Reference Manual This page intentionally left blank 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70% 80% 90% 100% Table Of Contents Introduction ........................................................5 Important Safety Instructions ........................7 Chapter 1: Connections.....................................11 Chapter 2: First Session....................................13 Playing the Demos .................................................................................13 Playing Programs....................................................................................13 Finding Programs...................................................................................13 Playing Split and Layered Programs (Mixes)......................................14 Changing the Programs in a Mix .........................................................14 Selecting Banks .......................................................................................15 Using the Performance Controls .........................................................15 Transposing the Keyboard....................................................................15 Storing and Copying ..............................................................................16 Chapter 3: Overview ..........................................17 The Front Panel Controls .....................................................................17 The Edit Modes......................................................................................19 Global and Store Modes........................................................................20 Special Editing Features ........................................................................20 Compare...................................................................................................20 Resetting Parameter Values...................................................................20 Chapter 4: Expansion Cards ............................21 PCMCIA Expansion Cards ..................................................................21 Playing Card Sounds ..............................................................................21 Playing Card Sequences .........................................................................21 Saving a Bank to an SRAM Card (Formatting) .................................22 Saving a Program or Mix to an SRAM Card......................................22 Loading Banks from a Card..................................................................22 Loading a Program or Mix from a Card.............................................23 Transferring Mix Banks.........................................................................23 Chapter 5: MIDI ..................................................25 MIDI Connections.................................................................................25 Using Your QS With a MIDI Sequencer............................................27 Changing the MIDI Channel................................................................27 Saving Programs and Mixes Via MIDI...............................................27 Chapter 6: Global Parameters.........................29 Setting the Master Pitch.........................................................................29 Fine Tuning .............................................................................................29 Picking the Keyboard Velocity Curve .................................................29 Setting the Keyboard Velocity Scaling ................................................30 Transposing the Keyboard....................................................................30 Setting the Keyboard MIDI Mode ......................................................30 Turning on General MIDI....................................................................31 Setting the A-D Controller MIDI Numbers......................................31 Setting the Pedal 1 MIDI Controller Number...................................31 Setting the Pedal 2 MIDI Controller Number...................................31 Selecting the MIDI Program Change Behavior ................................31 1 Table Of Contents Setting the Behavior of the MIDI Out Port......................................32 Resetting the A-D Controllers..............................................................32 Setting the A-D Controller MIDI Mode ............................................32 Chapter 7: Editing Programs...........................33 QS Composite SynthesisTM...................................................................33 Selecting a Sound to Edit [00-30 SOUND] .......................................35 The Voice Function [40 VOICE] ........................................................36 The Level Function [50 LEVEL] ........................................................38 The Pitch Function [60 PITCH]..........................................................39 The Filter Function [70 FILTER]........................................................41 The Amp/Range Function [80 AMP/RANGE] ..............................43 The Pitch Envelope Function [90 PITCH ENVELOPE] ..............44 The Filter Envelope Function [100 FILTER ENVELOPE]..........44 The Amplitude Envelope Function [110 AMP ENVELOPE] ......45 Naming the Program [120 NAME].....................................................47 Copying Sound Layers [STORE].........................................................48 Auditioning Programs Before Storing ................................................48 Chapter 8: Modulations.....................................49 Selecting a Mod Route [0-5 MOD] .....................................................50 The Pitch LFO Function [6 PITCH LFO] ........................................52 The Filter LFO Function [7 FILTER LFO]......................................52 The Amplitude LFO Function [8 AMP LFO] ..................................52 Scaling Modulation Sources [9 TRACK GEN].................................54 Chapter 9: Editing Drum Kits .........................57 Selecting a Drum to Edit [0-9 DRUM]...............................................57 Selecting the Drum Sample [40 VOICE] ...........................................57 The Level Function [50 LEVEL] ........................................................59 The Pitch Function [60 PITCH]..........................................................60 Setting the Velocity Filter Curve [70 FILTER]..................................60 