Lexicon PCM NATIVE STRINGBOX User manual

OWNER’S MANUAL
PCM NATIVE STRINGBOX

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The Lexicon®Legacy
continues...

...with the PCM Native Stringbox
For over 40 years Lexicon®has
been recognized as the gold
standard of digital reverb and
effects processing and has
continuously introduced leading
edge technology for the audio
industry. Lexicon again rocked
the audio industry with the
introduction of the PCM Native
Reverb and PCM Native Effects
Plug-In Bundles, the ultimate
bundles for creating professional,
inspirational mixes within popular
DAWs like Pro Tools®, Logic®, and
any other VST®, Audio UnitTM, or
RTAS®compatible platform.
With all the flexibility you would
expect from native plug-ins,
these powerhouse plug-ins offer
legendary Lexicon processing
with the most versatile and finely
crafted studio presets. Designed
to bring the highest level of sonic
quality and functionality to all
your audio applications, the PCM
Native Series Plug-Ins will take
center stage in your DAW.

Congratulations and thank you
for purchasing the PCM Native Stringbox plug-in. With decades of legacy products to pull from,
the PCM Native plug-ins include the finest collection of factory presets available. Designed to
bring the highest level of sonic quality and functionality to all of your audio applications, the
PCM Native plug-ins will take center stage in your DAW.
Quick Start
• Open your DAW and choose the Lexicon plug-in from your list of plug-ins
• In the plug-in’s window, select a category
• Select a preset
• Adjust parameters (optional)
• Save the preset (optional)
It can be as simple or as in-depth as you’d like. The included presets work well for most
situations, but you can easily adjust any parameter and save any preset. See the “Factory
Presets” section for more information on editing, loading and saving presets.
Included Items
• PCM Native Stringbox software CD
• iLok license code
• This manual

Table of Contents
Installation ............................................... 1
Install the Plug-in .................................... 1
iLok License ............................................ 1
First Look—The User Interface................ 2
Overview................................................. 2
Strings Window .................................. 3
Decay/Tone Parameters ..................... 3
Level Meters....................................... 3
Preset Category.................................. 3
Preset Selector ................................... 3
Slider Parameters .............................. 3
Control Buttons.................................. 3
Combo Box Parameters ..................... 3
The Realtime Display .............................. 4
Off ...................................................... 5
String Resonance View....................... 5
The Control Buttons................................ 6
Compare ............................................ 6
Store................................................... 6
Reload ................................................ 6
Presets..................................................... 7
Loading a Preset..................................... 7
Storing and Managing Presets................ 8
Portable Presets...................................... 9
Where are presets stored?...................... 10
Tempo Mode Presets............................... 11
Getting the most out of your computer.. 12
The Algorithm.......................................... 16
Stringbox ................................................ 17
The Parameters ....................................... 18
Chorus................................................ 18
Decay Envelope ................................. 18
Delay Mode........................................ 18
Keyboard............................................ 18
Low Bright, Mid Bright, High Bright... 18
Low Decay, Mid Decay, High Decay... 18
Low Trim, Mid Trim, High Trim ........... 19
Mix...................................................... 19
Note Selection ................................... 19
Output Level ...................................... 19
Pan Mode........................................... 19
Predelay ............................................. 19
Rolloff ................................................. 19
String Response ................................. 19
Tail Width ........................................... 20
Transposition ...................................... 20
Tuning Master..................................... 20
Tuning System.................................... 20
Lexicon Plug-Ins & Upgrades................... 21
Available Lexicon Plug-Ins ...................... 21
Upgrading .............................................. 21

1
Installation
Install the Plug-in
Insert the CD into your CD-ROM drive. The Installer should start automatically.
If the Installer doesn’t start automatically, you can start it manually by opening the appropriate
file on the CD:
Mac®: Use the “.dmg” installation file
Windows®: Use the “32-bit.exe” or “64-bit.exe” installation file
Once the Installer is open, follow the on-screen instructions to install the software.
iLok License
You must download the license to your 2nd Generation iLok USB smart key before running
any program that might use this plug-in. If a valid iLok license is not present, the initial plug-in
validation scan will fail and you may not be able to run the plug-in without digging into your
system. For more information go to www.iLok.com.
Important! Your PCM Native Plug-in will not work without an authorized
2nd Generation iLok USB smart key inserted in your computer’s USB
port!

!
!

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First Look—The User Interface
Overview
When the plug-in is instantiated, you will see a window that looks something like this:
Decay/Tone
Parameters
Strings
Window
Keyboard
Combo Box
Parameters
Slider
Parameters
Preset
Category
Preset
Selector
Control
Buttons
Level Meters
Keyboard
When the Note Selection parameter is set to Keyboard this keyboard section becomes active.
This full piano keyboard allows you to select which keys are held down by clicking on each
key. When pressed, the key will turn yellow indicating that the key is being held down. Any
combination of keys can be held down and there is no limit to the number of keys that can be
held.
Note: The keyboard area in the Stringbox algorithm does not respond to midi note commands

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Strings Window
Stringbox has a unique metering system that shows just which strings are resonating. The
strings window is a real time visual representation of the piano strings vibrating based on the
energy in each resonator. There is a string image for each note. If that string is resonating, then
the string image brightens.
The Decay/Tone parameters can also be adjusted in this graphical display by selecting
the group of Decay/Tone parameters, then left clicking and dragging the nodes on the
corresponding colored line.
Decay/Tone Parameters
Filtering, decay and level can be set here in each of 3 bands. The resulting curve is displayed in
the strings window, represented by matching color coded lines.
Level Meters
Shows the input, output and feedback levels. The Feedback meters measure the energy level
being fed back into the beginning of the delay line.
Preset Category
Presets for the algorithm are grouped into categories to make them easier to find. Clicking
in this area will show the list of categories. Selecting a category will load the presets for that
category in the Preset Selector.
Preset Selector
Displays the list of presets within the selected category. Selecting a preset from the list will
cause the preset to be loaded into the plug-in.
Slider Parameters
These are the fader type parameters.
Control Buttons
These buttons are used to compare, reload and store presets. This is explained in more detail in
the “Control Buttons” section of this manual.
Combo Box Parameters
These are the combo box type parameters. Each parameter is described in the “Parameters”
section starting on page 18.

