Instruction/ maintenance manual of the product D4 Alesis
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A L ES I S D4 Reference M a nu a l.
CHAPTER 1 - INTRODUCTION 1.0 PRINCIPAL FEATURES ..................................................................................... 1 1.1 RETURN YOUR WARRANTY CARD NOW! ....................................................... 2 1.2 HOOKUP/INSTANT GRATIFICATION .
CHAPTER 4 - MIDI FUNCTIONS 4.0 DRUM SET ROOT NOTE ................................................................................... 21 4.1 MIDI CHANNEL SELECTION ............................................................................. 23 4.2 MIDI THRU/OUT SELECTION .
1 CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION Thank you for purchasing the Alesis D4 Drum Sound Module. The D4 provides over 500 high-quality drum/percussion sounds (many of them in stereo), that use the same drum recording expertise responsible for making the SR-16 and HR-16 standards in the music world.
2 • Velocity-sensitive Preview button. Audition sounds at the D4 itself, so you don’t have to go back and forth between a controller and the D4 when making drum kit assignments or checking out sounds. • Headphone jack. This is excellent for practicing, or for creating drum kits while other activity is taking place in the studio.
3 Power MIDI THRU/OUT Jack MIDI IN Jack Main Output Jacks Trigger Jacks Footswitch Jack Aux Output Jacks 1.2A Installation For most applications the D4 should be installed in a rack frame so that you can tap the Preview button without causing the unit to slide around.
4 The D4’s drum sounds can be triggered by non-MIDI electronic drum pads, audio signals from tape, drum sounds from other drum machines, etc. 1. If you ’re using a hi hat pad, connect its output to rear panel trigger input 1. 2. Connect up to 11 more pads to any of the remaining 11 rear panel trigger inputs.
5 3. Trigger D4 notes via MIDI or acoustic triggers. Diff erent MIDI notes (within the range of 36-96) or triggers should trigger different drum sounds. 4. Turn the Data wheel clockwise to select higher-numbered drum kits or counterclockwise to select lower-numbered drum kits.
6 1. Press the Voice button, and its LED lights. The display shows a MIDI note number on the top line and the name of the currently selected drum sound on the lower line.
7 1.2I Assign Drum Sounds to Particular MIDI Notes 1. Press the Voice button. 2. Use the cursor buttons to place the cursor under the MIDI note number on the to p line. 3. Rotate the Data knob and select the note to which you want to assign a particular drum sound.
8 1.3B About the Edit Buffer Whenever you select a Drum Set, all parameters associated with the Drum Set load into a temporary memory buffer. As you edit the Drum Set, changes are made to this temporary version rather than the original Drum Set.
9 000 C-2 036 C1 096 C6 127 G8 61 Note Window MIDI IN DATA Note Data to Sound Generator External Triggers 3 4 5 6 2 1 Programmable Drumset trigger note number assignments (any trigger may be assigned any note number within the 61 note window) Alesis D4 Trigger / Note Relationship Programmable Drumset Rootnote 7 8 9 10 11 12 1.
10 1.4A Function Buttons The eight Function buttons select eight different groups of parameters, as shown on the LCD. Pushing a Function button lights its associated LED and deselects any previously-selected Function button (its LED goes out). The functions are: Voice Chooses the drum sound to be edited and/or assigned.
11 After selecting the parameter to be edited, use the Data wheel to vary its value. Once a Drum Set has been edited, a period appears in the display after the Drum Set number. Example: This Drum Set has not been edited. DRUMSET 00 “Standard Stuff” This Drum Set has been edited.
12 CHAPTER 2: DRUM SET MANAGEMENT In most cases, you will call up a particular Drum Set when you want to use the D4. Drum Sets can be selected, named, edited, and saved (stored). 2.0 SELECTING DRUM SETS 1. Press the Drum Set function button; its LED will light.
13 R S T U V W X Y Z [] ^ _ ` ab c de f g h ij k l m n opq r s t u v w xyz { | } 4. After naming the Drum Set and selecting where it should be stored, press the Store button again. The LCD will briefly show DRUMSET STORED to confirm that it has been stored.
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15 CHAPTER 3: FUNCTION BUTTONS The function buttons allow you to edit Drum Set parameters on a fairly detailed level. 3.0 NOTE CHASE/DRUM NOTE SELECTION The Voice, Tune, Mix, Output, and Group buttons all require selecting a particular drum note for editing.
