User manual APPLIED ACOUSTICS SYSTEMS TASSMAN

USER MANUAL 2 Information in this manual is subject to change without notice and does not represent a commitment on the part of Applied Acoustics Systems DVM Inc. The software described in this manual is furnished under a license agreement. The software may be used only in accordance of the terms of this license agreement. It is against the law to copy this software on any medium except as specifically allowed in the license agreement. No part of this manual may be copied, photocopied, reproduced, translated, distributed or converted to any electronic or machine-readable form in whole or in part without prior written approval of Applied Acoustics Systems DVM Inc. Copyright c 2004 Applied Acoustics Systems DVM Inc. All rights reserved. Printed in Canada. Program Copyright c 2000-2004 Applied Acoustics Systems, Inc. All right reserved. Tassman is a Trademark of Applied Acoustics Systems DVM Inc. Windows 98, 2000, NT, ME, XP and DirectX are either trademarks or registered trademarks of Microsoft Corporation. Macintosh, Mac OS, QuickTime and Audio Units are registered trademarks of Apple Corporation. VST Instruments, ASIO, Cubase and Cubasis are trademarks of Steinberg Soft Und Hardware GmbH. Sonar is a trademark of Twelve Tone Systems Inc. ProTools and DirectConnect are registered trademarks of Digidesign. Digital Performer and MAS are registered trademarks of Mark of the Unicorn. Logic is a trademark of Emagic Soft-un Hardware GmbH. Adobe and Acrobat are trademarks of Adobe Systems incorporated. Unauthorized copying, renting or lending of the software is strictly prohibited. Visit Applied Acoustics Systems DVM Inc. on the World Wide Web at www.applied-acoustics.com Contents 1 Introduction 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 1.6 1.7 2 System requirements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Installation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Registration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Getting started . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Using the Tassman as a Plug-in . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Getting help . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . About this book . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8 9 9 10 11 15 16 17 18 18 25 34 39 45 45 46 49 50 50 52 52 52 53 54 54 56 56 57 59 Tutorials 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 Tutorial 1. A Simple Analog Synth . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Tutorial 2 Playing a Synth with a Keyboard . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Tutorial 3 Using a Sequencer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Tutorial 4 Playing with Acoustic Objects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3 The Tassman Builder 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 3.5 The Builder area . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Creating an instrument . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Setting MIDI Links . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Making Polyphonic Instruments . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Using Sub-Patches . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4 The Tassman Player 4.1 4.2 4.3 4.4 4.5 4.6 4.7 4.8 4.9 Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . The Tassman Player . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Tweaking knobs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Audio Device Settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . MIDI Settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Latency Settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Instruments and Presets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Output Effect Stage . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Performances . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4 CONTENTS 5 The Browser 5.1 5.2 5.3 5.4 5.5 5.6 5.7 The Instruments folder . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . The Performances folder . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . The Modules folder . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . The Sub-Patches folder . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . The Import folder . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Customizing the browser . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Browser Filters . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 60 60 60 61 61 61 62 63 64 64 65 66 66 67 67 68 70 71 71 72 73 76 77 77 78 80 80 81 83 83 84 6 Specifications for modules 6.1 6.2 6.3 6.4 6.5 6.6 6.7 6.8 6.9 ADAR . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ADSR . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . After Touch . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . And . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Audio In . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Audio Out . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Bandpass2 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Beam . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Bowed Beam . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6.10 Bowed Marimba . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6.11 Bowed Membrane . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6.12 Bowed Multimode . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6.13 Bowed Plate . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6.14 Bowed String . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6.15 Breath Controller . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6.16 Comb . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6.17 Compressor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6.18 Constant . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6.19 Control Voltage Sequencer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6.20 Control Voltage Sequencer with Songs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6.21 Damper . