Alesis SR-16 User manual

GettingStarted
withthe
A
preliminaryguide
to
playing
andcreating:
rPattems
oSongs
oDrum
Kits
0pen
thislinttostart
playing
immediately...
ri
I
,l

16B'T
SIENEO
DNUTfr'ACH'}IE
A
preliminary
guide
@1990AlesisCorporation

GETTING STARTED WITH TTIE SR.16
TheSR-15
canbeusedonmanylevels,
from simply playing preset
Pattemsto cr€atint your own
complex
polyrhythms in odd timesignatureg'Asarestrlt,thelearetwo rumuals.
Thismini-manual will acquaint
you with afewof theSR-16
smostimportant functions. Many
musicians
will only needb know as
muchabouttheSR-16
as
ispresenbd in this-
manual. Tte
Refermce
Manualis acomplete
self-teaching
couNethatexplainseveryaspect
of thesR-16.
Please
readthereference
manualatsorne
point to urderstand iusthow muchpowertheleisln
thisdeceptivelysimplelooking liftle box.
First,hereareafewbasic
factsabouttheSR-16.
BUTTONS AND WINDOWS
TheUplDown arrow butbns (to tlreright of the0and5numberbuttons)incneaseor decase
values
rrspectively. Pressonly one
button atatime.
Thedisplay hasseveral
"windows" thatinforrn you of theSR-16sstatus. If theinstructions
mmtion thataparticular word shouldor shouldnotshowup in aparticularwindow, checkthe
window to seewhich isthecasebefor,e
proceeding.
WHAT
THE
THREEMODE
BUTTONS
DO
Therearethreemodebuttonsthatselect
basicoperational
modes.Thesebuttonstogglebetween
thetwo options(press
for oneoption,pressagain
for theotheroption)'
PRESET/USER:
Thisselects
between
two banksof drum sets
andrhythm Patterru,herct ald
User. Presetdrum setsandrhythm Patternsare
pernunently etched
into theSR-16slittle sllicon
brainandcannot
bealtered. Userdrum setsandrhythm Patternscanbeprogramrrcd, eras€d,
andotherwiseeditedby theuser.
PATTERN/SONG: ln PattemMode,you can
playback(andwith UserPattens,reclDrd)
individual rhythm Pafterns.Theseareuzuallyfairly short---say,
4to 16 beab-and form the
basicelemmtsof aSong.In Song
modeyou create
a'Plaflist" of Patterns,which playsvarious
Patbrns in thedesired
order.
PERFORM/COMI€sE: In thecase
of eitherPattemor Song
mode,Performmodeisdesigned
for playback,andCompose
for recordlng.
DONT PANICT
lf you'restuckin asituationandyou don't know how b 8etout of it, Press
theSTOPbutton.
3

