Thank you for purchasing this Peak eight voice polyphonic desktop synthesiser, the best sounding synth Novation has made up to this point. Peak evolved from an initial concept of a polyphonic version of the Bass Station II analogue synth, but we decided on a radically new approach to sound generation, and developed the New Oxford Oscillators. These Numerically Controlled Oscillators (NCOs) combine the enormous flexibility afforded by digital control with the organic warmth expected from an analogue synth.
As well as superlative sound quality, Peak gives you a great set of specially-created presets and some equally exciting effects. Peak can be used in the studio or on stage with the MIDI controller of your choice, be it a keyboard, DAW or with a pad controller such as the Novation Launchpad. It has a CV (Control Voltage) Input to let you interface with Eurorack and other CV-capable synths you may already have.
Note
Peak is capable of generating audio with a large dynamic range, the extremes of which can cause damage to loudspeakers or other components, and to your hearing!
Note
To download this user guide in PDF format, go to: downloads.novationmusic.com.
This is Version 5.0 of the Peak user guide.
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FPGA-based Numerically Controlled Oscillators (24 MHz) for analogue-quality waveforms
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Fully analogue filter section with LP/BP/HP filters with variable slope, resonance, overdrive, and modulation options
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Eight-voice polyphony
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Sine, triangle, sawtooth and pulse waveforms, plus 60 wavetables, per oscillator
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Tuning Table function – allows creation of non-standard keyboard tunings
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Four LFOs, two with panel controls plus menu control of other parameters: fully routable via the Modulation Matrix
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Three Envelope sections (Amp and 2 x Mod) with six phases: DAHDSR
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Traditional dedicated rotary controls and fader controls for ADSR phases of Amp and Mod envelopes
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Pre-loaded with 286 brand-new Patches
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Two User banks for 128 additional Single Patches and 128 additional Multi Patches
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Class-compliant USB port (no drivers needed), patch dump and MIDI
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External CV input for integration with other analogue equipment
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Two stereo output pairs for flexible routing, plus headphone out (main/aux/both)
Important
This User Guide is applicable to Peak synthesisers with the latest firmware. If your Peak has an earlier firmware version, we recommend you update it to the latest version, using Novation Components: components.novationmusic.com
We’ve tried to make this manual as helpful as possible for all types of user, and this inevitably means more experienced users will want to skip over certain parts of it, while those with a bit less synth experience will want to avoid certain parts of it until they’re confident they’ve mastered the basics. As with other Novation synthesiser User Guides, we’ve included a “Synthesis Tutorial” (see Peak synthesis tutorial) which explains the principles of sound generation and treatment that are the foundation of all synthesisers. We think this will be of help and interest to everyone.
There are a few general points that are useful to know before you continue reading this manual. We’ve adopted some graphical conventions within the text, which we hope you will find helpful in navigating through the information to find what you need to know quickly:
Where top panel controls or rear panel connectors are referred to, we’ve used a number thus: to cross-reference to the top panel diagram, and thus:
to cross-reference to the rear panel diagram.
We’ve used BOLD TEXT (or Bold Text) to name top panel controls or rear panel connectors; we’ve made a point of using exactly the same names as appear on Peak itself.
It is important to register your Peak online at id.focusritegroup.com, using the information provided in the Getting Started Guide. This allows you to download the additional software that you are entitled to as a Peak owner from your Novation account.
Peak is shipped with an external 12 V DC, 1 A power supply. This is a “universal” type, and will operate on all mains voltages between 100 V and 240 V.
The centre pin of the coaxial connector is the positive (+ve) side of the supply. Peak must be powered by the supplied AC-to-DC mains adaptor.
Your Peak will be supplied with the a version of the PSU appropriate to your territory. In some countries the PSU comes with detachable adaptors; in this case, use the one that fits your country’s AC outlets. When powering Peak with the mains PSU, please ensure that your local AC supply is within the range of voltages required by the adaptor – i.e., 100 to 240 VAC - BEFORE you plug it into the mains.
We strongly recommend that you only use the supplied PSU. Using alternative PSUs will invalidate your warranty. Power supplies for your Novation product can be purchased from your music dealer if you have lost yours.