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Rossum CONTROL FORGE Operation Manual

Programmable universal cv generator
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CONTROL
FORGE
Programmable
Universal CV Generator
Operation Manual
v1.7_102616
Copyright 2016 Rossum Electro-Music LLC
www.rossum-electro.com

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  • Page 1 CONTROL FORGE Programmable Universal CV Generator Operation Manual v1.7_102616 Copyright 2016 Rossum Electro-Music LLC www.rossum-electro.com...

  • Page 2: Table Of Contents

    Contents 1. Introduction 2. Module Installation 3. Overview 4. How to Use This Manual 5. Basic Functionality 6. Main Displays 7. Managing Presets 8. Preset Globals 9. Linear Contours 10. Randomness 11. Sequences 12. Conditional Jumps 13. AutoChain 14. Triggers 15.

  • Page 3: Introduction

    1. Introduction Support In the unlikely event that you have a problem with your Control Forge, tell us about it here: http://www.rossum-electro.com/support/ support-request-form/ … and we’ll get you sorted out. If you have any questions, comments, or just want to say “Hi!,” you can always get in touch here: http://www.rossum-electro.com/about-2/...

  • Page 4: Module Installation

    When handling the red stripe on the cable (the -12V side) is Control Forge, it’s best that you hold it by the on the same end of the header as the “Red edges of the front panel or circuit board. It’s Stripe (-12V)”...

  • Page 5: Overview

    3. Overview Control Forge’s core functionality is drawn encompassing elaborate one-shot contours, from the E-mu Morpheus’s insanely powerful evolving cyclical patterns and sequences of (but hard to program on a two-line display) arbitrary length and complexity. Function Generators. But now expanded...
  • Page 6 At its most basic, Control Forge is an Control Forge’s AutoChain functionality 8-segment function generator with variable allows the creation of two very specific time and target voltage level for each kinds of multi-preset patterns: A multi-preset segment. retriggerable pattern (like a long syncable LFO), and a multi-preset “envelope-like”...

  • Page 7: How To Use This Manual

    CV contours of arbitrary lengths chapters offer: that can change their shapes in response Chapter 5: Basic Functionality to Control Forge’s real time controls or CVs This chapter introduces you to Control from other modules in your system. Forge’s basic functional principles, including...
  • Page 8 (Gate, Logic and Preset Sequencer control), Transition Shapes. and CVs (CV 1, CV 2, and Time Scale CV). Chapter 22: Specifications Additionally, Control Forge can be put in Program Mode while a preset is running, Yup, specifications. allowing you to reprogram segments while Chapter 23: From Dave’s Lab...

  • Page 9: Basic Functionality

    5. Basic Functionality Inputs Before we jump into individual functions, let’s take a look at Control Forge’s basic Gate/Trigger organization. This input, as its name so ably suggests, accepts Power Up triggers and/or gates, i.e., When power is applied to the module for...
  • Page 10 2. See Chapter 17 for details. Global/Pause/Utilities Button Outputs In Play Mode, if Control Forge is running, + Output quickly pressing this button causes playback Outputs the CV contour in the to pause. Pressing it again causes playback to range of -5V to +5V.
  • Page 11 No segment LED is lit when segment being programmed will always be Control Forge is stopped. fully lit. If Control Forge is running, the LED of the active segment (if it is not the segment Pressing one of the Segment Buttons (apart being programmed) will be more dimly lit.
  • Page 12 In Program Mode, the black parameter For ease of programming multiple segments buttons are used to select parameters for that may share some or all of their editing and to load and save presets and parameters, the following copying functions sequences.
  • Page 13 about a second, the message “Segment copied” will appear in the display and the parameter values will have been copied to the destination segment and the destination segment will be selected. 4 The destination segment will be selected, but if you continue holding the original source segment button, you can repeat the procedure and sequentially copy the same source parameter values to as many...

