Instrument settings

Here you can set up many instrument parameters including MIDI, samples and VST instruments.

Screen displays (from top-left to bottom-right)

The Instrument settings window is divided into three sections: MIDI Properties, Sample Properties, and VST Instrument.

MIDI Properties

• On/Off

• Device

• Channel/Bank

• Program/Base Note

• Delay

• Duration

Sample Properties

• NNA (New Note Action)

  Sets the type of NNA. Available settings are "Cut", "Note Off", and "Continue".

• Loop

  Sets the type of loop the sample is played with. Available settings are "None", "Forward", "Reverse", and "Pingpong".

• Basenote

  The Basenote defines with what "height" the sample is played when you hit "C-4".

• Beatsync

  This is a setting that helps you play a sample at the exact speed you need it played to last as long as a the playing of a defined number of pattern lines take. This is especially useful if you have a beatloop sample that doesn't exactly fit the speed of your song. As it changes the pitch of the sample, it's hardly useful for "tone instruments".

• Beatlines

  This is the additional setting for usage of the "Beatsync" option. Set your desired sample playing length here. Hint: Common values for this option are 16 or 32 lines (10 or 20 hex).

• Amplify

  Sets the amount of volume gain you want to give to this sample. This comes in handy if your sample just sounds a lot more quiet than everything else and the maximize function in the Sample editor didn't bring the desired volume.

• Finetuning

  Sets the amount of fine tune added to the sample. Finetuning raises or lowers the pitch of the sample a bit. Use this slider to bring all samples to the exact height of one sample you like to be the "master sample".

VST Instrument

• Instrument

  Sets the VST Instrument you wish to use from the list of VST Instruments that were found on your computer during the loading process of Renoise.
  Hint: If a VST Instrument you installed is not in this list, probably the VST Directory in the Configs menu is not correct or the VST Instrument wasn't installed into this very directory.

• Channel

  Sets a MIDI Channel you want Renoise to communicate with the VST Instrument on.

• Base Note

  Just like with the Sample Properties, this setting defines with what "height" the sample is played when you hit "C-4".

• Program

  Sets the program of the VST Instrument. Normally VST Instruments bring along their own programs. If not and if you haven't created any for them, you don't have anything to choose here.

• FXBank Load/Save

  This loads or saves FXBank settings of a VST Instrument.

• FXPreset Load/Save

  This loads and saves presets for VST Instruments.

• Amplify

  Just like in the Sample Properties, this slider sets the amount of volume that's added to the output of the VST Instrument.

A word about handling Instrument Settings

Every time you wish to change how your instrument sounds, you can return to this window. Firstly, you can select the MIDI device. For example, if you have a synthesizer or sampler connected to your computer, you can use it for playback by selecting its programs in the MIDI section of the instrument. The sound quality is then dependent on the quality of your equipment.

Remember, MIDI is not audio! It is a data protocol to control devices that have the samples stored in their wavetables, so DSP effects won't have any influence on your MIDI Instruments.

When using samples, often you will only use a single sample per instrument. Usually, the only parameters you need to set up are sample volume and fine tune. Additionally if you use loops, the loop may be synced to different BPM (song speed). You can then change song BPM (which may not be practical if you use loops that have various BPMs). Another way is to sync the loop to the appropriate number of pattern lines using Beat Sync. Just try the values that sound good to you. Most loops are already arranged to repeat themselves smoothly but if they are not, go to Sample Editor and cut extra data (usually silence, an extra beat etc.).

If you use multi sample instruments, first select a sample from the (3) Instrument Selector and then setup its base note. Now, if you have another sample, select it and setup its base note, too. Now go to the Instrument Editor and draw on the shown piano keyboard (with the mouse) which key you want to assign to this sample. Do this for all samples of your multi sample instrument.
Multi sample instruments are useful to create drumsets, but you can also create instruments that sound more natural, too, by loading differenct samples of the same instrument from different octaves and spreading those samples over the octave spectrum in Renoise. Especially pianos sound a lot more natural if you sample them with 2 samples per octave and reimport those samples in a multi sample instrument in Renoise.

Each sample split can have its own parameters like volume, fine tune etc..

Finally, you can use a VST Instrument. Using these is different with each VST Instrument and describing all of them is far beyond scope of this document. However, here are few basic guidelines:
Assuming that you have correctly setup the VST path in the Configs menu VSTs should appear in the instrument list. When you select it, a new button "Open Editor" appears. With a click on it, you can setup the VST Instrument's parameters in the VST's own window. If the VST has predefined parameters, they will be listed in Renoise. VSTs are software based sound generators / modifiers, so Renoise's internal DSP effects can be also applied to them. Due some internal limitations a particular VST Instrument can play only on one track at the same time. If you need the same VSTI to play on several tracks you have either to create another instance of that Instrument. Maybe the usage of Send-Track DSPs could help here too.

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