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SEQUENTIAL/DSI => Tempest => Topic started by: Yorgos Arabatzis on October 19, 2015, 09:43:40 AM

Title: Tempest Operational Tips & Tricks AKA FAQ Thread (Attention!!Read this first!!)
Post by: Yorgos Arabatzis on October 19, 2015, 09:43:40 AM
Hi fellow Tempesters,
Thought i'd gather any specific operational tips/tricks i could find on the unofficial forum and make it a sticky.For your convenience i'll keep em organised on the first page.If you have any tricks up your sleeves show em ;)

--------------------------------

Tempest Operational Tips & Tricks

1st things 1st (an explanation of Tempest's Voice architecture)
You're hearing your sound cycling through the main outs while you've plugged a cable to one of your individual voice outs.Is there's something wrong?Nop, you are a victim of T's voice architecture...ATTENTION!!! Read below!!!
Tempest's individual voice outs are hardwired to their respective synth voices. This means that when you plug a cable into one of these jacks, you are effectively removing that voice from the signal path altogether: i.e. from the main-outs, from the master FX, etc. So when you have a cable plugged into one of the voice-outs, as the Tempest randomly cycles through voices, whatever sound gets picked up by that voice will then appear at that output momentarily. To avoid this behavior you can assign sounds to specific voices. You do that via the 'Choke and Voice Assign' page, the shortcut to which is holding 'Shift' and pushing the 'Mod Paths' button.Finally the number of assigned sounds depends on how many cables you are plugging to the individual voice outs.And now that we've mentioned cables let's see what type do we need for the Tempest.
For the Main Outs we need two 1/4 Inch TS Male to TS Male:
(https://i.imgur.com/lq3OrPU.jpg)

and for the 6 stereo/12 Mono individual Outs we need these 1/4 Inch TRS Male to TS Male:
(https://i5.walmartimages.com/asr/8ca53427-6a71-4b68-8d42-201bdeb285dd_1.2d283f8828f583d32c329c57fd581173.jpeg)

--------------------------------

   •   Before you start using your Tempest make sure you have the final Main OS 1.5.0.2 and Voice 1.5 installed

   •   After updating to the final Tempest OS make sure to calibrate it with all cables unplugged (except power cord of course)

   •   Hold down "mod paths" when changing beats to retain beat FX settings.

   •   Tempest can only accept Midi CC messages on main MIDI channel as follows:
CC# 12 - Distortion
CC# 13 - Compression
CC# 19 - a value other than 0 reverts Beat FX params to defaults
CC# 20 - Beat FX All Osc Frequency
CC# 21 - Beat FX Feedback
CC# 22 - Beat FX Lowpass Filter Cutoff
CC# 23 - Beat FX Lowpass Filter Resonance
CC# 24 - Beat FX Lowpass Filter Audio Mod
CC# 25 - Beat FX Highpass Filter Cutoff
CC# 26 - Beat FX All Env Attack
CC# 27 - Beat FX All Env Decay

   •   Shift+Mod Paths takes you to voice assign (16 Sounds/Sounds mode).

   •   Shift+Real Time FX playback for intensity or destination of the note FX values.

   •   Holding both shift buttons + Stop is the MIDI panic button.

   •   Holding both shift buttons + System button takes you to Tempest’s system root menu.There you can do lots of cool stuff to your Tempest like formatting it,saving your custom init setups etc.

   •   Hold down the Oscillator 'Select' button to edit all 4 oscillators at once. The Pitch encoder changes the pitch for all 4 oscillators and the OLED displays the values for each oscillator individually so you can edit them all together or one by one using the soft knobs.You can also do something similar with the oscillator levels, you just hold the oscillator 'Select' button then tweak the oscillator 'Level' knob and the screen appears.  Alternatively try the arrow / page up & down buttons

   •   You can control the level of a single analog oscillator by turning the second oscillator to 'off'. When only 1 oscillator is used, the OSC 1/2 mix param acts as a level control.

   •   In 16 sounds, you can press shift and a pad to select that sound with out sound being triggered. good for going into 16 tuning mode live.

   •   Don't use the Save/Load button for loading individual sounds for pads.
When in 16 Sounds/ Pads mode, the upper two soft knobs let you load sounds for the pad you are playing easily. just keep hitting the pad as you turn the upper right soft knobs to hear each sound.

   •   1) Play beat
        2) Tap roll to turn on
        3) Hitting the same beat pad turns off roll but the light stays on
        4) Now roll beat by pressing that beat pad instead of roll button.

   •   Press and hold the 16 sounds button, select a pad.This way the pad doesn't triggers.It's like the Hold Shift+ Pad fuction.

   •   If you half the tempo of your beat/project before you start recording anything you can achieve double the bars per beat.

   •   The mixer page can reveal the delay settings and the distortion/compression page with the Page up/ Page down buttons.

   •   While recording, hold a slider position and punch in and out with the playback button.

   •   If you keep the slider assigned to beat-roll held down on BEATS or MUTES screen and then, while still holding the slider, switch to the SOUNDS screen, take your finger off the slider and presto! The roll is latched! This might seem useless being the ROLL button latches, but you can cut a beat roll down even further with the sliders and create a nice 2/4 signature and latch it. Perfect for those tricky transitions.I've also found you can use a similar function in the TIME STEPS screen by holding down the SHIFT button. An option for "Loop Screen" will appear.

   •   Juan Solo's External Sequencing Setup:
1. Go into the system menu page System:MIDI Polyphonic Keyboard Play
2. Scroll down to #5 MIDI: Sequencer Out Channel,
set this to the midi channel that your external instrument is receiving on.
It has to be a unique channel, Tempest will not allow you to share channels you are already using for Tempest, and you will see a dim #(USED) message
3. Scroll to #6 MIDI:Sequencer Sound, choose a pad you want to use to sequence your external instrument.
4. Exit the System Menu
5. On the pad you chose to sequence your external instrument, set the amp envelope amount to 0, and the amp velocity to zero. If you do not set these to zero you will get a distorted clicking when external instrument is receiving notes.
6. Make sure the pad you chose is not muted
7. Make sure the mixer volume for this pad is set anything above zero
8. Make sure the volume in the feedback display is set to anything above zero
9. Set the envelope for this pad to ADSR, to record durations of held pads
Now you should be able to play your external gear in 16 tunings mode for that pad.
You can also record what you play into Tempest's sequencer, OR sequence in 16 steps mode.
For now the Tempest only sends pitch, velocity, and duration.

