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  1. Introduction

Thanks for purchasing (or otherwise 
acquiring) the Assimil8or Multi-Timbral Phase 
Modulation Sampler.

This manual will give you the information you 
need to get the most out of Assimil8or. The 
manual assumes you already have a basic 
understanding of synthesis, synthesizers and 
samplers. If you’re just starting out, there 
are a number of good reference and tutorial 
resources available to get you up to speed. 
One that we highly recommend is:

Power Tools for Synthesizer Programming

 

(2nd Edition)

By Jim Aikin
Published by Hal Leonard
HL00131064

Support

In the unlikely event that you have a problem 
with your Assimil8or, tell us about it here:

http://www.rossum-electro.com/support/
support-request-form/

…and we’ll get you sorted out.

If you have any questions, comments, or just 
want to say “Hi!,” you can always get in touch 
here:

http://www.rossum-electro.com/about-2/
contact-us/

…and we’ll get back to you.

Happy music making!

Summary of Contents for ASSIMIL8OR

Page 1: ...ASSIMIL8OR Multi Timbral Phase Modulation Sampler Copyright 2018 Rossum Electro Music LLC www rossum electro com Operation Manual _040618...

Page 2: ...24 9 Channels 27 10 Zones 32 11 Play Mode Latch 35 12 Envelope 36 13 Loop Mode 38 14 Loop Start and End Length 39 15 Pitch 42 16 Level 43 17 Phase Modulation 44 18 Mutate 45 19 Shuttle and Scrub 47 2...

Page 3: ...ence and tutorial resources available to get you up to speed One that we highly recommend is Power Tools for Synthesizer Programming 2nd Edition By Jim Aikin Published by Hal Leonard HL00131064 Suppor...

Page 4: ...k out Dave s discussion of Circuit Protection in Chapter 26 Plug the included 16 pin connector into the header on the rear of the module such that the red stripe on the cable the 12V side is on the sa...

Page 5: ...nation of Dave Rossum s decades long pioneering of affordable professional sampling technology Assimil8or provides eight independent channels of sampled sounds or control voltages transposable over an...

Page 6: ...effects Crossfade Groups to crossfade between 2 to 8 channels under CV control Unique timbral capabilities with the ability to phase modulate samples by external analog signals or by other samples a...

Page 7: ...nels chapter for details about Channel Modes Control Voltage Inputs Assimil8or provides 24 CV inputs that can be arbitrarily assigned to any parameters on any channels A single CV can be assigned to m...

Page 8: ...never there are any unsaved parameter changes in a preset a yellow warning sign will appear in the lower left hand corner of the home display If you select a new preset before saving the current one t...

Page 9: ...en where you configure your presets by assigning samples to the various channels and setting Channel Modes and Crossfade Groups See Chapter 9 for details Additionally pressing and holding this button...

Page 10: ...mmend that for the security of your data you use cards from known reliable manufacturers purchased from trusted sources Phase Modulation Lets you select the phase modulation source channel sample inpu...

Page 11: ...are assigned to that channel If the number is black on a bright red background that channel contains a sample and is selected for editing If the number is black on a dimmer red background that channe...

Page 12: ...en saved If you select another preset or load a new folder before saving the current preset your changes will be lost Folder Name The name of the currently loaded folder appears at the bottom of the d...

Page 13: ...rd The micro SD card is essentially a library of folders you ve created along with a few housekeeping files you don t really need to worry about Content may either be written directly to the card by y...

Page 14: ...ile this is happening you will see a green progress bar across the middle of the home screen that indicates the loading process If the folder contains only a few presets and or samples the progress ba...

Page 15: ...scroll through all existing presets When you see the one you want click the encoder s switch If you press and hold the encoder switch and then turn the encoder each preset will load immediately as yo...

Page 16: ...ly displays Saving in 2 Seconds and then after 2 seconds displays Save Completed and exits the Save Preset screen If you release the button before 2 seconds have elapsed the display briefly shows Save...

Page 17: ...els chapter Channel Parameters The following parameters are referred to as Channel Parameters because while they affect a channel s sample s they are actually owned by the channel not the sample If yo...

Page 18: ...r zones However samples can be imported from other folders into the currently loaded one To import a sample With the destination channel or zone selected i e the channel or zone you want to import the...

