D16 Group LUSH-2 User manual

User Manual
20 June 2023, 15:45

Requirements
Soware and hardware requirements:
Windows PC
OS version Windows 7 or newer
CPU Intel x86 / AMD x86
Soware VST2/VST3/AAXcompablehostapplicaon(32bitor64bit)
Apple Mac
OS version OS X 10.13 or newer
CPU Intel x86 / Apple Silicon
RAM 8GB(16GBRecommended)
Soware AU/VST2/VST3/AAXcompablehostapplicaon(64bit!)
Hardware requirements / recommendaons are based on esmates performed on available computers at D16 Group HQ,
and therefore cannot cover all possible conguraons available on the market. CPU usage may vary widely depending on the
manner in which the product is used. Factors that may contribute to variance in CPU usage include parcular patch and its
complexity, the global quality seng, project sample rate. In order to form a beer understanding of how a plug-in will behave
within your current setup, we highly recommend downloading the demo and giving it a try.
2
RequiRements •

Preliminary informaon
Thischaptercontainsgeneraladviceforusingtheplug-in’sinterface.
To do a right-click on macOS with single buon mice:
Eitheruseyour mouse click whileholdingtheCTRL key onyourkeyboardorusetwo ngers onyourtouchpad.
Checking the value of a parameter
Right-click onanyparametertocheckitsvalueinitscontextmenu:
A parameter’s context menu
Note: It’s currently not possible to enter a precise value in the input box; it’s just to check the value.
Fine-tuning connuous parameters
Tweakacontrol(knob)whileholdingtheCTRL key(onWindows)or Apple CMDkey(onmacOS)-thiswillmake
thetweakingmoreprecisewhilemovingthemousepointerupanddown.
Double-click to reset a connuous parameter’s value
Double-clickingonaparameterrestoresitsvaluetotheinialstate,eitherdefault(rightaerloading
theplug-in/loadingitalongaprojectle)orfromthemostrecentlyloadedpreset.
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PReliminaRy infoRmation •

Enabling parameters for automaon
Lush 2synthesizerhasthousandsofsoundparametersandVST/AU/AAXhostautomaonallowsonlyahandful
ofautomatableparameterssoby default all parameters are disabled for automaon.
Usingtheparameter’scontextmenu(describedabove),youcanenableautomaonforparametersyouwishto
controlexternally:
A parameter’s context menu
Lush 2 works only with specic sample rate values
Lush 2 worksonlywiththefollowingsampleratevalues[Hz]:
• 44100
• 48000
• 88200
• 96000
• 192000
Ifyoutrytouseanyothercustomsamplerate,theplug-inwillswitchinto44kHzmode,whichmaycauseitto
sounddierentlyorcauseaudioarfactstoappear.
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PReliminaRy infoRmation •

Introducon to Lush
Lush 2isapolyphonicsubtracvesynthesizer.Itsstructureisbasedon8layers.EachLayerisanindependentsynthe-
sizerwithitsownparametersandpolyphony.
EachofthelayerscanlistentoadierentMIDIchannelandrespondtoadierentkeyboardzone.Therefore,the
synthesizerworksasamul-mbralinstrumentwhereeachLayeriscontrolledviaadierentMIDI channel.Itis
alsopossibletoconvenientlysplitaMIDIkeyboardintosecons,wheredierentLayerslistentodierentkeyboard
seconsofthesameMIDI channel.YoucanalsocreatecomplexsoundtexturesbyoverlappingLayers,wheremore
thanonelayerlistenstothesamekeyboardzoneonthesameMIDIchannel.
Lush 2 allowsforconvenientmixingofLayerswithinacustom-designed,built-inMixer,wherewecanaddnaltouch-
esthroughparametricequalizers,compressors(oneperchannel)and3built-insendeects.Eachofthetrackscorre-
spondingtooneLayeroreachof3availableeecttrackscorrespondingto3sendeectscanbesenttoanyof11
availableplug-inoutputs.
A diagram showing the general signal ow
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intRoduction to lush •

