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 Forum index » Instruments and Equipment » Alesis Andromeda
New Andromeda Owner! with a few questions
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ChurchyLaFemme



Joined: Feb 27, 2014
Posts: 5
Location: Portland

PostPosted: Thu Feb 27, 2014 9:24 pm    Post subject: New Andromeda Owner! with a few questions Reply with quote  Mark this post and the followings unread

Hi guys!

I picked up an Andromeda last week and am absolutely loving its sound. The unit I got was relatively cheap and seems to be in fine shape (tuning is stable, no discernible bugs, etc.). The only problem I have found is that the ribbon controller does not work. When I try to route it as a control source, it says 'Not connected' on the screen (this is corroborated by the fact that it's LED doesn't light up when I touch it). I was wondering if you guys know if this is a relatively fixable problem, and whether I can reconnect it myself. Thank you very much! As I say, I'm loving the synth thus far and can't wait to dig into more.

Also...I have a silly question that I'm sure I can hunt through the manual to solve, but while I'm here...How do I FM the filters? I cannot find either of the oscillators as a control source in the filters' respective modulation pages and the LFOs do not go fast enough to get into audio range.

Thanks again!

Cheers,

Churchy
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scd



Joined: Dec 26, 2003
Posts: 44
Location: Netherlands

PostPosted: Sat Mar 01, 2014 6:24 am    Post subject: Reply with quote  Mark this post and the followings unread

Hi Churchy,

Congrats with the Andro. You bought yourself a beast Smile
As far as the ribbon controller problem concerns: that smells like a hardware problem to me. Not sure if you could repair that yourself. Better have a synth tech looking at it.

FM-ing the filters...
Yes, one of those Andro anomalies Smile
You need to turn this on in the oscillator sections.
For both oscillators there is an on/off switch in the Osc 1/2 -> View -> Wave section, 8th button on the right.
Does that answer your question?

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ChurchyLaFemme



Joined: Feb 27, 2014
Posts: 5
Location: Portland

PostPosted: Sat Mar 01, 2014 12:48 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote  Mark this post and the followings unread

Hi scd,

Thank you for the heads up. I will be sure to get that checked out by a professional -- the last thing I want to do is hurt this beast!

I just had my first eye-opening jam and HOLY CRAP! This thing is the most incredible synth I have ever heard...I have no idea how so many people don't seem to gel with it (better for us, I guess?). It is capable of absolute filth in so many different ways (soft sync WTF?!!) and yet somehow can produce a whole alternate universe of cream as well. I love how any subtle adjustment will produce a useful effect -- this is the true essence of analog to me. For instance, I found that tuning a hard sync'd slave oscillator below the master opens up a whole variety of negating tones that soften up sounds wonderfully.

Gahh I could gush about this forever! I am so grateful to only be at the beginning of exploring this monster synth. It makes my former CODE 8 and Prophet 5 Rev 3 look two-dimensional by comparison.

Anyway, I would love some tips to prompt my next exploration! Thanks again!

Cheers,

Churchy
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scd



Joined: Dec 26, 2003
Posts: 44
Location: Netherlands

PostPosted: Sun Mar 02, 2014 5:06 am    Post subject: Reply with quote  Mark this post and the followings unread

If you own an iPad you might want to read this thread too Wink
http://electro-music.com/forum/topic-57217.html

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Silagemaker



Joined: Aug 01, 2013
Posts: 47
Location: Ireland

PostPosted: Sun Mar 02, 2014 5:30 am    Post subject: Reply with quote  Mark this post and the followings unread

Consider getting a card for patches and mixes. I guarantee you'll need it.
Download patches from Womart. Listen to mp3s first and pick the ones you like. I love the patches with SW in the name.
I second the iPad editor. Thomann do a good deal on Line 6 Midi Mobilizer or connect to your pc over wifi if it has a midi interface.
Good luck.
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Angroc



Joined: Jan 14, 2014
Posts: 12
Location: San Francisco

PostPosted: Sun Mar 02, 2014 4:09 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote  Mark this post and the followings unread

I don't know about the ribbon problem. Get it to a qualified synth-tech! You don't want to mess up such a beautiful instrument. : )

The FM stuff can be tricky to get into, but can be really rewarding. First thing you should know is the FM knob on the osc1 section. It essentially controls the amount that osc2 >>FM>> osc1.

When combined with the mod section, this can be pretty powerful, as you can use all the mod sources to control LIN FM, EXP FM and PWM FM. For example, a quick ENV on EXP FM will it give it some nice transient attacks.

OSC2 is also available as a modulator in the filter section. Hit the 'view' button for Filter1, and turn up the "CV amount", and turn soft knob 8 'til you see "filter FM" being highlighted. OSC2 will now drive this filter. You can also highlight the "filter FM" in Filter2, though the CV amount is modulated for both Filters in the Filter1 'view' screen. I think it's because they both share a bus on the circuit board.

A fun way to play with this is to turn all OSC2 outputs off, and use it purely as modulator. Turn it down a couple of octaves, and listen to how it interacts across the span of your keyboard.

Then you also have the NZEXT stuff. This will modulate either OSCs of filters with noise or external in. You should see this in the mod sections on the OSC, or listed as EXT IN in the filters. Again, this shares the CV AMOUNT knob with the FILTER FM. Also, keep in mind, noise, feedback and external in is all shared on the same bus, so you gotta be selective.

Choose white noise for a pleasant fuss, down to the red noise, where it becomes more gritty. Really fun stuff to play with.

In my opinion, FM is what really makes the analog nature of the Andromeda shine. And what other instrument offers you analog FM synthesis with 16 voices? Insane!

Just be patient with the interface, and you will come to navigate it like second nature. And make sure to read the manual thoroughly. There's alot of gems hidden away in menus.

Oh and good luck with the ribbon controller.

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Infrablue



Joined: Dec 29, 2011
Posts: 131
Location: Utah

PostPosted: Sat Mar 22, 2014 6:00 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote  Mark this post and the followings unread

I'll try to look it up... but there is a ribbon callibration mode. My ribbon was pretty bad and then months later found this out and it became amazing.

I'll dig it up...

Still could be hardware but it's worth a try...
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Infrablue



Joined: Dec 29, 2011
Posts: 131
Location: Utah

PostPosted: Sat Mar 22, 2014 6:03 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote  Mark this post and the followings unread

Here it is... soft key 5 held while powering up... from the manual>.......

POWER UP MODES
We have already mentioned a few power up modes that are entered by holding
down a soft button while powering up the A6. Here is a summary of all of them:
POWER UP
WHILE HOLDING FUNCTION
Soft Button 1 Forces A6 to load default Program and Mix. This is useful if the A6 has
received corrupted data, causing it to hang.
Soft Button 2 Enters front panel debug mode.
Soft Button 3 Initializes all user RAM. This is also known as a Hard Reset. Warning, this
will erase all User Programs and Mixes, replacing them with the factory
default User Programs and Mixes!
Soft Button 4 Initializes all Global parameters, including tuning tables.
Soft Button 5 Re-calibrates Mod Wheel and Ribbon Controller.Soft Button 6 Sends software OS out as MIDI Syx Ex dump.
Soft Button 7 Enables the A6 to receive software Syx Ex dump (OS or bootloader).
Soft Button 8 Replaces the factory default User Programs and Mixes with the User Bank
Programs and Mixes. The next time a RAM initialization is done (Soft
Button 3), these banks will be used to initialize the User Banks.
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