Emu XL7 Command Station

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Emu XL7 Command Station
zZounds Gear Experts Say...
The new XL-7 takes the synth engine of E-MU¬'s powerful Proteus¬ 2000 and XL-1 sound modules and combines it with a new grooving multi-track sequencer.

Play
The XL-7 and MP-7 Command Stations put all of the advanced features and sonic quality of E-MU's flagship Proteus¬ 2000 sound module at your fingertips in highly tactile, intuitive tabletop packages. Each Command Station ships with over 1000 waveforms (the XL-7 and MP-7 feature Electronica/Dance and Hip-Hop soundsets respectively), but can be expanded and customized with any of the Proteus 2000 expansion ROMs available (up to 128 MB total) or even burn your own custom ROMs using E-MU's E4 Ultra samplers. 128 voice polyphony ensures that you can play and sequence your fattest, layered sounds with confidence, while 32 MIDI channels give you access and control over a huge palette of internal sounds and all of your external gear.

To match this powerful sound engine, the Command Stations give you 13 quality velocity-sensitive pads with aftertouch to play your sounds and input data. These pads have been specifically designed for the Command Stations and are extremely responsive, capturing all of the nuances of your performance. The XL-7 and MP-7 Command Stations truly represent the ultimate melding of E-MU's pristine sound quality, powerful sound engine, and cutting edge controller technologies and are uniquely qualified to serve as the control center of your MIDI studio.

Tweak
The Command Stations not only provide you with over 100 BPM-based parameters per preset, but they also deliver dedicated, real-time control over these parameters with over 40 programmable knobs and buttons… read more for an incredible number of modulation possibilities. Pick a preset and instantly have 16 knobs dedicated to synth parameters, or quickly program the knobs to control any MIDI parameters - even in your external gear! Tweak E-MU's legendary 12 pole filters for extreme sound sculpting, change LFO rates on the fly, and modify your envelopes in real-time - without ever touching a menu.

And if you do need to access a menu, dedicated jump keys instantly take you to specific menus screens - no searching through pages in the heat of your performance. Two internal effects processors round out your arsenal of sound tools, providing you with a host of quality effects, everything from tempo-based delays to reverbs, distortion, and more. Each Command Station also gives you 2 footswitch inputs and a touchstrip for even more real-time control. Never has this much sonic power been so easy to control!

Perform
While the XL-7 and MP-7 give you total real-time control over your sound, these Command Stations are unmatched in the performance arena. Under the hood you'll find a 16-track interactive sequencer with real-time, step, and grid record modes that can be switched without ever stopping the creative flow. 16 dedicated Mute/Select buttons allow you to add, monitor, and modify parts on the fly without the usual cumbersome menu scrolling. Each Command Station can store over 300,000 notes, and with E-MU's E-Loader program, you can import and export MIDI files to and from your Mac and PC with ease. In addition to its powerful sequencer, each Command Station can play up to 32 programmable, synced arpeggiators simultaneously. These arpeggiators are a powerful performance tool that can be saved with your sequence for instant recall and can be modified in real-time using the control knobs. And the lightning-fast processor in each Command Station provides dead-on MIDI timing for your most intense sequences, ARPs, and layered sounds. In a market littered with toys, only E-MU's XL-7 and MP-7 Command Stations bring this much real-time performance power to your tabletop at such an affordable price. Take command of your music today!

Upgrade your current OS with a FREE 2.0 update from Emu! Check out their website for details.

Features in 2.0:
XMix: allows you to replace tracks of the currently playing pattern with tracks from another pattern. It's designed both for performance use and as a quick way to experimentally swap tracks.

Direct Pattern Access: You can now select one of 16 patterns using the Trigger buttons.

Explode/Combine Tracks: These new functions facilitate the interchange between single multi-channel tracks and multiple single-channel tracks.

Key Up Layer: The synthesizer layers can now be programmed to play when a key is released instead of when it is pressed.

