MT-32 Timbre Editing Program Table of Contents Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 Installation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3 Background . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4 Timbres . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4 Partials . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4 Common Parameter . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4 Patches . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5 Other Information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5 Operation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7 Library Menu . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7 Timbre Editing Menu . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7 Patch Editing Menu . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7 Patch Sending Program . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7 Appendix A . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9 Appendix B . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13 Appendix C . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14 1 Introduction The MT-32 Multi-Timbral Sound Module is a very powerful synthesizer module. It is based on the LA (Linear Arithmetic) synthesis method of sound creation which combines analog and sampled sounds. Each sound (called Timbres from now on) consists of between one and four partials. A partial is a basic sound. The MT-32 has many partials including percussion, acoustic instruments, and synthesized sounds. Each partial can be either a PCM (sampled sound) or a digitally synthesized sound created much like an analog synthesizer. Each partial also has its own Time Variant Filter, Time Variant Amplifier, and Low-Frequency Oscillator. Extremely realistic sounds can be created using these tools. To keep the cost of the MT-32 at a minimum, Roland decided to only allow programming through MIDI. This computer program will allow you to create new timbres and save them in libraries. Entire libraries of 64 timbres can be saved and loaded from the MT-32. 2 Installation Installation of the MT-32 Timbre Editor/Librarian Program is very straight forward. Some knowledge of the IBM PC compatible computer and it's Disk Operating System is required however. The following items are required: An IBM Compatible PC with at least 256K of RAM memory and at least 1 floppy disk drive An MPU-401 compatible MIDI interface The MT-32 Timbre Editor program diskette DOS 3.0 or greater The MT-32 Timbre Editing program can be run from a floppy disk, but it offers best performance if installed on a hard disk. Before running the program, it is always a good idea to make a copy of the original disk. The disk is not copy protected, so DISKCOPY or COPY *.* will make a backup disk. If you do not understand how to copy the disk, refer to the DOS manual or someone who can. You can use the backup disk as your working copy of the program. If you have a hard disk you can install the program on it. Below is an example of how to do this. A>C: C>MD \MT32 C>CD \MT32 C>COPY A:*.* C: The above commands will copy the program into a sub-directory called MT32 on your hard drive C:. Depending upon your computer, you may need to change the above example. On the MIDI side of things, the IN of the MT-32 must be connected to the OUT of your MPU-401 compatiable interface. If you want to load patches from your MT-32, the OUT of the MT-32 must be connected to the IN of the MPU-401 interface also. Your MT-32 must be set to unit number 17. This is the default as shipped from Roland. If the unit number is not 17 or the connections are not correct, you will get the error "Error Reading MIDI Data". Once you have created your work disk or installed the program on your hard disk, and connected your MT-32 correctly, you can now run the program by typing MT32 and pressing enter. The program assumes you are using a color monitor. If you have a monochrome monitor, type MT32 MONO instead of MT32 to start the program. 3 Background Before learning how the program works, you must first understand how the MT-32 works. Timbres Timbres are parameters that make up sounds. There are three types of timbres in the MT-32. Two sets of 64 preset timbres, one set of 34 rhythm timbres, and one set of 64 memory timbres. The preset and rhythm timbres are permanent and cannot be edited or changed. This computer program will allow you to manipulate the fourth set - the memory timbres All of the timbre are made up of four partials and one common part. An understanding of these parts is essential for programming Linear Arithmetic type synthesizers. Partials A partial is the smallest part that defines a timbre. Each partial makes a single sound. A partial can make be a PCM sampled sound or an analog type sound. The Waveform Generator of the partial defines the pitch of the tone it produces. The Partial LFO is a low-frequency oscillator that produces a tremolo or vibrato within the partial. The pitch envelope allows pitch changes within the note envelope or the duration of the note. The Time Variant Filter and Time Variant Amplifier vary the harmonics and level of the tone respectively. These also can vary within the duration of the note. Common Parameter The Common Parameter ties the partials together. It also consists of the timbre name, the envelope mode and the structure of the partials. The structure of the partials is one of the most important parts of the sound. Changing the structure of partials makes big differences in the sounds. There are two structures for each sound - one for partials 1 and 2, and one for partials 3 and 4. In the MT-32 Timbre Editor, partial structures are shown by line drawings. The structures that resemble a sideways "Y" mix the two partials (1 and 2 or 3 and 4) and applies the total output to the left and right channels. The structures that resemble two horizontal lines send the output of partial 1 or 3 to the left channel and partial 2 or 4 to the right channel. The structures that contain an "R" in the center mix the two partials through a ring-modulator. This creates bell type sounds. 