Steinberg Halion 5 Manual

							211
World Instruments 
Introduction
The World Instruments deliver a great variety of ethnic instruments which can either 
be played manually or use the integrated arpeggiator.
On the Sound page, the instruments can be fine-tuned with filter and amp settings. In 
addition, you can use the built-in micro-tuning functionality, which allows you to 
decrease the pitch of each key by a quarter note, to realize typical oriental scales.
The Filter Section
Filter Shape
The filter shapes are the same as on the Filter subpage, see “Filter Shape” on page 
114.
Cutoff
Controls the cutoff frequency of the filter.
Resonance
This parameter emphasizes the frequencies around the cutoff. At higher resonance 
settings, the filter self-oscillates, which results in a ringing tone. 
Env Amount
Controls the cutoff modulation from the filter envelope. 
Velocity
Controls the cutoff modulation from velocity. 
						

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World InstrumentsThe Amp Section
Filter Envelope
Attack
Controls the attack time of the filter envelope.
Decay
Controls the decay time of the filter envelope.
Sustain
Controls the sustain level of the filter envelope. 
Release
Controls the release time of the filter envelope.
The Amp Section
Amp Parameters
Key Delay
Delays playback of the notes. This parameter can be used when working with multiple 
programs or layers. Setting up different key delay values for the different layers allows 
you to spread the notes, so that they do not all begin at the same time.
Level
Controls the overall volume of the sound.
Velocity
Controls the level modulation from velocity. At 0, all notes are played with the same 
level.
Amp Envelope
Attack
Controls the attack time of the amplifier envelope.
Decay
Controls the decay time of the amplifier envelope.
Sustain
Sets the sustain level of the amplifier envelope.
Release
Sets the release time of the amplifier envelope. 
						

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World InstrumentsThe Pitch/LFO/MW Sections
The Pitch/LFO/MW Sections
Pitch Section
Pitchbend Up/Down
Here, you can set the range of the pitch modulation that is applied when you move the 
pitchbend wheel. 
Coarse
Adjusts the tuning in semitones. 
Fine
Adjusts the tuning in cents.
LFO Section
Freq
Controls the frequency of the modulation, that is, the speed of the LFO.
Sync
When Sync is active, the frequency is set in fractions of beats. 
Pitch
Controls the modulation depth of the pitch modulation.
Cutoff
Controls the modulation depth of the filter cutoff modulation.
MW Section
Vib Freq
Controls the frequency of the second LFO which is used for pitch modulation, or 
vibrato.
Vib Depth
Controls the depth of the vibrato modulation.
Cutoff
Controls the influence of the mod wheel on the filter cutoff. 
The Oriental Scale Section
Scale On/Off
Activates/Deactivates the influence of the scale settings on the played notes.
Note Switches
Activate a switch to decrease the tuning of the corresponding note by a quarter note.  
						

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World InstrumentsThe Arp Page
The Arp Page
This page contains the same parameters as the FlexPhraser, see “The FlexPhraser” on 
page 254. 
						

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World Percussion
Introduction
World Percussion delivers a great variety of ethnic percussion instruments and 
associated MIDI phrases. The instruments can be globally fine-tuned with filter and 
amp settings which in turn can make use of envelope settings. The built-in MIDI player 
allows you to use the included MIDI phrases or to import your own MIDI phrases.
MIDI Player Parameters
On/Off button
Activates/Deactivates the MIDI player part of the World Percussion Macro page.
Variation buttons
You can configure up to 8 different variations of your sounds and switch between 
them with the variation buttons. This works in the same way as for the FlexPhrasers, 
see 
“Working with FlexPhraser Variations” on page 258. 
ÖTo avoid switching variations in the middle of a beat or measure, use the trigger 
modes “Next Beat” or “Next Measure”.
Loading phrases
•To load a phrase, click in the Phrase field and select a phrase from the selector.
Exporting MIDI phrases
You can export your MIDI phrase as MIDI file using drag and drop. 
						

