Emu XL-7 & MP-7 User's Group

--- In xl7@yahoogroups.com, Aaron Eppolito <synthesis77@y...> wrote:
> *NO ONE* that I know of in the ROMpler/sampler world counts layered
> presets as one "voice".  Stereo sounds use two voices.  
> Layered sounds use at least one voice per layer.  This is not
> deceiving on the part of
> every synth manufacturer, it's just what the terminology is.
> 
> By the way, I forgot to mention that 12th order filters use 2 
voices.


When you consider how much bulk E-Mu puts into its manuals and how 
prominently the "128-voice" capability is promoted, it is absurd that 
E-Mu doesn't come out and say what other manufacturers have freely 
admitted.

Please show me in which manual or addenda there is any explanation of 
how anything other than chorus reduces polyphony (number of playable 
voices).  Do the manuals say that stereo samples use two audio 
streams?  Perhaps I missed that.  Do the manuals say that 12th order 
filters use two audio streams?  What else eats up audio streams?  And 
where are audio streams explicitly equated with layers?

BTW, I am comfortable saying current E-Mu gear has 128 audio streams. 

Will we also find out that multi-samples also use multiple audio 
streams--that (for example), an E-Mu instrument [ROM sample] that has 
28 drum different samples (a kit) uses 28 audio streams?

Why can't E-Mu just do what other manufacturers have done in the past 
and be up front (as my previous posts from Casio and Roland manuals 
show)?

Read the E-Mu manuals, please:

INTRODUCTION:  Ultra Powerful Synthesizer

"The extremely flexible yet easy to use 4-layer synthesizer voices 
make it easy . . . ."

"128 voice polyphony ensures that you can play and sequence the most 
complex material."

The first sentence clearly refers to a 4-layer structure as a voice. 

Two sentences later, the reader/user/consumer/potential buyer has no 
reason to believe that 128 voice polyphony is not 128 4-layer 
synthesizer voices. 

It would be very easy to say, "The extremely flexible yet easy to use 
4-layer synthesizer presets make it easy . . . ." and "Up to 128 
voice polyphony ensures that you can play and sequence the most 
complex material" or even "E-Mu's unique 128 audio stream 
architechture ensures that you can create, play and sequence the most 
complex material."

In order to demonstrate that the hype in the intro is not intended to 
be misleading, it would be nice to see in future manuals and addenda 
a note referring to a brief section summarizing 128 audio stream 
architecture as it rleates to layers, number of simultaneous notes 
that can be triggered, polyphony, etc.  E.g., "(See page 12 for an 
overview of E-Mu's unique 128 audio stream sound engine.)"

BTW, how does an E-Mu user know which samples [aka ROM instruments] 
are stereo and which aren't?

Please don't misunderstand, I like the E-Mu architecture and am very 
pleased with the flexibility it has.  In fact on this board and 
others when users have had problems/complaints, I have been very 
liberal with my praise of the architecture's flexibility (so much so 
that when someone asked if the big data knob can be used to send 
program changes to external gear and someone else said they didn't 
think so, I wrote a utility pattern that demonstrated two ways that 
it could be done.)

Also, having worked with real patchcords extensively on the original 
Moog, I appreciate E-Mu's virtual patchcord architecture, 
terminology, and flexibility.  I have openly praised them when others 
have questioned them, and I have created sample patchcord solutions 
to posted problems to show how flexible they are.

However, I did not like finding out after several months that I do 
not have an "Ultra Powerful Synthesizer" with 128 4-layer voices and 
I certainly did not appreciate the way in which I found this out.

> *NO ONE* that I know of in the ROMpler/sampler world counts layered
> presets as one "voice". 

Huh?  "The extremely flexible yet easy to use 4-layer synthesizer 
voices make it easy . . . ."

E-Mu clealy refers to "4-layer synthesizer voices."  The gear has 4-
layer presets.  [presets = voices]  Thus, in every introuduction of 
every manual that has this line E-Mu is counting a 4-layer preset as 
a 4-layer voice. 

If other manufacturers also equate the number of layers with 
polyphony (number of triggerable voices) without describing how the 
architecture uses, reduces, chews ups, eats, robs, etc. 
voices/polyphony, I would also claim they should improve their 
manuals.

8-)
Steve