Firmware v1.13
User Manual
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Copyright © 2022 Expert Sleepers Ltd. All rights reserved.
This manual, as well as the hardware and software described in it, is furnished under licence and
may be used or copied only in accordance with the terms of such licence. The content of this
manual is furnished for informational use only, is subject to change without notice, and should not
be construed as a commitment by Expert Sleepers Ltd. Expert Sleepers Ltd assumes no
responsibility or liability for any errors or inaccuracies that may appear in this document.
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Table of Contents
Introduction........................................................6
A note on videos............................................6
A note on navigating this manual..................6
Extra Content.....................................................6
Installation.........................................................7
Power requirements.......................................7
Connecting expansion modules.....................7
Jumpers.........................................................8
Inputs and Outputs.............................................9
Controls..............................................................9
A note on the pots.........................................9
Menus............................................................9
SD Card slot.....................................................10
Inserting a MicroSD card............................10
Supported MicroSD cards...........................10
Overview..........................................................12
Single Mode.....................................................12
Single mode concepts..................................12
Single mode display & controls..................12
Parameters with confirm.............................13
Display zoom..............................................14
Single mode common parameters...............14
Single mode help.........................................14
Dual Mode.......................................................15
disting mk4 firmware version.....................15
Sample rate..................................................15
Scala support...............................................15
Favourites....................................................15
Help.............................................................16
Z push functions & the Knob Recorder......16
disting mk4 algorithms not included...........16
disting mk4 algorithms with improved
specifications...............................................17
Extra algorithms not part of the disting mk4
.....................................................................18
Entering dual mode.....................................18
Accessing the main menu from dual mode. 18
Presets in dual mode....................................18
Dual display modes.....................................18
Presets..............................................................19
Web-based preset editor..............................19
Load preset..................................................20
Save preset..................................................20
Reset preset.................................................20
Name preset.................................................20
Erase preset.................................................20
Load from SD card......................................20
Save to SD card...........................................21
Bulk operations...........................................21
Load all from SD card.................................21
Save all to SD card......................................21
Load from folder to.....................................21
Save all to folder.........................................21
Load all dual from SD.................................22
Save all dual to SD......................................22
Set preset mapping......................................22
Auto-save....................................................22
Mappings.........................................................23
Web-based editor........................................23
CV Mappings..............................................23
Knob Mappings...........................................24
Button Mappings.........................................24
MIDI Mappings...........................................25
I2C Mappings..............................................26
Load mapping..............................................27
Save mapping..............................................27
Reset mapping.............................................27
Name mapping............................................27
Load from SD card......................................27
Save to SD card...........................................28
Load all from SD card.................................28
Save all to SD card......................................28
Single Mode Algorithms..................................29
1 – Matrix Mixer..............................................30
Parameters...................................................30
Quantization options...................................31
2 – Augustus Loop...........................................32
Algorithm-specific display..........................33
Outputs........................................................33
Parameters...................................................33
Default mappings........................................36
Delay time multipliers.................................36
Tap tempo....................................................36
Clocks required...........................................36
Inertia free mode.........................................37
Filter............................................................37
Effects Loop................................................37
3 – SD Multisample.........................................38
Algorithm-specific display..........................38
Inputs...........................................................39
Outputs........................................................39
MIDI support...............................................40
Parameters...................................................40
Default mappings........................................43
Note ranges..................................................43
Tap tempo....................................................43
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Chord scales................................................44
Chord shapes...............................................44
Arpeggio modes..........................................45
Chords, arpeggios, and multiple CV inputs
per gate........................................................46
WAV file defaults.......................................46
Scala and MTS (MIDI Tuning Standard)
support.........................................................46
SoundFont®s...............................................48
Creating your own multisamples................48
Transpose limit............................................48
4 – SD 6 Triggers.............................................49
Algorithm-specific display..........................49
Outputs........................................................50
ES-5 outputs................................................50
Trigger inputs..............................................50
MIDI support...............................................50
Parameters...................................................50
WAV file defaults.......................................51
5 – WAV Recorder..........................................52
Recording....................................................52
Multi-channel audio....................................53
Algorithm-specific display..........................53
Outputs........................................................53
Parameters...................................................54
Output options.............................................55
Auto-sampler...............................................55
6 – Multi-Switch..............................................56
Parameters...................................................56
Default mappings........................................57
Inputs choices..............................................58
Outputs choices...........................................58
Control sources (when type is not 'Link')....58
Control sources (when type is 'Link')..........59
Control types...............................................59
Reset sources...............................................60
7 – Looper........................................................61
Loop targets and commands........................61
Basic looping...............................................62
Recording a blank loop...............................62
Pausing/muting/retriggering the loop..........63
Overdubbing................................................63
Clearing the loop.........................................63
Crossfades...................................................63
Envelopes....................................................64
Overdub fade...............................................64
Replace........................................................64
Clocked operation.......................................64
ES-5 outputs................................................64
MIDI support...............................................64
Parameters...................................................64
Default mappings........................................66
Saving/loading loops...................................66
8 – Dream Machine..........................................68
Setting the fundamental...............................68
Setting the primes........................................69
Setting the frequency ratios.........................69
Outputs........................................................69
Parameters...................................................69
Default mappings........................................70
Fun fact........................................................71
9 – Filter Bank.................................................72
Filter modes.................................................72
Setting the filter frequencies.......................73
Outputs........................................................73
MIDI support...............................................73
Parameters...................................................73
Default mappings........................................74
10 – Poly Wavetable........................................75
Algorithm-specific display..........................75
Inputs...........................................................76
Outputs........................................................76
MIDI support...............................................77
Parameters...................................................77
Default mappings........................................81
Output modes..............................................81
Tap tempo....................................................81
Chords and arpeggiators..............................81
Scala and MTS support...............................81
11 – Granulator................................................82
Algorithm-specific display..........................83
Outputs........................................................84
MIDI support...............................................84
Parameters...................................................84
Default mappings........................................87
Spawn mode................................................87
Shape...........................................................88
Saving/loading WAV files..........................89
Viewing the WAV path...............................89
Clearing the audio buffer............................90
12 – Multi FX..................................................91
Routing........................................................91
EQ...............................................................92
Pitch Effects................................................92
Delay...........................................................92
Reverb.........................................................92
Variable Sample Rate..................................93
Outputs........................................................93
MIDI support...............................................93
Parameters...................................................93
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Default mappings........................................96
13 – Poly Exciter..............................................97
What is an 'exciter'?.....................................97
Built-in exciters...........................................98
Exciter files on the MicroSD card...............98
Processing external audio............................98
Algorithm-specific display..........................99
Outputs........................................................99
MIDI support...............................................99
Parameters...................................................99
Default mappings......................................103
Excitation modes.......................................103
Input modes...............................................103
Output modes............................................104
Tap tempo..................................................104
Chords and arpeggiators............................104
Scala and MTS support.............................105
14 – Quad Envelope.......................................106
'Shapes' and 'Envelopes'............................106
VCAs.........................................................106
Algorithm-specific display........................107
Outputs......................................................107
ES-5 outputs..............................................107
MIDI support.............................................108
Parameters.................................................108
Default mappings......................................109
Press to trigger...........................................109
Input selection...........................................109
Trigger modes...........................................109
Clock inputs..............................................110
Clock modes..............................................110
15 – Convolver...............................................111
Impulse length and the factors that affect it
...................................................................111
Impulse responses on the MicroSD card...112
Recording impulse responses into the
algorithm...................................................112
Saving your recorded impulses.................113
Live update................................................113
Outputs......................................................113
Parameters.................................................113
Default mappings......................................114
Dual Mode Algorithms..................................115
H-2 Dual Sample and Hold.......................115
J-5 Oscilloscope........................................116
K-6 24dB/oct VCF....................................117
K-7 Delay Stereo.......................................117
K-8 Delay Stereo Clk................................117
N-8 Dual VCO..........................................118
WAV file naming conventions and playlists. 119
Per-algorithm defaults...............................119
Automatic '-natural' values........................119
Automatic '-switch' calculation.................119
New playlist flags......................................120
Loop markers in audio files...........................120
Wavetables.....................................................121
Settings...........................................................122
General......................................................122
MIDI/I2C page 1.......................................123
Favourites..................................................125
Calibration.................................................125
Reset Settings............................................125
Miscellaneous functions................................125
Show firmware version.............................125
Reboot.......................................................125
Show MIDI history...................................125
Show I2C history.......................................126
Show stats..................................................126
Save MTS dump to SD.............................126
Tests..........................................................126
5-pin DIN MIDI I/O......................................128
Connections...............................................128
MIDI "Low-Voltage Signaling"................128
MIDI System Exclusive (SysEx)...................129
SysEx Header............................................129
16 bit values..............................................129
Received SysEx messages.........................129
Sent SysEx messages................................132
Select Bus......................................................135
I2C Connection..............................................136
Value ranges..............................................136
Presets.......................................................136
Algorithms (single mode).........................137
Algorithm-specific....................................138
MIDI / Select Bus......................................138
Voice Control (for specified voice)...........138
Voice Control (note based).......................139
Dual mode operations...............................139
Calibration.....................................................141
Firmware Updates..........................................142
Where to get help...........................................142
Acknowledgments.........................................143
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Introduction
Congratulations on your purchase of an Expert Sleepers 'super disting EX plus alpha' (hereafter
'disting EX'). Please read this user manual before operating your new module.
A note on videos
Throughout this user manual you will find links to videos, which illustrate the corresponding
sections of the text. In general these have been shot at UHD (4k) resolution, which, as well as
looking more awesome, has the practical benefit of making the module's display easier to read. You
are advised to watch the videos in full resolution if possible. Be aware that some web browsers,
notably Safari, do not support watching YouTube videos in 4k.
A note on navigating this manual
When one part of the manual refers to another, it may say something like “see Menus, below”. In
such cases the word 'below' (or 'above') is a hyperlink, and can be clicked on. Try it.
Extra Content
In addition to the audio samples, wavetables, and presets on the MicroSD card supplied with the
module, there is extra content to be had on our website, here1.
1 https://expert-sleepers.co.uk/distingEXcontent.html
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Installation
House the module in a Eurorack case of your choosing. The power connector is 16-pin Doepfer
standard2. If using the power cable supplied with the module, the red edge of the cable is furthest
from the top edge of the PCB, and carries -12V. ("-12V" is marked on the PCB itself next to this
end of the connector.) Be sure to connect the other end of the power cable correctly, again so -12V
corresponds to the red stripe on the cable.
Power requirements
The disting EX draws up to 229mA on the +12V rail, and 50mA on the -12V rail.
It does not use the 5V rail.
Connecting expansion modules
Turn off the power before connecting or disconnecting expansion modules.
2 http://www.doepfer.de/a100_man/a100t_e.htm
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Connect an ES-53 module via the header on the back of the disting EX marked “GT3/To ES-5”,
using the 10-way cable provided. The red stripe should be oriented down on both modules, as
shown in the photo above, and in the ES-5 user manual4.
Connect an FHX-8GT or FHX-8CV module via the header on the back of the disting EX marked
“GT2/FHX Expansion”. The red stripe should be oriented down on both modules, as shown in the
photo above.
Connect a MIDI breakout to the header on the back of the disting EX marked “GT4/MIDI”. See the
MIDI I/O section below.
A device or module that communicates via I2C (e.g. the 16n Faderbank5) can be connected via the
header marked “JP2”. See the I2C Connection section below.
Jumpers
There is one jumper header on the disting EX marked “JP1”, which sets whether the system CV bus
line is used for pitch CV (the traditional use as implemented by Doepfer) or as the Select Bus. See
below for more on the disting EX's Select Bus implementation.
The photo above shows the jumper in the Select Bus position.
Regardless of this jumper position, the disting EX always connects to the system gate bus.
3 https://www.expert-sleepers.co.uk/es5.html
4 https://expert-sleepers.co.uk/es5usermanual.html
5 https://16n-faderbank.github.io
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Inputs and Outputs
The disting EX has six analogue inputs and four analogue outputs on 3.5mm TS jack sockets. These
are designed to cope with any Eurorack signal (with a range of approximately ±10V), and are DC
coupled, so can be used for CVs as well as audio.
The inputs are numbered on a white background; the four outputs are at the bottom of the module.
The disting mk4 labelling (Z/X/Y/A/B) is also printed on the panel, in orange.
The jack sockets are illuminated, lighting red for positive voltage and blue for negative voltage.
(Audio appears purple, since it is a rapid alternation of positive and negative.)
Controls
The disting EX has two rotary encoders (labelled P & V, notionally for 'parameter' and 'value') and
two rotary potentiometers (labelled L & R, for 'left' and 'right'). All four of these controls also have
a push-button function.
A note on the pots
On the disting mk4, the Z pot and the Z input jack are permanently linked, and the LEDs of the Z
jack display the combined signal from the pot and jack.
On the disting EX, this is still the case when in dual mode, but in single mode the pots are
completely independent of the jacks, and the jack LEDs reflect only the incoming signal.
Menus
Video
Many of the module's non-realtime functions are accessed via a menu. The menu is accessed by
pressing 'P' (in single mode) or both 'P' & 'V' together (in dual mode).
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While the menu is active, turning 'P' scrolls through menu items, and pressing 'P' chooses the
current menu item (or descends to the next menu level, if the current menu item is a submenu).
Pressing 'V' jumps back up one menu level. Holding down 'V' exits the menu completely.
SD Card slot
The disting EX has a MicroSD card slot, to the left of the display.
Inserting a MicroSD card
Video
The exposed contacts of the card should face towards the display; the angled side of the card itself
points up.
The slot is of the "push-push" type - to remove the card, push it in slightly and it will spring out.
Supported MicroSD cards
In theory any MicroSD card will work, but in practice there is a huge variety of cards on the market
and we cannot possibly test them all. We recommend 32GB SDHC cards.
The MicroSD card must be formatted in FAT32 format, which is the as-sold state for many cards. If
not, cards can easily be reformatted to FAT32 in Windows or macOS.
The card also needs to be partitioned using the 'Master Boot Record' (MBR) scheme. In macOS's
Disk Utility, you may need to select View->Show All Devices to inspect the partitioning scheme.
The Erase settings should look like this:
The speed of your SD card can be estimated using the 'Test SD speed' menu (under Misc->Tests).
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The maximum speed achievable with the disting EX is around 3 MB/s.
Technical note: the disting EX accesses the MicroSD card in SPI mode, and so can never achieve
the rated speed of the card, which assumes full SD bus access. It can however use High Speed mode
where available to double the throughput. Unfortunately whether a given card supports High Speed
mode over SPI seems to be hard to gauge from the specs – we've tested a number of cards rated at
UHS-I and above, some of which support High Speed mode and some of which don't. For the
record, the Samsung EVO range do; the Sandisk Extreme range does not. A card which does not
support High Speed mode will read around 1.8 MB/s on the disting EX's 'Test SD speed'.
A card that reads less than around 1.8 MB/s should be viewed with suspicion, and is probably not a
good choice for card-intensive purposes such as playing or recording WAV files.
There is a setting (see below) to enable or disable the use of High Speed mode.
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Overview
The disting EX is a multifunction module. Its various functions are referred to as algorithms. Types
of algorithms include
• audio processing (audio in, audio out e.g. delays, reverbs)
• CV processing (CV in, CV out e.g. quantisers)
• CV generation (e.g. envelopes)
• audio generation (e.g. VCOs, WAV playback)
The disting EX builds on the rich legacy of the disting mk4, and can be used essentially as two
disting mk4s with a shared display. This is known as dual mode as is described in more detail
below.
The disting EX also includes its own unique algorithms, which take over the whole module in what
we call single mode.
Because the disting mk4 has relatively few CV inputs, and because its small display makes
accessing a large number of parameters awkward, it tends towards a proliferation of algorithms
which are similar to one another but have, say, different means of CV control. In contrast the disting
EX's single mode algorithms tend to be fewer but much more configurable.
Single Mode
Single mode concepts
Video
The disting EX runs one single mode algorithm at a time. Switching algorithms is done via the
Algorithms menu (see above for basic information on using the menus).
There are two fundamental elements that define a single algorithm's operation, the preset and the
mapping.
The preset is the state of the algorithm's parameters – a set of numerical values that control how the
algorithm works. For example, the delay time of a delay effect, or the choice of samples files in a
WAV playback algorithm.
The mapping defines how the parameters are controlled by a number of control sources –
primarily, the module's own CV inputs, but also MIDI, I2C etc.
Changing algorithm resets the current preset and mappings to defaults.
Single mode display & controls
The display in single mode often varies with each algorithm, but is based around the common
structure show below:
The first line simply shows the algorithm number and name.
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The second line shows the current parameter number and name. Turning the 'P' knob scrolls through
the parameters.
Video
The third line shows the current parameter's value, and if appropriate, its unit (the unit in the
screenshot above is “%”). You'll note that there are two values shown. The first (leftmost) is the
parameter's base value. This is the one set by the preset, and is the one you edit when you turn the
'V' knob. The second value is the parameter's effective value. This is the value after control by CV
inputs etc. has been taken into account, and is the actual value being used by the algorithm.
If a parameter is not under CV control, these two values will always be the same. When CV control
is applied, this offsets the base value by an amount related to the CV.
If the 'R' knob has not been set up in the mapping, it defaults to changing the current parameter.
Since 'R' is an absolute positional control (a pot, not an encoder) this can make it much easier to dial
in values quickly, especially if the parameter has a large range.
Note that 'V' and 'R' are adjusting the same value, just in different ways.
If the 'R' button has not been set up in the mapping, it defaults to setting the current parameter to its
default value when pushed.
Holding 'V' shows a key of the current input and knob functions, either as hardwired into the
algorithm or set by the mapping.
Turning 'V' while held changes the key to show the outputs.
If the module has an active MIDI connection, the top right of the display shows MIDI in & out
activity indicators:
When a preset is loaded (or saved), the top line shows the preset number and name instead of the
algorithm name:
As soon as the preset is edited, the display reverts to the algorithm name:
Parameters with confirm
Some parameter changes do not take effect immediately, but wait for user confirmation. Typically
these are things which take a while, such as choosing a wavetable in the Poly Wavetable algorithm.
When these parameter are changed, “PUSH V” appears in the display. Pushing the 'V' encoder
confirms the new parameter value.
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Display zoom
Video
If enabled in the Settings (see below), the current parameter name or value is temporarily shown in
a larger font.
The value in the Settings is a multiple of 100ms for which to show the zoomed version. For
example, a value of 10 shows the zoomed version for 1 second.
Single mode common parameters
Every algorithm in single mode shares a number of parameters. These are:
Name Min Max Default Unit Description
1 Attenuverter 1 -200 200 100 % Applies an attenuverter6 to input 1. A negative value
indicates that the CV will be inverted.
2 Attenuverter 2 -200 200 100 % As above for input 2.
3 Attenuverter 3 -200 200 100 % As above for input 3.
4 Attenuverter 4 -200 200 100 % As above for input 4.
5 Attenuverter 5 -200 200 100 % As above for input 5.
6 Attenuverter 6 -200 200 100 % As above for input 6.
The attenuverters affect the incoming audio/CV signal just like an attenuator knob on an analogue
module. Anything that uses the signal downstream (including parameter automation) uses the
attenuated signal.
