is running Windows XP or later or
Mac OSX, the computer will automatically recognize the SD
card inside the 45000 and treat it like a removable disk.
4. Locate the 6 files you want to restore to the 45000 on your
hard drive. If the files are in their own folder with no other
files, copy the entire folder to the root directory of the
45000’s SD card. Name the folder on the SD card LOOPxx,
where xx denotes the loop number you want the audio to
reside in, for example LOOP01 or LOOP52.
5. Select the loop number (this easiest to do with the optional
45000 Foot Controller attached to the 45000).
6. Play the 45000, the audio files should be restored.
7. To disconnect the 45000 from the computer, follow the
proper ejection procedure for the computer you are using:
For Windows, go to the “Safely Remove Hardware” icon
down in the lower right corner of the screen. Select the
USB Mass Storage Device and hit the STOP button.
For Mac OSX, go to the Finder, drag the Compact Flash
Card icon to the Trash.
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The Record Transport
N
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1. NEW LOOP Button
The NEW LOOP button will put the 45000 into
Record-Ready Mode. When you press the NEW
LOOP button, the RECORD LED blinks at a medium rate, indicating the 45000 is ready to record.
Press the NEW LOOP button again to exit RecordReady Mode. If you press the NEW LOOP button
while recording a New Loop it will end recording,
setting the loop length and put the 45000 into
Playback mode. The table to the right explains
the result of pressing the NEW LOOP button in
relation to the currrent mode of the 45000.
2. RECORD Button and LED
Depending on the 45000’s current mode, the
RECORD button serves a few purposes, all of
which enable the 45000 to enter/exit one of the
recording modes: Record, Overdub or Punch-In.
The RECORD LED will light up solid anytime the
45000 is Recording or Overdubbing audio. The
RECORD LED blinks at a medium rate when the
45000 is in Record-Ready mode. The table to the
right explains the result of pressing the RECORD
button in relation to the currrent mode of the 45000.
3. PLAY Button and LED
The PLAY button is used to toggle Playback mode
on/off. The PLAY LED will light anytime the 45000
is Playing or Overdubbing audio. The table to
the right explains the result of pressing the PLAY
button in relation to the currrent Record/Playback
mode of the 45000.
5
4
536
2
Current Mode + NEW LOOP
Idle Record-Ready
Playback Record-Ready (Continues playing current loop)
Overdubbing Overdubbing (NEW LOOP Button is ignored)
Record-Ready Reverts to previous mode before Record-Ready
Recording New Loop Playback (End recording New Loop, set length)
Current Mode + RECORD (Record LED State)
Idle (no loop in memory) Begin Recording New Loop (LED = ON)
Idle (w/ loop in memory) Overdubbing (LED = ON)
Playback Overdubbing (LED = ON)
Overdubbing Playback (LED = OFF)
Record-Ready Begin Recording New Loop (LED = ON)
Recording New Loop Idle, sets loop length (LED = OFF)
Current Mode + PLAY (Play LED State)
Idle (no loop in memory) Idle, no change
Idle (w/ loop in memory) Playback (LED = ON)
Playback Idle (LED = OFF)
Overdubbing Idle (LED = OFF)
Record-Ready Playback of Current Loop (LED = ON)
Recording New Loop Overdubbing, sets loop length (LED = ON)
When a loop cycles back to the beginning, the PLAY LED blinks once,
signifying the start of the loop.
4. REVERSE Button and LED
Press the REVERSE button and the loop will reverse its
Playback/Record direction. The REVERSE button can be used
at all times except when recording a New Loop. The REVERSE
LED will light up when the Reverse function is active. If EXT.
CLOCK is activated and you press REVERSE while currently
playing or recording a loop, though the loop’s tempo will
remain synced to the external clock, the loop will most likely
lose its place. In the case where you are synced to an external
clock, we recommend you stop loop playback, toggle Reverse
mode, and then play the loop again.
5. PUNCH IN Button and LED
When the PUNCH-IN function is activated, Overdubbing Mode
will change into Punch-In Mode. While in Punch-In mode, all
audio previously recorded on the active track will be erased
when the RECORD LED is lit, no matter where the volume
fader is set for that track. The Punch-In function is useful for
fixing bad notes or mistakes. When Punch-In is active, its LED
is lit.
6. OCTAVE Button and LED
The OCTAVE button will lower the speed of the loop by exactly
1/2: the pitch will go down one octave and the tempo will be
halved. The OCTAVE button can be used at all times except
when recording a New Loop or when syncing to external MIDI
Clock. The OCTAVE LED will light up when the Octave function
is active.
