Arturia PROPHET-VS V User manual

USER MANUAL
_PROPHET-VS V

Special Thanks
DIRECTION
Frédéric Brun Kevin Molcard
DEVELOPMENT
Jari Kleimola
Baptiste Le Goff
Baptiste Aubry
Mathieu Nocenti
Raynald Dantigny
Marie Pauli
Alexandre Adam
Corentin Comte
Samuel Limier
Fanny Roche
Rasmus Kürstein
Kevin Arcas
Alessandro De Cecco
Hugo Caracalla
Mauro De Bari
Geoffrey Gormond
Marius Lasfargue
Marc Antigny
Pierre-Lin Laneyrie
Yann Burrer
Loris De Marco
Cyril Lepinette
Patrick Perea
Stéphane Albanese
Pascal Douillard
Christophe Luong
Pierre Mazurier
DESIGN
Callum Magill (lead)
Edouard Madeuf
Pierre Pfister
Maxence Berthiot
Florian Rameau
Shaun Ellwood
Morgan Perrier
Heloise Noir
SOUND DESIGN
Lily Jordy (lead)
Jean-Michel Blanchet
Quentin Feuillard
Maxime Audfray
Florian Marin
Andrea De Paoli
Gustao Bravetti
Klaus Baetz
Solidtrax
Sonar Traffic
Victor Morello
TESTING
Germain Marzin (lead)
Arnaud Barbier
Matthieu Bosshardt
Aurélien Mortha
Julien Viannenc
Roger Schumann
Thomas Barbier
Adrien Soyer
Bastien Hervieux
Enrique Vela
Benjamin Renard
Nicolas Stermann
MANUAL
Stephen Fortner Jimmy Michon
BETA TESTING
Gary Morgan
George Ware
Marco Koshdukai Correia
Mat Herbert
Luis Rodriguez
T.J. Trifeletti
Fernando Manuel Rodrigues
Chuck Zwicky
Andrew MacAulay
Davide Pudexxu
Bernd Waldstädt
Bastian Barth
Stephen Wey
Terry Marsden
Jay Janseen
Gustavo Bravetti
© ARTURIA SA – 2022 – All rights reserved.
26 avenue Jean Kuntzmann
38330 Montbonnot-Saint-Martin
FRANCE
www.arturia.com

Information contained in this manual is subject to change without notice and does not
represent a commitment on the part of Arturia. The software described in this manual is
provided under the terms of a license agreement or non-disclosure agreement. The software
license agreement specifies the terms and conditions for its lawful use. No part of this
manual may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any purpose other than
purchaser’s personal use, without the express written permission of ARTURIA S.A.
All manufacturer and product names mentioned on this manual are trademarks of their
respective owners, which are in no way associated or affiliated with Arturia. The trademarks
of other manufacturers are used solely to identify the products of those manufacturers
whose features and sound were studied during the development. All names of equipment,
inventors, and manufacturers have been included for illustrative and educational purposes
only, and do not suggest any affiliation or endorsement by any equipment inventor or
manufacturer.
Product version: 1.0.0
Revision date: 10 May 2022

Special Messages
This manual covers how to use Prophet-VS V, provides a comprehensive look at its features,
and details how to download and activate it. First, some important messages:
Specifications Subject to Change:
The information contained in this manual is correct at the time of printing. However, Arturia
reserves the right to change or modify any of the specifications or features without notice
or obligation.
IMPORTANT:
The software, when used in combination with an amplifier, headphones or speakers, may
be able to produce sound levels that could cause permanent hearing loss. DO NOT operate
for long periods of time at a high volume or at a level that is uncomfortable.
If you encounter any hearing loss or ringing in your ears, please consult an audiologist.
NOTICE:
Service charges incurred due to lack of knowledge relating to how a function or a feature
works (when the software is operating as designed) are not covered by the manufacturer’s
warranty, and are therefore the owner's responsibility. Please study this manual carefully
and consult your dealer before requesting additional support.

