Elektron Sidstation - Manual (Page 20)

SIDSTATION
Owners Manual
20
perfect timing without any need for the HCut delay (se section regarding the System menu and
the sync sub-menu). It also keeps the SID chip oscillators totally quiet, reducing the background
noise. However, while curing the SID chip envelope bug, it introduces a new peculiar effect,
courtesy of the SID chip. A few seconds after a sound is played and the SID is forced to be
quiet, it lets go of a "ghost sound". Choose for yourself if you think that this envelope mode is
useful.
The Delay value makes it possible to delay the output of an oscillator with a number of update
cycles. Can be used either to fatten up a layered sound by giving the different sounds a slight
delay, or it can be used for "echo effects" found on some C64 game tunes using greater values.
Pitch
The pitch settings are controlled from the two-screen menu below:
All oscillators can be tuned separately (in poly mode there’s only one oscillator to edit). The
pitch can be locked to a specific note by the pitch parameter. To lock the pitch, select the note
you want the oscillator to hold no matter what key is pressed on the keyboard. To make the
pitch follow the incoming MIDI data set the parameter to Key.
The arpeggiator in SidStation is quite different from the ones found in other synthesizers. This
arpeggiator implements the “broken chord” style found in Commodore C64 music. The speed of
the arpeggiator is divided down from the frequency set in the system menu or, if selected,
relative to the patch. Different arpeggiator speeds can be set for the three oscillators. It is also
possible to synchronise the arpeggiator to external MIDI clock messages using the following
table:
Desired note length Speed value
½ 96
¼ 48
1/8 24
1/16 12
1/32 6
1/64 3
Note:
• For the arpeggiator to synchronise to external MIDI clock, the system sync source must
be set to ExtCl. Please see section “The menu system” for more info about the system
settings.
• The order the chords are pressed on the keyboard controls the order they will be
replayed. As long as one note is held down the arpeggiator is held. This is made to help
simple chord changes without restarting the arpeggio (in other words: feature – not bug).
• The arpeggiator have no function in poly mode.
The pitch is transposed by the Trnsp parameter. Transpose allows you to move the pitch range
of your oscillator up or down. For example, this can be used to let an oscillator act as a sub-
oscillator when making bass sounds so that the sound gets more depth. The transpose interval
is –24 to +24 semitones.