Arturia MiniFreak User Manual
  1. Manuals
  2. Brands
  3. Arturia Manuals
  4. Synthesizer
  5. MiniFreak
  6. User manual

Arturia MiniFreak User Manual

Hide thumbs
Table of Contents

Advertisement

Quick Links

USER MANUAL
_MINIFREAK

Advertisement

Table of Contents
loading
Need help?

Need help?

Do you have a question about the MiniFreak and is the answer not in the manual?

Questions and answers

Subscribe to Our Youtube Channel

Related Manuals for Arturia MiniFreak

Summary of Contents for Arturia MiniFreak

  • Page 1 USER MANUAL _MINIFREAK...
  • Page 2 Mike METLAY (writer) Léo HIVERT (writer) Jimmy MICHON SPECIAL ACKNOWLEDGEMENT Special thanks to Mutable Instruments for providing the Plaits code under MIT license. © ARTURIA SA – 2022 – All rights reserved. 26 avenue Jean Kuntzmann 38330 Montbonnot-Saint-Martin FRANCE www.arturia.com...
  • Page 3 Information contained in this manual is subject to change without notice and does not represent a commitment on the part of Arturia. The software described in this manual is provided under the terms of a license agreement or non-disclosure agreement. The software license agreement specifies the terms and conditions for its lawful use.
  • Page 4 This manual covers the features and operation of Arturia’s MiniFreak, the powerful hybrid desktop synth and big brother of MicroFreak. Be sure to register your product as soon as possible! When you purchased MiniFreak you were given a serial number and an unlock code. These are required during the online registration process.
  • Page 5 Do not use the instrument when there is a gas leak nearby. • Arturia is not responsible for any damage or data loss caused by improper operations to the instrument. • Arturia recommends the use of audio cables with proper shielding, less than 3 m (10') in length.

  • Page 6: Table Of Contents

    Powering the MiniFreak ..............................4 2.2. Notice......................................4 2.3. Register your Instrument..............................4 2.4. Connecting the MiniFreak to the outside world....................5 2.5. Upgrade to the latest firmware ..........................5 Meet the MiniFreak: An overview........................6 3.1. The Front Panel..................................6 3.2.
  • Page 7 13.3. Macro Assign ..................................81 The Arpeggiator and Sequencer ........................83 14.1. Common Features ................................83 14.2. The Arpeggiator ................................86 14.3. Sequencer..................................... 88 14.4. Modulation sequence lanes ............................94 The Utility Menu................................ 97 15.1. Control and navigation ..............................97 15.2.

  • Page 8: Welcome And Introduction

    The MiniFreak can connect to your studio with stereo audio outs, a mono audio in, analog clock signals, MIDI In/Out/Thru, and class-compliant USB MIDI. That makes it a perfect...

  • Page 9: Setup And Installation

    2. SETUP AND INSTALLATION 2.1. Powering the MiniFreak The MiniFreak uses an external power adapter. Do not use any power supply or adapter other than the one provided by Arturia. Arturia accepts no responsibility for damage caused by use of an unauthorized power supply.

  • Page 10: Connecting The Minifreak To The Outside World

    Using the MiniFreak V software, simply click FW Update on the top bar : • If you are not up to date (version is older to use MiniFreak V) : => MiniFreak V will prompt you, on opening, with a pop up telling you to update, simply click on the "Upgrade to latest"...