   •   Hold step in 16 time steps and press FF or Rewind to move that step forward/backwards by one quantize amount.

   •   Tempest’s Copy function now allows you to be selective about copying other elements associated with a Sound or a Beat by using the soft knobs.Also by holding copy and double tapping a pad swaps that sound between sound bank A/B

   •   Samples on OSC's 3-4 now organized into Categories and can be skipped by hitting Shift+softknob.

   •   You can start Tempest at any bar.Just hit the FF/RW buttons to take you to the desired bar then while holding the Stop button hit Play.

   •   How to avoid inconsistency on sounds by Yorgos Arabatzis:
1) Use Wave Reset
2) Mess around with various combinations on Delay parameters for Pitch,Filter,VCA or Aux envelopes.A setting of 1 will do the trick.Also play around with VCA attack time & Peak.
4) Using the self oscillating filter is unstable as Chris stated unless sound assigned to a voice.Try to use the waveforms of OSCs 1-4 instead if you don't assign a sound to a voice.
5) Assigning a sound to a voice can help but also produces a small click to the sound.It's very noticeable if you play fast bass or sustained sounds.
6) Take it easy on the Feedback!Settings beyond 80 create unstable environment.
7) Every tiny change you make in Tempest's envelopes counts so it's a mater of sweet spot in them.A spectrum analyzer can indicate these changes.
8)Hi-passing is a good way to avoid rumble when you crank up that feedback.Also it's a matter of sweet spot on this.A good range for kick/bassy sounds is between 1-4.
9)Try to design your sounds with volume and velocity at fixed max values and after you have a consistent result tweek the velocity you want to taste in case you need it.

   •   Creating Custom Initialize Projects/Beats/Sounds
You can save your own Initialize templates by accessing Tempest system root menu and saving it there.
Holding both shift buttons + System button takes you to Tempest’s system root menu.

   •   To anyone searching for a tight sync between Ableton Live & Tempest if you own an iOS device with the free Midi Link Sync app and this Lightning to USB 3 Camera Adapter (https://store.storeimages.cdn-apple.com/4974/as-images.apple.com/is/image/AppleInc/aos/published/images/M/K0/MK0W2/MK0W2?wid=572&hei=572&fmt=jpeg&qlt=95&op_sharpen=0&resMode=bicub&op_usm=0.5,0.5,0,0&iccEmbed=0&layer=comp&.v=1479496994382)
you can have a very tight sync using Ableton's Link feature ;)

   •   Use panning as a dirty method to get recordable effect sends. Run one side of a voice out dry to a mixer, run the other side through an effect. Have it hard panned normally, and set up a note FX routing for panning.

   •   Real Time NOTE FX Sounds Mode Operations

* Real Time FX are always available as momentary effects.
* Playback bypasses Sequencer Note FX, and Arms Real Time FX for Recording
* Latching requires an Initial Touch, but once set can be engaged and disengaged by toggling Play Back, * which when off, reverts to the Sequencer control.
* Latching is ignored during recording,


(http://i.imgur.com/gOWoTBQ.png)

   •   Polymeters on Tempest:
OK, it might be a bit quirky, but it does work for some polymeters.
You can use other time signatures than 4/4 to get some polymeter action. Try using 12/16 @ 2 bars. You can now do 3 over 12 and 6 over 12 for instance.
It's pretty basic, but it does work :). I have not tried other combinations yet, but maybe 5/16 @ 8 bars could also work for instance. Programming sequences like this is pretty quirky though ;)
The basic idea is using other time signatures and programming 4/4 beats within them.

   •   Ahh and let’s not forget...The metronome steals a voice ;)

   •   Simple but very useful, but did you know you can achieve a quantised beat-wide revert by hitting the current beat's pad again?  The beat will not revert until it reaches the position that corresponds with its quantise setting.  Obviously this requires that the beat does indeed have a quantise setting in the first place.

   •   A detailed Tempest Samples index number file by Van can be found attached at the bottom of this post ⇩
You must be logged in to download it.
Title: Re: Tempest Operational Tips & Tricks
Post by: viudu on October 27, 2015, 11:13:24 AM

Now you should be able to play your external gear in 16 tunings mode for that pad.
You can also record what you play into Tempest's sequencer, OR sequence in 16 steps mode.

For now the Tempest only sends pitch, velocity, and duration.

Wait - I this sends pitch? I thought I tried this and was unable to get more than a single note number, am I mistaken?  BTW - thanks for this post, most helpful!
Title: Re: Tempest Operational Tips & Tricks
Post by: Yorgos Arabatzis on October 27, 2015, 11:49:32 AM
Yep Tempest can send pitch also..
Title: Re: Tempest Operational Tips & Tricks
Post by: Pym on October 27, 2015, 02:11:01 PM
It can send pitch for a single sound if you set up a MIDI synth sound, normally it sends each drum as a single note value like most drum machines

Yep Tempest can send pitch also..
Title: Re: Tempest Operational Tips & Tricks
Post by: viudu on October 28, 2015, 01:16:54 PM
Thanks for that info - was able to get pitch info recorded into a pad and sent to via midi to an external synth. Very cool.

I was unable to get the arpeggiator to work by pressing the roll button though. Is that working for others?
Title: Re: Tempest Operational Tips & Tricks
Post by: Morgenspaziergang on February 04, 2016, 11:14:09 PM
so, can i use the tempest to play external samples in an external sampler?

say, map channel 4 to a tempest pad and that pad plays a sample in the external sampler thats listening to midi channel 4?

if so, can one use , say,, 8 tempest pads with unique midi note channels to externally trigger/control 8 unique samples in an external sampler?

too good to be true?

