sequential Sequential Prophet-6 Prophet-6-Operation-Manual-2.1

®
Operation Manual
Operation Manual
Version 2.1
Feb, 2021
Sequential LLC
1527 Stockton Street, 3rd Floor
USA
©2019 Sequential
www.sequential.com
Tested to Comply With FCC Standards FOR HOME OR OFFICE USE
This device complies with Part 15 of the FCC Rules. Operation is subject to the following two conditions: (1) This device may not cause harmful inter­ference and (2) this device must accept any interference received, including interference that may cause undesired operation.
This Class B digital apparatus meets all requirements of the Canadian Interference-Causing Equipment Regulations.
Cet appareil numerique de la classe B respecte toutes les exigences du Reglement sur le materiel brouilleur du Canada.
For pluggable equipment, the socket-outlet shall be installed near the equipment and shall be easily accessible.
For Technical Support, email: support@sequential.com
CALIFORNIA PROP 65 WARNING
This product may expose you to chemicals including BPA, which is known to the State of California to cause cancer and birth defects or other reproductive harm. Though indepen-dent laboratory testing has certified that our products are several orders of magnitude below safe limits, it is our responsibility to alert you to this fact and direct you to: https://www.p65warnings.ca.gov for more
information.
Table of Contents
A Few Words of Thanks ...............................ix
Getting Started ........................................1
Sound Banks ...........................................2
Selecting Programs ......................................2
Stepping Through Presets Using the Inc/Dec Buttons ............3
Editing Programs ........................................3
How to Check a Parameter Setting in a Preset ................. 4
Comparing an Edited Program to its Original State ..............4
Creating a Program from Scratch ............................ 5
Live Panel Mode ......................................... 5
Saving a Program ........................................ 6
Canceling Save ..........................................7
Using Poly Chain ........................................8
Moving to the Next Level ..................................9
Connections .........................................10
Global Settings ......................................12
Globals - Top Row ...................................... 13
Globals - Bottom Row .................................... 15
Oscillators ..........................................17
Oscillator Parameters ....................................18
Slop ................................................20
Mixer ...............................................21
Filters ..............................................22
Filter Envelope .......................................24
Changing the Filter Envelope’s Response Curve ...............25
Amplier Envelope ...................................26
Effects. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .28
Main Parameters .......................................31
Low Frequency Oscillators. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .34
Poly Mod ............................................36
Poly Mod Parameters ....................................37
Arpeggiator .........................................38
Arpeggiator Beat Sync ...................................39
Using the Arpeggiator in a Poly-Chained System ..............39
Arpeggiator Parameters ..................................40
Sequencer ..........................................41
Programming the Sequencer ..............................42
Stepping Backward to Correct Notes When Recording a Sequence .........44
MIDI Note Output from the Arpeggiator and Sequencer ..........44
Using the Sequencer in a Poly-Chained System ............... 45
Sequencer Parameters ................................... 46
Distortion ...........................................48
Hold ................................................49
Glide ...............................................49
Unison .............................................50
Using Chord Memory ....................................51
Using Unison in a Poly-Chained System ..................... 53
Write ...............................................53
Canceling Save .........................................54
Comparing Before You Save ..............................55
Globals .............................................55
Preset ..............................................56
Pitch and Mod Wheels ................................57
Pitch Wheel ............................................ 57
Modulation Wheel ....................................... 58
Misc Parameters .....................................58
Aftertouch ..........................................59
Exporting Programs and Banks .........................62
Calibrating the Prophet-6 ..............................63
How and When to Calibrate the Oscillators and Filters .......... 63
Calibrating the Pitch and Mod Wheels .......................64
Resetting the Global Parameters ...........................64
Using USB ..........................................65
Performing OS Updates in a Poly-Chained System ........66
Appendix A: Alternative Tunings ........................68
Appendix C: MIDI Implementation .......................72
MIDI Messages ......................................... 73
NRPN Messages ....................................... 77
Control NRPN Data .....................................81
Sysex Messages ........................................81
Packed Data Format ....................................84
Appendix D: Support ..................................84
Troubleshooting ........................................ 84
Recovering from a Failed OS Udate ......................... 86
Contacting Technical Support .............................. 87
Warranty Repair ........................................87
Credits and Acknowledgements
SOUND DESIGN
Joseph Akins
John Bowen
Richard Devine
Peter Dyer
Tim Koon
THE SEQUENTIAL CREW
Art Arellano, Fabien Cesari, Bob Coover, Carson Day, Chris Hector, Tony Karavidas, Mark Kono, Justin Labrecque, Andy Lambert, Michelle Marshall, Andrew McGowan, Joanne McGowan,
Julio Ortiz, Campbell Smith, Tracy Wadley, and Mark Wilcox.
Special thanks to Ikutaro Kakehashi and Yamaha Corporation. Thanks also to Robert Rich
for the alternative tunings content. And nally, a shout out to OMOM (Old Men Of MIDI)
for their support, camaraderie, and sound design.
Kurt Kurasaki
Kevin Lamb
Jason Lindner
Cord Mueller
Drew Neumann
Robert Rich
Matia Simovich
James Terris
Mitch Thomas
Taiho Yamada

A Few Words of Thanks

Thank you for purchasing the Prophet-6. We take a lot of pleasure in creating all of our instruments but bringing the Prophet-6 to life was particularly satisfying. In many ways it brings my 40-plus years of designing synthesizers full circle. I’ll tell you why.
In 2014, two events occurred that led to the creation of the Prophet-6. The rst was a fairly common one around our ofce — our usual informal discussion
about what would be interesting to build next. (We don’t do marketing surveys around here.) We all agreed that an analog poly synth with true voltage-controlled
oscillators, lters, and ampliers would not only be exciting to design, but would
also almost certainly sound great. So we decided to do it.
Event two transpired when, unknown to me, my old friend and collaborator in the creation of MIDI, Ikutaro Kakehashi, founder of Roland, asked Yamaha Corporation to consider returning ownership of my original company brand, Sequential Circuits, to me. (Yamaha had purchased Sequential’s assets when we closed shop back in
1987.) Yamaha generously agreed and suddenly Sequential was back — almost. All
we needed was an awesome new product to bear the name.
Well, you know how the story ends: with the very synth you’ve just purchased. We
gured that building the best-sounding analog poly synth possible would be a tting
tribute to Sequential’s most famous instrument, the Prophet-5, the poly synth that started it all.
The Sequential Prophet-6 takes the best qualities of the Prophet-5 and adds some nice touches that the original never had, such as stereo outputs, velocity and aftertouch
sensitivity, dual digital effects, a high-pass lter, a polyphonic step sequencer, an
arpeggiator, and of course, MIDI. The result is a synth with vintage analog tone and the reliability of a state-of-the-art, modern instrument.
I hope you enjoy the Prophet-6 as much as we enjoyed designing it.
Cheers,

Getting Started

The Prophet-6 is a six-voice, polyphonic analog synthesizer with
voltage-controlled oscillators, lters, and ampliers. It was designed to
provide all of the warmth and presence of a vintage-era synth with the added convenience and stability of a state-of-the-art, modern instrument.
The Prophet-6 is rst and foremost a performance instrument. All of its
sound-shaping controls are immediately accessible on its front panel, packing a tremendous amount of power and versatility into a compact, easy-to-use format.
You can nd in-depth information about each of the Prophet-6’s parame­ters in later sections of this manual. But don’t hesitate to dive right in and start turning knobs and pressing buttons before you begin reading. You can always get back to where you started, even if you have no idea what you’re doing. So start exploring and keep your ears and mind open!
POLY MOD ARPEGGIATOR SEQUENCERCLOCK
MASTER VOL
DISTORT
AMOUNT
FREQUENCY
LFO SYNC
DOWN UP
TRANSPOSE
PITCH MOD
FREQ 1 SHAPE 1 PW 1 FILTER
OSC 2 PRGM VOLFILTER ENV
EFFECTS
A B
ON/OFF EFFECT SYNC
TYPE
LOW FREQUENCY OSCILLATOR
FREQ 1
SHAPE
INITIAL AMT
0
Prophet-6 front panel
TAP TEMPO
CLOCK
MIX 1
FREQ 2 PW 1+2 AMP FILTER
GLIDE RATE
BPM
2
SYNC
FREQUENCY
FREQUENCY FINE SHAPE PULSE WIDTH
BANK
OSCILLATOR 1
ON/OFF
OCTAVESVALUE MODE
MIXER
SLOP
AMOUNT
SHAPE PULSE WIDTH
OSCILLATOR 2
PROGRAM
IncrementDecrement
SELECT
OSC 1 OSC 2
LOW FREQ
KEYBOARD
SUB OCTAVE NOISE
Transpose Master Tune MIDI Channel MIDI Clock Clock Port Param Xmit Param Rcv MIDI Control MIDI SysEx MIDI Out
Local Ctrl Seq Jack Pot Mode Sustain +/- Alt Tuning Vel Response AT Response Stereo/Mono Pgm Dump
TENS
USBMIDI InMIDI OutMIDI ThruPhones Left Right LP Filter Volume Sustain Sequencer AC In On/Off
RECORD
PLAY
CUTOFF ENV AMOUNTRESONANCE
CUTOFF ENV AMOUNTRESONANCE
AFTERTOUCH
FREQ 1 FREQ 2 LFO AMT AMP FILTER
AMOUNT
HIGH-PASS FILTER
VELOCITY
LOW-PASS FILTER
VELOCITY KEYBOARD
Half Full
KEYBOARD
Half Full
ENV AMOUNT
WRITE PRESET10 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9HOLD GLIDE UNISON BANKSELECT
PAN SPREAD
FILTER ENVELOPE
ATTACK DECAY SUSTAIN RELEASE
AMPLIFIER ENVELOPE
VELOCITY
ATTACK DECAY SUSTAIN RELEASE
GLOBALS
MISC PARAMETERS
P WHL RANGEKEY MODE
Prophet-6 Operation Manual
Getting Started
1

Sound Banks

6 7 8 9
Vel Response AT Response Stereo/Mono Pgm Dump
Param Xmit Param Rcv MIDI Control MIDI SysEx MIDI Out
The Prophet-6 contains a total of 1000 programs. 500 are permanent and 500 can be overwritten. Banks 0-4 are User Banks that can be overwrit­ten. Banks 5-9 are Factory Banks that are permanent. You can edit the programs of either bank, but you can only save them to Banks 0-4. As shipped from the factory, presets 000-499 are identical to 500-999.
BANK
BANKSELECT
PROGRAM
Program bank, tens, and number selectors
IncrementDecrement
TENS
SELECT
Transpose Master Tune MIDI Channel MIDI Clock Clock Port
Local Ctrl Seq Jack Pot Mode Sustain +/- Alt Tuning
10 2 3 4 5

Selecting Programs

Use the bank, tens, and program selector buttons to select and recall programs.
To choose a program:
1. Hold down the bank button then press a program selector button (0-9) to specify the “hundreds” bank of the program.
2. Hold down the tens button then press a program selector button (0-9) to specify the “tens” digit of the program.
3. Press a program selector button (0-9) to specify the “ones” digit of the program.
To choose program 123, for example:
1. Hold bank and press 1. Then release the bank button.
2. Hold tens and press 2. Then release the tens button.
3. Press program selector button 3.
It’s not always necessary to enter all 3 digits of a program number to recall it.
Getting Started
2
Sequential
For example:
• If the current program is 100 and you want to recall program 101, simply press “1.”
• If the current program is 100 and you want to recall program 110, hold down the tens button and press “1.”
• If the current program is 100 and you want to recall program 115, hold down the tens button and press “1.” Then release the tens button and press “5.”
Pressing the globals button three times in a row saves the current program as
the default program that appears when you turn on the Prophet-6.

Stepping Through Presets Using the Inc/Dec Buttons

Instead of having to manually enter the Banks, Tens, and Ones digits to recall a preset, you can also use the Increment/Decrement buttons to step through programs sequentially, one by one.
To do this:
1. Hold bank select/dec and press tens select/inc to increment by a single program.
2. Hold tens select/inc and press bank select/dec to decrement by a single program.

Editing Programs

Because all of the sound-shaping controls of the Prophet-6 appear on its front panel, editing an existing program is simple: just turn a knob and listen to its effect. Keep turning knobs and pressing buttons and if you like what you’ve created, save the program. (See “Saving a Program” on page 6.)
The rotary controls on the front panel are a mixture of “endless” rotary encoders and potentiometers or “pots.” You can choose between three different modes that determine how the synth reacts when parameters are edited with a pot. For details, see “Pot Mode” on page 13.
Prophet-6 Operation Manual
Getting Started
3

How to Check a Parameter Setting in a Preset

When you’re editing a preset, the Prophet-6 has a convenient way of indicat­ing the programmed (saved) value for any knob parameter: Whenever you turn a knob and reach the saved value of a given parameter, an LED dot in the main Prophet-6 display will illuminate.
This dot illuminates
BANK PROGRAM
The dot illuminates when a knob position matches a preset’s saved parameter value

Comparing an Edited Program to its Original State

When editing a program, it’s often useful to compare its edited state to its original state to evaluate your edits. Alternatively, before saving a program to a new location you may want to check the program in the target location before you overwrite it.
To compare an edited program to a saved version:
1. Edit a program.
2. Press the write button. It starts ashing.
3. Press the global button. Both LEDs on the button light up, indicating
compare mode.
4. Play the keyboard to hear the saved version of the sound.
5. To disable the compare function and return to the edited sound, turn off the global button. Programs can’t be written while in compare mode.
6. If you want to save the edited sound, the write button is still ash­ing and ready to save, so enter a location with the program selector buttons. The sound is saved.
7. Alternatively, if you want to cancel saving and continue editing, press the write button. It stops ashing and saving is canceled.
Getting Started
4
Sequential

Creating a Program from Scratch

PRESET
An existing program can be very useful as a jumping off point for new sounds. But it’s also useful (and educational) to create a new sound from scratch. The Prophet-6 makes this easy by providing a “Basic Preset” that you can quickly recall at any time. This preset is very simple, with a single oscillator as its basis.
To recall the Basic Preset:
1. Hold down the preset button.
2. Press the write button.