Table Of Contents
1. Welcome to Prophet-VS V!..................................................................................................................................... 4
1.1. About the Prophet-VS........................................................................................................................................................... 4
1.2. Arturia’s Secret Ingredient: TAE® ................................................................................................................................ 6
1.2.1. Aliasing-Free Oscillators ........................................................................................................................................................................................... 6
1.2.2. A Better Reproduction of Oscillator Waveforms ..................................................................................................................................... 7
1.2.3. Voice Dispersion Feature......................................................................................................................................................................................... 8
1.3. Prophet-VS V Features....................................................................................................................................................... 8
2. Activation and Setup ................................................................................................................................................. 9
2.1. Register and Activate .......................................................................................................................................................... 9
2.1.1. Arturia Software Center (ASC).............................................................................................................................................................................. 9
2.2. Initial Setup for Stand-Alone Use .............................................................................................................................. 9
2.2.1. Windows Users: Audio and MIDI settings................................................................................................................................................ 10
2.2.2. macOS Users: Audio and MIDI settings .................................................................................................................................................... 12
2.2.3. Using Prophet-VS V in Plug-In Mode........................................................................................................................................................... 12
3. The User Interface .................................................................................................................................................... 13
3.1. High-Level Overview ......................................................................................................................................................... 13
3.2. The Upper Toolbar ............................................................................................................................................................. 14
3.2.1. Main Menu....................................................................................................................................................................................................................... 14
3.2.2. Preset Toolbar Area .................................................................................................................................................................................................. 17
3.2.3. Advanced Panel Button......................................................................................................................................................................................... 18
3.2.4. Gear Icon........................................................................................................................................................................................................................ 18
3.3. The Lower Toolbar............................................................................................................................................................. 19
3.3.1. Left Side............................................................................................................................................................................................................................ 19
3.3.2. Right Side ..................................................................................................................................................................................................................... 20
3.4. The Side Panel..................................................................................................................................................................... 22
3.4.1. Settings............................................................................................................................................................................................................................. 22
3.4.2. MIDI Tab ........................................................................................................................................................................................................................ 25
3.4.3. Macros Tab ................................................................................................................................................................................................................... 29
3.4.4. Tutorials ........................................................................................................................................................................................................................... 31
4. The Preset Browser ................................................................................................................................................. 32
4.1. Search and Results............................................................................................................................................................ 33
4.2. Using Tags as a Filter...................................................................................................................................................... 34
4.2.1. Types ................................................................................................................................................................................................................................. 34
4.2.2. Styles................................................................................................................................................................................................................................ 35
4.2.3. Banks................................................................................................................................................................................................................................ 35
4.3. Search Results window................................................................................................................................................. 36
4.3.1. Sorting the Preset Order....................................................................................................................................................................................... 36
4.3.2. Clearing Tags .............................................................................................................................................................................................................. 36
4.3.3. Liking Presets .............................................................................................................................................................................................................. 37
4.4. Sidebar ..................................................................................................................................................................................... 38
4.4.1. My Sound Banks ........................................................................................................................................................................................................ 38
4.4.2. My Favorites ................................................................................................................................................................................................................ 39
4.4.3. My Playlists ................................................................................................................................................................................................................. 40
4.5. Preset Info Section ............................................................................................................................................................ 41
4.5.1. Editing Info for Multiple Presets ...................................................................................................................................................................... 42
4.6. Preset Selection: Other Methods ............................................................................................................................. 43
4.7. Macro Knobs.......................................................................................................................................................................... 21
4.8. Playlists .................................................................................................................................................................................... 45
4.8.1. Create your first Playlist....................................................................................................................................................................................... 45
4.8.2. Add a Playlist .............................................................................................................................................................................................................. 45
4.8.3. Add a Preset ................................................................................................................................................................................................................ 46
4.8.4. Re-order the Presets................................................................................................................................................................................................ 47
4.8.5. Remove a Preset........................................................................................................................................................................................................ 47
4.8.6. New Song and Playlist Management.......................................................................................................................................................... 48
5. Main Panel ..................................................................................................................................................................... 49
5.1. Architecture ............................................................................................................................................................................ 49
5.2. Common Behaviors........................................................................................................................................................ 50
5.2.1. Value Pop-Ups ............................................................................................................................................................................................................ 50
5.2.2. Fine Adjustments..................................................................................................................................................................................................... 50
5.2.3. Parameter Name Display.................................................................................................................................................................................. 50