Single mode help
Video
Each algorithm's user manual section can be accessed via the Algorithms menu.
The help display can be scrolled with 'P', 'V', or (rapidly) with 'R'.
6 An attenuverter is a Eurorack term for a combination of an attenuator and an inverter. These aren't strictly
attenuators because the gain goes above 100%.
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Dual Mode
In dual mode, the disting EX essentially behaves like two souped-up disting mk4s7.
We do not propose to reproduce the entire disting mk4 user manual8 here, which is itself a 118 page
document. Instead, below is a list of ways in which the disting EX in dual mode differs from a
disting mk4.
disting mk4 firmware version
This version of the disting EX firmware is synchronised with version 4.21 of the disting mk4
firmware. Please refer to that version of the disting mk4 user manual.
Sample rate
The disting mk4 runs at 75kHz in general, with some algorithms running lower for performance
reasons. The disting EX runs at 96kHz.
Scala support
The 'logTables_16_20.bin' file is not required.
Favourites
Whereas on a disting mk4 these are set up with a text file on the MicroSD card, on the disting EX
they are set via the Settings menu (see below).
7 https://www.expert-sleepers.co.uk/disting.html
8 https://www.expert-sleepers.co.uk/distingfirmwareupdates.html
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Input Y Input Y
Output B
Output A
Output A
Input X
Input Z
Input X
Input Z
Z knob
S knob
Turn to change parameter value.
Hold & turn to choose parameter.
Press to enter menu.
Output B
Right disting mk4Left disting mk4
Z knob
S knob
Help
Video
Video
The per-algorithm help is hardcoded into the firmware – it is not stored on the SD card. Also it
displays the help a page at a time, rather than scrolling it a character at a time!
The algorithm help can be accessed via the dual mode menu, as shown in the first video above. It
can also be quickly accessed by holding down the encoder for more than one second (shown in the
second video), in which case it will be dismissed when the encoder is released. Note that you can
still scroll through the help by turning the encoder, whichever way you access it.
The first screen's worth of help for each algorithm is an overview of the inputs and outputs:
Z push functions & the Knob Recorder
On the disting mk4, the effect of pushing the Z knob is very algorithm-dependent – by default it
advances to the next parameter, but an algorithm may override it to perform some other function
e.g. 'freeze' on the reverbs, or the knob recorder.
The disting EX lets you choose this behaviour, via the dual-mode menu Options->Z function. The
options are:
Function or Param As on the disting mk4, pressing Z advances to the next parameter, unless the
algorithm defines another function for it.
Function Pressing Z always performs the algorithm-specific function, if any.
Parameter Pressing Z always advances to the next parameter.
Knob Recorder Pressing Z is used to activate the knob recorder.
This choice is stored as part of a preset.
Note that this means you have the option of using the knob recorder with any algorithm, not just
those for which the disting mk4 implements it.
When the knob recorder is chosen, holding Z down while turning it causes the Z value changes to
be recorded. As soon as the knob is released, the recording is played back in a loop. To end
playback, turn the Z knob slightly to regain manual control.
disting mk4 algorithms not included
The following disting mk4 algorithms are not included in the disting EX:
• J-5 Audio Recorder & J-7 Mono Audio Recorder
◦ You can use the disting EX's WAV Recorder mode instead.
• K-6 Clockable SD Delay, K-7 Stereo Clockable SD Delay, K-8 Stereo Clockable SD Delay
(Z clock) & N-8 Clockable SD Ping Pong
◦ On the disting EX, the equivalent non-SD versions have much longer delay times.
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disting mk4 algorithms with improved specifications
• B-4 Clockable Delay/Echo
◦ Operates at 96kHz and offers a maximum delay time of around 22 seconds.
• C-3 Clockable Ping Pong Delay (Z feedback) & C-4 Clockable Ping Pong Delay (Z input
pan)
◦ Operate at 96kHz and offer a maximum delay time of around 11 seconds.
• C-8 Bit Crusher
◦ Has an option for stereo operation.
• D-2 Tape Delay & M-6 Stereo Tape Delay
◦ Maximum delay time is around 11 seconds (mono)/5.5 seconds (stereo). The algorithms
have an extra 'Coarse' parameter to access the extra delay time available.
• G-7 MIDI/CV
◦ Supports MTS (MIDI Tuning Standard) – see below.
• H-2 Dual Sample and Hold
◦ Has extra features which essentially turn it into a whole new algorithm, which is
documented in full below.
• K-1 Wavetable VCO, K-2 Clockable Wavetable LFO, K-3 Wavetable Waveshaper, K-4
Clockable Wavetable Envelope & N-5 Pulsar VCO
◦ These algorithms support up to 1000 files in a wavetable folder, and up to 2 million total
wave samples (100/29000 on the disting mk4).
• All Audio Playback algorithms
◦ 24 bit WAV files are supported.
◦ Triggering latency is down from 3ms to 700µs.
◦ Enhanced support for embedded loop information (see below).
• Both MIDI File Playback algorithms
◦ Have an extra parameter, 'MIDI out channel'. If set to '-1', the MIDI channels in the file
are used (as on the mk4). If set to '0', no MIDI is output. Otherwise the MIDI in the file
is forced to use the set MIDI channel number.
• K-5 Programmable Quantizer
◦ Supports MTS (MIDI Tuning Standard) – see below.
• L-1 Stereo Reverb, L-2 Mono-to-Stereo Reverb & L-3 Dual Reverb
◦ The maximum reverb size parameter is 99 (rather than 32).
◦ Changes in reverb size are smooth, without audio glitches.
• M-7 Granular Pitch Shifter
◦ The maximum delay parameter is 99 (rather than 32).
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Extra algorithms not part of the disting mk4
While most of the dual mode algorithms are from the disting mk4, there are some extra algorithms
which do not exist on the mk4. These are documented below.
Entering dual mode
Video
From the menu, choose 'Algorithms', then 'Enter dual mode'.
Accessing the main menu from dual mode
In dual mode, the two encoders enter the disting mk4-style menus of their respective halves. To
access the main menu, press both encoders at the same time.
Presets in dual mode
Each half can save and load presets, as on the disting mk4, though there are more (256) slots
available.
Also, from the main menu you can save & load a 'dual preset', which stores the parameters for both
halves, and can be named. See Presets, below.
Dual display modes
Video
The default display mode in dual mode presents the two halves side by side:
When a parameter is changed, or a menu is used, the display zooms to use the whole screen for the
half being edited. A bar is drawn at the top of the screen showing whether the left or right half is
being accessed:
The images above show a menu and a parameter being accessed for the left & right halves
respectively.
In the main Settings menu (see below) you can choose alternative dual display modes. The options
are 'Standard', 'Standard (no zoom)' and 'Retro'. The 'no zoom' option is as above but the display
never zooms to use the entire screen for one half. The 'Retro' option recreates the actual disting mk4
display – a 5x7 LED matrix for each half:
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Presets
A preset on the disting EX stores the following information:
• The preset name.
• The current algorithm(s).
• The algorithm parameters.
• The mapping to load when the preset is loaded.
• The current parameter.
• For dual algorithms:
◦ The chosen Z function.
◦ Whether the Z knob was overridden by MIDI (and if so, the MIDI value).
• For single algorithms:
◦ Any folder and/or file names used by the algorithm.
Presets can be stored in the module's flash memory and/or on the MicroSD card. There are 256
preset slots in flash memory. You can also save all 256 presets to/from MicroSD at once.
All preset functions are accessed via the top-level Presets menu.
Web-based preset editor
There is an 'early access' (i.e. not very polished but usable) GUI preset editor for the disting EX
here9. It connects to the module via MIDI.
9 https://github.com/expertsleepersltd/distingEX_tools
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Users have also created editors in MIDI controller apps – for example, see here10 for some nice
TouchOSC11 layouts.
Load preset
Loads a preset from flash memory. Use the 'P' knob to choose the preset slot. The preset name is
shown at the bottom of the screen, or <Empty> if the slot is empty. The preset algorithm is also
displayed.
Optionally, the 'L' and 'R' buttons can be set to step through the presets for the current algorithm.
This is enabled in the Settings (see below).
Save preset
Saves the current module state to a preset in flash memory. Use the 'P' knob to choose the preset
slot. If the slot is not empty, the preset name and algorithm are shown.
Reset preset
Resets the current state to defaults (for the current algorithm).
Name preset
Allows you to edit the name of the current preset. Typically you would do this before saving it.
Use the 'P' knob to move the cursor, and the 'V' or 'R' knobs to edit the character under the cursor.
Erase preset
Allows you to erase a preset slot in flash memory, reverting it to 'empty'.
Load from SD card
Loads a preset from the MicroSD card.
Use the 'P' knob to choose the preset file to load.
10 https://www.muffwiggler.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=35&t=242137
11 https://hexler.net/products/touchosc
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Preset files may be located at the top level of the card, or inside folders. If a folder contains preset
files, it is included in the names you can choose with 'P', and “(folder)” is displayed. Pressing 'P'
will enter the folder and let you browse the preset files therein. Choosing the special item <..> steps
back up to the parent folder.
Save to SD card
Saves the current module state to a preset file on the SD card. The file is placed in the root folder,
and the filename is automatically constructed from the preset name.
Bulk operations
The “Bulk operations” submenu contains functions which operate on many (or all) presets at once.
Load all from SD card
Loads an 'all presets' file from the MicroSD card.
Take care – this function replaces all the presets saved in flash memory with those loaded from the
card.
Use the 'P' knob to choose the preset file to load.
Save all to SD card
Saves all the presets in flash memory to a file on the MicroSD card. The file is placed in the root
folder, and is named 'ALL<n>.dexpresets' where <n> is a number which increments to make the
filename unique.
Load from folder to
Loads all the presets from a folder on the MicroSD card and installs them into flash memory,
starting at the selected slot.
Save all to folder
Saves all the presets from flash which are not empty as individual preset files to a folder on the
MicroSD card. A new folder is created named 'PRST<n>' where <n> is a number which increments
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to make the folder name unique.
Load all dual from SD
Loads an 'all dual presets' file from the MicroSD card.
Take care – this function replaces all the dual mode presets saved in flash memory with those
loaded from the card.
Save all dual to SD
Saves all the dual mode presets in flash memory to a file on the MicroSD card. The file is placed in
the root folder, and is named 'ALL<n>.dexduals' where <n> is a number which increments to make
the filename unique.
Set preset mapping
Sets the mapping to load automatically when the preset is loaded, or 0 for 'None'.
Auto-save
If enabled in the Settings (see below) the module will periodically save its current state, and reload
it when the module next powers up.
When an automatic save is performed, the message “*AUTO-SAVE*” will flash up on the display.
Auto-saves do not use one of the regular preset slots. If you want to save a preset that you can
reload at will, use one of the manual save mechanisms.
An auto-save happens 10 seconds after any change (this delay is to ensure the module is not
constantly auto-saving while you're changing values), except that auto-saving is prevented while
audio is being played from or recorded to the SD card (this is largely precautionary – SD usage can
be performance critical).
You can prevent the module loading its startup or auto-saved preset by holding the 'P' encoder down
during the 'disting EX' splash screen (after the bootloader screen).
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Mappings
A 'mapping' stores all the information about how an algorithm's parameters are controlled by CV,
MIDI etc. It is dealt with separately from a preset on the rationale that you will change a mapping
less often than a preset.
Most of the Mappings functionality applies to single mode algorithms only, except for MIDI
mappings, which also apply to dual mode.
Mappings can be stored in the module's flash memory and/or on the MicroSD card. There are 64
mapping slots in flash memory. You can also save all 64 mappings to/from MicroSD at once.
All mapping functions are accessed via the top-level Mappings menu.
For all types of mapping, the first 64 parameters of an algorithm only can be mapped.
12
Web-based editor
There is an 'early access' (i.e. not very polished but usable) GUI preset editor for the disting EX
here13, which also allows for viewing/editing of mappings. It connects to the module via MIDI.
CV Mappings
Video
CV mappings let you control algorithm parameters from the module's six CV inputs. Every
parameter can be assigned to a CV input simultaneously, and each parameter's response to that CV
set independently.
The CV mappings offset the values set manually – the parameter value calculated from the CV
voltage is added to the value set via the parameter/value knobs.
When you switch to a new algorithm, some CV mappings may be set up by default. Even for
parameters which do not by default have an active CV mapping, the CV scalings are set
appropriately so that simply enabling a CV input will control the parameter in a sensible way,
usually mapping the range ±5V to the whole parameter range.
On the mapping editing screen, move the cursor (the dotted rectangle) with the 'P' knob. Turn the
'V' or 'R' knobs to adjust the value under the cursor. There are five cursor positions:
• The parameter number – choose which parameter's mapping you want to edit.
• The input – choose the CV input to use, or “-” for none.
• The CV polarity – choose “Bipolar” to use both positive and negative CV voltages, or
“Unipolar” to use only positive voltages.
12 It is rare for an algorithm to have more than 64 parameters. Where this is so the parameters have been ordered so the
un-mappable ones are those you wouldn't normally want to map.
13 https://github.com/expertsleepersltd/distingEX_tools
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• Whether to treat the CV as a gate – choose “Norm” for a normal CV, or “Gate” for a gate. A
gate-type mapping switches between the parameter's minimum and maximum when the
input goes over 1V.
• The CV scaling – the relationship between incoming voltages and the parameter values. For
example, in the screenshot above, Input 4 is controlling the Input Level with a scaling of
20.0%/V – that is, it will take a CV of 5V to change the input level by 100%.
Knob Mappings
Video
Knob mappings let you control algorithm parameters from the module's 'L' & 'R' knobs. Every
parameter can be assigned to a knob simultaneously, and each parameter's response to that knob set
independently.
The knob mappings can either offset the values set manually – the parameter value calculated from
the knob is added to the value previously set – or they can directly set the parameter value.
When you switch to a new algorithm, some knob mappings may be set up by default. Even for
parameters which do not by default have an active knob mapping, the knob scalings are set
appropriately so that simply enabling a knob will control the parameter in a sensible way, usually
mapping the knob to the whole parameter range.
On the mapping editing screen, move the cursor (the dotted rectangle) with the 'P' knob. Turn the
'V' or 'R' knobs to adjust the value under the cursor. There are six cursor positions:
• The parameter number – choose which parameter's mapping you want to edit.
• The knob – choose the knob to use, or “-” for none.
• Whether the knob offsets the parameter value (“Rel” or relative mode) or sets it directly
(“Abs” or absolute mode).
• Whether the knob is considered Unipolar (range 0-1) or Bipolar (range ±1). This simply
makes it easier to set the scale and offset values below.
• The knob offset, and
• The knob scale. These two values let you define the relationship between the knob position
and the value set by the mapping. The value is Offset + K * Scale, where K is a value in the
range [0,1] or [-1,1] (depending on the Uni/Bi setting).
Button Mappings
Video
Button mappings let you control algorithm parameters from pushing the module's 'L' & 'R' knobs.
Every parameter can be assigned to a button simultaneously, and each parameter's response to that
button set independently.
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The button mappings offset the values set manually – the parameter value from the button is added
to the value set via the parameter/value knobs.
On the mapping editing screen, move the cursor (the dotted rectangle) with the 'P' knob. Turn the
'V' or 'R' knobs to adjust the value under the cursor. There are three cursor positions:
• The parameter number – choose which parameter's mapping you want to edit.
• The button – choose the button to use, or “-” for none.
• The offset – the value to be added to the parameter when you press the button.
MIDI Mappings
Video
MIDI mappings let you control algorithm parameters via MIDI continuous controllers (CCs) and
certain other MIDI messages. Every parameter can be assigned to a CC simultaneously, and each
parameter's response to that CC set independently.
MIDI mappings can be used to control the module from MIDI devices or MIDI controller software.
For example, see here14 for some nice TouchOSC15 layouts.
The MIDI mappings set the base parameter values, exactly as if you had changed the value
manually with the 'V' knob.
When you switch to a new algorithm, default MIDI mappings are applied.
In single mode, default mappings control parameters 7 and up (i.e. everything except the common
attenuverter parameters) from MIDI CCs 7 and up16. The CC value range of 0-127 is mapped to the
parameter's full value range.
In dual mode, default mappings recreate the (fixed) disting mk4 MIDI CC control, which maps CCs
1-8 to parameters 0-7, and CCs 17-19 to “Set Z”, “Select algorithm”, and “Free Z” respectively.
On the mapping editing screen, move the cursor (the dotted rectangle) with the 'P' knob. Turn the
'V' or 'R' knobs to adjust the value under the cursor. There are six cursor positions:
• The parameter number – choose which parameter's mapping you want to edit.
• The CC number – choose which MIDI CC you want to control the parameter, or 'After' to
choose aftertouch (aka channel pressure).
• The Enabled/Disabled setting.
• Whether the CC is treated as normal (“Norm”) or symmetric (“Sym”). For a normal CC, the
range 0-127 is mapped across the range set by the min & max settings below. For a
symmetric CC, the value 64 is mapped to the mid point of the range, and values above and
below that are scaled by half the total range. A symmetric mapping is appropriate for a
14 https://www.muffwiggler.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=35&t=242137
15 https://hexler.net/products/touchosc
16 This CC number can be changed in the Settings.
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parameter which has a bipolar range around zero (for example, a pan position), where you
want to be sure that a MIDI value of 64 gives you exactly zero in the middle.
• The minimum (“Min”) and
• the maximum (“Max”) parameter values for the mapping.
While editing the MIDI mapping, pressing 'P' enters 'MIDI learn' mode.
The first CC received by the module after activating Learn will be assigned to the current mapping.
There is a setting for whether a mapping set by Learn automatically unsets any other mapping that
uses the same CC. See below.
Press 'P' again to cancel Learn.
The module can also use the MIDI mappings in reverse to send parameter changes back to the
controlling device/software. This is enabled via the 'Send CCs' setting (below). The options are
'Off', 'On preset load', 'On parameter change', or 'Both'.
I2C Mappings
I2C mappings let you control algorithm parameters via the I2C bus (see below). Every parameter
can be assigned an I2C controller simultaneously, and each parameter's response to that controller
set independently.
The I2C mappings set the base parameter values, exactly as if you had changed the value manually
with the 'V' knob.
When you switch to a new algorithm, default I2C mappings are applied, which is to control
parameters 7 and up (i.e. everything except the common attenuverter parameters) from I2C
controllers 0 and up. The controller range of 0-16383 is mapped to the parameter's full value range.
On the mapping editing screen, move the cursor (the dotted rectangle) with the 'P' knob. Turn the
'V' or 'R' knobs to adjust the value under the cursor. There are six cursor positions:
• The parameter number – choose which parameter's mapping you want to edit.
• The controller number – choose which I2C controller you want to control the parameter.
• The Enabled/Disabled setting.
