Zone Parameters
Transpose
Musician’s Guide 5-7
Alternating Maps
Alternating maps can be used when you are addressing multiple synthesizers that can play the
same sound, to increase the apparent polyphony of your system.
An obvious use of alternating note maps is with the Ò64-Note PolyÓ instruments on the VGM
board. The instruments in this Bank are exact duplicates of some of the sounds in the Internal
Voices bank. By assigning all of the odd-numbered notes to the Internal Voices, and all of the
even-numbered notes to the duplicates on the VGM board (which have the same names,
preceded by ÒvÓ), you can achieve 64-voice polyphony within the PC88.
An example of how this is done is found in Setup #49 Ò64-note PianoÓ. The MIDI channel of
Zone 1 is 1. Its Bank is Internal Voices and its Program is 000, ÒClassical PianoÓ. Look at its Key
Range map: it is set to 1 of 2. Only odd-numbered notes played on the keyboard will play
sounds from the Internal Voices bank. Now go to Zone 2. Its MIDI channel is 2, its Bank is 64-
Note Poly and its program is also 000, ÒvClassical PianoÓ, which is an exact copy of the sound
in the Internal Voices bank. Its Key Range, however, is 2 of 2. Only even-numbered notes will
play the sounds on this Bank in the VGM board. Since each Bank can support 32 voices by
itself, combining them in this way gives you 64 voices Ñ unless you happen to play more than
32 odd or 32 even notes at a time!
This mapping of the keyboard is also applied to outgoing MIDI data: odd-numbered notes are
sent out channel 1, and even-numbered ones channel 2. If you have two identical synths
receiving on the two channels, say each with 16-voice polyphony, you can set one to channel 1
and the other to channel 2, and thereby combine them to create a single 32-voice instrument
(and you donÕt need the VGM board to do this).
You can use three Zones this way (1 of 3, 2 of 3, 3 of 3) or even, if youÕre really ambitious, all
four Zones (1 of 4, etc.). These maps wonÕt accomplish much on the PC88, but they can come in
handy with external synths.
Transpose
This is a simple menu: it has but one item. This parameter changes the pitch of the Zone,
without changing its position on the keyboard. It also changes the MIDI note numbers
generated by the keys in the Zone, without physically shifting the Zone. The range is ±127
semitones. Since there are 12 semitones (or half steps) to an octave, you can transpose up or
down over ten octaves. If you transpose out of the range of the active voice, however, no notes
will sound; beyond MIDI note numbers, no notes will transmit.
If the Note Map is set to Const, then this parameter determines what note will be transmitted
over the Zone Ñ the sort of thing that comes in handy when youÕre laying a ride cymbal over a
bass, or a wood block over a ßute. Intuitive Entry can be used with the keyboard to set this
parameter, holding the Enter button and playing a note. C4 is no transposition; above that is up
and below it is down. To enter negative numbers on the numeric keypad, use the +/- button any
time before you press Enter: e.g., to enter -100, you can press +/-, 1, 0, 0, Enter; or 1, +/-, 0, 0,
Enter; or 1, 0, 0, +/-, Enter; etc.
Parameter Values
Transposition: -127 to 127
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