Page 19: ...sign the desired CV input 7 Unless you re already in HOT mode see the Arming Safety section below press and hold the Sampling Setup button to arm sampling The Sample LED will flash and the message SAM...

Page 20: ...owest numbered empty channel in the current preset Useful if you are sampling a series of sounds to fill the current preset as you won t have to change the destination after every sample NOTE If you s...

Page 21: ...with substantial super high frequency content and you know you ll want to be pitch shifting it down which can give some very interesting effects the higher rates may be the way to go Naming Mode When...

Page 22: ...f the incoming signal from 30dB to 24dB In addition to the numeric field there is a blue graphic indicator of the level value Additionally playing your signal into the sample input will display the re...

Page 23: ...y of the 24 CV inputs to act as a sampling trigger NOTE The different triggering methods can be used in combination to start and stop sampling For example you could start sampling with the Sample butt...

Page 24: ...of course also use the encoder to navigate to either field If you press either button twice in succession you will dismiss the screen Sample Start Sample Start sets the point at which the sample star...

Page 25: ...and hold the Zones Select button and then press the Channel Button whose number matches the desired zone The number of the currently selected zone is displayed in the upper righthand corner of the sc...

Page 26: ...ints and then press both the Sample Start and Sample End buttons simultaneously As above the sample will be truncated after 2 seconds and the new truncated sample will be selected NOTE When you trunca...

Page 27: ...the encoder again to select it The Channels screen along with the Zones screen if you re using zones is where you configure your presets assigning samples to channels and setting Channel Modes that de...

Page 28: ...channel s channel parameters that had been set for the previous sample You may or may not need to adjust those as desired Copying Channels If you ve previously programmed a channel either in the curre...

Page 29: ...nnels each with its own trigger and modulation routings set each of them as a Master channel and you re done NOTE As you will see below a Master channel can interact with other channels depending on t...

Page 30: ...card Combining Channel Modes The various Channel Modes can be interspersed for interesting effects For example in the following configuration the three Link groups alternate being triggered in Cycle M...

Page 31: ...hannels Positive CVs crossfade toward channels higher on the screen i e lower numbered channels NOTE Members of a Crossfade Group do not have to be contiguous on the Channels screen They could even be...

Page 32: ...ill appear Scroll to the sample of your choice and click the encoder again to select it If this is the first zone created it will appear on the zone screen as a single zone with a selection range of 5...

Page 33: ...when you re editing the other zones dependent parameters Pitch Level Sample Start End and Loop Start End Length Using that technique you can select various zones and edit them in sequence without hav...

Page 34: ...ew Zones 3 and 4 The new Zone 3 has annexed the old Zone 3 s range of 2 5V to 3 75V leaving Zones 1 2 and 4 the previous Zone 5 unaffected Gate Rise vs Continuous Modes As mentioned above you can spec...

Page 35: ...Latch button lets you select the way in which a channel responds to a trigger or gate NOTE In addition to its associated LEDs Play Mode status is also displayed on the Envelope screen and can be set f...

Page 36: ...clicks on re triggering is to turn on Smoothing in the Mutate screen See Chapter 18 for details Release Time Release Time sets the time in seconds it takes from the moment a gate fall is received for...

Page 37: ...want to load a preset and have one or more channels automatically start playing It is also useful for channels used as LFOs or other repeating CVs The choices are Normal What you d normally hence its...

Page 38: ...oices are Loop Off When neither of the Loop Mode button s LEDs are lit the selected channel s loop is tuned off Normal Mode When the top LED is lit the loop is in Normal Mode In this mode upon gate fa...

Page 39: ...uttons The screen will appear with the selected numerical field highlighted Once the screen is displayed you can use the two buttons to switch back and forth between the two points for editing You can...

Page 40: ...re programming a sample to loop while its audio is playing as opposed to just looping a rhythmic phrase at its beginning and end you will typically want to program the smoothest loop splice possible W...

Page 41: ...length depending on mode can be modulated by any of the CV inputs with the modulation gain set by the associated attenuverter Positive CVs move the point towards the end of the sample while negative...

Page 42: ...he range is from 8 octaves below to 5 octaves above the channel s initial pitch as set by the Pitch parameter above NOTE The number of the selected zone is displayed in the upper righthand corner of t...

Page 43: ...Level screen lets you set a channel s initial level set a zone level offset if the channel contains zones and set up exponential and or linear amplitude modulation Level Level lets you set the initial...

