Waldorf Waldorf Q, Q Rack, Q User manual

User´s Manual

for the Q Synthesizer

Q Keyboard/Q Rack/Q+

➤

Vielen Dank für den Kauf dieses Waldorf Produktes. Es zeichnet sich durch
Zuverlässigkeit und Langlebigkeit aus. Dennoch können Material- oder
Verarbeitungsfehler nicht völlig ausgeschlossen werden. Daher bieten wir
Ihnen eine verlängerte Garantie. Damit Garantieleistungen in Kraft treten,
müssen Kaufrechnung und Garantiekarte vollständig ausgefüllt innerhalb
von 14 Tagen zurückgesandt werden. Diese Garantie erstreckt sich auf alle
Defekte in Material und Verarbeitung für den Zeitraum von 1 Jahr ab Kauf
des Produktes. Während der Garantiezeit ersetzt oder repariert Waldorf­Music AG das durch Waldorf-Music AG oder ein autorisiertes Service
Zentrum als defekt befundene Produkt, ohne dem Kunden Material- oder
Arbeitsaufwand in Rechnung zu stellen.
Um die Garantie in Anspruch zu nehmen, muß sich der Kunde zunächst
telefonisch mit dem zuständigen Vertrieb in Verbindung setzen. Produkte,
die ohne vorherige Absprache eingesandt werden, können nicht kostenfrei
ausgetauscht bzw. repariert werden.
Das Produkt muß frei und versichert in Originalverpackung eingesandt
werden. Detaillierte Fehlerbeschreibungen sind beizufügen. Unfrei und/oder
nicht originalverpackt eingesandte Produkte gehen ungeöffnet zurück.
Waldorf-Music AG behält sich vor, das eingesandte Produkt auf den neusten
Stand der Technik zu bringen, wenn dies erforderlich sein sollte.
Diese Garantie deckt keine Defekte ab, die durch unsachgemäße
Behandlung oder Eingriffe von unautorisierten Personen verursacht wurden
und ist beschränkt auf die Behebung von Defekten, die während der
normalen Nutzung durch Material- oder Verarbeitungsfehler aufgetreten
sind.

Thank you for choosing this Waldorf product. It is a dependable device and
is designed to last. However, the potential for defects in material or
workmanship cannot be eradicated completely. This is why we provide an
extended warranty for you.
To ensure your unit has full warranty coverage, mail the receipt and the fully
completed warranty card back within 14 days of purchase.
This warranty covers all defects in material and workmanship for a period of
one year from the date of original purchase. During this time, Waldorf­Music AG will repair or replace the product without charge for materials or
labor, provided the product was first inspected and found faulty by Waldorf­Music AG or an authorized service center. You must first contact your dealer
or distributor by telephone. Products that were mailed without prior
agreement cannot be exchanged or repaired free of charge.
The unit must be insured and sent prepared in its original package. Please
include a detailed description of the defect. Products that were not send
prepared or in the original package will be returned unopened.
Waldorf-Music AG reserves the right to upgrade the unit with the latest
technological advances if necessary.
This warranty does not cover defects due to abuse, operation under other
than specified conditions, or repair by unauthorized persons. The warranty
covers only those malfunctions caused by material or workmanship defects
that occur during normal operation.

Bitte schicken Sie die Garantiekarte vollständig ausgefüllt zusammen mit
einer Kopie der Kaufrechnung zurück, um die Produktgarantie in Anspruch
nehmen zu können.

Please fill out this warranty card completely, include a copy of the purchase
receipt and send the two items to us in order to ensure the warranty is valid.

Garantiekarte / Warranty Card

Produktgarantie / Product Warranty

✁

Produkt / Product:

Sonderausstattungen / Custom features:

Sonstige verwendete Geräte / Other used equipment:

Seriennummer / Serial number:

Kaufdatum / Purchase date:

Name Ihres Händlers / Name of your dealer:

Ort Ihres Händlers / City of your dealer:

➤

➤

➤

Waldorf-Music AG

Support Department
Schloss Ahrenthal
53489 Sinzig
Germany

Straße / Street:

PLZ, Wohnort / ZIP Code, City:

Land / Country:

Telefon / Telephone:

Email:

Name / Name:

Keyboard

Rack

S Y N T H E S I Z E R

4

Produktunterstützung / Product Support

✁

Wenn Sie Fragen zu Ihrem Waldorf Produkt haben, gibt es vier
Möglichkeiten, uns zu kontaktieren:

If you have any questions about your Waldorf product, feel free to contact us
via one of the four options listed below.

Schicken Sie uns eine E-Mail. Das ist der mit
Abstand effizienteste und schnellste Weg, uns zu
erreichen. Ihre Fragen können sofort an die
richtige Stelle weitergeleitet und innerhalb
kürzester Zeit beantwortet werden.

Senden Sie uns ein Telefax. Fast so schnell wie E­Mail, allerdings für Sie und uns weniger
komfortabel.

Schicken Sie uns einen Brief. Etwas langsamer,
dafür jedoch genauso zuverlässig wie ein
Telefax.

Und wenn es ganz dringend ist, rufen Sie uns an.
Wir versuchen, Ihre Fragen möglichst sofort zu
beantworten.

Send us an e-mail message. This is the most
efficient and fastest way to contact us. Your
questions will be forwarded immediately to the
resident expert and you will quickly receive an
answer.

Send us a fax. This is as fast as e-mail, but not
quite as comfortable for you and us.

Send us a letter. It will take a bit longer, but it is
just as dependable as a fax.

If you’re in big hurry, call us, we’ll try to answer
your questions right away.

[e-mail]

+49- (0) 26 42 - 90 20 8-77

+49- (0) 26 42 - 99 40 16

Waldorf-Music AG

Schloß Ahrenthal

53489 Sinzig, Germany

4

3

3

2

2

1

1

Foreword

Thank you for purchasing the Waldorf Q, the Q Rack or the Q+. You now own a synthesizer
featuring a wide range of unique sounds from analog to digital.

To ensure your instrument functions properly and enjoys a long life, please read and heed the
instructions in this manual.

Development

Software development: Jürgen Fornoff, Albert Huitsing, Stefan Stenzel

Hardware development: Thomas Kircher

Design: Axel Hartmann

Housing: Frank Schneider

Factory Sound programming: Michael Bruder, Wolfram Franke, Achim Gratz, Uwe G. Hoenig,

Foreword – Development

Jörg Hüttner, Tommy Kircher, Dirk Krause, Hubertus Maass,
Stefan Stenzel, Tsching, Eric Young

Manual: Holger "Tsching" Steinbrink

Head: Wolfgang Düren

Revision Date: Januar, 2003 - version 3.02 (Q); version 3.53 (Q+)

We would like to thank

Holger Bahr, Sigi Barishi, Steffi vom Berg, H.-P. “Bonni” Bonnenberg (†), Piera Caccia, Mike Caroll,
Geoff Farr, Gunther Gräfe, Peter Grandl, Florian Gypser, Christian Halten, Martin Herbst, Thilo Kloft,
Achim Lenzgen, Evi Mognol, Wolfgang Mörs, Werner Mohrlok, Dr. Georg Müller, Martin Neideck,
Drew Neumann, Stefan Profitlich, Amanda and Mark Pulver, Alex Sauff, Holger "Tsching" Steinbrink,
Beate Walkowiak, Kurt “Lu” Wangard, K.D. Warnecke, Sabine Weiland, Hubertus “Hubi” Weller,
Oliver Wüst, Rocco Zodiac … and anyone we have forgotten.

Waldorf-Music AG is not liable for any erroneous information contained in this manual. The contents
of this manual may be updated at any time without prior notice. We made every effort to ensure the
information herein is accurate and that the manual contains no contradictory information. Waldorf
extends no liabilities in regard to this manual other than those required by local law.

This manual or any portion of it may not be reproduced in any form without the manufacturer's
written consent.

Waldorf-Music AG, Schloss Ahrenthal, D-53489 Sinzig, Germany

5 Waldorf Q User’s Manual

Control Features and Connections – Front Panel Q Keyboard

Control Features and Connections

Front Panel Q Keyboard

Picture 1: Front Panel Q Keyboard

햲 System Volume rotary. Controls the overall

volume.

햳 LFO Section. Contains all the knobs and buttons

associated with the LFOs.

햴 Oscillators Section. Contains all the knobs and

buttons associated with the oscillators.

햵 Mixer Section. Contains all the knobs and

buttons associated with the mixer.

햶 Routing Section. Contains the Filter Routing

Control.

햷 Master Section with display, page dial, value

dials, Instrument Select and function buttons.

햸 Envelopes, Sequencer and Program Select

Section. Contains all knobs and buttons

associated with the envelopes, the step
sequencer and program selection.

햹 Filter Section. Contains all knobs and buttons

associated with the filters.

햺 Amplifier Section. Contains all knobs associated

with the amplifier.

햻 FX Section. Contains all knobs and buttons

associated with the Effects.

햽 Arpeggiator Section. Contains all knobs and

buttons associated with the arpeggiator.

햾 Power button with standby LED.

햿 Controller Section with pitchbend wheel,

modulation wheel and two assignable buttons.

헀 Keyboard Section

Waldorf Q User’s Manual 6

Frontpanel Q Rack

Control Features and Connections – Frontpanel Q Rack

Picture 2: Front Panel Q Rack

햲 System Volume rotary. Controls the overall

volume.

햳 LFO Section. Contains all the knobs and buttons

associated with the LFOs.

햴 Oscillators Section. Contains all the knobs and

buttons associated with the oscillators.

햵 Mixer Section. Contains all the knobs and

buttons associated with the mixer.

햶 Routing Section. Contains the Filter Routing

Control.

햷 Master Section with display, page dial, value

dials, Instrument Select and function buttons.

햸 Envelopes, Sep Sequencer and Program Select

Section. Contains all knobs and buttons
associated with the envelopes, the step
sequencer and program selection.

햹 Filter Section. Contains all knobs and buttons

associated with the filters.

햺 Amplifier Section. Contains all knobs associated

with the amplifier.

햻 FX Section. Contains all knobs and buttons

associated with the Effects.

햽 Arpeggiator Section. Contains all knobs and

buttons associated with the arpeggiator.

햾 Power button with standby LED.

7Waldorf Q User’s Manual

Control Features and Connections – Rear Panel

Rear Panel

쐉

POWER

! !

CAUTION

To reduce the risk of electric shock, do not remove cover. No user-

100…240V AC

serviceable parts inside. Refer servicing to qualified service personnel.

max. 30VA

Vorsicht! Gerät nicht öffnen. Gefahr eines Stromschlages. Servicear­beiten nur von geschultem Fachpersonal durchführen lassen!

This device complies to
the FCC rules part 15

쐅쐈

/



In Thru OutLeft/Stereo Right/Mono Left/Stereo Right/Mono Left/Stereo Right/Mono Tip:1 / Ring:2Stereo12 Coaxial



Picture 2: Rear Panel Q Keyboard

쐃 Power supply socket 100…240V AC

쐇 Control Pedal / CV In jacks for connecting foot

controllers or analog control voltages (only Q
Keyboard)

쐋 Stereo External In jack for feeding external audio

signals into the Mixer section.

쐏 Main Out jacks. Deliver a stereo line level

output signal for connection to a mixing desk or
amplifier.

쐄 Sub Out 1 jacks. Deliver a stereo line level

output signal for connection to a mixing desk or
amplifier.

쐂 Sub Out 2 jacks. Deliver a stereo line level

output signal for connection to a mixing desk or

쐆 Digital Out jack. S/PDIF type coaxial output for

connection to a digital mixing desk, DAT
recorder or hard disk recording system. Signal is
similar to the Main Out jacks.

쐊 Switch Pedal jack (stereo) for connecting one or

two footswitch controllers.

쐎 MIDI In jack. Used to receive MIDI data from an

external device.

쐅 MIDI Thru jack. Echoes MIDI data received at

the MIDI In.

쐈 MIDI Out jack. Used to transmit MIDI data to an

external device.

쐉 Card slot. Holds a card of type Q-Card 256 or

higher (located at the front of the Q Rack)

amplifier.

MIDIMAIN OUT SUB OUT 1 SUB OUT 2 PEDALINPEDAL CV IN D.OUT

Waldorf Q User’s Manual 8

Contents

Foreword.......................................................... 5

Development......................................................5

We would like to thank........................................5

Control Features and Connections.................... 6

Front Panel Q Keyboard.......................................6

Front Panel Q Rack .............................................7

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

Contents........................................................... 9

Introduction....................................................11

About this Manual............................................. 11

Symbols.......................................................11

Highlighted Control Features and Parameters ..11

What to read? ................................................... 12

If you are new to the whole subject ................12

If you have experience with synthesizers.........12

If you are a synthesizer hotshot ......................14

General Safety Guidelines..................................15

Suitable Operating Conditions ....................... 15

Power Supply............................................... 15

Operation .................................................... 15

Maintenance................................................15

Proper Use................................................... 16

Contents – Rear Panel

Selecting Programs with the Number Buttons ..26

Bank Hold ................................................... 28

Switching Banks ...........................................28

Selecting Programs on Memory Cards............. 28

Category Search ........................................... 29

Instruments and Sounds ..................................... 30

Switching between Instruments...................... 30

Creating Sound Layers with Instruments.......... 30

Replacing Sounds in Layers ...........................30

Editing Sounds in Layers................................ 31

Deactivating Sound Layers.............................31

Editing Parameters............................................. 31

Edit Buffers...................................................31

Editing Panel Parameters ............................... 32

Editing Alternative Panel Parameters............... 33

Control and Button Types.............................. 33

Editing Display Menu Parameters ................... 34

Viewing Parameters without Change – Peek .... 35

Comparing Edited Programs...........................35

Recalling Edited Programs ............................. 36

Storing Programs ..........................................36

Multi Mode......................................................38

Selecting an Instrument for editing ...................... 38

Instrument settings ............................................39

Multi settings .................................................... 45

Step Sequencer...............................................47

Setup and Connection.....................................17

Inventory.......................................................... 17

Setup ...............................................................17

Connections .....................................................17

Audio Connections............................................19

Digital S/PDIF Output........................................ 19

External Input....................................................20

Switch Pedal Inputs ...........................................20

Control Pedal/CV Inputs.....................................20

Overview.........................................................21

Memory Structure..............................................21

Memory Card....................................................22

Maintenance................................................22

Basic Operation..............................................23

Switching on.....................................................23

Switching off.....................................................23

Panic Function.................................................. 24

System Volume .................................................24

Demo Playback.................................................24

The Master Section............................................25

Selecting Programs ............................................25

Selecting Programs with the Page Dial............ 26

Editing Sequence Patterns ..................................47

Activating the Step Sequencer Controls...........47

Step Selection ..............................................47

Deselecting all Steps..................................... 48

Programming Notes or Chords .......................48

Programming a Pause....................................48

Holding Notes over More Than One Step........49

Limiting the Audible Range to One Bank.........49

Changing Modulation Values for Selected Steps49
Changing Modulation Values for All Steps At

Once...........................................................50

Sequencer Panel Controls ..................................50

Sequencer Rotaries............................................51

Sequencer Edit Menu......................................... 51

Sound Parameters.......................................... 55

Overview of Functions.......................................55

The Tempo ....................................................... 56

Modulation Speed Levels ...................................57

FM (Frequency Modulation)...........................57

Fast Modulation............................................58

Standard Modulation ....................................59

Xphorm – Interpolating between two sounds........ 62

Xphorm Edit Menu........................................63

Triggering of Voices...........................................64

Sound Edit Menu.......................................... 64

9 Waldorf Q User’s Manual

Contents – Rear Panel

Oscillators........................................................66

Oscillator Shapes..........................................66

Wavetable Synthesis .....................................71

Oscillators Panel Controls .............................72

Oscillators Edit Menu....................................78

Glide ...............................................................79

Mixer............................................................... 80

Mixer Panel Controls ....................................80

Mixer Edit Menu........................................... 82

Routing ............................................................84

Filter ................................................................85

Selecting and Editing Filters ...........................86

Filter Panel Controls......................................87

Filter Edit Menu............................................89

Filter Types....................................................... 90

Bypass......................................................... 90

24dB Low Pass and 12dB Low Pass ................90

PPG LP Low Pass.......................................... 90

24dB Band Pass and 12dB Band Pass..............90

24dB High Pass and 12dB High Pass .............. 91

24dB Notch and 12dB Notch.........................91

Comb+ and Comb-.......................................92

Amplifier.......................................................... 96

Amplifier Edit Menu...................................... 97

Effects .............................................................. 98

Effect Panel Controls..................................... 98

FX1 and FX2 Edit Menus ...............................98

Bypass......................................................... 99

Chorus ........................................................99

Flanger ........................................................99

Phaser .......................................................100

Delay ........................................................101

Overdrive ..................................................102

Five FX ......................................................103

Reverb.......................................................104

Tap Delay.................................................. 106

5.1 Surround Delay Types ........................... 107

Vocoder ....................................................110

Arpeggiator.....................................................113

Arpeggiator Panel Controls ..........................113

Arpeggiator Edit Menu ................................115

Arpeggiator Edit Menu Step Data..................118

Envelopes.......................................................122

Envelope Panel Controls..............................122

ADSR Envelope .......................................... 123

ADS1DS2R Envelope ..................................124

One Shot ...................................................125

Loop S1S2 .................................................126

Loop All ....................................................127

Low Frequency Oscillators (LFO) ......................128

Low Frequency Oscillator Panel Controls...... 128

LFO Edit Menu........................................... 129

Modulation Matrix ..........................................131

Matrix Edit Menu........................................ 131

Modifier Matrix...............................................132

Matrix Edit Menu........................................ 132

Control Delay .................................................133

Drum Map..................................................... 134

Drum Map Sound Menu..............................134

Global Parameters........................................136

Global Menu .................................................. 136

Utility Menu ...................................................147

MIDI Control.................................................. 149

Channel Based MIDI Messages ......................... 149

Program Change Messages .......................... 149

Note On and Note Off Messages.................. 149

Aftertouch Messages ...................................149

Poly Pressure Messages ...............................149

Pitchbend Messages.................................... 150

Modulation Wheel......................................150

Breath Control Messages ............................. 150

Foot Controller Messages.............................150

Channel Volume Messages..........................150

Pan Messages............................................. 150

Sustain Pedal Messages ...............................150

Sostenuto Pedal Messages ...........................150

Footswitches ..............................................150

Pedals .......................................................151

All Notes Off Message.................................151

All Sound Off Message................................151

Reset All Controllers Message ...................... 151

Influencing / Editing Sounds over MIDI.............. 151

Controllers as Modulation Sources ...............151

Changing Sound Parameters with Controllers 151
Changing Sound Parameters with SysEx Data 151

System Exclusive Data Transmission..................152

Sending System Exclusive Data ....................152

Receiving System Exclusive Data..................153

Other Functions............................................154

Updating the System Software......................154

The HMT Function .....................................156

Tips & Tricks..............................................157

Appendix......................................................158

Technical Data ...............................................158

Index .............................................................159

Midi Signalflow diagram ..................................160

Glossary.........................................................161

Controller Numbers......................................... 165

MIDI Implementation Chart..............................169

CE Declaration................................................170

Waldorf Q User’s Manual 10

Introduction

About this Manual

This manual was written to help you to become familiar with the Waldorf Q. It will also aid
experienced users with routine tasks.

Since this manual is valid for the keyboard- as well as the rack-version, we will separately point out
the particular differences. Hence we will talk only of the Q within the manual. To avoid confusion,
the terminology in this manual is based on the Q parameter names. You will find a glossary at the end
of the manual; it explains the various terms used.

We also used a uniform set of symbols to show you topics of particular interest or significance.
Important terms are highlighted in bold letters.

Symbols

 Caution – The comments that follow this symbol will help you avoid errors and malfunctions.

☞ Instruction – Follow these guidelines to execute a desired function.

Introduction – About this Manual

 Info – Additional information on a given topic.

 Example – Real-world examples to try out.

Highlighted Control Features and Parameters

All of the Q’s buttons, controls and parameters are highlighted in bold letters throughout the manual.
Example:

• Press the Play button.

Also, each section and the main control elements have position numbers … which refer to the

pictures at the beginning of this manual. The connectors on the rear panel are referred by position
numbers …. We suggest you make a copy of these pages to have it at hand when needed.

The Q’s different modes and parameter pages are illustrated in a depiction of the display:

Inst:1 Sound:A001
Zeitlos T

The value range of a continuous parameter is indicated from low to high with both values shown in
italic letters, separated by three dots. Example:

Semi -12…+12

11 Waldorf Q User’s Manual

Introduction – What to read?

What to read?

The biggest problem with any manual is to find a way to cover both the needs of an absolute expert
and a beginner alike. There are people who read a manual cover to cover while others don’t even
touch it. The latter is the worst choice, especially when the manual describes a Waldorf instrument.
To ensure that everyone finds the information he needs to work with the Q, we collected the
following information to tell you which chapters you should read at the very least.

 On page 159 you will find an index table with the corresponding page hint.

If you are new to the whole subject

Is this your first or second synthesizer? Then you should first read the whole manual once. You don’t
need to do that while you’re exploring the Q - you can also read it as you would read a good book.
But read it. You don’t need to understand everything but after you’ve read the manual, you know
where to find a particular topic. Then it’s time to go deep into the Q and when you’re stuck, you will
find the answer quickly and easily.

Furthermore, we recommend the purchase of a good book explaining synthesizers and sound
synthesis in general. This book might help you when you don’t understand a certain term that is used
in the manual. The appendix of the Q manual contains a glossary but it is possible that you want or
need even deeper explanation. A good book explaining analog sound synthesis named “Analog
Sound Synthesis” can be obtained from the German publisher WIZOO. You can find further info
about it and other books covering similar topics at: http://www.wizoo.com

If you have experience with synthesizers

Do you own a couple of synthesizers, and have you edited some sounds to fit your needs? Then make
sure to read at least the following chapters:

Section Chapter Sub-Chapter

Introduction General Safety Guidelines all chapters
Setup and Connection Audio Connections

Digital S/PDIF Output

Basic Operation

Step Sequencer all chapters
Sound Parameters

Switching off,
Panic Function

Selecting Programs all chapters
Instruments and Sounds all chapters
Editing Parameters all chapters
Multi Parameters all chaptersMulti Mode
Instrument Parameters all chapters

The Tempo
Clock
Modulation Speed Levels
Xphorm

Oscillators FM and FM Source

Wavetable Oscillators
Pulsewidth
PWM and PWM Source
PitchMod and PitchMod Source
Sync, Keytrack

Waldorf Q User’s Manual 12

Introduction – What to read?

