User manual LEXICON PCM 80

[. . . ] PCM 80 Vocal Fix Algorithm Card User Guide Unpacking and Inspection After unpacking the Vocal Fix Algorithm Card, save all packing materials in case you ever need to ship the card. Thoroughly inspect the card and packing materials for signs of damage. Report any shipment damage to the carrier at once; report equipment malfunction to your dealer. Precautions This is a read only card. To avoid damage to the card, do not expose to rain or moisture, extreme temperatures, direct sunlight, or extreme shock. [. . . ] In reality, these splice points are the source of audible artifacts which can be minimized, but not completely eliminated. Much of the art of pitch shifting, therefore, is in determining the appropriate intervals for sampling and the optimal points for splicing. As the PCM 80 Vocal Fix card gives you significant control over these operations, you may find it helpful to keep in mind some of the other factors which can affect pitch shift quality: · Amount of pitch shifting Large shift intervals require more splicing. As each splice can be the source of an artifact, increasing their number increases the likelihood of audible artifacts. Pitch-complexity of the input material Pure tones have simple waveforms which can be correlated easily for smooth splicing. Pitch shifting of simple tones such as those generated by a solo voice or a monophonic instrument generally produces fewer artifacts than pitch shifting of wide bandwidth material such as piano chords, full orchestra, etc. Low frequency content of the input material Pitch shifting low frequency material requires the addition or removal of larger segments of audio than high frequency material. The increased size of these segments can introduce delays which are heard as artifacts. Transient content of the input material When large amounts of pitch shifting are applied to complex input material with dense percussive transients (drums, strummed mandolin, complex speech, etc. ) some of the transients may lose definition or be shifted slightly in time. Overview · · · Intelligent pitch involves two major tasks, pitch detection and pitch shifting. Pitch detection requires analyzing the input signal to determine its pitch ­ notes from a chromatic scale: A, B, E-flat, etc. The second task involves shifting the pitch of the input signal to a different note. The "intelligent" part refers to the ability of the algorithm to follow a set of rules to determine an appropriate output pitch based on the detected input shift. 2-1 PCM 80 Vocal Fix User Guide Lexicon The Vocal Fix Pitch Correct algorithm is designed to work with monophonic (one note at a time) vocal sources. The algorithm contains an intelligent pitch shifter combined with a PCM 80 Chamber reverb. The intelligent pitch shifter detects the pitch of incoming audio and produces effects based on the detected pitch. The FX Mix parameter is set to 0% reverb as most applications require only pitch processing. The initial diffusion is similar to the Concert Hall algorithm, but the sense of space and size is much less obvious. This characteristic, along with the low color in the decay tail, makes Chamber useful on a wide range of material. It is especially useful on spoken voice, giving a noticeable increase in loudness with very low coloration. The Chamber Reverb 2-3 PCM 80 Vocal Fix User Guide Lexicon Parameter Descriptions Controls Row FX HiCut, FX LoCut These parameters control stereo high cut and low cut filters on the algorithm outputs. Each has a range of 20Hz- 20kHz. Pitch Row Detect This parameter displays the source used for pitch detection: Input, Fixed or MIDI. Input Pitch is detected from the sum of the left and right input signals. The detected pitch and the number of cents sharp or flat is displayed and updated in real time. The number of cents sharp or flat from the selected fixed pitch is displayed and updated in real time. [. . . ] The Pitch Correct algorithm lets you select the most suitable method for the area of the track you are working with, and apply the most effective correction process for your material. Using the Vocal Fix Programs In general, the track with errors is routed through the PCM 80, processed by one of the Vocal Fix presets and re-recorded. Depending on the number and type of errors on a given track, it is possible to fix the vocals in one pass. Typically, however, you may need to make several passes, fixing a particular note or phrase in each pass. The amount of delay is dependent on the setting of the low note parameter. [. . . ]