5.2.4. Double Click for Default...................................................................................................................................................................................... 50
5.3. Oscillator Section................................................................................................................................................................ 51
5.3.1. Tuning Controls........................................................................................................................................................................................................... 52
5.3.2. Waveform Browser ................................................................................................................................................................................................ 53
5.3.3. Importing Waveforms.......................................................................................................................................................................................... 53
5.4. Filter............................................................................................................................................................................................ 54
5.5. Envelope Group .................................................................................................................................................................. 55
5.5.1. Common Controls..................................................................................................................................................................................................... 55
5.5.2. Mix Envelope................................................................................................................................................................................................................ 56
5.5.3. Filter Envelope ............................................................................................................................................................................................................. 57
5.5.4. Amp Envelope............................................................................................................................................................................................................. 58
5.6. LFO Group .............................................................................................................................................................................. 58
5.6.1. LFO Sync......................................................................................................................................................................................................................... 58
5.7. Arpeggiator ............................................................................................................................................................................ 59
5.7.1. Arpeggiator Sync Options.................................................................................................................................................................................... 59
5.7.2. Arpeggiator Settings.............................................................................................................................................................................................. 60
5.7.3. Arpeggiator Hold Modes ..................................................................................................................................................................................... 60
5.8. Voice Control.......................................................................................................................................................................... 61
5.8.1. Unison................................................................................................................................................................................................................................ 61
5.8.2. Glide .................................................................................................................................................................................................................................. 62
5.8.3. Spread and Tune ...................................................................................................................................................................................................... 63
5.9. Main Panel Chorus ........................................................................................................................................................... 63
5.10. The Virtual Keyboard ................................................................................................................................................... 64
5.10.1. Pitch and Modulation Wheels ........................................................................................................................................................................ 64
5.11. The Random Button ........................................................................................................................................................ 65
5.12. Voice Dispersion ............................................................................................................................................................... 66
5.13. Pan Trimmers .................................................................................................................................................................... 66
6. Advanced Panel: Envelopes................................................................................................................................ 67
6.1. The Mixer Tab........................................................................................................................................................................ 67
6.1.1. Bypass Button................................................................................................................................................................................................................ 67
6.1.2. Vector Display.............................................................................................................................................................................................................. 68
6.1.3. Mix Envelope Controls ............................................................................................................................................................................................ 69
6.1.4. Tempo Sync and Rate Multiplier...................................................................................................................................................................... 70
6.1.5. Loop Mode ....................................................................................................................................................................................................................... 71
6.2. Filter Envelope Tab............................................................................................................................................................. 72
6.2.1. Envelope Mode ............................................................................................................................................................................................................. 72
6.3. Amp Envelope Tab ............................................................................................................................................................. 78
7. Advanced Panel: Modulations ........................................................................................................................... 79
7.1. The Functions ......................................................................................................................................................................... 79
7.1.1. Function Presets ......................................................................................................................................................................................................... 80
7.1.2. Function Copy............................................................................................................................................................................................................. 80
7.1.3. Breakpoints..................................................................................................................................................................................................................... 81
7.1.4. Moving a Breakpoint................................................................................................................................................................................................. 81
7.1.5. Changing a Curve ..................................................................................................................................................................................................... 82
7.1.6. Drawing Tools .............................................................................................................................................................................................................. 82
7.1.7. Function Rate, Amplitude, and Modes .......................................................................................................................................................... 83
7.2. Modulation Matrix .............................................................................................................................................................. 84
7.2.1. Assigning a Source................................................................................................................................................................................................... 84
7.2.2. Assigning a Destination........................................................................................................................................................................................ 85
7.2.3. Setting the Modulation Amount....................................................................................................................................................................... 85
8. Advanced Panel: Effects ....................................................................................................................................... 86
8.1. Effects Routing...................................................................................................................................................................... 86
8.2. Common Effects Controls............................................................................................................................................ 88
8.2.1. Main On/Off Button.................................................................................................................................................................................................. 88
8.2.2. Bypass Buttons .......................................................................................................................................................................................................... 88
8.2.3. Effect Selection Menu ............................................................................................................................................................................................ 88
8.2.4. Effect Presets .............................................................................................................................................................................................................. 89
8.2.5. Effect Copy ................................................................................................................................................................................................................... 89
8.2.6. Dry/Wet Slider........................................................................................................................................................................................................... 90
8.3. Individual Effects Controls........................................................................................................................................... 91
8.3.1. Time-Based Effects.................................................................................................................................................................................................... 91
8.3.2. Distortion Effects....................................................................................................................................................................................................... 95

