G O T H I C I N S T R U M E N T S

Revolutionary Kontakt atmosphere creator.

DARK SYNTHESIS MODULE

CONTENTS

1. Welcome&About2. Overview&SystemRequirements3. Installation&QuickStart4. TheMIDIKeys5. MainPage6. ExpertPage7. LFO&FXPage8. ArpeggiatorPage9. RhythmEditor10. MasterFXPage11. UsingExternalMIDIControllers12. RecordingDialChangesToYourDAW13. FactoryPresets14. LicenseAgreement15. Tips16. FinalWords

1 – WELCOME! ThankyouforbuyingtheDRONARDarkSynthesisModule.DRONARisadeep,expressiveandinnovativeatmosphericsoundcreator,eachmoduleexploringadifferentareaofsound&music.ThisDarkSynthesisModulecreatesdark,eerieandmysterioussynthetictexturesbycombiningstrangesynthwaveformswithcomplexprocessedrealworldrecordingswithahugesetofcontrolsthatinvitedeepexploration,expressionanddiscovery.

ABOUT GothicInstrumentsareDanGrahamandAdamHanley.DanhasproducedsamplelibrariesforZeroGandisthefounderofGothicStormMusic.AdamownsIcebreakerAudioandhasscriptedmanyblockbusterproducts.TheincredibleDarkSynthesisaudiowascraftedbyAdamPietruszkoandAlessandroCamnasio.TheGUI&boxartisbyRyoIshidowithdialanimationsbyKokeNúñezGómez.

2 – OVERVIEW

AUNIVERSEFROMANOTE:

DRONARcreatesmind-expandingatmospheresfromaverysmallnumberofnotesplayed(1to4recommended).Itautomaticallyspreadsoutthechordinthemid-range,addsarootbassnote,ahighnoteandthenaddsevolvingsoundeffects.8simultaneousdifferentsoundsarethenanimatedwithLFOs,arhythmsequencerandarpeggiatorstobringthemtolife.Theresultsarerichanddramatic.

AHANDFREEFOREXPRESSION:

ThissoniccomplexityfromonehandfreesuptheothertoexpressivelycontroldialswithmousedragsorexternalMIDIcontrollerknobs,andrecordthechangesasaperformanceinyourDAW.Subtledialmovementsgivedeepexpression,idealforsoundtracksaswellashighlyexpressivepads,patternsandatmospheresinanygenre.

ACOMPLETEATMOSPHERE:BecauseDRONARinstantlyaddslow,mid-rangeandhighsoundsplussoundeffects,youbarelyneedothernon-Dronarsoundstoquicklycreateacompletepieceofatmospheric,expressivemusic.

BEGINNERANDEXPERTFRIENDLY:Needingtoonlyplayafewnotesandmoveafewdialstogetsuchrichexpressionisinvitingforbeginners,butanexpertwillgetfurtherbyknowingwhatnotestoplayandhowtoexpressemotionsusingthedials.Beyondtheshimmeringimmediacyofthe‘MainPage’awaitsawholeotherworldofexpertcontrol,turningDRONARintoavastmodularmulti-timbralsynth/samplerwithmultipleindependentarpeggiators.

DRONAR’SPRESETHIERARCHY–BRIEFOVERVIEWDRONARstartsfromthousandsofevolvingsampleloops.8oftheseareloadedintoeach‘Drone’(an.nkapresetfileinthe/Datafolder,oneloadedontoeach‘DroneKey’),andthenthereare12Dronesineach.nkipatch(inthe/Instrumentsfolder).

CAUTION

Expecttolosehoursinanaddictive,hypnotictweak-stateofsound-and-dialwonder,nothelpedbymagicalglowingdialsandshimmeringanimations.Ifyoudogoonthesevoyages,savepresetsorrecordwhatyoudointoyourDAWwhileyouwork,toloadbacklaterlikepostcardsfromanotherrealm.

SYSTEM REQUIREMENTS • 4GBRAM• Kontakt5.6fullversion(notthefreeKontaktPlayer)• MacOSX10.6andabove• Windows7-10

3 – INSTALLATION DRONAR-DARKSYNTHESISMODULEcontainsKontaktFormattedfiles,whichcanbeaccessedfromtheFilestabwithinthefullversionofKontakt.FromwithinKontakt,pleaseensureyouareontheFilestab,andnottheLibrariestab,andusethebrowsertolocateyourchoseninstallpath.

Now,withtheproductfolderinthebottomofthetwoleftwindows,navigatethroughthefolderandtherewillbeKontaktinstrumentfiles(.nki)whichyoucandouble-clicktoloadintoKontakt.

Goingbackandforthbetweenthelibraryandfilestabcanslowdownworkflow,thisiswhyNative-InstrumentsincludedahandyQuick-LoadfeaturewithinKontakt.BysettinguptheQuick-LoadfeatureyoucancustomisethelayoutandaccessallofyourKontaktformattedfilesandlibrariesinonelocation.PleaseseethehandyTime+Spacevideoformoredetailsonhowtosetthisup:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZtON7YKor5Y

QUICK START

LOADAPATCH:Inthe“/Instruments/!!PresetMenus”folderyou’llseeasetof.nkifiles.LoadonefromtheKontaktbrowserordragacrossfromExplorer(PC)orFinder(Mac).

