E-Mu Emulator User Manual

E-mu Systems Emulator

Operating Instructions

(Preliminary)

By Marco Alpert and Dave Rossum

Restored by The Emulator Archive 1999

www.emulatorarchive.com

Based on the Manual Shipped with Emulator Serial #440

Emulator – Operating Instructions Preliminary

1 Introduction 2

2 Functional Overview 2

3 Software 3

4 Diskette Use and Storage 4

5 Sound Storage and Recall 6

6 Release Foot Switch 9

7 Doubling Mode 9

8 Special Sound Modes 10

9 Backwards Mode 11

10 Outputs 12

11 Keyboard Channel Allocation 12

12 Channel Disable 13

13 Vibrato and Pitch Bend 14

14 Sustain Loop, Truncation and Filter 15

15 Master Tune 17

16 Sound Input 18

17 Multi-Sample Recording 21

18 User’s Multi-Sample 22

19 Sequencer 27

20 User’s Diskette Formatting 32

21 In Case of Difficulty 33

22 Warranty 34

Change of Address Notice 35

Instant Emulator Simplified 36

Emulator – Operating Instructions Preliminary

1 INTRODUCTION

This is the preliminary operating manual for the E-mu Systems Emulator digital polyphonic keyboard instrument. Its purpose is to provide a concise description of the functions and user controls of the instrument along with some suggestions as to how to get the highest level of performance from the machine. We are currently at work on a more complete user’s manual, which will be sent to you upon its completion.

2 FUNCTIONAL OVERVIEW

The Emulator is a computer based digital instrument that allows you to record any sound of up to two seconds in length and then to play that sound at any pitch over a two-octave range, with four or eight voice polyphonic capability. Its four octave split keyboard allows the simultaneous control of two independent sounds, while a unique sustain loop function allows any sound to be sustained indefinitely. Its integral mini-floppy disk drive is used for the storage and recall of a potentially unlimited sound library. Additionally, performance oriented effects wheels allow the real-time control of both pitch bend and vibrato depth.

To understand how the Emulator works, refer to the simplified flowchart in figure 1. During the recording process, sound is input from a microphone or line level source. In either case the signal is presented to the Emulator as an analog voltage, which is filtered, and then processed by an analog to digital converter (ADC). The ADC samples the incoming signal approximately 30,000 times a second and, for each sample, stores a number in the computer’s memory that corresponds to the level of the analog voltage. Once in memory, the numbers representing the sampled sound can have various operations performed on them, including truncating the recording and defining a loop portion of the sound which will be repeated as long as a key is held down. The information in memory (including the truncation and loop definition) can be stored on a floppy diskette for reloading at any later time.

Once a sound is recorded in memory it can be played back by pressing a key on the keyboard. When a key is pressed the computer outputs the numbers stored in memory to a digital to analog converter (DAC), which decodes them back into the analog voltage originally recorded. Which key is pressed controls the speed at which the numbers are output. Output speeds faster than the original sampling rate result in higher pitches while slower speeds result in lower pitches. The output rate is also affected, in various ways, by the master tune controls, the vibrato controls, and the pitch bend wheel. When the output voltage is applied to an amplifier and speaker, the result is the recreation of the

originally recorded sound at pitches corresponding to the keys pressed

Figure 1: Emulator Functional Overview

Emulator – Operating Instructions Preliminary

3 SOFTWARE

Overview

Your Emulator is basically a special purpose digital computer and, like all computers, requires “software” in order to function. Software (as opposed to “hardware” - the actual physical parts of which the Emulator is made) consists of instructions to the computer telling it what to do (i.e. programs) and data for those programs to work with (in the case of the Emulator, digital representations of recorded sounds). Both types of Emulator software are stored on floppy diskettes.

Of the ten diskettes supplied with your Emulator, eight contain pre-programmed sounds and are shipped “write protected” (see section IV). The remaining two have been left blank for you to record sounds of your own. You can, of course, record over any of the other eight that you don’t wish to save. Additional diskettes can be purchased from your E-mu Systems dealer.

In addition to sound storage, each diskette also contains the Emulator’s complete operating program. This program is automatically loaded into the Emulator each time it is turned on. Consequently, as new and improved software is developed we can update your Emulator simply by sending you a diskette containing the new program. Using the Software Replicate function (see Section 5) this new software can be copied onto all your existing diskettes without disturbing any sounds recorded on them. For this reason it is important that you always keep us apprised of your current address so that we can notify you of any future software updates. All Emulator owners who return their warranty card will be placed on a permanent mailing list. If you should move, please send us one of the Change Of Address Notices, included at the back of this manual.