8.3.3. Dynamics Processors ............................................................................................................................................................................................ 97
8.3.4. Modulation Effects ................................................................................................................................................................................................ 100
8.3.5. Filter and EQ Effects............................................................................................................................................................................................. 106
9. Software License Agreement......................................................................................................................... 108

1. WELCOME TO PROPHET-VS V!
Thank you for your purchase of Prophet-VS V by Arturia. It is a loving recreation of the
classic Prophet-VS vector synthesizer, employing our exclusive TAE® (True Analog Modeling)
technology. Far beyond taking digital snapshots of a classic instrument’s sound, TAE
analyzes and recreates analog circuits of classic hardware instruments. Now, talking about
analog modeling is a bit of a misnomer in the case of the Prophet-VS, which was a digital
synthesizer. The point is, we didn’t just sample it. We got our hands on the real thing,
analyzed how every circuit behaved, and reverse-engineered it from the assembly code up
so that you could have a hard-to-find classic synth as close at hand as a click of your mouse.
1.1. About the Prophet-VS
The Prophet-VS was manufactured by Sequential Circuits, the same company whose
founder Dave Smith gave us the first fully programmable polyphonic analog synthesizer,
the Prophet-5. Despite the ongoing popularity of the analog Prophet-5, by 1985, the temporal
center of a decade in which the keyboard industry was infatuated with all things digital, it
was time to say, “And now for something completely different.”
The Prophet-VS pioneered vector synthesis , which is a relative of wavetable synthesis
although it works somewhat differently. It featured four digital oscillators, each of which
could create a plethora of digital waveforms — anything from duplicates of traditional
analog waveforms such as sine and sawtooth to extremely complex harmonic patterns.
The player could morph between these waveforms using a joystick or a mixer envelope
which, in effect, automated the joystick. Thus, you could achieve far more sophisticated
harmonic variations than what were possible in traditional subtractive synthesis. Within a
single patch, musical moves such as cross-fading from an analog-like synth brass into the
audio equivalent of Superman’s snowy fortress full of sparkling crystals, were no problem.
Then, if you placed an “invisible hand” on the joystick using a modulation source such as an
envelope generator, you achieved sonic variation not possible by simply sweeping the filter
cutoff and resonance knobs on a conventional analog synthesizer. The top center, bottom
center, left center, and right center joystick positions represented the sound of just one of
the oscillators, but any other position was a mix. A move between two joystick positions —
either by a human or digital hand — was a “vector.” Hence, vector synthesis.
The original Prophet-VS had eight voices (with four oscillators per voice) and was two-part
multi-timbral. The voices were mixed into a four-pole (24dB-per-octave) analog filter. It also
featured five-stage envelopes for volume, the filter, and the all-important mix between the
four oscillators.
Prophet-VS synthesizer
4 Arturia - User Manual Prophet-VS V - Welcome to Prophet-VS V!

Inventor Dave Smith would rack up many further accomplishments, most famously as
the primary designer of MIDI, the language all music hardware and software uses to
communicate to this day. He designed the first commercially available software synthesizer,
Seer Systems Reality, released in 1997. He developed the beloved Wavestation wave-
sequencing synth for Korg — an instrument that would not have existed without the research
and development that went into the Prophet-VS. In 2002, he formed Dave Smith
Instruments and started manufacturing his own hardware synths, beginning with the
Evolver desktop hybrid synth. In 2013, he was awarded a Technical Grammy for MIDI and
his lifetime of achievements in music. Then in 2018, Smith regained the rights to use the
Sequential name and continues to bring new analog and digital-analog hybrid synths to
market.
Arturia - User Manual Prophet-VS V - Welcome to Prophet-VS V! 5

1.2. Arturia’s Secret Ingredient: TAE®
TAE® (True Analog Emulation) is Arturia's technology for emulating the circuits used in
classic synthesizers. TAE’s software algorithms result in spot-on emulation of the original
hardware. This is why Prophet-VS V offers an unparalleled quality of sound, as do all of
Arturia’s virtual instruments.
TAE combines major advances in several domains of synthesis:
1.2.1. Aliasing-Free Oscillators
Standard digital synthesizers produce aliasing in high frequencies, especially when using
Pulse Width Modulation (PWM) or Frequency Modulation (FM).
TAE enables the creation of oscillators that are completely free of aliasing in all contexts and
behaviors such as PWM, FM, and more.
Linear frequency spectrum of a current well-known software synthesizer
Linear frequency spectrum of an oscillator modeled with TAE®
6 Arturia - User Manual Prophet-VS V - Welcome to Prophet-VS V!