• Whether the CC is treated as normal (“Norm”) or symmetric (“Sym”). For a normal CC, the
range 0- 16383 is mapped across the range set by the min & max settings below. For a
symmetric CC, the value 8192 is mapped to the mid point of the range, and values above
and below that are scaled by half the total range. A symmetric mapping is appropriate for a
parameter which has a bipolar range around zero (for example, a pan position), where you
want to be sure that a controller value of 8192 gives you exactly zero in the middle.
• The minimum (“Min”) and
• the maximum (“Max”) parameter values for the mapping.
While editing the I2C mapping, pressing 'P' enters 'I2C learn' mode.
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The first I2C controller received by the module after activating Learn will be assigned to the current
mapping.
There is a setting for whether a mapping set by Learn automatically unsets any other mapping that
uses the same controller. See below.
Press 'P' again to cancel Learn.
Load mapping
Loads a mapping from flash memory. Use the 'P' knob to choose the mapping slot. The mapping
name is shown at the bottom of the screen, or <Empty> if the slot is empty. The algorithm for
which the mapping was saved is also displayed.
Save mapping
Saves the current module mapping state to a mapping in flash memory. Use the 'P' knob to choose
the mapping slot. If the slot is not empty, the mapping name and algorithm are shown.
Reset mapping
Resets the current mapping to defaults (for the current algorithm).
Name mapping
Allows you to edit the name of the current mapping. Typically you would do this before saving it.
Use the 'P' knob to move the cursor, and the 'V' or 'R' knobs to edit the character under the cursor.
Load from SD card
Loads a mapping from the MicroSD card.
Use the 'P' knob to choose the mapping file to load.
Mapping files may be located at the top level of the card, or inside folders. If a folder contains
mapping files, it is included in the names you can choose with 'P', and “(folder)” is displayed.
Pressing 'P' will enter the folder and let you browse the mapping files therein. Choosing the special
item <..> steps back up to the parent folder.
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Save to SD card
Saves the current mapping to a file on the SD card. The file is placed in the root folder, and the
filename is automatically constructed from the mapping name.
Load all from SD card
Loads an 'all mappings' file from the MicroSD card.
Take care – this function replaces all the mappings saved in flash memory with those loaded from
the card.
Use the 'P' knob to choose the mapping file to load.
Save all to SD card
Saves all the mappings in flash memory to a file on the MicroSD card. The file is placed in the root
folder, and is named 'ALL<n>.dexmappings' where <n> is a number which increments to make the
filename unique.
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Single Mode Algorithms
The following pages describe the disting EX's “single mode” algorithms.
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1 – Matrix Mixer
The Matrix Mixer is a flexible 6 into 4 mixer, mainly designed for CV processing, though it will
happily handle audio as well. As well as a static mix, the algorithm is capable of complex dynamic
mixes when CV mapping is used, and also of CV generation – for example, by automating the input
and output offsets to generate four CVs which might control the rest of your patch in a 'macro'
fashion.
Parameters
Name Min Max Default Unit Description
1-6 Attenuverter
1-6
-200 200 100 % Applies an attenuverter to the corresponding
input. A negative value indicates that the CV
will be inverted.
7-10 Out offset
1-4
-10000 10000 0 Output offset for outputs 1-4. The unit of the
offset depends on the corresponding 'Out
offset type' parameter. The net offset in mV is
shown to the right of the parameter value.
11-14 Out offset
1-4 type
0 2 0 Sets the unit for the corresponding 'Out offset'
parameter. The options are V (Volts), mV
(millivolts) and semitones (multiples of
83mV, corresponding to semitone steps of a
1V/octave pitch CV).
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Mix outputs
Mix outputs
Mix inputsMix inputs
Name Min Max Default Unit Description
15-38 Mix N->M -200 200 0 % These 24 parameters set the mix matrix. E.g.
'Mix 5->2' sets the amount of input 5 that will
be summed into output 2. A negative amount
indicates that the signal will be inverted.
39-44 In offset
1-6
-10000 10000 0 Input offsets for inputs 1-6. The unit of the
offset depends on the corresponding 'In offset
type' parameter. The net offset in mV is
shown to the right of the parameter value.
45-50 In offset
1-4 type
0 2 0 Sets the unit for the corresponding 'In offset'
parameter. The options are the same as for
'Out offset type' above.
51-54 Out
Quantize 14
0 3 0 Sets the quantization for outputs 1-4. The
output quantization is applied after the output
offset.
55-60 In Quantize
1-6
0 3 0 Sets the quantization for inputs 1-6. The input
quantization is applied after the input offset.
61-64 Smoothing
1-4
0 1000 0 Sets the amount of smoothing applied to the
coefficients of the mixes for outputs 1-4 (so
for example “Smoothing 1” applies
smoothing to “Out offset 1” and the six “Mix
N->1” parameters).
Quantization options
The following values are available for the Out Quantize 1-4 and In Quantize 1-6 parameters.
Value Name Description
0 Off No quantization.
1 V Quantization to whole Volts.
2 semitones Quantization to multiples of 83mV, corresponding to semitone steps of a
1V/octave pitch CV.
3 oct->semi Quantization to octaves, and then scaling by 1/12, so the output is a
semitone value per octave.
17
17 This somewhat curious scheme was added to address a specific customer request. If you're interested, read the
discussion here (https://modwiggler.com/forum/viewtopic.php?p=3377946#p3377946).
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2 – Augustus Loop
Video
Augustus Loop is a disting EX implementation of one of Expert Sleepers' oldest products, the VST
plug-in of the same name (here18). Essentially, it's a tape-inspired stereo delay.
The delay time can be dialled in manually, or set by tap tempo or a clock input. The longest delay
possible is around 44 seconds.
Being a tape delay, you can change the tape speed via CV. Patching an LFO into here is your route
to all manner of subtle detuning or extreme mangling effects. You can also stop and reverse the
tape.
There is an option to run the delay signal through an 'effects loop', allowing you to insert other
effects or processing into the guts of the delay.
Note that the 'Pitch CV' input changes the tape speed. It is labelled pitch rather than speed to
emphasise the fact that it is scaled 1V/octave.
18 https://expert-sleepers.co.uk/augustusloop.html
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Right input Input level CV
Dry/delay mix left
Delay only left
ClockLeft/mono input
Pitch CV
Feedback
Dry/delay mix right
Delay only right
This diagram is reproduced from the VST plug-in user manual, and explains the signal flow
graphically:
There are four 'tape read heads' with independent delay times and stereo positions, allowing for
straight stereo delays, ping pong delays, or hybrid multi-tap style effects.
Algorithm-specific display
The bottom line of the display shows the current feedback, the tape direction, and the delay time.
Outputs
Outputs 1 & 2 are a mix of the dry and delay signals according to the 'Dry gain' and 'Effect gain'
parameters.
Outputs 3 & 4 are the delay signal only, or the effects loop output, if active.
Parameters
Name Min Max Default Unit Description
1-6 Attenuverter
1-6
-200 200 100 % Applies an attenuverter to the corresponding
input. A negative value indicates that the CV
will be inverted.
7 Time
(coarse)
0 437 10 Sets the delay time, in multiples of 100ms. The
coarse and fine delay times are added to
produce the actual delay time.
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InputOutput
Read heads Write head
Feedback
levels
Saturation
& Filter
Virtual
Tape
Master
feedback
Input
level
Dry
level
Effect
level
Name Min Max Default Unit Description
8 Time (fine) -100 100 0 ms Sets an adjustment to the delay time, in
milliseconds. The coarse and fine delay times
are added to produce the actual delay time.
9 Delay
multiplier
0 23 15 A multiplier to apply to the delay time set by
the parameters, the tap tempo, or the clock. See
below for the available values.
10 Feedback 0 100 50 % The master delay feedback amount.
11 Dry gain -40 6 0 dB The amount of the dry signal to mix into the
outputs. At “-40” there is no dry signal at all i.e.
it's actually –∞dB.
12 Effect gain -40 6 -3 dB The amount of the effect (delay) signal to mix
into the outputs. At “-40” there is no effect
signal at all i.e. it's actually –∞dB.
13 L-L Time 0 100 100 % Scales the delay time of the left-to-left feedback
path, as a percentage of the master delay time.
14 L-R Time 0 100 50 % Scales the delay time of the left-to-right
feedback path, as a percentage of the master
delay time.
15 R-L Time 0 100 50 % Scales the delay time of the right-to-left
feedback path, as a percentage of the master
delay time.
16 R-R Time 0 100 100 % Scales the delay time of the right-to-right
feedback path, as a percentage of the master
delay time.
17 L-L Level 0 100 100 % Scales the amount of the delayed left signal
mixed into the left feedback path.
18 L-R Level 0 100 0 % Scales the amount of the delayed left signal
mixed into the right feedback path.
19 R-L Level 0 100 0 % Scales the amount of the delayed right signal
mixed into the left feedback path.
20 R-R Level 0 100 100 % Scales the amount of the delayed right signal
mixed into the right feedback path.
21 Mono-ize 0 100 0 % Reduces the stereo width of the incoming
signal. At zero the signal is reduced to mono, at
a pan position set by the 'Initial pan' parameter.
22 Initial pan -100 100 -100 Sets the pan position of the mono-ized signal.
-100 is fully left; 100 is fully right.
23 Input level 0 100 100 % Attenuates the input signal fed to the tape write
head.
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Name Min Max Default Unit Description
24 Pitch inertia 0 125 64 Sets the amount of 'inertia' or slew on the pitch
CV input. At zero, the tape speed follows the
pitch input closely; at the maximum value, pitch
changes are quite gradual.
25 Stop tape 0 1 0 When set to '1', the tape speed is set to zero.
Note that the Pitch inertia affects how quickly
the tape stops and starts.
26 Reverse tape 0 1 0 When set to '1', the tape is reversed. Note that
the Pitch inertia affects how quickly the tape
reverses.
27 Mono input 0 1 0 If '0', inputs 1 & 2 are used as a stereo input. If
'1', only input 1 is used, as a mono input
(leaving input 2 free for parameter mapping).
28 Sample rate 0 1 1 Controls the sample rate at which the algorithm
runs. At the default '1' the algorithm runs at full
speed (96kHz). At '0' the algorithm runs at
48kHz, which doubles the maximum delay
time.
29 Bit depth 0 1 1 Controls the bit depth used in the delay memory
(note, not the bit depth used in any other
processing). Settings this to '0' (16 bit) doubles
the maximum delay time.
30 Inertia free 0 1 0 Enables 'Inertia free' mode. See below.
31 Inertia fade
time
1 1000 100 ms The fade time to use when in Inertia free mode.
32 Pitch CV
input
0 6 5 The CV input to use for pitch, or “0” for none.
33 Clock input 0 6 3 The CV input to use as the clock, or “0” for
none. The delay time is set as the time between
two rising clock edges.
34 Tap tempo 0 1 0 When this parameter transitions from 0 to 1, the
algorithm acts on a tap tempo event. See tap
tempo, below.
35 Clocks
required
1 10 1 Sets the number of consistent clocks required to
change the delay time. See below.
36 Filter type 0 400 0 Sets the filter type. See below.
37 Filter freq 0 127 64 Sets the filter frequency.
38 Filter Q 0 100 20 Sets the filter resonance.
39 FX Loop
position
0 2 0 Enables the effects loop and sets in position the
signal flow. See below.
40 FX Loop
input
0 10 5 Sets the effects loop input. See below.
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Default mappings
Input 4 is mapped to 'Input level'.
The 'L' knob is mapped to 'Feedback'.
The 'L' button is mapped to 'Tap tempo'.
'Clock input' defaults to input 3.
'Input level' defaults to input 4.
'Pitch CV input' defaults to input 5.
Delay time multipliers
Parameter value Multiplier Parameter value Multiplier Parameter value Multiplier
0 1/64 8 3/16 16 x1.5
1 1/48 9 1/4 17 x2
2 1/32 10 5/16 18 x3
3 1/24 11 1/3 19 x4
4 1/16 12 3/8 20 x5
5 1/12 13 1/2 21 x6
6 1/8 14 3/4 22 x8
7 1/6 15 x1 23 x16
Tap tempo
The 'Tap tempo' parameter allows for a tap tempo function. Typically you would map this to a
button push, or a MIDI event. By default it is mapped to the 'L' button.
Two taps are required to set the delay time. Taps more than 11 seconds apart are ignored. When the
module is 'listening' for a second tap, a “!” is shown in the display, as in the screenshot above.
Clocks required
When using the clock input, the algorithm's default behaviour is to follow every clock pulse and
immediately change the delay time. This is appropriate if you're using a clock with variable timing
(perhaps the gate output from a sequencer rather than a clock per se).
However, sometimes you're actually wanting a steady clock, but occasionally the time between
clocks changes anyway – for example, if the clock is coming from your DAW or sequencer, the
clock will stop when the transport stops, and then the first clock when the transport starts will be
interpreted as a really long clock (the time between stopping and starting the transport).
The 'Clocks required' parameter is a solution to this problem. By raising the value above '1', you're
telling the algorithm to only change the delay time when it receives a number of clocks of the same
time in succession ('same' here means within 10%) - so it will ignore the rogue clock you get from
stopping and starting the transport.
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Inertia free mode
“Inertia free” mode relates to the algorithm's behaviour when the delay time is changed, either by
changing the master delay time, the multiplier, or the four L-L, L-R, etc. times.
19
When inertia free mode is not activated, the effect is as if the physical tape heads on a tape machine
were slid along the tape to adjust the write/read head gap. This results in a characteristic and fairly
drastic pitch slew sound.
When inertia free mode is activated, the algorithm crossfades between the old and new delay times,
which is much more subtle effect. The length of the crossfade can be set with the 'Inertia fade time'
parameter.
Activating inertia free mode forces the algorithm into 48kHz operation.
Filter
A second order state variable filter is available within the delay feedback path. The 'Filter type'
parameter lets you smoothly fade between the various responses – 'thru' (i.e. no filtering), low pass,
band pass, high pass, and back to thru.
Effects Loop
Video
Enabling the 'FX Loop position' (i.e. setting it to something other than Off) breaks the internal delay
feedback path and sends it out of and back into the module, allowing you to insert other effects or
processing into the delay. Note that this is different to simply inserting another effect after the delay
output – using the effects loop, each delay repeat is progressively more processed by the external
effects.
Simple ideas include putting external VCAs in the loop to control the amount of feedback. Or you
could put other delays, reverbs, or pitch effects (e.g. chorus) into the loop. Putting a pitch shifter
into the loop gives you the classic “pitch spiralling off to infinity” sound.
The two options for the effects loop position are 'Pre-Filter' and 'Post-Filter', which as you might
expect places the external loop either before or after the filter, giving you the option of filtering
before you send the audio to the external effects, or filtering the result that comes back in.
The 'FX Loop input' parameter allows you to choose which input(s) to use for the effects loop
return. If a single input is chosen, that input is used as both the left and right return signals. If an
input pair is chosen, that pair is used as a stereo return.
19 Granted, the name of this parameter isn't particularly well chosen, but this is what it's called in the VST version, and
we're sticking with it for the sake of consistency.
Page 37
3 – SD Multisample
Video pt1
Video pt2
The SD Multisample algorithm is an 8 voice polyphonic sample playback instrument, playing
WAV files from the MicroSD card. It can have up to 3 input CV/gate pairs, or can be played via
MIDI. It supports both velocity switches and round robins per sample.
There is also a chord and arpeggio generator, based on that in the Expert Sleepers General CV20
module.
The algorithm has built in EQ and a delay/echo effect.
The gate inputs are velocity sensitive – the voltage of the gate signal is used like the velocity of a
MIDI note. 5V corresponds to maximum velocity.
Please see the section on WAV file naming conventions, below.
The algorithm supports microtonal tunings using Scala or MTS – see 'Scala support' below.
Algorithm-specific display
If the Folder parameter is current, the bottom line shows the folder name. Otherwise, it shows the
file numbers being played by the 8 voices, or “--” if a voice is not playing. The top line shows
20 https://expert-sleepers.co.uk/generalcv.html
Page 38
Pitch CV 1 Gate 1
Mono mix
Stereo outputs
Paraphonic gate
Gate 2 (if enabled)
Gate 3 (if enabled)
Pitch CV 2 (if enabled)
Pitch CV 3 (if enabled)
information for the highest active voice: the file name, the file's natural pitch, and its switch setting.
Inputs
The 'Input mode' parameter controls how many of the module's inputs are used as CV/gate inputs.
The options are as follows. Remember that holding 'V' shows you what the inputs are being used
for.
No CV/Gate inputs Select this if you're playing the module by MIDI or I2C and want the
maximum number of CV inputs for parameter mapping.
1 CV/Gate pair Uses input 2 for pitch and 4 for gate.
2 CV/Gate pairs As above plus input 1 for pitch and 3 for gate.
3 CV/Gate pairs As above plus input 5 for pitch and 6 for gate.
2 CVs/1 Gate Uses inputs 1 & 2 for pitch and 4 for gate.
3 CVs/1 Gate Uses inputs 1, 2 & 5 for pitch and 4 for gate.
4 CVs/1 Gate Uses inputs 1, 2, 5 & 6 for pitch and 4 for gate.
5 CVs/1 Gate Uses inputs 1, 2, 3, 5 & 6 for pitch and 4 for gate.
2x 2 CVs/1 Gate Two sets: 1 & 2 (pitch)/4 (gate), 5 & 6 (pitch)/3 (gate).
3 CVs/Gate +
CV/Gate
Two sets: 1, 2 & 5 (pitch)/4 (gate), 6 (pitch)/3 (gate).
Outputs
The algorithm's outputs depend on the 'Output mode' parameter value. The options are:
All summed 1/2 Outputs 1 & 2 are the main stereo outputs.
Output 4 is a mono mix of outputs 1 & 2.
Output 3 is a 'paraphonic gate'.
Per gate 1/2-3/4 Outputs 1/2 and 3/4 are two stereo pairs. Voices are assigned to one of the two
pairs depending on which gate input triggered them.
Per gate 1-2-3 Outputs 1, 2 and 3 are three mono outputs. Voices are assigned to one of the
three depending on which gate input triggered them.
Output 4 is a 'paraphonic gate'.
There are two choices of what is output as a 'paraphonic gate'. The first outputs a gate as long as any
voices are playing; the second outputs a gate as long as any keys are held. This is set via the
algorithm's menu:
Page 39
The output modes with stereo outputs also have alternative spread modes, which determines the
effect of the 'Output spread' parameter:
Spread mode 1 Voices are spread across the stereo field from left to right.
Spread mode 2 Voices are spread across the stereo field in an alternating left/right manner, by a
small amount for voices 1/2, increasing up to voices 7/8.
MIDI support
This algorithm recognises note on, note off, and pitch bend messages. It also recognises sustain
(CC# 64) and All Notes Off (CC# 123 value 0), so these CCs are not available for MIDI mapping.
Notes received over MIDI (and I2C) use the 'Arpeggio 3 mode' and 'Arpeggio 3 range', and the 'Min
note 3' and 'Max note 3', parameters.
