Novation Peak Users Manual

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Novation A division of Focusrite Audio Engineering Ltd. Windsor House Turnpike Road Cressex Business Park High Wycombe Buckinghamshire HP 12 3FX United Kingdom

Tel: +44 1494 462246 Fax: +44 1494 459920 e-mail: sales@novationmusic.com Web: http://www.novationmusic.com

Trade marks

The Novation trade mark is owned by Focusrite Audio Engineering Ltd. All other brand ,product and company names and any other registered names or trade marks mentioned in this manual belong to their respective owners.

Disclaimer

Novation has taken all possible steps to ensure that the information given here is both corre ct and complete. I n no event can Novatio n accept a ny liability or re sponsibility for any loss or damage to the owner of the equi pment, any third party, or any equipment which may result from use of this manu al or the equipment which it describes. The information provided in this document may be modiﬁed at any time without prior warning. Speciﬁcations and appearance may differ from those listed and illustrated.

Novation is a registered tr ade mark of Focusrite Audio Engineering Limited. Peak and New Oxford Oscillator are trade marks of Focusrite Audio Engineering Limited.

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CONTENTS

COPY RIGHT AND LEGAL NOTICES ............................................2

INTRODUCTION..............................................................4

Key Features .............................................................4

About T his Manual ........................................................4

What’s in the box .........................................................4

Registering your Novation Peak .............................................4

Power Requirements ......................................................4

HARDWARE OVERVIEW ......................................................5

Top Panel ................................................................5

Controls, section by section..........................................5

Rear Panel ...............................................................8

GETTING STARTED...........................................................9

Menu Navigation.........................................................11

Loading Patches .........................................................11

Saving Patches ..........................................................11

Basic Operation – sound modiﬁc ation ......................................12

The OLED display................................................. 12

Parameter adjustment .............................................12

The Filter knob.................................................... 12

Pitch and Mod wheels . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12

The Arpeggiator ..................................................12

MIDI control...................................................... 12

The Animate Buttons .............................................. 12

SYNTHESIS TUTORIAL.......................................................13

PEAK: SIMPLIFIED BLOCK DIAGRAM .........................................17

PEAK IN DETAI L . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .17

The Oscillator Section ....................................................17

Wave............................................................ 17

Pitch ............................................................ 18

Pitch Modulation.................................................. 18

Shape ........................................................... 18

The Oscillator Menu............................................... 18

The LFO Section.........................................................20

LFO Waveform ...................................................20

LFO Rate ........................................................20

LFO Fade Time ...................................................20

The LFO Menu ................................................... 20

The Mixer Section........................................................22

The Envelopes Section ...................................................22

The Envelopes Menu ..............................................23

The Filter Section ........................................................24

Filter type........................................................ 24

Frequency ....................................................... 24

Resonance....................................................... 24

Filter modulation..................................................24

Filter tracking..................................................... 25

Overdrive ........................................................25

The Modulation Matrix ....................................................26

Glide ...................................................................27

Voices..................................................................27

The Arpeggiator .........................................................29

Arp data transmission .............................................29

The Arp/Clock Menu .............................................. 29

The Effects Section ......................................................31

Distortion ........................................................31

Chorus .......................................................... 31

Delay............................................................ 31

Reverb .......................................................... 31

The FX Menu .....................................................31

The Set tings Menu .......................................................33

APPENDIX ..................................................................36

System Updates using Novation Components................................36

Patch import vi a SysEx....................................................36

Sync values tables .......................................................36

Arp/Clock Sync Rate..............................................36

Delay Sync Rate ..................................................36

LFO Sync Rate ................................................... 36

Init Patch – parameter table ...............................................37

Modul ation Matrix – sources ...............................................38

Modulation Matrix – destinations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .38

MIDI parameters list ......................................................38

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INTRODUCTION

Tips

Thank you for purchasing this Peak eight voice polyphonic desktop synthesiser, the best sounding synth Novation has eve r made. Pe ak evolved from an initial concept of a polyphonic version of the Bass Station II analogue synth, but we decided on a radically new approach to sound generation, and developed the New Oxford Oscillators. These Numerically Controlled Oscillators (NCOs) combine the enormous ﬂexibility afforded by digital control with the organic warmth expected from an analogue synth.

As well as superlative sound quality, Peak gives you a great set of specially-created presets and some equally exciting effects. Peak can be used in the studio or on stage with the MIDI controller of your choice, be it a keyboard, DAW or with a pad controller such as the Novation Launchpad P ro. It has a CV (Control Voltage) Input to let you interface with Eurorack and other CV-capable synths you may a lready have.

NOTE: Peak is capable of generating audio with a large dynamic range, the extremes of which c an cause damage to l oudspeakers or other components, and also to your hearing!

Key Features

• FPGA-based Numerically Controlled Oscillators running at 24 MHz generate waveforms indistinguishable from those produced by analogue oscillators

• Eight-voice polyphony

• Three multi-waveform oscillators per voice

• Waveform shaping on all waveform types

• Analogue signal path – ﬁlters, distortions, VCA

• Traditional, dedicated function rotary controls

• LP/BP/ HP ﬁlter with variable slope, resonance, overdrive and modulation options

• Two independent LFO sections

• Separate Amp and Mod Envelope sections with ADSR fader controls

• Ring Modulator (inputs: Oscs 1 and 2)

• Versatile arpeggiator with wide range of patterns

• Glide (portamento) with dedicated time control

• Pre-loaded with 256 brand new Patches

• Memory for 256 additional User Patches

• Two Animate buttons for adding spot effects in live performance

• Powerful effects: distortion, delay, chorus and reverb

• Class-compliant USB port (no drivers required), patch dump and MIDI

• OLED display for patch selection and parameter adjustment

• External DC input (for supplied AC PSU)

• External CV input for integration with other analogue equipment

• Headphone output

• Supports any two pedals – sustain or expression

• Kensington Security Slot

• Optional stand available

About This Manual

We’ve tried to make this manual a s helpful as possible for all types of user, and this inevitably means that more experienced users will want to sk ip over certain parts of it, while those with a bit less synth experience will want to avoid cer tain parts of it until they’re conﬁdent they’ve mastered the basics. A s with other Novation synthesiser User Guides, we’ve included a “Synthesis Tutorial” (see page 13) which explains the principles of sound generation and treatment that are the foundation of all synthesisers. We think this will be of help and interest to all users.

There a re a few general points that are useful to k now before you continue reading this manual. We’ve adopted some graphical conventions within the text, which we hope all types of user will ﬁnd helpful in navigating through the information to ﬁnd what they need to know quickly:

These do what it says on the tin : we include bits of advice, relevant to the topic being disc ussed that should simplify setting up Peak to do what you want. It’s not mandator y that you follow them, but generally they should make life easier.

Extra Info

These are additions to the text that will be of interest to the more advanced user and can generally be avoided by the less experienced. They are intended to provide a clariﬁcation or explanation of a particular area of operation.

What’s in the box

Your Peak synthesiser has been carefully packed in the factory and the pack aging was designed to withstand rough handling. Should the unit appear to have been damaged in transit, do not discard any of the packing material and notify your music dealer.

If practical, save all the packing materials in case you ever need to ship the unit again.

Please check the list below against the contents of the packaging. If any items are missing or damaged, contact the Novation dealer or distributor where you purchased the unit.

• Peak synthesiser

• DC power supply unit (PSU)

• USB cable, A-type to B-type, 1.5 m

• Safety information sheet

• “Getting Started” Guide, also providing online access to:

• Loopmasters Sample Content

• Ableton Live Lite

Registering your Novation Peak

It is important to register your Peak online at novationmusic.com/register, using the information provided in the Getting Started Guide. This will allow you to download the additional software that you are entitle d to as a Peak owner from your Novation account.

Power Requirements

Peak is shipped w ith an external 12 V DC, 1 A power supply. This is a “universal” type, and will operate on all mains voltages between 100 V and 240 V.

The centre pin of the coaxial connector is the positive (+ve) side of the supply. Pe ak must be powered by the supplied AC -to-DC mains adaptor.

Your Peak will be supplied with the a versi on of the PSU appropriate to your territory. In some countries the PSU comes with detachable adaptors; in this case, use the one that ﬁts your country’s AC outlets. When powering Peak with the mains PSU, please ensure that your loc al AC supply is within the range of voltages required by the adaptor – i.e., 100 to 240 VAC - BEFORE you plug it into the mains.

We strongly recommend that you only us e the supplied PSU. Using alternative PSUs will invalidate your warranty. Power supplies for your Novation product can be purchased from your music dealer if you have lost yours.

Abbreviations, conventions, etc.

Where top panel controls or rear panel connectors are referred to, we’ve used a number

thus: 1 to cross-refer ence to the top panel diagram , and thus : 1 to cross-reference to the rear panel diagram. (See page 5 and page 8).

We’ve used B OLD TEXT (or Bold Text) to na me top panel controls or rear panel connectors; we’ve made a point of using exactly the same names as appear on Peak itself. We’ve used Dot Matrix text to illustrate text and numbers that appear on the top panel display.

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HARDWARE OVERVIEW

Top Pan el

Peak’s control surface is divided logically into functional areas, with signal generation and treatment broadly following a left-to-right sequence.

PATCH LFO 1

MASTER

ANIMATE

OSCILLATOR 1

OSCILLATOR 2

OSCILLATOR 3

• PATC H – load and save Patches

• OSCILLATOR 1 – Primary sound generator

• OSCILLATOR 2 – Primary sound generator

• OSCILLATOR 3 – Primary sound generator

• LFO 1 – low frequency oscillator, modulates ﬁlter and oscillator Shape

• LFO 2 – low frequency oscillator, modulates the pitch of Oscs 1, 2 & 3

• MIXER – sums oscillator waveforms, ring modulator output and noise

• AMP ENVE LOPE – controls how signal amplitude varies with time

• MOD ENVELOPES – controls how other synth parameters vary over time

• GLIDE – enables a glide between successive notes

• ARP – arpeggiator function generates note patterns

• FILTER – modiﬁes frequency content of signal

• EFFECTS – adds distortion, echo, reverb and chorus effects to overall sound

• MENU – 4 x 20 character display for Patch selection and extended parameter control

• ANIMATE – momentary buttons for instant sound modiﬁcation

ARPMENU LFO 2

GLIDE

AMP

ENVELOPE

MIXERFILTEREFFECTS

Controls, section by section

PATC H:

MOD ENVELOPES

CHORUS DISTORTION

DELAY

REVERB

Initialise – pre ss this button to reset all synth param eters to the default values of the

1 Initial Patch – se e “Init Patch – parameter table” on page 37 for a list. This prov ides a rapid way getting back to a bare “star ting point” for fresh sound creation.

Compare – press (and hold) this button to hear an “unmodiﬁed” version of the

2 currently loaded Patch. This allows you to com pare the origina l version with the effects of any tweaking that you’ve done since loading it.

Audition – press to hear the current synth sound even without a keyboard (or other

3 controller) connected. The note played will always be middle C ( C3) . This corresponds to MIDI note number 60.

Save – use in conjunction with Patch keys 6 to save modiﬁed Patches in me mory.

Patch select – use this rotary control to select a Patch, or a different memory loc ation

5 in which to save a modiﬁed Patch or new sound.

Patch +/- – these buttons provide an alternative method of scrolling through Patches.

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OSCILLATORS:

MIXER:

7 8 9 10 11 12 14 13

The three Oscillators have identical sets of controls. All have further parameters available for adjustment via the menu system; these are described in det ail later in the User Guide.

Range – steps through the oscillator’s base pitch ranges. For standard concert pitch

(A3 = 440 Hz), set to 8’.

Coarse – adjusts the pitch of the selected oscillator over a range of ±1 octave.

Fine – adjusts the oscillator pitch over a range of ±100 cents (±1 semitone) .

Wave – steps through th e range of available oscillator waveforms – sine, triangular,

sawtooth, pulse and more (the menu offers various additional waveforms for more).

Mod Env 2 D epth – controls the degree by which the oscillator pitch changes a s a

11 result of modulation by Envelope 2. A ll Modulation Depth controls are “centre-zero” and thus both pitch increases and decreases can be obtained.

LFO 2 Dep th – controls the degree by which the oscillator p itch changes as a result of

12 modulation by LF O 2. Pitch c hanges are bi-polar (up and down ); uni-p olar pitch modulation is available by the use of the Modulation Matri x.

Source – this button se lects a source for further variati on of the waveform sha pe. The

13 options are: mo dulation by Envelope 1 (Mod Env 1), modulation by LFO 1 ( LFO 1) or manual control by the Shape Amount control 14.

Shape Amount – controls fur ther modiﬁcations of the waveform shape, and is active

14 for all wave shapes. With pulse waves, it adjusts the pulse width; with sine, triangle and sawtooth waves, it makes subtle changes to the wave shape . When more is selected by the Wave switch 10, the control selects dif ferent areas of th e wavetable. When S ource

is set to Mod Env 1 or LFO 1, it acts as a Modulation Depth control. N ote that the

13 wave shape may be modulated by more than one source simultaneously, by differing amounts.

Osc 1 – controls level of Oscillator 1’s waveform.

Osc 2 – controls level of Oscillator 2’s waveform

Osc 3 – controls level of Oscillator 3’s waveform

Ring 1* 2 – controls the Ring Modulator output level: the inputs to the Ring M odulator

are Osc 1 and Osc 2.

Noise – controls how much white noise is added.

VCA Gain – this effectively controls the mixer output level : it adjusts the signal level

between the Amp Envelope and Effects sections. See page 17.

AMP ENVELOPE, MOD ENVELOPES:

All three envelopes have further parameters available for adjustment via the menu syste m; these are described in detail later in the User Guide.

LFO 1 & LFO 2 :

15 16 17 18

The two LFOs have identical sets of controls . Both have further parameters available for adjustment via the menu system; these are de scribed in detail later in the User Guide. The outputs of either LFO may be used to modulate numerous other synth pa rameters.

Type – steps through the available wavefor ms: triangle, sawtooth, square, sample and

15 hold. T he associated LEDs give a visual indication of the LFO s peed and waveform.

Fade Time – sets the timing of the LFO’s action: it is possible to “ramp” th e LFO up or

16 down or to delay its ef fect. T he options are set in the LFO me nu.

Range – selects High or Low; the third option is Sync, which synchronises the LFO

17 frequency to the internal a rp clock or to an exte rnal MIDI clock if one is present..

Rate – sets LFO frequency.

Amp Enve lope controls – a set of four 30 mm s liders adjusting the standard ADSR

parameters (Attack , Decay, Sustain and Release) of the amplitude envelope.

Mod Envelope controls – an i dentic al set of sliders, adjusting the parameter s of the two

modulation envelopes (see 27 below).

Select – Peak generates two ind ependent Mod Envelopes ; this button selects which

of these (Mod 1 or Mod 2) the Mod Envelope sli ders 26 control.

GLIDE:

Time – sets the portamento glide time.

On – enables/disables the Glide function.

ARP:

The Arpeggiator has fur ther parameters available for adjustment via the menu system ; these include basic set tings such as BPM, pattern selection and octave range. The se are descr ibed in detail later in the User Guide.

On – turns the Arpeggiator on and off.

Key Latc h – when the A rpeggiator is running, pressing Key Latch simulates the effect

of holding the keys down continuously, until the keys are released.

Gate – sets the basic duration of the notes played by the A rpeggiator.

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FI LTE R:

REVERB: Type – emulates spaces of three different sizes: 3 is the largest.

REVERB: Level – controls the “amount” of reverberation.

CHORUS: Rate – adjusts the rate of chorus modulation.

CHORUS: Type – lets you select one of three different chorus algorithms.

CHORUS: Level – controls the degree of chorus effect.

EFFECTS: Bypass – the three time-doma in effects may be sw itched in or out with

this button.

MENU:

Shape – steps through the three types of ﬁlter: low-pass ( LP), band-pass (BP) or

high-pass (HP).

Slope – sets the slope of ﬁlter to either 12dB or 24dB per octave.

Frequency – large rotary knob controlling the ﬁlter’s cut-off frequency (LP or H P), or

its centre frequency (BP).

Resonance – adds resonance (an increased response at the ﬁlter frequency) to the

ﬁlter characteristic.

Overdrive – adds a degree of pre-ﬁlter distortion to the mixer output.

Source – selects whether the ﬁlter is to be varied by Mod Envelope 1 (Mo d Env 1) or

the Amp Envelope (Amp Env).

Env dept h – controls the degree by which the ﬁlter frequency is modiﬁed by the

envelope selected by Source 38.

LFO 1 depth – contro ls the degree by which the ﬁlter frequency is modiﬁed by LFO 1.

Osc 3 Filt er Mod – allows the ﬁlter frequency to be modulated directly by Oscillator 3.

Key Tracking – controls the degree by which the keyboard position of the note being

played varies the ﬁlter frequency b etween 0 and 100%

EFFECTS:

Peak’s Effects section comprises three different DSP-based processors producing timedomain effects, plus an analogue distortion generator.

The Delay, Reverb and Chorus effects have fur ther parameter s available for adjustment via the menu system; these are described in detail later in the User G uide.

20 character x 4 row OLED disp lay. Displays one of the nine menus selected by the

buttons 56. Pages within each menu may be selected with the two Page/ Select buttons below the display. Adjusti ng any of Peak’s rotary controls (except MASTER and PATC H) invokes a n alternative display showing the value of the parameter being adjusted until the control is released . The three buttons to the lef t of the display assign the parameter controls 57 to a particular row of the pag e being displayed.

Nine buttons selecting the menu to be displayed: Patch, Osc , Env, LFO, Arp/Clock,

Mod, Voice, FX and Settings.

Param eter adjustment may either be made rapidly by th e rotary control or incremented /

decremented one parameter value at a time with the Valu e + / Value - buttons.

Active Voice – eight LEDs, indicating which of the eight voices are currently active.

AN IMAT E:

51 52

4544

48 49

DISTORTION: Level – controls the amount of analogue distortion applied to the sum

of all eight voice s.

DE LAY: T im e – sets the timing of the delayed signal (echo) added to the original.

Maximum delay is approx. 1.4 seconds.

DE LAY: S yn c – selecting Sync allows the delay time to be synchronised to the internal

clock or an incoming MIDI clock.

DELAY: Feedback – allows the delayed signal to be fed back to the input of th e delay

processor, creating multiple echoes.

DE LAY: L ev el – controls the volume of the del ayed signal.

REVERB: Time – adjusts reverberation decay time. (The maximum time is longer than

you’ll ever be likely to need! )

AN IMAT E 1 and 2 – add an “instant” effect to the sound currently being generated.

59 These buttons are great in live per formance: the nature of the extra effect will be determined by the Patch in use.

Hold – press ing Hold will “lock” th e Animate function in an “On” state. You can either

60 press Hold before pressing ANIM ATE , or vice-versa. Pressing A NIM ATE a second time relea ses both the Animate and Hold functions.

MASTER:

Volume – master volume control for the synth’s audio output; this also controls the

61 headphones output level.

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Rear Panel

+12V DC – connect the supplied PSU here.

POWER – on /off switch.

– standard USB 2.0 or 3.0 por t. Connect to a Type A USB port on a c omputer

using the supplied cable. Note that the USB port only carries MIDI data, not audio.

MIDI IN, OUT and THRU – standard 5-pin DIN MIDI sockets for connecting Peak to a

keyboard or other MIDI-equipped hardware.

PEDAL 1 and PEDA L 2 – two 3-pole (TRS) ¼” jack sockets for connection of switch (e.g., sustain) and/or expression pedals. The sockets detect switch pedal polarity automatically. Expression pedals are also detected automatica lly and can be routed directly as sources available to the Modulation Matrix. Switch pedal functi ons are conﬁgured in the Settings menu.

CV MOD I N – 3.5 mm jack socket for connecting an external Control Voltage source in the range of +/-5 V. This permits other a nalogue instruments (equipped with a compatible CV output) to modulate Peak’s sounds.

OUTPUTS – two ¼” 3-pole (TRS) jack sockets carrying Peak’s output signal. Use both L/MONO and RIGHT for full stereo: if RIGHT is unconnected, a mono (L+ R) sum is available at L/MONO. Outputs are pseudo-balanced.