Sound Parameters

Global Parameters Global Menu Sysex Device ID

MIDI Control

Glide Mode
Mixer Balance

RingMod
Noise / Ext. Balance

N/E Select F1 / F2 Feed
Routing
Filter Selecting and Editing Filters

CutoffMod and CutoffMod Source

FM and FM Source

Drive

Env

Velo

Pan

PanMod and PanMod Source
Filter Types Notch

Comb + and Comb ­Amplifier Velo

AmpMod and AmpMod Source
Effects Introduction

Mix

FX Types
Vocoder all Chapters
Arpeggiator Edit Menu all chapters
Arpeggiator Edit Menu Step

Data
Envelopes Mode

LFOs Sync

Modulation Matrix all chapters
Modifier Matrix all chapters
Drum Map all chapters

Channel Based MIDI
Messages

Influencing and Editing
Sounds over MIDI

Other Functions Updating the System Software

Table 1: Suggested chapters for advanced users

all chapters

ADS1DS2R Envelope

One Shot Envelope

LoopS1S2 Envelope

Loop All Envelope

Delay

Keytrack

Fade

Clocked

Phase

Clock

HMT function

Controller Send

Input Gain

Mix In parameter

Program Change Messages

Poly Pressure Messages

Sostenuto Pedal Messages

Footswitches

Pedals

all chapters

13 Waldorf Q User’s Manual

Introduction – What to read?

If you are a synthesizer hotshot

Do you own a whole bunch of various synthesizers of all flavours, analog, digital, sample playback,
and know how to create and modify sounds, multis and other patch types on them? Do you already
own any Waldorf synthesizers so that you are familiar with their structure and terminology. Then
make sure to read at least the following chapters. They describe the extraordinary features and
functions of the Q.

Section Chapter Sub-Chapter

Introduction General Safety Guidelines Power Supply
Setup and Connection External Input
Basic Operation

Step Sequencer all chapters
Sound Parameters

Global Parameters Global Menu Global MIDI Channel, Sysex ID

Switching off
Panic Function

Selecting Programs Sound Selection by Category
Instruments and Sounds all chapters
Editing Parameters all chapters
Multi Parameters Ctrl W…ZMulti Mode
Instrument Parameters Selecting an Instrument for editing

Instrument settings

The Tempo
Clock
Modulation Speed Levels
Xphorm

Oscillators FM and FM Source

Wavetable Oscillators
Mixer Balance

Noise / Ext. Balance

N/E Select F1 / F2 Feed
Routing
Filter Selecting and Editing Filters

FM and FM Source

Pan, PanMod and PanMod Source
Filter Types Comb + and Comb ­Effects FX Types
Vocoder all chapters
Arpeggiator Edit Menu all chapters
Arpeggiator Edit Menu Step

Data
Envelopes Mode

LFOs Sync, Fade, Clocked, Phase
Modulation Matrix all chapters
Modifier Matrix all chapters

Table 2: Suggested chapters for synthesizer cracks

all chapters

ADS1DS2R Envelope

One Shot Envelope

LoopS1S2 Envelope

Loop All Envelope

Clock, Controller Send

Input Gain, Mix In parameter

Waldorf Q User’s Manual 14

General Safety Guidelines

 Please read the following safety tips carefully! They include several precautions you should

always observe when dealing with electronic equipment. Read all of the instructions before
operating your device.

Suitable Operating Conditions

• Use the device in enclosed rooms only.

• Never use the device under damp conditions such as in bathrooms, washrooms or around
indoor swimming pools.

• Do not use the device in extremely dusty or dirty environments.

• Make sure that adequate ventilation is available at all sides of the device.

• Do not place the device near heat sources such as radiators.

• Do not expose the device to direct sunlight.

• Do not expose the device to extreme vibrations.

Introduction – General Safety Guidelines

Power Supply

• The internal power supply of the Q has an automatic current switch. It can be connected
without any additional transformer to AC power outlets with currents from 100V to 240V
AC. If the available power outlet doesn’t provide this current, consult a qualified
technician.

• Never use a different power cable than the one that came with the Q.

• Never install a different plug. If the included cable is not equipped with a suitable plug for
your local sockets, take the Q and the cable to a qualified electrician.

• Unplug the device when you are not using it for longer periods.

• Never touch the plug with wet hands.

• Always pull the plug when unplugging the device, never the cable.

Operation

• Never place objects containing liquids on or near the device.

• Place the device on a stable base only. Use a suitable platform or rack.

• Make sure no foreign objects find their way into the chassis. If for some reason this should
occur, switch the power off, unplug the device and consult a qualified repair center.

• This device, used on its own or with amplifiers, speakers or headphones, can generate
volume levels that may do irreparable damage to your hearing. For this reason you should
keep the volume at tolerable levels.

Maintenance

• Do not open the device or remove the cover. Refer all service and repair tasks to qualified
personnel. The interior of the chassis contains no components that require user
maintenance.

15 Waldorf Q User’s Manual

Introduction – General Safety Guidelines

• Use only a dry, soft cloth or brush to clean the device. Never use alcohol, cleaning
solutions or similar chemicals. They will damage the surface of the chassis.

Proper Use

This device is designed exclusively to produce low-frequency audio signals for the purpose of
generating sound. Any other use is prohibited and voids the warranty extended by Waldorf­Music AG. Waldorf-Music AG is not liable for damages due to incorrect use.

 Don´t let your Q beside children or animals. This could leads into critical interactions.

Waldorf Q User’s Manual 16

Setup and Connection

Inventory

The Waldorf Q comes complete with:

• the Q/Q+ or the Q Rack

• power supply cable

• this manual

Please ensure all the items above were included. If something is missing, contact your local dealer.

We recommend that you save the original packing material for future transport.

 Make sure you fill out the warranty card and send it to the appropriate distributor or the

address printed on the card. This is the only way we can keep you informed of updates and
upgrades. Other available services are listed on the warranty card.

Setup

Setup and Connection – Inventory

Place the Q on a clean, even surface. If you choose to take the device on the road, we suggest
transporting it in a special keyboard or rack case, which should be available from your dealer. We
recommended the installation in a stable 19" rack for the Q Rack version

Connections

In order to get started with your Q you will need an AC power outlet, a mixing console, an amp and
an audio monitor such as a speaker cabinet. The Q Rack also needs to connect with a MIDI master
keyboard.

You can also use a computer or sequencer to make use of the Q’s MIDI features.

17 Waldorf Q User’s Manual

Setup and Connection – Connections

PEDAL / CV IN

Control Pedals

Tip / Ground:

47kΩ Potentiometer

Ring: +5V

Left/Stereo Right/Mono

Main Output

to mixing desk,

headphone or

amplifier

Left/Stereo:

Tip: Left Signal

Ring: Right Signal

External In

from mixing desk or

audio source

Tip: Left Signal

Ring: Right Signal

Left/Stereo Right/Mono Left/Stereo Right/Mono

Sub Output 2

to mixing desk or

amplifier

Left/Stereo:

Tip: Left Signal

Ring: Right Signal

Sub Output 1

to mixing desk or

amplifier

Left/Stereo:

Tip: Left Signal

Ring: Right Signal

D.OUT

Tip:1 / Ring:2Stereo1 2 Coaxial

Switch Pedals

Switch 1: Tip /

Ground

Switch 2: Ring /

Ground

Digital Output

S/PDIF Format

MIDIMAIN OUT SUB OUT 1 SUB OUT 2 PEDALIN

Thru

In

MIDI Thru

to MIDI In of further

tone generators

MIDI In

from MIDI Out of a
Computer or other

MIDI Controller

Out

MIDI Out

to MIDI In of a

Computer or tone

generator

Out

In

Connections

☞ To connect the devices:

1. Turn all units off.

2. Connect the Q’s main audio outputs Main Out  to your mixing console. Optionally
connect the auxilliary audio outputs Sub Out 1  and Sub Out 2  too.

3. Connect the power supply cable that came with the Q with the Power Supply  jack.

4. Plug the other side of the power supply cable into a suitable AC power outlet.

5. The Q should power up itself. If not, switch on the Q with the Power button .

Waldorf Q User’s Manual 18

6. Then switch on the computer (if connected), the mixing console and finally the amplifier.

7. To play the Q Rack you need a MIDI master keyboard. Please connect the Q Rack´s MIDI
In jack  with the MIDI Out jack of the keyboard. Instead of this you can also connect

the Q Rack to a MIDI computer system.

 If you want to use a computer with a sequencer software, connect your computers MIDI Out

jack to the Q’s MIDI In jack  and the computers MIDI In jack to the Q’s MIDI Out jack . To

check the correct reception of MIDI Data, send any MIDI Events to the Q; the Peek LED lights
up on any incoming MIDI Message. If this is not the case please check the MIDI connection to
the Q.

Audio Connections

The Q provides three analog stereo audio outputs that can be used individually. All outputs are
affected by the setting of the System Volume  control. If you choose to send only one mono or

stereo signal to your mixer, use the Main Out  jacks. You can connect each output stereophonically

or monophonically as follows:

Setup and Connection – Audio Connections

☞ To connect an output stereophonically with two mono cables:

• Connect the Left and Right jack with 1/4-inch mono plugs.

☞ To connect an output stereophonically with one stereo cable:

• Only connect the Left/Stereo jack of the output with a 1/4-inch stereo plug. Don’t plug
any cable into the Right/Mono jack of the output pair.

☞ To connect an output monophonically:

• Only connect the Right/Mono jack of the output pair with a 1/4 inch mono plug. Don’t
plug any cable into the Left/Stereo jack of the output pair.

☞ To connect a headphone:

• Connect the headphone with the Left/Stereo jack of the Main Out .

 If you do not choose to connect a mixing console, you can patch the Q’s output signals directly

to an amp. Use an input usually called Aux or Tape input.

 Before connecting and disconnecting the Q to a power supply source, turn your amp’s

volume control all the way down to avoid damage due to on/off switching noise.
The Q produces a high level output signal (see “Technical Data” on page 158). Please take
care that the connected playback device is suitable for the high level of an electronic
instrument. Never use the mic or phono input of the connected amp!

Digital S/PDIF Output

In addition to the 6 analog audio outputs, the Q is equipped with an S/PDIF type digital output 

(44.1 kHz, 16 Bit signal). You can use this output to connect the Q to a digital mixing console or to
record the sound signal on a DAT machine or hard disk recording system. The signal on the digital

out connector is always identical to the Main Out jacks .

19 Waldorf Q User’s Manual

Setup and Connection – External Input

External Input

The Q offers a stereo External In jack  that can be used to feed an external signal into the mixer

section. Therefore, the signal can be processed via the filters and the effects section in the same way
as the oscillators.

 As the external signal is treated like any other sound source within the Q, it is necessary to

trigger the Amplifier Envelope to get the signal passed through. To do so, notes must be sent to
the Q’s sound generation, either by playing on the keyboard, receiving MIDI notes or via the
internal step sequencer or arpeggiator. You can also send an external audio signal directly to
the Q´s FX section by using the Mix In to parameter in the Global menu.

Switch Pedal Inputs

The Q features two inputs for switch pedals. These switch pedals can be of any type, you can i.e. use
foot switches, sustain pedals etc. It also doesn’t matter if the pedal or switch is open or closed in
either pressed or non-pressed state. You can adjust the behaviour of each pedal separately in the
Global menu.

The Switch Pedal Jack  on the Q is a stereophonic 1/4 inch phono jack. You can connect one

switch pedal to it with a monophonic 1/4 inch phono plug or two switches using a stereophonic plug.
If you do so, the plug has to be connected as follows:

• Footswitch 1 is connected to the tip and the ground.

• Footswitch 2 is connected to the ring and the ground.

You can use an adapter that routes a stereo 1/4 inch phono plug to two mono 1/4 inch phono jacks.

Control Pedal/CV Inputs (only Q Keyboard)

The Q features two inputs for control pedals or control voltages.

If a control pedal is used, a potentiometer of 47KOhms or higher is recommended. This covers almost
any type of control pedal on the market. It doesn’t matter in which direction the control pedal works,
this can be adjusted in the Global menu later.

If CV is used, make sure to match these specifications:

• Tip: CV in (internally connected to +5V by a 4K7 Resistor)

• Ring: internally connected to +5V by a 4K7 Resistor.

• Input Voltage Range: 0 to 5V

It doesn’t matter if the incoming CV is linear or logarithmic, this can be adjusted in the Global menu
as well as the initial offset and the overall gain.

Waldorf Q User’s Manual 20

Overview

Memory Structure

The memory architecture of the Q is divided into four main sections as shown in the following
picture. All memory locations are freely programmable, so there is no separation into preset and user
programs.

001

100

Overview – Memory Structure

Internal Memory

SoundMulti

.
.
.
.
.
.
.

001

.
.
.

010

Bank B

Bank A

001

.
.

100

Bank C

Memory Card

Sound Bank XMulti Bank X

001

.
.
.
.
.
.
.

100

Drum Map

001

.
.
.
.
.
.
.

020

Pattern

001

.
.
.
.
.
.
.

100

Drum Map E

001

.
.
.

020

Picture 3: Memory Structure

• 100 Multi programs (Multi 001…100)
A Multi program stores information about how up to 16 Sound programs sound at once.

• 300 Sound programs (Sound A001…C100)
A Sound program stores information about the character of a sound.

• 20 Drum Maps (Drum Map D001...D020)
A Drum Map contains up to 32 Single Sound Programs which can be organized on the
keyboard.

• 100 Pattern programs (Pattern 001…100)
A Pattern is used to store step sequencer information that can be used in a Sound or Multi
program.

Dynamic Voice Management (Q+ only)

The Q+ has a Dynamic Voice Management. This means that unused or deactivated parts of the Sound
Engine, e.g. Oscillators, Filters, Effects, etc. do not need any CPU capacity. This enhances the
following maximum polyphony up to 100 voices.

 The simple rule of thumb says: the less complex the sound, the higher the available

polyphony.

 If you select a sound that uses the analog filter the polyphony for this sound is reduced to 16

voices because of the 16 hardware analog filter.

21 Waldorf Q User’s Manual

Overview – Memory Card

Memory Card

You can expand the number of program locations by using a memory card of the type Q-Card 256.

 It is possible that there are cards with more memory available for the Q as technology moves

on. Please ask your Waldorf dealer or check our website for further infomation.

Picture 4: Q-Card

☞ To plug a Q-Card into your Q:

1. Make sure that you see the yellow arrow and that you can read the text “TOP”. The yellow
arrow points into the direction where the card is plugged into the card slot. The golden
contact plate has to be on the bottom side of the card.

2. Push the card carefully into the card slot  located on the rear of the Q Keyboard until

you feel that it can’t be moved further. You won’t hear a click, the card just stops moving.
The card slot at the Q Rack is located at the left side of the front panel. The text "TOP"
should point to the right side.

3. Now the card is ready to be used.

Maintenance

Although it is nearly impossible to destroy the Q-Card you should handle it with the same care as you
would do with a floppy disk. However, it might be that you have to clean the contact plate if the card
stopped working.

☞ To clean a dirty contact plate:

1. Use a soft pencil eraser and wipe over the contact plate carefully until it looks shiny.

2. Check if the card works.

 Never use any other type of eraser than a pencil eraser. There are various erasers for ink or

charcoal that aren’t suited for this cleaning process. They might destroy or scratch the surface
of the contact plate.

 The Q-Card is equipped with FLASH memory, the same type of memory that is used for the

internal memory of the Q. This means that you never need to replace a battery or to recharge
the card.

Waldorf Q User’s Manual 22

Basic Operation

Switching on

The Q is equipped with a software-based power control, which means that it is initially switched on
when you connect it to an AC outlet, even if it was switched to standby mode before the power was
disconnected. This enables you to switch the Q on or off through e.g. a main power switch in your
studio. However, if you switched the Q off manually you can switch it on again with the following
procedure:

☞ To switch the Q on manually:

• Press Power  to switch the Q on. The standby LED will go out.

First, the version number of the Q’s operating software and the serial number of your
device will appear in the display:

Basic Operation – Switching on

waldorf Q
OS:3.00 SN:020111973

 Please note that both the OS version and the serial number will differ from the numbers shown

 Please take into consideration that we’re releasing new Operating Systems for our Synthesizers

Switching off

here.

Thereafter the number of voices of the Q will be shown in the upper line of the display. In
the basic version the Q offers 16 voices. With the optional available expansion board you
can get up to 32 voices. The Q+ offers up to 100 voices.

[*** 16 Voices ***]
Zeitlos T

at regular intervals. These new Operating Systems might contain new and desired features. To
read about this please see the chapter „Updating the System Software“ on page 154.

After a couple of seconds the display will change, to show the last sound or multi program
that was selected before the Q has been switched off. The Q is now ready to be played:

Inst:1 Sound:A001
Zeitlos T

 The Q has a special shutdown feature that prevents data loss by accidentally pressing the

power button.

☞ To switch the Q off:

• Press and hold the Power button . The display now shows a countdown message from

10 to 0:

23 Waldorf Q User’s Manual

Basic Operation – Panic Function

After counting down to 0 the Q will switch off. If you release the Power button before, the
shutdown process is cancelled.

Panic Function

The Power  button is also used to perform a Panic function. The Panic function sends and executes

an "All Notes Off" command to terminate stuck notes. Panic immediately sets all envelopes to their
release phases. Panic also stops the step sequencer and the arpeggiator playing when running in Hold
mode.

To activate this function, briefly press Power .

When holding Power  a bit longer, all sound is suppressed and the release phases are cancelled.

System Volume

You can use the System Volume control  to adjust the Q’s master volume. The volume setting is

global and affects the levels of all audio outputs including the digital output.

Switching off: 8

Demo Playback

The Q is equipped with several demo songs to show some of its unique features. They should give
you a quick overview of the Q’s sound character and the possibilities you can expect when you start
working with your Q. To listen to the songs in highest quality you should make sure that the Q is
connected stereophonically to a good amplifier/loudspeaker combination. Alternatively, you could
use good headphones.

 The Demo Playback mode clears all edit buffers. If you should have made any changes to

existing programs that you would like to keep, you should store them now. However, stored
programs aren’t affected in any way.

☞ To start the Demo Playback:

• Press Multimode and Peek simultaneously. The Q shows a selection of various demo

• Press one of the highlighted Number Buttons to listen to a particular demo song or press

☞ To play back another demo song:

• Press another highlighted Number Button.

If you got a clue what the Q is capable of, it is time to leave the Demo Playback and to start exploring
it yourself.

songs.

Start/Stop to listen to all demo songs in sequence.

☞ To exit the Demo Playback Mode:

• Press Multimode and Peek simultaneously. The Q returns to normal operation.

Waldorf Q User’s Manual 24

The Master Section

Most of the basic operations like managing programs are done in the Master Section. The picture

below shows the controls of the Master Section in detail:

5/9/13

Basic Operation – The Master Section

Utility

1

6/10/14

2

7/11/15

3

8/12/16

4

Instruments

Instruments

Play / O.K.

Global

Multi

Xphorm

Sound

Matrix

Undo

Compare

Recall

Store

Multimode Peak

Shift

Picture 5: Master Section

As you can see, the Master Section consists of several controls:

• A 2x20 character display that shows program names, parameters and other messages.

• A page dial on the right of the display. It is used to select sound programs or, when editing

a program, to select a parameter page.

• Two value dials below the display for adjusting parameters currently shown.

• Five buttons labelled Global / Utility, Multi / Undo, Matrix / Compare, Xphorm / Recall
and Sound / Store. These buttons are used to call special parameter edit pages and to

perform several utility functions.

• A button labelled Shift that is used to activate alternative functions of knobs and buttons,

labelled in light blue color.

• A button labelled Play / OK. Pressing this button will bring back the Q to Play mode,

where sounds can be selected.

• A button labelled Multimode. It is used to activate or deactivate the Multimode.

• A button labelled Peek. Pressing this button allows you to check parameter values without

changing them. The Peek button also lights up on any incoming MIDI message.

Selecting Programs

The Q offers four types of programs, Multis, Sounds, Drum Maps and Patterns. To switch between

them, you can either use the Page Dial 햷 or the Number Buttons 햸. Which type of program is

changed, depends on if the Q is in Single or Multi Mode.

Single Mode

The Single Mode of the Q consists of four Instruments that can be played one after the other or at

once. This offers a fast way to switch between different sounds in a live situation or to create layered

sounds in a studio session without deeper programming. We will come to that later. For now, you

only need to know: The buttons Inst. 1…Inst. 4 햷 are used to switch between these Instruments.

Each Instrument holds a Sound that can be selected in various ways.

25 Waldorf Q User’s Manual

Basic Operation – Selecting Programs

In Single Mode, you can either select Drum Maps, Pattern or Sound Programs. These are selected
independently, which means that the Pattern is not changed when you select a different Sound and
vice versa. If you want to build a setup with a particular Sound or Drum Map and a related Pattern,
use the Multi Mode of the Q.

Multi Mode

The Multi Mode of the Q consists of 16 Instruments that can be mapped, layered or played
individually. For a deep explanation of the Multi Mode, read the chapter “Multi Mode” on page 38.

In Multi Mode, you can select Programs of any type, depending on the setting of the Pattern / Sound
/ Multi Button .

Selecting Programs with the Page Dial

With the Page Dial, you can select Multis in Multi Mode and Sounds in Single Mode. The setting of
the Pattern / Sound / Multi Button  is not relevant.

☞ To select a Program with the Page Dial :

1. Make sure that the Play LED is lit. If not, press Play .

2. If you are in Single Mode (Multimode LED is off), press one of the Instrument buttons Inst.
1…Inst. 4  to select an Instrument that holds the Sound or Pattern. The LED above the

button lights up and the display content will change to show the current Sound for this
Instrument.

3. Use the Page Dial  to select an appropriate Program. Turning the dial clockwise

increases the Program number, turning the dial counterclockwise decreases it.
When you are at the end of one Bank and turn the Page Dial  further, you will jump to

the beginning of the next Bank and vice versa. The only exceptions are the first Program in
the first Bank and the last Program in the last Bank. The Bank names are:

Sound Bank A to C or X, if a Memory Card is inserted.
Drum Map bank D or E, if a Memory Card is inserted.
Multi Bank A and X, if a Memory Card is inserted.

4. The display shows the Program number in the top right corner and the name of the
selected Program (name may be different depending on the factory set in your Q).

