SR18 Professional Drum Machine

Data can be saved so that it is retained in memory even if the power is turned off. If the memory fills up with drum Patterns and Songs, this data can be saved permanently to MIDI System Exclusive storage devices.

The SR18 also includes a library of Preset Patterns prepared by professional drummers and musicians for those who want to start creating Songs in the fastest and easiest way possible.

After perfecting these Patterns, Song Mode offers two ways to create a song:

• Program a list of Patterns, in the order in which they are to be played.
• Select Patterns in real time, and the SR18 will remember your performance.

The SR18 stores up to 100 User-programmable Songs.

Breaking a song into Patterns saves time since elements of a song often repeat.

Example: The second verse might have the same drum pattern as the first verse. Rather than record the same Pattern twice, simply record one Pattern, then list it twice when assembling a Song. This also saves memory (thus leaving room for more Patterns and Songs) since listing a Song step takes up much less memory than recording a Pattern.

• Preset Patterns provide a variety of rock, jazz, pop, and other rhythms programmed by professional drummers.
• User Patterns are Patterns you can program, edit, and save. The PRESET/USER button selects between these two master banks of Patterns. It is important to note that the only way to modify a Preset Pattern is to copy it to a User Pattern, where it can be edited.

The reason for pairing the two different A and B Patterns together is simply so that you can switch back and forth between them rapidly in live performance or while improvising. Note that a Pattern's A, B and FILL Sub-Patterns have equal lengths and use the same Drum Set (collection of drum, percussion and bass sounds, as well as effects parameters).

Note that even though there are "only" 100 Patterns, the A and B variations double that to 200 Patterns, and the Fills double that again to 400 Patterns. Added to the Preset Patterns, 800 total Patterns are available.

Example: Suppose you want to record an 8-beat pattern. While recording, the pattern will record through all 8 beats, then immediately jump back to the beginning and continue recording through all 8 beats again. The SR18 will remain in record mode, and continue to loop, until you press STOP or switch over to Pattern Play mode. You will hear any previously-played parts as you record new parts. You can also erase drum hits while the pattern is looping to correct for errors.

Each pad is velocity-sensitive: the harder you hit the pad, the louder the sound assigned to the pad will play. Thanks to the dynamic articulation techniques mentioned earlier, the timbre will often change as well, just like the way that "real" drum, percussion and bass instruments produce sound when played with different amounts of force.

There are eight levels of pad volume resolution, from soft to loud. However, when using the SR18 as a drum sound expander and triggering sounds via MIDI, they respond to all 127 MIDI volume levels.

Pressing the INC button once increases the value of the entire number indicated by the cursor (not just a single digit) by one. Pressing the DEC button once decreases the value of the entire number indicated by the cursor (not just a single digit) by one.

Example: If the display shows 00 and you want to enter 01, tap the INC button once.

These buttons, as well as the PAGE buttons, also have a "scroll" feature. If you press and hold a button, after a short pause the display will either increment or decrement at a rapid rate.

Example: The beat length is a three-digit number. To enter a beat length of 16, enter 016.

Example: Press the PATTERN/SONG button once to change from Pattern to Song; press again to change from Song to Pattern.

Example: Press RECORD SETUP to call up the Record Setup menu; press RECORD SETUP again to exit the Record Setup menu.

2. Leave the MIDI OUT jack (rear panel) disconnected for now.
3. Plug the SR18's AC adapter into the wall. The smaller plug inserts in the 12V DC Power jack on the back.
4. Turn on the rear panel ON/OFF switch, and then turn on the amplifier.
5. The LCD will illuminate. The upper right of the display should say PATTERN and not SONG; if it shows SONG, press the PATTERN/SONG button so the display shows PATTERN.
6. Start hitting the pads. Adjust the volume control for a comfortable listening level, and check out the sounds.
7. Try pressing one of the Pad Play Mode buttons (DRUM, PERC, BASS) to access the different instrument layers and play the pads.
8. To hear the built-in demo, hold down the PATTERN/SONG button and press PLAY. To stop the demo, press STOP. If you want to play along with the demo, feel free to bash away on the pads.
9. To hear a Preset Pattern, stop the SR18 and press the PRESET / USER button to select Preset Patterns (the display should show PRESET). Then, press PLAY to hear the Preset Pattern.
10. Try the following:
    • While in Preset Patterns, enter a two-digit number between 00-99 using the number keys, then press PLAY.
    • Press the INC button to select the next higher-numbered Preset Pattern. It will play at the end of the current Pattern.
    • Press the DEC button to select the next lower-numbered Preset Pattern.
    • Press the B button to select the B variation of the selected Pattern.
    • Press the A button to select the A variation of the selected Pattern.
    • Press FILL briefly while a Main (A or B) Pattern is playing. Note how the Main Pattern switches from either A to B or B to A after the Fill has played.
    • Press FILL and hold it down until after the Fill has played. If the FILL button is held down past the next downbeat, the Fill's associated Main Pattern (A or B) continues to play rather than switch from A to B or B to A.
    • Hold down TAP TEMPO and use the VALUE dial (or INC / DEC buttons) to change the tempo.