Live Panel Mode

The Prophet-6 also features a “live panel” mode in which its sound switches to the current settings of its knobs and switches. In other words, the current preset is ignored and what you see on the front panel is what you
hear. This is a great mode for learning, experimentation, and instant gratication.
To enter live panel mode:
• Press the preset button to toggle it off. Note that you can’t change programs or banks with Preset off.
To return to preset mode:
• Press the preset button again to toggle it on.
Toggling off the preset button enables “live panel” mode
Prophet-6 Operation Manual
Getting Started
5

Saving a Program

If you’ve created a sound that you like, you’ll probably want to save it. Saving a program overwrites a previously saved program. Sound design­ers often save many incremental versions of a program as they continue
to rene it. These intermediate versions often make good jumping off
points for new sounds.
To save a program to the same preset location:
1. Press the write button. Its LED begins blinking.
2. Press a program selector button (0-9) to specify the “ones” digit of the program.
3. The write button LED stops blinking and the program is saved.
Be careful when write is enabled. You can change banks and tens without executing write, but once you press a program selector button (0-9) for the “ones” digit, the write command is executed and the program at that location is overwritten.
To save a program to a different bank location:
1. Press the write button. Its LED begins blinking.
2. Hold down the bank button then press a program selector button to specify the “hundreds” bank of the program. You can only save to Banks 0-4.
3. Hold down the tens button then press a program selector button (0-9) to specify the “tens” digit of the program.
4. Press a program selector button (0-9) to specify the “ones” digit of the program.
5. The write button LED stops blinking and the program is saved.
Getting Started
6
Sequential

Canceling Save

Sometimes you may want to cancel saving a program before you commit.
To cancel the Save process before you commit:
• If the write button LED is ashing, press it again. The LED stops ash­ing and saving is canceled. You can return to editing if you want.
Comparing Before You Save
Before saving a program to a new location, it’s a good idea to listen to the program in the target location to make sure you really want to overwrite it.
To evaluate a program before you overwrite it:
1. Get ready to save by pressing the write button. It starts ashing.
2. Press the global button. Both LEDs on the button light up, indicating
compare mode.
3. Use the program buttons to navigate to the sound you want to compare and play the keyboard to hear the sound.
4. To disable the compare function and go back to the edited sound, turn off the global button. Programs can’t be written while in compare mode.
5. If you want to save the edited sound, the write button is still ashing and ready to save, so enter a location with the program buttons. The sound is saved.
6. Alternatively, if you want to cancel saving and continue editing, press the write button. It stops ashing and saving is canceled.
Prophet-6 Operation Manual
Getting Started
7

Using Poly Chain

If you have two Prophet-6 synthesizers of any type (modules or keyboards) you can link them together with MIDI to increase the total available polyphony to 12 voices. We call this poly chaining. If you have a Prophet-6 keyboard and a Prophet-6 module, you will most likely use the keyboard as the master and the module as the slave.
To poly chain two Prophet-6 synths:
1. With a MIDI cable, connect the rear-panel midi out of the rst Prophet-6 (the master) to the midi in of the second Prophet-6 (the slave).
2. On the master Prophet-6, press the globals button then press program selector button 9 (midi out).
3. Use the bank/decrement and tens/increment to select ply (poly).
4. Press the globals button twice to exit globals mode.
The two synths are now poly chained. You can now play up to twelve notes simultaneously. Another advantage of this arrangement is that notes with long release times are less likely to be cut off as you play
additional notes.
Getting Started
8
Sequential

Moving to the Next Level

The Prophet-6 is lled with possibilities for sound creation. Although
we realize that you’d rather spend your time exploring its capabilities, we’d like to point you toward a few things that will help you tailor the instrument to your needs.
First, check out the Global Settings section of this manual. Read about Pot Modes and determine which works best for you when you’re editing
sounds. You’ll also nd information about MIDI setup. Read this to more
effectively integrate the Prophet-6 into your MIDI rig. To get the most out of the Prophet-6’s live performance capabilities, read up on using a footswitch or expression pedal.
And nally, be on the lookout for tips and notes scattered throughout this
manual to gain a better working knowledge of the Prophet-6. The better you know your instrument, the more you’ll get out of it. We wish you many hours of musical exploration!
Prophet-6 Operation Manual
Getting Started
9

Connections

5 6 7 8 9
1 2 3 4
1. AC Power ConnectorAccepts a standard, grounded IEC power
cord. Operates over a range of 100 to 240 volts and 50 to 60 Hz.
2. USBFor bidirectional MIDI communication with a computer. The
Prophet-6 is a Class Compliant USB device and does not require addi­tional drivers when used with Mac OS or Windows. See Using USB on page 65 for more information.
3. MIDI In, Out, and ThruStandard 5-pin MIDI DIN connectors.
4. Footswitch-SequenceAccepts a momentary, normally open or
normally closed footswitch to turn the sequencer or arpeggiator on and off. Alternatively, an audio signal connected to this jack can be used to
either control sequencer/arpeggiator playback, or to gate the lter and amplier envelopes while notes are held. See “Seq Jack” on page 15
for more information about choosing the appropriate mode for these behaviors.
5. Footswitch-SustainAccepts a momentary, normally open or
normally closed footswitch to control sustain. See “3. Sustain +/- : Nor, Rev, n-r, r-n (Normally Open, Normally Closed, Sustain Normally Open/Sequencer Normally Closed, Sustain Normally Closed/Sequencer
Normally Open)—The Sustain pedal polarity parameter affects both
the sustain pedal and sequencer jack input ports. There are two types of momentary footswitches, normally open and normally closed. Either type can be used with the Prophet-6. Not sure which type you have? If
the behavior of the footswitch is the opposite of what is expected — that
Connections
10
Sequential
5 6 7 8 9
is, down is off and up is on — changing this setting will correct that.” on
page 16 for more information.
6. Expression Pedal-VolumeAccepts a standard expression pedal
that has a variable resistor on a TRS (tip-ring-sleeve) ¼ inch phone plug. Once connected, you can use the pedal to control volume to add expres­siveness and dynamics to live performance.
7. Expression Pedal-LP FilterAccepts a standard expression pedal
that has a variable resistor on a TRS (tip-ring-sleeve) ¼ inch phone plug. Once connected, you can use the pedal to control the cutoff frequency of
the low-pass lter to add expressiveness to live performance.
Prophet-6 Operation Manual
Connections
11
8. Audio OutputsUnbalanced, ¼ inch audio outputs. The Prophet-6
GLOBALS
10 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9
Vel Response AT Response Stereo/Mono Pgm Dump
Param Xmit Param Rcv MIDI Control MIDI SysEx MIDI Out
sounds great in stereo, but can be switched to mono if needed. See “Mono/Stereo” in Global Settings on page 13.
9. HeadphonesA ¼ inch stereo headphone jack. Headphone volume is
controlled by the master vol knob on the front panel.

Global Settings

Global settings are parameters that affect all programs. These include settings such as Master Tune, MIDI Channel, MIDI Clock, and others. Global parameters are printed above the numeric program selector switches (0 - 9). Use the Globals switch to choose between the two sets. The red LED indicates that the upper row is active. The yellow LED indicates that the lower row is active
The Globals button
Transpose Master Tune MIDI Channel MIDI Clock Clock Port
Local Ctrl Seq Jack Pot Mode Sustain +/- Alt Tuning
Globals 0-4
Param Xmit Param Rcv MIDI Control MIDI SysEx MIDI Out
Vel Response AT Response Stereo/Mono Pgm Dump
5 6 7 8 9
Globals 5-9
Global Settings
12
Sequential
BANK
IncrementDecrement
TENS
BANKSELECT
Use the Bank and Tens buttons to scroll forward and backward, respectively, through parameter settings
To set a Global parameter:
PROGRAM
SELECT
1. Press the globals button. Pressing it once activates the upper set of parameters. Pressing it a second time enables the lower set of param­eters.
2. Press the program selector button (0 - 9) that corresponds to the desired parameter. The parameters are printed above each switch.
3. Use the bank and tens buttons as decrement and increment buttons to step through available settings.
4. Once you’ve chosen the desired setting, press the globals button again to exit.

Globals - Top Row

0. Transpose: -1212Master Transpose control, 0 is centered. Steps
in semitones up to one octave up (+12) or down (-12).
1. Master Tune: -5050Master Fine Tune control; 0 centered. Steps
in cents as much as a quarter-tone up (+50) or down (-50).
2. MIDI Channel: All, 116Selects which MIDI channel to send and
receive data, 1 to 16. all receives on all 16 channels.
3. MIDI Clock: Sets the Prophet-6’s ability to send and receive MIDI
clock messages:
Off: MIDI Clock is neither sent nor received
Out: MIDI Clock is sent, but not received
In: MIDI Clock is received, but not sent
Prophet-6 Operation Manual
Global Settings
13
• Slave Thru (i-0): MIDI Clock is received and passed to MIDI Out
• In, No Start/Stop (n55): Receives MIDI Clock but does not respond to
MIDI Start or Stop commands.
When set to in or slave thru, if no MIDI clock is present at the selected input,
the arpeggiator and sequencer will not function.
4. Clock Port: MID, USBSets the ports, MIDI or USB, by which MIDI
clock signals are received.
5. Param Xmit: Off, CC, NRChanges to the values of front panel
controls are transmitted via MIDI as Continuous Controllers (CC) or Non­registered Parameter Number (NR). Transmission of parameters can also be
turned off. You could, for example, turn the lter cutoff frequence knob on
the Prophet-6 and have it affect the cutoff frequency of another synthesizer. For a list of Prophet-6 CCs and NRPNs, see Appendix D.
NRPNs are the preferred method of parameter transmission, since they cover
the complete range of all parameters, while CCs are limited to a range of 128.
6. Param Rcv: Off, CC, NRSets the method by which parameter changes are
received via MIDI. As with transmission, NRPNs are the preferred method.
7. MIDI Control: Off, OnWhen On, the synth will respond to MIDI
controllers, including Pitch Wheel, Mod Wheel, Pedal, Volume.
8. MIDI Sysex: MID, USBWhen set to MIDI (MID) it will receive
and transmit them using the MIDI ports/cables When set to USB it will receive and transmit them using the USB port/cable. MIDI SysEx messages are used when sending and receiving a variety of data includ­ing, programs, alternative tunings, system updates, and more.
9. MIDI Out: MID, USBSets the port by which MIDI data will be trans-
mitted (MIDI or USB).
Global Settings
14
Sequential

Globals - Bottom Row

0. Local Control: Off, OnWhen on (the default), the keyboard and
front panel controls directly affect the Prophet-6. When off, the controls are transmitted via MIDI but do not directly affect the “local” synth (that is, the Prophet-6). This is primarily useful for avoiding MIDI data loops that can occur with some external sequencers.
1. Seq Jack: NOR, Tri, Gat, T-g (Normal, Trigger, Gate, T-G)—Selects
the mode for signals received on the rear-panel Sequencer jack.
• With normal selected, a footswitch will start sequencer playback.
• With trig selected, an audio signal connected to the sequencer jack will step the sequencer when the sequencer’s play button is on.
• With gate selected, an audio signal connected to the sequencer jack will trigger and gate the envelopes while you hold a note or chord. Additionally, turning on the sequencer or arpeggiator will add
sequencer or arpeggiator playback—but controlled by the Prophet-6’s
clock bpm and value settings and not the audio trigger.
• With t-g (trigger+gate) selected, an audio signal connected to the
sequencer jack will trigger and gate the envelopes while you hold a
note or chord. Additionally, pressing the sequencer’s play button will also add synchronized sequencer playback.
For best results when triggering the sequencer with an audio signal, use a loud
signal with a sharp attack/decay and little or no sustain.
2. Pot Mode:
on the front
Rel, Pas, Jup (Relative, Passthru, Jump)—The rotary controls
panel are a mixture of “endless” rotary encoders and potenti-
ometers or “pots.” The pots are identiable by their lined knobs and the
fact that they have about 300° of travel. There are three pot modes to deter­mine how the synth reacts when the programmable parameters are edited. (Master volume is not programmable, so these modes don’t apply.)
In Relative mode, changes are relative to the stored setting. In Relative mode, the full value range is not available until either the minimum or maximum value and the respective lower or upper limit of the pot’s travel is reached.
For example, the resonance parameter has an internal value range of 0 to 127. Let’s say the physical position of the resonance pot is the equivalent to a
Prophet-6 Operation Manual
Global Settings
15
value of 100. If you switch to a program that has a stored Resonance setting of 63 and turn the pot all the way up, it will only go to 90. To get
to the maximum value of 127, you rst have to turn down until the value is
at the other extreme and the pot is at the limit of its travel (in this case, 0 and fully counter-clockwise, respectively).
In Passthru mode, turning the pot has no effect until after the edited value equals the preset value (that is, until the edited value “passes through” the stored value).
Jump mode uses an absolute value based upon the position of the pot when edited: turn a pot and the value jumps immediately from the stored value to the edited value.
3. Sustain +/- : Nor, Rev, n-r, r-n (Normally Open, Normally Closed, Sustain Normally Open/Sequencer Normally Closed, Sustain Normally
Closed/Sequencer Normally Open)—The Sustain pedal polarity param-
eter affects both the sustain pedal and sequencer jack input ports. There are two types of momentary footswitches, normally open and normally closed. Either type can be used with the Prophet-6. Not sure which type you have? If the behavior of the footswitch is the opposite of what is
expected — that is, down is off and up is on — changing this setting will
correct that.
4. Alt Tuning: Nor, 1…16 (Normal, 1…16)—Selects one of the Prophet-6’s
built-in tunings. Set to normal, the tuning is standard, chromatic tuning. Choosing 1 through 16 selects an alternative, non-chromatic, non-Western scale that can be used to emulate ethnic instruments or in other creative ways.
See “Appendix A: Alternative Tunings” on page 59 for a description of each tuning. Additional tunings can be imported into the Prophet-6 as a SysEx message. For more information, see Appendix A.
5. Vel Response: 0-7 (Curve 0, Curve 1, Curve 2, Curve 3, Curve 4, Curve 5, Curve 6, Curve 7)—Sets one of eight velocity curves to adjust the keyboard’s
velocity response to your playing style.
6. AT Response: 0-3 (Curve 0, Curve 1, Curve 2, Curve 3)—Sets one of
four pressure curves to adjust the keyboard’s aftertouch response to your playing style.
Global Settings
16
Sequential
7. Stereo/Mono: Ste, Mon (Stereo, Mono)—The Prophet-6 defaults to
OSC 1 OSC 2
SUB OC TAVE NOISE
MIXER
stereo operation. When set to Mono, this parameter defeats all pan settings and modulation, effectively making each of the outputs a mono output.
8. Pgm Dump: Prg, Ten, Ban, usr, All (Program, Tens, Bank, User Banks, All)—Transmits the current program, ten programs from the
currently selected bank and tens location, the current bank, all user banks (0-4), or all banks (both user and factory) in SysEx format via the selected MIDI port. (See: “MIDI Sysex.”) Dumped programs will load back into the same bank and program location in memory when received by the Prophet-6 via MIDI.

Oscillators

Oscillators provide the raw building blocks of the Prophet-6’s sound by producing waveforms, each of which has its own inherent sound charac­ter based on its harmonic content. The Prophet-6 has two oscillators, plus a sub oscillator and a noise generator per voice. Level controls for each of these are located in the Mixer section.
Each oscillator is capable of generating triangle, sawtooth, and variable­width pulse waves. These waveshapes are continuously variable and smoothly transition from one shape to the next as you turn the shape knob. This provides a variety of “in-between” waveshapes.
The oscillators on the Prophet-6 are extremely stable. To emulate the random pitch drift and oscillator instability of vintage instruments, use the slop parameter to dial in as little or as much drift as you like.
OSCILLATOR 1
FREQUENCY SHAPE PULSE WIDT H
FREQUENCY FINE SHAPE PULSE WIDT H
Oscillators 1 and 2
Prophet-6 Operation Manual
SYNC
OSCILLATOR 2
LOW FREQ
SLOP
AMOUNT
KEYBOARD
Oscillators
17
Oscillator 1 can be hard-synced to Oscillator 2 for complex, harmoni­cally-rich sounds when modulated.
Oscillator 2 features a fine knob for detuning and thickening sounds, a low freq switch that allows it to function as an LFO for modulation purposes, and a keyboard switch that disables keyboard control over its pitch (useful when used as an LFO, or for drones and other effects).

