DRUM DIREKTOR USER GUIDE

Drum Direktor User Guide

Drum Direktor : Introduction

Drum Direktor : Sequencer

Sequencer MIDI Controls

Sequencer Global Controls

Sequencer Drum Editing

Sequencer Grouping

Drum Direktor : Drums

Drum Pad Controls

10

Drum Pad Grouping

13

Drum Direktor : Mixer

14

Group Mixer

15

Group Effects

16

Master Effects

18

Global Effects

21

Drum Direktor : Config

24

MIDI Assign

25

Playback

26

Group Options

26

Drum Direktor : Installation

29

Drum Direktor : FAQ

30

Drum Direktor System Requirements

33

Drum Direktor Credits

33

Drum Direktor : Introduction

Thank-you for purchasing Drum Direktor from The Loop Loft. Drum Direktor is a sample/loop
based instrument for Kontakt 5.2.1 and above which was designed from the ground up to make
interacting with and creating music using drum loops a seamless and intuitive process. One of
the main goals of the instrument is to create a method of interacting with loops that could work
inside of and enhance, many different workflows. Some of the highlight features of the
instrument include

Internal 32 Step Sequencer with 8 recallable patterns that allow for the simultaneous
sequencing of loops and samples within a single instrument. Shuffle, Global Accent, Step
Dynamics, Per group Sequencer Precedence and a convenient layout of Solo, Mute and
Drum Loop auditioning all make sequencing patterns within Drum Direktor a natural and
fast process.

Flexible grouping architecture which allows for sophisticated organization and structure of
drum loops and samples with easily identifiable colors and workflow features usually
reserved for dedicated hardware workstations.

Powerful Drum Pad infrastructure which allows for 16 simultaneous loops or samples from
a collection of over 300 to be played and sequenced simultaneously with a clear waveform
overview and playback positioning.

A feature rich tools set of tools for processing each individual Drum Pad. Users have the
ability to set playback quantization, playback speed, sampler mode, slice start time, pitch,
stereo width, randomization, filtering, distortion, velocity, volume and pan on each of the
individual 16 Drum Pads.

A dedicated mixer for processing each of the 8 individual drum groups with high quality
internal effects which include a Transient Shaper and Compressor/EQ modelled after a
famous Solid State Console.

Global Effects for Delay, Reverb and a powerful Tape Machine which allows for quick and
powerful tone shaping. The Drum Direktor Tape Machine matches the quality and workflow
of mixing drums to a multi-track tape machine in a fast and easy to use custom design.

Internal master bus processors including EQ, Compression, Filtering and Distortion for a
polished mix ready sound without ever having to use external effects or plugins.

Powerful MIDI mapping controls for configuring Drum Direktor to behave exactly the way
you want to work with your existing MIDI controllers.

Highly customizable group options including user definable colors, choke times and
external output for further processing and mixing within your favourite DAW software.

Low RAM and CPU usage options for compatibility with a wide range of systems.

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Drum Direktor : Sequencer

Drum Direktor features an intuitive step sequencer which allows for the simultaneous layering of
loops and samples across all 16 Drum Pads. The sequencer is controlled via external MIDI
messages and allows for instantaneous starting, stopping and switching of Loops, Samples and
Patterns.
Sequencer MIDI Controls

Sequencer Global Controls

Sequencer Drum Editing

Sequencer Grouping

7
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Sequencer MIDI Controls

The internal Kontakt keyboard displays the coloured keys which perform the various functions of the Sequencer.

Blue Keys
Drum Pad Triggers - Trigger the notes assigned to the individual drum pads starting from
Drum Pad 1 and extending to Drum Pad 16. By default this key range is C1 to D#2.
Yellow Key
Pattern Mute Key - When this note is held down any Loops or pattern currently playing on a
subsequently triggered key will be immediately silenced. This can be used to stop a long
running loop or to stop the playback of the sequencer. By default this key is E2.
Red Keys
Pattern Start Keys - These notes are are assigned to the eight patterns of the sequencer.
Pressing on the highlighted notes will instantly switch to the corresponding pattern. If no pattern
is currently playing these keys will start playback with the corresponding pattern of the key
selected. When Drum Direktor is running inside of an external host such as a DAW, or using
Kontakts internal Sync playback, playback will be quantized to begin on beat 1 of the following
bar. By default this key range is F2 to C3.
Black / Inverted White Key
Pad / Pattern Stop Key - This note when triggered will immediately stop all samples, loops and
patterns from playing. Each individual group will fade out by their corresponding group fade
time. By default this key is C#3.

Sequencer Global Controls

Drum Direktors Sequencer Global Controls.