Processing of MIDI notes can be disabled from the algorithm's menu:
The 'Delay time' parameter can optionally follow MIDI clock. This is also enabled via the menu:
When following MIDI clock, the parameter page shows 'MIDI', as well as the selected clock
division and the effective time in milliseconds:
Parameters
Name Min Max Default Unit Description
1-6 Attenuverter
1-6
-200 200 100 % Applies an attenuverter to the corresponding
input. A negative value indicates that the CV
will be inverted.
7 Folder 0 999 0 The folder on the MicroSD card to load the
samples from.
8 Attack time 0 127 0 The envelope attack time. Range 1ms-15s, or
zero at value '0'.
9 Decay time 0 127 60 The envelope decay time. Range 20ms-15s.
10 Sustain level 0 127 127 The envelope sustain level.
11 Release time 0 127 77 The envelope release time. Range 10ms-30s.
The value 127 means “infinite” - the sample
will play forever or until it stops, depending
on whether it is looped or one-shot.
12 Octave -8 8 0 Transposes the whole instrument in octaves.
13 Transpose -60 60 0 Transposes the whole instrument in semitones.
14 Fine tune -100 100 0 cents Tunes the whole instrument in cents.
Page 40
Name Min Max Default Unit Description
15 Gain -40 24 0 dB Applies an output gain (before saturation, if
enabled). The default level is intended to be
appropriate for playing chords – if you're
playing monophonic lines you may like to
boost the level.
16 Saturation 0 1 1 Enables a soft saturation stage at the output.
This will prevent harsh digital clipping, at the
expense of some colouration of the sound
when driven loud.
17 Sustain 0 1 0 Activates sustain (notes remain playing when
the gate goes low).
18 Max voices 1 8 8 Sets the maximum number of simultaneous
voices.
19 Bend range 0 48 2 The pitch bend range, in semitones. Applies
both to MIDI pitch bend, and to CV pitch
bend, in which case a CV of ±5V maps to the
chosen bend range.
20 Pitch bend
input
0 6 0 The pitch bend input, or “0” for none.
21-28Voice 1-8
detune
-100 100 0 cents Sets a per-voice detune. This could be used for
example to mimic an old polysynth with a
badly tuned voice card.
29-36Voice 1-8
bend input
0 6 0 The per-voice pitch bend input, or “0” for
none.
37 Chord enable 0 7 0 Enables the chord generator function. The
chord generator can be on or off globally, or
per gate (MIDI/I2C counts as gate 3).
38 Chord key -12 12 0 The key of the chord generator. “0” is C, “1”
is C♯/D♭ etc.
39 Chord scale 0 7 0 The scale of the chord generator. See below
for the options.
40 Chord shape 0 13 0 The shape of the chord generator. See below
for the options.
41 Chord
inversion
0 3 0 The chord inversion. For example the first
inversion takes the first note of the chord and
moves it an octave up, so the lowest note in
the chord is now the second (e.g. C E G
becomes E G C). See e.g. here21 for a fuller
explanation of inversions.
21 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Inversion_(music)#Inversions
Page 41
Name Min Max Default Unit Description
42-44Arpeggio 1-3
mode
0 9 0 The arpeggiator mode for each CV/gate input
pair. See below for the options.
45-47Arpeggio 1-3
range
1 3 1 When set to 1, the arpeggio is simply the notes
formed by the chord. When set to 2 or 3, a
copy of the chord is appended to the pattern,
one or two octaves higher, creating a longer
pattern that spans multiple octaves.
48 Scala/MTS 0 Sets the Scala scale or MTS tuning to use. See
below.
49 Scala KBM 0 Sets the Scala keyboard map to use. See
below.
50 Folder 2 -1 999 -1 The folder on the MicroSD card to load the
samples from for notes triggered by the second
CV/gate pair, or -1 to use the primary folder.
51 Folder 3 -1 999 -1 The folder on the MicroSD card to load the
samples from for notes triggered by the third
CV/gate pair and by MIDI/I2C, or -1 to use
the primary folder.
52 Min note 1 0 127 0 The lowest note to respond to on the first
CV/gate pair.
53 Max note 1 0 127 127 The highest note to respond to on the first
CV/gate pair.
54 Min note 2 0 127 0 The lowest note to respond to on the second
CV/gate pair.
55 Max note 2 0 127 127 The highest note to respond to on the second
CV/gate pair.
56 Min note 3 0 127 0 The lowest note to respond to on the third
CV/gate pair, and on MIDI/I2C.
57 Max note 3 0 127 127 The highest note to respond to on the third
CV/gate pair, and on MIDI/I2C.
58 Output spread -100 100 0 % Sets the amount by which voices are panned,
according to the 'Output mode'. See above.
59 Delay mode 0 2 0 The type of delay effect: 'Off', 'Stereo' or
'Ping-pong'.
60 Delay level -40 0 -3 dB The level of the delay effect.
'-40' is treated as –∞dB.
61 Delay time 1 1365 500 ms The delay time, in milliseconds.
or 1 18 5 The delay time, if following MIDI clock.
62 Delay 0 100 50 % The delay feedback.
Page 42
Name Min Max Default Unit Description
feedback
63 Tone bass -240 240 0 0.1dB Bass EQ cut or boost.
64 Tone treble -240 240 0 0.1dB Treble EQ cut or boost.
65 Output mode 0 4 0 Sets how the outputs are used. Also controls
the effect of the 'Output spread' parameter. See
above.
66 Input mode 0 9 1 Sets how the inputs are used for CV/gate
control. See above.
67 Sustain mode 0 1 0 Sets the behaviour of the sustain function. The
options are “Synth” (sustained notes cannot be
retriggered) and “Piano” (sustained notes can
be retriggered).
68 MIDI vel
curve
0 3 0 Selects a velocity curve applied to incoming
MIDI notes.
69 Arp reset
input
0 6 0 The input to use as the arpeggiator reset, or
“0” for none. A trigger pulse into this input
will reset the arpeggiator back to step 1.
70 Gate offset 0 496 0 Offsets (delays) the gate inputs relative to the
pitch inputs. This is useful to allow pitch CVs
to settle before they are sampled on the rising
gate, and also to cope with modules which
output both a pitch and gate but change their
gate first.
22
Default mappings
Input 1 is mapped to 'Env Time'.
Input 3 is mapped to 'Sustain'.
Note ranges
The Min/Max note 1-3 parameters (parameters 56-61) set the range of incoming notes that will
trigger a response. Note that in chord mode it is still possible that notes will sound outside of this
range. For example, if the chord shape is Octave, and the min/max notes are C1-B1 (a single
octave), playing C1-B1 on a keyboard will produce both octaves, even though the higher octave is
outside of the note range.
Tap tempo
When the 'Delay time' parameter is current, pressing the 'R' button acts as a 'tap tempo' function to
set the delay time (instead of resetting the parameter to its default value).
22 For example, while making the demo movie for this algorithm, we discovered that a suitable value for the René mk2
is around 330.
Page 43
Chord scales
The available scales are as follows.
Name Notes Example (on C)
Major 1, 3, 5, 6, 8, 10, 12 C D E F G A B
Natural Minor 1, 3, 4, 6, 8, 9, 11
C D E♭ F G A♭ B♭
Dominant 1, 3, 5, 6, 8, 10, 11
C D E F G A B♭
Fully Diminished 1, 3, 4, 6, 7, 9, 10, 12
C D E♭ F F♯ A♭ A B
Dominant Dim 1, 2, 4, 5, 7, 8, 10, 11
C D♭ E♭ E F♯ G A B♭
Augmented 1, 4, 5, 8, 9, 12
C E♭ E G A♭ B
Whole Tone 1, 3, 5, 7, 9, 11 C D E F♯ G♯ A♯
Chromatic 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12
Chord shapes
The available shapes are as follows.
Name Notes (within scale) Example (in C major)
None 1 C
Octave 1-1(8ve) C C(8ve)
Two Octaves 1-1(8ve)-1(15ma) C C(8ve) C(15ma)
Root/Fifth 1-5 C G
Root/Fifth + 8ve 1-5-1(8ve) C G C(8ve)
Triad 1-3-5 C E G
Triad + 8ve 1-3-5-1(8ve) C E G C(8ve)
Sus4 1-4-5 C F G
Sus4 + 8ve 1-4-5-1(8ve) C F G C(8ve)
Sixth 1-3-5-6 C E G A
Sixth + 8ve 1-3-5-6-1(8ve) C E G A C(8ve)
Seventh 1-3-5-7 C E G B
Seventh + 8ve 1-3-5-7-1(8ve) C E G B C(8ve)
Ninth 1-3-5-7-2(8ve) C E G B D
Page 44
Arpeggio modes
The 'Arpeggio 1-3 mode' parameters specify the way in which the notes from the chord are played
to create an arpeggio. The options are as follows:
Name Behaviour Example (on C major triad)
Up Notes are played from lowest to highest. C E G C E G ...
Down Notes are played from highest to lowest. G E C G E C ...
Alt Notes are played alternately up and down. C E G E C E G ...
Alt2 Notes are played alternately up and down,
repeating the top & bottom notes.
C E G G E C C E G ...
Up -8ve See below.
Down -8ve See below.
Alt -8ve See below.
Alt2 -8ve See below.
Step Up The lowest note alternates with the other
notes in the chord, in rising order.
C E C G C E C G ...
Step Down The highest note alternates with the other
notes in the chord, in descending order.
G E G C G E G C ...
Random Notes are played in a random order.
Random2 Notes are played in a random order, except
that the same note cannot be played twice
in a row.
Random3 The notes in the chord are played in a
random permutation, then another random
permutation, and so on.
As Played Notes are played according to the order of
their CV inputs. See below.
The “-8ve” modes differ from the basic modes in how they treat the Range parameter (above), for
shapes which end in “+8ve”. As an example, consider the Triad+8ve shape in C major, which
contains the notes:
C E G C(8ve)
If Range is set to 2, this pattern is repeated an octave higher, so modes Up/Down/Alt/Alt2 will
arpeggiate the notes:
C E G C(8ve) C(8ve) E(8ve) G(8ve) C(15ma)
Note how C(8ve) is repeated. The “-8ve” modes skip this repeated note, so for example the Up-8ve
mode will play:
C E G C(8ve) E(8ve) G(8ve) C(15ma) C E G …
Page 45
Chords, arpeggios, and multiple CV inputs per gate
How these features interact warrants some clarification.
Video
If the input mode is one in which there are multiple pitch CVs per gate, the chord generation is
applied to each pitch CV. For example, if you supply the notes C and D, and set the chord
generation to 'triad' in C major, you'll get the notes C, E, G, D, F, A.
If you enable arpeggiation, but not chords, then the arpeggiation is over the input pitch CVs. So for
example if your input mode is “3 CVs/1 gate” then the arpeggiator will run over the three notes
supplied to the CV inputs. Note that this is useful even if you have a single pitch CV per gate, since
you can still use the arpeggio range setting to get octaves.
If chords and arpeggiation are both enabled, then the arpeggio is over all the notes generated by the
chords. In most cases, the notes are sorted and then the Up, Down, etc. direction imposed. The
exception is 'As Played' mode – in this mode the notes are ordered according to the CV input that
generated them. In the above example, 'As Played' mode would give you C, E, G, D, F, A, in that
order, whereas 'Up' would give you C, D, E, F, G, A.
WAV file defaults
Loop setting: the default is for a file to be looping if it has loop markers defined in the file, or to be
one-shot otherwise. This can be overridden in the playlist.
Scala and MTS (MIDI Tuning Standard) support
Video
You can apply microtonal tunings in this algorithm using files in Scala23 format or tuning dumps in
MTS24 format. In both cases, files may be placed on the MicroSD card, or sent to the module over
MIDI. When active, tuning is applied both when playing the algorithm over MIDI and when
playing using CV/gate.
Scala files can be generated by the Scala application, any another tool that writes Scala-format files
(for example, Scale Workshop25), or even written by hand.
Some example files are included on the MicroSD card that comes with the module. Scale files need
to go in the folder named 'scl', and keyboard map files need to go in the folder named 'kbm'.
Note that the 'playlist-scales.txt' file required by the dual mode algorithms is not used here. It
suffices to simply put the .scl and .kbm files into the right folders.
The MTS support is designed to be compatible with MTS-ESP by ODDSound26, which provides a
convenient way to experiment with tunings in real time, though the files used follow the generic
MIDI bulk tuning dump specification27.
23 http://huygens-fokker.org/scala/
24 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MIDI_tuning_standard
25 https://sevish.com/scaleworkshop/
26 http://www.oddsound.com/
27 https://www.midi.org/specifications/midi1-specifications/midi-1-addenda/midi-tuning-updated
Page 46
If using MTS-ESP MIDI Client, choose the 'MTS SYSEX' option:
MTS dumps should be placed in a folder named 'MTS' on the MicroSD card, and the files should
have the extension '.syx'. The file should be exactly 408 bytes in size; if the file you have is a
different size, it is in the wrong format.
Select the scale and keyboard mapping using the parameters. If the scale is 'None', no tuning will be
applied. Likewise, if using Scala (as opposed to MTS) and the keyboard mapping is 'None', no
tuning will be applied.
Positive values of the Scala/MTS parameter select Scala operation; negative values select MTS
operation.
Setting Scala/MTS to '1' chooses the scl file supplied over MIDI. Note that sending Scala over
MIDI is not a standard operation – to our knowledge it is currently only supported by our own tool,
which you'll find in our GitHub28.
Scala/MTS values of '2' or higher select scl files from the MicroSD card.
Similarly, setting Scala KBM to '1' chooses the file supplied over MIDI, and values of '2' or higher
select kbm files from the MicroSD card.
If there is a mismatch between the two files (for example, if the keyboard map refers to a scale
degree not present in the scale), then this is indicated in the display, and no tuning is applied.
Settings Scala/MTS to '-1' chooses the MTS tuning supplied over MIDI. Note that it is possible to
save this tuning data as a file on the MicroSD card – see below.
Scala/MTS values of '-2' or below select MTS files from the MicroSD card.
When using MTS, the Scala KBM parameter is not relevant and is ignored. “Using MTS” is shown
28 https://github.com/expertsleepersltd/distingEX_tools
Page 47
in the display.
SoundFont®s
Video
SoundFont29 is a file format (usually using the .sf2 extension) which rolls up multiple audio samples
with data describing how they are to be combined into an instrument. Such samples are ideally
matched for use in this algorithm. Sadly the way the data is arranged in the file format does not lend
itself to an efficient implementation on the module, so we have not supported being able to directly
load .sf2 files from the SD card. However, we have published an open source tool to extract the
samples from .sf2 files and to create a folder of WAV files, named appropriately for this algorithm.
The tool is here30.
Creating your own multisamples
Creating new sample sets for this algorithm is simply a matter of collecting WAV files in a folder
on the MicroSD card and naming them appropriately (see below). However there are tools available
to automate the sampling of existing instruments.
The disting EX's own WAV Recorder algorithm includes auto-sampling functionality which will
automatically sample any instrument it can trigger via CV/gate or MIDI. The files it records to the
MicroSD card are named correctly for this algorithm.
There are also computer-based tools available to automatically sample virtual instruments. Once
such is Bliss31 by DiscoDSP. There is a tutorial video showing the use of Bliss to prepare
instruments for the disting EX here32.
Transpose limit
It is possible to set a 'transpose limit', which limits the amount by which samples can be pitched up.
This is to avoid glitches that can occur when trying to stream samples from the MicroSD card faster
than the card can support.
When this feature is active, samples that would be transposed up from their natural pitch by more
than the specified amount are dropped by octaves to bring them back into range.
29 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SoundFont
30 https://github.com/expertsleepersltd/sf2_to_dex
31 https://www.discodsp.com/bliss/
32 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U7Vdi4ph7Ko
Page 48
4 – SD 6 Triggers
Video
This algorithm, primarily designed for drum sample playback, offers 6 voices with independent
triggers and sample selection.
It is somewhat like the disting mk4's 'I-8 Dual Audio Playback with Z Speed' but much more
capable.
It supports both velocity switches and round robins per sample.
The gate inputs are velocity sensitive – the voltage of the gate signal is used like the velocity of a
MIDI note. 5V corresponds to maximum velocity.
The trigger for each voice is the correspondingly numbered input i.e. input 1 triggers voice 1 etc.
Please see the section on WAV file naming conventions, below.
Algorithm-specific display
If the Folder parameter is current, the bottom line shows the folder name.
If one of the six Sample parameters is current, the bottom line shows the file name. If the voice is
playing, the line above also shows the velocity, the velocity switch number and the round-robin
number. If there are no round-robins or velocity switches, that number is replaced by “>”.
Page 49
Trigger inputs Trigger inputs
Assignable outputs
Assignable outputs
Outputs
Outputs 1-4 are audio outputs. Each voice can be routed to one or a pair of these.
ES-5 outputs
If an ES-5 is connected (see above), the first 6 outputs of the ES-5 emit “end of sample” triggers
when the corresponding voice's sample comes to an end.
Trigger inputs
By default, each input serves as a trigger input for the correspondingly numbered voice. However, if
you want to trigger the voice by MIDI or I2C and use an input for CV mapping instead, the trigger
input can be disabled from the algorithm's menu:
MIDI support
Six consecutive MIDI notes trigger voices 1-6 respectively. By default these are notes 48-53 but
this can be changed via the algorithm's menu:
Processing of MIDI notes can be disabled from the algorithm's menu:
Parameters
Name Min Max Default Unit Description
1-6 Attenuverter
1-6
-200 200 100 % Applies an attenuverter to the corresponding
input. A negative value indicates that the CV
will be inverted.
7 Folder 0 999 0 The folder on the MicroSD card to load the
samples from.
8-13 Sample 1-6 -1 999 0-5 The sample chosen for the voice. The special
value “-1” disables the voice.
Pressing 'R' while one of these parameters is
current triggers the sample (for previewing).
14-19 Output 1-6 1 8 5 The output assignment for the voice.
1-4 give a single output, as numbered.
5 gives outputs 1/2 as a stereo pair.
6 gives outputs 3/4 as a stereo pair.
7 gives outputs 1/2 as a stereo pair and output 3
as a mono output.
8 gives outputs 1/2 as a stereo pair and output 4
as a mono output.
20-25 Gain 1-6 -40 6 -6 dB The gain for each voice.
26-31 Pan 1-6 -100 100 0 The pan position for each voice (if assigned to
a stereo output).
Page 50
Name Min Max Default Unit Description
32-37 Env Time 1-60 100 100 The (release) envelope time. The value 100
means “infinite” - the sample will play forever
or until it stops, depending on whether it is
looped or one-shot.
38-43 Transpose 1-6-60 60 0 The transposition of each voice, in semitones.
44-49 Fine tune 1-6-100 100 0 cents The fine tuning of each voice, in cents.
50-55 Choke group
1-6
0 3 0 The voice's 'choke group', or “0” for off. When
a voice in a choke group is triggered, it ends the
playback of any other voices in the same choke
group.
56-61 Start offset
1-6
0 999 0 0.1% The position in the sample at which to begin
playback, in % of the sample length. The offset
in milliseconds is displayed on the bottom line
of the display.
62-65 Out 1-4
Saturation
0 1 1 Enables soft saturation on each output.
