Roland TM-6 PRO User manual

Quick Start (this document)
Read this rst. It explains basic operation.
PDF Manual (download from the web)
5Reference Manual
This explains all the functions of the TM-6 PRO.
5Data List
This explains the parameters and sound of the
TM-6 PRO.
5MIDI Implementation
This is detailed reference material regarding MIDI messages.
Before using this unit, carefully read “USING THE UNIT SAFELY” and “IMPORTANT NOTES”(the leaet “USING THE UNIT SAFELY”
and the Owner’s Manual (p. 25)). After reading, keep the document(s) where it will be available for immediate reference.
© 2018 Roland Corporation
To obtain the PDF manual
1. Enter the following URL in your
computer.
http://www.roland.com/manuals/
I
2. Choose “TM-6 PRO” as the product name.
Quick Start
Contents
Flow of Operations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
Kits and Instruments. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
Getting Ready . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
Panel Descriptions. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
Mounting the TM-6 PRO on the Stand. . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
Turning the Power On/O . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
Basic Operation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8
Drum Triggers That Can Be Connected . . . . . . . . . . . . 8
Footswitches That Can Be Connected . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
Trigger Settings (TRIG). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
Basic Procedure for Trigger Settings. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
Specifying the Drum Trigger Type . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
Adjusting the Drum Trigger’s Minimum Sensitivity
(Threshold) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
Adjusting the Drum Trigger’s Sensitivity (Sensitivity) 12
Making Hi-hat Settings. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
Performing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
Selecting a Kit. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
Playing with the Click . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
Performing Along with a Song . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14
Editing. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16
Selecting and Editing an Instrument . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16
Applying Eects to Each Drum Trigger (Pad Eect). . 16
Using the Sound Modify Knobs. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
Editing a Kit. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18
Importing and Playing Audio Files (USER SAMPLE). . 19
Settings (MENU) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21
Basic Procedure for Settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21
Backing Up Data . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21
Formatting an SD Card . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22
Connecting to a Computer for Playback . . . . . . . . . . . 22
Making the Power Automatically Turn o After a
Time (Auto O ) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23
Returning to the Factory Settings. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23
Troubleshooting. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24
USING THE UNIT SAFELY . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25
IMPORTANT NOTES . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25
Main Specications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26

2
Flow of Operations
Connections
Trigger
settings
Perform
Edit
Power supply
AC adaptor
Specifying the type of drum trigger
Trigger type
page 10
Selecting a kit
[–] [+] buttons
page 8
Sound modify
Sound modify knobs
page 17
Playing with backing tracks (audio les)
[SONG] button
page 14
Assigning instruments
Instrument editing
page 16
Sounding a click tone
[CLICK] button
page 13
Importing a WAV le
Importing user
samples
page 19
TRIG IN jacks/HH CTRL jack
Acoustic drum trigger/
V pad/
Hi-hat control pedal
page 8
OUTPUT jacks/PHONES jack
Speaker/
Mixer/
Headphones
* Subsequently in this manual, acoustic drum triggers and pads
are collectively called“drum triggers.”
Adjust balance between strike strength
and the sound’s loudness
Sensitivity
page 12
Adjust sensitivity if mis-triggering
occurs
Minimum sensitivity
(Threshold)
page 12
Playing user samples
Assigning user samples
to instruments
page 20
page 6
Specifying the function quickly
Shortcut list
page 8
Backing up data
Backing up to SD card
page 21