  • Page 14: Main Displays

    6. Main Displays Control Forge offers two main display The number and name of the currently > layouts, depending on whether you are loaded preset in Play or Program modes. Additionally, The current numeric Time Scale > there are dedicated layouts for loading and multipliers.
  • Page 15 A display of the time progress through the > preset (P) and/or the current sequence (S) segments used in the preset (including any have unsaved changes. conditional jumps). This display disappears when NOTE: Control Forge is stopped. It flashes while Control Forge is paused.

  • Page 16: Managing Presets

    7. Managing Presets Loading Presets Saving Presets Press the Load Preset button Press the Save Preset button to bring up the to bring up the Load Preset Save Preset display. The current preset is display. Use the encoder to initially displayed. scroll through all of the existing Selecting a Location presets, displaying the number...
  • Page 17 The Save Preset operation can also Press the encoder to choose the character NOTE: > be exited at any time without saving by and return the encoder to character pressing any other function button (other than location selection operation. Segment or Manual Gate buttons). Repeat as necessary.

  • Page 18: Preset Globals

    8. Preset Globals The parameters in the Preset Globals menu Initially, the display will show an overview apply to the entire preset, as opposed to of the current values of all of the global specific segments. Since they define the parameters.
  • Page 19 Fall function has been programmed for a The following settings all refer to the voltage level at the beginning of the contour: different conditional in the active segment, in which case the segment function takes Start Level: Reset or Current priority).
  • Page 20 value within the range may be selected. If Gaussian, values nearer to the target level are more likely to be selected than values nearer the extremes of the range. While these last two parameters NOTE: look pretty much identical to the Reset Random Level and the Reset Random Shape parameters above, they are completely independent of each other.

  • Page 21: Linear Contours

    9. Linear Contours Whew! Now that we’ve covered all of that At its most basic, a Control Forge CV contour infrastructural stuff, it’s time to make some is made up of up to 8 segments, each one of which has a Target Level (the voltage the presets.
  • Page 22 To tweak a previously NOTE SECOND(S) ANOTHER NOTE: note 0.250 programmed Time value (without having to wiggle the knob and change the setting), note triplet 0.334 with no parameter editing box visible, click the Dotted 32 0.375 encoder to display the current value of the note 0.500 segment’s Time or Level (whichever was most...
  • Page 23 Initially turning the knob brings the Level The four modes are: value to the fore on the display and modifies Absolute (Abs): The Target Level for the it. While the Level value is displayed, you can segment is the level set by the Level Knob. use the encoder to fine tune your selection.
  • Page 24 This vastly expands the range of possible CV 95, 99 contours, as well as offers dramatic effects Linear Shuffle and Linear Shuffle 2 when Control Forge is operated at audio Random A-L, Z rates (see Chapter 16 for details). CV1-4 Passthrough...
  • Page 25 11. Finally, you’re ready to audition your 2. Make sure your Control Forge is in contour! Connect the + Output to the Program Mode. Press the Global button frequency input of a VCO, switch your to access the Preset Globals screen.
  • Page 26 In Play Mode, turn the encoder to 2. Repeat steps 4–11 in the previous > speed up or slow down your contour, example to set the Time, Level and Shape while maintaining the segments’ time parameters for all 8 segments. relationships.

  • Page 27: Randomness

    Control Forge provides three independent Here are the places you can program sources of randomization and lets you select...
  • Page 28 Randomness button from here exits back to Assign Trigger 1: Begin Segment 1 Program Mode. 3. Patch the Control Forge’s + Output to This Randomness setting interacts with the the 1V/Oct input of an oscillator and the Level Mode setting as follows:...
  • Page 29 would result in a sample and hold range of -1.500V to 4.500V Change the Level Mode to Absolute Randomness= ± 0.19V > Quantized to have all of your sample and +0.35V etc. hold values be quantized to semitones. Drifting Random Variation Here, we’ll use Relative Level Mode and -0.35V Randomness to program a contour that drifts...