Oscillator Parameters

Frequency: Sets the base oscillator frequency over a 9-octave range from
16 Hz to 8KHz (when used with the Transpose buttons). Adjustment is in semitones.
The global Master Tune settings affect the pitch of all oscillators. See “Globals -
Top Row” on page 13 for more information.
Fine: Fine tune control with a range of a quartertone up or down. The 12
o’clock position is centered. Steps are in cents (50 cents = 1/2 semitone).
Shape: Triangle, Sawtooth, Pulse—Used to select the waveshape
generated by the oscillator. Waveshapes are continuously variable and smoothly transition from one shape to the next as you turn the shape knob. This provides a variety of “in-between” waveshapes.
Pulse Width: Changes the width of the pulse wave from a square wave
when the pulse width knob is at center position, to a very narrow pulse wave when the pulse width knob is full left or right.
Applying pulse width modulation using poly mod or the low frequency oscillator is a great way to add movement and thickness to a sound, especially when creating pad or string-like sounds.
Oscillators
18
Sequential
Sync: Off, On—Turns Oscillator 1 hard sync on. Sync forces Oscillator
1 (the slave) to restart its cycle every time Oscillator 2 (the master) starts a cycle. This provides a way to create more complex, harmonically rich shapes from simple waveforms—especially when the frequency of Oscil­lator 1 is set to a different interval than Oscillator 2.
Oscillator 1
Oscillator 2
Oscillator 1
synced to
Oscillator 2
Oscillator hard sync
Use Poly Mod to sweep the pitch of Oscillator 1 when it is synced to generate the classic, hard-edged sync sound.
Low Frequency: Off, On—Turns Oscillator 2 into a low-frequency
oscillator, essentially providing another LFO source for modulation using Poly Mod. The frequency, fine, shape, and pulse width controls still apply and will affect the character of any low-frequency modulation applied using Oscillator 2.
Keyboard: Off, On—When off, the Oscillator 2 ignores the keyboard
and note data received via MIDI and plays at its base frequency setting. Oscillator 2 pitch can still be affected by modulation from other sources when in this mode.
Prophet-6 Operation Manual
Oscillators
19

Slop

SLOP
Slop adds randomized detuning to the oscillators to emulate the tuning instability of vintage analog oscillators. This tuning instability is a big part of what made vintage instruments sound characteristically warm and fat.
Because the Prophet-6 oscillators are extremely stable, small amounts of Slop can help impart a very vintage tone to what is otherwise a very stable, modern instrument. Slop amount is adjustable from subtle, barely perceptible amounts to wildly out of tune.
The global Master Tune settings affect the pitch of all oscillators. See “Globals -
Top Row” on page 13 for more information.
AMOUNT
Oscillator Slop
20
Slop
Sequential

Mixer

The Mixer section is where you set the levels of the various sound generators on the Prophet-6. These include Oscillator 1, Oscillator 2, Sub Octave (Oscillator 1 sub oscillator) and the white noise generator. You must turn up at least one of these in order to make sound with the
Prophet-6. (Alternatively, you can use the lter to generate its own sine
wave in self-oscillating mode.)
Rather than limit the Prophet-6’s outputs to keep the instrument from clipping,
we allow you to adjust levels at various points in its signal path. This gives you the option to “overload” things in interesting ways, if you wish to do so. If not, try reducing the levels of the oscillators in the mixer section, the env amount parameter in the Ampli-
er Envelope, or the resonance parameter in either the low-pass or high-pass lter.
MIXER
OSC 1 OSC 2
SUB OC TAVE NOISE
The Mixer
Osc 1: Sets the output level of Oscillator 1.
Osc 2: Sets the output level of Oscillator 2.
Sub Octave: Controls the level of a triangle wave oscillator pitched one
octave below Oscillator 1. Because a triangle wave has few harmonics and is mainly characterized by its fundamental frequency, adding a sub octave to sounds such as bass are a great way to increase their low-register presence.
Noise: Sets the output level of the white noise generator.
Prophet-6 Operation Manual
Mixer
21

Filters

CUTOFF ENV AMOUNTRESONANCE
LOW-PASS FILTER
VELOCIT Y
CUTOFF ENV AMOUNT
RESONANCE
KEYBOARD
HIGH-PASS FILTER
VELOCIT Y KEYBOARD
Half Full
Half Full
Filters take the basic, raw sound of the oscillators and noise generator and subtract frequencies, changing the harmonic content and character of their sound. This change can be varied over time using the Filter Enve­lope to produce more dynamic, animated timbres.
The Prophet-6’s two-lter architecture allows for a wide range of sonic
possibilities. The Low-Pass Filter is a 4-pole, 24 dB per-octave, resonant
lter. The High-Pass Filter is a 2-pole, 12 dB per octave, resonant lter.
In simple terms, the Low-Pass Filter cuts high frequencies and the High-
Pass Filter cuts low frequencies. If used at the same time, the two lters act as a band-pass lter, passing only the band of frequencies that fall
between the high-pass and low-pass cutoff points.
The Low-Pass Filter and High-Pass Filter
Cutoff: Sets the lter’s cutoff frequency. On the Low-Pass Filter,
frequencies are reduced from the top down — cutting the high frequen­cies and passing the low, hence the name “low-pass.” On the High-Pass
Filter, frequencies are reduced from the bottom up — cutting the low
frequencies and passing the high, hence the name “high-pass.”
Resonance: Emphasizes a narrow band of frequencies around the cutoff
frequency. On the Low-Pass Filter, high levels of resonance can cause the
lter to self oscillate and generate its own pitch.
22
Filters
Sequential
High levels of resonance can sometimes cause the Prophet-6 outputs to clip if its sound generators are also set to high output in the Mixer. Monitor your outputs carefully to ensure optimal, clean signal levels. If you experience signal clipping, try reducing the levels of the oscillators in the mixer section, the env amount parameter in
the Amplier Envelope, or the resonance parameter in either the low-pass or high-pass lter.
Env Amount: Sets the amount of modulation from the lter envelope to
the lters. Higher amounts more dramatically affect the cutoff frequency.
This control is bipolar. Positive settings produce standard behavior as described in “Filter Envelope” on page 24. Negative settings invert the envelope. Experiment with this control to create a variety of expressive
ltering effects.
Velocity: on, off—When enabled, allows key velocity to inuence lter
frequency. If the env amount is set to a positive value on the low-pass
lter, the harder you play, the more the lter will open and the brighter
the sound will be. Conversely, if the env amount is set to a negative
value, the harder you play, the more the lter will close and the less
bright the sound will be. This control makes for more touch-sensitive sounds
Keyboard: off, half, full—Sets the amount of modulation from the
keyboard to the lter’s cutoff frequency. Selecting half or full means that the higher the note played on the keyboard, the more the lter opens.
This is useful for adding brightness to a sound as higher notes are played, which is typically how acoustic instruments behave. If both half and full are off, keyboard lter tracking is off, meaning that lter frequency is unaf­fected by playing higher or lower notes on the keyboard.
On the Low-Pass Filter, setting keyboard to full when the lter is self oscillating
will cause the lter-generated pitch to follow the keyboard in tune (i.e. in semitones).
Setting the keyboard to half will cause the lter-generated pitch to follow the keyboard pitch in quarter tones.
Prophet-6 Operation Manual
Filters
23

Filter Envelope

Attack
Decay
Sustain
Release
Amplitude
Time
The Prophet-6’s low-pass and high-pass lters share a dedicated, four-
stage envelope generator. The Filter Envelope is used to shape the
harmonic characteristics of a synthesized sound by giving you ltering
control over its attack, decay, sustain, and release stages.
This is one of the most important factors in designing a sound. Without
an envelope, the lters would be completely static. They would stay open or closed by a xed amount that wouldn’t change over the duration
of a sound. That’s not very interesting to listen to and it’s not how instru­ments behave in the real world.
In general, sounds produced by an instrument are brighter at their begin­ning (the attack stage) and grow mellower as they die out (the decay and release stages). In other words, their harmonic content changes over
time. This is exactly what the lter envelope is designed to emulate.
FILTER ENVELOPE
ATTA CK DE CAY SUSTA IN RELE ASE
Filter envelope
A typical 4-stage envelope
Filter Envelope
24
Sequential
Attack: Sets the attack time of the envelope. The higher the setting, the
slower the attack time and the the longer it takes for the lter to open from the level set with the lter cutoff knob to the level set by the lter
envelope amount. Percussive sounds typically have sharp (short) attacks.
Decay: Sets the decay time of the envelope. After a sound reaches the
lter frequency set at its attack stage, decay controls how quickly the lter then transitions to the cutoff frequency set with the sustain knob.
The higher the setting, the longer the decay. Percussive sounds, such as synth bass, typically have shorter decays (and a generous amount of low-
pass lter resonance).
Sustain: Sets the lter cutoff frequency for the sustained portion of the
sound. The sound will stay at this lter frequency for as long as a note is
held on the keyboard.
Release: Sets the release time of the envelope. This controls how
quickly the lter closes after a note is released.
The description of envelope behavior above is true when the envelope amount parameter is set to a positive value. But since this control is actually bi-polar, it is possible to set a negative amount of modulation. In this case, the envelopes are inverted and their behavior changes. The best way to get a feel for the difference is to experiment with both positive and negative settings of the envelope amount parameter.
The cutoff frequency setting may limit the effect of the envelope on the lter. For example, on the low-pass lter, if cutoff is at its highest setting, a positive envelope amount will have no effect on the lter since the lter is already completely open.

Changing the Filter Envelope’s Response Curve

By default, the envelopes of all synthesizers are designed to have certain type of response curve that is largely dependent on the preference of the designer. In most cases, this can’t be changed. The current preference is that the faster or snappier the envelopes, the better.
However, in the case of the Prophet-6, there is a hidden feature in the Poly Mod section that allows you to modify the responsiveness of the
Filter Envelope’s ADSR controls. This opens up a new level of ne
adjustment of these controls that is subtle but powerful. Try it and see.
Prophet-6 Operation Manual
Filter Envelope
25
To adjust the responsiveness of the lter envelope:
1. Select a program — such as a synth brass sound — that has a slightly soft but bright attack.
2. Repeatedly play a series of notes or chords on the keyboard, so you can hear the effect of the adjustments as you follow the steps below.
3. In the Poly Mod section, enable the lp filter as the only destination (disable all other Poly Mod destinations such as freq 1, freq 2 etc.).
4. In the Poly Mod section, turn the filter env control slightly counter- clockwise. Try a setting of about 11 o’clock.
5. Continue to play a series of chords and turn the env amount knob clockwise in the low-pass filter section. Try moving it back and forth between 1 o’clock and 3 o’clock.
6. As you do this, compare different settings of the Poly Mod filter env control, the Low-Pass Filter env amount, and different Attack, Decay, Sustain, and Release settings on the Filter Envelope.
The interaction of these controls is worth exploring for greater exibility
and control of the Filter Envelope.
Amplier Envelope
After passing through the lters, a synthesized sound goes into an analog voltage controlled amplier or VCA, which controls its overall loudness.
The VCA has a dedicated, four-stage envelope generator.
The Amplier Envelope is used to shape the volume characteristics of
a sound over time by giving you control over its attack, decay, sustain,
and release stages. Along with the lter envelope, this is one of the most
important factors in designing a sound.
Without a volume envelope, the loudness of a sound wouldn’t change over the duration of a note. It would begin immediately, remain at its full volume for the duration of the note, then end immediately when the note was released. Again, that’s not very interesting sonically and it’s not typi­cally how instruments behave in the real world.
Amplier Envelope
26
Sequential
To give you a real-world example, the main difference between the
Attack
Decay
Sustain
Release
Amplitude
Time
sound of the wind and the sound of a snare drum is that they have very different volume envelopes. Otherwise, they are essentially both white noise. Wind has a relatively slow attack, a long sustain, and a long decay and release. A snare drum has a sharp attack, no sustain, and virtually no decay or release. But again, they are both fundamentally white noise.
AMPLIFIER ENV ELOPE
ENV AMOUNT
Amplier envelope
VELOCIT Y
ATTA CK DE CAY SUS TAIN RELE ASE
A typical four-stage, ADSR envelope shape
Attack: Sets the attack time of the envelope. The higher the setting, the
slower the attack time and the longer it takes for a sound to reach its full volume. Pads typically have softer (longer) attacks. Percussive sounds have sharper (shorter) attacks.
Decay: Sets the decay time of the envelope. After a sound reaches its full
volume at its attack stage, decay controls how quickly the sound transi- tions to the level set with the sustain control. The higher the setting, the longer the decay. Percussive sounds, such as synth bass, typically have shorter decays.
Sustain: Sets the sustain level of the envelope. The higher the setting,
the louder the sustained portion of the sound will be. The sound will stay at this level for as long as a note is held on the keyboard.
Prophet-6 Operation Manual
Amplier Envelope
27
Release: Sets the release time of the envelope. This controls how
quickly a sound dies out after a note is released.
Env Amount: Sets the amount of modulation from the Amplier Enve-
lope to the VCA. In most cases you will probably want to set this fully clockwise for maximum VCA volume. If you experience signal clipping, try reducing the env amount or the levels of the oscillators in the mixer section.
To recreate the “gated VCA” effect used on certain classic rock anthems, choose an organ sound, then set the vca env amount to zero, route the LFO square wave to amp with an initial amt setting of 100% and hold a few chords.
Velocity: This button enables keyboard velocity to modulate the VCA
Envelope Amount. The harder you play, the more the VCA envelope is affected. This makes for more touch-sensitive sounds.

Effects

The Prophet-6 effects section allows you to add up to two, 24-bit, 48 kHz digital effects to any sound. Though the Prophet-6 sounds great on its own, adding a touch of reverb or delay can enhance many sounds with a subtle (or not so subtle) sense of ambience and depth. Other effects such as the chorus and phaser are useful for adding more conspicuous tonal enhance­ment as well as emulating classic instruments such as string ensembles and so on.
While the effects themselves are digital, the main signal path of the Prophet-6 is analog, with the effects generated in a separate audio chain, converted to analog, then added to the main signal path using the mix knob. The on/off switch enables and disables both Effect A and Effect B, using a true bypass, ensuring a pure analog signal path.
Effects settings are saved individually with each program. Time-based effects such as the Delays can be synchronized to the arpeggiator, sequencer, or MIDI clock to produce repeats that occur on the beat.
Effects
28
Sequential
A B
EFFECTS
CLOCK
2
ON/OFF EFFECT SYNC
The Effects section
TYPE
MIX 1
Effects are divided into sets A and B. You can choose a single effect from each set. Effect A and B are applied one after another, in series. For this reason, reverb effects are only available as Effect B, since it’s the last
stage in the serial effects chain — where reverb is traditionally applied.
Either effect can also be set to “off.”
Effect A:
• “bbd” - vintage bucket-brigade emulation
• “ddl” - classic digital delay
• “CHO” - vintage chorus
PH1” vintage 6-stage phaser, high resonance
• “PH2” vintage 6-stage phaser, lower resonance
• “PH3” emulation of Tom Oberheim’s original phaser design
• “rin” ring modulator
• “FL1” vintage anger, high resonance
• “FL2” vintage anger, low resonance
Effect B:
• “bbd” - vintage bucket-brigade emulation
• “ddl” - classic digital delay
• “CHO” - vintage chorus
PH1” vintage 6-stage phaser, high resonance
• “PH2” vintage 6-stage phaser, lower resonance
• “PH3” emulation of Tom Oberheim’s original phaser design
• “rin” ring modulator
Prophet-6 Operation Manual
Effects
29
• “FL1” vintage anger, high resonance
• “FL2” vintage anger, low resonance
• “HAL” - classic hall emulation
• “rOO” - classic room emulation
• “PLA” - classic plate emulation
• “SPr” - vintage guitar-amp-style spring emulation
To use Effects:
1. Press the on/off switch to turn on Effects.
2. Press effect and choose A or B, depending on which you want to apply
and congure.
3. Turn the type knob to select an effect. Names are abbreviated. For instance “bbd” is the bucket-brigade delay. Refer to the list above.
4. Turn the mix knob to the right to blend in a good amount of the processed signal. You’ll want to be able to clearly hear the effect when you tweak its settings. You can dial it down afterward.
5. Use the parameter 1 and parameter 2 knobs to adjust the effect’s param­eters to your taste. See “Effects Parameters” on page 29 for details on the adjustable parameters on each effect type.
6. Finally, adjust the mix knob to optimize the amount of the effect. Full left is completely dry. Full right is completely wet (a 100% processed signal).
7. Repeat as needed to add a second effect.
Effects
30
Sequential