Single Mode:

Inst:1 Sound:A001
Zeitlos T

Multi Mode:

Inst:1 Multi:A001
Abfahrt T

Selecting Programs with the Number Buttons

You can also use the Sequencer section’s number buttons to select a program. The following picture
shows the number buttons:

Waldorf Q User’s Manual 26

Basic Operation – Selecting Programs

Pattern

Select

Pattern

Sound

Sound

Multi

Multi

Step 1-8

Bank A

Step 9-16

Bank B

Step 17-24

Bank C

Step 25-32

Bank D

Pause

78654321 90

Picture 6: Number Buttons Q Keyboard

To the left of the ten number buttons, you can see the Pattern / Sound / Multi Button 햸. This

button is used to set the program type that is switched by the number buttons.

Entering a two-digit number will select the corresponding program within the current bank.

Here are three examples:

• Entering 01 will call up Program number 001 in the current bank.

• Entering 99 will call up Program number 099 in the current bank.

• Entering 00 will call up Program number 100 in the current bank.

☞ To select a Program with the Number Buttons :

1. Make sure that the Play LED is lit. If not, press Play 햷.

2. If you are in Single Mode (Multimode LED is off), press one of the Instrument buttons Inst.
1…Inst. 4 햷 to select an Instrument that holds the Sound or Pattern. The LED above the

button lights up and the display content will change to show the current Sound for this

Instrument.

Hold

3. Press the Pattern / Sound / Multi Button 햸 until the LED of the Program type you want

to select lights up.

4. Enter a two-digit number with the number buttons.

5. The display shows the Program number in the top right corner and the name of the

selected Program (name may be different depending on the factory set in your Q).

Single Mode:

Inst:1 Sound:A001
Zeitlos T

Multi Mode:

Inst:1 Multi:A001
Abfahrt T

 Drum Maps are located at number 01 to 20 of bank D. You can´t select higher a program

number for this program type.

27 Waldorf Q User’s Manual

Basic Operation – Selecting Programs

Bank Hold

The Bank Hold function gives further enhancement to the numerical program select. By "freezing" one
digit of the program number, programs can be changed by typing one single digit of the number. This
feature is useful especially in live situations.

☞ To use the Bank Hold function:

• Press Shift  + Pattern / Sound / Multi . The corresponding LED next to the Pattern /
Sound / Multi Button  will flash.

• By pressing one of the numerical buttons, you can select the last digit of the program no.
E.g. if program no. A001 was selected before, you can switch from A001 to A010 by
pressing the corresponding numerical button.

• To select the second digit of the program number, i.e. to switch programs in steps of 10,
hold down the Shift button while pressing a numerical button. E.g. if program no. A074
was selected before, you can switch between A014, A024, A034…A004 by pressing the
corresponding numerical button.

• To terminate the Bank Hold function, press the Pattern / Sound / Multi button  again.

The LED besides the button will light up again instead of flashing.

 Please note that you can also use the page dial to select programs at any time, i.e. even when

Bank Hold is activated.

Switching Banks

As described before the Q’s sound program memory consists of several banks, named "A" to "C". Each
of these banks contains 100 Sounds, giving you a total of 300 sounds. The bank D contains 20 Drum
Maps.

There is also a Bank X that is used to access Sounds and Multis on Memory Cards. The card bank E is
used for Drum Maps. Please refer to the section “Selecting Programs on Memory Cards” below to get
further information how many programs of each type are stored on a Memory Card.

☞ To switch between program banks:

1. Press and hold the Pattern / Sound / Multi Button .

2. Use the 4 leftmost numerical buttons to select the desired bank. These buttons are also
labelled Bank A to Bank D. The program number will be retained when you change the
bank. E.g. if program A025 was selected before, pressing the Bank C button will select
program number C025. Take account that the Drum Map Bank D contains only 20
programs.

3. Release the Select button again.

Selecting Programs on Memory Cards

When a memory card of type Q-Card 256 is inserted, the total memory of the Q is expanded by:

• 100 Sounds

• 20 Drum Maps

• 10 Multis

Waldorf Q User’s Manual 28

Basic Operation – Selecting Programs

☞ To select a card program:

1. Please make sure the Memory-Card is plugged properly into the Card-Slot. The Card­Banks each reside after the regular internal banks.

2. The Card-Banks each reside after the regular internal banks.

3. Choose the programs on the card like the programs of the internal storage with the red
data-entry-wheel or the number buttons.

Category Search

The Q offers a special function to enable easy searches for sounds of similar categories. If you’re
searching for pad sounds, only these sounds will be displayed as you scan the storage banks with the
red dial. To accomplish this each sound contains 4 extra digits in the sound name to define its sound
category. Further details about how to change a sound’s category are described in the chapter
„Storing programs“ on page 36.

☞ Searching for a special sound categroy:

1. Hold down the Shift button

2. Chose a category with the red dial. The following message shows up on the display:

[Sel. Category:Pad ]

3. Release the Shift button.

4. Use the red dial to scroll through the patches of the selected category.

The following categories are available: Arp, Atmo, Bass, Bell, Brs, Drum, Ext, FX, Init, Keys, Lead,
Pad, Perc, Pluk, Poly, Seq, Strg, Voc and Wave. By using the store function you can create own
categories. For more information refer to the chaper „Storing programs“ on page 36.

 With the category search function activated, the Q scans its entire storage bank for only those

type of sounds. This can lead to short waiting periods.

☞ Switching off Category Search:

1. Hold down the Shift button.

2. Turn the red dial clockwise until the display shows:

[Sel. Category:----]

3. Release the Shift button.

 Category Search doesn’t change any program numbers. It only filters out all patches not

belonging to the selected category. Scrolling through patches with this function is much faster
because only patches belonging to the selected category are visible.

29 Waldorf Q User’s Manual

Basic Operation – Instruments and Sounds

Instruments and Sounds

Switching between Instruments to change Sounds

As mentioned before, the Single Mode of the Q uses four Instruments that can be accessed through
the buttons Inst. 1…Inst. 4 .

In a live situation, for example, you can set up the Sounds for the Instruments in advance and quickly
switch to them during your performance.

Or, in a studio session, you can try out several Sounds by switching the Instruments back and forth.
This is also interesting when working with MIDI. In Single Mode, only the active Instrument (or Sound
Layer) responds to MIDI.

☞ To select one instrument:

• Press one of the Instrument buttons Inst. 1…Inst. 4 . The LED above the button lights

up and the display content will change to show the settings for this Instrument.

• You can now play the Sound of this Instrument.

 There’s no way to store the settings of the four Instruments permanently except when you

create a real Multi in Multi Mode. So, see the Instruments as temporary scratch pads.

Creating Sound Layers with Instruments

Beside the feature to select the four Instruments in sequence, you can select two or more Instruments
at once to create Sound Layers. This is very handy and allows you to build up big sounds without any
deeper programming as you would have to do in Multi Mode. However, if you are very happy with a
Sound Layer, you should think about building a Multi with the same settings to store it permanently.

☞ To create a Sound Layer by selecting several Instruments at once:

1. Set up the Instruments to hold the Sounds that you would like to play.

2. Press and hold one of the Instrument buttons Inst. 1…Inst. 4 . The LED above the

button lights up and the display content will change.

3. Press additional Instrument buttons briefly. The Instruments will be added to the other
Instruments as long as you hold the Instrument button you’ve pressed first. The respective
Instrument LED light up half as bright to indicate that these Instruments are added.

4. Release the Instrument button you’ve pressed first.

5. The LED of the Instrument you’ve selected first will light fully to indicate that this is the
editable Instrument. All other selected Instrument LED are dimmed.

Replacing Sounds in Layers

If you are not happy with one Sound of your Sound Layer, you can replace it at any time with a
different Sound.

☞ To replace one Sound of a Layer:

1. Press the Instrument button Inst. 1…Inst. 4  that holds the Sound you want to replace.

The LED above the Instrument button lights up fully.

2. Select a Sound for this Instrument.

Waldorf Q User’s Manual 30

Basic Operation – Editing Parameters

Editing Sounds in Layers

You can edit individual Sounds in Layers. This helps you to fine-tune a Sound to match it to the sound
character of the Layer.

☞ To edit one Sound of a Layer:

1. Press the Instrument button Inst. 1…Inst. 4  that holds the Sound you want to replace.

The LED above the Instrument button lights up fully.

2. Now you can edit the Sound with the panel controls and its menus.

Deactivating Sound Layers

☞ To deactivate a Sound Layer:

• Press all Instrument buttons Inst. 1…Inst. 4  that make up the Sound Layer.

or

• Press an Instrument button Inst. 1…Inst. 4  that isn’t part of the Sound Layer.

Editing Parameters

In order to change or edit a program in the Q, you must access the appropriate parameters.
Depending on the type of parameters, there are different ways to achieve this:

• The controls on the Q’s front panel offer direct access to the most important sound
parameters. The panel is divided into several sections, each containing knobs and buttons
associated with that section. By adjusting the controls on the panel, you have instant
access to the sound. These parameters are called panel parameters.

• Most sections offer an Edit button. Pressing this button calls up the display menu for that
section. The display menu contains additional parameters that are not accessible directly
via the control elements on the panel. These parameters are called display menu
parameters.

Edit Buffers

Whenever you edit a program on the Q, the program is internally copied to an edit buffer. When you
use the Store function to save the edits, the program is copied back from the edit buffer to the
internal memory. The display shows an e behind the program number for every program that is
actually in an edit buffer:

Inst:1 Sound:A001e
Zeitlos T

The Q has a number of different edit buffers, each holding a program of the specific type when you
edit them:

• 1 Multi edit buffer:
This buffer holds the currently selected Multi in Multi mode.

• 1 Drum Map edit buffer:
This buffer holds the currently edited Drum Map in single or multi mode.

• 16 Sound edit buffers:
Each buffer holds an edited Sound.

31 Waldorf Q User’s Manual

Basic Operation – Editing Parameters

• 1 Pattern edit buffers:

This buffer hold the currently edited sequencer pattern.

 The edit buffers aren’t cleared when you select a different program so you can always go back

to the edited program to examine it or do further edits. The only way to “loose” an edit buffer

automatically is when all buffers of this type are already in use and you start to edit another

program. Then the oldest edit buffer is cleared and used to hold the new edit.

 Note that all edit buffers are cleared when switching off the Q. Use the Store function as

soon as possible after finishing your edits.

Editing Panel Parameters

Editing panel parameters is very easy and gives you instant access to the sound. That’s probably one

of the reasons why you bought the Q. The Q features a lot of buttons and controls on the front panel

for direct editing. The following picture of the Oscillator section shows a selection of most types:

Oscillators

1

Octave Semi Detune Pitch Mod Source

2

Octave Semi Detune Pitch Mod Source

Sync

3

Octave Semi Detune Pitch Mod Source

Tri

Sine

Shape

Shape

Shape

Alt1

Alt2

Pulsewidth PWM Source

Sine

Alt1

Alt2

Pulsewidth PWM Source

Sine

Pulsewidth PWM Source

Saw

Pulse

Tri

Saw

Pulse

Tri

Saw

Pulse

Glide Rate

Mode

Active

Pitch Mod Source

Edit

Picture 7: Oscillator Section Q Keyboard

☞ To access a specific panel parameter:

1. Locate the section that contains the desired parameter on the front panel. For example, if

you want to change the waveform of Oscillator 1, refer to the Oscillators section.

2. As can be seen, the parameter Shape, that determines the waveform of the oscillators, can

be accessed on the front panel via a dedicated control. Use the knob to select the desired

waveform, e.g. Sine.

3. Whenever you change a parameter by moving a knob or pressing a button, the display

shows the edited parameter and its current value in the upper right corner for a few

seconds:

[Shape: Sine]

 You can adjust the time a parameter is shown in the display in the Global menu. The standard

setting is 1.5 seconds but when you’re new to the Q you should raise the time to about 5

seconds.

Waldorf Q User’s Manual 32

Basic Operation – Editing Parameters

Editing Alternative Panel Parameters

Most of the controls on the front panel have alternative functions or parameters, labelled in blue
color. To access an alternative function or parameter (e.g. Semi in the Oscillators section), you will
have to use the Shift button, located in the Master section. The Shift button can be used in two
different ways:

• Press the Shift button briefly. The LED next to the button will flash. Now you can access
all parameters labelled in light blue colour. Briefly press the button again (LED will go off)
to switch back the controls to their normal operation. If you don’t perform any edits for a
certain time, the Shift mode will be terminated automatically. You can adjust this timeout
in the Global section.

• Press and hold the Shift button while moving controls on the panel. The alternative
parameters will be valid as long as you hold down the button. Releasing the button will
end the mode. The LED will flash while holding the button.

 Please note that some of the alternative functions mentioned later (e.g. Utility) require to hold

down the Shift button, no matter if Shift is active or not.

Control and Button Types

The front panel has controls of several different types. The following paragraphs give a short
explanation of how each control reacts.

Continuous Controls

Most controls on the front panel are of this type. They control parameters with continuous values. All
rotary controls are made of dials. Turning a dial clockwise increases the corresponding value, turning
it counterclockwise decreases it. The dials have a built-in dynamic response feature. If you turn the
control slowly, the value changes very smoothly, too. If you turn it faster, it accelerates as well. This
gives you the chance of adjusting the whole value range in just one turn without losing accurate
control when necessary. They don’t have any LED and no click. An example for a continuous control
is the Detune control.

Selective Controls

Selective controls differ to continuous controls by having a click. You will easily notice that when you
turn a control of this type. Selective Controls might have LED to indicate the current value of their
parameters. An example without LED is the Octave control, an example with LED is the Shape
control.

Switch Buttons

Switch buttons are used to switch a parameter on or off, or to toggle between different values. They
have a direct influence on the edited Sound. An example for an on/off switch is the Sync button, an
example for a button that toggles between different values is the Arpeggiator Mode button whose
values can be Off, On, One Shot or Hold.

Selection Buttons

Selection buttons are used to switch a part of the panel to control different aspects of the sound. They
don’t have a direct influence on the edited Sound, but their status is saved with the Sound to recall

33 Waldorf Q User’s Manual

Basic Operation – Editing Parameters

the panel to the same state when the Sound is selected again. The only selection buttons on the front
panel are the Filter Select and the Envelope Select buttons.

Editing Display Menu Parameters

Most sections offer an Edit button. Pressing this button calls up the display menu for that section. The
display menus contain additional parameters that are not directly accessible on the front panel.

☞ To access a specific display menu parameter:

1. Locate the section that contains the desired parameter on the front panel. For example, if
you want to change the Keytrack of one of the oscillators, refer to the Oscillators section.

2. Press the Edit button of the Oscillators section. The LED beside the button will light.

3. The first page of the oscillators’ display menu will appear. If you did some editing in this
menu before, the display may show another page. This happens because the Q
remembers the state of each display menu:

4. Use the page dial to scroll through the menu. Turning the dial clockwise selects the next
page, turning it counterclockwise selects the previous page. You can also press the Edit
button again to select the next page.

O1 Keytrk|O1 BendRg
+100% | +02

5. Use the value dials below the display to adjust the corresponding parameters. Some
display menus only consist of one single parameter. Only the leftmost value dial will be
active then.

6. After finishing all edits, press the Play button in the Master section to return to normal
mode.

 While editing display menu parameters, you can also adjust panel parameters and vice versa.

In addition to the display menu parameters of the different sections, five buttons located on the right
hand of the Master section allow you to set up further parameters:

• The Global parameters provide the basic settings of the Q, valid for all programs. For
more information refer to the chapter “Global parameter” on page 136.

• The Multi parameters refer to a Multi program. They determine the common setting for all
instruments in the Multi program. Obviously, you can access these parameters only when
the Q is in Multi mode. For more information refer to the chapter “Multimode” on page

38.

• The Matrix button gives access to the Modulation Matrix parameters of the currently
selected sound. For more information refer to the chapter “Modulation Matrix” on page

131.

• The Xphorm button allows you to set up special parameters for morphing between
different sounds in real-time. For more information refer to the chapter “Xphorm function”
on page 62.

• The Sound parameters refer to a Sound program. If you are in Single Mode, you will edit
the currently played program. If you are in Multi mode, the Sound program for the
currently selected Instrument will be edited.

Waldorf Q User’s Manual 34

Basic Operation – Editing Parameters

The procedure for setting up these parameters is the same as adjusting other display menu parameters
described above.

When you have finished all your edits, you should save the program. Please read the chapter about
storing programs on page 36 for further information.

Viewing Parameter Values without Change – Peek

The Q offers a special mode to check parameter values without performing any changes.

☞ To check parameter values without changing them:

1. Press the Peek button, located in the Master section. The LED beside this button will light
up.

2. If you move the control element of any panel parameter, its current value will be shown in
the display. E.g. if you move the Glide Rate knob in the Oscillators section, the display
will show (value may be different):

[Glide Rate 100]

3. After a few seconds, the display will return to its previous state. You can check several
parameters in the same way. You can also check the various display menu parameters.
Press the Edit button of a desired section and scroll through the display menu via the page
dial or by pressing the Edit button repeatedly. The same procedure is also valid for all
display menu parameters accessible via the Global, Multi, Matrix, Xphorm or Sound
buttons.

4. Press the Peek button again. The LED beside the button will go off, indicating that peek
mode has been terminated.

 If you don’t check any parameters for a certain time, the Peek mode will be terminated

automatically. Independent from the Peek function the Peek LED lights up on any incoming
MIDI Message.

Comparing Edited Programs with Stored Programs

The Compare function allows you to compare the currently edited program to its original stored
version in the internal memory.

☞ To use the Compare function:

1. Choose the program type to compare as follows:

• If you want to compare a Sound, select the Play page or any of the Sound Edit

menus.

• If you want to compare a Multi, select the Multi page.

• If you want to compare a Sequencer Pattern, select the Step Sequencer Edit

menu.

• If you want to compare a Drum Map, select the Drum Map Edit menu.

2. Press Shift + Compare.

3. The display now shows a c after the program number:

35 Waldorf Q User’s Manual

Basic Operation – Editing Parameters

4. You will hear the unedited version of your program when you play the Q.

5. Press the Shift + Compare again.

6. The c in the display changes to e again. The edited version of the program is now active
again.

 You can only view the original settings. If you select a new program while the Compare

function is active, the Compare status is automatically terminated. No parameters can be edited
when the Compare function is active. Any attempt will give you an error message on the
display:

Recalling Edited Programs

You can void edits at any time and return to the original program.

Inst:1 Sound:A001c
Zeitlos T

[Compare active]

☞ To recall an edited program:

1. Choose the program type to recall as follows:

• If you want to recall a Sound, select the Play page or any of the Sound Edit menus.

• If you want to recall a Multi, select the Multi page.

• If you want to recall a Sequencer Pattern, select the Step Sequencer Edit menu.

• If you want to recall a Drum Map, select the Drum Map Edit menu.

2. Press Shift + Recall.

3. The e or c in the display after the program number will disappear. All edits will be
recalled and the program returns back to its stored state.

Storing Programs

After you have finished editing a program, you must save it if you intend to use it again. All memory
locations of the Q are available for this purpose. The type of program that is stored depends on the
page you were in before performing the Store function.

☞ To store a program:

1. Choose the program type to store as follows:

• If you want to store a Sound, select the Play page or any of the Sound Edit menus.

• If you want to store a Multi, select the Multi page.

• If you want to store a Sequencer Pattern, select the Step Sequencer Edit menu.

• If you want to store a Drum Map, select the Drum Map Edit menu.

2. Press Shift + Store to activate the Store page.

3. The display shows the Store page where you can select the destination and the program
name:

Waldorf Q User’s Manual 36

Basic Operation – Editing Parameters

Store Sound to A001
01[Zeitlos T]

4. Use the page dial to select the destination program. The default value is the currently
selected program but you may want to change it to store your edits under a different
location.

5. Optionally, edit the program name. First select the character to be modified via the first
value dial. Then change its setting via the second value dial. The program name can use
up to 16 characters.

6. When the cursor is on the 16th character and you scroll it even further to the right, you
will come to a second page where you can change the category of the sound. It is strongly
recommended to select an appropriate category for your sound or to create a new
category. This helps you finding your sound later. You can get more information on how
to search for a Sound category in the chapter “Category Search” on page 29. This is how
the display looks:

Store Sound to A001
01[Pad ] <-category

7. Press Shift + Store to store the Program to the selected location.

 Whenever you store a program, the selected memory location is overwritten. Therefore, any

previously stored program under this location will be erased and there is no way to get it
back. So, you should do backups of the sounds, multis and patterns regularly. If you want to
restore the factory presets, you can download them as a Standard MIDI File from our
website.

You now have stored the program. When you activate the Store function, the Edit or Compare status
of the stored program is terminated.

By pressing any button before performing the last step, you can discard the Store process at any time.

 Use the Store function also if you want to copy programs. There is no need to edit a program

before storing it.

37 Waldorf Q User’s Manual

Multi Mode – Selecting an Instrument for editing

Multi Mode

The Waldorf Q offers a 16 part Multi mode. As soon as you want to arrange keyboard layers for a live
performance or want to do multi track recordings in a studio, you should start to program your own
Multis that you can use to quickly switch between completely different setups.

Only a Multi combines the various sections of the Q like Sounds, Step Sequencer Patterns, MIDI
In/Out Channel settings, or audio output routings. The following picture shows the structure of a
Multi.

Multi Program

Multi Program Parameters

Instrument 4

Instrument 3

Instrument 2

Instrument 1

Instrument
Parameters

Sound Pattern

Instrument 8

Instrument 7

Instrument 6

Instrument 5

Instrument

Parameters

Sound Pattern Sound Pattern Sound Pattern

Sound

Bank C

Bank B

Bank A

001

.
.

100

Picture 8: Multi Program architecture

Instrument 9

Instrument 12

Instrument 11

Instrument 10

Instrument
Parameters

Pattern

001

100

Instrument 16

Instrument 15

Instrument 14

Instrument 13

Instrument
Parameters

.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.

 Setting up a Multi requires some administrative work, as it does on all synthesizers, but you

should do it anyway because it eases your work with the Q when you use it live or for
recording.

Selecting an Instrument for editing

Before you can adjust the Instrument Parameters of a particular Instrument, you have to select it. The
Multi mode of the Q offers 16 Instruments that can be played at a time, either by the internal
keyboard (only Q Keyboard) or by MIDI. The 16 Instruments are organized into 4 banks with each 4
Instruments.

☞ To select an Instrument:

1. Press Shift+Inst. 1…4 to select one of the four Instrument banks.

2. Press Inst. 1…4 to select one of the Instruments of the selected bank.

or

Waldorf Q User’s Manual 38

Multi Mode – Instrument settings

1. Hold down the Multimode button and choose the desired instrument with the red dial while

being in Multimode.