HEADPHONES – 3-pole (TRS) ¼” jack socket for stereo headphone s. Phones volume i s adjusted by the VOLU ME control 61.

Kensington Security Slot – to secure your synth.

1 2 9

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G E T TIN G S TAR T E D

Peak may, of course, be used simply as a standalone synthesiser with a mas ter keyboard connected to its MIDI IN socket. However, there are m any more possibilities , and how you choose to integrate it into your existing synth /recording setup will be determined by the other equipment you have and your own imagination!

Below are three examples illustrating how Peak could form part of a synth setup. We’ve used Novation or Focusrite products throughout (we would, wouldn’t we? ), but of course you can use whatever equipment you have in your system provided it’s functionally equivalent, of course. Note: for clarit y, we’ve omit ted audio signal paths from the diagrams.

Example 1

Euroack

Computer

LFO OUT

MIDI IN

Novation Bass

Station II

Here you could use a pad controller such as the Novation Circuit to trigger sounds both in Peak and another synth such as a Novation Bass Station II. An ex ternal modular LFO in a Eurorack could be used to modulate one or more parameters in Peak via the CV connection. A ll MID I data gets recorded in the DAW via USB connections.

Euroack

MIDI THRU

CV IN

Novation

Peak

Example 2

USB

MIDI IN

USBUSB

Computer

MIDI OUT

Novation

Circuit

LFO OUT

MIDI IN

Novation Bass

Station II

In the second example, a Launchpad Pro in stand-al one mode r eplaces the Circuit. This would permit Peak to be played directly from the Launch pad Pro, t aking advantage of its polyphonic aftertouch capability.

MIDI THRU

CV IN

Novation

Peak

USBUSB

MIDI IN

MIDI OUT

Novation

LaunchPad Pro

Page 10

Euroack

Example 3

Computer

USB

Novation

Launchkey

LFO OUT

USB

Eurorack

MIDI IN

Novation Bass

Station II

In this example, a Focusrite Clarett audio interface is used to enable “real-world” instruments to be record ed in the DAW as well as synth sounds . A keyboard controller is used to tr igger both Peak and a second synth, such as a Bass Station II, with the Clarett conver ting MIDI data sent from the computer via a Thunderb olt link to c onventional MI DI data.

The sim plest and quickest way of ﬁnding out what Peak can do is to connect the re ar panel outputs powered speaker or other means of monitoring the output.

If using Peak with other sound modules, connect MI DI THR U module’s MIDI IN, and daisy-chain fur ther modules in the usual way. If using Peak with a master keyboard, connect the master keyboard’s MIDI OUT to MIDI IN on Peak , and ensure that the master keyboard is set to transmit on MIDI channel 1 (the synth’s default channel).

– in either mono or stereo - to the input of a power ampli ﬁer, audio mixer,

to the nex t sound

Audio Out Mono

THUNDERBOLT

Focusrite ClarettFocusrite Clarett

AUDIO I/O

MIDI THRU

CV IN

USBUSB

MIDI IN

MIDI OUT

MIDI IN

Novation

Peak

With the ampliﬁ er or mixer off or muted, connect the AC adaptor to Peak into the AC mains. Turn the synth on : after completing its boot sequence, Peak will load Patch 000, and the LCD display will conﬁrm thi s:

Utopian Streams 1/1 Patch 000 H Bank A Category All

“Utopian Streams” is the name of the factory Patch in Bank A, memory location 000.

Turn on the mixer/ampliﬁe r/powered speakers, a nd turn up the Volume control 61 until you have a healthy sound level from the speaker when you play.

Using headphones

Instead of a speaker and /or an audio mixer, you may wish to use a pair of headphones. These may be plugged into the rear panel headphone output socket are still active when headphones are plugged in. The Volume control 61 also adjusts headphone level.

. The main outputs

, and plug it

USB

MIDI IN

Master Keyboard

MIDI OUT

Sound Modules

NOTE: Peak’s headphone ampliﬁer is capable of outputting a high signal level; please take care when setting the volume.

Headphones

Page 11

Menu Navigation

LFO 2 4/6

SAVE RENAME 1/3

SAVE LOCATION 2/3

Utopian Streams

Although most of the key parameters affecting the nature of the sound Peak generates are immediately accessible through dedicated, “per-function” rotary controls and switches, many further parameters and synth settings can be modiﬁe d using the OLED display and its associated controls.

Peak’s menu system has been designed to be as simple and consistent as possible. T he eight buttons above the display 56, plus Patch, select one of nine menus. Each menu ha s multiple pages: use the Page/Select buttons to scroll through the pages in sequence.

On each p age, Row 1 is a “title” row and stays ﬁxed. Rows 2, 3 and 4 each displ ay a parameter for modiﬁcation; some pages do not have all data in all rows. Use the three buttons to the lef t of the dis play to select the row to edit: the active row is indic ated by an asterisk. The parameter value m ay be adjusted either by the rotary control or the

Value +/- buttons.

Saving Patches

Patches can be saved to any of the 512 memor y locations, but remember that if you save your set tings to any location in Banks A or B, you will overw rite one of the factory presets.

To save a Patch press the Save button 4. The OLED display changes as shown below:

Character to be inserted

Initial Patch

Name

I Utopian Streams H H

-space->

Synth section

Page 4 of 6

Phase Free MonoTrig Legato H Slew 0

Parameter to be adjusted

Loading Patches

Peak ca n store 512 Patches in memory, arranged in four Banks of 128; the Banks are designated A to D. Banks A and B are pre-loaded with 256 great factory Patches especially created for Peak, while Banks C and D are for storing your own Patc hes and come pre-loaded with th e same default “initial” Pa tc h Init Patch. See page 37 for the default synth parameters this Patch contains . This initial Patch will always be the star ting point for creating new sounds “from scratch”.

A Patch is loaded by simply selecting its number with the rotary patch selector 5 or the

Patch buttons 6. It is immediately active.

The Compare button 2 is a really useful feature a s it lets you h ear the Patch you loaded in its “factory” state, ignoring any changes or twe aks you’ve been mak ing. Hold the button down to hear the original Patch: when you release it, you’ll be back to your modiﬁed version. This i s a useful feature to use when you’re about to save a new Patch into a memor y location that might already contain a Patch you want to retain – you ca n press Compare during the Save process to check what’s in the intended memory location.

Current

parameter

value

Row 3 is selected

Cursor

You can now give the Patch you want to save a name. The existing name is displayed initially; use the Row 2 but ton ( H) to move the cursor to the character position to be changed and then use the rotary parameter control 57 to select the new letter. Repeat this process one character at a time. Upper c ase, lower case, numbers, punctuation marks and space characters are all available in sequence from the rotary control. Use the Row 4 button to insert a space instead of a character. When you have entered the new name, press Page/Select H to select Page 2, where you de cide which memory location the modiﬁ ed Patch will be saved in.

Patch 000 H Bank A

Now you can enter the memory location by Bank and number. Note that the name of the Patch currently in the memory location you select is displaye d on Row 4, to re mind you what it is in case it’s something you don’t want to overwrite. Press Page/ Selec t H again to select Page 3, and you can (if you wish) assign your Patch to one of several pre-determined categories.

SAVE CATEGORY 3/3 Category None h

You can pres s Initialise 1 at any time to load a copy of the default initial Patch. Doing so does not overwrite the previous Patch, though you will lose any modiﬁcations that you made to it i f you haven’t saved it in a user Patch location.

If you’re working without a keyboard, you can generate a note (corresponding to middle C)

at any time by pressing Audition 3.

Note that when you ch ange Patc h, you lose the current synth settings. If the current settings were a modiﬁed version of a store d Patch, these modiﬁ cations will be lost. Thus it is always advisable to save your settings before loading a new Patch. See Saving Patches.

When you have done this, press Save again, and the display will conﬁrm that the Patch is saved.

You may save a modiﬁed Patch to the same location, if you are happy for the earlier version to be overwritten. This can easily be achieved by pressing Save four times in succession.

Peak Factory Patches can be downloaded from the Novation website if they have been accidentally overwritten. See page 36.

Page 12

Basic Operation – sound modiﬁcation

01Fine

Once you have loaded a Patch you like the sound of, you can modify the sound in many different ways using the synth controls. Each area of the control panel is dealt with in greater depth later in the manual, but a few funda mental points should be noted ﬁrst.

The OLE D display

The OLED display will show the last menu page selected until a rotary control or slider is moved on the control panel, when it changes to conﬁrm the control being moved, together with the instantaneous parameter value and the parameter va lue for the currently loade d Patch:

current -17 saved val +0

Many rotary controls have a parameter range of 0 to +127. Others are effectively “centreoff”, and have a parameter ra nge of either -64 to + 63 or -128 to +127.

The display reverts to the previous menu page a short time (user-deﬁnable) af ter the co ntrol is rele ased. I f no control is touch ed for 10 minutes, the display tur ns off, but will resume immediately a control or menu button is selected.

The one exception to this is the Master volume rotary control.

Parameter adjustment

As with traditional analogue synths, most of the primary sound modiﬁcation controls on Peak are dedicated, physical rot ary controls or switches, providing instant access to the most commonly needed sound parameters.

MIDI control

Peak has a very high degree of MIDI implementation, and almost ever y control and synth parameter is able to trans mit MIDI data to ex ternal equipment, and similar ly, the synth may be controlled in almost every respect by incoming M IDI data from a DAW, sequencer or master control keyboard.

The Settings menu has numerous options for enabling various aspects of MIDI control, which include M IDI Channel setting, Arpeggio MID I Out, Af tertou ch, CC /NR PN transmit/ receive and Program/Bank Change transmit/receive. Please see page 33 for full details.

The factory default is for all MID I transmit/receive options to b e On, and M IDI Channel 1 is set as the active ch annel.

The Animate Buttons

Each of the two ANIMATE but tons 59 may be programmed to provide an instant modiﬁ cation to the synth’s sound, which persists for as long as th e button is pressed. This is a great way of adding sound ef fects “on the ﬂy” in live performance.

The ANIM ATE buttons are programmed using the Modulation Matrix, and appear in the list of Sources on Page 2 of the Mod menu. Each button may be assigned as a modulating source for any of the Destinations available in the Mod M atrix. See page 26 for full details.

Many more parameters are available for adjustment in most of the synth sections via the menu system; these tend to be parameters that you wouldn’t need imm ediate ac cess to during a live per formance. Those in the Osc, E nv, LFO, Arp/Clock, Voice and FX menus all affect the relevant sections of sound generation and treatment directly, while the Mod menu lets you interconnect different synth sections with the Modulation Matrix.

The Filter knob

Adjusting the frequency of the synth’s ﬁlter is probably the most commonly-used method of sound modiﬁcation. For this reason, Filter Frequency has a large rotary c ontrol 35 near the bottom of the pa nel. Experiment with different types of patch to hear how cha nging the ﬁlter frequency alters the characteristic of dif ferent t ypes of sound. Also listen to the effect of the three different ﬁlter Shapes.

Pitch and Mod wheels

Any MIDI keyboard controller used with Pe ak will be ﬁtted with a standard pair of synthesiser control wheels, Pitch and Mod (Modulation). Pitch is usually spring-loaded and will return to its centre position. The range of control of Pitch is adjustable ( with the BendRange parameter - see page 18) in semitone increments up to +/-2 oct aves; the default setting is +/-1 octave.

The Mod wheel’s precise function varies with the patch loaded; it is used in ge neral to add expression or various elements to a synthesized sound. A common use is to add vibrato to a sound.

It is possible to a ssign the Mod wheel to alter various parameters making up the sound – or a combination of parameters simultaneously. This topic is discussed in more detail elsewhere in the manual. See “The Modulation Matrix” on page 26.

The Arpeggiator

Peak includes an arpeggiator (the ‘ARP’), which allows arpeggios of va rying complexity and rhy thm to be played and ma nipulated in real-time. The Arpeggiator is enabled by pressing the Arp ON button 30.

If a single key is pre ssed, the note will be retriggered by the arpeggiator, at a rate determined by the ClockRate parameter on Page 1 of the Arp menu. If you play a chord, the arpeggiator identiﬁes its notes and plays them individually in sequence at the same rate (this is termed an arpeggio pattern or ‘arp sequence’); thus if you play a C major triad, the selected notes will be C, E and G.

Adjusting Gate 32, and the Ty p e, Rhythm and Octaves parameters on Page 2 of the Arp menu w ill alter the rhythm of the pat tern, the way the sequence is played and the note range in a variety of ways . See “The Arpeggiator” on page 29 for full details.

Page 13

SYNTHESIS TUTORIAL

Time Time

A B

Oscillators Mixer Filter Amplifier

Square Wave

Volume

Harmonic

1 2 3 4 5

Volume

Harmonic

1 3 5 7

Triangle Wave

This section covers the general principles of electronic sound generation and processing in more detail, including references to Peak’s facilities where relevant. It is recommended that this chapter is read carefully if analogue sound synthes is is an unfamilia r subjec t. Users familia r with this subject can skip this section and move on to the next.

To gain an understanding of how a synthes iser generates sound it is helpful to have an appreciation of the components that make up a sound, both music al and non-musical.

The only way that a sound may be detected is by a ir vibrating the eardrum i n a regula r, perio dic manner. The brain interprets these vibrations (very accurately ) into one of a n inﬁnite number of different types of sound.

Remar kably, any sound may be described in ter ms of just three properti es, and all sounds always have them. They are:

• Pitch

• Tone

• Volume

What makes one sound different from anothe r is the relative mag nitudes of the three properties a s initially present in the sound, and how the properties change over the duration of the sound.

With a musical synthesiser, we deliberatel y set out to have precise control over these three properties a nd, in particular, how they can be changed during the “li fetime” of the sound. The properti es are of ten given different names: Volume may be refer red to as Amplitude, Loudness or Level, Pitch as Frequency and Tone as Timbre.

Pitch

As state d, sound is perceived by air vibrating the eardrum. The pitch of the sound is determined by how fast the vibratio ns are. For an adult human, the slowest vibration perceived as sound is about twent y times a second, w hich the brain interprets as a bass sound ; the fastest is many thousands of times a second, which the brain interprets as a high treble sound.

Having shown that just three elements may deﬁ ne any sound, these elements now have to be realised in a musical synthesiser. It is logical that different sections of the synthesiser ‘synthesize’ (or create) each of these different elements.

One section of the synthesiser, the Oscillators, provide raw waveform signals which deﬁne the pitch of the sound along with its raw harmonic content (tone). These signals are then mixed together in a section called the Mixer, and the resulting mixture is then fed into a section called the Filter. This makes further alterations to the tone of the sound, by removing (ﬁltering ) or enhan cing certain of the harmonics. Lastly, the ﬁltered signal is fed into the Ampliﬁer, which determines the ﬁnal volume of the sound.

Additional synthesiser sections - LFOs and Envelopes - provide further ways of altering the pitc h, tone and volume of a sound by interacting with the Oscillators, Filter and Ampliﬁer, providing changes in the char acter of the sound which can evolve over time. Because LFOs’ and Envelopes’ only purpose is to c ontrol ( modulate) the other synthesiser sections, they are commonly known as ‘modulators’.

These various synthesiser sections will now be covered in more detail.

The Oscillators And Mixer

The Osc illator section is really the hear tbeat of the synthesiser. It g enerates an electronic wave (which creates the vibrations when eventually fed to a loudspeaker). This waveform is produced at a controllable musical pitch, initially determined by the note played on the keyboard or contained in a received MIDI note message. The distinctive tone or timbre of the waveform is actually determined by the waveform’s shape.

Many years ago, pioneers of music al synthesis discovered that just a few distinctive waveforms contained many of the most useful harmonics for mak ing musi cal sounds. The names of these waves reﬂec t their actual shape when viewed on an instrument called an oscilloscope, and they are: Sine waves, Square waves, Sawtooth waves , Triangle waves and Noise. Each of Peak’s Oscillator sections can generate all these waveforms, and can generate non-traditional synth waveforms as well. ( Note that Noise is actually generated independently and mixed in with the other waveforms in the Mixer s ection .)

If the number of pe aks in the t wo wavefor ms (vibrations) are counted, it will be seen that there are exactly twice as many peaks in Wave B as in Wave A. (Wave B is actually an octave higher in pitch than Wave A.) It is the number of vibrations in a given period that determines the p itch of a sound. This is the reason that pitch is sometimes referred to as frequency. It is the number of waveform peaks counted during a given period of time which deﬁnes the pitch, or frequency.

Tone

Musical sounds consist of several different, related pitches occurring simultaneously. The lowest is referred to as the ‘ fundamental’ pitch and corresponds to the perceived note of the sound. Other pitches making up the sound which ar e related to the fundamental in simple mathematical ratios are called harmonics. The relative loudness of each harmonic as compared to the loudness of the fundamental determines the overall tone or ‘timbre’ of the sound.

Consider two instruments such as a harpsichord and a piano playing the same note on the keyboard and at equal volume. Despite having the same volume and pitch, the instruments still sound distinctly different. This is because the different note-ma king mechanisms of the two instruments generate dif ferent sets of harmonics; the harmonics present in a piano sound are different to those found in a harpsi chord sound.

Volume

Volume, w hich is of ten referred to as the amplitude or loudness of the sound, is determined by how large the vibrations are. Very s imply, listening to a piano fro m a metre away would sound louder than if it were ﬁfty metres away.

A B

Each waveform (except Noise) ha s a speciﬁc set of musically-related harmonics which can be manipulated by further sections of the synthesiser.

The diagrams below show how these waveforms look on an oscilloscope, and illustrate the relative levels of their harmonics. Remember, it is the relative levels of the various harmo nics present in a waveform which deter mine the tonal character of the ﬁnal sound.

Sine Waves

Volume

Sine Wave

Harmonic

These possess just one harmoni c. A sine waveform produces the “purest” sound because it only has this single pitch (frequency).

Triangle Waves

Volume

1 3 5 7

Triangle Wave

Harmonic

These contain only odd harmonics. The volume of each decre ases as the square of its position in the harmonic series. For example, the 5th harmonic has a volume 1/25th of the volume of the fundamental.

Volume

Page 14

Sawtooth Waves

Volume

Harmonic

Sine Wave

Square Wave

Volume

Harmonic

1 2 3 4 5

Volume

Harmonic

1 3 5 7

Triangle Wave

Volume

Harmonic

1 3 5 7

Triangle Wave

Volume

Harmonic

Sine Wave

Sawtooth Wave

Volume

Harmonic

Square Wave

Volume

Harmonic

1 2 3 4 5

Volume

Harmonic

1 3 5 7

Triangle Wave

1 2 3 4 5

OSC 1

OSC 2

OSC 1

OSC 1 VOLUM E

OSC 2 VOLUM E

OSC 3 VOLUM E

COMPLEX WAVEFORM

MIX OF

OSC1, 2, 3,

NOISE AND

RING

MODULATOR

MIXER

INPUT TO FILTER

OSC 2

OSC 3

NOISE

RING MOD

NOISE

RING MOD

harmo nic content present in each of the two oscillator signals, and will consist of a series of sum and difference frequencies as well as the frequencies present in the original signals.

Volume

Sawtooth Wave

1 2 3 4 5

Harmonic

These are rich in harmonics, and contain both even and odd harmonics of the fundamenta l frequency. The volume of each is inversely proportional to its position in the harmonic series.

Square / Pulse Waves

Volume

Square Wave

1 2 3 4 5

Harmonic

These contain only odd harmonics, which are at the s ame volume as the odd harmonics in a sawtooth wave.

It will b e noticed that the square waveform spends an equal amount of time in its ‘high’ state as in its ‘low’ state. This ratio is known as the ‘duty cycle’. A square wave always has a duty cycle of 50 % which means it is ‘high’ for half the cycle and ‘low’ for the other half. Peak lets you adjust the duty cycle of the basic square waveform (vi a the Shape Amount control) to produce a waveform which is more ‘rectangular’ in shape. These are often known a s Pulse waveforms. As the waveform becomes more and more rectangular, more even har monics are intro duced and the waveform changes its character, becoming more ‘nasal’ sounding.

The width of the pulse waveform (the ‘Pulse Wi dth’) can be altered dynamically by a modulator, which results in the harm onic content of the waveform constantly changing. This can give the waveform a very ‘ fat’ quality when the pulse width is altered at a moderate rate.

