Alesis QS8, QS7 manual Drum Mode

Editing Programs: Chapter 6

DRUM MODE

Any one or all of the four sounds in a Program can be put into Drum Mode. The Drum Mode parameter is found in the Misc. Function (see last section of this chapter). Note that Drum Mode isn’t the only way to hear drums or percussion from a Program. In Standard mode, if you select a kit (such as “Rock Kit 1”) as the voice of a Program sound, an entire arrangement of preset, pre-mapped drum sounds will be assigned across the keyboard. If you select a single drum (such as “Timpani”) as the voice, that single drum sound will sound across the keyboard range, with a different pitch on each note (the original sample pitch will appear on C3).

However, Drum Mode changes the nature of the VOICE function, allowing you to make up your own drum kit from a selection of over 80 different samples: 7 kicks, 8 snares, 4 hi-hats, 14 toms, 5 cymbals, 31 percussion, 17 percussion effects and 3 synth waves. Plus, there are 44 rhythm beats to choose from (pre-sequenced drum grooves). You can map any of these samples to any note on the keyboard that does not already have a drum assigned to it in that layer. When a sound is in Drum Mode, you can assign 10 different drum sounds to 10 different keys in that layer. If all four sounds in a Program are placed in Drum Mode, you could assemble 40 drum sounds. In Drum mode, individual drums cannot be “stretched” across the entire range of the keyboard -- each occupies a maximum of three keys.

Each of the 10 drum sounds has its own set of parameters in each of the functions in the display (Pitch, Filter, Range, Effects Level, etc.). You can use the [0] – [9] buttons to select which one of the 10 drum sounds to edit in each Function Group ([40] – [120] buttons).

Here is a block diagram of a sound in Drum Mode.

When Drum Mode is enabled, the sound will have fewer parameters for editing. Consequently, not all Function buttons will respond when pressed as when Drum Mode is turned off. Specifically, the LFOs and all Envelopes (with the exception of the Amp Envelope) are unavailable. In addition, the parameters in most other functions will differ.

QS7/QS8 Reference Manual 53