Dave Smith Instruments TETRA - Manual (Page 34)

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Display Trigger mode
Key Step Striking a key advances the sequencer
one step.
On/Off: Off, On — Turns the sequencer on and off.
Seq 1, 2, 3, or 4 Destinations — Sets the destination for each of the four
sequence tracks. For a complete list, see Modulation Destinations on page 41.
Seq 1, 2, 3, or 4 Steps: C0…D5+ or 0…125, Reset, Rest — Sets each step value
for each of the four sequence tracks. The values are displayed as both relative
note values and as simple numerical values. Note values are displayed in quarter
tones with a plus sign (+) indicating that the pitch is a quarter tone higher than
the displayed note number. The two highest values are Reset and Rest. Reset
causes the sequence to reset to the first step, enabling sequences of fewer than
16 steps or even sequences in which the tracks are different lengths. Rest inserts
a rest on the selected step.
About the Sequencer
For many musicians, the term sequencer has become synonymous with MIDI
sequencer; that is, a computer-based application or dedicated hardware device
for recording and playing back notes and performance gestures via MIDI. But
sequencers were around long before MIDI. Tetra’s sequencer is much more like
the original analog sequencers typically associated with modular synthesizer
systems. The sequencer comprises four 16-step sequences that play in parallel.
Each sequence can be routed to a chosen destination, and each step in a
sequence can be set to a different value used to modulate that destination. Each
of the four voices has its own sequencer.
1 2 3 4
1
2
3
4
5 6 7 8 9
Steps
v = step value
Dest. 1
Dest. 2
Dest. 3
Dest. 4
10 11 12 13 14 15 16
S
e
q
u
e
n
c
e
Strictly speaking, Tetra’s sequencer does not play notes, nor does it transmit
MIDI data. If none of the sequence destinations are routed to oscillator
frequency, the sequencer may not even affect the pitch. In Tetra terms, a
sequence is just a series of events at timed intervals that changes the value of
one of the synth’s parameters in discrete steps. Because the four sequences play
in parallel, up to four parameters can be affected by each step, one per sequence.