DRUM

This Pad Play mode allows you to play up to twelve Drum sounds with the pads.

PERC

This Pad Play mode allows you to play up to twelve Percussion sounds with the pads.

BASS

This Pad Play mode allows you to play up to 3 Octaves of a key-mapped bass sample(s) on the pads. To transpose the bass sounds, press and hold the BASS button and then use the INC / DEC buttons or VALUE dial to transpose up or down an octave.

Press PLAY to play the Pattern or Song from the current location. Press PLAY again while a Pattern or Song is playing to pause it. Press PLAY to continue playing the Pattern or Song from the location where it was paused.

• Preset Patterns provide a variety of styles, and other rhythms that feature drums, percussion and an accompanying bassline. Note that the only way to modify a Preset Pattern is to copy it to a User Pattern, where it can be edited.
• User Patterns are Patterns you can program, edit, and save.

The PRESET / USER button selects between these two banks of Patterns.

1. Use the INC / DEC buttons or VALUE dial to select the next Pattern. The newly-selected Pattern will play back as soon as the current Pattern plays through its entire length. The display shows the Pattern to be played next.
2. Enter the two-digit Pattern number with the number buttons. If an A Pattern is currently playing, the new Pattern number will play the A variation. If a B Pattern is currently playing, the new Pattern number will play the B variation. You can also enter a two-digit Pattern number followed by A or B or PRESET / USER to call up an A or B or Preset or User Pattern, regardless of the Pattern that is currently playing.

3. Press the A button to select the A Main Pattern, or B to select the B Main Pattern. To select a Fill Pattern, first select the desired Main Pattern (A or B) then press the FILL button.
4. Press PRESET/USER to select either a Preset or User Pattern.
5. When a Main Pattern reaches its end, it will loop back to the beginning and continue playing from that point unless you select a new Pattern, select a Fill Pattern initially, or stop the Pattern.

If you select a User Pattern that contains no data, the display says EMPTY PATTERN. If you select a User Pattern that contains data but has not yet been named, the display says NO NAME.

Notes

• If you change your mind or select the wrong Pattern, you can select a new Pattern number at any time before the next Pattern begins.
• If you press STOP before the next Pattern begins playing, the SR18 will stop and remain on the currently selected Pattern.
• To immediately jump to the next Pattern in the sequence, press the PAGE UP button.
• To immediately return and begin playing from the start of the current Pattern, press PAGE DOWN.

1. Before playing a Pattern, tap the TAP TEMPO button several times at the desired tempo. The SR18 will average the time between taps and derive a tempo; the display will update the tempo with each tap. If a footswitch is plugged into the Count/A/B/Fill jack, tapping the footswitch at the desired rate is equivalent to tapping the TAP TEMPO button.
2. Hold down the TAP TEMPO button and turn the VALUE dial to select a new tempo. Alternatively, you can use the INC / DEC buttons while holding down TAP TEMPO to increase or decrease by 1 BPM, or hold down to scroll through the tempo values.

Note that you can customize how the SR18 deals with tempo. In the System Setup pages (page 9), you can specify whether the SR18 will follow the tempo associated with each Pattern or whether the unit will follow a global tempo setting, ignoring any tempo data associated with the Patterns.

