YAMAHA AUTHORIZED PRODUCT MANUAL DIGITAL RHYTHM PROGRAMMER
YAMAHA DIGITAL RHYTHM PROGRAMMER OWNER’S MANUAL
INTRODUCTION Congratulations on your purchase of a Yamaha RX21 Digital Rhythm Programmer! Your RX21 represents the crystallization of the most sophisticated electronic music technology, combining advanced microcomputer control with a top-quality digital PCM sound storage and reproduction system. With the RX21 you will be able to program virtually any type of rhythm pattern, and since the instrument sounds are digitally recorded they are indistinguishable from live percussion instruments.
CONTROL PANEL 2
CONNECTIONS MIDI IN CASSETTE IN/OUT MIDI OUT PHONES OUT R MIDI EQUIPMENT A wide variety of MIDI compatible equipment may be used. These are just a few examples.
PA-1 POWER SUPPY DC9V~ 12V IN OUTPUT TO SOUND/MONITOR SYSTEM POWER ON/OFF OTHER SOURCES MULTITRACK RECORDER PA OR RECORDING MIXER OUT L CASSETTE "IN" OR "MIC" JACK CASSETTE "OUT" OR "EAR" JACK DATA CASSETTE RECORDER 4
PRECAUTIONS Avoid placing the RX21 in locations exposed to direct sunlight or high temperatures, excessively high or low humidity, high dust concentration, or vibration. Be sure to connect the RX21 to an AC power supply that meets the power supply specifications listed on the rear of the unit. Ideally, you should use the PA-1 power supply unit supplied with the RX21. If there is any danger of lightning occurring nearby, remove the power plug from the wall socket in advance.
SETTING UP Please read the PRECAUTIONS section of this manual before setting up your RX21. The CONNECTIONS diagram which folds out at the front of this manual shows you how to make the simple connections necessary to set up your RX21. Use the PA-1 power supply, or any similar power supply to convert the AC voltage to the voltage required to power the RX21 (9 to 12 V). A brief output pulse appears at the RX21 outputs when the power is initially turned on.
THE INSTRUMENTS Getting to Know the RX21 Instruments The RX21 contains nine superb percussion instrument sounds. Because they are digitally recorded, they are indistinguishable from the real thing, and allow you to create totally authentic drum rhythms. The RX21 instruments can be played in real-time (without programming patterns or songs) by tapping on the black instrument buttons.
buttons increases or decreases the volume by one, respectively. Holding either button down will cause the numbers to change continuously and rapidly. The total level, once set, remains at the selected value even after turning off the RX21. Press PATTERN PLAY to exit the total level mode. Total Level (Example: reducing total level from 63 to 50) Instrument Level To set the individual instrument level, press the LEVEL button twice.
When you record a pattern, pressing the ACCENT key to add an accent to a beat (no need to press an instrument key at the same time) will affect ALL instruments sounding on that beat, according to their individual accent levels. For instruments which are not to be accented, simply set their accent level to zero. Setting Accent Levels The accent level for each instrument can be set independently, making it possible to set the most natural level in relation to the instrument’s normal level.
PATTERN OPERATIONS Pattern Selection With the RX21, a "pattern" denotes a one bar (one measure) drum sequence, which repeats when you play it back. The RX21 is capable of storing a total of 100 different patterns in its internal pattern memory. Pattern memories 56 through 99 contain 44 preset patterns that provide a variety of exciting and usable drum patterns that you can play immediately. These are listed in the RX21 PATTERN BOOK accompanying this manual.
the LCD, and the RX21 will switch to the new pattern at the end of the pattern that is presently playing (i.e. at the end of the measure). The LCD will then display only the new pattern number. Pattern Change During Playback (Example: Patterns 00 Tempo Control 01 24) The pattern tempo can be adjusted at any time (even while playing back or recording) by pressing the blue TEMPO button.