Title: Re: Tempest Operational Tips & Tricks
Post by: Yorgos Arabatzis on February 05, 2016, 01:21:46 AM
It's a shame that Tempest can output only 1 sequencer channel..Many users on the old forum have been asking for this.
so, can i use the tempest to play external samples in an external sampler?

say, map channel 4 to a tempest pad and that pad plays a sample in the external sampler thats listening to midi channel 4?

if so, can one use , say,, 8 tempest pads with unique midi note channels to externally trigger/control 8 unique samples in an external sampler?

too good to be true?
Title: Re: Tempest Operational Tips & Tricks
Post by: Morgenspaziergang on February 05, 2016, 07:36:49 AM
thank you for your input. cheers!
Title: Re: Tempest Operational Tips & Tricks
Post by: tumblingplanet on June 21, 2016, 09:12:13 AM
Hi Yorgos

Are you sure this works, because I'm trying to put an 8th note from the beginning of a beat to the end using this method. I also tried taking the second 8th note and putting it back to the one, but no go.
This would be a tremendous help because as you may know the copy and paste functions only work for full bars! Could you go in depth on this one please?

   •   Hold step in 16 time steps and press FF or Rewind to move that step forward/backwards by one quantize amount.

Thanks,
 Scott
Title: Re: Tempest Operational Tips & Tricks
Post by: Yorgos Arabatzis on June 21, 2016, 11:51:21 AM
Ye it works..In 16 times step if you hold a lit pad and press FF it'll move that pad to the next one.If you hold the lit pad again and press RW it'll take it back to were it was.This has nothing to do with copy functions.
Hi Yorgos

Are you sure this works, because I'm trying to put an 8th note from the beginning of a beat to the end using this method. I also tried taking the second 8th note and putting it back to the one, but no go.
This would be a tremendous help because as you may know the copy and paste functions only work for full bars! Could you go in depth on this one please?

   •   Hold step in 16 time steps and press FF or Rewind to move that step forward/backwards by one quantize amount.

Thanks,
 Scott
Title: Re: Tempest Operational Tips & Tricks
Post by: Jurgen on June 29, 2016, 04:02:59 AM

4) Using the self oscillating filter is unstable as Chris stated.Try to use the waveforms of OSCs 1-4 instead.
5) Assigning a sound to a voice can help also.

I always use self-osclillating filter for my kicks.  Other then assigning the sound to 1 voice, I set up the pitch filter to lowpass and in mod section to highpass filter. Attack 0 and decay 5-9 amount 5-9. Filter env and amp env. have a traditional approach on the attack 2-3. It's pretty stable this way :)
Title: Re: Tempest Operational Tips & Tricks
Post by: Yorgos Arabatzis on June 29, 2016, 02:04:49 PM
As you said you have to lock the selfosc filter to a voice to be stable but in my experience this can result in small click to sounds that can't go away even if you raise the amp env attack.That's why when i design my sounds i don't lock them to voices.That's what Chris said in an older thread:
Quote from: Yorgos Arabatzis
Quote from: Pym
Short answer:

I have looked at this rather extensively; this is the big reason I was so adamant about putting the wave reset feature in the Tempest, because the transients varied too much. The problem is this only works for oscillator playback and not for sounds that use the self-resonance of the filter or the feedback. The problem is due to the transition between states, pushing into self-resonance or heavy feedback is not a stable operation in a very similar fashion to a free running oscillator (see: chaos theory). This is similar to the effect you would get on many distortion units, where it is impossible to get an identical response each time you play through the unit.

So you basically have two ways of going about it to stabilize the transient right now. One, using the oscillator for the transient and bringing in the desired amount of feedback/self-resonance after the transients using an envelope. Or, two, putting a second sound layered on top of the kick as the 'click'. There is also something in the pipeline that we've tested but haven't enabled in the OS. I'll talk about this more in the early betas after the 1.3 OS is out.
Title: Re: Tempest Operational Tips & Tricks
Post by: dekalboy on August 22, 2016, 07:16:00 AM
  " While recording, hold a slider position and punch in and out with the playback button."


=> Don't understand that .
Title: Re: Tempest Operational Tips & Tricks
Post by: dekalboy on August 22, 2016, 07:30:30 AM


   •   You can start Tempest at any bar.Just hit the FF/RW buttons to take you to the desired bar then while holding the Stop button hit Play.


Nice !
But I made a suggestion for the developpers  : would be AWESOME to keep this starting while keeping holding the STOP button.

Su ppose you want to start at BAR 4 :
 => you push the FF button 3 times
=> you hold STOP
=> hit PLAY
=> still holding STOP , you hit play again and it is restarting the sequence to BAR 4
Very very useful when editing the sequence or even create  live effects .

Another cool thing s we could have is saving the sequence always starting at BAR 4 for that sequence ....
Title: Re: Tempest Operational Tips & Tricks
Post by: soidthezoid on August 31, 2016, 03:33:28 AM

Hold down the Oscillator 'Select' button to edit all 4 oscillators at once. The Pitch encoder changes the pitch for all 4 oscillators and the OLED displays the values for each oscillator individually so you can edit them all together or one by one using the soft knobs.


You can also do something similar with the oscillator levels, think you just hold the oscillator 'Select' button then tweak the oscillator 'Level' knob and the screen appears.  Alternatively try the arrow / page up & down buttons


   If you half the tempo of your beat/project before you start recording anything you can achieve double the bars per beat.