4 The structure diagrams also tell whether the the partials are synthesized sounds or PCM sounds. In the diagrams, S stands for synthesized sounds and P stands for PCM sounds. The top letter is partial 1 or 3, and the bottom letter is partial 2 or 4. Patches The MT-32 is different from most other synthesizers in the way timbres are accessed. In most synthesizers, timbres and patches are the same thing. In the MT-32, they are different. A timbre is the information defining the four partials and the common parameters for one sound. There are 226 timbres in the MT-32. 128 timbres are preset sounds, 34 are rhythm sounds, and 64 are memory sounds. The MIDI specification says that an instrument can only have 128 timbres. The Roland engineers had to design the MT-32 so that all 226 timbres could be accessed. The MT-32 was designed with 128 patches. These corresponds to the 128 timbres in the MIDI specification. Within the patches is a "pointer" to a timbre. When you turn on the MT-32, all the patches "point" to the preset sounds. The memory sounds cannot be accessed. This program will allow you to change patches to "point" to memory timbres instead of preset timbres. The use of patches does not increase the MIDI limitation of 128, it allows you to pick which 128 of the 226 timbres you want to access at one time. A patch contains the following information: Sound Group: The sound group is A, B, M or R. A and B are for preset sound groups A and B. Sound Number: This is the timbre number within the group. Key shift: This parameter will let you change the actual pitch of this timbre plus or minus two octaves. Fine tune: This parameter will let you change the actual pitch of the part in small increments. Bender range: This parameter sets the maximum range of the bender from 0 notes to 2 octaves. Assign mode: This parameter tells how to allocate notes within the MT-32. See page 23 of the MT-32 manual for an explaination. Reverb switch: This paramter allows you to turn the reverb on or off for this timbre. 5 Other Information One thing that the MT-32 manuals do not tell you is that to access the memory timbres through one of the 128 patches, you have to do so through the MIDI port. There is no way to access memory information from the front of the unit. 6 Operation The MT-32 Timbre Editing Program uses menus for selections. The following is a description of each menu item. Library Menu The library menu will allow you to load and save the timbres and patches to and from the disk and to and from the MT-32. Before you can change any timbres or patches, you must load a set from the disk drive or from the MT-32. Once you load and change the timbre and patch information, you can save the information to disk or to the MT-32. To use the information, you have to save the information to the MT-32. Timbre Editing Menu The timbre editing menu will allow you to change timbres. You must load the timbres from the disk or from the MT-32 before you can edit them. The editing menu will first allow you to select a timbre to edit. Use the arrow keys to highlight the timbre you want to edit and press enter. You may now modify the timbre. Use the up and down arrow keys to move the cursor to the information you want to change. Use the left and right arrow keys to change the information. Ctrl-left and Ctrl-right will change the information at a faster rate. The timbre name will allow you to type the name in addition to using the arrow keys. Patch Editing Menu The patch editing menu will allow you to change the patches. You must load the timbres from the disk or from the MT-32 before you can edit them. You must first select a patch to edit in the same way as you select a timbre. PgUp and PgDn will select the first and second set of 64 patches. Use the arrow keys to highlight the patch you want to edit and press enter. You may now modify the patch. Use the up and down arrow keys to move the cursor to the information you want to change. Use the left and right arrow keys to change the information. Ctrl-left and Ctrl-right will change the information at a faster rate. Appendix A lists all the parameters and what I know about them. The patch editing menu will allow you to change one of the 128 patches. Use this option to make one of the patches "point" to a memory timbre. Appendix B lists all the parameters in a patch and what I know about them. 7 Patch Sending Program There is one other program that comes with the program. This program will send a library of patches and timbres to the MT-32. To operate the program, type SEND at the DOS Prompt. Libraryname is the name of the library file you want to send to the MT-32. It must be in the current directory when running the program. I use this program before a performance to send the patches I want to use to the MT-32. 8 Appendix A The following is a list of the timbre parameters in the order they appear in the program. Common Parameter Timbre Name: The name of the timbre that appears on the display of the MT-32. A-Z, a-z, 0-9, space and punctiation marks are allowed. Structure 1-4: The two structures define how the partials are mixed together. See the discussion on the Common Parameter in these instructions for more information. Partial Mute: The partial mutes will allow you "turn off" individual partials. Envelope Mode: The envelope mode tells the MT-32 whether to turn sustain if the key is held down longer than the envelope. The NORMAL mode will put a sustain segment in the envelope between T3 and T4. The NO SUSTAIN mode will not have a sustain segment. NO SUSTAIN should be used for percussive sounds. Waveform Generator Pitch Course: This sets the pitch of middle C. C4 is middle C. For example if you set Pitch Course to C5, the partial would be one octave higher than normal. Pitch Fine: This will allow detuning the standard pitch by cents. Pitch Keyfollow: Key follow tells how much pitch a key represents. On the piano and most keyboard instruments, each key represents a semi-tone. The MT-32 lets you change that. The fraction or number represents the semi-tone change between keys. 1 is the standard setting, -1 will change in semi-tones reverse of normal. S1 and S2 are special tunings. S1 will be a tuning of 1 cent higher than an octave and S2 will be a tuning of 5 cents higher than an octave. Pitch Bend Switch: Selects whether the pitch will be controlled by the bender lever. 