Peak may, of course, be used simply as a standalone synthesiser with a master keyboard connected to its MIDI IN socket. However, there are many more possibilities, and how you choose to integrate it into your existing synth/recording setup will be determined by the other equipment you have and your own imagination!
Below are three examples illustrating how Peak could form part of a synth setup.
Here you could use a pad controller such as the Novation Circuit to trigger sounds both in Peak and another synth such as a Novation Bass Station II. An external modular LFO in a Eurorack could be used to modulate one or more parameters in Peak via the CV connection. All MIDI data gets recorded in the DAW via USB connections.
In the second example, a Launchpad Pro in stand-alone mode replaces the Circuit. This would permit Peak to be played directly from the Launchpad Pro, taking advantage of its polyphonic aftertouch capability.
In this example, a Focusrite Clarett audio interface is used to enable “real-world” instruments to be recorded in the DAW as well as synth sounds. A keyboard controller is used to trigger both Peak and a second synth, such as a Launchkey, with the Clarett converting MIDI data sent from the computer via a Thunderbolt link to conventional MIDI data.
The simplest and quickest way of finding out what Peak can do is to connect the rear panel outputs – in either mono or stereo - to the input of a power amplifier, audio mixer, powered speaker or other means of monitoring the output.
If using Peak with other sound modules, connect MIDI THRU to the next sound module’s MIDI IN, and daisy-chain further modules in the usual way. If using Peak with a master keyboard, connect the master keyboard’s MIDI OUT to MIDI IN on Peak, and ensure that the master keyboard is set to transmit on MIDI channel 1 (the synth’s default channel).
With the amplifier or mixer off or muted, connect the AC adaptor to Peak , and plug it into the AC mains. Turn the synth on: after completing its boot sequence, Peak will load Patch 000, and the LCD display will confirm this:
“Utopian Streams” is the name of the factory Patch in Bank A, memory location 000.
Turn on the mixer/amplifier/powered speakers, and turn up the Volume control until you have a healthy sound level from the speaker when you play.
Instead of a speaker and/or an audio mixer, you may wish to use a pair of headphones. These may be plugged into the rear panel headphone output socket. The main outputs are still active when headphones are plugged in. The Volume control also adjusts headphone level.
Although most of the key parameters affecting the nature of the sound Peak generates are accessible through dedicated, “per-function” rotary controls and switches, many further parameters and synth settings can be modified using the OLED display and its associated controls.
The menu system has been designed so all parameters and settings can be accessed on a single menu “level” – there are no multi-level submenus to navigate.
Peak’s menu system has been designed to be as simple and consistent as possible. The buttons above the display, plus Settings and the two Patch buttons, select one of eleven menus. All menus except Patch have multiple pages: use the Page ◀ and ► buttons to scroll through the pages in sequence.
On each page, Row 1 is a “title” row and stays fixed. Rows 2, 3 and 4 each display a parameter for modification; some pages do not present data in all rows. Use the three buttons to the left of the display to select the row to edit: the active row is indicated by a ► symbol. The parameter value may be adjusted either by the rotary control or the Value +/- buttons.
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Synth section
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Page 4 of 8
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Parameter to be adjusted
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Current parameter value
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Row 3 is selected
Peak can store 512 Patches in memory, arranged in four Banks of 128; the Banks are designated A to D. Banks A and B are pre-loaded with 256 great factory Patches especially created for Peak, while Banks C and D are for storing your own Patches and come pre-loaded with the same default “initial” Patch Init Patch. See Init patch – parameter table for the default synth parameters this Patch contains. This initial Patch will always be the starting point for creating new sounds “from scratch”.
A Patch is loaded by simply selecting its number with the rotary patch selector or the Patch buttons. It is immediately active.
The Compare button is a really useful feature as it lets you hear the Patch you loaded in its “factory” state, ignoring any changes or tweaks you’ve been making. Hold the button down to hear the original Patch: when you release it, you’ll be back to your modified version. This is a useful feature to use when you’re about to save a new Patch into a memory location that might already contain a Patch you want to retain – you can press Compare during the Save process to check what’s in the intended memory location.
You can press Initialise at any time to load a copy of the default initial Patch. Doing so does not overwrite the previous Patch, though you will lose any modifications that you made to it if you haven’t saved it in a user Patch location.
If you’re working without a keyboard, you can generate a note (corresponding to middle C) at any time by pressing Audition.
Patches can be saved to any of the 512 memory locations, but remember that if you save your settings to any location in Banks A or B, you will overwrite one of the factory presets. To save a Patch press the Save button. The OLED display changes as shown below:
You can now give the Patch you want to save a name. The existing name is displayed initially; use the Row 2 button (►) to move the cursor to the character position to be changed and then use the rotary parameter control to select the new letter. Repeat this process one character at a time. Upper case, lower case, numbers, punctuation marks and space characters are all available in sequence from the rotary control. Use the Row 4 button to insert a space instead of a character. When you have entered the new name, press Page ► to move to Page 2, where you decide which memory location the modified Patch will be saved in.
