Peterson StroboSoft 2.0 Owner's Manual

StroboSoft Owners Manual

peterson Electro-Musical Products, Inc

(708) 388 - 3311

11601 S. Mayfield Ave.

Alsip, IL 60803

USA

Rev 1.0

Table of Contents

Introduction 1
Getting Started 9
Chromatic Tune 15
Instrument Tune 25
Set-Up Screen 33
Tutorials 41
Trouble Shooting 55
Upgrade StroboSoft 59
Glossary 61
Index 67

iii

Introduction

Welcome to StroboSoft™ by Peterson and congratulations on

choosing the most accurate and advanced tuning software from the

tuner company, Peterson Strobe Tuners.

StroboSoft™ uses the power of your computer and its high resolution to
accurately display the pitch of your instrument employing traditional tuning
standards, our Peterson Sweetened™settings, and other contributor settings.
With the 0.1 cents accuracy and sophistication of StroboSoft™, Peterson's 55+
years of tuning experience has now taken tuning from plain black and white to
the world of high definition color!

StroboSoft™ is simple to use in its chromatic tune mode and also has an
exclusive instrument mode that allows you to define your instrument to
StroboSoft™ and store those settings in presets to be quickly recalled at any
time. After storing your presets, tuning multiple instruments with StroboSoft™ is
quick and easy. Create a library of tunings for one instrument or better yet, all of
your instruments!

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S T R O B O S O F T O W N E R S M A N U A L

To maximize your StroboSoft™ experience, we would like to invite you to take a
minute and review how our Help File functions. As you may have noticed,
StroboSoft™ is unlike no other software tuner on the market today and neither is
our Help System! We designed the Help File to be more than just a collection of
words on a screen. Our Help System comes alive and demonstrates functions
and techniques to help you get the most out of tuning with StroboSoft™.

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engineering in the 70s, many companies built

I N T R O D U C T I O N

History

In 1948, 10 years after the invention of the strobe tuner, the Chicago-based
Peterson Electro-Musical Products commenced building instrument tuners. Led
by Dick Peterson, a pioneer of solid state electronics, its first product was the
Model 150 in 1952 and, realizing the need for a light but accurate device,
Peterson engineer Bill Hass built the first battery powered handheld tuner in
1964, the Model 70. This culminated in the Peterson Model 400 strobe tuner in

1967. This was the first solid-state strobe tuner. With rock musicians´ increasing
fascination with all things technical, and the accompanying strive for excellence &
perfection in the audio arena, the strobe tuner began to be a common sight on
stage and in the recording studio. Many will recall first seeing the mysterious
flickering dials behind such luminaries as the Grateful Dead, The Who, Pink
Floyd, Frank Zappa, Jimi Hendrix, Neil Young et al. It also took its place as a
must-have in the road cases of their touring crews, still the case today.

Due to the rapid advances in electronic
tuners as a by-product in their quest to find

uses for the many & varied parts left over
from other concepts. These units were
simple reference devices, and found
increasing favor with musicians through the
decade. Accuracy was not really an issue,
except for the major bands, studios, schools
& instrument manufacturers for whom
compromise was not an option, and the
strobe tuner became a sign of
professionalism & high standards.

In the 80´s, the strobe tuner continued its
dominance, with rivaling manufacturers
seeking & failing to emulate the elusive
strobe display by other means. The Conn
dynasty faded to an end in 1985, and what
was left of their Strobotuner division was
bought by Peterson who, after acquiring new
engineering blood, produced the 12 wheel
Strobe Center 5000™ in 1994 and the single

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S T R O B O S O F T O W N E R S M A N U A L

In 2001, befitting the year, the

wheel Autostrobe™ in 1997. Presently the
standard in professional circles, Peterson is
was in an enviable position as sole
manufacturers of strobe tuners globally.

strobe tuner also became a
hand-held device known as
the Peterson VS-1 Virtual
Strobe™, a brand new
concept, combining the time­proven advantages of the
stroboscopic display with
battery-powered portability in
a compact format. This new
tuner can boast of a 65 year
old legacy, as the Strobe
Tuner continues to dominate
as the professional choice of
musicians, technicians,
manufacturers & educators
worldwide.

