Zeppelin Design Labs Altura Theremin, User Manual

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13
2. 3-DIGIT DISPLAY
Depending on conditions, this display shows a variety of information. It times out after 60 seconds
and turns itself off, to spare your battery. To reactivate it, just turn any knob, or wave a hand in front
of either sensor.
Here is a summary of what you might see on the display, and what it means. Each section in the
Manual also has its own explanation of what the display is displaying.
IF YOU
SEE:
FOR
EXAMPLE: IT MEANS:
A letter and
a number
D 3
This is the KEY (letter) and the SCALE (number). See those sections
below for details. When not in X-Y mode, the display defaults to
this after 3 seconds.
Two
separate
numbers
5 4
These are the Octaves. The left number is the octave active NEAR
the right sensor; the right number is the octave active FAR from the
sensor. See OCTAvE SELECT below.
A one-,
two- or
three-digit
number
8
67
122
While turning the DATA knobs, this is the limiting value of MIDI
data the left sensor will transmit. See the various FUNCTIONS for
details.
While waving your hand in front of the left sensor (or the right
sensor when in X-Y mode), this is the MIDI data value the Altura is
transmitting.
A dynamic,
spinning
symbol
0.0a@sdf
fghjk00
Indicates amount of pitch bend, from “
f
“ (no bend) to “
0.
”
(maximum bend). See PITCH BEND.
Dashes
- - -
X-Y mode Idle: no data transmitting from either sensor.
This thing:
z - x
X-Y mode Active: both sensors transmitting data.
DISTANCE SENSORS - GENERAL
The distance sensors are ultrasonic ranging devices. One of those eyeballs is a speaker, the other is a
microphone. Several times a second, the speaker emits a high-frequency chirp; the microphone listens
for an echo. If it fails to hear an echo before a preset timeout, the sensor returns a null value. The
Altura software attempts to distinguish between a timeout because there is truly nothing there, versus a
timeout because it simply missed a chirp or two while your hand wiggled around. If the sensor hears
an echo before the timeout, it returns the elapsed time in microseconds. The Altura software uses this
time to calculate how far away your hand is, and decides what particular data this represents – a note
number or a control change value. That data is worked into a standard MIDI message, which is then
sent to the MIDI OUT cable.
The sensors monitor a cone-shaped space. They are terrific at identifying things like walls. To spot your
hand, you will have to learn exactly where the sensor is looking. This takes practice, as any fretless
instrument requires.