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6.22 Delay . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . CONTENTS 5 6.23 Dual Gate Sequencer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6.24 Dual Gate Sequencer with Songs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6.25 Flanger . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6.26 Flute . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6.27 Gain, Gain 2, Gain 3, Gain 4 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6.28 Highpass1 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6.29 Inlets (1-12) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6.30 Inverter . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6.31 Keyboard . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6.32 Knob . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6.33 LESS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6.34 Level . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6.35 LFO (Low Frequency Oscillator . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6.36 Lin Gain . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6.37 Lowpass1 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6.38 Lowpass2 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6.39 Mallet . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6.40 Marimba . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6.41 Master Recorder Trig . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 85 86 87 90 91 91 91 92 93 94 94 94 95 96 96 96 97 98 99 6.42 Master Sync Input . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 100 6.43 Membrane . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 101 6.44 Mix2, Mix3, Mix4 and Mix5 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 102 6.45 Modulation Wheel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 102 6.46 Multimode . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 102 6.47 Multi-sequencer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 104 6.48 Nand . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 107 6.49 Noise . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 107 6.50 Noise mallet . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 107 6.51 Nor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 108 6.52 Not . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 108 6.53 On/Off, On/Off2, On/Off3, On/Off4 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 109 6.54 Or . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 109 6 CONTENTS 6.55 Organ . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 110 6.56 Outlet (1-12) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 110 6.57 Panpot . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 111 6.58 Phaser . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 112 6.59 Pickup . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 114 6.60 Pitch Wheel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 116 6.61 Plate . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 116 6.62 Player . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 117 6.63 Plectrum . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 119 6.64 Polykey . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 120 6.65 Polymixer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 121 6.66 Polyvkey . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 122 6.67 Portamento . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 122 6.68 Recorder . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 124 6.69 Recorder2 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 125 6.70 Reverberator . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 126 6.71 RMS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 128 6.72 Sample & Hold . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 129 6.73 Sbandpass2 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 130 6.74 Selector2, Selector3 and Selector4 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 131 6.75 Shifter . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 131 6.76 Single Gate Sequencer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 132 6.77 Single Gate Sequencer with Songs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 134 6.78 Slider . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 135 6.79 Static Delay . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 135 6.80 Stereo Audio In . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 135 6.81 Stereo Audio Out . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 136 6.82 Stereo Chorus . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 136 6.83 String . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 138 6.84 Sync delay . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 139 6.85 Sync LFO . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 139 6.86 Sync Ping Pong Delay . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 140 CONTENTS 7 6.87 Toggle . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 142 6.88 Tone wheel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 142 6.89 Tremolo . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 143 6.90 Tube . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 144 6.91 Tube4 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 146 6.92 Tube Reverb . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 147 6.93 VADAR . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 148 6.94 VADSR . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 149 6.95 Vbandpass2 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 149 6.96 VCA (Voltage Controlled Amplifier) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 150 6.97 VCO (Voltage Controlled Oscillator) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 151 6.98 VCS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 153 6.99 Vhighpass2 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 154 6.100Vkeyboard . