Native Instruments Reaktor Spark User manual

MANUAL

The information in this document is subject to change without notice and does not represent a
commitment on the part of Native Instruments GmbH. The software described by this document is
subject to a License Agreement and may not be copied to other media. No part of this publication
may be copied, reproduced or otherwise transmitted or recorded, for any purpose, without prior
written permission by Native Instruments GmbH, hereinafter referred to as Native Instruments. All
product and company names are ™ or ® trademarks of their respective owners.
Manual written by Aleksander Rebane
Document Version: 1.1 (06/2010)
Product Version: 1.0.1
Special thanks to the Beta Test Team, who were invaluable not just in tracking down bugs, but in
making this a better product.

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REAKTOR SPARK – IV
Table Of Contents
1 WelcometoREAKTORSPARK!...........................................................................................5
2 InterfaceOverview............................................................................................................6
3 UsingREAKTORSPARK......................................................................................................7
3.1 SignalFlow.............................................................................................................7
3.2 Tutorial................................................................................................................. 10
4 ControlReference........................................................................................................... 19
4.1 OscillatorsSection................................................................................................20
4.2 RingMod/FilterSection.........................................................................................22
4.3 ShaperSection.....................................................................................................24
4.4 SpecialSection....................................................................................................25
4.5 MixerSection......................................................................................................26
4.6 CabinetSection....................................................................................................27
4.7 8-PoleFilterSection.............................................................................................28
4.8 ModDelaySection...............................................................................................29
4.9 ReverbSection.....................................................................................................30
4.10 OscillatorEnvelopeSection...................................................................................31
4.11 ModulationEnvelopeSection.................................................................................33
4.12 ModulationEnvelopeAmountsSection...................................................................34
4.13 ModulationMacroControllerSection.....................................................................35
4.14 LFOSection.........................................................................................................36
5 Credits...........................................................................................................................38

REAKTOR SPARK – 5
SPRACHE IN Paragraph-Style “05 - STANDARD Fließtext” passend einstellen
1 Welcome to REAKTOR SPARK!
Thank you very much for purchasing REAKTOR SPARK. On behalf of the entire Native
Instruments team, we hope this instrument will truly inspire you.
REAKTOR SPARK puts a large collection of production-ready sounds for contemporary music
production directly under your ngertips: REAKTOR SPARK has it all, from pad to lead sounds,
from percussive keyboards to oating soundscapes.
It is a diverse collection of dynamic and expressive sounds based on the innovative SPARK
ensemble: saucy synth leads, vibrant percussive sounds, and quasi-chaotically evolving pads,
readily responding to your individual way of playing. In either a studio environment or a live
performance situation, the sounds included can be used in Rock, Jazz, Industrial, Psychedelic,
Sound Tracks, and various electronic genres ranging from Electro to IDM, but the musical
genre is actually not important. It’s all up to you...
We hope you enjoy this ne instrument as much as we do.
- The team at Native Instruments

REAKTOR SPARK – 6
2 Interface Overview
The SPARK Ensemble in REAKTOR
SPARK takes full advantage of the far-reaching capabilities of REAKTOR. The main concept
behind SPARK is to allow dramatic real-time inuence on the sound source. Like a natural
instrument, it needs to be played expressively in order to reach its full potential. SPARK’s
secret lies in the way it uses various feedback loops to generate its own input, enabling you
to inuence the sound with relatively few, but carefully chosen parameters.

REAKTOR SPARK – 7
3 Using REAKTOR SPARK
It is exactly because of SPARK’s unconventional signal routing that SPARK achieves its ex-
pressive sonic character. Not only SPARK’s sonic capabilities set it apart from other more
conventional synthesizers, but also the way it is used. To help you get familiar with the be-
haviour of SPARK’s controls, we will briey discuss the signal ow within the ensemble and
then proceed to demonstrate the most prominent aspects of SPARK in a step-by-step tutorial.
3.1 Signal Flow
SPARK’s control panel features the access to parameters that cannot be intuitively under-
stood without knowledge of the signal ow. According to the gure on the following page, we
will go through the main aspects of SPARK’s signal ow. The names of the different parts of
the signal ow that directly correspond to the labels in the control panel are capitalized and
given the name sections.
The sound generation in the instrument happens by two oscillators, Pulse and Sine, in the
Oscillators section. Here we see how the output of two simple oscillators is more than just
simple static waveforms: SPARK’s signal routing makes it possible to create complex and
evolving waveforms by letting the feedback signal control both oscillators by frequency modu-
lation and/or the Pulse oscillator by hard synchronization. In the gure on the next page, the
bold lines illustrate the path of the feedback signal.