First, select the pattern number you wish to program (numbers 00 through 55 only: patterns 56 through 99 are permanent preset patterns and cannot be re-programmed, although you can edit the preset patterns to produce new patterns, as we’ll explain in the PATTERN COPY SECTION later in this chapter). Also, ensure (by playing back if necessary) that the selected pattern number does not contain a pattern, if you want to avoid losing an existing pattern.
4. Press BEAT a third time, to return the RX21 to the real time write mode. You are now ready to program your pattern. Tap the red START button, and you’ll hear the “click track” rhythm accents. If, by mistake, you have selected a preset, there will be no click track. Instead, the LCD will show “PRESET PTN AREA!”, then revert to the “SELECT PTN pp" display, and you should select another pattern and repeat the real time write setting procedure.
grammed pattern CANNOT be changed. The quantize rate can only be changed by using the Beat Exchange function (this is described later in this chapter). Real Time Write (Example: 3/4 time, Quantize Rate 1/16, on pattern 00) PLAY INSTRUMENT KEYS TO ENTER PATTERN. USE ACCENT KEY TO ENTER ACCENTS, CLEAR KEY PLUS INSTRUMENT KEY TO CLEAR MISTAKES.
For this initial explanation, we’ll assume that you’ve selected a pattern number that is empty of data. You can now set the length and quantize rate of your pattern. Press the BEAT button. If, by mistake, you have selected a pre-programmed pattern, the LCD will show the error message "PRESET PTN AREA!" then revert to the "SELECT PTN” display. Normally, the LCD will switch to “LENGTH=// /16” (// is the pattern length) with the cursor flashing to the right of the length number.
Here’s a simple example of a rhythm pattern programmed in the Step Write Mode, using a quantize rate of 1/16 (this pattern is the same as the one you entered in the real time mode). It’s shown here in regular music notation, and underneath the part of each instrument is shown in the form of a Dot Display. You can call up a Dot Display on the RX21’s LCD, as described in the STEP WRITE DOT DISPLAY section later in this chapter.
PLAY INSTRUMENT KEYS TO ENTER MORE NOTES. USE ACCENT KEY TO ENTER ACCENTS, +1/YES KEY TO ENTER RESTS, CLEAR KEY PLUS INSTRUMENT KEY TO CLEAR MISTAKES. You can now playback your pattern in the usual way, adjusting the tempo as desired. Quantize Basically, quantize determines the smallest note-increments which can be programmed. The available quantize values are 1/12, 1/24, 1/16, and 1/32. This is the order in which the values appear when you “scroll through” the quantize values with the +1/YES key.
NOTE: The quantize value is set ONLY when a clear pattern is called and is being set for programming, as described in the REAL TIME PATTERN PROGRAMMING and STEP WRITE PATTERN PROGRAMMING sections. The Step Write Dot Display To make step write programming of patterns easier and more rapid, the RX21 features a Dot Display which gives a visual indication of each instrument. This is called up as follows: 1. Enter the step write mode as usual, and set the Length and Quantize Rate as previously described.
The length of the Dot Display depends on two things: the length of the pattern, and the quantize rate. For example, in a 3/4 time pattern with a quantize rate of 1/12, the empty pattern will be displayed thus: However, the LCD display only accommodates 16 beats, so in the case of a pattern with more beats (for example, a 4/4 time bar with a quantize rate of 1/24) only the first 16 beats will be displayed, initially.
You can use the Dot Display function to examine any pattern, whether programmed in real time or step write. This is a good way to learn what rhythms look like when displayed visually–you’ll find that even complex rhythms quantized at 1/32 look really simple on the Dot Display. Beat Exchange Once a pattern is programmed, you cannot re-program the quantize rate. However, the Beat Exchange function enables you to switch the quantize rate of an existing pattern between 1/12 and 1/24, or 1/16 and 1/32.
IMPORTANT: If you switch from a higher quantize rate to a lower one, only the notes occuring on the new beats will remain-all other notes will be cleared. For example, if you have programmed a part at a quantize rate of 1/32, the Beat Exchange function will switch the quantize rate to 1/16, and all notes which originally appeared on beats 2, 4, 6, 8 etc. will be erased. This will affect all instruments simultaneously.