Software Update Both the blank and pre-recorded diskettes are shipped with the most recent version of Emulator operating software. When you get a new diskette, check the software version number on the diskette label. If it is numerically higher than the number on the rest of your diskettes, it contains a more recent software version. Use the software replication procedure described in Section 5 to copy this software onto your other diskettes. Be sure to change the number on the labels to reflect this.

When a software update corrects a newly found error in current software, you will be sent a free diskette containing the new program. When an update adds a new operating feature, you can purchase the software for the cost of a blank diskette, or, if you send us one of your diskettes, we will copy the new software onto it and return it at no charge.

We are currently in the process of recording a wide range of additional instrumental sounds. Some of these sounds will be available for purchase and others will be included among those sent free with each new Emulator. These latter sounds will be available to current owners on the same basis described above for software updates, i.e. for the cost of a blank diskette, or free if you send us a diskette to copy it onto.

 NOTE:

Unless you’ve purchased the optional User’s Formatting program, all Emulator diskettes must be purchased from E-mu Systems, or your Emulator dealer.

Other diskettes will NOT work.

Emulator – Operating Instructions Preliminary

4 DISKETTE USE AND STORAGE

Overview

The data representing recorded sounds are stored on mini-diskettes. To insure reliable storage and recall it is necessary to observe the following precautions:

1. When not in use, always store diskettes in their boxes.

2. When using your Emulator, place the diskettes, in their white envelopes, in the storage compartment on top of the instrument. The only time a diskette should be out of its envelope is when it is actually in the disk drive.

3. The diskette itself consists of a black jacket enclosing a thin disk of plastic on which the magnetic medium is deposited. NEVER touch the plastic disk where it is exposed through the jacket.

4. Never fold or bend a diskette.

5. Keep diskettes away from strong magnetic fields such as telephones or tape head demagnetizers.

6. When writing on diskette labels, use only felt tip pen. A ballpoint pen or pencil may damage the disk.

7. Diskettes should not be exposed to temperatures lower than 50 degrees F or higher than 125 degrees F.

8 As much as possible, keep diskettes away from dirt, dust and

smoke. Never lay them down without their protective envelope. If someone holds a gun to your head and forces you to lay an unprotected diskette down on a less than sterile surface, keep in mind the fact that the data is recorded on the side of the diskette opposite the side with the label, so lay it label side down.

Diskette Loading

The Emulator’s disk drive is located behind the slot to the left of the control panel. To insert a diskette, first open the square plastic door at the center of the drive by grasping its bottom edge and pulling out and up. Insert the diskette (label side up) with the edge with the label facing you. Insert it into the open drive until it stops. It should be completely inside the drive. The diskette should slip in easily.

If you encounter any resistance, withdraw the disk and try again. If it still doesn’t go in easily, inspect the diskette for damage and check to be sure there isn’t already a diskette in the drive.

Once the diskette is in the drive, close the plastic door. To remove the diskette, simply open the door and pull it out.

Emulator – Operating Instructions Preliminary

Write Protecting Diskettes

Near the lower right hand corner of the diskette label you will find a rectangular cutout. This is the “write protect” slot. When this slot is exposed the Emulator can write data onto the disk To “write protect” the disk peel one of the silver selfadhesive tabs from its backing sheet and press it around the edge of the diskette so it completely covers both sides of the slot. When this tab is in place the Emulator cannot write onto the disk. It is a good idea to keep all your sound disks write protected.

Backing Up Diskettes

It is also a good idea to keep backup disks of any sounds that would be difficult to replace. A backup disk is only used to load a sound into the Emulator for the purpose of rewriting it onto a working disk. The working disk is employed for everyday use. Should anything happen to the working disk the backup is always available to generate a replacement

New Diskette Initialization

Each of your Emulator diskettes must be initialized for use in your particular machine. The diskettes shipped with your instrument have already been initialized at the factory.

When you buy new diskettes, either blank or with pre-recorded sounds, you must initialize them before use. To do this, turn your Emulator off and then turn it back on again (unless, of course, it’s already off, in which case merely turning it on will be sufficient). Place a diskette to be initialized, with NO write protect tab, into the drive and wait for the Emulator to finish loading. That diskette is now initialized. If you have more new diskettes, place each one in the drive (also with no write protect tab) and execute the software replication procedure as described in Section 5. The diskettes are now ready for use.

With proper handling, diskettes should last almost indefinitely. During testing we loaded sounds into an Emulator 56,000 times in succession from a single diskette with no noticeable diskette wear. In cases where data files have been lost, it has almost always been as the result of improper diskette handling. The slightest scratch to the surface of a diskette is enough to render it useless.

