Expert Sleepers super disting EX Plus Alpha User manual

Firmware v1.1.1
User Manual
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Copyright © 2020 Expert Sleepers Ltd. All rights reserved.
This manual as well as the hardware and software described in it is furnished under licence and
may be used or copied only in accordance with the terms of such licence. The content of this
manual is furnished for informational use only is subject to change without notice and should not
be construed as a commitment by Expert Sleepers Ltd. Expert Sleepers Ltd assumes no
responsibility or liability for any errors or inaccuracies that may appear in this document.
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Table of Contents
Introduction........................................................5
A note on videos............................................5
Installation.........................................................6
Power requirements.......................................6
Connecting expansion modules.....................6
Jumpers.........................................................7
Inputs and Outputs.............................................8
Controls..............................................................8
A note on the pots.........................................8
Menus............................................................8
SD Card slot.......................................................9
Inserting a MicroSD card..............................9
Supported MicroSD cards.............................9
Overview..........................................................11
Single Mode.....................................................11
Single mode concepts..................................11
Single mode display & controls..................11
Single mode common parameters...............12
Single mode help.........................................13
Dual Mode.......................................................14
disting mk4 firmware version.....................14
Sample rate..................................................14
Scala support...............................................14
Favourites....................................................14
Help.............................................................15
Z push functions & the Knob Recorder......15
disting mk4 algorithms not included...........15
disting mk4 algorithms with improved
specifications...............................................15
Entering dual mode.....................................16
Accessing the main menu from dual mode. 16
Presets in dual mode....................................16
Dual display modes.....................................16
Presets..............................................................18
Load preset..................................................18
Save preset..................................................18
Reset preset.................................................18
Name preset.................................................18
Load from SD card......................................19
Save to SD card...........................................19
Load all from SD card.................................19
Save all to SD card......................................19
Mappings.........................................................20
CV Mappings..............................................20
Knob Mappings...........................................21
Button Mappings.........................................21
MIDI Mappings...........................................22
I2C Mappings..............................................22
Load mapping..............................................23
Save mapping..............................................23
Reset mapping.............................................23
Name mapping............................................23
Load from SD card......................................24
Save to SD card...........................................24
Load all from SD card.................................24
Save all to SD card......................................24
Single Mode Algorithms..................................25
1 – Matrix Mixer..............................................26
Parameters...................................................26
2 – Augustus Loop...........................................28
Algorithm-specific display..........................29
Outputs........................................................29
Parameters...................................................29
Default mappings........................................31
Delay time multipliers.................................32
Tap tempo....................................................32
Inertia free mode.........................................32
3 – SD Multisample.........................................33
Algorithm-specific display..........................33
Outputs........................................................34
Parameters...................................................34
Default mappings........................................36
Chord scales................................................36
Chord shapes...............................................36
Arpeggio modes..........................................36
WAV file defaults.......................................37
4 – SD 6 Triggers.............................................38
Algorithm-specific display..........................38
Outputs........................................................39
Parameters...................................................39
WAV file defaults.......................................39
5 – WAV Recorder..........................................40
Algorithm-specific display..........................40
Outputs........................................................41
Parameters...................................................41
Output options.............................................42
WAV file naming conventions and playlists...43
Per-algorithm defaults.................................43
Automatic '-natural' values..........................43
Automatic '-switch' calculation...................43
Settings.............................................................45
General........................................................45
MIDI/I2C.....................................................45
Favourites....................................................46
Calibration...................................................46
Reset Settings..............................................46
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Miscellaneous functions..................................46
Show firmware version...............................46
Reboot.........................................................46
Show MIDI history.....................................47
Show I2C history.........................................47
Show stats....................................................47
Tests............................................................47
5-pin DIN MIDI I/O........................................49
Connections.................................................49
MIDI "Low-Voltage Signaling"..................49
MIDI System Exclusive (SysEx).....................50
SysEx Header..............................................50
Received SysEx messages...........................50
01H – Take screenshot...........................50
02H – Display message..........................50
22H – Request version string.................50
Sent SysEx messages..................................50
32H – Message.......................................50
33H – Screenshot....................................50
Select Bus........................................................51
I2C Connection................................................52
Calibration.......................................................53
Firmware Updates............................................54
Where to get help.............................................54
Acknowledgments...........................................54
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Introduction
Congratulations on your purchase of an Expert Sleepers 'super disting EX plus alpha' (hereafter
'disting EX'). Please read this user manual before operating your new module.
A note on videos
Throughout this user manual you will find links to videos which illustrate the corresponding
sections of the text. In general these have been shot at UHD (4k) resolution which as well as
looking more awesome has the practical benefit of making the module's display easier to read. You
are advised to watch the videos in full resolution if possible. Be aware that some web browsers
notably Safari do not support watching YouTube videos in 4k.