The Mixer

To extend the range of sounds that may be produced, typical analogue synthesisers have more than one Oscillator ( Peak has three ). By using multiple Oscillators to create a sound, it is pos sible to achieve ver y interesting harmonic mixes. I t is also possible to slightly detune individual Oscillators against each other, which creates a ver y warm, ‘ fat’ sound. Peak’s M ixer all ows you to cre ate a sound c onsisting of the waveforms of Oscillators 1, 2 and 3, a Noise source and the Ring Modulator output, all mixed together as required.

A pulse waveform sounds the same whether the duty cycle is – for example – 40% or 60% , since the waveform is just “inverted” and the harmonic content is exactly the same.

Noise

Noise is basically a random signal, and does not have a fundamental frequency (and therefore has no pitch property). Noise contains all frequencies, and all are at the same volume . Because it possesses no pitch, noise is of ten useful for creating sound effects and percussion type sounds.

Ring Modulation

A Ring Modulator is a sound ge nerator that takes signals from two oscillators and effectively “multiplies” them together. Peak’s Ring Modulator uses Oscillator 1 and Oscillator 2 as inputs. The resulting output depends on the various frequencies and

Volume

50%

40%

10%

60%

1 2 3 4 5

The Filter

Peak is a

subtractive

music synthesiser.

Subtractive

implies that part of the sound is

subtracted somewhere in the synthesis process.

The Osc illator s provide the raw waveforms with plenty of harmonic content and the Filter section subtracts some of the harmonics in a controlled manner.

There a re three b asic ﬁlter type s, all of which are available in Peak: low-pas s, band-pass and high-pass. The type of ﬁlter most commonly used on synthesisers is low-pass. In a low-pass ﬁlter, a “cut-off frequency” is chosen and any frequencies below this are passed, while frequencies above are ﬁltered out, or removed. The setting of the Filter Frequency parameter dictates the point above which frequencies are re moved. This process of removing harmonics from the waveforms has the effect of changing the sound’s character or timbre. When the Frequency parameter is at maximum, the ﬁlter is completely “open” and no frequencies are removed from the raw Oscillator waveforms.

In practice, there is a gradual (rather than a sudden) reduction in the volume of the harmo nics above the cut-off point of a low-pa ss ﬁlter. How rapidly these harmonics reduce in volum e as frequency increases above the cut-off point is determined by the ﬁlter’s Slope parameter. The slope is measured in ‘volume units per o ctave’. Since volume is measured in decibels, this slope is usually quoted as s o many decibels pe r octave (dB /oct). The higher the number, the greater the rejection of harm onics above the cut-off point, and the more pronounced the ﬁltering effect. Peak’s ﬁlter section prov ides two slope s, 12 dB/oct and 24 dB/oct.

A further important parameter of the ﬁlter is Resonance. Frequencies at the cut-off point may be increased in volume by advancing the ﬁlter’s Resonance control. This is useful for emphasising certain harmonics of the sound.

As Resonance is increased, a whistling-like quality will be introduced to the sound passing through the ﬁlter. When set to very high levels, Resonance actually causes the ﬁlte r to self-oscillate whenever a signal is being passed through it. The resulting whistling tone

Page 15

being produce d is actually a pure sine wave, the pitch of which depends on the setting of

Cut-off

Volume

Frequency

Cut-off

Frequency

Volume

Frequency

Cut-off

Frequency

Volume

Frequency

Cut-off

Frequency

Cut-off

Frequency

Volume

Frequency

Cut-off

Frequency

Cut-off

Frequency

TIME

KEY "ON" KEY "OFF"

TIME

KEY "ON" KEY "OFF"

VOLUME

TIME

KEY "ON" KEY "OFF"

TIME

KEY "ON" KEY "OFF"

VOLUME

TIME

KEY "ON" KEY "OFF"

VOLUME

TIME

the Frequency control (the ﬁlter’s cut-off point). This resonance-produce d sine wave can actually be used for some sounds as an additional sound source if wished.

The diagram below shows the response of a typical low-pass ﬁlter. Frequ encies above the cut-off point are reduced in volume.

Frequency

Volume

Frequency

When re sonance is added, the frequencies around the cut of f point are boosted in volume.

Cut-off

Frequency

Volume

Cut-off

Frequency

Volume

Frequency

Envelopes And Ampliﬁer

In earlier paragraphs, the synthesis of the pitch and the timbre of a sound was described . The nex t part of the Synthesis Tutorial describes how the volume of the sound is controlled. The volume of a note created by a musical instrument often varies greatly ove r the duration of the note, according to the t ype of instrument.

For example, a note played on an organ quickly attains full volum e when a key is pressed. It stays at full volu me until the key is released, at which point the volume level falls instantly to zero.

In addition to the traditional low- pass ﬁlter type , there are also high-pass and band -pass types. On Peak, the ﬁlter type is selecte d with the Shape switch 33.

A high-pass ﬁlter is similar to a low-pass ﬁlter, but works in the “opposite sense”, so that it is frequencies below the cut- off point which are remove d. Frequencies above the cut-of f point are passed. When the Frequency parameter is set to minimum, the ﬁlter is completely open and no frequencies are removed from the raw Oscillator waveforms.

Cut-off

Frequency

Volume

VOLUM E

A piano note quick ly attains full volume after a key is pressed, but gradually falls in volume to zero af ter several seconds, even if the key is held.

VOLUME

A string section emulati on only at tains full volume gradually when a key is pressed. It remains at full volume while the key is held down, but once the key is released, the volume falls to zero fairly slowly.

KEY "ON" KEY "OFF"

VOLUME

With a band-pass ﬁlter, just a narrow band of frequencies centered around the cut-off point is passed. Frequencies above an d below the band are removed. It is not possible to fully open this type of ﬁlter and allow all frequencies to pass.

In an analogue synthesiser, changes to a sound’s character whic h occur over the duration of a note are controlled by a section called an Envelope Generator. One (Amp Env) is always related to th e Ampliﬁer, which controls the note’s amplitude – i.e., the volume of the sound – when the note is played. Each envelope generator has four main parameters, which determine the shape of the envelope; these are often referred to as the ADSR parameters.

Page 16

TIME

KEY "ON" KEY "OFF"

VOLUME

TIME

KEY "ON" KEY "OFF"

VOLUME

TIME

KEY "ON" KEY "OFF"

VOLUME

KEY "ON" KEY "OFF"

A waveshape often used for an LFO is a Triangle wave.

VOLUME

SUSTAIN

ATTAC K DECAY RELEASE

TIME

Attack Time

Adjusts the time it takes af ter a key is pressed for the volume to climb from zero to full volume . It can be u sed to create a sound with a slow fade-in.

Decay Time

Adjusts the time it takes for the volume to fall from its initial full volume to the level set by the Susta in control while a key is held down.

Sustain Level

This is unlike the other Envelope controls in that it sets a level rather than a period of tim e. It sets the volume level that the envelope remains at while the key is held down, af ter the Decay Time has ex pired.

Release Time

Adjusts the time it takes for the volume to fall from the Sust ain level to zero once the key is relea sed. It c an be used to create sounds that have a “fade-out ” quality.

Most synthesisers can generate multiple envelopes. Peak has three Envelope Generators: Amp Env ha s a dedicated set of ADSR controls, and is always applied to the ampliﬁer to shape the volume of each note played, as detailed above. The two Modulation Envelopes (Mo d Env 1 and Mo d Env 2) share an identical set of controls, with an ass ignment switch selecting the envelope being controlled. Modulation envelopes c an be used to dynami cally alter other sections of the synthesiser during the lifetime of e ach note. Peak’s Mod Env Generators can be used to modify the ﬁlter cut-off frequency, or the pulse width of the Oscillators’ Square Wave outputs, for example.

PITCH

PITCH WITHOUT MODULATION

TIME

Alternatively, if the same LFO signal were to modulate the Filter cut-off frequency instead of the Oscillator pitch, a familiar wobbling effect known as ‘wah-wah’ would be the result.

Summary

A synthe siser can be broken down into ﬁ ve main sound generating or sound modifying (modulating) blocks:

1. Oscillators that generate waveforms at a various pitches.

2. A Mixer that mixes the outputs from the Oscillators together (and add Noise and other signals).

3. Filters that remove certain harmonics, changing the character or timbre of the sound.

4. An Ampliﬁer controlled by an Envelope generator, which alters the volume of a sound over time when a note is played.

5. LFOs and Envelopes that can be used to modulate any of the above.

Much of the enjoyment to be had with a synthesise r is with experimenting with the factory preset sounds ( Patches) and creating new ones. There is no substitute for ‘hands on‘ experience. Experiments with adjusting Peak’s various controls will eventually lead to a fuller understanding of how the various synth secti ons alter and help shape new sounds. Armed with the knowledge in this chapter, and an understanding of what is actually happe ning in the synth when tweaks to the knobs and switches are made, the process of creating new and exciting sounds will become easy. Have fun!

KEY "ON" KEY "OFF"

FILTER CUT-OFF FREQUENCY

SUSTAIN

ATTAC K DECAY RELEASE

TIME

LFOs

Like the E nvelope G enerators, the LFO (Low Frequency Oscillator) section of a synthes iser is a Modulator. Thus instead of being a part of the sound synthesis itself, it is used to change (or modulate) other sections of the synthesiser. In Peak, for example, the LFOs c an be used to alter Oscillator pitch, or Filter cutoff frequency.

Most musical instruments produce sounds that vary over time both in volume and in pitch and timbre. Sometimes these variations can be quite subtle, but still contribute greatly towards characterising the ﬁnal sound.

Where as an Envelope is used to control a one-off modulation over the lifetime of a single note, LF Os modulate by using a repeating cyclic waveform or pattern. As discussed earli er, Oscillators produce a constant waveform, which can take the shape of a repeating sine wave, triangle wave etc. LFOs produce waveforms in a similar way, but norma lly at a frequency which is too low to produce a s ound that the human ear could percei ve directly. As with an Envelope, the waveforms generated by the LFOs may be fed to other parts of the synthesiser to create the desired changes over time – or ‘movements’ - to the sound. Peak has two independent LFOs, which may be used to modulate different synthesiser sections and ca n run at dif ferent speeds .

Imagine this very low frequency wave being applied to an Oscillator’s pitch. The result is that the pitch of the Oscillator slowly rises and falls above and below its original pitch. This would simulate, for example, a violinist moving a ﬁnger up and down the string of the instrument whilst it is being bowed. This subtle up and down movement of pitch is referred to as the ‘Vibrato’ effect.

Page 17

PEAK: SIMPLIFIED BLOCK DIAGRAM

FPGA

Voice 1

Voice 2

Voice 3

Voice 4

Voice 5

Voice 6

Voice 7

Voice 8

Global FX

- Delay

- Reverb

- Chorus

Osc1 Osc2 Osc3

Mixer

Analogue

Overdrive

Overdrive Filter

Analogue

Filter

Distortion

Effects Send

Effects Refturn

Pre VCA

VCA left

VCA right

VCA left

(Sum)

VCA right

(Sum)

AnalogueAnalogue

Post VCA Distortion

Left Output

Right Output

Peak has eight separate voices, which are treated independ ently throughout the remaining signal chain. The voice s are synthesise d digita lly in a Field Programmable Gate Ar ray (FP GA) using Numerically Controlled Oscillators running at an extremely high clock rate, resulting in waveforms which are indistinguishable from those using traditional analogue synthesis.

Each voice is a mix of the outputs of the three oscillators ; when you adjust one of the oscillator level controls 19, 20 or 21 you are ef fectively adjusting the level of eight voice s simultaneously. The subsequent elements in the signal processing chain are entirely in the analogue doma in. Note that distortion can be added in severa l places – before the ﬁlter (Overdrive 37), after the ﬁlter (Filter Post Drive in the Voices Menu) and after ﬁnal voice summation ( Distortion Level 43). The sonic effect can be quite dif ferent in each case.

Note that the time-domain effects (FX) – chorus, delay and reverb – are digitally generated within the FPGA as well. The stereo effects send into the FX processing section is taken from post the main VCA, so all distor tions added to the signals a re processed by the FX. The FX return signal is added back to same point in the signal path .

PEAK IN DETAIL

In this section of the manual, each section of the synthesiser is discussed in greater detail. The sec tions are arranged in order of “signal ﬂow” – se e the Block Diagram above. Within each section, the surface physical controls are described ﬁrst, followed by a reference guide to the display menu relating to the section. In general, the menus of fer “ﬁne control” parameters to which access is less readily required. The “initial value” given for each parameter is that for the factory Init Patch: these will differ when another Patc h is loade d.

We must emphasise that there is no substitute for experimentation. Adjusting controls and twe aking individual para meters while listening to di fferent Patches will tell you more about what each parameter does than this User Guide ever could. In particular, we would encourage you to ex periment with the effect that varying a par ameter has on different Patches – you will ﬁnd there can be considerable differences between Patche s, depending on how the s ound is being generated.

The Oscillator Section

7 8 9 10 11 12 14 13

Peak’s Osc illator section co nsists of th ree identical oscillators, each with its own set of

controls. The following descriptions thus apply equally to any of the oscillators.

Wave

The Wave button 10 selects one of ﬁve wave shape o ptions : four are the common fundamental waves, Sine, Triangle, (rising) Sawtooth and Square/ Pulse. The ﬁf th option, more, allows selection from a range of 17 further waveta bles, accessed via the WaveMore pa rameter in the Oscillator menu (see page 18). The LEDs conﬁrm the waveform currently selected.

Page 18

Pitch

The three controls Range 7, Coarse 8 and Fine 9 set the Oscillator’s fundamental frequency (or Pitch). The Range button selects traditional “organ-stop” units, where 16’ gives the lowest frequency and 2’ the highest. Each doubling of stop length halves the frequency and thus transposes the pitc h of a note played at the same position on a keyboard down one octave. When Range is set to 8’, the keyboard will be at concert pitch with Middle C in the centre. The LEDs conﬁrm the stop length currently selected.

The Coarse and Fine rotary controls adjust the pitc h over a range of ±1 octave and ±1 semitone respectively. The OLED display shows the parameter value for Coarse in semito nes (12 semitones = 1 octave) and Fine in c ents (100 cents = 1 semitone).

Pitch Modulation

The fre quency of each Oscillator may be varie d by modulating it with either (or both) LFO 2 or the Mo d Env 2 envelope. The t wo Pitch controls, Mod Env 2 Depth 11 and LFO 2 Depth 12 control the depth – or intensity – of the respective modulation sources .

Note that each Oscillator has a Depth control for modulation by LFO 2. It is also possible to modulate all three Oscillators simultaneously by LFO 1: this patch is set up in the Mod Matrix – see page 26. Oscillator pitch can be varied by up to ﬁve octaves, but the LFO 2 depth control is calibrated to give ﬁner resolution at lower parameter values (less than ±12), as these are generally more useful for musical purposes.

Negative values of LFO 2 Dep th “inver t” the modulating LFO waveform; the effect of this will be more obvious with non-sinusoidal LFO waveforms.

Adding LFO Modulation c an add a pleasing vibrato when a sine or triangle LFO waveform is used , and the LFO speed i s set neither too high nor too low. A sawtooth or square LFO waveform will produce rather more dramatic and unusual effects.

Adding envelope modulation can give some interesting effects, with the oscillator pitch altering over the duration of the note as it is played. With the parameter value set to maximum (±127), the oscillator pitch will vary over eight octaves. A parameter value of 8 shifts the pitch by one octave at the maximum level of the modulation envelope (e.g., if sustain is at maximum). Negative values invert the sense of the pitch variation; i.e., the pitch will fall during the attack phase of the envelope if Mod E nv depth has a negative setti ng.

Shape

Peak lets you modify the “shape” of the selected waveform; this will alter the harmonic content and thus the timbre of generated sound. The degree of modiﬁcation – or deviation from the “classic” wavefor m type – can be varied both manually and as a modulation. The modulation sources available using the panel controls are Mod Env 1 and LFO 1; many other mod sources may be selected using the Modulation Matrix – see page 26.

The Source button 13 assigns the Shape Amount control 14to one of the sources. When set to Manual, Shape Amount lets you alter the waveform shape directly; the parameter range is -63 to + 63, where 0 corresponds to an unmo diﬁed waveform. The precise effect of Shape Amount will depend on the waveform in use.

When Sine is selected as the waveform, a non-zero Shape Amount parameter will add distortion, resulting in the addition of upper harmonics. Similarly, varying Shape Amount with Triangle or Saw tooth waveforms modiﬁes wave shape and thus the harmonic content.

When Square /Pulse is selected as th e waveform, Shape Amount will vary the pulse width : a value of 0 produces a 1:1 square wave. The timbre of the “edgy” square wave sound can be modi ﬁed by var ying the pulse width, or duty cycle, of the waveform. Ex treme clockwise and anticlockwise settings produce very narrow positive or negative pulses, with the sound becoming thinner and more “reedy” as the control is advanced.

When the waveform i s set to more, Shape Amount selects the waveform by sweeping across the ﬁve columns in the selected wavetable to produce a “mor phing” of two adjacent columns: the sonic effect of this will var y greatly depending on the active patch and the wavetable in use. We recommend you experiment altering Shape Amount with different waveforms to hear the effec t.

The Oscillator Menu

The following additional Oscillator parameters are available in the Osc menu. Each of the three oscillators has two menu pages; the parameters available for each oscillator are identical. There are also two further pages (Pages 1/8 and 2/8), with parameters common to all three oscillators.

Per-Osc illator pages:

The default menu displays for Oscillator 1 are shown below:

OSCILLATOR 1 3/8 WaveMore BS sine h FixedNote Off BendRange +12

OSCILLATOR 1 4/8 Vsync 0 h SawDense 0 DenseDet 64

More Waveforms

Displayed as: WaveMore Initial value: BS sine Range of adjustment : Wide range of waveforms

Peak includes a wavetable of 17 x 5 waveforms. The WaveMore parameter selects the row of the wavetable the oscillator use s when Wave 10 is set to more. Note that the wavetable column (or pair of adjacent columns) in use is determined by the setting of

Shape Amount 14.

Single Fixed Note

Displayed as: FixNote Initial value: Off Range of adjustment : Off, C # -2 to E 5

Some sounds need not be chromatically-dependent. Examples would be certain percussion sounds (e.g., bass drums ), and sound effects, such as a laser gun. It i s possible to assign a ﬁxed note to a patch, such that playing any key on the keyboard generates the same sound. The pitch on which the sound is bas ed may be any semitone note in a range of over eight octaves. With the parameter set Off, the keyboard behaves as normal. With it set to any other value, every key plays the sound at the p itch corresponding to the value.

Pitch Wheel Range

Displayed as: BendRange Initial value: +12 Range of adjustment : -24 to +24

A keyboard pitch wheel can vary the oscillator pitch by up to two octaves, up or down. The units are in semitones , so with the default value of +12, moving the pitch wheel up increases the pitch of the notes being played by one octave, and moving it down takes them down an octave. Setting the parameter to a negative value has the effect of reversing the operating sense of the pitch wheel. You will ﬁnd that many of the factory Patches have this parameter set to +12 to allow a pitc h wheel range of ±1 octave, or to +2 for a range of ±1 tone.

Shape may also be modulated by either (or both ) Mod Env 1 or LFO 1, as selected by Source 13. With pulse waveforms, the sonic effect of LFO modulation is ver y dependent on the LF O waveform and speed used, while using envelop e modulation can p roduce some good tonal effects, with the harmonic content of the note changing over its duration.

Page 19

Oscillator Sync

Displayed as: VSync Initial value: 0 Range of adjustment : 0 to 127

Oscillator Sync is traditionally a technique of using one oscillator (the master) to add harmo nics to another (the slave). Peak provides Oscillator Sync by using a vir tual oscillator for each of the three main oscillators. The virtual oscillators are not heard, but the frequency of each is used to re-trigger that of the main oscillator. The V syn c parameter controls the frequency offset of the virtual oscillator relative to the (audible) main oscillator. This technique produces an interesting range of sonic effects. The nature of the resulting sound varies as the parameter value is altered b ecause the virtual oscillator frequency increases in proportion to the main oscillator frequency as the parameter value increases. W hen the V sync value is a multiple of 16, the virtual oscillator frequency is a music al harmonic of the main oscillator frequency. The overa ll effect is a transposition of the oscillator that moves up the harmonic series, with values in between multiples of 16 producing more discordant effects.

