User manual YAMAHA SY-2

[. . . ] The more you play the SY-2, the more you'll find that "vectors" will become an indispensable part of your musical repertoire. q q q q q q q q q q q q q q q q Yamaha AWM and FM tone generators for superior sound and tonal versatility. 2-element or 4-element voice architecture brings AWM and FM waveforms together. Vector control for 2-axis control of element level and detuning. Dynamic level and detune vectors can be recorded easily in real time. [. . . ] THIRD-PARTY SOFTWARE Yamaha can not take any responsibility for software produced for this product by third-party manufacturers. Please direct any questions or comments about such software to the manufacturer or their agents. 4 About the Manuals The SY-2 comes with two manuals -- Getting Started and Feature Reference. q The Getting Started Manual (this manual) In addition to an overview of the SY-2 controls and connectors (page 8), the Getting Started manual contains five separate tutorials that take you step-by-step through the main procedures you will need to know to become familiar with your SY-2: 1. Setting Up Your System [Page 14] Basic system connections. Selecting And Playing Voices [Page 16] Selecting and playing voices from the PRESET, INTERNAL and CARD voice banks. Vectors [Page 21] Using and understanding manual and dynamic vectors. Instant Voice Programming [Page 31] The fast way to create an unlimited range of new voices for the SY-2. The Multi Mode [Page 34] Play several voices simultaneously, or control multiple SY-2 voices from an external MIDI sequencer. We recommend that you go through the tutorials in sequence while actually carrying out procedures on your SY-2. Once you've gone through the entire TUTORIALS section in this way, you should be familiar enough with the SY-2 to need only the Feature Reference manual in future. 5 q The Feature Reference Manual The Feature Reference manual is the "nuts and bolts" reference for the SY-2, individually describing its many functions in detail. The Feature Reference manual is divided into eight main sections, each describing the various functions within a particular SY-2 edit or utility mode. VOICE COMMON [Page 3] VOICE VECTOR [Page 9] ELEMENT TONE [Page 15] ELEMENT ENVELOPE [Page 25] MULTI [Page 33] UTILITY SETUP [Page 39] UTILITY RECALL [Page 47] UTILITY MIDI [Page 51] Once you have become familiar with the way the SY-2 works by going through the Getting Started manual, you should only need to refer to the Feature Reference manual from time to time to get details on functions you've never used before, or refresh your memory about functions that you don't use very often. Before we dive in and record an original dynamic vector, spend a few minutes familiarizing yourself with the SE* Elect voice and its preset dynamic vector. Try Out the SE* Elect Dynamic Vector 1 Select the SE* Elect Voice The SE* Elect voice (I66) features a distinct dynamic vector that will serve as an ideal foundation for a few initial experiments. VOICE PLAY I66 SE*Elect 2 Turn Vector Play OFF and Play the Voice Make sure the manual VECTOR PLAY mode is turned OFF, using the VECTOR PLAY [ON/OFF] key to turn it off if necessary (neither the [LEVEL] or [DETUNE] indicators should be lit). Play a nice long note or chord. Notice how the various elements are gradually brought in and blended automatically -- this is the result of a dynamic vector. 24 3 Turn Vector Play ON Now press the VECTOR PLAY [ON/OFF] key to turn the VECTOR PLAY mode ON, and select [LEVEL] control. Since Vector Play is ON, the dynamic vector will not play. Set the VECTOR CONTROL to center position and play another note or chord. You should hear all 4 elements at the same time, in approximately equal proportions. Play with the VECTOR CONTROL a bit to get a feel for this particular combination of elements. VECTOR CONTROL A A D C D C B B Recording An Original Dynamic Vector Now we'll go ahead and record an original dynamic level vector for the SP* Bell voice. 1 Select the VOICE VECTOR Edit Mode The first step is to enter the VOICE VECTOR edit mode, which we do by pressing the [EDIT/UTILITY] key and then the [VOICE VECTOR] key. 2 Select the LEVEL SPEED Function If the LEVEL SPEED function does not appear immediately when you enter the VOICE VECTOR edit mode, press the [VOICE VECTOR] key a few times until it does appear (Feature Reference manual, page 11). VV>LEVEL SPEED Vector Rate 30ms 25 4 Select the LEVEL REC Function Press the [VOICE VECTOR] key once to move ahead to the LEVEL REC display. Use the [4] and [6] cursor keys to move the cursor to the STBY (standby) parameter. (The VECTOR PLAY LEVEL LED will light. ) At this point the VECTOR CONTROL will be active in the level control mode, and you can rehearse the level vector you are about to record. 5 Select REC Move the cursor to the REC parameter (press the CURSOR [6] key). 6 Record the Dynamic Vector Vector recording will begin the instant you play a note on the keyboard. Play a note (or chord), and begin moving the VECTOR CONTROL. VECTOR CONTROL A Í D C B 27 1 Turn Memory Protect OFF To turn the memory protect function off, press the [UTILITY SETUP] key a few times until the MEM. PROTECT function appears. Move the cursor to the INT parameter and press the [­1/NO] or [+1/YES] key to turn the internal memory protection off. 2 Press [VOICE] Now press the [VOICE] key to return to the VOICE PLAY mode. Before actually returning you to the VOICE PLAY mode, however, the SY-2 will ask you whether you want to store the voice you have just edited into one of the INTERNAL memory locations. You can skip this step and go straight to the VOICE PLAY mode by pressing the [­1/NO] key, or you can press [+1/YES] to initiate the voice storage procedure. 3 Press [+1/YES] If You Want to Store the Voice If you press [+1/YES], a display similar to the following will appear: The number of the voice you edited will be shown to the left of the lower display line, and the cursor will be placed to the right of the arrow. 29 4. Instant Voice Programming Although the SY-2 allows you to program voices in considerable detail, in this section we'll present a simple way to create an unlimited range of new and useful voices. Detailed parameters for programming individual elements are available in the ELEMENT TONE and ELEMENT ENVELOPE edit modes described in the Feature Reference manual, beginning on pages 15 and 25, respectively. [. . . ] the speed and shape of the attack, how fast the sound decays, etc. A pitch envelope determines how the pitch of a note changes over time. Next to the basic waveform, the amplitude and pitch envelopes are the most important factors in determining how a voice sounds. FM is Yamaha's proven Frequency Modulation synthesis technology which is capable of creating extraordinarily warm, vibrant simulations of actual instruments, as well as an infinite variety of original sounds. [. . . ]