AUDITIONADRONEFROMTHE12KEYSWITCHES:Every“Menu”patchhas12differentdrones(completeatmosphericsounds)toauditionfromthe12keyswitchesonaloweroctave(G1toF#2)ofyourMIDIkeyboardrange.

HOLDDOWN1TO4KEYS:1keywillgiveyouanoctave-baseddrone.Tryholdingdowndifferentnumbersofnotestoheartheoptions–octaves,fifths,fourths,chords.Youcanholddownmorethan4keys,especiallyifyouwantthearpeggiatortocreateintricateruns,but1-4isusuallyenough.

MOVETHEMODWHEEL:LookingattheGUI,theINTENSITYdialismappedtotheModWheelandimmediatelyopensuptheexpressivepowerofDRONAR.

MOVETHEMAINPAGEDIALS:

Movethedialswithyourmouseasyouholddownthenotes(orsustainthemwithasuspedal).YouwillheartheimmediateimpactonthesoundandgetagoodunderstandingofthewayDRONARworks.INTENSITY(alsocontrolledbytheModWheel)takesyoufromsilenttopowerfulbyfadingupthroughdifferentvelocitylayers.MOVEMENThasaglobaleffectontheintensityofthearpeggiators–setithighforstrongeffectsandzeroforaflatpadsound.

HI,MIDandLOcontroltheautomaticallygeneratedhighnotes,mid-rangenotesandbassnotes.Movingthesedialshasahugeexpressiveeffectonthemusic.It’sonlylikeusingamixingdeskandyet–havingitsoaccessibleinfrontofyouencouragesyoutoworkwiththebalanceaspartoftheoriginalcreativeexpression,insteadofamixdecisionlateron.

FXcontrolsthelevelof20-secondfuturistic,unpitchedsoundeffectsloopsinthemixandaddinstantmovementandcomplexity.

Youshouldnowbeupandrunning.Readontodelvedeeper.

4 – THE MIDI KEYS

TheKontaktkeyboardshowsacolourcodedguidetowhat’shappeningineachrange.

THE12DRONEKEYS(redkeys,F0toE1):

EachoftheseredDroneKeyscontainsadifferentDrone(apreset).Playaredkeytoselectoneandanotherredkeytoswitchtoanother.The“Menu”presetshaveatotallydifferentDroneoneachDroneKey.Theother,individualpresetshavethesameDroneoneveryDroneKey,encouragingyoutocreateyourownvariationsonthe12keys.

PLAYABLERANGE(bluekeysG1toB4):

Thisrangeisusedtodetectthenotesyouplay.Thinkofitalmostlikea‘noteandchorddetectionrange’morethanaplayablesynth.DRONARwantstoknowwhatnotesandchordsyouwant,itdoesn’twantyoutoplayitlikeapiano.

OVERFLOWRANGE(palecyankeysC5toB5):

Incaseyoustartplayingoutsidethedetectionrange,itrepeatsthetopoctaveforyoujusttomakesureyourchordsarecaptured.

5 – MAIN PAGE

Behold,shimmeringcloudsofmagicdustanddazzlinglightwheels!These6simpledialshaveahugeinfluenceoverthesound.RecordchangesasDAWautomation,orassigndialstoanexternalMIDIcontrollerandhittheDAWrecordbutton.

MAINPAGEFEATURES:

Thereare6maindials(INTENSITY,MOVEMENT,FX,HIMIDandLO),pluseffectsendlevels(ReverbandDelay),andtabsforthe5pages.SOLOORMUTEALAYER:Clickalayername(e.g.‘MID’)totogglemuteon/off.SolousingALT+click.

6 – EXPERT PAGE

TheEXPERTPAGEshowsyouallthesettingsforthecurrent,lastplayedDronefromthe12DroneKeys(thedrone-selectinglowF0toE1octave).ThesesettingsareremembereduntilyouclosetheKontaktInstrument,soifyouswitchtoadifferentDroneonadifferentDronekeyandthenswitchback,youwillfindallthevaluesasyouleftthem.

ThischapterexplainseachEXPERTPAGEfeature,startingatthetopandworkingdown.Firstthough,somenotesaboutthelayersandsounds:

EACHDRONEHAS4LAYERS:FX,HI,MID&LO:

Torecap,DRONARisdetectingthenotesyouplaywithonehandandautomaticallyaddingnewnotes–extendingthemiddlerange,addingahighnote,addingabassnoteandmixinginsoundeffectstocreatearich,evolvingatmosphere.

OntheEXPERTPAGEeachofthese4layers(FX,HI,MIDandLO)hasaseparatesetofcontrols,likearackof4synths,or4mixingdeskchannels.

EACHLAYERHAS2SOUNDS:

Eachofthe4layersconsistsof2differentsounds(actuallylong,complexloopsat3dynamiclevels).

