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neutral labs SCROOGE v1.1 Manual

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SCROOGE v1.1
by neutral labs
Manual
Hello, owner.
Scrooge is a sequenced malfunction generator, available as a Eurorack
module or semi-modular desktop synth. While you can convince it to
deliver boomy kick drum sounds, clicky hi-hats or metallic snares, it
would much rather be making glitchy artifacts, hollow crackles and
horribly distorted growls. It contains a sophisticated step sequencer
with parameter locking and the possibility to control all steps across
multiple tracks at once. Its 5 distinct and fully analog voices are
made
up
of
special
circuits
that
work
without
dedicated
power
supplies, scrounging power from the sequencer control signals instead,
which gives them an organic and unstable quality. As a bonus, it means
you won't have to power the unit itself if you sequence it from
external gear.

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Summary of Contents for neutral labs SCROOGE v1.1

  • Page 1 SCROOGE v1.1 by neutral labs Manual Hello, owner. Scrooge is a sequenced malfunction generator, available as a Eurorack module or semi-modular desktop synth. While you can convince it to deliver boomy kick drum sounds, clicky hi-hats or metallic snares, it would much rather be making glitchy artifacts, hollow crackles and horribly distorted growls.

  • Page 2: Specifications

    Specifications ● Width: 42 HP ● Supply voltage (either): ○ Eurorack 10-pin header: +12V/-12V ○ USB power: +5V ● Current draw (if used in powered mode): ○ Eurorack ■ +12V: typ. 75 mA, max. 100 mA ■ -12V: unused, 0 mA ■...

  • Page 3: First Setup

    will see the infamous magic smoke rise and the module will need repair. There is an arrow indicator next to the word STRIPE on the circuit board. Unsurprisingly, the red stripe side of the cable goes on the side that says STRIPE. The module (and your power supply) is protected in case you should ever connect it the wrong way around, it simply won’t power up.
  • Page 4 and turn the STEP knobs to alter the control voltage curve for that step. ● SHIFT (press and release the button) toggles between primary and secondary mode for the STEP knobs. ● CTL ALL (press and release the button) toggles STEP knob control for all steps on or off.
  • Page 5 Overview...
  • Page 6 Voices Scrooge has 5 voices, each with a different architecture, though they have one thing in common: They’re constructed from CMOS chips combined with some analog circuitry. These chips are supplied with a voltage which may come from external gear, or more likely, from Scrooge’s internal step sequencer.
  • Page 7 Each voice has a dedicated volume slider with an LED indicator that lights up as the voice is activated, following the control voltage curve. There is one 3-way A-B switch per voice, which routes the voice’s audio output to either output socket A or B (or decouples it from the output if in the middle position, muting the voice).
  • Page 8 The specific effect of the modulation voltage depends on the voice. It may act like a filter, it may adjust the pitch or timbre, and in some cases you can even “play” the voice using just the modulation track. When connecting several voices to the same modulation track, some cross-modulation effects will occur, which can lead to the discovery of happy little accidents.