Saturation prevents harsh digital clipping, at the
expense of some colouration of the sound when
driven loud.
66-70 Folder 2-6 -1 999 -1 The folder on the MicroSD card to load the
samples from for voices 2-6, or -1 to use the
primary folder as set by parameter 7.
WAV file defaults
Loop setting: the default is for a file to be one-shot (not looping). This can be overridden in the
playlist.
Page 51
5 – WAV Recorder
This algorithm records audio (or CV) to the MicroSD card as a WAV file. It can record up to six
channels of audio at 48 or 96kHz, 16 or 24 bit. It can also play previous recordings, though the
various WAV playing algorithms offer many more possibilities.
There is an “auto-sampler” feature for automatically capturing multi-sampled instruments.
Recording
The files are placed in a folder called “!RECORD” (which will be created by the module if it does
not exist). They are named e.g. “REC00001.WAV”, where the number increases for each new
recording. It can be controlled by pushing the module buttons, or by CV.
Do not remove the card or power off the module while it is recording.
Doing so may corrupt the card.
Inputs 1 & 2 are the stereo inputs (use input 1 for mono). When recording more than two channels,
use inputs 3-6 as required.
Press 'L' to start and stop recording. Press 'R' to start and stop playback of the last recording. Both
knobs can be 'locked' to prevent accidental activation. This is done by turning them anticlockwise.
If the button is pressed while locked, the display indicates this:
Recording can also be controlled by a CV into input 5. Playback can be controlled by input 6. Note
that when recording five or six channels, these inputs are used for audio. Be sure to switch to five or
Page 52
Right input
L/R output pair 1
L/R output pair 2
Play CV
Left/mono input
Record CV
Record Play
six channels before connecting the audio signals to the inputs, or you risk attempting to start/stop
recording & playback at audio rates, which will not end well.
Multi-channel audio
Recording of more than two channels at once places great demands on the MicroSD card. In our
tests we have achieved reliable recording of six channels at 48kHz, 24 bit. You are unlikely to
achieve 96kHz recordings of this many channels.
You are advised to thoroughly test your card before relying on it to make any critical recordings.
Currently, playback is only possible for mono or stereo files.
We have published a desktop tool to split multi-channel files into stereo & mono files, which is
here33.
Since the module has more inputs than outputs it is not possible to monitor all 6 inputs on separate
outputs. The “Thru routing” parameters let you choose which inputs you monitor, and on which
outputs (mixing inputs that share the same output routing).
Algorithm-specific display
The bottom of the screen shows a level meter. Each channel has a peak hold and a clip indicator.
(The image above shows that the left channel has clipped.) The number at the top right is the
number of the last recording – this will be incremented when recording starts.
While recording, the display looks like this:
The top line changes to show the time since recording started, a circle to indicate recording, and a
barber pole animation over the recording number.
Below the recording number are two horizontal lines, which will grow from left to right. The top
line indicates how much data is being written into a memory buffer; the lower line indicates how
this data is being transferred to the card. Ideally these will progress in lock-step. If the top line
overtakes the lower line, this indicates that the module has been unable to write data to the card fast
enough. Unless your recording is shorter than the module's RAM buffer, it is likely to be
incomplete. In this case, use a faster card, or use a lower sample rate or bit depth.
While playing back a recording, the display looks like this:
The top line shows the time within the recording, a triangle to indicate playback, and the recording
number is superposed with a progress bar indicating the current position within the file.
Outputs
Outputs 1/2 and 3/4 are stereo pairs, whose exact function can be set with the 'Outputs' parameters.
Outputs 3/4 are also used as CV/gate outputs during auto-sampling.
33 https://github.com/expertsleepersltd/split_wav
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Parameters
Name Min Max Default Unit Description
1-6 Attenuverter
1-6
-200 200 100 % Applies an attenuverter to the corresponding
input. A negative value indicates that the CV
will be inverted.
7 Input gain 0 24 0 dB The gain to apply to the inputs.
8 Sample rate 0 1 0 The sample rate of the recording. The options
are 48kHz and 96kHz.
9 Bit depth 0 1 0 The bit depth of the recording. The options are
16 bit and 24 bit.
10 Channels 1 6 2 The number of channels to record.
11 Rec CV
Mode
0 1 0 If “0”, the record CV control (input 5) is a
trigger; if “1”, a gate.
12 Play CV
Mode
0 1 0 If “0”, the play CV control (input 6) is a
trigger; if “1”, a gate.
13 Play As
Loop
0 1 0 Whether to play the recording as a one-shot or
a loop.
14 Outputs 1/2 0 2 1 Controls what is output on outputs 1/2. See
below for details.
15 Outputs 3/4 0 2 0 Controls what is output on outputs 3/4. See
below for details.
16 AS Enable 0 1 0 Enables the auto-sampler.
17 AS Start
Note
0 127 21 Auto-sampler start note. (MIDI note number;
48 is 0V for the CV output.)
18 AS End
Note
0 127 108 Auto-sampler end note.
19 AS Note
Step
1 127 1 Auto-sampler note step.
20 AS Vel Sw 1 9 1 Number of auto-sampler velocity switch layers.
21 AS RRobins 1 9 1 Number of auto-sampler round-robins.
22 AS Coarse 0 60 1 s Auto-sampler note on time (coarse).
23 AS Fine -1000 1000 0 ms Auto-sampler note on time (fine).
24 AS Gap 1 600 1 x100msAuto-sampler gap time (time between note-ons
i.e. how long to keep recording after the note).
25 AS Latency 0 960 0 Auto-sampler latency adjustment.
26-31 Thru routing
1-6
0 6 1 or 2 Sets the routing for each input when
monitoring. '0' is 'None'; '1' to '4' are outputs 14; '5' is outputs 1 and 2; '6' is outputs 3 and 4.
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Output options
The following options apply to the “Outputs 1/2” and “Outputs 3/4” parameters.
0 Thru Output the input signals (controlled by the “Thru routing” parameters).
1 Thru/Play Output the input signals, unless playback is active, in which case output the
playback signals.
2 Play Output the playback if active, else nothing.
Auto-sampler
Video
Video
The auto-sampler feature of this algorithm allows you to automatically create multi-sampled
instruments in a format that can be immediately used by the SD Multisample algorithm, by
triggering an external synth (by MIDI or CV/gate) and recording the resulting audio.
Use the parameters to set the range of notes to be sampled, and the step size (e.g. every note, every
fourth note etc.). You can also choose to sample multiple velocity levels per note, and multiple
round-robins of each note.
The selected sample rate, bit depth, and channel count parameters apply as usual.
To begin, set “AS Enable” to 1. Connect your MIDI synth via the breakout, or connect a synth via
CV/gate to outputs 3 (CV) and 4 (gate).
Set the length of the note to be played using the “AS Coarse” and “AS Fine” parameters (these are
simply added). Set the gap between notes (which should allow time for the release section of the
note) with “AS Gap”.
You can preview the note timings by pressing the 'R' knob.
This will generate a MIDI note and a gate of the set length, after which “Testing timing” will
continue to be shown for the gap time.
This function also helps to set up the latency adjustment. This is unlikely to be necessary when
using CV/gate but there will be some delay when triggering a MIDI synth, which if not accounted
for will result in a short silence at the start of every sample. To the right of “Testing timing” will
appear a number (6 in the screenshot above) which is the number of frames between the note on and
the module receiving audio above a threshold (of 100mV). Set the “AS Latency” parameter to a
little less than this value. Experiment for best results.
Press the 'L' knob to begin the auto-sampling process.
A new folder will be created on the card named e.g “AUTO0001” and the samples placed therein.
The current filename being recorded is shown on the display.
Pressing 'L' again during auto-sampling will cancel it (leaving any samples recorded so far in
place).
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6 – Multi-Switch
Video
This algorithm offers six highly configurable sequential or voltage controlled switches. Being DCcoupled, it can switch audio or CVs.
Each switch consists of two sub-switches: an input sub-switch, to select one of the module's six
inputs, and an output sub-switch, to select one of the module's four outputs. The selected input is
routed to the selected output. When multiple switches share the same output, their signals are
summed.
Each sub-switch can crossfade when transitioning, for click-free switches (when the fade is very
short) or noticeable blends between sources/targets (when the fade is long).
The switches can be controlled by CV inputs, or by one of the 'Macro' parameters, which can in turn
be controlled by one of the mapping sources (knobs, buttons, MIDI or i2c).
Parameters
The six switches have identical parameters. The parameters for switch A are spelled out below;
those for switches B-F follow the same pattern.
Name Min Max Default Unit Description
1-6 Attenuverter
1-6
-200 200 100 % Applies an attenuverter to the corresponding
input. A negative value indicates that the CV
will be inverted.
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Switch outputs
Switch outputs
Switch inputs
or control CVs
Macro 1/2
Switch inputs
or control CVs
Name Min Max Default Unit Description
7-12 Macro 1-6 0 127 0 Can be mapped (to CV, MIDI etc.) and used as
a control source by the switches.
13 A inputs 0 31 0 The inputs for the switch. See 'inputs choices'.
14 A outputs 0 13 0 The outputs for the switch. See 'outputs
choices'.
15 A in control 0 36 0 The control source for the input switch. See
'control sources'.
16 A in control
type
0 9 0 The type of control source for the input switch.
Changes the options available for 'in control'.
See 'control types'.
17 A out
control
0 36 0 The control source for the output switch. See
'control sources'.
18 A out
control type
0 9 0 The type of control source for the output
switch. Changes the options available for 'out
control'. See 'control types'.
19 A reset 0 12 0 The reset source for the switch. See 'reset
sources'.
20 A fade 0 1000 1 ms The switch's crossfade time, in milliseconds.
21-28 Switch B parameters
29-36 Switch C parameters
37-44 Switch D parameters
45-52 Switch E parameters
53-60 Switch F parameters
Default mappings
The 'L' knob is mapped to 'Macro 1'.
The 'L' button is mapped to 'Macro 2'.
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Inputs choices
Value Switch inputs Value Switch inputs Value Switch inputs
0 None 10 4-5 20 2-3-4-5
1 1 11 5-6 21 3-4-5-6
2 2 12 6-1 22 4-5-6-1
3 3 13 1-2-3 23 5-6-1-2
4 4 14 2-3-4 24 6-1-2-3
5 5 15 3-4-5 25 1-2-3-4-5
6 6 16 4-5-6 26 2-3-4-5-6
7 1-2 17 5-6-1 27 3-4-5-6-1
8 2-3 18 6-1-2 28 4-5-6-1-2
9 3-4 19 1-2-3-4 29 5-6-1-2-3
30 6-1-2-3-4
31 1-2-3-4-5-6
Outputs choices
Value Switch outputs Value Switch outputs Value Switch outputs
0 None 5 1-2 10 2-3-4
1 1 6 2-3 11 3-4-1
2 2 7 3-4 12 4-1-2
3 3 8 4-1 13 1-2-3-4
4 4 9 1-2-3
Control sources (when type is not 'Link')
A sub-switch is triggered when its chosen reset input goes over 1V, or when the chosen Macro goes
over 64.
Value Control source Value Control source Value Control source
0 None
1 Input 1 5 Input 5 9 Macro 3
2 Input 2 6 Input 6 10 Macro 4
3 Input 3 7 Macro 1 11 Macro 5
4 Input 4 8 Macro 2 12 Macro 6
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Control sources (when type is 'Link')
Value Control source Value Control source Value Control source
0 None
1 A plus 0 13 C plus 0 25 E plus 0
2 A plus 1 14 C plus 1 26 E plus 1
3 A plus 2 15 C plus 2 27 E plus 2
4 A plus 3 16 C plus 3 28 E plus 3
5 A plus 4 17 C plus 4 29 E plus 4
6 A plus 5 18 C plus 5 30 E plus 5
7 B plus 0 19 D plus 0 31 F plus 0
8 B plus 1 20 D plus 1 32 F plus 1
9 B plus 2 21 D plus 2 33 F plus 2
10 B plus 3 22 D plus 3 34 F plus 3
11 B plus 4 23 D plus 4 35 F plus 4
12 B plus 5 24 D plus 5 36 F plus 5
Control types
Value Name Description
0 None
1 Trig fwds The chosen source is used as a trigger to advance the switch one step forwards.
2 Trig rev The chosen source is used as a trigger to advance the switch one step
backwards.
3 Trig pong The chosen source is used as a trigger to advance the switch, the direction
alternating on each pass. For example, if the chosen inputs/outputs are 1-2-3,
the switch will advance like so: 1-2-3-2-1-2-3-2-1-etc.
4 Trig rand The chosen source is used as a trigger – the switch adopts a randomly chosen
position on each trigger.
5 Unipolar The chosen source is used directly to select a switch position. Values from 0V
to 5V map to switch positions from first to last.
6 Bipolar The chosen source is used directly to select a switch position. Values from -5V
to 5V map to switch positions from first to last.
7 Uni rev The chosen source is used directly to select a switch position. Values from 0V
to 5V map to switch positions from last to first.
8 Bi rev The chosen source is used directly to select a switch position. Values from -5V
to 5V map to switch positions from last to first.
9 Link The switch position is linked to another switch's position, plus an offset.
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Reset sources
A sub-switch is reset when its chosen reset input goes over 1V, or when the chosen Macro goes
over 64.
Value Reset source Value Reset source Value Reset source
0 None
1 Input 1 5 Input 5 9 Macro 3
2 Input 2 6 Input 6 10 Macro 4
3 Input 3 7 Macro 1 11 Macro 5
4 Input 4 8 Macro 2 12 Macro 6
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7 – Looper
Video
This algorithm provides four simultaneous loopers, with two button record/play/overdub control in
the manner of many stomp-box loopers.
The loopers may be 8/16/32 bit, and mono or stereo, with corresponding adjustments to maximum
loop time. For the default 16 bit mono, each of the four loops has a maximum time of about 21s.
The inputs and outputs of each looper are highly configurable; they can all share inputs & outputs,
or all have their own dedicated inputs and outputs, or something in between. There are output mix
controls for the loops themselves, and for a monitor mix (i.e. a mix of the looper inputs).
Loops can have crossfades, they can fade in and out, and overdubbing can fade in and out, all of
which is designed to make it easy to achieve smooth, ambient looping.
All looping operations can also be synchronised to a clock input, if tight rhythmic looping is more
your thing.
Loops may also be reversed, and played at half speed (an octave down).
Loop targets and commands
Fundamental to the operation of the Looper is the concept of the 'target loop'. This is how we
expose the control of four independent loopers through a two button interface. The
record/overdub/play/pause/reverse/octave down operations are considered as 'commands' that apply
to whichever loop or loops is the 'target'.
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Assignable outputs
Assignable outputs
Assignable inputs
Assignable inputs
Record/Overdub/Clear Play/Pause/Mute
The target loop is set by parameter 7. You may like to map this to a knob for ease of access; or you
may not, to avoid the risk of accidentally changing it. Note that special MIDI control of the target
loop is provided – see below.
The commands are given by parameters 56-58 & 62. It is implemented this way to give you the
flexibility to map these commands to whatever CV, MIDI, i2c, button etc. you like.
The command is given when the parameter changes from '0' to '1'.
Basic looping
The basic procedure is as follows
– Connect an input signal (all loopers default to input 1).
– Choose the target loop.
The bottom of the display is divided into four, for the four loopers. Each will initially show
a square, which is the 'stopped' symbol. The target loop or loops are shown with inverted
colours.
– Press 'L' to begin recording.
The symbol for the target loop will change to a circle, for 'recording'. The recording time
will start counting up in the upper right of the display.
– Press 'L' again to end recording and immediately enter playback.
The symbol for the loop will change to a triangle, for 'play'. The upper right area shows the
current time in the loop, and the loop length. Both the upper right area and the loop's own
rectangle also indicate the position within the loop graphically.
– If the recording approaches the maximum loop time, the upper left of the display will show
'remain:' and the remaining loop time.
Recording will automatically stop once it reaches the maximum time.
Recording can also be ended by pressing 'R'.
Recording a blank loop
Sometimes it is useful to set the loop length without actually recording anything into it. To do this,
press 'R' instead of 'L' to begin recording.
The display will show the record icon (circle) with an 'M' for mute.
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Pausing/muting/retriggering the loop
Once a loop is playing, pressing 'R' pauses or mutes the loop, depending on the 'Pause/mute'
parameter.
If the loop is paused, the symbol changes to the 'double vertical line' icon:
If the loop is muted, the symbol changes to an 'M':
Pressing 'R' again returns the loop to play mode.
A third option, 'Retrigger', is like Mute except that when the loop starts playing again it does so
from the beginning of the loop.
Loops may also be retriggered by setting the 'Play' parameter to '-1'. By default the 'R' button
automates the Play parameter between 0 and 1 – you may like to set up a CV Mapping to set Play to
-1, thus enabling retriggering of loops via a CV input.
Overdubbing
While a loop is playing, pressing 'L' enters overdub mode. Incoming material is recorded on top of
the previous loop. The loop's symbol shows both the play (triangle) and record (circle) icons.
Press 'L' again to stop overdubbing.
Clearing the loop
When a loop is paused or muted, you can clear the loop, which means erasing it completely and
returning to 'stopped'.
To do so, hold down the 'L' button.
While you hold the button, the word 'CLEAR' will appear with a graphical countdown. After two
seconds, the loop will be cleared.
Crossfades
Each loop can have a crossfade time set, which helps to make smooth loops. Note that raising the
crossfade time effectively reduces the loop time, since two passes of the loop have to be overlaid
and mixed.
If the crossfade time is set before recording the loop, the recording will run on after the end-ofrecord command, in order to record extra material for the crossfade. The overall loop time will still
be correct i.e. the time between the start- and end-of-record commands.
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Envelopes
Two attack-decay envelopes are provided; one for when a loop is started and stopped, and one for
when overdubbing starts and ends.
While the loop is in the decay stage, fading out towards pause/mute, a 'v' is indicated in its display.
While the end of overdub decay stage is active, the record indicator (the circle) flashes.
Overdub fade
By default, loops do not fade out. You can use the 'Overdub fade' parameter to choose to fade out
previous material while overdubbing new material. Note that the fade stops (i.e. the loop no longer
decays) when overdubbing ends.
Replace
If 'Overdub fade' is set to its minimum, none of the previous material is recorded into the loop, at
which point the overdub operation is actually a replace operation i.e. the new material completely
replaces the previous material.
Clocked operation
If a clock input is chosen, any looping command is deferred until the next clock that arrives.
When in clocked mode, the 'Lock range' parameter activates automatic re-triggering of the loops to
keep them locked to the clock. The parameter specifies a time window around the clock – if a loop
would naturally loop during this window, it is retriggered so that it begins exactly on the clock
pulse.
ES-5 outputs
If an ES-5 is connected (see above), the outputs of the ES-5 plus any attached ESX-8GT expanders
are selectable as the loops' trigger outputs.
MIDI support
MIDI notes 48, 50, 52 & 53 (i.e. C3, D3, E3 & F3) can be used to set the target loop (C is loop 1, D
is loop 2 etc.). While keys are held, subsequent presses are additive – that is, you can play a chord
to select multiple loops.