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 155 6.101Vlowpass2 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 156 6.102Vlowpass4 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 157 6.103Volume . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 158 6.104Xor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 158 7 8 Quick references to commands and shortcuts License Agreement 159 163 8 Introduction 1 Introduction The Tassman is a modular software synthesizer based on physical modeling. The modular architecture of the software reproduces the very powerful features of vintage analog synthesizers letting you construct instruments "` la carte" by patching modules together. The module library includes a many analog-type objects but also modules simulating acoustic objects and instruments. The Tassman makes no distinction between different object types which means that you can reproduce your favorite vintage analog synthesizer, recreate or invent acoustic instruments but also combine analog and acoustic modules and create very innovative hybrid instruments. The Tassman generates sound by simulating the different modules through physical modeling. This technology uses the laws of physics to reproduce the behavior of an object. In other words the Tassman solves, in real-time, mathematical equations describing how an object functions. The Tassman uses no sampling or wavetable, it just calculates the sound as you play in accordance to the controls it receives. For example, if you choose to hit a plate with a mallet, the Tassman simulates (1) the impact of the mallet at a particular point, (2) the resulting displacement of the plate due to wave motion (taking into account the geometry and physical parameters of the plate related to its material), and (3) sound radiation at a particular listening point. Physical modeling is a very general and powerful approach since the result is obtained by reproducing how an object generates sound rather than trying to reproduce the sound signal itself using, for example, wavetables, additive synthesis or samples. This implies that a module can generate very different sounds depending on the driving signals it receives. For example, different sounds will be produced by a plate of a given geometry and material, depending on the strength of the mallet impact and its impact point. It will behave differently again if you hit the plate when it is at rest or when it is already vibrating. Physical modeling takes all these parameters into account naturally since it reproduces the behavior of the real object. This results in very natural and realistic sounds and reproduces the control musicians have on real acoustic instruments. The Tassman software is comprised of three tightly integrated views, in a single window. Instruments are created in the Builder by patching together modules imported from the Browser. Modules are just "building block" having inputs and outputs which you connect together using wires. The fully modular architecture of the Tassman lets you expand the Browser library by letting you define groups of modules as sub-patches for later inclusion in your constructions. Instruments created with the Tassman can be exported as short text files, which means that you can very easily exchange them with other users. Once an instrument has been constructed, the Player is opened, displaying the instrument's controls. The Player interprets the files generated in the Builder and automatically generates the playing interface and the computational code corresponding to a particular instrument. The panels of the different modules were inspired by vintage hardware making them very easy to use. All the controls appearing on the screen can be moved with the mouse and keyboard but can also be linked to external MIDI controllers. As with sub-patches, and modules in the builder view, presets for each instrument can be easily "drag and dropped" from the browser, which means you don't have to worry about searching through an endless stream of "load" dialog boxes to find the components 1.1 System requirements 9 you need. Before discussing the Tassman in more detail, we would like to take the opportunity to thank you for choosing an Applied Acoustics Systems product. We hope that you have as much fun playing with the Tassman as we had developing it! 1.1 System requirements The following computer configuration is necessary to run the Tassman: Mac OSX : · · · · · · · PC : · · · · · · Win98SE/2000/XP PIII 500 or better processor 128 Mb RAM 800 x 600 or higher screen resolution Direct X or ASIO supported sound card MIDI Keyboard (recommended) Mac OSX 10.2 (Jaguar) or later. G3 Processor (G4 strongly recommended) 256 Mb RAM 800 x 600 or higher screen resolution MIDI Keyboard (recommended) Ethernet Port Quicktime 4.0 This computer configuration will enable you to play fairly elaborate instruments. Keep in mind that the computational power required by the Tassman depends on the complexity of the patch you are playing and the number of voices of polyphony. Although it is not absolutely necessary it is strongly recommended to play the Tassman with a MIDI keyboard or controller. 1.2 Installation Mac OSX Insert the Tassman program disc into your CD ROM drive. Open the CD icon once it appears on your desktop. Click on the Tassman Install icon and follow the instructions of the installer. For download installations simply click on Install icon and follow the instructions of the installer. 10 Introduction PC Insert the Tassman program disc into your CD ROM drive. Click on the CD ROM icon on your desktop. Click on Install icon and follow the instructions of the installer. For download installations simply click on Install icon and follow the instructions of the installer. 