• Fills are always the same length, and use the same Drum Set, as the associated Main Pattern. This lets you "drop in" a Fill at any time. As soon as you press the FILL button, the Fill takes over from the Main Pattern and starts playing until the end of the Fill.
• Fills are transitional Patterns.

  Example: Suppose an 8-beat A Main Pattern is playing and you press the FILL button on beat 4. The A Fill Pattern will play the last 4 beats and then automatically transition into the B Main Pattern.

• Conversely, if B Main is playing and you press Fill, after B Fill has played, the SR18 will transition to the A Main Pattern. You can select the Fill at any time while the Main Pattern is playing. However, Fills do not have to be transitional Patterns. If you press the FILL button (or footswitch) before the Fill has finished playing and hold it down until after the Fill has played (i.e., past the downbeat of the next Pattern), the SR18 will return to the original Main Pattern.

  Example: Suppose an 8-beat A Main Pattern is playing and you press the FILL button on beat 4 but hold it down past beat 8. The A Fill Pattern will play the last 4 beats, then the SR18 will return to the A Main Pattern.

• Fills cannot start on the downbeat since a Fill, by definition, starts at some point into the Main Pattern. However, anything you record on the Fill downbeat will play on the first downbeat following the Fill (i.e., the downbeat of the next Pattern). To show why this is a useful feature, consider that when coming out of a fill, you'll often want to hit something like a cymbal crash on the downbeat of the next Pattern yet not have that crash repeat every time the Pattern plays. This way of handling Fills lets the downbeat cymbal crash be part of the Fill instead of the Main Pattern.
• A footswitch plugged into the Count/A/B/Fill jack duplicates the FILL button function when playing Patterns in Perform mode.

Background: This way of handling Patterns explains the logic behind having A, B, and Fill Patterns. In typical pop tunes, A would be the verse and B the chorus. A Fill provides the Fill that transitions from verse to chorus, and B Fill provides the Fill that transitions from chorus to verse. Thus, one of the numbered Patterns may be all you need to put together a tune. This structure makes it possible to put together songs in minutes using the Preset Patterns. It also makes it easy to play drum parts live. For example, if there's a solo happening over the A Main Pattern, you can keep the Pattern repeating until the solo is about to end, at which point you select the Fill that leads out of the A Main Pattern.

Background: The rear panel Start/Stop footswitch jack accepts a momentary, normally open or normally closed footswitch (available at most music stores) for remote or foot control of the stop and start functions. The SR18 checks the footswitch on power-up to determine whether it is normally open or normally closed, so make sure the footswitch is plugged in (and you're not pressing it down) when you turn on power.

Press a pad on the first beat of what will be a series of hits and hold it down. Immediately after pressing the pad, press and hold the ROLL button. The drum will be retriggered at the current quantization rate for as long as the pad and ROLL button are held down. All hits will be at the same volume as the first pad hit.

1. Play a Pattern.
2. Press and hold the MUTE button.
3. Press one of the Instrument buttons (DRUM, PERC or BASS). That particular instrument sound will be muted.
4. To un-mute the instrument layer, press the corresponding button (DRUM, PERC, BASS) while holding down MUTE.

3. Enter the desired Drum Set number (from 00 to 99) with the number buttons, INC/DEC buttons or the VALUE dial. (With the number buttons, enter a leading zero if necessary).

Note: User Patterns will remember the selected Drum Set assignments. Preset Patterns have fixed Drum Set assignments; if you exit from the Preset Pattern, the SR18 will forget any assignment you made.

Note: To select sounds for the Perc or Bass section of the kit, press the corresponding button for these sections and then edit the parameters the same way you would for the Drums.

The Effects selection and settings are similar to the Record Setup and Drum Set modes. After you press the EFFECTS button, you will be taken to the first page. To move between the different pages and parameters, use the PAGE UP / DOWN buttons. The current parameter value can be changed with INC / DEC buttons, the number keypad, or the VALUE dial. Note that you can turn Effects on and off on a per pad basis.

Note: For EQ and Compression there is no send parameter.

1. To save your set, press and hold the SAVE / COPY button. The display shows SAVE SET?, the currently selected Drum Set number (location), and a two-digit number that's the same as the currently selected Drum Set. You will notice the REC LED begin to blink.
2. To save the Drum Set to the current location, press REC.
3. To save the Drum Set to a different location, enter the new Drum Set number with the INC/DEC buttons, number buttons (allowable range is 00-99), or the VALUE dial.
4. Finally, press REC to save to the selected location.