Main Parameters

On/Off: Turns both effects, A and B, on and off. The on/off switch uses a
true bypass, ensuring a pure analog signal path.
Effect: A, B—Selects either effect A or B for editing. Once selected, all
adjustments apply to that effect.
Type: Off, bbd, ddl, CHO, PH1, PH2, HAL, rOO, PLA, SPr—Selects the effect type.
Mix: 0...127—Sets the balance between the processed (wet) signal
and unprocessed (dry) signal. Full left is completely dry. Full right is completely wet.
Clock Sync: On, Off—When a delay effect is chosen, this enables syncing
of the timed delay repeats (feedback) to the Arpeggiator, Sequencer, or MIDI clock. When Sync is on, delay time provides the following values:
Value Delay Time
1 4 beats
2d 3 beats
2 2 beats
4t 1 beat
4d 1 1/2 beat
4 1 beat
8d 3/4 of 1 beat
8 1/2 of 1 beat
8t 1/2 of 1 beat
16d 3/8 of 1 beat
16 1/4 of 1 beat
Maximum delay time is 1 second. The combination of longer synced delay times with slower tempos can result in delay times that would be greater than 1 second. When that happens, the delay time is divided by 2 until it no longer exceeds the 1 second limit. For example, if the BPM is set to 60 and Delay Time is set to Half, the expected delay time would be 2 seconds. The actual delay time will be 1 second (i.e. 2 seconds divided by 2).
Prophet-6 Operation Manual
Effects
31
Parameter 1: Variable, depending on the effect—This knob adjusts parameter 1 for the chosen effect. Each effect has two adjustable param­eters, which differ depending on the effect. See “Effects Parameters” on page 29 for details about the adjustable parameters on each effect type.
Parameter 2: Variable, depending on the effect—This knob adjusts
parameter 2 for the chosen effect. Each effect has two adjustable param­eters, which differ depending on the effect. See “Effects Parameters” on page 29 for details about the adjustable parameters on each effect type.
Display Effect Type Parameter 1 Parameter 2
bbd
ddl
cho
PH1
PH2
HAL
rOO
PLA
SPr
bucket-brigade delay delay time feedback amount
digital delay delay time feedback amount
chorus rate depth
phaser 1 rate depth
phaser 2 rate depth
hall reverb time early reections
room reverb time early reections
plate reverb time early reections
spring reverb decay tone
bbd: This is a vintage bucket-brigade delay emulation. Bucket-brigade
delays were originally a type of analog delay characterized by relatively short delay times and a warmer character than digital delays due to their loss of treble and clarity in the delayed analog signal. Adjustable param­eters are delay time and feedback amount.
To recreate a classic bucket-brigade time-shifting effect, try adjusting the time
parameter in real time.
ddl: This is a classic digital delay, Adjustable parameters are delay time
and feedback amount.
CHO: This is a vintage chorus emulation. Use it to thicken and add
animation to any sound. Adjustable parameters are rate and depth.
PH1: This is a vintage phaser emulation with high resonance. Use it to
add a deep, sweeping, swirling resonant effect to a sound. Adjustable parameters are rate and depth.
Effects
32
Sequential
PH2: This is a vintage phaser emulation with lower resonance. Use it to
add a swirling resonant effect to a sound. Adjustable parameters are rate and depth.
PH3: This is a faithful emulation of Tom Oberheim’s original phaser
design. Use it to add a swirling resonant effect to a sound. Adjustable parameters are rate and depth.
rin: This is a faithful emulation of Tom Oberheim’s original ring modula-
tor design. Use it to add a complex harmonic effect to a sound. Adjust­able parameters are the modulation frequency and low note pitch track­ing on/off.
HAL: This is a Hall reverb. It’s the largest of the available reverbs. Adjust-
able parameters are reverb time and early reection amount.
rOO: This is a Room reverb. It’s the second largest of the available reverbs.
Adjustable parameters are reverb time and early reection amount.
PLA: This is a Plate reverb. It emulates a classic reverb plate. Adjustable
parameters are reverb time and early reection amount.
SPr: This is a Spring reverb. It emulates a vintage, guitar-amp-style
reverb. Adjustable parameters are decay and tone.
Prophet-6 Operation Manual
Effects
33

Low Frequency Oscillators

The LFO is a special-purpose oscillator that produces a frequency below the range of human hearing. The LFO is typically used for periodic modulation such as vibrato (periodic pitch modulation) and tremolo (periodic amplitude modulation).
The LFO on the Prophet-6 produces a variety of waveshapes, including triangle, sawtooth, reverse sawtooth, square, and random. Though most often used for low-frequency modulation, the Prophet-6 LFO can actually function at speeds that extend into the audible range for extreme effects.
LOW FREQUENCY OSCILLATOR
LFO SYNC
FREQUENCY
The Low-Frequency Oscillator
SHAPE
INITIAL AMT
FREQ 1
FREQ 2 PW 1+2 AMP FI LTER
Triangle and Random waves are bipolar. That is, their waveshape is posi­tive for half of their cycle and negative for the other half. In the case of the triangle wave, this makes it possible to generate a natural-sounding vibrato
that goes alternately sharp and at in equal amounts on either side of a center
frequency. Random, also known as “sample and hold,” generates a series of random values, each held for the duration of one cycle
The square wave, sawtooth, and reverse sawtooth generate only positive values. In the case of the square wave this makes it possible to generate natural­sounding trills.
Triangle
0
LFO waveshapes
Sawtooth
Square RandomSawtooth Reverse
The Prophet-6 has a sixth “hidden” LFO waveshape that you can use as a modulation source — noise. To access this, choose random then turn frequency all the way clockwise. This generates a white noise waveform.
Low Frequency Oscillators
34
Sequential
The LFO can be free-running or synced to the arpeggiator, sequencer, or
MIDI clock for tempo-synced effects such as lter sweeps, tremolo, and so on.
Frequency: Sets the frequency of the LFO waveshape routed to the
destination. See also “LFO Sync” below.
LFO Sync: When on, the LFO synchronizes with the arpeggiator,
sequencer, or MIDI clock. By default, the LFO wave cycle is reset when you press a key (but is not reset if you press a key while other notes are held).
Shape: Triangle, Sawtooth, Reverse Sawtooth, Square, Random—The
wave shape of the LFO. A sixth waveshape, noise, can be generated by selecting random and turning the frequency knob all the way to the right.
Initial Amount: Sets the amount of LFO modulation routed to the
selected destinations. Setting an amount here applies the selected modu­lation continuously. If you set this parameter to zero but still select a modulation destination, modulation is only applied when you use the Mod Wheel.
Freq 1: Selects the frequency of Oscillator 1 as a modulation destination.
Use a triangle wave as a source to create vibrato. Use a square wave to create trills.
Freq 2: Selects the frequency of Oscillator 2 as a modulation destination.
Use a triangle wave as a source to create vibrato. Use a square wave to create trills.
PW 1+2: When Oscillator 1 and/or 2 is set to square wave, this modu-
lates the pulse width of the wave. Use a triangle wave LFO to create a chorus-like effect often used to emulate strings.
Amp: Selects the amplitude level as a modulation destination. Use a
triangle wave LFO to create a tremolo effect.
LP Filter: Selects the Low-Pass Filter frequency as a modulation destina-
tion. Use a triangle wave LFO to create an auto-wah effect. Modulating the Low-Pass Filter at high frequencies can create interesting timbres.
HP Filter: Selects the High-Pass Filter frequency as a modulation desti-
nation. Modulating the High-Pass Filter at high frequencies can create interesting timbres.
Prophet-6 Operation Manual
Low Frequency Oscillators
35

Poly Mod

Although the overall sonic character of the Prophet-6 is determined by its
analog oscillators and lters, much of its power to make truly unique and
unusual sounds comes from the Poly Mod section.
POLY MOD
OSC 2FILTER ENV
The Poly Mod section
Poly Mod modulation sources:
FREQ 1 SHAPE 1 PW 1 FILTER
• Filter envelope
• Oscillator 2 frequency
Poly Mod modulation destinations:
• Oscillator 1 frequency
• Oscillator 1 waveshape
• Oscillator 1 pulse width
low-pass lter frequency
high-pass lter frequency
You can control how much the source affects the destination by dialing in a specic modulation amount with the filter env or osc 2 knobs. Modu- lation amount can either be positive or negative.
Use Poly Mod to create complex harmonic effects ranging from FM
(frequency modulation) to audio-rate lter modulation and beyond. Many
classic sounds on the original Prophet-5 were created through clever use of Poly Mod.
36
Poly Mod
Sequential

Poly Mod Parameters

Filter Env: Selects the amount of modulation from the Filter Envelope
that is applied to a selected destination. Modulation amount can be either positive or negative.
Osc 2: Selects the amount of modulation from Oscillator 2 that is applied
to a selected destination. Modulation amount can be either positive or negative.
When using osc 2 as a modulation source, the modulation character is affected by the waveshape currently chosen for Oscillator 2 (triangle, sawtooth, or square/pulse). Try setting Oscillator 2 to low frequency (using the low freq switch) to further increase modulation possibilities.
Freq 1: Selects Oscillator 1 frequency as a modulation destination.
Choose osc 2 as a modulation source to produce FM effects with their characteristic complex harmonics and metallic timbre.
Shape 1: Selects the Oscillator 1 waveshape as a modulation destination.
This can animate the timbre of Oscillator 1 in interesting ways.
PW 1: When Oscillator 1 is set to pulse wave, choosing this as a destina-
tion modulates its pulse width. This will animate the timbre of Oscillator 1 in interesting ways.
LP Filter: Selects the Low-Pass Filter cutoff frequency as a modulation
destination.
HP Filter: Selects the High-Pass Filter cutoff frequency as a modulation destination.
Prophet-6 Operation Manual
Poly Mod
37

Arpeggiator

ARPEGGIATOR SEQUENCERCLOCK
The Prophet-6 has a full-featured Arpeggiator. Turn it on, hold a chord and the Prophet-6 will play a pattern based on the individual notes held. Choose a mode (up, down, random, etc.), an octave range (1, 2, or 3), and a tempo, then pair it with an appropriately percussive sound, and you’ll be surprised at the number of creative things you can do.
When hold is active, the Arpeggiator is in “relatch” mode, where play­ing a new chord latches to the new chord rather than adding notes to the existing chord.
If you enable hold, you can release the notes on the keyboard and the Arpeggiator will continue to play. In addition, the Arpeggiator features auto-latching: With hold on, played notes are held on and arpeggiated,
and any additional notes you play are added to the arpeggio—as long as
at least one key is continuously held.
You can sync the Arpeggiator to external MIDI clock, or even an external audio signal. When the Arpeggiator is playing, the Sequencer is disabled.
TAP TEMPO
The Arpeggiator section
BPM
To use the Arpeggiator:
ON/OFF
OCTAV ESVALUE MODE
1. Press the Arpeggiator on/off switch to turn it on.
2. Hold down one or more notes on the keyboard. The Arpeggiator plays them according to the settings you’ve chosen.
3. To latch arpeggiation on (so that you don’t have to continuously hold down notes) press the hold button.
4. Adjust settings such as mode, octave, bpm and value.
5. To synchronize a delay effect to the Arpeggiator, turn on clock sync in the Effects section, choose a delay, and adjust its delay time setting as desired.
Arpeggiator
38
RECORD
PLAY
Sequential

Arpeggiator Beat Sync

is option quantizes keyboard performance of the arpeggiator so that notes are quantized to the current clock divide setting. Previously, chang­ing notes or chords on the keyboard during arpeggiator playback would retrigger notes whether or not the note was played precisely on the beat. With this option enabled, arpeggiator note playback occurs only on the beat — regardless of the precision of your playing.
To enable Arpeggiator Beat Sync:
1. Press the globals button twice to activate the lower set of parameters.
2. Press program selector button 9.
3. Use the bank and tens buttons as decrement and increment buttons to step through available settings and select on.
4. Once you’ve chosen the desired setting, press the globals button again to exit.

Using the Arpeggiator in a Poly-Chained System

As with the Sequencer, in a poly-chained system, the arpeggiator func­tions nearly the same as it does in a non-poly-chained system. The 6 extra voices are added into the total pool of available voices. Any notes with long release times are less likely to be cut off as additional notes are arpeggiated.
An audio signal connected to the rear-panel footswitch - sequence jack can be used to control arpeggiator (and sequencer) playback. This makes it possible to tempo sync the arpeggiator to a recorded drum track or other audio source. See “Seq Jack” on page 15 for more information about choosing the appropriate mode for these behaviors.
Prophet-6 Operation Manual
Arpeggiator
39

Arpeggiator Parameters

Tap TempoTapping the tap tempo button sets the tempo from 30 to
250 BPM. The LED ashes at the BPM rate you set. Tap the button at
least 4 times to set the tempo.
BPM: 30…250—Sets the tempo for the arpeggiator in BPM (beats per
minute). The tap tempo LED ashes at the BPM rate. When lfo sync is enabled on the low-frequency oscillator, or clock sync is enabled in the Effects section, the BPM rate affects the LFO frequency and/or delay effect. When syncing to an external MIDI clock source, the BPM setting has no effect.
ValueSelects a basic note value relative to the BPM. See the table below:
Name Tempo Timing Division
Half BPM/2 Half note
Qtr BPM Quarter note
8th BPM x 2 Eighth note
8th D BPM x 2 Eighth note, dot
8th S BPM x 2 Eighth note, swing timing
8th T BPM x 3 Eighth note triplets
16th BPM x 4 Sixteenth note
16th S BPM x 4 Sixteenth note, full swing timing
16th T BPM x 6 Sixteenth note triplets
32nd BPM x 8 Thirty-second note
On/OffTurns the Arpeggiator on and off.
Octave: 1 Octave, 2 Octaves, 3 Octaves—Set to 1 Octave, only the
keyed notes are arpeggiated. Set to 2 Octaves, the keyed notes and the notes one octave above them arpeggiate. Set to 3 Octaves, the keyed notes and the notes one and two octaves above them arpeggiate.
Arpeggiator
40
Sequential
Mode: Sets the order in which notes play when Arpeggiator is on. See the table.
Arp Mode Behavior
Up Plays from lowest to highest note
Down Plays from highest to lowest note
Up + Down Plays from lowest to highest and back to lowest
Random Plays notes in random order
Assign Plays notes in the order the keys were pressed

Sequencer

The Prophet-6’s sequencer is similar to a classic step sequencer. It allows you to create a single sequence of up to 64 steps, including rests and ties, with up to 6 notes per step. In addition, you can play along with a sequence (provided there is available polyphony), making it a powerful live performance tool. When the Sequencer is playing, the Arpeggiator is disabled.
ARPEGGIATOR SEQUENCERCLOCK
TAP TEMPO
The Sequencer/Arpeggiator
BPM
An audio signal connected to the rear-panel footswitch - sequence jack can be used to control sequencer playback. This makes it possible to tempo sync the sequencer (or arpeggiator) to a recorded drum track or other audio source. See “Seq Jack” on page 15 for more information about choosing the appropriate mode for these behaviors.
Prophet-6 Operation Manual
ON/OFF
OCTAV ESVALUE MODE
Sequencer
RECORD
PLAY
41