RANDOMIZESAMPLESBUTTON

Hittingthisbuttonwillkeepallyoursettingsbutinstantlyswapallthesamplesinthe8namedsoundslots(2perlayer).Thisiswonderfulfor

quicklyfindingnewsoundvariationsandit’seasytokeephittingthebuttonifyou’renothappywithwhatitthrowsatyou.

CAUTION:Kontakthasno“UNDO”function,soonceyouhitRANDOMIZEtochangethesamplesyoucan’tchangethemback.Savethe.nkior“STORE”yourDroneifyouwanttokeepitpermanently.

STOREANDLOADDRONES

DRONARhasanentirehiddeninternalDronepresetsystemwhichyoucanworkwith.Thisisalargesetof.nkafilessittinginthe

/Data/FactoryPresetsfolderwhichcanbeindividuallyloadedontoDroneKeys,andyoucanalsocreateandsaveyourownnew.nkaDronepresetfiles.STOREDRONEallowsyoutosavethesettingsonthecurrentDroneKeyasan.nkafiletobeloadedintoadifferentDroneKey,orloadedlaterintoadifferentornewfile.

LOADDRONEopensanExplorerorFinderwindowwhereyoucanloadan.nkafileontothecurrentDroneKey,overwritingthecurrentDrone.CAUTION–NOUNDO:KontakthasnoUndofunction,sounlessyou’vesavedyourpatchor.nkaDronepreset,overwritingthe

currentDronewillloseitforever.Becarefultosavegreatsoundsincaseyouoverwritethem!MASTERFXAREN’TSAVED:Your.nkapresetwillstoreyourREVandDELsendsettings,butthereverbanddelaysettings(aswellasothermastereffects)intheMASTERFXpagearenotstoredinthepresetandcouldhaveabiginfluenceonthesound.

SOLO&MUTELAYERS:

Clickonthelayername(e.g.‘FX’)totogglemuteon/off.Alt+Clicktosolothelayer.Thisisveryusefulwhenauditioningdifferentsamplesormakingchangestoonelayer.

‘THICK’BUTTONS:

Eachofthe4layershasaTHICKbutton.Thisaddsinextranotesforathickersound:

• IntheFXlayerTHICKaddsthesamesoundataloweroctave.• IntheHIlayerTHICKaddsanextraoctavehigherupforamorepiercing,high

sound.• IntheMIDlayerTHICKspreadsthechordintelligentlyacross2octavesforathick

chordoralargerarpeggiorange.• IntheLOlayerTHICKaddsanoteanoctaveabovethemainbassnoteforaslightly

morepowerfullowermidrange.

THETWOSAMPLESANDTHEA/BSLIDERS:

Eachofthe4layerscontains2samples(2x20secondloopsat3dynamicvelocitylayers).Thenamesofthosesamplesareshownintheboxes.

TheA/BSLIDERStotherightallowyoutohavejustthetopsoundat100%,justthebottomsoundat0%orablendofbothifthesliderisbetweenthetwo.

A/BSLIDERTIP:Blending2soundsfillsoutthefrequencyspectrumandthereforecreatesanoverallmorenoise-likesound,especiallyFXsounds,andevenmoresoifalllayershaveblendedsounds.Formorepurityandcharacter,trysomeorallat0%or100%.

SAMPLESELECTIONMENUS:

IfyouclickaWHITEDOWN-ARROWtotherightofasamplenameitwillopenupaSAMPLESELECTIONMENU.

Theserawsampleloopsareorganisedintocategoriesandsamples.Categoriesaresustainsounds,reversedsounds,“DRONAR”sounds(includingstringsandsynthsandcommontoallmodules)and“RHYTHMS”–rhythmicalloopswhichcanbere-arrangedintheRHYTHMEDITOR.

ATTACKANDRELEASETIME:

ThewhiterampupanddowniconsarefortheATTACKTIMEandRELEASETIME.Togethertheycontrolwhetherthesoundfadesinandoutslowlyorquickly.

FILTERSETTINGS:

E➜FisforENVELOPETOFILTER.Sethigh,thefilteropensupandclosesasthesoundgetslouderandquieter(assetbytheATTACKandRELEASETIMES).

FistheFILTERcutoff–lowforalessbrightsound.

QcontrolstheRESONANCEofthefilter.

Mw➜FisforMODWHEELTOFILTER.Sethigh,theModWheelcontrolstheFILTERCUTOFFfrequency(aswellastheINTENSITYsetting).FILTERNOTE:thesefiltersettingsandthoseintheArpeggiatorallinteract,sometimesunexpectedly,meaningthatyouwon’talwaysgetthesameresultsfromanyonedialsetting.

WIDTH,TONEANDVOLUME:

WIDTHcontrolsthestereoseparationofthetwosampleloopsinthelayer.Ahighsettingpansthemoutleftandrightwhilelowpansthembothcentre.Thiscanbegoodtogetspaceywidesounds,orfocusedcentralsounds.

