Reason 13.1 Operation Manual
DAW | Rack Plugin
NN-19 Sampler
A sampler could be described as a device capable of recording and reproducing audio material, like a tape recorder. Unlike a tape or hard disk based recorder, samplers allows you to “play” the recorded sound via MIDI, using a keyboard for example. This way, any reproducible sound can be integrated into the MIDI environment, and be controlled from sequencers etc. like synthesizers.
The NN-19 is a sampler capable of recording and reproducing - but not editing - sound files.
The program comes with numerous ready-made sample patches, covering all kinds of instrument types. In addition to this there are plenty of single samples that can be used for creating your own patches.
If you want to sample and edit your own sounds, you can use the Sampling function, described in the “Sampling” chapter.
There are also plenty of relatively inexpensive (and even free) audio editing software for both the Windows and the macOS platforms, that will allow you to both record audio (via your computers or audio cards audio inputs), and to edit the resulting audio file. Virtually every software that is capable of this, can create sound files which can be loaded directly into the NN-19.
Also, there are thousands of high quality sample libraries available, covering every conceivable musical style or direction ranging from professionally recorded orchestral samples to esoteric electronic noises.
#Background
Before a sound can be used by a sampler, it must be converted to a digital signal. Hardware samplers and computer audio cards provide audio inputs that can convert the analog signal to digital, by the use of an “A/D Converter” (analog to digital). This “samples” the signal at very short time intervals and converts it to a digital representation of the analog signal’s waveform. The sample rate and the bit depth of this conversion determines the resulting sound quality. Finally the signal is passed through a digital to analog converter (D/A) which reconstructs the digital signal back to analog, which can be played back.
#Multisampling vs. single samples
Most of the included NN-19 patches are made up of a collection of several samples. This is because a single sampled sound only sounds natural within a fairly narrow frequency range. If a single sample is loaded into an empty NN-19, the sample will be playable across the whole keyboard. The pitch (frequency) of the original sample (called root-key) will be automatically placed on the middle C key (C3).
Note that this has nothing to do with the actual pitch the sample itself produces! It may not even have a pitch as such, it could be the sound of someone talking for example.
If you play any single sample about two octaves above or below its root key, it will most likely sound very “unnatural”. In the case of it actually being a sample of someone talking, playing two octaves up will make the talking voice sample sound squeaky, short and most likely unintelligible. Two octaves down the voice will sound something like a drawn-out gargle.
Thus, the range that most samples can be transposed without sounding unnatural is limited. To make a sampled piano, for example, sound good across the whole keyboard, you need to first have made many samples at close intervals across the keyboard, and then define an upper and lower range for each sample, called a Key Zone. All the keyzones in the piano sample patch then make up a Key Map.
How to create key zones is described in “About Key Zones and samples”.
To sample real instruments accurately requires a lot of hard work. Firstly, you need the original instrument, which should be in perfect working order. For acoustic instruments you need a couple of good microphones, a mixer or other device with high quality microphone preamps, and a room with good acoustics. You need to be meticulous when recording the different samples, so that levels are smooth and even across the range etc.
Fortunately Reason provides a wide range of high quality multisampled instruments, so much of this hard work has already been done for you.
In our experience, most people don’t use samplers only for playing sampled versions of “real” instruments. Very often, single “stand alone” or single samples are used. Maybe you wish to use different sounds for every key zone. Or you could have complete chorus and verse vocals plus variations assigned to several “one note” key zones. Or use samples of different chords that play rhythmic figures to the same tempo, and use these to build song structures etc. The possibilities are endless. When you use samples in this way, the keys on your keyboard that play the samples do not necessarily correspond to pitch at all, the keys are simply used to trigger the samples.
The audio file format support differs depending on which computer OS you are using.
The NN-19 can read audio files in the following formats:
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In Windows:
.wav, .aif, .mp3, .aac, .m4a and .wma.
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In macOS:
.wav, .aiff, .3g2, .3gp, .mp1, .mp2, .mp3, .mpeg, .mpa, .snd, .au, .sd2, .ac3, .aac, .adts, .amr, .caf, .m4a .m4r and .mp4.
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SoundFonts (.sf2)
SoundFonts are an open standard for wavetable synthesized audio, developed by E-mu systems and Creative Technologies.