I also figured that one out but I seem to recall that it caused laggy beat transitions in some cases.  It only seemed to happen if I programmed a lot of 32nd notes (essentially 16th notes when the tempo is halved).  That was before the recent flurry of OS updates though, so might be fixed now....
Title: Re: Tempest Operational Tips & Tricks
Post by: lifted_ground on September 29, 2016, 07:40:42 PM
Great tips!  After 4 years of wanting a Tempest, I finally bought one this week!  So far, I love it.  I'm a long-time MPC and Evolver user, so I knew I wouldn't be let down with this collaborative effort.  Cheers to everyone who has contributed here. I'm reading everything and finding it all very useful.   8)
Title: Re: Tempest Operational Tips & Tricks
Post by: bobbyquine on November 09, 2016, 11:40:21 AM
Use panning as a dirty method to get recordable effect sends. Run one side of a voice out dry to a mixer, run the other side through an effect. Have it hard panned normally, and set up a note FX routing for panning.
Title: Re: Tempest Operational Tips & Tricks
Post by: LucidSFX on November 09, 2016, 09:04:45 PM
Very interesting idea man.
Title: Re: Tempest Operational Tips & Tricks
Post by: Yorgos Arabatzis on November 10, 2016, 01:56:35 AM
Nice one bobbyquine added to the list!
Use panning as a dirty method to get recordable effect sends. Run one side of a voice out dry to a mixer, run the other side through an effect. Have it hard panned normally, and set up a note FX routing for panning.
Title: Re: Tempest Operational Tips & Tricks AKA FAQ Thread (Attention!!Read this first!!)
Post by: Yorgos Arabatzis on February 13, 2017, 07:02:42 AM
@idm
Moved your sound design tip into the appropriate thread

Thanks ;)
Title: Re: Tempest Operational Tips & Tricks AKA FAQ Thread (Attention!!Read this first!!)
Post by: LucidSFX on February 13, 2017, 09:18:48 AM
I couldnt find @idm's tip...on the sound design thread.
Title: Re: Tempest Operational Tips & Tricks AKA FAQ Thread (Attention!!Read this first!!)
Post by: Yorgos Arabatzis on February 13, 2017, 09:22:18 AM
Last tip on 1st post ;)
I couldnt find @idm's tip...on the sound design thread.
Title: Re: Tempest Operational Tips & Tricks AKA FAQ Thread (Attention!!Read this first!!)
Post by: Jehann on April 23, 2017, 04:15:29 AM
Hello everyone !

I am new to this forum and also a new Tempest user ! I love this machine but there is one thing that I cannot seem to work out...

Is it possible to change the root note that is produced when hitting a pad in the 16 Time steps mode?  For example, each time I hit a note on the sequencer it gives me a C5... Even though i changed the root note in the 16 tunings mode, it always gives that damn C5 in the 16 Time steps mode... Also I'm not sure where it could be changed in the system menu....

Pretty annoying if you want to tune your drums in lets say E.

It might be a dumb question... but anyway...hehe

Thanks a lot ! :)

Christ
Title: Re: Tempest Operational Tips & Tricks AKA FAQ Thread (Attention!!Read this first!!)
Post by: idm on April 23, 2017, 11:13:01 PM
Don't know why you ask this question in this topic? :) this topic is for giving tips.

Anyway, that is not possible. It always sends c5. You tune your drums via the pitch controls in the the oscillators ;). You can record in 16 tunings mode to record different pitches into the sequencer. Via the events screen you can edit pitches of recorded notes (upper right encoder).
Title: Re: Tempest Operational Tips & Tricks AKA FAQ Thread (Attention!!Read this first!!)
Post by: idm on May 21, 2017, 05:30:18 AM
Polymeters on Tempest:
OK, it might be a bit quirky, but it does work for some polymeters.

You can use other time signatures than 4/4 to get some polymeter action. Try using 12/16 @ 2 bars. You can now do 3 over 12 and 6 over 12 for instance.

It's pretty basic, but it does work :). I have not tried other combinations yet, but maybe 5/16 @ 8 bars could also work for instance. Programming sequences like this is pretty quirky though ;)

The basic idea is using other time signatures and programming 4/4 beats within them.
Title: Re: Tempest Operational Tips & Tricks AKA FAQ Thread (Attention!!Read this first!!)
Post by: particlesintowaves on July 18, 2017, 01:02:13 PM
   •   Tempest can only accept Midi CC messages on main MIDI channel as follows:
CC# 12 - Distortion
CC# 13 - Compression
CC# 19 - a value other than 0 reverts Beat FX params to defaults
CC# 20 - Beat FX All Osc Frequency
CC# 21 - Beat FX Feedback
CC# 22 - Beat FX Lowpass Filter Cutoff
CC# 23 - Beat FX Lowpass Filter Resonance
CC# 24 - Beat FX Lowpass Filter Audio Mod
CC# 25 - Beat FX Highpass Filter Cutoff
CC# 26 - Beat FX All Env Attack
CC# 27 - Beat FX All Env Decay

So is there no way to engage the roll or reverse function in 16 Beats via MIDI?
Title: Re: Tempest Operational Tips & Tricks AKA FAQ Thread (Attention!!Read this first!!)
Post by: bnsd on August 26, 2017, 09:16:51 AM
Hello,

Hope everyone is doing well.. I had a question about that point :

5) Assigning a sound to a voice can help but also produces a small click to the sound.It's very noticeable if you play fast bass or sustained sounds.

How to avoid those clicks when playing fast bass or sustained sounds ? Is there any tip about that ? I usually increase the amp attack but I still don't like the result..
Title: Re: Tempest Operational Tips & Tricks AKA FAQ Thread (Attention!!Read this first!!)
Post by: soidthezoid on August 26, 2017, 09:49:04 AM
   •   Tempest can only accept Midi CC messages on main MIDI channel as follows:
CC# 12 - Distortion
CC# 13 - Compression
CC# 19 - a value other than 0 reverts Beat FX params to defaults
CC# 20 - Beat FX All Osc Frequency
CC# 21 - Beat FX Feedback
CC# 22 - Beat FX Lowpass Filter Cutoff
CC# 23 - Beat FX Lowpass Filter Resonance
CC# 24 - Beat FX Lowpass Filter Audio Mod
CC# 25 - Beat FX Highpass Filter Cutoff
CC# 26 - Beat FX All Env Attack
CC# 27 - Beat FX All Env Decay

So is there no way to engage the roll or reverse function in 16 Beats via MIDI?

