Audio Damage Sequencer 1 - Manual (Page 12)

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Repeats can also be activated with one of the two control-voltage inputs, so you can use
voltage sources like LFOs to trigger repeats in predictable or random ways.
5.5.2. Ratchet Buttons
Step buttons 15 and 16 also have a second performance-oriented function: ratcheting. Pressing
or while the sequencer plays causes the Gate output to fire twice or four times per
step, rather than once.
5.6. Measure Button
If you’ve been paying close attention, you may be wondering how Sequencer 1 lets you work
with patterns of up to 64 steps if there are only 16 Step buttons for working with those steps.
The answer is the button on the far right labeled
. For patterns with more than 16
steps, pressing this button flips from one measure of 16 steps to the next. The current measure
is indicated in the LCD.
The Measure button has a second function labeled . Pressing and holding the
ALT button, then pressing the Measure button erases the current pattern, setting all of its
parameters and steps back to default values. Obviously you should use this button with caution,
which is why we put this function on the far side of the panel away from the other command
buttons.
Finally, when the sequencer is playing, the Measure button blinks when every fourth step is
played. This provides visual reassurance that the sequencer is in fact playing when the current
step is not in the currently visible measure, and hence you can’t see the Step LEDs merrily
blinking along.
5.7. ESC, ALT Buttons
We’ve already mentioned that the button is used in conjunction with the Step buttons to
execute commands and change edit modes. Pressing the button, short for Escape, takes
you out of whatever edit mode Sequencer 1 is currently in, returning you to the default mode
that Sequencer 1 starts in when powered up.
6. Making Patterns
So far we’ve been waving our hands a little bit in that we haven’t really described how
Sequencer 1 makes music. Making music with Sequencer 1 boils down to making patterns, and
making patterns means adjusting the parameters of the pattern and the parameters of the
individual steps within the pattern. You do this by selecting different edit modes with the ALT
functions of the Step buttons. Each edit mode displays one or more pages of parameters in the
LCD. You change the parameters by turning the knobs. Since Sequencer 1 lets you switch
modes and change parameters while it’s playing a pattern, you can create patterns in an
improvisational manner, which means it’s a lot more fun than it sounds like when it’s written
down in gory detail. Nonetheless, we’ll plow through the gory details because we promised you