Roland DISCOVER 5M Service Manual

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Owner’s Manual

Thank you for choosing a Roland DisCover 5M Realtime Orchestrator module, the perfect Standard MIDI File player

for performing musicians with a professional Vocal Harmonist function. The DisCover 5M allows you to play back

Standard MIDI Files on SmartMedia™ card or floppy disk, and to change their orchestration in realtime, while you

also have the flexibility to jump to four locations within every song, which allows you, for instance, to repeat any

part of a song time and again.

The DisCover 5M’s Vocal Harmonist is equally flexible: it can add harmonies to your singing based on the chords

used by the songs you are playing back. You can also use it for gender transformations of your voice, for correcting

not-so-perfect singing, and for a number of professional effects.

To get the most out of the DisCover 5M and to ensure many years of trouble-free service, we urge you to read

through this Owner’s Manual thoroughly.

To avoid confusion, let’s agree to use the word “button” for all keys on the front panel.

To save space (and time), let us agree to use the word “song” when referring to Standard MIDI Files.

Before using this module, carefully read the sections entitled “Important safety instructions” and “Important notes”.

They provide important information concerning the proper operation of the DisCover 5M. Be sure to keep this man-

ual in a safe place for future reference.

Copyright © 2003 ROLAND EUROPE. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced in any form without the written permission of Roland Europe s.p.a.

Features

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The ease of Standard MIDI Files

The DisCover 5M is not just another Standard MIDI

File player: it’s a MIDI File wizard that allows you to

do all kinds of things to song material you purchase

or download from the Internet.

The DisCover 5M accepts 8MB, 16MB, 32MB, 64MB,

and 128MB SmartMedia™ cards. You should there-

fore be able to build yourself a vast repertoire in no

time.

Flexible song playback

Simply by selecting another “Cover” preset (of which

there are 72), you can change the orchestration of

the songs you are playing back, so as to transform,

say, the original country version into a Viennese ball-

room rendition.

It is also possible to just change the character of the

drum or bass parts, if you think your songs will sound

better that way.

Of course, you can also program everything yourself

so as to add your hallmark to pre-recorded material.

The good news is that all changes can be carried out

on the DisCover 5M itself. You do not need to resort

to an external sequencer or software program.

Song Chain function and quick location of the songs

you need

Thanks to the DisCover 5M’s Chain function, you can

program play lists for your performances. The advan-

tage of such song chains is that you won’t have to

look for the desired songs on stage.

But make no mistake: in the DisCover 5M’s case, not

having to look for the next song to be played back is

only designed to help you avoid choosing the wrong

song, which can happen quite easily, as you may

know. Realtime selection of Standard MIDI Files is

indeed lightning-fast (courtesy of the Song Finder)

and convenient (Play & Search function).

Furthermore, you can already prepare the next song

while the current one is still running (NEXT SONG

function).

And finally, you can also link one song to each User

Program, so that the desired song will be loaded sim-

ply by recalling that User Program.

Professional Vocal Harmonist

Another highlight of the DisCover 5M is its Vocal

Harmonist that adds automatic harmonies to your

singing, while there are also several modes for trans-

forming your (or someone else’s) voice.

This implies, of course, that you can connect an

optional (Roland DR-10 or DR-20) microphone to the

DisCover 5M. Other signal sources (synthesizers, etc.)

can also be connected.

The signals generated by your singing and/or the

Vocal Harmonist can either be added to the signals of

the OUTPUT sockets, or transmitted directly to one or

two mixer channels (or additional amplifiers) via the

dedicated VOCAL HARMONIST OUTPUT sockets.

Dedicated effects sections

The DisCover 5M has dedicated (and completely sep-

arate) effects processors for the song and Realtime

parts, on the one hand, and the microphone and

Vocal Harmonist signals on the other.

These include: Reverb, Chorus, Delay, Compressor,

Gate, and 2-band parametric equalizer.

Three Realtime parts

You can control the DisCover 5M from an external

keyboard, MIDI accordion, sequencer, etc. To this end,

your Realtime Orchestrator contains an Upper,

Lower, and M.Drums part. They can be controlled via

separate (or the same) MIDI channel(s).

Intuitive user interface

The large touch screen keeps you posted about the

DisCover 5M’s status and allows you to set almost all

functions by touching the on-screen fields.

The DisCover 5M’s panel layout is just as intuitive and

very cooperative indeed: it works hand-in-hand with

the touch screen.

D-Beam controller

The DisCover 5M has the acclaimed D-Beam Control-

ler* for intuitive song playback control and additional

DJ-like effects via movements over an invisible beam

of infrared light. And, of course, there are sockets for

an optional footswitch and expression pedal.

(* D Beam technology licensed from Interactive Light, Inc.)

Excellent sound source

The DisCover 5M comes with a 64-voice polyphonic

sound source with 1,422 instrument sounds and 44

Drum Sets that cover everything from incredibly

realistic acoustic instruments to cooking Techno

sounds. Never before has an electronic instrument

produced such true-to-life instrument and drum

sounds that include subtle tonal changes and all the

“noises” associated with acoustic instruments (scrap-

ing for guitar sounds, resonance for drum sounds,

etc.).

The DisCover 5M supports GS-, General MIDI2-, and

XG-format MIDI files.

128 User Programs

User Programs are memories where you can save

your own panel settings. These include the currently

selected song, Tones (sounds), tempo, as well as a lot

of other parameters. At the press of a maximum of

three buttons, you can thus completely reconfigure

your instrument.

Features

Owner’s Manual

3

For even more flexibility, User Program settings

stored on SmartMedia™ card can be loaded directly,

so that the number of “pre-sets” available on stage is

almost unlimited.

…and so much more

Listing all of the DisCover 5M’s advantages and func-

tions would take another ten pages, while you must

be dying to put it through its paces. That is why we

would like to ask you to read this manual from cover

to cover. You’ll find that the DisCover 5M is quite

unlike any other instrument you know.

Have fun!

Using the unit safely

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Using the unit safely

• Before using this instrument, make sure to read the

instructions below, and the Owner’s Manual.

....................................................................................................................................

• Do not open or perform any internal modifications on

the unit.

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• Do not attempt to repair the DisCover 5M, or replace

parts within it (except when this manual provides specific

instructions directing you to do so). Refer all servicing to

your retailer, the nearest Roland Service Center, or an

authorized Roland distributor, as listed on the “Informa-

tion” page.

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• Never use or store the DisCover 5M in places that are:

• Subject to temperature extremes (e.g., direct sunlight

in an enclosed vehicle, near a heating duct, on top of

heat-generating equipment); or are

• Damp (e.g., baths, washrooms, on wet floors); or are

• Humid; or are

• Exposed to rain; or are

• Dusty; or are

• Subject to high levels of vibration.

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• This unit should be used only with a rack or stand that

is recommended by Roland.

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007

• Make sure you always have the unit placed in such a way

that it is level and sure to remain stable. Never place it on

stands that could wobble, or on inclined surfaces.

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• The instrument should only be connected to a power

supply of the type described in the operating instruc-

tions, or as marked on the DisCover 5M.

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• Do not excessively twist or bend the power cord, nor

place heavy objects on it. Doing so can damage the cord,

producing severed elements and short circuits. Damaged

cords are fire and shock hazards!

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• This instrument, either alone or in combination with an

amplifier and headphones or speakers, may be capable of

producing sound levels that could cause permanent

hearing loss. Do not operate for a long period of time at a

high volume level, or at a level that is uncomfortable. If

you experience any hearing loss or ringing in the ears,

you should immediately stop using the unit, and consult

an audiologist.

...................................................................................................................................

• Do not allow any objects (e.g., flammable material, coins,

pins); or liquids of any kind (water, soft drinks, etc.) to

penetrate the unit.

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• In households with small children, an adult should pro-

vide supervision until the child is capable of following all

rules essential for the safe operation of the DisCover 5M.

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• Protect the unit from strong impact.

(Do not drop it!)

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• Do not force the DisCover 5M’s power cord to share an

outlet with an unreasonable number of other devices. Be

especially careful when using extension cords—the total

power used by all devices you have connected to the

extension cord’s outlet must never exceed the power rat-

ing (watts/amperes) for the extension cord. Excessive

loads can cause the insulation on the cord to heat up and

eventually melt through.

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Used for instructions intended to alert

the user to the risk of injury or material

damage should the unit be used

improperly.

* Material damage refers to damage or

other adverse effects caused with

respect to the home and all its

furnishings, as well to domestic

animals or pets.

Used for instructions intended to alert

the user to the risk of death or severe

injury should the unit be used

improperly.

The ● symbol alerts the user to things that must be

carried out. The specific thing that must be done is

indicated by the design contained within the circle. In

the case of the symbol at left, it means that the power-

cord plug must be unplugged from the outlet.

The symbol alerts the user to important instructions

or warnings.The specific meaning of the symbol is

determined by the design contained within the

triangle. In the case of the symbol at left, it is used for

general cautions, warnings, or alerts to danger.

The symbol alerts the user to items that must never

be carried out (are forbidden). The specific thing that

must not be done is indicated by the design contained

within the circle. In the case of the symbol at left, it

means that the unit must never be disassembled.

