Native Instruments Reaktor Spark Manual
Native Instruments Reaktor Spark Manual

Native Instruments Reaktor Spark Manual

Software for computer-based audio production and djing

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MANUAL

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Summary of Contents for Native Instruments Reaktor Spark

  • Page 1 MANUAL...
  • Page 2 The information in this document is subject to change without notice and does not represent a commitment on the part of Native Instruments GmbH. The software described by this document is subject to a License Agreement and may not be copied to other media. No part of this publication may be copied, reproduced or otherwise transmitted or recorded, for any purpose, without prior written permission by Native Instruments GmbH, hereinafter referred to as Native Instruments.
  • Page 3 Germany Native Instruments GmbH Schlesische Str. 28 D-10997 Berlin Germany info@native-instruments.de www.native-instruments.de Native Instruments North America, Inc. 5631 Hollywood Boulevard Los Angeles, CA 90028 sales@native-instruments.com www.native-instruments.com © Native Instruments GmbH, 2010. All rights reserved.
  • Page 4: Table Of Contents

    Oscillators Section ....................20 4.2 Ring Mod/Filter Section ..................22 4.3 Shaper Section .....................24 4.4 Special Section ....................25 4.5 Mixer Section ......................26 4.6 Cabinet Section ....................27 4.7 8-Pole Filter Section .....................28 4.8 Mod Delay Section ....................29 4.9 Reverb Section .....................30 4.10 Oscillator Envelope Section ................... 31 4.11 Modulation Envelope Section .................33 4.12 Modulation Envelope Amounts Section ..............34 4.13 Modulation Macro Controller Section ..............35 4.14 LFO Section ......................36 5 Credits ...........................38 REAKTOR SPARK – IV...
  • Page 5: Welcome To Reaktor Spark

    1 Welcome to REAKTOR SPARK! Thank you very much for purchasing REAKTOR SPARK . On behalf of the entire Native Instruments team, we hope this instrument will truly inspire you. REAKTOR SPARK puts a large collection of production-ready sounds for contemporary music production directly under your fingertips: REAKTOR SPARK has it all, from pad to lead sounds, from percussive keyboards to floating soundscapes.
  • Page 6: Interface Overview

    SPARK’s secret lies in the way it uses various feedback loops to generate its own input, enabling you to influence the sound with relatively few, but carefully chosen parameters. REAKTOR SPARK – 6...
  • Page 7: Using Reaktor Spark

    3 Using REAKTOR SPARK It is exactly because of SPARK’s unconventional signal routing that SPARK achieves its ex- pressive sonic character. Not only SPARK’s sonic capabilities set it apart from other more conventional synthesizers, but also the way it is used. To help you get familiar with the be- haviour of SPARK’s controls, we will briefly discuss the signal flow within the ensemble and...
  • Page 8 The amplitude modulated signal is then ring modulated by the output of the Oscillators sec- tion. Ring modulation causes the harmonics to be mixed in a manner similar to amplitude REAKTOR SPARK – 8...
  • Page 9 Even with good knowledge of the signal flow the effects of changing the parameters can often be quite surprising, but that is also part of the fun when exploring SPARK’s capabilities. REAKTOR SPARK – 9...
  • Page 10: Tutorial

    3.2 Tutorial In this tutorial we will use a sound from the REAKTOR SPARK SOUNDPACK and manipulate it using the SPARK control panel with the goal to create a new sound with certain character- istics. We want to make use of some of the special qualities of SPARK and for that reason we will opt for two main characteristics: first, the sound should exhibit a full, warm character that responds to the way notes are played and second, we want to implement SPARK’s feed-...
  • Page 11 We can change the lFo r to make the effect happen more frequently, or increase the lFo a to make Mount the effect stronger. REAKTOR SPARK – 11...
  • Page 12 Special section and turn it all the way to the left. While turning the D , you hear a chorus effect. elay Next, we move on to the Oscillators section, where the sound generators of SPARK lie. REAKTOR SPARK – 12...
  • Page 13 Oscillators section, we use the p – S . We want to have a fuller sound, so we turn that knob to have a value of 0.7, which means that we are mixing more of the frequency REAKTOR SPARK – 13...
  • Page 14 2nDh K you can see the potential for fat and funky sounds. For now we leave the nobS and 2nDh K in their zero position and set the D to 14. nobS riVe REAKTOR SPARK – 14...
  • Page 15 Within a feedback loop the resonance can have a very drastic effect, creating ringing or strongly self- oscillating sounds, so it should be used with care. This is a good moment to play around with REAKTOR SPARK – 15...
  • Page 16 We want to add the fundamental Sine tone to our mix for the low end and turn up the knobs for the bandpass and highpass filters to add the higher frequencies, so set the knobs in the Mixer section as shown in the figure above. REAKTOR SPARK – 16...
  • Page 17 Turning the Fb F down to the value 0.3 gives us a longer lasting ring and further adds to the substance of the sound. REAKTOR SPARK – 17...
  • Page 18 – and the effects section. For more details and ideas to the use of all controls, including the ones not discussed in this tutorial, be sure to check out the SPARK Control Reference section. REAKTOR SPARK – 18...
  • Page 19: Control Reference