I
Hook It Up!
3 nugthe ACadapercord
inb the9VAClrckand
theadapEr itseuinto a
convenient
wall socket.
4 n"ott*
on/off switdr -.
sothatthe \
Asyou hookup theSR-16
therrclurne
conurol
on
)lour powerampard theSR-16
shouldbedl the
waydown,ard ponm tobothunitsshould
beoff.
2lflouhaveacoupleof
footawitclres,
plug
tlreminb the
Start/Stopard
Count/A/B/Ftll Fcks.
1 Phgr/4"rmno
cordsfrom the
rnainoutputs to a
ste!€o
amp. For
rnonoamPs,use
eitherrnainoutpul
switch latches
in t}te"in"
position.
5 Tapthepads
toheardrum
...adiust
thevolunr
cpntrol
fua
comfortable
lishdng
level.
sounds
asyou...
(tostep
6)
4
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Check Out SomePatterns
TheSR-16 hasalibrary of preset
pa.ttemsfor all kinds of mwia-rock, blues,
reggae,fusioryR&8,rap,country,even
polka. Manymusicians
will find the
groovestheyneed
hereandwill nothavetoworry aboutprogrammingtheir
own programsuntil theybecome
morefamiliar with theSR-16'
1 f tn"airpt"ysupperrightwindowshows
Song
Press
thePATTERN/SOiIG button
once
to select
Pattern
mode. (Pr€ssing thisbutton
"toggle 'betweenSong
andPattemrnodes.)
2 If tn" airpt"y's upper right window shows
USER,
pressthePRESET/USERbutton-
to select
Prset Pattems.Ttres€arcselecd if
thedisplay'supperright window does
not
stow USERandthedisplay's upperle{tshows
apattemnarne
(Rock
1,Blu6, etc.).
3 fo.u" tt " UPIDOIVNI
arrowbuttons
bselectaPatterrL You
can also enter a pattern
number(@49) with the
Numberbuttons.
Singledigit Patterns
requirea 'leading zero"
(e.9.,07,A,03,
etc.l
4Press
PLAYto starta
pattern,STOP to stopit.
Whma Pattemreaches
ibmd,itwill loopback
tothebeginningand
playagainuzless
you
stopit or choose
another
pattem (described later).
5 Speea
up ttrebmpo by pressingthe
TEMITO/UParow button
(press
once
to speed
upby oneBPM,press
andhold to s@ up rapidly). Use
the
TEMI''O/DOWN anow button
in thesam€
rnannerto slowdown thetempo.
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Playing Sequences
of Patterns
EachPattern
number,Preset
andueer,indudes A andB"subpatterns." Thepreset
A andB
vaniations
complement
each
other. Forexample,in aRock
pattern,A crouldplay theverse,
andB
thechorus. ln fact,you mayconstmctmanysongs
justby switchingbackandfbrth between
the
A andBvariations. You'renot limited b usingA andBvariationsof apartioilar pattern
number;you canalso
callup otherPattemnumbers,
andlfteirA andBvariations,
which will
play assoonasthecun€nt Patternhas
playedthrough.
1 augi" by *t*ting aPattern
andpressing
PLAI asdecribed on thepreviouspage,
Theupper right window showsthe
selectedPattern
numberandwhetherthe
A or Bvariation isselected.Thedisplay's
upperleft line normally counb each
beat
of theselectedPattemasit plays"
3 Experiment
with switching
between
theA andB
variations. Listmto how
thepatternssourd, and
observehow thedisplay
keepsyou inforned of
what'shappening.
2 If anA Pattern
isplaying, press
theBbuttron
(orpress
A if aB
Pattern
isplaying).
ThealternatePattemwill begin
playingas soon
asthecunently-
selectedPattemreaches
its md.
Until thathappens,thedisplay
will showthenarne
of thePattern
you selecEd
(a.g,NDCI
PATTOIB).After analternate
Patern ticks irl thedisplay's
upperright window will show
thePatErnnumberandwhether
it istheA or Bvariation.
4 You can c.ll uP a
diffwnt Pattem
numberif deired.
hesstheLJP/DOWN
arrowbuttons
to select
aPattemor
enteraPattemnumber
(&49)withthe
numberbuttons.
Singledigit Patterns
requirea"leadingzero"
(e.9.,01,02,03,
etc.)
The new Patbrn will play the same variation
(A or B) as what's already selected. To choose
adifferent variation,press
A or B
before the current PatFrn has finished playlng.
5
6
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ol clftrto

FunWith Fills
EachA andBvariationalsoincludesassociad Ftll Patterns, which canplay expressive
transitionsbetweentheA andBvariations. Youcanpushabutton to haveaFill takeoverfrom
its associatedrnainPatternandhansition tothealternate
Pattern.
3 Prouth.FILLbt tott
2 ftu*t "rd t"t""se theFILL button
again. Adiffetent fill will
transitionfrom theBpattem
backinto theA pattern. You
canselectafill atanytime
thernainpattem is play'ng.
(preferablysomewhere
aroundbeat
4or so). You'll hearatastydrum fitl
thatteadsright into theassociatedB
pattern(as
confirmedby the
display).
1 O"gitbyrutoting*
APattem then
prcadngPl.Alas
described
previously.
Theupper right
window showsthe
selected
Paftern
numberandshould
confirm thattheA
variationis selected.
Thedisplay'supper
left linecountseach
beat
of theselected
Pattemasit plays.
4 Fillsdo not alwayshavetobetansitional
Pattems.SupposeanA Pattern
isplaflng. If
you presstheFILLbuttoq afill will start-but
thistime,keep theFILL button held down
until afterthefill hasfinishedplaflng. -
Thiscancelsthetransitionto thealternate
pattern(in this example,theA patFrn would
continue
playing).
while the main A Pattem is
7
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d'6doorl
T]OODC]D

