FXpansion DCAM Synth Squad Quick Start Guide

Contents

4 Installing DCAM: Synth Squad: Mac OSX 10.5 or above

6 Installing DCAM: Synth Squad: Windows XP or later

8 Authorizing DCAM: Synth Squad

8 Starting the authorization

8 Introduction to License Manager

10 Authorizing a product

11 Option 1. Online authorization

12 Option 2. Authorization via your Web browser

14 Option 3. Authorizing via a different computer

15 Other functions in the License Manager application

15 Possible problems during authorization

16 After installation and authorization

16 Learning how to use DCAM: Synth Squad

16 Software updates and technical support

17 Introduction to using DCAM: Synth Squad

18 DCAM: Synth Squad interface basics

18 Using presets

20 Using DCAM: Synth Squad controls

20 Modulation in DCAM: Synth Squad: the TransMod system

21 Using controls with a TransMod slot selected

22 Other types of controls in DCAM: Synth Squad

22 Voices and Unison voices

23 Parameter context menu

23 On-screen keyboard and performance controllers

24 Assigning performance controllers (Perf1 and Perf2)

25 Using MIDI Learn

26 Strobe

28 Cypher

32 Amber

34 Fusor

36 Getting started with Fusor

36 Loading synths

36 Adding FX to a synth channel

37 Layering synths

37 Setting up a reverb as an Aux

38 Splitting 3 synths across the keyboard

40 Using Animator as an arpeggiator

42 Using Animator as a note step-sequencer

44 Credits

44 DCAM Synth Squad Licence Conditions

Installing DCAM: Synth Squad

Mac OSX 10.5 or above

1. Insert the DCAM: Synth Squad installer disc and open the new DVD image that mounts to your desktop.

2. Double-click on the

Install DCAM Synth Squad package.

3. You may need to enter an administrator password to proceed.

4. You must read and agree to the license conditions in order to continue.

When you have ticked the

‘I agree...’ checkbox, click the Next button.

5. Installation will now

commence.

6. The installer asks if you want to check for updates at our website.

We highly recommend

using the very latest version of DCAM: Synth Squad, as it is constantly being updated for optimum performance.

7. Click the Done button to

complete the installation.

You are now ready to authorize DCAM: Synth Squad. Turn to page 8 for authorization instructions.

Installing DCAM: Synth Squad

Windows XP or later

1. Insert the DCAM: Synth Squad installer disc and open the DVD if it does not open automatically.

2. Double-click on DCAM Synth Squad.exe.

If Windows asks you

for conﬁrmation at any stage, please choose to proceed!

3. You must read and agree

to the license conditions in order to continue.

When you have ticked the

‘I agree...’ checkbox, click the Next button.

4. You now need to specify

the location of your VSTplugins folder.

Install

The installer tries to

detect your VST folder automatically. If you require a different location for the VST plugin components, click the Browse button to navigate to and select another location. Click Next to continue.

5. You can now decide

whether you do not want the installer to create application shortcuts on the Desktop or the Start menu.

Un-tick any checkboxes

as necessary, and then click Next.

6. Installation will now commence.

7. The installer asks if you

want to check for updates at our website.

We highly recommend using the very latest version of DCAM: Synth Squad, as it is constantly being updated for optimum performance.

8. Click the Done button to complete the installation.

You are now ready to authorize DCAM: Synth Squad. Turn to page 8 for authorization instructions.

Authorizing DCAM: Synth Squad

Starting the authorization

The best way to authorize DCAM: Synth Squad is using the supplied standalone applications. These are found in your Applications folder (Mac) or in C:\Program Files\ FXpansion\<instrument> (Windows) – for example, C:\Program Files\FXpansion\Strobe. See Appendix 1 of the operation manual PDF for more details of the standalone apps.

You only need to authorize one instrument to authorize the whole of DCAM: Synth Squad. Run the Strobe, Amber, Cypher or Fusor standalone applications – when the instrument detects it is not yet authorized, it runs License Manager automatically.

Introduction to License Manager

The License Manager application is used to manage licenses and authorizations for DCAM: Synth Squad and other FXpansion software products, such as BFD2 and its expansion packs.

The computer on which you want to use the product does NOT need to be on the internet. To use our products, you need to authorize them to be run on your computer. You can

authorize your products in 3 ways:

• With License Manager and an internet connection on the same computer

• With License Manager and an internet connection on a different computer

• Using a web browser and a generated Authorization Request ﬁle, on the same or a different computer

Note: Authorization ﬁles generated from an Authorization Request ﬁle are unique to a

single computer. An Authorization ﬁle is only valid on the computer that created the Authorization Request ﬁle.

Enter your serial number

When License Manager runs, it may ﬁrst prompt you for your product serial number. If it does so, type in your serial number, hit ENTER and then click the OK button.