MIDI notes 55, 57, 59 & 60 (i.e. G3, A3, B3 & C4) activate Record, Play, Reverse and Octave
Down respectively.
Processing of MIDI notes can be disabled from the algorithm's menu:
Parameters
Name Min Max Default Unit Description
1-6 Attenuverter
1-6
-200 200 100 % Applies an attenuverter to the corresponding
input. A negative value indicates that the CV
will be inverted.
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Name Min Max Default Unit Description
7 Target loop 1 15 1 Selects which loop(s) will be affected by the
Record/Play/Reverse commands.
8 Record gain -40 6 0 dB The gain to apply at the loop inputs (does not
affect the monitoring levels).
9-12 Loop 1-4
input
0 6 1 Which input to use as the loop input, or '0' for
'None'. If the loops are stereo, this parameter
selects the left input and the next highest input
is used as the right channel input.
13-16 Loop 1-4
output
1 6 5 The loop output (1-4), or '5' to use outputs 1 &
2 as a stereo pair, or '6' to use outputs 3 & 4 as
a stereo pair.
17-20 Loop 1-4
pan
-100 100 0 % If the loop output is a stereo pair, and the loops
are mono, this sets the pan position of the loop.
21-24 Loop 1-4
gain
-40 6 0 dB The output gain of the loop.
'-40' is treated as –∞dB.
25-28 Loop 1-4 x-
fade
0 127 0 The loop crossfade time. The control is
logarithmic, offering times between 0.1ms and
5 seconds.
29-32 Loop 1-4
VCA
0 6 0 The input to use to control the loop level, or '0'
for 'None'. If enabled, this is equivalent to
putting the loop output through a linear VCA,
with 5V being unity gain.
33-36 Monitor 1-4
output
1 6 5 The monitor output (1-4), or '5' to use outputs 1
& 2 as a stereo pair, or '6' to use outputs 3 & 4
as a stereo pair.
37-40 Monitor 1-4
pan
-100 100 0 % If the monitor output is a stereo pair, and the
loops are mono, this sets the pan position of the
monitor signal.
41 Monitor 1
gain
-40 6 0 dB The monitor mix gain.
42-44 Monitor 2-4
gain
-40 6 -40 dB The monitor mix gain.
'-40' is treated as –∞dB.
45 Attack time 0 127 0 The loop attack time (when fading in from
pause/mute). The control is logarithmic,
offering times between 1ms and 30 seconds.
46 Decay time 0 127 0 The loop decay time (when fading out to
pause/mute). The control is logarithmic,
offering times between 1ms and 30 seconds.
47 Overdub
attack time
0 127 0 The loop overdub attack time (when entering
overdub). The control is logarithmic, offering
times between 1ms and 30 seconds.
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Name Min Max Default Unit Description
48 Overdub
decay time
0 127 0 The loop overdub decay time (when leaving
overdub). The control is logarithmic, offering
times between 1ms and 30 seconds.
49 Overdub
fade
-240 0 0 0.1dBSets how much the previous loop content will
fade out on each pass while overdubbing.
'-240' is treated as –∞dB, at which point the
'overdub' feature is actually 'replace'.
50 Pause/mute 0 2 0 Chooses what happens when the pause/mute
command is given. The options are:
0 – Pause (loop stops)
1 – Mute (loop continues but is silent)
2 – Retrigger (as 1 but loop restarts from zero)
51-54 Trigger 1-4
output
0 52 0 Sets which output to use for a start-of-loop
trigger pulse. The options are '0' for 'None', 1-4
for outputs 1-4, or 5-52 for the outputs of an
attached ES-5 module.
55 Clock input 0 6 0 Sets the clock input, or '0' for 'None'.
56 Record 0 1 0 Controls the 'record/overdub/clear' function. By
default this is mapped to the 'L' button.
57 Play -1 1 0 Controls the 'play/pause/mute' function. By
default this is mapped to the 'R' button.
When set to '-1', causes an immediate retrigger
of the active loops.
58 Reverse 0 1 0 Controls the 'reverse' function.
59 Bit depth 0 2 1 Sets the loop bit depth. The options are 8 bit, 16
bit or 32 bit.
60 Stereo 0 1 0 Chooses stereo or mono operation.
61 Lowpass
filter
0 127 127 Sets the frequency of a second order low-pass
filter applied to the loop outputs. '127' disables
the filter; lower values set the cutoff frequency
with a minimum of 200Hz.
62 Octave
down
0 1 0 Controls the 'octave down' function.
63 Lock range 0 1000 0 ms The lock range when the clock input is active –
see above.
Default mappings
The 'L' button is mapped to 'Record'.
The 'R' button is mapped to 'Play'.
Saving/loading loops
The Looper can load WAV files from the MicroSD card into the loops, and can save its loops as
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WAV files.
When a preset is saved from this algorithm, it automatically saves its loops as WAV files, and loads
them when the preset it loaded.
Files are saved and loaded from the Looper's own menu, which is accessed by pressing 'P' in the
usual way:
Loading a WAV file to a loop
From the Looper menu, select 'Load WAV' and then 'Load loop 1' (or 2, 3, 4):
You can then navigate to the WAV file that you want to load.
Loading a loop set
A 'loop set' is a set of up to four WAV files, typically saved by this algorithm, which share the same
filename but with a “_1”, “_2” etc. suffix.
From the 'Load WAV' menu select 'Load loop set':
Then navigate to one of the files in the set. The files will be loaded to the loops that correspond to
their suffix number.
Saving loops
From the Looper menu, select 'Save WAV' and then 'Save all loops':
Each looper that is not empty will be saved to the MicroSD card as a WAV file, into a folder named
“!LOOPER”. A unique filename is automatically generated, starting with “LP” and then a number,
and finally a suffix in the format expected by 'Load loop set'.
The filename is displayed when saving is complete:
Saving loops with presets
When a Looper preset is saved, its loops are also saved to the MicroSD card as WAV files.
They are saved into a folder called “!LOOPER”, using a filename created from the preset number
and the preset name.
If WAV files for this preset are already present in the folder, they are renamed and moved into a
folder called “!LOOPER.BAK”. This extremely conservative behaviour is designed to ensure you
never accidentally lose any recordings, but it may tend to fill up your MicroSD card. Please bear
this in mind and occasionally tidy up the card on a computer.
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8 – Dream Machine
Video
This algorithm is designed to generate drones, allowing the user to explore non-traditional
harmonies based on prime ratios. It was inspired by the theories of composer La Monte Young34.
An interesting read is the pdf “Notes on The Theatre of Eternal Music” available in a number of
places online e.g. here35.
The output is a combination of five sounds – the fundamental and four harmonies. The prime ratios
that define the frequency relationships are controlled by parameters.
The algorithm uses wavetable synthesis to generate the tones. Additionally the fundamental may
instead be a pure sine, triangle or square wave.
Each tone has a simple attack/release envelope, controlled by its own gate parameter.
By default little is mapped to the CV inputs, and it is perfectly possible to drive the algorithm
entirely by hand. You may however like to map the inputs as FM inputs, or to control the gates.
Setting the fundamental
The fundamental is the fixed tone (usually the bass note) that everything else revolves around. You
may like to set it to a concert pitch (it defaults to concert B♭) or some other frequency (La Monte
Young sometimes chose the mains frequency – 60Hz in the USA – or you could tune it to the
resonant frequency of whatever environment you find yourself in). It can be dialled in via the
34 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/La_Monte_Young
35 http://soundartarchive.net/articles/Young-2000-Notes%20on%20his%20Practice.pdf
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Stereo outputs
Fundamental wave
Wave offset
Fundamental envelope
Wave input
parameter (in thousandths of a Hz), or set from the algorithm's menu.
Note that the Hz value shown in the display also takes into account the octave parameter.
Setting the primes
Parameters 8-11 let you choose the set of prime numbers that will make up the allowable values for
the frequency ratios. La Monte Young famously chose the primes 2, 3, 7 & 31, and moreover
specifically avoided the prime 5, thereby excluding major thirds from his tunings.
If you want less than four primes, set the unwanted parameters to '1'.
Setting the frequency ratios
To set the ratios of tones 1-4 relative to the fundamental, set the parameters for the denominator and
the four numerators.
When setting the numerators, the pitch of the tone is shown, as well as the ratio reduced to its
lowest form. For example 48/32 reduces to 3/2, the familiar form of the perfect fifth in just
intonation.
Outputs
Outputs 1 & 2 are the main stereo mix.
Output 3 is the fundamental waveform (unaffected by its gain and envelope).
Output 4 is the fundamental's envelope.
Parameters
Name Min Max Default Unit Description
1-6 Attenuverter
1-6
-200 200 100 % Applies an attenuverter to the corresponding
input. A negative value indicates that the CV
will be inverted.
7 Wavetable 0 999 0 Chooses the wavetable from those installed on
the MicroSD card. See below.
8 Prime 1 2 32767 2 Sets one of the four primes that may be
multiplied to create the denominator and
numerators of the frequency ratios.
9 Prime 2 1 32767 3 Sets the second prime.
10 Prime 3 1 32767 7 Sets the third prime.
11 Prime 4 1 32767 31 Sets the fourth prime.
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Name Min Max Default Unit Description
12 Fundamental 1 32767 29135 Sets the fundamental frequency, in thousandths
of a Hz.
13 Octave -8 8 1 Sets an octave shift for the fundamental.
14 Denominator 1 256 32 Sets the denominator of the frequency ratios.
15 Numerator 1 1 1024 42 Sets the numerator of the frequency ratio of
tone 1.
16 Numerator 2 1 1024 56 Sets the numerator of the frequency ratio of
tone 2.
17 Numerator 3 1 1024 62 Sets the numerator of the frequency ratio of
tone 3.
18 Numerator 4 1 1024 63 Sets the numerator of the frequency ratio of
tone 4.
19 Gate 0 0 1 0 Gate for the fundamental.
20-23 Gate 1-4 0 1 0 Gates for tones 1-4.
24 Gain 0 -40 6 0 dB Gain for the fundamental.
“-40” is treated as –∞dB.
25-28 Gain 1-4 -40 6 0 dB Gains for tones 1-4.
“-40” is treated as –∞dB.
29-32 Pan 1-4 -100 100 0 % Stereo pan position for tones 1-4.
33 Wave input 0 6 5 Which input to use to control the position in the
wavetable, or '0' for 'None'.
34 Wave offset -100 100 0 An offset for the wavetable position, added to
that set from the wave input.
35 Attack time 0 127 0 Attack time for the envelopes.
36 Decay time 0 127 0 Decay time for the envelopes.
37-40 FM input 1-4 0 6 0 Which input to use to frequency modulate (FM)
tones 1-4, or '0' for 'None'. The inputs are scaled
according to the FM Range parameter.
41 Waveform 0 0 3 0 Chooses the waveform for the fundamental.
Options 0-3 are Wavetable, Sine, Triangle and
Square, respectively.
42 FM Range 0 3 0 Sets the scaling for the FM inputs. The options
are 1Hz/V, 10Hz/V, 100Hz/V or 1kHz/V.
Default mappings
The 'L' knob is mapped to 'Wave offset'.
Input 5 is mapped to 'Wave input'.
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Fun fact
This algorithm was road-tested during development in a couple of online gigs, which you can watch
here36 and here37.
36 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zc5ksVeMXFA
37 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WTw6vz71LJM
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9 – Filter Bank
Video
This algorithm provides a bank of eight parallel stereo bandpass filters or resonators. The filters'
levels can be controlled manually, via CV, or with envelopes driven from gates, and their pitch can
also be set manually or via CV or MIDI. An internal octature LFO is also provided for the levels.
The resonators in particular are good for being played as chords over MIDI, in the manner of the
Alesis Quadraverb Plus (see e.g. here38).
Filter modes
The filters can be set to one of three modes: Resonator, Bandpass or Multiband.
Resonators are peaking all-pass filters that greatly emphasise the narrow band of frequencies around
their centre frequencies.
Bandpass filters are a basic filter type that attenuate frequencies away from their centre frequencies.
In both of the modes above, all eight filters are completely independent. In Multiband mode
however, the filter frequencies set a series of crossover points, such as you might find in a
multiband compressor, for example. Therefore the frequencies passed by each band are bounded by
its own frequency on the one side, and the frequency of the next band on the other.
38 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZObDS3Hvfuo&t=90
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Stereo mix outputs
Odd sum output
CV input (optional)
Stereo inputs
Even sum output
Gate input (optional)
Setting the filter frequencies
When set manually from the parameters, the filter frequencies are set in terms of MIDI note
numbers. The frequency in Hz is also shown for convenience.
Outputs
Outputs 1 & 2 are a mix of the dry and filtered signals according to the 'Dry gain' and 'Effect gain'
parameters.
Output 3 is a sum of the odd-numbered filters (1, 3, 5 & 7) only.
Output 4 is a sum of the even-numbered filters (2, 4, 6 & 8) only.
MIDI support
MIDI notes set the pitch and control the gates of the filters.
Processing of MIDI notes can be disabled from the algorithm's menu:
Parameters
Name Min Max Default Unit Description
1-6 Attenuverter
1-6
-200 200 100 % Applies an attenuverter to the corresponding
input. A negative value indicates that the CV
will be inverted.
7 Mode 0 2 0 Selects the filter mode. The options are
Resonator, Bandpass or Multiband.
8 Gain/Q 1 100 50 % Sets the filter gain (for resonators) or resonance
(for bandpass/multiband).
9 Dry gain -40 6 -3 dB The amount of the dry signal to mix into the
outputs. At “-40” there is no dry signal at all i.e.
it's actually –∞dB.
10 Effect gain -40 6 -3 dB The amount of the effect (filtered) signal to mix
into the outputs. At “-40” there is no effect
signal at all i.e. it's actually –∞dB.
11 Attack time 0 127 0 The envelope attack time.
12 Decay time 0 127 0 The envelope decay time.
13-20 Pitch 1-8 0 127 The pitches/frequencies of the eight filters.
21-28 Gate 1-8 0 1 0 The gates for the eight filters.
29-36 Gain 1-8 -40 6 0 dB The gain for the eight filters.
“-40” is treated as –∞dB.
37-44 VCA input
1-8
0 6 0 The input to use as a VCA for the filter, or '0'
for 'None'.
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Name Min Max Default Unit Description
45 Spread -100 100 0 % Sets an amount by which to spread out the
filters in the stereo field.
46 LFO depth 0 100 0 % Sets the depth of an octature LFO modulation of
the filter gains.
47 LFO rate -100 100 50 Sets the LFO rate.
48 CV/Gate
control
0 2 0 Sets whether inputs 3 & 4 are used as a CV/gate
pair to 'play' the filters as pitched voices. The
options are Off, On (filter pitch follows the CV)
and Quantized (filter pitch set to the nearest
semitone).
49 Controlled
voices
1 8 8 Sets the number of filters that will be controlled
by MIDI or CV/gate. By reducing this, you can
elect to control some filters by MIDI while the
rest remain under manual control.
50 Mono input 0 1 0 If '1', only input 1 is used for audio input, and
input 2 is freed up for CV mapping.
Default mappings
None.
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10 – Poly Wavetable
Videos (playlist)
This algorithm is a complete 8 voice polyphonic synthesizer, using wavetable oscillators. Each
voice has two envelopes, a filter and an LFO. Delay and chorus effects are also provided.
The algorithm can be played equally well by CV/gate or MIDI. When using CV/gate, the gate
inputs are velocity-sensitive.
Automatic chord generation and arpeggiation are provided.
The outputs can be a stereo or mono mix, or each voice can have its own output.
See below for details on how wavetables are installed on the MicroSD card.
The algorithm supports microtonal tunings using Scala or MTS – see 'Scala support', below.
Presets for this algorithm are available to download here39.
Algorithm-specific display
If the 'Wavetable' parameter is current, the bottom line shows the folder name. If the 'Wave input' or
'Wave offset' parameter is current, the bottom line shows the fractional position in the wavetable
(for the loudest voice currently playing – the graphical display of the waveform also reflects this
voice).
39 https://expert-sleepers.co.uk/distingEXcontent.html
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Stereo outputs
Paraphonic gate
Wave offset
Mono mix
Wave input
Pitch CV
Gate
Sustain
Filter frequency
Note that the waveform may be different per voice if e.g. the 'Wave spread' parameter is used.
For most parameters, the display shows the note numbers being played by the 8 voices, or “--” if a
voice is not playing. On each voice is superimposed a vertical bar representing the voice's current
envelope level.
Inputs
The 'Input mode' parameter controls how many of the module's inputs are used as CV/gate inputs.
The options are as follows. Remember that holding 'V' shows you what the inputs are being used
for.
No CV/Gate inputs Select this if you're playing the module by MIDI or I2C and want the
maximum number of CV inputs for parameter mapping.
1 CV/Gate pair Uses input 2 for pitch and 4 for gate.
2 CV/Gate pairs As above plus input 1 for pitch and 3 for gate.
3 CV/Gate pairs As above plus input 5 for pitch and 6 for gate.
2 CVs/1 Gate Uses inputs 1 & 2 for pitch and 4 for gate.
3 CVs/1 Gate Uses inputs 1, 2 & 5 for pitch and 4 for gate.
4 CVs/1 Gate Uses inputs 1, 2, 5 & 6 for pitch and 4 for gate.
5 CVs/1 Gate Uses inputs 1, 2, 3, 5 & 6 for pitch and 4 for gate.
2x 2 CVs/1 Gate Two sets: 1 & 2 (pitch)/4 (gate), 5 & 6 (pitch)/3 (gate).
3 CVs/Gate +
CV/Gate
Two sets: 1, 2 & 5 (pitch)/4 (gate), 6 (pitch)/3 (gate).
After these options, the same pattern repeats again, but with 'Pressure' instead of 'Gate'. In these
modes, the gate inputs effectively become VCA inputs, replacing the volume control from the
envelope with direct volume control from the pressure CV. The threshold required to trigger a note
(which is set by the 'Gate CV threshold' setting – see below) is reduced by a factor of 16.
Outputs
If 'Output mode' is 0, 1 or 2:
• Outputs 1 & 2 are the main stereo outputs.
• Output 4 is a mono mix of outputs 1 & 2.
• Output 3 is a 'paraphonic gate'.
If 'Output mode' is 3 ('Per voice'):
• Output 1 carries voices 1 & 5.
• Output 2 carries voices 2 & 6.
• Output 3 carries voices 3 & 7.
• Output 4 carries voices 4 & 8.
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There are two choices of what is output as a 'paraphonic gate'. The first outputs a gate as long as any
voices are playing; the second outputs a gate as long as any keys are held. This is set via the
algorithm's menu:
MIDI support
This algorithm recognises note on, note off, and pitch bend messages. It also recognises sustain
(CC# 64) and All Notes Off (CC# 123 value 0), so these CCs are not available for MIDI mapping.
Notes received over MIDI (and i2c) use the 'Arpeggio 3 mode' and 'Arpeggio 3 range' parameters.
