Question: Triggering of drum machines
I would like to know if it is possible to start, and keep
running, a drum machine in time with an AMPLE tune via the AMPLE program.
The drum machine I use is a Korg DDM-110 with SYNC in/out
and TRIG out.
Carl Robinson
Question: Music 500 and Music 5000
My query follows on from that of Patrick Cain in AMPLINEX
010. I have three Music 500 synthesisers with serial numbers a) 101453, b)
101637 and c) 102566. Synthesisers b) and c) sound the same in all respects but
a) sounds quite different. The one instrument that really shows up this difference
is the basic Organ. On a) this is very distorted on all eight voices.
Can anyone advise me whether synthesiser a) is faulty or if
this earlier unit is technically different to the later two? If it is
different, can this be put right with a modification? When I asked Hybrid Technology
about this they were far from being helpful because I did not purchase any of
my Music 500's directly from them. Also, does anyone have a circuit diagram?
John Pugh
Answer: Controlling MIDI instruments
In AMPLINEX 010 Taj Letocha asks about accessing drum fills
on the Casio HT700 and Yamaha DD10. I had occasion to explore the Casio HT-3000
- the HT-700's big brother - and I don't think this can be done.
MIDI supports Start, Stop and Continue messages - so you
should be able to start and stop the Casio's drums by setting its clock to
External and sending Xs and ^s from the Music 2000. But there is not a special
MIDI message to allow you to trigger a drum fill.
Also, I could discover no way of accessing the HT-3000's
drum sounds via MIDI. In other words they don't seem to respond to MIDI note
number messages as sounds on dedicated drum machines do. One odd thing I did discover
- it took me nigh on two days! - is the fact that the HT-3000 (and so, I
suspect, the HT-700) does not respond to Song Position messages. This is just
the way the synthesiser has been designed.
Ian Waugh
Question: MIDI slides and bends
In using the Roland D-110 expander with the Music 2000 MIDI
interface I have found the word 'gl' (page 44 of the Music 2000 User Guide) to
be the best substitute to the AMPLE Slide command. In the case of limited pitch-bend
ranges, I have used the number 512 instead of 1024 in 'gl' which produces a
smoother slide.
The 'stepsnumber' input in the command, however, is not the
one I would expect. To obtain a 3 semitone bend, I had to input 4 with 512 (or
2 with 1024) used in gl. I haven't yet found a way to 'slide' over more than 4
tones. Also, what is the 'pitch bend sensitivity' mentioned on page 44?
Roger Sapolsky
Question: Archimedes A3000 computer
In response to Chris Jordan's comments in AMPLINEX 010, now
that the covers are off the latest BBC computer, does Hybrid Technology regard
the machine as 'finished' enough to develop AMPLE for?
I'm sure many AMPLINEX members with old BBC Model B's (if
not 40-track drives!) are looking long and hard at the A3000 as a suitable
upgrade, but want to continue with and improve their AMPLE music.
The Electron add-ons company, 'Pres', are reported to be
introducing a 1MHz port for the A3000, so would any of the current hardware be
usable, even if only in emulation mode?
On a slightly different subject, is the Music 3000 expander
(announced in AMPLINEX 011) compatible in any way with the Music 2000 software?
For instance, could the 16 voices of the Music 5000 + 3000 be used in addition to
those available on a MIDI instrument?
Jack Wrigley
The Music 2000 and Music 3000 are fully compatible. All 16
voices on the Music 5000 + 3000 combination are usable in addition to a
potential 32 MIDI voices. The maximum number of players remains at ten. The
Music 2000 User Guide warns, however, that if you try to control a MIDI
instrument via each of the Music 2000's three output lines 'by the time you
have added three MIDI parts to a piece which already uses most of the Music
5000 voices, you may well be nearing the limit of available memory and processing
power.' The same caution would apply to a Music 5000 + 3000 + 2000 combination.
Question: The MERGE command
Does the MERGE command mentioned on page 17 of the AMPLE
Nucleus Programmer Guide (issues 1 and 2) actually exist? I can find no other reference
to it. If it does exist, how do you use it?
J Benton
The inclusion of the MERGE command in the AMPLE Nucleus
Programmer Guide was a mistake. The command, to merge one program with another
will, however, be included in a 'utilities' package currently being developed
by Hybrid Technology.
Answer: Use of ROMRAM board
In AMPLINEX 011 Diccon Maude asks whether any other member
has managed to use the Watford RAMROM board to provide extra memory for AMPLE.
I also have a ROMRAM board, but unfortunately it can only be used to increase
usable memory with applications which explicitly support it. Therefore, a major
re-write of AMPLE would be required to gain any advantage.
The question asks about Sideways RAM - this should not be
confused with Shadow RAM, which immediately increases available memory in most applications
(including AMPLE).
Peter Miller
Question: Music 4000 silences
I am having trouble at the moment with pieces composed on
the Music 4000 keyboard. When I compose the individual parts and set them up to
RUN together there is always a moment of silence between the playing of part1a
and part1b. This is annoying since it breaks the continuity of the music. Could
someone help?