REAKTOR SPARK – 8
This diagram shows SPARK’s feedback signal ow
The output of the Oscillators section is the mixed with the feedback signal by the crossfader
marked as “Filter FB” and fed as the carrier signal to an amplitude modulator, the rst ele-
ment in the Ringmod/Filters section. Again, the modulating signal again is the feedback signal.
Amplitude modulation reduces the presence of the carrier signal harmonics, but adds the
harmonics of the modulation signal into the mix in a more complex manner than just adding
the two signals together.
The amplitude modulated signal is then ring modulated by the output of the Oscillators sec-
tion. Ring modulation causes the harmonics to be mixed in a manner similar to amplitude

REAKTOR SPARK – 9
modulation with the difference that the harmonics of the incoming signals are not left intact.
This often causes inharmonic spectra. The signal from the ring modulator is then fed to the
lter, and subsequently to the shaper.
The voice delay in the Special section is a key element in the creating the feedback signal, it
determines which frequencies are excited in the feedback loop. The frequency shifter is the
last structure that allows direct manipulation of the frequency content of the spectra.
In the Mixer section, the signals from different points along the described path can be tapped
and mixed together to be processed by the Effects section. The effects are always running
and the degree that the output of the Mixer section is processed by a certain effect unit is
controlled by the unit´s Mix Knob.
The feedback signal is put together in the Special Section using the “FB Mono” and “Int –
Ext” crossfaders, where turning the knobs to the right increasingly crossfades to the signal
that is represented on the right side of the crossfader in the gure. By now it is fairly obvious
that the sound that reaches the instrument output at the end of the effects chain can have a
wide range of timbres and evolving behaviours made possible by manipulating the feedback
loop. Even with good knowledge of the signal ow the effects of changing the parameters can
often be quite surprising, but that is also part of the fun when exploring SPARK’s capabilities.

REAKTOR SPARK – 10
3.2 Tutorial
In this tutorial we will use a sound from the REAKTOR SPARK SOUNDPACK and manipulate
it using the SPARK control panel with the goal to create a new sound with certain character-
istics. We want to make use of some of the special qualities of SPARK and for that reason
we will opt for two main characteristics: rst, the sound should exhibit a full, warm character
that responds to the way notes are played and second, we want to implement SPARK’s feed-
back loop to create interesting self-oscillating ripples that accompany the sound. The sound
should have a denite pitch and have behaviour predictable enough that melodies can be
played with it at both slow and fast speeds.
The universal Value Display in the SPARK Ensemble
To see the exact values of the currently handled controller, use the orange Value DiSplay located
above the Cabinet saturator unit. If you just want to check what value a controller has, click
on it, and press the up or down arrow key on your keyboard. The value of that controller will
appear in the universal Value DiSplay.
To start off, we load the “Paddikk” REAKTOR Snapshot by Denis Gökdag. Play around with
the sound a bit and note the slow attack time and the periodic chorus-like effect induced by
the LFO. For further playback of the sound during this tutorial, we will stick to the MIDI note
C4 (MIDI value 72), as the timbre of the sound can signicantly differ in different registers.
First, we remember that, instead of a slowly evolving pad, we are looking for a synth lead type
of sound, and we shouldn’t have to wait after pressing the key to hear the sound. We see that
the amplitude envelope in the Oscillators section shows a long attack time. Turn the knob
with the label a to the value -4 and hear that playing a note will yield a sound right away.