Emulator – Operating Instructions Preliminary

5 SOUND STORAGE AND RECALL

Controls

The sound storage section consists of the disk drive and the following four controls:

1 GET LOWER

With a sound diskette in the disk drive, pressing the GET LOWER button causes the Emulator to load the Lower sound from the diskette into memory for control by the lower two octaves of the keyboard This process takes approximately seven seconds, during which time the GET LOWER LED will flash. At the end of this time the LED will go out to signify a successful load. If a problem is encountered during the load procedure the Emulator will turn off the disk drive and light the GET LOWER LED. Possible problems include:

 There is no diskette in the drive  The diskette has been improperly inserted into the drive  There is damage to the diskette resulting in data errors

In the latter case, data up to the point of the error will have been loaded into memory, so attempting to play the lower keyboard after an unsuccessful load may bring unpredictable results. (On the other hand, if the sound you were attempting to load was a very short one and the data error happened after the truncation point (see Section 14) the sound may, in fact, be usable despite the error.)

Whenever the LED is lit as the result of an unsuccessful load, it will remain lit until a sound is successfully loaded into that half of’ the keyboard If an improperly loaded sound is Swapped (see below) to the opposite side of the keyboard the lit LED indication will also move to the other Get button. For example, if you successfully load a sound into the Upper keyboard section and then attempt to load a sound into the Lower section from what turns out to be a damaged disk, you will end up with a good sound in the Upper section, a garbled sound in the Lower section, and a steadily lit GET LOWER LED. If you then hit the SWAP button, the two sounds will be exchanged, the GET LOWER LED will go out and the GET UPPER LED will light to indicate that the Upper section now contains an improperly loaded sound.

Both halves of the keyboard remain active during the load procedure. The results of playing on the half of the keyboard into which the load is happening, depends to a great extent on the relative lengths of the incoming and outgoing sounds. If they are both short sounds, it may be possible to play the new sound after only a second or two of the load cycle. However, if they are both fairly long or the outgoing sound is substantially longer than the incoming one, playing a key during load will result in a sound consisting of the first portion of the new sound followed by the end of the old one. This, of course, does not in any way affect the loading process, so feel free to experiment.

2 GET UPPER

This button functions exactly as GET LOWER except that it loads the Upper Sound from a diskette into memory for control by the upper two octaves of the keyboard.

Emulator – Operating Instructions Preliminary

3 SAVE

With an unprotected diskette in the drive, pressing this button causes the Emulator to store both sounds presently in memory along with the sequences in bins #1 and #2 (see Section 19) onto the diskette. The sound currently controlled by the lower half of the keyboard is stored as the Lower Sound and, appropriately enough, the sound controlled by the upper half is stored as the Upper Sound. This process takes approximately 20 seconds, during which time the SAVE LED will blink. At the end of this time the LED will go out to indicate a successful save. If a problem is encountered during the Save process the disk drive will be turned off and the SAVE LED will light.

If, when the SAVE button is pressed, the LED comes on immediately and does not blink, the possible problems include:

 There is no diskette in the drive  The diskette is improperly inserted in the drive  The diskette in the drive is write protected

If’ the LED blinks for a while and then comes on steadily, the Emulator has been unable to successfully transfer the data to the diskette. This almost always indicates a damaged diskette. In either case the data in the Emulator’s memory is still intact. To make another attempt to save, turn off the SAVE LED by hitting any key on the keyboard correct the problem and press SAVE again. The keyboard and all other front panel controls are inactive during the Save process

4 SWAP

Pressing the SWAP button causes control of the two sounds currently in memory to be exchanged between the two halves of the keyboard; i.e. the sound controlled by the lower half of the key board moves to the upper half and vice versa. This process takes about five seconds, during which time the SWAP LED remains lit. Both halves of’ the keyboard and all panel controls remain active during the Swap process.

Power On Procedure

When the Emulator is first turned on, the disk drive motor will turn on and the disk drive LED, and all the panel LED’s will light. Insert a sound diskette into the drive. The panel LED’s that had lit will go out and the Emulator will automatically load both the Lower and Upper sounds into memory. Neither the keyboard nor the panel controls will become active until both sounds have been loaded.

It should be noted that the software (i.e. the computer program) that makes the Emulator work is not stored in the machine but on each diskette. It is automatically loaded into the Emulator during the power on procedure. If the diskette that you use in this procedure is a faulty one, the Emulator may refuse to work and give the appearance of being broken. In this case, turn the Emulator off, turn it back on again, and try the procedure with a different diskette.