When the Play page is selected, the display shows the Instrument number in the top left corner as
follows:

Inst:4 Multi:001
Sequencer Multi

The instruments are numbered reasonably from 1 to 16. In the display shown above Instrument 4 is
selected. If you want to select Instrument 12, for instance, you have to access Bank 3 by pressing
Shift + Inst.3 and then button Inst.4 to switch to Instrument 12.

When one of the Instrument parameter pages is selected, the current Instrument number is shown in
the top right corner as follows:

Channel |Output 4
global |Main Out

 Don’t confuse Instruments with MIDI Channels. Although you can set up a Multi that uses

separate MIDI Channels in ascending order for all Instruments, it can also be that a couple or
all Instruments are set to the same MIDI Channel. Please read the description below to see how
the MIDI Channel for a particular Instrument is set.

☞ To call the Multi parameter pages:

1. Make sure that the Multimode LED is lit to indicate that the Multi mode is active.

2. Press Multi . The display changes to the Multi or Instrument parameter page that was

active before you left the Multi parameter pages the last time.

Instrument settings

The instrument parameters specify the individual settings of each instrument in a Multi Program. You
can edit the audio output, transpose function or tuning, key range and velocity range for a selected
sound. Additionally the Multimode offers various settings for Midi functions. This allows the Q
Keyboard to be used as the perfect Masterkeyboard. In the appendix of this manual on page 160 you
will find a graphical overview of the Q’s Midi Signalflow.

Sound Bank and Number A…D 001…100

Each Instrument points to one Sound in memory. The display shows the Sound name in the upper row
and the Sound bank and number in the lower row as follows:

Zeitlos T 1
Bank: A Sound: A001

☞ To select a Sound for an Instrument:

• Use the left display dial to select Bank A…D from which the Sound program is taken.

• Use the right display dial to select the Instrument’s Sound program 001…100.

 In a Multi-Program you can use only one Drum Map at a time. When you’re assigning a Drum

Map to an instrument, any other instrument using a Drum Map will be restored to the normal
program assignment.

39 Waldorf Q User’s Manual

Multi Mode – Instrument settings

 A Multi in the internal memory can point to a Sound that is stored on card or vice versa.

However, you should try to avoid to set up a Multi in internal memory that points to a Sound
on card because the Multi might sound strange if you haven’t inserted the correct card.

Volume 000…127

Volume sets the output volume of the selected Instrument.

 This Volume parameter sets the maximum output volume of the selected Instrument. If you use

MIDI Controller #7 (Channel Volume) to change the volume of the Instruments that receive on
this MIDI channel, the real output level is scaled to the volume set up in this parameter. This
means that if you set Instrument Volume to 10 and Controller #7 to 127, the maximum output
volume is 10.

Panning left 64...center...right 63

Volume ! Panning 1
127 ! center

Determines the panning position of the selected instrument. The setting left 64 stands for full left, right
63 for full right. In case you want to have the sound in the mid position select center.

With this function you can set the stereo outputs of the Q to mono outputs by selecting the full left or
full right position for the panning.

 If stereo effects are active, e.g. delay, the effect will still sound in both outputs even if the basic

sound is set to full left or full right.

Channel |Output 1
01 |Main Out

Channel global, omni, 1…16

Channel sets the MIDI Channel for the selected Instrument. This MIDI channel is used to send MIDI

messages and to receive MIDI messages for this Instrument.

• global means that the selected Instrument receives and sends on the MIDI channel set up
in the Global menu. This setting is recommended for a Multi that should be used for a live
performance.

• omni means that the selected Instrument receives all MIDI channels and sends on the
MIDI channel set up in the Global menu. This setting is not recommended. Only use it for
diagnostic purposes when you need to know if the Q receives any MIDI messages at all.

• 1…16 means that the selected Instrument receives and sends on this MIDI channel. This
setting is recommended for a Multi that should be used for multi track playback with a
software sequencer.

Waldorf Q User’s Manual 40

Multi Mode – Instrument settings

Output Main Out, Sub Out1, Sub Out2, FX1, FX2, FX3, FX4, Aux

Output
Main Out

Output sets the audio output of the selected Instrument. The Instruments 1…4 can only be routed to
the physical outputs, the Instruments 5…16 can also be routed to the effect busses of the Instruments
1…4.

• Main Out means that the selected Instrument plays over the Main Out  and the Digital
Out  jacks.

• Sub Out1 means that the selected Instrument plays over the Sub Out 1  jacks.

• Sub Out2 means that the selected Instrument plays over the Sub Out 2  jacks.

• FX1…FX4 (only available on Instruments 5…16) means that the selected Instrument is
routed to the respective effect bus of Instrument 1…4 and therefore also plays back over
the same physical output.

• aux means that the selected instrument is routed to the internal audio bus. So you can use
this Instrument to feed the vocoder or the 5FX. For more information refer to the chapter
"Effects" on page 104 and 110.

 The Instruments 1…4 define the effects that are used in the selected Multi. All other Instruments

are played back without effects unless you route them to one of the effect busses FX1…FX4. If
you do so, these particular Instruments automatically use the same physical outputs that are set
up in the respective Instrument 1…4.

 If you have choose aux for an instrument you don´t hear its audio signal on the physical

outputs.

Rx.Stat. !Tx.Stat. 1
Midi ! Direct

Rx. Status Off / Midi; only Q Keyboard: Local / Loc.+Midi

Status sets the send and receive status of the selected Instrument. This means whether the Instrument

can be played over the internal keyboard, by MIDI or both.

• off means that the selected Instrument is disabled.

• Local means that the selected Instrument can only be played by the internal keyboard
(only Q Keyboard)

• Midi means that the selected Instrument can only be played by MIDI.

• Loc.+Midi means that the selected Instrument can be played by the internal keyboard and
by MIDI (only Q Keyboard).

 If all Instruments were set to off or Midi, the Q Keyboard wouldn’t send out any MIDI note

messages from the internal keyboard. To prevent this, the Q automatically sends out MIDI note
messages on the Global channel.

 Reasonably the Status-Parameter of the Q Rack doesn’t include Local and Loc.+Midi as it

doesn’t have a keyboard.

41 Waldorf Q User’s Manual

Multi Mode – Instrument settings

Tx.Status Off / Direct / Sequencer / Seq.+Arp.

This parameter determines the data being transmitted via the Midi Out Port.

• With the setting off, no Midi data will be transmitted.

• Direct will send all keyboard and controller data directly to the Midi Out.

• The setting Sequencer will transmit all data after passing through the step sequencer.

• The setting Seq.+Arp will transmit all data after passing through the step sequencer and the
arpeggiator.

Pitchbend (Pitchbnd) Enable / Disable

Determines whether the chosen instrument transmits and receives pitchbend data (Enable) or not
(Disable).

Modwheel Enable / Disable

Pitchbnd !Modwheel 1
Enable ! Enable

Determines whether the chosen instrument transmits and receives modwheel data (Enable) or not
(Disable).

Aftertch ! Sustain 1
Enable ! Enable

Aftertouch (Aftertch) Enable / Disable

Determines whether the chosen instrument transmits and receives aftertouch data (Enable) or not
(Disable).

Sustain Enable / Disable

Determines whether the chosen instrument transmits and receives sustain pedal data (Enable) or not
(Disable).

Btn. 1&2 | Prg.Chg 1
Enable ! Enable

Button 1&2 (Btn. 1&2) Enable / Disable

Determines whether the chosen instrument transmits and receives button data (Enable) or not
(Disable).

 These buttons are available for the Q Keyboard only. The Q rack is able to receive the button

data.

Program Change (Prg.Chg) Enable / Disable

Determines whether the chosen instrument transmits and receives program change data (Enable) or
not (Disable).

Waldorf Q User’s Manual 42

Multi Mode – Instrument settings

 With this Multimode parameters you can quickly create a live setup with only certain

instruments reacting to controller data. You can also define which instruments transmit Midi
data and which do not.

Engine Play / Mute / Solo

Engine 1
Play

This parameter activates or deactivates an instrument.

• Play will cause the instrument to play normally.

• Mute will mute the selected instrument.

• Solo mutes all other instruments apart from the one chosen.

 The settings for the Engine parameter are also present in the Multi Mixer.

Transpose|Detune 1
+00 | +00

Transpose -48…+48

Transposes the Instrument in semitone steps. I.e., a value of –12 means that the Instrument sounds
one octave lower than it was originally programmed.

Detune -64…+63

Detunes the Instrument in steps of 1/64th of a semitone.

 You can set up nice layer sounds with Transpose and Detune. Activate two Instruments and

set their parameters to identical values including the sound number. Then just transpose one
Instrument by one octave and you got a fat layer sound. Or set them both to the same octave
and set Detune of one Instrument to –05 and the other to +05.

LowVelo |HiVelo 1
001 | 127

Low Velo 001…127

LowVelo allows you to limit the velocity range in which the instrument is played. Only notes

with a velocity higher or equal to the selected value are passed through. Set this parameter
to

1, if you want to turn velocity switching off.

Hi Velo 001…127

HiVelo is the counterpart to LowVelo. Only notes with a velocity lower or equal to the

selected value are passed through. Set this parameter to 127, if you want to turn velocity
switching off.

43 Waldorf Q User’s Manual

Multi Mode – Instrument settings

LowKey C-2…G8

Equivalent to the velocity switching parameters, you can restrict the key range used for the
instrument’s tone generation. Only notes with a key number higher or equal to the selected value are
passed through. Set this parameter to C-2 if you want to use the full keyboard range.

HighKey C-2…G8

HighKey is the counterpart to the LowKey parameter. Only notes with a key number lower or equal

to the selected value are passed through. Set this parameter to G8 if you want to use the full keyboard
range.

Pattern off, 001…100

Each Instrument can point to one Sequencer Pattern in memory. The Pattern is played back as soon as
you hit Start/Stop.

☞ To select a Sequencer Pattern for an Instrument:

LowKey |HighKey 1
C-2 | G8

• Use the right display dial to select the Sequencer Pattern 001…100.

Pattern #001 1
Bigbeats AJH

☞ To switch the Sequencer Pattern off:

• Turn the right display dial all the way to the left until the display reads:

Seq. Pattern Off 1

 When you set up several Instruments to use different Sequencer Patterns, you can build up

complex multi track patterns that i.e. play back a whole rhythm section. In combination with
the LowKey and HiKey parameters you can even set up zones of the keyboard to transpose
these Sequencer Patterns while other zones can be played as usual.

Ctrl W…Ctrl Z 0…120

Ctrl W |Ctrl X 1
002 (02) |004 (04)

Ctrl Y |Ctrl Z 1
011 (0B) !012 (0C)

These parameters are used to define arbitrary MIDI Continuous Controllers as modulation sources for
the Sounds in the active Multi. You can set up four Controls, W, X, Y and Z, for this purpose. Each
value represents a MIDI Continuous Controller number that is used when you assign its parameter as
modulation source in the Modifiers or the Modulation Matrix. The highest possible Controller number
is 120 because all higher numbers are reserved for non-real-time purposes. If global is selected, the
corresponding settings for Ctrl W...Z made in the global parameter section are used.

Waldorf Q User’s Manual 44

Multi Mode – Instrument settings

 The most important Sound parameters of the Q can be controlled by MIDI Continuous

Controller messages. If you set one of the Ctrl W…Ctrl Z to a Controller that is also used for a
Sound parameter, the Q disables this Controller as Sound parameter Controller and uses it
exclusively for one of the Ctrl W…Ctrl Z.
This is an important issue when you send Sound parameter changes by tweaking parameters on
the front panel. The Sound parameter is sent out as Controller but can’t be received as long as
any of the Ctrl W…Ctrl Z remains assigned the same Controller number.

Multi settings

The Multi settings consists of settings that are common to all instruments in a Multi program.

Multi Volume 0…127

Multi Volume 1
127

Multi Volume sets the overall volume for the selected Multi program. It affects all Instruments of the
Multi program so if you would set Multi Volume to 0, you wouldn’t hear anything.

 Multi Volume is used to set several Multi programs to similar output levels, especially in live

situations. While recording in a studio, you should set Multi Volume to 127 to get the highest
possible Signal-to-Noise ratio.

Multi Mixer

VOL

ˇ_____ˇ____ˇ____ 127

The Multi Mixer offers fast graphical editing of Volume, Panning and Effect Send for all 16
instruments. The Mute and Solo functions enable fast and intuitive changes to the Multi setup. The
Multi mixer is found after the Multi Volume Menu. The 16 horizontal segments represent the 16
available instruments. A small cursor below the corresponding segment indicates the chosen
instrument. With the red dial you can switch between Level Mode and VU Mode.

Level Mode

In Level Mode the settings for all 16 instruments can be quickly edited. The left display knob selects
the desired parameter. The right display knob changes the value. You can easily compare values for
all 16 instruments at the same time. The following parameters are available:

• Vol shows the actual volume of the instruments in Multimode. Here the volume can be
changed infinitely variable from 0 to 127

• FX1 shows the FX1 Mix Level of the Multi Instruments. It can be changed infinitely
variable from 0 to 127.

• FX2 shows the FX2 Mix Level of the Multi Instruments. It can be changed infinitely
variable from 0 to 127.

VU Mode

The VU Mode graphically shows all incoming Midi signals and current signal volume as a bargraph
(like on a signal analyzer.) This allows you to check which instruments are receiving Midi messages.

45 Waldorf Q User’s Manual

Multi Mode – Instrument settings

All of the Multimode parameters can be changed in VU Mode. In addition to the Level Mode
parameters, the following parameters are also available:

• PAN sets the panorama position infinitely variable from 0 to 127

• ENG sets the Engine parameter as described above (PLY/MUT/SOL)

 The Multi Mixer offers the possibility to mute or unmute instruments during a live performance.

Multi Tempo 40…300

Multi Tempo sets the global tempo for all instruments in the selected Multi program. It affects all step

sequencers, all arpeggiators and all LFO that are set to clocked. Please read the chapter “The Tempo”
on page 56 for further information.

 The Multi Tempo parameter is controlled by the Tempo dial on the front panel, so it doesn’t

need to have an entry in the Multi parameter pages.

[Multi Tempo 120]

Waldorf Q User’s Manual 46

Step Sequencer

A Step Sequencer is a classic module to play back a number of notes that are stored in sequence. It is

also used to send out modulation signals to control various parameters of the connected tone

generator like filter cutoff. It can be found in a number of vintage analog synthesizers, especially in

big modular systems, and as stand-alone units to connect to other synthesizers. The Step Sequencer in

the Q offers all the classic features while giving you new features like polyphonic steps, storing of

patterns and so on.

It seems a little anachronistic to build a very limited sequencer into a synthesizer where today’s music

productions mostly base on big arrangements made in powerful software sequencers. But exactly

these limitations force you to work with what is there and give you results you wouldn’t ever program

with software sequencers. So, don’t see the Q’s Step Sequencer as a replacement but an addition to

your music setup.

Step Sequencer – Editing Sequence Patterns

Sequencer

Grab Control

Pattern

Select

Pattern

Sound

Sound

Multi

Multi

Step 1-8

Bank A

Editing Sequence Patterns

It doesn’t matter if the step sequencer is stopped or running. All changes are immediate and you can

listen to them instantly.

Activating the Step Sequencer Controls

The step sequencer uses the number buttons and the envelope controls as input controls. This means

that you have to switch this section to control the step sequencer.

☞ To switch the number buttons and envelope controls to control the step sequencer:

• Press Grab Control 햸 until the LED is lit.

Step 9-16

Bank B

Step 17-24

Bank C

Step 25-32

Bank D

Picture 9: Sequencer Section Q Keyboard

Cutoff

Velocity

Option

Pause

78654321 90

Hold

EditStart / Stop

Step Selection

To perform changes on one or more steps, you need to select all the steps you want to change. This is

done as follows:

☞ To select one or more steps:

1. Hold Bank Select and Step 1-8 and/or Step 9-16...Step 25-32 to select one or more

banks of 8 steps. If you select more than one bank, changes will be performed on all

selected banks.

2. Press one or more number buttons 1...8 to select one or more steps. If you select a step

without having a bank selected, the current bank is locked. This is very important when

the sequencer is running.

As soon as you select at least one step, the step sequencer is armed to record notes.

47 Waldorf Q User’s Manual

Step Sequencer – Editing Sequence Patterns

Deselecting all Steps

To prevent that the sequence pattern is accidentally changed, you should deselect all steps after
you’re done with the modifications you’ve wanted to do.

☞ To deselect all selected steps:

• Press Bank Select briefly.

Programming Notes or Chords

As soon as you select at least one step, the step sequencer is ready to record notes or chords that you
program over the keyboard. Each sequence pattern can hold up to 256 notes, each step up to 8 notes.
E.g., one step can play a chord of 8 notes while the next step only plays 1 note.

☞ To program a note or chord:

1. Select any number of steps.

2. Play the note or chord on the keyboard.

As soon as you program a step, the step sequencer automatically advances to the next step. This is
also true when more than one step is selected, all steps are advanced by one and you can program
the following set of steps.

If only one bank is selected, the step bank is also advanced when you program a note or chord. This
gives you the ability to program a whole sequence pattern in one run without selecting individual
steps or banks. However, if more than one bank is selected, the step banks aren’t advanced although
the selected steps are still advanced in the selected bank.

 It is a handy feature to program more than one step at a time, e.g. when you want to program a

Bass Drum into a 1/16th sequence pattern. Just select all four step banks and select the steps 1
and 5. Now hit one note and the sequence pattern is programmed.

 When you want to program a 1/16th HiHat pattern, just perform the same selection as above

but play four notes with different velocities in sequence.

Programming a Pause

A sequence pattern doesn’t need to play notes on all steps but can have pauses between some notes
or chords.

☞ To program a Pause:

1. Select any number of steps.

2. Press Pause.

 Programming a Pause in fact deletes all notes of the selected steps. There is no specific “delete

notes” function because the Pause function is meant to do this task.

Waldorf Q User’s Manual 48

Step Sequencer – Editing Sequence Patterns

Holding Notes over More Than One Step

Although you can change the length of each step individually, it might be easier to use the Hold
function instead to keep the overall length of the sequence pattern.

If a step is set to Hold, it holds the notes that are programmed in the previous step. If the previous step
is also set to Hold, the notes that were held on that step are still held. You can program up to 31 steps
to hold the notes that you’ve programmed in one step.

If the first step of the first bank is set to Hold, the last steps of the last played bank are held.

☞ To program a Hold event:

1. Select any number of steps.

2. Press Hold.

 Make sure that a Hold event doesn’t follow a paused step because then you wouldn’t hear

anything.

Limiting the Audible Range of the Sequence to One Bank

The *visible* range of the step sequence is limited to one bank automatically as soon as you select a
step or turn a dial. However, you might also want to listen only to one bank to find mistakes.

☞ To limit the audible range to one bank:

• Hold Shift and press one of the Step 1-8 ... Step 25-32 buttons. The Bank Select LED
flashes rapidly to indicate that you listen only to this particular bank of steps.

To deactivate this feature, perform the above action again.

 Limiting the audible range to one bank is only a temporary function. It isn’t meant to set the

length of the sequence pattern. To change the length of the sequence pattern, use the Pattern
Length function.

Changing Modulation Signal Values for Selected Steps

One of the most powerful features of a step sequencer is the ability to send out modulation signals for
each step like Cutoff or Velocity. This and more can be done with the rotary controls above the
number buttons.

You can change Cutoff and Velocity for all selected steps at once. The changes are relative meaning
that if you decrease the value of one step by 10, the values of the other selected steps are also
decreased by 10. Further Controllers can be adjusted by using the Control Value Parameter you can
choose in the Option menu (please read additionally the chapter „Option Line Parameter“).

If you turn a control of a step that isn’t selected, the value of this step of the current bank is changed
and the visible bank is locked as soon as you turn a control.

☞ To change the modulation signal values of selected steps:

1. Select any number of steps.

2. Press the Control Select button until the parameter that you want to change is shown.

49 Waldorf Q User’s Manual

Step Sequencer – Sequencer Panel Controls

3. Turn the controls as you like. The changes are relative to all selected steps when you turn
a control whose step is selected. If you turn a control whose step isn't selected, the control
only changes this particular step.

Changing Modulation Signal Values for All Steps At Once

It is also possible to change the modulation signal values for all steps at once. This is very handy
when you i.e. want to reset Cutoff or to set all Velocities to 127. The changes are relative meaning
that if you decrease the value of one step by 10, the values of all other steps are also decreased by 10.

☞ To change the modulation signal values of all steps at once:

1. Press the Control Select button until the parameter that you want to change is shown.

2. Hold Shift and turn any control. The changes are relative to all steps.

 If you want to quickly change all parameters to the same value, just turn a control fully up and

down to make sure all steps have the same values. Afterwards you can adjust the parameter to
the desired value.

Sequencer Panel Controls

Grab Control

Used to switch the number buttons and envelope controls to control the step sequencer. This is the
first button you have to press to edit a sequence pattern. The panel controls described in the following
paragraphs only work when Grab Control is active.

 The only Step Sequencer controls that you can use without activating Grab Control are the

Tempo control, the Start/Stop button and the Edit button. This is handy for a live

performance.

Start/Stop

Starts or stops the sequencer.

• Press Start/Stop to start the pattern from the first step or to stop the sequencer.

• Press Shift+Start/Stop to start the pattern from the last step that was played before you
stopped the sequencer.

If the sequencer is running, the current playback position of the sequence pattern is shown by the LED
of the step sequencer section as follows:

• If no step is selected, the LED showing the playback position are fully lit.

• If one or more steps are selected, the playback position is shown with dimmed LED.

Tempo see Sound Tempo

Controls the tempo of the step sequencer.

Bank Select Button (Pattern/Sound/Multi Button)

The Bank Select Button is used to select step banks or to deselect all steps.

Waldorf Q User’s Manual 50

Step Sequencer – Sequencer Rotaries

• Press Bank Select to deselect all selected steps.

• Press Bank Select+Step 1-8…Step 25-32 to select any number of step banks. The LEDs
of selected Banks are fully lit.

Step Buttons 1…8

The Step Buttons 1…8 are used to select one or more steps. If you press a Step Button while the
sequencer is stopped, the notes of this step are played back.

 Using the monitor function of the Step Buttons 1…8 while the step sequencer is stopped is a

handy feature to trigger chords or arpeggios. Just program a couple of chords into a sequence
pattern and hit the step buttons during your performance.

