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Precautions l Do not expose the plug-in board to direct sunlight, ex- l Before connecting the computer to other devices, turn cessive humidity, high temperatures, excessive dust or off the power switches of all devices. strong vibrations. l Yamaha is not responsible for loss of data through com- l Before handling the plug-in board, be sure to touch a puter malfunctions or operator actions. metal surface to discharge any static electricity which l The plug-in board contains no user-serviceable pa
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Introduction Thank you for purchasing the Yamaha XG Plug-in board PLG100-DX. The PLG100-DX is a plug-in board that offers a six-operator FM generator equivalent to the one that made the DX7 series so famous. The PLG100-DX is compatible with the XG plug-in system, and you can install it into the MU128 or any other tone generator or sequencer that supports XG plug-ins. Once it’s installed, the unique FM tone generator voices that built the reputation of the DX series will be right at your fingerti
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About the PLG100-DX Features of the PLG100-DX • Features the same FM tone generator that has won acclaim in the DX series synthesizers. The PLG100-DX employs an FM tone generator system, with six operators and 32 algorithms, that has been a favorite of musicians in DX series synthesizers like the DX7 and the DX7II. • Maximum 16 voice simultaneous polyphony Ensures maximum 16 voice simultaneous polyphony equal to the DX7 and DX7II. Furthermore, by installing multiple PLG100-DX boards, the maximum
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About the PLG100-DX Included Items The items below are packaged together with your new PLG100-DX. Before using your board, be sure to check that everything has been included. In the rare event that some item is missing, please contact the store where you bought your PLG100-DX as soon as pos- sible. l PLG100-DX Board l PLG100-DX Owner’s Manual l CD-ROM “XGtools” Necessary Items that Are Not Included XG tone generator or synthesizer To use your PLG100-DX, you will need an XG tone generator or synt
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About the PLG100-DX DX Simulator The DX Simulator is special software for editing the custom voices of the PLG100- DX. When you start up the program, an image of the DX7 front panel is displayed on your computer screen. Using your mouse to operate the buttons and sliders, you can edit voices just like using a real DX7. You can also display an edit list where you can edit voices while checking all the parameters in a table on the screen. The edited voice data can be either saved in memory or to a
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About the PLG100-DX About the CD-ROM In addition to the two plug-in software programs, DX Simulator and DX Easy Editor, the CD-ROM that was packaged with your board also contains several demonstration songs that showcase the special features of the PLG100-DX, and also performance data (voice settings) for use in the platform where you have installed your PLG100-DX. The demon- stration songs can be enjoyed by playing them with sequence software like XGworks V2.0 or XGworks(lite), or with a QY700.
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About the PLG100-DX “House” (HOUSE.MID) by Katsumi Nagae (Idecs Inc.) The typical house music sound is simulated in this song, which experiments with reproducing sampling phrases using the DX Voice system. In addition, the second half of the song features the metalic sound that is a strong point of the DX. “Jungle” (DXJungle.MID) by Katsumi Nagae (Idecs Inc.) This song adds a touch of Chinese feeling to the Jungle. The Oriental image is under- scored by the “CHINA_S&” and “IMAGE9” plug-in SE vo
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About the PLG100-DX Open the DX Easy Editor Window • For details about using the DX Easy Editor, see the help file that comes with the DX Easy Editor. • If the DX Easy Editor does not appear on the Plug-In menu of XGworks(lite), the program may not be properly installed in the XGworks(lite) folder. You can install it by running the plug-in installation program. n Starting the DX Simulator ............................................................... 1. Start XGworks(lite). 2. Select “Select DX
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FM Tone Generation Before actually editing the PLG100-DX voices, let’s get an idea of how the FM tone generator is put together. Operators In the PLG100-DX, there are six special devices called “operators” that generate sine waves. These six operators are combined in various ways to make up the different voices produced by the PLG100-DX. The operators have the following two functions: (1) They can freely change the frequency (pitch) of the generated sine wave. (2) They can freely change the ampl