CreateandErase
aSong
TheSR-16canremernber
theorderln which you selecEd Patterns,
whldr variationswere
selec{ed,
ard whenyou selectedfills. Recordtng
thtsinformation in theSR-16sSong mode
cneaFsacDmpleESong.@in with theSR-16
stopped.
1 Sd."t Sot
g trrod". 3 n"*tttn"PnRrcRM/
COMPOSEbutton
2 ff* ai"phy opperldt shouldsayEMPfi
SO.IG. If not,pess theUp or Down butbns
until anefirpty sonlg
isselected.
until thedisplay's
lower middle shows
COMPOSE.The
displaywill show
STEPO1andthe
contentsof the@,
whidr iscurrently
END(to indicate
that
the
songisempty).
5
4 Cbe aPatunftrsog$ep 1byenuiqga
FatEn nrriber andA orBrrariafnn This$epcan
beaFlllif pu p'tts Hll abngwithAa B.Us
PatFnsstnuH rst beelecEl formw. IfUs
appecsred tothePatErn rlttnberlor ertered
in
tc uppe leftwirdow, prese
PRESEVUSERbslect
Prcs.
hessPLAY.
ThePattern
specifiedin step
(4)abovewill
startplayiry.
6 Choo*Putt" ",AandB
variations,andFillsas
decribed in theprevious
page. Eachselection
will
beremembeted
as
another
Songstep,and
theSR-16will also
rernernber
theexact
instantyou selectedaFill.
Ifyou don't specif anew
Pattem,
everytimea
patt€rnrepeatsit will add
anewsongsteP.
7 Whunyou'* finishedcreatint
theSong,pressSTOP.
10 fo erasett eSong you musthavetheSongrlecbd. Tl€ SR-16shouldbestopped
andin Performrnode. I,ressERASE
ard while holding tt down, press
PLAY. -
8 ton""ryo*Song,press
PERrcRM/COMPO6E
toselect
Perform
nrode.
ThenpressPLAY.
9 If you like theSong great!
TheSR-15will remember
it.
EnteringtheSongnumber
in SongandPerformmode
will callup theSong.
8
A
E
r--t
STEP 01,
END-
D OI]
TheSongwill beerased.

FootswitchControl
Now thatwehavethebasicsdown, let'sinvesdgatesomelive pedorrnanceoptionsusing
footswiEh conbol. firis is particularly usefulif you'replalng alongwith Pattems
andSongs
on
tlrepadsandcan'tuseyour handsto punchbutbns.
As slrownunderH@klt W!, thercaretwo iack for footswitdres(Start/StoP
and
Count/A/B/Fill). Always plug these
footswitdes in beprcturning onPower. Eithernormally
openor norrnally cloeed
types(thetwo rrost cornrnon
footswitdr typec)canbeused;theSR-16
determines
whidr kind isin use
during Pow€r-uP.
Here's
how to usethefootswitch6.
Set
Tempo
TheSR-16
mustbesbpped. Before
playing aSongor Pattern,taptheCount/A/B/Fill ittck
footswitchseveral
timesatthedesiredtempo. TheSR-16
will average
thetimebetweentaps
and
deriveatempo,thedisplay will updatethetempowith each
tap. TaPPingtheSTOP
button
actomplishes
thesamercsult astappingtheCount/A/B/Fill footswitch.
StartaSong
or Pattern
WhentheSR-16
isstopped,
pressingtheStart/StoP
footswitchisequivalenttopressingPLAY.
when thesR-16
isrunning pressingthestart/stop footswiEh isequivalentto pressing
sToP.
Initiate aFill When PlayingPatterns
In Performmode,theC-ount/A/B/Fi[ foobwitch duplicaes theFILLbutbn function when
playing Patterns.
Cancel
aTransitionFromA to B,or Bto A' Patterns
Wlrenyou initiate aFill, anA Pattemwill transitiontoaBpattern(orvicevelsa) whentheFill
hasfinistredplaying. However,you cancancelthis transitionif desired. Wevealready
explained
how to do thiswith thefront panelFILLbutbn. However,you canalso
usethe
Count/A/B/Filt footswitch. If you pressthefootswitchbeforethefill hasfinishedplalng and
hold it down until afterthefill hasplayed(i.e,
pastthedownbeat
of thenextPatErn),theSR-16
\,yillr€tum to theoriginal MainA or BPattem.
Extend a SongStepWhen Playing Back a Song
In Song Performmode(i.e,
during song
playbac$, pressingandholding theCount/A,/B/Fill
footswikh until pasttheendof aSont Step
witl causethatsbP tor€Peat.Thisisgreatif the
soloistwantsb takeaftw rnorebars.
I