  • Page 11: Meet The Minifreak: An Overview

    Now it's time to learn our way around the MiniFreak! In this chapter, we'll take a look at the front and rear panels of the MiniFreak. In later chapters, we'll explain what the controls in each section do, and how to use them, but we'll start with a basic understanding of the different control types.
  • Page 12 3.1.1. The Modulation Matrix The Modulation Matrix The top section of the MiniFreak begins with the Modulation Matrix, which lets you connect a variety of sources and destinations together in order to form modulation routings , where one part of the MiniFreak controls another.
  • Page 13 Analog Filter controls Arturia's analog synthesizers are famous for their filters, and the Analog Filter on the MiniFreak is no exception. Its warm and clean timbre is adding some character to the digital Oscillators with a few twists of a knob.
  • Page 14 Directly above the Wave/Load knob is a pair of LEDs that pulse at the rates of the two LFOs, feedbacked through color changes from yellow when positive and red when negative. Arturia - User Manual MiniFreak - Meet the MiniFreak: An overview...
  • Page 15 To the left of the display are the Sound Edit/Utility and Save/Panel buttons. Sound Edit [p.71] brings up a menu of extra functions for many parts of the MiniFreak, going beyond those with their own buttons and knobs on the front panel.
  • Page 16 The Mode button lets you select between different types of polyphony, cycling between Monophonic, Polyphonic, Paraphonic, and Unison modes. Which will be described further in Envelopes [p.65] chapter. Arturia - User Manual MiniFreak - Meet the MiniFreak: An overview...
  • Page 17 Shapes for the LFO Edit [p.57] Sequencer length and Shaper slopes controls There's a lot to go over here; we'll save the fine details for the Arpeggiator and Sequencer chapter [p.83]. Arturia - User Manual MiniFreak - Meet the MiniFreak: An overview...

  • Page 18: The Touch Strips

    Seq/Arp Gate/Spice (orange LEDs) sets the Touch Strips to control Gate time • and Spice in the Arpeggiator and Sequencer [p.83]. Shift-touching this button will enable the Dice. Arturia - User Manual MiniFreak - Meet the MiniFreak: An overview...

  • Page 19: The Rear Panel

    3.3. The Rear Panel Let's now review the MiniFreak rear panel inputs and outputs, The Rear Panel From left to right, the MiniFreak's rear-panel connectors are as follows: Function Connector type MIDI In/Out/Thru 5-pin DIN Standard USB Type B Sustain Pedal Input 1/4"...

  • Page 20: Managing Presets

    – are stored in a Preset. The MiniFreak has space for 512 Presets on board, and comes out of the box with a curated list of fine presets to get you started. Because it's important to be able to customize and save your own sounds easily, the Preset management system on the MiniFreak has been kept simple and easy to navigate, while giving you tools to quickly find the sounds you want.

  • Page 21: Saving Presets

    The Save button will go dark and Display will read "Save Cancelled".  Lastly, note that when powering your MiniFreak back on, the last saved preset will be reloaded. 4.3.1. Updating a Preset If you only want to save your edits to the same Preset in the same slot, just click Save again and you're done.
  • Page 22 = browse characters • click = move to next index • click + turn = browse index • shift + turn = shortcut to the first element of the characters' list Arturia - User Manual MiniFreak - Managing Presets...

  • Page 23: Filters

    Details: displays Type, the Sound Designer's name (yours, if you introduced your • name as the user of the MiniFreak), and the Revision number for the Preset. 4.6. Utility Menu Preset Operations has a submenu called Preset Operations. These include some useful Utility menu [p.97]...
  • Page 24 Preset in order to start over : • Preset Init • Reload Preset • Matrix • • Reload Seq • Mods • Macro 1 or 2 • LFO 1 or LFO 2 User Curve Arturia - User Manual MiniFreak - Managing Presets...

  • Page 25: The Digital Oscillators

    Others use frequency modulation (FM), or the Karplus-Strong mathematics of a plucked string, or sums of harmonics, or... The core of MiniFreak's freakiness is its pair of Digital Oscillators, which provide all of the synthesis types mentioned above and many more. Some of them are familiar from the synthesizers that made them famous, and others are exciting and new.
  • Page 26 The graphic shows a test tube (Wave), bottle (Timbre), and flask (Shape), with the "fluid level" indicating the parameter value. (Hey, why not? The MiniFreak can turn anyone into a mad scientist!) When turning a knob, the display will offer a corresponding feedback along with a numerical value which is updated in realtime.