16 To select a drum sound within the Bank, place the cursor under the drum sound and turn the Data wheel. The accompanying chart included with the D4 shows the names of all available drum sounds. 3.2 TUNE Press Tune, and the LCD shows the selected MIDI note number on the top line and the Pitch on the bottom line.
17 NOTE: 054 F#2 OUTPUT: M AIN To change the output assignment, turn the Data wheel. To send the drum sound to the Main outputs, select Main. To send the drum sound to the Aux outputs, select Aux. Having two stereo output pairs allows for several options.
18 To select a particular Drum Set, turn the Data wheel. Numbers range from 00 to 20. Drum Set selection and management was already covered in more detail in Chapter 2. 3.6 EXT TRIG Press Ext Trig, and the LCD shows the Trigger input and Trigger Characteristics (Type) on the top line, and the note associated with the Trigger on the bottom line.
19 problem, try assigning all the toms to a group so that they only use up one voice at a time. 3.8 MIDI BUTTON Press MIDI, and the LCD shows the root note for the selected drumset on the bottom line. Example: DRUMSET ROOT NOTE: 0 36 C1 MIDI options are spread over five different screen displays, which are described in detail in Chaper 4.
20 1. Press and hold the Note Chase function button. While holding this button, press the Store button. Release both buttons. The Store LED will light and the display shows something like: COPY 036 C1 TO 0 42 F#1 2. The cursor will be under the destination note number.
21 2. Turn the Data wheel to select the desired Drum Set root note..
22 4.1 MIDI CHANNEL SELECTION The D4 can receive and transmit MIDI data in Omni mode (receives data appearing on any of the 16 MIDI channels, transmits data over channel 1) or Poly mode (transmits and receives over any one of the 16 MIDI channels). Use Omni when playing the D4 from an external MIDI controller (MIDI drum pads, MIDI keyboard, etc.
23 Program Change commands can change Drum Sets at any time, including while the D4 is playing. A Program Change Table (section 4.5) determines which Drum Set will be called up in response to a particular Program Change number.
24 99 Non-Registered Parameter LSB (0-127) This works similarly to controller 98 but the controller value selects the Least Significant Byte of the parameter to be controlled.
25 3. Use the Data wheel to select a status of On (the D4 responds to controller messages) or Off (the D4 ignores controller messages). 4.5 PROGRAM CHANGE TABLE 1. The fourth MIDI page shows the Program Table. Example: PROGRAM TABLE 0 00 = 00 The lower left, three-digit number represents the incoming Program Change number.
26 which receives all channels) to retrieve this data. It’s a good idea to include the channel assignment in the System Exclusive file name to prevent possible confusion. To back up: 1. Connect the D4 ’s MIDI Out to the MIDI In of the other D4 or system exclusive storage device, such as the DataDisk.
27 6. Press the D4 Store button. The D4 display says SENDING SYSEX DATA OUT MIDI… and the DD display says RECEIVING Alesis D4 to indicate that data has been received.
28 CHAPTER 5: EXTERNAL TRIGGERING External triggering has three main uses: • Driving D4 sounds from electronic drum pads. Some electronic drum pads provide MIDI triggers when hit; these can feed directly into the D4’s MIDI input. Other pads generate analog triggers, which can interface with the trigger inputs.
29 About Trigger Parameters The D4 now offers five user controllable trigger parameters. These are: • VCURVE. This represents the velocity curve, or the sensitivity of the trigger input.
30 This chart represents three signals which are "seen" by the D4. Signal 1 is a legitimate hit from the snare pad. Signal 2 is the Tom 1 pad, but it is not a hit. It is the pad being triggered by stand vibrations from the first snare hit. Signal 3 is a second "real" hit from the snare pad.
31 Selecting a higher DCAY value (long decay times) will allow for the most reliable triggering but may miss quickly repeated hits. Lower DCAY values (shorter times) will respond to quickly repeated hits but may be more prone to false triggering. Experimentation with these levels is necessary to achieve the proper results.
32 • NOISE. The noise floor is is the signal level threshold a vibration or sound must exceed before it can trigger a drum sound. When selecting lower values, very soft signals (hits) will trigger the D4.
33 2. Place the cursor under the TRIG parameter. 3. Turn the Data wheel to select the desired trigger for editing. 5.1 TRIGGER NOTE SELECTION Each trigger can be assigned to any MIDI note number, which is associated with a corresponding drum sound (programmed according to the instructions in section 3.