1.3 Registration Upon launching the Tassman for the first time the registration page will appear. The Tassman uses a proprietary challenge/response copy protection system which requires you to provide some information before using the program. You will require: · A valid email address · Your product serial number (on the back of your CD or in your confirmation email for downloads) · The challenge key supplied by the registration page A challenge key is a long string of capital letters and numbers that is generated uniquely for each machine during the registration process. In other words, for each machine you install this program on you will receive a different challenge key. If you are a PC user, please note that a new challenge key will be generated should you change your computer's hard drive or upgrade your operating system. Once you have registered you will not have to do so again unless: · You reformat or upgrade your hard drive (on PC) · You change or upgrade your operating system (on PC) · You uninstall the program (Mac and PC) If the machine you have installed on is connected to the internet: Enter your email address and serial number, and click next. The registration system will now automatically launch your internet browser and connect to the AAS unlock page. The information you have provided, along with your challenge key will be filled into the online form. Verify that this information is correct and click next. The next page asks you to provide information about yourself including your mailing address and phone number. While this part of the registration process is optional, we recommend this information be provided to ensure our support team is able to contact you to resolve any future support issues, and notify you of product updates promptly. This information is kept completely confidential. You will then receive your response code on-screen. Copy and paste this information into the registration window, and the process is complete. Your response code will also be sent to you by email for your records. 1.4 Getting started 11 If you wish to register your software from another computer: Enter you email address and serial number into the registration window and click next. You will then be provided your challenge key. Take note of this information and proceed to your internet connected computer. Launch your browser and go to the unlock page of the AAS website at: http://www.applied-acoustics.com/unlock.htm Enter your email address, serial number, and challenge key, and click next. The next page asks you to provide information about yourself including your mailing address and phone number. While this part of the registration process is optional, we recommend this information be provided to ensure our support team is able to contact you to resolve any future issues, and notify you of product updates promptly. This information is kept completely confidential. You will then receive your response code on-screen. Copy this information into the registration window, and the process is complete. Your response code will also be sent to you by email for your records. If you wish to register by fax or over the phone: Should you not have access to the internet, AAS support representatives are available to assist you in the registration process Monday to Friday, 9am to 6pm EST. You may contact us by phone at: · North America Toll-free number: 1-888-441-8277 · Outside North America: 1-514-871-8100 · Fax Number: 1-514-845-1875 · Email: support@applied-acoustics.com 1.4 Getting started There's no mistaking it. Getting a new piece of gear is an occasion for excitement. At a time when music technology is getting faster and more powerful by the day, however, the task of going through the process of figuring out how your new toy actually works can be a little daunting to say the least. Enter the realm of software and virtual instruments and you could be looking at learning the "ins and outs" of the equivalent of an entire studio full of gear, in a single piece of software! As is so often the case, the most important thing is to know yourself and the pace at which you feel comfortable working. The Tassman has been developed with the needs of a very wide spectrum of individuals in mind. Whether you're new to the world of soft synths and computer music production, or are a seasoned industry professional, the Tassman is sure to be a source of creative inspiration, and offer up hours of virtual knob twiddling fun. When you launch the Tassman for the first time you'll be greeted with a familiar "file-browserlike" interface, not unlike those your operating system generates to display the contents of your 12 Introduction hard disk, or your email program uses to organize your mail and address book. The left side of the screen contains the Tassman's browser, a "tree view" organization of all the relevant components the Tassman uses, including: · Imports - destination folder for imported instruments, presets and sub-patches. · Instruments - ready to play, pre-configured groups of modules of all shapes and sizes including physical modeled acoustic instruments, electro-mechanical emulations, analog, FM synths, and more. · Modules - The basic building blocks of the Tassman including Oscillators, Filters, etc. · Sub-patches - smaller groups of pre-patched modules that are saved for use in various instruments such as your favorite effects, filter banks and EQs, etc. This approach makes it possible for you to explore the Tassman at your own pace. From scanning through the included instruments and presets, to constructing your own synths from the ground up, the Tassman grows right along with you. Audio and MIDI Configuration Before you start exploring the included instruments and presets, take a moment to set up your system configuration, under the Edit drop down menu, selecting Preferences: General Settings - This menu allows you to select whether exported folders from the browser contain the contents of any sub-folders located in their branch of the browser tree, i.e. when you export a synth, its presets and sub-patches will be included in the export with it if this option is selected. For more details on import and export functions please refer to the browser