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REX file slices (.rx2, .rex, .rcy)
REX files are music loops created in the ReCycle program or when editing audio clips inline in Reason (see “Bounce Clip to REX Loop”). The NN-19 lets you either load REX files as patches or separate slices from REX files as individual samples.
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Any sample rate and practically any bit depth.
#About the Sample Patch format
Reason’s Sample Patch format (.smp), is based on either Wave or AIFF files, but includes all the NN-19 associated parameter settings as well.
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The audio files may be stereo or mono. Stereo audio files are shown with a “S” symbol beside its name in the display.
#Loading a Sample Patch
When you create a new NN-19 device, it is automatically loaded with a default patch. If you want to start from scratch, with no samples loaded, you can select “Reset Device” from the context menu or Edit menu. For NN-19 to produce sound, you need to load either a sample patch, or a sample - or sample a sound yourself using the Sampling function (see “Sampling”).
A patch contains “everything”. All the samples, assigned key zones, and associated panel settings will be loaded. Loading a sample patch is done using the Browser, just like in all other devices that use Patches.
1.
Click the Browse Patch button on the front panel to set browse focus to the NN-19 device.
2.
Navigate to the folder that contains the NN-19 patch you wish to load, select it and click Load in the Browser.
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Alternatively, drag an NN-19 patch from the Browser and drop it on the NN-19 device in the rack.
The panel is dimmed in orange and the Patch Replace symbol appears in the center.
#Loading REX Files as Patches
REX files are music loops created in the ReCycle program or when editing audio clips inline in Reason (see “Bounce Clip to REX Loop”). In Reason, REX files are primarily used in the Dr. Octo Rex loop player, but they can be used in the NN-19 as well. Possible extensions are “.rx2”, “.rcy” and “.rex”.
1.
Click the Browse Patch button on the front panel to set browse focus to the NN-19 device.
2.
Navigate to the folder that contains the REX loop you wish to load, select it and click Load in the Browser.
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Alternatively, drag a REX loop from the Browser and drop it on the NN-19 device in the rack.
The panel is dimmed in orange and the Patch Replace symbol appears in the center.
When loading a REX file, each slice in the file is assigned to one key, chromatically, starting from C1. All parameters are set to their default settings.
When using REX files in the Dr. Octo Rex loop player, it is possible to make a track play the slices in order to recreate the original loop. To do the same in the NN-19 requires a few extra steps.
1.
Use the Browser to load the REX file into an NN-19 sampler.
2.
Create a Dr. Octo Rex loop player and load the same REX file into o Loop Slot of this device.
3.
Use the “Copy Loop To Track” feature on the Dr. Octo Rex to create playback data (a group) on the track assigned to the Dr. Octo Rex.
4.
Move that group to the track that plays the NN-19 and play it back from there.
5.
Delete the Dr. Octo Rex loop player.
#Loading a Sample into an empty NN-19
1.
Create an NN-19 device and select “Reset Device” from the context menu or from the Edit menu.
2.
Click on the Browse Sample button.
This is located above the keyboard display to the left.
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When you browse samples, you can preview them before loading using the Play button in the Browser. If you select the “Autoplay” function, the samples play back once automatically when selected.
3.
Select a sample in the Browser and click the Load button in the Browser to load it.
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Alternatively, drag a sample file from the Browser and drop it on the NN-19 device in the rack.
The panel is dimmed in blue and a Sample Replace symbol appears in the center.
When you load the first sample into an empty NN-19, this will be assigned a key zone that spans the entire range of the keyboard, and the default Init Patch settings will be used.
Below the keyboard, the range, sample name, root key, tuning, level and loop status of the current key zone is displayed, each with a corresponding knob.
The light blue strip above the keyboard indicates the currently selected key zone, which is in this case the full range of the keyboard.
The inverted note on the keyboard indicates the “root key” of the sample. All samples contain a root key, tuning and level setting. If NN-19 is empty, a sample will have its root key placed on the middle “C” (C3) key.
4.
If desired, click on the keyboard to change the root key.
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You can audition a loaded sample patch or sample by holding down [Option] (Mac)/[Alt] (Windows) and clicking on a key in the Keyboard display. The mouse will take on the shape of a speaker symbol to indicate this.
#Loading SoundFont samples
The SoundFont format was developed by E-mu systems in collaboration with Creative Technologies. It is a standardized data format containing wavetable synthesized audio and information on how it should be played back in wavetable synthesizers - typically on audio cards. The SoundFont format is an open standard so there is a vast amount of SoundFont banks and SoundFont compatible banks developed by third parties.