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Installation
House the module in a Eurorack case of your choosing. The power connector is 16-pin Doepfer
standard1. If using the power cable supplied with the module the red edge of the cable is furthest
from the top edge of the PCB and carries -12V. ("-12V" is marked on the PCB itself next to this
end of the connector.) Be sure to connect the other end of the power cable correctly again so -12V
corresponds to the red stripe on the cable.
Power requirements
The disting EX draws up to 229mA on the +12V rail and 50mA on the -12V rail.
It does not use the 5V rail.
Connecting expansion modules
Turn off the power before connecting or disconnecting expansion modules.
1 http://www.doepfer.de/a100_man/a100t_e.htm
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Connect an ES-5 module via the header on the back of the disting EX marked “GT3/To ES-5”
using the 10-way cable provided. The red stripe should be oriented down on both modules as
shown in the photo above and in the ES-5 user manual2.
Connect an FHX-8GT or FHX-8CV module via the header on the back of the disting EX marked
“GT2/FHX Expansion”. The red stripe should be oriented down on both modules as shown in the
photo above.
Connect a MIDI breakout to the header on the back of the disting EX marked “GT4/MIDI”. See the
MIDI I/O section below.
A device or module that communicates via I2C (e.g. the 16n Faderbank3) can be connected via the
header marked “JP2”. See the I2C Connection section below.
Jumpers
There is one jumper header on the disting EX marked “JP1” which sets whether the system CV bus
line is used for pitch CV (the traditional use as implemented by Doepfer) or as the Select Bus. See
below for more on the disting EX's Select Bus implementation.
The photo above shows the jumper in the Select Bus position.
Regardless of this jumper position the disting EX always connects to the system gate bus.
2 https://expert-sleepers.co.uk/es5usermanual.html
3 https://16n-faderbank.github.io
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Inputs and Outputs
The disting EX has six analogue inputs and four analogue outputs on 3.5mm TS jack sockets. These
are designed to cope with any Eurorack signal (with a range of approximately ±10V) and are DC
coupled so can be used for CVs as well as audio.
The inputs are numbered on a white background; the four outputs are at the bottom of the module.
The disting mk4 labelling (Z/X/Y/A/B) is also printed on the panel in orange.
The jack sockets are illuminated lighting red for positive voltage and blue for negative voltage.
(Audio appears purple since it is a rapid alternation of positive and negative.)
Controls
The disting EX has two rotary encoders (labelled P & V notionally for 'parameter' and 'value') and
two rotary potentiometers (labelled L & R for 'left' and 'right'). All four of these controls also have
a push-button function.
A note on the pots
On the disting mk4 the Z pot and the Z input jack are permanently linked and the LEDs of the Z
jack display the combined signal from the pot and jack.
On the disting EX this is still the case when in dual mode but in single mode the pots are
completely independent of the jacks and the jack LEDs reflect only the incoming signal.
Menus
Video
Many of the module's non-realtime functions are accessed via a menu. The menu is accessed by
pressing 'P' (in single mode) or both 'P' & 'V' together (in dual mode).
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While the menu is active turning 'P' scrolls through menu items and pressing 'P' chooses the
current menu item (or descends to the next menu level if the current menu item is a submenu).
Pressing 'V' jumps back up one menu level. Holding down 'V' exits the menu completely.
SD Card slot
The disting EX has a MicroSD card slot to the left of the display.
Inserting a MicroSD card
Video
The exposed contacts of the card should face towards the display; the angled side of the card itself
points up.
The slot is of the "push-push" type - to remove the card push it in slightly and it will spring out.
Supported MicroSD cards
In theory any MicroSD card will work but in practice there is a huge variety of cards on the market
and we cannot possibly test them all. We recommend 32GB SDHC cards.
The MicroSD card must be formatted in FAT32 format which is the as-sold state for many cards. If
not cards can easily be reformatted to FAT32 in Windows or macOS.
The card also needs to be partitioned using the 'Master Boot Record' (MBR) scheme. In macOS's
Disk Utility you may need to select View->Show All Devices to inspect the partitioning scheme.
The Erase settings should look like this:
The speed of your SD card can be estimated using the 'Test SD speed' menu (under Misc->Tests).
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The maximum speed achievable with the disting EX is around 3 MB/s.
Technical note: the disting EX accesses the MicroSD card in SPI mode and so can never achieve
the rated speed of the card which assumes full SD bus access. It can however use High Speed mode
where available to double the throughput. Unfortunately whether a given card supports High Speed
mode over SPI seems to be hard to gauge from the specs – we've tested a number of cards rated at
UHS-I and above some of which support High Speed mode and some of which don't. For the
record the Samsung EVO range do; the Sandisk Extreme range does not. A card which does not
support High Speed mode will read around 1.8 MB/s on the disting EX's 'Test SD speed'.
A card that reads less than around 1.8 MB/s should be viewed with suspicion and is probably not a
good choice for card-intensive purposes such as playing or recording WAV files.
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