section of this manual. The General page also includes a slider which allows you to choose between smoother graphical response or better audio performance. Save preferences and the default sound file directory are also set from this menu. Finally, this menu lets you resize the window of the different plug-in versions of Tassman by adjusting the height and width of the window. Note that in order for these adjustments to take effect, you need to unload and then reload the plug-in. Audio Settings - This menu allows you to select from the installed audio ports on your computer, by driver type. If you have ASIO drivers available, these should be selected for optimum performance. Multi-channel interfaces will have their outputs listed as stereo pairs. MIDI Settings - This menu lists all of the available MIDI ports installed on your system. Select the port or ports you wish to use and click OK. Tassman can receive up to 16 simultaneous channels of MIDI data. 1.4 Getting started 13 Latency Settings on PC - Audio Control Panel on Mac - This panel allows you to select the bit depth (16, 24, or 32 bit audio) sample rate (22.05, 44.1, 48, or 96 kHz) and buffer size, which affects how quickly the Tassman responds to the control information it receives. The smaller the buffer size, the shorter the latency, and vice versa. Why would you ever want to introduce more latency you might ask? In some situations, such as large, self generating ambient synths and other stand-alone applications, you may wish to `trade' the resources Tassman normal utilizes to maintain low latency response for more raw processing power. Note that the content of the dialog depends on the driver selected in the Audio Settings menu. ASIO Driver Configuration - Some sound cards provide their own ASIO control panel, in which case the above information will differ from card to card. Some sound-cards also require that you close all programs before making changes to the buffer size, sampling rate, or bit depth. If you discover this is the case with your sound card, please refer to the manufacturer's documentation for details on configuring it for optimum performance. Most sound card manufacturers also update their drivers regularly. It's is strongly recommended that you visit your sound card manufacturer's website regularly to ensure you are using the most up to date drivers and support software. 96k hz Sample Rate Support - It will literally take twice as much CPU power to process audio at a sampling rate of 96 kHz as it would to process the same data at 48 kHz, simply because you have twice the processing to do. As a result of this, 96 kHz support is only recommended for PIV, and G4 processor based systems running at 800Mhz or more. Exploring the Factory Instruments and Presets The Tassman comes with 50 factory instruments and around 1000 presets right out of the box, which amounts to a huge range of sounds before you've even turned a single knob. As you'd expect, the best way of coming to grips with the possibilities each synth offers is simply to go through them one at a time. Open the Instruments folder by clicking on the "disclosure" symbol to the left. This will expand the browser to reveal the folder's contents. Select the type of synth that interests you (acoustic, analog, etc) and double click on the first synth in the list. The Builder, as the name implies, shows all of an instrument's included modules and internal connections, while the Player displays its editing and performance controls. You can switch back and forth between these views from the View menu. Clicking on the "disclosure" symbol to the left of any instrument reveals its presets. You can switch between presets by double clicking on the preset of your choice. If you fall upon an instrument you're having trouble understanding, or would simply like to have more information about how it works, choose Get Instrument Info from the Edit menu. For detailed information on the functionalities of the Builder, Browser, and Player, please refer to the dedicated chapters on each later in manual. As was mentioned earlier, the Tassman has been designed to meet the needs of a wide range of users. Similarly, the included synths and presets have been created to cover an equally wide range of tastes. Once you've had a chance to explore the included synths in some detail, you may find 14 Introduction that some of them produce sounds you feel you will use very rarely in your work, or simply aren't quite your style. The Browser makes it easy to organize your synths and presets in whatever manor you choose. Click in the browser, and choose New Folder from the File menu. Name this folder "Archive". You can now place all those "specialty" synths in the archive, freeing up space in your instruments folder and making it quicker and easier to find the sounds you need while you work. Building your Own Instruments One of the Tassman's greatest strengths is its modularity. As you explore the various factory instruments and presets, ideas for your own creations are sure to come up. The tutorials section of the manual provides an excellent basis for getting your ideas off the ground, and coming to grips with the basic functionalities of the Tassman's Builder. Regardless of your knowledge of synthesis and previous experience with modular environments, we recommend that you at least scan the tutorials to learn about the basic conventions of the builder. By answering a few key questions before beginning your first constructions, you will be able to spend less time pondering the near infinite possibilities the Tassman offers, and more time making music. Does one of the included instruments contain some of the elements of the idea you have in mind? You can easily duplicate groups of modules used in one synth in another using the Copy and Paste menu commands. If there is a group of modules you find you're using quite frequently in your constructions, copy and paste it to a new instrument, add the necessary inlets and outlets