Alesis QS7, Reference Manual

Page: 12 / 141

Chapter 2: Your First Session
The QS provides 640 internal Programs, divided into 5 Banks of 128 Programs each.
More Programs can be added by inserting a Sound Card into the Sound Card slot on
the rear panel of the QS. Each Bank is broken down into 12 Sound Groups of 10
Programs each, plus a 13th Sound Group with 8 Programs. These group together
similar sounding Programs, such as pianos [00], guitars [30], bass [40] and drums
[120].
A Program may have from 1 to 4 different sounds which can be combined in a variety
of ways to create the overall sound of the instrument the Program is intended to
emulate. These four sounds can be layered on top of one another, or split up into
different sections of the keyboard. You can even have different sounds played
depending on how hard you play the keyboard (this is known as velocity).
W
HAT
’
S A
M
IX
?
A Mix is a combination of 1 to 16 Programs. These Programs can be combined in
many ways. The most common is multi-timbral when connected to a MIDI sequencer,
which means that for each MIDI channel the QS receives (up to 16), a different
Program may be selected, thus creating anything from a small pop/rock ensemble to
a complete orchestra. Another way of using a Mix is by layering two or more
Programs together, so that they play simultaneously from the keyboard. You can also
create a split, where one Program is in the lower half of the keyboard, while another
is at the top half; you can even have these Programs overlap in the middle.
W
HAT
'
S A
B
ANK
?
A Bank is a collection of 128 Programs and 100 Mixes. There are five internal banks
available at any time, with more if a card is in the Sound Card slot. The current bank
is shown on the top line of the display, and will cycle in the following order:
USER PRESET1 PRESET3 PRESET2 GenMIDI
and optionally CARD 1 CARD 2 CARD 3, etc.
Each bank contains its own unique Programs and Mixes. Program 10 in Preset 1 is
different from Program 10 in Preset 3, although they are usually related sounds. A
Mix may contain Programs from any bank.
The [ BANK] and [BANK ] buttons change the current bank from the top panel,
and MIDI Bank Select commands may also be used to select any of the 640
Programs on board, or additional card programs.
Preset and General MIDI banks are permanently “burned in” at the factory. User
banks, and Card banks from an SRAM card, may be changed by the user. If you edit
a Preset Program or Mix, it can be saved to a User or SRAM card bank only.
A
BOUT
S
OUND
G
ROUPS
Preset Banks 1-3 and the User bank are organized into 13 Groups of 10 Sounds
each, and are spread out among the top-right row of buttons on the front panel
(programs 00-09 are pianos, 50-59 are basses, and so on). The GenMIDI bank,
however, does not follow this arrangement; it follows the program list of the General
MIDI standard. Programs on some sound cards may not follow that arrangement
either, depending on the card type.
P
LAYING THE
QS K
EYBOARD
The QS is shipped from the factory with 5 Banks of 128 Preset Programs (sounds)
each. Additionally, there are 100 Mixes in each of the 5 Banks.
P
ROGRAM
M
ODE AND
M
IX
M
ODE
12 QS7/QS8 Reference Manual