Alesis HR-16 User manual

HIGH SAMPLE RATE
/
16 BIT DIGITAL DRUM MACHINE
IS/IMT-B MULTI TRACK MIDI RECORDER
Instruction Manual
ALESIS CORPORATION •LOS ANGELES: 3630 Holdredge Avenue, Los Angeles, CA 90016-9801
LONDON: 6, Letchworth Business Center, Avenue One, Letchworth, Hertfordshire S66 2HR

PLEASE READ THIS
Concerning the backup memory of the HR-16 and MMT-8.
The backup memories in the HR-16 and the MMT-8 are non-volatile. They
are protected by a lithium cell battery with an expected life of 10 years.
This means you can turn power off on both machines and your work
will be retained in memory.
However, please be aware that any computer based device with memory
backup can be subject to losing its memory at any time for the following
reasons:
1) If power is interrupted, even briefly, during RECORD, ERASE, or LENGTH
CHANGE, you may lose all memory or some minute portion of memory.
This is possible because the MMT-8 and HR-1 6's internal computers are
moving information around in memory during these operations. Apower
surge, or power interruption could cause an unfortunate memory loss
during these vulnerable operations.
2) Static electricity can also cause afull or partial memory loss.
Therefore, it is recommended that you frequently backup any
important work you are involved in. It is asimple operation.
Please make it ahabitual part of your use of the HR-16 and MMT-8,
so that your enjoyment and musical progress won't be interrupted.
See the sections on TAPE in this Instruction Manual.

ALESIS HR-16 HIGH SAMPLE RATE 16 BIT DIGITAL
DRUM MACHINE
TABLE OF CONTENTS PAGE
INTRODUCTION
HR-16 QUICK BASIC SETUP
PATTERN MODE
RECORDING APATTERN
LENGTH
QUANTIZE
ERASE
STEP EDIT MODE
SONG MODE
SONGEDrr
COPY
OFFSET
SWING
FILL
MODE/DATA ENTRY BUTTONS
VOICE
TUNE
MIX
TEMPO
MIDI/UTILITY
MIDI CHANNEL
RECEIVE MIDI DRUMS
TRANSMIT MIDI DRUMS
MIDI NOTE ASSIGNMENT
MIDI ECHO
MIDI PROGRAM CHANGE
CLOCKSOURCE
MIDI CLOCK OUT
AUTOSTART
CLICK VALUE
CLICK IN PLAY
MANUAL VOICE/TUNE/MIX
BUTTON DYNAMICS
SONG LOOP
TAPE (STORAGE)
STORING TO DISK USING MIDI BULK DATA DUMP.
SYNCING THE HR-1 6TO TAPE
USING THE HR-1 6AS ASOUND SOURCE
START/STOP FOOTSWITCH
REMAINING MEMORY
CLEARING MEMORY
HR-16 MIDI IMPLEMENTATION CHART
HR-1 6TROUBLESHOOTING CHART
10
12
14
14
15
16
16
.17
.17
.17
.18
.18
18
UL
.19
.20
.20
20
21
11
22
22
22
22
23
23
25
26
26
21
_
27
_
28
29

LRLROUT IN START/ OUT IN wAC ON/OFF
OUTPUT 1OUTPUT 2TAPE STOP IMIDI I

INTRODUCTION
The Alesis HR-16 (High sample Rate /16 bit drum machine) is auser friendly, yet
extremely powerful MIDI drum sequencer /sound generator. The sound generation
capabilities of the HR-16 include 16 independent drum ’Voices", each of which can be
assigned to any one of 49 digital samples, and can be routed with a7position pan to one
of two sets of stereo outputs. Each voice can also be tuned independently in 32
seperate increments over an octave an ahalf.
The sequencing of the drums is accomplished by entering record, and then playing on
the touch-sensitive drum buttons on the front panel, which is then stored into a"pattern.”
There can be up to 100 patterns in the HR-16’s memory (00-99). These patterns can be
anywhere from 1to 682 beats long. The patterns can be combined into lists of patterns,
which are called "songs." There can be up to 100 songs in the HR-16’s memory(00-99),
and each can contain alist of patterns up to 255 steps long.
The 16drum pads at the front of the HR-1 6are velocity-sensitive. How hard the pad is hit
determines the volume of the drum on 8levels. 12 of the pads (all pads except Closed
Hat, Mid Hat, Open Hat, and Crash) are each directly assigned to avoice. This means that
playing apad repeatedly will retrigger the same voice, and no other pad will effect that
voice.
Any sounds assigned to the three Hi Hat pads will all be assigned to the same voice. This
is so that playing the Closed Hat will cut off the Open or Mid Hat, for amore realistic hi hat
sound. The Crash pad is assigned to two voices that alternate. This means that
repeatedly hitting the crash pad results in two independent crashes (of the same sound)
that can overlap as they decay.
More sounds can be made to overlap by assigning the same sound to two different pads
and alternating which pad is pressed each time the sound is to be played. Only 15 voices
have been used (1 2normal pads, 1voice for Hi Hats, 2for Crash). The 16th voice is used
for the Click, which can also be assigned to be any of the 49 available sounds.
Alesis HR-16 Instructions Page 3