Processing of MIDI notes can be disabled from the algorithm's menu:
The 'Delay time' parameter can optionally follow MIDI clock. This is also enabled via the menu:
When following MIDI clock, the parameter page shows 'MIDI', as well as the selected clock
division and the effective time in milliseconds:
Parameters
Name Min Max Default Unit Description
1-6 Attenuverter
1-6
-200 200 100 % Applies an attenuverter to the corresponding
input. A negative value indicates that the CV
will be inverted.
7 Wavetable 0 999 0 Chooses the wavetable from those installed on
the MicroSD card.
8 Wave offset -100 100 0 An offset for the wavetable position, added to
that set from the wave input.
9 Wave spread -100 100 0 An amount by which to spread out the per-
voice wavetable positions.
10 Coarse tune -60 60 0 Transposes the whole instrument in semitones.
11 Fine tune -100 100 0 cents Tunes the whole instrument in cents.
12 Attack time 0 127 20 Envelope 1 attack time. Range 1ms-15s.
13 Decay time 0 127 60 Envelope 1 decay time. Range 20ms-15s.
14 Sustain level 0 127 80 Envelope 1 sustain level.
15 Release time 0 127 60 Envelope 1 release time. Range 10ms-30s.
16 Attack shape 0 127 64 Envelope 1 attack shape.
'0' is highly exponential; '127' is almost linear.
17 Decay shape 0 127 64 Envelope 1 decay & release shape.
18 Attack time 2 0 127 60 Envelope 2 attack time. Range 1ms-15s.
19 Decay time 2 0 127 70 Envelope 2 decay time. Range 20ms-15s.
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Name Min Max Default Unit Description
20 Sustain level 2 -127 127 64 Envelope 2 sustain level.
Note that this can go negative.
21 Release time 2 0 127 50 Envelope 2 release time. Range 10ms-30s.
22 Attack shape 20 127 64 Envelope 2 attack shape.
23 Decay shape 2 0 127 64 Envelope 2 decay & release shape.
24 Filter type 0 3 0 The filter type; 'Off', 'Lowpass', 'Bandpass' or
'Highpass'.
25 Filter freq 0 127 64 The filter frequency, specified as a MIDI note
number.
26 Filter Q 0 100 50 The filter resonance.
27 Veloc ->
volume
0 100 100 % The amount by which the note velocity affects
the note volume.
28 Veloc -> wave -100 100 0 % The amount by which the note velocity affects
the wavetable position.
29 Veloc -> filter -127 127 0 The amount by which the note velocity affects
the filter frequency.
30 Pitch -> wave -100 100 0 % The amount by which the note pitch affects the
wavetable position.
31 Pitch -> filter -100 100 0 % The amount by which the note pitch affects the
filter frequency.
32 Env -> wave -100 100 0 % The amount by which envelope 1 affects the
wavetable position.
33 Env -> filter -127 127 0 The amount by which envelope 1 affects the
filter frequency.
34 Env 2 -> wave -100 100 0 % The amount by which envelope 2 affects the
wavetable position.
35 Env 2 -> filter -127 127 0 The amount by which envelope 2 affects the
filter frequency.
36 Env 2 -> pitch -120 120 0 The amount by which envelope 2 affects the
note pitch (in units of 1/10th semitones).
37 LFO -> wave -100 100 0 % The amount by which the LFO affects the
wavetable position.
38 LFO -> filter -127 127 0 The amount by which the LFO affects the filter
frequency.
39 LFO -> pitch -120 120 0 The amount by which the LFO affects the note
pitch (in units of 1/10th semitones).
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Name Min Max Default Unit Description
40 LFO speed -100 100 90 The LFO speed. Range 0.01Hz-10Hz.
41 Gain -40 24 0 dB Applies an overall output gain.
42 Sustain 0 1 0 Activates sustain (notes remain playing when
the gate goes low).
43 Bend range 0 48 2 The pitch bend range, in semitones. Applies
both to MIDI pitch bend, and to CV pitch bend,
in which case a CV of ±5V maps to the chosen
bend range.
44 Chord enable 0 7 0 Enables the chord generator function. The
chord generator can be on or off globally, or
per gate (MIDI/I2C counts as gate 3).
45 Chord key -12 12 0 The key of the chord generator. “0” is C, “1” is
C♯/D♭ etc.
46 Chord scale 0 7 0 The scale of the chord generator. See below for
the options.
47 Chord shape 0 13 0 The shape of the chord generator. See below
for the options.
48 Chord
inversion
0 3 0 The chord inversion. For example the first
inversion takes the first note of the chord and
moves it an octave up, so the lowest note in the
chord is now the second (e.g. C E G becomes E
G C). See e.g. here40 for a fuller explanation of
inversions.
49-51Arpeggio 1-3
mode
0 9 0 The arpeggiator mode for each CV/gate input
pair. See below for the options.
52-54Arpeggio 1-3
range
1 3 1 When set to 1, the arpeggio is simply the notes
formed by the chord. When set to 2 or 3, a copy
of the chord is appended to the pattern, one or
two octaves higher, creating a longer pattern
that spans multiple octaves.
55 Scala/MTS 0 Sets the Scala scale or MTS tuning to use. See
above.
56 Scala KBM 0 Sets the Scala keyboard map to use. See above.
57 Chorus mode 0 2 0 Engages the chorus effect, or '0' for 'off'.
41
58 Delay mode 0 2 0 The type of delay effect: 'Off', 'Stereo' or 'Ping-
pong'.
59 Delay level -40 0 -3 dB The level of the delay effect.
'-40' is treated as –∞dB.
40 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Inversion_(music)#Inversions
41 The chorus effect is unapologetically modelled on that of the classic Juno-6 polysynth, based on measurements of
the author's own unit.
Page 79
Name Min Max Default Unit Description
60 Delay time 1 10000 500 ms The delay time, in milliseconds.
or 1 18 5 The delay time, if following MIDI clock.
61 Delay
feedback
0 100 50 % The delay feedback.
62 Unison 1 8 1 The number of voices to play simultaneously
for each note triggered.
63 Unison detune 0 100 10 cents The detune amount when Unison is active.
64 Output spread -100 100 0 % The amount of output spread, if the selected
output mode uses spread.
65 Output mode 0 3 0 The output mode – see below for details.
66 Input mode 0 18 1 Sets how the inputs are used for CV/gate
control. See above.
67 Sustain mode 0 1 0 Sets the behaviour of the sustain function. The
options are “Synth” (sustained notes cannot be
retriggered) and “Piano” (sustained notes can
be retriggered).
68 MIDI vel
curve
0 3 0 Selects a velocity curve applied to incoming
MIDI notes.
69 Wave input 0 6 5 Which input to use to control the position in the
wavetable, or '0' for 'None'.
70 Pitch bend
input
0 6 0 The pitch bend input, or “0” for none.
71 Arp reset
input
0 6 0 The input to use as the arpeggiator reset, or “0”
for none. A trigger pulse into this input will
reset the arpeggiator back to step 1.
72 Max voices 1 8 8 Sets the maximum number of simultaneous
voices.
73 LFO retrigger 0 2 0 Sets whether the LFOs are retriggered at note
on. The options are 'Poly' (each voice's LFO
triggers independently), 'Mono' (all LFOs are
retriggered when the first note is played), or
'Off' (LFOs are free-running).
74 LFO spread 0 90 0 Sets the phase to which LFOs are retriggered.
The value, in degrees42, is multiplied by the
voice number to give the initial LFO phase.
When retrigger is off, this sets the phase
relationship between the free-running LFOs.
42 360° per LFO cycle.
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Name Min Max Default Unit Description
75 Gate offset 0 496 0 Offsets (delays) the gate inputs relative to the
pitch inputs. This is useful to allow pitch CVs
to settle before they are sampled on the rising
gate, and also to cope with modules which
output both a pitch and gate but change their
gate first.
Default mappings
Input 3 is mapped to 'Sustain'.
Input 5 is mapped to 'Wave input'.
Input 6 is mapped to 'Filter freq'.
The 'L' knob is mapped to 'Wave offset'.
Output modes
The available values for the 'Output mode' parameter are as follows:
Value Name Description
0 Spread by voice Voices are spread across the stereo field from left to right.
1 Spread by voice 2 Voices are spread across the stereo field in an alternating left/right
manner, by a small amount for voices 1/2, increasing up to voices 7/8.
2 Spread by pitch Voices are spread across the stereo field according to their pitch, with
note 48 at the centre.
3 Per voice Each voice comes out of one output only, as described above.
Tap tempo
When the 'Delay time' parameter is current, pressing the 'R' button acts as a 'tap tempo' function to
set the delay time (instead of resetting the parameter to its default value).
Chords and arpeggiators
The various chord and arpeggiator parameters are exactly the same as those in the SD Multisample
algorithm. Please refer to the documentation of that algorithm, above.
Scala and MTS support
This algorithm's Scala and MTS (MIDI Tuning Standard) parameters are also the same as those for
the SD Multisample algorithm – see above. Unlike the SD Multisample algorithm however, this
algorithm updates its tuning on the fly as you switch between scales/keyboard mappings.
Page 81
11 – Granulator
Videos (playlist)
This algorithm implements a granular synthesis43 engine, taking as its source material either live
audio input or audio loaded from the SD card.
Granular synthesis works by playing many short snippets of sound, or 'grains', typically of the order
of 100ms in length. Often various properties of the grains (e.g. their timing, length, pitch, stereo
panning etc.) are randomised to some extent.
In this algorithm, the creation ('spawning') of grains is controlled by 'notes'. Notes control when
grain clouds begin and end, and affect other features e.g. the grain pitch.
Notes can be played into the engine via CV/gate pairs or MIDI/I2C (exactly as for the module's
other synth engines e.g. the Poly Wavetable). The algorithm also offers three 'drone' voices, which
can simply be enabled via the usual parameter interface. When using the algorithm as an audio
processing effect you're likely to just enable one or more of these drones and leave them on while
manipulating other grain parameters.
As in the other algorithms, you can choose from zero to 3 CV/gate pairs to play notes. Selecting less
CV/gate pairs will allow more inputs to be mapped for CV control of parameters. (The default is
one CV/gate pair.)
The algorithm does nothing until you've recorded some audio into it or loaded some audio from the
SD card.
43 Essential reading on granular synthesis includes Microsound by Curtis Roads,
https://mitpress.mit.edu/books/microsound
Page 82
Stereo mix outputs
Delay mean
Stereo grains outputs
Left input
Pitch CV
Gate
Record
Right input
Delay mean
Two suggested ways of getting started:
1) Connect an audio input, enable Record and enable Drone 1.
2) Connect CV/gate or MIDI, load a sample from the card, and play.
The algorithm also offers a standard delay/echo effect on the output of the granular synthesis
engine. The full signal flow looks like this (depending on the 'Out delay routing' parameter):
or
Algorithm-specific display
The algorithm has a special display mode which shows an overview of the audio waveform in the
buffer, and the positions of the various grains. This is accessed by double-clicking the 'V' knob.
The two dotted vertical lines indicate the range of the buffer that will be played (at normal pitch), as
set by the 'Delay mean' and 'Size mean' parameters. The two numbers are the delay mean and buffer
size, in milliseconds. At the top right is an indicator of whether 'Record' is active.
You can optionally set this mode to appear automatically when the interface is otherwise idle. Do
this via the 'Auto visuals' option under the algorithm's menu. The value is a time in seconds, or zero
to disable this feature.
If you double-click 'V' to exit the visuals display mode, 'Auto visuals' will not apply until you
double-click again to enter the mode.
Another option, 'MIDI leaves visuals', causes the display to automatically revert to the normal
display mode when a parameter change is received via MIDI.
The options are 'Off', 'All' and 'Most'. 'Most' remains in the visuals mode if the MIDI parameter
change affects 'Buffer size', 'Delay mean' or 'Size mean'.
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Outputs
Outputs 1 & 2 present a mix of the input signal and the granulator output.
Outputs 3 & 4 present just the granulator output.
MIDI support
This algorithm recognises note on, note off, and pitch bend messages. It also recognises sustain
(CC# 64) and All Notes Off (CC# 123 value 0), so these CCs are not available for MIDI mapping.
Processing of MIDI notes can be disabled from the algorithm's menu:
The 'Out delay time' parameter can optionally follow MIDI clock. This is also enabled via the
menu:
When following MIDI clock, the parameter page shows 'MIDI', as well as the selected clock
division and the effective time in milliseconds:
Parameters
Name Min Max Default Unit Description
1-6 Attenuverter
1-6
-200 200 100 % Applies an attenuverter to the corresponding
input. A negative value indicates that the CV
will be inverted.
7 Buffer size 100 31250 5000 ms The audio buffer size in milliseconds.
8 Input gain -34 12 0 dB Gain applied to the audio being recorded (does
not affect the dry signal).
'-34' is treated as –∞dB.
9 Dry gain -40 6 0 dB Level of the input signal in the output mix.
'-40' is treated as –∞dB.
10 Effect gain -40 6 0 dB Level of the effect signal (granulator output
plus output delay) in the output mix.
'-40' is treated as –∞dB.
11 Record 0 1 0 Enables recording into the buffer.
12 Spawn mode 0 1 0 How grains are spawned. See below.
13 Rate mean 1 1000 5 ms The average time between new grains being
spawned.
14 Rate spread 0 200 10 % The amount of variation in the spawn rate,
expressed as a percentage of 'Rate mean'.
15 Size mean 2 1000 100 ms The average grain size.
16 Size spread 0 200 10 % The amount of variation in grain size,
expressed as a percentage of 'Size mean'.
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Name Min Max Default Unit Description
17 Pitch mean -24 24 0 ST The average grain pitch shift (in semitones).
18 Pitch spread 0 1200 0 cents The amount of variation in grain pitch shift.
19 Pan mean -100 100 0 % The average grain pan position.
20 Pan spread 0 100 10 % The amount of variation in grain pan.
21 Delay mean 0 100 50 % The average grain delay (equivalently, the
position in the audio buffer), expressed as a
percentage of the buffer size.
22 Delay spread 0 100 5 % The amount of variation in grain delay,
expressed as a percentage of the buffer size.
23 Shape 0 5 0 The grain envelope/window shape. See below.
24 Opacity 0 100 100 % The 'opacity' of a note, which is the percentage
of grains that would normally make up the note
that actually sound.
25 LFO depth -100 100 0 % The depth of the LFO that affects the grain
delay, expressed as a percentage of the buffer
size.
26 LFO speed 0 255 196 The speed of the grain delay LFO. This is
scaled relative to the buffer size – at the default
value of 196 the LFO will cause the 'play head'
(to use a tape metaphor) to advance at 1x
speed.
27 Input
feedback
0 100 0 % The amount of feedback to apply around the
audio buffer itself when recording (resulting in
an echo effect on the input material, with a
delay time equal to the buffer size).
28 Main
feedback
0 100 0 % The amount of the granulator output to feed
back into the audio buffer when recording.
29 Attack time 0 127 64 Envelope attack time. Range 100ms-30s.
30 Release time 0 127 64 Envelope release time. Range 100ms-30s.
31 Env ->
opacity
0 100 100 % The amount by which the note envelope affects
the note opacity.
32 Env -> level 0 100 0 % The amount by which the note envelope affects
the note level (volume).
33 Veloc -> level 0 100 100 % The amount by which the note velocity affects
the note level (volume).
34 Veloc ->
delay
-100 100 0 % The amount by which the note velocity affects
the grain delay.
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Name Min Max Default Unit Description
35 Pitch -> pitch -100 100 100 % The amount by which the note pitch affects the
grain pitch. Commonly this will either be 100%
(normal pitch tracking) or 0% (the incoming
pitch doesn't affect the grain pitch at all, but
may still affect e.g. the grain delay).
36 Pitch -> delay -100 100 0 % The amount by which the note pitch affects the
grain delay.
37 Normalize 0 1 1 If enabled, the overall volume of the grain
cloud is lowered according to how many grains
are active.
38 Natural pitch 0 127 48 ST Sets the natural pitch of the audio i.e. the MIDI
note number that will play back the audio at the
same pitch at which it was recorded.
39 Drone 1 pitch 0 127 48 ST The MIDI note number for drone 1.
40 Drone 2 pitch 0 127 36 ST The MIDI note number for drone 2.
41 Drone 3 pitch 0 127 60 ST The MIDI note number for drone 3.
42-44Drone 1-3
enable
0 1 0 Enables (gates) for the three drones.
45-47Drone 1-3
opacity
0 100 100 % The opacity of the three drones.
48-50Drone 1-3
level
-40 6 0 dB The level (volume) of the three drones.
51 Out delay
mode
0 2 0 The type of the output delay effect: 'Off',
'Stereo' or 'Ping-pong'.
52 Out delay
level
-40 0 -3 dB The level of the output delay effect.
'-40' is treated as –∞dB.
53 Out delay
time
1 2730 500 ms The output delay time, in milliseconds.
or 1 18 5 The output delay time, if following MIDI
clock.
54 Out delay
feedback
0 100 50 % The output delay feedback.
55 Grain limit 1 20 20 Imposes an arbitrary limit on the number of
simultaneous grains.
56 Bend range 0 48 2 ST The MIDI pitch bend range.
57 Sustain mode 0 1 0 Sets the behaviour of the sustain function. The
options are “Synth” (sustained notes cannot be
retriggered) and “Piano” (sustained notes can
be retriggered).
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Name Min Max Default Unit Description
58 Input mode 0 3 1 Sets how many input CV/gate pairs the
algorithm uses. “1” uses inputs 2/4; “2” adds
inputs 1/3; “3” adds inputs 5/6.
59 Mono input 0 1 0 If '0', inputs 5 & 6 are used as a stereo input. If
'1', only input 5 is used, as a mono input
(leaving input 6 free for parameter mapping).
60 Delay mean
input
0 6 1 The CV input to use to control the grain delay.
A CV of 5V corresponds to 100% of the buffer
size.
61 Out delay
routing
0 1 0 Where the output delay appears in the signal
chain. See the diagrams above.
62 Reverse 0 100 0 % Sets the probability that a grain will be played
backwards.
63 Pitch quantize 0 5 0 If set, quantizes the random pitch deviation (the
sum of the 'Pitch mean' and 'Pitch spread') to
musical intervals.
64 LFO shape 0 2 0 Sets the LFO shape. The options are Triangle,
Ramp up, and Ramp down.
Default mappings
Input 1 is the 'Delay mean input'.
Input 3 is mapped to 'Record'.
The 'L' knob is mapped to 'Delay mean'.
The 'L' button is mapped to 'Record'.
Spawn mode
The spawn mode parameter controls the algorithm by which new grains are spawned. The options
are:
• Stochastic (the default): grains are spawned randomly according to the 'Rate mean' and
'Rate spread' parameters.
• Mid-grain: a new grain is spawned at the middle point of the current grain. This is intended
to be used with 'Size spread' at zero and with 'Shape' as 'Equal power', resulting in smooth
crossfade looping, but you are of course free to use it creatively as you wish.
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Shape
The 'Shape' parameter sets the volume envelope (also called 'window' in some of the literature) of
the grains. The options are as follows.
