Global Controls
These controls generally work in any Editor at any time. Just pay attention to the notes below the table.
| Function | Buttons |
|---|---|
| Move around Editor*1 | tap U/D/L/R |
| Modify a Value*2 | hold A then tap/hold U/D/L/R |
| Clear or 'Reset' a Value*3 | tap B |
| Play/Pause (Pattern or Song Mode) | tap START |
| Play From Beginning (Pattern or Song Mode) | hold SELECT then tap START |
| Play Song From Loop (Song Mode) | hold A then tap START |
| Mute a Track*4 | hold B then tap SELECT |
| Solo a Track*4 | hold B then tap START |
| Move To Another Editor | hold B then tap U/D/L/R (in the direction of the Editor you want to move to) |
*1 In some Editors you are only able to move Up/Down or Left/Right.
*2 Generally most values can be increased/decreased by 01 by pressing L/R, or by bigger increments (mostly 10 or 0C in the case of notes/note offsets) by pressing U/D but not all of them can be.
*3 In some Editors the function of 'clearing' or 'reseting' a value varies. Sometimes it will write 00 to the parameter, sometimes a 'default' value will be written or sometimes the function is used to turn a feature on/off.
*4 Whichever Editor you are currently in, the Track that will be affected by Mute and Solo is shown by the Track Indicator (blue arrow) to the left of the Grid.
Song Editor Controls
In addition to Global Controls, the Song Editor has these extra functions.
Remember that most of the parameters in the Song Editor can be modified only if Song Recording mode is enabled (REC).
| Function | Buttons | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Change between Pattern Mode (OFF), Song Play (PLY) and Song Record (REC) | hold A on Song Mode parameter then tap:
| ||||||
| Toggle Looping | tap B on LP[] parameter | ||||||
| Show Song Edit Menu | hold SELECT then tap D | ||||||
| Show Clear Data Menu | hold B + SELECT then tap D | ||||||
| Change current Bar from anywhere in Song Editor*1 | hold B then tap/hold U/D/L/R | ||||||
| Load the Pattern on the current Bar into the Grid Editor and jump to Grid Editor | tap SELECT anywhere in Song Editor | ||||||
| Insert a Bar into the Song*2 | hold B+A then tap R | ||||||
| Delete a Bar from the Song*3 | hold B+A then tap L |
*1 This is mainly so that you can leave the cursor on the PTN parameter and advance fowards/backwards through a song when changing Pattern numbers, making editing a little quicker.
*2 When inserting a Bar, if the current Bar is before the Loop point or on the first Bar of the Loop, the Loop point will be pushed one bar along. If the current Bar is anywhere else inside the Loop the Loop Start will remain the same but the Loop will be extended by 1 Bar.
*3 When deleting a Bar, if the current bar is before the Loop, the Loop Start will be moved 1 Bar back. If the current Bar is within the Loop the Loop Length will be shortened by 1 Bar.
Note: when changing the Song number (SNG), the Song Speed/Swing (SPD/SWG) or the Loop Start/Loop Length parameters, the value isn't set until you release the A button.
Pattern Editor Controls
In addition to Global Controls, some aspects of the Pattern Editor have these extra functions.
Grid Editor
| Function | Buttons |
|---|---|
| Add a Trigger | tap A in an empty cell |
| Remove a Trigger (clear the cell) | tap B on an cell containing a Trigger |
| Cycle a Trigger between Note, Tie Note and Kill Note (and off) | tap A on a cell containing a Trigger |
| Paste The Last Deleted Trigger | tap B in an empty cell |
| Modify a Trigger Parameter*1 | with cursor on a cell containing a Trigger, hold A then tap/hold U/D/L/R |
| Modify Parameter For All Triggers In Current Phrase*1 | with cursor on a cell containing a Trigger, hold A + B then tap/hold U/D/L/R |
| Shift Phrase Left/Right | hold SELECT + A then tap L/R |
| Move Track Up/Down In Pattern*2 | hold SELECT + A then tap U/D |
| Show Pattern Edit Menu | hold SELECT then tap D |
| Paste Phrase/Pattern*3 | hold SELECT then tap U |
| Show Pattern Echo Menu | hold B + SELECT then tap D |
*1 remember that the Trigger Parameter that will be modified is indicated by the indicator in the Trigger Editor. 'Current Phrase' is the Phrase that your cursor is in.
*2 Changing the Track order moves both the Phrase and the Drum assigned to the Track.
*3 You have to have previously copied either Phrase or Pattern data via the Pattern Edit Menu. A confirmation dialogue will appear in the left of the Song Editor asking you to confirm the operation.