HR-16 QUICK BASIC SETUP
1. Connect output 1(either left ,right or both) to asuitable monitoring system. If output 2
is connected, the desired drum pads must be assigned to output 2using the MIX button
(See MIX.)
2. Connect the MIDI IN jack of the HR-16 to the MIDI OUT jack of asequencer, an external
drum pad controller, or akeyboard.
3. Connect the MIDI OUT jack of the HR- 16 to other MIDI sound sources when daisey
chaining MIDI devices or to an external drum source. The MIDI OUT jack also doubles as a
MIDI THRU jack and both MIDI IN data and data produced on the HR-16 are present at the
MIDI OUT jack if desired. AUDIO
For stand alone operation the MIDI jacks need not be connected.
MIDI allows rhythm triggering and programming of the HR-16 from external MIDI devices,
such as keyboards or drum pads that are equipped with MIDI. Also, MIDI can be used to
sync different devices to the HR-16, save and recall the memory using an external disk
drive via MIDI system exclusive data dump, and receive program change commands which
will call up patterns.
The program change command is useful for accessing different sets of sounds when
triggering sounds from drum pads or sequencers. Program change commands are
ignored during PLAY mode.
The HR-16 has two stereo outputs (four individual outputs). The volume slider is active on
only the first stereo output (output 1). In addition, if only one side of an output is
connected, the stereo mix assigned on that stereo output becomes amono mix on that
single output. This saves having to reconstruct amono mix from astereo mix, when only a
single output is being used.
Using Four outputs, assign the kick to output 2panned hard left and the snare to output 2
panned hard right. This leaves all other drums on output 1panned in stereo as desired
and the kick and snare assigned to their own output.
For more information on setting up drum machines and sequencers, see MMT-8 BASIC
SET UP in the MMT-8 Instruction Manual.
Alesis HR-16 Instructions Page 4

PATTERN MODE
When power is first turned on, the HR-1 6will be in SONG or PATT mode (SONG or PATT
LED lit), depending on the mode that was selected before power was turned off. The
song or pattern number will also be the same as when power was turned off.
PATT (pattern) Button
Press the PATT button to enter pattern mode. PATT LED will light. Now, the display
reads:
SELECT PATT QO
Selecting aPATTern
The 00 is underlined to indicate that it will be changed if anew number is selected with the
keypad or the +/- arrow buttons. Pressing the +/- arrow buttons immediately selects the
next pattern number, with the numbers looping past 99 to 00 and looping down from 00
to 99. If asingle digit on the keypad is pressed (3, for example), the display will change to:
SELECT PATT 3.
The display is now indicating that the second digit of the pattern should be entered. After
entering the second digit, the new pattern is selected. If the second digit is not entered
within 2seconds, the display will revert back to the previous pattern number, and no new
pattern will have been selected. This type of keypad entry is consistent with all entries
made with the keypad described in this manual. Pressing PLAY will start playing the
selected pattern from its beginning, and the PLAY LED will light. The display will read, for
example:
PLAYING PATT 00
BEAT 001
The display is now showing the current beat number and the pattern number that is being
played. As each beat occurs, the display will advance the beat count. While the pattern is
playing, the keypad and +/- arrow buttons can be used to select anew pattern number.
The display will read:
PATT 00 NEXT 21
BEAT 001
Selecting new PATTerns in PLAY
At the end of the current pattern, the newly selected pattern number will play, with the
beat count starting again at 001 .The NEXT pattern to play can be changed up until the
end of the current pattern is reached, after which the new pattern will begin playing, and
the display will revert back to PLAYING PATT.
STOP/CONTINUE Buttons
Pressing STOP/CONTINUE will stop playing apattern, and the display will return to the
select pattern display. Pressing STOP/CONTINUE again will begin playing apattern from
the beginning of the beat it was on when it was stopped. Pressing PLAY will always start a
pattern from the beginning. When apattern reaches its end, it will loop back and continue
playing from the beginning.
Alesis HR-16 Instructions Page 5