Theplug-inGUIlooksasfollows:
The Graphical User Interface
AtthetopofGUI,thereisabarcalledthe Controlsecon:
The Control secon
Andbelowit,wecanseethepartoftheGUIresponsibleforedingasingleLayer (thisisthedefaultview,aeropening
Lush 2inahostapplicaon).
The Synthesis view containing a Layer’s parameters
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intRoduction to lush •

Control secon
TheControlseconoccupiesthetopbaroftheGUI.
The Control secon
IntheControlsecon,wecandisnguishthefollowinggroupsofcontrols:
Opons
TheOponsbuonallowsaccesstoanOponsmenu.Allplug-insengscanbeconguredfromhere.
The Opons buon
Global preset browser
TheGlobal Preset seconcanloadandsaveGlobal Presets(thispresettypeisdescribedlater)andadjust
Global Preset sengs:
The Preset Management secon for Global Presets
Here,wehavethefollowingcontrols:
• Global Preset-ThetextboxcontainingthenameofthecurrentlyloadedGlobal Preset.Clickingthedisplay
opensabrowsertoloadandmanagepresets(moreonthatinthePreset Management partofthemanual).
• Cog(icon)-OpenstheGlobal Preset Sengs window.
• Save-Storescurrentparametersengsof Lush 2 as a new preset.
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contRol section • OptiOns

Layer selector
TheLayer Selector containsthreerowsofbuonstoselectaLayerforeding(rstrow-Select),turntheLayeron/o
(secondrow-Enable)andmute/solotheLayer(thirdrow-Mute).
Abovethis,thereisarowofPadlocksforlockingindividualLayers,prevenngoverwriteofselectedLayer parameters
whenaGlobal Preset is loaded.
The Layer Selector
View selector
BuonsforswitchingtheView:
The View (tab) selector
• Synth-EditsaselectedLayer’s sound parameters.
• Modulaon Matrix -EditsaselectedLayer’smodulaonmatrix.
• Mixer -MixesandcombinesthesoundfromallLayers together.
Master volume
Master Volume knob-controlstheoverallvolumeoftheoutputsoundcomingfromLush 2.
Global preset sengs
ThispanelcontainsspecicsengsfortheGlobal Presetthatarenotnecessarilyathandwhenyoueditasound.
Global Preset SengsarestoredwithaGlobal Preset.
ToopentheGlobal Preset Sengspanel,youneedtousetheCog iconintheGlobal Preset seconontheGUI:
Opening the Global Preset Sengs panel
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contRol section • Layer seLectOr

Thiswindowwillappear:
The Global Preset Sengs window
Here,youcanmanagetheMIDI Zonesandtransposion(MIDItab),andchoosehowArpeggiatorsinteractwitheach
otheracrosstheLayers(Arpeggiator tab).
MIDI tab
Zone editor
IntheMIDItab,wecaneasilyandconvenientlyeditwhichMIDIzonesdierentLayerswillrespondto.Eachkeyboard
Zoneisdenedasacompleterangebetweentwonotes.Thelowernotedenesthebeginningandthehighernote
denestheendoftheZone.TheZone editorisarrangedinrows,whereeachrowrepresentsasingleLayer.
The MIDI Zone editor
Whenyouhoveroverazone,twosmalldotswilllightuponeitherside:
Eding a Zone
Youcandragthedotsusingthemousepointerandsetthebeginningorendofeachzone.
Youcanalsoholdtherectangleinthemiddleusingthemousepointerandmoveanenrezoneleandright.
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contRol section • GLObaL preset settinGs