The VS-II and V-SAM Virtual Strobes followed in 2003 and the first ever True
Bypass tuner of any kind, the Peterson StroboStomp™ made its entrance in

2004.

Continuing this innovative tradition in 2005, Peterson became the first ever tuner
manufacturer to offer both hard- and software tuners with the debut of
StroboSoft™ Standard and Deluxe Edition software strobe tuners as the latest
chapter in Peterson's 70-year-old strobe tuner legacy.

For more information on Peterson Electro-Musical Products, Inc, please

The company home page at: www.petersontuners.com
The StroboStomp™ home page at: www.strobostomp.com
The StroboSoft™ home page at: www.strobosoft.com

visit:

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I N T R O D U C T I O N

SOFTWARE LICENSING CONTRACT

This is a legal agreement between you ("User") and Peterson Electro-Musical
Products, Inc. (Peterson). BY INSTALLING THE SOFTWARE YOU ARE
AGREEING TO BE BOUND BY THE TERMS OF THIS AGREEMENT. IF YOU
DO NOT WISH TO BE SO BOUND DO NOT INSTALL THE SOFTWARE AND
CONTACT PETERSON FOR A FULL REFUND.

1. License

Peterson hereby grants User a personal, non-exclusive, non-transferable license
to use two copies of Peterson's software product (the "Program") as acquired
with this license in accordance with any user documentation supplied with the
Program and in accordance with the terms of this agreement. User may use one
copy of the Program on a single stand-alone computer and the other copy on
another single stand-alone computer at any time. User may make one back-up
copy of the Program, provided that such copy shall be subject to the terms of this
agreement.

2. Copyright and other intellectual property rights

All intellectual property rights in the Program and user documentation are owned
by or licensed to Peterson and are protected by UK copyright laws, US copyright
laws, international treaty provisions and other applicable national laws.

3. Further restrictions

User may not loan, rent, lease or license the Program or any copy. User may not
use the Program for or on behalf of anyone else (which includes operating any
form of facility on behalf of anyone else or operating a software bureau service).
User must not reverse engineer or de-compile the Program save to the extent
permitted by applicable law despite any contractual prohibition. If User wishes to
obtain interface information relating to the Program, to achieve inter-operability, a
request should be made in writing to Peterson.

4. Warranties

EXCEPT AS EXPRESSLY PROVIDED OTHERWISE BY THIS AGREEMENT,
NO CONDITIONS, WARRANTIES, REPRESENTATIONS OR OTHER TERMS
APPLY TO THE PROGRAM OR USER DOCUMENTATION (INCLUDING ANY

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S T R O B O S O F T O W N E R S M A N U A L

SUCH TERMS RELATING TO QUALITY, PERFORMANCE, SUITABILITY OR
FITNESS FOR PURPOSE). Peterson DOES NOT WARRANT OR ENTER INTO
ANY TERM TO THE EFFECT THAT THE PROGRAM WILL BE ENTIRELY
FREE FROM DEFECTS OR THAT ITS OPERATION WILL BE ENTIRELY
ERROR FREE.

5. Exclusion of liability/damages

Except as and to the extent provided in this agreement, Peterson (or any related
company) will not in any circumstances be liable for any other damages
whatsoever (including, without limitation, damages for loss of business, business
interruption, loss of business information or other indirect or consequential loss)
arising out of the use or inability to use or supply or non-supply of the Program
and any accompanying written materials. Peterson’s (or any related company’s)
total liability under any provision of this agreement is in any case limited to the
amount actually paid by you for the Program.

6. Termination

User’s license to use the Program automatically terminates if User fails to comply
with any provisions of this agreement or if User has a receiver or administrative
receiver appointed, passes a resolution for winding up (other than as part of a
reconstruction), enters into any voluntary arrangement with User’s creditors or
becomes subject to an administration order.