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World PercussionIntroduction
Loop
Defines whether the phrase is played once or continuously in a loop. When this is 
activated, the phrase plays in a loop.
Hold
With the Hold parameter, you can prevent the phrase from stopping or changing 
when the keys are released. In addition, the Gated mode plays silently in the 
background when you release the keys, and resumes playback at the current position 
when you press the keys again.
You can select one of the following options:
Trigger Mode
The Trigger Mode determines at which moment the player changes the phrase when 
you select another variation. 
You can select one of the following options:
Restart
Depending on the selected Restart mode and your playing, you can restart playback 
from the beginning of the loop.
You can select one of the following options
Start
This parameter allows you to shift the start of the loop in steps of 1/4 notes. The 
length of the loop is shortened accordingly.
Option Description
OffThe phrase changes immediately when releasing a key. The phrase 
stops immediately when releasing all keys.
OnThe phrase plays to end even when the keys are released. When the 
Loop option is activated, the phrase plays continuously in a cycle.
GatedThe phrase starts playback with the first key being played. It plays 
silently in the background even when the keys are released, and 
resumes playback at the current position when you press any of the 
keys again. This way, you can gate the playback of the phrase.
OptionDescription
ImmediatelyThe phrase changes as soon as you switch to another variation.
Next BeatThe phrase changes on the first new beat after switching to another 
variation.
Next MeasureThe phrase changes on the first new measure after switching to 
another variation.
OptionDescription
OffThe loop runs continuously and will not restart upon note changes.
First NoteThe loop restarts when a note is triggered and no other notes are 
already held.
Each NoteThe loop restarts each time a note is triggered.
Sync to HostSelect this to align the loop with the beats and measures of your 
host application. The loop aligns to the beats and measures each 
time you start the transport.
Follow TransportPlayback starts and stops automatically together with the transport 
controls in your host application. 
						

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World PercussionIntroduction
Length
This parameter allows you to shorten the length of the loop in steps of 1/4 notes.
ÖThe control range of Start and Length varies with the original length of the loop.
Tempo
When Sync is deactivated, use the Tempo control to set the internal playback speed 
of the loop. The playback speed of the loop is specified in Beats Per Minute (BPM). In 
addition, Tempo Scale gives you further control over the playback speed. The Tempo 
control is inactive when Sync is activated.
Sync
To synchronize the loop to the tempo of your host application, activate Sync. The 
Tempo control is disabled when Sync is activated.
ÖFor the modes “Sync to Host” and “Follow Transport”, synchronization to the host 
application is established automatically. In these modes, the Sync parameter cannot 
be edited.
Play
Click this to start playback of the phrase.
Low Key
This defines the lowest key on which the phrase is triggered.
High Key
This defines the highest key on which the phrase is triggered.
Center Key
This parameter determines the MIDI note that is used as the central position for the 
Key Follow function.
Pitch Drums in Relation to Center Key
Activate this to set the pitch of the drum sounds according to the center key.
The Performance section
Tempo Scale
This parameter defines the rate at which notes are triggered, that is, the speed at 
which the phrase is running. You can specify a value in fractions of beats. You can 
also set dotted and triplet note values.
When the Tempo parameter is 1/16 and you set this value to 1/8, for example, the 
speed is cut to half. When you set it to 1/32, the speed is doubled. Other values 
increase or decrease the speed accordingly.
Swing
Use this parameter to shift the timing of notes on even numbered beats. This way, the 
phrase gets a swing feeling. Negative values shift the timing backward, and the notes 
are played earlier. Positive values shift the timing forward, and the notes are played 
later.
Gate Scale
This parameter allows you to shorten or lengthen the notes of the phrase. At a value of 
100
 %, the notes play with their original gate length. 
						