3
Trigger 6
Instrument
Layer A
Layer B
Instrument
Layer A
Layer B
EQ
EQ
MFXCOMPTRANSIENT
Pad eect
Head shot
Rim shot
Trigger 3
Instrument
Layer A
Layer B
Instrument
Layer A
Layer B
EQ
EQ
MFXCOMPTRANSIENT
Pad eect
Head shot
Rim shot
Trigger 4
Instrument
Layer A
Layer B
Instrument
Layer A
Layer B
EQ
EQ
MFXCOMPTRANSIENT
Pad eect
Head shot
Rim shot
Trigger 5
Instrument
Layer A
Layer B
Instrument
Layer A
Layer B
EQ
EQ
MFXCOMPTRANSIENT
Pad eect
Head shot
Rim shot
Trigger 2
Instrument
Layer A
Layer B
Instrument
Layer A
Layer B
EQ
EQ
MFXCOMPTRANSIENT
Pad eect
Head shot
Rim shot
Kits and Instruments
On the TM-6 PRO, the sound that you hear when you strike a connected drum trigger is
called an “instrument” (INST). A set of instruments assigned to the various triggers is called a
“ k i t .”
Trigger 1
Instrument
Layer A
Layer B
Instrument
Layer A
Layer B
EQ
EQ
MFXCOMPTRANSIENT
Pad eect
Head shot
Rim shot
Transient
Attack
Transient
Release MFX Control
Kit eect
Volume Pitch Decay
REVERB SEND
Kit 1–100 Settings for the entire kit
Mute group
Kit tempo
Kit name
MIDI settings for the kit
NOTE
GATE TIME
CH
REVERB
KIT VOLUMEMASTER EQMASTER COMP
Instrument
Kit
Sound modify knobs

4
Getting Ready
Panel Descriptions
Top Panel
4
5
6
2
1
3
7
# Controller Explanation Page
1
[MASTER] knob Adjusts the volume of the MASTER OUT jacks. –
[CLICK] knob Adjusts the volume of the click. This can also adjust the volume of the click track
(p. 15). p. 13
[CLICK] button Accesses the CLICK screen. Here you can make click-related settings such as
tempo.
[SONG] knob Adjusts the volume of the song.
p. 14
[SONG] button Accesses the SONG screen. Here you can make song-related settings.
[s] button Plays/stops an internal demo song or a song (audio le) on an SD card.
If the song has a click track, the click track plays simultaneously.
2
Sound modify button Selects the group of parameters that is adjusted by the sound modify knobs. p. 17
Sound modify knobs Adjust the parameters of the group selected by the sound modify button.
3
Trigger buttons
You can use these buttons to check the sound of the instrument that is assigned to
each trigger. They are lit or blinking depending on the state of the performance or
settings.
p. 10
[RIM] button
If you press the [RIM] button to make it light, the rim is selected, allowing you
to specify an instrument for the rim or to play the rim instrument by pressing its
trigger button.
p. 10
4 [PHONES] knob Adjusts the volume of the headphones connected to the PHONES jack. –
5 [–] [+] buttons Use these buttons to switch kits or to edit values. p. 8
8
9

5
Getting Ready
# Controller Explanation Page
6
[] [ ] [<] [>] buttons
(cursor buttons) Move the cursor. –
[EXIT] button Press this once to return to the next higher screen level. If you press it repeatedly,
you’ll eventually return to the KIT screen. –
[ENTER] button
Press this to conrm a value or execute an operation.
By holding down the [ENTER] button and pressing another button, you can make
settings for a variety of functions.
p. 8
7
[MENU] button Allows you to make settings for functions that aect the entire TM-6 PRO, such as
instrument or eect settings. p. 21
[USER SAMPLE] button
Press this to make settings for the user sample function.
By using the user sample function, audio les that you created on your computer
can be loaded via an SD card into the TM-6 PRO and played as instruments.
p. 19
[TRIG] button Lets you make trigger parameter settings. p. 10
8 Function buttons
These buttons change their function depending on the
indication in the display. You can use these to switch
between the tabs that are shown in the lower part of the
display, and to make function settings. [F1] [F2] [F3]
p. 8
9 Display This shows various information depending on the operation. –
Side Panel
A B C
Computer
External sound module or
other MIDI device
SD card
# Connector Explanation Page
A MIDI OUT jack
Use these connectors to connect an external sound module or other MIDI device.
You can specify a MIDI channel and note number, and use MIDI messages to
control an external MIDI device.
&PDF
B SD card slot
Insert a commercially available SD card (SDHC cards (up to 32 GB) are supported).
You can store songs or TM-6 PRO data on the SD card.
You can also use an SD card to load user samples or play back songs (audio les).
* The rst time you use an SD card, you must initialize (format) the SD card on
TM-6 PRO (p. 22).
* Never turn o the power or remove the SD cards while the screen indicates
“Processing...”
–
C USB COMPUTER port
Use a USB cable to connect the TM-6 PRO to your computer.
This allows you to use DAW software to record the TM-6 PRO’s performance as
audio or as MIDI.
p. 22