Pattern Parameters
| Function | Buttons |
|---|---|
| Change Pattern Parameter*1 | hold A then tap U/D/L/R |
| Clone Pattern*2 | with cursor on PTN parameter, hold B then tap A |
*1 Changing any of the Pattern Parameters has a slightly different behaviour than other parameters in PR8. While you still have A pressed you can change any of the Pattern Parameters freely but even though the values (and the Grid view in the case of changing the Pattern Number, PTN) change visually, the new values won't take effect until you release the A button.
*2 If an unused, empty Pattern is found, the current Pattern will be copied to the empty one and then the newly cloned Pattern will be loaded into the Grid and will begin to play when the previous Pattern end is reached.
A NOTE ABOUT PATTERN CLONING: PR8 looks for a Pattern that has Phrase 00 assigned to all Tracks. If it finds one it treats that Pattern as being 'empty' and uses it as the destination for the clone operation. With this in mind, always leave Phrase 00 blank if you intend to make use of the Pattern clone function. It's unlikely that you'd have a Pattern that deliberately had Phrase 00 assigned to every track but it's worth being aware of just in case.
Also, it's worth mentioning that the Pattern cloning search will never use Pattern 00 as a destination Pattern. Though, unlike the restriction with Phrases, you can use Pattern 00 like any other Pattern without worry.
Track Assignment
| Function | Buttons |
|---|---|
| Move Track Up/Down In Pattern*1 | hold A + B then tap U/D |
| Clone Phrase Assigned To Track*2 | hold B then tap A |
*1 Changing the Track order moves both the Phrase and the Drum assigned to the Track.
*2 This function searches for unused Phrases. If successful the current Phrase will be duplicated to the unused Phrase and then Track Assignment for the current Track will be update to the new Phrase. If no unused Phrases are found, nothing happens.
Trigger Editor
| Function | Buttons |
|---|---|
| Repeat Last Set Value | tap A |
| Remap/Reset Trigger Parameter*1 | with cursor on T1, T2 or T3, hold SELECT then tap A |
| Move the 'Ghost Cursor' (change the 'current cell') | hold SELECT then tap U/D/L/R |
*1 As long as the cursor is on a Tx parameter, this function will scan the current Track and will set the Tx value in each Note Trigger to the 'default' value that is specified in the Drum Patch. An indicator will 'wipe' across the Track as a visual confirmation.
Drum Editor Controls
In addition to Global Controls, the Drum Editor has these extra functions.
| Function | Buttons |
|---|---|
| Move between Drum Voices | hold B then tap L/R |
| Toggle Voice On/Off*1 | tap SELECT |
| Show Drum Edit Menu | hold SELECT then tap D |
| Paste Drum*2 | hold SELECT then tap U |
*1 You can also turn a Voice on/off by putting the cursor on the Voice switch and holding A then tapping U/D/L/R.
*2 You have to have previously copied Drum data via the Drum Edit Menu. A confirmation dialogue will appear in the left of the Song Editor asking you to confirm the operation.
Drum Auxiliary Editor
Editing the Drum Auxiliary Parameters (Drum Name, T1/T2/T3 parameters) has some extra controls too.
| Function | Buttons |
|---|---|
| To Edit Drum Name | with cursor on 'NAM' parameter, tap A. You can then highlight individual letters with the cursor using L/R and change the letter using U/D. When you are finished editing, tap A |
| To Edit Tx Parameters | with cursor on a Tx parameter, hold A then tap U/D. |
| Remap/Reset Trigger Automation*1 | with cursor on T1, T2 or T3, hold SELECT then tap A |
| Toggle Tx Control On/Off | with cursor on a Tx parameter, tap B |
*1 As long as the cursor is on a Tx parameter, this function will scan the current Track and will set the Tx value in each Note Trigger to the 'default' value that is specified in the Drum Patch. An indicator will 'wipe' across the Track as a visual confirmation.
Moving From Pattern Editor to Drum Editor
Normally, moving to and from the Drum Editor will leave the cursor in the Voice Parameter Group that you were last in. However, as a convenience feature, if you change Tracks in the Pattern Editor and then move from the Pattern to the Drum Editor and the cursor will end up in a Voice Parameter Group that is not switched on, the cursor instead will move to the first active Voice of the Drum Patch.
A Note about the Automation 'Remap/Reset' Function
This is probably one of those functions that will have you scratching your head...until you need it! You might find that you've added a load of automation tweaks to a Phrase using one of the Tx parameters and then at a later point you might want to change what Drum Parameters that Tx parameter is affecting. The problem then is that you have automation data in the Phrase that is likely invalid for the new Tx parameter. Using this function you can 'remap' the automation for that Tx parameter to a sensible value (copied from whatever Drum Parameter that Tx is pointing to).
You can perform this function both from the Drum Editor (Aux) or the Trigger Editor.