OSC 2

Common Oscillator page:

The default menu display is shown below:

OSC COMN 1 1/8 Diverge 0 h Drift 0 Noise 127

OSC COMN 2 2/8 KeySync Off h

Diverge

Displayed as: Diverge Initial value: 0 Range of adjustment : 0 to 127

OSC 1 (MASTER)

OSC 2 (SLAVE)

Vsync may be controlled for any or all oscillators using the Modulation Matrix. See “The Modulation M atrix” on page 26 for details of how to use the M atrix.

To get the best out of Vsync, try modulating i t using the LFO. Try assigning it to the MOD wheel for real-time control.

Sawtooth Density

Displayed as: SawDense Initial value: 0 Range of adjustment : 0 to 127

This parameter only affects saw tooth waveforms. It effectively adds copies of the oscillator waveform to itself. Two additional virtual oscillators are used for this, producing a “thicker” sound at low to medium values , but if the virtual oscillators are detuned slightly (see Density Detuning below), a more interesting effect is obtained.

Density Detuning

Displayed as: DenseDet Initial value: 64 Range of adjustment : 0 to 127

This parameter should be used in conjunction with Sawtooth D ensity. It detune s the vir tual density oscillators , and you will notice not only a thicker sound, but the effect of beating as well.

Sawtooth Density and Density D etuning parameters can be used to “thicken” the sound, and simulate the effect of adding additional Voices. The Unison and Unison Detune parameters in the Voice Menu can be used to create a very similar effect, but using Density and Density Detune have the adva ntage of not needing to use additional Voices, which are ﬁnite in number.

Peak is an eight-voice synth, and each voice has three oscillators. Diverge applies very small pitch variations independently to e ach of these 24 oscillators. The effect of applying this is that each voice will have its own tuning characteristic. This adds a further interesting colouration to the sound quality a nd can be used to bring the synth alive. The parameter sets the degree of variation.

Oscillator Drif t

Displayed as: D rif t Initial value: 0 Range of adjustment : 0 to 127

Peak has a dedicated very low frequency oscillator which can b e used to apply a very slight meandering detune to the three Oscillators. This is to emulate the oscillator drif t of traditional analogue synths: by applying a controlled amount of detuning, the oscillators become slightly out of tune with each other, adding a “fuller” character to the sound. Unlike Diverge, the drift effect changes over time.

Noise ﬁlter

Displayed as: NoiseLPF Initial value: 127 Range of adjustment : 0 to 127

In addition to the three Oscillator s, Peak also has a noise generator. Noise is a signal compr ising a wide range of frequencies, and is a familiar “hissing” sound. T he Noise ﬁlter is a low-pass type: restricting the bandwidth of the noise alters the characteristi c of the “hiss”, and you can ad justing the ﬁlter cut-off frequency to do this . The parameter’s default value of 127 sets the ﬁlter “ fully open”. Note that the noise generator has its own input to the mixer, and in ord er to hear it in isolation, its input will need to be turned up and the oscillator inputs turned down. ( See “Th e Mixer Section” on page 22.)

Key Sync

Displayed as: KeySync Initial value: Off Range of adjustment : Off or On

With KeySync set Off, Peak’s three oscillators are free-running and even when set accurately to the s ame pitch, may not be in phase with each other. This often doe s not matter, but if the Ring Modul ator is in us e, the out-of-phase effect may not pro duce the result required. To overcome this, KeySy nc may be selected to On, which ensures that the oscillators always start generating their waveforms at the start of a cycle when a key is pressed.

Page 20

The LFO Section

Slew

15 16 17 18

The LFO Menu

Each of Peak’s LFOs are ‘per voice’. This is a very powerful feature of Peak (and other Novation synthesisers). For example, when an LFO is assigned to create vibrato, and a chord is played, each note of the chord will be varied at the same rate, but not necessarily at the same phase . There are various settings in the LFO Menu that control how the LF Os respond and lock together.

Each LFO has two menu page s; the parameters available for each LFO are i dentic al.

The default menu displays for LFO 1 are shown below:

Peak has two Low Frequency Oscillators (LFOs), LFO 1, and LF O 2. They are identical in terms of features, but their outputs may be routed using the panel c ontrols to different par ts of the synth and are thus used differently, as outlined below:

LFO 1:

• can modify the waveform shape of each oscillator when LFO1 is selected by the oscillator’s Source button 13;

• can modulate the ﬁlter frequency; the amount of modulation is adjusted in the Filter Section with LFO 1 Depth control 40.

LFO 2:

• can modulate the pitch of each Oscillator; the amount of modulation is adjusted in the Oscillator Section with the LFO 2 Depth control 12. This is the method of adding “vibrato” to a sound.

Either LFO may additionally be patched in the Modulation Matrix (see page 26) to modulate many other synth parameters.

LFO Waveform

The Type button 15 selects one of four wave shapes - Triangle, (fa lling) Sawtooth, Squar e or Sample and Hold. The LEDs above the button conﬁr m the waveform currently selected.

LFO Rate

The speed (or frequency) of each LFO is set by the Range button 7 and the rotary Rate control 18. The Range button has three settings: High, Low and Sync. The LFO frequency range s are from 0 to 200 Hz in the Low setting and 0 to 1.6 kHz in High. Selecting Sync reassigns the func tion of the Rate control, and allows the spe ed of the LF O to be synchronised to an internal or external MIDI clock, based on a sync value selected by the control. When Sync is selected, the OLED di splays the RateSync parameter, which allows you to choose the tempo division required with th e Rate control. See LFO Sync Rate table on page 36.

LFO Fade Time

LFO ef fects are often more effective when faded-in, rath er than just ‘switched on’; the Fade Time parameter sets how long the LFO output takes to ramp up when a note is played. The rota ry control 16 is used to adjust this time. See also Fade Mode (page 21), where you can also make the LFO fade out after the Fade Time, or, start or end abr uptly af ter the Fade Time.

LFO 1 1/6 Phase Free h MonoTrig Legato

LFO 1 2/6 FadeMode FadeIn h FadeSync On

LFO 1 3/6 Repeats Off h Common Off

LFO Phas e

Displayed as: Phase Initial value: Free Range of adjustment : Free; 0deg to 357deg (in 3deg increments)

Each LFO runs continuously ‘in th e background’. If Phase is set to Free (the default), there is no way of predicting where the waveform will be when a key is pres sed. Consecutive presses of a key will inevitably produce varying results. With all other values of Phase, the LFO will re-star t at the same point on the waveform every time a key is pressed, the actual point being determined by the parameter value. A complete waveform has 360º, and the control’s increments are in 3º steps. T hus a half-way setting (180deg) will cause the modulating waveform to start at half-way through its cycle.

PHASE = 0

MonoTrig

Displayed as: M on oTrig Initial value: Legato Range of adjustment : Legato or Re-Trig

M on oTrig only applies to monophonic Voice modes (see “Voices” on page 27). Providing that LFO Phase is not set to Free, the LFOs are re-triggered eac h time a new note is pressed. But if you are playing in legato style (literally “smoothly” – playing fur ther keys while one key is still held ), the LFOs will only re-trigger if M o n oTrig is set to Re-Trig. If set to Legato, you will only hear the ef fect of re -triggering on the ﬁrst note.

KEY "ON"

PHASE = 90

KEY "ON"

PHASE = 180

KEY "ON"

Page 21

LFO Slew

Displayed as: Slew Initial value: 0 Range of adjustment : 0 to 127

LFO Common Sync

Displayed as: Common Initial value: Off Range of adjustment : Off or On

Slew has the effect of modifying the shape of the LFO waveform. Sharp edges become less sharp as Sl ew is increased. The effect of this can be heard on pitch modulation by selecting Square as the LFO waveform and set ting the rate fairly low so that when a key is pres sed the output alternates between just two tones. Increasing the value of Slew will cause the transition between the two tones to bec ome a “glide” rather than a sharp change. This is caused by the vertical edges of the square LFO waveform being slewed.

Note that Slew has an effect on all LF O waveforms, but the sonic ef fect differs with waveform rate and type. As Slew is increased, the time taken to reach maximum amplitude is inc reased, and can ultimately result in it never being achieved at all, though th e setting at which this point is reached will vary with waveform.

SQUARE WAVE NO SLEW

SMALL SLEW VALUE

LARGE SLEW VALUE

Fade Mode

Displayed as: FadeMode Initial value: FadeIn Range of adjustment: FadeIn, FadeOut, GateIn, GateOut

Common Sync is only applicable to polyphonic voic es. Whe n Common is On, it ensures that the p hase of th e LFO waveform is synchronised for every note being played. When set Of f, there is no such synchroni sation , and playing a second note while one is already pressed will result in an unsynchronised sound as the modulations will be out of time. When LFOs are in use for pitch modulation (their most c ommon application), having Common set to Off will give mo re natural results.

KEY "ON"

NOTE 1

KEY "ON"

NOTE 2

KEY "ON"

NOTE 1

KEY "ON"

NOTE 2

Set Common to On for an emulation of early analogue polyphonic synths.

The function of the four pos sible settings of FadeMode are as follows:

1. FadeIn – the LFO’s modulation is gradually increased over the time period set by the Fade T ime control 16.

2. FadeOut – the LFO’s modulation is gradually decreased over the time period set by the Fade Time control, leaving the note unmodulated.

3. GateIn – the onset of the LFO’s modulation is delayed by the time period set by the Fade T ime parameter, and then star ts immediately at full level.

4. GateOut – the note is fully modulate d by the LFO for the time period set by the Fade Time parameter. At this time, the modulati on stops abruptly.

Note that whichever of the Fade Modes i s selected is always active; if you do not want to hear its effect, turn the Fade Time control 16 down to zero.

LFO Fade Sy nc

Displayed as: FadeSync Initial value: On Range of adjustment : Off or On

The set ting of FadeSync only app lies to monophonic voice modes (see “Voice s” on page 27) . FadeSync determines whether the time delay set by Fade Time is re-started each time a key is pres sed. With FadeSync set to On ( the default), the LFO fade time recommences; when set to O ff, it is triggered only by th e ﬁrst note. This will only be of relevance when playing in legato style.

Repeats

Displayed as: Repeats Initial value: Off Range of adjustment : Off, 1 - 127

Repeats sets how many cycles of LFO waveform will be generated each ti me the LFO is triggered. So if set to 1, you will only hear the effect of any LFO modulation for a s ingle cycle, and hence for a shor t duration (depending on the setting of Rate, of course).

Page 22

The Mixer Section

OSC 1

RING MOD

OSC 2

OSC 3

NOISE

MIXER

TO ENVELOPES

SECTION

The Envelopes Section

Peak generates three envelopes each time a key is pressed, which can be used to modify the synth sound in many ways. The envelope controls are based on the familiar ADSR concept.

KEY "ON" KEY "OFF"

VOLUME

SUSTAIN

ATTACK DECAY RELEASE

TIME

The ADSR envelope can be most easily visua lised by conside ring the a mplitude (volume) of a note over time. The envelope describing the “ lifetime” of a note can be split into four distinct phases:

• Attack – the time it takes for the note to increase from zero (e.g., when the key is pressed) to its maximum level. A long attack time produces a “fade-in” effect.

• Decay – the time it takes for the note to drop in level from the maximum value reached at the end of the attack phase to a new level, deﬁned by the Sustain parameter.

• Sustain – this is an amplitude value, and represents the volume of the note after the initial attack and decay phases – i.e., while holding the key down. Setting a low value of Sustain can give a very short, percussive effect (providing the attack and decay times are short).

• Release – This is the time it takes for the note’s volume to drop back to zero after the key is released. A high value of Release will cause the sound to remain audible (though diminishing in volume) after the key is released.

The outputs of the various sound sources can be mixed together in any proportion to produce the overall synth sound, using what is essentially a standard 5-into-1 mono mixer.

The three Oscillators, the Noise source and the Ring Modulator output each have level controls, Osc 1 19, Osc 2 20, Osc 3 21, Noise 23 and Rin g 1*2 22 respectively. There i s also a “master” level control, VCA Gain 24, which sets the output level of the mixer. As the mixer section precede s the Envelopes section, this control scales the ADS R envelope.

Peak is c apable of producing level s in the mixer section that can clip if all sources are turned up to ma ximum. It may be necessary to balance the levels either by turning the sources down or by reducing the VCA Gain control

to ensure that audible clipping does not occur.

Although the above discusses ADSR in terms of volume, note that Peak is equi pped with three separate envelope generators, referred to as Amp Envelope, Mod Envelope 1 and Mod Envelope 2 .

• Amp Env is the envelope that controls the amplitude of the synth signal, and is always routed to the VCA in the output stage (see “PEAK: Simpliﬁed Block Diagram” on page 17). Peak also allows Amp Env to modulate the frequency of the Filter section.

• Mod Env 1 & 2 – the two modulation envelopes - are routed to various other sections of Peak, where it can be used to alter other synth parameters over the duration of the note. They are:

• Mod Env 1 can modulate the waveform shape of any of the three Oscillators,

at a degree set by the Shape Amount controls 14 when the associated Source button 13 is set to Mod Env 1.

• Mod Env 1 may also modulate the ﬁ lter frequency, at a degree set by the Env

Depth control 39 when the Source button 38 is set to Mod Env 1.

• Mod Env 2 can modulate the pitch of any of the three Oscillators, at a degree

set by the M od Env Depth 2 controls 11.

It should be noted that the above routings are only those available directly using Peak’s top panel controls: many more routing options are available using the Modulation Matrix (see “The Modulation Matrix” on page 26).

Page 23

Peak’s Envelope section has two sets of four slider controls, one set for Amp Env, the other for either M od Env 1 or Mo d Env 2, as selected by the Select butto n 27. Each slider is dedic ated to one of the ADSR parameters; the descriptions below describe the effect of the Amp Envelope controls as amplitude variations are more easily visualised, though the effect of the corresponding Mo d Envelope controls is identical.

• Attack – sets the note’s attack time. With the slider at its lowest position, the note attains its maximum level immediately the key is pressed; with the slider in its uppermost position, the note takes over 18 seconds to reach its maximum level.

• Decay – sets the time the note takes to decay from its initial level to that deﬁned by the Sustain parameter. Maximum decay time is approx. 22 seconds.

• Sustain – sets the volume of the note after the decay phase. A low Sustain value will obviously have the effect of emphasising the start of the note; having the slider fully down will make the note inaudible when the decay time has elapsed.

• Release – Many sounds acquire some of their character from the notes remaining audible after the key is released; this “hanging” or “fade-out” effect, with the note gently dying away naturally (as with many real instruments) can be very effective. Peak has a maximum release time of over 24 seconds, but shorter times will probably be more useful! The relationship between the parameter value and the Release Time is not linear.

Multi-Triggering

Displayed as: M on oTrig Initial value: Legato Range of adjustment : Legato or Re-Trig

When this parameter is set to Re-Trig, each note played will trigger its full ADSR envelope, even if other keys are held down . In Legato mode, only the ﬁrst key to be pressed will produce a note with the full envelope, all subsequent notes will omit the attack and decay phase s, and sound only from the start of the Sustain phase. “ Legato” literally means “smoothly”, and this mode aids this style of playing.

It is important to appreciate that for the Leg ato mode to be operative, Mono or MonoLG modes must be selected in the Voice Menu – it will not work with polyphonic voicing or Mono2 mode. See “Voices” on page 27.

What is Legato?

As implied above, the musical term Legato means “smoothly”. A Legato keyboard style is one where at least two notes overlap. This means that as you play the melody, you keep the previous (or an earlier) note sounding as you play another note. Once that note i s sounding, you the n relea se the earlier note.

The Envelopes Menu

The following additional Envelope parameters are available in the Env menu. Each Envelope has two menu page s; the parameters available for each Envelope are identical , except that the initial value of the M o n oTrig parameter for the Mod Envelopes is Re-Trig.

The default menu displays for the Amp Envelope are shown below:

AMP ENVELOPE 1/3 Velocity +0 h MonoTrig Legato

Velocity

Displayed as: Velocity Initial value: 0 Range of adjustment : -64 to + 63

Velocity does not modi fy the shape of the A DSR envelope in any way, but adds touch sensitivity to the sound. In the ca se of the Amplitude Envelope, setting a positive para meter value will mean the harder you play the keys, the louder will be the sound. If set to zero, the volume i s the same regardless of how the keys are played. The relationship between the velocity at which a note is played and volume is determined by the value. Note that negative values have the inve rse effect.

For the most “natural” playing style, try setting A mplitude Velocity to about +40.

The sonic effect of the corresponding Velocity parameter for the two M odulation Envelopes will depend on what the Envelopes are used for: for example, if they are used to modulate Filter Frequency (a common application), a positive Velo city parameter will result in a greater degree of ﬁlter action.

Page 24

The Filter Section

Cutoff

Frequency

Volume

Frequency

Cutoff

Frequency

The large rotar y Frequency control 35 sets the cut-off frequency of the ﬁlter when Shape is set to HP or LP. With BP selected, Frequency sets the centre frequency of the ﬁlter’s pass-band.

Sweeping the ﬁlter frequency manually will impose a “hard-to-soft” characteristic on almost any sound.

Resonance

The Resonance control 36 adds gain to the signal in a narrow band of frequencies around the frequency set by the Frequenc y control . It can accentuate the swept-ﬁlter effect considerably. Increasing the resonance parameter is very good for enhancing modulation of the cut-off frequency, creating a very edgy sound. Increasing Resonance also accentuates the action of the Frequency control, giving it a more pronounced effect.

The sum of the various signal sources create d in the mixer is fed to the Filter Section, which can be used to modify the harmonic content of the Oscillator’s output. Peak’s ﬁlter is a traditional analogue design, and has an extensive set of modulation and control options.

Filter type

The Shape button 33 selects one of three ﬁlter t ypes: low-pass (LP), band-pass (BP) or high-pass (HP)

The Slope button 34 sets the degree of rejection applied to out-of-band frequencies; the 24 dB position gives a steeper slo pe than the 12 dB; an out-of-band frequency will be attenuated more severely with the steeper setting.

Frequency

Volume

Low Pass 24 dB

Frequency

Low Pass 24 dB with Resonance

Setting Resonance to a high value can greatly increase the output signal level – the synth volume . This can be compensated for by adjusting VCA Gain 24.

Filter modulation

The ﬁlter’s Frequency parameter may be modulated - using the physical controls - by the output of LFO 1, the Amplitude Envelope, Modulation Envelope 1, or any combination of these. Modulation by LFO 1 is controlled by the LFO 1 dept h control 40, and by the Env Depth control 39 for either of the two envelop es. The E nv Depth c ontrol is assigned to the Amplitude Envelope by selecting Amp Env with the Sourc e button 38, and to Modulation Envelope 2 by selecting Source to Mod Env. Both mod sources may be used simultaneously, with the Env Dept h control adjusting only the currently selected envelope. (Compare with the use of LFO 1 and Mod Env 1 for modulating the Oscillator’s Shape parameter.)

As with many other c ontrol routings between synth sections, a great many more options for modulating the ﬁ lter may be explore d using the Modulation Matrix (se e page 26).

Note that only one LFO – LFO 1 - is used for ﬁlter modulation. Filter frequency can be varied by up to eight octaves.

Volume

Low Pass 12 dB

Frequency

Cutoff

Frequency

Cutoff

Frequency

Cutoff

Frequency

Band Pass 12 dB

High Pass 24 dB

Negative values of LFO 1 depth “inver t” the modulating LFO waveform; the effect of this will be more obvious with non-sinusoidal L FO waveforms and low LFO rates.

Modul ating the ﬁlter frequency with an LFO can produce some unusual “ wah-wah” type effects . Setting LFO 1 to a very slow sp eed can add a gradual hardening and then softening edge to the sound.

When the ﬁlter’s action is tr iggered by an envelope, the ﬁlter action changes over the duration of the note. By adjusting the Envelope controls carefully, this can produce some very pleasing sounds , as for example, th e spectral content of the sound can be made to differ considerably during the attack phase of the note compared to its “fade-out”. Env dept h lets you control the “depth” and “direction” of the mo dulation; the higher the value, the greater the range of frequencies over which the ﬁlter will sweep. Positi ve and negative values make the ﬁlter sweep in opposite directions, but the audible result of this will be further modiﬁed by the ﬁlter type in u se.