Programming the Sequencer

Though programming the sequencer is simple, you can create sequences that are rhythmically and melodically complex by combining a repeating phrase or bass line with chords, ties, and rests. You can play up to 64 steps with up to 6 notes held simultaneously per step. For most sequences you’ll probably want to use sounds with a relatively sharp attack and short release.
Most factory programs have a sequence associated with them. Recall a program and press the Sequencer’s play button to hear its associated sequence.
To program a note sequence:
1. Press the record button.
2. Perform the sequence on the keyboard. The display indicates the current step as you play.
When recording a chord as a step, as long as you continue to hold at least one note down, you can keep adding notes to the chord/step, and even use the transpose buttons to extend the keyboard range while doing it.
3. To add a rest as you play, press the tens/increment button for that step, then continue playing.
4. To add a “tie” that extends the length of a note, continue to hold down the note(s) and press the tens/increment button repeatedly to extend the note the number of steps you want.
5. When you’re done, press play to listen to your sequence.
6. To save the sequence, save the program and they are saved together. (See “Saving a Program” on page 5.)
If you want to play live along with the sequencer, be sure to leave voices avail-
able. In other words, don’t play 6-note chords for every step in the sequence!
Sequencer
42
Sequential
To play a sequence:
1. Press play. The sequence plays back at the current BPM setting.
2. To stop playback, press play again.
Alternatively, you can start and stop sequencer playback using a footswitch connected to the rear-panel seq jack or using MIDI start/stop messages sent from a DAW or other MIDI device. See “Seq Jack” on page 15 for more information.
Use the bpm, value, or tap tempo controls to adjust sequencer playback speed.
To transpose a sequence:
1. Press play. The sequence begins playback.
2. Press and hold record and press a key on the keyboard. “Middle C” is the reference point. Playing a note above middle C transposes the sequence higher by that interval. Playing a note below middle C trans­poses the sequence lower by that interval.
if you’re using a program with Unison enabled, you don’t need to hold down the  button. You can simply press a note on the keyboard and the sequence is transposed to that key. (When not using Unison, you must still hold down the  button to enable transposition.)
Remember that “Middle C” is the reference point. Playing a note above middle C transposes the sequence higher by that interval. Playing a note below middle C transposes the sequence lower by that interval.
Prophet-6 Operation Manual
Sequencer
43

Stepping Backward to Correct Notes When Recording a Sequence

While you are recording a sequence, it is now possible to step backward using the Bank/Decrement button to correct notes. You can decrement as many steps as you like, but each time you step backward the sequencer erases the step. You must then re-record any steps/notes that occur after the current step. For example, if you play notes on steps 1-8, then decre­ment to step 4, you will need to manually re-play steps 5-8 again on the keyboard.
To step backward while recording a sequence:
1. Record a sequencer normally by pressing the record button, then play­ing notes on the keyboard. The display indicates the current step as you play.
2. Press the bank select/decrement button. This will step back to the previous step so that you can rerecord it. Stepping back erases the step.

MIDI Note Output from the Arpeggiator and Sequencer

e Prophet-6’s arpeggiator and sequencer can now output MIDI note numbers. Any notes that you hold on the Prophet-6 keyboard will be arpeggiated according to the current settings of the arpeggiator and output over MIDI (or USB) as MIDI notes. Similarly, any notes output by the sequencer will be output over MIDI (or USB) as MIDI notes. You can use this feature to drive other MIDI-equipped devices such as synthesiz­ers and drum machines.
To enable MIDI Note output from the arpeggiator and sequencer:
1. Press the globals button then press program selector button 5 (param
xmit).
2. Use the bank and tens buttons as decrement and increment buttons to step through available settings and select either cas or nas. Your choice depends on whether you were previously using CC or NRPN to send MIDI controller data to your external device, as either setting will send MIDI notes out. Choose cas if CC. Choose nas if NRPN.
3. Once you’ve chosen the desired setting, press the globals button again to exit.
Sequencer
44
Sequential
To control an external MIDI device:
1. Connect the MIDI or USB output of the Prophet-6 to the MIDI or USB input of the external device, depending on which type of connection the external device requires.
2. On the Prophet-6, press the globals button, then press program selector button 9 (midi out) to select nid (midi) or usb (usb).
3. Press the globals button again to exit the Global menu.
4. On the external device, set the MIDI Channel and MIDI Receive port to match the Prophet-6.
5. Hold down a chord on the Prophet-6 or start sequencer playback. The external device should be triggered by the arpeggiated or sequenced notes.

Using the Sequencer in a Poly-Chained System

In a poly-chained system, the sequencer functions nearly the same as it does in a non-poly-chained system. In other words, you can create a single sequence of up to 64 steps with a maximum of six notes (6-note chords) per step.
The 6 extra voices are simply added into the total pool of available voices so that any notes with long release times are less likely to be cut off as additional notes are played.
Additionally, the six extra voices can be used to play live along with the sequence as it runs.
Prophet-6 Operation Manual
Sequencer
45

Sequencer Parameters

Here are the controls and parameters used when interacting with the sequencer.
Record: On, Off—This switch turns sequencer recording on and off.
Play: On, Off—This switch turns sequencer playback on and off.
BPM: 30…250—Sets the tempo for the Sequencer and Arpeggiator in BPM
(beats per minute). The tap tempo LED ashes at the BPM rate. When lfo
sync is turned on, the BPM rate affects the LFO frequency. When syncing to
an external MIDI clock source, the BPM setting has no effect.
Tap Tempo: 30…250—Tap this button at least 4 times to quickly set the
tempo for the Sequencer and Arpeggiator. The LED ashes at the BPM rate you set.
Value: Sets the note value for each sequencer/arpeggiator step relative
to the BPM. value works with both internal and external clock sources. The following table lists the values:
Name Tempo Timing Division
Half BPM/2 Half note
Qtr BPM Quarter note
8th BPM x 2 Eighth note
8th D BPM x 2 Eighth note, dot
8th S BPM x 2 Eighth note, swing timing
8th T BPM x 3 Eighth note triplets
16th BPM x 4 Sixteenth note
16th S BPM x 4 Sixteenth note, full swing timing
16th T BPM x 6 Sixteenth note triplets
32nd BPM x 8 Thirty-second note
Sequencer
46
Sequential
Master Volume/Program Volume
The master output level of the Prophet-6 is controlled by the front-panel
master vol knob. In addition, the volume of an individual program
can be set with the prgm vol knob in the misc parameters section. This is useful for ensuring that your sounds have roughly the same volume from program to program. Unison sounds in particular can be very loud compared to other programs.
MASTER VOL
The Master Volume knob
MISC PARAMETERS
PAN SPREAD
P WHL RANGEKEY MODE
The program volume knob (prgm vol) in the misc parameters section
To set the volume of an individual program:
PRGM VOL
1. Choose a program.
2. In the misc parameters section, turn the prgm vol knob to set its volume.
3. Save the program. (See “Saving a Program” on page 4.)
MIDI volume can also inuence the overall volume of the Prophet-6 if you are
controlling it from an external MIDI source.
Prophet-6 Operation Manual
Sequencer
47

Distortion

DISTORT
AMOUNT
0
DOWN UP
TRANSPOSE
The Prophet-6 provides stereo analog distortion. This can be used to add warmth, harmonic complexity, and an aggressive edge to sounds. The character of the distortion is affected by the harmonic content of a program. Sounds with more high-end will sound different than sounds with fewer harmonics. To add distortion, use the distortion knob.
The Distortion knob
Transpose
The up and down buttons in the transpose section transpose the keyboard up or down in octaves. The LED indicates the current keyboard trans­position state. Transposing the keyboard also changes the MIDI note numbers of the keys so that MIDI notes sent are also transposed. Trans­pose settings are global and are not saved with individual programs.
The Transpose controls
Distortion
48
Sequential

Hold

HOLD
When hold is on, any notes played will continue to play until hold is turned off. When used in conjunction with the Arpeggiator, notes are latched on and replaced by any new note(s) struck. If hold is on and at least one key continuously held down, any new notes played are added to the arpeggio.
The Hold button

Glide

Glide or portamento causes the pitch of a note to glide up or down from the pitch of the previously played note. Glide is turned on and off using the glide switch, but the glide amount must also be set. If the glide button is on, but glide amount is set to 0, glide has no effect.
GLIDE RATE
The Glide controls
GLIDE
There are four modes that determine how glide behaves.
Fixed Rate (FR): The time to transition between notes varies with the
interval between the notes; the greater the interval, the longer the transi-
tion time. The glide rate is xed. This is the default glide mode.
Prophet-6 Operation Manual
Hold
49
Fixed Rate A (FRA): The same as Fixed Rate, but glide is only applied
when playing legato. That is, glide only occurs when a note is held until the next note is played. This effectively allows glide to be turned on and off from the keyboard.
Fixed Time (FT): Glide is set to a xed time, regardless of the interval
between notes.
Fixed Time A (FTA): The same as Fixed Time, but glide only occurs
when playing legato.
To select a glide mode:
1. Press and hold the glide switch. The numeric display shows the currently selected Glide mode.
2. To select a different mode, continue to hold down the glide switch then press the bank/decrement and tens/increment switches to step through the other choices.
3. When nished, release the glide switch.

Unison

When unison is on, the Prophet-6 functions like a monophonic synthesizer in that only 1 note can be played at a time. However, that one note can be powered by as many as six voices, depending on how many you choose to use. With up to 12 oscillators powering a single note (2 oscillators per voice x 6 voices), you can create some very dense, speaker-rattling sounds.
If you want to create an ultra heavy synth bass, try using Unison!
Unison gives you control over not only how many voices to stack, but also the amount of detuning between the oscillators, and what note gets priority if you happen to play more than one note on the keyboard. (This is called the key assign mode or note priority. See “Key Assign Modes” on page 52 for details.)
Unison
50
Sequential
UNISON
The Unison button
To use Unison:
1. Press and hold the unison switch.
2. With the Unison switch held down, use the bank/decrement and tens/
increment switches to choose the number of voices to stack, then
release the Unison switch.
3. To detune the oscillators, use the slop knob.

Using Chord Memory

Unison has another useful feature: chord memory. Instead of assigning voices to a single note, hold down a chord on the keyboard and press the Unison switch. The Prophet-6 memorizes the notes of the chord. Single notes played on the keyboard will then trigger all notes of the stored chord, transposing them as you play up or down the keyboard. Try using this feature to create powerful chord stabs and hits.
If you save a program that uses chord memory, the chord is saved with the program. “CHD” will then appear as a choice if you step through voice stacking options using the banks/decrement and tens/increment buttons while holding down unison.
If low-note priority is chosen in Global settings, the note that you play corre­sponds to the lowest note of the chord voicing. Changing the Key Assign Mode to high-note priority will make the note that you play correspond to the highest note in the chord voicing.
To use chord memory:
1. Hold down a chord on the keyboard (6 notes maximum).
2. Press the unison switch. The chord voicing is memorized. Play a few notes to listen to the result.
3. If you save the program, the unison chord memory is saved with it.
Prophet-6 Operation Manual
Unison
51
To clear chord memory:
1. Turn off Unison.
2. Hold down a single note.
3. Press the unison button.
4. Save the program again.
Key Assign Modes
Key Assign (sometimes called note priority) determines what note has priority when more than one note is played on the keyboard or via MIDI:
• Low-note priority (LO) is most common in vintage synths and is often
used for playing trills by holding a note and repeatedly tapping a lower note.
• Low retrigger (LOr) causes the envelopes to be retriggered with each
keystroke.
• High note (Hi) and high retrigger (Hir) are similar to the low note
settings, except that the highest note is given priority.
• Last note (LAS) and last retrigger (LAr) give priority to the last note
played.
To choose the Key Assign mode:
1. Press and hold key mode in the misc parameters section. The numeric display shows the currently selected mode.
2. To select a different mode, continue to hold down the key mode switch then press the bank/decrement and tens/increment switches to step through the other choices.
3. Release the key mode switch when you’re nished.
Key Assign settings are only relevant to Unison mode. They do not affect poly-
phonic playback.
Unison
52
Sequential

Using Unison in a Poly-Chained System

10 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9BANKSELECT
SELECT
PROGRAM
In a poly-chained system, the maximum number of voices available in unison mode is 12 voices. In a non-poly chained system, Unison gives
you control over how many voices to stack — from 2 to 6 voices.
In a poly-chained system, stacking options are slightly different. You can choose to stack either 2, 3, 4, 5, or 12 voices. In other words, setting voice stacking above 5 voices will stack all 12 voices. There are no options for stacking 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, or 11 voices in a poly-chained system.
To use Unison:
1. Press and hold the unison switch.
2. With the Unison switch held down, use the bank/decrement and tens/
increment switches to choose the number of voices to stack (2, 3, 4, 5,
or 12 voices) then release the Unison switch.
3. To detune the oscillators, use the slop knob.

Write

The write button saves the currently active program. Saving a program overwrites a previously saved program.
The Prophet-6 contains a total of 1000 programs. 500 are permanent and 500 can be overwritten. Banks 0-4 are User Banks that can be overwrit­ten. Banks 5-9 are Factory Banks that are permanent. You can edit the programs of either bank, but you can only save them to Banks 0-4. As shipped from the factory, presets 000-499 are identical to 500-999.
WRITE
The Write button
Transpose Master Tune MIDI Channel MIDI Clock Clock Port Param Xmit Param Rcv MIDI Control MIDI SysEx MIDI Out
IncrementDecrement
BANK
Program bank, tens, and number selectors
Prophet-6 Operation Manual
Local Ctrl Seq Jack Pot Mode Sustain +/- Alt Tuning Vel Response AT Response Stereo/Mono Pgm Dump
TENS
Write
53
To save a program to the same preset location:
1. Press the write button. Its LED begins blinking.
2. Press a program selector button (0-9) to specify the “ones” digit of the program.
3. The write button LED stops blinking and the program is saved.
To save a program to a different bank location:
1. Press the write button. Its LED begins blinking.
2. Hold down the bank button then press a program selector button (0-9) to specify the “hundreds” bank of the program. You can only save to Banks 0-4.
3. Hold down the tens button then press a program selector button (0-9) to specify the “tens” digit of the program.
4. Press a program selector button (0-9) to specify the “ones” digit of the program.
5. The write button LED stops blinking and the program is saved.

Canceling Save

Sometimes you may want to cancel saving a program before you commit.
To cancel the Save process before you commit:
• If the write button LED is ashing, press it again. The LED stops ash­ing and saving is canceled. You can return to editing if you want.
Write
54
Sequential

Comparing Before You Save

Before writing a program to a new location, it’s a good idea to listen to the program in the target location to make sure you really want to overwrite it.
To evaluate a program before you overwrite it:
1. Get ready to save by pressing the write button. It starts ashing.
2. Press the global button. Both LEDs on the button light up, indicating
compare mode.
3. Use the program buttons to navigate to the sound you want to compare and play the keyboard to hear the sound.
4. To disable the compare function and go back to the edited sound, turn off the global button. Programs can’t be written while in compare mode.
5. If you want to save the edited sound, the write button is still ashing and ready to save, so enter a location with the program buttons. The sound is saved.
6. Alternatively, if you want to cancel saving and continue editing, press the write button. It stops ashing and saving is canceled.