TONEisacomplexEQcontrol.Atlowsettingsittakesoffthehighfrequenciesandbooststhelowforabiglowsound.Athighsettingsitbooststhehighfrequenciesandcutsoutthelows,resultinginathinbrightsound.

VOLUME(speakericon)controlsthelayervolumeandmirrorsthebigdialsettingsontheMAINPAGE.

SMARTBASSON/OFFBUTTON:

Whenenabled,SMARTBASSworksoutthecorrectrootnoteforyourcurrentchord.Ifthisisoff,thebassnotewillinsteadjustbethelowestnoteinthechordyouareholdingdown.

7 – LFO & FX PAGE

Whereaseffectsonthe“MasterFX”Pageareglobalacrossall12Dronesinthecurrentpatch,anysettingsonthisLFO&FXpageareonlyactiveonthecurrentDronenowplaying,onthemostrecentlyplayedDroneKeyofthe12keyswitches.

LFOSETTINGS:

Forthoseunfamiliar,‘LFO’(forLowFrequencyOscillator)isacontinuouswaveofchangingvaluesspreadovertime,whichcanberoutedheretoPan,FilterandPitch.ThoseaudioparametersthenchangeovertimeunderthecontroloftheLFO.Thishelpsaddmovementtothesound,includingpanning,vibratoorsireneffects.

• RATEisthespeedoftheLFO• MWHeelallowsyoutocontroltheamountofLFOusingtheModWheel• Shapechangestheshapeofthewavefromtriangletosinetosquare• PandefineshowmuchtheLFOmakesthesoundpanfromlefttoright

andback• PitchdefinestheamountofpitchchangecausedbytheLFO• Desyncathighsettingsthrowsallofthedifferentsoundsinthecurrent

Droneoutofsyncwitheachother,sotheydon’tallmovetogetheranymore,foramorecomplexandvariedsound.

DRONEEFFECTS:

TheseinserteffectsalterthesoundofthecurrentlyplayingDrone,asselectedbythelastplayedDroneKeyofthe12keyswitches.

DIST(VALVEDISTORTION):

• DRIVEaddssteadilymoredistortiontothesound• DAMPdampensthesound,makingitmoresoftanddull• MWheelmapstheModWheeltotheDRIVElevel.Ahighsettingmeans

itwillgetverydistortednearthetopoftheModWheel.

CHORUS:

Chorusisaneffectcreatedbyplayingthesamesoundtwicebutslightlydetunedandcanaddthickness,interestandcolourtothesound.

• AMOUNTisthedepthofthechoruseffect• RATEisthespeedofthechorusmodulation

REVERBANDDELAYSENDS:

Thisisamirrorofthe“REV”and“DEL”dialsettingsontheMainPageGUIandcontrolstheamountofsoundbeingsentouttotheReverbandDelayeffects.

8 – ARPEGGIATOR PAGE

Thisistheplacetogetsoundsreallymovingorpulsingovertime,syncedtotheDAWhosttempo.Inthefactorypresetsthe“Arp-O-Rama”presetsareheavilyusingpitcharpeggiosintheMIDrangeandthe“Pulsing”presetsareheavilyusingINTENSITYandFILTERpatternstogetthosepulsingqualities.

ARPEGGIATORONANDOFF:

ThisswitchesthearpeggiatoronandoffforthecurrentlyselectedDrone(thelastplayedofthe12DroneKeykeyswitches).Ifyoudon’tneedthearpeggiator,turningthisoffwillsavesomeCPU.

RATEANDSTEPS:

RATEallowsawiderangeofratesfromslow1/4(whereeachstepinthearpeggiatorisaquarternote)rightuptoaveryfast1/64(eachstepisa64thofabar).Thisgivesyoutheabilityto

usetheArpeggiatorasmuchforslowundulatingmovementsasmuchasforfaststrobe-likepatterns.

STEPSdefinesthenumberofstepsinthepattern.16isthedefault.Using12willbeusefulfora3/4,6/8ortripletpattern.

LAYERSELECTOR:

Selectthelayer(FX,HI,MIDorLO)thatyouwishtoviewandeditintheArpeggiator.TherestoftheARPEGGIATORpagethenshowsthesettingsforthatcurrentlyselectedlayer.

BecausetheMIDlayercoversawiderangeofdifferentnotesandtheotherlayersdon’t(theFXlayerhasnopitch,andtheHIandLOlayershavesinglenotesoroctaves),theMIDlayerhasextraPITCHarpeggiatoroptions.

Eachlayerhasallotheroptionsincommon,withtheirownindependentarpeggiators.Thisallowsalotofcomplexityandflexibility,forexamplehavingfast

rhythmsintheFXlayer,noarpeggiatorintheHIlayer,pitcharpeggiosintheMIDlaterandslowpulsesinthelowlayers.

ARPEGGIATOR-KEY-TRIGGEREDPATTERNSTIP:Ifyougetagoodcomplexpatterngoingacrossthedifferentlayers,youcanSTOREtheDrone,thencreatedifferentvariationsonthepatternandSTOREeachofthose.ThenLOADthosedifferentDronesontothe12differentDroneKeykey-switches.Now,youhaveyourown12-patternkey-triggeredsequence!