  • Page 27: Oscillator Types

    Sub: adds a sine wave one octave down. This extra sound source, a sub oscillator , adds low-end girth to waveforms. It could be generated on 1970s/1980s analog synthesizers at a much lower cost than adding an entire extra oscillator. Arturia - User Manual MiniFreak - The Digital Oscillators...
  • Page 28 Sculpting: gradually morphs the individual harmonics from the traditional sine wave to a triangle wave, providing a different character impossible on older additive synths. Chorus: subtly widens and thickens the sound. Arturia - User Manual MiniFreak - The Digital Oscillators...
  • Page 29 (where one oscillator forces another oscillator's waveform to reset its phase). Wave: changes the shape of the sawtooth, from a triangle through a sawtooth with increasing harmonic content. Arturia - User Manual MiniFreak - The Digital Oscillators...
  • Page 30 Freak Out: each of the three knobs causes a wide and distinctive change in timbre over its range. Try modulating all three of them at once, with control signals that all repeat at different rates – for example, the two LFOs and the Cycling Envelope set to Loop. Arturia - User Manual MiniFreak - The Digital Oscillators...
  • Page 31 . One of the most common and useful algorithms in 4-operator FM is a simple mix of two pairs of operators, one in each pair modulating the other. If you set both of the MiniFreak's Oscillators to Two Op. FM and mix them together, you'll have created this exact algorithm, with one important difference: the traditional algorithm...
  • Page 32 Combine these two ideas, and the Formant Oscillator creates a variety of harmonically rich tones with a definite "vocal" quality to them. Interval: sets the ratio between the two formant frequencies. Formant: Sets the base formant frequency. Shape: Sets formant width and shape. Arturia - User Manual MiniFreak - The Digital Oscillators...
  • Page 33 LFO or Cycling Envelope will push you into the land of chaos. Somewhat more musically, you can modulate the Inv/Trsp to keep chord inversions moving through high and low pitches, or modulate Waveform between 50 and 100 to create wavetable sweeps. Arturia - User Manual MiniFreak - The Digital Oscillators...
  • Page 34 As an example: if you set Type to around 80, then play notes as you turn the Word knob up, you'll hear the MiniFreak say "Alpha, Bravo, Charlie" up to "X-Ray, Yankee, Zulu" at the pitch you're playing. It's a lot of fun! ...
  • Page 35 "woody" to "metallic". Timbre: sets how bright the exciter is – its balance of low and high frequencies. This affects which harmonics are excited. Decay: how quickly the resonance is damped. Arturia - User Manual MiniFreak - The Digital Oscillators...
  • Page 36 The MiniFreak's Noise Oscillator provides a variety of noise types, including particle noise , made up of tiny fragments created by sampling noise and turning down the sample rate.
  • Page 37 Rectify: adjusts the rectification of the harmonics. The rectifier is a well-known analog circuit that creates an effect somewhat like wavefolding Noise: adds phase-modulated noise and clipping. Arturia - User Manual MiniFreak - The Digital Oscillators...
  • Page 38 5.2.16. Audio In (Osc 1 only) Osc 1 can route any audio signal from the Audio In Jack into MiniFreak's signal flow. This audio is digitalized, then processed by a wavefolder and a decimator, with digital noise added. A decimator throws away input samples at a designated ratio, for example saving one sample out of every five or ten.
  • Page 39 Wave: selects the waveform of Osc 2 to be modulated by Osc 1. FreqMod: selects the amount of FM. RingMod: selects the amount of RM. Arturia - User Manual MiniFreak - The Digital Oscillators...