4
The Realtime Display
The realtime display window allows you to visualize the effect. While your ears will always be the
primary tool in choosing and adjusting presets, the display provides a direct way to see what’s
going on. Click anywhere in the realtime display window to change the view.

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Off
This display mode is the default view for the plug-in
and requires the least amount of CPU cycles.
String Resonance View
This disply mode shows a visual representation of
the piano strings vibrating based on the energy in
each resonator.

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The Control Buttons
These buttons let you access all of a preset’s parameters, manage presets, and compare
changes you’ve made to the original settings.
Compare
The Compare button temporarily resets all parameters to the original preset value. It is used to
get back to the original preset and quickly audition your edits verses the original preset. When
compare is on, all parameters are frozen and cannot be changed. Turning compare off returns
you to your edits. Choosing a different preset cancels compare mode.
Store
The Store button allows you to create and manage user presets. See the “Storing and
Managing Presets” section for more information.
Reload
Clicking the Reload button reloads the current preset, overriding all user edits.

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Presets
The PCM Native plug-ins come with a large complement of Factory Presets. These presets are
grouped in categories that make it easier for you to find the sound you need. Most presets also
come with several variants that may save you a lot of editing time.
Loading a Preset
The preset category is chosen from the drop-down menu in the upper-left portion of the edit
window. When you select a category, the preset menu is updated to show availability of the new
presets within the selected category. An initial preset will be loaded from the category. It will be
the first preset in the list unless you have previously visited the category. In that case, it will be
the last preset you loaded from that category.
Click here
to select
a category
Click here
to select
a preset

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Storing and Managing Presets
When you load a Lexicon®plug-in, the overall appearance may be something like this:
You will notice that the Lexicon plug-in (with the gold border) is embedded within a larger
window provided by the DAW. Appearance will differ from host to host (this example is from
Logic®). Oftentimes, the DAW itself provides the ability to save presets. The presets saved by
the DAW can only be used with the DAW that saved them. If you work with multiple DAWs, this
would be a problem. However, Lexicon®solves this problem with the use of Portable Presets.

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Portable Presets
When you store presets with the Lexicon Store button (shown below), your presets are available
to all DAWs on your machine. With only a little effort, you can also share them with other
machines, even when going between Mac and PC.
If you’ve made some edits you’d like to save as a User Preset, press the Store button on the
upper portion of the plug-in editor. You’ll see a screen that looks like this:
1. Click Store
2. Click to
edit name
3. Click Store
to save
The upper field contains the list of User Presets that have already been created for this
algorithm. Presets appear in alphabetical order. Click the name field to edit the name of the
preset. Once done, click the Store button.
The lower field contains the name of the preset that was loaded before you began editing.
You can easily click in this field and change the name to anything you like. Once you have the
appropriate name, click the Store button and the preset will be saved. If you decide not to save
the preset, pressing the Cancel button will return you to the editor without saving the preset.

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If you select one of the existing presets in the library, you can replace or delete that preset.
2. Preset name
appears here
Click to delete
1. Click on a preset
3. Click to replace, or
Where are presets stored?
On the Mac, User Presets are stored in:
”Home”/Library/Application Support/Lexicon/Native/User Presets/”AlgorithmName”
(“Home” is the name of the account you’re logged in under. “AlgorithmName” is the name of the plug-in.)
On Windows Vista/Seven, User Presets are stored in:
Users/”Username”/AppData/Roaming/Lexicon PCM Native/
UserPresets/”AlgorithmName”
(“Username” is the name of the account you’re logged in under. “AlgorithmName” is the name of the plug-in.)
On Windows XP, User Presets are stored in:
Documents and Settings/”Username”/Application Data/Lexicon PCM Native/User
Presets/”AlgorithmName”
(“Username” is the name of the account you’re logged in under. “AlgorithmName” is the name of the plug-in.)
Note: The AppData and Application Data folders are Windows system folders and are hidden
by default. Windows must be configured to “show hidden files and folders” to view these
folders.

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Tempo Mode Presets
Some presets will contain “(T)” in the preset name. These are tempo mode presets. The delays
in these presets respond (or are synced) to the tempo of the DAW. They are best used when the
tempo of the project actually reflects the tempo of the musical material (MIDI sequences and
such). In those cases, the tempo component of the preset will reinforce the tempo in some way.

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Getting the most out of your computer
The PCM Native plug-ins are written to be efficient, and most computers will run more copies
than you may need. But if you find yourself needing to squeeze a little bit more out of your
CPU, you can take the following simple steps:
• Turn off the active realtime display. The active display window can represent your effect
in real time. However, this display consumes some of your computer’s processing power.
If you click until you reach the static display, your computer will have more CPU power
available.
• Close the plug-in editor. Unless you’re actively controlling your mix in realtime, you don’t
need the editor after you’ve made the appropriate settings. All those knobs, faders and
displays require processing power. You can always reopen the editor if you need to edit.

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