If you were editing a Preset Drum Set and want to save it, you will be given the option to save it to a User Drum Set since you cannot overwrite a Preset Drum Set. This technique can also copy one Drum Set to a different Drum Set. Also, remember that if you change Patterns before saving your Drum Set, all of your edits will be lost.

Quantization shifts your playing to the specified beat while you play, so choose the desired value before playing out your rhythms. Remember that you can also change quantization while recording if, for example, you want to record snare with eighth note quantization but hi-hats with 16th note quantization.

Enter the desired quantization value with the INC/DEC buttons, VALUE dial, or number buttons (1 = quarter note, 2 = quarter note triplet, 3 = 8th note, 4 = 8th note triplet, 5 = 16th note, 6 = 16th note triplet, 7 = 32nd note, 8 = 32nd note triplet, 9 and 0 = Off, equivalent to 1/384th note resolution).

Note: The quantize value also sets the step length in Step Edit mode.

3. After you select the Song, press the PLAY button. Note that the SR18 will not attempt to play blank songs (i.e. if the display shows EMPTY SONG). The screen will change as shown:
   • The step number will be displayed on the top line of the display, on the left.
   • The current beat will be displayed on the right.
   • The pattern assigned to the current step will be displayed on the bottom line.
   • A, B or FILL and PRESET / USER will be displayed as well, depending on which sub-pattern is selected for the step.

2. Press the PATTERN / SONG button again to switch back to Song Mode (the display should show SONG).
3. Press the REC button to enable Record Mode (the REC LED will illuminate). Now press the PLAY button to begin recording the Song. The Pattern which you selected above will begin to play and you will see this screen:
4. To select the Pattern which should be played next, use the INC / DEC buttons. Alternatively, you can use the VALUE dial or you can enter the Pattern number with the number keys. You can also specify which sub-pattern should be played by pressing the A, B or FILL button. The screen will change to display NEXT and the cued Pattern number on the bottom line. The Pattern will begin playing as soon as the current Pattern plays through its end, and will be entered as the next Song step.
5. Continue to select the rest of the Patterns for your Song.
6. When finished, press STOP.

Notes:

If you enter a new Pattern number (Preset or User, A or B) while the first Pattern is playing, the new Pattern will begin playing after the first Pattern has finished and be stored as another Song step in the Song. If you let the original Pattern keep playing, it will add a new Song step with its Pattern number every time it repeats. In addition to selecting different Patterns, you can press FILL at any time. The SR18 will remember where you pressed FILL. As in Pattern mode, pressing FILL will automatically transition to the B Pattern if the A Pattern is currently playing (and vice versa), or will continue playing the same Pattern if the FILL button is held past the end of the Fill.

A Fill can transition into any Pattern number, A or B, by specifying the Pattern before the end of the Fill and releasing FILL before the Fill has finished playing. If you hold FILL past the end of the Fill, the associated Main Pattern will continue playing and any Pattern you may have previously specified for the next Step will be forgotten. When recording a Song, the Count/A/B/Fill footswitch duplicates the FILL button function.

1. Select Song mode (the display should indicate SONG in the upper right corner) and select a desired Song number with the number keypad, INC / DEC buttons or the VALUE dial. For the purposes of this example, let's assume that you are starting a fresh Song (the display should say EMPTY SONG).
2. Press the STEP EDIT button to enter Step Edit Mode. The REC LED will illuminate and you will see this screen:
3. Now use the number keypad, INC / DEC buttons, or the VALUE dial to select the first Pattern for the Song. If desired, choose between the A/B variations and Preset/User options.

   You will see the screen below, where the second line indicates the Pattern which you have selected for the first step (step 00).

   
4. Press the PAGE UP button to go to the next Song step.
5. Enter the Pattern for the next step.
6. Continue in a similar fashion until you have entered all the Patterns for the Song.

   You can always change the Pattern associated with a particular step by navigating to the step with the PAGE UP / DOWN buttons and entering a new Pattern.

It is not necessary to press PLAY; the step will remember where the Fill is to occur. As the Song plays the step where the Fill occurs, the display will show FILL when the Fill begins playing.