Pause Button

Sets the selected steps to Pause. All notes that were previously stored on these steps are deleted.

Hold Button

Sets the selected steps to Hold. This means that the notes of the previous step are held over the length
of the step. You can set adjacent steps to Hold to hold notes over several steps.

Make sure that no Pause event occurs between the step with the notes and the step you set to Hold,
otherwise the notes aren’t held.

Control Select Button (Cutoff/Velocity/Option Button)

Switches the eight rotary controls to control the following parameters per step:

• Cutoff performs relative changes to the Cutoff parameters of Filter 1 and Filter 2.

• Velocity sets the velocity for all notes of the step.

• Option controls further parameters. Available parameters are selected in the Step
Sequencer Edit menu. Please read the chapter “Option Line parameter” for further
information.

Sequencer Rotaries

The Sequencer Rotaries are used to control various continuous parameters of the sequence pattern.

• If you turn the control of a step that isn’t selected, only the parameter of that step is
changed.

• If you turn the control of a selected step, all other selected steps in all selected banks are
changed relatively.

• If you turn a control while Shift is held, all steps in all banks are changed relatively.

The row of LED to the right of the eight controls shows which parameter is currently edited.

Sequencer Edit Menu

The following parameters can be accessed via the display menu. Press the Sequencer section’s Edit
button to activate the display menu.

51 Waldorf Q User’s Manual

Step Sequencer – Sequencer Edit Menu

You can select the corresponding menu pages through the data dial. Alternatively you also can
change this pages by pressing the Edit button. With the two parameter dials below the display you set
the values.

Selection of a Pattern

In Single-Mode you can select the desired pattern. In Multimode the following display appears:

In this mode you can select the sequencer pattern only in the Multi Menu. Beside this please read
„Pattern“ in the chapter „Multimode“ on page 44.

The internal storage of the Q can hold up to 100 patterns.

Pattern #001
SchuppenShampoo!

Choose Multi-Seq.
in Multi Edit

Option Line Parm
NoteLen

Option Line Parameter

Here you can select the parameter being activated in the Option function with the Control Select
Button. All values of this parameter are adjusted with the encoders of the Sequencer Section. The
following parameters are available for Option Line Parameter:

CtrVal1 (Control Value 1) and CtrVal2 (Control Value 2)

Control Value 1 and 2 are Standard Modulation Sources, which destinations have to been defined in

the modulation matrix. Every step can create a different modulation. Please read the chapter
"Modulation matrix" on page 131 for detailed information.

 Use Control Value to control various sound parameters like Resonance and Filter Envelope

Decay, for instance. A Control Value can drive different Controllers at the same time when the
necessary settings are made in the Modulation Matrix.

StepLen (Step Length)

Each step and its notes can have individual lengths. Step Length determines how long a step is hold
before the step sequencer advances to the next step. You can change this parameter in a range from
1/64 to 4 Bars. Step Length is set in the same manner as Modulation Signals. The only difference is
that you can’t change more than one step at a time because you would destroy the rhythm of the
sequence pattern.

NoteLen (Note Length)

Note Length sets the length of the notes of the current step. The note lengths can be longer or shorter
than the actual step length. Musicians usually say “staccato” to shorter notes and “legato” to notes
that are as long or longer than the step. You can change this parameter in a range from 1/64 to 4 Bars.
Note Length is set in the same manner as Modulation Signals. The only difference is that you can’t
change more than one step at a time because you would destroy the rhythm of the sequence pattern.

Waldorf Q User’s Manual 52

Step Sequencer – Sequencer Edit Menu

Note 1...8

With the value Note 1 to 8 you can supplementary edit the recorded notes per step. It doesn’t matter
how many notes you put in per step. When using a monophonic sequencer line Note 1 transposes the
corresponding notes, while Note 2 to 8 are creating new notes in each case. In polyphonic chords
Note 1 to 8 can be used to edit the existing notes

 With this function you easily can insert notes subsequent into a step or change existing chords

without being in need of making new additions with the keyboard. This especially makes sense
when working with the Q Rack.

Transpose

With this function you can transpose infinitely variable existing notes up or down. The notes are
transposed as long as you’re turning the encoder.

Pattern Length
32

Pattern Length 1…32

Sets the length of the sequence pattern. A sequence pattern can have a maximum number of 32 steps.
When you set Pattern Length to a value smaller than 32, you can still edit the steps that are outside
this range but you won’t hear them when the Step Sequencer is running.

Transpose Mode
1 Octave

Transpose Mode Off / On / 1 Octave

Used to activate or deactivate the transpose of the pattern when Grab Control is off or no step is
selected.

• Off means that the sequence isn't transposed. The keyboard acts as usual.

• On means that the sequence is transposed relatively to the Transpose Key setting. The
keyboard is used to set the transpose offset with “last note priority” as soon as the Step
Sequencer is running.

• 1 Octave means that the sequence is transposed relatively to the Transpose Key setting but
all transposes are mapped to half an octave below or above the Transpose key. The
keyboard is used to set the transpose offset with “last note priority” as soon as the Step
Sequencer is running.

Transpose Key
C1

Transpose Key C-2…G8

Sets the basic key from where transposes start. This feature is useful when you i.e. have a sequence in
C major where the first note is an E. Setting Transpose Key to C3 assures that the sequence really
plays in C major when you hit a C.

53 Waldorf Q User’s Manual

Step Sequencer – Sequencer Edit Menu

Transpose Quantize Next Step / Next Bank / Next Cycle

Determines when the transpose is actually performed after a note was hit.

• Next Step means that the transpose is performed immediately after the note was hit.

• Next Bank means that the transpose takes place when the next bank is played.

• Next Cycle means that the transpose is performed when a new cycle starts.

Rotate Steps

These are temporary controls that actually change the sequence. So, use them with care (and after
you've read this description):

As long as you turn one of these controls, the banks or cycles are moved back or forth in the
sequence. When you i.e. turn Rotate Steps Banks to +01, the first bank is moved to the second, the
second to the third and so on. The same behaviour is available for cycle. After you've released the
control, it is reset to 0 but the change is performed in the sequence, so don't be confused.

Transpose Quantize
Next Cycle

Rotate Steps
Banks | Cycle

Init All Lengths
Steplen |Notelen

Init All Lengths (Step and Note Length) 1/64...4 Bars

As soon as you turn one of these controls, the Step Lengths or Note Lengths of all steps are set to this
value. This is a handy feature when you e.g. want to set all steps to 16th notes.

Waldorf Q User’s Manual 54

Sound Parameters

Overview of Functions

The Waldorf Q consists of numerous sound-shaping components. The following overview gives you
an idea of how the individual components interact:

Sound Parameters – Overview of Functions

Step Sequencer Arpeggiator TriggerMIDI Clock

Audio Signal

Control Signal

FM Destination

LFO 1

MIDI Input

Oscillator 1

Ring Modulator

Oscillator 2

Oscillator 3

…

Sync

Modulation

…

…

…

LFO 2

…

Matrix

Mixer

Noise Generator

Modifiers

f(x, y)

External

Audio Signal

…

Filter 1

Routing

Filter 2

Filter Envelope

…

…

Amplifier
Envelope

Pan 1

Amplifier FX 2

Pan 2

Envelope 3 Envelope 4LFO 3

FX 1

L

Output

R

Picture 10: Block schematic diagram of a sound

As you can see, the Q consists of two different types of components for sound generation and sound
shaping:

• Oscillators, Ring Modulator, Noise Generator, External Audio Signal, Mixer, Filters,
Amplifier, Effects:
These modules represent the audio signal flow. Sound generation actually occurs within
the Oscillators. They produce square, sawtooth, triangular, sine and alternative
waveforms. The Mixer follows the Oscillators in the signal chain, which is where the
Oscillators’ output signals are mixed. Noise or signals received through the audio inputs
can also be added to the mix. The Filter then shapes the sound by amplifying (boosting) or
attenuating (dampening) certain frequencies. The Amplifier and the Effects are located at
the end of the signal chain. They determine the overall volume of the signal and add some
effects like chorus, flanger, delay, reverb etc.

• LFO, Envelopes, Modifiers, Modulation Matrix:
These modules are called Modulators. The Modulators are designed to manipulate or
modulate the sound generating components to add dynamics to sounds. The Low­frequency Oscillators (LFO) are designed for periodic or recurring modulations while

55 Waldorf Q User’s Manual

Sound Parameters – The Tempo

Envelopes are for modulations that occur once on each note. These generators are
assigned to parameters through the Modulation Matrix and influence these parameters to
alter a sound. In addition, the Modifier unit can process various mathematical operations
and functions on the modulation signals.

The Tempo

Tempo 40…300

The Tempo control is one of the most important parameters in all operation modes of the Q. It
controls the tempo of the Step Sequencer, the Arpeggiator, some Effect types and the LFO where
Clocked is activated.

In Multi Mode, Tempo controls the overall tempo of the current Multi affecting all Sounds that are
used in its Instruments.

These parameters are affected by Tempo:

• LFO 1…3 Speed, when the respective Clocked parameter is activated

• Effect type Delay, when its Tempo parameter is set to Internal

• The Arpeggiator

• The Step Sequencer

Clock Internal / Send / Auto / Auto-Thru

 The Clock parameter is located in the Global menu. You can also change the clock settings

by pressing the Shift button and turning the Tempo knob to the desired value.

Tempo goes hand in hand with the Clock parameter. It determines how the Q reacts on incoming

MIDI Clock messages and if it sends those. Depending on the setting of Clock, the actual sound
tempo is set as follows:

• Internal means that the Q doesn’t react on incoming MIDI Clock nor does it send MIDI
Clock. The Q only syncs to its own tempo base that is set by Tempo.

• Send means that the Q doesn’t react on incoming MIDI Clock but sends it as MIDI Clock
messages through its MIDI Out. Use this setting when you want to sync other devices to
the Q’s Tempo setting but never want to sync the Q to any other device.

• Auto means that the Q automatically syncs to incoming MIDI Clock if it is sent to it by an
external device like a sequencer or drum machine. If there is no MIDI Clock present, the
Q generates its internal tempo base and sends it as MIDI Clock messages through its MIDI
Out. This is the recommended setting that works in almost all situations.

Now, how does Auto really work? When you select a Sound or a Multi, the programmed
tempo is used as long as no MIDI Clock is received. As soon as the Q receives MIDI
Clock, the Tempo parameter is changed to match the incoming MIDI Clock. This tempo
is still valid when no MIDI Clock is received anymore. You can now change the Tempo
manually starting from the calculated value or perform the Recall function for the Sound
or Multi to get back to the stored tempo.

• Auto-Thru means that the Q automatically syncs to incoming MIDI Clock and always
sends out MIDI Clock, no matter if it received it or if it generated the tempo base itself.

Waldorf Q User’s Manual 56

This setting is only useful for special setups where you need to control a device through
the Q’s MIDI Out including sync, e.g., when you use the Q as a master keyboard in a live
performance where the Q itself is synced to a sequencer but needs to send MIDI Clock to
a hardware sequencer, too.

 The recommended setting for Clock is Auto. This setting works in almost all situations. Please

read the description above for a detailed explanation of it.

Modulation Speed Levels

The Q offers three levels of modulation speeds, FM, Fast Modulation and Standard Modulation. This
separation assures a maximum flexibility in sound generation while keeping the amount of processor
power needed to calculate a voice as low as possible. You find separate descriptions how to access
the different modulation types in the chapters below. The three modulation speed levels are divided
as follows:

FM (Frequency Modulation)

This is the fastest modulation speed level. These calculations are performed for each generated
sample or, in other words, 48000 times per second (48kHz). Five modules of the Q’s sound
generation offer FM, the three oscillators and the two filters. When you browse the list of available
sources for this type of modulation, you will almost only find those sources that make sense to
modulate the destination with sample speed. This includes the oscillators, the audio input, noise, the
LFO, the envelopes and so on. You won’t find sources like modwheel or velocity, because their
values change incredibly slowly, compared to an oscillator playing at a pitch of i.e. 10kHz. The
following table shows all available FM Sources:

Sound Parameters – Modulation Speed Levels

FM Sources Description

Off No modulation
Osc1 Oscillator 1 Signal
Osc2 Oscillator 2 Signal
Osc3 Oscillator 3 Signal
Noise Noise Generator Signal
ExtLeft Audio Input Left Signal
ExtRight Audio Input Right Signal
ExtL+R Summed Audio Input Signal
LFO1 LFO 1 Signal
LFO2 LFO 2 Signal
LFO3 LFO 3 Signal
FilterEnv Filter Envelope Signal
AmpEnv Amplifier Envelope Signal
Env3 Envelope 3 Signal
Env4 Envelope 4 Signal

Table 3: FM Sources

57 Waldorf Q User’s Manual

Sound Parameters – Modulation Speed Levels

Fast Modulation

Though not calculated in sample speed, the Fast Modulation calculations are performed in audio
speed: more than 5000 times per second (>5kHz). Most of the modulations in the Q are performed at
this speed level. The following table lists all pre-routed Fast Modulation destinations:

Pre-routed Modulation destinations Description

Oscillator PitchMod Global pitch modulation of all three Oscillators at once
Oscillator 1 PWM Pulse width modulation of Oscillator 1
Oscillator 2 PWM Pulse width modulation of Oscillator 2
Oscillator 3 PWM Pulse width modulation of Oscillator 3
Filter 1 CutoffMod Cutoff modulation of Filter 1
Filter 1 Env Envelope amount of Filter 1 cutoff
Filter 1 Velo Envelope velocity amount of Filter 1 cutoff
Filter 1 PanMod Panning modulation of Filter 1 output
Filter 2 CutoffMod Cutoff modulation of Filter 2
Filter 2 Env Envelope amount of Filter 2 cutoff
Filter 2 Velo Envelope velocity amount of Filter 2 cutoff
Filter 2 PanMod Panning modulation of Filter 2 output
Amplifier AmpMod Amplitude modulation
Amplifier Volume Output shaped by the Amplifier Envelope

Table 4: Pre-routed Modulation destinations

In addition to the pre-routed Fast Modulation destinations, the Q offers eight slots for individual
routing connections that are updated at the same speed level: the Fast Modulation Matrix. The
following table lists all available destinations for a Fast Modulation Matrix slot:

Fast Modulation Matrix destinations Description

Pitch Global pitch of all three Oscillators at once
O1 Pitch, O2 Pitch, O3 Pitch Pitch of Oscillator 1…3
O1 PW, O2 PW, O3 PW Pulse width of Oscillator 1…3
O1 FM, O2 FM, O3 FM FM Amount modulation of Oscillator 1…3
O1 Level, O2 Level, O3 Level Mixer level of Oscillator 1…3
O1 Bal., O2 Bal., O3Bal. Filter 1/2 Balance of Oscillator 1…3
RingLevel Mixer ring modulation level
Ring Bal. Filter 1/2 Balance of Oscillator 1
N/E Level Mixer level of Noise or External signal
N/E Bal. Filter 1/2 Balance of Noise or External signal
Routing Filter Routing
F1 Cutoff, F2 Cutoff Cutoff of Filter 1…2
F1 Reson., F2 Reson. Resonance of Filter 1…2
F1 FM, F2 FM FM Amount modulation of Filter 1…2
F1 Drive, F2 Drive Drive of Filter 1…2
F1 Pan, F2 Pan Pan of Filter 1…2
Volume Amplifier output volume

Table 5: Fast Modulation Matrix destinations

Waldorf Q User’s Manual 58

Sound Parameters – Modulation Speed Levels

The following table shows all available Fast Modulation sources:

Fast Modulation sources Description

Off No modulation
LFO1 LFO 1 Signal
LFO1*MW LFO 1 Signal shaped by the Modwheel
LFO2 LFO 2 Signal
LFO2*Prs LFO 2 Signal shaped by Aftertouch
LFO3 LFO 3 Signal
FilterEnv Filter Envelope Signal
AmpEnv Amplifier Envelope Signal
Env3 Envelope 3 Signal
Env4 Envelope 4 Signal
Velocity MIDI Velocity
Modwheel MIDI modulation wheel (controller #1)
Pitchbend MIDI pitchbend signal
Pressure MIDI channel pressure

Table 6: Fast Modulation sources

Standard Modulation

The Standard Modulations are calculated at normal speed that is still fast enough for the most
modulation purposes, e.g. when dealing with the modulation wheel or velocity. The Standard
Modulation slots offer an extended set of modulation sources and destinations compared to the Fast
Modulation slots. The Standard Modulation speed level is only available in the Modulation Matrix, all
other modulations are performed as Fast Modulations or FM.

Standard Modulation Matrix
destinations

Pitch Global pitch of all three Oscillators at once
O1 Pitch, O2 Pitch, O3 Pitch Pitch of Oscillator 1…3
O1 PW, O2 PW, O3 PW Pulse width of Oscillator 1…3
O1 FM, O2 FM, O3 FM FM Amount modulation of Oscillator 1…3
O1 Level, O2 Level, O3 Level Mixer level of Oscillator 1…3
O1 Bal., O2 Bal., O3Bal. Filter 1/2 Balance of Oscillator 1…3
RingLevel Mixer ring modulation level
Ring Bal. Filter 1/2 Balance of Oscillator 1
N/E Level Mixer level of Noise or External signal
N/E Bal. Filter 1/2 Balance of Noise or External signal
Routing Filter Routing
F1 Cutoff, F2 Cutoff Cutoff of Filter 1…2
F1 Reson., F2 Reson. Resonance of Filter 1…2
F1 FM, F2 FM FM Amount modulation of Filter 1…2
F1 Drive, F2 Drive Drive of Filter 1…2
F1 Pan, F2 Pan Pan of Filter 1…2
Volume Amplifier output volume
LFO1Speed, LFO2Speed, LFO3Speed Speed of LFO 1…3
FE Attack Attack rate of Filter Envelope
FE Decay Decay (and Decay 2) rate of Filter Envelope

Description

59 Waldorf Q User’s Manual

Sound Parameters – Modulation Speed Levels

FE Sustain Sustain (and Sustain 2) level of Filter Envelope
FE Release Release rate of Filter Envelope
AE Attack Attack rate of Amp Envelope
AE Decay Decay (and Decay 2) rate of Amp Envelope
AE Sustain Sustain (and Sustain 2) level of Amp Envelope
AE Release Release rate of Amp Envelope
E3 Attack Attack rate of Envelope 3
E3 Decay Decay (and Decay 2) rate of Envelope 3
E3 Sustain Sustain (and Sustain 2) level of Envelope 3
E3 Release Release rate of Envelope 3
E4 Attack Attack rate of Envelope 4
E4 Decay Decay (and Decay 2) rate of Envelope 4
E4 Sustain Sustain (and Sustain 2) level of Envelope 4
E4 Release Release rate of Envelope 4
M1F Amount Modulation amount of M1F
M2F Amount Modulation amount of M2F
M1S Amount Modulation amount of M1S
M2S Amount Modulation amount of M2S
01SubDiv, 02SubDiv Frequency divide of the sub oscillator1...2
01SubVol, 02SubVol Volume of the sub oscillators 1...2

Table 7: Standard Modulation Matrix destinations

The following table shows all available Standard Modulation sources:

Standard Modulation Matrix sources Description

Off No modulation
LFO1 LFO 1 Signal
LFO1*MW LFO 1 Signal shaped by the Modwheel
LFO2 LFO 2 Signal
LFO2*Prs LFO 2 Signal shaped by Aftertouch
LFO3 LFO 3 Signal
FilterEnv Filter Envelope Signal
AmpEnv Amplifier Envelope Signal
Env3 Envelope 3 Signal
Env4 Envelope 4 Signal
Keytrack MIDI note number
Velocity MIDI Velocity
Rel. Velo MIDI note release velocity
Pressure MIDI channel pressure
Poly Prs. MIDI polyphonic pressure
Pitchbend MIDI pitchbend signal
Modwheel MIDI modulation wheel (controller #1)
Sust. Ctr MIDI sustain pedal (controller #64)
Foot Ctr MIDI foot control (controller #4)
BreathCtr MIDI breath control (controller #2)
Control W, X, Y, Z assignable MIDI controller W, X, Y, Z
Ctr Delay Modifier Delay
Modif. #1...#4 Modifier result #1...#4
minimum constant for minimum modulation (equals 0)

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Sound Parameters – Modulation Speed Levels

MAXIMUM constant for maximum modulation (equals +1)
Button 1 assignable button 1
Button 2 assignable button 2
LastBtn last button status
PrevBtn previous button status
S. Cutoff Step sequencer filter cutoff modulation
Seq. CV1, CV2 Step sequencer control value 1 and 2
S.CV1 run, CV2 run Step sequencer control value 1 and 2 start
Seq. Step Step sequencer step
S.Steplen Step sequencer step length
S.Notelen Step sequencer note length
Voice Num Note number of played voices
Voice %16, %8, %4, %2 Number of played voices
Unisono V Number of played unisono voices

Table 8: Standard Modulation Matrix sources

61 Waldorf Q User’s Manual

Sound Parameters – Xphorm – Interpolating between two sounds

Xphorm – Interpolating between two sounds

The Xphorm function gives you an easy and powerful way to interpolate between two different
sounds. Interpolation means that all continuous sound parameters of two sounds are changed by a
certain ratio determined by the Xphorm source.

Sounds difficult? Here’s an example: imagine two sounds with different settings for Filter 1 and the
Amp Envelope. When you move the Xphorm source, i.e., the Modwheel half up, the parameter values
are in the exact middle of the two sounds. The following table shows some parameters of the original
sound, the interpolated sound and the sound setup in the Xphorm menu:

Original Sound 50% Interpolated Sound Sound set up in the Xphorm menu

Cutoff 32 64 96
Resonance 0 5 10
Env. Amount +60 +15 -30
Attack 8 7 6
Decay 25 45 65
Sustain 0 32 64
Release 20 30 40

Table 9: An example of two sounds that are Xphormed

You can easily see how the parameters are changed. I.e., Cutoff was set to 32 in the original sound
and to 96 in the Xphorm sound, so the 50% interpolation is in the middle: 64. The same is true for
bipolar parameters like Env. Amount. You also see that Xphorm is a blending of parameters, not a
fade out and fade in of two different sounds.

Xphorm can change all continuous parameters, but no switch parameters. So, the basic functionality
is similar to what would happen when you would set up a lot of modulations in the various
modulation slots. But Xphorm is faster and easier to set up and sometimes it creates surprising results
you wouldn’t have found by manually setting up modulations.