Owner’s Manual

5

• Before using the DisCover 5M in a foreign country, con-

sult with your retailer, the nearest Roland Service Center,

or an authorized Roland distributor, as listed on the

“Information” page.

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• The DisCover 5M should be located so that its location or

position does not interfere with its proper ventilation.

....................................................................................................................................

• Always grasp only the plug on the power-supply cord

when plugging into, or unplugging from, an outlet or this

unit.

....................................................................................................................................

• Try to prevent cords and cables from becoming entan-

gled. Also, all cords and cables should be placed out of

the reach of children.

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• Never climb on top of, nor place heavy objects on the

unit.

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• Never handle the power cord or its plugs with wet hands

when plugging into, or unplugging from, an outlet or this

unit.

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• If you need to move the instrument, take note of the pre-

cautions listed below. Make sure to have a firm grip, to

protect yourself from injury and the instrument from

damage.

• Disconnect the power cord.

• Disconnect all cords coming from external devices.

• Before cleaning the unit, turn off the power and unplug

the power cord from the outlet.

...................................................................................................................................

• Whenever you suspect the possibility of lightning in your

area, disconnect the power cord from the outlet.

...................................................................................................................................

• Should you remove screws, make sure to put them in a

safe place out of children’s reach, so there is no chance

of them being swallowed accidentally.

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Important notes

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In addition to the items listed under “Using the unit safely” (p. 4), please read and observe the following:

Power supply

• Do not use this instrument on the same power circuit with any

device that will generate line noise (such as an electric motor or

variable lighting system).

• Before connecting the DisCover 5M to other devices, turn off the

power to all units. This will help prevent malfunctions and/or dam-

age to speakers or other devices.

Placement

• Using the DisCover 5M near power amplifiers (or other equipment

containing large power transformers) may induce hum. To allevi-

ate the problem, change the orientation of this instrument or

move it further away from the source of interference.

• This instrument may interfere with radio and television reception.

Do not use it in the vicinity of such receivers.

• Observe the following when using the unit’s floppy disk drive. For

further details, refer to “Before using floppy disks (handling the

floppy disk drive)”.

• Do not place the unit near devices that produce a strong mag-

netic field (e.g., loudspeakers).

• Install the DisCover 5M on a solid, level surface.

• Do not move the unit or subject it to vibration while the drive is

operating.

• Do not expose the DisCover 5M to direct sunlight, place it near

devices that radiate heat, leave it inside an enclosed vehicle, or

otherwise subject it to temperature extremes. Excessive heat can

deform or discolor the instrument.

• To avoid possible breakdown, do not use the unit in a wet area,

such as an area exposed to rain or other moisture.

• Do not allow objects to remain on top of the DisCover 5M. This can

be the cause of malfunction.

Maintenance

• For everyday cleaning wipe the DisCover 5M with a soft, dry cloth

or one that has been slightly dampened with water. To remove

stubborn dirt, use a mild, non-abrasive detergent. Afterwards, be

sure to wipe the instrument thoroughly with a soft, dry cloth.

• Never use benzene, thinner, alcohol or solvents of any kind, to

avoid the possibility of discoloration and/or deformation.

Repairs and data

• Please be aware that all data contained in the instrument’s mem-

ory may be lost when it is sent for repairs. In certain cases (such as

when circuitry related to memory itself is out of order), we regret

that it may not be possible to restore the data. Roland assumes no

liability concerning such loss of data.

Additional precautions

• Please be aware that the memory contents can be irretrievably lost

as a result of a malfunction, or the improper operation of the

instrument.

• Use a reasonable amount of care when using the instrument’s but-

tons, other controls, and jacks/connectors. Rough handling can

lead to malfunctions.

• Never strike or apply strong pressure to the display.

• When connecting/disconnecting cables, grasp the connector

itself—never pull on the cable. This way you will avoid causing

shorts, or damage to the cable’s internal elements.

• A small amount of heat will radiate from the instrument during

normal operation. This is perfectly normal.

• To avoid disturbing your neighbors, try to keep the instrument’s

volume at reasonable levels. You may prefer to use headphones, so

you do not need to be concerned about those around you (espe-

cially late at night).

• When you need to transport the instrument, package it in the box

(including padding) that it came in. Otherwise, you will need to use

equivalent packaging materials, or a flightcase.

• Use only the specified expression pedal (EV-5, EV-7; sold sepa-

rately). By connecting any other expression pedals, you risk caus-

ing malfunction and/or damage to the DisCover 5M.

About the touch screen

• Wipe off stains on the touch screen using ethanol, but do not

allow the ethanol to soak into the joint of the upper fume and the

bottom glass, for it may otherwise cause peeling or malfunction.

Do not use organic solvents or detergents other than ethyl alcohol

(ethanol).

Before using floppy disks (handling the floppy disk

drive)

• Install the unit on a solid, level surface in an area free from vibra-

tion. If the unit must be installed at an angle, be sure the installa-

tion does not exceed the permissible range: upward, 2°; down-

ward, 18°.

• Avoid using the DisCover 5M immediately after it has been moved

to a location with a level of humidity that is greatly different than

its former location. Rapid changes in the environment can cause

condensation to form inside the drive, which will adversely affect

the operation of the drive and/or damage floppy disks. When the

unit has been moved, allow it to become accustomed to the new

environment (allow a few hours) before operating it.

• To insert a disk, push it gently but firmly into the drive—it will click

into place. To remove a disk, press the EJECT button firmly. Do not

use excessive force to remove a disk which is lodged in the drive.

• Never attempt to remove a floppy disk from the drive while the

drive is operating (the indicator is lit); damage could result to both

the disk and the drive.

• Remove any disk from the drive before powering up or down.

• To prevent damage to the disk drive’s heads, always try to hold the

floppy disk in a level position (not tilted in any direction) while

inserting it into the drive. Push it in firmly, but gently. Never use

excessive force.

• To avoid the risk of malfunction and/or damage, insert only floppy

disks into the disk drive. Never insert any other type of disk. Avoid

getting paper clips, coins, or any other foreign objects inside the

drive.

Handling floppy disks

• Floppy disks contain a plastic disk with a thin magnetic coating.

Microscopic precision is required to enable storage of large

amounts of data on such a small surface area. To preserve their

integrity, please observe the following when handling floppy disks:

• Never touch the magnetic medium inside the disk.

• Do not use or store floppy disks in dirty or dusty areas.

• Do not subject floppy disks to temperature extremes (e.g., direct

sunlight in an enclosed vehicle). Recommended temperature

range: 10°~50°C (50°~122°F).

• Do not expose floppy disks to strong magnetic fields, such as

those generated by loudspeakers.

1. Important notes

Owner’s Manual

7

• Floppy disks have a “WRITE” tab which can protect the disk from

accidental erasure. It is recommended that the tab be kept in

the PROTECT position, and moved to the WRITE position only

when you wish to write new data onto the disk.

• Disks containing important performance data for this instru-

ment should always be locked (have their write protect tab slid

to the PROTECT position) before you insert them into the drive

of another instrument.

• The identification label should be firmly affixed to the disk. If

the label comes loose while the disk is in the drive, it may be

difficult to remove the disk.

• Put the disk back into its case for storage.

Before using a SmartMedia™ card

• Only SmartMedia cards formatted on the DisCover 5M can be

used.

• Be sure to insert the memory card all the way into the slot.

• Do not touch the contacts of the memory card, or allow them to

become soiled.

• Never remove the memory card or turn off the power while an

operation –such as reading or writing data, or formatting– is being

performed on the memory card. Never remove or connect the card

while the DisCover 5M is on. Doing so can destroy the data on the

memory card and/or render the memory card itself unusable.

• If you affix the write-protect label to the write-protect area of the

memory card, you will not be able to format the card or write data

to it. If you wish to format the card or write data to it, do so with-

out the label affixed. For details on the write-protect sticker, refer

to the owner’s manual for your memory card.

• If you attempt to format a card or write data to it when the write-

protect label is affixed, an error message will appear. In that case,

either insert another card or remove the write-protect label.

• At power-on, do not remove/insert a SmartMedia card while the

DisCover 5M is updating its internal data (wait until the messages

“Song database checking…” and “User Program database

checking…” have disappeared).

• Make sure that the memory card is oriented correctly, and push it

all the way into the slot. The gold contacts must face downward.

• Never turn on the power when a memory card is inserted partway

into the slot. Doing so will damage the data in internal memory.

Memory cards usable with the DisCover 5M

• The DisCover 5M can use commercially available Smart Media

memory cards. You can purchase such cards at a computer shop or

digital camera dealer.

• Memory cards you purchase must meet the following conditions.

• Power supply voltage: 3.3 V

• Capacity: 4, 8, 16, 32, 64, 128MB

• The DisCover 5M cannot use SmartMedia of types other than the

above.

Liability and copyright

• Should data contained and stored on the SmartMedia card be lost,

it is unfortunately impossible to restore them. Roland Europe

S.p.A. assumes no liability concerning such loss of data.

• Unauthorized recording, distribution, sale, lending, public perfor-

mance, broadcasting, or the like in whole or in part, of a work

(musical composition, video, broadcast, public performance, or the

like) whose copyright is held by a third party is prohibited by law.