RECORDING APATTern (Also see LENGTH and QUANTIZE)
To record on apattern, press and hold the RECORD button, and then press the PLAY
button. The HR-1 6will immediately begin playing back any existing drums in the currently
selected pattern from the beginning, and will add any new drums played on the buttons or
via MIDI to the pattern. The PLAY and RECORD LEDs will be fit, and the display will read:
RECRDING PATTOO
BEAT 001
The pattern number is not underlined, indicating that anew pattern cannot be selected
while recording. When adrum button is pressed, it is recorded along with its dynamics on
eight levels. The drums are always recorded quantized to the nearest currently selected
quantize beat. Pressing STOP exits record mode, and both the RECORD and PLAY
LEDs will turn off. If PLAY is pressed while in RECORD, the RECORD LED will turn off,
and the pattern will immediately begin playing from the start.
LENGTH
When recording for the first time on an empty pattern, the length will default to 8 beats,
unless it was set previously with the LENGTH button .
The LENGTH button is used to set the length of apattern to aspecified number of beats.
While holding the LENGTH button, the display will show the current length of the current
pattern. If it is an empty pattern, the display will read:
PATTOO
LENGTH QOB BEATS
8beats is the default length of an empty pattern. If it is desired to change the length, the
+/- arrow buttons can be used to move the length up or down in single beat increments
(001 minimum, 682 maximum), or athree digit number can be entered with the keypad. In
either case, the new length is not entered into the pattern until the RECORD button is
pressed. When RECORD is pressed the display changes to:
PATTOO
LENGTH CHANGED
This display remains until RECORD is released. If LENGTH is released before RECORD is
pressed, no change to the length will be made, regardless of what was pressed on the
keypad. If RECORD is pressed after entering apartial length (1 or 2digits), nothing will
happen. When entering in digits, the first digit entered (1, for example) results in the
following display:
PATTOO
LENGTH 1BEATS
The display is now waiting for the entry of the second digit. If the second digit is not
entered within 2seconds, the display will revert to its previous value. If RECORD is
pressed after entering an incomplete length (1 or 2digits), the display will revert to its
previous value.
Alesis HR-16 Instructions Page 6

When anew length is entered (RECORD), any drum events that were beyond the new
set length will be erased. If the new length is longer than the previous one, the additional
length will be filled with silence. If it is desired to remove or add length to the beginning of
apattern, first set the desired length (as described above), and then press and release
the PATT button. The display will change to:
CHANGES PATT TOP
LENGTH QOS BEATS
Pressing the PATT button again will toggle back to the original display. If RECORD is
pressed with the above display showing, any additional beats will be placed at the
beginning of the pattern, and any beats removed will be removed from the pattern top.
Drum events that were stored in the removed beats will be removed from the pattern.
The LENGTH button has no effect in song mode, or while asong or pattern is playing.
QUANTIZE
The QUANTIZE button is used to select the resolution at which drum events are to be
recorded. While holding down the QUANTIZE button in pattern mode, the display will
read:
QUANTIZE RECORD
TO 1/16
The 10 quantize choices are 1/4, 1/6, 1/8, 1/12, 1/16, 1/24, 1/32, 1/48, 1/64, and OFF.
The +/- arrow buttons of the keypad can be used to scroll through the choices. The
keypad buttons 0-9 can also be used to select the quantize value directly, with 0=1/4 and
9=OFF.
Quantize will only affect newly recorded events, and will not change any events already
recorded. Whenever anew quantize value is selected, the swing amount will be reset to
50%. Also, the quantize value determines the step amount to be used when in pattern
step mode (PATT+RECORD). If quantize is set to OFF, the steps will be in 384th notes.
ERASE
The erase button is used to erase asingle drum, apattern, or asong. When in PATT
mode, pressing and holding the ERASE button causes the following display:
ERASE PATT 01
The number 01 would actually be the currently selected pattern number. To erase the
selected pattern, press RECORD. The display will change to:
ERASE PATT 01
PATT ERASED
The display will remain this way until the RECORD button is released, after which the
display will return to its previous state. To erase asingle drum, press and hold the ERASE
button, and select the desired drum button. If, for example, TOM 1is pressed, the display
will read:
Alesis HR-16 Instructions Page 7