  • Page 30: Sequences

    11. Sequences You can alternate DC Delay While strictly speaking, any series of A TIP: CVs output from Control Forge can be segments with other transition shapes to considered a sequence, in this chapter we’re create sequences that intersperse sustained going to address using Control Forge more notes with dynamic transitions.
  • Page 31 Scale to provide your desired tempo, note your sequence, you can: the Time Scale multiplier value and use the Program one of Control Forge’s triggers Scale All Times function in the Preset Globals > to fire at the end of the last segment of...
  • Page 32 Using Conditional Jumps With Conditional Jumps, you can create extended sequences with sections whose order changes based on external CVs or gates. For example, you can program a conditional jump in a segment of a preset that jumps to another preset if a gate is high at the Logic input, while if it is low, the sequence would continue to the next segment where, if the Logic remains low, it...

  • Page 33: Conditional Jumps

    12. Conditional Jumps Conditional Jumps are, without a doubt, Jump Mode one of the most powerful of Control Forge’s The Jump capabilities. They give you the ability to Mode create CV contours and sequences that parameter actually change their content based on input...
  • Page 34 maintaining its Target Level, until a gate The two “wait” modes are designed NOTE: rise does arrive, at which time it jumps to to let you program contours that are its Jump Target. clocked from segment to segment by a clock patched to the Gate/Trig or Logic inputs, if@end GateHi: Jumps to the Jump Target...
  • Page 35 Some Examples of to Seq Reset: Send the Preset Sequencer a Reset trigger Conditional Jumps to Preset ### (any existing Preset): Jump If we tried to document all of the possibilities to the selected Preset opened up by Conditional Jumps, this already frighteningly long manual would grow The display is dismissed by: to truly epic proportions.
  • Page 36 (say 0.10v), and set Randomness to +/- 0.25 contains only the standard four segments Gaussian. Now, while the gate remains high of an ADSR, with the Control Forge, each during the sustain portion of the envelope, of the functional sections could themselves...
  • Page 37 Jump to Different Presets Based on CVs While it’s simple to program a jump to a different preset based on any Conditional Jump evaluation, since each segment can have only one Conditional Jump programmed, it takes a bit more programming to set up a decision point that results in the contour jumping to one preset if a certain condition is true and a different one if it isn’t.

  • Page 38: Autochain

    13. AutoChain AutoChain is Here’s how it works: an alternate 1. An AutoChain pattern is created in way to link numerically consecutive preset locations. multiple 2. Absent any other specific segment presets in programming, each preset in an extended AutoChain will automatically proceed chains.
  • Page 39 PRESET # PRESET # PRESET # PRESET # PRESET # PRESET # PRESET # PRESET # Start Continue Continue Continue Continue Release Continue --empty-- AutoChain FIGURE 6: AN AUTOCHAIN EXAMPLE A couple more AutoChain factoids: If an individual segment in an AutoChain >...

  • Page 40: Triggers

    They can be used to affect other Begin Segment #: A gate or trigger is modules in your system or can generated when the specified segment be routed to Control Forge’s begins. own inputs. The triggers are End Segment #: A gate or trigger is programmed via the Assign Triggers button.
  • Page 41 Depending on the circumstance NOTE: triggers. that fires them and the setting of the Trigger Width parameters, Control Forge can A 99% Trigger Width will NOTE: output an actual “trigger” (i.e., a very short remain high for the entire length of its...

  • Page 42: Real Time Control

    15. Real Time Control Time Scale CV Input When Control Forge is in Play Mode, there are a wide variety of ways to influence the The CV at this input will scale the entire progress of a contour, both manually and via contour while preserving the segment’s time...
  • Page 43 If you switch to Program Mode NOTE: both for a control structure and when while randomization is active, it remains Control Forge is operating at audio rate as a active. wavetable audio source. Trigger 1 and Trigger 2 Buttons In Play Mode, pressing either of these buttons causes a manual gate to be generated at the associated output.