REAKTOR SPARK – 11
Set an Attack time value of -4 by clicking the Knob labelled A and dragging the mouse downwards.
Also notice how even such a small change can drastically inuence the feel of the sound. The
Vel to leVel FaDer is important to how our sound responds to the hardness we play the notes
with (velocity): right now we see it have a value of 1. This means that the peak amplitude of
the oscillators, as determined by the envelope, responds linearly to the velocity. Playing the
MIDI keys softly yields a different sound than hitting the keys hard. See the Control Reference
section for more information on this.
Next we want to nd out how the chorus-type effect is created and how we can change its
timing. As we play the note we notice that the movement of the horizontal fader labelled
Mc3 on the top part of the screen coincides with the effect. Mc3 is one of the three macro
controllers that can be assigned to modulate a number of parameters within SPARK by the
menus and sliders to the right of the macro controllers. Note that you need to hit the MIDI
keys with a certain velocity to hear the chorus-type effect.
The Mc3 FaDer’S settings are currently being modulated by an LFO.
The lit LED left of the controller Mc3 indicates that the LFO, which is controlled by the knobs
in the top left part of the screen, is currently modulating this parameter. We can change the
lFo rate to make the effect happen more frequently, or increase the lFo aMount to make
the effect stronger.

REAKTOR SPARK – 12
Turning the lFo rate and aMount KnobS changes the character of the chorus effect.
For now let us turn off the LFO modulation of Mc3 by clicking on the button left of the Mc3
FaDer. While playing the note we can also manually move Mc3 by clicking and dragging the
Mc3 FaDer with the mouse. We see that the movement of the tiMe Knob in the Special section
of SPARK’s control panel coincides with the movement of the Mc3 FaDer. We see also that to
the right of the Mc3 FaDer in the menu the item Delay tiMe has been chosen. Also, the slider
on the right of the menu determines the extent of the change of the D elay t iMe p araMeter
with a movement of the Mc3 FaDer. Setting the slider to its midpoint causes the Mc3 FaDer
to have no effect on the corresponding parameter. For now we don’t want to manipulate the
parameters by the macro controllers but directly. We turn our attention to the Delay tiMe Knob
in the Special section and turn it all the way to the left.
While turning the Delay tiMe Knob, you hear a chorus effect.
Next, we move on to the Oscillators section, where the sound generators of SPARK lie.

REAKTOR SPARK – 13
The sound generation in SPARK is controlled with the Oscillators section.
To acquaint ourselves with the sound of the two oscillators and to hear the effects of our
manipulations of the oscillator parameters in the direction of a slightly harsher sound, we
can use the pulSe and Sine KnobS in the Mixer section below the Oscillators section. Turn up
the Sine Knob and turn the Sine FM Knob to its vertical, zero position. We hear that the less
FM modulation we have of the Sine oscillator, the softer the sound gets. Turning the Sine FM
Knob to either side adds harmonics to the sound. The FM KnobS determine how much of the
feedback signal frequency modulates the respective oscillator, and depending on what the
feedback signal is, the effect can be more pronounced. After you have heard the effect of
this knob, set Sine FM to around 0.8.
Now we turn the S ine K nob down again and turn up the p ulSe K no b. A characteristic parameter
for the Pulse waveform is the pulSe WiDth. As we turn the pW Knob to its vertical position we
hear some of the buzziness leave the sound and get replaced by the sound of a symmetric
Pulse oscillator. With pW at 0.4 we should have a good balance between buzziness and the
odd overtones of the Pulse oscillator. Changing the pulSe FM Knob we can hear additional
subtle differences in timbre similar to what we heard before with the S ine FM p araMeter .
Again, the effect depends on the feedback signal. Leaving p ulSe FM at -1.0 will result in a
subtle inuence on the sound.
Now that we know the sounds of our pure oscillators, you can turn the p ulSe K nob down
again. If we want to change the mix between the Pulse and Sine oscillator signals leaving
the Oscillators section, we use the plS – Sine Knob. We want to have a fuller sound, so we
turn that knob to have a value of 0.7, which means that we are mixing more of the frequency