Many other features as well as a couple of bug fixes. read less

Audio Channels: 128

MIDI Channels: 32 Internal/32 External

Pads: 13 Velocity Sensitive, 7-Octave Range, Aftertouch

Controllers: 16 knobs - Quick edit, Mix, Programmable (MIDI
channel, CC#)

Controllers: 2 Footswitches, 4 button switches, 16 triggers (Latch, MIDI Channel, Note, and Velocity)

Controllers: Center Detented Touch Strip

Displays: 2x24 LED, 4-digit 7-segment LED

Navigation: Data Knob, 2 Cursor buttons, 2 Track/Channel select buttons, 16 synth edit menu jump buttons

Lamp: 12 Volt goose-neck adapter

Presets: 512 RAM, 512 User

Layers Per Preset: 4

BPM/ MIDI synchronized parameters per Preset: >100

Sound Memory: 32 MB (expandable to 128 MB)

Internal Expansion slots: 3 additional

Expansion format: ROM (16/32MB) Flash (16/32MB)

Filters: 6/12th order (50 types)

Sequencer PPQN: 384

Songs: 512

Patterns: 1024

Tracks: 16 per pattern, 16 MIDI channels per Track, plus 1 Song

Track (16 MIDI channels)

Record Types: Real Time, Step, Grid

Sequencer Format: XL/MP-7, SMF import/export

Sequencer Storage Size: Internal, > 300,000 notes. External, unlimited using E-MU's E-Loader software file assistant (Mac/PC)

Arpeggiators: 32 simultaneous pattern based or traditional

Arp Patterns: 300 ROM, 100 User

Arp Editor: 32 steps - Key, Velocity, Duration, Repeat

Effects: Dual 24-bit

Audio Outputs: 6 analog (configured as 3 stereo), Stereo S/PDIF

Audio Inputs: Effects Return 1 In (Stereo), Effects Return 2 In (Stereo)

MIDI: In, MIDI Out A/Thru, MIDI Out B/Thru

Data Encoding: 16-bit linear, 24-bit DACs

Signal to Noise: >100 dB

Frequency Response: 20-20,000Hz (+0.0/-0.1dB)

THD + Noise (DACs): <0.002%

Power Consumption: 15 watts

Voltage Input: 90VAC - 260VAC at 50Hz - 60 Hz

Maximum Output Level: +6dBV

Output Impedance: 1000 Ohms

Dimensions: Height 5.25" (Highest point), Width 18.60" - 20.10", Depth 10.50"; fits in standard 6-space rack when you remove the end caps (requires optional rack ears)

Modes: Song, Pattern

Views: Song, Pattern, Preset, Mix

Menus: Song Edit, Pattern Edit, Preset Edit, Global, Controllers, Arpeggiator, and MIDI

Additional functions: Audition, Compare, Save/Copy, Home/Enter, Tap Tempo

Note: All specifications subject to change.

For support or warranty questions, please contact the manufacturer:
Phone: 831-438-1921
Operation Manual
XBoard Read Me
XBoard Tutorial

Reviewers gave this product an overall rating of 4 out of 5 stars. (67 ratings)
Submitted April 26, 2004 by a customer from hotmail

"tip to improve drums"

Overall: 4 out of 5 stars
(see rating details)
I least like the drums, most are not punchy, 808s and 909s dont measure, but this is good in some ways, i am scared to buy the expansion drum cards, for fear that they are no better.

Sound
LISTEN::: This machine has very good sound quality, maybe better than all the other beatboxes,(ive been through alot of them) but.. THE DRUM KITS ARE WEAK! and need EQ-ing for bass, they tend to be quiet and drowned out easily against the synths. **TIP** -The drums can be beefed up by tweeking with "deeper 4 highpass" filter,(cutoff-left, rez-right), & some pitching here and there if wanted for rap. Some kits lose snares and hats, on certain filters. I route drums to my DP/4 through the XL's sub/insert outputs. The usual(rev,del,etc) fx, are good but the distortion could be better Some cheesy patches, but some interesting sounds by manipulation. The synths are fairly nice, some crispness or bite, some good basses . As with all machines, other gear is needed to add differant flavors The demos are slow and boring and certainly do not show its potential. The RM1X is very thin sounding when compared. (from what i remeber the quasimidi 309,and the MC 505 are comparable for sound quality, but they just dont match the XL-7 as an external sequencer).

Features
TWO MIDI OUTS, A&B, and two sets of 16 tracks, both for internal or external use, which is awsome for other gear, The EXTRA OUTPUTS serve as INSERTS and save on… read more mixer channels. PADS are VELOCITY SENS,.. KNOBS and RIBBON are PROGRAMMABLE USB? i dont use it. i heard it doesnt work.? If it had a sampler, i would sell all my other gear. This machine seems to be very complex.. yet simple enough to pickup.

Quality
Built well, tough, the knobs arent half as cheap as some other gear. before os,2 my led display would stutter, and notes would stick, it crashed once but i didnt lose any work. i havent had problems or found any glitches since. not to say that there wont be any.

Value
its original price was way to high.

The Wow Factor
Appearance takes some getting use to, Possibly a better sequencer than the RM1X, each have their pros and cons, for edits or midi.

Musical Style:
? anything electronic , no set style read less
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