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FM Tone Generation Combinations of Two Operators Although the six operators can be combined in myriad ways, here the fundamental combi- nations that involve two operators will be explained. Two operators can be combined in the following two ways (the two operators will be called A and B respectively): (1) Horizontal Combination When the two operators are combined horizontally, the sound generated by each is mixed with the sound from the other. The actual sound (sine wave) is produced by A and B
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FM Tone Generation Carrier and Modulator To distinguish the two operators when they are combined vertically, they are called the “Carrier” and the “Modulator.” • Carrier ................. The operator in the lowest position, that produces the actual sound. (Called A in the previous section.) • Modulator ............ An operator positioned above another operator, which changes (modulates) the sound of the next operator down. (Called B in the previous section.) When there are three or more operato
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Eighth Harmonic Seventh Harmonic Sixth Harmonic Fifth Harmonic Fourth Harmonic Third Harmonic Second Harmonic Fundamental Fourth Harmonic Third Harmonic Second Harmonic Fundamental FM Tone Generation Harmonics Most sounds are made up of multiple tones that are different than the pitch (frequency). Within these multiple tones, the one that determines the pitch of the entire sound is called the fundamental tone (fundamental frequency). All the tones besides the fundamental tone are called partials
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FM Tone Generation Algorithms While there may be only two ways to combine two operators, when you start talking about six operators, the number of possible combinations becomes much larger. These combina- tions of six operators are called “algorithms,” and in both the DX7 series and the PLG100- DX, 32 of these combinations have been selected that can be used for creating voices. In an FM tone generator, which operators work as carriers and which work as modulators are changed dynamically by the
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FM Tone Generation Algorithm 4 3 6 2 5 Feedback 1 4 Essentials for Determining Voices Voices are determined by the following main elements: (1) The output level from each operator (OUTPUT LEVEL). (2) The frequency of the tone put out by each operator (OUTPUT FREQUENCY). (3) The feedback level (FEEDBACK LEVEL). (4) The Envelope Generator (EG). Each of these will be explained in order. (1) The output level from each operator When voices are edited, the most important point is the output level for
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FM Tone Generation On the other hand, because the carrier actually makes the sound, changing the output level causes a change in the strength (volume) of the sound. If there is only one carrier, this will simply cause the overall volume to change. However, if there are multiple carriers in the algorithm, the timbre may also be changed as the balance in volume between the different carriers is changed. To summarize these points: • The voice changes according to the output level of the modulators.
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FM Tone Generation (3) FEEDBACK LEVEL By raising the feedback level, the modulation deepens, and the timbre of the sound be- comes brighter. (4) Envelope Generator (EG) The EG creates the changes over time in the output level from the instant a key on the keyboard is pressed to the time that the sound disappears. If you listen to various musical instruments, you soon realize that besides the differences in the timbre of the sounds they create, there is a large difference in the way that the soun
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Memory Buffer Configuration The memory buffer of the PLG100-DX is configured as shown in the diagram below. Preset Memory Recall (912 Voices) Voice Edit Buffer Custom Voices (64 Voices) Compare Store Edit Recall Edit Recall Buffer • The only voices that can be edited using an editing program like the DX Simulator are the custom voices. When using the custom bank • The following parameters are not valid when using the custom bank because they are saved as voice parameters. XG Native Part Parame
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DX Voice Selection The PLG100-DX voices can be selected just like the voices for the XG tone generator itself. However, to use the PLG100-DX voices, XG mode or performance mode (PERFORM) must be selected in the Sound Module Mode of the XG tone generator. Also the part/performance layer assigned to the PLG100-DX must be specified in the sub-mode (PLUGIN) of the utility mode of the XG tone generator. • The displays used below for explaining tone generator operations are from the MU100. The screens
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DX Voice Selection 5. Use the [VALUE / ] buttons to select the voice you wish to use. Program number display location • When a program number that does not exist for the PLG100-DX is selected when the chosen bank is from 000 to 099, the icon for the voice selected in the XG tone generator itself will be displayed in the icon area. n Specifying Parts/Performance Layers.................................................................... 1. Press the [UTIL] button on the panel, and display the uti