• Do not use this unit for purposes that could infringe on a copy-

right held by a third party. Roland assumes no responsibility what-

soever with regard to any infringements of third-party copyrights

arising through your use of this unit.

Rear side of the disk

WRITE

(you can save data to the disk)

PROTECT

(you cannot save data)

Protect tab

• SmartMedia is a trademark of Toshiba Corp.

• All product names mentioned in this document are trademarks or

registered trademarks of their respective owners.

• DisCover 5M IT. PAT. PEND.

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Features. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2

1. Important notes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6

2. Panel descriptions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9

3. Touring your DisCover 5M . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12

Connections. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12

Switching the DisCover 5M on/off . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13

Interactive demo of the DisCover 5M. . . . . . . . . . . . . 14

Overview . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15

Playing back songs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15

Quick location of the song you need. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16

Starting playback . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16

Other practical playback functions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17

Modifying songs in realtime. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19

Using the Cover function . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .19

Minus One . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19

Vocal Harmonist function. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20

Adding harmonies to your singing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .22

Who specifies the harmonies? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23

Not convinced so far? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23

Voice-FX . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24

Auto Pitch Correct function . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24

Vocoder. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25

Talk . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26

Automatic transposition (Singer Key) . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27

Displaying Lyrics and chord information . . . . . . . . . . 29

Using the Realtime parts. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30

Choosing other Tones (or Drum Sets) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31

Using the D Beam Controller . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34

4. Using the performance functions . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35

Transposition. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35

Setting the transposition interval via the display . . . . . .36

Master Tune. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36

D Beam functions. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37

Using optional footswitches. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39

Expression (Foot Pedal) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40

Scale Tune . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40

5. Before you start editing (Menu). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42

6. Working with the Mixer & using effects . . . . . . . . 44

Mixing Realtime parts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44

More refined Mixer settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45

Editing the Realtime (and song) effects processors . . . . 45

Using the multi-effects processor (Multi-FX) . . . . . . 47

Selecting another Multi-FX type . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47

Linking Multi-FX type selection to the Upper part

(Upper M-FX) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 49

Voice and Vocal Harmonist part mixing . . . . . . . . . . . 49

Reverb, Delay, and Chorus effects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 50

7. Editing the Realtime & Vocal Harmonist parts . . . 54

Editing the Realtime parts (Sound Edit) . . . . . . . . . . . 54

Editing the Vocal Harmonist parts. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 56

Procedure for selecting these pages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 56

Singer settings. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 56

Voice-FX settings. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 57

Auto Pitch Correct function settings. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 58

Vocoder settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 59

Small settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 60

Ensemble settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .62

8. More refined song functions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 63

Using the Fade-In/Out function . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 63

Programming MARK JUMP locations . . . . . . . . . . . . . 64

Working with the Song Finder. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 65

Locating files with the Song Finder . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .66

Editing the Song Finder information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 67

Song Chain function . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 71

Programming Song Chains . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 71

Editing Chains . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 72

Using Song Chains . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 73

Managing Song Chains . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 74

9. Working with User Programs. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 75

Writing your settings to a User Program. . . . . . . . . . 75

Selecting User Programs. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 76

User Program selection . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 76

Selecting User Programs with

[DOWN]

[UP]

. . . . . . . . . . .77

Finder: selecting User Programs on SmartMedia card . . 77

Selectively loading User Program settings

(User Program Hold) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 78

Automatic functions for User Programs . . . . . . . . . . 79

Linking a MIDI Set to a User Program . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .80

Startup User Program. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 80

10. Song Makeup Tools. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 81

Instrument: selecting different sounds . . . . . . . . . . . 81

Volume: part balance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 82

Reverb and Chorus: effect balance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 83

Palette: in-depth song editing. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 85

11. Editing Lyrics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 91

Adding Lyrics to a song. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 91

‘Utility’ functions for Edit Lyrics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 93

12. MIDI . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 94

The how-to’s . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 94

Editing MIDI parameters. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 96

Editing the System parameters. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 98

MIDI Sets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 99

13. Disk/Media functions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 101

The how-to’s . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 101

Load (from disk or SmartMedia) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 102

Save (to disk or SmartMedia). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 102

Delete. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 104

Disk/Media Utility functions. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 104

Format. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .104

Copy functions. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .105

14. Specifications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 110

MIDI Implementation Chart. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 111

Index. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 112

Contents

Owner’s Manual

9

A

D Beam controller

This controller allows you to influence the timbre of

the notes you play, to control song playback, and to

create some unique effects. All you need to do is

move your hand up/down or left/right above the two

“eyes”.

The D BEAM CONTROLLER buttons allow you to

assign the desired function to the D Beam Controller.

See p. 34.

B

LCD CONTRAST knob

Use this knob to set the contrast when you are hav-

ing problems reading what is written on the display.

The LCD may take some time to warm up. That is why

you may have to change the contrast several times

after powering on.

C

VOLUME section

[MASTER]

knob: Use this knob to set the global vol-

ume of your DisCover 5M.

[SONG]

knob: This knob allows you to set the volume

of the song parts. Turn it towards the left (towards

“MIN”) if you think your solo is too soft.

[FADE¥OUT/IN]

button: This button allows you to start

playback with an automatic fade-in of the music. If

you press it during playback, the volume will gradu-

ally decrease (fade-out).

D

TRANSPOSE section

These buttons allow you to transpose the

DisCover 5M up ([¥®]) or down ([√¥ƒ]) in semitone

steps. You can also specify which parts are to be

transposed (page 35). If neither button lights, no

manual transposition is used.

E

[SONG/RHYTHM FINDER] button

Press this button to quickly locate the desired Stan-

dard MIDI File on the inserted SmartMedia™ card or

floppy disk. See page 65.

F

[LYRICS & CHORD] button

Press this button if you want the lyrics contained in

the songs to appear in the display. At the same time,

the chords of the notes played by the song parts will

also be displayed. This, however, is information that is

“extracted” (derived) in realtime by the DisCover 5M.

G

[SINGER KEY] button

This button provides access to a page where you can

set and/or select the range to which the tonality of

the songs should be adapted (page 27).

H

[DISK/MEDIA] button

Press this button if you wish to save/load data from a

floppy disk or SmartMedia™ card. You will also find

data management functions here, like deleting files,

formatting floppies or cards, etc. (page 101).

2. Panel descriptions

A

C

D J

I

K

ML N O

H

G

F

E

T

S U

V W X

R

Q

P

B

Panel descriptions

10

r

I

SONG MAKEUP TOOLS buttons

These buttons allow you to modify the settings of the

current song. See page 81.

The [COVER] button is especially interesting, because

it provides access to pre-programmed templates that

allow you to quickly modify a song’s character. See

page 19.

J

PLAYER section

[CHAIN] button: Press this button to access the Chain

display where you can select a song chain to be

played back, edit existing chains, program new ones,

etc. When this button lights, [|√], [º], [‰], [®/ª] are

used to control playback of the current song. Press it

together with [NEXT¥SONG] to select the

DisCover 5M’s demo function (see p. 14).

[NEXT¥SONG] button: Press this button to select the

next song you want to use, while the current one is

still running. If the [CHAIN] button lights, this button

allows you to select the next song of the selected

chain.

[MINUS¥ONE] button: Press this button to switch off

the part you want to play (or sing) yourself. The part

to be muted is selectable (page 19).

[|√], [º], [‰], [®/ª]: These buttons allow you to return

to the beginning of the current song, “rewind” or

fast-foward in one-measure steps, and to start and

stop playback of the selected song.

BEAT indicator: this indicator flashes at the speed of

the currently-set tempo (the tempo value also

appears in the display).

K

[MULTI-FX] button

This button allows you to quickly switch the

DisCover 5M’s multi-effects processor on (button

lights) and off (button dark). By holding it slightly

longer, you jump to a display page where you can

change the multi-effects settings (see p. 47).

L

USER PROGRAM buttons

These buttons allow you to select the previous

([DOWN]) or next ([UP]) User Program. User Programs

are registration memories. By pressing these buttons

simultaneously, you revert to the settings that were

in effect before recalling the current User Program

(“Cancel”).

M

USER PROGRAM HOLD buttons

These buttons are used for ignoring the TONE and/or

VOCAL HARMONIST settings of subsequently loaded

User Programs. If a button lights, the DisCover 5M

will recall all User Program settings except the ones

filtered by the active button.

N

MARK JUMP buttons [1], [2], [3], [4]

These buttons allow you to jump to one of four

stored locations inside the currently selected song.

The 132 songs on the supplied SmartMedia™ card

already contain such locations for the verse ([1]), cho-

rus ([2]), bridge ([3]) and ending ([4]). You can edit

these, and also program the desired locations for

songs that do not yet contain them.

O

DATA ENTRY section

[VALUE] dial: This dial can be used to set the tempo or

the value in the parameter field that is currently

highlighted.

The [PREV] and [NEXT] buttons are used to select the

previous or next value field on the current display

page (if available).

P

Display

This touch sensitive display not only keeps you

posted about the DisCover 5M’s current status, it also

allows you to select the parameters and settings you

see by pressing the corresponding fields.

Q

[TONE FINDER] button

Press this button to search for a suitable sound

(“Tone”) for your live playing using the Upper and/or

Lower Realtime parts.