Continuous parameters include:

• LFO Speed, Delay, Fade

• Osc Pitch, PW, Glide and Mod Amounts

• Mixer Levels and Balances

• Filter Routing

• Filter Cutoff, Resonance, Drive, Pan and Mod Amounts

• Amp Volume and Mod Amounts

• Envelope Rates and Levels

The Mod Matrix Amounts aren't xphormed because it is very likely that the sources and destinations
are different in the xphormed patch.

Switch parameters that aren't xphormed:

• LFO Shapes, Sync, Clocked

• Osc Shapes, Sync and Mod Sources

• Mixer Input settings for N/E

• Filter Types and Mod Sources

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Sound Parameters – Xphorm – Interpolating between two sounds

• Effect Types

Why aren’t switch parameters xphormed?

The reason is very simple: all the above are made of models. Xphorming between different oscillator
and filter models is not possible because they are representations of analog circuits. Xphorming
between different effect types is not possible as well because what is the middle between a chorus
and a distortion? A Chortion? Or a Distorus? (Not to forget that they are also made of different
models.)

What about two models running at a time and blending between them?

Firstly, this would lower the polyphony drastically. But secondly, it is not the same as xphorm.
Xphorm changes the parameter from one set to another while blending would leave both parameter
sets where they are but would lower the volume of the first module while it would raise the volume of
the second module. An example: two Low Pass filters, one with a low cutoff and another one with a
high cutoff setting: Xphorm would open the filter gradually while blending would make the volume of
the low cutoff part lower while it would raise the volume of the high cutoff part. It wouldn't create
any cutoff values in-between.

Xphorm Edit Menu

The Xphorm menu features two parameters to setup the Xphorm function.

Xphorm Mode off, Modwheel, Pressure

This parameter sets the source that controls the Xphorm interpolation.

• off means that Xphorm is deactivated

• Modwheel means that the Modulation Wheel is used to control the Xphorm interpolation.

• Pressure means that monophonic Aftertouch is used to control the Xphorm interpolation.

 Please make sure that you don’t use any modulations in the sounds that use the Modulation

Wheel or Pressure as source, because their changes would still be used in the sound. On the
other hand, when you know what you are doing, you can create additional changes by setting
up those modulation connections.

Xphorm Sound Bank and Number A…X 001…100

In the second page, you can select the sound that is used as Xphorm destination. Based on the switch
parameters of the original sound, it might happen that the Xphorm destination sound sounds different.
If you like that, keep it, if not, select a different sound or change one of the sounds so that it uses the
same switch parameter settings.

• Use the left display dial to select Bank A…X from which the Sound program is taken.

• Use the right display dial to select the Sound program 001…100.

63 Waldorf Q User’s Manual

Sound Parameters – Triggering of Voices

Triggering of Voices

As soon as a note is played, the Q triggers one or several voices. How this triggering is done is set by
the following parameters. You can find these parameters in the Sound edit menu.

Sound Edit-Menu

Mode Poly / Mono

Controls if the Sound can be played polyphonically or monophonically.

• Poly means that each note triggers its own voice or voices like on a piano.

• Mono means that only the last played note sounds. All other notes are stored in an internal
list but aren’t played. As soon as you release the note that is currently played, the second
last note is played and so on. When you play legato, only the first note that was played
triggers the envelopes. All later notes use these envelopes but sound in the pitch you’ve
played. This mode is for sustained sounds like typical 70’s solo sounds.

Mode | Unisono
Poly | Dual

 When Mono is selected and you have set up a decaying volume envelope for the selected

Sound, you might not hear anything after playing several notes because of the envelopes
decaying to 0.

Unisono Off / Dual / 3…6

Controls how many voices are triggered when a note is played.

• Off means that a note triggers one voice. This is the standard mode.

• Dual means that a note triggers two voices. Both voices have high priority so they can cut
off other voices that are played.

• 3…6 means that this number of voices is triggered when a note is played. Only the first
voice has high priority, meaning that it can cut off other played notes. The other voices can
only sound if any voices are free or if there are other unison voices with lower priority that
could be cut off. This ensures that older notes play at least one voice as long as the voice
allocation isn’t forced to steal even this voice for a new note.

Unisono Detune 000…031

Unisono Detune
012

Controls the detuning of the Unison voices. Each voice is detuned differently, with Unisono Detune,
you control the overall amount.

 Unisono Detune suits perfect for thickening the tone. Also Step Sequences and Arpeggios

profit from the detune function.

Waldorf Q User’s Manual 64

Sound Parameters – Triggering of Voices

Trig FE ! AE (mono)
Normal ! Single

Triggering of the Filter Envelope (Trig FE)

Determines the triggering of the Filter Envelope.

• Normal means that every Note starts the filter envelope of its own voice.

• Single means that the envelopes of all voices of a selected program behave like a single
envelope. This common envelope starts as soon as the first note is played. The sustain level
remains until the last note is released. Afterwards the release phase is active.

Triggering of the Amplifier Envelope (AE (Mono))

Determines the triggering of the Amplifier Envelope.

• Normal means that every Note starts the amplifier envelope of its own voice.

• Single means that the envelopes of all voices of a selected program behave like a single
envelope. This common envelope starts as soon as the first note is played. The sustain level
remains until the last note is released. Afterwards the release phase is active. This setting is
only active as long as the Parameter Mode is set to Mono. Otherwise the envelope
behaves as being set to Normal.

Trig E3 ! E4 (mono)
Normal ! Single

Triggering of the Envelopes 3 (Trig E3) and 4 E4 (mono)

Determines the triggering of the Envelopes 3 and 4.

• Normal means that every Note starts the amplifier envelope of its own voice.

• Single means that the envelopes of all voices of a selected program behave like a single
envelope. This common envelope starts as soon as the first note is played. The sustain level
remains until the last note is released. Afterwards the release phase is active. This setting is
only active as long as the Parameter Mode is set to Mono (only Envelope 4). Otherwise the
envelope behaves as being set to Normal.

65 Waldorf Q User’s Manual

Sound Parameters – Oscillators

Oscillators

The Waldorf Q is equipped with three oscillators that have almost the same functionality.

Oscillator Shapes

The oscillator is the first building block of a synthesizer. It delivers the signal that is transformed by all
other components of the synthesizer. In the early days of electronic synthesis, Robert A. Moog found
out that most real acoustic instrument waveforms could be reproduced by using abstracted electronic
versions of these waveforms. He wasn’t the first who came to that conclusion but he was the first in
recreating them electronically and building them into a machine that could be used commercially.
What he implemented into his synthesizer were the still well-known waveforms sawtooth, square and
triangle. For sure, this is only a minimal selection of the endless variety of waveforms, but the Waldorf
Q gives you exactly these waveforms at hand. Plus other classic waveforms like pulse (which is the
father of the square waveform) and the sine wave (which is also part of each other waveform).

Now, you probably know how these waveforms look and sound like, but the following chapter gives
you a small introduction into the deeper structure of these waveforms. Let’s start with the most basic
one.

The Sine Wave

The Sine Wave is the purest tone that can be generated. It consists only of one harmonic, the
fundamental, and has no overtones. The following picture shows the sine wave and its frequency
representation:

Amplitude

Time

There is no acoustic music instrument that generates a pure sine wave, the only instrument that comes
close to it is the pitch fork. Therefore, the sine wave sounds a little artificial to the ear. However, the
sine wave can be an interesting oscillator waveform to emphasize a certain harmonic while other
oscillators are playing more complex waveforms, or as fm source for frequency modulation.

The sine wave is the most basic building block of each waveform. Any waveform can be broken
down to several or many sine waves that are arranged with different frequencies and magnitudes.
These sine waves are called partials. In most waveforms, the partial with the lowest frequency is
dominant, meaning that this partial is used by the ear to determine the pitch of the tone. This partial is
called fundamental. All other partials are called overtones. So, the second partial is the first overtone.

Magnitude

Frequency

14 8 12 16

Harmonics

The Sine Wave

Cyclic waveforms such as the waveforms in the Q only feature sine waves in integer frequency ratios
to the fundamental like double frequency, triple frequency and so on. Those partials are called
harmonics because their frequency is a harmonic multiple of the fundamental.

Confusing? Let’s generalize it to cyclic waveforms: a cyclic waveform like sawtooth, square etc. only
consists of harmonic partials. The harmonic with the lowest frequency is dominant and therefore
called fundamental. All other harmonics are called overtones.

Waldorf Q User’s Manual 66

Sound Parameters – Oscillators

The Sawtooth Wave

The Sawtooth Wave is the most popular synthesizer waveform. It consists of all harmonics where the
magnitude of each harmonic descends by the factor of its position. This means that the first harmonic
(the fundamental) has full magnitude, the second harmonic has half magnitude, the third harmonic
has a third magnitude and so on. The following picture shows how the individual harmonics build up
the sawtooth wave:

1st Harmonic
Magnitude 1

+

2nd Harmonic
Magnitude 1/2

+

3rd Harmonic
Magnitude 1/3

+

4th Harmonic
Magnitude 1/4

+

.
.

Amplitude

The sawtooth wave was thought as an abstraction of the timbre of string and brass instruments. You
can easily understand that when you think of a violin. Imagine a bow pulling the string slightly into
one direction. At one point, the string abruptly comes off the bow and swings back to its original
position. The bow is still moved and so it catches the string again and the procedure is repeated. The
result is a waveform that looks like a sawtooth. The same is true for a brass instrument. The string in
this case are the lips while the bow is the air. The lips are moved by the air to a certain extent and
abruptly move back to their original position.

=

Time

Picture 11: Additive components of the Sawtooth wave

Magnitude

Frequency

14 81216

Harmonics

67 Waldorf Q User’s Manual

Sound Parameters – Oscillators

The Square Wave

The Square Wave is a special waveform generated by a pulse waveform with 50% pulse width. This
means that the positive part of the waveform has equal length to the negative part. The pulse
waveform can have other pulse widths as you can read later. For now, we speak about the square
wave as a unique waveform. The square wave consists of all odd harmonics where the magnitude of
each harmonic descends by the factor of its position. This means that the first harmonic has full
magnitude, the third harmonic has a third magnitude, the fifth harmonic has a fifth magnitude and so
on. The following picture shows how the individual harmonics build up the sawtooth wave:

1st Harmonic
Magnitude 1

+

3rd Harmonic
Magnitude 1/3

Amplitude

+

5th Harmonic
Magnitude 1/5

+

7th Harmonic
Magnitude 1/7

+

.
.

=

Time

Picture 12: Additive components of the square wave with 50% pulse width

Magnitude

13

579

Harmonics

11 13 15

Frequency

The square wave was thought as an abstraction of wind instruments like a panflute or a recorder.
They consist of a tube that can contain a certain amount of air. The player blows air through the tube
in a way that the air starts to vibrate. This vibration is almost completely symmetrical resulting in a
hollow timbre.

Waldorf Q User’s Manual 68

Sound Parameters – Oscillators

The Pulse Wave

The Pulse Wave is the most versatile wave in a classic synthesizer because its shape and therefore its
harmonic content can be changed in realtime. This is done by changing the width of the upper and
lower portion of the waveform cycle. These portions are called pulses, hence the name pulse width.
The width of the first pulse is used to distinguish between different pulse waves and it is measured in
percent. The following picture shows several pulse waves with different pulse widths:

50% Pulse
(Square Wave)

13

1357911 13 15

1357911 13 15

1357911 13 15

Picture 13: Additive components of Pulse wave with different pulse widths

The first thing you probably note is that the lower part of the wave gets closer to the center. This is
because the energy of the wider pulse is higher than the one of the narrower pulse. If this wouldn’t be
compensated in the waveform, the overall signal would have an unwanted DC offset.

57911 13 15

33% Pulse

25% Pulse

<1% Pulse
(Impulse)

As you could read in the previous chapter, the harmonic content of a 50% pulse wave is a special
case. It has a very symmetrical harmonic content while all other pulse widths create peaks or holes at
certain frequencies. Another special case is a pulse wave with a very narrow pulse width, in the
above picture labelled with <1%. An infinitely thin pulse creates a spectrum that has all harmonics
with equal magnitudes. In a digital synthesizer, “infinitely” for sure means one sample.

The pulse wave is an artificial wave which means that it doesn’t occur in nature. It was built into
synthesizers because it could create a lot of different timbres with a minimum of technical effort.
However, certain pulse widths sound very close to the timbres of acoustic (or semi-acoustic)
instruments, i.e. a guitar or bass guitar, an e-piano or even a flute.

The most powerful feature of the pulse wave is to change its pulse width during a sound. This is
called pulse width modulation. When the pulse width is changed, the waveform starts to sound
thicker. This happens because the effect is very similar to what you would get when you have two
oscillators running with slightly different frequencies. They interfere and create irregular holes in the
resulting waveforms.

69 Waldorf Q User’s Manual

Sound Parameters – Oscillators

The Triangle Wave

The Triangle Wave is very similar to the square wave. It is made of the same harmonics as the square
wave, but with different magnitude ratios. The magnitude of each harmonic is divided by the power
of the number of it. This means that the third harmonic’s magnitude is a ninth, the fifth harmonic is a
twenty-fifth and so on. The following picture shows the harmonic content:

1st Harmonic
Magnitude 1

+

3rd Harmonic
Magnitude 1/9

+

5th Harmonic
Magnitude 1/25

+

7th Harmonic
Magnitude 1/49

+

.
.

Amplitude

The reason why the triangle wave is so popular in classic synthesizers is because it was easier to
generate than a sine wave but could be used for the same purpose. It could act as a suboscillator
wave, to emphasize certain frequencies or to frequency modulate other oscillators.

The triangle wave sounds like a wood wind instrument, i.e. a clarinet. It can also be used for mallet
instruments like vibraphone, xylophone etc.

=

Time

Picture 14: Additive components of the Triangle wave

Magnitude

13

579

Harmonics

11 13 15

Frequency

Waldorf Q User’s Manual 70

Sound Parameters – Oscillators

Wavetable Synthesis

The sound generation of the alternative waveforms (Alt1 and Alt2) of the Q is based on wavetable
synthesis. This type of synthesis combines analog access and digital flexibility in a simple way.
Although wavetable synthesis is a form of "sample playback" in principle, you should avoid this term
because functionality, operation and results are totally different. Each of Alt1 and Alt2 contain one
wavetable with 128 Waves each.

 Please keep the terms "wavetable" and "wave" in mind. Don´t bring them into confusion.

The following overview will clearly explain the system of the Wavetable Synthesis:
A wavetable into the Q is a table consisting of 128 waveforms. Each waveform is classified by its own
very special sound character. The main difference of wavetable synthesis compared to other sound
generation principles is the facility not only to play one waveform per oscillator, but also to walk
through the wavetable via different modulations. Therefore you can create wavetable sweeps. The
results can be very drastic - much more than any sample playback based system could ever produce.
That is a unique feature of wavetable synthesis.

The capabilities of this principle are very strong. To give some examples:

• Each note on a keyboard can access a different wave of the wavetable.

• Different waves can be played depending on key velocity.

• A LFO can modulate the position inside the wavetable. You can create subtle to drastic
sound changes.

• Random controllers like e.g. the modwheel can change the position inside the wavetable.
When you turn the wheel while playing a chord, each note´s wave will be modified
instantly.

• Wavetables are perfect as FM Source when you want to create very strange sounds.

You should keep the following sentence in mind because it describes the essential of the wavetable
synthesis:

A wavetable is a table of pointers to up to 128 waves, among which you can move at will.

 If you like the sound and possibilities of the wavetable synthesis you should try out the Waldorf

Microwave II, XT or XTk. These are pure wavetable synthesizers. Also the Waldorf PPG Wave

2.V as a VST Instrument is capable of this synthesis.

71 Waldorf Q User’s Manual

Sound Parameters – Oscillators

Oscillators Panel Controls

The most important controls of the oscillators can be found on the front panel. The following picture

of the Q’s front panel shows the Oscillators section:

Oscillators

1

Octave Semi Detune Pitch Mod Source

2

Octave Semi Detune Pitch Mod Source

Sync

3

Octave Semi Detune Pitch Mod Source

Saw

Pulse

Saw

Pulse

Saw

Pulse

Tri

Sine

Alt1

Alt2

Shape

Tri

Shape

Tri

Shape

Pulsewidth PWM Source

Sine

Alt1

Alt2

Pulsewidth PWM Source

Sine

Pulsewidth PWM Source

Glide Rate

Mode

Active

Pitch Mod Source

Edit

Picture 15: Oscillators section Q Keyboard

Selecting an Oscillator on the Q Rack

Press one or more Oscillator Select buttons to select one or more Oscillators on the Q Rack to be

edited with the Panel Controls.

Octave 128’…1/2’

Sets the basic pitch of the oscillator in steps of an octave. The Octave setting is shown as register

value, a common measurement based on the length of organ pipes. The reference pitch for the

oscillator is generated at MIDI note A3 (note no. 69) when Octave is set to 8’, Semi and Detune are
set to 0 and no pitch modulation is applied. In this case, the oscillator’s frequency will be the same as
set in the global Tune parameter (usually 440Hz).

 Set Octave to 16’ for bass sounds.
 Set Octave to 8’ if you are creating typical keyboard sounds.
 Set Octave to 4’ if you are programming strings or other high pitched sounds.
 When you use an Oscillator to modulate other Oscillators or the Filters, experiment with the

Octave parameter. Low settings might result in periodic modulations while high settings might

add a bell character to the timbre.

 Ultra-low settings like 128’ can create very nice rhythmic changes when used with the ring

modulator. If this is still not low enough, you can use the Standard Modulation Matrix to apply

MAXIMUM to the respective oscillator pitch with a negative amount.

Semi -12...+12

Sets the pitch of the oscillator in semitone steps. The standard setting for this parameter is 0, but there

are cases where different values are interesting as well.

Waldorf Q User’s Manual 72

Sound Parameters – Oscillators

 Organ sounds often include a fifth, therefore one oscillator's semitone parameter must be set to

+7.

 Lead and Solo sounds might sound interesting when you set one Oscillator to e.g. a quart (+5

semitones).

 When making ring modulated or FM sounds, try to use disharmonic values, e.g. +6 or +8.

Detune -64…+63

Fine-tunes the oscillator in steps of 1/128th of a semitone. The audible result of detuned oscillators is
a Chorus or Flanger effect. Use a positive setting for one oscillator and an equivalent negative setting
for another.

 A low value of ±1 results in a slow and soft Flanger effect.
 Mid-ranged settings of ±5 are perfect for pads and other fat sounding programs.
 High values of ±12 or above will give a strong detune that can be used for accordions or effect

sounds.

FM 0…127

Sets the amount of frequency modulation that is applied to the oscillator by the selected source. The
sound will get more metallic and sometimes even drift out of tune, especially if Oscillator 2 is used as
FM Source for Oscillator 3 and Sync is activated. To avoid unusable detune, use a triangular or sine
waveform for the FM Source.

 If you want to bias the FM over the keyboard so that higher notes aren’t modulated as strong as

lower notes, use the Standard Modulation Matrix and apply Keytrack to the respective
oscillator FM with a negative amount.

 To change the amount of FM dynamically, use the Fast Modulation Matrix or Standard

Modulation Matrix to apply an Envelope or an LFO to the respective oscillator FM with

positive amount.

FM Source see Table “FM Sources” on page 57

Selects the source for the frequency modulation.

 You can create nice E-Piano sounds when you use a high pitched oscillator as FM Source and

set its Keytrack to a value between +000% and +050%.

 Very interesting is the use of Noise as FM Source on a high pitched oscillator playing a sine or

triangle waveform. With low FM amount, the oscillator starts to sound dirty or airy while
higher amounts create a coloured noise similar to a filter with high resonance. The nice thing is
that the filters are then still free for other purposes.

Shape Pulse / Saw / Tri / Sine / Alt1 / Alt2

Sets the type of waveform to be generated by the Oscillator. The parameter is called Shape instead of
“waveform”, because it doesn’t necessarily set only one waveform, but sets a specific oscillator model
that could produce a number of waveforms depending on other settings. A good example for this

73 Waldorf Q User’s Manual

Sound Parameters – Oscillators

behaviour is the Pulse shape. However, the term “waveform” is used interchangeably throughout the
manual. The following shapes are currently available:

Pulse

(variable Pulse Width)

• Pulse selects the pulse waveform. A pulse waveform with a pulse width of 50% only has
the odd harmonics of the fundamental frequency present. This waveform produces a
hollow / metallic sound. If the Pulse waveform is selected, the parameters Pulsewidth
and PWM are used to change the pulsewidth of the waveform. Furthermore, the
modulation destinations O1PW, O2PW or O3PW gain functionality, depending on which
oscillator is set to Pulse.

• Saw selects the sawtooth waveform. A Sawtooth wave has all the harmonics of the
fundamental frequency in descending magnitude. It doesn’t have any further parameters.
This waveform is pleasing to the ear.

• Tri selects the triangular waveform. The triangle mainly consists of the odd harmonics with
very low magnitudes. It doesn’t have any further parameters.

• The Sine waveform consists of the fundamental frequency only. It has no harmonics at all.
It doesn’t have any further parameters.

• Alt1 and Alt2 are wavetable generators. Both can create a wavetable with 128 waves
each. Please refer the chapter "Wavetable synthesis". When Alt1 or Alt2 are selected, the
knobs Pulsewidth and PWM serve for selecting the startpoint of the waves. Furthermore
the modulation sources 01PW and 02PW are active subject to which Oscillator is set to
Alt. In the Oscillator Edit Menu you additionally have Suboscillators at your disposal
(please read also „Suboscillators“ in the chapter „Oscillator Edit Menu“ on page 78 about
this). Please note that the Wavetables are only available for Oscillators 1 and 2.

Sawtooth Triangle Sine

 The Pulse shape can be used to create unusual synthesizer sounds and oboe like sounds.
 The Saw shape can be used for basses, leads, brass and string sounds.
 The Tri shape can be used for flute sounds or soft pads.
 The Sine shape can be used to produce basses and electric organ sounds.
 The Sine shape is also perfectly suited for ring modulation or as FM Source.
 Alt1/are perfect for very vivid sounds.
 The tips shown in this place of course are only recommendations. The variety of tones of all

Waveforms in the Q are nearly inexhaustible.