Both footswitch inputs can also accept a CV signal so plug a MIDI to CV converter into one or both of them & you can control any of the parameters, which are assignable to the footswitches.  They are setup with the System menu.
Title: Re: Tempest Operational Tips & Tricks AKA FAQ Thread (Attention!!Read this first!!)
Post by: RobH on August 26, 2017, 11:24:40 AM
   •   Tempest can only accept Midi CC messages on main MIDI channel as follows:
CC# 12 - Distortion
CC# 13 - Compression
CC# 19 - a value other than 0 reverts Beat FX params to defaults
CC# 20 - Beat FX All Osc Frequency
CC# 21 - Beat FX Feedback
CC# 22 - Beat FX Lowpass Filter Cutoff
CC# 23 - Beat FX Lowpass Filter Resonance
CC# 24 - Beat FX Lowpass Filter Audio Mod
CC# 25 - Beat FX Highpass Filter Cutoff
CC# 26 - Beat FX All Env Attack
CC# 27 - Beat FX All Env Decay

So is there no way to engage the roll or reverse function in 16 Beats via MIDI?

Both footswitch inputs can also accept a CV signal so plug a MIDI to CV converter into one or both of them & you can control any of the parameters, which are assignable to the footswitches.  They are setup with the System menu.

Oh really I didn't know they would just take any cv I don't know very much about foot switch pedals although I do have a bit of modular cv gear, do you know what the footswitch inputs are rated at and/ or if they are unipolar ( which I'm guessing they won't be) are they +10v or +12v etc?
Title: Re: Tempest Operational Tips & Tricks AKA FAQ Thread (Attention!!Read this first!!)
Post by: Yorgos Arabatzis on August 26, 2017, 12:57:48 PM
For my ears the best sounding solution is not to assign any of your sounds.In other words forget individual voice outs and go out with your main outs...Another solution is to lower your sound's decay/release so the notes don't truncate.My guess is something's going on with T's envelopes or voices..There's was a discussion about it in the old forum..The answer i got from DSI was "That's how analog works..." but i've played very fast other analog synths like Moog etc. and didn't got this behavior...Guess this inherited in the character of Tempest..

Cheers!
Hello,

Hope everyone is doing well.. I had a question about that point :

5) Assigning a sound to a voice can help but also produces a small click to the sound.It's very noticeable if you play fast bass or sustained sounds.

How to avoid those clicks when playing fast bass or sustained sounds ? Is there any tip about that ? I usually increase the amp attack but I still don't like the result..
Title: Re: Tempest Operational Tips & Tricks AKA FAQ Thread (Attention!!Read this first!!)
Post by: bnsd on August 26, 2017, 05:28:28 PM
For my ears the best sounding solution is not to assign any of your sounds.In other words forget individual voice outs and go out with your main outs...Another solution is to lower your sound's decay/release so the notes don't truncate.My guess is something's going on with T's envelopes or voices..There's was a discussion about it in the old forum..The answer i got from DSI was "That's how analog works..." but i've played very fast other analog synths like Moog etc. and didn't got this behavior...Guess this inherited in the character of Tempest..

Cheers!
Hello,

Hope everyone is doing well.. I had a question about that point :

5) Assigning a sound to a voice can help but also produces a small click to the sound.It's very noticeable if you play fast bass or sustained sounds.

How to avoid those clicks when playing fast bass or sustained sounds ? Is there any tip about that ? I usually increase the amp attack but I still don't like the result..

Thanks mate.
Title: Re: Tempest Operational Tips & Tricks AKA FAQ Thread (Attention!!Read this first!!)
Post by: timbo74 on August 26, 2017, 06:00:19 PM
   •   Tempest can only accept Midi CC messages on main MIDI channel as follows:
CC# 12 - Distortion
CC# 13 - Compression
CC# 19 - a value other than 0 reverts Beat FX params to defaults
CC# 20 - Beat FX All Osc Frequency
CC# 21 - Beat FX Feedback
CC# 22 - Beat FX Lowpass Filter Cutoff
CC# 23 - Beat FX Lowpass Filter Resonance
CC# 24 - Beat FX Lowpass Filter Audio Mod
CC# 25 - Beat FX Highpass Filter Cutoff
CC# 26 - Beat FX All Env Attack
CC# 27 - Beat FX All Env Decay

So is there no way to engage the roll or reverse function in 16 Beats via MIDI?

Both footswitch inputs can also accept a CV signal so plug a MIDI to CV converter into one or both of them & you can control any of the parameters, which are assignable to the footswitches.  They are setup with the System menu.

Oh really I didn't know they would just take any cv I don't know very much about foot switch pedals although I do have a bit of modular cv gear, do you know what the footswitch inputs are rated at and/ or if they are unipolar ( which I'm guessing they won't be) are they +10v or +12v etc?



Hi RobH,

On the Tempest DSI main page are the specs.
Quote:
Two pedal/control voltage (3.3 VDC max.) input (1/4″ TRS phone jack)

Hope that helps.