AMOUNT&SMOOTHDIALS:

Eachofthe3typesofarpeggiator(PITCH,INTENSITYandFILTER)havethesetwocontrols.AMOUNTcontrolshowstrongthearpeggiationis,whereasSMOOTHfadesinthearpeggiationeffect-slowlyathighsettingsandsharplyatlowsettings.Thisexplanationwillbemademoreclearbelow.

DRONAR’SUNIQUEPITCHARPEGGIATOR:

ThePITCHarpeggiatorasfarasweknowisanoriginaltypeofarpeggiogeneratornotfoundelsewhere.Whereasotherarpeggiatorsre-triggerthenoteateverystep,DRONAR’spitcharpeggiatorplaysallthenotesthatyouareholdingdownbutcross-fadesbetweenthem.Thisislikehavingthedifferentnotesofachordallgoingthroughdifferentchannelsonamixingdesk,thenturningthefadersinsuccessiontocreatetheimpressionofanarpeggio.

Thebeautyofthisapproachisthatyoucanchoosehowstrongthearpeggiatoris.Ifthe

AMOUNTdialislowyouhearjustthechordyouareplaying,setfullyouhearalltheseparatenotesaseachsoundisfadedoutbetweensteps.Betweenzeroandfullyougetawonderfulblendofhalf-arpeggios–shimmeringchordswithahintofmovement.

TheSMOOTHdialislikefadingupthemixerfadersquicklyforafast,gated,non-fade,orslowlyforaslow,smoothcrossfadebetweenthe

notesinthechord.

HOWTHEMAINPAGEMOVEMENTDIALAFFECTSAMOUNT&SMOOTHVALUES:

BackontheMAINpage,oneofthe6bigdialsistheMOVEMENTdial.ThisdialisactuallygloballyincreasingorreducingalltheAMOUNTsettingsontheARPEGGIATORpage.At12o’clock,youhearjustwhateverAMOUNTShavebeensetontheARPEGGIATORpage.Atzero,thearpeggiator’sAMOUNTvaluesarebroughttozero,cancellingoutanyarpeggiation.Setfull,theAMOUNTvaluesareallpumpedupfullforexaggeratedarpeggiatoraction.

PITCHARPEGGIATOR–FXOPTIONS:

BecausetheFXlayerdoesn’tactuallyhavepitches,wecouldn’tactuallygivepitcharpeggiatoroptionsHere.So,ratherthanleavingitblankwe’vethrowninaGATEoptionwhichpulsestheFXlayeronandoff.

PITCHARPEGGIATOR–HIOPTIONS:

IfyouhavetheHIlayer’sTHICKbuttonenabledontheEXPERTpagethenDRONARisproducingtwoHInotesanoctaveapart.Theseoptions–UPorDOWN–createasimpleoctaveupordownarpeggiatorpatternintheHIlayer.

PITCHARPEGGIATOR–MIDOPTIONS:

ItisintheMIDlayerthattherealarpeggiomagichappens.Fourdifferentpatterns(UP,DOWN,CYCLEandRANDOM)cyclethroughallthenotesyouareholdingdownwithasubtleshimmeryarpeggio(atlowAMOUNTsettings)oracleararpeggiopattern(athighAMOUNTsettings).

MIDPITCHARP–“THICK”TIP:AniceeffectiscreatedwhentheMIDlayer’sTHICKbuttonisenabledontheEXPERTpage-thereisanextraoctaveofnotestocyclethroughandthepatternisthereforebigger,takestwiceaslongtocompleteandproducesmoresoaringpatterns.

MIDPITCHARP–CLUSTERSANDRUNSTIP:Insteadofachord,ifyouholddownaclusterofnotes,someclosetogether,the‘arpeggio’becomesarun,likealittlemelody.TryholdingdownthenotesA,B,C,EandF#nowforamagicallittlepatternbasedaroundanAm6+9chord.

PITCHARPEGGIATOR–LOOPTIONS:

LiketheHIlayer,theLOlayeronlyhastwooctavenotes(andonlytheniftheTHICKbuttonisenabledontheEXPERTpage)andthereforeyoujustgetthesimpleUPorDOWNoptions.

THEINTENSITYARPEGGIATOR:

Asfarasweknow,theINTENSITYarpeggiatorisanotheruniqueDRONARfeature.Whereotherarpeggiatorscontrolthevolumeofasound,theINTENSITYarpeggiatorismoreexpressivebycontrollingthedynamicvelocitylayerofthesound.ItisasifthevaluesyousetherearemovingtheModWheelupanddowninapattern,fadingupanddownbetweensoftandintensesamples.Toeditthepatternwindow,dragyourmouseto‘draw’

patterns.

INTENSITYARPEGGIATOR–DROP-DOWNEDITMENU:

Hereyougetsomehandyoptionstospeedupyourediting:

• CLEARclearsthebox,resultinginaflatline• RANDOMgivesyouarandompatternforchaoticeffects• COPYcopiesthispatterntoyourclipboardtopasteintootherpatternwindows

inotherlayersorintheFILTERpatternwindow.• PASTEpastesapatternfromyourclipboardintothecurrentwindow.