7. Sub-license and Assignment

User may not sublicense the Program. User may assign all its rights to use the
Program to another person or entity provided that: (a) User transfers this
agreement, the physical medium in which the Program is made available, user
documentation and all copies of the Program and user documentation; (b) User
retains no copies of the Program, including copies stored on a device; and (c)
User remains liable under this agreement for any breach of its terms by the
assignee.

8. Statutory rights

If User purchased the copy of the Program covered by this agreement as a
consumer, the exclusions and limitations contained in this agreement do not
affect any statutory rights to which User is entitled and which may not under
applicable law be excluded or limited.

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I N T R O D U C T I O N

9. Title

User owns only any media on which the Program is supplied and may retain this
media on termination of this agreement provided that the Program is erased.
Peterson shall at all times retain ownership of the Program.

10. Entire agreement, applicable law and jurisdiction

This agreement sets out all of the terms that have been agreed between
Peterson and User in relation to the subjects covered by it. This agreement is
governed by United States law and both parties submit to the exclusive
jurisdiction of the United States Court in relation to any dispute concerning this
agreement, but Peterson is also entitled to apply to any court worldwide for
injunctive and other remedies in order to protect or enforce its intellectual

property rights.

7

Getting Started

Getting Started - Input Device Set-up

To configure your sound card for use with StroboSoft™ Deluxe

1. Click on the SET-UP button.

2. Click on the SET-UP tab inside the window.

3. Select the MONO, L, or R button to choose the channel StroboSoft™
should use for measuring input signals. When MONO is selected,
StroboSoft™ will access your sound card using its mono input.
Typically, this uses the left input of a stereo device, but your sound card
may mix the left and right channels to create mono; this is not under the
control of StroboSoft™ and different devices may do different things.
This is the setting most users will choose since they will only be
connecting one instrument into StroboSoft™ at a time. The Left and
Right selectors allow you to individually access the left and right
channels of a stereo input. This is useful if you have two instruments
connected at the same time, one on the left channel and one on the
right: you can easily switch between these instruments without having to
physically reconnect them. For example, a 6-string acoustic can go into
the Left channel while a 5-string bass can be fed into the Right channel.

4. Select your sample rate. This rate should match your audio application's
setting to avoid device conflicts. It should also fall within your sound
card's rating. Increasing the sample rate will "capture" more data in the
signal measurement and may assist in measuring problematic higher
octave notes. (Default setting is AUTO)

5. Select your sound card type. Multiple sound card users can select a
particular card to use or if your sound card has multiple inputs you can
select the set of inputs for StroboSoft™ to use.

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S T R O B O S O F T O W N E R S M A N U A L

Note: It's important to note what things are stored with each INPUT DEVICE.

These are the MONO, L, and R settings. When selected, you can save the noise
filter, sample rate, sensitivity, and calibration settings. This means that different
devices can have different settings, which can be very useful especially if these
devices have different characteristics (e.g., noise levels) or are connected to
different instruments.

To configure your sound card for use with StroboSoft™ Standard

1. Click on the SET-UP button.

2. Click on the SET-UP tab inside the window.

3. Select your sample rate. This rate should match your sound card's
rating. Increasing the sample rate will "capture" more data in the signal
measurement and may assist in measuring problematic higher octave
notes. (Default setting is AUTO)

4. Select your sound card type. Multiple sound card users can select a
particular card to use or if your sound card has multiple inputs you can
select the set of inputs to use.

Audio Device Problem Detected

If your sound card cannot "stream" data smoothly to StroboSoft™, you will
receive the AUDIO DEVICE PROBLEM DETECTED message in the strobe

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G E T T I N G S T A R T E D

display window. Try changing the sample to a higher rate to increase the amount
of data your sound card sends the application.

Generally, the AUTO function will work with any sound card. The AUTO function
samples audio at 11025Hz by default. This sample rate will preserve all
information up to frequencies up to 5512.5Hz (Nyquist's Theorem). Most stringed
instruments do not produce fundamental tones above 5512.5Hz. However,
switching to a higher sample rate will capture more "information" on higher
octave note measurements. So if you have a high octave note that is difficult to
measure, try switching the sample rate to a higher one.