  • Page 40: Osc 2 Audio Processor Types

    Also note some of these filter's cutoff are not mapped to follow the keyboard by default. Assign cutoff to the Matrix, and modulate it with the Keyboard source with an amount of 50 to get perfect Keyboard tracking. Arturia - User Manual MiniFreak - The Digital Oscillators...
  • Page 41 ("wolf tones") in your sound. Other times you'll want to add greatly boosted frequencies for dramatic effect. In a professional studio or in a DAW, this is done with a parametric equalizer, but in the MiniFreak, you can use the Surgeon Filter. Cutoff: sets the cutoff or center frequency of the filtering.
  • Page 42 When the amount of time delay is modulated with an LFO, the tone of the comb filter sweeps up and down. If this sounds like it would produce a really cool-sounding effect, you'd be right. Fortunately that exact effect is available on the MiniFreak: check out the Digital Effects chapter [p.8]...
  • Page 43 Choose a number of Poles and then slowly sweep the Cutoff. How many of the frequency notches can you hear distinctly for each Poles setting? As you add more filters, it becomes trickier... Arturia - User Manual MiniFreak - The Digital Oscillators...
  • Page 44 Bitcrush: lowers the number of bits of each sample. This creates a number of uniquely nasty artifacts.  Put all of these together, modulate each one differently, and – well, listen for yourself. Sometimes you need a little ugliness in your sound. Arturia - User Manual MiniFreak - The Digital Oscillators...

  • Page 45: The Analog Filter

    After being nearly forgotten for decades, the circuit was rediscovered, modified and updated with input from Nyle Steiner, the designer of the Synthacon – and named the Arturia Brute filter, becoming a vital element of every Arturia Brute synthesizer.

  • Page 46: Elements Of Filter Design And Their Controls

    Like the original SEM filter, the MiniFreak's Analog Filter can be set to three types: Low Pass, High Pass, and Band Pass. These are chosen with the Analog Filter's Type button, with white LEDs to indicate the current choice.
  • Page 47 (4 kHz), it's 24 dB quieter. That means our filter has a slope of 12 dB/octave. MiniFreak's Analog Filter has a fixed 12 dB/octave slope, but the digital Multimode Filter [p.35] in Osc 2 has a wide variety of available slopes, including some that are quite unusual in analog synths.

  • Page 48: Developing A Feel For The Filter

    Effects turned off and a fairly simple Osc Type like BasicWaves to start with. The character of this filter is magical, and easily overlooked with everything else the MiniFreak can do – so be sure to give it plenty of attention.

  • Page 49: Digital Effects

    The MiniFreak includes a set of three Digital Effects at the end of its signal path, and they offer a wide variety of tones that can be called up rapidly or tweaked to taste.
  • Page 50 There are plug-ins that give you individual control of each of these parameters if you really want them. That's not the point of the MiniFreak's effects – the Subtypes makes it extremely easy to change the effects character in a fast way.

  • Page 51: The Effects Types

    Dry/Wet mixes that signal with the dry signal. Play with both to help you understand the difference. Subtypes: Default, Lush, Dark, Shaded, Single •  Try turning the Dry/Wet mix all the way wet and speeding up the Rate to create a stronger sense of vibrato. Arturia - User Manual MiniFreak - Digital Effects...
  • Page 52 Subtypes: Default, Default Sync, Space, Space Sync, SnH, SnH Sync. •  The Sync variations synchronize the Rate to the master Tempo set on the MiniFreak. They also synchronize to external clocks and MIDI clocks. 7.2.3. Flanger A flanger creates an intense comb filtering effect. It works the same way as a chorus, but usually has only one delayed signal to mix with the dry signal, and its delay time is very short, only a few milliseconds.
  • Page 53 In Insert it sets the Dry/Wet mix, while in Send, controls the Send Level. Subtypes: Digital, Stereo, Ping-Pong, Mono, Filtered, and Filtered Ping-Pong – • each one also available in a Sync version. Arturia - User Manual MiniFreak - Digital Effects...
  • Page 54 Decimate: sets how much the signal is decimated. Higher values introduce all • kinds of digital garbage. BitDepth: sets the resolution of the signal. Higher knob values equal more • crushing, i.e. fewer bits. Dry/Wet: Dry/Wet mix. • Subtypes: none • Arturia - User Manual MiniFreak - Digital Effects...
  • Page 55 Because the user has full control over these parameters, there is no need for Subtypes. A common use for this type of EQ is to cut a very narrow frequency range in order to remove an unwanted effect such as an undesired resonance or external hum. Arturia - User Manual MiniFreak - Digital Effects...
  • Page 56 Put it all together and you can have more than 30 different parameters to keep track of. Fortunately, the MiniFreak's Multi Comp effect comes with a careful selection of useful Subtypes, and provides three useful User parameters for each.