  • Page 44: Audio Rate Contours

    Use the encoder in Play Mode to vary the approximately 1V/oct, it’s not always precisely frequency. 1V/oct. As such, Control Forge is best seen as a source of rich audio textures as opposed to From that start, try the following: a precise source of diatonic melody.

  • Page 45: Preset Sequencer

    17. Preset Sequencer chapter and, in your mind, replace “Preset” with “Sequence.” Sequence 000 (Off) turns off the sequencer. When The Preset Sequencer allows you to create Sequence an ordered list of presets (and optionally, 000 is loaded, some navigational commands) and then triggers at step through them under trigger or manual the sequence...
  • Page 46 associated with it, and any Inc or Dec rising To program or edit a step, use the encoder to scroll to that step (it will be displayed at edge will cause the sequence to move a larger size than the unselected steps) and (circularly) to the next or previous step.
  • Page 47 Reset: If the Sequencer is in the normal preset. In that case, the sequence step the or Halt state, it immediately jumps to Step erased preset previously occupied would be 001 of the current sequence, loading named “--empty--”. If you find yourself in the associated preset or command.
  • Page 48 Depending on how you want to play back your contour, you can: Program one of Control Forge’s triggers > to fire at the end of the last segment of each preset and patch that trigger to the sequencer’s Inc input to automatically...

  • Page 49: Utilities

    To send the data: the Global/ 1. Connect the Trigger 2 output from your Pause/ Control Forge to the Logic input of the Utilities receiving module button while in Play Mode. 2. Select Utilities > Send to Module on your Turn the Control Forge.
  • Page 50 Satellite or To save your another data to a .wav Control file: Forge into 1. Connect the Control Forge’s + Output to your Control the input of your recording device. Forge. The recording device must NOTE: This function will overwrite IMPORTANT!: record uncompressed WAV data.
  • Page 51 This does not actually load the data into your Control Forge. It’s purpose is to confirm So, if you have saved presets 003 and 006, that the backup file is valid, so that you can...
  • Page 52 The first 3 steps require you to measure the 1. Connect the output from your playback voltage at the + Output with your meter and device to your Control Forge’s CV 1 input. then adjust it if necessary. The remaining We’ve found that a regular Eurorack patch steps use that output to calibrate the CV cord works fine.
  • Page 53 Global/Pause/Utilities Erase All User Data button to exit. This does Once transfer is complete, click the encoder exactly to reboot your Control Forge and use your what it says, new software. i.e., erases all of the Load Boot Software...
  • Page 54 4. If you change your mind before If you do get an error message during a > completing Step 3, either turn the encoder transfer (e.g., the level was too low, your until Cancel is displayed again and press computer generated extraneous audio, the encoder, or press the Global/Pause/ etc.), you can just correct the problem Utilities button to abort the process.

  • Page 55: Preset Templates

    19. Preset Templates 300 One Shot The following presets are designed to be starting points for a variety of common types This is a simple 8-segment one shot contour. of contours. Their Global parameters have A rising edge at the Gate/Trig input (or press been set up, conditional jumps, if used, have of the Manual Gate button) starts it and resets been programmed, and stand-in values have...
  • Page 56 304 Shape Keys At Gate rise will instantly reset the contour to Segment 1. This is one of our favorites for real-time fun. The template defines a “keyboard” made up Trigger 1 fires at the beginning of Segment 1. of the 8 Segment Buttons. Simply press a key Customize the template by selecting new to “play”...
  • Page 57 Patch the Maths output back into CV 1. You It’s identical to 310, except that the value in can now send Control Forge a short gate to Segment 1 comes directly from the CV 1 start the envelope, and the envelope will loop input.