R

[MIXER/EFFECT] button

This button provides access to the display pages

where you can set the volume balance and effects of

the DisCover 5M’s parts.

S

[MENU] button

Press this button to call up a menu that provides

access to more refined DisCover 5M functions you

may wish to set from time to time.

T

[EXIT] button

Press this button to return to the previously selected

display page, or the DisCover 5M’s main page.

U

VOCAL HARMONIST section

The buttons and knobs in this section are used to set

the Vocal Harmonist function, the microphone level

and the effects applied to the signals received via the

Vocal Harmonist MIC INPUT socket.

V

PHONES 1 & 2 sockets

This is where you can connect optional stereo head-

phones (e.g. of Roland’s RH series). Feel free to use

either or both jacks simultaneously.

W

SmartMedia™ slot

This is where you need to insert the supplied or other

SmartMedia cards. The DisCover 5M comes with a

64MB card packed with Standard MIDI Files and

other useful settings. You can, however, also use 4, 8,

16, 32, 64 and 128MB cards.

X

Disk drive

This is where you insert floppy disks with Standard

MIDI Files you may already own. The drive accepts

2DD (720k) and 2HD (1.44MB) floppy disks.

For your convenience, and to take advantage of the

DisCover 5M’s powerful FINDER functions, we rec-

ommend copying all Standard MIDI Files to Smart-

Media card.

Owner’s Manual

11

A

OUTPUT R & L/MONO sockets

These sockets need to be connected to an external

amplifier, mixing consoles, etc. Depending on

whether you are also using the Vocal Harmonist OUT-

PUT sockets (see below), the present sockets either

transmit only the music generated by Song and Real-

time parts, or both the tone generator’s and Vocal

Harmonist’s signals.

Note: If you can/want to use only one channel on your exter-

nal amplifier, connect the L/MONO socket to its input. For

optimum sound quality, we recommend working in stereo,

though.

B

VIDEO OUTPUT socket

Connect this socket to the appropriate socket of your

TV or monitor. In that case, the lyrics of songs that

contain such information, and the note information

extracted in realtime (page 29) will be displayed on

screen even if the [LYRICS&CHORD] button does not

light (in which case the lyrics and chords no longer

appear in the DisCover 5M’s display).

Note: The signal format (PAL or NTSC) can be set via a MENU

function.

C

Vocal Harmonist OUTPUT R & L sockets

If connected to a mixing console, amplifier, etc.,

these sockets transmit the signal received via the MIC

INPUT socket and processed by the DisCover 5M’s

Vocal Harmonist. If no jacks are connected here, the

Vocal Harmonist signals will be transmitted via the

OUTPUT sockets (see above).

D

MIC INPUT socket

This is where you need to connect an optional micro-

phone (like a Roland DR-10 or DR-20) or other exter-

nal signal source you wish to process using the

DisCover 5M’s Vocal Harmonist facility. See also

“GAIN switch” above for setting the input sensitivity.

Note: The MIC INPUT socket is mono.

E

GAIN switch

If you connect a microphone to the MIC INPUT

socket, set this switch to “MIC”. If you wish to try out

the Vocal Harmonist function for other signals (gui-

tar, external synthesizers & modules, CDs, MDs, etc.),

set this switch to “LINE”.

Note: For the “LINE” setting to work with electric guitars or

basses, you need to connect such instruments to an effects

pedal or rack effect (in bypass mode), and connect the effect’s

output to the MIC INPUT socket.

F

FOOT SWITCH socket

An optional DP-2, DP-6, or BOSS FS-5U footswitch

connected to this socket can be used for various pur-

poses: its function is programmable (page 39).

Note: The DisCover 5M has no Hold (or Damper) socket,

because those messages are received via MIDI. If you need to

sustain the notes you play, connect an appropriate pedal to

your external MIDI keyboard (Roland A-37, PC-300, etc.).

G

FOOT PEDAL socket

An optional EV-5 or EV-7 expression pedal connected

to this jack can be used for controlling the volume of

the DisCover 5M’s Realtime parts.

H

MIDI THRU/OUT/IN sockets

These sockets allow you to connect the DisCover 5M

to external MIDI devices for a variety of applications:

receiving song data in realtime from an external

sequencer, transmitting your playing (and the data of

the song you are playing back) to an external

sequencer.

Note: The MIDI functions can be accessed via the

DisCover 5M’s Menu (page 94). Frequently used MIDI settings

can be written and recalled as “MIDI Sets”.

I

[POWER ON] button

Press this button to switch the DisCover 5M on and

off.

J

AC socket

This is where you need to connect the supplied power

cord.

A B C D E F G

H I J

Touring your DisCover 5M

12

r

You must be dying to try out your new DisCover 5M to see what it is capable of. We’ll get to that in a minute. But

first we need to connect it.

Connections

The DisCover 5M neither contains a keyboard, nor internal speakers. You therefore need to connect it to an external

keyboard (MIDI accordion, sequencer) and amplifier (Roland’s KC series, for example), or use optional headphones

(Roland RH-25 or RH-50, for example).

Be sure to switch off both

the DisCover 5M and the

external devices you want

to connect before making

or breaking audio and/or

MIDI connections. If you

do not have access to the

sound system of the venue

where you are perform-

ing, ask the local engineer

to set the volume to the

minimum level.

Note: Try to use dynamic

microphones whenever possi-

ble. You can also connect a

condenser microphone, how-

ever, provided you use a DI box

(with power supply). Connect

the microphone using an

unbalanced mono 1/4” jack.

Note: Except for the power

cable, all other items shown

above are optional. See your

Roland dealer for details.

Note: There is no absolute

need to connect the Vocal Har-

monist OUTPUT sockets. If you

don’t, your singing and the

Harmonist effects will be trans-

mitted via the main OUTPUT

sockets. (Only if you don’t con-

nect anything to the Vocal

Harmonist OUTPUT sockets.) If

you use these connectors, the

Vocal Harmonist signals are no

longer transmitted to the

headphones.

3. Touring your DisCover 5M

AC

PEDAL

FOOT

SWITCH

FOOT

MIC

INPUT

MIDI

IN

MIDI OUT

Roland

OUTPUT R,

L/MONO

Vocal Harmonist

OUTPUT R, L

Keyboard amplifier, active speakers,

etc.

Keyboard amplifier, active speakers

—OPTIONAL—

Dynamic microphone

(select “MIC”)

Other signal source

(select “LINE”)

Footswitch

(DP-2, DP-6, or BOSS FS-5U)

Stereo headphones

(RH-25 or RH-50)

Expression pedal

(EV-5, EV-7)

[Microphone: DR-10 or DR-20]

*Connect the microphone using an

unbalanced mono 1/4” jack.

Connect to

wall outlet

MIDI controller (key-

board, accordion,

sequencer, etc.)

Owner’s Manual

13

Switching the DisCover 5M on/off

After connecting the DisCover 5M to the other devices, proceed as follows:

Switching on the DisCover 5M

(1) Insert the included power cable into the AC inlet

and then plug it into an electrical outlet.

(2) Press the DisCover 5M’s [POWER¥ON] button

located on the rear panel to switch it on.

(3) If you connected the DisCover 5M to a mixing console, switch it on now.

(4) Switch on the amplifier, your active speakers, or the keyboard amplifier(s).

(5) Switch on your MIDI controller connected to the DisCover 5M’s MIDI IN socket.

(6) Use the [MASTER] knob to set the DisCover 5M’s

output volume.

Setting the display contrast

The information in the LCD display may be difficult to

view after turning on your DisCover 5M or after extended

use. Your viewing angle or the current lighting conditions

can also affect the appearance of the display.

In such cases, use the [LCD¥CONTRAST] knob located on

the rear panel to adjust the contrast of the display.

Switching off the DisCover 5M

(7) Switch off all external devices.

(8) Press the DisCover 5M’s [POWER¥ON] button to switch it off.

Touring your DisCover 5M

14

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Interactive demo of the DisCover 5M

Your DisCover 5M contains an interactive demo that introduces all of its highlights. It might be a good idea to try it

out now. The demo is self-explanatory, so we’ll just show you how to start and stop it.

(1) Simultaneously press the [CHAIN] and

[NEXT¥SONG] buttons.

The display now looks as follows:

(2) Press the field that provides access to the

desired demo function.

There are 5 demo songs that are played back in

a loop. If necessary, you can jump to the pre-

ceding or following demo song by pressing the

[PREV] or [NEXT] button.

(3) To stop the demo and leave the

DisCover 5M’s Demo function, press the [EXIT]

button.

(4) If you can barely hear the music, set the

[MASTER] knob (far left, VOLUME section) to a

higher level.

LCD Mode

You can decide to have the information displayed

white-on-blue (Normal) or blue–on-white (Invert).

Choose whichever is more convenient for you:

(1) Press the [MENU] button.

(2) On the display page that appears now, press the

[UTILITY] field.

(3) Press the [Global] field in the left corner.

(4) Press the [LCD¥Mode] field.

(5) Use the [VALUE] dial to select “Invert” (blue-on-

white) or “Normal” (white-on-blue).

(6) Press the [EXIT] button to return to the main page.