Alternatively, if you are using a pro-audio sound card that has a higher sample
rate capability, switch StroboSoft™ to match it for optimum performance.

A Note on Drivers

As of 12/2005, on the Windows platform, StroboSoft™ currently only supports
MME drivers. If your sound card does not provide suitable drivers (e.g., it only
supports ASIO, or WDM/KS) then StroboSoft™ will not be able to access these
inputs. However, almost every sound card includes suitable MME drivers. Please
make sure you have MME capability enabled in your aftermarket sound card
utility before calling for support.

If your sound card is displayed in the Windows Control Panel under Sounds and
Audio Devices, StroboSoft™ will be able to recognize your sound card and
access its input(s).

Also, visit the forum at www.strobosoft.com for updates.

StroboSoft and ProTools™:

When running ProTools, the DigiDesign drivers will not allow any other
application to use the audio device even if ProTools is idle. Therefore, it is not
possible to run ProTools and StroboSoft™ side-by-side and use the same audio
device. This is not a problem with other DAWs. This problem is not exhibited on
LE systems. We are working to address this issue in a future version of
StroboSoft.

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S T R O B O S O F T O W N E R S M A N U A L

Getting Started - StroboSoft™ Audio Tips

There are a few items that you will require before using StroboSoft™:

1. Instrument cable long enough to position yourself by the computer but
still give you free movement with your instrument. You will need to
access the mouse and keyboard in certain instances.

2. A simple 1/4" to 1/8" mini adaptor to plug into your stock sound card.
Pro-Audio sound cards typically have a direct 1/4" input that you can
use, often with direct instrument inputs. The adaptor is not required in
this case.

3. Most acoustic instruments will require a microphone if they are not
equipped with an electronic pick-up device. A simple omni-directional
microphone will suffice. Suction cup devices and clip-on pickups will
work also.

4. That's it! Simple, right? Let's get started...

Here's Some Tips Just for Good Measure...

1. Keep your microphone away from your computer. Some machines
exhibit excessive fan noise that can be picked up in the microphone and
prevent an accurate measurement.

2. If you are using an electric instrument, it's best to plug it into the "line in"
connection instead of the "microphone" connection if your computer has
both. This will give much better signal quality. The line-level signal of
your electric instrument is ample enough to allow for a good
measurement.

3. Use a good microphone. Inexpensive computer microphones may not
be able to accurately reproduce the frequency range of your instrument
signal. This will create a false measurement.

4. Use the Noise Filter. With the noise filter engaged, StroboSoft™ can
"ignore" the typical 50/60Hz cycle hum. Once the background noise is
reduced, StroboSoft™ can better distinguish between noise levels and

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G E T T I N G S T A R T E D

true instrument tones. In addition to 50/60Hz cycle hum, the noise filter
will also reject computer fan noise and other room noise.

5. Use the Spectrum Analyzer. The Spectrum Analyzer will allow you to
immediately see what type of input signal StroboSoft™ is trying to
measure. If there are large spikes or high background noise level is
present, run the Noise Filter. You can use the numbers at the bottom of
the graph and the Multi-Function Window to compare Hz measurements
instantly. (This is a great function to view harmonic tone sets of a
particular note also.)

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Chromatic Tune

Chromatic Tune - Manual Note Select

StroboSoft™ Manual Note Select

When tuning under unusual circumstances tuning extremely high-pitched notes
or low volume sounds in noisy environments it may be necessary to manually
select the note to which you would like to tune.

StroboSoft™'s MANUAL NOTE SELECT will allow users to select their notes and
tune with complete confidence that their notes are being measured accurately.

Using the MANUAL NOTE SELECT also assists the user in tuning to different
offsets whether original or proprietary since the CENTS display will output the
current cents position on a NOTE/OCTAVE basis.

MANUAL NOTE SELECT limits the range of notes StroboSoft™ looks for so it
can potentially detect harmonics from other notes and assume that was the note
you are looking for. This can be useful if you are trying to detect harmonics from
other notes. For example, you can play an E2 and set MANUAL NOTE SELECT
to E3 and measure the pitch of the first harmonic instead of the fundamental
frequency.