Zone learn
Addionally,theZone Learnfunconisavailable:
The Zone Learn funcon
WecanuseittodeneaZone directlyfromtheMIDIkeyboard:
1. PresstheZone Learnbuon.
2. ClicktoselectarowintheZone Editor,whichwillturnorange.
3. Theplug-inisnowignoringChannel sengsinOpons,insteadlisteningtoallMIDIchannelsandwaingfor
twoMIDInotemessages.
4. WhenyoupresstwokeysonyourMIDIkeyboard,eithersimultaneouslyoronebyone,theplug-inwillautoma-
callysetthebeginningandendofaZone,takingthelowernoteasthebeginningandthehighernoteastheend.
5. Youcanrepeatsteps2–4ifyouwanttosetupMIDIZonesformorethanoneLayer.
6. Press Zone Learnagaintodeacvatethefuncon.
Transposion
NexttotheZone Editor,theTransposecolumncanperformtransposionforeachLayer:
The Layer Transposion column
ThiscolumnliststheTransposion parametersfromallLayers insingleplaceforconvenience,sochangesherewillbe
reectedaschangesinthesynthesisviewalso:
The Layer transposion parameter
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contRol section • GLObaL preset settinGs

Arpeggiator tab
The Arpeggiator tab - Global Preset Sengs
Thisseconcontainsonlyoneseng:Arpeggio Sync Mode.
IfweusetheArpeggiator onmorethanoneLayer, Arpeggio Sync ModedeneshowtheArpeggiators communicate
orsynchronizeacrossLayers.ThemersforArpeggiators in Layers canworkindependentlyortogetheraccordingto
speciccriteria.Ifthemersoftwoormore
Arpeggiatorsarejoinedtogether,therstArpeggiator triggered(Master)generatesamastermingsignalsimultaneous-
lywhilegenerangitssequenceofnotes.TheotherArpeggiatorswillbesynchronizedtothis.Inotherwords,subse-
quenttriggeredArpeggiators(Slave)willgenerateanotesequence(s)quanzed/synchronizedwithamingsignal
generatedbytheMaster Arpeggiator. Arpeggio Sync ModedenesthecriterionbywhichArpeggiators in Layers are
groupedtogether.Withinasinglegroup,therstArpeggiatortriggeredbecomestheMaster.Wecanselectoneofthe
followingcriteria:
• Common MIDI Channel-Arpeggiators setonthesameMIDIchannel(Opons panel)aregroupedtogetherand
thersttriggeredArpeggiatorsynchronizesotherArpeggiators inthegroup.AnytwoArpeggiatorsindierent
LayerslisteningtothesameMIDIchannelaregroupedtogetherandoneofthembecomesaMaster.Anytwo
Arpeggiators in Layers listeningtodierentMIDIchannelswillbeinseparategroups.
• All together-All8Arpeggiators(fromall8Layers)aregroupedtogether;whenoneofthemistriggered,the
otherArpeggiatorsadjusttheirmerstotherst.
• Each independent-AllArpeggiators workcompletelyindependentlyandnoneaecttheothers.
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contRol section • GLObaL preset settinGs

Layer parameters
We access LayerparametersbyclickingtheSynthbuonintheControlsecon:
The View (tab) selector
TheyaredisplayedinthemainpartofGUI:
The Synthesis view, containing a Layer’s parameters
Fromthe8available,wecanselecttheLayerwewanttoeditusingtheLayerseleconbuonsintheControl secon:
The Layer selector
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layeR PaRameteRs • GLObaL preset settinGs

InasingleLayer,wecandisnguishbetweenthefollowinggroupsofcontrols:
• Layer [No.] -BrowsepresetsforindividualLayersandtransposethem
The Layer Presets browser
• Voices-Polyphonymanagement
The Voices secon
• FX Rack–ForprocessingtheLayer’soutgoingsignalthroughtwoinserteects
The FX Rack secon
• Layer Out -TomakenaltouchesbeforethesignalgoesintotheMixer
The Layer master
• Asetofsoundparameterstogeneratethesound
The Layer’s sound parameters
• Arpeggiator-AsetofparameterscontrollingtheLayer’s Arpeggiator
The Layer’s sound parameters
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layeR PaRameteRs • GLObaL preset settinGs