The samples in a SoundFont are stored hierarchically in different categories: User Samples, Instruments, Presets etc. The NN-19 allows you to browse for and load single SoundFont samples, but not entire soundfonts.
1.
Click the Browse Sample button, select a SoundFont file (.sf2) in the Browser and open it.
The Browser opens the SoundFont and displays the folders within it.
2.
Select the folder “Samples” and open it.
This folder contains a number of samples which can be loaded like any other sample.
3.
Select the desired sample and load it by clicking the Load button in the Browser.
The sample is loaded and assigned a key zone range that spans the entire keyboard. You can now make settings for it as with any other sample.
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Alternatively, drag a sample file from the Browser and drop it on the NN-19 device in the rack.
The panel is dimmed in blue and a Sample Replace symbol appears in the center.
#Loading REX slices as samples
A slice is a snippet of sound in a REX File.
1.
To import a REX slice, click the Browse Sample button (see above), browse to a REX file and open it as if it was a folder.
The Browser will then display the slices as files inside that “folder”.
2.
Select the desired REX slice and load it by clicking the Load button in the Browser.
The REX slice is loaded and assigned a key zone range that spans the entire keyboard. You can now make settings for it as with any other sample.
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Alternatively, drag REX slice from the Browser and drop it on the NN-19 device in the rack.
The panel is dimmed in blue and a Sample Replace symbol appears in the center.
In the rest of this manual, when we refer to importing samples, all that is said applies to REX slices as well.
#Creating Key Zones
A “key zone” is a range of keys, that plays a sample. All key zones together make up a “key map”.
To create a new key zone, the following methods can be used:
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Select “Split Key Zone” from the Edit or context menus.
This splits the currently selected key zone in the middle. The new zone is the upper half of the split, and is empty. The dividing point has a “handle” above it, see “Setting the Key Zone Range” below for a description.
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By [Alt]/[Option]-clicking at a point just above the key zone strip, a new empty key zone is created.
The point where you click becomes the lower limit (or boundary) for the original key zone, and the upper limit for the new key zone.
The new empty key zone gets selected upon creation.
#Selecting Key Zones
Only one key zone can be selected at a time. A selected key zone is indicated by a light blue (as opposed to dark blue) strip above the keyboard in the display. There are two ways you can select key zones:
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By clicking on a non-selected key zone in the display.
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By activating the “Select Key Zone via MIDI” button.
Playing a note belonging to a non-selected key zone from your MIDI keyboard, will select the key zone it belongs to.
#Setting the Key Zone Range
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Key zones cannot overlap.
When you adjust the boundaries of a key zone, the surrounding boundaries are automatically adjusted accordingly.
You can change the key zone range in the following ways:
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By dragging the “handle(s)” which divides the key zones, you can change the range of the selected key zone.
In the case of having two key zones split in the middle, you could thus change the lower limit for the upper (new) key zone and the upper limit for the original key zone.
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By using the “Lowkey” and “Highkey” knobs to set a lower and upper range, respectively.
#Deleting a Key Zone
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To delete a key zone, select it and then select “Delete Key Zone” from the Edit menu.
#About Key zones, assigned and unassigned samples
When you load samples and rearrange your key mapping, you will often end up with samples that are not assigned to any key zone. In the following texts we refer to the samples as follows:
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Assigned samples are samples that are currently assigned to one ore more key zones.
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Unassigned samples are samples that reside in the sample memory, but that are currently not assigned to any key zone.
#Adding sample(s) to a Key Map
#If the sample hasn’t been loaded yet
1.
Select a key zone.
This can be empty, or contain a sample - it doesn’t matter for now.
2.
Use the Browser to add one, or several (see below), sample(s).
The following will happen:
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If the zone contained a sample prior to loading, this will be replaced, both in the zone and in the sample memory, unless the sample was also used by another key zone, in which case it will be kept.
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If you loaded several samples, one of the samples will be assigned to the key zone, and the other samples will be loaded but remain unassigned.
#If the sample is already loaded but unassigned
1.
Select a key zone.
This can be empty, or contain a sample - it doesn’t matter for now.
2.
Use the Sample knob to dial in the sample you want the key zone to play.
The Sample knob.
#Setting the Root Key
Once you have defined a key zone, and added a sample, you should set the root key for the sample.