Sequence - Selects one of the 8 Sequence Patterns for playback. Alternatively these can also
be selected via the Red Keys highlighted on the Kontakt keyboard or through external MIDI
input corresponding to the 8 keys ascending from the Pattern Start Key found in the Config
Panel.
Copy - When selected the current Sequence Pattern will be copied to the next selected
Sequence Pattern which is selected through the Sequence drop down menu or corresponding
external MIDI note.
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Clear - Clears all steps and Globals Accent for the currently selected pattern.
1-8 - Displays Drum Pads 1-8 for Sequence Editing.
9-16 - Displays Drum Pads 9-16 for Sequence Editing.
Length - Determines the Length of the Step Sequencer between 1 and 32 Steps. Controllable
via the length slider or by clicking and dragging up/down on the numerical representation of
steps.
Rate - Sets the synchronized rate the Sequencer takes to progress between each step.
Adjustable between 1/1, 1/2, 1/4, 1/8, 1/16 and 1/32 time values.
Shuffle - Sets the shuffle and groove of the Step Sequencer. The centre position will cause the
sequencer to play with a straight timing. Values to the right push each 1/8 note further behind
the beat and values to left rush each 1/8 note ahead of the beat.
Accent - Determines the Volume increase for steps that have Global Accent enabled. When set
to the lowest position Global Accent will have no volume increase to corresponding steps.

Sequencer Drum Editing

Sequencer Drum Editing in Drum Direktor. Currently showing the Sequence Editor for Drum Pad 1 (Highlighted in Orange)

Sequencer - Highlights the Sequence Step with a running light which illuminates the current
playing step.
Accent - When selected adds a Global Accent for all Drum Pads on the corresponding step.
The overall Volume level of this accent is determined with the Accent Knob.
Sequence Editor - Pattern editor for Drum Pads 1-16. Each pad is highlighted in a color
corresponding to the group which the Drum Pad is assigned to. Click and Drag up to increase
velocity steps from 0 (off) to 4 (Max Velocity).
Drum Pad Indicator - Plays the current sound assigned to the selected Drum Pad when the
corresponding option is enabled in the config panel.
Drum Pad Mute - Mutes the Output Volume of the selected Drum Pad.
Drum Pad Solo - Mutes the Output Volume of all Drum Pads except the current Drum Pad.

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Sequencer Grouping

Advanced Group choking keeps Drum Pads assigned to the same group from playing at identical steps. Here no Drums Pads
assigned to that group has values placed at the same step.

Color plays a big role in helping to quickly identify many of the aspects of Drum Direktor. With
the sequencer in particular there are a few considerations involving grouping which are
important to keep in mind.

Drum pads which are assigned to the same group will always choke each other on
playback. What this means is that if two Drum Pads are assigned to the same group and
one of them has a value placed at a specific step, drawing a new value on the other Drum
Pad at the same step will automatically clear it from the first one.
When a Drum Pad has a sequence and is switched into a group that also contains Drum
Pads with values at identical positions the user must make a decision regarding which Drum
Pad will take precedence. See the below images for a detailed explanation outlining the
intended process for dealing with this.

Drum Pad 9 and Drum Pad 10 have steps which are occurring at identical steps. Because these Drum Pads are in different
groups this causes no problem and the two Drum Pads will play simultaneously.

Now you can see that Drum Pad 10 has been set to the same group as Drum Pad 9. This causes a problem because steps in the
same group are occurring at the same step on both Drum Pads. In order to correct this the user must make a decision on which of
the Drum Pads is to take precedent and remove values from the steps of the other(s).
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Sequencer Precedence occurs when a user selects the sequencer of a Drum Pad with the mouse. In this example the user has
clicked the sequencer for Drum Pad 10 causing the Drum Pad 9 to lose all values occurring at identical steps.

Alternatively if the user had clicked Drum Pad 9 instead of Drum Pad 10 the opposite would have happened. All values occurring
at identical steps in Drum Pad 9 would be removed from Drum Pad 10.

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Drum Direktor : Drums

The Drums panel allows for the selection and editing of 16 unique Loops and Samples. Controls
for Sample Start, Amplifier Envelope, Filter, Distortion and Output settings can be controlled for
each Drum Pad. The Drum Pads can also be assigned to one of 8 groups which can be further
enhanced an processed in the Mixer Panel.

Drum Pad Controls

10

Drum Pad Grouping

13

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Drum Pad Controls

Drum Pad Options

Waveform Overview - Displays the overview of the currently selected Drum Pads waveform.
Quantize - When synchronized to a host the currently select pad will quantize it's playback
timing to the selected value. This is ideal for live performing when it would be desirable to have
the playback of a loop or sample begin on a specific beat. The options include 1/1, 1/2, 1/4, 1/8
and 1/16.
Speed - Sets the playback speed of the currently selected loop. 0.5X, 1.0X and 2.0X speed.
This can be useful for correctly synchronizing the speed of a loop to double or half time tempos.
i.e. : Your song may be in 90BPM but you would like to set your projects tempo 180BPM for a
double time metronome. In this case the loops will play at double the expected speed but they
can be adjusted to play in the correct speed by selecting 0.5x from the speed option. This
option is only active when the Mode is set to Sync.
Mode - Sets the Sampler Mode for the currently selected loop.
Sync - Synchronizes playback to the host tempo. When using the Speed parameter playback
can be set to half, normal,or double time.
Free - Plays at the original speed. This is most useful for playing back samples and
breakbeat style one shots from loops without any time-stretching.
Vintage - Plays at the original speed and models the sound of a classic sampler. Like the
free mode this is most useful for playing back samples and breakbeat style one shots from
loops without any time-stretching. Vintage differs from free mode by lowering the bit depth
and matching the tuning artifacts of vintage samplers. This mode is ideal for recreating
classic drum sounds found in electronic music styles prominent throughout the 80s and 90s.
Tune - Changes the pitch of the drum pad precisely by +/- 12 semitones.