3. Press and hold SAVE / COPY, and keep holding it down until step (6). You should see this screen:
4. Enter the two-digit Pattern number to be inserted.
5. Press REC (ENTER). The new step is inserted, and all subsequent steps are automatically renumbered to reflect the addition of the inserted step (e.g., what used to be step 05 is now step 06, what used to be step 06 is now step 07, etc.).
6. Release the SAVE / COPY and REC (ENTER) buttons.

3. Press and hold ERASE. You will see this screen:
4. While continuing to hold ERASE, press REC (ENTER). The step is deleted, and all subsequent steps are automatically re-numbered to reflect the deletion of the step (e.g., what used to be step 06 is now step 05, what used to be step 07 is now step 06, etc.).
5. Release the ERASE and REC (ENTER) buttons.

Note: If a footswitch is plugged into the Count/A/B/Fill jack, tapping the footswitch at the desired rate is equivalent to pressing the TAP TEMPO button.

3. Press and hold TAP TEMPO and press PAGE UP to enter the Tempo Event Edit Mode:
4. A tempo change can be inserted at any beat of the Song Step. While holding TAP TEMPO, use the PAGE buttons to select the beat within the step.
5. While holding TAP TEMPO use the INC / DEC buttons, number keypad or the VALUE dial to set the tempo.
6. Release the TAP TEMPO button to return to the previous page.

Note: If you would like to erase an existing Tempo Change event, navigate to the beat where the event occurs while holding TAP TEMPO and press ERASE.

Another use is if two Songs share the same tempo. Follow the first Song with a blank Pattern, then append the second Song. Between Songs, hold down the footswitch on the blank Pattern song step, then release to start the second Song.

1. Make sure the SR18 is in Record mode (Press the REC button), even if you don't plan to record anything.
2. Use the INC/DEC buttons to select the Song step at which you want the SR18 to start playing.
3. Press PLAY. The SR18 will start playing at the downbeat of the selected Song step.
4. If you don't want to extend the Song length, use the normal Playback mode before reaching the end of the Song (press REC again so the REC LED is no longer illuminated). If you do want to extend the Song length, remain in Record mode.

3. Press and hold the ERASE button. You will see this screen:
4. While holding down the ERASE button, press REC (ENTER). The display says SONG ERASED and erasure is complete.
5. Release the ERASE and REC (ENTER) buttons.

1. The SR18 should be in Song Mode.
2. Use the INC / DEC buttons, the number keypad or the VALUE dial to select the Song which you would like to save.
3. Press and hold the SAVE / COPY button.
4. Press REC (ENTER) to save the song. The display will show SAVE DONE.
5. Release the SAVE / COPY button.

1. The SR18 should be in Song Mode.
2. Select the Song to be copied to itself with the number buttons, INC / DEC buttons or the VALUE dial.
3. Press and hold the SAVE / COPY button.
4. While holding the SAVE / COPY button, press the PAGE UP button. You will see this screen:
5. While continuing to hold the SAVE / COPY button, enter the same Song number as the one selected in step (2).
6. Press REC (ENTER) to copy the song to itself.
7. Release the SAVE / COPY and REC (ENTER) buttons.

1. Turn on MIDI Clock Out (page 6 of the System Setup menus).
2. Program the slave units to not follow their internal clocks, but to accept external MIDI Clock and Start/Stop data. Refer to each device's manual to find out how to do this. Enable the slave's Song Position Pointer if it is available.
3. Press PLAY on the SR18. The slave units should start at the same time, and progress at the same tempo. If the slaves respond to Song Position Pointer, you can start an SR18 Song at any point, and after a few seconds the slaves will catch up and synchronize from that point on.

The diagram below shows an SR18 serving as the MIDI system master clock, with a sampler device set as a slave. To slave the sampler (or any external device accepting MIDI in) use a 5-pin MIDI cable to connect the MIDI OUT of the SR18 to the MIDI IN of the device.

1. Turn on MIDI Clock In on the SR18 (page 5 of the System Setup menus).
2. Program the master unit to send MIDI Clock. Refer to each device's manual to find out how to do this.
3. Press PLAY on the master clock device. The SR18 should start at the same time, and progress at the same tempo.