Peak also allows direct modulation of the Filter frequency by Oscillato r 3, to a degree controlled by Osc 3 Filter Mod 41. The inte nsity of the resulting effect is dependent on the control setting, but also on almost all Osc 3 parameters, e.g., range, pitch, waveform, pulse width and any modulation applied to the O scillator.

Try adding Osc 3 Filter Mod while sweeping Osc 3 pitch with the pitch wheel.

Page 25

Filter tracking

The pitch of the note p layed can be made to alter the cut-off fre quency of the ﬁlter. This relationship is governed by the set ting of the Key Tracking control 42. At the ma ximum value (127), the ﬁlter cut-off fre quency moves in semitone steps with the notes played on the keyboard – i.e., the ﬁlter tracks the pitch changes in a 1:1 ratio. T his means that when playing two notes an octave apar t, the ﬁlter cut of f frequency will also change by one octave. At minimum setting (value 0), the ﬁlter frequency remains constant, whatever note(s) are played on the keyboard.

When using ﬁlter resonance as an additional oscillator, set Key Tracking to maximum (127) to allow the ﬁlter to be played ‘in tune’.

Overdrive

The ﬁlter section includes a dedicated drive (or distortion) generator; the Overdrive control 37 adjusts the degree of distortion treatment appli ed to the signal. The drive is added before the ﬁlter.

Peak does not have a dedicated Filter menu, but t wo further Filter-related parameters – Fil ter Post D rive and Filter Divergence - are also available for adjustment in the Voice menu. See page 29.

Page 26

The Modulation Matrix

Destin 0123Ptch

SourceB Direct

Velocity

Lfo2+

Osc2Shpe

Velocity

Lfo2+

Osc2Shpe

Velocity

Lfo2+

Osc2Shpe

Velocity

Lfo2+

Osc2Shpe

Velocity

Lfo2+

Osc2Shpe

Velocity

Lfo2+

Osc2Shpe

The heart of a versatile synthesiser lies in the ability to interconnect the var ious controllers, sound generators and pro cessing blocks such that one block is controlling – or “modulating” - another, in as many ways as possible. Peak provides considerable ﬂexibility of control routing, and there is a dedicated menu for this, the Mod Menu. The available modulating sources and destinations to be modulated can be thought of as the inputs and outputs of a large matrix:

Osc1 Lev

Osc2Shpe

Osc3Shpe

Number 1

Osc2 Lev

MOD SOURCES

Direct

ModWheel

AftTouch ExprPED1 BrthPED2

Velocity

Keyboard

Lfo1+

Lfo1+/-

Lfo2+

Lfo2+/-

AmpEnv

ModEnv1 ModEnv2 Animate1 Animate2

CV +/-

0123Ptch

Osc1Ptch

Osc2Ptch

Osc3Ptch

Osc1VSnc

Osc2VSnc

Osc1Shpe

Osc3VSnc

MOD DESTINATIONS

Filt Drv

FiltFreq

Ring Lev

VcaLevel

NoiseLev

Osc3 Lev

Number 16

Velocity

Lfo2+/-

FiltDist

Filt Res

AmpEnv A

AmpEnv R

AmpEnv D

ModEnv1A

ModEnv1R

ModEnv1D

Osc2Shpe

ModEnv2A

ModEnv2R

ModEnv2D

Depth

FM O1>O2

FM O2>O3

FM O3>O1

Ns>FiltF

O3>FiltF

The example here shows how any two sources, in this case Velocity and LFO 2, can simultaneously modulate the sa me parameter, in this case Osc 2 Shape. M any mod matrix assignments w ill only use a single source. Note that the two modulation sources are effectively multiplied together, and that the Depth p arameter controls the overall degree of modulation.

The diagram depicts a single matrix “slot”; Peak ha s 16 such slots, allowing an enormous range of modulation possibilities.

Press the Mod button 56 to open th e Modulation Menu, which compri ses two pages. The menu may be visualised as a system for connecting controlling sources to a speciﬁ c area of the synth. Each such connection a ssignment is termed a ‘slot’, and there are 16 such slots, accessed on Page 1). Each s lot deﬁnes how one or two control sources are routed to a controlled parameter. The routing possibilities available in each of the 16 slots are identical, and the control description below is applicable to a ll of them .

MOD MATRIX 1/2 Slot 1 h

Depth +0

MOD SLOT 1 2/2 SourceA Direct h

The Modulation Matrix is both variable and additive. What do we mean by a ‘variable’ and ‘additive’ matrix?

By ‘variable’, we mean that it is not just the routing of a controlling source to a controlled parameter which is deﬁned in each slot, but also the “magnitude” of the control. Thus the ‘amount’ of control – or Depth – used is up to you.

By ‘additive’ we mean that a par ameter may be varie d by more than one source, if wishe d. Each slot allows for two sources to be routed to a parameter, and their effects are multiplied together. This means that if either of them is at zero, there will be no modulation. However, there is no reason why you can’t have further slots routing these or other sources to the same parameter. In this case, the control signals from different slots “add” to produce the overall ef fect.

Mod Wheel Position

MOD SLOT NO 1

SOURCE 1: LFO

SOURCE 2: MOD WHEE L

SOURCE 1: LFO

SOURCE 2: MOD WHEE L

Depth +0

MOD SLOT NO 1

MOD SLOT NO 2

MOD SLOT NO 1

MOD SLOT NO 2

SOURCE 1: LFO

SOURCE 2:

SOURCE 1: MOD WHEE L

SOURCE 2:

SOURCE 1: LFO

SOURCE 2:

SOURCE 1: MOD WHEE L

SOURCE 2:

Page 27

You need to be careful when setting up matr ix assignments like this to ensure that the combined effect of all the controllers acting simultaneously still creates the sound that you want .

In addition, the Modulation Menu lets you assign the two AN IM ATE buttons as sources (see page 12).

Sources

Displayed as: SourceA SourceB Initial values: Direct and Direct Range of adjustment : See table at page 37 for full details

Each of these selects a control source (modulator), which will be routed to the synth element selected by Destin. Setting both SourceA and Sou rceB to Direct means that when the Depth for the Slot is set to a non-zero value, a constant change to the Destination paramete r will result (there is no modulator to change this over time).

Slot number

Displayed as: Slot Initial value: 1 Range of adjustment : 1 to 16

Slot lets you select one of 16 ‘slots’, each deﬁning a routing assignment of one (or t wo) sources to a destination. All the slots have the same selection of sources and destinations and any or all can be used. The same source can control multiple destinations, and one destination can be controlled by multiple sources.

Destination

Displayed as: Destin Initial value: O123Ptch Range of adjustment : See table at page 38 for full details

This sets the parameter to be controlled by the selected source ( or sourc es) in the currently selected slot. The range of possibilities includes: parameters that directly af fect the sound:

• three parameters per oscillator (Pitc h, Vsync and Shape)

• global pitch ( O123Ptch)

• the ﬁve mixer inputs from the oscillators, noise source, ring modulator and the mixer output (see Tip below)

• Filter frequency, resonance and distortion

parameters that can a lso act as modulating sources (thus permitting recursive modulation):

• LFO 1 & 2 frequency

• the Attack, Decay and Release phases of all three Envelopes

• Frequency Modulation of oscillators (FM) by ﬁlter other oscillators or Noise

The mixer output (VCA level) is an unusual matrix destinatio n! The VCA is the main output stage for the synth and this is nor mally under the sole control of the Amplitude E nvelope, but Peak lets you assign the VCA as a destination in the Mod Matrix. If either Source A or Source B is not set to an Envelope, the VCA can be controlled independently of any notes being played.

Note that the list of s ources allows for Expression pedals. I f you connect an Expression pedal to either the rear panel peda l connectors, or to corresponding connectors on a controlling keyboard, they can be selecte d to control any Destination you wish in the norma l way. If you wish an Expression pedal to control overall synth volume in a natural way, choose VcaLevel as the routing destination for Slot A and AmpEnv for Slot B.

The CV input is also available as a source for the Mod Matrix. The CV input can be routed to any of the available mod destinations. The CV input has been designed to r espond to control inputs w ithout aliasing up to just over 1 kHz (which roughly corresponds to two octaves above middle C).

The Modulation Matrix AftTouch source will accept either channel after touch, which is the most common type of aftertouch, or can be used with polyphonic aftertouch, as generated by some controllers such as

the Novation LaunchPad P ro. When polyphonic aftertouch is recei ved, the pressure applied during a note event is inte rpreted as a modulation event for this one note only. This provides a leve l of expressivity in playing that is uncommon with har dware synths.

Glide

Peak’s G lide function ma kes notes played sequentially glide from one to the next, rather than immediately jumping from one pitch to another. It is enabled w ith the Glide On button 29. The synth remembers the last note played per Voice (see below) and the glide – up or down - will start from that Voice’s last triggered’s pitch even after the key ha s been relea sed. The duration of the glide is set by the Time control 28: a value of 90 equates to approximately 1 second.

Glide i s primarily intended for use in a mono Mode, where it is particul arly ef fective. It can also be used in Poly modes, but its operation can be s lightly unpredictable, because the glide will be from the previous note used by the voice now assigne d to the note being played. This may be particularly evident with chords. Note that PreGlide must be set to zero in or der for Glide to be operative.

See also the PreGlide parameter in the Voices menu (page 28).

Depth

Displayed as: Depth Initial value: 0 Range of adjustment : -64 to + 63

The Depth parameter sets “how much” control i s being applied to the Destination – i.e., the parameter being modulated by the selected source(s). If both Source 1 and Sourc e 2 are active in the sl ot in question, Depth controls their combined effect

Depth effectively deﬁnes the “amount” by which the controlled parameter varies when under modulation c ontrol. Think of it as the “range” of control. It also determines the “sense” or polarity of the control

– positive value s of Depth will increase the value of the controlled parameter and negative values will decrease it, for the same control input. Note that having deﬁned Source and Destination in a patch, no modulation will occur until the Depth control is set to something other than zero.

Negative values of Depth do not work on certain parameters, unless modulation is already being applied to that parameter by some other routing, in which case the negative sense “cancels” the modulation already present. Examples are: i) Oscillator Vsync – nee ds to be applied via the Oscillator Menu before it can be reduced by a Mod Matrix routing; ii) FM of one oscillator by another – another mod slot must alread y be applying the FM before it c an be cancelled .

With both sources set to Direct, the parameter control becomes a

“manual” modulation control which will always affect whichever

parameter is set as the Destination.

Voices

Peak is a multi-voice, pol yphonic synthesiser, whi ch basically me ans you can play chords on the keyboard, a nd every note you hold down will sound. As you play, each note is assigned one or more ‘voices’, and as Peak supp orts eight voices, you will often run out of ﬁngers before you run out of voices ! But this does dep end on how many voice s are assigned to each note – see the Uniso n parameter in the Voice Menu on page 28). However, if you are controlling Peak from a MIDI sequencer or DAW, it is possible to run out: sequencers don’t have the hum an constraint of a ﬁ nite number of ﬁngers. Although this is likely to happen infrequently, users may occasionally observe this phenomenon, which is termed ‘voice stealing’.

The alternative to polyphonic voicing is mono. With mono voicing, only one note sounds at a time; pressing a second key while holding the ﬁrst down will cancel the ﬁ rst and play the second – and so on. T he last note played is always the only one that you hear. All the ear ly synths were mono, and if you are trying to emulate a 1970s analogue synth, you may wish to set the voicing to mono as the mode imposes a cer tain restriction on playing style that will add to authenticity.

Note that Depth is available as a parameter on both pages of the Mod Menu.

Page 28

Press the Voice button 56 to open th e Voice Menu, which comprises three pages. In

UniDeTune 25

Mode Poly

FltDiverge 0

addition to selecting polyphonic or mono voicing, the menu also lets you set how Glide operates and other relate d voicing parameters.

VOICE 1/3

Unison 1 h

UniSpread 0

Stereo image placement diagram for 4 voice unison with UniSpread set mid way

unison voice 2 unison voice 1

centre

unison voice 4 unison voice 3

Fully Left Fully Right

VOICE 2/3

PreGlide +0 h

PatchLevel 64

VOICE 3/3

FltPostDrv 0 h

Unison

Displayed as: Unis on Initial value: 1 Range of adjustment : 1, 2, 3, 4, 8

Unison can be used to “thicken” the sound by ass igning additional voices (up to eight in total ) for each note. Be awa re that the “reser voir” of voices is ﬁ nite and with multiple voices assigned, Peak’s polyphonic ca pability may be reduced. With four voices per note, only two notes may be played together fully polyphonically, and if further notes are played, “voice stealing” is implemented and the ﬁrst note played will be c ancelled. With Uniso n set to 8, Pe ak becomes a multi-voice monophonic synth.

If the limitation on polyphony imp osed by Unison Voices is restrictive and

the oscillators are set to Sawtooth, a similar effect can be obtained by

using the SawDense and DenseDet parameters in the Oscillator

Menu. (In fact, some of the factory patches use this technique.)

SawDense and DenseDet have no impact on the polyphony.

Voice DeTune

Displayed as: U niD eTu n e Initial value: 25 Range of adjustment : 0 to 127

Stereo image placement diagram for 4 voice unison with UniSpread increased

unison voice 2

unison voice 4 unison voice 3

Fully Left Fully Right

Note that UniSpread is still effective even with unison voices set to zero: in this case, a single note played is positioned centrally in the stereo image, while playing multiple notes re sults in left or right panning, depending whether the voice in use is odd- or even-numbered. When used like this, best results are obtained with moderate amounts of UniSpread.

Pre-Glide

Displayed as: PreGlide Initial value: Off Range of adjustment : Off, -12 to +12

If set to a value other than zero, Pre-G lide takes prior ity over Glide, though it does use the setting of Glide’s Time control 28 to determine its duration. Note that Glide must also be On 29 for Pre-Glide to work. PreGlide is calibrated in semitones , and each note played will actually begin on a chromatically-related note up to an octave above (value = +12) or below ( value = -12) the note c orresponding to the key pressed, and glide towards the ‘target’ note. This differ s from Glide in that, e.g., t wo notes played in sequence will each have their own Pre-Glide, related to the notes played, and there will be no glide ‘bet ween’ the notes.

Although the use of Glide is not recommended in Poly modes when playing more than one note at a time, this restriction does not apply to Pre-Glide, which can be very effective with full chords.

centre

unison voice 1

Unison Detune is only effective when Unis on is set to something othe r than 1. The parameter determines how much each voice is detuned relative to the others; detuning is generally desirable as adding additional “identical” voices has much less effect.

Voice panning

Displayed as: UniSpread Initial value: 0 Range of adjustment : 0 to 127

UniSpread gives you a method of co ntrolling how the separate voices are positioned in the stereo image. With UniSpread set to zero, all voices are centrally panned, effectively providing a mono image. As the value of UniSpread is increased, multiple voices are panned increasingly left and right – odd-numbered voices to the left and eve n to the right.

Page 29

Polyphony Mode

status INT 120.00bpm

Octaves 1

KeySync Off

Displayed as: Mode Initial value: Poly Range of adjustment: Mono, MonoLG, Mono2, Poly, Poly2

As the names imply, three of the possible mode s are mono a nd two are polyphonic.

1. Mono – this is standard monophonic mode; only one note sounds at a time,

and the “last played” rule applies - if you play more than key, only the last pressed will be heard. T he same voice or voices are used for ever y note: this means e ach note played will r e-trigger the voices even if the previous note is still sounding. When selected On, Glide will always be operative between successive notes.

2. MonoLG – LG stands for Legato Glide. This is an alternative mono mode, which differs from Mono in the way Glide and Pre-Glide work. In MonoLG mode, G lide and Pre-Glide only work if the keys are played in a legato style ; playing notes separately produces no glide effect. As with Mono, the same voices are re-used for every note.

3. Mono 2 – this mode operates in the same way as Mono, except that voices are assigned “in rotation” as each note is played. Unlike Mono or MonoLG, this has the effect (depending on playing speed ) of allowing each note to compl ete its individua l envelope. The main advant age of the M ono 2 voice mode is when using envelop es with an amount of attack as the envelope is always reset. This is not how analogue envelope generators work, but many digital envelope generators work on this principle.

4. Po ly – in polyphonic mode, up to eight voices can sound simultaneously: depending on how many voices are assigned in the Patch, this means that you can play up to eight notes simultaneously. If you play the sa me note repeatedly, each note will be assigned a different voice, and you will hear the individual envelopes of ever y note.

5. Poly2 – in this alter native polyphonic mode, succes sively p laying the same note(s) uses the same voices , the voices being re-triggered by new notes. This can change the behaviour of voice stealing. For example, in P oly mode, when playing chord shapes with similar notes (e.g., Amin7 to Cm aj) the notes C, E and G will be playe d twice as well as the A and the B, i.e., a total of eight voices. If playing a melody in the other hand, one voice from the ﬁrst chord will be stolen, which may be the lowest A. If Mode is set to P oly 2, the C, E and G will only be played once, which will leave three voices free for playing a melody.

The Arpeggiator

Peak has a versatile Arpeggiator (Arp) feature which allows arpeggios of varying compl exity and rhythm to be played and manipulated in real-time. When the Arpe ggiator is enabled and a single key is p ressed, its note will be retriggered. If you play a chord, the Arpeggiator identiﬁes its notes and plays them indi vidually in sequence (this is termed an arpeggio pattern or ‘arp sequence’); thus if you play a C major triad, the s elected notes will be C, E and G.

There a re only three panel controls for the Arpeggiator: most of the arp parameters – including tempo, pattern, octave range and type (up/down) - are set up in the Arp menu (see below). The Arpeggiator is enabled by pressing the On button 30.

The Key Latch button 31 plays the currently selected arp sequence repeatedly without the keys being held. If further key(s) are pressed while the initial keys are being held down, the extra note(s) will be adde d to the sequence. If further keys are pressed after releasing all the notes, a new sequenc e consisting only of the new notes will be played.

The Gate control 32 sets the basic duration of the notes played by the Arpeggiator (though this will be further ame nded by both the Rhythm and SyncRate menu settings). Gate length is a perc entage of the step length so the time during which the gate is open depends on the master clock s peed. The lower the parameter value, the shorter the duration of the note played. At its ma ximum value (127), one note in the sequence is immediately followed by the next without a gap. At the default value of 64, the note duration is exactly half the beat interval ( as set by the ClockRate parameter in the menu), and each note is followed by a rest of e qual length.

Arp data transmission

Peak will both transmit M IDI note data from the arpeggiator, and allow the arpeggiator to play notes according to received MIDI note data. See “Arp MIDI mode” on page 34 for more information.

The effect of the differ ent polyphony modes can be quite subtle, depending on the Patch in use and playing style, and we recommend that you experiment!

Patch Level

Displayed as: Patch Level Initial value: 64 Range of adjustment : 0 to 127

This is a n additional level trim control, whose setting is save d with the Patch. This allows you to set the overall volume of each Patch, so that all the Patche s in use are at the levels that you want. With a value of 0, the Patch volume is halved; with a value of 127, it is doubled.

Filter Post Drive

Displayed as: FltPostDrv Initial value: 0 Range of adjustment : 0 to 127

This parameter controls how much pre-envelope distortion is added to the sound after the ﬁlter, but (crucially) b efore the ampliﬁ er. This distortion will thus remain constant when the ampliﬁer is gradually opened and closed by the amplitude envelope, unlike that added by the Effects section DISTORTION Level control 43, which follows the ampliﬁ er in the signal chain.

Filter Divergence

Displayed as: FltDiverge Initial value: 0 Range of adjustment : 0 to 127

This parameter re-creates the subtle effect of poor ﬁlter calibration found on early a nalogue synths . The ﬁlter for each voice is deliberately detuned by a different, ﬁxed amount. The effect will be more apparent when the ﬁlter i s close to resonance.