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Loop Select
Loop Filter - Filters the Loop Select to only
display a specific category of loops and
samples.
Group - Assigns the currently selected pad to
one of the 8 loop groups. When the group is
adjusted the color of the pad will visually adjust to match the color of the selected group.
Clone - When enabled the current drum pad settings will be copied to the next selected drum
pad. When used in combination with Select on Note in the Config panel MIDI notes can be
used to quickly copy settings between Drum Pads.
Previous Loop - Selects the previous loop in the Loop List.
Next Loop - Selects the next loop int the Loop List.
Loop Select - Selects the assigned loop for the currently selected pad.

Modifiers
Slice - Moves the sample start position of
the current Drum Sample to the next or
previous transient. The slice marker is
visible in the Waveform Overview as a
solid line which matches the color of the
Drum Pad Group.
Offset - Moves the sample start position of
the current Drum Sample by a finer value.
This can be useful for selecting drum hits
not mapped to the slices or for creating new and interesting rhythms.
Pitch - Changes the pitch of the drum pad by +/- 1200 cents. Similar in function to the tune
option but instead of changing by semitone it allows for finer increments of tune.
Width - Adjusts the stereo width of current drum pad from 0% (mono) to 200%.
Rnd. Pan - Randomizes the pan position of the currently selected drum pad within 0-100%.
Attack - Adjusts the Attack Time of the currently selected drum pad.
Hold - Adjusts the Hold Time of the currently selected drum pad.
Decay - Adjusts the Decay Time of the currently selected drum pad.
Loop / One Shot - When enabled the Attack, Hold and Decay settings are bypassed. Loops will
play continuously until stopped and Samples will play for their entire duration.
Rnd. Tune - Randomizes the tune of the currently selected drum pad within +/- 100 cents.
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Filter
Cutoff - Adjusts the Filter Cutoff Frequency of the currently
selected Drum Pad Filter. When set to HPF the off position is fully
counter clockwise. When set to LPF the off position is fully
clockwise.
Res - Adjusts the Filter Resonance of the currently selected drum
pad. With a value greater than 0, this control will boost a small
frequency range around the cutoff frequency.
Drive - Adjusts the Filter drive of the currently selected drum pad.
which controls the amplitude increase after the filter. This control
can be used to compensate for amplitude reduction due to the
filter, or to increase the soft saturation of the effect.
HPF / LPF - Toggles between HPF and LPF filters. Note that the cutoff frequency dynamically
adjusts when switching styles.

Bit Crush
Depth - Adjusts the Bit-Depth of the currently selected drum pad within 24-1 Bit
by re-quantizing the signal. Fractional bit levels (such as 12.4 bits) are possible
and can add considerable grit. Audio CDs have a quantization depth of 16 bits,
old samplers frequently used 8 or 12 bits, and 4 bits evoke memories of countless
irritating childrens toys.
Rate - Adjusts the Sample Rate of the currently selected drum pad within
44100-50Hz by resampling the signal to an adjustable sample rate. The
resampling is done without any kind of (usually mandatory) low-pass filtering,
which causes all kinds of wonderful aliasing artifacts. At 50 Hz not much of the
original signal will be left.

Output Controls
Pan - Adjusts the Pan Position of the currently selected drum pad.
Level - Adjusts the Output Volume of the currently selected drum pad.
Level Via Vel. - Determines the Velocity Sensitivity of the Output Volume
for the currently selected drum pad.

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Drum Pad Grouping

Each Drum Pad belongs to one of eight drum groups. These groups determine the following
behaviors for the drum pads
The color of the Drum Pad and Group Mixer Track components determined by the Group
Settings section of the Config Panel.
The mixer channel that the Drum Pad will be output to.
The Choke Group the Drum Pad is assigned to. Only one Drum Pad per group may play
simultaneously. This means Drum Pads which belong to the same choke group will mute all
other Drum Pads in the same group when played. The time that the other Drum Pads will
take to Fade Out is determined by the Choke Time found in the Config Panel

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Drum Direktor : Mixer

The mixer panel allows for the balancing and processing of the 8 Group Channels, Master Bus
and Global Effects. Track Effects include a Transient Shaper and Compression and EQ
modelled after a famous solid state mixing console. Each group track also has access to a
global Reverb, Delay and a powerful global Tape Machine. The Master Bus combines all eight
groups into a single stereo track and features master EQ, Compression, Filtering, Bit Crusher
and Tape Drive Effects..
Group Mixer

15

Group Effects

16

Master Effects

18

Global Effects

21

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Group Mixer

Each of the 8 Groups provides independent control over Pan, Volume, Mute and Solo and
the display of the stereo level meters. All of these parameters may be viewed
simultaneously and in all sections of the Mixer Panel.
The fader and level meters of the Group Tracks match the color of the specific group. These
colors are user definable and may be switched in the Group Settings Section of the Config
Panel. Please refer to the Group Settings section on pages 26-27 for more details on
changing these colors.
To select a group for editing of track effects select the GRP # button above the Group Pan
Knob. The buttons text will illuminate yellow to signify which track you are currently editing.
To the right of the Master fader are three output knobs for the volume control of the Shaper,
Compressor and EQ of the currently selected group.