If you do not insert a diskette into the disk drive within about five seconds of turning on the Emulator, or if the diskette is improperly inserted, the SAMPLE, OVERLOAD, and SWAP LED’s will go out. This indicates a “Disk Not Ready” error. Either insert a diskette or remove and reinsert an improperly inserted diskette The Emulator should now load normally. If the Emulator encounters other problems in the process of initial loading, other combinations of LED’s will go out. If you cannot get your Emulator to successfully execute the power on procedure, carefully note which LED’s go out and when. Call your nearest service center or E-mu Systems with this information.

 NOTE:

E-mu Systems no longer formally support the Emulator.

Emulator – Operating Instructions Preliminary

Software Replication

The Software Replicate feature allows you to copy updated or special function software onto previously formatted diskettes without disturbing any sounds stored on them.

To update diskettes, start by powering up the Emulator with the diskette containing the new software. Next remove that diskette and insert a diskette to be updated (be sure it’s not write protected). Press the ‘B’ button followed by the ‘8’ button (see Section 20 for details of using the sequencer buttons as special function keys). The disk drive LED will come on and the software will be written onto the diskette. If a problem is encountered in the write process, the SAVE button LED will come on. This can indicate any of the problems described above in the Save section, but it is usually the result of forgetting to remove the write protection on the diskette that you are attempting to update.

Multi Button Commands

The Emulator will remember up to three presses of the GET, SWAP and GET SEQUENCE buttons and execute them in sequence. It is not necessary, for example, when getting both upper and lower sounds from a disk, to wait until the GET LOWER cycle is finished before pressing the GET UPPER button. Simply press the GET LOWER button followed immediately by the GET UPPER button.

Another example is GET LOWER, SWAP, GET LOWER. This sequence would put the same sound on both halves of the keyboard. The SAVE function can not be part of a multi-button command.

Sound Reorganization

Using the GET and SWAP functions, it is easy to combine sounds from different disks onto a single disk. Imagine that you need a diskette with a lower sound of cellos and an upper sound of flutes. Your cello sound is currently the lower sound on your diskette #1 and the flute sound is the lower sound on diskette #2. Simply place diskette #2 in the drive and load the flute sound into the lower section. Hit SWAP to move it to the upper section. Remove diskette #2 and insert #1. Load the cellos into the lower section. Now place a blank diskette in the drive and hit SAVE.

Voila!

Emulator – Operating Instructions Preliminary

6 RELEASE FOOT SWITCH

All Emulator sounds supplied by E-mu Systems are supplied in “short release” mode. (Exceptions are sound effects and percussion sounds, which are preset in natural release mode (see Section 7). Sounds recorded into the instrument using the Input section are also initially in short release mode. In this mode, releasing a key always results in the immediate termination of the sound, regardless of whether or not the recorded sample has come to its end. Alternatively, a sound may be put into “natural release” mode. In natural release mode, pressing a key always results in the complete sample being played, regardless of when the key is released. A sound may be put into natural release mode through use of the special sound mode function (see Section 7) or by use of the release foot switch.

To use the supplied foot switch to control the release mode, insert its phone plug into the Foot Switch jack on the Emulator’s rear panel. The foot switch can be assigned to affect the sounds on either or both halves of the keyboard.

To assign the foot switch to the lower keyboard section only, press the ‘A’ button followed by the ‘6’ button in the Sequencer section. (See section 20 for the details of using the sequencer buttons as special function keys).

To assign it to the upper section only press ‘A 7’. To assign it to both sections press ‘A 8’. If you don’t want it to affect either section, don’t step on it. Depressing the foot switch causes the sounds in affected keyboard sections to operate in natural release mode for as long as the switch is held down. Releasing the switch causes all sounds whose keys are not currently pressed to immediately terminate. The footswitch never affects sounds that have been put into natural release mode through the use of the special sound mode procedure described in Section 7.

7 DOUBLING MODE

Doubling mode allows you to play notes on the lower keyboard section and have those notes automatically doubled by the sound on the upper keyboard section. When playing in doubling mode, each key that you press uses up two of your available channels so you have only half the polyphonic capability that you usually have.

To use doubling mode, plug a foot switch into the Access. Switch jack on the rear of the Emulator. Pressing the foot switch puts you in doubling mode. Once in doubling mode you will remain in doubling mode until you press the switch again. It is not necessary to keep your foot on the switch.