  • Page 9: Step Buttons

    the voice. Sending an external audio source into a POKE input is often very rewarding. Modulation control voltages can be sent to the MOD inputs when used in passive mode. Of course, the individual voice inputs and outputs will also work in powered mode.
  • Page 10 STEP knobs These 3 knobs are used to change the parameters of a single step’s control voltage curve (while not in CTL ALL mode), or the parameters of a number of steps (while in CTL ALL mode). The resulting control voltage curve both activates the voice, like a gate, and sets a variety of sound characteristics like pitch, timbre or punchiness, depending on the voice.
  • Page 11 Knob Description POKE sets the control voltage for the step, from no voltage in the leftmost position to the maximum voltage in the rightmost position. Varying amounts of voltage will have different effects on the sound, depending on the voice and POKE settings voice’s...
  • Page 12 start or end voltage is increased or lowered accordingly, so the increase will not start from zero, or the drop off will not go all the way to zero. MELT erodes the control voltage curve using digital bit mangling operations. The result is an abrasive sound not unlike that achieved by frequency modulation (FM).
  • Page 13 RUN/PAGE button Press and immediately release the RUN/PAGE button in order to start or pause sequencer. When starting once paused sequence, the sequencer will pick up from where it was last paused, and not necessarily from the first step. In order to reset all sequencer tracks to the first step, hold the CTL ALL/FUNC button, then press and immediately release the RUN/PAGE button (or alternatively, use the RST input with an external trigger).
  • Page 14 SHIFT/SELECT button Press and immediately release the SHIFT/SELECT button in order to turn SHIFT on or off. The button LED will indicate the SHIFT status. While SHIFT is active, the STEP knobs will adjust their secondary parameters as described under STEP knobs. In order to access items from the SELECT menu (tracks and patterns), press and hold the SHIFT/SELECT button, then press and release any of the 16 step buttons, then let go of the SHIFT/SELECT button.
  • Page 15 ALL tracks. This functionality may be used whether the sequencer is currently playing or not. In order to select these CTL ALL tracks, enter CTL ALL mode and use the SHIFT/SELECT button to add or remove tracks from CTL ALL as described under SHIFT/SELECT button.
  • Page 16 available patterns will light up and the step button 2 LED will be blinking. Press and release any PTN button, then press and release additional buttons in your desired order. Patterns may be repeated in the chain. Up to 32 entries can be made. To cancel, press and release the blinking CTL ALL/FUNC button at any time.
  • Page 17 CTL RST Use this to revert the changes made in CTL ALL mode. Note that this does not reset the pattern to the state stored in flash memory. In order to do that instead, simply reload the pattern by holding the SHIFT/SELECT button and pressing the button corresponding to the current pattern number.
  • Page 18 MICRO Toggles microtiming mode. this mode, the secondary function accessible POKE/PROB knob sets microtiming for the step. Refer to the STEP knobs section for a detailed explanation. While holding the CTL ALL/FUNC button, the microtiming mode status is indicated by the LED (lit means on, flashing means off).
  • Page 19 PASTE If the clipboard contains a pattern, track or step after using the COPY or CPY STEP commands, use this to paste the data from the clipboard. If the clipboard contains a pattern, this pattern will be pasted and the current pattern will be overwritten, though not stored to flash memory.
  • Page 20 STORE This stores the current pattern in flash memory, including all modifications that have been made after the pattern was last loaded. The step button for the current pattern and the CTL ALL/FUNC button will both blink, the step buttons other patterns current...
  • Page 21 The reset procedure takes about 15 seconds and its progress will be indicated by the step LEDs. It is not advisable to turn off the power during this time. After the procedure has finished, Scrooge will reboot into the factory state. Note that this does not restore the original firmware version.
  • Page 22 Syncing Scrooge to external devices Scrooge will send a clock signal to external devices via the EXT output if the sequencer is running and EXT sync mode is enabled. In this case the EXT sequencer track will be disabled. See EXT sync mode in the ADV functions table.

  • Page 23: Tips And Tricks

    Tips and Tricks Here are some random tips and tricks that might not be super obvious: ● While performing in CTL ALL mode, turn down the PROB parameter on all tracks to momentarily give the pattern a sparse feeling. Likewise, you can turn down GATE so all steps will be short blips, or turn it up to a powerful crescendo before disabling CTL ALL and returning to the original pattern.

  • Page 24: Troubleshooting

    Troubleshooting Problem Possible Solution The unit doesn’t For the Eurorack version, make sure the power cable is turn on. properly connected and in the correct orientation. For the desktop version, make sure the cable is fully inserted on both sides. Check whether your power supply works with other gear.
  • Page 25 A step sounds Some variation is always to be expected due to the different every nature sound-generating circuits, time it’s played. resulting uncertainty should ideally be embraced by the user. If the result seems particularly severe, check if modulation via the X or Y track is enabled across several voices, and see if the issue persists when disconnecting the MOD tracks.