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Group Effects

Each of the 8 Group Tracks features a dedicated Transient Shaper, Compressor, Quad-Band
EQ and Reverb and Delay Send. To enable/disable the Shape, Compressor and Quad-Band EQ
select the yellow light to the left of the effect name. Select the GRP # button above the Group
Pan Knob to edit the effect parameters of a specific group.

Shape
Shape Attack - Adjusts the Transient Shaper Attack Time for the currently selected Group.
Increasing this parameter will add more punch and decreasing it will reduce sharp attacks.
Shape Release - Adjusts the Transient Shaper Sustain Time for the currently selected Group.
Increasing this parameter will add more body to the sound and decreasing it will reduce the
sounds tail.

Compressor
Compressor Threshold - Adjusts the Compressor Threshold for the currently selected Group.
The Threshold determines the level above which the Compressor starts working. Only levels
that rise above this threshold will be reduced by the compression; signals that stay below it will
be left unprocessed. To lower the threshold (thereby increasing the signal which is compressed)
turn the knob counter-clockwise to the left.
Compressor Ratio - Adjusts the Compressor Ratio for the currently selected Group. Ratio
controls the amount of compression. This is expressed as a ratio of input level change against
output level change. A Ratio of 1:1 would mean that no compression will be happening. For
example, a Setting of 4 represents the ration 4:1, which means for every 4 decibel increase of
amplitude above the threshold, the output will increase by only 1 decibel. This knob is stepped
to six specific values : 1.5:1, 2:1, 3:1, 4:1, 5:1 and 10:1. Smaller ratios are to the left and larger
ratios are to the right.

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Compressor Attack - Adjusts the Compressor Attack Time for the currently selected Group.
Attack determines how long the Compressor will take to reach the full Ratio value after an input
signal exceeds the Threshold level.

Compressor Release - Adjusts the Compressor Release Time for the currently selected Group.
Release adjusts the time the compressor will take to fall back to non-compression after the input
signal falls below the threshold.
Compressor Makeup - Adjusts the Compressor Makeup for the currently selected Group.
Makeup controls the output gain of the compressed signal. Because compression lowers the
volume of loud sections of audio the makeup is used to compensate for the gain reduction of the
effect.
Compressor Mix - Adjusts the Compressor Mix for the currently selected Group. Compressor
Mix controls the dry/wet mix of the compressor. This can be used to create a parallel
compression style routing, which increases the quieter signals rather than reducing the louder
ones. At a setting of 100% you will only hear the compressed signal, at a setting of 0% you will
only hear the unprocessed input signal.

Quad Band EQ
Quad-Band EQ Low Bell / Shelf - Adjusts the EQ Low Band Shape between Bell and Shelf for
the currently selected Group. When turned to the left the band becomes a shelf. When turned to
the right the band becomes a bell.
Quad-Band EQ Low Freq - Adjusts the EQ Low Band Frequency for the currently selected
Group. The frequency range is adjustable between 40Hz and 600Hz.
Quad-Band EQ Low Gain - Adjusts the EQ Low Band Gain for the currently selected Group.
The gain range is adjustable between -20dB and +20dB.
Quad-Band EQ Low-Mid Q Factor - Adjusts the EQ Low Mid Band Q for the currently selected
Group. For most EQs, the higher the quality, the narrower the frequency band, but with this EQ
the control is reversed to match the hardware it emulates and becomes a bandwidth control.
Quad-Band EQ Low-Mid Freq - Adjusts the EQ Low Mid Band Frequency for the currently
selected Group. The frequency range is adjustable between 200Hz and 2500Hz.
Quad-Band EQ Low-Mid Gain - Adjusts the EQ Low Mid Band Gain for the currently selected
Group. The gain range is adjustable between -20dB and +20dB.
Quad-Band EQ High-Mid Q Factor - Adjusts the EQ Low Mid Band Q for the currently selected
Group. For most EQs, the higher the quality, the narrower the frequency band, but with this EQ
the control is reversed to match the hardware it emulates and becomes a bandwidth control.
Quad-Band EQ High-Mid Freq - Adjusts the EQ High Mid Band Frequency for the currently
selected Group. The frequency range is adjustable between 600Hz and 7000Hz.