34 Note: The setting of 0, Unassigned, is selected by rotating the Data wheel fully counterclockwise. This is a special case VCURVE setting which allows a trigger input to contribute to the D4’s master suppression threshold. However, it will not trigger any sounds or MIDI note messages.
35 3. Go to the next page and set the XTALK, DCAY and NOISE levels all to 00. This low level will allow the maximum signal to be detected by the D4. 4. Press the EXT TRIG button again to get to the GAIN page. Using the bar graph meter, adjust the level according to the severety of the false triggering.
36 5.3 TRIGGER PARAMETER SELECTION To compensate for differences in transducer outputs, the crosstalk, decay time, and noise floor level for each trigger can be set independently. These are Global settings that apply to all Drum Sets. 1. The second Ext Trig page shows four parameters.
37 3. Place the cursor under the XTALK parameter. While you hit the snare pad (triggering the tom pad) gradually raise the crosstalk level of the tom 1 pad . 4. Continue to raise the level until the tom pad stops triggering when you apply hard hits to the snare pad.
38 5.5 TRIGGER DCAY CONTROL SELECTION If a pad or drum "double triggers" when it is struck, it may be necessary to adjust the DCAY level. This is evident when shortly after the initial strike to a pad, a second trigger from the same pad is generated, or it "double triggers".
39 Remember : In keeping potential problems to a minimum, it is always a good idea to try to keep some distance between your pad or drum kit, and nearby speaker cabinets (especially bass cabinets). Whenever possible, try to aim them so they are not facing directly towards your set up.
40 4. To aid in the adjustment of this parameter, strike the pad or drum whose transducer is plugged into the selected input. The lower LCD line will turn into a bar-graph meter that shows the peak strength of the transducer signal.
41 5.8A Understanding Hi Hat Pedal Mode This is a feature for hardcore drummers. It’s a little complicated, but hang in there— the D4 finally gives you a way to get truly realistic hi hat effects with electronic drums. An acoustic hi hat produces three main types of sound: • Open hi hat.
42 Striking the pad while the footswitch is held down plays the closed hi hat sound..
43 CHAPTER 6: MIDI SUPPLEMENT (This chapter is an abridged version of material from Power Sequencing with Master Tracks Pro/Pro 4 and The Complete Guide to the Alesis HR-16 and MMT-8, copyright 1990 and 1989 respectively by AMSCO Publications, and is adapted with permission.
44 machines) can often transmit and/or receive additional MIDI timing messages that keep other rhythmically-oriented units in a system synchronized with each other. An optional MIDI Thru jack provides a duplicate of the signal at the MIDI In jack. This is handy if you want to route MIDI data appearing at one device to another device as well.
45 Pitch Bend This “bends” a note from its standard pitch. Continuous Controller Footpedals, breath controllers, and modulation wheels can vary sounds as you play, thus adding expressiveness.
46 124 Omni Off (0) 125 Omni On (0) 126 Mono On (0-16; 0=Omni Off) 127 Poly On (0) 6.3B Mode Messages There are two messages that determine the MIDI mode (i.e., how the D4 will receive MIDI data). The “Omni” message determines how many channels will be recognized.
47 Continue Unlike a Start command, which re-starts a sequencer or drum machine from the beginning of a song each time it occurs, sending a continue message after stop will re-start units from where they were stopped. 6.5 BOOKS ON MIDI The preceding does not substitute for reading a good book on the subject of MIDI.
An important point after buying a device Alesis D4 (or even before the purchase) is to read its user manual. We should do this for several simple reasons:
If you have not bought Alesis D4 yet, this is a good time to familiarize yourself with the basic data on the product. First of all view first pages of the manual, you can find above. You should find there the most important technical data Alesis D4 - thus you can check whether the hardware meets your expectations. When delving into next pages of the user manual, Alesis D4 you will learn all the available features of the product, as well as information on its operation. The information that you get Alesis D4 will certainly help you make a decision on the purchase.
If you already are a holder of Alesis D4, but have not read the manual yet, you should do it for the reasons described above. You will learn then if you properly used the available features, and whether you have not made any mistakes, which can shorten the lifetime Alesis D4.
However, one of the most important roles played by the user manual is to help in solving problems with Alesis D4. Almost always you will find there Troubleshooting, which are the most frequently occurring failures and malfunctions of the device Alesis D4 along with tips on how to solve them. Even if you fail to solve the problem, the manual will show you a further procedure – contact to the customer service center or the nearest service center