REAKTOR SPARK – 14
modulated Pulse signal to the output. When we play the notes a bit longer, we noticed slight
oscillations in the timbre. This is partly the result of the feedback loop and our settings for
the FM KnobS. From a psychoacoustic perspective these slight modulations in the timbre go
a long way to make the human ear perceive sounds as full and dynamic, especially when the
pitches of the oscillators are not the same.
With the right ‘P’ V alue e Dit you can adjust the pitch of the Sine oscillator; with the left ‘P’ V alue e Dit you can
adjust the pitch of the Pulse oscillator.
Now we will see if what we said was true and transpose the pitch of the Pulse oscillator up 7 semitones by clicking
and dragging the pitch Value eDit that is to the left of the pW Knob to 67.01. Clicking and dragging in front of the
decimal point transposes the pitch in semitones, clicking and draggin behind the decimal point transposes the pitch
in cents. So, we can also detune the Sine oscillator by dragging the digits behind the decimal point in the p itch V alue
e Dit to the right of the pW K nob . When transposing the Sine pitch from 60.00 to 59.88, oscillations of the amplitude
appear from the interference of the detuned pitches. Notice though, that although the oscillators have two different
pitches, only one pitch is readily perceived and the two oscillators merge together to create one sound. The detun-
ing and modulation of pitches is a psychoacoustic trick to make sounds merge together and have a “fatter” timbre.
The Shaper section allows you to fatten up the sound.
This is a good moment to inspect the shaper effect. This nonlinear effect is very powerful if
used within a feedback loop. If you turn up the D riVe p araMeter and play with the S at -S ine
and 2nDh KnobS you can see the potential for fat and funky sounds. For now we leave the
Sat-Sine and 2nDh KnobS in their zero position and set the DriVe Knob to 14.

REAKTOR SPARK – 15
With the controls of the Ringmod/Filter section you can strongly inuence the effect of the feedback signal on the
sound.
Now we turn our attention to the Ringmod/Filter section. The Filter FeeDbacK Knob in the top
left of this section is a key element to the feedback loop. Turning it all the way to the left we
get a taste for self-oscillating behaviour in the feedback loop. This often works well in combina-
tion with the ring modulation unit, the amount of which is determined by the ring MoDulation
Mix Knob. The aMplituDe MoDulation paraMeter is more subtle in its effect. Turning it either
to the positive or negative will spread the harmonics out and usually reduce the loudness of
the sound, but with high feedback settings surprising changes to the sound can take place.
To make use of the feedback signal, turn the Filter FeeDbacK Knob to 0.4, since too much
feedback can cause strong resonances that completely change the character of the sound,
away from what we are working towards. To smooth the sound, turn the aMplituDe MoDulation
paraMeter to 0.3. Now play around with the ring MoDulation Mix. Notice that with the feed-
back activated, the sound gains complexity and substance as more ring modulation is mixed.
Also, setting the plS – Sine Knob to 0.35 adds more of the Pulse oscillator’s harmonics to the
sound. Set the r ing M oDulation M ix K nob to 0.6, because we like the way the ring modulation
adds force to our sound.
The Static Filter cutoFF and Filter reSonance Knobs give you direct access to the frequency
content of the sound. Depending on the setting of the Filter type Knob, different frequencies
get ltered out of the signal, the main reference being to the cutoff frequency set by the Static
Filter cutoFF Knob. For more details on the Filter type paraMeter and the lter types associ-
ated with its different settings see the Control Reference section. The Filter reSonance Knob
determines the amount the frequencies around the cutoff frequency are enhanced. Within a
feedback loop the resonance can have a very drastic effect, creating ringing or strongly self-
oscillating sounds, so it should be used with care. This is a good moment to play around with