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Select the key zone the sample belongs to, and click on the key you wish to set the root key to.
Which key to select is normally determined by the pitch of the sample. For example if the sample plays a F#2 guitar note, click on F#2.
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Note that it is possible to select a root key outside the key zone, if required.
#Removing sample(s) from a Key Map
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To remove a sample, select the zone it belongs to, and then select “Delete Sample” from the Edit or context menus.
The sample is removed from the zone and from sample memory.
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To remove a sample from a key zone/map, without removing it from memory, you can either select “No Sample” with the Sample knob for that zone, or simply replace it with another sample in the same way.
#Removing all unassigned samples
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To remove all samples that are not assigned to any key zone, select Delete Unused Samples from the Edit menu.
#Rearranging samples in a Key Map
There is no specific function for rearranging or trading places between samples and key zones. Simply select a key zone and change the current sample assignment with the Sample knob.
#Setting Sample Level
For each key zone you can set a volume level, using the Level button below the display. If the transition between two key zones causes a noticeable level difference, this parameter can be used to balance the levels.
#Tuning samples
Sometimes you might find that the samples you wish to use in a key map are slightly out of tune with each other. This parameter allows you to tune each sample in a map by +/– half a semitone.
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Select the key zone(s) that contains the out of tune sample(s), and use the Tune knob below the keyboard display.
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If all samples originate from different sources, and all or most of them are pitched slightly different (a not uncommon sampling scenario), you could first tune them so that they all match each other, and then, if necessary, use the Sample Pitch controls in the Osc section to tune them globally to the “song” you wish to use the samples in.
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Note that if all the samples were slightly out of tune by the same amount in relation to the song you intend to use the samples in, it would be much simpler to use the Sample Pitch controls in the Osc section directly.
#Looping Samples
A sample, unlike the cycles of an oscillator for example, is a finite quantity. There is a sample start and end. To get samples to play for as long as you press down the keys on your keyboard, they need to be looped.
For this to work properly, you have to first set up two loop points which determine the part of the sample that will be looped, and make this a part of the audio file. You cannot set loop points in the NN-19, this has to be done in the Edit Sample window (see “Looping samples”) or in an external sample editor.
All included samples already have set loop points (if needed).
For each sample (or key zone), you can select the following Loop modes by using the Loop knob below the keyboard display:
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OFF
No looping is applied to the sample.
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FWD
The part between the loop points plays from start to end, then the cycle is repeated. This is the most common loop mode.
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FWD - BW
The part between the loop points plays from start to end, then from end to start, and then repeats the cycle.
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For samples without any loop points, the whole sample will be looped.
#About the Solo Sample function
The Solo Sample button will allow you to listen to a selected sample over the entire keyboard range.
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Select the key zone the sample is assigned to, and then activate Solo Sample.
This can be useful for checking if the root key is set correctly or if the current range is possible to extend etc.
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For Solo Sample to work, “Select Key Zone via MIDI” must be disabled!
If you have a number of samples that belong together, but haven’t mapped them to key zones you can use the “Automap Samples” function on the Edit menu. This is used in the following way:
1.
Select all samples that belong together and load them in one go, using the sample browser.
One of the samples will be assigned to a key zone spanning the whole range, and the rest will be loaded in to memory but remain unassigned.
2.
Select Automap Samples from the Edit menu.
Now all samples currently in memory (assigned or unassigned) will be arranged automatically so that:
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Each sample will be placed correctly according to its root note, and will be tuned according to the information in the sample file.
Most audio editing programs can save root key information as part of the file.
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Each sample will occupy half the note range to the next sample’s root note.
The root key will always be in the middle of each zone, with the zone extending both down and up in relation to the root position.
Mapping samples without Root Key or Tuning information
Some samples may not have any information about root key or tuning stored in the file. If the file names indicate the root key you can manually set it for each sample using the method described below. In a worst case scenario, i.e. no tuning or root key information whatsoever, you can still make use of the Automap function:
1.
Select all samples that belong together and load them in one go, using the sample browser.
One of the samples will be assigned to a key zone spanning the whole range, and the rest will be loaded in to memory but remain unassigned.
2.
Manually set the root key, and adjust the tune knob if the sample needs fine-tuning.
Without any information stored in the file, or if the file name doesn’t indicate the root key, you will have to use your ears for this step. Play the sample and use another instrument or a tuner to determine its pitch.