Now you can enter the memory location by Bank and number. Note that the name of the Patch currently in the memory location you select is displayed on Row 4, to remind you what is already stored there in case it’s something you don’t want to overwrite. Press Page ► again to select Page 3, and you can (if you wish) assign your Patch to one of the several pre-determined categories.
When you’ve done this, press Save again, and the display will confirm the Patch is saved.
Tip
You may save a modified Patch to the same location, if you are happy for the earlier version to be overwritten. This can easily be achieved by pressing Save four times in succession.
Tip
Peak Factory Patches can be downloaded using Novation Components if they have been accidentally overwritten. See Loading patches
Once you have loaded a Patch you like the sound of, you can modify the sound in many different ways using the synth controls. Each area of the control panel is dealt with in greater depth later in the manual, but a few fundamental points should be noted first.
The OLED display will show the last menu page selected. When you move a control, it changes to confirm the control being moved, together with the instantaneous parameter value and the parameter value for the currently loaded Patch.:
Many rotary controls have a parameter range of 0 to +127. Others are effectively “centre-off”, and have a parameter range of either -64 to + 63 or -128 to +127.
The display reverts to the previous menu page a short time (user-definable) after the control is released. If no control is touched for 10 minutes, the display turns off, but will resume immediately a control or menu button is selected.
Two exceptions to the above are the MASTER volume rotary control and the more setting of the Oscillator Wave selector. Adjusting the MASTER control does not alter the OLED display in any way. Selecting an Oscillator Wave to more will change the display to page 3, 5 or 7 of the Osc menu: this page includes the WaveMore parameter for wavetable selection.
As with traditional analogue synths, most of the primary sound modification controls on Peak are dedicated, physical rotary controls or switches, providing instant access to the most commonly needed sound parameters.
Many more parameters are available for adjustment in most of the synth sections via the menu system; these tend to be parameters you wouldn’t need immediate access to during live performance. Those in the Osc, Env, LFO, Arp/Clock, Voice and FX menus all affect the relevant sections of sound generation and treatment directly, while the Mod menus let you interconnect different synth sections with the Modulation Matrix or the independent FX Modulation Matrix, which is dedicated to the control of FX parameters.
Adjusting the frequency of a synth’s filter is probably the most commonly-used method of sound modification in live performance. For this reason, Filter Frequency has a large rotary control. Experiment with different types of patch to hear how changing the filter frequency alters the characteristic of different types of sound. Also listen to the different effect of the basic filter shapes.
Any MIDI keyboard controller used with Peak will be fitted with a standard pair of synthesiser control wheels, Pitch and Mod (Modulation). Pitch is usually spring-loaded and will return to its centre position. The range of control of Pitch is adjustable (with the BendRange parameter - see Pitch Wheel Range) in semitone increments up to +/-2 octaves; the default setting is +/-1 octave.
The Mod wheel’s precise function varies with the patch loaded; it is used in general to add expression or various elements to a synthesized sound. A common use is to add vibrato to a sound.
It is possible to assign the Mod wheel to alter various parameters making up the sound – or a combination of parameters simultaneously. This topic is discussed in more detail elsewhere in the manual. See The Modulation Matrix.
Peak includes an arpeggiator (the ‘ARP’), which allows arpeggios of varying complexity and rhythm to be played and manipulated in real-time. The Arpeggiator is enabled by pressing the Arp ON button.
If a single key is pressed, the note will be retriggered by the arpeggiator, at a rate determined by the ClockRate parameter on Page 1 of the Arp menu. If you play a chord, the arpeggiator identifies its notes and plays them individually in sequence at the same rate (this is termed an arpeggio pattern or ‘arp sequence’); thus if you play a C major triad, the selected notes will be C, E and G.
Adjusting Gate, and the Type, Rhythm and Octaves parameters on Page 2 of the Arp menu will alter the rhythm of the pattern, the way the sequence is played and the note range in a variety of ways. See The arpeggiator for full details.
Peak has a very high degree of MIDI implementation, and almost every control and synth parameter is able to transmit MIDI data to external equipment, and similarly, the synth may be controlled in almost every respect by incoming MIDI data from a DAW, sequencer or master control keyboard.
The Settings menu has numerous options for enabling various aspects of MIDI control, which include MIDI Channel setting, Arpeggio MIDI Out, Aftertouch, CC/NRPN transmit/receive and Program/Bank Change transmit/receive. Please see page 35 for full details.
The factory default is for all MIDI transmit/receive options to be On, and MIDI Channel 1 is set as the active channel.
Each of the two ANIMATE buttons may be programmed to provide an instant modification to the synth’s sound, which persists for as long as the button is pressed. This is a great way of adding sound effects “on the fly” in live performance.
The ANIMATE buttons are programmed using the Modulation Matrix, and appear in the list of Sources on Page 2 of the Mod menu. Each button may be assigned as a modulating source for any of the Destinations available in the Mod Matrix. See The Modulation Matrix for full details.