Tim
Title: Re: Tempest Operational Tips & Tricks AKA FAQ Thread (Attention!!Read this first!!)
Post by: abstrx on September 30, 2017, 08:47:11 AM
The combinations of analog and digital DCO's and the percussion focused envelopes lead to some great synth sounds. A bit like a funky Evolver with on-board compression and a sequencer that is quicker to work with!

a couple links if anyone is interested.

https://stimresp.wordpress.com/2012/02/26/tempest-recipes-1-voice-chords/

https://davesmithinstruments.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/201389680-How-to-play-the-Tempest-as-a-polyphonic-synth-from-a-MIDI-keyboard
Title: Re: Tempest Operational Tips & Tricks AKA FAQ Thread (Attention!!Read this first!!)
Post by: Yorgos Arabatzis on September 30, 2017, 11:01:44 AM
You can find stim’s tutorials and many other on the sound design thread here: http://forum.davesmithinstruments.com/index.php?topic=34.0

If you haven’t already don’t forget to download Tempest various patches located at the bottom of the first post

Cheers!
Title: Re: Tempest Operational Tips & Tricks AKA FAQ Thread (Attention!!Read this first!!)
Post by: soidthezoid on December 20, 2017, 04:21:46 AM
Don't recall seeing this one in this thread so here goes:  Simple but very useful, but did you know you can achieve a quantised beat-wide revert by hitting the current beat's pad again?  The beat will not revert until it reaches the position that corresponds with its quantise setting.  Obviously this requires that the beat does indeed have a quantise setting in the first place.
Title: Re: Tempest Operational Tips & Tricks AKA FAQ Thread (Attention!!Read this first!!)
Post by: Yorgos Arabatzis on December 21, 2017, 04:28:45 AM
Thanks for mentioning this helpful tip!1st post updated ;)
Keep it up people!
Don't recall seeing this one in this thread so here goes:  Simple but very useful, but did you know you can achieve a quantised beat-wide revert by hitting the current beat's pad again?  The beat will not revert until it reaches the position that corresponds with its quantise setting.  Obviously this requires that the beat does indeed have a quantise setting in the first place.
Title: Re: Tempest Operational Tips & Tricks AKA FAQ Thread (Attention!!Read this first!!)
Post by: RobH on December 21, 2017, 05:48:03 AM
Don't recall seeing this one in this thread so here goes:  Simple but very useful, but did you know you can achieve a quantised beat-wide revert by hitting the current beat's pad again?  The beat will not revert until it reaches the position that corresponds with its quantise setting.  Obviously this requires that the beat does indeed have a quantise setting in the first place.

Nice tip i'll have to try this!
Title: Re: Tempest Operational Tips & Tricks AKA FAQ Thread (Attention!!Read this first!!)
Post by: muleskinner on December 22, 2017, 03:15:21 AM
I don't know if this counts as a tip but I was having real problems the other day with a patch that was exhibiting random clicks. Tried all the usual stuff to sort but nothing would fix it.

In the end I narrowed it down to filter FM which was used heavily. If, instead of having filter FM maxxed out to start with I tied it to an envelope and put a delay of '1' on that envelope (attack of zero and max peak hold) the random clicks went away!

Setting a delay of '1' on VCA envelope has been suggested before as a way of getting rid of clicks but that didn't work in this case.



Title: Re: Tempest Operational Tips & Tricks AKA FAQ Thread (Attention!!Read this first!!)
Post by: Yorgos Arabatzis on December 22, 2017, 04:24:24 AM
Thanks for sharing the tip muleskinner ;)
I don't know if this counts as a tip but I was having real problems the other day with a patch that was exhibiting random clicks. Tried all the usual stuff to sort but nothing would fix it.

In the end I narrowed it down to filter FM which was used heavily. If, instead of having filter FM maxxed out to start with I tied it to an envelope and put a delay of '1' on that envelope (attack of zero and max peak hold) the random clicks went away!

Setting a delay of '1' on VCA envelope has been suggested before as a way of getting rid of clicks but that didn't work in this case.
Title: Re: Tempest Operational Tips & Tricks AKA FAQ Thread (Attention!!Read this first!!)
Post by: muleskinner on January 19, 2018, 04:04:36 AM
Here's another one - people have asked about creating drones before and I just found a neat solution for this.

Set one FX slider to target VCA level, set that slider to 'latch', press pad + slider. Bingo - never-ending drone!
Title: Re: Tempest Operational Tips & Tricks AKA FAQ Thread (Attention!!Read this first!!)
Post by: hilmarlarsen@hotmail.com on February 10, 2018, 08:42:10 AM
How to make OT recieve the T’s beat change (aka pattern change)?

I need to use T’s beat changes to send changes of OT’s patterns, so that they can advance in a live jammed song together, automatically. (I will not make a song structure in advance)

I use T as rythms and as the masterclock/transport source for OT.

Can anyone please tell me if this is possible and if so, show me a guide?
Title: Re: Tempest Operational Tips & Tricks AKA FAQ Thread (Attention!!Read this first!!)
Post by: Jinsai on May 13, 2018, 11:40:05 AM
...My guess is something's going on with T's envelopes or voices..There's was a discussion about it in the old forum..The answer i got from DSI was "That's how analog works..." but i've played very fast other analog synths like Moog etc. and didn't got this behavior...Guess this inherited in the character of Tempest...


I am pretty sure the way Tempest works is that the internal sequencer is sending patch change data to each voice right before that voice is triggered. That's the only way you can get the 6 synth voices to support so many different sounds.

Because there are analog components, they can take some time to respond/reset/change, and their state as they change may be dependent on the values they held before the new patch was loaded, particularly things that "ring" like the feedback or resonant filter (see also: the clicking of DSI/Curtis analog oscillators when changing from low to high notes). The addition of slight attack ramps just buys the synth a few more milliseconds to reset/change.

I haven't tested it yet, but I'm pretty sure if you tried to get a monosynth such as a Moog Voyager or Mono Evolver to behave like a Tempest voice by firing patch changes right before the beat triggered, you'd get similar weirdness.
Title: Re: Tempest Operational Tips & Tricks AKA FAQ Thread (Attention!!Read this first!!)
Post by: LoboLives on May 19, 2018, 10:18:08 PM
Personally what I love doing is sequencing an external sequencer. I use the Tempest’s synth voice (after first recording a bass sequence on it) going midi out into my Moog Sub 37. The Moog is set up in sequencer mode and the Tempest is in playlist (aka song) mode so as the playlist is switching from beat to beat it’s also changing the root note of the sequence on the Moog. This frees up one of my hands from having to do it thus it allows me to play another synth or guitar over top.
Title: Re: Tempest Operational Tips & Tricks AKA FAQ Thread (Attention!!Read this first!!)
Post by: Ritchiedrums on January 31, 2019, 12:59:13 PM
I have been looking for 3 days now & the answer is probably right in front of me.
In 16 beats mode, when I choose the next beat sometimes it waits for the beat to finish &
other times it jumps to the next beat in the middle of the pattern.
How do I control this??
Title: Re: Tempest Operational Tips & Tricks AKA FAQ Thread (Attention!!Read this first!!)
Post by: Yorgos Arabatzis on February 01, 2019, 01:06:19 AM
I have been looking for 3 days now & the answer is probably right in front of me.
In 16 beats mode, when I choose the next beat sometimes it waits for the beat to finish &
other times it jumps to the next beat in the middle of the pattern.
How do I control this??