1.2.2. A Better Reproduction of Oscillator Waveforms
The waveforms produced by the oscillators in vintage synthesizers are affected by the
presence of a capacitor in the circuits. The discharge of such capacitors results in a
slight “bend” in the original waveform (most notably for sawtooth, triangle, and square
waveforms). TAE® reproduces the result of this capacitor discharge in software.
Directly below is a plot of a waveform from one of the hardware instruments that Arturia
has emulated, followed by one generated by Arturia’s TAE. As you can see, the waveforms
are quite similar and both are equally deformed by the lowpass and highpass filtering.
Temporal representation of the sawtooth waveform of a
hardware synthesizer
Temporal representation of a sawtooth waveform
reproduced by TAE®
Arturia - User Manual Prophet-VS V - Welcome to Prophet-VS V! 7

1.2.3. Voice Dispersion Feature
Oscillators in vintage hardware were often unstable in their operation. Their waveforms
differed slightly from one period to another and the starting point for each period could vary
due to changes in temperature and other environmental conditions. So could the pitch and
other aspects of the sound. These stability “problems” were, in fact, largely responsible for
the sound of many synthesizers! Prophet-VS V includes adjustable Voice Dispersion to give
you precise control over the variation in cutoff, resonance, pitch, and amp levels of each
individual voice.
1.3. Prophet-VS V Features
It wouldn’t be an Arturia instrument if we didn’t combine the best of modeled hardware
with the conveniences only possible with modern software. Here is a list of Prophet-VS V’s
main features.
• All sections of Prophet-VS main panel lovingly recreated.
• Four oscillators with 94 original Prophet-VS waveforms, plus coarse and fine
tuning.
• 450 additional waveforms per oscillator, including granular synthesis
waveforms, FM, analog-style, and hybrids.
• Ability to import user samples as waveforms for each oscillator.
• Up to 16 voices of polyphony.
• Unison mode stacks voices for absolutely huge sounds.
• Two LFOs as on original Prophet-VS, with tempo sync.
• Filter and amp envelopes with original 5-stage, multi-segment, and DADSR
modes.
• Oscillator mixer envelope with tempo sync.
• Advanced function generators let you assign custom modulation shapes to
multiple destinations.
• Integrated arpeggiator based on the original Prophet-VS.
• Three effects slots, each with a choice of 16 studio-quality effects.
• Full DAW automation of virtually all parameters.
• Tempo-sync of all appropriate time-based settings (e.g. LFO rates).
• Support for MPE (MIDI Polyphonic Expression).
• Searchable Preset Browser with user-creatable Playlists.
8 Arturia - User Manual Prophet-VS V - Welcome to Prophet-VS V!

2. ACTIVATION AND SETUP
2.1. Register and Activate
Prophet-VS V works on computers equipped with Windows 8.1 or later, and macOS 10.13 or
later. You can play it in standalone mode or use it as a plug-in instrument in Audio Units,
AAX, VST2, or VST3 format.
Once you install Prophet-VS V, the next step is to register the software. This is a simple
process that involves a different software program, Arturia Software Center.
2.1.1. Arturia Software Center (ASC)
If you haven't installed ASC yet, please go to this webpage: Arturia Downloads & Manuals.
Look for the Arturia Software Center near the top of the page, and then download the
installer version for the system you’re using (Windows or macOS).
After you complete the installation instructions, proceed to do the following:
• Launch the Arturia Software Center (ASC).
• Log into your Arturia account.
• Scroll down to the 'My Products' section of ASC.
• Click on the Activate button next to the software you want to start using (in this
case, Prophet-VS V).
It's as simple as that!
2.2. Initial Setup for Stand-Alone Use
If you would like to use Prophet-VS V in stand-alone mode, you will need to set up the
software and ensure that MIDI and audio signals are flowing through it properly. You only
need to do this once unless you'd make some major changes to your computer. The setup
process is largely the same on both Windows and macOS computers but for the sake of
clarity, we’ll cover each system separately.
! This section only applies to readers that plan to use Prophet-VS V in stand-alone mode. If you are
only going to use the software as a plug-in within a host music software, you can jump to the end of
this chapter - Using Prophet-VS V in plug-in mode [p.12] - as your host music software will handle these
things automatically.
Arturia - User Manual Prophet-VS V - Activation and Setup 9