from the In/Out folder of the browser, and save it as a new sub-patch. Have you checked the sub-patch folder for elements you want to include in your synth? The Tassman comes with a large collection of sub-patches ranging from various oscillator and filter configurations, common output setups, and effects chains. You don't have to reinvent the wheel every time you sit down to build a new instrument. Save time, use a sub-patch. Is this synth going to be used as a plug-in? If you plan to use your synth as plug-in, a well thought out, efficient design will provide better performance when it's running along side several other audio and MIDI tracks. Even if you're using a top of the line system with the fastest processor on the market, efficient patch design means your instruments will run more smoothly in plug-in mode, and take less of your system's resources. Does your patch really need 16 reverbs !? For detailed instructions on building your first synths, please refer to the Tutorials section of the manual. A detailed description of each module's functionalities is also provided in chapter 6. 1.5 Using the Tassman as a Plug-in 15 1.5 Using the Tassman as a Plug-in The Tassman integrates seamlessly into the industry's most popular multi-track recording and sequencing applications as an instrument plug-in, making it easy to use the factory synths, as well as your own instruments and presets in your arrangements. Below you'll find step by step instructions on how to open the Tassman as plug-in in several of these applications. Instructions have been provided for the most recent versions of each product. For further details on using virtual instruments, please refer to the documentation of your host sequencer. Opening Tassman in Cakewalk's Sonar as a DXi plug-in · Start Sonar, · Select DXi Synth > Tassman from the Insert menu, · The Insert DXi Synth Options dialog will appear, click OK, · The Tassman window will appear. Opening Tassman in FL Studio as a DXi or VST plug-in · Start Fl Studio, · Select More . . . from the Channel menu, · Click the refresh button and select Fast Scan (Recommended), · Double-click on Tassman either from the VST plug-ins or DXi plug-ins categories, · The Tassman window will appear. Opening Tassman in MOTU's Digital Performer as an Audio Units plug-in · Start Digital Performer, · Create or open a project, · Select Add Track Instrument Track > Tassman from the Project menu, · The Tassman window will appear, · Click the output of a MIDI channel, select Tassman and the MIDI Channel; make sure that the MIDI channels are matching. Opening Tassman in Digidesign's ProTools using RTAS · Start Protools, · Create or open a project, 16 Introduction · Create a Stereo Audio Track, · In the mix window, on the newly created track, click on the first insert button and choose multi-channel plugin > Tassman, · Create a MIDI Track, · In the mix window, on the newly created track, assign the MIDI output to Tassman; make sure that the MIDI channels are matching. Opening Tassman in Emagic's Logic Audio a VST plug-in · Start Logic, · Create or open a project, · In the main window of Logic, select an audioinst track by double-clicking on it. This will bring up the mixer, · Choose the track you want to appear on, hold-click on the inserts button and select Stereo > VST > Tassman. Opening Tassman in Emagic's Logic Audio an Audio Units plug-in · Start Logic, · Create or open a project, · In the main window of Logic, select an audioinst track by double-clicking on it. This will bring up the mixer, · Choose the track you want to appear on, hold-click on the I/O button and select Stereo > Audio Units > Applied Acoustics Systems > Tassman. Opening Tassman in Steinberg's Cubase SX as a VST plug-in · Select VST Instruments from the Devices menu, · Select Tassman from the drop down menu, · Create a MIDI Track, · Assign the output of the MIDI track to Tassman. 1.6 Getting help Applied Acoustics Systems technical support representatives are on hand from Monday to Friday, 9am to 6pm EST. Whether you've got a question regarding a new synth you are building, or need a hand getting the Tassman up and running as a plug-in in your favorite sequencer, we're here to help. Contact us by phone, fax, or email at: 1.7 About this book 17 · North America Toll Free:1 888 441 8277 · Worldwide: 1 514 871 8100 · Fax: 1 514 845 1875 · Email: support@applied-acoustics.com Our online support pages contain downloads of the most recent product updates, and answers to frequently asked questions on all AAS products. The support pages are located at: www.applied-acoustics.com/faq.htm The AAS community site also contains the Tassman user forum, an excellent place to meet new users and get answers to your questions, as well as the synth download page, tutorials, and MP3s create with AAS products. The community site is located at: www.applied-acoustics.com/community.htm 1.7 About this book This User Manual begins with a tutorial to help you learn quickly how to create and play instruments with the Tassman. Four examples are included in the tutorial and every patch presented in the tutorial has been pre-constructed for you. You can find the corresponding files in the Tutorial folder of the Tassman browser. The Tassman comes with a certain number of pre-patched instruments and presets. We strongly recommend that you have a look at these instruments as a complement to the tutorial. Chapters 5, 3 and 4 of this manual describe the Tassman Browser, Builder and Player respectively. Chapter 6, a reference guide, contains a description of every module included in the Tassman. Builder and Player menus and shortcuts are listed in Chapter 7. 18 Tutorials 2 Tutorials The following tutorials will teach you the basics of constructing and playing synthesizers with the Tassman. We recommend that you build the different synthesizers from scratch as you go along the different examples. If you have any problem, you can find the patches described in the different tutorials in the Tutorials folder under the Instruments folder in the Tassman Browser. The Tassman comes with many pre-constructed instruments and presets. We strongly recommend that you have a look at the patches of these instruments for more elaborate examples. 