REAKTOR SPARK – 16
the lter and shaper settings to get a feel for the lters behaviour within the feedback loop
and its interaction with the shaper.
Once you have had your fun with that, leave the Static Filter cutoFF at 24.0, the Filter
reSonance at 0.8, and the Filter type at 0.3. The last parameter gives us all the lower fre-
quencies below the cutoff frequency, with a slight amount of the frequencies above the cutoff
frequency thrown into the mix. The cutoff frequency is chosen so that we still have quite a
soft, warm, but not dull sound and the resonance setting gives us quite a lot of frequency
excitation in the feedback loop (especially with the action of the shaper) that is still not out
of control.
The controls in the Mixer section allow you to selectively choose the spectral components in the sound.
We can also tap into the lter outputs directly and selectively, using the Mixer section. The
knobs labelled lp-2, lp-4, bp-2, bp-4, hp-2, and hp-4 determine the amount of signal from
the 2-pole lowpass, 4-pole lowpass, 2-pole bandpass, 4-pole bandpass, 2-pole highpass, and
4-pole highpass lters in the mix that gets routed to the Effects section. The “pole-number”
is a measure for the strength of the lter. A 4-pole lowpass lter suppresses the frequencies
above the cutoff frequency twice as much as a 2-pole lowpass lter. A bandpass lter sup-
presses all frequencies beyond a certain distance from the cutoff frequency and the highpass
lter suppresses frequencies below the cutoff frequency. See the Control Reference section
on more information on the lters. We want to add the fundamental Sine tone to our mix for
the low end and turn up the knobs for the bandpass and highpass lters to add the higher
frequencies, so set the knobs in the Mixer section as shown in the gure above.

REAKTOR SPARK – 17
In the Modulation Envelope Amounts section you can adjust how much the modulation envelope affects SPARK’s
most important parameters.
Right now our sound has good substance and structure, but something is still quite at about
it. It’s time to get our hands on the Modulation Envelope Amounts section. This will allow
us to make the sound have more liveliness by responding to the hardness with which the
MIDI keys are struck and have the timbres evolve from the moment the note is played. The
shape of the modulation envelope is given in the Modulation Envelope section to the left of
the Modulation Envelope Amounts section. The modulation amount knobs determine how
the parameters corresponding to the knob labels are modulated by the envelope. The knobs
that have a plus and minus sign can also cause an inverse modulation. Turning the cutoFF
MoDulation Knob, for example, to the very left, will yield a low cutoff value for the modulation
envelope peak, whereas when turned to the right, the cutoff will be higher for the envelope
peak. In most natural instruments the higher frequencies are excited a bit after the attack
phase and decay rst. Following that observation we set the Cutoff Modulation Knob to 11
and the DriVe MoDulation Knob to 8 (since a higher drive causes higher frequencies to be
excited). Modulation amount knobs without the plus and minus signs always cause a positive
modulation, that is, the modulation envelope peak causes the modulated parameter also to
be increased. We may remember, that for most natural instruments, it takes a certain amount
of time for the resonances characteristic to that instrument to build up. For that matter we
might also want to set the ring modulation amount to follow the modulation envelope by
turning the rM Knob all the way up. This gives a nice resonance to our sustained sound. We
notice that the Fb Filt Knob is turned all the way up. This means that the feedback signal to
the lter input is suppressed by the modulation envelope, also suppressing resonances that
might be interesting to our sound. Turning the Fb Filt Knob down to the value 0.3 gives us a
longer lasting ring and further adds to the substance of the sound.

REAKTOR SPARK – 18
The LFO modulates the Mc2 FaDer which is assigned to change the Static Filter cutoFF paraMeter.
We remember that we liked to have a rippling effect as part of our synth lead, and until now
we have only been working on the core substance of the sound. How could we add a periodic
rippling into the mix? The key lies in the word period, for that is exactly what we started out
with in this tutorial, looking at periodic movements of the Delay tiMe Knob, controlled by the
Macro controller 3, which in turn was controlled by the LFO.
In order to add a rippling effect, we will use the Macro controller 2. Activate the LFO control
of Mc2 by clicking the button left of the Mc2 FaDer and turn the lFo aMount Knob to 0.5 to
have a substantial modulation of MC2 by the LFO. You should be able to see the Mc2 FaDer
move as it is modulated by the LFO. Now we will set the destination parameter that should
be controlled by the LFO, hence by Mc2. Now go to the cutoFF SliDer that is in the same
row as Mc2 and on the very right of the screen. Move it about halfway to the right, as seen
in the gure, to determine the amount of modulation that the Filter cutoFF paraMeter should
receive from Mc2. Moving the slider to the left of its mid-point will cause negative modula-
tions. Now we are ready to speed up the LFO, causing a rippling sound: while you play a note
to hear the effect of this change, increase the lFo rate Knob by the LFO controls to almost
maximum value.
Congratulations! You have just created your rst SPARK sound by using SPARK’s unique
feedback capabilities and without even having laid your hands on the Effects section. Now
that you have become familiar with SPARK’s new controls, you can start having fun with your
own sonic explorations – and the effects section. For more details and ideas to the use of all
controls, including the ones not discussed in this tutorial, be sure to check out the SPARK
Control Reference section.