Click Level You can set the level of the RX21’s click track (rhythm guide during real time recording) before or during recording. Simply press the LEVEL key twice, then the BEAT key. You can now set the click track level using the -1/NO and +1/YES keys. The available click level range is 00–31. 00 turns off the click track. When setting the level, the -1/NO and +1/YES keys can be pressed for single unit change, or held down for rapid continuous change.
First, press the CLEAR button from the pattern select mode (in this case, the pattern number selected is of no importance). When the “CLEAR PTN pp ?” display appears, simultaneously press the CLEAR and PATTERN PLAY buttons. The LCD will switch to “CLEAR ALL PTNS ?”. If you decide you don’t want to clear all patterns, press the -1/NO button to cancel the clear function. If you want to clear all patterns, press the +1/YES key.
Instrument Clear (Example: clear HH CLOSED from pattern 00) Pattern Copy The RX21 allows you to copy any pattern from one pattern number to another pattern number. This is particularly handy when you want to add more instruments or rhythm lines, or otherwise alter an existing pattern, and still keep the original pattern. You can use this function to copy one of the RX21’s preset patterns, then alter it to create your own personally programmed pattern.
Pattern Copy (Example: Copy pattern 79 to pattern 00) 25
SONG OPERATIONS In the RX21 the term "song" refers to a number of patterns connected together to form the complete rhythm track for a musical piece-for example, intro pattern, verse pattern, chorus pattern, fills, ending, etc. When used in a song, the individual patterns are referred to as “parts” of the song. The RX21 has a song memory which is separate from the pattern memory, and is capable of storing up to 4 different songs (numbered 0 through 3).
ON”. If you now press START the song that is already selected will play. If you press REPEAT, the RX21 will revert to the select song mode, and you can select another song. The REPEAT function will now apply to playback of any song programmed into the RX21. During repeat playback, you can of course carry out all the operations described in the SONG PLAYBACK section. Playback will continue until you press the STOP/CONTINUE key.
or hold-down-for-continuous- movement actions. Also, pressing the SONG WRITE key while in this mode sends you back to the beginning of the song instantly. At any point in the song you can replace a part simply by entering a new pattern number. Let’s create a simple song consisting of four different patterns. We’ll use this song as a working example throughout this section of the manual.
The lnsert Function While in the Edit mode, the Insert function permits new patterns to be inserted anywhere in the song, between already-programmed parts. Let’s take our song example, in which we’ve already programmed parts 1 through 4, and add a new part between parts 2 and 3, leaving us with a total of 5 parts instead of 4. Use the -1/NO and +1/YES keys to locate part 3, which will contain the new part-the original part 3, and any subsequent parts, will be moved up by one part. Press the INSERT key.
The Delete Function While in the edit mode, the delete function can be used to clear parts from a song program. For example, in the INSERT function described above, we inserted a new pattern into part 3. To delete this part, we simply locate part 3 using the -1/NO or +1/YES key, and press DELETE. The LCD will show "DELETE PART 003?". If we now press +1/YES, part 3 will be deleted and all subsequent parts will be moved back one part.
Still in the editing mode, you can now use the -1/NO and +1/YES keys and locate the repeats, which are displayed just before the corresponding part (in the case of Begin Repeat signs) or just after (in the case of End Repeat signs) and once located, you can delete repeats in the same way as parts (see the DELETING REPEATS section). You can, if you wish, repeat only one part. This is quite common-you may often want to repeat the same part, say, eight times, for a verse section, for example.
Having located the repeat sign, press DELETE, and the LCD will show "DELETE REPEAT ?”, then press +1/YES to delete, or -1/NO to cancel the delete function. Delete Repeat (Example: delete Begin Repeat at pattern 2) NOTE: If you delete a Begin Repeat sign, the corresponding End Repeat sign will be ineffective, and vice versa. Generally, it’s best to delete both repeat signs, Song Clear Single songs can be cleared by selecting the song to be cleared and then pressing the CLEAR key.