ERASE PATT 01
TOM 1ERASED
TOM 1is now completely erased from pattern 1. When erasing asingle drum, it is not
necessary to press RECORD.
In SONG mode, holding the ERASE button will cause the following display:
ERASE SONG 01
Pressing the RECORD button will erase the currently selected song number.
When erasing apattern or song, the erase is not executed until RECORD is pressed, and
will be aborted if ERASE is released before pressing RECORD. When erasing adrum,
the erase occurs as soon as the drum button is pressed. The ERASE button has no
effect while asong or pattern is playing.
Erasing Individual drums in RECORD mode (selected beats)
While recording in apattern, individual drums can be erased by holding the ERASE
button while playing the drum on the desired beat to be erased. If the drum was hit within
aquantize window in which that same drum had been previously recorded, it will be
erased. Holding the drum button down will continue to erase any of the same drum
events that may occur.
This means that adrum button can be held down with ERASE throughout a part of a
pattern while in record in order to erase ail of that drum's events that occur within the
current quantize step. If eighth notes existed on asnare for example, and erase and
snare were held down in record while in quarter note quantize, only the snare events on
quarter notes would be erased.
NOTE:
Erase in Record is not active if the quantize value is set to OFF'Events recorded with
quantize off can be erased (edited) in step edit mode. See STEP EDIT MODE.
Erasing an entire drum button's rhythm (all beats) or erasing and entire
PATTern
While not playing or recording apattern, the ERASE button can be used to erase all of a
drum’s events (regardless of quantize mode) from the entire pattern by holding erase and
hitting the drum. It can also be used to erase the entire pattern by holding ERASE and
hitting RECORD.
STEP EDIT MODE
How to enter STEP EDIT mode
To enter step record /step edit, press and hold PATTERN, and then press RECORD,
then release both buttons. The RECORD LED will light, but the PLAY LED will not,
indicating that you are in step mode. The display will look as follows:
STEP 001 +00/96
PERC1 VOLUME:£
The first line of the display shows the current beat number, followed by the sub-beat
shown as a fraction of 96ths of abeat. The +arrow button is used to move forwards in
Alesis HR-16 Instructions Page 8

single steps of the current quantize value (you cannot move backwards). If quantize is set
to 1/16, each step will equal 24/96 (If swing is set to 50%).
If adrum existed on astep in between the current quantize value, it will play as it is
stepped past, but the display will not stop on that drum. The lower display shows the
drum that was triggered followed by the volume of that drum. Since only one drum can be
displayed at atime, if more than one drum occurred on the same beat, the +arrow button
will advance through each drum one at atime before advancing to the next step. If a
quantize step does not have any drum recorded on it, the display will read EMPTY in place
of the drum name. The 16possible drums are displayed with 7characters each as follows:
TOM 1TOM 2TOM 3TOM 4RIDE CRASH PERC3 PERC 4
KICK SNARE CLS HAT MID HAT OPN HAT CLAPS PERC1 PERC2
These same displays appear elsewhere in this manual when the drum buttons are
displayed. The volume is shown as one of eight possible volumes. To add anew drum to
abeat, just press adrum button. That drum, along with its volume (how hard the pad was
hit), will be recorded onto the displayed step.
If there were other drums already recorded on that beat, they are not effected. If the drum
played already existed on the current beat, it will be replaced with the new volume played.
Erasing adrum from astep
To erase adrum from a step, hold ERASE, and press RECORD, the drum that was being
displayed will be erased. To edit the volume of adrum, the 1-8 buttons on the keypad are
used, or the displayed drum is replayed. Step mode is exited by pressing STOP or
PATTERN. If PLAY is pressed, step mode will be exited, and the pattern will begin
playing from the beginning. If swing is on, STEP mode will step in "swinged" increments.
SONG MODE
Selecting and Playing aSONG /SONG Button
Press the SONG button to enter song mode. The display will read as follows, with the last
song entered being indicated in the number portion of the display.
SELECT SONG Q0
STEP 01 PATT 27
Selecting aSONG
ASONG is alist of patterns in aspecific order, with each entry into the list being aSTEP
which contains apattern number. The 00 is underlined to indicate that it will be changed if
anew number is selected with the keypad .If asingle digit on the keypad is pressed (2,
for example), the display will change to:
SELECT SONG 2_
STEP 01 PA7T27
The display is now indicating that the second digit of the song should be entered. After
entering the second digit, the new song is selected. If the second digit is not entered
within 2seconds, the display will revert back to the previous song number, and no new
song will have been selected. The +/- arrow buttons are used to scroll forwards and
backwards through the steps within asong. Pressing PLAY will start playing the selected
song from its beginning, and the PLAY LED will light. The display will read, tor example:
Alesis HR-16 Instructions Page 9