Page 88
Saving/loading WAV files
The Granulator can load WAV files from the MicroSD card into the audio buffer, and can save the
buffer contents as a WAV file.
Files are saved and loaded from the Granulator's own menu, which is accessed by pressing 'P' in the
usual way:
Loading a WAV file
From the Granulator menu, select 'Load' and then either 'Load WAV' or 'Load WAV (raw)'.
You can then navigate to the WAV file that you want to load.
The difference between the two options is that the first will, if necessary, perform sample rate
conversion to maintain the audio's pitch. The second option simply loads frames from the source
file 1:1 into the buffer.
If the file is longer than the maximum buffer size, the rest of the file is ignored.
If the file is stereo, only the left channel is loaded.
The buffer size parameter is automatically set to match the length of the loaded file.
Saving a WAV file
From the Granulator menu, select 'Save':
The contents of the audio buffer will be saved to the MicroSD card as a WAV file, into a folder
named “!GRANUL8”. A unique filename is automatically generated, starting with “GRAN” and
then a number.
The filename is displayed when saving is complete:
Viewing the WAV path
From the Granulator menu, selecting 'View saved path'
will show the path on the SD card of the last WAV file loaded or saved by the algorithm, or
“<none>” if no file is associated with the algorithm. Clearing the buffer and changing the buffer
size both clear the stored WAV path.
If a preset is stored with a saved path, the WAV file will be reloaded automatically when the preset
is loaded.
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Clearing the audio buffer
The 'Clear buffer' menu item under the Granulator menu erases all audio in the buffer.
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12 – Multi FX
Videos (playlist)
This algorithm is a flexible stereo multi-fx processor, offering simultaneous EQ, pitch effects, delay
and reverb44. It also supports a “variable sample rate” feature, allowing you to change (under CV
control if desired) the DSP's internal sample rate, which has a number of creative applications.
Routing
The routing between effects sections is quite flexible, allowing them to be chained in different
orders, or to work in parallel.
In stereo operation, inputs 1 & 2 are the audio inputs. For mono operation, use input 1 and set the
'Mono input' parameter to '1'.
44 Eagle-eyed users may notice some similarities of design to a certain “simultaneous digital effects processor” from
the late '80s.
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Stereo mix outputs
Stereo aux outputs
Reverb time
Right input
Pitch shift
VSR (variable sample rate)
Left input
The EQ section always comes first – it processes the 'dry' input. You have an option as to whether
the pre- or post-EQ signal is considered to be the dry signal for purposes of the output mix (see the
'Dry routing' parameter).
Each of the pitch, delay and reverb sections takes as input a mix of two signals, which you can
choose freely from the pre- or post-EQ dry signals, or the outputs of the other sections.
The output of the algorithm is a mix of the dry signal and the three effect sections.
It should be apparent that this flexibility also allows you to set up feedback loops. In some cases
this can be useful (especially if a delay is involved); other times it will simply create howling
feedback. Route with care.
EQ
The EQ section offers three bands of EQ (in series).
EQ 1 offers 6dB/octave high-pass, 12dB/octave high-pass, or low shelving EQ.
EQ 2 is a peak/notch band with adjustable Q.
EQ 3 offers 6dB/octave low-pass, 12dB/octave low-pass, or high shelving EQ.
Pitch Effects
The pitch effects section provides one of three effects: chorus/flange, phaser, or pitch shift.
For a chorus effect, select a longish 'Chorus delay' with a low 'Chorus depth' and low 'Pitch
feedback'. For a flanger, you want a short 'Chorus delay' and a high 'Chorus depth', and add
feedback to taste.
The 'spread' control applies to the chorus and phaser effects, and sets the phase difference in the
LFOs for the left and right channel. When at the default setting of 180 you get the 'stereo chorus'
effect provided on certain classic synths to generate a stereo output from an essentially mono
source.
Delay
The delay section offers mono, stereo and ping-pong delay effects. In fact, 'mono' is a misnomer
since the signal path is still stereo – but the delay is set by a single parameter for both channels, as
compared to 'stereo' mode where each channel has independent delays.
Each mode comes in two flavours – 'fade' and 'slew'. The difference is in how the delays respond to
changes in delay time. The 'fade' version crossfades between the two times; the 'slew' version gives
a dynamic effect like speeding up or slowing down tape.
Reverb
The reverb section offers a classic algorithmic reverb effect. 'Reverb time' is the primary control,
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and is by default controlled by CV on input 5.
Modulation speed and depth parameters control a chorus-like effect applied within the reverb
echoes.
Variable Sample Rate
By default the algorithm runs at 96kHz, but you can change this (downwards) using the 'VSR'
parameters and CV input. This simulates in software the popular effects achievable in hardware
from devices where the actual physical clock speed of the DSP chip can be controlled.
Modulating the sample rate modulates the effective pitch of audio in the delay & reverb buffers.
Subtle modulations of the sample rate give chorus-like effects. More drastic modulation causes
more drastic effects – for example, jumping the sample rate up & down in octaves causes the reverb
and delay tails to jump in octaves as well.
Changing the sample rate also affects EQ frequencies, and also changes the bandwidth of the audio.
Lowering the sample rate by a fixed couple of octaves, for example, reduces the bandwidth to a
nicely retro 12kHz – while also quadrupling the available delay and reverb times.
The 'Quantize' parameter, if active, limits the pitch changes to those in a musical scale. The options
are the same as in the dual mode 'Quantizer' algorithm.
Outputs
Outputs 1 & 2 present a mix according to parameters 10-15.
Outputs 3 & 4 present an auxiliary output according to parameter 63.
MIDI support
The 'Delay time' and 'Delay time R' parameters can optionally follow MIDI clock. This is enabled
via the algorithm's menu:
When following MIDI clock, the parameter page shows 'MIDI', as well as the selected clock
division and the effective time in milliseconds:
Parameters
Name Min Max Default Unit Description
1-6Attenuverter 1-6-200 200 100 % Applies an attenuverter to the corresponding
input. A negative value indicates that the CV
will be inverted.
7 VSR -80 80 0 ST Sets the variable sample rate, in semitones.
Note that the rate can only go downwards –
positive values here will only have an effect if
a negative CV is being applied.
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Name Min Max Default Unit Description
8 VSR attenuator 0 100 100 % An attenuator for the VSR CV input. You may
need both this and the relevant attenuverter
above to scale down a full-range LFO to a
subtle pitch modulation.
9 Quantize 0 16 0 Sets the scale to quantize the VSR to, or '0' for
'Off'.
10 Dry routing 0 1 0 Sets the dry routing to Pre-EQ or Post-EQ.
11 Dry gain -40 6 0 dB The level of the dry signal mixed into the
output.
12 Effects gain -40 6 0 dB The overall level of the combined effects
signals mixed into the output.
13 Pitch gain -40 6 0 dB The level of the pitch effect mixed into the
output.
14 Delay gain -40 6 0 dB The level of the delay effect mixed into the
output.
15 Reverb gain -40 6 0 dB The level of the reverb mixed into the output.
16 Saturation 0 1 1 Enables saturation on the mix output.
17 EQ 1 type 0 2 2 The type of EQ band 1.
18 EQ 1
frequency
0 127 26 The frequency of EQ band 1.
19 EQ 1 gain -120 120 0 0.1dB The gain of EQ band 1 (only if type is
'Shelving').
20 EQ 2
frequency
0 127 75 The frequency of EQ band 2.
21 EQ 2 Q 0 127 64 The Q (resonance) of EQ band 2.
22 EQ 2 gain -120 120 0 0.1dB The gain of EQ band 2.
23 EQ 3 type 0 2 2 The type of EQ band 3.
24 EQ 3
frequency
0 127 118 The frequency of EQ band 3.
25 EQ 3 gain -120 120 0 0.1dB The gain of EQ band 3 (only if type is
'Shelving').
26 Pitch input 1 0 4 1 Chooses one input to the pitch effect.
27 Pitch input 2 0 4 3 Chooses the other input to the pitch effect.
28 Pitch input mix -100 100 -100 % Sets the mix between pitch effect inputs (-100
is all input 1; 100 is all input 2).
29 Pitch effect 0 2 0 Chooses the pitch effect (chorus, phaser, or
pitch shift).
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Name Min Max Default Unit Description
30 Pitch blend -100 100 100 % Sets the mix at the pitch effect output between
the input signal and the processed signal.
Negative values crossfade between the input
and processed signals; positive values add an
amount of the processed signal to the input
signal.
31 Pitch feedback -100 100 0 % The internal feedback of the pitch effect.
Applies to all three effect modes, though the
effect is different for each.
32 Chorus delay/
Phaser centre
1 853 580 0.1ms The delay time of the chorus effect; OR
the centre frequency of the phaser effect.
33 Chorus speed/
Phaser speed
1 200 40 0.01HzThe LFO speed of the chorus or phaser effect.
34 Chorus depth/
Phaser depth
0 100 15 The LFO depth of the chorus or phaser effect.
35 Chorus spread/
Phaser spread
0 360 180 The stereo spread of the chorus or phaser
effect, in degrees.
36 Pitch shift
delay
1 1000 250 ms The delay time used by the pitch shifter effect.
37 Pitch shift -48 48 0 ST The amount of pitch shifting, in semitones.
38 Pitch shift
(fine)
-100 100 0 cents The amount of pitch shifting, in cents.
39 Delay input 1 0 4 1 Chooses one input to the delay effect.
40 Delay input 2 0 4 2 Chooses the other input to the delay effect.
41 Delay input
mix
-100 100 -100 % Sets the mix between delay effect inputs (-100
is all input 1; 100 is all input 2).
42 Delay mode 0 5 0 Sets the delay mode.
43 Delay time 1 5000 500 ms Sets the delay time, or the left delay time if the
mode is 'stereo'.
or 1 18 5 The delay time, if following MIDI clock.
44 Delay time R 1 5000 500 ms Sets the right delay time if the mode is 'stereo'.
or 1 18 5 The right delay time, if following MIDI clock.
45 Delay feedback 0 100 50 % Sets the delay feedback.
46 Delay mono-
ize
0 100 100 % If the delay mode is 'ping-pong', sets the
amount by which the input signal is reduced to
a mono signal to be panned.
47 Delay initial
pan
-100 100 -100 If the delay mode is 'ping-pong', sets the pan
position of the first delay.
48 Reverb input 1 0 4 1 Chooses one input to the reverb.
49 Reverb input 2 0 4 3 Chooses the other input to the reverb.
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Name Min Max Default Unit Description
50 Reverb input
mix
-100 100 -100 % Sets the mix between reverb inputs (-100 is all
input 1; 100 is all input 2).
51 Reverb model 0 3 1 Chooses the reverb model.
52 Reverb time 400 30000 1000 ms Sets the reverb time.
53 Reverb size 1 100 100 % Sets the size of the reverb space – mainly
affects the times of the early reflections.
54 Reverb high
damp
0 100 60 Sets the amount of high frequency damping in
the reverb tail.
55 Reverb mod
speed
1 500 250 0.01HzSets the speed of reverb modulation.
56 Reverb mod
depth
0 100 25 Sets the depth of reverb modulation.
57 Reverb early
gain
-40 6 -12 dB Sets the output level of the early reflections.
58 Reverb diff
gain
-40 6 -6 dB Sets the output level of the diffuse reflections.
59 Reverb low
pass
0 127 100 Sets the frequency of a first order low-pass
filter applied at the reverb input.
60 Mono input 0 1 0 Sets whether the algorithm input is mono or
stereo.
61 VSR input 0 6 3 Selects which input is used for the VSR CV,
or '0' for 'None'.
62 Pitch shift
input
0 6 4 Selects which input is used for the pitch shift
CV, or '0' for 'None'.
63 Aux outputs 0 4 1 Chooses which effect section's outputs appear
on outputs 3 & 4.
Default mappings
Input 3 is the 'VSR input'.
Input 4 is the 'Pitch shift input'.
Input 5 is mapped to 'Reverb time'.
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13 – Poly Exciter
Videos (playlist)
This algorithm is an 8 voice polyphonic synthesizer, based on the method of exciting a resonant
structure with a burst of audio. It produces results than can sound like a stringed instrument being
plucked/struck.
The 'exciter' can be one of those built into the algorithm itself, a WAV file loaded from the
MicroSD card, or live audio patched into one of the module's inputs.
The algorithm can be played equally well by CV/gate or MIDI. When using CV/gate, the gate
inputs are velocity-sensitive. In 'Strum' mode (see below) the algorithm works particularly well with
aftertouch, and supports using the gate inputs as such.
Delay and chorus effects are built into the algorithm to enhance the overall sound.
Automatic chord generation and arpeggiation are provided.
The outputs can be a stereo or mono mix, or each voice can have its own output.
The algorithm supports microtonal tunings using Scala or MTS – see 'Scala support', above.
What is an 'exciter'?
An exciter is simply a short (up to about half a second) burst of audio, which excites the resonator
into oscillation. The exact timbre of the oscillation, especially early on, depends very much on the
nature of the exciter; as the note rings out, it tends towards a simple, sine-like waveform.
You can use any audio as an exciter – it doesn't have to be specially created. Drum sounds are
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Stereo outputs
Pressure
Mono mix
Tone
Pitch CV
Gate
Sustain
Damping
interesting choices – try a bass drum for a softish sound, or a snare for a sound with a sharp, noisy
attack. Audio files with sharp discontinuities tend to produce very pronounced 'pluck' sounds.
Built-in exciters
Selecting “-1” for the Table parameter lets you choose a built-in waveform for the exciter. The
options are as follows:
Number Name Description
0 Ramp A decaying linear ramp.
1 Noise burst White noise at a constant level.
2 Noise ramp White noise, shaped by a decaying linear ramp.
3 Square Constant maximum amplitude. Gives a strong pluck at the start and the
end of the exciter (so, in Scrape mode, on key down and key up).
4 Silence Silence. Chiefly useful when an external audio signal is being processed.
Exciter files on the MicroSD card
The algorithm contains some built-in exciters (chosen by setting the 'Table' parameter to -1) but
more flexibility and creativity is possible when defining custom exciters. This is done by installing
WAV files on the MicroSD card, in a manner very similar to how wavetables (see below) are
installed.
There are some example exciters available to download here45.
All exciter tables go inside a folder at the top level of the MicroSD card named “exciters”. As with
wavetables, exciter tables can either be a single WAV file, or a folder of individual WAV files, one
per exciter. In either case, the sample rate of the WAV file is ignored, the samples are converted to
16 bit, and only the left channel of stereo files is loaded.
If the exciter table is a single file (directly within the “exciters” folder), it must contain exactly 128
exciters. The exciters can be any length, but they will be truncated at 28672 sample frames if
longer.
If the exciter table is a folder, there can be any number of exciters, but only the first 128 (sorted
alphabetically) will be used. Each exciter is a single WAV file, which can be any length, but only
the first 28672 sample frames will be used.
In either case, exciters of less than 28672 sample frames are padded out with zeroes to the
maximum length.
Processing external audio
Use the 'Ext exciter input' parameter to choose a module input to use when processing external
signals. (Note that all the inputs are mapped to parameters by default, so you'll need to unmap one
of them to free up an input.)
The external audio is used as well as the built-in or MicroSD-sourced exciter. You may wish to
choose the built-in exciter “Silence”.
The external signal does not need to be audio as such – interesting results can be achieved by
feeding in, say, a square LFO, which will give rhythmic plucks at the LFO frequency.
45 https://expert-sleepers.co.uk/distingEXcontent.html
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Algorithm-specific display
For most parameters, the display shows the note numbers being played by the 8 voices, or “--” if a
voice is not playing. On each voice is superimposed a vertical bar representing the voice's current
envelope level. If the Table parameter is current, the bottom line shows the table name. For
parameters which control modulation of the exciter number, the bottom line shows the current
exciter for the last played note.
Outputs
If 'Output mode' is 0, 1 or 2:
• Outputs 1 & 2 are the main stereo outputs.
• Output 4 is a mono mix of outputs 1 & 2.
If 'Output mode' is 3 ('Per voice'):
• Output 1 carries voices 1 & 5.
• Output 2 carries voices 2 & 6.
• Output 3 carries voices 3 & 7.
• Output 4 carries voices 4 & 8.
If you want to guarantee a single voice per output, you can set 'Max voices' to 4.
MIDI support
This algorithm recognises note on, note off, pitch bend, polyphonic key pressure (aka aftertouch),
and channel pressure (aka aftertouch) messages. It also recognises sustain (CC# 64) and All Notes
Off (CC# 123 value 0), so these CCs are not available for MIDI mapping.
Notes received over MIDI (and I2C) use the 'Arpeggio 3 mode' and 'Arpeggio 3 range' parameters,
and are treated as coming from gate 3 for the purposes enabling chord mode per gate.
Processing of MIDI notes can be disabled from the algorithm's menu:
The 'Delay time' parameter can optionally follow MIDI clock. This is also enabled via the menu:
When following MIDI clock, the parameter page shows 'MIDI', as well as the selected clock
division and the effective time in milliseconds:
Parameters
Name Min Max Default Unit Description
1-6 Attenuverter
1-6
-200 200 100 % Applies an attenuverter to the corresponding
input. A negative value indicates that the CV
will be inverted.
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Name Min Max Default Unit Description
7 Mode 0 2 0 See excitation modes, below.
8 Table -1 999 -1 The chosen exciter table loaded from the
MicroSD card, or -1 for the internal table.
9 Exciter 0 127 0 The exciter number within the table.
10 Exciter length 1 597 100 ms The exciter length, in milliseconds.
11 Tone 0 127 50 Sets the tone (brightness) of the resonator.
12 Damp 0 100 4 Sets the amount of damping in the resonator.
13 Release damp 0 100 0 Sets the amount of extra damping added when a
note is released.
14 Pressure 0 127 0 Sets the baseline pressure applied. See
excitation modes, below.
15 Veloc ->
strike
0 100 100 % The amount by which the note velocity affects
the strength of the exciter.
16 Veloc -> tone -100 100 0 % The amount by which the note velocity affects
the tone.
17 Veloc ->
damp
-100 100 0 % The amount by which the note velocity affects
the damping.
18 Veloc ->
exciter
-127 127 0 The amount by which the note velocity affects
the chosen exciter within the table.
19 Pitch -> damp -100 100 0 % The amount by which the note pitch affects the
damping.
20 Pitch ->
exciter
-100 100 0 % The amount by which the note pitch affects the
chosen exciter within the table.
21 Pitch -> LPF -100 100 0 % The amount by which the note pitch affects the
low pass filter.
22 Press ->
exciter
-127 127 0 The amount by which pressure affects the
chosen exciter within the table.
23 Env -> pitch -120 120 0 The amount by which the envelope affects the
note pitch (in units of 1/10th semitones).
24 Env -> exciter -127 127 0 The amount by which the envelope affects the
chosen exciter within the table.
25 LFO -> pitch -200 200 0 cents The amount by which the LFO affects the note
pitch.
26 LFO ->
exciter
-127 127 0 The amount by which the LFO affects the
chosen exciter within the table.
27 LFO speed -100 100 90 The LFO speed. Range 0.01Hz-10Hz.
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