    MIDI controller. This is called a note-on event. With the pb V you change how much the pitchbend controller on your MIDI keyboard alue or host sequencer can change the pitch. REAKTOR SPARK – 19...
  • Page 20: Oscillators Section

    . Slightly detuning one oscillator from the other yields a fatter sound. Below itch alue the p lies the p for the corresponding oscillator pitch. itch alue itch racKing alue This controls the response of the oscillator pitch to the MIDI note that is played. When set REAKTOR SPARK – 20...
  • Page 21 With the S in the o position, the Pulse Oscillator can be utton synced to note-on events if the K is in the o position. See ranD p utton araMeter for a description of the note-on event. REAKTOR SPARK – 21...
  • Page 22: Ring Mod/Filter Section

    The RM p determines how much of the modulating signal comes from the Pulse Oscillator and how much from the Sine Oscillator. The modulating signal from the Oscillators section is not affected by the Oscillator Envelope. REAKTOR SPARK – 22...
  • Page 23 0.0 and 1.0. racK The color of the Filter section’s output signal can be further controlled with the F ilter . This parameter controls how much the filter cutoff frequency is modulated by the filter input signal. REAKTOR SPARK – 23...
  • Page 24: Shaper Section

    At zero the shaping curves are symmetric, creating mainly odd harmonics. With larger values the curve gets increasingly asymmetric and the amount of the 2nd and other even harmonics is increased. REAKTOR SPARK – 24...
  • Page 25: Special Section

    The FB M acts as a crossfader between the polyphonic Delay unit’s output and the monophonic signal mixed together from the Frequency Shifter unit’s output and the REAKTOR SPARK – 25...
  • Page 26: Mixer Section

    Effects section. The right l in the output unit shows the amount that the synthesizer output eVel eter signal is reduced by the limiter. REAKTOR SPARK – 26...
  • Page 27: Cabinet Section

    The mixing of the output signal of the Cabinet Saturator happens with the c eVel Knobs. c determines the output level of the saturation effect before it abinet eVel gets mixed to the dry, unaffected signal. The balance between the two signals is set with the abinet REAKTOR SPARK – 27...
  • Page 28: 8-Pole Filter Section

    . The c is used to set the mean value of the cutoff frequencies of FFSet enter the two channels. REAKTOR SPARK – 28...
  • Page 29: Mod Delay Section

    LFO as its delay time modulation source. Chorus effects can be achieved when the D value is not too large. D controls the amount of LFO modulation epth epth applied to the delay time. The rate of the LFO is determined by the setting of the r REAKTOR SPARK – 29...
  • Page 30: Reverb Section

    Reverb eVerb effect and wet signal at the output of the reverb effect. Turning the r to the eVerb right crossfades the output to the wet signal. REAKTOR SPARK – 30...
  • Page 31: Oscillator Envelope Section

    2 the parabolic velocity curve is used with the influence to the levels increasing with the . The parabolic velocity curve exhibits higher velocity sensitivity at higher el to eVel alue REAKTOR SPARK – 31...
  • Page 32 A setting of +0.5 causes the times to be halved, a setting of +1.0 causes the times to be multiplied by one-fourth for each octave higher than the note C3. REAKTOR SPARK – 32...
  • Page 33: Modulation Envelope Section

    8 parameters in ways determined in the Modulation Envelope Amounts section. For the details on how the envelope parameters in the Modulation Envelope section influence the envelope evolution see the Oscillator Envelope section. REAKTOR SPARK – 33...
  • Page 34: Modulation Envelope Amounts Section

    Ringmod/Filter section. The drive parameter of the Shaper unit is also important in feedback loops, since high input gains before the saturator suppress the signal level and with it self-oscillations. For this pur- REAKTOR SPARK – 34...
  • Page 35: Modulation Macro Controller Section

    They have already been assigned to the MIDI control numbers of the volume pedal (Ctrl 7), the expression pedal (Ctrl 11), and the modulation wheel (Ctrl 1), for Mc1, Mc2, and Mc3, respectively. REAKTOR SPARK – 35...
  • Page 36: Lfo Section

    . The routing of the modulation signal to each destination can be switched on or ontroller off with the t Mc1, t Mc2, and t Mc3 b for the Velocity Controller, MC1, uttonS MC2, and MC3, respectively. These buttons are located on the left of the corresponding controller’s fader. REAKTOR SPARK – 36...
  • Page 37 When c is set to +1 there is no clipping at the negative part of the waveform, and for -1 there is no clipping at the positive part of the waveform. REAKTOR SPARK – 37...
  • Page 38: Credits

    Sound Design: Alex Hofmann, Denis Gökdag (Surround SFX), Dietrich Pank, Ema Jolly, Eoin Rossney, Gustavo Bravetti, Jörg Hüttner, Jeremiah Savage, Martin Backes, Matthias Fuchs (Visophon), Stephan Schmitt, Thomas Binek (Tasmodia), Thomas Koot, Tobias Menguser SPARK Ensemble created by Stephan Schmitt. Graphics Design for SPARK by Phirol. REAKTOR SPARK – 38...

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