Globals

Global settings are parameters that affect all programs. These include settings such as Master Tune, MIDI Channel, MIDI Clock, and others. Global parameters are printed in two rows the program number switches (0 - 9). Press the Globals switch once to access the top row. Press it twice to access the bottom row. For details on the various Global parameters, see “Global Settings” on page 12.
GLOBALS
The Globals button
Prophet-6 Operation Manual
Globals
55
To change a Global setting:

PRESET

1. Press the globals button. Pressing it once accesses the top row of Global parameters. Pressing it twice accesses the top row of Global parameters. The LED indicates which row is active.
2. Press the program selector button that corresponds to the Global parameter you want to change.
3. Use the bank/decrement and tens/increment buttons to step through the available settings until you reach the one you want.
4. When nished, press globals again to exit.
Pressing the globals button three times in a row saves the current program as
the default program that appears when you turn on the Prophet-6.
Preset
The preset switch toggles “live panel” mode on and off. In live panel mode the Prophet-6 ignores the currently active preset and reverts to the current front-panel settings of its knobs and switches. In other words, what you see on the front panel is what you hear. This is a great mode for
learning, experimentation, and instant gratication.
The Preset button
To enter live panel mode:
• Press the preset button to toggle it off. The Prophet-6 is now in live panel mode. What you see on the front panel is what you hear. Note that you can’t change programs or banks with Preset off.
To return to preset mode:
• Press the preset button again to toggle it on. The LED is lit. The current program is what you hear.
Preset
56
Sequential

Pitch and Mod Wheels

The Prophet-6 has a spring loaded Pitch wheel and a Mod wheel. You can use these controls to enhance live performance by bending notes and adding modulation in real time as you play.
In the same way that guitar players use note bends and vibrato to give their playing expressiveness and character, these two controls can really
help you dene your sound as a performer and take you beyond just
playing notes on the keyboard.
Pitch Mod
The Pitch and Modulation wheels

Pitch Wheel

You can set a range in semitones for the Pitch wheel, depending on your playing preference. The range is up to 12 semitones (1 octave). Many musicians use a range of 2 semitones (a whole step) since this is the bend range of many acoustic instruments. For guitar whammy bar effects, you many wish to set a wider range.
To set the pitch bend range:
1. In the misc parameters section, press and hold the p whl range button.
2. With the button still held down, use the bank/decrement and tens/
increment switches to choose the number of semitones (up to 12) for
the pitch bend range, then release the p whl range button.
Prophet-6 Operation Manual
Pitch and Mod Wheels
57

Modulation Wheel

The Mod wheel controls the amount of modulation applied to any destina­tions chosen in the low-frequency oscillator section. This allows you to “perform” LFO modulation in real time by moving the Mod wheel. This is a great way to add expressiveness to a sound or performance.
To choose a modulation destination for the Mod wheel:
1. In the low-frequency oscillator section, choose a modulation desti- nation as well as a shape and frequency for the LFO. (See “Low Frequency Oscillators” on page 34 for more details.)
2. To apply modulation only when using the Mod wheel, set the initial
amt knob to zero. (Turing this knob up will apply LFO modulation
continuously — not just when the Mod wheel is used.)
Many programs use the Mod wheel to add vibrato. In this case, Freq 1 and Freq 2 are enabled as modulation destinations in the low-frequency oscillator section. This adds vibrato when you push the mod wheel forward. Set the initial amt knob to zero to apply vibrato only when using the Mod wheel.

Misc Parameters

The misc parameters section allows you to access controls for a number of essential functions described below. To set the key mode and p whl
range, hold down the associated button in the misc parameters section,
then use the bank/decrement and ten/increment buttons to step through available settings.
MISC PARAMETERS
PAN SPREAD
The Misc Parameters controls
Misc Parameters
58
P WHL RANGEKEY MODE
PRGM VOL
Sequential
Pan Spread: Pans the audio in the stereo eld individually per voice. Set
to 0, all voices are panned to the center. As Pan Spread is turned up, the audio in each voice is gradually moved away from the center by greater amounts. Every other voice goes in a different direction, left or right.
This creates a broader stereo eld while playing.
Key Mode: Low Note (LO), High Note (Hi), Last Note (Las), Low Note Retrigger (LOr), High Note Retrigger (Hir), Last Note Retrigger
(LAr)—Selects the key priority when more than one key is played
simultaneously in when in Unison mode. low note, high note and last
note are monophonic playback modes that give priority to the lowest,
highest, or last note played, as their names imply.
P Wheel Range: 0...12 Semitones— Selects the range in semitones
when moving the Pitch Wheel forward or backward. Twelve semitones equals 1 octave.
Program Volume: Sets the volume of an individual program. This is
useful for matching volume between programs.
There is enough gain in the Prophet-6 that if you set some programs to a
high program volume, clipping distortion may occur. If this happens, try lowering the
program volume, the levels of the oscillators in the mixer, the VCA envelope amount, or
the resonance parameter of the low-pass or high-pass lter.

Aftertouch

Aftertouch is a performance feature that allows you to add modulation to a sound by applying additional pressure to a key after the key is already down. The greater the pressure applied, the more modulation is applied. The Prophet-6 provides monophonic (or “channel”) aftertouch, which means that applying pressure to any key within a chord will apply modu­lation to all notes currently held.
The Aftertouch section lets you choose the amount of modulation applied using aftertouch and which parameters are modulated (oscilla-
tor frequency, lter cutoff, etc.). You can set either a positive or negative
amount.
Prophet-6 Operation Manual
Aftertouch
59
For example, if you select the Low-Pass Filter as destination (filter lp), set a positive amount of aftertouch, then press the keys harder, the lter
cutoff frequency will increase, making the lter open wider and the
sound become brighter.
Conversely, if you select the Low-Pass Filter as destination (filter lp), set a negative amount of aftertouch, then press the keys harder, the lter
cutoff frequency will be lowered, making the lter close more and the
sound become more muted.
The Prophet-6 provides four different aftertouch response settings for your convenience. The default setting provides a linear response. To choose a different response curve, use the at response button in the globals section. See page 16 for more details.
AFTERTOUCH
AMOUNT
The Aftertouch controls
FREQ 1 FREQ 2 LFO AMT AMP FILTER
Amount: Selects the amount of aftertouch applied to a selected destina-
tion. Positive amount settings apply positive amounts of modulation. Negative amount settings apply negative amounts of modulation.
Freq 1: Selects Oscillator 1 frequency as an aftertouch modulation desti-
nation. With a positive amount setting, pressing the keys harder will shift the Oscillator 1 pitch upward. With a negative amount setting, pressing the keys harder will shift the Oscillator 1 pitch downward.
Freq 2: Selects Oscillator 2 frequency as an aftertouch modulation desti-
nation. With a positive amount setting, pressing the keys harder will shift the Oscillator 2 pitch upward. With a negative amount setting, pressing the keys harder will shift the Oscillator 2 pitch downward.
60
Aftertouch
Sequential
LFO Amount: Selects the lfo amount parameter as an aftertouch modu-
lation destination. With a positive amount setting, pressing the keys harder will increase the amount of LFO modulation to any destina­tion selected in the low-frequency oscillator section. With a negative
amount setting, pressing the keys harder will increase the amount of
LFO modulation — with the LFO waveform inverted.
Amp: Selects Amplitude as an aftertouch modulation destination. With
a positive amount setting, pressing the keys harder will increase the volume of a sound. With a negative amount setting, pressing the keys harder will decrease the volume of a sound.
If the Amplier Envelope’s env amount is set to full, positive amounts of amp aftertouch will have no effect since the VCA is already at its maximum output level.
LP Filter: Selects the Low-Pass Filter cutoff frequency as a modulation
destination. With a positive amount setting, pressing the keys harder will
open the lter wider and make a sound become brighter. With a negative
amount setting, pressing the keys harder will close the lter more and
make a sound more muted.
HP Filter: Selects the High-Pass Filter cutoff frequency as a modulation
destination. With a positive amount setting, pressing the keys harder will increase the high-pass cutoff frequency, reducing the low-end of a sound. With a negative amount setting, pressing the keys harder will decrease the high-pass cutoff frequency allowing more low frequencies to pass.
Controlling the low-pass or high-pass lter frequency with Aftertouch may or may not have an audible effect, depending on the cutoff frequency of the lter.
Prophet-6 Operation Manual
Aftertouch
61

Exporting Programs and Banks

You can use the pgm dump command in the globals section to transmit the current program, bank, or all banks in SysEx format via the selected MIDI port. This allows you to save your programs so that you can share them or archive them.
To export a program or bank as a SysEx le over MIDI:
1. Press the globals button once (this enables the upper set of parameters)
then press program selector 8 to select the midi sysex command.
2. Use the bank/decrement and tens/increment buttons to select the
appropriate MIDI port — MIDI (MID) or USB (usb).
3. Press globals a second time (this enables the lower set of parameters)
then press program selector 8 to select the pgm dump command. The
write button begins ashing.
4. Use the bank/decrement and tens/increment buttons to select the
desired option — program (PRO), tens (ten), bank (ban), user banks (USR), all (all).
5. Press write. The program or bank is exported.
Dumped programs will load back into the same bank and program location in memory when received by the Prophet-6 via MIDI.
Exporting Programs and Banks
62
Sequential

Calibrating the Prophet-6

The Prophet-6 is calibrated at the factory. Controls such as the pitch and mod wheels shouldn’t require re-calibration. However, because its oscil-
lators and lters are voltage controlled and can be affected by extremes
of temperature, you may need to use the built-in calibration function to tune them occasionally.

How and When to Calibrate the Oscillators and Filters

The rst time you use the Prophet-6, please run its built-in oscillator and lter calibration procedure. Let it warm up for several minutes and come
to its normal operating temperature before doing so.
Repeat the calibration procedure as needed over the next few days of use. The Prophet-6 learns the range of temperatures at your location and will keep itself in tune over this range.
Later, if you use the Prophet-6 in a different environment that is measur­ably warmer or cooler (on stage, in an air-conditioned studio, and so on) run the calibration procedure again.
To calibrate the oscillators and lters:
1. Hold down the preset button and press 0.
2. The front panel LEDs and display begin ashing as the Prophet-6 performs its auto-calibration procedure. Don’t turn off the power while it’s doing this.
3. When nished, the front panel controls will return to normal and you can play the Prophet-6 again.
Prophet-6 Operation Manual
Calibrating the Prophet-6
63

Calibrating the Pitch and Mod Wheels

In general, the Pitch and Mod wheels shouldn’t require re-calibration. However, if you experience what seems like a persistent problem with either of them, the Prophet-6 has built-in auto-calibration procedure that you can use to remedy the problem.
To calibrate the Pitch and Mod wheel’s low position:
1. Rotate and hold both wheels in their low position.
2. Hold down the preset button and press 7.
To calibrate the Pitch wheel’s center position:
• With the Pitch wheel centered, hold down the preset button and press 8.
To calibrate the Pitch and Mod wheel’s high position:
1. Rotate and hold both wheels in their high position.
2. Hold down the preset button and press 9.

Resetting the Global Parameters

If you’re trying to track down a problem, it’s sometimes a good idea to reset the Global parameters to their defaults. This is a quick way to make sure that the Prophet-6 returns to its factory settings.
To reset all Global parameters to their default settings:
• Hold down the global button and press write.
Calibrating the Prophet-6
64
Sequential

Using USB

The Prophet-6’s USB 2.0 port enables bidirectional MIDI communica­tion with a computer. A MIDI interface and MIDI cables are not neces­sary, just a USB cable. The Prophet-6 is a Class Compliant USB device. That means it does not require any additional drivers to be installed to communicate with a Mac or Windows computer. The Prophet-6 transmits and receives MIDI data via USB, but does not transmit audio.
MIDI In and USB should not be used at the same time, as overlapping messages from different sources may cause the Prophet-6 to respond unpredictably. MIDI Out and USB can be used at the same time and transmit the same data.
USB Notes
Under Mac OS X, “Prophet-6 Keyboard” will appear as a MIDI port
when connected via USB and can be congured using the Mac’s Audio
MIDI Setup utility (typically found in Applications/Utilities).
Under Windows, the rst time the Prophet-6 is connected via USB, the
“Found new hardware” alert appears and it is automatically installed as “Prophet-6 Keyboard.”
In Windows, if you unplug the USB cable and plug it back in while a program has the Prophet-6 port open, you may have to resync. That
usually means going to the Prophet-6 Keyboard Properties — in the
Windows Device Manager under “Sound, video, and game controllers” — and clicking OK. If Prophet-6 Keyboard is no longer listed in the Device Manager, power the Prophet-6 down and back up again while it is connected via USB. It should be detected on power up.
Prophet-6 Operation Manual
Using USB
65
Performing OS Updates in a Poly­Chained System
In a poly-chained system, updating the operating systems of both synths can be done in tandem. This requires connecting the two synths as
described below. Note that the OS update must be passed to the rst
Prophet-6 using its midi in port. You cannot use the USB port to perform the OS update in this case.
To enable two poly-chained Prophet-6s to be updated in tandem:
1. With a MIDI cable, connect your MIDI interface to the midi in port of
the rst Prophet-6.
2. Connect the rear-panel midi thru of the rst Prophet-6 to the midi in of the second Prophet-6.
3. Perform the OS update in the normal way. See the instructions included with the OS update for step-by-step instructions.

