Alesis SR-16 User Manual

ALESIS SR-16 Reference Manual

61.2G Display LayoutThe LCD is divided into several "windows." Each window contains information that helps youmonitor th

7number will be in parenthesis—for example, step (4)—to prevent confusion with Song stepsor step edit mode.1.3 IMPORTANT: HOW TO C

8These buttons, and the TEMPO/PAGE buttons, also have a "scroll" feature. If you press andhold a button, after a short p

97. To hear the built-in demo, hold down the PATTERN/SONG button and press PLAY. To stopthe demo, press STOP. If you want to play a

10CHAPTER 2: RECORD SETUPSeveral parameters are often adjusted prior to recording a Pattern, such as metronome,Pattern length, etc.

11Quantization shifts your playing to the specified beat while you play, so choose the desiredvalue before tapping out your rhythms

122.3 PAGE 3: ENABLE CLICK (METRONOME) AND SET RHYTHM (CLICK SELECT)The display shows CLICK SELECT; the Click window shows the cl

132.5 PAGE 5: ADJUST VELOCITY RESPONSE (VELOCITY)There are 11 ways in which a pad's output level can respond to the force wi

142.6 PAGE 6: ADD/REMOVE BEATS FROM PATTERN END (LENGTH)This option either adds beats to, or subtracts beats from, the end of the

15The display says ### BEAT and ➔START. This indicates a Pattern's length in beats(quarter notes). Enter the desired length wi

TABLE OF CONTENTSCHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION ...11.1 WELCOME TO THE SR-16 DRUM MACHINE!...

16than one drum event occurs on the same sub-beat, the PAGE UP/DOWN buttons step forwardor backward respectively through each drum

17The following page summarizes the step edit options.

182.9A Add a New Drum to a StepUse the PAGE buttons to select the step where the drum is to be added. Press the pad thatcorrespond

19CHAPTER 3: PLAYING BACK/RECORDING PATTERNS3.1 PLAYBACK/RECORD BASICSPlease make sure you've read section 1.2B, which explai

20To listen, choose Perform (this de-activates the click). You can drop in and out of these twomodes as you record. While the SR-16

213.1F Using the Start/Stop FootswitchWhen the SR-16 is stopped, pressing a footswitch plugged into the Start/Stop footswitch jack

223.1H Select Fill Patterns in Perform (Playback) ModeFill Patterns are the key to creating expressive drum parts. However, Fill i

233.1I Record a PatternAn empty Pattern defaults to an 8 beat length, with 16th note quantization and swing off(50%). If you need

243.1K Using Fill to Create Repetitive Drum HitsAs mentioned earlier, the FILL button performs two different functions. We've

253.2 ERASE FUNCTIONS3.2A Erase Mistakes While RecordingWhile the SR-16 is recording, you can erase any individual drum event or

3.1J Select New Patterns and Fills While in Compose (Record) Mode...223.1K Using Fill to Create Repetitive Drum Hits...

263.3 COPY FUNCTIONSThe following Copy functions assume that you are copying a Main Pattern to a Main Pattern(remember, copying a

271. The SR-16 should be in Pattern mode and stopped.2. Select the Pattern containing the drum part to be copied.3. Press and hold

285. Release the COPY and PLAY buttons.3.3E Copy a Single Drum Pad's Part to a Drum Pad in Another SR-16 Via MIDIThe SR-16 ca

29CHAPTER 4: CREATING DRUM SETSThe SR-16's 12 pads can be assigned to various drum sounds, with different levels, tuning,panni

304.2 PAGE 2: ASSIGN SOUNDS TO PADSThe display shows the currently selected pad number and the sound assigned to that pad.FATSNARE

31To change the volume associated with a given pad:1. Press the pad (the display will show the pad number).2. Enter the desired vol

324.5 PAGE 5: SET PAD TUNING (TUNING)The display shows TUNING, the currently selected pad number, and the tuning assigned tothat p

33Background Each mode affects triggering in a different way:Multi: When hitting a pad repeatedly, each hit will cause the sound t

34Stereo with Fixed Placement: Plug the left Main output into the left channel of your amp (or mixer), and the rightMain output int

35copy one Drum Set to a different Drum Set. Also, remember that if you change Patternsbefore saving your Drum Set, all of your ed

6.5 PAGE 5: ACCEPT EXTERNAL CLOCK DATA (CLOCK IN)...446.6 PAGE 6: SEND CLOCK DATA TO OTHER DEVICES (CLOCK

36CHAPTER 5: SONG MODE5.1 SONG MODE BASICSAfter creating the Patterns that make up a Song, it's time to string those Patterns

375.1C Continue, Re-start, or Jump to Next Song Step• In Compose mode, if you stop a Song and then press PLAY, the Song will conti

385.1G Change Song Tempo as the SR-16 PlaysTo change the Song tempo as it plays, press the TEMPO/PAGE UP button to increase thetem

395.3 MANUAL SONG CREATION5.3A Enter a Pattern1. Select Song mode and the desired Song number.2. Select Compose mode. The display