Record aPattern
TheSR-16
offersveryflo<ibleandmusical recordingopions. Thisiust
givesataste
ofwhafs available* sur€to checl out thereference
manualfor moreinforrnation.
1 f m" airpt ys upperright window showsSONG, 3 fn"t t"PfnfOnU/
pre*s
thePATTERN,/SONG
button COMIOSEbutton
onc€to selectPattemrnode. (Pressing
thisbutton
"toggles"
betweenSongandPattemmodes.)
2 f t}r. airpt"ys upperright window does
not
showUSER, press
OrePRESET/USER
buttor
toselect
UserPatterns,Unlike Pt€set
Paftems,
you canrecordinto, andedit, UserPatbrns.
4Pres.s
theUp,/Down
arrow butbns
until you find anEMPTY
PATTern,
asslrownon
thedisplay. Youcanalso
mter aPatternnumber
(0G49)
with theNumber
buftons,and/or selectan
AorB Paftern.
5Pr€ss PLAYto start
recording.
Youwill probablyhear
ametronome
click.
WhenaPatErn reaclres
itsend,it will loopback
tothebeginningsoyou
can do overdubs.
5 ehythepads.
TheSR-16
will shiftyour playing to the
near€st
rhythmic valueshownin the
lowerleft comerof thequantize
window. Referto thernainrnanualfor
information onchangingquantization.
until thedisplay'slower
middle shows
COMPOSE.
7 If you makeamistake,
press
and
hold down the ERASE button.
If you press
apadwhile holding
dovrnERASE,
anynotresplayed
by that padthatoccrr between
thetinc you press
andrelease
thepad,will beerased.
8 o"1'1 prs"t tttaLyoy ca: playdifficult passages
by slowingdown rh€tempo,playint the
part,thenspeedingbackup again.
OOOc)6.@
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f]DDC]O
to