REAKTOR SPARK – 19
4 Control Reference
The exact value of the currently selected controller is seen in the orange V alue D iSplay . You can see the global tuning
properties of the instrument placed next to the Value DiSplay.
To see the exact values of the currently handled controller, use the orange universal Value
DiSplay. If you just want to check what value a controller has, click on it, and press the up or
down arrow key on your keyboard. The value of that controller will appear in the V alue D iSplay .
To transpose SPARK from the notes it receives from the host sequencer or MIDI keyboard, use
the tune Value eDit. Clicking and dragging the whole number in the tune Value eDit changes
the transposition in semitones. To ne tune the transposition, click and drag the digits after
the decimal point. This changes the transposition in cents.
The VoiceS Value shows the number of voices that are used for one note to create the unison
effect. The left number denotes the maximum number of polyphonic voices and the right
number shows the number of unison voices of the instrument. When the number of available
voices is exceeded by polyphonic playing, that is, the number of keys that are simultaneously
pressed, then the actual number of unison voices will be reduced automatically. These num-
bers are set in the header or the Properties of the instrument.
If the number of unison voices is more than one, the SprD controller can be used to spread
out the tuning of the individual voices around the note pitch, creating a fatter sound. You can
change the number of unison voices with the Max uniSon V and Min uniSon V parameters in
the Instrument Properties Page. For more details see the REAKTOR User Manual.
For small values the ranD paraMeter adds a more analog feel to the sound, for large values
it creates a chaotic behaviour of the synthesizer. The ranD paraMeter controls the amount
of random detuning applied to each voice when a note is played by the host sequencer or a
key is pressed on the MIDI controller. This is called a note-on event.
With the pb Value eDit you change how much the pitchbend controller on your MIDI keyboard
or host sequencer can change the pitch.

REAKTOR SPARK – 20
4.1 Oscillators Section
The main source of waveforms in SPARK is controlled with the Oscillators section.
The aMplituDe Knob controls the amplitude of the output signal of the Oscillator section. This
applies to both the mixed signal and the Sine output signal that goes directly to the Mixer
section.
The plS-Sine Mix Knob determines the main characteristic of the sound source. It acts as a
crossfader between the Pulse and Sine Oscillators for the mixed output signal. Turning the
plS-Sine Mix Knob to the right yields a sound with a softer character typical of a sinus tone.
Turning the plS-Sine Mix Knob to the left mixes more of the Pulse signal to the output, result-
ing in a brighter timbre.
The Static pW Knob you can use to further change the timbre of the Pulse signal. It controls
the static amount of the Pulse width of the Pulse oscillator. With the Knob set in its vertical
position, a symmetrical Pulse signal with only odd harmonics is generated. Turning the Static
pW Knob either to the right or to the left, the Pulse becomes more asymmetrical, adding even
harmonics to the spectrum. The difference between turning to the left or to the right can be
very strong if the pW Knob is not set to zero.
The pitch Value eDit found on the left of the Static pW Knob and aMplituDe Knob controls the
pitch of the Pulse and Sine Oscillator, respectively, when the Note C3 is played. Clicking and
dragging the pitch Value eDit to the left of the decimal point transposes the oscillator pitch in
semitones. To ne tune the oscillators, click and drag to the left of the decimal point in the
pitch Value eDit. Slightly detuning one oscillator from the other yields a fatter sound. Below
the pitch Value eDit lies the pitch tracKing Value eDit for the corresponding oscillator pitch.
This controls the response of the oscillator pitch to the MIDI note that is played. When set