The Arp /Clock Menu

The following additional Arpeggiator parameters are available in the Arp /Clock menu, which has three pages:

CLOCK 1/3 ClockRate 120BPM h Source Auto

ARP 2/3 Type Up h Rhythm 1

ARP 3/3 Swing 50 h SyncRate 16th

Page 30

Temp o

Displayed as: ClockRate Initial value: 120 BPM Range of adjustment : 40 to 240 BPM

Arp Rhythm

Displayed as: Rhythm Initial value: 1 Range of adjustment : 1 to 33

ClockRate sets the basic tempo of the arp sequ ence and you can make it play faster or slower by adjusting it. The range is 40 to 240 BPM . If Peak is being synchronised to an external MIDI clock, it will automatically detect the incoming tempo and disable the internal clock . The tempo of the arp sequence will then be deter mined by the external MIDI clock .

If the ex ternal MIDI clock source is removed, the A rpeggiator will continue to “ﬂy wheel” at the last known tempo. However, if you now adjust ClockRate, the internal clock will take over and override the ﬂywheel rate.

Clock source

Displayed as: Source Initial value: Auto Range of adjustment : Auto, Internal, Ext-Auto, MIDI, USB

Peak uses a master MIDI clock in order to set the tempo of the arpeggiator and to provide a time base for synchronisation to an overall tempo. This clock may be derived internally or provided by an ex ternal device able to transmit MI DI cloc k. The Source setting determines whether Peak’s tempo-synchronised features (Arpe ggiator, Delay Sync and LFO Rate Sync) will follow the tempo of an external MIDI clock source or follow the tempo set by the ClockRate parameter. The options are:

• Auto – when no external MIDI clock source is present Peak will default to the

internal MIDI clock. Tempo will be set by the ClockRate parameter. If an external MIDI clock is present, Peak will synchronise to it.

• Internal – Peak will synchronise to the internal MIDI clock irrespective of what external MIDI clock sources may be present.

• Ext-Auto – this is an auto-detect mode whereby Peak will synchronise to any external MIDI clock source (via USB or MIDI connection). Until external clock is detected, Peak will run at its internal clock rate. When external clock is detected, Peak synchronises to it. If external clock is subsequently lost (or stopped), Peak’s tempo then “ﬂywheels” to the last-known clock rate.

• MIDI – synchronisation will be to an external MIDI clock connected to the (DIN) MIDI input socket. If no clock is detected, the tempo “ﬂywheels” to the last-known clock rate.

• USB – synchronisation will be to an external MI DI clock received via the USB connection. If no clock is detected, the tempo “ﬂywheels” to the last-known clock rate.

When set to either of the external MI DI clock sources the tempo will be at the MIDI Clock rate received from the external source (e.g., a sequencer) . Make sure the external sequencer is set to transmit MID I Clock . If unsure of the procedure, consult the sequencer manual for details.

Most sequencers do not transmit MIDI C lock while they are stopped. Synchronisation of Peak to M IDI Clock will only be possible while the sequencer is actually recording or playing. In the absence of an external clock, the tempo may ﬂywheel and will assume the last known incoming M IDI Clock value. In this situation, the 4th row of the OLED will display FLY. (Note that Peak does NOT revert to the tempo set by the ClockRate parameter unless Auto is selected.)

Arp Mod e

Displayed as: Ty pe Initial value: Up Range of adjustment : See table below

As well as being able to set the basic timing and mode of the ar p sequence (with the ArpMode and SyncRate parameters ), you can also introduce further rhythmic variations with the Rhythm parameter. The Arpeggiator comes with 33 pre-deﬁned arp sequences; use the Rhyth m parameter to select one. In ver y general terms, the sequences increase in rhythmic complexity a s the numbers increase; Rhythm 1 i s just a series of consecutive crotchets, and higher-numbered rhythms introduce more complex patterns, shorter duration notes (semiquavers) and syncopation.

You should spend some time experimenting with different combinations of

Rhythm and Ty p e. Some patterns work better with certain choices of Ty pe.

Octave range

Displayed as: Octaves Initial value: 1 Range of adjustment : 1 to 6

The Octaves parameter allows upper octaves to be ad ded to the arp sequence. When set to 2, the sequence is playe d as normal, then immediately played again an octave higher. Higher values extend this process by adding additional higher octaves. Set tings other than 1 have the effect of doubling, tripling, etc., the length of the sequence. The additional notes added duplicate the c omplete original sequence, but octave-shifted. Thus a four-note sequence played with Octaves set to 1 will cons ist of eight notes when Octaves is set to 2.

Swing

Displayed as: Swing Initial value: 50 Range of adjustment : 20 to 80

If Swing is set to so mething other tha n its default value of 50, some further interesting rhythmic effects can be obtained. Higher values lengthen the interval between odd and even notes, while the even-to-odd intervals are correspondingly shortened. Lower values have the opposite effect. This is an effect which is easier to experiment with than describe!

Arp Rate Sync

Displayed as: SyncRate Initial value: 16th Range of adjustment : See table at page 36 for full details

This parameter effectively determine s the beat of the arp se quence, based on the tempo rate set by the ClockRate parameter.

Arp Key Sync

Displayed as: KeySync Initial value: Off Range of adjustment : Off or On

KeySync only applies only when Key Latch 31 is On. It determines how the sequence behaves when a new set of notes is played. With KeySync off, the notes are changed but the constant rhythm dictated by the arp pattern is maintained. If KeySy nc is On, the arp pat tern will be interr upted immediately the keys are struck.

When enabled, the Arpe ggiator w ill play all notes held down in a sequence which is determined by the Type parameter. The third column of the table describes the nature of the sequence in each case.

ARP MODE DESCRIPTION COMMENTS

Up Ascending Sequence begins with lowest note played Down Descending Sequence begins with hi ghest note played Up-Down 1

Up Down 2

Played Key order

Random Rando m

Chord Chord

Ascend/descend

Sequence alternates As Up-Down 1, but lowest and highest notes are played twice Sequence comprises notes in the order in which they are played The note s held are played in a continuouslyvarying random sequence The note s making up the sequence are played simultaneously, as a chord

Page 31

The Effects Section

Peak comes equi pped with a sound ef fects ( FX) s ection . FX can be applied to the sound the synth is gener ating to add colour and character. All F X parameters are saved with the Patch.

51 52

4544

The output of the delay processor is connected back to the input, at a reduced level; The Feedback control 46 sets the level. This results in multiple echoes, as th e delayed signal is further repeated. With Feedback set to zero, no delayed signal at all is fed back, so only a single echo results. As you increase the value, you will hear more ec hoes for e ach note, though they still die away in volume. Setting the control in the c entre of its range (64) results in about 5 or 6 audible echoes ; at the ma ximum setting the decay in volume is almost imperceptible and the repetitions will still be audible after a minute or more.

The Level control 47 adjusts the level of the echoes: at the maximum setting (127), the ﬁrst echo is approximately the same volume as the initial, dr y note.

There a re further Delay parameters available for adjustment in the F X Menu

Reverb

Reverberation (reverb) adds the effect of an acoustic space to a sound. Unlike delay, reverb is created by generating a dense set of delayed signals, typically with different phase r elationships and equalisations applied to re-create what happens to sound in a real acoustic space.

Peak provides three reverb presets, selected by the Ty pe button 49. The pre sets are simply numbered 1, 2 and 3, and set the RevSize parameter (see page 32) to values of 0, 64 or 127 respectively, thus simulating spaces of different size s.

48 49

The FX tools comprise analogue distortion and three digital “time-domain” effects: Reverb, Chorus and Delay. Each has its own set of controls and any or all FX may be used without restriction.

In addition, the FX Menu provides extensive control of addi tional parameters for the digital FX. These may be used in pa rallel conﬁguration, or arranged in series in any order: the conﬁgurations are set up in the FX Menu.

The FX processing section is active by default: the Bypass button 54 switches the digital FX processing out of cir cuit: it does not by pass the Distor tion processor.

Distortion

Distortion may be added w ith the single Level control 43. A controlled amount of distor tion is added after the VCA , in the analogue domain, and affects the sum of the eight voices. This means that the distor tion characteristic will change as the amplitude of the signal change s over time a s a result of the Amplitude Envelope, and also with the number of active voices .

The output from the Distor tion processor is then routed to the other FX .

Note that “per-voic e” distor tion may be added by adjusting Post Filter Drive in the Voice m enu.

Chorus

Chorus is an effect produced by mi xing a continuously delayed version of the signal with the original. The characteristic swirling effect is produced by the Chorus processor’s own LFO making ver y small changes in the delays. The changing delay also produces the effect of multiple voices, some of which are pitch-shifted; this adds to the effect.

The Time control 48 sets the basic reverb time of the selected spac e and sets the time that the r everb takes to die away to inaudibility. The Level control 50 adjusts the volume of the reverb.

The FX Menu

The following additional parameters for the three time-domain ef fects are available in the FX menu. Two menu pages each are dedicated to Chorus and Delay and three to Reverb. There i s also one further page (Page 1/8 ), with “global” parameters affecting all three effects.

Chorus pages:

CHORUS 2/8 ChorDepth 64 h ChorFback +0

CHORUS 3/8 LoPass 90 h HiPass 2

Peak has three stereo Chorus programs (simply numbered 1, 2 and 3), selected by the Type button 52. Type 1 is a two-tap chor us, Type 2 use s four taps and Type 3 is an

ensemble effect. The amount of C horus effect added to the “dry” signal is adjusted by the Level control 53. The Rate control 51 sets the frequency of the Chorus processor’s dedic ated LFO. Lower values give a lower frequency, and he nce a sound whose characteristic changes more gradually. A slow rate is generally more effective.

There a re further Chorus parameters available for adjustment in the FX Menu

Delay

The Delay FX processor produces one or more repetitions of the note played. Although the two are intimately related in an acoustic sense, delay should not be confused with reverb in terms of an effect. Think of delay simply as “Echo”.

The Time control 44 sets the basic delay time: the note played will be repeated after a ﬁxed time. High er values correspond to a longer delay, with the maximum value of 127 equating to approx. 1.4 seconds. If Time is varied while a note is being played, pitch shifting will result.

It is often desirable to synchronise echoes to tempo : on Peak this can be done by selecting Sync 45. The Time control then varies the DelaySync parameter, which is displayed on the OLED while the control is adjusted. The sync va lue is limited by the maximum delay time of 1.4 seconds, consequently some combinations of ClockRate and DelaySync result in truncating the delay time to the maximum calc ulated sync rate permi ssible, i.e., the delay ti me will re duce, but it will remain in sync.

Chorus Depth

Displayed as: ChorDepth Initial value: 64 Range of adjustment : 0 to 127

The ChorDepth parameter determines the amount of LFO modulation applied to the Chorus delay time, and thus the overall depth of the effect. A value of zero results in no chorus effect being added.

Chorus Feedback

Displayed as: ChorFback Initial value: 0 Range of adjustment : -64 to + 63

The Chorus processor has its own feedback path between output and input, and a degree of feedback can be applied to get a more effecti ve sound. Negative values of the ChorFback parameter mean that the signal being fed back is phase-reversed: High values – positive or negative – can add a dramatic “swooping” effect. Adding feedback and keeping the value of ChorDepth low will tur n the Chorus FX into a ﬂanger.

Page 32

Chorus E Q

HP Damp 0

Width 127

HP Damp 1

ModRate 4

Displayed as: LoPass HiPass Initial values: 90 and 2 Range of adjustment : 0 to 127 0 to 127

Width

Displayed as: Width Initial value: 127 Range of adjustment : 0 to 127

The LoPass and HiPas s para meters adjust simple HF and LF ﬁlter s within the Chorus proce ssor. Adjusting th ese will enhance or mask some of the additional harmonics added to the sound by the Chorus effect.

Delay pages:

DELAY 4/8 DelaySync 4th T h LP Damp 85

DELAY 5/8 L/R Ratio 1/1 h SlewRate 32

Delay Sync

Displayed as: DelaySync Initial value: 4th T Range of adjustment : See table at page 36 for full details

Delay time may synchronised to the internal or external MIDI clock, using a wide variety of tempo dividers/multipliers to produce delays from about 5 ms to 1 second.

The value of DelaySync is also disp layed while the front panel Time control 44 is being adjusted, when Sync 45 is set On.

The Width parameter is only really relevant to settings of L R Ra tio which result in the echoes being split across the stereo image. With its default value of 127, any stereo placement of delayed signals will be fully left and fully right. Decreasing the value of Width reduces the width of the stereo image and panned echoes tend towards the centre position.

Reverb pages:

REVERB 6/8 PreDelay 40 h LP Damp 50

REVERB 7/8 RevSize 64 h ModDepth 64

REVERB 8/8 LoPass 75 h HiPass 0

Be aware that the total delay time available is ﬁnite. Using large tempo divisions at a ver y slow tempo rate may exceed the delay time limit.

Damping

Displayed as: LP Damp HP Damp Initial values: 85 and 0 Range of adjustment : 0 to 127 0 to 127

Echoes produc ed acoustically by reﬂections in physica l spaces decay at different rates at different frequencies, depending on the type of surface producing the reﬂection. The two Damping parameters allow a simulatio n of this ef fect. Note that the varying decay only applies to the delayed notes, not to the initial one. See also the Damping parameter s in the Reverb processor.

Left- Right Ratio

Displayed as: LR R atio Initial value: 1/1 Range of adjustment : 1/1, 4/3, 3 /4, 3/2, 2/ 3, 2/1, 1/2, 3/1, 1/3, 4/1, 1/4

The value of this parameter is a ratio, and determines how each delayed note is distributed between the lef t and right outputs. Setting LR Ratio to the default 1/1 value places all echoe s centra lly in the stereo image. With other values, echoes are alternated between left and right at simple ratios of the delay time.

Delay Slew Rate

Displayed as: SlewRate Initial value: 32 Range of adjustment : 0 to 127

The value of SlewRate affects the nature of the sound while the Delay Time is being varied. Varying delay time produces pitch-shif ting. With Slew Rate set to the maximum value (127), al most no pitch-shift effects will be heard as the Time control 44 is adjusted. With lower values, the pitch-shift effects become more evident. A s the purpose of var ying delay time in per formance is generally to produce pitch shift artefacts, a medium va lue is usually desirable.

PreDelay

Displayed as: PreDelay Initial value: 40 Range of adjustment : 1 to 127

In a very large space, the ﬁ rst reﬂections making up the reverberation are not h eard immediately. PreDelay controls how soon after the sta rt of the initial note the reverb eration begins , and thus allows a more accurate simulation of a re al space to be created. With PreDelay set to its maxi mum value (127), the ﬁrst reﬂecti ons are delayed by approximately half a second.

Damping

Displayed as: LP Damp HP Damp Initial values: 50 and 1 Range of adjustment : 0 to 127 0 to 127

These two parameters perform the same function for the reve rb processor as the corre sponding ones in the Delay processor, in that th ey simulate the effect of frequencydependent absorption coefﬁcients of different surfaces.

Size

Displayed as: RevSize Initial value: 64 Range of adjustment : 1 to 127

The RevSize parameter alters the reverberation character: larger values introduce additional and more prominent reﬂections, simulating the effect of a larger physical space. Note that the Typ e button 49 sets RevSize to 0, 64 or 127, so the menu option allows ﬁner adjustment between these values.

Reverb Modulation

Displayed as: ModDepth ModRate Initial values: 64 and 4 Range of adjustment : 0 to 127 0 to 127

The reverb processor includes a dedicated modulation source, which can be used to continuously vary the reverb time (set with the Time control 48). Two parameters ar e provided: ModDepth, which controls the degree of modulation and ModRate, which controls the modulation rate.

Page 33

Reverb EQ

Routing Parallel

Memory Protect ON

Displayed as: LoPass HiPa ss Initial values: 74 and 0 Range of adjustment : 0 to 127 0 to 127

These two parameters basically constitute a sim ple LF/ HF EQ section for the reverb envelope itself. The effects dif fer from those of the Damping parameters: LoPass and

HiPass are simple ﬁlter s for the overall reverberation (not the initi al note) while LP Damp and HP Damp are coefﬁcients deﬁning how the reverb algorithm itself

operates.

Global F X page:

The default menu display is shown below:

FX GLOBAL 1/8 WetLevel 127 h DryLevel 127

The par ameters availab le on the Global FX page affect all three time -domain FX proce ssors ( Chorus, Delay and Reverb).

Wet and Dr y Levels

Displayed as: WetLevel DryLevel Initial values: 127 and 127 Range of adjustment : 0 to 127 0 to 127

The terms “wet” and “dry” a s applied to FX pro cessors respectively refer to the untreated signal, i.e., the input to the processors , and the treated signal, i.e., the output of the proce ssors . It is normal to mix these together and the default parameter values (both 127) create a full-level, equal mix. By reducing DryLevel, the treated signal will predominate, which c an produce some unusual and interesting ef fects with reverb and delay. With WetLevel at zero, no processing effect will be audible.

The Settings Menu

Press the Settings button 56 opens the Settings Menu (eight pages) . This menu contains a set of synth and system functions which, once set up, will not generally need to be accessed on a regular basis. The Settings Menu includes Patch backup routines, MIDI and pedal settings among other functions.

Note that the Settings Menu deﬁnes settings which are globa l for the synth, and are not saved with individual Patches. However, it is possible to retain the current contents of the Set tings menu by opening the menu and pressing Save 4. This will ensure that the settings (such as VelShape and Patch Memory P rotecti on) are r einstated after power- cycling. Note that saving Settings in this way will also save the current Patch as a default, and this Patch will be re-loaded at the next power-up.

System pages:

SYSTEM 1/8 Protect Off h Pickup Off Brightness 64

SYSTEM 2/8 Msg Time 64 h Version 0221 h Calibrate

Patch Memory Protection

Displayed as: Protect Initial value: Off Range of adjustment : On or Of f

analogue and digital

voices

FX Rout ing

Displayed as: Routing Initial value: Parallel Range of adjustment : Parallel, D->R-> C, D-> C->R, R->D->C , R->C->D, C->D-> R, C->R->D

When us ing more than one of the three time-domain effects (Chorus, Delay and Reverb ) simultaneously, the over all effect will differ depending on the order of processing. For example, if Delay prece des Reverb, each echo added to notes by the Delay pro cessor will initiate its own reverb envel ope. If Delay follows Reverb, the Delay processor will attempt to gener ate a multiplicit y of fresh reverb envelopes a s repeats. Routing allows you to arrange the three time-domain proces sors in series in a ny order, or to conﬁgure them to proce ss sounds in parallel, i.e., simultaneously, with the outputs being blended together. In parallel (the default conﬁguration ), the overall result is subtly different from any of the series conﬁgurations.

analogue

voice sum

digital

effects

dry

wet

analogue

outputs

Overview

Setting Protect to On disable s Peak’s Patch Save function: pressing Save will generate the display message below:

Cannot Save Patch

This is a useful function if you need to be sure that Patches already saved (including factory Patches) cannot be overwritten.

Pickup

Displayed as: Picku p Initial value: Off Range of adjustment : On or Of f

The set ting of Pic kup allows the c urrent physical position of Peak’s rotary controls to be taken into account. When Picku p is Off, adjusting any of Peak’s rotary controls will produce parameter change and an immediately audible effect. When set to On, the control needs to be moved to the physical position corresponding to the value of the paramete r saved for the currently loaded Patch, and will only alter the parameter value once that position is reached. For parameters with a range of 0 to 255, this means the 12 o’clock position will correspond to a value of 127; for parameters with a range of - 64 to +63, the 12 o’clock position will correspond to a va lue of zero.

Brightness

Displayed as: Brightness Initial value: 64 Range of adjustment : 0 to 127

Adjusts the brightness of the OLED display.

Page 34

Message Time

Calibration Complete

Transpose +0

Arp>Midi On

Displayed as: M sg Ti m e Initial value: 64 Range of adjustment : 0 to 127

Transpose

Displayed as: Transpose Default value: +0 Range of adjustment : -12 to +12

M sg Ti m e sets the time for which pa rameter values ( and the saved value for the current Patch) are displayed whe n a rotar y control is adjusted. The maximum time (value = 127) is equivalent to approx. 3 seconds.

OS version

Displayed as: Version

This is read-only data, and reports Peak’s OS (Operating System ) version. This lets you ensure that you have the most up-to-date OS installed.

Auto Calibration

Displayed as: Calibrate

Pressing the Row 3 button initiates a calibration routine whi ch sets up the ﬁlters, VCAs and distortion circuitry accurately. This will have been done at the factory and should not need to be run again, but the routine ha s been included for good measure. T he procedure takes several minutes, and the synth should not be touched while in progress. Note that the routine overrides the ma ster volume control and sets it to maximum.