Pulsewidth 0…127

Sets the pulse width of the Pulse waveform. The value 0 is equivalent to a pulse ratio of <1%, the
value 127 is equivalent to 50%. You determine the startpoint of the wavetable at Alt1 or Alt2 with the
Pulsewidth knob, at which 0 selects the first of 128 Waveforms. If you select any waveform other

Waldorf Q User’s Manual 74

Sound Parameters – Oscillators

than Pulse, Alt1 or Alt2 this parameter does not have any effect The following picture illustrates the
effect of the pulsewidth parameter:

Pulse Width 50%

(Square)

Pulse Width 33% Pulse Width 25% Pulse Width <1%

(Impulse)

Picture 16: Pulse Width parameter results

 A pulse width of 50% can be used for flute sounds or very hollow bass sounds.
 A pulse width of around 30% can be used for e-piano or fat bass sounds.
 A pulse width of around 10% is interesting for Clavinet sounds.
 Go experimenting with different startpoints for Alt1- and Alt2-Waveforms to get a general view

on the supply of Waveforms of both Wavetables.

PWM -64…+63

PWM stands for pulsewidth modulation. This parameter determines the amount of modulation that is

applied to the pulsewidth of the oscillator’s square wave. If Alt1 or Alt2 is selected, PWM determines
the amount of the wavetable modulation. If you select any shape other than Pulse, Alt1 or Alt2, this
parameter does not have any effect. The modulation source that affects the pulsewidth is selected by
the source parameter described below.

PWM Source see Table “Fast Modulation Sources” on page 58

Selects the source of the pulsewidth modulation or the wavetable modulation. Common sources for
pulsewidth modulation are envelopes and LFO, but other sources like the modulation wheel or
aftertouch can create nice effects as well.

 To create a thick oscillator sound, use a triangular LFO as PWM Source with full PWM and a

Pulsewidth of around 80. This basic setting is useful for very big string and lead sounds. When

you play different notes on the keyboard, you might notice that bass notes sound more detuned
than higher notes. To avoid this behaviour, set Keytrack of the used LFO to a positive setting
between 50% and 100%.

 To create a Bass sound, use a decaying Envelope as PWM Source with negative PWM and a

Pulsewidth of around 80…127. This results in a fat attack phase, especially when only one

oscillator is used for the Bass.

 When you want to create a sound with a wave sweep, you should roughly set the startpoint

(Pulsewidth) onto the desired wave, before you apply any modulation. This helps you to find
the basic waveform where all modulations start from. Note that you can apply unipolar and
bipolar modulation sources . For example, set Pulsewidth to 64, which is almost the middle of
the wavetable and apply a slow running LFO to PWM Source to sweep through the whole
wavetable.

75 Waldorf Q User’s Manual

Sound Parameters – Oscillators

Alt1 and Alt2 waveforms

At this point we offer a few more hints and tips about the „Alternate Waveforms“:

As stated above, the Shapes Alt1 and Alt2 each contain a wavetable generator showing a few
particulars that are opposite to the normal synthesis functions. Please refer to the chapter "Wavetable
Synthesis" on page 71.

To make sure that you have access to the power of the wavetable synthesis, you should make yourself
familiar with the sound and the characteristics of both wavetables. The best way to do this is to set up
a kind of test sound to listen to the wavetables:

☞ Test program for wavetables

Start with an initialized sound program (please read "Init Sound" in the chapter "Utility menu" on
page 147).

1. Choose Alt1 as Shape for oscillator 1 and turn down the mixer level of oscillator 2 and 3.

2. Choose the modulation wheel (Modwheel) as PWM-Source for oscillator 1.

3. Set the PWM amount to -63.

Now you can use the Modulation Wheel of your keyboard to sweep through the whole wavetable.
Choose Alt2 to hear how this wavetable sounds. You will notice that both wavetables cover an
extremely wide range of interesting spectral timbres, including analog, FM-like, bell-type or vocal.

 To get very lively sounds you should always use modulators when using the Wavetables of

Alt1 and Alt2.

 When you like to create a wavetable sweep you should set the starting point roughly to the

wanted position with Pulsewidth before programming the modulation. This proceeding can
help to find the basic character of the sound the modulation is moving around.

 Please note that you can use unipolar as well as bipolar modulation sources. For instance, set

the Pulsewidth Parameter to 64, nearly the middle of the wavetable, and use a slow LFO to
sweep through the whole wavetable.

 Try out very lively sounds by using different fast modulation sources (LFO or envelopes) on

Osc1 set to Alt1 and Osc2 set to Alt2 and additionally ring- and frequency-modulating the
signal.

 Please note that additional Suboscillators are available when using Alt1 and Alt2 (see chapter

„Suboscillator“ on page 78).

Sync Osc2 / Sync off / on

Enables or disables oscillator synchronization. When enabled, Oscillator 2 acts as a slave that is
controlled by Oscillator 3, the master. Each time Oscillator 3 starts a new cycle, it sends a trigger
signal to Oscillator 2, forcing it to restart its waveform cycle, too. As a result, interesting sound effects
may be generated, especially when both oscillators are operating at different pitch settings. Using
additional pitch modulation by envelopes, LFO or pitchbend will bring further movement into sync
sounds. The following picture illustrates the principle of oscillator synchronization in a simplified
way:

Waldorf Q User’s Manual 76

Sound Parameters – Oscillators

new cycle of master oscillator

This oscillator synced to this oscillator results in this wave

Picture 17: Oscillator Sync

 Use Sync for Lead or Solo sounds. Set Oscillator 2 to play one octave and 7 semitones higher,

apply an envelope to its pitch with positive amount and you get a screaming sync sound.

 Sync can also be very interesting on arpeggio sounds. Apply a slow clocked LFO to Oscillator

2 pitch and the arpeggio starts to move.

Additional Controls on the Q Keyboard

PitchMod -64…+63

Sets the amount of pitch modulation for all oscillators. Positive amounts will raise the pitch when
positive modulation is applied, e.g. by pressing aftertouch on the keyboard. Negative amounts will
lower the pitch when positive modulation is applied.

PitchMod Source see Table “Fast Modulation Sources” on page 58

Selects the source of the pitch modulation for all oscillators. A common source for pitch modulation
is an LFO whose strength is controlled by the modwheel or aftertouch.

 To create a common pitch vibrato that is controlled by the modwheel, set PitchMod Source

to LFO1*MW with PitchMod set to around +20.

 To create a sound whose pitch glides in, set PitchMod Source to a decaying Envelope with

PitchMod set to around –25.

 If you want to modulate the pitch of individual oscillators, you can do so with the Fast

Modulation Matrix or Standard Modulation Matrix that can be accessed through the Matrix

menu. See the respective section on page 131 for details.

77 Waldorf Q User’s Manual

Sound Parameters – Oscillators

Oscillators Edit Menu

The following parameters can be accessed via the display menu. Press the Oscillators section’s Edit
button to activate the display menu.

PitchMod (only Q Rack)

See Additional Controls on the Q Keyboard.

PitchMod Source (only Q Rack)

See Additional Controls on the Q Keyboard.

Keytrk -200%...+197%

Determines how much the pitch of the oscillator depends on the MIDI note number. The reference
note for Keytrack is E3, note number 64. For positive settings, the oscillator pitch rises on notes above
the reference note, for negative settings the oscillator pitch falls up to higher notes and vice versa. A
setting of +100% corresponds to a 1:1 scale, e.g. when an octave is played on the keyboard the pitch
changes for the same amount. Other settings than +100% make sense especially when using ring
modulation, FM or oscillator synchronization. Try to use values in the range 0%…+75% or even
negative settings for one oscillator while leaving the second at +100% Keytrack.

O1 Keytrk|O1 BendRg
+100% | +12

BendRg -24…+24

Determines the intensity of the pitchbend via MIDI Pitchbend messages in semitones.

Suboscillator

01Sub Vol!Frq.divide
127 | 24

The parameters for the Suboscillator settings are only available when Alt1 or Alt2 are chosen as
Waveform. Therefore Oscillator 3 cannot create a Suboscillator. SubVol determines the volume of
the Suboscillator creating a Square Waveform. A setting of 0 corresponds to no volume. Please note
that the loudness of the Suboscillator also depends on the volume of the main oscillator. Frq.divide
determines the relative proportion of Sub- and Main oscillator frequencies. Higher values represent a
lower tuning.

 When Alt-Waveforms are selected for the first two oscillators and the Suboscillators are

activated, the Q can create up to 5 (!) oscillators per voice.

Tune Mode

Tune Mode
global

The Tune Mode determines if the sound uses the normal global tuning or the HMT tuning. For more
information about HMT refer to the page 156.

The following parameters are available:

Waldorf Q User’s Manual 78

Glide

Sound Parameters – Glide

• Tempered is the normal equal stage tuning for electronic keyboard instrument. HMT is not
active in this case.

• Global activates the HMT Mode as selected in the Tune Mode parameter in the Global
Menu.

 The different HMT settings can be made in the Global menu. For more information refer to

page 138.

“Glide or "Portamento" describes the continuous gliding from one note to another. This effect can be
created on fretless string instruments or some brass instruments (e.g. trombone). It is very common on
synthesizers and used throughout all music styles. Please note that Glide affects the pitch of all
oscillators.

The controls for the glide effect are located in the Oscillators section.

The following parameters can be accessed via the Oscillator edit menu of the Q Rack or the front
panel of the Q Keyboard:

Glide Rate 0…127

Determines the glide time. Low values will give a short glide time in the range of milliseconds that
gives a special character to the sound. High values will result in a long glide time up to several
seconds which can be useful for solo and effect sounds.

Glide Mode Portamento / Fingered Portamento / Glissando / Fingered Gliss

Determines the way the Glide effect works.

• Portamento means that a continuous glide is performed on all new notes.

• Fingered Portamento means that a continuous glide is performed only, when notes are
played legato. Staccato played notes start on the exact pitch of their note.

• Glissando makes the normal Glissando effect in the same manner by changing the pitch in
semitones.

• Fingered Gliss is similar to Glissando but generates a pitchchange only when notes are
played coherent (legato).

Glide / Active off / on

Enables or disables the Glide effect.

79 Waldorf Q User’s Manual

Sound Parameters – Mixer

Mixer

In the Mixer, you control the volumes of the oscillators, the noise generator and an external sound

source. Ring modulation can be applied optionally to extend the Q’s tonal range.

The following picture of the Q’s front panel shows the Mixer section:

Mixer

Osc 1

Balance

Osc 2

Balance

Osc 3

Balance

RingMod

Osc1/Osc2

Noise / Ext

Balance

Edit

Picture 18: Mixer Section Q Keyboard

Mixer Panel Controls

The most commonly used controls of the Mixer can be found on the front panel.

Selecting an Oscillator for the Mixer-Level on the Q Rack

Press one or more Oscillator Select buttons in the Oscillator Section to select one or more

Oscillators on the Q Rack for adjusting the Mixerlevel/Balance.

Level 0…127

Volume of the selected Oscillator(s).

Balance F1 64…mid…F2 63

Determines the ratio of the selected Oscillator’s signal that is sent to the inputs of Filter 1 and Filter 2

(see routing picture). If set to F1 64, the signal is sent to Filter 1 only. Higher values will increase the
amount of signal that feeds Filter 2 and decrease the amount of signal that feeds Filter 1. If set to mid,
both filters will receive the same signal level. If set to F2 63, the signal is sent to Filter 2 only.

Additional Controls on the Q Keyboard:

Osc1 0…127

Volume of Oscillator 1.

Osc1 Balance F1 64…mid…F2 63

Determines the ratio of the oscillator’s signal that is sent to the inputs of Filter 1 and Filter 2 (see

routing picture). If set to F1 64, the signal is sent to Filter 1 only. Higher values will increase the
amount of signal that feeds Filter 2 and decrease the amount of signal that feeds Filter 1. If set to mid,
both filters will receive the same signal level. If set to F2 63, the signal is sent to Filter 2 only.

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Sound Parameters – Mixer

Osc2 0…127

Volume of Oscillator 2.

Osc2 Balance F1 64…mid…F2 63

Determines the ratio of the oscillator’s signal that is sent to the inputs of Filter 1 and Filter 2 (see
routing picture). If set to F1 64, the signal is sent to Filter 1 only. Higher values will increase the
amount of signal that feeds Filter 2 and decrease the amount of signal that feeds Filter 1. If set to mid,
both filters will receive the same signal level. If set to F2 63, the signal is sent to Filter 2 only.

Osc3 0…127

Volume of Oscillator 3.

Osc3 Balance F1 64…mid…F2 63

Determines the ratio of the oscillator’s signal that is sent to the inputs of Filter 1 and Filter 2 (see
routing picture). If set to F1 64, the signal is sent to Filter 1 only. Higher values will increase the
amount of signal that feeds Filter 2 and decrease the amount of signal that feeds Filter 1. If set to mid,
both filters will receive the same signal level. If set to F2 63, the signal is sent to Filter 2 only.

RingMod 0…127

Volume of the ring modulation between Oscillator 1 and 2. From a technical point of view ring
modulation is the multiplication of two oscillators’ signals. The result of this operation is a waveform
that contains the sums and the differences of the source frequency components. Since the ring
modulation generates disharmonic components, it can be used to add metallic distorted sound
characteristics. This is useful e.g. when generating synth percussion. Please note that in a complex
waveform all harmonic components behave like interacting sine waves, resulting in a wide spectral
range of the ring modulated sound. The following pictures show the results of a saw wave
ringmodulated with a square wave and two ringmodulated sine waves:

This Sawtooth wave ringmodulated with this Square wave results in this wave

Picture 19: Ring Modulation of a Sawtooth and a Square wave with different frequencies.

A Sine wave with frequency 1 ringmodulated with a Sine wave with

frequency 2.5 (1 octave + 4 semitones)

Picture 20: Ring Modulation of two Sine waves with different frequencies.

results in this wave

 Ring Modulation can result in unwanted low frequencies when the pitches of oscillator 1 and 2

don’t differ very much. This is logical because when you use i.e. one oscillator set to 100Hz
and the second set to 101Hz, the resulting ring modulation is 201Hz and 1Hz. And 1Hz is very
low.

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Sound Parameters – Mixer

 Ring Modulation can be very interesting with a slow pitch modulation that is applied to one

oscillator, i.e. a decaying Envelope. This creates spacey effect sounds.

 For an E-Piano sound, you should use Ring Modulation where one high pitched oscillator’s

Keytrack is lowered to i.e. 50%.

 If you turn the pitch of one oscillator down very far, you can get a very similar effect to

Amplitude modulation. Use this for sounds with a periodic element if you like.

RingMod Balance F1 64…mid…F2 63

Determines the ratio of the ring modulator’s signal that is sent to the inputs of Filter 1 and Filter 2 (see
routing picture). If set to F1 64, the signal is sent to Filter 1 only. Higher values will increase the
amount of signal that feeds Filter 2 and decrease the amount of signal that feeds Filter 1. If set to mid,
both filters will receive the same signal level. If set to F2 63, the signal is sent to Filter 2 only.

Noise / Ext. 0…127

Volume of the noise generator respectively the external sound source connected to the stereo

External In  jack. This control behaves differently depending on the setting of N/E Select F1/F2

feed in the Mixer Edit menu. Noise is a fundamental source for any kind of analog-type percussion.

Also, wind and other sound effects can be created by using the noise generator. Please note that if
you use an external sound source, you still have to trigger the Q’s envelopes to get the signal passed
through. So you have to generate MIDI notes by the keyboard, a connected sequencer or the internal
step sequencer or arpeggiator to hear the audio signal.

Noise / Ext. Balance F1 64…mid…F2 64

Determines how loud the signals set up in N/E Select F1/F2 feed are sent to the inputs of Filter 1
and Filter 2. Noise / Ext. Balance behaves differently than the other Balance controls. It doesn’t move
the signal between Filter 1 and Filter 2 but controls the loudness ratio between the two signals set up
in N/E Select F1/F2 feed. The signal set up in F1 feed is always sent to Filter 1 while the signal set
up in F2 feed is always sent to Filter 2.

Mixer Edit Menu

The following parameters can be accessed via the display menu. Press the Mixer section’s Edit button
to activate the display menu.

RingMod (Q Rack only)

See Additional Controls on the Q Keyboard.

RingMod Balance (Q Rack only)

See Additional Controls on the Q Keyboard.

Noise / Ext. (Q Rack only)

See Additional Controls on the Q Keyboard.

Noise / Ext. Balance (Q Rack only)

See Additional Controls on the Q Keyboard.

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Sound Parameters – Mixer

N/E Select F1 / F2 Feed Noise / ExtLeft / ExtRight / ExtL+R

Sets the input signal sources that are fed into filter 1 and filter 2.

Please note that the N/E Balance control behaves differently compared to the other Balance controls.
N/E Balance only affects the input levels but doesn't move the signals between the filters. F1 Feed is
always routed to Filter 1 while F2 Feed is always routed to Filter 2.

The available sources are:

• Noise selects the Noise Generator as input for the respective filter.

Amplitude

Time

• ExtLeft selects the Left input signal as input for the respective filter.

• ExtRight selects the right input signal as input for the respective filter.

• ExtL+R feeds the summed signal of the left and right input into the respective filter.

Magnitude

Frequency (Hz)

110 100 1000 10000

Picture 21: Noise

83 Waldorf Q User’s Manual

Sound Parameters – Routing

Routing

The Routing section is one of the advanced features of the Q. Its purpose is to control the signal flow

of the filters. In comparison with many other synthesizers where signal flow is static, the Q offers a

completely flexible configuration.

The following picture of the Q’s front panel shows the Routing section:

Routing

Osc 1

Ring Mod

Osc 2

Osc 3

Noise/Ext

The Q offers two independent filters and panning units. In fact, the panning units are part of the filters

in the Q. The routing control makes it possible to blend the signal flow continuously from a parallel to

a serial filter configuration and vice versa. Even more, the routing control is fully modulatable via the

modulation matrix.

Filter Pan

Mixer

2 2

PanFilter

Picture 22: Routing Section Q Keyboard

11

Left

Amp

Right

EFX

This is how the Routing section works in detail:

• As can be seen in the picture, the Mixer section uses two separate outputs – one

connected to the input of Filter 1, the other connected to the input of Filter 2. Each sound

source, i.e. the oscillators, the ring modulator and the noise generator/external input has

an individual Balance control in the Mixer. By means of these controls you can

determine what portion of each source’s signal is routed to the inputs of Filter 1 and Filter

2. E.g. this makes it possible to send the signal of Oscillator 1 and 2 to Filter 1 and the ring

modulation signal to Filter 2.

• The output of Filter 1 is split up into two paths. The Routing knob determines the ratio of

the signals for each path. The LED beside the knob will give you a visual control of the

setting.

• Fully counterclockwise, the Routing parameter is set to 0. Then the whole output signal

of Filter 1 is routed to the input of Filter 2, added to the amount of signal that is already

coming from the Mixer through its dedicated output. This setting is equivalent to a serial

connection of the two filters.

• Turning the knob clockwise will increase the amount of signal that is sent to the panning

unit of Filter 1 and decrease the amount of signal that feeds the input of Filter 2.

• Fully clockwise, the Routing parameter is set to 127. Then the whole output signal of

Filter 1 is routed to the filter’s panning unit. This setting is equivalent to a parallel routing

of two filters, each filtering the input signals independently.

• After passing the panning units, both signals are summed up again and sent to the

Amplifier and FX sections.

Waldorf Q User’s Manual 84

Filter

Sound Parameters – Filter

Once the audio signal leaves the mixer, it is sent to the filters. The Q has two independent filter units,
each with its own individual settings. The signal flow in the filters can be controlled in the Routing
section. The filters are components that have significant influence on the Q’s sound characteristics.

For a detailed description of the different filter types that are available in the Q, see the section “Filter
Types”. For now, we explain the basic function of a filter with the filter type that is used most
commonly in synthesizers: the low pass filter.

The low pass filter type dampens frequencies that lie above a specified cutoff frequency. Frequencies
below this threshold are hardly affected. The frequency below the cutoff point is called the pass band
range, the frequencies above are called the stop band range. The Q’s filter dampens frequencies in
the stop band with a certain slope. The slope can be 12dB or 24dB per octave. This means that the
level of a frequency that lies an octave above the cutoff point will be 12dB or 24dB less than those
frequencies of the signal that fall into the pass band.

Level

Frequency

Cutoff

Picture 23: Low Pass Filter principle

To give you an idea of the extent of damping, consider this example of a low pass filter: A reduction
of 24dB reduces the original level one octave above the cutoff point by approx. 94%. The damping
factor two octaves above the cutoff point reduces the original level by more than 99%, which in most
cases means this portion of the signal is no longer audible.

The Q’s filter also features a resonance parameter. Resonance in the context of a low, band or high
pass filter means that a narrow frequency band around the cutoff point is emphasized. The following
picture shows the effect of the resonance parameter on the filter’s frequency curve:

Level

Resonance

Frequency

Cutoff

Picture 24: Low Pass Filter Resonance

85 Waldorf Q User’s Manual

Sound Parameters – Filter

If the resonance is raised to a great extent, then the filter will begin self-oscillation, i.e. the filter

generates an audible sine wave even when it does not receive an incoming signal.

The following picture of the Q’s front panel shows the Filter section:

Filter

Type Cutoff Mod FM Source Keytrack

2

1

Filter Select

Cutoff Resonance Env Velo Pan

Picture 25: Filter Section Q Keyboard

Drive

PanMod

Source

Edit

Selecting and Editing Filters

Before you make any edits to the filters, you must select whether to edit Filter 1, Filter 2 or both. This

is done by pressing the Filter Select button. The two LED above the button indicate which filter is

selected for editing.

If both filters are selected for editing, moving any control will alter the setting of the corresponding

parameter for Filter 1 and Filter 2. Please note that all edits are relative. Therefore, the relationship of

the parameters will be retained. E.g. the display may look like this when turning the Cutoff knob:

[F1 Cutoff 80]
[F2 Cutoff 93]

In the given example, turning the Cutoff control two steps clockwise will result in the following:

[F1 Cutoff 82]
[F2 Cutoff 95]

If the value range of one parameter is reached, e.g. by turning Cutoff clockwise until 127 is set for

Filter 1, the relationship is not retained anymore. In this case, Filter 1’s cutoff will keep its maximum

value while Filter 2’s cutoff is still increased by turning the knob.

 This scenario is not valid when moving the Type knob or any other selective parameter like

CutoffMod Source. I.e., If both filters are selected for editing and Type is moved, the same

filter type is assigned to Filter 1 and Filter 2. This is performed because altering selective

parameters in relation does not make any sense.

Waldorf Q User’s Manual 86

Sound Parameters – Filter

Filter Panel Controls

The most commonly used controls of the filters can be found on the front panel.

Cutoff 0…127

Controls the cutoff frequency for the low pass and high pass filter types, the center frequency for the
band pass and notch filter types and the delay length of the comb filter types.

• When a low pass is selected via the Type parameter, all frequencies above the cutoff
frequency are damped.