SONG 00 BEAT 001
STEP 01 PATT 27
The first line of the display is now showing the current song number being played, and
the current beat number of the pattern being played. The second line of the display is
showing the step number and the pattern assigned to the step that is playing at the
moment. When the song advances to the next step, the display will show the pattern for
step 2, etc. Pressing STOP/CONTINUE will stop playing the song, and the display will
return to the select song display. Pressing STOP/CONTINUE again will begin playing the
song from the point at which it was stopped. Pressing PLAY will always start the song
from the beginning of the first step. When asong reaches its end, it will stop and the
PLAY LED will turn off, unless SONG LOOP (see MIDI/UTIL) is on, which will cause the
song to loop back to step one and continue playing.
SONG EDIT
Asong is edited by using the DELETE, INSERT, and OFFSET buttons, along with the +/-
arrow buttons. The arrow buttons are used to move forward and backward through the list
of steps in asong. If asong is empty, the display will read:
SELECT SONG Q0
STEP 01 END
Inserting a Step /INSERT Button
To insert astep into asong at the currently displayed step, press and hold INSERT. The
display will read:
INSERT INTO
STEP 01 PATTQO
While holding the INSERT button, the keypad or +/- buttons can be used to change the
pattern number displayed. To complete the insertion, the RECORD button must be
pressed while still holding the INSERT button. The display will read:
INSERT COMPLETED
STEP 01 PATT00
This display will remain until RECORD is released, after which the display will revert to the
first INSERT display. If it is desired to insert the same pattern many times, the RECORD
button can be pressed repeatedly while holding the INSERT button. Each time apattern
is inserted, the previous pattern at the displayed step is moved to step +1, and all other
steps after it are also stepped +1. If atempo change is desired, pressing TEMPO while
holding INSERT causes the following display:
INSERT INTO
STEP 01 TEM 120
The keypad can now be used to change the desired tempo to be inserted into the song.
Again, pressing RECORD completes the insertion. Pressing the TEMPO button again
will change the display to PATT again. The programmable tempo range of astep in asong
is from 46 to 200 beats per minute.
Deleting astep /DELETE Button
Alesis HR-16 Instructions Page 1
0

w°| d
read- aSt6P fr°m3S°n9 'PrGSS and h°ld the DELETE button-and ,he display
DELETE STEP
STEP 01 PATT27
tT, aDF|PFTF ll Th’Jhe RECORD button must be pressed while still holding
the DELETE button. This shifts all patterns after the displayed step down one
step After all steps have been deleted, the display will show step 1being END
(empty song). The END step cannot be deleted (RECORD will be ignored).
Replacing astep /OFFSET Button
The OFFSET button is used to replace the currently displayed step's pattern or
tempo with another patten or tempo. It is provided as aconvenience, and
essentia ly does the same thing as DELETE followed by INSERT. Pressina and
holding the OFFSET button causes the following display: 9
REPLACE STEP
STEP 01 PATTflO
While holding the OFFSET button, the keypad can be used to change the pattern
number displayed. To complete the replacement, the RECORD button must be
pressed while still holding the OFFSET button. The display will read-
STEP REPLACED
STEP 01 PATT00
Th sdisplay will remain until RECORD is released, after which the display will
REP
,
EACEMENT di£P|ay- lf ‘he step being replaced contained a
tempo, the display will read TEM instead of PATT. Whether replacing apattern
or atempo, the TEMPO button can be turned on or off so as to change what the
replacement will be. When replacing astep, all other steps remain unchanged
since the number of steps does not change. 9’
Erasing an entire SONG
To erase an entire song, press and hold the ERASE button. The display will read:
IERASE SONG 00 I
While holding the ERASE button, if RECORD is pressed, the
and the display will read: song will be erased,
ERASE SONG 00
SONG ERASED
This display will remain until RECORD is released. In all of the above editinq
examples, no changes to the song will occur until RECORD is pressed.
Alesis HR-16 Instructions Page 1
1