The Amp/Range Function [80 AMP/RANGE] ..............................60 The Amp/Env Function [AMP ENV 110] .......................................61 Chapter 10: Editing Mixes ................................63 Changing the Programs Within a Mix.................................................63 Getting Into Mix Edit Mode ................................................................63 The Level Function [60 LEVEL] ........................................................64 The Pitch Function [70 PITCH]..........................................................65 The Effect Function [80 EFFECT] ....................................................65 The Keyboard/MIDI Function [90 KEYBOARD/MIDI]............66 The Controller Function [100 CONTROLLERS] ...........................67 The Range Function [110 RANGE] ...................................................67 Naming the Mix [120 NAME] .............................................................68 The Mix Edit Buffers.............................................................................68 Chapter 11: Editing Effects ..............................69 Setting the Send Levels..........................................................................69 Getting Into Effects Edit Mode ..........................................................69 Storing Effects Settings .........................................................................70 Copying Effects ......................................................................................70 The Configuration Function [40 CONFIGURATION] .................71 Configuration 1: 1 REVERB................................................................72 2 Table of Contents Configuration 2: 2 REVERBS..............................................................73 Configuration 3: LEZLIE+REVERB...............................................74 Configuration 4: 1 REVERB+EQ ......................................................75 Configuration 5: OVERDRIVE+LEZLIE .......................................75 Selecting a Send to Edit [00-30 SEND]..............................................76 The EQ Function [50 EQ] ...................................................................76 The Mod Function [60 MOD].............................................................77 The Lezlie Function [70 LEZLIE]......................................................78 The Pitch Function [80 PITCH]..........................................................79 The Delay Function [90 DELAY] .......................................................82 The Reverb Function [100 REVERB] ................................................83 The Overdrive Function [110 OVERDRIVE]..................................87 Setting the Effects Output Levels [120 MIX]....................................88 Appendix A: Frequently Asked Questions ...89 How do I split the keyboard? ...............................................................89 How do I layer two sounds on the keyboard? ...................................89 What is a MIDI Sequence? ...................................................................89 Where can I get MIDI sequences for the QS? ..................................89 How do I play General MIDI sequences?..........................................89 How do I load sequences into my QS?...............................................89 How do I load samples into the QS? ..................................................90 Where can I get Q Cards?.....................................................................90 Where can I get SRAM cards and Flash cards?.................................90 Where can I get more Banks?...............................................................90 Are QS6.2/QS8.2 Programs compatible with older QS programs? ................................................................................................90 How do I change what the sliders do?................................................90 Appendix B: Sound Bridge...............................91 Appendix C: MIDI Supplement .......................93 Appendix D: Troubleshooting .........................97 Recovering from a Crash.......................................................................98 Re-Initializing ..........................................................................................98 Checking the Software Version ............................................................98 Cleaning Your QS...................................................................................98 Specifications ......................................................99 Index......................................................................101 Warranty/Contact Alesis...................................103 3 Introduction Welcome! Congratulations on your purchase of an Alesis QS6.2/QS8.2 64-Voice Expandable Synthesizer! It's a powerful instrument and we're sure you will find it exciting to use! Those of you who are familiar with the enormously-popular QS-line of synthesizers may be wondering, "What has changed in the new QS6.2 and QS8.2?". Well, we've kept the same great sound engine but totally redesigned the output section. We replaced the 18-bit D/A (digital-to-analog) converters with vastly superior Alesis 24-bit audio converters, resulting in a tremendous improvement in sound quality (much higher signal-to-noise ratio, and much lower distortion). You can hear the difference in the crystal-clear sounds. Go ahead - turn up the volume... We also refined the look of the keyboards and rearranged the front panel controls to make them more intuitive and improve ergonomics. In addition, we improved the little, but important, things. The User Bank Programs have been completely updated. The rear-panel jacks have been moved to make the QS6.2 fit on certain kinds of stands better. We even re-wrote the manual and added a FAQ with the questions we've received the most over the years. And don't forget, like their predecessors, the QS6.2 and QS8.2 are expandable. With an Alesis Q-Card ROM expansion, you get 8MB of additional professional-quality samples to add to your palette, in whatever genre of music you're into. Ask your music dealer about Alesis Q-Cards. Be sure to register your QS synthesizer on the Alesis website, www.alesis.com. Here, you will find some cool items to go with your QS synthesizer, like additional sound Banks and Sound Bridge software. We hope your investment will bring you many years of creative e ...