Step Mode; Pattern Mode; User Scales - Xaoc Devices MOSKWA II Operator's Manual

button to select the mode as indicated by the
adjacent LED appearing yellow.

STEP MODE

In the step mode, the step buttons activate and
deactivate the gate/trigger signal for each se-
quence step similar to a traditional sequencer.
You deactivate the step to create a pause for
the duration of that particular step. To enter
the advanced settings for a step, press and hold
the step button for one second. More details on
the advanced settings are presented later in this
user manual.

PATTERN MODE

Each step can have an unique pattern—a mi-
cro-sequence of up to eight gates/triggers
played at the moment the main sequence step
is triggered.
Patterns enable the user to achieve ratchet-
ing, repeat steps, move the gate/trigger sig-
nal within the duration of the step to achieve
swing, lengthen the step duration, or introduce
a pause. When a pattern is active, it replaces
the default single gate/trigger on the given step
of the main sequence with a micro sequence
of up to eight gate/triggers. Depending on the
pattern playback mode, each step button
will be illuminated red or orange, and the se-
quence step will last either one clock cycle, or
up to eight clock cycles (for details see: below).
Remember – if the given step is inactive, even an
active pattern on that particular step will not
produce any gate/trigger signal.
QUANTIZATION
Pressing and holding the step/quant button
for one second activates the quantization set-
tings. This mode is indicated by a red LED next
to the step/quant button.
The quantizer gives you access to eight scales
selected via the step buttons. The active scale
is indicated by a green backlight. When you
choose one of the scales and then send Mosk-
wa's CV output to a frequency input of a 1V/
oct oscillator, the step knobs select note values
corresponding to the given scale. Don't forget
to tune your oscillator to the root note of your
choosing. To exit the quantizer settings, push
either of the main mode buttons, step or patt.
Factory scales: chromatic, major, minor,
major pentatonic, minor pentatonic, ake-
bono, arabian, phrygian.

USER SCALES

Feature available from firmware 1.0.5 onward.
Connect the module to a computer via USB
while holding the transport button. The
module will appear as an external drive and
containing a scales.txt file. That file allows you
to create and use your own scales. You can edit
it (preferably using a copy of the file saved lo-
cally) in any simple text editor application such
as Notepad on Windows or TextEdit on Mac.
The file contains 8 lines of text. Each line cor-
responds to one quantization setting available
in Moskwa II. Each line contains 12 numbers
separated by commas. The numbers' position
corresponds to a half step in an octave. A "1"
indicates the given half step is active, while
a "0" indicates the given half step is omitted.
For example, the first quantization setting
available in Moskwa II by default is chromat-
ic, so the first line of the default scales.txt file
reads as follows: "1,1,1,1,1,1,1,1,1,1,1,1" (note:
there is no comma at the end of the line). The
second line in the scales.txt file corresponds to
the second quantization setting – a major scale.
According to the structure of the major scale, it
should contain the following intervals: whole
step, whole step, half step, whole step, whole
step, whole step. In Moskwa II it translates to:
"1,0,1,0,1,1,0,1,0,1,0,1".
Replace the default set of scales on your Mosk-
wa II with your own scales.txt file while the
module is connected to a computer and in exter-
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