Page 44: ...e active Highlight the CV select field to select your desired CV Use the attenuverter to set the CV Gain in a range of from 1 00X to 1 00X at a resolution of 0 01 NOTE Even when a CV is not selected a...

Page 45: ...without artifacts The Aliasing control lets you progressively disable that technology so that you can introduce those aliasing and imaging artifacts into your sounds if that s the sort of thing you r...

Page 46: ...ow the start point and proceeds towards what was the sample s programmed start point which is now the end point Loops begin at what was the sample s programmed loop end point which is now the start po...

Page 47: ...tep 4 6 Go to the main home page so DATA 2 is active and latch your channel on 7 Turn the DATA 2 knob as desired Here s how it works When the CV is positive the sample plays forward The greater the CV...

Page 48: ...itch to 60 00 semitones 3 In the Loop screen create a 4 sample loop in Start Length mode at the approximate center of the sound 4 Assign a CV to modulate the loop start with a gain of 0 71 5 Assign th...

Page 49: ...l display of position The pan position can be modulated by any of the CV inputs with the modulation gain set by the associated attenuverter Modulation gain can be set from 40 0 per volt to 40 0 per vo...

Page 50: ...in the front panel slot the screen will display Card Not Ready If that happens put a card in the slot as if you need us to tell you that OLED Control As mentioned back in Chapter 5 OLED displays have...

Page 51: ...After creating it your most currently loaded folder will still be in memory You will need to use the Load function to access the new folder Folder Utilities This function offers a variety of utilities...

Page 52: ...raightforward but it does require that you have the ability to download a file from the internet and copy it onto a micro SD card 1 From the Downloads tab of the Assimil8or web page www rossum electro...

Page 53: ...card However if you ever want or need for whatever reason to have a backup boot card this function will allow you to create one The process is exactly like the Format SD Card process described above A...

Page 54: ...reason that you ever need to worry about it However like Calibrate it s self guiding so if you re just curious you re welcome to play with it since it can t do any harm About this Module Selecting thi...

Page 55: ...oth presets press the Channel 1 button repeatedly or patch a repeating trigger into Channel 1 s Gate Trig input Preset 001 A synthesized voice speaking a number sequentially on each channel Preset 002...

Page 56: ...1 s Gate Trig input Each time the button is pressed or a trigger is received you will hear the zone sample corresponding to the CV value at that moment Preset 002 A demo of Zones in Continuous mode Pr...

Page 57: ...are super popular right now I guess we ll have too trust him on that As a bonus and not as far as we can tell having anything to do with clicks there s an additional preset of motor relay and revving...

Page 58: ...together as you desire All channels have CV A patched to Pitch CV B patched as Phase Mod source and CV C patched to Phase Mod Index DivKid Drones 12 stereo but see above sample in 3 presets A variety...

Page 59: ...d 4 000V will do You may need to use a precision inverter to get 4 000V if you only have a 4 000V precision source Make sure your voltage source has essentially zero ohms output impedance CRITICAL NOT...

Page 60: ...ctave source you should connect that source to those inputs and set it to output 0 000V Leave the sample input jacks and any CVs you don t plan to calibrate open Once you ve done this press the encode...

Page 61: ...old CONTROL VOLTAGE A 8x 3 5mm mono socket 100k Input Impedance 96 kHz sample rate Anti alias filtered to 20kHz bandwidth CONTROL VOLTAGE B C 16x 3 5mm mono socket 100k Input Impedance 48 kHz sample r...

Page 62: ...ohn Chowning discovered using digital oscillators that linear FM through the zero point so the carrier actually reversed its oscillation produced very diverse and pleasing timbres Yamaha further devel...

Page 63: ...th the frequency of the modulating pulse wave increased by 1 5 octaves Note that the carrier waveform is getting to be pretty much an ordinary sawtooth The solution as Yamaha discovered was to instead...

Page 64: ...re you can see how phase modulation maintains the character of each waveform giving a new timbre with the characteristics of both the modulator and the unmodulated carrier When first planning Assimil8...

Page 65: ...the system s 5V and 12V supplies potentially damaging the power supply and any modules that use 5V To prevent this Rossum Electro Music modules deviate from the standard Eurorack power connector by l...

Page 66: ...above copyright notice this list of conditions and the following disclaimer in the documentation and or other materials provided with the distribution Neither the name of Texas Instruments Incorporate...

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