2.2.1. Windows Users: Audio and MIDI settings
At the top left of Prophet-VS V’s upper toolbar, you’ll find a “hamburger“ icon that opens up
the main drop-down menu. This contains various setup options. Go to Audio MIDI Settings
to set up how the audio and MIDI signals behave.
This option works in the same way on both Windows and macOS X, although the names of
the devices available to you will depend on the hardware that you are using.
Starting from the top, you’ll have the following options:
10 Arturia - User Manual Prophet-VS V - Activation and Setup

•Device selects which audio driver and device will handle the playback of
Prophet-VS V. This can be your computer’s internal driver, like Windows Audio
or ASIO, or CoreAudio in Mac devices. Depending on your selection, the name of
your hardware interface may appear in the field below.
• Using the second bar under Device lets you select the output channels, which
means choosing which of the available outputs will be used to route your audio
out. If your selected device has only two outputs, then only two options will
appear here. If your device has more than two outputs, then you can select a
specific pair of outputs.
• The Buffer Size gives you the option to choose the size of the audio buffer your
computer uses to calculate sound.
♪A larger buffer means a lower CPU load as the computer has fewer interruptions and
longer amount of time to process commands. However, this can result in longer latency
(reaction time) between pressing a key and hearing the sound it’s supposed to produce,
which creates a considerable problem when wanting to play an instrument smoothly. On
the contrary, a smaller buffer means lower latency between pressing a key and hearing
the note but a higher strain on your CPU.
A fast, modern computer should be easily able to operate at low sample buffer
sizes (such as 256 or 128) without audio glitches. However, if you do hear
clicks, pops or other audio disruptions, try increasing the buffer size until you
reach smooth playback without any glitches. The latency time is displayed in
milliseconds on the right-hand side of this menu.
• The Sample Rate menu lets you set the sample rate at which audio is sent out
of the instrument. The options listed here will depend on the capability of your
audio interface hardware.
♪Virtually, all audio hardware can operate at 44.1 or 48 kHz which is perfectly fine in
most applications, including Prophet-VS V. Higher sample rates place greater loads on the
CPU so we recommend staying at 44.1 or 48 kHz unless you have a specific requirements
to work at high sample rates.
•Test Tone plays a simple test tone to help you troubleshoot any audio issues. You
can use this feature to confirm if the instrument is routed correctly through your
audio interface and whether audio is playing back to where you expect to hear
it (your speakers or headphones, for example).
Arturia - User Manual Prophet-VS V - Activation and Setup 11

• Your connected MIDI devices will appear in the MIDI Settings area. Note that
this is only displayed if MIDI devices are present on your computer. Click the
check box to accept MIDI data from the device you want to use to trigger the
instrument. Note that you can select more than one MIDI device if you wish to
play Prophet-VS V from multiple controllers.
•Tempo lets you set the tempo of the Prophet-VS V sequencer. When using
Prophet-VS V within a host music software as a plugin, the virtual instrument
gets tempo information from your host software.
2.2.2. macOS Users: Audio and MIDI settings
The process of setting up Audio and MIDI settings in a macOS system is overwhelmingly
similar to setting them up in Windows (described above), and the menu is accessed in an
identical way. The only difference here in macOS is that OS X uses CoreAudio to handle
audio routing, and within that, your audio device will be available in the second drop-down
menu.
2.2.3. Using Prophet-VS V in Plug-In Mode
Prophet-VS V comes in VST, AU and AAX plug-in formats for use in all major digital audio
workstation (DAW) host software, such as Cubase, Logic Pro, Pro Tools, Ableton Live, and
more. You can load it as a plug-in instrument and its interface and settings will work in the
same way as in stand-alone mode, with a few small differences:
• The instrument will now sync to your DAW’s host tempo.
• You can automate numerous parameters using your DAW’s automation system.
• You can use more than one instance of Prophet-VS V in a DAW project (in stand-
alone mode you can only run one instance of Prophet-VS V).
• You can route Prophet-VS V’s audio outputs more creatively inside your DAW
using the DAW’s own audio routing system.
Now that you've set up your software, it’s time to play!
12 Arturia - User Manual Prophet-VS V - Activation and Setup