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Quad-Band EQ High-Mid Gain - Adjusts the EQ High Mid Band Gain for the currently selected
Group. The gain range is adjustable between -20dB and +20dB.
Quad-Band EQ High Bell / Shelf - Adjusts the EQ High Band Shape between Bell and Shelf
for the currently selected Group. When turned to the right the band becomes a shelf. When
turned to the left the band becomes a bell.
Quad-Band EQ High Freq - Adjusts the EQ High Band Frequency for the currently selected
Group. The frequency range is adjustable between 1500Hz and 22000Hz.
Quad-Band EQ High Gain - Adjusts the EQ High Band Gain for the currently selected Group.
The gain range is adjustable between -20dB and +20dB.

Send Effects
Effects Reverb Send - Adjusts the Reverb Send for the currently selected Group.
Effects Delay Send - Adjusts the Delay Send for the currently selected Group.

Master Effects

The Master Bus features a Quad-Band EQ, Compressor, Filter, Bitcrush and Tape Saturation
effect. To enable/disable these effect section select the yellow light to the left of the effect name.
Select the MASTER button above the Master Bus Pan Knob to edit the effect parameters of
the Master Bus.

Quad Band EQ
Quad-Band EQ Low Bell / Shelf - Adjusts the EQ Low Band Shape between Bell and Shelf for
the Master Bus. When turned to the left the band becomes a shelf. When turned to the right the
band becomes a bell.
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Quad-Band EQ Low Freq - Adjusts the EQ Low Band Frequency for the Master Bus. The
frequency range is adjustable between 40Hz and 600Hz.
Quad-Band EQ Low Gain - Adjusts the EQ Low Band Gain for the Master Bus. The gain range
is adjustable between -20dB and +20dB.
Quad-Band EQ Low-Mid Q Factor - Adjusts the EQ Low Mid Band Q for the Master Bus. For
most EQs, the higher the quality, the narrower the frequency band, but with this EQ the control
is reversed to match the hardware it emulates and becomes a bandwidth control.
Quad-Band EQ Low-Mid Freq - Adjusts the EQ Low Mid Band Frequency for the Master Bus.
The frequency range is adjustable between 200Hz and 2500Hz.
Quad-Band EQ Low-Mid Gain - Adjusts the EQ Low Mid Band Gain for the Master Bus. The
gain range is adjustable between -20dB and +20dB.
Quad-Band EQ High-Mid Q Factor - Adjusts the EQ Low Mid Band Q for the Master Bus. For
most EQs, the higher the quality, the narrower the frequency band, but with this EQ the control
is reversed to match the hardware it emulates and becomes a bandwidth control.
Quad-Band EQ High-Mid Freq - Adjusts the EQ High Mid Band Frequency for the Master Bus.
The frequency range is adjustable between 600Hz and 7000Hz.
Quad-Band EQ High-Mid Gain - Adjusts the EQ High Mid Band Gain for the Master Bus. The
gain range is adjustable between -20dB and +20dB.
Quad-Band EQ High Bell / Shelf - Adjusts the EQ High Band Shape between Bell and Shelf
for the Master Bus. When turned to the right the band becomes a shelf. When turned to the left
the band becomes a bell.
Quad-Band EQ High Freq - Adjusts the EQ High Band Frequency for the Master Bus. The
frequency range is adjustable between 1500Hz and 22000Hz.
Quad-Band EQ High Gain - Adjusts the EQ High Band Gain for the Master Bus. The gain
range is adjustable between -20dB and +20dB.

Compressor
Compressor Threshold - Adjusts the Compressor Threshold for the Master Bus. The
Threshold determines the level above which the Compressor starts working. Only levels that
rise above this threshold will be reduced by the compression; signals that stay below it will be
left unprocessed. To lower the threshold (thereby increasing the signal which is compressed)
turn the knob counter-clockwise to the left.
Compressor Ratio - Adjusts the Compressor Ratio for the Master Bus. Ratio controls the
amount of compression. This is expressed as a ratio of input level change against output level
change. A Ratio of 1:1 would mean that no compression will be happening. For example, a
Setting of 4 represents the ration 4:1, which means for every 4 decibel increase of amplitude
above the threshold, the output will increase by only 1 decibel. This knob is stepped to six
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specific values : 1.5:1, 2:1, 3:1, 4:1, 5:1 and 10:1. Smaller ratios are to the left and larger ratios
are to the right.
Compressor Attack - Adjusts the Compressor Attack Time for the Master Bus. Attack
determines how long the Compressor will take to reach the full Ratio value after an input signal
exceeds the Threshold level.

Compressor Release - Adjusts the Compressor Release Time for the Master Bus. Release
adjusts the time the compressor will take to fall back to non-compression after the input signal
falls below the threshold.
Compressor Makeup - Adjusts the Compressor Makeup for the Master Bus. Makeup controls
the output gain of the compressed signal. Because compression lowers the volume of loud
sections of audio the makeup is used to compensate for the gain reduction of the effect.
Compressor Mix - Adjusts the Compressor Mix for the Master Bus. Compressor Mix controls
the dry/wet mix of the compressor. This can be used to create a parallel compression style
routing, which increases the quieter signals rather than reducing the louder ones. At a setting of
100% you will only hear the compressed signal, at a setting of 0% you will only hear the
unprocessed input signal.