The diagram below shows an SR18 serving as a MIDI system slave, with a synth workstation device set as the master clock source. To slave the SR18, use a 5-pin MIDI cable to connect the MIDI OUT of the master clock device to the MIDI IN of the SR18.

Example: Create four eight-beat Patterns, then use the copy function to combine these into a single 32-beat Pattern.

Example: Suppose you have a 16-measure figure where the first three groups of four measures are identical, and the final group of four measures provides some sort of variation. Recording this as one 16-measure Pattern will take up more memory than recording two Patterns (one of the first group of four measures and one of the last group of four measures), and while in Song mode repeating the first group three times followed by the last group once.

Example: Programming a Pattern seven beats long will yield a measure of 7/4. Programming a Pattern 14 beats long will yield two measures of 7/4. Time signatures such as 2/4, 3/4, 5/4, 9/4, and so on are easy to implement.

For time signatures based on eighth notes, it's easiest to double the tempo so that each beat lasts an eighth note instead of a quarter note. However, you will have to take this into account when quantizing and setting the metronome—if the display says a quarter note, it will be read as an eighth note.

Plan carefully when mixing different time signatures within the same piece. If some Patterns use a time signature based on quarter notes and others on eighth notes, you will need to double the tempo for the quarter note-based Patterns to match up with the eighth-note based Patterns.

Rhythmic Values for Notes With a measure written in a 4/4 time signature, there are 4 beats per measure, and each beat represents a quarter (1/4) note. Thus, there are 4 quarter notes per measure of 4/4 music. With a 3/4 time signature the "numerator" indicates that there are 3 beats per measure, while the "denominator" indicates that each of these beats is a quarter note (1/4).

There are two eighth notes per quarter note. Thus, there are eight eighth notes per measure of 4/4 music.

There are four 16th notes per quarter note. Thus, there are sixteen 16th notes per measure of 4/4 music.

There are eight 32nd notes per quarter note. Thus, there are thirty-two 32nd notes per measure of 4/4 music.

There are also notes that span a greater number of beats than quarter notes. A half note equals two quarter notes. Therefore, there are two half notes per measure of 4/4 music. A whole note equals four quarter notes, so there is one whole note per measure of 4/4 music. (We keep referring to these notes in 4/4 time because that is the most commonly used time signature in contemporary Western music.)

Triplets The above notes divide measures by factors of two. However, there are some cases where you want to divide a beat into thirds, giving three notes per beat. Dividing a quarter note by three results in eighth-note triplets. The reason why we use the term eighth-note triplets is because the eighth note is closest to the actual rhythmic value. Dividing an eighth note by three results in 16th-note triplets. Dividing a 16th note by three results in 32nd note triplets.

Rests You can also specify where notes should not be played; this is indicated by a rest, which can be the same length as any of the rhythmic values used for notes.

Time Signatures 4/4 (and to a lesser extent 3/4) are the most common time signatures in our culture, but they are by no means the only ones. In jazz, both 5/4 (where each measure consists of five quarter notes) and 7/4 (where each measure consists of seven quarter notes) are often used. In practice, complex time signatures are played like a combination of simpler time signatures; for example, some 7/4 compositions would have you count each measure not as 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7 but as 1, 2, 3, 4, 1, 2, 3. It's often easier to think of 7/4 as one bar of 4/4 followed by one bar of 3/4 (or the other way around, depending on the phrasing), since, as we mentioned, 4/4 and 3/4 are extremely common time signatures.

3. Press the INC / DEC buttons or use the VALUE dial to select a Pattern. You can also enter a Pattern number (00-99) with the number buttons. Use a "leading zero" (i.e. 01, 02, 03) for the first nine Patterns.
4. Press PLAY to start the Pattern.
5. Adjust the tempo by holding the TAP TEMPO button and pressing the INC / DEC buttons or turning the VALUE dial. You may also tap in a new tempo with the TAP TEMPO button. The SR18 will average the time between taps and derive the tempo accordingly.
6. Press STOP to stop the Pattern.

3. Press the FILL button again. A different fill will transition from the B Pattern back into the A Pattern.
4. Fills do not always have to be transitional Patterns. Suppose an A Pattern is playing. If you press the FILL button, a fill will start – but this time, keep the FILL button held down until after the fill has finished playing. This cancels the transition to the alternate pattern (in this example, the A pattern would continue playing).