INTENSITYARPEGGIATORTIPS:

SomeideasaboutwhatcouldbedonewiththeINTENSITYarpeggiator:

• GATING:usethisasanoisegateproducingcomplexgatingeffects.ThisisgoingtobemoredramaticwithhighRATEsettings(32or64)forspeed,andwithsharpcontrastsbetweenhighandlowINTENSITYbars,andwiththeAMOUNTdialhighandSMOOTHdiallow.

• TREMOLO:getaneffectlikeaguitartremolopedalwithhigh-ishRATES(16or32),drawinawavepatternandsettheSMOOTHdialhightosmoothoffthejumpsfurther.

• UNDULATINGWAVES:havethesoundundulatingslowlybackandforthwithslowRATES,amildwavepattern(orlowAMOUNTdialsetting)andhighSMOOTHdialsetting.

• SLOWPULSES:settheRATEslowandhavehalfoftheINTENSITYpatternatthetopandhalfatthebottom,withtheAMOUNTdialhighandtheSMOOTHdiallow.

• RHYTHMS:WithhighRATEsettings,drawlargesaw-toothpatternstomimicnotesbeingplayedwithafastattackanddecay,andlaythemoutinapattern.Byhavingdifferentpatternsindifferentlayersyoucanbuildupagroove.

• MAKEALAYERSUPERLOUD:Atricktomakeonelayersuper-loud(sayyouwanttheLOlayertoblastoutevenatlowModWheelsettings),istosettheintensitypatternatfull–allwhitebarstothetop,withAMOUNTsetfull.ThiswillhavetheeffectofoverridingtheModWheelandgettingabigvolumeboostforthatlayer.

THEFILTERARPEGGIATOR:

ThisworksjustliketheINTENSITYarpeggiator.ThedifferenceisjustthatinsteadoftheINTENSITYlevel,theFILTERCUTOFFFREQUENCYisbeingmodulated,makingitmorebrightordull.

Usingthisyoucangeteffectslikefiltersweeps,orfollowtheINTENSITYpatterntogetfilterenvelopeeffects.

WATCHOUTFORFILTERINTERACTIONS:

OntheEXPERTpageyouhavevariousfiltersettings.OntheLFO/FXpageyoualsohaveafiltertoLFOmapping,andonthispageyouhaveevenmorefiltermovement.Allofthesearecontrollingthesamefilterandthereforetheywillinteractunpredictably;thesamesettingswillgivedifferentfilterresultsdependingonwhatelseisgoingon.

9 – RHYTHM EDITOR

Darksynthesisrhythmsamples(asfoundinthesampleselectionmenusontheEXPERTpage)wereperformedliveforanaturalsoundwherenotwoadjacentnotesareexactlythesameandtheythereforehaveacertainflowcomparedtotriggersofsinglesamples.Theywerealsorecordedat3dynamics(soft,medium,loud)allowingyoutoaccentyourrhythmsusingtheModWheeltofadebetweendynamics.TheRHYTHMEDITORpageallowsyoutochangethepatternsoftherhythmsamples.Underthehood,theDronarengineiscreatingyournewpatternsinreal-timebyjumpingaroundtheoriginalloopsandplayingdifferentsectionsoftheminadifferentorder.Note-ifnorhythmsamplesareactiveonthecurrentdrone,thispagewon’tdoanythingtothesound.

LO/MID/HILAYERSELECTOR:

Selectthedronelayerwhereyouwanttoedittherhythm.

PATTERNDISPLAY:

Thepatterndisplayshowstheactiverhythmpattern.Theareaisdividedintobars.Barsaredividedintobeats,andbeatshavebeatdivisionsof2(8ths),3(triplets)or4(16ths).

Clickonabeattoselectthatbeatandadottedrectangleboundaryappears.Onceselectedyoucaneitherusethe“BeatDiv”buttontoalterthebeatdivision,orclickagaintotoggleanaccent(loudernote)onandoff.

Alargedotindicatesanaccent(loudernote).Clickinsidethecurrentlyselectedbeatareatotoggleaccentonandoff.

TheBeatsselectorallowsyoutochoose3or4beatsinthebarfora3/4or4/4timesignature.

TheBarsselectorallowsyoutochoose1,2,3or4barsforthetotalpatternlooplength.

TheBeatDiv(beatdivision)selectorallowsyoutodividethecurrentlyselectedbeatinto2(8ths),3(triplets)or4(16ths).

TRIGGERMODEallowsyoutoselecteitherFREE(triggersassoonasyoupressaMIDInote)orBEAT(waitsuntilthenextquarternote,toallowasecurelocktothecurrentDAWtempogrid).NOTE:ThissettingisGLOBAL

forthewholepreset,forall12currentdrones.

TEMPOallowsyoutochoosebetweenhalfspeed,hosttempoordoublespeedforsloworfastrhythmicalmomentum.