Filter
Cutoff - Adjusts the Filter Cutoff Frequency for the Master Bus. When set to HPF the off position
is fully counter clockwise. When set to LPF the off position is fully clockwise.
Res - Adjusts the Filter Resonance for the Master Bus. With a value greater than 0, this control
will boost a small frequency range around the cutoff frequency.
Drive - Adjusts the Filter drive for the Master Bus which controls the amplitude increase after
the filter. This control can be used to compensate for amplitude reduction due to the filter, or to
increase the soft saturation of the effect.
HPF / LPF - Toggles between HPF and LPF filters. Note that the cutoff frequency dynamically
adjusts when switching styles.

Bit Crush
Depth - Adjusts the Bit-Depth for the Master Bus within 24-1 Bit by re-quantizing the signal.
Fractional bit levels (such as 12.4 bits) are possible and can add considerable grit. Audio CDs
have a quantization depth of 16 bits, old samplers frequently used 8 or 12 bits, and 4 bits evoke
memories of countless irritating childrens toys.
Rate - Adjusts the Sample Rate for the Master Bus within 44100-50Hz by resampling the signal
to an adjustable sample rate. The resampling is done without any kind of (usually mandatory)
low-pass filtering, which causes all kinds of wonderful aliasing artifacts. At 50 Hz not much of
the original signal will be left.

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Tape
Drive - Adjusts the Drive for the Master Bus Tape Saturator which increases the amount of tape
distortion and compression. This parameter is able to shape the sound from subtle saturation to
heavy fuzz and distortion. The Drive ranges from 0dB to +48dB.
Warmth - Adjusts the Warmth for the Master Bus Tape Saturator. The centre position has a
neutral sound and Values to the left accentuate the high end and values to the right accentuate
the low end.
Makeup - Adjusts the Output for the Master Bus Tape Saturator. Because the Tape effect can
lower or increase the volume based on the amount of Drive the Makeup can be used to
compensate the volume. The Makeup ranges from -12dB to +24dB.

Global Effects

The Global Effects allow for control of the Delay, Reverb and Tape Machine effects which are
used globally by all tracks of the instrument. To enable/disable the Tape Machine select the
yellow light to the left of the effect name. The Delay and Reverb effects are always active but to
be heard require the Reverb and Delay Send of a specific Track Group be increased. Select the
EFFECTS button to the right of the MASTER button to edit the Global Effects parameters.
Please note that the Delay and Reverb sends run in parallel with the Master Bus. This means
that any processing applied in the Master Bus will not be applied to the return of the Delay and
Reverb effects. This is a design aspect of the Kontakt engine which Drum Direktor is built on.
When applying EQ and Compression effects this is generally a non-issue however certain
considerations may need to be considered when using Delay and Reverb with Master Filter and
Distortion effects.

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Delay
Time - Adjusts the synchronized Delay Time for the Master Delay Effect. Longer times are to the
left and shorter times are to the right.
Feedback - Adjusts the Feedback for the Master Delay Effect. Feedback is the amount of the
output signal thats being fed back into the input of the delay line, thereby creating a series of
echoes that gradually fade into silence.
Width - Adjusts the Stereo Ping-Pong for the Master Delay Effect. A Ping-Pong is a delay effect
that is created by alternating echos between the left and the right side of the stereo panorama.
Higher values will result in wider panning; at 100, signals alternate between the far left and far
right channel.
Hi Cut - Adjusts the Filter for the Master Delay Effect. Attenuates high frequencies in the
delayed signal. Turning this control clockwise will increase the damping effect. If you have set a
feedback level, the signal will gradually lose more high frequency content with each repetition.

Reverb
Delay - Adjusts the Pre-Delay for the Master Reverb Effect which Introduces a short delay
between the direct signal and the reverb trail build-up. This corresponds to the natural
reverberation behavior of large rooms, where a short time elapses before the first reflection of a
sound wave returns from a wall.
Size - Adjusts the Size of the simulated room for the Master Reverb Effect. This affects the
duration of the reverb trail.
Color - Adjusts the Colour for the Master Reverb Effect. This control allows you to adjust the
construction material of the simulated room and, consequently, the color of the reverb trail. Low
values simulate softer surfaces like wood, while high values simulate the reflection behavior of
hard surfaces like concrete.
Width - Adjusts the Stereo Width for the Master Reverb Effect. Higher values increase the
stereo base width of the output signal. Lower values simulate a closer distance to the sound
source.
Hi Cut - Adjusts the Filter for the Master Reverb Effect. Useful for simulating the absorption that
takes place in rooms due to furnishings, people, or acoustic treatments affecting the reflection
behavior.

Tape Machine
Input - Adjusts the signal which is sent from the output of an individual group to the Tape
Machine effect. Similar to the drive for the Master Bus Tape Saturator this increases the amount
of tape distortion and compression. This parameter is able to shape the sound from subtle
saturation to heavy fuzz and distortion. The Input range is dynamic based on the position of the
Drive Knob.
Output - Adjusts the Group Output of the signal from the Tape Saturator. Because the Tape
effect can lower or increase the volume based on the amount of Drive or Input the Makeup can
be used to compensate the volume. The Makeup ranges from off to +24dB.