COPY
Copying aPATTern to itself
The copy button is used to append apattern or song to another pattern or song. It
only functions while the COPY button is held down. If the COPY button is released
(either before or after the copy Is executed), the previous mode will show up on
the display, and copy mode is exited. When in PATT mode, and COPY is pressed
and held, the display will read:
COPY FROM PATT
01 TO PATT fll
Both displayed pattern numbers will actually display the current pattern
number (00-99). Pressing RECORD completes the operation, and the display
reads:
COPY COMPLETE
This display remains until the RECORD button is released, which then returns
the display to its previous state. The above example demonstrated copying a
pattern to itself, which will double the length of that pattern.
Copying aPATTern to another PATTern
To copy apattern to another pattern, press and hold COPY, then enter the two
digit pattern number with the keypad. The display will show the selected pattern
number. Pressing RECORD initiates the copy, and appends the source pattern
(the current pattern before COPY was pressed) to the destination pattern (the
pattern entered with the keypad). If the destination pattern was empty, then the
destination now contains an exact copy of the source pattern.
If the destination was not empty, then the destination's length is increased by the
length of the source pattern, and the source pattern is appended to the end of the
destination pattern. All voice, mix, and tuning assignments m&de on the source
pattern will be overridden by the destination pattern's assignments. If the length
of the destination pattern would result in more than 682 beats after copying, the
copy will not be executed, and the display will read:
TOO MANY BEATS
IN PATTERN
Copying asingle drum pad's rhythm to another drum pad
Single drum pads can also be copied to other pads. If adrum pad (CLOSED HAT,
for example) is pressed while holding the COPY button, the display will read:
COPY FROM PATT
CLS HAT >1
Alesls HR-16 Instructions Page 12

The display is now waiting for asecond drum pad to be pressed (pressing RECORD
at this point will do nothing). If for example, TOM 1was pressed, the display
would read:
COPY FROM PATT
CLS HAT >IOM 1
The display of the second pad pressed remains underlined, indicating that it can
still be changed by selecting another drum pad. As in copying patterns, once
RECORD is pressed, the copy will be complete, and the display will read "COPY
COMPLETE."
The length of the rhythm of the destination pad will not be changed, and the source
drum rhythm will be merged with the destination drum rhythm. The destination
drum will remain assigned to its previous voice, mix, and tuning. Adrum from
one pattern can be copied to adrum of another pattern if the destination pattern
is selected before selecting the source and destination drum buttons.
Copying aSONG to itself
In SONG mode, pressing and holding the COPY button will result in the following
display:
COPY FROM SONG
01 TO SONG fll
The 01 display will actually show the currently selected song number. Like in
PATT mode, pressing RECORD will append the current song to itself, making it
twice as long.
Copying aSONG to another SONG
If anew song number is selected, the display will show the newly selected song
number, and pressing RECORD will append the source song number (the number
selected before pressing COPY), to the destination song number (the number
selected while holding COPY).
This mode is very useful, since averse consisting of more than one pattern could
be entered into asong, and then appended into another song when needed without
having to re-enter the patterns for the verse. If the destination song would
result in more than 255 steps after copying, the copy will not be executed, and
the display will read:
TOO MANY STEPS
IN SONG
In all cases, the copy is not executed until RECORD is pressed, and will be aborted
if COPY is released before pressing RECORD. The COPY button has no effect while
asong or pattern is playing.
Alesis HR-16 Instructions Page 1
3