When in 16 Beats mode (pads key lit) just set the quantazation of your project using the softknob 1
Title: Re: Tempest Operational Tips & Tricks AKA FAQ Thread (Attention!!Read this first!!)
Post by: Ritchiedrums on February 01, 2019, 07:51:27 AM
This has nothing to do with Quantization.


Call up a Project & Play Pad 1 in 16 Beats mode.
Now select Pad 2.
Sometimes it waits for the beat on Pad 1 to finish &
other times it jumps to Pad 2 as soon as you tap.

How is this determined?

I have been looking for 3 days now & the answer is probably right in front of me.
In 16 beats mode, when I choose the next beat sometimes it waits for the beat to finish &
other times it jumps to the next beat in the middle of the pattern.
How do I control this??

When in 16 Beats mode (pads key lit) just set the quantazation of your project using the softknob 1
Title: Re: Tempest Operational Tips & Tricks AKA FAQ Thread (Attention!!Read this first!!)
Post by: Yorgos Arabatzis on February 01, 2019, 10:09:54 AM
That’s why i’m telling you about quantization..The pad switching is tied with the quantization value you’re going to choose..The lower the quantization the faster the switching of the pad 1 to pad 2 in your example..Manual page 4 (The pad function keys)
Title: Re: Tempest Operational Tips & Tricks AKA FAQ Thread (Attention!!Read this first!!)
Post by: Ritchiedrums on February 01, 2019, 11:54:57 AM
Ah Haaaa!

Thanx very much!!!!


That’s why i’m telling you about quantization..The pad switching is tied with the quantization value you’re going to choose..The lower the quantization the faster the switching of the pad 1 to pad 2 in your example..Manual page 4 (The pad function keys)
Title: Re: Tempest Operational Tips & Tricks AKA FAQ Thread (Attention!!Read this first!!)
Post by: codydjango on March 22, 2019, 05:34:47 PM
I love my Tempest, but the one key feature I feel is missing, and could have quite possibly been included, is note probabilities. Perhaps as a step option in the step sequencer, to go along with duration, etc. Any tricks for achieving randomized notes? The closest I can get is using the mod matrix to randomly affect vca and vca amount, or attack/decay. This isn't ideal though. For example, I'd love to have every quarter note hit 100% of the time, and every other note hit 25% of the time.

Ideas? Thanks
Title: Re: Tempest Operational Tips & Tricks AKA FAQ Thread (Attention!!Read this first!!)
Post by: dekalboy on May 08, 2019, 02:28:32 PM
Don’t try to make speaking an American guy into Swedish !
I think you wants the features of an Elektron device into a Dave Smith device .

That being said , maybe with a lot of creativity it is possible . For instance you can use the cv inputs of the tempest ( labelled 1 / 2 on the rear panel ) , send a sample and hold signal into them and use them as a modulation source into the mod path .  But it will be pure randomness and not a “ controlled “ random as you may need to see on  the tempest .
Title: Re: Tempest Operational Tips & Tricks AKA FAQ Thread (Attention!!Read this first!!)
Post by: devn on September 11, 2020, 07:05:02 PM
On the topic of Ableton Live syncing: I spent quite awhile yesterday and could not get rid of a 30ms delay on the first beat. After that it stabilizes. It's better if the Tempest is master, but it's still about 9ms off on the first beat. The easy fix is to just let it play through a whole loop and then begin recording, but I was wondering if the Ableton Live + iOS app option makes this first beat delay go away.
Title: Re: Tempest Operational Tips & Tricks AKA FAQ Thread (Attention!!Read this first!!)
Post by: Zagorov on February 28, 2021, 12:37:16 PM
Yorgos wrote that: ''Assigning a sound to a voice can help but also produces a small click to the sound.It's very noticeable if you play fast bass or sustained sounds.''

I am new to Tempest and I think I have this issue while making bass patches. If I set OSC1 to let say: PULSE 50% NOTE: C1 (or lower) and turn VCF fully CCW, without any modulations on VCF cutoff (env. lfo. pressure etc) then I should hear nothing when hitting pad, but I hear some leak (I think it's ;real) and that's super annoying because I would love to make some sub bass patches without any clicks or leaks... Am I doing something wrong? or it is just Tempest 'normal' behavior? I am using Individual outs with TS cables. Cheers !

here's video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MUPypaWIXLg&feature=youtu.be
Title: Re: Tempest Operational Tips & Tricks AKA FAQ Thread (Attention!!Read this first!!)
Post by: Yorgos Arabatzis on February 28, 2021, 08:38:42 PM
Yorgos wrote that: ''Assigning a sound to a voice can help but also produces a small click to the sound.It's very noticeable if you play fast bass or sustained sounds.''