Create
aDrum Set
Thisisanoompleofafrnrtbn withmultiple
pages.
IheSR-15
has
50
Pr6ctard50editableUser
Dnm Sets
Qroupaofsomds)whictrcanbeassignedtoanyofthelmPattems.
AfterprcssingtheDRLJMSEfbu$on,
each
prrssofIheTEMPO,/PAGE
uPbutton
sel€cts
adiffer€r*
kind
ofpanmeter
(drum
sound,
tuning,
volumq,etc.)
Tapthepadbbeedibd,thanantatherrlvpanmeFvalrrwiththeI,JPIDOWN,aIrcw,or
numberhrttons.
Toedttmorepads,tapamth€rFdardenteranewvalrr.
Aftereditingthepad(s),Press
tlETBTPO/PAGE
LJPh*bn toace$ tl€ nodtne ofparanetd.The
SR-16should
besto@'
L n."onuuSrf.
Sdect
anumberfrom fi149 with thenumberbuftons,
andPresetorUs wtth thePRESET/USERbuton
heset Drum Setscanonly besavedto Userlocations.
2 Pru*tth" TSMPO/PAGF UP
toclnoeePage
2(seedisplay
lower right), where,rou can
assigndiffennt drum sourds
b different pads. Pttss the
pad
tobeassigned
ttren
usetheUp/Downor
numberbuttons
toselectoneof theavailable
sourds (a3digit number-
don't forgetleadingzeroesif
rEccsary).
3 ftr" -"ot* similar b step2,prese
IheTEMFO./PAGE
LJPbuton
b droose
Page3,whereyou canassigndifftrent lwels for each
pad. Tapapa4 then
usetheUP/DOtfitI or numberbutbns to select
thelevel,asshownon thedisplay.
4 n " t*t trersimilar to step3,prccstheTEMFO/PAGELJPbutton
o ctroose
Page4 whereyur canassigrthepanning fureadt pad. Tapa@, thm use
theLP/DOWN buttonsb selectthepanpositioo asshownonthedispLay.
5 fn amannersimilar b step
4,presstheTEMPO/PAGEUPbutton
o clroose
Page
5,whercyou canasdgnthetuning for ah pad. Tapapad,tlrenusethe
uP/DOITVN
or nurnberbutbns to s€lectthetuning,asshownon thedisplay.
6 Tosavethenew Drum Set
parameus, presetheTEMPO/PAGEuP button
threetirnesb ctrooe Page8,wher,e
1oucansavethedrum st ParanEtemyou'veselected.
If
yur hadsdectedahesetDrumSeCyourclrargeswillbe saved
inthe likenumbered User
Dnrm Set
(or mter adiffercnt number). PnesgPLAYto savgor DRUM SET
tobackout.
7 f pu presseaPLA! pressDRUMSET
to r€turn to nornraloperatbn.
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clooocl9
DDC]DC-]O
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tl

Usethe SR-16
asanExpander
Module
(Note Thb tutorial requiree
sonr krnwledge of MIDI. SeetheMIDI supplernent
in
thereference
rnanualif 1ouneed
b know rnre abort MIDI.) - -
Tho* with electronic
drum pads
or agequencer
can
usetheSR-16as
atone
modulq wheredffferent.drumswiUsoundin response
todifferent MIDI notes
receirred
at thesR-16sMIDI fuLYoumugtrun aMIDI cablefrom thegequencEr
or
TheSR-16has
aspecial
'exparder module"nrode
thatasdgruaspecific
MIDI noE
to eadrpadof asetof 10
UserDrum Sets.
Thedurt in section
6.9of thercference
manualshowswhich MIDI notetriggerswhich padof which Drrm Set.Assign
sourdsto eadrpadof thesedrum seteas
decribed in thepr€viouspage,The-SR-16
elec{ronic
drum sefsMIDI out b theSR-15sMIDI in
shouldbestopped.
1 n rurrAPf
SEruP.
UsetheLJP/DOIMII
b select
Ornni rnode
or a
specific
MIDI dunnel br
Polynrode.
2Itess theTEMPO/PAGE
UPbutton
b choose Page 2 (see
displaylower righO. Prese
theUParrcwbu
sothat Drum ln ison(ia,,
theSR-15
reeives MIDI
notedata).
3 n" -"or,o similar to stepZ,prese
theTEMpO/PAGE LJpBUTION Uu€e
tirnesto clroose
Page
5. ttess theDown Anow button sothat theClockln
isOff (i.c,,
theSR-16
ignores
MIDI syncluonization
&td.
4 Ir," *"oner sirnilarto step
3,prees
theTEL,iPO/PAGE
LJpBUTII)N ttu€e
!a1 !g 6gotl"g" E. hress
theDownAtrow btrttonsothatOrc
prgChnE
isOff (i^c,,
theSR-15ignores
MIDI prognm drange
data).
5 n amanner
simttarb srep
4,pr€$ theTElvlIO/pAGE LJpBUTION to
g$1 P3ee
9, Pness
fte Up Arrow bumon
sothatrhe
Note Mapshows
DflXB, D10'19,etc.
6 T* t*tg:now setup asanepander nrodute. pr€ss
MIDI SEf,Up
again
bextt MIDI setupnrodeard retumto rornul operatbn
ODf]C:]OC]
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