3.
Select the next sample using the Sample knob, and repeat the previous step.
Proceed like this until you have set a root key for all the samples in memory.
4.
Select “Automap Samples” from the edit menu.
The samples will be mapped according to their set root key positions!
#How Mapping Information is saved
All information about key zones, high and low range, root key etc. is stored as part of the Sampler Patch. The original sample files are never altered!
The NN-19 synth parameters are used to shape and modulate samples. These are mostly similar to the parameters used to shape the oscillators in Subtractor - you have envelope generators, a filter, velocity control etc. Again, it is important to remember that these parameters do not alter the audio files in any way, only the way they will play back.
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These parameters are global, in the sense that they will affect all samples in a sample patch.
#The Oscillator Section
For a sample patch, the actual samples are what oscillators are for a synthesizer, the main sound source. The following settings can be made in the Osc section of the NN-19:
#Sample Start
This changes the start position of samples in a sample patch. Turning the knob clockwise gradually offsets the samples’ start position, so that they will play back from a position further “into” the samples’ waveform. This is useful mainly for two things:
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Removing “air” or other unwanted artefacts from the start of less than perfect samples.
Occasionally (although not in any samples supplied with Reason) you may come across samples where the start point of the sample is slightly ahead of the start of the actual sound. There may be noise or silence in the beginning which was not intended to be part of the sample. By adjusting the sample start position, this can be removed.
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Changing the start point as an effect.
For example, if you had a sample of someone saying “one, two, three”, you could change the start position so that when you played the sample it would start on “three”.
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You can also assign velocity sample start allowing to use your playing to determine the exact sample start. See later in this chapter.
#Setting Sample Pitch - Octave/Semitone/Fine
By adjusting the corresponding knobs you can change the pitch of all samples belonging to a patch, in three ways:
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Octave steps
The range is 0 - 8. The default setting is 4.
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Semitone steps
Allows you to raise the frequency in 12 semitone steps (1 octave).
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Fine steps (100th of a semitone)
The range is -50 to 50 (down or up half a semitone).
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Note that the controls in this section cannot be used to tune samples against each other, as all samples will be affected equally. To tune individual samples, you use the Tune parameter below the keyboard display (see “Tuning samples”).
#Keyboard Tracking
The Osc section has a button named “Kbd. Track”. If this is switched off, the sample’s pitch will remain constant, regardless of any incoming note pitch messages, although the oscillator still reacts to note on/off messages. This could be useful if you are using non-pitched samples, like drums for example. You could then play a sample in a zone using several keys, allowing for faster note triggering if you wanted to play a drum roll, for example.
#Osc Envelope Amount
This parameter determines to what degree the overall pitch of the samples will be affected by the Filter Envelope (see “Filter Envelope”). You can set negative or positive values here, which determines whether an envelope parameter should raise or lower the pitch.
#The Filter Section
Filters are used for shaping the overall timbre of the sound. The filter in NN-19 is a multimode filter with five filter types.
#Filter Mode
With this selector you can set the filter to operate as one of five different types of filter. These are as follows:
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24 dB Lowpass (LP 24)
Lowpass filters lets low frequencies pass and cuts out the high frequencies. This filter type has a fairly steep roll-off curve (24dB/Octave). Many classic synthesizers (Minimoog/Prophet 5 etc.) used this filter type.
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12 dB Lowpass (LP 12)
This type of lowpass filter is also widely used in classic analog synthesizers (Oberheim, TB-303 etc.). It has a gentler slope (12 dB/Octave), leaving more of the harmonics in the filtered sound compared to the LP 24 filter.
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Bandpass (BP 12)
A bandpass filter cuts both high and low frequencies, while midrange frequencies are not affected. Each slope in this filter type has a 12 dB/Octave roll-off.
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High-Pass (HP12)
A highpass filter is the opposite of a lowpass filter, cutting out the lower frequencies and letting the high frequencies pass. The HP filter slope has a 12 dB/Octave roll-off.
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Notch
A notch filter (or band reject filter) could be described as the opposite of a bandpass filter. It cuts off frequencies in a narrow midrange band, letting the frequencies below and above through.
#Filter Frequency
The Filter Frequency parameter (often referred to as “cutoff”) determines which area of the frequency spectrum the filter will operate in. For a lowpass filter, the frequency parameter could be described as governing the “opening” and “closing” of the filter. If the Filter Freq is set to zero, none or only the very lowest frequencies are heard, if set to maximum, all frequencies in the waveform are heard. Gradually changing the Filter Frequency produces the classic synthesizer filter “sweep” sound.