6
Getting Ready
FOOT SW jack
You can connect
a footswitch (sold
separately: BOSS FS-5U,
FS-6) here and use it to
control various things
(&PDF).
HH CTRL jack
By using this in conjunction
with the TRIGGER IN 6 jack you
can play open/closed hi-hat
sounds.
* Only instruments of the hi-
hat category support this.
TRIGGER IN 1–6 jacks
You can connect acoustic drum triggers (sold separately:
RT series), bar trigger pads (sold separately: BT-1), or pads
(sold separately: PD/PDX series) etc. to these jacks (p. 8).
To make connections, use the cable that’s included with
each trigger or pad.
PHONES jack
Connect your
headphones here.
Even if headphones are
connected, sound is
output from the various
output jacks.
MASTER OUT jack
These jacks output the sound.
Connect them to amplied
speakers or a mixer.
If you’re connecting to an amp
that has mono input, set the
Master Mono Sw appropriately
(&PDF).
DIRECT OUT 1–4 jacks
Connect these jacks to your mixer,
etc.
The Output Assign ([MENU]
button0SYS0Output Assign)
settings specify the DIRECT
OUT 1–4 jack from which each
instrument is output (&PDF).
DC IN jack
Connect the included AC adaptor here.
* Place the AC adaptor so the side with the indicator (see illustration) faces upwards
and the side with textual information faces downwards. The indicator will light
when you plug the AC adaptor into an AC outlet.
* Use the cord hook to secure the cord of the AC adaptor as shown in the illustration.
[POWER] switch
Press this switch to
turn it on/o (p. 7).
Rear Panel (Connect Your Equipment)
* To prevent malfunction and equipment failure, always turn down the volume, and turn o all the units before making any
connections.
Indicator

7
Getting Ready
Mounting the TM-6 PRO on the Stand
By using an all purpose clamp (sold separately: APC-33), you
can attach the TM-6 PRO to a hi-hat stand or cymbal stand.
You can also attach it to a pad stand (sold separately: PDS-
10).
* Do not use any screws except those that are included
with the TM-6 PRO. Using other screws might cause
malfunctions.
* When turning the unit over, be careful so as to protect
the buttons and knobs from damage. Also, handle the
unit carefully; do not drop it.
Mounting the TM-6 PRO on the all purpose
clamp
Wide
Narrow
Mounting
plate
* You must install the mounting plate in the orientation
that’s shown in the illustration. If the orientation is
incorrect, it will contact the stand and cannot be
attached.
MEMO
The all purpose clamp can be attached to a pipe with a
diameter in the range 10.5–28.6 mm.
Mounting the TM-6 PRO on the pad stand
Turning the Power On/O
Turning the power on
1. Minimize the volume of the TM-6 PRO and
the amplied speakers.
2. Turn on the rear panel [POWER] switch.
When you turn the TM-6 PRO on, the following screen
appears.
In this screen you can enable or disable the Auto O
function.
Button Explanation
[F1] (OFF)
button
The power does not turn o
automatically.
[F3] (4 HOURS)
button
When four hours have elapsed
without any drum trigger being struck
or any operation being performed, the
unit will turn o automatically.
If the Auto O function is set to “OFF,” this screen won’t
appear.
3. Power-on the amplied speakers, and adjust
the volume.
Turning the power o
1. Minimize the volume of the TM-6 PRO and
the connected devices.
2. Turn o the power to the connected devices.
3. Turn o the rear panel [POWER] switch.
The screen indicates“Shutting Down” and after a time
the power turns o.
MEMO
The power to this unit will be turned o automatically
after a predetermined amount of time has passed since it
was last used for playing music, or its buttons or controls
were operated (Auto O function).
* If you do not want the power to be turned o
automatically, disengage the Auto O function (p. 23).
* Before turning the unit on/o, always be sure to turn
the volume down. Even with the volume turned down,
you might hear some sound when switching the unit
on/o. However, this is normal and does not indicate a
malfunction.