  • Page 57: The Modulation Matrix

    8.2. Set an Amount Once you have selected your routing and pressed the Matrix encoder, the control will switch to Amount mode reflected by the LED being lit on its right and the MiniFreak screen showing you the Amount for that routing.

  • Page 58: Activate/Deactivate A Routing

    Press+turn the Matrix encoder.  Note that when you are in Amount mode, using the quick edit will exit this mode and return the encoder to Mod Browsing when released. Arturia - User Manual MiniFreak - The Modulation Matrix...

  • Page 59: Assign A Destination

    8.5. Assign a Destination There are nine available custom destinations organized in three Matrix Pages. Those are saved in the preset. We will now dive further into the specificity of the MiniFreak Matrix and its capabilities. 8.5.1. Matrix Pages In addition to the four hard-wired modulation destinations, there are three columns labeled Assign.
  • Page 60 Once you've selected a destination, you can let go of the Assign button, and the routing you've chosen is in place. At any time, you can touch the Assign button to remind yourself of what's currently there. Arturia - User Manual MiniFreak - The Modulation Matrix...
  • Page 61 Envelope Sustain Envelope Release CycEnv Rise / Attack CycEnv Fall / Decay CycEnv Sustain CycEnv Amp LFO X Rate LFO X Wave LFO X Amp Macro 1 Macro 2 Matrix Mod Amount Arturia - User Manual MiniFreak - The Modulation Matrix...

  • Page 62: The Low Frequency Oscillators

    LFO rate is set to a specific time value, or if it's locked to the beat of the MiniFreak's Tempo setting. Shift-clicking lets you select how the LFO is triggered to start the beginning of its wave cycle. We'll get into that in a moment.
  • Page 63 Each LFO can have its own Rate setting, which can either be unsynchronized or in sync with the MiniFreak's Tempo or with the external tempo to which MiniFreak is slaved. If the Sync LED isn't lit, the LFO Rate can be set between 0.015 Hz (one cycle takes a bit over 66 seconds) to 100 Hz.

  • Page 64: The Shaper And Lfo Wave Edit

    LFO waveforms using the Shaper. 9.2.1. Storing and loading Shaper Waves The MiniFreak contains a library of Shaper Waves that can be loaded for instant use. There are 16 Factory and 8 User Shaper Waves; storing a User Shaper Wave makes it available for any preset.
  • Page 65 9.2.2.2. Selecting a given step To shape a step in the Shaper pattern, select it by touching the appropriate Sequencer Step pad. Arturia - User Manual MiniFreak - The Low Frequency Oscillators...
  • Page 66 The Slope of a given step is set with the first four Pattern Length pads. • Curve is set with the Wheel Touch Strip, from -100% to 0% to 100%. • Arturia - User Manual MiniFreak - The Low Frequency Oscillators...
  • Page 67 Shaper Wave set to 1/8 notes will repeat in 5/8 time. You can create interesting polyrhythms if the two LFOs are using Shaper Waves with different lengths, say 5 against 7 or 3 against Arturia - User Manual MiniFreak - The Low Frequency Oscillators...

  • Page 68: Vibrato

    Now, what if you want to use that Shaper Wave in another Preset? You can save it in one of the 8 User Shaper Wave slots shared by all Presets. 9.3. Vibrato The MiniFreak has a third LFO called Vibrato. It doesn't have nearly as many features as the others, but it serves a very important purpose. ...