Performing OS Updates in a Poly-Chained System

66
Sequential
Prophet-6 Operation Manual
67

Appendix A: Alternative Tunings

By default, the Prophet-6 is set to standard, chromatic western tuning. Additionally it supports up to 16 additional alternative tunings, which you can access using the alt tuning button in the globals section.
From the factory, the Prophet-6 ships with 16 preset alternative tunings ranging from Equal temperament to Indonesian Gamelan tunings. If you
want, you can replace these with other tunings that you can nd on the
Internet. These must be in SysEx format. You can download them into the Prophet-6 using SysEx Librarian for Mac or MIDI-OX for Windows.
Here are descriptions of the default alternative tunings:
Nor (Normal) 12 Tone Equal Temperament (non-erasable)
The default Western tuning, based on the twelfth root of two.
1. Harmonic Series
MIDI notes 36-95 reect harmonics 2 through 60 based on the funda­mental of A = 27.5 Hz. The low C on a standard 5 octave keyboard acts as the root note (55Hz), and the harmonics play upwards from there. The
remaining keys above and below the 5 octave range are lled with the
same intervals as Carlos’ Harmonic 12 Tone that follows.
2. Carlos Harmonic Twelve Tone
Wendy Carlos’ twelve note scale based on octave-repeating harmonics. A = 1/1 (440 Hz). 1/1 17/16 9/8 19/16 5/4 21/16 11/8 3/2 13/8 27/16 7/4 15/8
3. Meantone Temperament
An early tempered tuning, with better thirds than 12ET. Sounds best in the key of C. Use this to add an authentic touch to performances of early Baroque music. C=1/1 (260 Hz)
4. 1/4 Tone Equal Temperament
24 notes per octave, equally spaced 24root2 intervals. Mexican composer Julian Carillo used this for custom-built pianos in the early 20th century.
Appendix A: Alternative Tunings
68
Sequential
5. 19 Tone Equal Temperament
19 notes per octave (19root2) offering better thirds than 12 ET, a better
overall compromise if you can gure out the keyboard patterns.
6. 31 Tone Equal Temperament
Many people consider 31root2 to offer the best compromise towards just intonation in an equal temperament, but it can get very tricky to keep track of the intervals.
7. Pythagorean C
One of the earliest tuning systems known from history, the Pythagorean
scale is constructed from an upward series of pure fths (3/2) transposed
down into a single octave. The tuning works well for monophonic melo-
dies against fth drones, but has a very narrow palate of good chords to
choose from. C=1/1 (261.625 Hz)
1/1 256/243 9/8 32/27 81/64 4/3 729/512 3/2 128/81 27/16 16/9 243/128
8. Just Intonation in A with 7-limit Tritone at D#
A rather vanilla 5-limit small interval JI, except for a single 7/5 tritone at D#, which offers some nice possibilities for rotating around bluesy sevenths. A=1/1 (440 Hz) 1/1 16/15 9/8 6/5 5/4 7/5 3/2 8/5 5/3 9/5 15/8
9. 3-5 Lattice in A
A pure 3 and 5-limit tuning which resolves to very symmetrical derived relationships between notes. A=1/1 (440 Hz)
1/1 16/15 10/9 6/5 5/4 4/3 64/45 3/2 8/5 5/3 16/9 15/8
10. 3-7 Lattice in A
A pure 3 and 7-limit tuning which resolves to very symmetrical derived relationships between notes. Some of the intervals are very close together, offering several choices for the same nominal chords. A=1/1 (440 Hz)
1/1 9/8 8/7 7/6 9/7 21/16 4/3 3/2 32/21 12/7 7/4 63/32
Prophet-6 Operation Manual
Appendix A: Alternative Tunings
69
11. Other Music 7-Limit Black Keys in C
Created by the group Other Music for their homemade gamelan, this offers a wide range of interesting chords and modes. C=1/1 (261.625 Hz)
1/1 15/14 9/8 7/6 5/4 4/3 7/5 3/2 14/9 5/3 7/4 15/8
12. Dan Schmidt Pelog/Slendro
Created for the Berkeley Gamelan group, this tuning ts an Indonesian-
style heptatonic Pelog on the white keys and pentatonic Slendro on the black keys, with B and Bb acting as 1/1 for their respective modes. Note that some of the notes will have the same frequency. By tuning the 1/1 to 60 Hz, Dan found a creative way to incorporate the inevitable line hum into his scale. Bb, B = 1/1 (60 Hz)
1/1 1/1 9/8 7/6 5/4 4/3 11/8 3/2 3/2 7/4 7/4 15/8
13. Yamaha Just Major C
When Yamaha decided to put preset microtunings into their FM synth product line, they selected this and the following tuning as representative just intonations. As such, they became the de-facto introduction to JI for many people. Just Major gives preferential treatment to major thirds on the sharps, and a good fourth relative to the second. C= 1/1 (261.625)
1/1 16/15 9/8 6/5 5/4 4/3 45/32 3/2 8/5 5/3 16/9 15/8
14. Yamaha Just Minor C
Similar to Yamaha’s preset Just Major, the Just Minor gives preferential
treatment to minor thirds on the sharps, and has a good fth relative to
the second. C= 1/1 (261.625) 1/1 25/24 10/9 6/5 5/4 4/3 45/32 3/2 8/5 5/3 16/9 15/8
Appendix A: Alternative Tunings
70
Sequential
15. Harry Partch 11-limit 43 Note Just Intonation
One of the pioneers of modern microtonal composition, Partch built
a unique orchestra with this tuning during the rst half of the 20th
century, to perform his own compositions. The large number of intervals in this very dense scale offers a full vocabulary of expressive chords
and complex key changes. The narrow spacing also allows xed-
pitched instruments like marimbas and organs to perform glissando-like passages. G = 1/1 (392 Hz, MIDI note 67)
1/1 81/80 33/32 21/20 16/15 12/11 11/10 10/9 9/8 8/7 7/6 32/27 6/5 11/9 5/4 14/11 9/7 21/16 4/3 27/20 11/8 7/5 10/7 16/11 40/27 3/2 32/21 14/9 11/7 8/5 18/11 5/3 27/16 12/7 7/4 16/9 9/5 20/11 11/6 15/8 40/21 64/33 160/81
16. Arabic 12-Tone
A 12-tone approximation of an Arabic scale, which appears in some elec­tronic keyboards designed for use with Arabic music. Not a JI scale, nor equal tempered. These are the intervals in Cents relative to C:
60 = Cents 0.
61 = Cents +151.
62 = Cents +204.
63 = Cents +294.
64 = Cents +355.
65 = Cents +498.
66 = Cents +649.
67 = Cents +702.
68 = Cents +853.
69 = Cents +906.
70 = Cents +996.
71 = Cents +1057.
72 = Cents +1200
Prophet-6 Operation Manual
Appendix A: Alternative Tunings
71

Appendix C: MIDI Implementation

The Prophet-6 receives MIDI data according to the settings you have chosen in the global settings. In addition, there is interaction between some of the Program parameters that determine the overall response of Prophet-6 to MIDI data. Following are the Global parameters that affect response to MIDI:
MIDI Channel: All, 116Selects which MIDI channel to send and
receive data, 1 to 16. All receives on all 16 channels.
MIDI Clock: Sets the Prophet-6’s ability to send and receive MIDI clock
messages:
Off: MIDI Clock is neither sent nor received
Out: MIDI Clock is sent, but not received
In: MIDI Clock is received, but not sent
• Slave Thru (i-0): MIDI Clock is received and passed to MIDI Out
• In, No Start/Stop (n55): Receives MIDI Clock but does not respond to
MIDI Start or Stop command.
When set to in or slave thru, if no MIDI clock is present at the selected input,
the arpeggiator and sequencer will not function.
Clock Port: MID, USBSets the port(s), MIDI or USB, by which MIDI
clock signals are received.
Param Xmit: Off, CC, NRChanges to the values of front panel controls
are transmitted via MIDI as Continuous Controllers (CC) or Non-registered Parameter Number (NR). Transmission of parameters can also be turned off.
NRPNs are the preferred method of parameter transmission, since they cover
the complete range of all parameters, while CCs are limited to a range of 128.
Param Rcv: Off, CC, NRSets the method by which parameter changes are
received via MIDI. As with transmission, NRPNs are the preferred method.
Appendix C: MIDI Implementation
72
Sequential
MIDI Control: Off, OnWhen On, the synth will respond to MIDI
controllers, including Pitch Wheel, Mod Wheel, Pedal, Volume.
MIDI Sysex: MID, USBWhen set to MIDI (MID) it will receive and
transmit them using the MIDI ports/cables When set to USB it will receive and transmit them using the USB port/cable. MIDI SysEx messages are used when sending and receiving a variety of data includ­ing, programs, alternative tunings, system updates, and more.
MIDI Out: MID, USBSets the port by which MIDI data will be transmit-
ted (MIDI or USB)..

MIDI Messages

System Real-Time Messages
Status Description
1111 1000 MIDI Timing Clock
Received Channel Messages
Status Second Third Description
1000 nnnn 0kkkkkkk 0vvvvvvv Note Off. Velocity is ignored
1001 nnnn 0kkkkkkk 0vvvvvvv Note On. Note off if vvvvvvv = 0
1010 nnnn 0kkkkkkk 0vvvvvvv Polyphonic Key Pressure
1011 nnnn 0vvvvvvv 0vvvvvvv Control Change; see “Received Controller Messages”
1100 nnnn 0ppppppp Program change, 0-99 for Programs 1-100 within
1101 nnnn 0vvvvvvv Channel Pressure
1110 nnnn 0vvvvvvv 0vvvvvvv Pitch Bend LS Byte then MS Byte
current Bank
Notes: 0kkkkkkk Note number 0 — 127 nnnn Channel number 0 to 15 (MIDI channel 1-16). Ignored if MIDI channel set to ALL 0vvvvvvv Value
Prophet-6 Operation Manual
Appendix C: MIDI Implementation
73
Received Controller Messages
Status Second Third Description
1011 nnnn 1 0vvvvvvv Mod Wheel: directly assignable controller
1011 nnnn 4 0vvvvvvv Foot Controller: directly assignable controller
1011 nnnn 7 0vvvvvvv Volume: Combined with Master Volume and Voice
1011 nnnn 74 0vvvvvvv Brightness: Added to low-pass lter cutoff frequency
1011 nnnn 32 0vvvvvvv Bank Select: 0 - 4 select user banks 0 - 4; 5 - 9 select
1011 nnnn 64 0vvvvvvv Damper pedal: Holds envelopes in Sustain if 0100 0000
1011 nnnn 123 0vvvvvvv All Notes Off: Clear all MIDI notes
1011 nnnn 121 0vvvvvvv Reset All Controllers: Clears all MIDI controllers to 0,
Volume
factory banks 0 - 4; others ignored
or higher
MIDI volume to maximum
See sections below for additional Continuous Controller (CC) and Non­registered Parameter Number (NRPN) messages received.
Transmitted Channel Messages
Status Second Third Description
1000 nnnn 0kkkkkkk 0000000 Note Off.
1001 nnnn 0kkkkkkk 0vvvvvvv Note On.
1011 nnnn 0vvvvvvv 0vvvvvvv Control Change; see “Transmitted Controller Messages”
1100 nnnn 0ppppppp Program change, 0-99 for Programs 00-99 within
1101 nnnn 0vvvvvvv Channel Pressure
1110 nnnn 0vvvvvvv 0vvvvvvv Pitch Bend LS Byte then MS Byte
current Bank
Notes: 0kkkkkkk Note number 0 — 127 nnnn Channel number 0 to 15 (MIDI channel 1-16). Ignored if MIDI channel set to ALL 0vvvvvvv Value
Appendix C: MIDI Implementation
74
Sequential
Transmitted Controller Messages
Status Second Third Description
1011 nnnn 0000 0001 0vvvvvvv Mod Wheel
1011 nnnn 0000 0100 0vvvvvvv Foot Controller: When assigned to Pedal 1 or Pedal 2
1011 nnnn 0000 0111 0vvvvvvv Volume: When assigned to Pedal 1 or Pedal 2
1011 nnnn 0100 1010 0vvvvvvv Brightness: When assigned to Pedal 1 or Pedal 2
1011 nnnn 0010 0000 0vvvvvvv Bank Select: 0 - 9
1011 nnnn 0100 0000 0vvvvvvv Damper pedal: Sends 0 if off, 0111 1111 when on
1011 nnnn 0000 0111 0vvvvvvv Volume knob
See sections that follow for additional Continuous Controller (CC) and Non-registered Parameter Number (NRPN) messages transmitted.
Prophet-6 Operation Manual
Appendix C: MIDI Implementation
75
Additional Continuous Controllers Transmitted/Received
The following table details how MIDI Continuous Controllers (CCs) are mapped to Prophet-6 controls. They are transmitted when Param Xmit is set to CC, and recognized/received when MIDI Rcv Receive is set to CC.
CC# Param
0
Bank Select MSB
1
Mod Wheel
3
BPM
4
Foot Controller
5
Glide Mode
6
Data Enttry MSB
7
MIDI Volume
8
Sub Osc Level
9
Distortion Amount
38
Data Entry LSB
39
Volume LSB
40
VCA Env Amt
41
VCA Env Vel Amt
43
VCA Env Attack
44
VCA Env Decay
45
VCA Env Sustain
46
VCA Env Release
47
Low-pass Env Amt
50
Filter Env Attack
51
Filter Env Decay
52
Filter Env Sustain
53
Filter Env Release
54
High-pass Env Amt
58
Arp On/Off
59
Arp Mode
60
Arp Range
62
Arp Time Signature
64
Damper Pedal
65
Glide On/Off
67
Osc 1 Freq
69
Osc 1 Level
70
Osc 1 Shape
CC# Param
71
Osc 1 Pulse Width
74
Brightness
75
Osc 2 Freq
76
Osc 2 Freq Fine
77
Osc 2 Level
78
Osc 2 Shape
79
Osc 2 Pulse Width
96
Data Increment
97
Data Decrement
98
NRPN Param LSB
99
NRPN Param MSB
100
RPN Param LSB
101
RPN Param MSB
102
Low-pass Freq
103
Low-pass Resonance
104
Low-pass Key Amt
105
Low-pass Vel On/Off
106
High-pass Freq
107
High-pass Resonance
108
High-pass Key Amt
109
High-pass Vel On/Off
120
All Sound Off
120
Reset Controllers
121
Reset Controllers
122
Local Control On/Off
123
All Notes Off
124
Omni Mode Off
125
Omni Mode On
126
Mono Mode On
127
Poly Mode On
Appendix C: MIDI Implementation
76
Sequential

