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About EXS24 Sampler Instruments
A sampler instrument is the file type that is loaded into the EXS24 mkII. You load sampler
instruments using the Sampler Instruments pop-up menu directly above the Cutoff knob
in the EXS24 mkII. When you select a sampler instrument, the associated audio files are
automatically located on the hard disk (or disks), and are loaded into your computer’s
RAM.
A sampler instrument tells the EXS24 mkII which samples—audio files—to use, and how
to organize them into zones and groups. You play and record with the loaded sampler
instrument in the same way as any software instrument. See An Overview of EXS24 mkII
Zones and Groups and Differences Between EXS24 Sampler Instruments and Settings.
An Overview of EXS24 mkII Zones and Groups
A sampler instrument consists of zones and groups:
• A zone is a location into which a single sample—an audio file—can be loaded from a
hard disk.
• Zones can be assigned to groups, which provide parameters that allow you to
simultaneously edit all zones in the group. You can define as many groups as desired.
For information about zones and groups, see An Overview of the EXS24 mkII Instrument
Editor and subsequent sections.
The EXS24 mkII is compatible with the following audio file formats: AIFF, WAV, SDII, and
CAF. Each audio file is loaded into the EXS24 mkII as a separate sample. Each audio file
is then automatically assigned to a zone in the EXS24 mkII Instrument Editor window.
These zones can be edited and organized into sampler instruments. For more information
about using audio files in zones, see Editing EXS24 mkII Zones and Groups.
Important: The actual audio files themselves are not contained within a sampler
instrument. The sampler instrument only stores information about audio file names,
parameter settings, and locations on the hard disk. If you delete or rename an audio file,
any sampler instrument that makes use of this file will not be able to find it, so take care
when performing these operations on audio files. You are free to move audio files to
another location on your system, however. The EXS24 mkII can find moved files when
sampler instruments are loaded.
Differences Between EXS24 Sampler Instruments and Settings
Sampler instruments are distinct from plug-in settings, which are loaded and saved in
the plug-in window header. Each has advantages and disadvantages for handling
parameter values in the Parameter window.
Typically, you will store the current Parameter window settings into the loaded sampler
instrument. This overrides the settings currently saved in the loaded sampler instrument.
Alternatively, you can save a new sampler instrument.
168 Chapter 9 EXS24 mkII