All songs in memory (songs 0–3) may be cleared simultaneously if desired. This is a "hidden function" in the sense that it cannot be accessed directly-in order to prevent accidental clearing of the entire song memory contents. First, press the CLEAR button from the song select mode (in this case, the song number selected is of no importance). When the "CLEAR SONG s ?" display appears, simultaneously press the CLEAR and SONG PLAY buttons. The LCD will switch to "CLEAR ALL SONGS?".
CASSETTE OPERATIONS Although the RX21 has a considerable amount of internal storage capacity, a cassette interface has been provided to facilitate storage on a standard cassette tape of an unlimited number of your original patterns and songs. The RX21 cassette save and load operations let you save (store onto tape) and load (transfer from tape to RX21 memory) the entire RX21 memory contents at once-all patterns and songs (except the preset patterns, which are permanently stored in the RX21’s memory).
the CASSETTE button. The LCD will read "SAVE BREAK” or "VERIFY BREAK”, depending on which function you have interrupted. The RX21 will stop for about 2 seconds, then you can return to the cassette mode by pressing CASSETTE again. The verify function can be accessed directly, without going through the save operation by pressing the VERIFY button.
Load Data From Cassette 36
MIDI FUNCTIONS The RX21 features MIDI (Musical Instrument Digital Interface) IN and OUT terminals on the rear panel (see the CONNECTIONS diagram for details). This means that your RX21 can control or be controlled by other MIDI instruments, so that it functions as part of a state-of-the-art digital music system, as well as a sophisticated unit in its own right. The following four basic MIDI control operations are available (read the rest of this chapter for details of these operation procedures). 1.
In this example, which in effect has the same sound potential as the previous one, the RX21 controls the QX7 which in turn controls a TX7. It outputs STOP and START signals, and the MIDI Clock signal, which will control the tempo of the QX7, which has its clock set to EXTERNAL. 3. KEY NUMBER RECEPTION. The RX21 instruments can be sequenced by an external sequencer or music computer, or played by an external synthesizer.
APPLICATION EXAMPLE: 2 RX21’s. In this example, the left hand RX21 sends MIDI data to the right hand RX21, as described later in this chapter. Whichever way you wish to send data, the connections should be made as shown. Clock Modes The RX21 offers two clock modes (also known as sync modes or synchronization modes) which function as follows: 1. INTERNAL. This is the normal RX21 mode.
MIDI Parameters The following parameters must be set, in order to carry out the various MIDI control operations that we’ve just discussed. 1. RECEIVE CHANNEL (1 through 76) MIDI information is transmitted on 16 channels, and for key number reception, the RX21 must be set to the same MIDI channel as the MIDI instrument(s) to which it is connected.
A key number transmitted by any MIDI synthesizer, sequencer or music computer will activate any RX21 instrument. For example, you can manually “play” the RX21 "drum kit” on a MIDI keyboard: You could also program a series of key numbers into your computer or sequencer (like programming in a "melody" composed of the “pitches” corresponding to the RX21 instruments, as shown in the above diagrams).
Transmitting MIDI Data Tape Sync with the RX21. The RX21 can function as part of a tape sync setup, where digital impulses recorded on tape can be used to control MIDI instruments for a Total Auto-Play system. In the example illustrated, the tape sync signal is recorded on track 1 of a four-track cassette using a Yamaha MT44D multitrack tape deck.