The layer’s top bar
AtthetopofLayer parameters,youwillndthissecon:
The Layer control parameters
Youcanndthere:
Layer preset browser
The Layer Preset Browser secon:
The Layer Preset Browser
Presets in Lush 2canbecreatedandstoredonafewlevelsofhierarchy,eitherforspecicgroupsofparametersorfor
allparameters;theycanbecreatedforasingleLayerorforacombinaonofall8 Layers,andtheycanalsobecreated
foraddionalparameterssuchasMixersendsengs.SingleLayer presets are called Layer Presetsandpresetsfora
combinaonofLayers are called Global Presets,andbecausethesearestoredinhierarchy,aGlobal Preset can load up
Layer Presetswithinit.
IntheLayer Preset Browsersecon,wehavethefollowingcontrols:
• Preset-ThetextboxcontainingthenameofthecurrentlyloadedLayer Preset.Clickingthedisplayopensa
browsertoload,saveandmanagepresets(moreonthatinthePreset Managementpartofthemanual).
• Copy (icon)-CopiesparametersfromthecurrentlyselectedLayerintoabuer.
• Paste (icon)-PastesparametersfromthebuerontoaselectedLayer.
Layer transposion
The Layer’s transposion seng
Thisallowsfortransposingalayerby24 half-tonesupordownin1half-tonesteps.
Polyphony and unison
Polyphony sengs
Voices - Polyphony sengs
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layeR PaRameteRs • the Layer’s tOp bar

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Inthissecon,wecaneditPolyphony and Portamentosengsforthe Layer:
• Polyphony-Chooseupto32voicesofPolyphonyfortheselectedLayer.Ifthenumberofvoicesisequalto1
thentheLayerwillplayinMono mode.
• Portamento-Onlyavailablewith Monomode(Polyphony=1).TurntheknobtocontrolPortamentome,which
isthemeofsmoothpitchslidebetweentwosuccessivenotes.TheradiogrouptotherightcontrolsthePorta-
mentomodeandithasthreevalues:
• O-Portamentoiso.
• Always-Portamentoisalwayson(foroverlappingandnon-overlappingMIDInotes).
• Legato-Portamento worksonlyforoverlappingMIDInotes.
Unison
Voices - Unison sengs
Unison modemakestheLayerplayasinglenotewithafewvoicesofPolyphonyatthesameme,inwhicheachvoice
hasslightlyvariedsengs(forTune, Panorama and/or its Filter’scuto).Bydefault,Unisonmodeisturnedo(valueof
Unison at1).Increasing the valueof the UnisonLEDdisplayturnsonUnison,andtheSpread knobsbecomeacve.
• Tune-ThevolumeofdetunedvoicesinUnison.
• Pan -ThespreadofvoicesinUnison.
• Filter-ThestrengthofFiltercutospreadamongthevoicesofUnison.
A Unison spread diagram
PleasenotethatUnison mode “steals” Polyphony,e.g.whenwesetUnison to 2,wewillnotbeabletosetthepolypho-
nygreaterthan16becauseitwouldexceed32voicesintotal(UnisonvoicesmulpliedbyPolyphony).
Voice sengs
ClickingtheCogiconnexttotheVoiceslabel…
Accessing Voice sengs panel
…allowsaccesstotheVoice sengs panel.
layeR PaRameteRs • the Layer’s tOp bar