OFFSET
The OFFSET button is used to add or subtract anumber of clock pulses (384th
notes) to adrum or pattern. If OFFSET is held down, the display will show:
OFFSET Q0/384th
The keypad can be used to enter atwo-digit number (00-99), or the +/- arrow
buttons can be used to increment or decrement the amount. The range of the
offset is ±99. Entering avalue with the keypad will remain the current display
sign (+ or -). To change the sign, the +/- buttons must be used to "pass
through" zero. Pressing the RECORD button executes the offset command for all
drums in apattern, resuiting in the following display:
OFFSET 03/384th
PATT OFFSET
This display remains until RECORD is released. The offset function moves drum
events ahead (+) or behind (-) the beat in 384th note steps. This is used to
change the "feel" of the pattern. If an event is moved past the end of apattern, it
is put at the beginning. Likewise, if an event is moved to before the beginning, it
is put at the end. Like the ERASE function, individual drums can be offset as well.
If, for example, TOM 1is pressed, the display will read:
OFFSET 03/384th
TOM 1OFFSET
TOM 1is now offset ahead of its previous location by 3384th notes. Unlike
quantize, this feature modifies the already existing drum events in apattern, and
does not effect any newly recorded events in the pattern. Because of this, it is
suggested that acopy of apattern be made before changing the offset so that the
original will be easily retrievable if the results are undesirable.
The OFFSET button does not function while playing apattern, or while in song
mode.
SWING
The SWING button is used to change the ratio between two equal rhythmic values
(such as 1/1 6th notes) in order to achieve ashuffle feel. If SWING is held down,
the display will show:
SWING IN RECORD
0.0=50.0%
The display above shows the current swing value. The +/- arrow buttons can be
used to increment or decrement the swing number, with the percentage of swing
Alesis HR-16 Instructions Page 14

shown beside it. 0swing =50% =no swing. The range of the swing is
determined by the current quantize value. The swing amount will only effect
newly recorded drum events, like in quantize. The swing amounts are shown
below:
-QUANT SWING PERCENTAGE
1/400 50.0%
1/600*1 650.0%-75.0%
1/800-1 250.0%-75.0%
1/1 200-08 50.0%-75. 0%
1/I 600-06 50.0%-75.0%
1/2 4 00-04 50.0%-75.0%
1/32 00-03 50.0%-75.0%
1/4 8 00-01 50. 0%-62. 5%
1/6 400 50.0%
OFF 00 50.0%
The SWING button does not function while playing apattern, or while in song
mode.
FILL
The FILL button is used to allow repeated entries of drums into apattern without
having to repeatedly press the drum buttons. While FILL is held down, pressing
and holding any drum button will cause that drum to repeat at the current
quantize rate until either the FILL button or the drum button is released. The
volume of the repeats will be determined by how hard the drum button is first
hit. Fill will only work while playing or recording.
Alesis HR-16 Instructions Page 1
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MODE /DATA ENTRY BUTTONS
All MODE buttons function as on/off switches. This means that they are pressed
once to enter the mode, and pressed again to exit the mode. When any of the modes
have been entered, the associated LED will be lit. For simplicity, any time
PATTERN or SONG is pressed, any previously selected mode will be turned off.
The VOICE, TUNE, and MIX settings can be stored with each pattern by holding the
RECORD button and pressing VOICE, TUNE, or MIX, respectively. Any changes
made to these parameters without storing them are temporary edits that will be
lost if anew pattern is selected. Copying apattern to an empty pattern will also
copy these settings. Copying apattern to anot empty pattern will not copy these
settings, but will instead retain the settings of the pattern being copied to. An
empty pattern defaults to astandard voice assignment with no pitch shift, and
nominal mix levels.
IMPORTANT NOTE: VOICE,TUNE, AND MIX ASSIGNMENTS CANNOT BE
STORED IN AN EMPTY PATTERN UNLESS THE LENGTH HAS BEEN
CHANGED TO ALENGTH OTHER THAN 8BEATS.
VOICE
Selecting aVOICE
To change the sound of any of the drum pads, the desire pad is pressed. If KICK is
pressed, for example, the display will show:
KICK PAD =Q_1
24" POWER KICK
The slider, keypad, or +/- arrow buttons can be used to change the selected
sound, and the lower display will show the name of the currently selected sound.
There are atotal of 49 sounds to choose from. Any changes made to any of the
drum pads are temporary until stored and will be lost as soon as anew pattern is
selected, or the current pattern is reselected (unless Manual Voice/Tune/Mix is
off, see below) .
Storing VOICE settings
To store the VOICE settings, press and hold RECORD, and then press VOICE. When
this is done, the voice settings will be permanently stored with the current
pattern.
IMPORTANT NOTE: VOICE, TUNE, AND MIX ASSIGNMENTS CANNOT BE
STORED IN AN EMPTY PATTERN UNLESS THE LENGTH HAS BEEN
CHANGED TO ALENGTH OTHER THAN 8BEATS.
Alesis HR-16 Instructions Page 1
6