Owner’s Manual

15

Overview

Your DisCover 5M is a very user-friendly instrument indeed, but it is also extremely powerful. As we have to start

somewhere (which may not be what you want to do first), here’s an overview of where to find what for your first

exploration of the DisCover 5M:

Playing back songs

Your DisCover 5M is a novel Standard MIDI File player with all kinds of functions for “customizing” the songs you

play back via easy-to-use routines. Let us first look at the playback functions proper.

(1) Connect the DisCover 5M to your sound sys-

tem.

If you prefer to use headphones, connect them

to the PHONES socket (left side).

(2) Insert the supplied SmartMedia™ card into

the card slot.

(3) Switch on the amp (if available) and the

DisCover 5M.

You can press [®÷ª] at this stage to start play-

back of the first song on the card. (If no card is

inserted, while a floppy disk is in the drive, the

DisCover 5M selects the first song on disk.) To

select the song yourself, proceed as follows:

(4) Press the [SONG/RHYTHM¥FINDER] button.

You can also press the [SONG] field in the upper

left corner of the display (if available) to select

songs.

The display changes to:

(5) If it isn’t already highlighted, press the

[SMART¥MEDIA] field in the upper right cor-

ner.

The display shows a list of 6 songs (Standard

MIDI Files) on the SmartMedia card.

If you prefer to listen to one of your own songs

on floppy disk, insert it into the drive and press

the [FLOPPY] field.

(6) If the name of the song you want to listen to

is already displayed, press its line.

In our example, “Birdland” has been selected.

(7) To display the next 6 songs, press the [˚] field

in the lower right corner.

You can press this field as many times as neces-

sary (or until it is no longer displayed).

To return to a previous group of 6 songs,

press [ø].

What do you want to do first?

• Playing back songs → p. 15

• Modifying songs in realtime → p. 19

• Vocal Harmonist function → p. 20

• Automatic transposition (Singer Key) → p. 27

• Displaying Lyrics and chord information → p. 29

• Using the Realtime parts → p. 30

• Using the D Beam Controller → p. 34

Other aspects will be covered elsewhere in this manual.

Touring your DisCover 5M

16

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Quick location of the song you need

There are several ways to quickly locate the song you are after:

• Press the [Author] or [Genre] field under step (4)

to sort the song files according to artist names

(Author) or kind of music (Genre).

Continue with step (5) to select the song you

want to listen to.

• Press the [Index] field in the upper left corner.

Press one of the displayed field names to nar-

row down your search to songs that belong to

the selected category (“Index”).

Note: Press the [ALL] field to display all songs on the

SmartMedia card.

The display now returns to the page shown

under step (4) above. This time, however, only

the songs belonging to the selected Index are

displayed.

Continue with step (5) to select the song you

want to listen to.

• If you only know the melody of the desired

song, press the [Finder] field under step (4).

• Connect an external MIDI controller to the

DisCover 5M’s MIDI IN jack (the MIDI channel

on which it transmits is of little importance

here).

• Press the [Play&Search] field.

• As indicated in the display, play the main theme

on the external keyboard. You can play in any

key, and the rhythm doesn’t have to be perfect

either (this function just looks for intervals).

• If you played a wrong note, press

[Delete¥LastNote].

• To enter the entire line again, press [∫¥Reset] to

erase the previously entered notes, then play

the phrase again.

• After entering the melody, press the [SEARCH]

field.

The display now returns to step (4) on page 15

and shows the names of the songs that contain

the melody you played.

• Press the field of the song you want to play

back.

Note: If no songs were found, the following message

appears, and all songs are once again displayed:

Starting playback

(8) To return to the main page, press [EXIT]. The “main page” is the DisCover 5M’s display

page that provides a maximum of relevant

information and allows you to select (and

change) items you may need during normal

operation.

It also displays the name of the selected song,

the tempo, and the current measure.

Note: The player can muster up to 76,000 events. If the

message “Too many events” is displayed, the selected

song contains more than that number and cannot be

played back.

Owner’s Manual

17

Note: When playing back large SMFs at a very high

tempo, playback may suddenly stop and the message

“Song Scanning” may appear. This can be solved by

reducing the playback tempo so that the DisCover 5M

has enough time to process all MIDI data contained in

the song.

(9) Press the [®÷ª] button.

Playback of the selected song starts.

(10) If necessary, use the [VALUE] dial to change

the tempo.

To reset the song tempo, press the tempo field

in the display.

(11) Use the [MASTER] knob to set the

DisCover 5M’s output volume.

You can also play to the music. If necessary, use

the [SONG] knob to set the desired balance.

Other practical playback functions

●

MARK JUMP

Songs on the supplied SmartMedia card con-

tain four locations (“markers”) you can jump to

right away. For songs that do not yet contain

them, you can program these markers yourself.

You can also edit the locations of existing

markers (page 64).

Use the MARK JUMP [1]~[4] buttons (below the

[®÷ª] button) to select the position you want to

jump to without stopping or delaying playback.

Such changes occur at the end of the current

measure, which makes more musical sense than

jumping when you’re halfway into a measure.

The labels (VERSE, CHORUS, BRIDGE, ENDING)

refer to the locations you jump to by pressing

the corresponding button. Obviously, these

labels may be meaningless for markers you pro-

grammed or edited yourself.

There are four such MARK memories.

The advantage of these markers is that you can

return to the chorus, for example, if you notice

that the audience wants the song to last a little

longer than originally planned. Markers also

allow you to change the song structure in real-

time (by starting with the bridge, for example).

Note: These buttons may also come in handy for the

songs of the [Rhythm] index. See page 65.

●

Reset, rewind, fast-forward

You can also use the following buttons to jump

to different song locations.

[|√] TOP: Allows you to return to the beginning

of the current song.

[º] BWD: allows you to rewind one measure at

a time.

[‰] FWD: allows you to fast-forward one mea-

sure at a time.

These buttons are available both during play-

back and while playback is stopped.

●

Next Song

While the current song is still running, you can

already select the next one to be played back:

• Press the [NEXT¥SONG] button.

• Select the desired song using the Song Finder

(page 15).

• As soon as the current song finishes, the next

one starts. You can now select another song.

• Press the [NEXT¥SONG] button again to switch

off this function.

Note: Your DisCover 5M also provides a Chain function

for programming play lists of several songs (page 71).

Touring your DisCover 5M

18

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●

Player (GS Reset Send and Quick Start)

(1) Press the [MENU] button.

The display changes to:

(2) Press the [UTILITY] field. If the [Player] field in

the left corner is not displayed in white, press

it.

(3) Switch the [GS¥RESET¥SEND] field to specify

whether (on) or not (off) SysEx messages

contained in the song you play back are

updated while you fast-forward/rewind or

use the MARK JUMP buttons.

By switching this function on, you can rest

assured that your songs always sound as

expected.

(4) Use the [Quick¥Start] field to quickly jump to

the first note of the selected song.

This function temporarily sets the tempo to

 = 250 – to race through empty measures at

the beginning of the song file (which may con-

tain important settings), thus avoiding that the

newly selected song begins with two measures

of “nothing” (which can be terribly long when

you’re in front of an audience). As soon as the

DisCover 5M reaches the first note, the tempo

returns to the programmed value.

Owner’s Manual

19

Modifying songs in realtime

Let us now look at some functions for customizing the songs you play back.

Using the Cover function

The COVER function provides “masks” that change the instrumentation of the selected song. Simply by selecting

another preset, you can cause a Viennese waltz to be played back by a heavy metal band, etc. Even though the

arrangement (rhythm, riffs) does not change, the songs’ character can be modified beyond recognition.

(1) Press the [COVER] button.

The display now looks more or less as follows:

(2) Select the parts whose instrumentation you

want to change:

Press the [ALL] field if all instruments should be

replaced.

Press the [DRUM] field if only the drum and

percussion instruments should change.

Press the [BASS] field if you’re happy with

everything but the bass line’s sound.

(3) Press one of the six fields in the lower half of

the display to select another preset.

After selecting a preset, you can press

[Original¥Sounds] (page 1) to return to the origi-

nal orchestration.

(4) If none of the displayed presets appeal to

you, use the PAGE [1]~[5] fields at the right to

jump to another page with more presets.

(5) Try out various presets to see how (fast) this

concept works.

(6) If you like the new version better than the

original one, you can press the [SAVE] field to

save the song to SmartMedia card or floppy

with this information (page 103).

Note: The COVER information is part of the data only

the DisCover 5M understands. You can still play back

the newly saved version of this song on another

sequencer or SMF player, but the COVER information

will be ignored.

Minus One

“Minus One” means that (at least) one part of a song is not played back.

There are at least two applications for this function:

• it allows you to play the muted parts yourself,

via the external keyboard;

• it allows you to sing without doubling by the

song (which may sound odd).

(1) Press and hold the [MINUS¥ONE] button.

The display changes to:

(2) Press one of the three “preset” fields to mute

the corresponding song parts:

Press [MELODY] to mute the melody (you will

notice that the [4] field also lights).

Press the [ACCOMP] field to mute everything

but the melody, bass, and drums.

Press the [DRUM&BASS] field to mute the bass

and drum parts.

Note: Even the “preset” fields can be used simulta-

neously. And the part fields [1]~[16] can be added, too.