1. Press the PTN PLAY button – this will enter Pattern Play Mode. The display will indicate PATTERN PLAY.
2. Try tapping a pad. The Pattern associated with the pad will begin playing. As the Pattern reaches its end, it will continue to loop from the beginning.
3. Now try hitting another pad. The Pattern associated with the pad will begin playing as soon as the previously selected Pattern reaches its end.
4. To change the Pattern assigned to a pad, press the PAGE UP button.

   Press the pad which you would like to modify.

   Now use the VALUE dial, INC / DEC, or number buttons to select the Pattern to be triggered with the pad. You may also specify A, B or Fill for the selected Pattern.

   Finally, press PTN PLAY again to exit the edit screen and continue performing.

3. Press the INC / DEC buttons or use the VALUE dial or number buttons to select an empty Pattern. If the Pattern is empty, the display will read EMPTY PATT.
4. Press the RECORD SETUP button to enter the Record Setup Menu. This menu allows you to customize recording settings, such as Quantization and Swing, which will affect the way that your patterns are recorded. Alternatively, you may choose to use the default settings in which case you should skip to Step 8.
5. On Page 1 of the Record Setup (page is indicated in lower right corner of screen), you can select the Quantization interval with the INC / DEC buttons or the VALUE dial. Quantization shifts your playing to the specified beat while you play, so choose the desired value before playing out your rhythms. Choose higher quantization settings for more precise and rhythmically complex playing.
6. To go to the Swing setting, press the PAGE UP button twice so PAGE 3 (SWING SELECT) is displayed on the screen. The Swing setting imparts the kind of feel found in shuffles and some jazz tunes, by shifting the timing of pairs of equal-valued notes. Select the Swing setting with the INC / DEC buttons or the VALUE dial. Possible values are OFF, 54%, 58%, 62%.
7. Once you have selected your Swing and Quantization settings, exit the Record Setup menu by pressing the RECORD SETUP button again.
8. Now you are ready to start recording your Pattern. Press and hold the REC button, then press PLAY to begin recording. The REC LED will illuminate to let you know that you are recording.
9. You will hear a metronome sound and the top line of the screen will display the Pattern's current Beat Number. Play the pads to the beat. As the Pattern loops, you can add more layers until you are satisfied. Note that the Quantization and Swing settings will affect how your pattern is recorded.
10. You can layer sounds from any of the three categories (Drums, Percussion, Bass) by pressing the corresponding button (DRUM, PERC, BASS) and then playing out a sequence on the pads.
11. If you make a mistake while recording, you can erase the sound while the Pattern is looping by holding down ERASE then holding down the pad corresponding to the sound for the duration which you would like to erase.
12. Once you are satisfied with the Pattern you have recorded, press the STOP button to stop the recording.
13. To hear the Pattern, press the PLAY button.
14. To record more Patterns, select another Pattern with the INC / DEC buttons or VALUE dial, and repeat the procedure above.

1. Press the DRUM SET button to bring up the Drum Set Menu. You will see this screen:
2. Use the INC / DEC buttons, the VALUE dial, or the number buttons to select a Drum Set (00-99).
3. Try hitting the pads to audition the sounds in the kit. To change a specific pad's sound, press the PAGE UP button (page 2).

   Press a pad to bring up its properties. The number of the pad will be indicated in the upper right corner of the display (8 in this example), the name of the sound assigned to the pad will be displayed on the top line (CowBell5 in this example) and the number of the sound will be displayed on the bottom line (252 in this example).