405.3E Delete a Step1. The SR-16 should be in Song and Compose modes.2. Use the INC/DEC buttons to select the step number to be de

414. While continuing to hold the COPY button, enter the destination Song number to which thesource Song should be copied using the

42CHAPTER 6: MIDI SETUPThis menu accesses important MIDI functions. General instructions are:1. Press the MIDI SETUP button.2. Use

436.2 PAGE 2: RECEIVE MIDI DRUM NOTES (DRUM IN)DRUM INPAGE ON V1SETUPMIDIPERFORMThe display shows DRUM IN. This page features two

446.4 PAGE 4: ASSIGN MIDI NOTE NUMBERS TO DRUM PADS (NOTE)This page determines which MIDI in NOTE will trigger a pad, or MIDI out

456.5 PAGE 5: ACCEPT EXTERNAL CLOCK DATA (CLOCK IN)PAGECLOCK IN ONSETUPMIDIPERFORMThe display shows CLOCK IN. To have the SR-16 re

1CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION1.1 WELCOME TO THE SR-16 DRUM MACHINE!1.1A If You Just Can't Wait…Turn to section 1.4, 10 Steps to I

46• The external device (sequencer, drum machine, etc.) can respond to MIDI timing signals.• These signals go from the SR-16's

476.8 PAGE 8: SELECT DRUM SETS VIA MIDI PROGRAM CHANGES (PRG CHNG)PAGESETUPMIDIPRG CHNG OFFPERFORMThe display shows PRG CHNG. Prog

48DrumSetPad#MIDINoteDrumSetPad#MIDINoteDrumSetPad#MIDINote000000000000000000000000010101010101010101010101020202020202020202020202

49CHAPTER 7: BACKUP7.1 BACKUP BASICSThis function allows you to save the SR-16 Pattern, Song, and Drum Kit data to cassettetapes o

507.2 TAPE INTERFACE HOOKUPTo save to tape: Connect a mini phone plug cable (male-to-male) from the SR-16 tapein/out to the record

511. Connect the SR-16 MIDI out to the DataDisk (DD) MIDI in.2. Insert a formatted disk into the DD and proceed to the next step. I

527.5 PAGE 2: SAVE ALL MEMORY CONTENTS TO TAPE (STORE TO TAPE?)PRESS PLAYPAGEBACKUPSTORE TOTAPE?PRESS PLAYThis function saves all

53To cancel the verifying operation at any time, press STOP. The display says TAPE INCANCEL.Background Although cassette interface

547.8 PAGE 5: LOAD ONE PATTERN FROM TAPE (LOAD IN PATT)LOAD INPAGEBACKUPPATT01APRESS PLAYThis loads a single Pattern from a tape d

55Background You may just want to load one Song from tape rather than all data. A Song being loaded from tapewill take its origina

28. Applications: This additional information will help you get the most out of the SR-16.9. MIDI Supplement: This brief, entry-le

567.11 CLEAR MEMORY/RE-INITIALIZE PARAMETERSAfter saving a bank of data, you may want to start programming new Patterns from scrat

57CHAPTER 8: APPLICATIONS8.1 MIDI SYNC APPLICATIONS8.1A SR-16 As MIDI Timing MasterThe SR-16 can control several other slave MIDI

583. Press PLAY on the system master. The SR-16 should start at the same time, and progressat the same tempo. If the master generat

598.2 STRATEGIES FOR ASSEMBLING PATTERNS AND SONGSIdeally, you should be able to translate your inspirations into tangible form wi

608.3 SOUND STACKING™8.3A BasicsSound Stacking™ was introduced by Alesis on its two earlier drum machines, the HR-16 andHR-16:B.

618.4 UNDERSTANDING RHYTHMIC NOTATIONMeasures A piece of music is divided into smaller units called measures (also called bars),

62CHAPTER 9: MIDI SUPPLEMENT(This chapter is adapted with permission from Power Sequencing with Master Tracks Pro/Pro4 and The Comp

6316's MIDI out jack can be switched to a thru function that merges MIDI in data with SR-16MIDI data.9.1B About SequencingSeq

649.2B Mode MessagesThere are two messages that determine the MIDI mode (i.e., how devices will receive MIDIdata). The "omni&

65MIDI For Musicians and The Electronic Musician's Dictionary by Craig Anderton; AMSCOPublications. The former was written spe

3After perfecting these Patterns, Song mode offers two ways to create a song:• Program a list of Patterns, in the order in which th

SymptomNo display.Buttons have no effect. LCD reads “Software Error”.LCD shows nonsense, all lights on, or unit has lost allmemory.No sound.Sound is

Other sequencers won't slave... (cont'd)SR-16 won’t slave to other sequencer.SR-16 not responding to Program Changes.SR-16 not sending MIDI

41.2C How "Looping" Simplifies RecordingTo simplify recording in Compose mode, a Pattern will "loop" over and

51.2F Physical LayoutThe SR-16 includes seven main types of controls, along with a group of connectors (locatedon the back panel).