  • Page 69: A Few Final Tips

    "Erase" menu. Sometimes it's OK to return to a clean slate. Arturia - User Manual MiniFreak - The Low Frequency Oscillators...

  • Page 70: The Envelopes

    The MiniFreak offers two envelopes: one is simply called the Envelope, and the other is the Cycling Envelope. These two envelopes have similarities, but are defined by very different modes of operation.

  • Page 71: Envelope

    MiniFreak's envelopes are based on these designs. 10.2. Envelope The Envelope controls The MiniFreak Envelope is an ADSR, with four dedicated knobs for its four stages: Attack, Decay, Sustain, and Release. Remember that Sustain sets a level while the other three knobs set times.
  • Page 72 It's true that in Polyphonic mode, where notes don't retrigger unless you play one more note than the number of voices you have (and the MiniFreak has to "steal" one of the voices from a previous note), retriggering might not seem important. However, Retrig Mode is vitally important in the Monophonic, Paraphonic, and Unison voicing modes, as it has a powerful effect on what the sound does as you play.

  • Page 73: Polyphony And Voicing Modes

    LED. The voicing mode controls how playing notes affects what the MiniFreak does. This can make a huge difference in how a given preset reacts musically to what you play.

  • Page 74: Cycling Envelope

    10.4. Cycling Envelope The Cycling Envelope controls The other envelope on the MiniFreak is the Cycling Envelope. It can work as a traditional envelope, but also has the capability of working in ways that almost make it a kind of LFO.
  • Page 75 LFO 1 or LFO 2: The Cycling Envelope retriggers when the selected LFO does. • Last but not least, Sound Edit > Cycling Env > Tempo Sync sets the Cycling Envelope to follow the MiniFreak's Tempo if desired. Arturia - User Manual MiniFreak - The Envelopes...

  • Page 76: Sound Edit

    With only a limited amount of space for knobs and buttons, the MiniFreak had to be designed to offer the vast majority of its regular functions in ways that are easy to get to and easy to use.
  • Page 77 • Release Curve • This set of functions is deeper than what's common for other sections of the MiniFreak, and they need a detailed set of explanations. You can find all the information you need in the Envelopes chapter [p.65].
  • Page 78 Details: displays Type, the Sound Designer's name (yours, if you created it on • your MiniFreak), and the Revision number for the Preset. Arturia - User Manual MiniFreak - Sound Edit...

  • Page 79: Keyboard Functions

    The most basic information sent by the keyboard is which note you're playing. Believe it or not, even this simple bit of data can be used by the MiniFreak in a variety of ways. The pitch of the note being played is a common modulation source for various synth parameters.

  • Page 80: Velocity And Aftertouch

    12.2. Velocity and Aftertouch The MiniFreak keyboard senses velocity (how fast you hit the keys) and aftertouch (how hard you press down on a key after playing it). The keyboard sends monophonic aftertouch messages, where all sounding voices are modulated by the same amount.

  • Page 81: Polyphony

    12.3. Polyphony The Sound Edit > Keyboard menu also has settings for how playing the keyboard triggers the MiniFreak's voices. The articulation of a Preset will depend on how voices are reassigned as notes are played. Poly Allocation defines how the MiniFreak looks for which voices to play next.

  • Page 82: Glide

    12.5. Scale configuration Sometimes it might be handy to make sure you can't play a wrong note. The MiniFreak can be set to play only notes in a particular key and scale, no matter which keys you play. (Out of scale keys will play the nearest correct pitch.)

  • Page 83: Chord Mode

    12.6. Chord Mode The MiniFreak offers a Chord mode which allows you to play multiple notes from a single key press. To enter this mode press the Chord/Scale button which will be then lit white.

  • Page 84: Touch Strips

    [p.83]. The left strip controls Gate length for steps in the arpeggio or sequence, and the right strip controls the amount of Spice [p.85] applied to the playback. Shift-touching the pad rolls the Dice [p.85]. Arturia - User Manual MiniFreak - Keyboard Functions...