8
Getting Ready
Basic Operation
Switching and setting
functions (function buttons)
Use these buttons to switch between
tabs shown in the bottom of the
display, or to make function settings.
Moving the cursor
(cursor buttons)
Cursor refers to the highlighted
characters indicating an on screen
parameter that can be set. When there
is more than one possibility within
the screen, use the cursor buttons to
move it.
MEMO
If you hold down the cursor button of one direction and
then press the cursor button of the opposite direction,
the cursor moves more quickly.
Editing a value ([–] [+] buttons)
To edit the value that’s highlighted by the cursor, use the [–]
[+] buttons.
If you operate these while holding down the [ENTER]
button, the value changes more quickly.
MEMO
If you hold down the [+] button and press the [–] button,
the value will increase rapidly. If you hold down the [–]
button and press the [+] button, the value will decrease
rapidly.
Shortcut List ([ENTER] Button)
You can specify a variety of functions on/o by holding
down the [ENTER] button and pressing another button.
Operation Function
[ENTER] + [–] [+] Changes the value in larger steps.
[ENTER] + [TRIG] Trigger lock (p. 11)
[ENTER] + [EXIT]
All sound o
Stops the currently-playing drum
performance sound or user sample
(p. 19).
* The reverberation of the eect,
and the song and click do not
stop.
[ENTER] + [CLICK] Turns the click on/o (p. 13)
[ENTER] + [MENU] Moves to the INST screen (p. 16)
[ENTER] + sound
modify button Sound modify lock (p. 18)
Drum Triggers That Can Be Connected
The TM-6 PRO supports a variety of drum triggers.
Drum trigger Explanation
RT series
This is attached to an acoustic
drum for use.
It lets you layer various sounds
of the TM-6 PRO onto the
sound of an acoustic drum, or
add depth to the sound.
KD series
This is played with your foot.
A commercially available kick
pedal is required.
KT series This is a kick pedal.
It is played with your foot.
BT-1 This is a compact pad that is
played with sticks.
PD/PDX
series
This is a pad.
It responds to head shots and
rim shots that you play.
VH-10,
VH-11
This is a hi-hat pad.
It responds to open/close, bow
shots, and edge shots that you
play. A commercially available
hi-hat stand is required.
FD series
This is a hi-hat pedal.
When this is used in
conjunction with a pad, such
as the CY series, you can
continuously vary the sound of
the hi-hat from open to closed.
* This supports only
instruments of the hi-hat
category.
CY series
This is a cymbal pad.
It responds to bow shots and
edge shots that you play.
Connecting two drum triggers to oneTRIGGER IN jack
By using a connection cable (sold separately: 1/4” stereo
phone plug#1/4” phone plug x 2) you can connect two
drum triggers to one TRIGGER IN jack. The head and rim
sounds of the single TRIGGER IN jack are played by separate
pads.
Reference
For details, refer to
“Reference Manual” (PDF).
Head Rim