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World PercussionIntroduction
Velocity Scale
This parameter allows you to raise or lower the note-on velocities of the phrase. At a 
value of 100
 %, the notes are played with their original velocity.
Quantize Note Value
This pop-up menu allows you to set up a quantization grid, in fractions of beats. You 
can also specify dotted and triplet values. This way, you can force the timing of the 
MIDI note events to play back only at the selected note value.
Quantize Amount
This parameter defines how much of the quantization grid is applied. A value of 100 % 
means the MIDI note events play back only at the specified Quantize note value. 
Smaller values move the notes only partially towards the next Quantize note value. 
With a value of 0
 %, no quantization is applied.
The Filter section
Cutoff
Adjusts the cutoff frequency of the filter.
Resonance
This parameter emphasizes the frequencies around the cutoff. At higher resonance 
settings, the filter self-oscillates, which results in a ringing tone. 
Env Amount
Controls the cutoff modulation from the filter envelope. 
Velocity
Controls the cutoff modulation from velocity.
Decay
Controls the decay time of the filter envelope.
The Amp section
Level
Controls the overall volume of the sound.
Velocity
Controls the level modulation from velocity. At 0, all notes are played with the same 
level.
Decay
Controls the decay time of the amplifier envelope. 
						

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Effects Reference
Introduction
HALion comes with a collection of high-quality studio effects. These effects are 
described in the following sections.
Many of the insert effects can also be used in surround configurations, that means, 
they process all channels. However, some effects only process the front left and right 
channels. This is true for the legacy HALion 3 effects, Stereo Pan, Chorus, Flanger, 
Rotary, Vibrato, and Multi Delay.
Reverb and Delay Effects
REVerence
REVerence is a convolution tool that allows you to apply room characteristics (reverb) 
to the audio. By recording an impulse in a room, you get the characteristics of the 
room. Convolution superimposes these characteristics to the sound. The result is a 
very natural sounding reverb. Included with this effect is a collection of high-quality 
reverb impulse responses.
Impulse Response
By selecting an impulse response you determine the basic sound character of the 
reverb.
Reverse
Activate this to reverse the impulse response.
Predelay
This determines the amount of time between the dry signal and the onset of the 
reverb. With higher predelay values you can simulate larger rooms.
Time 
This controls the reverb time. At a setting of 100 %, the impulse response is applied 
with its original length. 
						

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Effects ReferenceReverb and Delay Effects
Size
This scales the size of the simulated room. At a setting of 100 %, the impulse 
response is applied as recorded in the original room.
Level
Here you can adjust the level of the impulse response.
Equalizer
Activates the built-in three-band equalizer.
ER Tail Split
This sets the split point between the early reflections and the reverb tail.
ER Tail Mix
This sets the balance between the early reflections and the reverb tail. At a setting of 
50
 % the early reflections and the tail have the same volume level. Settings below 
50
 % raise the early reflections and lower the tail, as a result the sound source moves 
towards the front of the room. Settings above 50
 % raise the tail and lower the early 
reflections, as a result the sound source moves towards the back of the room.
Reverb
This effect produces a high-quality algorithmic reverb with early reflections and reverb 
tail. The early reflections are responsible for the spatial impression in the first 
milliseconds of the reverb. For emulating different rooms you can choose from different 
early reflections patterns and adjust their size. The reverb tail, or late reverberation, offers 
parameters for controlling the room size and the reverb time. You can adjust the reverb 
time individually in three frequency bands.
PreDelay
This determines the amount of time between the dry signal and the onset of the 
reverb. With higher predelay values you can simulate larger rooms.
Early Reflections
Here you select an early reflections pattern. The early reflections pattern contains the 
most important delays that deliver the key information for the spatial impression of the 
room. 
ER/Tail Mix
This sets the balance between the early reflections and the reverb tail. At a setting of 
50
 % the early reflections and the tail have the same volume level. Settings below 
50
 % raise the early reflections and lower the tail, as a result the sound source moves 
towards the front of the room. Settings above 50
 % raise the tail and lower the early 
reflections, as a result the sound source moves towards the back of the room.