• When a high pass type is selected, all frequencies below the cutoff frequency are damped.

• When a band pass type is selected, only frequencies near the cutoff setting will be passed
through.

• When a notch type is selected, the frequencies near the cutoff frequency are damped.

• When a comb type is selected, the frequencies near the cutoff frequency are emphasized
(comb+) or attenuated (comb-).

You can bring more movement into the sound by modulating the cutoff frequency via the LFOs, the
envelopes or the Keytrack parameter. At a value of 64 and a Resonance value of 114, the filter
oscillates with 440Hz, which is equal to A3 (the Comb+ type oscillates one octave higher). Tuning is
scaled in semitone steps. When Keytrack is set to +100%, the filter can be played in a tempered
scale.

Resonance 0…127

Controls the emphasis of the frequencies around the cutoff point. Use lower values in the range of
0…80 to give more brilliance to the sound. At higher values of 80…113 the sound gets the typical
filter character with a strong boost around the cutoff frequency. When the setting is raised to values
above 113, the filter starts to self-oscillate, generating a pure sine wave. This feature can be used to
create analog-style effects and percussion-like electronic toms, kicks, zaps etc.

Keytrack -200%…+197%

Determines how much the cutoff frequency depends on the MIDI note number. The reference note
for Keytrack is E3, note number 64. For positive settings, the cutoff frequency rises on notes above the
reference note, for negative settings the cutoff frequency falls up to higher notes and vice versa. A
setting of +100% corresponds to a 1:1 scale, so e.g. when an octave is played on the keyboard the
cutoff frequency changes for the same amount. If you want to play the filter in a tempered scale, e.g.
for a solo sound with self-oscillation, set the value to +100%. On most bass sounds lower settings in
the range +50…+75% are optimal to keep the sound smooth at higher notes.

Type see chapter “Filter Types” on page 90

Selects the filter type. Further information on the different filter types is given at the end of this chapter
on page 90.

Env -64…+63

Determines the amount of influence the filter envelope has on the cutoff frequency. For positive
settings, the filter cutoff frequency is increased by the modulation of the envelope, for negative
settings, the cutoff frequency is decreased. Use this parameter to change the timbre of the sound over

87 Waldorf Q User’s Manual

Sound Parameters – Filter

time. Sounds with a hard attack usually have a positive envelope amount that makes the start phase
bright and then closes the filter to get a darker sustain phase. On the other side string sounds usually
use a negative envelope amount that gives a slow and dark attack before the cutoff rises in the sustain
phase.

Velo -64…+63

Determines the amount of influence the filter envelope has on the cutoff frequency, based on key
velocity. This parameter works similarly to the Env parameter with the difference that its strength is
velocity based. Use this feature to give a more expressive character to the sound. When you hit the
keys smoothly, only few modulation is applied. When you hit them harder, the modulation amount
also gets stronger. The following picture illustrates the functionality of this parameter:

Envelope Depth

100%

50%

Key Velocity = 127

Key Velocity = 1…127

0%

-50%

-100%
Time

Env Parameter = +32

Velocity Parameter = 0

Picture 26: Envelope depth influence of different Velo parameter settings

Key Velocity = 1

Time

Env Parameter = +32

Velocity Parameter = +32

Key Velocity = 1

Key Velocity = 127

Time

Env Parameter = +32

Velocity Parameter = -64

 The overall modulation applied to the filter’s cutoff frequency is calculated as the sum of both

parameters Env and Velo. Therefore you should always bear in mind what the result is,
especially when the filter does not behave as you expect. You can also create interesting effects
by setting one parameter to a positive amount and the other to a negative.

Pan left 64…center…right 63

Determines the position in the stereo panorama. When the setting is left 64, the sound is panned far
left, when the setting is right 63, it is panned far right. If you want to set the sound into the middle of
the stereo panorama, use the center setting. To give further movement to the sound, set this parameter
to a basic value and apply some modulation to it via the PanMod parameter.

Drive 0…127

Determines the amount of saturation that is added to the signal. If set to 0, no saturation will be added
or, in other words, the signal will remain clean. Lower values will add some harmonics to the signal,
resulting in a warm character. Increasing the value will bring in more and more distortion, suitable for
harder lead sounds and effects.

Waldorf Q User’s Manual 88

Sound Parameters – Filter

Additional Controls on the Q Keyboard

Cutoff Mod -64…+63

Controls the amount of cutoff modulation. Positive amounts will increase the cutoff frequency when
positive modulation is applied, e.g. by pressing the aftertouch on the keyboard. Negative amounts
will decrease the cutoff frequency when positive modulation is applied.

Cutoff Mod Source see Table “Fast Modulation Sources” on page 58

Selects the source of the cutoff modulation.

FM 0…127

Sets the amount of frequency modulation that is applied to the filter by the selected source.

FM Source See Table “FM Sources” on page 57

Selects the source of the frequency modulation.

PanMod -64…+63

Determines the amount of panorama modulation.

PanMod Source see Table “Fast Modulation Sources” on page 58

Selects the source of the panorama modulation.

Filter Edit Menu

The following parameters can be accessed via the display menu of the Q Rack only. Press the Filter
section’s Edit button to activate the display menu.

Cutoff Mod

See Additional Controls on the Q Keyboard above.

Cutoff Mod Source

See Additional Controls on the Q Keyboard above.

FM

See Additional Controls on the Q Keyboard above.

FM Source

See Additional Controls on the Q Keyboard above.

PanMod

See Additional Controls on the Q Keyboard above.

PanMod Source

See Additional Controls on the Q Keyboard above.

89 Waldorf Q User’s Manual

Sound Parameters – Filter Types

Filter Types

This paragraph describes the Q’s different filter types. Most types are based on traditional low pass,
high pass or band pass structures.

Bypass

Use this setting to bypass the filter. This is useful if you want to disable the filter temporarily and listen
to the pure oscillators’ signals.

24dB Low Pass and 12dB Low Pass

The low pass types 24dB LP and 12dB LP are suitable for the most usual applications. Use the 24dB
slope if you want to create sounds with a typical audible filtered character, use the 12dB slope if you
want to get softer results.

Level

24dB/Oct 12dB/Oct

Cutoff

Picture 27: Low Pass Filter Type

Frequency

PPG LP Lowpass

The PPG LP is a resonance lowpass filter with a slope rate of 24dB per octave. Its characteristics were
modeled after the legendary PPG Wave synthesizer and its integrated SSM 2044 chip. The resonance
of the SSM 2044 had a very special tonal character, which has not been implemented in this way in
any other filter circuit or IC. If you have the chance to directly compare the original with the Q, you
will find the resonance (or Emphasis, as it´s called in the PPG) of both to be nearly identical.

 When using the PPG LP Filter type Filter FM isn´t possible. The cause is that the original filter

circuit also didn´t have FM.

24dB Band Pass and 12dB Band Pass

The band pass filters 24dB BP and 12dB BP remove frequencies both below and above the cutoff
point. As a result, the sound character gets narrow. Use these filter types for programming effect and
percussion-like sounds.

Waldorf Q User’s Manual 90

Sound Parameters – Filter Types

Level

Resonance

Frequency

Cutoff

Picture 28: Band Bass Filter Type

24dB High Pass and 12dB High Pass

The high pass filters 24db HP and 12dB HP are useful to thin out a sound’s bass frequencies. This
may give interesting results also in conjunction with cutoff frequency modulation. By doing this you
can e.g. "fly-in" a sound starting at its high harmonics and then coming up to its full frequency range.
Use the 24dB slope if you want to create sounds with a typical audible filtered character, use the
12dB slope if you want to get softer results.

Level

Resonance

Frequency

Cutoff

Picture 29: High Pass Filter Type

24dB Notch and 12dB Notch

The notch filters 24db Notch and 12dB Notch are the opposites to the band pass types. They dampen
frequencies around the cutoff point. Frequencies below or above the cutoff point are passed through.
Use these filter types for programming effect sounds.

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On Notch filter types, the Resonance parameter is almost useless by definition because the resonance
frequency is exactly the frequency that is blocked by the filter. However, you will still be able to hear
slight differences when you change the Resonance because of phase changes. Anyway, the effect isn’t
that spectacular.

Level

Frequency

Cutoff

Picture 30: Notch Filter Type

Comb+ and Comb-

The Comb filter types differ from the other filter types greatly because they actually don’t damp any
part of the signal but add a delayed version of the input signal to the output. But what is a Comb
filter?

A Comb filter is basically a very short delay that can be controlled in length and feedback. The delay
time is so short that you can’t hear its individual taps but a colorization of the original signal created
by peaks or holes in the frequency spectrum. The frequency of the colorization is set by the delay
length which is controlled in the Q through Cutoff while the amount of colorization is set by the
Comb filter feedback, which is controlled in the Q through Resonance.

Level

Resonance

Cutoff determines number of teeth

Picture 31: Comb + Filter Type

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Frequency

Sound Parameters – Filter Types

Level

Resonance

Frequency

Cutoff determines number of teeth

Picture 32: Comb – Filter Type

So, as with all other filter types, the Comb filter is controlled with two parameters:

• Cutoff controls the delay length.

• Resonance controls the feedback depth.

Now, what sound can a comb filter produce? Here are some examples:

The Comb filter as Chorus

This is the most basic way to use the Comb filter. A Chorus in fact is made of one or several Comb
filters so it is an easy task to set it up manually.

☞ To set up the Comb filter to produce a Chorus:

1. Select the Comb+ filter type for the desired filter.

2. Set Cutoff to a medium value.

3. Set Resonance, Drive, Keytrack and any other modulation to 0.

4. Select an LFO as Cutoff Mod Source.

5. Set Cutoff Mod to a medium positive or negative amount.

6. Adjust the LFO to generate a slow triangle oscillation.

7. Fine tune Cutoff, Cutoff Mod and LFO Speed until you get the desired Chorus effect.

 You can also use both filters to create a Chorus and pan them to different stereo positions.
 You can also pan the original i.e. low pass filtered signal to one stereo side and route 50% into

Filter 2 producing a Chorus effect that is panned to the other stereo side.

You might ask why you should use a Comb filter type to produce the Chorus instead of using the FX
section of the Q. Here are some reasons:

• The FX sections are still free for other purposes. Also, in Multi Mode, the Comb filter
works no matter on which Instrument you use it.

• The Comb filter works per voice rather than per Instrument. This means that each voice
has its own Chorus and therefore could generate a different Chorus effect. You can easily

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Sound Parameters – Filter Types

hear that when you change LFO Keytrack or Filter Keytrack. Then each voice sounds
with a different Chorus speed or frequency.

• You have full control over all parameters that make up the Chorus effect over MIDI by
using Control messages.

The Comb filter as Flanger

A Flanger is almost the same as a Chorus. The only difference is that it has a feedback circuitry to
change the depth of the Flanger effect.

☞ To set up the Comb filter to produce a Flanger:

1. Adjust the filter as described in the Chorus paragraph above.

2. Turn up Resonance to create the typical Flanger sound.

3. Eventually lower LFO Speed to create slow Flanger sweeps.

4. Select either Comb+ or Comb- to change the character of the Flanger.

 Set up Cutoff Mod Source to Modwheel to change the Flanger effect manually.
 Use the Filter Envelope with positive or negative amount to create a “one time sweep” that is

triggered at Note On.

 Use Filter Keytrack with an amount of 100% to create really different flangings depending on

the Note you play.

The Comb filter used to simulate a string or a tube

A Comb filter is one of the most basic building blocks of the so-called “Physical Modeling”, which is
an algorithmic description of an acoustic instrument. The Q is definitely not meant to replace a good
physical modeling synthesizer so you shouldn’t expect to get a perfect emulation of any acoustic
instrument like a trumpet or a violin out of the Q. However, the Comb filter enables you to create
abstractions of those sounds that can be played expressively.

To do so, you have to understand that the Comb filter is the part that actually sets the pitch of the
resulting sound, the oscillators or the noise generator are only used to trigger the Comb filter
somehow. When you play with the Comb filter, you can hear that it emphasizes or attenuates certain
frequencies depending on the setting of Cutoff and Resonance.

When you set Resonance to a very high value, you will notice that the Comb filter oscillates heavily,
and that’s the key to use it as a tone generator. When you set Filter Keytrack to +100%, you can
play the Comb filter musically.

Now you need to know how to set up Cutoff. Filter Cutoff is scaled in semitone steps and you only
have to find the Cutoff value where the filter oscillates with standard pitch. The following table gives
you these settings:

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Sound Parameters – Filter Types

Oscillator Comb+ Comb-

64’ 11 23
32’ 23 35
16’ 35 47
8’ 47 59
4’ 59 71
2’ 71 83

Table 10: Comb Filter Cutoff settings

If you need other tunings, just keep in mind that Cutoff is changed in semitones, so if you increment
Cutoff by 12, the filter oscillates one octave higher and vice versa.

☞ To set up the Comb filter to produce a tone:

1. Select either Comb+ to produce a string-like tone or Comb- to produce a tube-like tone.

2. Turn up Resonance to around 114 to 127.

3. Turn up Keytrack to +100% to have Filter Cutoff change with well-tempered scaling.

4. Set Cutoff to 23, 35, 47 or 59 to have it oscillating in the same pitch as the oscillators are
usually tuned. Please note that Comb+ oscillates one octave higher than Comb-.

5. Feed the Comb filter with a signal of any kind. The incoming signal’s pitch isn’t important
for the resulting tuning, but both pitch and timbre of the input signal affect the timbre of
the Comb filter output sound greatly.

 Try to experiment with all kinds of input signals, i.e. different oscillator settings, noise,

combinations of both and the like.

 Also try to set up envelopes to control the levels of the input signal, i.e., use a short percussive

signal that only triggers the comb filter shortly. The filter then oscillates to produce the final
tone.

12dB/24dB Analog LP (Q+ only)

These are the analog filters types. As soon as one of these is selected, the sound will have a
polyphony of sixteen voices, since the Q+ has 16 analog filters. If both filters are set to analog type,
polyphony of this sound is further reduced to eight voices only. However, these restrictions do not
apply to sounds which use the conventional filters. The Cutoff and Resonance parameter have the
same function as in the other lowpass filter types. FM is not available for the analog filter types. If
analog filters seem to be out of tune, especially audible with high resonance settings, execute the
Tune Filters function in Utility Menu.

 When the Analog Filter type is selected the Drive parameter is automatically set to the analog

drive which is located behind the analog filter.

 You should try the following functions with the analog filter type:

Experiment with the Cutoff, Resonance and Filter Env parameters to become a feeling for
the analog filter type; set up filter modulations with the Cutoff Mod or the Mod Matrix
use an external input signal to feed the analog filter

 16 analog filters are available, so to make use of the increased Q+ polyphony, we recommend

to use a mixture of analog/digital sounds in multimode.

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Sound Parameters – Amplifier

Amplifier

This unit is almost the last part in the Q’s signal routing, only followed by the Effects section. Its

purpose is to set the volume of the sound.

To understand the operation of this unit, it is important to know that the Amplifier Envelope is always

acting as a modulation source for the volume. This means that an audio signal can only pass through

if the Amplifier Envelope is triggered and opened.

The following picture of the Q’s front panel shows the Amplifier section:

Volume 0…127

Amp

Volume

Env Velo

Picture 33: Amplifier Section Q Keyboard

Determines the master volume of the sound program.

Velo -64…+63

Specifies how much volume will be affected by keyboard velocity. Use this feature to give more

expression to the sound. With a setting of 0, velocity will have no effect on the volume. Classic

organs work in this way because they do not have dynamic response. For positive settings, the

volume rises up to higher velocities. This is the most commonly used setting, which gives a piano-like

character. For negative settings, the volume falls up to higher velocities. This gives an untypical

character suitable for effect sounds. As the Amplifier always works in conjunction with the Amplifier

Envelope, this parameter actually determines the envelope velocity amount. The following picture

illustrates this functionality:

Output

100%

0%

Key Velocity = 1…127

Vel o c ity Parameter = 0

Picture 34: Volume influence of different Velo parameter settings

Time

Key Velocity = 127

Key Velocity = 64

Key Velocity = 1

Time

Vel o c ity Parameter = +63

Vel o c ity Parameter = -64

Maximum Volume

Key Velocity = 1

Key Velocity = 64

Key Velocity = 127

Time

Additional Controls on the Q Keyboard

AmpMod -64…+63

Determines the amount of volume modulation.

AmpMod Source see Table “Fast Modulation Sources” on page 58

Selects the source of the volume modulation.

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Sound Parameters – Amplifier

Amplifer Edit Menu

The following parameters can be accessed via the display menu of the Q Rack only. Press the
Amplifer section’s Edit button to activate the display menu.

AmpMod

See Additional Controls on the Q Keyboard.

AmpMod Source

See Additional Controls on the Q Keyboard.

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Sound Parameters – Effects

Effects

The Q offers eight separate effect units. They are grouped to two effects working on four different

Instruments. This means that in Single Mode, each Instrument keeps its effect settings, while in Multi

Mode the Instruments 1 to 4 determine the effect settings. The Instruments 5 to 16 each can be routed

to one of these effect busses.

Both effect units feature nearly the same effect types and parameters. The following chapters are

therefore valid for both effect units.

 When pressing Shift and the FX1 or FX2 button the selected effect gets initialized. This

function is useful to get a first impression of the corresponding effect.

Effect Panel Controls

The following picture of the Q’s front panel shows the Effects section:

FX1 FX2

Edit Edit

Mix

Picture 35: Effects Section Q Keyboard

As you can see, the Q offers two independent effect units per sound, named FX1 and FX2.

Mix

Mix

Additional Controls on the Q Keyboard

Mix 0…127

The only parameter that is common to all types of effects is the Mix parameter. This parameter
controls the volume ratio between the original signal and the effect output. If set to 0, the dry signal is

sent to the outputs only so that no effects can be heard. Higher values will increase the effect signal.

At maximum setting, the pure effect signal will be heard.

FX1 and FX2 Edit Menus

Most parameters related to the Effects section are located in the display menu. Press the Edit button of

the desired effect unit to access these parameters.

Mix (only Q Rack)

See Additional Controls on the Q Keyboard.

FX1/2 Type Bypass / Chorus / Flanger / Phaser / Delay / Overdrive / Five FX / Vocoder /

Reverb / Tap Delay /5.1 Delay /5.1 D.Clk

Sets the type of effect produced by the selected effect unit. All further parameters depend on the

selected effect type.

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Sound Parameters – Effects

FX1 Type
Bypass

FX2 Type
Delay

 The 5.1 Delay Types are only available on the FX2 unit.

Bypass

Disables the effect unit. No further parameters available.

Chorus

A Chorus effect is generated by using Comb filters that generate slightly detuned copies of the input
signal and mixing it into the output signal. The result sounds like an ensemble of several sounds at the
time, as a choir in opposite to a single voice, hence the name Chorus. The detuning is generated by
an internal LFO that can be controlled in speed and depth. The Chorus’ high frequency output can be
dampened with the Cutoff parameter.

 A Mix setting of 48 to 96 produces the strongest effect because both the unaffected signal and

the processed signal are mixed together.

Speed | Depth
064 | 064

Speed 0…127

Sets the LFO speed of the Chorus effect.

Depth 0…127

Sets the modulation depth of the Chorus effect.

Delay 0…127

Delay
064

Sets the initial delay that is added to the Chorus delay line.

Flanger

The Flanger effect is very similar to the Chorus effect but features a feedback circuitry to feed the
generated signal back into the comb filter. This generates a deeper detuning and colorizes the signal.
With extreme settings you can hear a whistling sound which is very characteristic for a Flanger effect.

 A Mix setting of 48 to 96 produces the strongest effect because both the unaffected signal and

the processed signal are mixed together.

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Speed 0…127

Sets the LFO speed of the Flanger effect.

Depth 0…127

Sets the modulation depth of the Flanger effect.

Feedback 0…127

Controls the feedback amount of the Flanger signal.

Polarity positive / negative

Determines if the feedback signal is fed back into the Flanger as it is or if it is inverted beforehand.

Speed | Depth
064 | 064

Feedback |Polarity
064 |positive

Phaser

A Phaser is a combination of several "allpass" filters working in parallel. This generates an effect with
equally spaced frequency peaks or holes. The result is a strongly colorized signal with a “spacey”
character.

 A Mix setting of 48 to 96 produces the strongest effect because both the unaffected signal and

the processed signal are mixed together.

Speed | Depth
064 | 064

Speed 0…127

Sets the LFO speed of the Phaser effect.

Depth 0…127

Sets the modulation depth of the Phaser effect.

Center | Spacing
064 | 064

Center 0…127

Controls the basic delay length of the allpass filters. Lower settings produce a high pitched Phaser
effect while higher settings enable the Phaser to also cover deep frequencies.

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Spacing 0…127

Controls the frequency relation of the allpass filters. A setting of 0 produces a classic phaser while
higher settings spread the frequencies of the allpass filters.

Feedback |Polarity

050.0% |negative

Feedback 0…127

Controls the feedback amount of the delay signal.

Polarity positive / negative

Determines if the feedback signal is fed back into the Phaser as it is or if it is inverted beforehand.

Delay

A Delay is an effect that produces echoes of the input signal. To make this effect musically useful in a
synthesizer, the parameters to adjust the delay length are scaled in note values when Clocked is
activated. The Delay effect features its own Tempo control but can also synced to the Global Tempo
if you like.

The Delay effect is fully stereophonic, meaning that a signal that is routed to the left stereo position is
fed into the left or right delay line and vice versa depending on the setting of Auto Pan.

An important feature of the Q’s Delay effect is that the Delay length can be changed without clicks or
pitch changes. This allows you to experiment with different Delay lengths without getting annoying
side effects in the output signal.

Clocked off / on

Clocked
Off

If Clocked is set to on, the delay length is adjusted in note values. If it set to off, the delay length is
adjusted in milliseconds.

Length | Tempo
8/4. | internal

Length 1.4ms…1.48s 1/128…8/4.

Sets the length of the Delay tap in milliseconds or note values depending of the Clocked setting. A
“t” behind the number means a triplet note value while a “.” behind it means a dotted note.

 If the adjusted length is longer than the maximum length of the Delay effect, the Delay length is

halved automatically.

Tempo internal / 42…300

Sets the tempo in BPM (Beats per minute) that is used as basis for the delay length. This parameter
only appears, if Clocked is set to on. When set to internal, the Tempo is synced to the Global Tempo
which in turn is generated by the Q itself or evaluated from incoming MIDI Clock. See the chapter
“The Tempo” for details.

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