Alesis DM5 Musical Instrument User Manual


 
MIDI Functions: Chapter 5
DM5 Reference Manual 35
LOCAL CONTROL
MIDI page 2 has only one parameter: Local Control.
The Local parameter determines whether or not the external triggers will “play” the
internal voices of the DM5. The triggers will generate MIDI note information when
played, which can be recorded onto a MIDI sequencer (as long as the DM5’s MIDI
Thru parameter is turned off; see page 34). In this situation, you may want to have
the sequencer “echo back” the information it receives from the DM5 (the sequencer
may have a different name for this feature, such as “Thru mode”, “Echo”, etc.). If the
sequencer is echoing back what it receives, it is not necessary for the external triggers
to directly play the DM5, since this would result in each note being played twice
(once by the trigger and again when the note is echoed back by the sequencer).
The solution is to either turn the sequencer’s echoing feature off, or turn the DM5’s
Local parameter off. The latter is a better choice if you intend to use the DM5’s
triggers to record tracks on the sequencer for other MIDI devices (since you wouldn’t
want to hear the DM5 play when you hit the external triggers).
With the Local parameter selected (flashing), turn the [VALUE] knob to select either
OFF (external triggers only generate MIDI notes) or On (external triggers play
internal drum sounds and generate MIDI notes).
PROGRAM CHANGE ENABLE
MIDI page 3 contains two parameters: Program Change Enable (PChg) and
Controllers Enable (Ctrl).
Program Change commands can change Drum Sets at any time, including while the
DM5 is playing. The Program Change Table (see page 37) determines which Drum Set
will be called up in response to a particular Program Change number.
Some MIDI devices number their Program Changes as 1-128, others as 0-127, and some as
banks of programs. Use the Program Change Table to compensate for these differences.
With the PChg parameter selected (flashing), turn the [VALUE] knob to select a status
of On (the DM5 selects Drum Sets when it receives Program Change commands
according to the Program Change Table) or OFF (the DM5 ignores Program Change
commands). Note that even with status set to On, you can still select Drum Sets
manually at any time.