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Note that the Filter Frequency parameter is usually controlled by the Filter Envelope (see “Envelope Section” below) as well. Changing the Filter Frequency with the Freq slider may therefore not produce the expected result.
#Resonance
The filter resonance parameter (sometimes called Q) is used to set the Filter characteristic, or quality. For lowpass filters, raising the filter Res value will emphasize the frequencies around the set filter frequency. This produces a generally thinner sound, but with a sharper, more pronounced filter frequency “sweep”. The higher the resonance value, the more resonant the sound becomes until it produces a whistling or ringing sound. If you set a high value for the Res parameter and then vary the filter frequency, this will produce a very distinct sweep, with the ringing sound being very evident at certain frequencies.
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For the highpass filter, the Res parameter operates just like for the lowpass filters.
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When you use the Bandpass or Notch filter, the Resonance setting adjusts the width of the band. When you raise the Resonance, the band where frequencies are let through (Bandpass), or cut (Notch) will become narrower. Generally, the Notch filter produces more musical results using low resonance settings.
#Envelope Section
Envelope generators are used to control several important sound parameters in analog synthesizers, such as pitch, volume, filter frequency etc. Envelopes govern how these parameters should respond over time - from the moment a note is struck to the moment it is released.
Standard synthesizer envelope generators have four parameters; Attack, Decay, Sustain and Release (ADSR).
There are two envelope generators in the NN-19, one for volume, and one for the filter frequency.
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Please refer to the Subtractor chapter for a description of the basic envelope parameters.
#Amplitude Envelope
The Amp Envelope is used to adjust how the volume of the sound should change from the time you press a key until the key is released. By setting up a volume envelope you sculpt the sound’s basic shape with the four Amplitude Envelope parameters, Attack, Decay, Sustain and Release. This determines the basic character of the sound (soft, long, short etc.). The Level parameter acts as a general volume control for the sample patch.
#Filter Envelope
The Filter Envelope can be used to control two parameters; filter frequency and sample pitch. By setting up a filter envelope you control the how the filter frequency and/or the sample pitch should change over time with the four Filter Envelope parameters, Attack, Decay, Sustain and Release.
#Filter Envelope Amount
This parameter determines to what degree the filter will be affected by the Filter Envelope. Raising this knob’s value creates more drastic results. The Envelope Amount parameter and the set filter frequency are related. If the Filter Freq slider is set to around the middle, this means that the moment you press a key the filter is already halfway open. The set Filter Envelope will then open the filter further from this point. The Filter Envelope Amount setting affects how much further the filter will open.
#Filter Envelope Invert
If this button is activated, the envelope will be inverted. For example, normally the Decay parameter lowers the filter frequency, but after activating Invert it will instead raise it, by the same amount. Note that Invert does not affect the Osc pitch parameter (this can be inverted by setting positive or negative values).
#LFO Section
LFO stands for Low Frequency Oscillator. LFOs are oscillators in the sense that they generate a waveform and a frequency. However, there are two significant differences compared to normal sound generating oscillators:
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LFOs only generate waveforms with low frequencies.
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The output of the two LFOs are never actually heard. Instead they are used for modulating various parameters.
The most typical application of an LFO is to modulate the pitch of a (sound generating) oscillator or sample, to produce vibrato.
The LFO section has the following parameters:
#Waveform
LFO 1 allows you to select different waveforms for modulating parameters. These are (from the top down):
 
| Waveform
| Description
Triangle
This is a smooth waveform, suitable for normal vibrato.
Inverted
Sawtooth
This produces a “ramp up” cycle. If applied to an oscillator’s frequency, the pitch would sweep up to a set point (governed by the Amount setting), after which the cycle immediately starts over.
Sawtooth
This produces a “ramp down” cycle, the same as above but inverted.
Square
This produces cycles that abruptly changes between two values, usable for trills etc.
Random
Produces random stepped modulation to the destination. Some vintage analog synths called this feature “sample & hold”.
Soft Random
The same as above, but with smooth modulation.
#Destination
The available LFO Destinations are as follows:
| Destination
| Description
Osc
Selecting this makes LFO control the pitch (frequency) of the sample patch.
Filter
Selecting this makes the LFO control the filter frequency.