SPREADslightlyseparatesthenotesinachordintime(arpeggiation)togetamorenatural‘strummed’effect.HUMANIZEaddsrandomnesstothatspread,sothatinstead

ofaveryregularargeggiationithasamorenaturalloosetiming.

TheSAVEandLOADbuttonsallowyoutopermanentlystoreandrecallrhythmpatternsas“.nka”datafiles.

10 – MASTER FX PAGE

Effectsonthispageareinsertedintothefinalmasterstereoaudiooutput,andthatmeanstheyareactiveonall12Dronesonthe12Drone-Keykeyswitches.

Theyareallstandardeffectswhichprobablyneedlittleexplanation,butsomequicknotesbelow:

• DELAY&REVERBAREEFFECTRETURNS:MeaningthatwhereasonalltheDronesyouhavedifferentREVandDELsendlevels,thisisthereturn.So,increasingthe“Level”dialsherewillmakereverbanddelaylouderonallofthe12Dronesandinasimilarway,allothersettingsonthispagewillhaveanimpactonalloftheDronesinthecurrentnkipreset.

• REVERBTYPES:DRONARincludesacoupleofdigital(algorithmic)reverbsandalsoasetofconvolutionimpulsesincludingsomecreativeandunusualimpulsesforsounddesign.Trythemout!

• NOTE:MASTERFXARENOTINTHE.NKADRONEPRESETS:TheseMasterEffectssettings,unlikethoseonthe“LFO&FX”page,arenotstoredwiththeindividual“.nka”DronePresets.So,ifyouwanttosavethesevaluesyouneedtosaveyourworkasan.nkipatch.

11 – USING EXTERNAL MIDI CONTROLLERS

YouwillgetthebestresultsfromDRONARbyassigningatleastthemain6dialsontheMAINpageGUItoknobsonanexternalMIDIcontroller.Thisisbecause:DRONARISDESIGNEDTOBEPLAYEDEXPRESSIVELY.

Thebestresultscomefromholdingdownanoteorchordwithonehand(orsustainingitusingasustainpedal),andthenexpressivelymovingthedialswiththeotherhand.Itismoreintuitivetodothiswithanexternalcontrollerthanthealternativeswhichare(a)tryingtomovethedialswithmousedrags,or(b)tryingtowriteinautomationcurvesinyourDAW.

EXTERNALMIDICONTROLLEROPTIONS:

• MIDIKEYBOARDKNOBS:ManyMIDIkeyboardshaveknobsthatoutputMIDIccdata.

• DEDICATEDCONTROLSURFACE:PopularandinexpensivecontrolsurfaceswithMIDIccknobsincludetheKORGnanoKONTROL2,BehringerX-TouchMiniDAWcontroller,NovationNocturnandmore.

• SMARTPHONE/TABLETAPPS:appscapableofcreatingMIDIccoutputincludeTouchOSCandJazzMutantLemur.

• LEAPMOTION+GecoMIDIsoftware:highlyrecommendedistheLeapMotion3Dinfraredgesture-basedcontrollerusing3rdpartyGecoMIDIsoftware(availableontheLeapAppStore).ApresetforGecoMIDIpre-mappedtoworkbeautifullywithDRONARhasbeencreatedandplacedinthe/Extrasfolders.

DEFAULTGUIDIAL-TO-MIDICONTROLLERMAPPINGS:

EachDRONARpresethasbeensetupwiththefollowingcccontrollersmappedbydefault:

• CC01➜INTENSITYdial(theModWheelismappedtocc1).• CC14➜MOVEMENTdial• CC21➜FXdial• CC23➜HIdial• CC24➜MIDdial• CC25➜LOdial

TORE-MAPMIDICCNUMBERS:

Right-clickonanyKontaktdialthatyouwishtomaptoaMIDIcontroller.AswellastheMAINpagedials,youcanalsodothisforanyotherdialonanypage.FromhereyoucanLEARN(selectthenturnaknobonyourcontrollertodetectandmapit),orREMOVE(removethedefaultmappingtoavoidanyconfusion).

12 – RECORDING DIAL CHANGES TO YOUR DAW

AutomatingDRONAR’Sdialscanbedone3ways:

• ViaanexternalMIDIcontroller(seepreviouschapter)

• ByprogrammingautomationcurvesinyourDAW

• Byenabling“WriteAutomation”inyourDAWandrecordingyourmouse-dragdialmovementsduringyourperformance.Thenenable“ReadAutomation”whenplayingback.

HOWTORECORDMIDICONTROLLERDIALMOVEMENTSTOYOURDAWPROJECT:

• ASSIGNDRONARDIALSTOYOURMIDICONTROLLER:seepreviouschapter.

• HITRECORD,ANDPERFORM!Thatshouldbeit.AslongasyourMIDIcontrolleriscorrectlyconfigured,andyourDAWispickingupMIDIfromallsources(controllerandkeyboard),yourDAWwillrecordtheMIDIccmovementsalongwiththeMIDInotesthatyouplay,leavingMIDIautomationlanesreadytobeeditedlater.