2.1 Tutorial 1. A Simple Analog Synth In this first example we will build a simple analog type synthesizer. You will learn to: · Select modules. · Connect modules. · Switch to the Player view. · Use modulation signals. · Delete modules and wires. · Monitor the output of an instrument. · Save an instrument. Open the Tassman by clicking on its icon or from the Start menu. The Builder contains three different parts. The main section of the Builder is the construction area on which you will make your patch. The Browser at the left, contains all the folders needed in Tassman. You will find the Imports, Instrument, Modules and Sub-patches folders. The different modules that you can assemble appear on the left in the Browser and are listed under the different headings of Effects, Envelopes, Filters, Generators, etc . . . Just above the construction area is a help area that will give you basic information on the currently selected module. Step 1: VCO and Audio Out Description We will construct what is probably the simplest synthesizer one can build. The basis of our first synth is a VCO (Voltage Controlled Oscillator). This module is a wave generator and constitutes the sound source in our example. To hear the output of the VCO we will connect it to an Audio Out module, which represents the output of your sound card. This module takes the digital signal produced by the VCO and sends it to the computer sound card so that it can be heard. It is, in fact, necessary to have one Audio Out in any instrument you make if you want to hear it. 2.1 Tutorial 1. A Simple Analog Synth 19 Construction · In the Generators section, click-hold on the VCO and then drag it in the construction area. A VCO module then appears in the construction area. You can select it by dragging the icon and placing it anywhere you want in the construction area. Note that the module has three inputs and one output. You can have some information on the use of these inputs and outputs by positioning the mouse over them on the icon. You can also find basic information on the currently selected module in the help area located above the construction area. · Select an Audio Out module in the Outputs folder of the In/Out section and drag it in the construction area. Note that this module has one input and no output. · Now we need to connect the two modules together so that the VCO output signal can be sent to the Audio Out module. Click on the VCO output and move the mouse toward the Audio Out module and you will see a wire appear in the construction area. Now click on the Audio Out input and the two modules will be connected as shown in the following figure. Figure 1: Tutorial 1, step 1 Playing To play and hear the instrument you need to display the Tassman Player view. In the View menu choose the Show Player command which will switch to the Tassman Player view. You can now see the playing interface of the two modules you have connected in the Builder. You can turn off your new synth by clicking on the switch of the Audio Out module. You can now play with the VCO. To change the frequency of the sound generated by the VCO, move the coarse or fine knob. There are many different ways to move a knob. First select it by clicking on it and, keeping button down, move the mouse upwards or downwards. Once the knob has been selected, you can also move it by using the arrow keys. To position the cursor in a particular spot, Shift-click (Option-click on Mac) on the circumference of the knob where you want it to point. The frequency can also be varied by one or more octaves by using the range selector. The color of the sound produced by the VCO depends on the waveform you choose. To change the waveform, click on the wavetype selector on the right of the front panel and drag the cursor up 20 Tutorials and down. You have a choice between four waveforms: sine, pulse, sawtooth, and noise. The sine wave consists of a single fundamental harmonic and is a very soft sound. The pulse wave is made by combining a fundamental and the whole harmonics series; this is very rich in tone and is good for woodwind sounds. The sawtooth wave contains all the harmonics, but its higher frequencies are softer than in the pulse wave; it is good for brass-like sounds and strings. The noise wave, as its name indicates, consists of white noise; it is good for unpitched percussion. Note that when a pulse wave has been chosen, its shape can be changed with the PWM (Pulse Width) knob. Before going on to the next step, go back to the Builder by choosing Show Builder from the View menu or use the Ctrl-T/Apple-T shortcut. Step 2: Adding a LFO Description To add some life to our synthesizer, we will use the output of a LFO (Low Frequency Oscillator) to modulate the input of the VCO. A LFO is an oscillator which generates sine, triangle, square and random waves with a frequency varying between 0.1 Hz and 35 Hz. The frequency of a LFO signal is so low that it cannot be heard; a LFO, therefore, is not used to produce sound but rather to generate control signals which modulate other signals. In our patch, we will use this signal to vary the frequency of the VCO (i.e., to produce a vibrato effect). Construction · In the Generators section of the Browser, choose the LFO module and connect its output to the first input of the VCO. This input is a pitch modulation signal. This means that the pitch variation will follow the shape of the input signal. Figure 2: Tutorial 1, step 2 Playing Now switch back to the Tassman Player. To hear the effect of the LFO, turn the mod1 knob of the VCO to the right and you will start to hear the frequency varying. The mod1 knob is simply a gain knob that adjusts the effect of the input signal by multiplying it by a gain. When the knob is fully