(3) To mute other parts “ad lib” (i.e. without tak-

ing advantage of the presets):

• Press the [USER] field. This mutes all parts

except [4] (the melody).

• Switch on all parts you want to hear by press-

ing the [1]~[3] and [5]~[16] fields. Indicator icons

of parts you need must be white (the others

blue).

Touring your DisCover 5M

20

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• To save this customized “Minus” setting in the

DisCover 5M’s internal memory, press

[Customize]. The display now responds with:

(4) Press the [EXIT] button to return to the main

page.

Your last preset selection (MELODY~USER) will

be used until you select another preset or until

you switch off your DisCover 5M.

(5) Press [MINUS¥ONE] again to switch this func-

tion off.

Note: You can also switch the Minus One function on/

off using an optional footswitch (page 39).

Vocal Harmonist function

The Vocal Harmonist doesn’t just produce harmonies: it can also transform your voice in various ways. More impor-

tantly, its sound quality surpasses by far anything you may already have tried.

Setting up

Here’s what you need to do to take advantage of

the Vocal Harmonist function:

(1) Switch off your amp and the DisCover 5M (in

that order).

(2) Connect a dynamic microphone to the MIC

INPUT jack on the DisCover 5M’s rear panel.

(3) Set the [GAIN] switch to “MIC”.

You can also connect the (mono) output of

other instruments, a CD player, etc.

In that case, you need to set [GAIN] to “LINE”.

(4) Set the [MIC¥GAIN] knob on the front panel to

“MIN”.

Note: If you like, you can connect the Vocal Harmonist

OUTPUT sockets to another amp (or additional mixer

channels).

(5) Switch on the DisCover 5M and your amp (in

that order).

(6) Press the [SINGER] button (it must light) and

switch off the [VOCODER], [SMALL] or

[ENSEMBLE] button.

(7) Sing into the microphone and gradually

increase the [MIC¥GAIN] setting.

Set it to the highest possible value, taking care

to avoid that the OVER indicator lights. It would

be best to sing at the level you will be using

during your performances.

(8) If your singing is inaudible in the speakers

connected to the amp (or the headphones),

turn the [VOICE] knob towards the right

(towards “MAX”).

Note: If a howling sound (a.k.a. “feedback”) is produced,

your microphone may be pointed at a speaker. Try to

orient it differently, or slightly reduce the [VOICE] set-

ting.

(9) Use the [EFFECTS] knob to set the balance

between your original singing and the effects

that are added to your voice.

Note: You can start song playback and sing to it. See

“Playing back songs” (p. 15) and “Minus One” (p. 19) for

details.

Set to “MIC”

Examples: Roland DR-10 or DR-20

KEYBOARD MODE ARPEGGIO

SEQ CTRL

/

2

7

1

6

TRANSPOSEX

-

DUALDUALSPLIT

3

8

4

9

5

0

VARIATION

TONE

ENTER

PERFORM

/SYSTEM

CONTROLKEYBOARDMIDI/TUNELEVEL/PAN

/EFFECT

ARPEGGIO

/TONE

PERFORM

/PRESET

USER

EDIT UTILITY

DRUMENVELOPEFILTERVIBRATO TONE

CANCELEXIT

UPPERLOWER

ROM PLAY

VOLUME

PALETTE

SELECT

ON/OFF

PART

VALUE

EDIT

12

COMBINATION

PALETTE

Preset:001

1>Piano 1

L/MONO

Set to “LINE”

Synthesizer, CD/MD player, etc.

Owner’s Manual

21

Your DisCover 5M provides a Compressor effect

you might want to set up now. The Compressor

reduces volume peaks and thus “levels out” dif-

ferences in the microphone signal.

The Gate effect, on the other hand can be used

to avoid that background noises cause the

Vocal Harmonist, etc., to start working when

you’re not singing.

These two effects are located immediately

behind the MIC INPUT socket and thus applied

to the microphone signal before it is processed

by the Vocal Harmonist section.

(10) Press the [MIXER/EFFECTS] button.

The display changes to:

(11) Press the [Vocal¥Effect] field.

Note: Since you pressed the [SINGER] button in step (6)

above, the left-most column is called “SINGER” here. It

may also be called “TALK”, “VOICE-FX”, or “AUTO PITCH”.

Though that is of little importance for what we are

about to do, it proves that your DisCover 5M is in fact a

very clever instrument that helps you save time.

(12) If you need the Compressor, press the

[Compressor] field, so that its indicator icon is

highlighted.

(13) If you also want to use the Gate, press the

[GATE] field (its indicator icon must be high-

lighted).

(14) Use the [PREV] and [NEXT] buttons to select

the parameter you wish to edit, and set the

desired value with the [VALUE] dial.

Parameter fields can also be selected by press-

ing them.

It is very important that you keep singing

while setting the following parameters.

Sustain Level: Use this parameter to specify

how fast the compressor stops working once

the microphone level drops below the Com-

pressor’s threshold. This should be set in such a

way as to avoid unpleasant level jumps

between notes. Set it in combination with the

following parameter to obtain the best possible

result.

Output Level: The Compressor reduces the

dynamics (level differences) of your singing.

This parameter serves two purposes: it allows

you to specify how strongly your voice should

be compressed, and –as you increase the value–

it raises the compressor’s output volume to

make up for the lower resulting level.

Note: The value “0” means that the Compressor is not

working.

Threshold: This parameter allows you to set the

level the microphone signal must have in order

to be audible. Softer signals will be muted (sup-

pressed) by the Gate.

(15) Press the [Vocal¥HARMONIST] field to jump to

a page where you can select different presets,

etc. (see below).

(16) Press the [EXIT] button to return to the main

page.

®

Compressor, Gate, and effects

Touring your DisCover 5M

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Adding harmonies to your singing

Now that your microphone is up and running, let’s look at the Harmonist effect proper.

The DisCover 5M provides two harmony types:

“Small” (1 or 2 additional voices) and “Ensemble” (3

or 4 additional voices).

(1) Connect your microphone, press the [SINGER]

button, set the desired [VOICE] level, and…

(2) …press the [SMALL] button (it must light).

(3) Sing a few notes and listen to the harmonies

produced.

(4) If the harmonies are too soft, turn the

[HARMONY] knob (right) towards the right

(towards “MAX”).

(5) To try out different harmonizations, press

and hold the [SMALL] button.

The display changes to:

(6) Press the [Male], [Female] or [Mix] field to

change the “GENDER” (voice type) of the har-

monies produced.

[Mix] adds both a male and a female voice.

This also changes the available preset options in

the center of the display. If, on the above page,

you press [Mix] for example, the display changes

to:

(7) Press one of the preset fields ([Walkin’Vox],

for example) to select a different harmony

type.

(8) Now press the [ENSEMBLE] button and sing

again.

This sounds more like a choir, don’t you agree?

(9) Press and hold the [ENSEMBLE] button.

The display changes to:

You already know what the [Male], [Female], and

[Mix] fields are for. The 10 preset fields in the

middle allow you to select different “voicings”

and voice characters for your choir.

(10) To sing again without automatic harmonies,

press the [SMALL] or [ENSEMBLE] button again

(so that neither of them lights).

Note: Obviously, you do not have to use a song as back-

ing: you can also play the accompaniment yourself. See

page 30 and below.

Owner’s Manual

23

Who specifies the harmonies?

Now that you know what the Vocal Harmonist does, let us briefly look at how it does that.

You may have noticed the [Harmony¥Assign]

field in the lower left corner of the above dis-

play pages.

Its current (default) setting is “Auto”. This

means that, during song playback, the note

information contained in the song data will be

used for specifying the pitches of the harmony

notes (“Auto Harmony”).

Note: If the song you are playing back contains a “Har-

mony track”, the harmonies will be based on those

notes. In all other cases, the harmonies are generated in

realtime.

If you stop song playback and play chords on

the external keyboard, the note information

thus generated is used for the harmony pitches.

Use the [VALUE] dial to select another setting.

The possibilities are:

Not convinced so far?

Just in case you are a little bit disappointed by the Vocal Harmonist function, here are some tips (and a bonus):

●

Use it with song backing

The Harmonist sounds most convincing when

used during song playback. It was fine-tuned to

blend in with Standard MIDI File playback, and

that’s when it sounds most “real”. Try it out, it

works!

●

Check the following (Gender Voice Input)

(1) Press and hold the [SINGER] button.

The display changes to:

(2) Press the [Male] field if you’re a man, or the

[Female] field if you’re a woman.

This is an important clue for the Vocal Harmon-

ist. After selecting the correct setting, you may

find that the harmonies sound better.

And just in case, you wanted to sound like a

somewhat worn-out opera singer…

(3) Press the [Vibrato] field (indicator icon must

“light”).

Sing a few notes and note the vibrato. If the

effect is not strong enough…

(4) Press the [Edit] field.

(5) Use the [PREV] and [NEXT] buttons to select

the parameter you wish to edit, and set the

desired value with the [VALUE] dial.

Parameter fields can also be selected by press-

ing them.

The [Vibrato] indicator icon must be blue for the

effect to be noticeable.

Here’s what the parameters mean:

Rate: Sets the speed of the vibrato effect.

Depth: Allows you to set the vibrato intensity.