9 Waveform: Selects the waveform of the synthesized sound generator. This can be a SQUare wave or a SAWtooth wave. PCM Wave #: Selects on of the 128 sampled PCM sounds. Unfortunatly, I have not found a list of what these are. Pulse Width: This sets the width of the synthesized waveform. It will vary the harmonic content of the sound. Velo Sens: The Pulse Width Velocity Sensitivity will control the width of the pulse by the loudness of playing. Negative values will make the pulse smaller when playing louder and positive values will make the pulse wider when playing louder. Partial LFO Rate: This parameter controls the rate of the LFO. 0 means no LFO and 100 means highest LFO frequency. Depth: This parameter sets the depth of the LFO from 0 (no LFO) to 100 (most effect). Mod Sens: This parameter sets the sensitivity of the LFO depth as controlled by the bender lever. 0 means that the lever will not control the LFO, higher numbers increase the effect. Pitch Envelope Depth: The envelope depth sets the effect of the envelope. The higher the number, the more the effect. Velo Sens: The higher the value, the more the keyboard velocity, the greater effect on the envelope. Time KeyFollow: This parameter sets the total envelope time depending on the pitch of the key played. The higher the value, the more effect pitch has on the envelope time. Times, Levels: These parameters set the levels and the times of all the points in the envelope. 10 Time Variant Filter Cutoff Freq: Filters the freqency of the Waveform Generator. A level of 100 will output a true Square/Sawtooth wave or the PCM wave. A level of 0 will not output anything. Resonance: The higher the number te more "electronic" the sound will be. KeyFollow: Adjusts the cutoff frequency in the same way the Waveform KeyFollow does Bias Point/Dir: This option will allow you to add a change to the KeyFollow curve starting from the key specified. If the option is >, the change will go above the key, the < will go below the key. Bias Level: This parameter sets the maximum change from -7 or lowering the maximum amount to +7 or raising the maximum amount. Env Depth: This parameter changes the amount of the cutoff frequency the envelope will effect. Env Velo Sens: This parameter sets the sensitivy of velocity on the envelope. I higher number will allow the loudness of playing to effect the velocity more. Env Depth KeyF: Sets the envelope depth depending on pitch the same way that time keyfollow adjusts time. Time, Level: These parameters set the levels and the times of all the points in the envelope. Time Variant Amp Level: This parameter sets the volume of the partial. Velo Sens: This parameter sets the effect of playing louder on the volume. Bias Point 1: Changes the amount of volume starting at a specific key and going up (>) or down (<) the keyboard. Bias Level 1: This parameter sets the maximum change from 0 to -12. 11 Bias Point 2: Changes the amount of volume starting at a specific key and going up (>) or down (<) the keyboard. Bias Level 2: This parameter sets the maximum change from 0 to -12. Env Time KeyF: This parameter sets the time of the Time Variant Amp depending on the key played. Env Time VFlw: This parameter sets the velocity of the Time Variant Amp depending on the key played. Time,Level: These parameters set the levels and the times of all the points in the envelope. 12 Appendix B The following is a list of the patch parameters in the order they appear in the program. Timbre Group: Specifies the group of the timbre. Group A and B are the preset groups. Timbre: Specifies which timbre in the group this patch points to. Key Shift: Allows changing of the pitch in semi-tones in reference to the pitch of the timbre. Fine Tune: Allows fine tuning of the pitch in cents in reference to the pitch of the timbre. Bender Range: Sets the range of the bend lever in semi- tones. Assign Mode: Sets the way the MT-32 assigns new notes. Reverb Switch: Sets whether the MT-32 will apply reverb to this part or not. 13 Appendix C This program is distributed as Shareware. You can make all the copies you want and give them to your friends. The requirement is that if you use the program for anything other than evaluation, you should pay the $25 registration fee. I write programs to make a living. The registration fee pays for my living expenses. It isn't fair to me to use the program I wrote without paying for it -- in fact it is illegal! Please do not use the program without paying for it. Benefits From Registration All those who register this program will receive the following: 1. Technical Support. If a person cannot prove to me that he or she has registered will not receive any support from me. It isn't fair for me to support a program that someone did not purchase. 2. Notice of updates. I make periodic changes to this program. Everyone who registers gets the first update sent to them free and all other updates to the program for the cost of the disk (around $5). I won't charge any more than the disk an mailing like commercial programs. 3. Input to the programs that I write. This isn't the only program I have written and will not be the last. When you register, you can send me your ideas for new programs. If I can do it and think it is worth it for me to, I'll use your suggestions. If I do use your suggestion, you'll get the program free! 14 Micro Technology 633 Pioneer Dr. Indianapolis, IN 46222 Name: ____________________________________________ Address: ____________________________________________ ____________________________________________ ____________________________________________ ____ Copies of the MT-32 Timbre Editing Program at $25 each. Please give me any comments about the program _________________________________________________ _________________________________________________ _________________________________________________ _________________________________________________ Do you have any suggestions for other programs _________________________________________________ _________________________________________________ _________________________________________________ _________________________________________________ 15