I am new to Tempest and I think I have this issue while making bass patches. If I set OSC1 to let say: PULSE 50% NOTE: C1 (or lower) and turn VCF fully CCW, without any modulations on VCF cutoff (env. lfo. pressure etc) then I should hear nothing when hitting pad, but I hear some leak (I think it's ;real) and that's super annoying because I would love to make some sub bass patches without any clicks or leaks... Am I doing something wrong? or it is just Tempest 'normal' behavior? I am using Individual outs with TS cables. Cheers !

here's video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MUPypaWIXLg&feature=youtu.be
Definitely it’s real that’s why i wrote it..
I’d leave bass sounds going out to the mains if i were you..
This is one of T’s voice allocation  quirks and i’m annoyed too..
Title: Re: Tempest Operational Tips & Tricks AKA FAQ Thread (Attention!!Read this first!!)
Post by: Zagorov on March 03, 2021, 12:28:59 AM
Unfortunately but there are leaks on both master out as well as individual outs. This makes making clear sub basses impossible at Tempest :/ Sometimes these leaks in the filter adds dirt & character to the sound - which I like, but not always, eh it's a pity.
Title: Re: Tempest Operational Tips & Tricks AKA FAQ Thread (Attention!!Read this first!!)
Post by: Yorgos Arabatzis on March 03, 2021, 07:29:14 AM
Unfortunately but there are leaks on both master out as well as individual outs. This makes making clear sub basses impossible at Tempest :/ Sometimes these leaks in the filter adds dirt & character to the sound - which I like, but not always, eh it's a pity.
If it’s on your master too then you’ve got a faulty voice..Just do the calibration routine with all cables unplugged and check again..If the problem persists send me your patch to check it on my Tempest if it leaks on the mains
Title: Re: Tempest Operational Tips & Tricks AKA FAQ Thread (Attention!!Read this first!!)
Post by: Zagorov on March 04, 2021, 12:48:06 AM
I don't think so it's faulty voice. I did calibration just after I received my (almost new) tempest. Just put square wave, note C1 or lower, turn filter FCCW , turn up the gain in your mixer/daw and hit the pad - that's my patch
Title: Re: Tempest Operational Tips & Tricks AKA FAQ Thread (Attention!!Read this first!!)
Post by: Yorgos Arabatzis on March 04, 2021, 01:04:21 AM
I don't think so it's faulty voice. I did calibration just after I received my (almost new) tempest. Just put square wave, note C1 or lower, turn filter FCCW , turn up the gain in your mixer/daw and hit the pad - that's my patch
Need detailed info on the envelopes and OSCs  too..And as i said it would be much easier and fast to send me your patch to check it out
Title: Re: Tempest Operational Tips & Tricks AKA FAQ Thread (Attention!!Read this first!!)
Post by: Zagorov on March 04, 2021, 08:16:40 AM
Here's the patch - turn the VCF fully CCW and turn up the volume on tempest and your mixer or daw & just hit the pad
https://we.tl/t-c6gItrWhCO

[edit]:

here's 2nd patch example: https://we.tl/t-Kd3w4voG8D
Title: Re: Tempest Operational Tips & Tricks AKA FAQ Thread (Attention!!Read this first!!)
Post by: Yorgos Arabatzis on March 06, 2021, 05:25:30 AM
Here's the patch - turn the VCF fully CCW and turn up the volume on tempest and your mixer or daw & just hit the pad
https://we.tl/t-c6gItrWhCO

[edit]:

here's 2nd patch example: https://we.tl/t-Kd3w4voG8D
No prob with your patches...
Just set your pad to output on the mains and Amp Attack to 10
Amp attack below 8 creates a click which some people want..
Cheers ;-)
Title: Re: Tempest Operational Tips & Tricks AKA FAQ Thread (Attention!!Read this first!!)
Post by: Zagorov on March 08, 2021, 05:34:06 AM
Check your ears Yorgos - tempest's vcf leaks sound, that'a a fact.
AMP can create click around 1-4 at attact stage, with 10 at amp attack, sound can't be snappy.
here's what DSI Support says:


''he sound you are hearing is due to low level analog oscillator output leaking through the filter. This is an artifact of the nature of the Tempest's Curtis chip-reliant analog voice architecture and is the expected operation of the synth voice.

The signal to noise ratio of the analog path is ~80db and you may hear the oscillator's bleeding through the filter at very low volumes and/or the noise floor of the synth. I am able to reproduce the results of your video with the Tempest I have here, although by reducing Resonance, Audio Mod, Lowpass Envelope Amount, and Velocity Amount to 0, the issue is much less noticeable. Essentially, in 4-Pole mode, reducing modulation to the filter cuts of much more of the sound. I'm also able to get sub bass tones by increasing Resonance while in 4-Pole mode, which is by design.

Additionally, turning off the analog oscillators will allow you to cut off the sound of the digital oscillators with the lowpass filter. This also allows the creation of kicks and sub bass tones by getting the the filter to self-resonate.''
Title: Re: Tempest Operational Tips & Tricks AKA FAQ Thread (Attention!!Read this first!!)
Post by: Yorgos Arabatzis on March 08, 2021, 07:30:18 AM
Check your ears Yorgos - tempest's vcf leaks sound, that'a a fact.
AMP can create click around 1-4 at attact stage, with 10 at amp attack, sound can't be snappy.

My ears are just fine thank you and yes I’m aware of support’s answer..
It’s that infamous click everyone’s talking about and gives consistency problems..If you read my tips & tricks thread i give some solutions to this behavior make sure to read it carefully eh ;)
I’d prefer for the Curtis chip and envelopes to work in a cleaner manner but that’s was the nature of the Tempest from the beginning..
Many hated it and many loved it!
I wonder if Prophet 6 behaves like that..Anyone to chime in?
Title: Re: Tempest Operational Tips & Tricks AKA FAQ Thread (Attention!!Read this first!!)
Post by: Zagorov on March 09, 2021, 12:39:11 AM
I own a Prophet 6 from the beginning it came out & have zero problems with it.
Clicks are easy to fix, my unit leaks VCOs in the VCF section - I am sure of this because the leak sound has always the same pitch as VCO ;) Anyway - thank's for help! Now I have to find out if this bug will annoy me or not, we'll see. :)
Title: Re: Tempest Operational Tips & Tricks AKA FAQ Thread (Attention!!Read this first!!)
Post by: timbo74 on August 11, 2021, 01:56:43 AM
Thanks to everyone who has contributed to this post as I refer to it often for clarity on some of Tempest workings and workarounds.  :)

Regards.
Tim