Alesis QS7, QS8 manual WHAT’S a MIX?, Whats a BANK?, Playing the QS Keyboard, About Sound Groups

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).

WHAT’S A MIX?

A Mix is a combination of 1 to 16 Programs. These Programs can be combined in many ways. The most common is multi-timbralwhen 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.

WHAT'S A BANK?

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.

ABOUT SOUND GROUPS

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.

PLAYING THE QS KEYBOARD

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.

PROGRAM MODE AND MIX MODE

12 QS7/QS8 Reference Manual