WARNING: The test generates various tones which will be present at the

synth’s output s; we rec ommend you mute or turn off any external ampliﬁer or

loudsp eakers connected as thes e tones will be at full volume.

When the calibration routine is complete, the display shows:

Transpose is a very useful globa l setting which “shifts” the received MIDI Note data up or down one semitone at a time . It differs from oscillator tuning in that it mo diﬁes the control data from a controlling keyboard rather than the actual oscillators. Thus setting Transpose to +4 means that you can pl ay with other instruments in the actua l key of E major, but only nee d to play white notes, a s if you were playing in C major.

Note that Transpose does not affect Note data generated by the arpeggiator.

MIDI pages:

MIDI CONTROL 4/8 MidiChan 1 h Local On

MIDI ENABLE 5/8 CC/NRPN Rec+Tranh Bank/Patch Rec+Tran

Assi gn MIDI Channel

Displayed as: MidiCh an Default value: 1 Range of adjustment : 1 to 16

Re-Power Now

Synth page:

SYNTH 3/8 VelShape 64 h TuneCents +0

Key Response

Displayed as: VelShape Initial value: 64 Range of adjustment : 0 to 127

This parameter modiﬁes the synth’s response to the velocity curve set on the controlling keyboard. The default value of 64 results in a li near relationship between the velocity curve and the synth’s response. Reducing the value will result in lighter key touches producing a greater volume; a higher value results in the o pposite. You can set the VelShape parameter to suit your normal playing style.

Maste r Fine Tuning

Displayed as: TuneCents Default value: 0 Range of adjustment : -50 to +50

This co ntrol adjusts the frequencies of all the Oscillators by the same small amount, allowing you to ﬁne -tune the w hole synth to another instrument if necessary. The increments are cents (1/100 of a semitone ), and thus setting the value to ±50 tunes the synth to a quarter-tone midway b etween two semitones. A setting of zero tunes keyboard with the A above middle C at 440 Hz – i.e., standard Concert Pitch.

MIDI protocol provides for 16 channels of data. This allows up to 16 devices to co- exist on a MIDI network, provided each is assigned to operate on a different MIDI channel. MidiCh an lets you set Peak to receive and transmit M IDI dat a on a particular channel, so that it can interface correctly with external equipment.

Local Control O n/Of f

Displayed as: Local Default value: On Range of adjustment : Off or On

In normal operation (with Local set to On), all of Peak’s physica l controls are active, and also transmit their set tings as MIDI data, provided that CC/NRPN on Menu Page 5 is set to either Transmit or Rec+Tran (see below). With Local set to Off, the controls no longer vary any parameters in Peak’s synth engine, but still transmit their settings a s MIDI data in the sam e way.

Arp MIDI mode

Displayed as: Ar p>Midi Default value: On Range of adjustment : Off or On

This setting determines how the ar peggiator handles MID I data.

• Off: the arp responds to incoming MIDI note data, either via the MIDI I N DIN port or the USB port. Control data is transmitted from both the MIDI OUT and USB ports. If the note data is supplied via the MIDI IN port, it is also retransmitted from MIDI THRU.

• On: In this setting, the arp responds to received MIDI note data in the same manner, but additionally transmits arpeggiator note data via both the MIDI OUT and USB ports, along with control data.

MIDI control data

Displayed as: CC/NRPN Default value: Rec+Tran Range of adjustment: Disabled, Receive, Transmit, Rec+Tran

With the default CC/NRPN setting of Rec+Trans, Peak’s physical controls transmit their settings as MI DI CC or N RPN dat a. The synth engine itself also responds to re ceived MIDI CC/ NRPN data with this setting. You can choose to only transmit MID I data and not recei ve it (Trans mit), or to receive it but not transmit (Receive), The fourth option, Disabled, effectively isolates Peak from a ny other MIDI equipment to which it is connected. See also Local Control On/Off above. Note that CC/ NRP N messages do not include Patch data , which is handle d separately as Program Change messages – see Bank /Patch.

Page 35

Patch Select

Displayed as: Bank/Patch Default value: Rec+Tran Range of adjustment: Disabled, Receive, Transmit, Rec+Tran

This setting controls how Peak handles MIDI Program Change and Bank Change messages. The default value of Re c+Trans allows Peak to send a Program/Bank Change message whenever a new Patch is loade d, and also lets you load a Patch from an external MIDI controller, such a s Novation Impulse. As with MIDI control data (above), you can choose to set Rece ive or Dis abled, so that Pea k does not transmit Program/ Bank Ch ange messages when you chang e Patches, or to set Transmit or Disabled, so that Peak does not respond to Program/Bank Change messages from external equipment.

Pedal pag es:

Select Patches

Displayed as: Select Default value: Current Range of adjustment : Current, Bank A, Bank B, Bank C, Bank D, A+B+C+D, Settings, ABCD+Set

Select lets you choose which Patches to back up as SysEx data. You can choose either the currently active Patch (Current), or any or all of the four Banks in full (128 Patches per Bank). You can also choose just to back up the current synth settings, with or without every Patch (Settings and ABCD+Set respectively).

Dump Port Selec t

Displayed as: Send To Default value: USBport Range of adjustment : USBport, MIDIout

PEDAL SW SENSE 6/8 Ped1Sense Auto h Ped2Sense Auto

PEDAL SW MODE 7/8 Ped1Mode Sustain h Ped2Mode Sostnuto

These two menu pages are concerned only with pedals of the switch (on /off ) type. [If you are using one or more Expression pedals , these may be connected to either or both the two PEDAL sockets on the rear of the unit. There are no Settings Menu options for E xpres sion pedals: they are assigned in the Mod Matrix on a per-Patch basis.]

Pedal Ty pe s

Displayed as: Ped1Sense Ped2Sense Initial values: Auto a nd Auto Range of adjustment : Auto, N /Open, N/ Closed Auto, N /Open, N/ Closed

Peak supports two foot switch pedals of various types. A sustain pedal or footswitch can be connected to Peak via the P EDAL 1 or P EDAL 2 soc kets sustain pedal is of the nor mally-open or normally-closed type, and set the Ped1Sense or Ped2Sense parameter to suit . If you are unsure which it is, connect the footswitch with Peak unpowered, and then power i t on (without your foot on the pedal! ) Provided the default value of Auto is still set, the polarit y will be correctly sensed.

. Ascertain whether your

You can choose to send the SysEx d ata via either the M IDI OU T socket or the USB port, with the SendTo setting. When you are ready to do the data dump, sele ct the lowe r left- hand screen but ton, Go, to perform the action.

Pedal Modes

Displayed as: Ped1Mode Ped2Mode Initial values: Animate1 and Animate2 Range of adjustment: Animate1, Sustain, Sostnuto Animate2, Sustain, Sostnuto

The Pedal Mode settings determi ne what you want the switch peda ls to do. The default setup is for the two Pedals to act as foot switches for Peak’s Animate functions : in this case, pressi ng a pedal triggers the Animate effect that has been de ﬁned within the Patch. You can alternatively assign either p eda; to be a Sustain or a Sostenuto pedal (like the middle pedal on a three-pedal piano).

Backup P age:

Novation recommends the use of Novation Components online Librarian to fully manage your Patches – see page 36. However, you may also impor t and exp ort Patch data via MIDI SysEx messages, using applic ations such as Sys Ex Librarian ( Mac) or MIDI-OX (Windows ).

BACKUP 8/8 Select Current h Send To USBport h Go

Page 36

APPENDIX

System Updates using Novation Components

Novation Components is an online Patch Librarian, which allows you to ma nage your Patch library. You can also restore original factor y Patches and download new ones as they become available.

Novation Components will also ad vise you if your Peak’s Operating System is out of date and will update it for you if nec essar y.

Full details are available at www.novationmusic.com/register

Patch import via SysE x

It is also possible to import Patch data into Peak via MI DI SysEx messages using applications such as SysEx Librarian (Mac) or MIDI-OX ( Windows). It is impor tant to note that Patch Banks retain a reference to their original memory location and will be loaded back into that location on im port. Thus any Patches already in those locations will be overwritten.

Sync values tables

Arp/Clock Sync Rate

This ta ble lists the sync rate divisions available for the Arpe ggiator c lock SyncRate parameter (Arp/Clock menu, page 3 ).

Display

8 beats

6 beats

5 + 1/3

4 beats

3 beats

2 + 2/3

2nd

4th D

1 + 1/3

4th

8th D

4th T

8th

16th D

8th T

16th

* Assuming a resolution o f 24 PPQN

Display Meaning

8 beats 1 cycle per 2 b ars 192

6 beats 1 cycle per 6 b eats (2 cycles per 3 bars) 144

5 + 1/3 3 cycles per 4 bars 128

4 beats 1 cycle per 1 b ar 96

3 beats 1 cycle per 3 b eats (4 cycles per 3 bars) 72

2 + 2/3 3 cycles per 2 bars 64

2nd 2 cycles per 1 bar 48

4th dotted 2 cycles per 3 beats (8 cycles pe r 3 bars) 36

1 + 1/3 3 cycles per 1 bar 32

4th 4 cycles per 1 ba r 24

8th dotted 4 cycles per 3 beats (16 cycles per 3 bars) 18

4th triplet 6 cycles per 1 bar 16

8th 8 cycles per 1 bar 12

16th dotted 8 cycles per 3 b eats (32 cycles per 3 bars) 9

8th triplet 12 cycles per 1 bar 8

16th 16 cycles per 1 bar 6

Musical Description

Delay Sync Rate

This table lists the sync rate divisions available for the DelaySync parameter (F X Menu, page 4).

MIDI

Ticks*

LFO Sync Rate

This ta ble lists the sync rate divisions available for the LFO Sync clock ; these are displayed when an L FO Rate control 18 is adjusted with Range 17 set to Sync.

Display

64 beats

48 beats

42 beats

36 beats

32 beats

30 beats

28 beats

24 beats

21 + 1/3

20 beats

18 + 2/3

18 beats

16 beats

13 + 1/3

12 beats

10 + 2/3

8 beats

6 beats

5 + 1/3

4 beats

3 beats

2 + 2/3

2nd

4th D

1 + 1/3

4th

8th D

4th T

8th

16th D

8th T

16th

16th T

32nd

32nd T

Display Meaning

64 beats 1 cycle per 16 bars 1536

48 beats 1 cycle per 12 bars 1152

42 beats 2 cycles per 21 bars 1002

36 beats 1 cycle per 9 bars 864

32 beats 1 cycle per 8 bars 768

30 beats 2 cycles per 15 bars 720

28 beats 1 cycle per 7 bars 672

24 beats 1 cycle per 6 bars 576

21 + 2/3 3 cycles per 16 bars 512

20 beats 1 cycle per 5 bars 480

18+ 2/ 3 3 cycles per 14 bars 448

18 be ats 1 cycle per 18 beats (2 cycles per 9 bars) 432

16 beat s 1 cycle per 4 bars 384

13 + 1/3 3 cycles per 4 bars 320

12 beats 1 cycle per 12 beats (1 cycle per 3 bars) 288

10 + 2/3 3 cycles per 8 bars 256

8 beats 1 cycle per 2 b ars 192

6 beats 1 cycle per 6 b eats (2 cycles per 3 bars) 144

5 + 1/3 3 cycles per 4 bars 128

4 beats 1 cycle per 1 b ar 96

3 beats 1 cycle per 3 b eats (4 cycles per 3 bars) 72

2 + 2/3 3 cycles per 2 bars 64

2nd 2 cycles per 1 bar 48

4th dotted 2 cycles per 3 beats (8 cycles pe r 3 bars) 36

1 + 1/3 3 cycles per 1 bar 32

4th 4 cycles per 1 bar 24

8th dotted 4 cycles per 3 beats (16 cycles per 3 bars) 18

4th triplet 6 cycles per 1 bar 16

8th 8 cycles per 1 bar 12

16th dotted 8 cycles per 3 b eats (32 cycles per 3 bars) 9

8th triplet 12 cycles per 1 bar 8

16th 16 cycles per 1 bar 6

16th triplet 24 cycles per 1 ba r 4

32nd 32 cycles pe r 1 bar 3

32nd triplet 48 cycles per 1 bar 2

Musical Description

MIDI

Ticks*

Display

4 beats

3 beats

2 + 2/3

2nd

4th D

1 + 1/3

4th

8th D

4th T

8th

16th D

8th T

16th

16th T

32nd

32nd T

* Assuming a resolution o f 24 PPQN

Display Meaning

4 beats 1 cycle per 1 b ar 96

3 beats 1 cycle per 3 b eats (4 cycles per 3 bars) 72

2 + 2/3 3 cycles per 2 bars 64

2nd 2 cycles per 1 bar 48

4th dotted 2 cycles per 3 beats (8 cycles pe r 3 bars) 36

1 + 1/3 3 cycles per 1 bar 32

4th 4 cycles per 1 bar 24

8th dotted 4 cycles per 3 beats (16 cycles per 3 bars) 18

4th triplet 6 cycles per 1 bar 16

8th 8 cycles per 1 bar 12

16th dotted 8 cycles per 3 b eats (32 cycles per 3 bars) 9

8th triplet 12 cycles per 1 bar 8

16th 16 cycles per 1 bar 6

16th triplet 24 cycles per 1 ba r 4

32nd 32 cycles pe r 1 bar 3

32nd triplet 48 cycles per 1 bar 2

Musical Description

MIDI

Ticks*

Page 37

Init Patch – parameter table

This list gives the values of all synth parameters in the I nit Patch (the factory Patc h initially loaded into Banks C and D). Parameters in italics are those accesse d via the menu system .

Parameter Initial Value

Oscillators

Osc 1 ﬁne 0 ( centre )

Osc 1 range 8' ( A3 =4 40Hz)

Osc 1 coa rse 0 (centre)

Osc 1 waveform saw

Osc 1 Mod Env 2 depth 0 (centre)

Osc 1 LFO 2 depth 0 (centre)

Osc 1 Sha pe Amount 0 (centre)

Osc 1 Sha pe Source Manual

Osc 1 WaveM ore BS sine

Osc 1 FixedNote Off

Osc 1 BendRange +12

Osc 1 Vsync 0

Osc 1 SawDense 0

Osc 1 DenseDet 64

Osc 2 ﬁne 0 ( centre )

Osc 2 range 8' (A3 =440 Hz)

Osc 2 coa rse 0 (centre)

Osc 2 waveform saw

Osc 2 Mod Env 2 depth 0 (centre)

Osc 2 LFO 2 depth 0 (centre)

Osc 2 Sha pe Amount 0 (centre)

Osc 2 Sha pe Source Manual

Osc 2 WaveM ore BS sine

Osc 2 FixedNote Off

Osc 2 BendRange +12

Osc 2 Vsync 0

Osc 2 SawDense 0

Osc 2 DenseDet 64

Osc 3 ﬁne 0 ( centre )

Osc 3 range 8' (A3 =440 Hz)

Osc 3 coa rse 0 (centre)

Osc 3 waveform saw

Osc 3 Mod Env 2 depth 0 (centre)

Osc 3 LFO 2 depth 0 (centre)

Osc 3 Sha pe Amount 0 (centre)

Osc 3 Sha pe Source Manual

Osc 3 WaveM ore BS sine

Osc 3 FixedNote Off

Osc 3 BendRange +12

Osc 3 Vsync 0

Osc 3 SawDense 0

Osc 3 DenseDet 64

Osc Common Diverge 0

Osc Common Drift 0

Osc Common Noi se LPF 127

Mixer

Osc 1 level 255

Osc 2 level 0

Osc 3 level 0

Noise level 0

Ring mod level 0

VCA gain 12 7

Parameter Initial Value

Filter

Slope 24dB

Shape LP

Frequency 255

Resonance 0

Env depth 0

Env Sour ce Mod Env 1

LFO 1 depth 0

Osc 3 Filter Mod 0

Overdrive 0

Key Tracking 12 7

Glide

Time 0

LFOs

LFO 1 Type Triangle

LFO 1 Range High

LFO 1 Rate 12 8

LFO 1 Fad e Time 50

LFO 1 Fade Mode FadeIn

LFO 1 Phase Free

LFO 1 Slew 0

LFO 1 OneShot Off

LFO 1 Common Off

LFO 2 Type Triangle

LFO 2 Range High

LFO 2 Rate 12 8

LFO 2 Fad e Time 50

LFO 2 Fade Mode FadeIn

LFO 2 Phase Free

LFO 2 Slew 0

LFO 2 OneShot Off

LFO 2 Common Off

Envelopes

Amp Env attack 2

Amp Env decay 90

Amp Env sustain 127

Amp Env release 40

Amp Env Velocity 0

Amp Env MonoTrig Legato

Mod Env attack 2

Mod Env decay 75

Mod Env sustain 35

Mod Env release 45

Mod Env select 1

Mod Env 1 Velocity 0

Mod Env 1 M onoTrig Re-Trig

Mod Env 2 Velocity 0

Mod Env 2 M onoTrig Re-Trig

Distortion

Distortion level 0

Effects

Bypass Off

Delay Feedback 64

Delay Time 64

Delay Level 0

Delay Sync Off

Delay SyncRate 16th

Delay LP Damp 85

Page 38

Modulation Matrix – sources

The table below lists the sources of modulation avail able to Inputs A and B of each Slot in the Modulation Matrix.

Display Controlling Parameter

Direct

ModWheel

AftTouch

ExprPED1

BrthPED2

Velocity

Keyboard

Lfo 1+

Lfo 1+/-

Lfo2+

Lfo2+/-

AmpEnv

ModEnv1

ModEnv2

Animate1

Animate2

CV +/-

The Depth control ([57]; select Row 3)

Mod Wheel

Keyboard aftertouch

Expression pedal connected at PEDAL 1 input

Expression pedal connected at PEDAL 2 input

Keyboard velocity

Key position on keyboard

LFO 1 waveform varies controlled parameter in a positive sense

LFO 1 waveform varies controlled parameter both positively a nd negatively

LFO 2 waveform varies controlled parameter in a positive sense

LFO 2 waveform varies controlled parameter both positively a nd negatively

Amplitude envelope

Modulation envelope 1

Modulation envelope 2

Animate Button 1

Animate Button 2

CV input varies controlled parameter both positively and negatively

Modulation Matrix – destinations

The table below lists the destinations to which each Slot of the Modulati on Matrix may be routed.

Display Controlling Source

O123Ptch

Osc1Ptch

Osc2Ptch

Osc3Ptch

Osc1VSnc

Osc2VSnc

Osc3VSnc

Osc1Shpe

Osc2Shpe

Osc3Shpe

Osc1 Lev

Osc2 Lev

Osc3 Lev

NoiseLev

Ring Lev

VcaLevel

Filt D r v

Filt Dis t

Filt Fr eq

Filt R e s

Lfo 1R at e

Lfo2Rate

AmpEnv A

AmpEnv D

AmpEnv R

ModEnv1A

ModEnv1D

ModEnv1R

ModEnv2A

ModEnv2D

ModEnv2R

FM O1>O2

FM O2>O3

FM O3>O1

FM Ns>O1

O3>FiltF

Ns>FiltF

* Note tha t only pos itive val ues of Depth are effecti ve for the FM options; all neg ative val ues are

consi dered as zero.