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Drive - Adjusts the Input signal of all tracks globally. This can be used to adjust the Input on all
Group Tracks globally. The Drive knob is ideal for making large shifts to the tone of the tape
machine in combination with the individual Input controls which can be used for fine tuning the
level of saturation.
Warmth - Adjusts the Warmth for the Master Bus Tape Saturator. The centre position has a
neutral sound and Values to the left accentuate the high end and values to the right accentuate
the low end.

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Drum Direktor : Config

The config panel allows for the configuration of MIDI, Playback and Group Settings. These
settings can be considered Advanced and in most cases would be unnecessary for users to
interact with unless so desired.
MIDI Assign

25

Playback

26

Group Options

26

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MIDI Assign
Pad Start - When the button to the right of this title is selected the next received MIDI note and
the following 15 notes will become the triggers for the Drum Pads. Triggering one of these notes
from a MIDI controller will trigger playback from the corresponding Drum Pad. The MIDI note
which is the base trigger for the 16 Drum Pads is displayed to the left of this button. Alternatively
you may also click the name of the Note and select the desired MIDI Note from the dropdown
menu.
Pad / Pattern Stop - When the button to the right of this title is selected the next received MIDI
note will become the Pad / Pattern Stop Key. The Pad / Pattern Stop Key will immediately stop
any loop, sample or pattern while it is held down and the corresponding MIDI note to trigger a
Drum Pad or Pattern is entered from an external MIDI controller or Kontakts internal keyboard.
This works similar to the Mute or Choke button found on some hardware Drum Samplers. The
MIDI note which is the trigger for the Pad / Pattern Stop Key is displayed to the left of this
button. Alternatively you may also click the name of the Note and select the desired MIDI Note
from the dropdown menu.
Pattern Start - When the button to the right of this title is selected the next received MIDI note
and the following 7 notes will become the triggers for starting the playback and switching the
Sequence Patterns. Depending on the current state of the sequencer triggering one of these
notes from a MIDI controller will have one of multiple outcomes.

If external Sequencer / DAW is not playing and the Pattern Start Note is received while
the internal sequencer is not yet playing - Playback of the sequencer will start immediately
on the pattern which corresponds to the MIDI Note received.
If external Sequencer / DAW is not playing and the Pattern Start Note is received while
the internal sequencer is playing - Playback of the internal sequencer will continue at its
current step position but will switch immediately to the pattern which corresponds to the MIDI
Note received.
If external Sequencer / DAW is playing and the Pattern Start Note is received while the
internal sequencer is not yet playing - Playback of the sequencer will at the down beat of
the upcoming bar on the pattern which corresponds to the MIDI Note received.
If external Sequencer / DAW is playing and the Pattern Start Note is received while the
internal sequencer is playing - Playback of the internal sequencer will continue at its
current step position but will switch immediately to the pattern which corresponds to the MIDI
Note received.
Stop All - When the button to the right of this title is selected the next received MIDI note will
become the Stop All Key which stops playback of all patterns and running loops. When this note
is received from a MIDI controller or the Kontakt keyboard playback of the internal sequencer
and all running loops will be immediately stopped. The MIDI note which is the trigger for the
Stop All Key is displayed to the left of this button. Alternatively you may also click the name of
the Note and select the desired MIDI Note from the dropdown menu.

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Playback
Select on Note - When selected playing a Drum Pad MIDI note will select the corresponding
Drum Pad in the Drums Panel. This is a useful feature for quickly building rhythms and selecting
patterns. It is enabled by default but is generally not the desired function when editing the Drum
Pads and playing back a MIDI sequence from a Host / DAW in realtime.
Play Note on Click - When selected clicking a Drum Pad will play the Sample assigned to that
pad. This can be useful for auditioning the sound of a Drum Pad without a MIDI controller. In
some situations this may not be the desired behaviour and the option exists to disable it. By
default it is enabled.
Display Play Cursor - Disables the waveform Play Cursor when the Drums Panel. Because the
playback of the Play Cursor can cause considerably high CPU usage the option exists to
disable this behaviour.

Group Options
Color - This option allows you to set the default color for each of the Drum Groups. There are
12 options to choose from which you can select by clicking and selecting form the drop down
menu.

Pale Green

Indigo

Emerald Green

Robins Egg

Fuchsia

Pink

Sky Blue

Orange

Light Purple

Red

Light Yellow

Light Pink

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After changing a color you must restart the Kontakt engine in order for the changes to take
place globally throughout Drum Direktor. There are two ways which this can be achieved.
1. Restart the Kontakt Engine within Kontakt Instrument. This can be done by selecting
the following within Kontakt
a. Browse
b. Monitor
c. Engine
d. Restart Engine
For information on this process please refer to page 125 in the KONTAKT 5
Application Reference Manual.

2. Save your session or .nki instrument and reload Kontakt by closing and restarting
your host or standalone application.