PROGRAMMING REFERENCE GUIDE Total Level (Example: reducing total level from 63 to 50) INSTRUMENT OPERATIONS Instrument Level (Example: Increase TOM 1 level from 15 to 22) Accent Level (Example: increase TOM 1 accent level from 5 to 15) 43
Selecting Patterns (Example: patterns 00, 01, 24) PATTERN OPERATlONS Pattern Change During Playback (Example: Patterns 00 01 24) TEMPO Function (Example: Change tempo from 120 to 140 during playback of pattern 00) Real Time Write (Example: 3/4 time, Quantize Rate 1/16, on pattern 00) 44
PLAY INSTRUMENT KEYS TO ENTER PATTERN. USE ACCENT KEY TO ENTER ACCENTS, CLEAR KEY PLUS INSTRUMENT KEY TO CLEAR MISTAKES. Step Write (Example: 4/4 Time, Quantize Rate 16, on pattern 00) PLAY INSTRUMENT KEYS TO ENTER MORE NOTES. USE ACCENT KEY TO ENTER ACCENTS, +1/YES KEY TO ENTER RESTS, CLEAR KEY PLUS INSTRUMENT KEY TO CLEAR MISTAKES.
Beat Exchange (Example: on pattern 00) Setting CIick level (Example: reducing level from 31 to 20, while recording on pattern 00) 46
Pattern Clear (Single) (Example: clear pattern 00) Pattern Clear (All Patterns, Except Presets) Instrument Clear (Example: clear HH CLOSED from pattern 00) Pattern Copy (Example: Copy pattern 79 to pattern 00) 47
Song Playback (Example: playback of song 2) SONG OPERATIONS Repeat Playback of Song (Example: repeat playback of song 0) 48
Song Editing (Example: song 0, patterns 22,5,79,4) Insert (Example: insert pattern 59 between parts 2 and 3) Delete (Example: delete part 3) 49
Entering Repeats (Example: repeat parts 2 and 5, 3 times) Delete Repeat (Example: delete Begin Repeat at pattern 2) Song Clear (Single) (Example: clear song 0) 50
Song Clear (All Songs) Save Data to Cassette and Verify CASSETTE OPERATIONS START RECORDER IN RECORD MODE START CASSETTE RECORDER IN PLAYBACK MODE Load Data From Cassette 51
Clock Mode Selection MIDI FUNCTIONS TO RETURN TO INTERNAL CLOCK: MIDI Receive Channel Setting (Example: set to channel 2) Key Number Reception Transmitting MIDI Data 52
ERROR MESSAGES No machine is unlimited, and from time to time the RX21’s LCD may present you with an error message indicating that something has gone wrong, or that you have made an operating error. These error messages are as follows: Cause: The RX21 memory backup battery voltage is between 1.5 and 2.2 V. Solution: Change battery as soon as possible (contact your local Yamaha dealer). Press +1/YES to return LCD to normal display.
Cause: You tried to write a song when the song memory was full (for example, all 512 available parts had been used in three songs, and you tried to write a fourth). Solution: Clear songs to make space for new songs, or save the entire RX21 memory onto cassette, then clear all songs. Cause: You tried to enter a repeat where there is one already entered.
SPECIFICATIONS SOUND SOURCE ROM: 256 KBIT WAVE ROMx2 NO. OF VOICES: 9 MEMORY CAPACITY NO. OF PATTERNS: 100 (00-55 programmable, 56-99 preset) NO. OF SONGS: 4 MAXIMUM NO.
BLOCK DIAGRAM 56
[ D i g i t a l Rhythm Programmer Model RX21 MIDI ] Version : 1.Ø Implementation Chart Transmitted Recognized Remarks Function . . .
FCC INFORMATION (USA) While the following statements are provided to comply with FCC Regulations in the United States, the corrective measures listed below are applicable worldwide. This series of Yamaha professional music equipment uses frequencies that appear in the radio frequency range and if installed in the immediate proximity of some types of audio or video devices (within three meters), interference may occur.
SINCE 1887 YAMAHA NIPPON GAKKI CO., LTD. HAMAMATSU, JAPAN OMD-136 85 11 10.
RX21 OM 9/10/98 29645 YAMAHA Recyclab!e RX21 OM Yamaha Corporation of America 6600 Orangethorpe Avenue, P.O.