  • Page 58: Demo Presets

    For quick access to the various preset categories, you can load Preset Sequences some of our talented beta testers to highlight some of Control Forge’s capabilities. In most 1-4 that each contain the presets of their cases, you can check them out with the basic own category.
  • Page 59 Presets 410–419: 404 CV1 5ths Sequence of volt/oct values that shift by Random CV contours octaves and fifths relative to segment 1. In each preset, Trigger 1 fires at the CV1 Controls the Quantized Value of Seg 1. beginning of every segment. Trigger 2 fires at (Requires CV 1 input) the beginning of Segment 1.
  • Page 60 Filter Pattern Contours CV4 Controls the Number of Segments in the Pattern. Kurt designed them to drive an oscillating Rossum Electro-Music Evolution filter, but 429 Filter F/B you can try them with anything. CV3 sets various segment voltages. In each preset, Trigger 1 fires at the beginning CV4 Controls the Playback Direction of the of every segment.
  • Page 61 “slide.” Trigger and retrigger with Patch a clock (gate or trigger source) into Gate Rises. The clock at the Logic Input sets > the Control Forge’s Logic Input. the tempo. Patch the Trigger 1 output to the gate >...
  • Page 62 460 Phi-Ascend 473 Rhyt-5 An ascending melodic pattern that uses Another variation based on Rhyt-2, but with Relative Target Levels to continue to rise the CV 4 Passthrough shape on Segment with each repetition until reaching the upper 5, this preset uses more Chaos Transition voltage limit and then repeating at that level.
  • Page 63 479 S&H-2 Variation of S&H-1, Trigger with a gate input, at medium to high rates for the best effect. Try using both positive and negative outputs at the same time to get two different variations. 480 S&H-3 Variation of S&H-2 using the FastLn3 shape for most of the segments for a very different sonic effect.

  • Page 64: Transition Shape Plots

    21. Transition Shape Plots The following are plots of the Transition Shapes available in Control Forge. LINEAR EXPONENTIAL 1 EXPONENTIAL 2 EXPONENTIAL 3 EXPONENTIAL 4 EXPONENTIAL 5 EXPONENTIAL 6 EXPONENTIAL 7 CIRCLE 1.4 CIRCLE 1.6 CIRCLE 1.8 CIRCLE 1.16 SQUEEZE...
  • Page 65 BLOOM 22: BLOOM 2 CIRCLE 1.16 REVERSE CIRCLE 1.8 REVERSE CIRCLE 1.6 REVERSE CIRCLE 1.4 REVERSE SLOW CURVE 1 SLOW CURVE 2 DELAY DC DC DELAY CURVE 2X CURVE 2X B CURVE 2X C ZIG ZAG 1 ZIG ZAG 2 ZIG ZAG 3 CHAOS 03 CHAOS 06...
  • Page 66 CHAOS 66 CHAOS 75 CHAOS 95 CHAOS 99 LINEAR SHUFFLE LINEAR SHUFFLE 2 RANDOM A RANDOM B RANDOM C RANDOM D RANDOM E RANDOM F RANDOM G RANDOM H RANDOM I RANDOM J RANDOM K RANDOM L RANDOM Z...

  • Page 67: Specifications

    22. Specifications PRESETS OUTPUTS + OUTPUT 1x 3.5mm mono socket PRESET SEQUENCES <1Ω Output Impedance -5V to +5V SEQUENCE STEPS - (INVERTED) OUTPUT 20,000 Dynamically Allocated 1x 3.5mm mono socket INPUTS <1Ω Output Impedance GATE/TRIG -5V to +5V 1x 3.5mm mono socket TRIGGER 1 100kΩ...

  • Page 68: From Dave's Lab

    Rossum Electro module is accidentally plugged in backwards, no stress is placed on the +5V supply or...

  • Page 69: Acknowledgements

    24. Acknowledgements A number of wonderful people generously provided help, advice, encouragement, and inspiration during the development of Control Forge. Many thanks from the Rossum Electro-Music team to: Jim Aikin Bob Bliss Patrick Brede Janis Chafin Richard Devine Nancy Enge...

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