Pan
Selecting this makes the LFO modulate the pan position of samples, i.e. it will move the sound from left to right in the stereo field.
#Sync
By clicking this button you activate/deactivate LFO sync. The frequency of the LFO will then be synchronized to the song tempo, in one of 16 possible time divisions. When sync is activated, the Rate knob (see below) is used for setting the desired time division.
Turn the knob and check the tooltip for an indication of the time division.
#Rate
The Rate knob controls the LFO’s frequency. Turn clockwise for a faster modulation rate.
#Amount
This parameter determines to what degree the selected parameter destination will be affected by the LFO. Raising this knob’s value creates more drastic results.
This section deals with two things: Parameters that are affected by how you play, and modulation that can be applied manually with standard MIDI keyboard controls.
These are:
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Velocity Control
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Pitch Bend and Modulation Wheel
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Legato
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Portamento
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Polyphony
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Voice Spread
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External Controllers
#Velocity Control
Velocity is used to control various parameters according to how hard or soft you play notes on your keyboard. A common application of velocity is to make sounds brighter and louder if you strike the key harder. By using the knobs in this section, you can control how much the various parameters will be affected by velocity. The velocity sensitivity amount can be set to either positive or negative values, with the center position representing no velocity control.
The following parameters can be velocity controlled:
| Destination
| Description
Amp
This let’s you velocity control the overall volume of the sound. If a positive value is set, the volume will increase the harder you strike a key. A negative value inverts this relationship, so that the volume decreases if you play harder, and increases if you play softer. If set to zero, the sound will play at a constant volume, regardless of how hard or soft you play.
F. Env
This sets velocity control for the Filter Envelope Amount parameter. A positive value will increase the envelope amount the harder you play. Negative values invert this relationship.
F. Dec
This sets velocity control for the Filter Envelope Decay parameter. A positive value will increase the Decay time the harder you play. Negative values invert this relationship.
S.Start
This sets velocity control for the Sample Start parameter. A positive value will increase the Start Time amount the harder you play. Negative values invert this relationship.
A. Attack
This sets velocity control for the Amp Envelope Attack parameter. A positive value will increase the Attack time the harder you play. Negative values invert this relationship.
#Pitch Bend and Modulation Wheels
The Pitch Bend wheel is used for “bending” notes, like bending the strings on a guitar. The Modulation wheel can be used to apply various modulation while you are playing. Virtually all MIDI keyboards have Pitch Bend and Modulation controls. NN-19 also has two functional wheels that could be used to apply real time modulation and pitch bend should you not have these controllers on your keyboard, or if you aren’t using a keyboard at all. The wheels mirror the movements of the MIDI keyboard controllers.
#Pitch Bend Range
The Range parameter sets the amount of pitch bend when the wheel is turned fully up or down. The maximum range is “24” (=up/down 2 Octaves).
#Modulation Wheel
The Modulation wheel can be set to simultaneously control a number of parameters. You can set positive or negative values, just like in the Velocity Control section. The following parameters can be affected by the modulation wheel:
| Destination
| Description
F. Freq
This sets modulation wheel control of the Filter Frequency parameter. A positive value will increase the frequency if the wheel is pushed forward. Negative values invert this relationship.
F. Res
This sets modulation wheel control of the Filter Resonance parameter. A positive value will increase the resonance if the wheel is pushed forward. Negative values invert this relationship.
F. Dec
This sets modulation wheel control for the Filter Envelope Decay parameter. A positive value will increase the decay if the wheel is pushed forward. Negative values invert this relationship.
LFO
This sets modulation wheel control of the LFO Amount parameter. A positive value will increase the Amount if the wheel is pushed forward. Negative values invert this relationship.
Amp
This sets modulation wheel control for the Amp level parameter. A positive value will increase the level if the wheel is pushed forward. Negative values invert this relationship.
#Legato
Legato works best with monophonic sounds. Set Polyphony (see “Setting Number of Voices - Polyphony”) to 1 and try the following:
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Hold down a key and then press another key without releasing the previous.
Notice that the pitch changes, but the envelopes do not start over. That is, there will be no new “attack”.
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If polyphony is set to more voices than 1, Legato will only be applied when all the assigned voices are “used up”.
For example, if you had a polyphony setting of “4” and you held down a 4 note chord, the next note you played would be Legato. Note, however, that this Legato voice will “steal” one of the voices in the 4 note chord, as all the assigned voices were already used up!
