Studiologic SL880 - Manual (Page 8)

These suggestions are designed as a starting point to help stimulate your own creative usage
of these features for your own musical applications and needs.
The ZONES are the heart of the SL-880 Master Controller. Creative use of the ZONE’s parame-
ters and the ZONES themselves gives the player new found flexibility and control over their
sounds and modules. We’ve already discussed how to operate the ZONES. Now we apply them
to musical applications. You can use the four (4) ZONES in a number of different ways. Here
are some options and possible applications using the features of this keyboard.
Set all four ZONES to the same range of notes and assign each of them to four similar String
patches or four similar Piano patches. Try two piano patches and two string patches.
Experiment with disabling some of the features on some of the ZONES such as, AFTERTOUCH
or SUSTAIN. While playing one section of a song, leave some of the layers turned off and then
switch them on during the “Chorus” by pressing their ZONE SWITCHES to build dynamics in the
song. On your module try setting and storing your PIANO patches to not respond to MIDI volu-
me (CC#7) then using a Volume Pedal on your Master Controller you can bring up the Strings
behind the Piano when needed.
Set two ZONES in your left hand for an Electric Piano/Pad layer and set two ZONES in the right
hand for a string or horn layer. Use the TRANSPOSE feature to bring these ZONES into a use-
ful range.
Try a Bass patch using one ZONE in the lowest two octaves of the keyboard, disable the
SUSTAIN PEDAL and TRANSPOSE up an octave or two to place it in the range of a bass guitar.
Now create a LAYER in the middle range with two ZONES set to a Breathy Synth or Comping
patch, and the last ZONE for the top octave or so on a Brass patch with the SUSTAIN PEDAL
disabled. You can play a bass line with your left hand, sustain chords you’ve played on the
Pad sound using the Sustain Pedal and now play Horn stabs or lines above it with your right
hand.
*Note On Splits: Always remember to use the TRANSPOSE feature to place your parts in pro-
per performance range no matter where on the 88 keys you may place a ZONES upper and lower
limits. Think of the whole keyboard as 88 keys or triggers available rather than the traditio-
nal note placement and tuning as on an Acoustic Piano.
Live and Studio Applications.
Live application: Try using the different SHAPES in each ZONE to manipulate and balance the
elements in your layers.
Studio application: Connect your MIDI out from your Master Controller to the MIDI in on your
Sequencer and the MIDI out of your sequencer to your Modules. Set your sequencer input fil-
ter to Direct Echo or the appropriate setting to pass all information through (non channeli-
ze). If you come up with an interesting layered patch set your sequencer to multi-record and
hit edit enter twice while your sequencer is recording to record your patch changes to the
sequencer and then continue and play while recording a performance for all your layers. For
another section of your track you can do the same with another patch and record and auto-
mate your patch changes along with your performance. Using the layers on the SL-880 you
may come up with patches and parts you might not have conceived programming the tradi-
tional one track at a time way.
Live application: Use the inverted or (-) SHAPES to experiment with velocity crossfades.
Live application: Set a ZONE to only one note. When editing SPLIT parameter in setting up
ZONE hit the same note twice at either the lowest note or highest note on the keyboard to set
a range of (1) one note for that ZONE. Assign that Zone to a MIDI channel that goes to your
sampler to trigger a Loop or trigger a Sound FX. Use the TRANSPOSE feature to bring the sam-
ple up or down to a useful range for triggering. If the (+) or (-) 24 steps of transposition is
not enough, assign the Sample trigger note to an appropriate one in the sampler and save it
APPLICATIONS USES AND
USER TIPS
THE ZONES
THE BIG LAYER
THE SPLIT
ANOTHER SPLIT?
A FEW OTHER TIPS
INCLUDED FOR YOUR
CONSIDERATION
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SECTION 5.
Programming the Studio Logic SL-880 Master Controller:
Creating musically useful Patches and how to do it.
Before we get into some programming examples and tips, the following information is about
the design architecture and how the Studio Logic SL-880 Master Controller operates.
When your Master Controller is switched on for the first time it will transmit the following
default settings:
• ZONE #1 ON, Zones #2,#3,#4 OFF. The four zones are set to transmit on MIDI channels 1
through 4 respectively, their SPLIT is set to the full extension of all 88 keys and all swit-
chable commands are in the ON position.
• All ZONES set to SHAPE #1, VELOCITY = 4, TRANSPOSE = 0.
• VOLUME SETTINGS OF 127 if no VOLUME PEDAL is connected. If a VOLUME PEDAL is connec
ted whatever position the pedal is in will be transmitted.
• SUSTAIN OFF. (PEDAL is enabled but in the off position, CC 64 = O)
• PITCH BEND value = 0, MODULATION WHEEL value = 0
To reset the unit to the above factory settings:
• Power up the keyboard while holding down all three UP-DOWN-ENTER buttons, hold for a few
seconds then release all three buttons.
• When the Master Controller is powered up it always transmits the contents of the program
memory.
• After programming any parameters, the contents of the memory is transmitted when exiting
EDIT mode.
• To transmit the contents of the memory while in play mode press the ENTER/EDIT button
twice.
• Exiting the EDIT mode automatically stores the newly changed parameters, if any, into the
memory.
• When powering down the unit all information in memory is retained and then transmitted
again upon power up.
• You can not enter the EDIT MODE if you are holding down keys or pressing the sustain pedal.
You must release all pedals and keys before entering into the edit mode.
• When re-entering the EDIT MODE it will be on the parameter setting and ZONE selection as
it was left when previously in the EDIT MODE.
• When EDIT MODE is selected, the keyboard does not sound. To test the programmed varia-
tions and play the keyboard exit the EDIT MODE.
DEFAULT SETTINGS
GENERAL RESET
GENERAL PROGRAMMING
INFORMATION
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0 2 4 5 7 9 8 6 /H 1 ON 3 OFF