9
Getting Ready
About Performance Techniques
The drum triggers that can be connected to the TM-6 PRO
respond to a variety of performance techniques.
Pad (PD/PDX series)
Playing method Explanation
Head shot
Head
Hit only the head of the pad.
Rim shot
Rim
Strike the head and the rim of the
pad simultaneously.
A sound (rim sound) dierent than
the head shot will be heard.
* Supported only by some sounds.
Hi-hat (VH-10, VH-11)
Playing method Explanation
Open/closed
The hi-hat tone changes smoothly
and continuously from open to
closed in response to how far the
pedal is pressed.
You can also play the foot closed
sound (playing the hi-hat with
the pedal completely pressed
down) and foot splash sound
(playing the hi-hat with the pedal
fully pressed and then instantly
opening it).
* Supported only by instruments
of the hi-hat category.
Bow shot
This is the performance technique
of hitting the striking surface of
the top hi-hat. The sound of the
head is heard.
Edge shot
Edge sensor
This is the performance technique
of striking the edge (rim) of the top
hi-hat with the shoulder portion
of the stick. When the edge sensor
area shown in the illustration is
struck, the rim sound is heard.
* Striking directly on the edge
(i.e., exactly from the side)
will not produce the correct
sound. Strike as shown in the
illustration.
* Do not strike the bottom of the top hi-hat, and do
not strike the bottom hi-hat. Doing so will cause
malfunctions.
Cymbal (CY series)
Playing method Explanation
Bow shot
This is the most common
performance technique of
striking the surface of the
cymbal. It plays the head
sound.
Edge shot
Edge sensor
This is the performance
technique of hitting the edge
(rim of the cymbal) with the
shoulder portion of the stick.
When the edge sensor area
shown in the illustration
is struck, the rim sound is
heard.
Choke play
Roland logo
Edge sensor
If you use your hand to choke
(grasp) the edge sensor after
striking the cymbal, the
sound stops.
When you strike the cymbal
in the choked state, the
sound is shorter.
Footswitches That Can Be Connected
You can use a footswitch to switch between kits or set lists.
The following footswitches (sold separately) are supported.
Footswitch Explanation
FS-5U
One or two of these footswitches
can be connected.
By using the appropriate
connection cable (sold separately:
stereo phone plug#phone plug x
2), two FS-5U footswitches can be
connected.
FS-6 This integrates two footswitches
into a single unit.

10
Trigger Settings (TRIG)
Basic Procedure forTrigger Settings
Here’s how to make trigger settings so that the signals
from the drum triggers can be accurately processed by the
TM-6 PRO.
Reference
For details on the parameters that can be edited, refer to
“Data List” (PDF).
1. Press the [TRIG] button.
The TRIGGER SETUP screen appears.
2. Use cursor buttons to select the menu item
for the settings that you want to make, and
then press the [ENTER] button.
Menu Explanation
BANK
Specify the type of each drum
trigger. These settings can be
collectively saved in a trigger bank.
PARAM
Specify settings such as the drum
trigger’s minimum sensitivity
(Threshold) (p. 12).
HI-HAT Make hi-hat settings (p. 12).
XTALK
Prevent unintended triggering
caused by the vibration of another
pad (crosstalk cancel).
MONITOR View the trigger response and
history of each drum trigger.
LOCK Make trigger lock settings (p. 11).
3. Edit the settings of the menu that you
selected.
4. Press the [EXIT] button several times to
return to the KIT screen.
Reference
For details on each menu, refer to“Reference Manual”
(PDF).
Specifying the Drum Trigger Type
You can specify the type of drum trigger (trigger type) used
by each trigger input of the trigger bank.
Trigger type
The trigger type is a collection of various trigger
parameters, adjusted to values that are appropriate
for each drum trigger. To obtain the optimal settings
for the drum trigger used with each trigger input,
specify the model (trigger type) of drum trigger that’s
connected.
Trigger bank
A trigger bank contains an entire set of settings for six
triggers. You can create eight trigger banks.
Reference
For more about trigger banks, refer to“Reference
Manual” (PDF).
1. Press the [TRIG] button.
2. Use the cursor buttons to select “BANK,” and
then press the [ENTER] button.
The TRIGGER BANK screen appears.
Trigger bank number, name
Trigger type
(head)
Trigger type (rim)
Trigger input number, Input type
H&R When connecting one drum trigger to one
TRIGGER IN jack (normal setting)
PADx2 When connecting two drum triggers to one
TRIGGER IN jack (p. 8)
Button Explanation
[F2] (THRESHOLD)
button
Moves to a screen for adjusting
the drum trigger’s minimum
sensitivity (p. 12).
[F3] (NAME) button Edits the name of the trigger
bank.
3. Move the cursor to the trigger bank number,
and use the [–] [+] button to select a bank.
4. Select the drum trigger that you want to
edit.
You can also use the cursor buttons to select this.
5. Press the [–] [+] buttons to specify the
trigger type.