#Retrig
This is the “normal” setting for playing polyphonic patches. That is, when you press a key without releasing the previous, the envelopes are retriggered, like when you release all keys and then press a new one. In monophonic mode, Retrig has an additional function; if you press a key, hold it, press a new key and then release that, the first note is also retriggered.
#Portamento (Time)
Portamento is when the pitch “glides” between the notes you play, instead of instantly changing the pitch. The Portamento knob is used to set how long it takes for the pitch to glide from one pitch to the next. If you don’t want any Portamento at all, set this knob to zero.
#Setting Number of Voices - Polyphony
This determines the polyphony, i.e. the number of voices a patch can play simultaneously. This can be used to make a patch monophonic (=a setting of “1”), or to extend the number of voices available for a patch. The maximum number of voices you can set a patch to use is 99.
*
Note that the Polyphony setting does not “hog” voices. For example, if you have a patch that has a polyphony setting of ten voices, but the part the patch plays only uses four voices, this won’t mean that you are “wasting” six voices. In other words, the polyphony setting is not something you need to consider if you want to conserve CPU power - it is only the number of voices actually used that counts.
#Voice Spread
This parameter can be used to control the stereo (pan) position of voices. The Spread knob determines the intensity of the panning. If this is set to “0”, no panning will take place. The following pan modes can be selected:
| Mode
| Description
Key
This will shift the pan position gradually from left to right the higher up on the keyboard you play.
Key 2
This will shift the pan position from left to right in 8 steps (1/2 octave) for each consecutive higher note you play, and then repeat the cycle.
Jump
This will alternate the pan position from left to right for each note played.
#Low Bandwidth
This will remove some high frequency content from the sound, but often this is not noticeable (this is especially true if you have “filtered down” samples). Activating this mode will save you some extra computer power, if needed.
#Controller Section
NN-19 can receive common MIDI controller messages, and route these to various parameters. The following MIDI messages can be received:
•
Aftertouch (Channel Pressure)
•
Expression Pedal
•
Breath Control
If your MIDI keyboard is capable of sending Aftertouch messages, or if you have access to an Expression Pedal or a Breath controller, you can use these to modulate NN-19 parameters. The “Source” selector switch determines which of these message-types should be received.
These messages can then be assigned to control the following parameters:
F. Freq
This sets external modulation control of the filter frequency parameter. A positive value will increase the frequency with higher external modulation values. Negative values invert this relationship.
LFO 1
This sets external modulation control of the LFO Amount parameter. A positive value will increase the LFO amount with higher external modulation values. Negative values invert this relationship.
Amp
This let’s you control the overall volume of the sound with external modulation. If a positive value is set, the volume will increase with higher external modulation values. A negative value inverts this relationship.
On the back panel of the NN-19 you will find the connectors, which are mostly CV/Gate related.
#Audio Outputs
These are the main left and right audio outputs. When you create a new NN-19 device, these are auto-routed to the first available channel on the audio mixer.
#Mono Sequencer Control
These are the main CV/Gate inputs. CV controls the note pitch. Gate inputs trigger note on/off values plus a level, which can be likened to a velocity value. If you want to control the NN-19 from a Matrix Pattern Sequencer for example, you would normally use these inputs. The inputs are “mono”, i.e. they control one voice in the sampler.
#Modulation Inputs
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Remember that CV connections will not be stored in the sample patch, even if the connections are to/from the same NN-19 device!
These control voltage (CV) inputs (with associated voltage trim pots), can modulate various NN-19 parameters from other devices, or from the modulation outputs of the same NN-19 device. These inputs can control the following parameters:
•
Osc (sample) Pitch
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Filter Cutoff
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Filter Resonance
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Amp Level
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Mod Wheel
#Modulation Outputs
The Modulation outputs can be used to voltage control other devices, or other parameters in the same NN-19 device. The Modulation Outputs are:
•
Filter Envelope
•
LFO
#Gate Inputs
These inputs can receive a CV signal to trigger the envelopes. Note that connecting to these inputs will override the “normal” triggering of the envelopes. For example, if you connected a LFO output to the Gate Amp input, you would not trigger the amp envelope by playing notes, as this is now controlled by the LFO. In addition you would only hear the LFO triggering the envelope for the notes that you hold down.
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Amp Envelope
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Filter Envelope