Frequency of all three oscillators

Oscillator 1 frequency

Oscillator 2 frequency

Oscillator 3 frequency

Oscillator 1 VSync level

Oscillator 2 VSync level

Oscillator 3 VSync level

Oscillator 1 Shape Amount

Oscillator 2 Shape Amount

Oscillator 3 Shape Amount

Oscillator 1 level

Oscillator 2 level

Oscillator 3 level

Noise source level

Ring Modulator output level (RM inputs are Osc 1 and Osc 2)

Overall synth output level

Pre-ﬁlter Overdrive

Post-ﬁlter Distortion

Filter cut-off frequency (or centre frequency when Shape= BP)

Filter Resonance

LFO 1 frequency

LFO 2 frequency

Attack time of Amplitude envelope

Decay time of Amplitude envelope

Release time of Amplitude envelope

Attack time of Modulation envelope 1

Decay time of Modulation envelope 1

Release time of Modulation envelope 1

Attack time of Modulation envelope 2

Decay time of Modulation envelope 2

Release time of Modulation envelope 2

Depth of Frequency modulation applied to Oscillato r 2 by Oscillator 1*

Depth of frequency modulation applied to Oscillator 3 by Oscillator 2*

Depth of frequency modulation applied to Oscillator 1 by Oscillator 3*

Amount of noise modulation applied to Oscillator 1*

Degree of control of ﬁlter cut-off/centre frequency by Oscillator 3*

Degree of control of ﬁlter cut-off/centre frequency by noise source*

MIDI parameters list

Parameter

Patch Category NRPN 0:0 0-14 0

Patch Genre NRPN 0:1 0-9 0

Voice Mode NRPN 0:2 0-4 0

Voice Unison NRPN 0:3 0-4 0

Voice Unison Detune NRPN 0:4 0-12 7 25

Voice Unison Spread NRPN 0:5 0 -127 0

Voice Keyboard Octave NRPN 0:6 61-67 (-3 to +3) 64 (0)

Glide Time CC 5

CC/ NRPN

Voice Pre-Glide NRPN

Glide O n CC

Osc Common Divergence

Osc Common Drift NRPN 0:10

Osc Common Noi se LPF

Osc Common Noi se HPF

Oscillator 1 Range CC 3 63-66 (-1 to +2) 64 (0 )

Oscillator 1 Coarse CC pair 14,4 6

Oscillator 1 Fine CC pair 15,47

Oscillator 1 ModEnv2 > Pitch

Oscillator 1 LFO2 > Pitch

Oscillator 1 Wave NRPN 0:14 0-4 (0 to + 4) 0 (2)

Oscillator 1 Wave More NRPN 0 :15 4-20 (4 to +20 ) 0 (4)

Oscillator 1 Shape Source

Oscillator 1 Manual Shape

Oscillator 1 ModEnv1 > Shape

Oscillator 1 LFO1 > Shape

Oscillator 1 Vsync CC 34

Oscillator 1 Saw Density

Oscillator 1 Saw Density Detune

Oscillator 1 Fixed Note NRPN 0: 19 0-88 (0 to +88) 0 (Off )

Oscillator 1 Bend Range

Oscillator 2 Range CC 37 63-66 (-1 to +2) 64 ( 0)

Oscillator 2 Coarse CC pair 17,49

Oscillator 2 Fine CC pair 18,50

Oscillator 2 ModEnv2 > Pitch

Oscillator 2 LFO2> Pitch

Oscillator 2 Wave NRPN 0:23 0-4 ( 0 to +4) 0 (2)

Oscillator 2 Wave More NRPN 0 :24 8-24 (4 to +20) 4 ( 4)

Oscillator 2 Shape Source

Oscillator 2 Manual Shape

Oscillator 2 ModEnv1 > Shape

Oscillator 2 LFO1 > Shape

Oscillator 2 Vsync CC 42

NRPN

NRPN 0 :11

NRPN 0:12 0-0 ( to +) (0)

CC 9

CC pair 16,48

NRPN 0: 16 0-2 (0 to +2) 0 ( 0)

CC 12

CC 119

CC 33

NRPN 0:17

NRPN 0: 18

NRPN 0:20

CC 38

CC pair 19,51

NRPN 0:25 0-2 (0 to +2) 0 (0 )

CC 39

CC 40

CC 41

Contr ol

Number.

35 0-1 (0 to +1) 0 (0)

Oscillators

0:9

Range

0-127 (0 to +127)

52-76 (-12 to +12)

0-127 (0 to +127)

0-255 (-12 8 to +127 )

28-228 (-100 to +10 0)

1-127 (-63 to +63)

1-255 (-127 to +127 )

0-127 (-64 to +63)

0-127 (0 to +127)

40-8 8 (-24 to +24)

0-255 (-12 8 to +127 )

28-228 (-100 to +10 0)

1-127 (-63 to +63)

1-255 (-127 to +127 )

0-127 (-64 to +63)

0-127 (0 to +127 )

Default

Value

0 (60 )

64 (Off)

0 (0)

0 (12 7)

128 (0 )

64 (0 )

128 (0 )

64 (0 )

0 (0)

0 (64)

64 (12)

128 (0 )

64 (0 )

128 (0 )

64 (35)

64 (0 )

0 (0)

Page 39

Parameter

Oscillator 2 Saw Density

Oscillator 2 Saw Density Detune

Oscillator 2 Fixed Note NRPN 0:28 0-88 (0 to + 88) 0 ( Off)

Oscillator 2 Bend Range

Oscillator 3 Range CC 65 63-66 (-1 to +2) 64 (-1)

Oscillator 3 Coarse CC pair 20,52

Oscillator 3 Fine CC pair 21,53

Oscillator 3 ModEnv2 > Pitch

Oscillator 3 LFO2 > Pitch

Oscillator 3 Wave NRPN 0:32 0-4 ( 0 to +4) 0 (2)

Oscillator 3 Wave More NRPN 0: 33 8-24 (4 to +20) 4 (4)

Oscillator 3 Shape Source

Oscillator 3 Manual Shape

Oscillator 3 ModEnv1 > Shape

Oscillator 3 LFO1 > Shape

Oscillator 3 Vsync CC 44

Oscillator 3 Saw Density

Oscillator 3 Saw Density Detune

Oscillator 3 Fixed Note NRPN 0: 37 0-88 (0 to +88) 0 (Of f)

Oscillator 3 Bend Range

Mi xe r Osc1 CC pair 23,55

Mixer Osc2 CC pair 24,56

Mixer Osc3 CC pair 25,57

Mixer R ing 1*2 CC pair 26,58

Mixer Noise CC pair 27,5 9

Mixer Patch Level NRPN 0: 41

Mixer VC A Gain NRPN 0:42

Mixer D ry Level NRPN 0:43

Mixer Wet Level NRPN 0:44

Filter Overdrive CC 80

Filter Post Drive CC 36

Filter Slope NRPN 0:45 0-1 (0 to +1) 0 (1)

Filter Shape NRPN 0 :46 0-2 (0 to +2) 0 (0)

Filter Key Tracking CC 75

Filter Resonance CC 79

Filter Frequency CC pair 29,61

Filter LFO1 > Filter

Filter Osc3 > Filter

Filter Env Select NRPN 0 :47 0-1 (0 to +1) 0 (1)

Filter AmpEnv > Filter

CC/ NRPN

NRPN 0:26

NRPN 0: 27

NRPN 0:29

CC 43

CC pair 22,54

NRPN 0:34 0-2 (0 to + 2) 0 (0)

CC 71

CC 72

CC 73

NRPN 0:35

NRPN 0:36

NRPN 0:38

CC pair 28,60

CC 76

CC 77

Contr ol

Number.

Mixer

Filter

Range

0-127 (0 to +127)

40-8 8 (-24 to +24)

0-255 (-12 8 to +127 )

28-228 (-100 to +10 0)

1-127 (-63 to +63)

1-255 (-127 to +127 )

0-127 (-64 to +63)

0-127 (0 to +127)

40-8 8 (-24 to +24)

0-255 (0 to +255)

0-127 (0 to +127)

0-127 ( 0 to +127)

0-127 (0 to +127)

0-255 (0 to +255)

1-255 (-127 to +127 )

0-127 (0 to +127)

1-127 (-63 to +63)

Default

Value

0 (0)

0 (64)

64 (12)

128 (0 )

64 (0 )

128 (0 )

64 (0 )

0 (0)

0 (64)

64 (12)

0 (255 )

0 (0)

0 (12 7)

0 (0)

0 (12 7)

0 (0)

0 (255 )

128 (128 )

0 (0)

64 (0 )

Parameter

Filter ModEnv1 > Filter

Filter Divergence NRPN 0:48

Amp Envelope Attack CC 86

Amp Envelope Decay CC 87

Amp Envelope Sustain CC 88

Amp Envelope Release CC 89

Amp Envelope Velocity NRPN 0:55

Amp Envelope Trigger NRPN 0:56

Mod Envelope Select NRPN 0:59

Mod Envelope 1 Attack CC 90

Mod Envelope 1 Decay CC 91

Mod Envelope 1 Sustain CC 92

Mod Envelope 1 Release

Mod Envelope 1 Velocity

Mod Envelope 1 Trigger NRPN 0:61 0-1 (0 to +1) 0 (1)

Mod Envelope 2 Attack CC 94

Mod Envelope 2 Decay CC 95

Mod Envelope 2 Sustain CC 117

Mod Envelope 2 Release

Mod Envelope 2 Velocity

Mod Envelope 2 Trigger NRPN 0:65 0-1 (0 to +1) 0 (1)

LFO 1 Range NRPN 0:68 0-2 (0 to + 2) 0 (0)

LFO 1 Rate CC pair 30,62

LFO 1 Sync Rate CC 81 0-34 ( 0 to +34 ) 0 (12 )

LFO 1 Wave NRPN 0:69 0-3 (0 to +3) 0 (0)

LFO 1 Phase NRPN 0:70

LFO 1 Slew NRPN 0:71

LFO 1 Fad e Time CC 82

LFO 1 Fad e In/ Out NRPN 0: 72 0-3 ( 0 to +3) 0 (0 )

LFO 1 One Shot NRPN 0:75 0-1 (0 to +1) 0 (0)

LFO 1 Common NRPN 0:76 0 -1 (0 to +1) 0 (0)

LFO 2 Range CC 83 0 -2 (0 to +2 ) 0 (0)

LFO 2 Rate CC pair 31, 63

LFO 2 Sync Rate CC 84 0-34 (0 to +34) 0 ( 12)

LFO 2 Wave NRPN 0:78 0-3 (0 to +3) 0 (0)

LFO 2 Phase NRPN 0:79

LFO 2 Slew NRPN 0:80

LFO 2 Fad e Time CC 85

LFO 2 Fad e In/ Out NRPN 0:81 0-3 (0 to +3) 0 (0)

LFO 2 One Shot NRPN 0:84 0-1 (0 to +1) 0 (0 )

LFO 2 Common NRPN 0:85 0-1 (0 to +1) 0 (0)

CC/ NRPN

CC 78

CC 93

NRPN 0:60

CC 103

NRPN 0:64

Contr ol

Number.

Envelopes

LFOs

Range

1-127 (-63 to +63)

0-127 (0 to +127)

0-127 (0 to +127 )

0-127 (-64 to +63)

0-1 (0 to +1)

0-127 (0 to +127)

0-127 (-64 to +63)

0-127 (0 to +127)

0-127 (-64 to +63)

0-255 ( 0 to +255)

0-120 (0 to +120)

0-127 (0 to +127)

0-255 (0 to +255)

0-120 (0 to +120)

0-127 (0 to +127)

Default

Value

64 (0 )

0 (0)

0 (2)

0 (90 )

0 (12 7)

0 (40)

64 (0 )

0 (1)

0 (0)

0 (2)

0 (75)

0 (35 )

0 (45)

64 (0 )

0 (2)

0 (75)

0 (35 )

0 (45)

64 (0 )

0 (64)

0 (0)

0 (64)

0 (0)

Page 40

Parameter

Distortion Level CC 10 4

Effects Master Bypass NRPN 0:88 0-1 (0 to +1) 0 (0)

Effects Routing NRPN 0:89 0-6 (0 to +6 ) 0 (0 )

Delay Level CC 108

Delay Time CC 109

Delay Width NRPN 0:92

Delay Sync NRPN 0: 93 0-1 (0 to +1) 0 (0)

Delay Sync Time NRPN 0:94 0-18 (0 to +18) 0 (4)

Delay Feedback CC 110

Delay Low Pass NRPN 0:95

Delay High Pass NRPN 0:96

Delay Slew NRPN 0 :97

Reverb Level CC 112

Reverb Type NRPN 0: 101 0-2 (0 to +2) 0 (0)

Reverb Time CC 11 3

Reverb Damping L F NRPN 0:10 2

Reverb Damping H F NRPN 0 :103

Reverb Size NRPN 0: 104

Reverb M od NRPN 0:105

Reverb M od Rate NRPN 0:106

Reverb Low Pass NRPN 0:107

Reverb High Pass NRPN 0 :108

Reverb Pre Delay NRPN 0:10 9

Chorus Level CC 10 5

Chorus Type NRPN 0: 111 0-2 (0 to +2) 0 (1)

Chorus Rate CC 118

Chorus Mod Depth NRPN 0: 112

Chorus Feedback CC 10 7

Chorus LP NRPN 0 :11 3

Chorus HP NRPN 0 :114

Arp/Clock Tempo NA NA: NA

Arp/Clock Sync Rate NRPN 0 :116 0-18 (0 to +18) 0 (16th )

Arp/Clock Type NRPN 0 :117 0-6 (0 to +6 ) 0 (0 )

Arp/Clock Rhythm NRPN 0 :118 0-32 (0 to +32) 0 ( 0)

Arp/Clock Octave NRPN 0 :119 0-5 (0 to + 5) 0 ( 0)

Arp/Clock Gate CC 116

Arp/Clock Swing NRPN 0 :120

Arp/Clock On NRPN 0 :121 0-1 (0 to +1) 0 (0)

Arp/Clock Key Latch NRPN 0:12 2 0-1 (0 to +1) 0 (0)

Arp/Clock Key Sync NRPN 0:123 0 -1 (0 to +1) 0 ( 0)

Animate 1 Hold CC 114 0 -1 (0 to +1) 0 (0)

Animate 2 Hold CC 115 0 -1 (0 to +1) 0 (0)

CC/ NRPN

Contr ol

Number.

Effects

ARP

Range

0-127 (0 to +127)

0-127 (-64 to +63)

0-127 (0 to +127)

40-240 (40 to +240)

0-127 (0 to +127)

20-80 (20 to +80)

Default

Value

0 (0)

0 (64)

0 (0)

0 ()

0 (0)

0 (90 )

0 (50 )

0 (1)

0 (90 )

0 (64)

0 (4)

0 (74)

0 (0)

0 (40)

0 (0)

0 (20)

0 (64)

64 (0 )

0 (90 )

0 (2)

0 (12 0)

0 (64)

0 (50 )

Parameter

Mod Matrix Selection NRPN 0 :125 0-15 (0 to +15) 0 (0)

Mod Matrix 1 Source1 NRPN 1:0 0-16 (0 to +16) 0 (0)

Mod Matrix 1 Source2 NRPN 1:1 0-16 (0 to +16) 0 (0)

Mod Matrix 1 Depth NRPN 1:2

Mod Matrix 1 Destination

Mod Matrix 2 Source1 NRPN 2:0 0-16 (0 to +16) 0 (0 )

Mod Matrix 2 Source2 NRPN 2:1 0-16 (0 to +16) 0 (0)

Mod Matrix 2 Depth NRPN 2:2

Mod Matrix 2 Destination

Mod Matrix 3 Source1 NRPN 3:0 0-16 (0 to +16) 0 (0)

Mod Matrix 3 Source2 NRPN 3:1 0-16 (0 to +16) 0 (0)

Mod Matrix 3 Depth NRPN 3:2

Mod Matrix 3 Destination

Mod Matrix 4 Source1 NRPN 4:0 0-16 (0 to +16) 0 (0 )

Mod Matrix 4 Source2 NRPN 4:1 0-16 (0 to +16) 0 (0)

Mod Matrix 4 Depth NRPN 4:2

Mod Matrix 4 Destination

Mod Matrix 5 Source1 NRPN 5:0 0-16 (0 to +16) 0 (0 )

Mod Matrix 5 Source2 NRPN 5:1 0-16 (0 to +16) 0 (0)

Mod Matrix 5 Depth NRPN 5:2

Mod Matrix 5 Destination

Mod Matrix 6 Source1 NRPN 6:0 0-16 (0 to +16) 0 (0)

Mod Matrix 6 Source2 NRPN 6:1 0-16 (0 to +16) 0 (0)

Mod Matrix 6 Depth NRPN 6:2

Mod Matrix 6 Destination

Mod Matrix 7 Source1 NRPN 7:0 0-16 (0 to +16) 0 (0 )

Mod Matrix 7 Source2 NRPN 7:1 0-16 (0 to +16) 0 (0 )

Mod Matrix 7 Depth NRPN 7:2

Mod Matrix 7 Destination

Mod Matrix 8 Source1 NRPN 8:0 0-16 (0 to +16) 0 (0)

Mod Matrix 8 Source2 NRPN 8:1 0-16 (0 to +16) 0 (0)

Mod Matrix 8 Depth NRPN 8:2

Mod Matrix 8 Destination

Mod Matrix 9 Source1 NRPN 9:0 0-16 (0 to +16) 0 (0)

Mod Matrix 9 Source2 NRPN 9:1 0-16 (0 to +16) 0 (0)

Mod Matrix 9 Depth NRPN 9:2

Mod Matrix 9 Destination

Mod Matrix 10 Sourc e1 NRPN 10 :0 0-16 (0 to +16) 0 (0)

Mod Matrix 10 Sourc e2 NRPN 10 :1 0-16 (0 to +16) 0 (0)

Mod Matrix 10 Depth NRPN 10:2

Mod Matrix 10 Destination

Mod Matrix 11 Source1 NRPN 11: 0 0-16 (0 to +16) 0 (0 )

Mod Matrix 11 Source2 NRPN 11: 1 0-16 (0 to +16) 0 (0 )

Mod Matrix 11 Depth NRPN 11:2

Mod Matrix 11 Destination

Mod Matrix 12 Source1 NRPN 12 :0 0-16 (0 to +16) 0 (0 )

Mod Matrix 12 Source2 NRPN 12 :1 0-16 (0 to +16) 0 (0 )

Mod Matrix 12 Depth NRPN 12:2

CC/ NRPN

NRPN 1:3 0-36 ( 0 to +36 ) 0 (0 )

NRPN 2:3 0-36 (0 to +36) 0 (0 )

NRPN 3:3

NRPN 4:3 0-36 (0 to +36) 0 (0)

NRPN 5:3 0-36 (0 to +36) 0 (0 )

NRPN 6:3 0-36 ( 0 to +36 ) 0 (0 )

NRPN 7:3 0-36 (0 to +36) 0 (0 )

NRPN 8:3 0-36 ( 0 to +36 ) 0 (0)

NRPN 9:3 0-36 ( 0 to +36 ) 0 (0)

NRPN 10: 3 0-36 (0 to +36) 0 (0)

NRPN 11: 3 0-36 (0 to +36 ) 0 (0 )

Contr ol

Number.

Mod Mat rix

Range

0-127 (-64 to +63)

0-36 (0 to +36)

0-127 (-64 to +63)

Default

Value

64 (0 )

0 (0)

64 (0 )

Page 41

Parameter

Mod Matrix 12 Destination

Mod Matrix 13 Sourc e1 NRPN 13 :0 0-16 (0 to +16) 0 (0)

Mod Matrix 13 Sourc e2 NRPN 13 :1 0-16 (0 to +16) 0 (0)

Mod Matrix 13 Depth NRPN 13:2

Mod Matrix 13 Destination

Mod Matrix 14 Source1 NRPN 14 :0 0 -16 (0 to +16) 0 (0)

Mod Matrix 14 Source2 NRPN 14 :1 0-16 (0 to +16) 0 (0)

Mod Matrix 14 Depth NRPN 14:2

Mod Matrix 14 Destination

Mod Matrix 15 Sourc e1 NRPN 15 :0 0-16 (0 to +16) 0 (0)

Mod Matrix 15 Sourc e2 NRPN 15 :1 0-16 (0 to +16) 0 (0)

Mod Matrix 15 Depth NRPN 15: 2

Mod Matrix 15 Destination

Mod Matrix 16 Sourc e1 NRPN 16 :0 0-16 (0 to +16) 0 (0 )

Mod Matrix 16 Sourc e2 NRPN 16 :1 0-16 (0 to +16) 0 (0)

Mod Matrix 16 Depth NRPN 16:2

Mod Matrix 16 Destination

CC/ NRPN

NRPN 12: 3 0-36 (0 to +36) 0 (0 )

NRPN 13: 3 0-36 ( 0 to +36 ) 0 (0)

NRPN 14: 3 0-36 (0 to +36) 0 (0)

NRPN 15: 3 0-36 ( 0 to +36) 0 (0)

NRPN 16: 3 0-36 0

Contr ol

Number.

Range

0-127 (-64 to +63)

Default

Value

64 (0 )

Page 42

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