3. THE USER INTERFACE
In this chapter we’ll start with an overview of the Prophet-VS V user interface. This will give
you an idea of how the instrument is organized and where to find things. We’ll dive deeper
into the main synth panel in Chapter 5 — Main Synth Panel [p.49].
3.1. High-Level Overview
Prophet-VS V is subdivided into four sections, three of which are annotated in the image
above.
1. The Upper Toolbar [p.14] This is where you handle administrative tasks such as
saving, loading and browsing presets, editing various setup and configuration
parameters, accessing the Preset Browser [p.32], and accessing other advanced
features of Prophet-VS V.
2. The Main Synth Panel: [p.49] Here is where you will likely spend most of your
time in Prophet-VS V. It contains a detailed reproduction of the Prophet-VS panel,
plus a few of our own features. We will go over this panel in the Main Synth Panel
[p.49] chapter.
3. The Lower Toolbar: [p.19] This section provides quick access to a number of
important parameters such as CPU usage, polyphony, edit history with undo/
redo, and Macro controls. Its left side also shows pop-up names for any control
over which you move the mouse.
4. The Side Panel: [p.22] Accessed by clicking the gear icon at upper right, this panel
contains MIDI and MPE settings, MIDI control assignments, Macro assignments,
and tutorials. (It’s not shown in the image above for reasons of neatness on the
page.)
Arturia - User Manual Prophet-VS V - The User Interface 13

3.2. The Upper Toolbar
The toolbar that runs along the top of the window provides access to many useful features
including the Prophet-VS V menu, preset browsing, access to Prophet-VS V's Advanced
mode, and important settings in the Side Panel [p.22]. This section will go over them from
left to right.
3.2.1. Main Menu
Clicking the “hamburger” (three horizontal lines) icon at the top left corner opens a pull-down
menu and lets you access many important features.
•New Preset: Creates a new Preset with default settings on all parameters. It is a
good place to start if you would like to create a new sound from scratch.
•Save Preset: Overwrites the currently loaded Preset with any changes you have
made. This is disabled on factory presets. To edit a factory Preset, first use the
“Save Preset As” option.
•Save Preset As Saves your Preset under a different name. Clicking this option
reveals a window where you can name your Preset and enter information about
it.
14 Arturia - User Manual Prophet-VS V - The User Interface

♪You can enter the Author’s name, select a Bank, and specify tags: Types, Styles, and
Characteristics. This becomes very useful for later searching in the Preset Browser [p.32]. You can even
enter freeform text in the Comments field, which is handy for providing a more detailed description.
•Import: Imports a file — either a single Preset or an entire Bank — from your
computer. File names have the extension “pvsx.”
•Export: You can export Presets in two ways: as a single Preset or as a Bank.
◦Export Preset: Exporting a single preset is handy when for sharing a
Preset with someone else. The default path to these files will appear
in the “save“ window, but you can create a folder at another location
if you like. The saved preset can be reloaded using the Import menu
option.
◦Export Bank: This option can be used to export an entire bank of
sounds from the instrument, which is useful for backing up or sharing
Presets. Saved banks can likewise be reloaded using Import .
•Resize Window: The Prophet-VS V window can be resized from 50% to 200% of
its original size without any visual artifacts. On a smaller screen such as a laptop
you may wish to reduce the interface size so it doesn’t dominate the display. On
a larger screen or a second monitor you can increase the size to get a better
view of the controls.
♪You can also use the keyboard shortcuts Ctrl & +/- (or Cmd & +/-) to quickly adjust the window size.
Note that in some DAWs, the same key commands may be used for zoom. In this case, the DAW takes
priority.
•Audio Settings (stand-alone mode only): Here you manage the way the
instrument transmits audio and receives MIDI. See Chapter 2 [p.9] for more
information.
When using Prophet-VS V as a plug-in, the host software handles all of the parameters in this menu
including audio and MIDI inputs and outputs, buffer size settings, and the like.
Arturia - User Manual Prophet-VS V - The User Interface 15

•Tutorials: Prophet-VS V comes with interactive, in-app tutorials that walk you
through different features of the instrument. Select one of the tutorial chapters to
get step-by-step descriptions of how to make the most of Prophet-VS V.
•Help: Provides links to the Prophet-VS User Manual and online FAQ.
•About: Here you can view the Prophet-VS V software version and “movie credits”
of everyone involved in its development. Click the About window again (or
anywhere on the interface) to close it.
16 Arturia - User Manual Prophet-VS V - The User Interface