Gideon Kay
Answer: Acoustic guitar instrument
In AMPLINEX 011 Pete Miller and Diccon Maude ask about an
acoustic guitar sound. I noticed that other members have also asked how to
produce certain types of instrument.
I think the first thing to realise when trying to create new
sounds is that the Hybrid Music System uses a type of synthesis which is just
not able to create absolutely any sound under the sun.
When extolling the virtues of the latest synthesiser,
exuberant salespeople in music shops have been heard to say, 'The range of
sounds you can produce is limited only by your imagination'. This is just not
true no matter what instrument they are referring to - samplers included.
The Hybrid Music System, therefore, is good at certain types
of sounds and not so good at others and you must accept and work within its limitations.
One other point to bear in mind is the lines you make these sounds
play. A brass riff on piano, for example, will not sound quite right. On the
other hand, if a string-type sound is used to play typical string lines
(fourths are quite popular) then the realism of the sound will be enhanced. The
envelope characteristics (attack, delay, sustain, release) probably play a more
important part in our perception of a sound than the waveform.
Anyway, I have used an instrument called 'guitar' which is a
modification of Elguit. I can't remember now if this was my own creation or if
I pinched it from somewhere else (probably the latter) but I think it does
quite a good job as an acoustic guitar, helped by the lines it plays.
Ian Waugh
Ian Waugh's 'guitar' instrument is included in the
Instruments section of this disc.
Question: Music 2000 and Casio HT-3000
Can anyone tell me if my Casio HT-3000 keyboard will work
properly with the Music 2000 MIDI interface?
Paul Nuttall
Question: £500 Synthesiser
I am looking around for a programmable synthesiser with some
good preset sounds and near full-size keys, to use on its own and with the
Hybrid Music System. The problem is finance - I don't intend to spend more than
£500.
If someone has purchased such a keyboard and can recommend
it, I would be grateful to hear from them.
Peter Miller
Question: Fanfare for the Common Man
The 'info' in 'Fanfare for the Common Man' (AMPLINEX 011
music) mentioned that the piece was written as an aid to a 20-piece brass
arrangement.
My girlfriend plays a double b-flat bass in a brass band and
is very interested in getting hold of this arrangement for her band to try out.
Could 'Robonk' (the author(s) of the of the AMPLINEX piece)
please provide more details of the arrangement, and where it can be obtained?
John Spry
Answer: Keys of tuned instruments
In response to Andrew Smith who had 'hit a brick wall' in
attempting to transcribe an orchestral arrangement (AMPLINEX 011), instruments
such as Bb clarinets and Eb saxophones are 'transposing instruments', simply because
a clarinet automatically transposes notes one tone down, while an Eb saxophone
transposes them one and a half tones up.
When the Music 5000 plays music written for such
instruments, a transposition is necessary to obtain the same note pitches as
played by the instruments.
Obviously, the AMPLE commands to use here are -2@ (clarinet)
and 3@ (saxophone).
Naturally, the key signatures indicated on the music parts
must also be entered after SCORE. For instance, if the piano in the band plays
in the key of Ab (4 flats in the key signature), the Bb clarinet will play in
Bb (2 flats) and the saxophone in the key of F (1 flat). You don't need to know
this however, since the information is on the scores.
I hope I have helped to make the 'brick wall' tumble down.
Roger Sapolsky
In the early days, brass instruments such as trumpets could
play only the notes of the harmonic series. It was therefore necessary to have instruments
with different lengths of tubing for playing in different keys. To make life
easier for the player his score was always written in the key of C no matter in
which key it sounded.
When instruments were improved so as to be able to play
chromatic scales it was still found that tone colour was better in some
instruments when they used (say) B flat or A as their natural key. Thus, very few
C clarinets are now made.
As scores are written with the players in mind, those of us
who just read them come up against the problem of these transposing
instruments. Older scores may contain many transposers and this makes it
difficult to read them and to imagine the actual music. Modern scores use fewer
transposers.
If you examine an orchestral score you will find that the
majority of the instruments have the same key signature (instruments such as
violins and flutes are not transposers) but one or two differ. Examine the ones
with differing key signatures. If you find one with a key signature two sharps
up (e.g. D instead of C) it means that that player has to play D for it to
sound a C.
One simple way of defining such an instrument in AMPLE is to
include in the definition:
EVERY CHAN
-32 SHIFT
which tunes the instrument a tone lower. It saves you having
to re-write the score before programming. Be aware also that some instruments
are written in a different octave to that in which they play because otherwise
they would be written off the top or bottom of the staff.
Here are some suggestions for the SHIFT instruction:
Piccolo 192
Cor Anglais -112
Clarinet in E flat 48
Clarinet in B flat -32
Clarinet in A -48
Bass clarinet in B flat -224
Double bassoon -192
Horn in F -112
Trumpets in B flat -32
Trombones usually are written as they sound 0
Tuba in F -112
Tuba in E flat -144
String bass -192
Solo tenor singer -192
I have never tackled brass band scores but I would expect to
find the following:
E flat instruments +48
B flat instruments -32
to which we might have to add -192
or even -384
depending on the size of the
instrument.