Vibrato is an effect that changes (“modulates”)

the pitch. The higher the Depth value, the more

outspoken these periodic pitch changes will be.

Rise Time: Allows you to set a swell for the

vibrato effect. This parameter specifies how

long it takes before the Depth value is reached

– once the Delay Time is up.

Delay Time: Allows you to set a delay between

the moment you start singing and the moment

the vibrato effect kicks in.

(6) Press [EXIT] to leave this page (or

[Back¥to¥Singer] to try out the other “Gender”

settings).

MIDI IN Only notes played on the external key-

board will be used for specifying har-

mony pitches.

MIDI IN

Left

Only MIDI notes played to the left of the

split point (page 31) will be used for

specifying harmony pitches.

MIDI IN

Right

Only MIDI notes played to the right of

the split point (page 31) will be used for

specifying harmony pitches.

Song The note information contained in the

song you are playing back is used.

Touring your DisCover 5M

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Voice-FX

Ever wondered what your voice would sound like if you were a woman (for men), man (for women), robot or

something else…? You’re about to find out:

(1) Press the

[VOICE-FX]

button.

(2) Sing into the microphone and listen to your-

self. (You may have to switch off the

[SMALL]

or

[ENSEMBLE]

button if it lights to hear how

this function works.)

(3) Press and hold the

[VOICE-FX]

button. The dis-

play now looks as follows:

(4) Press one of the twelve preset fields in the

center of the display to try out other possibil-

ities.

(5) For added “strangeness” (or realism), you can

press the

[Vibrato]

field (left).

(6) If you feel the general idea is OK, but would

like to fine-tune the effect, press the

[Edit]

field at the bottom edge of the display.

See page 57 for the Edit and Equalizer parame-

ters.

Note:

To keep your settings, you must write them to a

User Program.

Note:

You can add the

[SMALL]

or

[ENSEMBLE]

harmo-

nies to this effect.

(7) Press the

[EXIT]

button to return to the main

page.

Auto Pitch Correct function

Here’s another interesting effect that can either be used as gimmick or to ensure that even the flattest of rendi-

tions suddenly sounds in tune. Of course, the voice will sound somewhat “artificial”, because the emphasis is on

tuning here. However, even if you just speak the words of a song, it will be sung just the same.

(1) Press the

[AUTO¥PITCH]

button.

(2) Start song playback and say something into

the microphone (don’t sing).

Sounds like an interesting effect, doesn’t it?

(3) Press and hold the

[AUTO¥PITCH]

button.

The display changes to:

Let us begin with the most important parame-

ter: the notes that will be used by the Auto

Pitch function. That is what you specify via the

Auto Pitch Assign fields.

(4) Set the

Track

value to select a song part.

The “4” setting usually corresponds to the mel-

ody part, and is thus the most likely candidate,

but feel free to select “1”~”3” or “5”~”16” to use

another part as melody.

If you want to play the melody yourself, press

the

[Left]

or

[Right]

field (or both) and play the

desired notes on the external keyboard, while

you speak (or sing) into the microphone.

Note:

Selecting “Left” and/or “Right” will set the Track

parameter to “Off”.

(5) If necessary, press

[PREV]

or

[NEXT]

to select

the MIDI IN

Split Point

parameter and set the

desired note with the

[VALUE]

dial (“C3 48”~

”C6 84”).

This value specifies where the

[Left]

section ends

(or where the

[Right]

section starts).

The default MIDI channel for the Vocal Har-

monist part is “4” (the same as for the Upper

part). Be sure to set that number as Transmit (or

TX) channel on your MIDI controller.

Owner’s Manual

25

By switching on only [Left] or [Right] and select-

ing the appropriate split point you can thus

restrict the range of note numbers used for

controlling the Vocal Harmonist.

Use the Octave parameter to shift the pitch of

the Auto Pitch notes up to 2 octaves up or

down.

(6) Press the [Vibrato] field to add some “wobble”

to the Auto Pitch sound.

This vibrato effect is not linked to the Voice-FX

vibrato, and can thus be set separately (see

below).

(7) For more refined control over the Auto Pitch

voice, press the [Edit] field:

Though they are not linked to their namesakes

on the Voice-FX Edit page, most parameters on

this page will look familiar. Therefore, please

see above for the explanations of Gender and

Vibrato Rate, Depth, Rise Time, and Delay

Time.

(8) Use the [PREV] and [NEXT] buttons to select

the parameter you wish to edit, and set the

desired value with the [VALUE] dial.

Parameter fields can also be selected by press-

ing them.

(9) Press the [Portamento] field to switch on this

effect.

“Portamento” means that the pitch doesn’t

change in clearly defined steps: it produces

glides from one note to the next.

Use the Portamento Time parameter to specify

the speed at which those glides are carried out

(0~127). The higher the value, the slower the

transitions.

Note: To keep your settings, you must write them to a

User Program.

(10) Press [EXIT] to leave this page (or

[Back¥to¥A-Pitch] to modify other Auto Pitch

settings).

Vocoder

A Vocoder is an effect that combines spoken words with sounds, thus creating the impression that the instru-

ment that produces the sounds can talk. As this relies on complex filtering effects, the character of the sound

used as “carrier” can change dramatically.

(1) Press the [VOCODER] button (it must light).

This switches off the [SMALL] or [ENSEMBLE]

button if it was on, because the Vocoder cannot

be used simultaneously with the Harmonist

function proper.

(2) Stop song playback if it is running.

The Vocoder can also use a song part, but for

this demonstration, we’ll use the external key-

board, because doing so will make you under-

stand how the Vocoder works.

(3) Connect the MIDI controller’s MIDI OUT

socket to the DisCover 5M’s MIDI IN socket.

(4) Set the external keyboard’s MIDI transmit

(TX) channel to “4”.

(5) Play a chord on the external keyboard, hold

those notes, and talk into the microphone.

[Portamento Time= 0] “Rough” pitch changes in semitone

steps (normal)

[Portamento Time= 1~127] Pitch glides from one

note to the next

MIDI OUT

MIDI IN

Touring your DisCover 5M

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For obvious reasons, the Vocoder only works if

you (a) talk or sing, and (b) if there is a “musical

sound” that can be processed.

Play various chords and listen to how that

affects the signal generated by the Vocoder.

Note: The Vocoder can produce four voices at once.

Playing more than four notes simultaneously is thus

unnecessary.

Note: The Vocoder can be used alongside [SINGER],

[VOICE–FX] or [AUTO¥PITCH].

Again, there are several parameters for custom-

izing the Vocoder’s behavior:

(6) Press and hold the [VOCODER] button.

The display changes to:

Gender: Allows you to change the timbre of

the effect so as to create a masculine, feminine,

or mixed character. The Gender choice deter-

mines which 8 preset settings are available.

There are thus 24 Vocoder presets (8 for “Male”,

8 for “Female”, and 8 for “Mix”).

The 8 fields in the middle (e.g. [Opera],

[My¥Voice], etc.) specify the voice character.

These presets are based on the parameters you

can change on the Edit Part 1~4 page (which

you don’t need if you are happy with one of the

presets).

(7) Set the desired “Track” value with the [VALUE]

dial.

The Vocoder Assign section’s current (default)

setting is “Auto”. This means that song files

indicated as “With MIDI Harmony for Your

Vocal Harmony Processor” (with harmony note

information on track 5) automatically switch on

the Vocoder. If you like, you can still add more

chord information by playing on the external

keyboard (use MIDI channel “4”). In Small or

Ensemble mode, the pitch of your singing also

influences the voicing of the harmony notes.

This is not the case when you use the Vocoder.

If you stop song playback and then play a chord

on the external keyboard, the note information

thus generated is used.

Set the Track value to select a song part (“1”~

”16”). As the melody is usually monophonic (1

note at a time), “4” may not be the best possible

setting. Try to select a track with several notes.

If you want to play the melody yourself, press

the [Left] or [Right] field (or both) and play the

desired notes, while you speak (or sing) into the

microphone. See page 24 for details about the

MIDI IN Split Point parameter.

Note: See page 59 for the [Edit] parameters.

Note: To keep your settings, you must write them to a

User Program.

(8) Press [EXIT] or [Back¥to¥Vocoder] to leave this

page.

Talk

The Talk function is meant for announcements between songs: it switches off any other Vocal Harmonist effect

(Voice-FX, Auto Pitch, Singer, Vocoder, Small/Ensemble) that may be on. Furthermore, it mutes the Vocal Har-

monist’s effects processors (Reverb, Chorus, Delay, etc.) – or adds a pinch of Reverb and/or Delay if you like.

That way, your voice has its normal sound when you

wish or need to address your audience. And here

too, the professionalism of your DisCover 5M shows,

because the Talk function can be set in such a way

that the music (song) is turned softer, but not

muted altogether.

(1) Press the [TALK] button and speak into the

microphone.

All Vocal Harmonist transformations are now

muted. This includes the [VOCODER], [SMALL],

and [ENSEMBLE] buttons.

(2) After your announcement, press the [TALK]

button again (to return to the previous

“singer” settings) and sing to the next song.

Here’s what you need to do to change the level

of the background music, and the amount of

Reverb and/or Delay that is added to your

speaking voice.