NRPN Messages

The Non-Registered Parameter Number (NRPN) MIDI messages are used to transmit and receive both global and program parameters. They are transmitted when MIDI Parameter Send is set to NRPN in Global, and received when MIDI Parameter Receive is set to NRPN in Global.
The messages are handled in standard MIDI format using the NRPN CC commands in running status byte format. Below is the format used for transmitting a NRPN parameter.
Transmitted NRPN Messages
Status Description
1011 nnnn Control Change
0110 0011 NRPN parameter number MSB CC
0vvv vvvv Parameter Number MSB
0110 0010 NRPN parameter number LSB CC
0vvv vvvv Parameter Number LSB
0000 0110 NRPN parameter value MSB CC
0vvv vvvv Parameter value MSB
0010 0110 NRPN parameter value LSB CC
0vvv vvvv Parameter value LSB
The parameter number can be found in the two tables below, one for Global parameters, and the other for Program parameters. The parameter numbers and the parameter values are broken into two 7-bit bytes for
MIDI transmission; the LSB has the seven least-signicant bits, and the MSB has the seven most-signicant bits, though in most cases the MSB
will be zero or one, and never more than two.
When receiving an NRPN, all messages do not necessarily need to be transmitted, since the synth will track the most recent NRPN number, though it is usually good practice to send the entire message above.
Once an NRPN is selected, the synth will also respond to NRPN Data Increment and Decrement commands, which some controllers utilize. Finally, it responds to one RPN (Registered Parameter Number) command, the RPN/NRPN Reset command, which can be handy for resetting the currently selected parameter to a known state.
Prophet-6 Operation Manual
Appendix C: MIDI Implementation
77
Received NRPN Messages
Status Second Third Description
1011 nnnn 0110 0011 0vvvvvvv NRPN parameter number MSB CC
1011 nnnn 0110 0010 0vvvvvvv NRPN parameter number LSB CC
1011 nnnn 0000 0110 0vvvvvvv NRPN parameter value MSB CC
1011 nnnn 0010 0110 0vvvvvvv NRPN parameter value LSB CC
1011 nnnn 0110 0000 0xxxxxxx NRPN parameter value Increment
1011 nnnn 0110 0001 0xxxxxxx NRPN parameter value Decrement
1011 nnnn 0010 0101 0111111 RPN parameter number MSB CC - Reset NRPN param-
eter number (when both MSB and LSB received)
1011 nnnn 0010 0100 0111111 RPN parameter number LSB CC - Reset NRPN param-
eter number (when both MSB and LSB received)
Global Parameter Data
The table shows the Global data sent and received on global parameter dumps, and corresponding NRPN number when sent/received individually.
NRPN Range Description
1024 0-100 Master Fine Tune
1025 0-24 Master Coarse Tune
1026 0-16 MIDI Channel
0 = All
1027 0-3 MIDI Clock Mode
0 = Off 1 = Master 2 = Slave 3 = Slave Thru
1028 0-1 MIDI Clock Port
0 = MIDI Port 1 = USB
1029 0-2 MIDI Param Send*
0 = NRPN 1 = CC 2= Off
1030 0-2 MIDI Param Receive†
0 = NRPN 1 = CC 2= Off
1031 0-1 MIDI Control Enable
0 = Off 1 = On
1032 0-1 MIDI SysEx Enable
0 = Off 1 = On
*Controller received, but not transmitted. †Controller transmitted, but ignored when received.
NRPN Range Description
1033 0-3 MIDI Out Select
0 = Off 1 = MIDI 2 = USB 3 = MIDI+USB
1035 0-1 Local Control*
0 = Off 1 = On
1037 0-2 Pot Mode
0 = Relative 1= PassThru 2 = Jump
1039 0-3 Seq Jack
0 = normal 1= trigger 2= gate 3= trigger+gate
1040 0-3
Sustain Polarity 0 = normally open 1= normally closed 2= Sustain Normally Open/
Sequencer Normally Closed 3= Sustain Normally Closed/ Sequencer Normally Open
1041 0-3 Velocity Response
1042 0-3 Aftertouch Response
1043 0-1 Mono/Stereo
0 = Stereo 1 = Mono
1044 0-16 Alt Tuning
Appendix C: MIDI Implementation
78
Sequential
Program Parameter Data
The following table lists Prophet-6’s program parameters.
NRPN Value Description
0 0-60 Osc 1 Freq
1 0-1 Osc 1 Sync
2 0-127 Osc 1 Level
3 0-254 Osc 1 Shape
4 0-255 Osc 1 Pulse Width
5 0-60 Osc 2 Freq
6 0-254 Osc 2 Freq Fine
7 0-127 Osc 2 Level
8 0-254 Osc 2 Shape
9 0-255 Osc 2 Pulse Width
10 0-1 Osc 2 Low Freq
11 0-1 Osc 2 Key On/Off
27 0-127 Osc 1 Sub Level
28 0 -3 Glide Mode
29 0-1 Glide On/Off
30 0-127 Glide Rate
31 0-24 Pbend Range
32 0-127 Noise Level
33 0-127 Slop
45 0-164 Low-pass Freq
46 0-255 Low-pass Res
47 0-2 Low-pass Key Amt
48 0-1 Low-pass Vel On
49 0-164 High-pass Freq
50 0-255 High-pass Res
51 0-2 High-pass Key Amt
52 0-1 High-pass Vel On
62 0-127 Voice Volume
63 0-127 Pan Spread
64 0-127 Distortion Amt
66 0-127 VCA Env Amt
67 0-127 VCA Env Attack
NRPN Value Description
68 0-127 VCA Env Decay
69 0-127 VCA Env Sustain
70 0-127 VCA Env Release
71 0-1 VCA Env Vel On/Off
77 0-254 Low-pass Env Amt
78 0-127 Filter Env Attack
79 0-127 Filter Env Decay
80 0-127 Filter Env Sustain
81 0-127 Filter Env Release
82 0-254 High-pass Env Amt
88 0-254 LFO Freq
89 0-255 LFO Initial Amt
90 0-4 LFO Shape
91 0-1 LFO Sync
93 0-1 LFO Freq 1
Dest On/Off
94 0-1 LFO Freq 2
Dest On/Off
95 0-1 LFO PW 1, 2
Dest On/Off
96 0-1 LFO Amp Dest
On/Off,
97 0-1 LFO Low-pass
Dest On/Off
98 0-1 LFO High-pass
Dest On/Off
109 0-254 Pressure Amt
110 0-1 Pressure Freq 1
Dest On/Off
111 0-1 Pressure Freq 2
Dest On/Off
112 0-1 Pressure Low-pass
Dest On/Off
113 0-1 Pressure High-pass
Dest On/Off
114 0-1 Pressure VCA
Dest On/Off
Prophet-6 Operation Manual
Appendix C: MIDI Implementation
79
NRPN Value Description
115 0-1 Pressure LFO Amt
Dest On/Off
119 0-5 FX 1 Select
120 0-127 FX 1 Mix
121 0-255 FX 1 Param 1
122 0-127 FX 1 Param 2
123 0-1 FX 1 Sync
127 0-9 FX 2 Select
128 0-127 FX 2 Mix
129 0-255 FX 2 Param 1
130 0-127 FX 2 Param 2
131 0-1 FX 2 Sync
135 0-1 FX On/Off
143 0-254 PolyMod Filter Env
Amt
144 0-254 PolyMod Osc 2 Amt
145 0-1 PolyMod Freq 1
Dest On/Off
146 0-1 PolyMod Shape 1
Dest On/Off
147 0-1 PolyMod PW
1 Dest On/Off
148 0-1 PolyMod Low-Pass
Dest On/Off
149 0-1 PolyMod High-Pass
Dest On/Off,
156 0-1 Unison On/Off
157 0-6 Unison Mode
158 0-5 Key Mode
160 0-1 Arp On/Off
161 0-4 Arp mode
162 0-2 Arp Range
163 0-9 Arp Tim Sig
167 30-250 BPM
168 0-1 Seq On/Off
169 0-63 Seq Length
170 0-1 Seq Mode
171 0-1 Seq Play Mode
NRPN Value Description
236-255 32 - 125 Name 0-19
256-319 12-108 Seq Step 1-64
Note 1
320-383 0-127 Seq Step 1-64 Vel 1
384-447 12-108 Seq Step 1-64
Note 2
448-511 0-127 Seq Step 1-64 Vel 2
512-575 12-108 Seq Step 1-64
Note 3
576-639 0-127 Seq Step 1-64 Vel 3
640-703 12-108 Seq Step 1-64
Note 4
704-767 0-127 Seq Step 1-64 Vel 4
768-831 12-108 Seq Step 1-64
Note 5
832-895 0-127 Seq Step 1-64 Vel 5
896-959 12-108 Seq Step 1-64
Note 6
960-1023 0-127 Seq Step 1-64 Vel 6
1024 0-100 Tuning Fine
1025 0-24 Tuning Coarse
1026 0-16 MIDI Channel
1027 0-4 MIDI Clock
1028 0-1 MIDI Clock Port
1029 0-2 MIDI Param Send
1030 0-2 MIDI Param Receive
1031 0-1 MIDI MIDI Control
1032 0-1 MIDI SysEx Control
1033 0-1 MIDI Out
1035 0-1 Local Control
1037 0-2 Pot Mode
1039 0-3 Seq Jack
1040 0-3 Sustain Polarity
1041 0-3 Velocity Response
1042 0-3 At Response
1043 0-1 Stereo Mono
1044 0-16 Alt Tuning
Appendix C: MIDI Implementation
80
Sequential

Control NRPN Data

The following table lists the Prophet-6’s control NRPN data. It is received and transmitted but not saved as part of a program.
NRPN Value Description
1088 0-1 Seq Play/Stop *
1 0-1 Osc 1 Sync
2 0-127 Osc 1 Level
3 0-254 Osc 1 Shape
*Only available in normal Seq jack mode.

Sysex Messages

Universal System Exclusive Message (Device Inquiry)
Status Description
1111 0000 System Exclusive (SysEx)
0111 1110 Non-realtime message
0vvv vvvv If MIDI channel is set to 1 - 16, 0vvvvvvv must match (unless MIDI Channel = ALL); always
0000 0110 Inquiry Message
0000 0001 Inquiry Request
1111 0 111 End of Exclusive (EOX)
responds if 0vvvvvvv = 0111 1111.
The Prophet-6 responds with:
Status Description
1111 0000 System Exclusive (SysEx)
0111 1110 Non-realtime message
0vvv vvvv If MIDI Channel = ALL, 0vvvvvvv = 0111 1111. Otherwise 0vvvvvvv = Channel Number
0000 0110 Inquiry Message
0000 0010 Inquiry Reply
0000 0001 DSI ID
0010 1101 Prophet-6 ID (Family LS)
0000 0001 Family MS
0000 0000 Family Member LS
0000 0000 Family Member MS
0jjj nnnn Main Software version: jjj - Minor rev; nnnn - Major rev
1111 0 111 End of Exclusive (EOX)
Prophet-6 Operation Manual
0 - 15.
Appendix C: MIDI Implementation
81
Request Program Dump
Status Description
1111 0000 System Exclusive (SysEx)
0000 0001 DSI ID
0010 1101 Prophet-6 ID
0000 0101 Request Program Transmit
0000 00vv Bank Number, 0 - 9
0vvv vvvv Program Number, 0 - 99
1111 0 111 End of Exclusive (EOX)
The Prophet-6 will respond by sending out the Program Data in the format described below in Program Data Dump.
Request Program Edit Buffer Dump
Status Description
1111 0000 System Exclusive (SysEx)
0000 0001 DSI ID
0010 1101 Prophet-6 ID
0000 0110 Request Program Edit Buffer Transmit
1111 0 111 End of Exclusive (EOX)
The Prophet-6 will respond by sending out the current Program edit buffer in the format described below in Program Edit Buffer Data Dump.
Request Global Parameter Dump
Status Description
1111 0000 System Exclusive (SysEx)
0000 0001 DSI ID
0010 1101 Prophet-6 ID
0000 1110 Request Global Parameter Transmit
1111 0 111 End of Exclusive (EOX)
The Prophet-6 will respond by sending out the current values of Global Parameters in the format described in Global Parameters Data Dump.
Appendix C: MIDI Implementation
82
Sequential
Program Data Dump
Status Description
1111 0000 System Exclusive (SysEx)
0000 0001 DSI ID
0010 1101 Prophet-6 ID
0000 0010 Program Data
0000 00vv Bank Number: 0 - 9
0vvv vvvv Program Number: 0 - 99
0vvv vvvv 1024 bytes expanded to 1171 MIDI bytes in “packed MS bit” format
1111 0 111 End of Exclusive (EOX)
Program Edit Buffer Data Dump
Status Description
1111 0000 System Exclusive (SysEx)
0000 0001 - ID
0010 1101 Prophet-6 ID
0000 0011 Edit Buffer Data
0vvv vvvv 1024 bytes expanded to 1171 MIDI bytes in “packed MS bit” format
1111 0 111 End of Exclusive (EOX)
Global Parameters Data Dump
Value Description
1111 0000 System Exclusive (SysEx)
0000 0001 DSI ID
0010 1101 Prophet-6 ID
0000 1111 Main Parameter Data
0vvv vvvv 50 nibbles (LS then MS) for 25 Global parameters
1111 0 111 End of Exclusive (EOX)
The Global Parameters Data Dump is not recognized when received; it is only
transmitted when requested. NRPN messages are used to change Globals.
Prophet-6 Operation Manual
Appendix C: MIDI Implementation
83

Packed Data Format

Data is packed in 8 byte “packets”, with the MS bit stripped from 7 param­eter bytes, and packed into an eighth byte, which is sent at the start of the 8 byte packet.
Example:
Input Data Packed MIDI data
1 A7 A6 A5 A4 A3 A2 A1 A0 1 00 G7 F7 E7 D7 C7 B7 A7 2 B7 B6 B5 B4 B3 B2 B1 B0 2 00 A6 A5 A4 A3 A2 A1 A0 3 C7 C6 C5 C4 C3 C2 C1 C0 3 00 B6 B5 B4 B3 B2 B1 B0 4 D7 D6 D5 D4 D3 D2 D1 D0 4 00 C6 C5 C4 C3 C2 C1 C0 5 E7 E6 E5 E4 E3 E2 E1 E0 5 00 D6 D5 D4 D3 D2 D1 D0 6 F7 F6 F5 F4 F3 F2 F1 F0 6 00 E6 E5 E4 E3 E2 E1 E0 7 G7 G6 G5 G4 G3 G2 G1 G0 7 00 F6 F5 F4 F3 F2 F1 F0 8 00 G6 G5 G4 G3 G2 G1 G0
This explains why it takes 1171 MIDI bytes to transmit 1024 Program data bytes.

Appendix D: Support

Troubleshooting

Here are a few suggestions for resolving problems that may occur.
The sequencer or arpeggiator has stopped running.
Check the Clock settings (Global button 3) to ensure the Prophet-6 is set to Out or, if set to In, make sure the Prophet-6 is receiving MIDI clock.
Some of the programs sound different than before.
Check the Mod Wheel position. The Mod Wheel can do a lot more than just add vibrato. Also, check the Clock settings (Global button 3) to ensure the Prophet-6 is set to Out or, if set to In, make sure the Prophet-6 is receiving MIDI clock.
There is a ground hum in the audio output.
USB can cause ground loops, so try to resolve any grounding issues between the computer and the Prophet-6. Or use MIDI, which is opto­isolated.
Appendix D: Support
84
Sequential
The Prophet-6 is behaving erratically.
This is almost always caused by a MIDI data loop. Make sure that any MIDI Thru functionality is turned off on the MIDI interface/hardware or in the MIDI software application (sequencer or whatever). Disconnect
all the Prophet-6’s MIDI connections—MIDI and USB cables—and see if the problem persists. You can also monitor the MIDI trafc with MIDI
Monitor (Mac OS) or MIDI-OX (Windows) to see if the Prophet-6 is being overrun with duplicate messages.
MIDI System Exclusive data is not be transmitted/received.
Check the SysEx settings to make sure the correct port is selected (MID,
USB) using Global button 8.
The Prophet-6 plays out of tune.
Check Master Tune (Global button 1). If it seems correct, calibrate the
oscillators and lters.
To calibrate the oscillators and lters:
1. Hold down the  button and press 0.
2. e front panel LEDs and display begin ashing as the Prophet-6 performs its auto-calibration procedure. Don’t turn o the power while it’s doing this.
3. When nished, the front panel controls will return to normal and you can play the Prophet-6 again.
. It is not necessary to run the calibration routine on a regular basis. You should only
run it if you are experiencing problems.
Prophet-6 Operation Manual
Appendix D: Support
85

Recovering from a Failed OS Udate

In very rare cases, the Prophet-6 OS might fail to load correctly when you update. There is now a safe and easy way to recover in such situa­tions. The Prophet-6 is now equipped with a MIDI boot loader, which will allow you to reload the OS in the event the you accidentally “brick” your synth (permanently freeze it) while updating its OS.
To restore your Prophet-6 if it is frozen.
1. Power on the Prophet-6 while holding the write switch to enter boot loader mode. You’ll see an animation in the main display.
2. Use a MIDI cable (not USB) to transmit the new OS to your synth. You must use a standard MIDI cable for this. USB MIDI doesn’t work in boot loader mode.
3. As the OS loads, you will see the main display count backwards from
999. When it gets to 0, another countdown will begin between the main display and the effects parameter 1 display. Do not power down until
this countdown has nished. The Prophet-6 will restart itself when it is
done.
If your Prophet-6 is currently equipped with OS 1.2 (which is included with Prophet-6 serial numbers #2415 and later) you cannot downgrade to an OS version earlier than 1.2. If you try, your Prophet-6 will freeze. If this happens, you can enter recovery mode by holding the write button while powering up as described above. You can then update your synth to the latest OS via MIDI DIN (not USB).
Appendix D: Support
86
Sequential

Contacting Technical Support

If you are still having a problem with the Prophet-6, contact Technical Support at support@sequential.com. Please include your Prophet-6’s serial number, the version of the operating system (displayed on startup), and the purchase date.
If you have not already reset the Global parameters and run the calibration routines (see Troubleshooting, above), you should do it before contacting Technical
Support. It’s probably the rst thing they’ll ask you to do.

Warranty Repair

Sequential warrants that the Prophet-6 will be free from defects in materials and/or workmanship for 1 year from the date of purchase. Please register your product online at www.sequential.com to establish the date of purchase. (This is not a requirement for warranty service, but it will help expedite the process.)
Please contact support@sequential.com to determine the best course of action for getting your Prophet-6 repaired. For your own protection, as well as ours, please do not return any product to Sequential without a return authorization (RA) number. To issue an RA number, Technical Support needs:
• Your name
• Your return address
• Your email address
• A phone number where you can be reached
• Your Prophet-6’s serial number
• The date of purchase and where purchased
If you need to return your instrument for repair, you are responsible for getting it to Sequential. We highly recommend insuring it and packing in the original packaging. Damage resulting from shipping a product with
insufcient packaging is not covered by warranty.
Prophet-6 Operation Manual
Appendix D: Support
87
Sequential LLC
1527 Stockton Street, 3rd Floor
San Francisco, CA 94133
USA
www.sequential.com
DSI-10079R - 2/19
Loading...