To use:

1. Enable the MANUAL NOTE SELECT feature by CLICKING the LED (or
the text) above the MANUAL NOTE SELECT knob.

2. DRAG the knob with the mouse to select your desired note or for more
precise setting use the mouse wheel to SCROLL to the desired
NOTE/OCTAVE combination.

3. The notes will display in the NOTE/OCTAVE window.

4. That's it!

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Chromatic Tune - Global Cents Offset

Global Cents Offset

To manually change:

1. CLICK in the GLOBAL CENTS OFFSET text box.

2. TYPE in your new setting. Increments of 0.1 are allowed.

3. PRESS ENTER.

Adjusting the GLOBAL CENTS OFFSET in StroboSoft™ allows the user to
globally offset all measurements the tuner makes.

Setting the GLOBAL CENTS OFFSET to something outside of 0.0 will provide an
"off zero" reference for tuning to custom offsets.

Double clicking the top of the GLOBAL OFFSETS knob will reset it to zero.

Note: There are some mouse drivers that will allow you to "fine-tune" (settings of

0.1 cents) the GLOBAL CENTS OFFSET by holding down the right mouse button
while you scroll the mouse wheel. This will vary from computer to computer. This
will not impede the performance of StroboSoft™. If there is any issue with using
the mouse to input global offsets, simply manually change the offset by clicking in
the text box and typing it in.

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C H R O M A T I C T U N E

Chromatic Tune - Concert A Range

StroboSoft™ Concert A Frequency Range

To change:

1. CLICK in the CONCERT A text box.

2. TYPE in your new setting.

3. PRESS ENTER.

StroboSoft Concert A Range: 340Hz - 540 Hz

Strobosoft has a default reference frequency off 440Hz (Concert A). The range
of reference frequencies within StroboSoft™ can be changed from 340Hz to
540Hz in 0.1 Hz increments.

Adjusting the CONCERT A reference can be useful to allow tuning to recordings
that have different reference frequencies or tune to instruments that do not use
the typical 440Hz reference such as bagpipes, sitars, baroque type, or classic
instruments.

Also, depending on the tone you are trying to achieve, tuning to a higher
CONCERT A frequency allows your music to sound brighter.

The CONCERT A setting in StroboSoft™ is a global value that is not stored in
your instrument presets. Make sure this is set at 440Hz when tuning regularly or
your measurements may be incorrect.

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S T R O B O S O F T O W N E R S M A N U A L

Chromatic Tune - Temperaments

Temperaments

To change:

1. CLICK in the TEMPERAMENT text box.

2. A dialog box opens.

3. SELECT your new setting.

4. PRESS ENTER.

Lately, the word "temperament" has entered the language of many musicians
(notably guitarists and bassists) who never before had a term that could describe
the tuning shortcomings of their instruments. Many modern instruments are
constructed assuming "equal tempered" scale-note intervals. This is simply one
of an infinite number of ways to tune one scale note relative to another, and it
can create serious tuning shortcomings. However, by taking advantage of the
distinct characteristics of certain instruments (guitar, bass, steel guitar) or
prevalent key signatures (for the remaining "historical temperaments" in the list),
alternate temperaments are possible which generally "sweeten" the chords and
intervals played on these instruments without compromising the overall tuning
relative to other pitched instruments being played.

By nature of a temperament being "unequal", some chords and keys—generally,
major and minor keys at (or diatonically related to) the ROOT note on which the
temperament is built—are "favored" while more remote keys have chords that
sound worse than those of Equal Temperament.

In order to guarantee that a user can achieve a "favored sound" with any chosen
temperament regardless of key signature, StroboSoft™ provides a ROOT setting
(accessed under the TEMP menu item by pressing SET-UP then the TEMP
button). The ROOT setting realigns the temperament to the "concert pitch "
chosen. Thus, if one wants to play perfect 3rds in the diatonic key of D major, for
example, one might choose the JSTM temperament with ROOT set to "D".

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