TUNE
The TUNE mode is used to select the desired pitch for each drum pad, and the
click. When it is pressed, its LED will light, and the display will read:
CLICK
PITCH =0
This display appears when TUNE is first pressed, and the display was not
previously in MIX or VOICE mode for adrum pad. It is used to select the pitch of
the click (metronome). The pitch amount can be changed with the slider,or the
+/- arrow buttons. The range is from -16 to +15. As with the voice mode,
pressing adrum pad will select that drum for pitch editing. Also like in voice
mode, changes made to drum pads are temporary until stored by holding RECORD
and pressing TUNE. See IMPORTANT NOTE under storing voice settings.
MIX
The MIX button is used to change the volume, panning, and output assignment of
each drum button. When MIX is pressed its LED lights, and the display reads:
CLICK OUTPUT 1
VOL: 65 PAN: <>
This display appears when MIX is first pressed, and the display was not
previously in VOICE or TUNE mode for adrum pad. It is used to select the output,
the volume, and the panning of the click (metronome). The output is selected
with the 1and 2buttons of the keypad to select stereo outputs 1or 2,
respectively. The volume control is adjusted with the slider (00 to 99), and the
panning is adjusted with the +/- arrow buttons. The panning is seven position,
and the display will show <3, <2, <1, <>, 1>, 2>, or 3>. As with the voice mode,
pressing adrum pad will select that drum for mix editing. Also like in voice
mode, changes made to drum pads are temporary until stored by holding RECORD
and pressing MIX. See IMPORTANT NOTE under storing voice settings.
NOTE: The Volume slider on the front controls output 1only.
TEMPO
The TEMPO button is used to change the tempo of apattern or song. The tempo can
be stored with asong, but not with apattern. While in pattern mode, the tempo
remains at its previous setting until changed. While in song mode, the tempo
changes to the programmed tempo each time atempo step is encountered within a
song. While in pattern mode, pressing the TEMPO button causes the TEMPO LED to
light, and results in the following display:
TEMPO =12 0
BEATS PER MINUTE
Alesis HR-16 Instructions Page 1
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The +/- arrows and the SELECT slider can be used to select anew tempo, or a
tempo can be entered directly with three digits on the keypad. Tempo changes are
effective as soon as they are entered, and the RECORD button does not have to be
pressed.
In SONG mode, the tempo is displayed as arelative amount of change from the pre-
programmed song tempo. The display reads:
SONG TEMPO 100%
TEMPO =120
The current tempo (the one most recently recalled within asong) will be
displayed in the lower display, and the upper display shows the percentage of
programmed tempos to be used. The keypad can be used to enter athree-digit
number, or the +/- arrow buttons can be used to increment or decrement the
amount. The range of the shift is 50% (half tempo) to 200% (double tempo).
This change is shown as apercentage so that any tempo changes that occur In the
song wifi keep their time ratios constant.
MIDI /UTIL
The MIDI /UTIL button is used to access anumber of miscellaneous functions that
usually do not need to be accessed very often. The functions are scrolled through
with the SELECT slider, with the display showing the current function, and each
function being numbered for easy reference. The keypad and +/- arrow buttons
are used to change the parameters. All of these parameters are global parameters,
e.g., they are set once for the entire machine and are not programmable for each
pattern or song. The pages are as follows:
MIDI CHANNEL
The first MIDI UTIL page is MIDI CHANNEL. The display looks like this:
01 SET MIDI
CHANNEL: 01
The keypad and +/- buttons can be used to change the MIDI channel from 01 to 16.
This sets the MIDI channel that the HR-16 will transmit and receive on. If 00 is
selected, the display will read OMNI. In OMNI mode, the HR-16 will transmit on
channel 1, and will receive on all channels. The default is OMNI.
RECEIVE MIDI DRUMS
%
The RECEIVE MIDI DRUMS function is used to determine whether or not incoming
MIDI notes from asequencer, keyboard, or MIDI drum pad controller should
trigger the drums. The display looks like this:
Alesis HR-16 Instructions