TIP:MAKEPRESETSFROMDIALRECORDINGS.Ifatsomepointinyourrecordingyougetanespeciallywonderfulsound,playitbackatthatpoint,hittheDAWSTOPbuttonandsavewhatyouhaveasan.nkaDronePresetor.nkiKontaktInstrumentpatch.

13 – FACTORY PRESETS

DRONAR’sDarksynthesisModulecomeswithhundredsofpresetslovinglydesignedtoshowitsamazingpotential..NKADRONEPRESETS:

Foundinthe/Datafolder,theseareindividualDronepresetsthatcanbeloadedontoindividualDroneKeysinanactive,loadedpatchusingthe“LOADDRONE”buttonontheEXPERTpage.Note:thefactory.nkipresetsinthe/Instrumentsmenuareallbuiltupfromtheseindividual.nkaDronepresets.

MENUANDANDSINGLESOUNDPRESETS:

Inthe/Instrumentsmenuthereare2typesofpresets.MENUpresetsloadup12differentdrones,oneoneachoftheDrone-KeykeyswitchesinthelowerF0toE1octave.TheSINGLESOUNDPRESETShaveoneDronepreset,copiedacrossall12Drone-Keys.Thisenablesyoutocreateyourownvariationsonthemainsoundasyouareworking,savethemas.nkaDronepresetsandquicklyswitchbackandforthbetweenthemusingthekeyswitches.TheMENUsoundsusemoreRAMbecausetheyhavemoresamplesloaded.

TOLOADKONTAKTINSTRUMENT(.NKI)PRESETS:Eithernavigatetothe/InstrumentsfolderintheKontaktfilebrowser,oralternativelyopenthesamefolderinExplorer(PC)orFinder(Mac)anddragthe.nkifileontoanopen,empty(nothingloaded)instanceofKonkakt.

14 – LICENSE AGREEMENT Youarefreetousesoundsandmusicmadewiththissoftwareinanymusicalcontextincludingsounddesign,commercialrecordings,soundtracksandProductionMusic.

Restrictions:

1. Youarenotauthorizedtousethissoftwareoranyofthesesoundsinanysamplelibraryproduct.

2. Youcannotuseanyexposedsinglesoundsasanentirecueonalibrarymusicalbumwithnothingelseaddedforthedurationofthetrack.PleasefadeorblendmorethanoneDronarlayer,and/oraddothersounds.

3. Useisrestrictedtothesinglepurchaserofthesoftware.4. ThissoftwarecannotbesharedordistributedwithoutthepermissionofGothic

Instruments.5. Thislicenseisrevokedifanyoftheabovetermsarenotcompliedwith.

General:

6. ThislicenseissubjecttothelawsoftheUnitedKingdom7. Thislicenseisnotatransferofcopyrighttothepurchaser–theownershipofthe

intellectualpropertywithinthesoftwareandtheaudioitcontainsremainswithGothicInstruments.

15 – TIPS

PURGE.EachinstanceofDronarwoulduseover1GBofmemoryifallowedtoloadallsamples.YoucanmassivelyreducetheRAMfootprintbyselecting“purgeallsamples”andKontaktwillthenonlyreloadsamplesthatyouactuallyuseandtrigger.AllfactorypresetshavebeensavedinapurgedstatetoavoidlongloadtimesandRAMhogging.

TWEAK.Thepresetshereonlyskimthesurfaceoftheincrediblerangeofpossibilitiesinthisinstrument.Adeepexplorationofallthepagesisrewardingandhighlyrecommended.

EXPRESSWITHTHEMODWHEEL.AllexpressioninDRONARisbuiltaroundtheModWheel(MIDIcc1),whichfadesupthroughthedifferentintensitylevelsoftheactualsoft,mediumandloudperformancesonthesamplerecordings.Velocity(howhardyouplayMIDIkeys)hasnoeffectonthevolume.

ACCENTYOURRHYTHMSWITHTHEMODWHEEL.ByrockingtheModWheelbackandforthwhilearhythmisplayingyoucangetgreatnaturalaccents,includingsyncopatedrhythms.

MAKEPRESETSFROMDIALRECORDINGS.LeaveyourDAWrecordingautomation(“writeautomation”enabled)whileyouplaywiththedials.Ifyougetanespeciallywonderfulsound,hittheDAWSTOPbutton(orkeepgoingandgobacktothatpointlater)andsavewhatyouhaveasan.nkaDronePresetor.nkiKontaktInstrumentpatch.

16 – FINAL WORDS

ThankssomuchforchoosingDRONAR–DARKSYNTHESISMODULE.Wehopeyouenjoyitsvastpotentialtocreateamazing,complexatmosphericsoundsandexpressivelyperformthem.

PleasevisitourFacebookpagewhereyoucankeepupwithdevelopments&updatesandmessageuswithanyquestionsorsuggestions:

https://www.facebook.com/gothicinstruments/

Onceyou’veenjoyedthepossibilitiesoftheDARKSYNTHESISMODULE,wehopeyou’llstayonboardforthefuturemodulesinthisseries!

Thanks,

Dan&Adam

GOTHICINSTRUMENTS