Note: See page 49 for an in-depth discussion of the

effects settings.

(3) Press the [MIXER/EFFECTS] button.

Owner’s Manual

27

The display changes to:

(4) Press the [Vocal¥Effect] field.

Note: Press the [Vocal¥Harmonist] field to jump to a

page where you can select different presets, etc. (see

p. 22).

(5) Use the [PREV] and [NEXT] buttons to select

the Music Mute field and set the desired

value with the [VALUE] dial.

The smaller the value, the softer the song’s and

Realtime parts’ volume will be. Select “0” if you

do not want the music to be any softer than it

already is.

The Reverb Send and Delay Send fields allow

you to add some Reverb and/or Delay to your

voice. While some Reverb (values between “10”

and “40”, for example) could be useful, Delay

should probably only be used as a “effect”,

because it tends to blur your announcements.

Automatic transposition (Singer Key)

Here’s yet another revolutionary function of your DisCover 5M: based on information you select or input, it can

change the key of all songs you play back in realtime, thus allowing you (or a guest singer) to sing all songs in a

comfortable range. This function is called “Singer Key”.

(1) For the sake of clarity, first select a song (see

p. 15) and press [®÷ª] to start playback.

Pay attention to the song’s key.

(2) Press [®÷ª] again to stop playback, and [|√] to

return to the beginning.

(3) Press the [SINGER¥KEY] button to switch on

this function.

The display changes to:

This page contains three presets: [ORIGINAL]

means that the songs are not transposed, while

[MALE] and [FEMALE] adapt the song’s key to

the “typical” range of a male or female voice.

(4) Press the [MALE] or [FEMALE] field (depending

on whether you’re a man or a woman).

(5) Press the [®÷ª] button to start playback.

The song may now be playing in a different key.

If it is not, the melody falls within the “typical”

range you have just selected.

Note: This automatic transposition only works if track/

MIDI channel “4” of the songs you play back contains

the melody part.

(6) Press [®÷ª] again to stop playback, and [|√] to

return to the beginning.

That may still have been too high or too low for

comfort… So here comes the best part:

(7) Press one of the USER PRESET fields, and then

[Edit].

Touring your DisCover 5M

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The display changes to:

Note: The [Edit] field only appears after pressing one of

the USER PRESET fields. The latter are four memories

where you can store your own range settings.

(8) Press the [Highest¥Note] field (if it is not

already selected).

(9) Sing the highest note you can muster effort-

lessly (you can sing it several times).

If you connected a microphone, a [CAPTURE]

field appears. Press this field to confirm the

note you want the DisCover 5M to recognize.

The DisCover 5M recognizes the pitch and dis-

plays the name of the corresponding note.

(If you have no microphone handy, you can also

use the [VALUE] dial to set the desired note.)

(10) Press the [Lowest¥Note] field and repeat step

(9), taking care to sing your lowest possible

note.

(11) Press [Customize] to store these settings if you

wish to use them at a later stage.

The display briefly confirms that your settings

have been stored:

(12) Press the [Back¥to¥SingerK] field to return to

the page of the same name.

(13) Press the [Rename] field to assign a name to

your settings.

(14) Use the [ø] and [˚] fields to select the position

for which you wish to enter a new character.

(15) Use the alphanumeric keypad in the right

corner to enter the desired characters.

This keypad works exactly like the keypad of a

cellphone: you may have to press an alphanu-

meric field several times to select the desired

character or number.

• The [A/a] field allows you to switch between

uppercase and lowercase characters.

• The [Delete] field allows you to delete the

inverted character.

• Press [Space] to insert a blank (or the number

“0”).

• If you forgot to insert a character, use [ø] or [˚]

to select the position where the missing char-

acter should be inserted. Then press [Insert], fol-

lowed by the character you wish to insert.

(16) If you’re happy with the name for your

Singer Key settings, press [EXECUTE].

The display briefly confirms that your name has

been stored:

(17) Press the [®÷ª] button to start playback.

The song may now be playing in a different key.

If it is not, the melody falls within the range

you set.

Note: At first, the Singer Key function only works with

the songs on the supplied SmartMedia card. Other

songs you copied to the SmartMedia card need to be

selected, played back for a few measures, and then

saved to card again (even without any changes). Only

then will the Highest and Lowest notes be recognized

the way they should. See page 103 for how to save

songs.

®

Entering names

Owner’s Manual

29

Displaying Lyrics and chord information

Your DisCover 5M also allows you to view the lyrics of the songs (if available) in the display.

The Lyrics function was provided to allow you to

read the words of the songs being played back in a

karaoke fashion: the words to sing are highlighted

at the right time. Note that this function is only

available for Standard MIDI Files that contain Lyrics

data. Ask your dealer for details.

Apart from the Lyrics, the DisCover 5M also displays

the chords, which may come in handy for a guitarist

or bassist with whom you are playing.

The chord information is usually not contained in a

song as such, but that’s no problem: the

DisCover 5M can “calculate” it in realtime and even

display it a little ahead of the “changes”.

(1) Select a song (page 15).

(2) Press the [LYRICS&CHORD] button.

(3) Start song playback.

The display changes to:

The chord information appears at the bottom

of the screen.

Note: The chord information is calculated in real-time

and may not always be accurate. Also, with chords

where the third has been omitted, no information will

be displayed (because it is impossible to tell whether

those are minor or major chords).

Note: You can also add Lyrics data to songs that do not

yet contain them. See page 91 for details.

Your DisCover 5M also provides a VIDEO

OUTPUT socket you can connect to the video

input of a TV screen or monitor.

That monitor (or screen) always displays the

Lyrics (if available) and chords, even if you –or

the DisCover 5M– select(s) other display pages.

(1) Connect the VIDEO OUTPUT socket to the

video input of the TV set or monitor.

(2) Switch on your TV set or monitor and start

playback of a song with Lyrics.

If the lyrics and chords do not appear correctly

on the external screen, proceed as follows:

(3) Press the [MENU] button.

The display changes to:

(4) Press the [VIDEO¥LYRICS] field.

®

Using an external monitor

Touring your DisCover 5M

30

r

(5) Press the [PAL] or [NTSC] field to select the

desired setting (or the one that works).

Note: If you work with a TV set, do not forget to select

the correct channel (“AV”, or something to that effect,

see the manual that came with your set).

(6) Press the [EXIT] button to return to the main

page.

Using the Realtime parts

Your DisCover 5M provides three “parts” that allow you to play different sounds from an external keyboard. These

are called “Realtime parts”. They are available during song playback and while playback is stopped.

Playing with the Upper and/or Lower part

The three Realtime parts need to be controlled via

MIDI. They behave exactly like the parts (or chan-

nels) of a multitimbral sound module. This means

that the DisCover 5M is in fact three units in one:

• a Vocal Harmonist

• a powerful Standard MIDI File player

• a multitimbral sound module

To take advantage of the DisCover 5M’s Realtime

parts, you need to ensure that your MIDI controller

(keyboard, MIDI accordion, sequencer, etc.) trans-

mits on the correct MIDI channel.

The default MIDI channel assignments are as fol-

lows:

(*) The Vocal Harmonist’s reception range can be

restricted. You’ll find an example of this on page 24.

You can change these MIDI channel assignments. See

“Channel” (p. 96).

Note that the Vocal Harmonist part does not sound

directly: the note messages received by this “part”

are used for harmony voicings and controlling the

Auto Pitch, Vocoder and other related vocal effects.

These are discussed on the previous pages. Don’t

forget to sing while “feeding” the Vocal Harmonist

with MIDI notes.

(1) Connect the MIDI controller’s MIDI OUT

socket to the DisCover 5M’s MIDI IN socket.

Working with a keyboard like the Roland A-37,

A-33 or RD-170 has the following advantages:

• you can transmit on two MIDI channels simul-

taneously, either in the same range (“Layer”) or

via separate zones (“Split”).

• these instruments have memories that allow

you to quickly change the MIDI channels (and

many other MIDI parameters) by simply select-

ing another memory.

Note: By using an optional MIDI merger (or MIDI

patcher with Merge function) you could control the

Realtime parts as follows: Upper and Lower from a

MIDI keyboard or accordion, while a drummer with

MIDI-compatible pads can control the M.Drums part. If

you work with a sequencer, all three Realtime parts can

be controlled simultaneously.

(2) Set the MIDI controller’s transmit (TX) chan-

nel to “4” (Upper part), “11” (Lower part) and/

or “16” (M.Drums part).

(3) Play a few notes on the external MIDI con-

troller.

Depending on the MIDI channel the controller

transmits on, you now hear the Upper, Lower

and/or M.Drums part.

You could also press the [MULTI-FX] button to

add an appropriate effect to the Upper part.

See page 47 for details.

Note: The Multi-FX is only available for the Upper part.

(4) Use the [MASTER] knob to set the

DisCover 5M’s output volume.

(5) If you are playing to a song, use the [SONG]

knob to set the song volume.

Turn it towards “MAX” if your playing is too

loud with respect to the other parts.

Note: See page 44 for how to set the balance between

the Realtime parts.

Upper part MIDI channel 4

Lower part MIDI channel 11

M.Drums part MIDI channel 16

Vocal Harmonist* MIDI channel 4

MIDI OUT

MIDI IN