Voice sengs panel
Polyphony mode -PolyphonyfortheLayer islimitedbythenumberofvoicesallocated;ifPolyphonyistoosmallthen
previouslyplayedandsustainedsoundswillbestoppedbynewincomingMIDInotes.Thiswillbemostnoceablefor
sustainedphrasesand/orforsoundswithlongerreleasemes.In Lush 2,wecanchoosehownotesshouldbedistribut-
edamongavailablevoicesofpolyphony;thatistosay,theorderinwhichvoicesshouldbeassignedtoincomingnotes
andlaterreleased.Therearetwomodesbuilt-in:
• First played rst released-(Defaultvalue)Thisisanalogoustoaqueueofnoteswheretherstnoteinasustained
sequencewillbealsotherstonereleased-amethodinspiredbyKorg’sanaloguesynthesizers.
• First played last released-Voicesmanagementisdoneinawaysimilartoastack,wherethenoteprevioustoany
newnotewillbetherstreleased-thismethodwasinspiredbyRoland’sanaloguesynthesizers.
Sound synthesis
Lush 2isasubtracvesynthesizerandthesignalowcontroldoesnotdiersubstanallyfrommostcompacthardware
orsowaresynthesizersonthemarket.Itencompassesalltheelementsandcomponentswidelyusedinmodern
synthesizers.
The Synthesis parameters
Oscillators
Lush 2 hasfouroscillators:
• SquarewithadjustablepulsewidthandaHard Syncopon.
• SawtoothwithHard Sync and SuperSaw opons.
Note: The supersaw oscillator mixes a few sawtooth waveforms together, each slightly detuned.
• Suboscillatorwith5 dierentwaveformstoselectfrom.
• Noise generatorwiththreedierentcolorstoselectfrom.
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layeR PaRameteRs • sOund synthesis

Oscillators mixer
Oscillatorscanbemixedtogetherproporonally,setbyslidersplacedintheVoltageControlledOscillator(VCO)
secon:
Synthesis - VCO mixer
Starngfromtheleside,slidersinthisseconareresponsiblefor:
• Volume ofSquareoscillatorwithadjustablepulsewidth
• Volume ofSawtooth oscillator
• VolumeofSuboscillator
• Volume ofNoisegenerator
A VCO diagram
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layeR PaRameteRs • sOund synthesis

Oscillator’s independent Voltage Controlled Amplier (VCA)
ClickingtheEnvelopeiconintheVCOsecon:
Accessing the Independent VCA
Wegetaccessto the Independent VCA panel.
An individual VCA panel
It’spossibletomodulatethevolumeofindividualoscillatorswithamodulaonSource;thesourcebrowserboxabove
theoscillatorfadersallowsyoutochooseoneofeithertwoavailableEnvelopesortwoavailableLFOs.TheVolume
Modbuonsbelowitselectwhichoscillatorsshouldbeaected.
A diagram showing the oscillators’ independent amplitude modulaon by selected Source
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layeR PaRameteRs • sOund synthesis

The oscillators’ waveform opons
ClickingthesinewaveiconintheVCOsecon:
Accessing the VCO modiers panel
WegetaccesstotheVCO Waveform Opons panel.
The VCO modiers panel
SuperSaw
TheSuperSawmodeiscontrolledbyonebuonandtwoknobs.
SuperSaw mode
• Super -AcvatesanddeacvatesSuperSawmodeandthefollowingparameters:
• Amt -Setstheeectstrength;thebiggerthevalueis,themoresawoscillatorsareadded.
• Detune -Setsthedetunevaluebetweenaddionalsawoscillators.
Note: Please note that SuperSaw and Hard Sync cannot work simultaneously. If you turn on Hard Sync mode, SuperSaw will
be automacally disabled.
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layeR PaRameteRs • sOund synthesis

SuperSawisafunconoftheSawtoothoscillator,thereforetheamplitudeofSuperSaw iscontrolledbySawtooth’s
volumefaderintheVCO secon.
The VCO’s sawtooth volume
Suboscillator waveform
TheWavedisplay:
The Suboscillator’s waveform
ThischoosesoneoftheveavailablewaveformsfortheSuboscillator:
• Square with50 / 50pulsewidth,one octave belowbasefrequency
• Sawtooth, one octave belowbasefrequency
• Squarewith50 / 50pulsewidth,two octaves belowbasefrequency
• Sawtooth, two octaves below basefrequency
• Square with25 / 75pulsewidth,two octaves belowbasefrequency
Noise type
TheTypedisplay:
The Noise type selector
ThisselectsfromthefollowingnoisetypesfortheNoise generator:
• White
• Pink
• Brown
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layeR PaRameteRs • sOund synthesis