Lol Taylor
Question: 80-column print utility
The AMPLINEX print utility U.print80 (included in AMPLINEX
005) is a marvellous facility. I use it to print out all the relevant
information in each issue. I do, however, have a recurring problem.
Having happily printed out almost everything on issue 011 I
came to the last item - U.Xample1 - when all hell broke loose: flashing red and
green print at the top of the screen followed by a 'hang-up'.
The only way I could get anything on paper was to go into
Command mode, load U.Xample1 and use WRITE. This, however, printed the whole
program - not just the text - and in 40-column not 80. A proper mess. This has happened
before and presumably is because the file in question is a program and not just
text. How can I print just the text and in 80-column form?
G H Richardson
You are right about the reason for the problems with
printing the U.Xample1 file. It is an AMPLE program not a text file and is
therefore unsuitable for use with the U.print80 utility. The only way to use
the 80-column utility with such a file is to SPOOL the output to a file, import
it into a text editor to remove any control codes and unwanted text, and use
the resulting file with the U.print80 utility.
To create a file of the screen output load the program
required into AMPLE and then type
*SPOOL outfile
at the AMPLE command prompt. Then RUN the program as normal.
Once all the text has been displayed, close the output file with
*SPOOL
This file ('outfile') should then be loaded into a word processor
or other text editor and the control codes (such as the clear screen commands which
will cause a form feed on most printers) and unwanted text stripped out. The
resulting file can then be reformatted into 80-columns using the text editor or
saved and processed via the U.print80 program.
Because of the variety of programming styles used in AMPLE
programs it is unlikely that an automatic utility like U.print80 could be
created to print their text contents directly.
Question: Sideways RAM programs
I wonder if contributors of Sideways RAM utility programs
would consider providing their original assembly code listing (in addition to
the ROM image)? Since these are most likely to be 'service' ROMs responding to
call 4 (i.e. performing new *COMMANDS) then many AMPLINEX members with their
own skeleton ROMs could add any new routines to save Sideways RAM space.
I only have 32K of Sideways RAM in two banks of 16K with the
AMPLE ROM image taking up one bank and a choice of say ZROM19 or the ANHF ROM
for the other. Clearly by merging these it would be much more useful. It is a
large task to disassemble the code from a hex dump or disassembler listing.
Stewart M Wilkie
We can, of course, only publish what is submitted to
AMPLINEX, and in some cases the author of a ROM-based program may not wish to
publish the source code. However, we are always glad to receive suggestions for
the extension of the facilities provided by such programs and combining several
utilities into one ROM image is certainly something we will consider.
Answer: Registration slips
In AMPLINEX 011 Peter Wright said that he had sent off his
Music 5000 registration slip several months ago but had heard nothing and asked
'Is this something that other AMPLE users have found?'
Since returning my registration slip to Hybrid Technology I
have heard nothing from them about their new products or about their music
discs. I have had to rely on AMPLINEX for all such details. I don't know if any
other members share my concern at this lack of follow up?
Paul Nuttall
Like Peter Wright, Hybrid Technology have never sent me any
information other than with orders that I've placed with them. Their newsletter
('Hybrid Music System News') looked interesting, but it seems to be only occasionally
updated and available at shows. Maybe they are leaving all the publicity work
to the AMPLINEX editorial team. If this is the case, perhaps you should give
Chris Jordan a regular spot!
Jack Wrigley
In response to Peter Wright's question regarding
registration strips - when I purchased my Music 5000 upgrade and subsequently a
Music 4000 keyboard, I too completed registration slips.
Nearly 2 years has passed and I have received no information
either in the way of technical support or on new products, software etc.
When questioned at last year's Micro User show Hybrid
Technology expressed surprise and took my name and address. I have still
received nothing.
It appears that the only way to be kept informed is to write
or phone Hybrid on a regular basis or, of course, to read AMPLINEX.
Surely, it is not too much to expect some form of
recognition for their hundreds of customers - otherwise, why bother to include
a registration slip in the first place?
So, come on Hybrid, what about a twice-yearly newsletter or
free sample disc of selected current AMPLE albums? After all, we did purchase
your products in the first place and may do so again.
Alan Mothersole
Hybrid Technology say that their policy is to inform
customers of 'significant developments' in the Hybrid Music System and only the
Music 4000 keyboard has so far fallen into that category. The Music 3000 expander
unit (reviewed in AMPLINEX 011) is expected to be one of the subjects of the
next customer-wide mailshot later this year.
Editor's note:
The comments following some of the questions above are only
my opinions on the subject and should not be taken as definitive answers.
Your comments are most welcome on any of the questions
posed, whether they supplement, confirm or correct any I have expressed.