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Choke - Sets the Fade / Choke Time for all Drum Pads within the specified group. The Choke
Time is how long it takes for a Drum Pad to fade out when another Drum Pad within the same
group is played. Because no two Drum Pads in the same group may play simultaneously the
Choke time can be used to create the desired transition between loops / samples. This includes
creating realistic fades, instantaneous transitions and dealing with unwanted phase issues
which may occur from overlapping sounds. The Choke Time is displayed in milliseconds and
can be set on a per Group basis between 0 and 300 milliseconds.
Output - The Output Menu displays the available physical outputs in Kontakt and allows you to
assign each group to its own output channel. Users can create their own output channels as
described in page 137 in the KONTAKT 5 Application Reference Manual or load the
included .nkm files Drum Direktor Multi-Output.nkm which has 8 dedicated external outputs
already created. These outputs are used with the multi-output version of Kontakt for users who
would prefer to have each group on its own unique channel for further processing within their
DAW.
Please note the following limitations when using external outputs
1. The Master Bus Effects are not available when using external outputs. Because these
effects are applied to the Stereo Mix of the group tracks inside of Kontakt the stereo mixing
must take place inside of Kontakt. With external outputs the individual tracks are placed
outside of Kontakt for mixing in your chosen DAW.
2. Kontakt can only see the outputs which are available when Drum Direktor is first loaded. If
outputs are created after Drum Direktor is loaded you must restart the Kontakt engine or
reload your instance of Kontakt as described on Page 26 of the Drum Direktor User Guide.

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Drum Direktor : Installation

Installing and Registering
- Download the Drum Direktor instrument files from your account at The Loop Loft and the
latest version of Kontakt Player (version 5.5.1 or higher) from Native Instruments.
- After installing Kontakt Player you will find the program in your Application direction or in the
plugin location of your AU, VST or AAX compatible host. Launch Kontakt Player from one of
these preferred methods.
- Select the Browse button from the Kontakt Player menu at the top of the window.
- From the newly revealed Browser that appears on the left hand side of the Kontakt interface,
select Add Library. You will then be prompted with a select dialog window where you will
select the location of your Drum Direktor Library. Navigate to the instrument folder that
contains the file Drum Direktor FNK-4.nicnt and select Choose.
- At this point you will be prompted for your Native Instruments account user name and
password. If you do not have one you can register now. Otherwise please enter your
credentials.
- In the next dialog you must enter the serial number which was given to you for your copy of
Drum Direktor. You have now successfully registered Drum Direktor.
Opening the Instrument

- You will now see a new entry in your Kontakt Library Browser for Drum Direktor. Select the
Instruments button and browse the folders for the included presets or instruments. Opening
Kontakt Player either as a standalone application, AU, VST or AAX plugin will reveal this
browser and allow you to use Drum Direktor.

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Drum Direktor : FAQ

Q : Can I control the parameters of Drum Direktor with automation?
A : Yes, you can. To enable automation of a parameter within Drum Direktor use the Auto tab of
the browser. Both MIDI CC messages and host automation can be used for external control.
Controls can be enabled manually by selecting
a. Browse
b. Monitor
c. Dragging a CC or Host Automation control to any automatable
parameter within Drum Direktor.

One important consideration to keep in mind regarding automation is that the knobs of the
Drums and Mixer panel will always control the Drum Pad or Group which is in focus. For
example if Drum Pad 1 is selected, visibly automating the filter cutoff knob on the Drums Panel
will always adjust this pad. This allows all parameters of Drum Direktor to be controlled within
127 MIDI CC messages.
For more details on automation within Kontakt please refer to page 128-131 in the Kontakt 5 Application Reference Guide.

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Q : What is the internal signal flow of Drum Direktor throughout its Drum Pads, Groups
and Mixer?

The samples are played back from RAM

Drum Pad effects are applied individually to each sample
Group effects are applied to the stereo mix of all Drum Pads within a group
Reverb and Delay are sent in Parallel from the volume fader of each group
External outputs are tapped from the output of the volume fader
The stereo mix of all groups are processed through the master effects
The combination of the Reverb and Delay returns are mixed with the stereo output of
the Master Bus effects and sent to the output

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Q : How do I use Drum Direktor with Multiple-Outputs in my DAW or Host?

A : Included in the 7 Templates folder is a file named FNK-4 Drum Direktor Multi-Output.nkm.
This is a Kontakt multi which has multiple outputs pre-assigned. Once it is opened inside of
Kontakt any Drum Direktor preset that is subsequently loaded will be able to see 9 individual
outputs. Master and Groups 1-8. Please be aware that master group effects are not available in
this scenario and for complete signal routing refer to the chart on page 30.
For more information on Multi-Output configuration please refer to page 137 - 141 in the Kontakt
5 - Application Reference.

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Drum Direktor System Requirements

1GB Free Hard Drive Space

Intel Core i5 or Core i7 CPU recommended
2GB RAM (8GB recommended) - Full instrument requires 250MB to load.
Kontakt 5.2.1 or greater

Drum Direktor Credits

Samples and Loops recorded by the Loop Loft

Concept and Scripting by Matthew Fudge
Graphic design by Brian Potstra
User manual and preset design by Matthew Fudge

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