  • Page 85: Macros

    13. MACROS With all of the cool things the MiniFreak can do in real time, you might find yourself wishing that you had more than two hands to play and work the controls. Wouldn't it be cool to be able to simultaneously raise the Cutoff, lower the Resonance, change the Envelope attack a tiny bit, and sweep the Timbre knob, all in one motion? Of course it would...

  • Page 86: Macro Assign

    Use the macros as a preview to see how it could affect the sound. Setting the Macro back to 0 will take you back to the original sound, without breaking the preset. Arturia - User Manual MiniFreak - Macros...
  • Page 87 Macro Assign mode has no special Save function. You can simply exit by touching the Macros M1/M2 pad again, or the Sound Edit button, and all of your changes will be saved automatically. Arturia - User Manual MiniFreak - Macros...

  • Page 88: The Arpeggiator And Sequencer

     When using an external clock source, do note that the tempo cannot be edited. The MiniFreak stores the tempo on a per preset basis so recalling a Seq or Arp to the original tempo is super easy ! 14.1.3. Time Division You can set the time division of the Sequencer or Arp playback using the Tempo/Swing encoder.
  • Page 89 14.1.4. Swing The MiniFreak also provides Swing on both the Arp and Seq modes, you can set it using Shift + Tempo from 50% (no swing) to 75%. This only affects playback; it does not alter the location of the original notes.
  • Page 90 Div setting. 14.1.8. Spice and Dice Spice and Dice is an already classic feature from the MiniFreak's little brother, the MicroFreak. The aim of this feature is to generate a variation that will be applied on the arpeggiator and sequencer going from "simple arp pattern with a trig on every step with same gate length"...

  • Page 91: The Arpeggiator

    14.2. The Arpeggiator An arpeggiator breaks chords into individual notes played in succession. On the MiniFreak the concept of Arps has also seen a few expansions and performance tools to provide easy manipulation and variations of playback and mutations. To activate the Arpeggiator press the Arp button.
  • Page 92 14.2.2. Octave Range The MiniFreak allows you to decide on the range of the currently played Arp between one and four octaves, using the Octave buttons. The Octave buttons When you hold notes that span more than an octave, the overall range of an arpeggio can be much greater.

  • Page 93: Sequencer

    The Arpeggiator is a fun and creative way to come up with new ideas for melodies and the MiniFreak allows you to expand on that by transferring the Arp content to the sequencer to tailor it further to your liking or recall it on a later occasion.
  • Page 94 14.3.1. Setting a Sequence Length The Sequences on the MiniFreak are up to 64 steps long. To set a sequence length hold the Last Step button and press either a page or a specific step within the page to set the exact length of the sequence.
  • Page 95 When the sequencer mode is engaged and the MiniFreak is in stop mode you can enter step-record mode by pressing the record button (like shown below).
  • Page 96 Erase a step one or multiple steps Copy / Paste / Hold Off/Seq/Arp button, and press one Copies / Pastes / Erases the selected page Erase a page of the Page buttons Arturia - User Manual MiniFreak - The Arpeggiator and Sequencer...
  • Page 97 With no Note selected on the Offset all notes Length/ Offsets Velocity or Length for all notes in the current step, touch one of the Velocity in a Step currently selected step sliders Arturia - User Manual MiniFreak - The Arpeggiator and Sequencer...
  • Page 98 • A same note can't be entered twice. It will override data content (velo, note length,..) with the last trig properties. Arturia - User Manual MiniFreak - The Arpeggiator and Sequencer...