Each time License Manager runs, it performs a quick scan of installed FXpansion products to check their license status. This can take a few moments so please be patient.

Running License Manager manually

When DCAM: Synth Squad launches and detects it has not yet been authorized, it automatically runs or prompts you to run License Manager.

You can also run License Manager manually at any time from the following locations: Mac OS X: Applications/FX License Manager Windows: Start • Programs • FXpansion • License Manager

or: C:\Program Files\FXpansion\LicenseManager

Authorizing a product

To begin authorizing a product, click the Authorize and

Activate button.

At this point, you may be prompted for the product serial number. If so, type in the serial number, hit ENTER and then press the OK button.

You will be asked to choose an authorization method from the following:

1. Online, automatically

The quickest and easiest way of getting your software authorized.

It requires that your computer be connected to the Internet directly or via a transparent (non-Proxy) ﬁrewall.

2. Via your Web browser

Uses your Web browser for authorization. It is intended for aggressively ﬁrewalled or proxy-

based internet connections – this is often the case in the workplace or at academic institutions.

3. Via another computer

Generates an Auth Request ﬁle, which can be used to obtain an Authorization ﬁle on a separate internet enabled computer.

The Authorization ﬁle is then used to authorize the original machine.

Option 1. Online authorization

1. To begin authorizing online, choose Online, automatically as the authorization method.

2. On the next page, you are prompted for your FXpansion web site user name &

password. Enter the details and go to step 4.

3. If you don’t have an account, click Create a new account on the right; if you’ve forgotten

your details or you aren’t sure if you have an account, click the link at the bottom.

The Create a new account button opens your Web browser to a short form on our Web site.

Once you’ve created an account, return to the License Manager and log in with your new details.

4. The License Manager connects to our server. If it cannot connect, it reports an

error message. This is either because our server is down (please try later) or there is a ﬁrewall block or fault with your internet connection (try the Via your Web browser authorization method).

5. Once the License Manager

has logged in, you are given a conﬁrmation screen detailing the product that is about to be authorized, its serial number and your user account name.

Click Request Authorization

– the authorization process completes, and, all being well, your software is ready to use!

Option 2. Authorization via your Web browser

1. To authorize via your Web browser, choose Via your Web

browser as the authorization method.

2. License Manager creates an Authorization Request ﬁle on your desktop – for example,

“DCAM Synth Squad.AuthRequest” – and prompts you to launch your Web browser.

Note: If your browser fails to launch, you should launch it manually and point it to:

www.fxpansion.com/authorize

3. You are now be prompted to

4. Once you’ve logged in, or

created an account and then logged in, you are prompted to select the Authorization Request ﬁle. Click the Browse... button, and, when the ﬁle dialog pops up, navigate to and choose the

Authorization Request ﬁle that was created on the desktop by License Manager earlier. Then click the Submit button – the server now processes your authorization request. If the process is successful, you are prompted to download the Authorization ﬁle

– choose Save to Disk and save it to your desktop (if you are using Mac OSX Leopard,

downloaded ﬁles go to the Users/<user>/Downloads folder).

5. Close your web browser and return to the License

Manager application. On the main screen, click Import an

existing authorization ﬁle.

6. Select the Authorization ﬁle you just downloaded, (it ends in “.Auth”). The License

Manager imports the Authorization ﬁle, and your software is now authorized and ready

to use.

Note: The ﬁle you need to import is the one you downloaded from your web browser

(ending in “.Auth”), NOT the ﬁle that License Manager generated earlier on the desktop (ending in “.AuthRequest”).

Option 3. Authorizing via another computer

This method should only be used if the machine on which you need to authorize your software does not have an internet connection.

1. To authorize via another computer, choose Via another

computer as the authorization method.

2. License Manager creates an Authorization Request ﬁle on your desktop – for example,

“DCAM: Synth Squad.AuthRequest”.

3. You need to take this ﬁle to an internet-connected computer (via local network, ﬂoppy

disk, thumb drive, CDR, Zip disk etc.). A small USB thumb drive can be purchased for around $10 at any electronics retailer

and is ideal for this.

4. Once you are at in front of an internet-connected computer, you have one of two options

for generating the Authorization ﬁle:

• Using License Manager

Download License Manager from:

www.fxpansion.com/authorize

Install License Manager on your internet-connected

computer, run it and choose Authorize a different computer. You are prompted to select the Authorization Request ﬁle – choose the ﬁle on your

thumb drive (or ﬂoppy, etc.), and then follow steps 2-5 on page 11.

When the process completes, an Authorization ﬁle is generated on your desktop. You

now need to copy this ﬁle to your thumb drive (or ﬂoppy, etc.), and take it back to your

non-internet-connected machine.

+ 32 hidden pages