Using Effects on the SP808

Roland is well known for their great effects processors and the effects on the SP-808 are no exception. There are many unique effects such as the analog synth, the step modulator, analog modeled choruses, tape delays, and flangers. They’ve even included effects from popular Roland products such as the SDE-330 Digital Delay, SRV-330 Digital Reverb, and the VS8F-Series Effect Expansion boards used in our popular hard disk recorders. It’s amazing how these effects can make even the most tired, overused samples seem brand new.

The SP-808 also allows you to use the dual D-Beam controller to alter the effects in real time æ great for live performance and re-sampling (page 15).

Use the following procedure to apply effects to a sample:

1. Press REALTIME EFFECTS [ON/OFF] so it is lit.
2. Hold SHIFT and press SELECT ROW so that “a” (PATCH) is lit.
3. Hold SHIFT and press MUTE to display the Mix Common screen.
4. CURSOR to FxLoc and use the VALUE/TIME dial to select “(FX PATCH).”
5. Hold SHIFT and press EFFECTS.
6. CURSOR to the Fx value and use the VALUE/TIME dial to adjust the overall effect level as desired.
7. Press FX INFO and use the VALUE/TIME dial to select the desired effect.
8. Press ENTER/YES to select the effect.
9. Press the desired pad to hear the results.
10. Repeat steps 4-6 to audition different effects.
Sampling with Effects
The SP-808 allows you to record an effect and make it a permanent part of your sample. This frees up the effect processor, allowing it to be used on another sample or track. There are two different ways an effect can be routed to record: as an insert effect or in a send/return loop. The method you should use depends on the effect you are using. Insert should be used when you want to send your source signal into the effects processor and record the output of the effects processor without recording the dry signal. Some effects commonly used in an insert routing include distortion, slicer, and radio. Use the send/return method when you want to record a mixture of the dry and effected signal. Effects such as reverb, delay, and chorus are commonly used in a send/return fashion.

Use the following procedure to record a sample with the effects inserted:

1. Hold SHIFT and press MUTE (MIX COMMON).
2. Hold SHIFT and press SELECT ROW so that “a” (PATCH) is lit.
3. CURSOR to FxLoc and rotate the VALUE/TIME dial to select “INS RECORD.”
4. Press REALTIME EFFECTS [ON/OFF] so it is lit.
5. Press FX INFO and use the VALUE/TIME dial to select the desired effect.
6. Press ENTER/YES to select the effect.
7. Press PLAY to return to the main screen. Now, when you sample to a pad, the effect will be recorded.
Use the following procedure to record an effect in a send/return loop:

1. Hold SHIFT and press MUTE (MIX COMMON) to display the Mix Common screen.
2. CURSOR to FxLoc and use the VALUE/TIME dial to select “SEND/RETURN.”
3. Press PLAY to return to the main play screen.
4. Press MIC/LINE EFFECTS so it is lit.
5. Repeat steps 4-7 above to sample with an effect.
Realtime Effects Knobs and the D-Beam
Each effect contains six parameters that can be edited as the sample or track is playing by using the Realtime Effect knobs. These knobs will edit different parameters depending on the effect you choose. The SELECT ROW button will toggle between the parameters that can be controlled with the knobs. You can also assign the Realtime Effects knobs to function as a 3-band isolator or filter control. This is very useful for live performance.

Use the following procedure to assign the Realtime Effects knobs to function as a 3-band isolator or filter control:

1. Hold SHIFT and press SELECT ROW so that “b” (FILTER/ISOLATOR) is lit.
2. Press the SELECT ROW button by itself to toggle between FILTER and ISOLATOR.
3. Play the pad and rotate the control knobs to edit the effect.
The dual D-Beam can also be an effective tool for editing the effects. The D-Beam is an infrared beam that can be used to control various parameters on the SP-808, including effect parameters. The D-Beam is controlled by moving your hand across the beam and the parameters will change in various ways depending on how close your hand is to the source of the beam on the SP-808’s front panel. The SP-808 actually uses a dual D-Beam controller that can edit two different parameters at once. Most of the preset effect Patches already have controllers assigned to the left and right beam. Use the following procedure to edit an effect in real time using the D-Beam controller:

1. Hold SHIFT and press SELECT ROW so that “a” (PATCH) is lit.
2. Press SELECT ROW so that FILTER is lit.
3. Press REALTIME EFFECTS [ON/OFF] so it is lit.
4. Press D-BEAM CONTROLLER EFFECTS so it is lit.
5. Play the desired sample or track and move your hands over the D-Beam to control the effects as desired.
Use the following procedure to change the effect parameters the D-Beam controls:

1. Hold SHIFT and press SELECT ROW so that “a” (PATCH) is lit.
2. Hold SHIFT and press FX INFO.
3. Use the CURSOR buttons to highlight CTL (Control) and press ENTER/YES.
4. CURSOR down to C5BL(Control 5 Beam Left) and rotate the VALUE/TIME dial to select the desired effect parameter for the left D-Beam.
5. CURSOR down to C6BR(Control 6 Beam Right) and rotate the VALUE/TIME dial to select the desired effect parameter for the right D-Beam.
6. Use the PARAMETER buttons and the VALUE/TIME dial to change other effect values as desired.
7. Press PLAY to return to the main play screen.
8. Press one of the pads to play a sample and move your hand across the D-Beam to hear the results.
Virtual Analog Synth
In addition to all of the other effects, the SP-808 contains a virtual analog synthesizer similar to the Roland JP-8000. This is a programmable monophonic synthesizer that can be triggered from an external keyboard, the D-Beam controller, or the Step Modulator. It has all of the parameters you would expect from an analog synth including cutoff, resonance, VCO, VCF, LFO, portamento, ring modulator, delay, chorus, and flanger effects. You can customize these parameters and save the settings as a user effects Patch. You can also sample the output of the synthesizer to a pad or record it to a track. Use the following procedure to control the virtual analog synthesizer effect from a MIDI keyboard:

1. Connect the MIDI OUT of your keyboard to the MIDI IN of the SP-808.
2. Set your keyboard to transmit on MIDI channel 11 (refer to the owner’s manual for your keyboard if you are unsure how to do this).
3. Press FX INFO, use the VALUE/TIME dial to select “P99 20>AnlgSyn,” and press ENTER/YES.
4. Play the keyboard to hear the virtual analog synthesizer.
Tip: You can adjust the parameters of the virtual analog synthesizer in real time using the Realtime Effects knobs. Refer to pages 123-130 of the SP-808 Owner∂s Manual for more information.

If you have edited the effect parameters and would like to save those settings, use the following procedure to write a user effects Patch:

1. Hold SHIFT and press ENTER/YES (SAVE).
2. CURSOR down to EFFECTS Patch and press ENTER/YES.
3. Use the VALUE/TIME dial to select the desired User location.
4. CURSOR down to New Name and use the pads or the VALUE/TIME dial to rename the Patch.
5. Press ENTER/YES twice.
6. Press PLAY to return to the main play screen.

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