Emulator – Operating Instructions Preliminary

8 SPECIAL SOUND MODES

Overview

Each sound in the Emulator carries with it an identification of its sound type. Sounds supplied by E-mu Systems on diskette are supplied in “normal” mode (sound type 1). Sounds recorded into the instrument using the Input section are also initially in normal mode. The current software has 4 modes:

 sound type 1 – normal  sound type 2 – solo mode  sound type 3 – non-transposition mode  sound type 4 – natural release mode

Solo Mode (Sound Type 2)

Sounds in solo mode play on only one channel (i.e. monophonically). If a second key is pressed before the previous one is released, the pitch changes to that of the more recent key without any re-attack occurring. If a second key is pressed while a previous note is decaying, the decay is terminated and a new attack is begun. This latter effect works well with sounds having a percussive attack, but less well with sounds that begin gradually.

Non-transposition Mode (Sound Type 3)

In non-transposition mode all keys within the keyboard section play the sound at its recorded pitch. The vibrato and pitch wheels function normally.

Natural Release Mode (Sound Type 4)

Normally, when you release a pressed key, its sound will stop immediately, whether or not the recorded sample has reached its end. In natural release mode the complete sample will always be played, regardless of when the key is released. This is equivalent to playing a normal sound with the release footswitch always depressed. This mode is particularly useful for sound effects and percussion sounds when you want to be able to trigger the entire sound with just a quick press of a key. The release foot switch never affects a sound in natural release mode.

Setting Sound Type

To set the type of the lower sound, use the special function buttons as described in Section XVI.

 A 1 sets sound type 1 (normal)  A 2 sets sound type 2 (solo)  A 3 sets sound type 3 (non-transposition)  A 4 sets sound type 4 (natural release)

It should be noted that sound type 4 functions somewhat differently from the other types. Unlike types 1, 2, or 3, when you press the ‘A 4’ for sound type 4, it toggles the sound in or out of natural release mode, depending on the sound’s current state. If the sound is currently in short release mode it will be changed to natural release mode, and vice versa. No other characteristics of the sound are changed. If the sound is currently in another special sound mode, it remains in that mode. It is therefore possible for a sound to be simultaneously in both natural release mode, and either solo or non-transposition mode. This is not true of the other sound types. A sound cannot be in both solo and nontransposition modes at the same time.

Emulator – Operating Instructions Preliminary

To set the type of the upper sound you must first Swap sounds, wait for the swap to complete, set the lower sound type as described above, and then finally reswap the sounds. Once the type of a sound has been set, that sound will continue to play in the mode selected and can be stored and recalled from disk while retaining the mode. The sound can be changed to a different mode whenever desired.

9 BACKWARDS MODE

Overview

Backwards mode allows you to play any Emulator sound in reverse (i.e. as if it had been recorded on tape and then played backwards). To put the lower sound into backwards mode, press special function code ‘B 3’. Pressing ‘B 3’ again will return the sound to normal mode. To place the upper sound into backwards mode you must first swap it to the lower keyboard section, press ‘B 3’, and then re-swap it. When you press ‘B 3’, it takes about one second to complete the reversing process.

Truncation

In addition to being able to play sounds backwards, this mode also gives you the ability to truncate the beginnings of samples. This is useful for fixing samples which for some reason triggered early during recording, resulting in a delay at the start of the sound (see Section 10). To do this, press ‘B 3’ to reverse the sound, use the truncation function to shorten what is now the end of the sound, and then press ‘B 3’ to reverse it back to normal.

Weird Stuff

Since backwards mode only reverses the un-truncated part of the sound and leaves any currently truncated portion unaffected, it is possible to create a sample that consists partially of forward sound and partially of backward sound.

One way to do this is to record a sample, truncate part of it, reverse it, and then un-truncate it. When you press a key you will hear the originally un-truncated part of the sound backwards followed by the part that had been truncated played forwards. Subsequent truncating, reversing, and un-truncating will give you a wide variety of bizarre results.

The Backwards Talking Game

Although it probably has limited practical usefulness, we’ve been having an awful lot of fun with the following:

Record a word or short phrase into your Emulator. Reverse it and listen carefully to the resulting sound. Try to speak this backwards version. This will take a bit of practice since reversing speech results in some vocal sounds that are difficult to reproduce. When you think you’ve got it, record this backward version into the Emulator. Now reverse it and listen to the result. You’ll probably find that you’ve invented an entirely new foreign accent.

+ 26 hidden pages

E-Mu Emulator User Manual

CONTENTS

1 INTRODUCTION

2 FUNCTIONAL OVERVIEW

3 SOFTWARE

4 DISKETTE USE AND STORAGE

5 SOUND STORAGE AND RECALL

7 DOUBLING MODE

8 SPECIAL SOUND MODES

9 BACKWARDS MODE