  • Page 99: Modulation Sequence Lanes

    14.4. Modulation sequence lanes On top of Pitch, Note length and Velocity sequencing, the MiniFreak also offers four lanes of Parameter sequencing. To access the modulation sequencing lanes, press the Mods button next to Record. Mods button 14.4.1. Add a Modulation To add a modulation make sure to : •...
  • Page 100 Page only to Modulations on the selected lane pages buttons Erase modulation Long click the Preset/Edit encoder Currently focused modulation will be track while in Mods Page reset Arturia - User Manual MiniFreak - The Arpeggiator and Sequencer...
  • Page 101 FX X Amount Envelope Attack Envelope Decay Envelope Sustain Envelope Release CycEnv Rise / Attack CycEnv Fall / Decay CycEnv Sustain LFO Rate Macro 1 Macro 2 Pitch Bend Mod Wheel Arturia - User Manual MiniFreak - The Arpeggiator and Sequencer...

  • Page 102: The Utility Menu

    15. THE UTILITY MENU With everything that's going on inside the MiniFreak – especially with so many functions and settings that can be customized for every Preset – it's handy to have a central place to find things that are intended to be global , applying to the entire synthesizer. That's what the Utility menu is for! 15.1.
  • Page 103 MIDI Seq/Synth: determines routing of keyboard data vs. external MIDI data for • the Arpeggiator/Sequencer vs. the MiniFreak's synth engine. Knob Send CC: sets whether or not the MiniFreak's front panel knobs send MIDI • Control Change data. Program Change: sets whether or not the MiniFreak sends and receives Program •...
  • Page 104 The calibration process will show a progress bar as it proceeds; while it's running, the MiniFreak can't be played, sequenced, or edited. When it's done, you'll be shown a "calibration successful" message, and clicking the Preset/Edit/Filters encoder will exit the menu.
  • Page 105 When you've given yourself a grand and impressive title, just click the Utility button twice to save it... then turn your MiniFreak off and on again, just to see it greet you for the first time! Arturia - User Manual MiniFreak - The Utility Menu...

  • Page 106: External Control: Midi And Clock Signals

    16. EXTERNAL CONTROL: MIDI AND CLOCK SIGNALS As much fun as the MiniFreak is to use on its own, it's amazing as part of a larger musical world. In this chapter, we'll look at the ways in which the MiniFreak sends and receives various kinds of data for use with other hardware synthesizers, sequencers, and computers.

  • Page 107: Midi

    [p.98]. We'll note them as we go along. 16.2.1. MIDI inputs and outputs The MiniFreak uses both DIN jacks and USB for MIDI communication. While the USB port can do things that the DIN connections can't such as bi-lateral communication from a single cable.
  • Page 108 Control setting on the Utility > MIDI menu does. However, with everything going on inside the MiniFreak, it's handy to have a bit more precise control than that. So the Utility > MIDI menu also has a parameter called MIDI Seq/Synth, which controls exactly how internal and external MIDI data are routed to and from the keyboard, synthesizer, and Arpeggiator/Sequencer.
  • Page 109 4. With Local Control OFF and MIDI > ArpSeq selected, the keyboard only sends MIDI out, and the Arp/Seq and synth only receive external MIDI data. This splits the MiniFreak into a silent MIDI controller keyboard and a sequencer/synth module run via MIDI input.
  • Page 110 Wave Timbre Shape Volume Analog Filter Cutoff Resonance VCF Env Amt Velocity Env Mod Cycling Env Rise Shape Rise Fall Hold Fall Shape Envelope Attack Decay Sustain Release Arturia - User Manual MiniFreak - External Control: MIDI and Clock Signals...

  • Page 111: Usb

    CC messages. These can be recorded into a sequencer or DAW, and replayed to automate control movements on the MiniFreak. On the Utility > MIDI menu, Knob Send CC sets whether or not the MiniFreak's front panel knobs send MIDI Control Change data when they're turned.

  • Page 112: Declaration Of Conformity

    Important notice: DO NOT MODIFY THE UNIT! This product, when installed as indicated in the instructions contained in this manual, meets FCC requirement. Modifications not expressly approved by Arturia may avoid your authority, granted by the FCC, to use the product.

Table of Contents

Save PDF