7. QUANTIZE Button and LED
The QUANTIZE button toggles between Non-Quantize (NQ) and
Quantize modes. When the QUANTIZE LED is lit, the 45000 is
in Quantize mode. When you record a New Loop in Quantize
mode, the 45000 gives you a 4-beat count-in and then begins
recording. When ending a loop it will extend or truncate the
loop length to the nearest full bar. In Quantize mode you can
be sloppy about ending the loop, the 45000 will adjust the
loop length to the nearest bar yielding loops that cycle perfectly in sync with the CLIX metronome. All bars are 4 beats
long. In Non-Quantize mode, the length of the loop is defined
by the time between pressing the RECORD button (to begin
recording) and then the RECORD, PLAY or NEW LOOP buttons
(to end the loop). Please Note: when setting the 45000 to
EXT. CLOCK mode, we recommend you enable Quantize mode
otherwise the 45000’s loop lengths will not line up with the
MIDI master device’s bar lengths causing the loops to sound
out of sync.
8. EXT. CLOCK Button and LED
Pressing the EXT. CLOCK button will enable the 45000 to synchronize to external MIDI Clock messages received at its MIDI
IN jack. With each press of the EXT. CLOCK button, it cycles
through one of three modes of synchronization:
LED Off: The 45000 uses its internal clock for loop speed.
The TEMPO slider sets the speed. This is the mode to use if
the 45000 is used on its own or will be the MIDI Clock master for a slave device.
LED Lit: Full external clock mode. The 45000 synchronizes to
an external device’s MIDI Clock as well as responds to MIDI
Start and Stop commands. This mode is recommended for
most situations where the 45000 needs to synchronize to an
external device.
LED Blinking: Beat-Sync external clock mode. The 45000
synchronizes the loop tempo to the external device’s MIDI
Clock but ignores the MIDI Start command. The 45000 follows the external MIDI Clock and resets to beat 1 when MIDI
Start commands are received from the MIDI master but it
does not begin playback of its loop. When you press PLAY
on the 45000, it will start playing back from the beginning
of the loop, on the next MIDI Clock beat from the master
device. If you want your loop to begin playback on the MIDI
master’s beat 1, press the PLAY button just before you hear
beat 1 from the MIDI master.
6
Tracks, Track Selection and Mixdown
N
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SD C ARD
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L INPUT R
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SD C ARD
CLIP
L INPUT R
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SD C ARD
SD C ARD
SD C ARD
SD C ARD
INPUT R
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11
UT
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LOOP
9 13
10
9. DRY OUT Fader and Pan Pot
The DRY OUT Fader and pan knob allow you to monitor your
instrument when recording or to play along with a loop you
have already recorded. Adjust the output volume of your
instrument using the DRY OUT Fader. Use its pan knob to
direct the Left and Right Inputs to the Left and Right Outputs.
When pan is set to the full CCW position, the Left Input is
monitored at the Left Output and the Right Input is monitored
at the Right Output. When pan is set to the full CW position,
the Left Input is monitored at the Right Output and the Right
Input is monitored at the Left Output. When pan is set to the
middle, both Inputs are mixed to both Outputs. The settings
of the DRY OUT Fader and the pan pot have no influence on
the signal that is recorded. Please Note: when recording in
mono, both inputs are summed together and recorded onto
the same track. When recording in stereo the two inputs
remain separate: the LEFT input sent to the odd numbered
tracks and the RIGHT input sent to the even numbered tracks.
10. RECORD TRACKS
There are 4 tracks available for you to record your instruments
onto. You can record at most 2 tracks simultaneously. Each
of the 4 tracks contains a pan knob and a volume fader allowing you to balance your levels as well as locate your tracks
within the stereo spectrum. Each track also contains an activation LED above the track number. When the LED is lit, that
particular track is enabled for recording. When you press the
RECORD button, the enabled track will be recorded or overdubbed onto.
16
15
14
The tracks are available in mono or stereo pairs (1 & 2 or 3 &
4). The recording levels are set with the INPUT knobs.
10. TRACK Faders
The 4 track faders serve a dual purpose: during Playback they
are the volume control for each track, during Overdubbing
they act like a Feedback control as seen on a delay effect. So
when you are Overdubbing, the level of the previously recorded audio on the active track is multiplied by the position of
the track’s fader. If the fader is set to 100%, the previously
recorded audio will remain at the volume it was recorded at. If
the fader is set anywhere below 100%, with each pass of the
loop, the volume of the previously recorded audio will attenuate according to the setting of the fader. Using this function,
it is possible to use the 45000 as a very long delay pedal.
11. TRACK SELECT Button
This button is used to select the active track for recording
and overdubbing. Pressing the TRACK SELECT button cycles
through the 4 tracks.
12. STEREO MODE Button and LED
This button toggles the 45000 in/out of Stereo Mode. When
the STEREO MODE LED is lit, you are in Stereo Mode, when it
is off, you are in Mono Mode. When Stereo Mode is activated,
the stereo pairs (1 & 2 or 3 & 4) will be recorded simultaneously. The LEFT Input will always be sent to Tracks 1 or 3. The
RIGHT Input goes to Tracks 2 or 4.
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