   
4. To switch the pad to a different sound, use the INC / DEC buttons, the VALUE dial, or the number buttons to select another sound.
5. To change the sounds of another pad, simply press the pad and repeat step 4.
6. While in Drum Set Mode, press the PAGE UP button to view other pages of parameters, such as Volume, Tuning, Panning, etc. for the selected pad. Again, use the INC / DEC buttons, the VALUE dial, or the number buttons to change the setting for the selected pad.
7. Note that Drums and Percussion sounds are grouped in each Drum Set. This means that changing the drum sounds to a different set on page 1 of the Drum Set menu will cause the Percussion sounds to change as well (although individual pad sounds may be replaced freely once a Drum Set has been loaded). You can, however, independently choose a different set of Bass sounds for the selected set. Press the BASS button while on page 1 of Drum Set Mode (if you have navigated to other pages, use the PAGE UP / DOWN buttons to return to page 1). You will see this screen:
8. Now use the INC / DEC buttons, the VALUE dial or the number buttons to select a different set of bass sounds for the Drum Set you are currently editing. You can also view and edit a variety of settings for the bass sounds by using the PAGE UP / DOWN buttons to move between parameter pages.
9. Once you are happy with your Drum Set, you will need to save it. Otherwise, your settings will be lost once you turn off the unit. To save your set, press and hold the SAVE / COPY button. While holding down SAVE / COPY, use the INC / DEC buttons, the VALUE dial, or the number buttons to select the destination where you would like to save your Drum Set.

   You will notice that the REC LED will begin to blink, indicating that user input is required. To save the Drum Set to the selected destination, press the REC button.

10. To exit the Drum Set menus at any time, press the DRUM SET button once.

1. Select Song Mode by pressing the PATTERN / SONG button so the display says SONG.
2. The display should say EMPTY SONG. If not, press the INC / DEC buttons (or use the VALUE dial) to select an empty song.
3. Choose a Pattern for Song step 1 by switching back to Pattern Mode (press PATTERN / SONG so PATTERN is displayed). User Patterns should not be selected for now, so if the display says USER, press the PRESET / USER button so USER is no longer illuminated. Now, use the INC / DEC buttons or the VALUE dial to select the first pattern.
4. Press the PATTERN / SONG button to switch back to Song Mode (the display will show SONG).
5. Press the REC button to enable Record Mode (the REC LED will illuminate). Now press the PLAY button to begin recording the Song. You will see this screen. The first three-digit number (000 in this example) shows the current Song Step. The second three-digit number (005 in this example) shows the Beat Number of the currently selected Pattern. The Pattern selected for this step is shown on the second line (PATT 05 in this example). A, B or FILL will be shown as well, depending on which iteration of the Pattern has been chosen.
6. To select the Pattern which should be played next, use the INC / DEC buttons. Alternatively, you can use the VALUE dial or you can enter the Pattern number with the number keys. Remember to add a leading zero for patterns 0-9 (i.e. 00, 05, 09, etc). The screen will change to display NEXT and the cued Pattern number on the bottom line. The Pattern will begin playing as soon as the current Pattern plays through its end.
7. Once you have finished creating the sequence of Patterns for your Song, press the STOP button to stop the recording.
8. You will see this screen. The top line will indicate the last step of the Song (STEP 48 in this example) and the bottom line will say END.

   To move between the steps, use the PAGE UP / DOWN buttons. Each step of the sequence will show the Pattern associated with it. If you have made any errors, you can correct them by selecting a different pattern for the step, using the INC / DEC buttons, the VALUE dial, or the number buttons.

9. To hear the sequence from the beginning (step 00), press the PLAY button.

   To audition the sequence from the start of the currently selected step (indicated on the top line), press the PAGE DOWN button.

   To audition the sequence from the start of the next song step, press the PAGE UP button.

10. If you are satisfied with the Song, great! Now you will need to save it so you can access it later. If you are in Step Edit Mode, press the STEP EDIT button once so the song name is displayed on the top line (it should display NO NAME unless the song has already been given a title).

    To save the Song, press and hold the SAVE / COPY button. You will see SAVE TO SONG displayed on the screen and you will notice that the REC LED will begin to blink.

    

    To confirm that you want to save the Song, press the REC button while holding down SAVE / COPY.

    However, if you are not satisfied with the Song and wish to erase it, simply press and hold the ERASE button while in Song Mode. You will see SONG ERASE? displayed on the screen and the REC LED will begin to blink, indicating that user action is required. Press REC to erase the Song. If you change your mind, simply release the ERASE button and your Song will not be erased.

    

There are two jacks for footswitches (Start/Stop and Count/A/B/Fill). Always plug these footswitches in before turning on power. Either normally open or normally closed types (the two most common footswitch types) can be used; the SR18 determines which kind is in use during power-up.

Here's how to use the footswitches: