NONLINEAR LABS C15 Manual de usuario

C15 - Pedal Manual

1. Features of the Pedal Inputs

• Support for almost all types of expression pedals and damper pedals of dierent

technology and connector pin-outs. Further, many model-specific pedal presets can be

selected for optimized performance.

• Support for “Control Voltage” as additional type of controller.

• Auto-Ranging to fully use the available electrical travel of a pedal.

• Auto-Hold to de-noise and stabilize the controller output.

• Controller parameters (like current Auto-Ranging internal settings) are continuously

saved, and re-loaded aer power-up.

2. Quick Start

1. If the pedal has a detachable cable, then first connect a suitable cable to the pedal. If

the pedal has a “minimum volume” setting adjust (like many Roland and Boss models

do), set it to the fully counter-clockwise position.

2. Connect the pedal cable to the C15 at one of the TRS Sockets numbered “Pedal 1...4”.

The C15 may already be powered on or o, it does not matter. If on, try to insert the

cable quickly into the TRS socket (in less than 1 second).

3. Go to “Setup > Device Settings > Pedals” and select the proper type for the pedal from

the pedal presets list. If your pedal is listed explicitly then please use that setting.

Otherwise, try the generic “Pot, Tip-Active” (also known as Boss/Roland pin-out) or

“Pot, Ring-Active” (Yamaha pin-out) presets.

4. Do the Auto-Ranging cycle: Move the pedal to one end stop of its mechanical travel,

wait a moment (1 second), then move it to the other end stop, wait a moment.

5. Check if the position indicator in the Pedal Editor screen moves evenly and over the

whole range of 0%...100% when operating the pedal over the complete travel. When

using one of the generic “Pot” settings and you find that the approximate “center”

position gives a way too high (or too low) reading, try the corresponding generic pedal

presets with the swapped pin-out (swap “tip active” with “ring active”).

6. During operation, when you find that the pedal does not move over the complete

0%...100% range anymore, reset the Auto-Ranging by temporarily selecting another

pedal type. Alternatively, you can pull the cable from the TRS socket and re-plug it.

3. List of Pedal Presets

Name / Type Remarks

Pot, Tip-Active

Continuous

Generic 3-Wire Expression/Damper Pedal, Tip-Active (“Roland” pin-out).

If there is a “min” control, set it fully counter-clockwise.

If there is a “range” control, set it fully clockwise.

Auto-Ranging dead-zones: 5%, 5%. Auto-Hold strength: medium.

Pot, Ring-Active

Continuous

Generic 3-Wire Expression/Damper Pedal, Ring-Active (“Yamaha” pin-out).

If there is a “min” control, set it fully counter-clockwise.

If there is a “range” control, set it fully clockwise.

Auto-Ranging dead-zones: 5%, 5%. Auto-Hold strength: medium.

Pot, Tip-Act. Rev.

Continuous

Generic 3-Wire Expression/Damper Pedal, Tip-Active (“Roland” pin-out).

Reversed output vs. pedal travel.

If there is a “min” control, set it fully counter-clockwise.

If there is a “range” control, set it fully clockwise.

Auto-Ranging dead-zones: 5%, 5%. Auto-Hold strength: medium.

Pot, Ring-Act. Rev.

Continuous

Generic 3-Wire Expression/Damper Pedal, Ring-Active (“Yamaha” pin-out).

Reversed output vs. pedal travel.

If there is a “min” control, set it fully counter-clockwise.

If there is a “range” control, set it fully clockwise.

Auto-Ranging dead-zones: 5%, 5%. Auto-Hold strength: medium.

Resistor

Continuous

Generic 2-Wire Adjustable Resistor, Tip-Active.

Auto-Ranging dead-zones: 5%, 5%. Auto-Hold strength: medium.

Resistor, Rev.

Continuous

Generic 2-Wire Adjustable Resistor, Tip-Active.

Reversed output vs. pedal travel.

Auto-Ranging dead-zones: 5%, 5%. Auto-Hold strength: medium.

Switch, Closing

Bi-Stable

Generic 2-Wire Switch, Tip-Active.

“100%” Output in closed position.

Auto-Ranging dead-zones: 1%, 1%. Auto-Hold strength: weak.

You can use most tip-active expression and damper pedals as switches, too.

Switch, Opening

Bi-Stable

Generic 2-Wire Switch, Tip-Active.

“100%” Output in open position.

Auto-Ranging dead-zones: 1%, 1%. Auto-Hold strength: weak.

You can use most tip-active expression and damper pedals as switches, too.

CV, 0...5V

Continuous

Control Voltage, Tip-Active, Fixed Range: 0...5V.

Auto-Ranging: o, Auto-Hold strength: weak.

Do not apply voltages outside a 0...5V range.

Do not apply ANY voltage when the unit is o.

CV, 0..5V

(Auto-Range)

Continuous

Control Voltage, Tip-Active, Auto-Ranging within 0...5V.

Auto-Ranging dead-zones: 1%, 1%. Auto-Hold strength: weak.

Do not apply voltages outside a 0...5V range.

Do not apply ANY voltage when the unit is o.

— OFF — Use this to fully ignore a pedal even when connected.

Name / Type Remarks

E:Boss EV-30

Continuous

3-Wire Expression Pedal, Tip-Active.

Set “min” controls to fully counter-clockwise.

For direct reverse action, use output “EXP2” set to “INV”.

Auto-Ranging dead-zones: 1%, 2%. Auto-Hold strength: medium.

E:Boss FV-500L

Continuous

3-Wire Expression Pedal, Tip-Active.

Set “min” control to fully counter-clockwise.

Use “EXP” output.

Auto-Ranging dead-zones: 1%, 1%. Auto-Hold strength: strong.

E:Doepfer FP5

Continuous

3-Wire Expression Pedal, Ring-Active.

Auto-Ranging dead-zones: 1%, 4%. Auto-Hold strength: medium.

E:Fractal EV-2

Continuous

3-Wire Expression Pedal, Tip-Active.

Use “EXP” output.

Auto-Ranging dead-zones: 1%, 1%. Auto-Hold strength: weak.

D:Korg DS-1H

Continuous

2-Wire (Resistor) Damper Pedal, Tip-Active, Reverse Action.

Auto-Ranging dead-zones: 3%, 7%. Auto-Hold strength: weak.

E:Korg EXP-2

Continuous

3-Wire Expression Pedal, Ring-Active.

Use output “2”.

Auto-Ranging dead-zones: 6%, 2%. Auto-Hold strength: medium.

E:Lead Foot LFX-1

Continuous

3-Wire Expression Pedal, Tip-Active.

Auto-Ranging dead-zones: 1%, 1%. Auto-Hold strength: weak.

E:M-Audio EX-P (M.)

Continuous

3-Wire Expression Pedal, Tip-Active.

Set “min” control to fully counter-clockwise.

Set bottom switch to “M-Audio”.

Auto-Ranging dead-zones: 1%, 1%. Auto-Hold strength: weak.

E:Moog EP-3 (std.)

Continuous

3-Wire Expression Pedal, Tip-Active.

Set “range” control to fully clockwise.

Set bottom switch to “Standard”.

Auto-Ranging dead-zones: 1%, 8%. Auto-Hold strength: strong.

D:Roland DP-10

(cont.)

Continuous

3-Wire Damper Pedal, Tip-Active.

Set switch to “Continuous”.

Auto-Ranging dead-zones: 7%, 1%. Auto-Hold strength: weak.

E:Roland EV-5

Continuous

3-Wire Expression Pedal, Tip-Active.

Set “min” control to fully counter-clockwise.

Auto-Ranging dead-zones: 1%, 2%. Auto-Hold strength: weak.

D:Yamaha FC3A

Continuous

3-Wire Damper Pedal, Ring-Active, Reverse Action.

Auto-Ranging dead-zones: 4%, 1%. Auto-Hold strength: weak.

E:Yamaha FC7

Continuous

3-Wire Expression Pedal, Ring-Active.

Auto-Ranging dead-zones: 1%, 2%. Auto-Hold strength: strong.

4. Connection

Some expression and damper pedals have detachable cables. Typically, a 3-wire TRS

cable should be used with TRS plugs on both ends.

But there are certain battery- or mains-powered switching pedals that use the ring con-

tact of their TRS jack to close an electric circuit to power up the pedal, for those only use

a 2-wire cable with TS-plugs on both ends and the cable must first be connected to the

switch before plugging into the C15, otherwise the function might not work properly and

the input might even be damaged.

In general, always connect the cable to the pedal first before plugging it into the C15.

When connecting a Control Voltage source provided by, for example, a CV output from an

analog synth, it is recommended to follow these steps:

• Check that the CV output does produce output voltages only within the 0V...+5V

range, eg. do NOT connect to sources that range from -5V to +5V or 0V to +10V etc.

• Switch o both the source and the C15 before making the cable connection. CV input

is recognized only on the tip of a TRS or TS plug, with the sleeve being the “ground

reference”. The ring contact is not used.

• Switch on the C15 first, then the CV source. For switch-o, reverse that order, that is,

switch o the source first, then the C15.

• You may need to do a “pedal reset” and restart Auto-Ranging for the “CV, 0..5V(Au-

to-Range)” pedal presets aer the C15 is fully up and running by selecting a dierent

pedal preset temporarily.

It is important that the cable, no matter what type of source, is plugged in quickly into

a running C15 (in less than one second). Otherwise, the Auto-Ranging function may not

work properly because of wrong initial values being detected.

For the same reason, sources with detachable cables must first be connected to the cable

before plugging the cable into a running C15.

Note: When a pedal or other source is unplugged during operation of the C15, the last

readouts sent to a connected Macro Control may have arbitrary values not related to the

actual pedal setting.

Do NOT connect anything else to the C15 than passive expression and damper pedals,

passive mechanical switches, and, with some care, control voltage sources and powered

switch pedals, otherwise damage may occur.

Please consult Nonlinear Labs (info@nonlinear-labs.de) if there are any questions.

Also make sure that you never mistakenly connect any audio TRS cables for the audio

signal chain (mixer, amp) to the pedal jacks as that may produce very loud and dangerous

“thump”-sounds from the speakers or the main PA.

5. Setup

The setup for the pedals, switches and CV sources is simple. Navigate to the Pedal

Settings either using the Panel Unit or the Graphical User Interface and select the proper

type from the list of presets. There are several groups of presets:

• generic presets for expression and damper pedals

• generic presets for switches

• generic presets for control voltage sources

• specific presets for a variety of commonly used expression and damper pedals, listed

alphabetically by make and model. Expression pedals start with the prefix “E:”, whereas

damper pedals start with “D:”. Please try to find your expression or damper pedal in

this list first. Use one of the generic presets only when the pedal is not listed. In most

cases either “Pot, Tip-Active” or “Pot, Ring-Active” then will work, but you might try

other compatible presets as well (compatible in that they have the same general type

and connector pin-out).

• an “OFF” pedal preset, intended to fully deactivate a pedal without having the need to

unplug it.

Note: If you are using a pedal preset not matching the general type of your actual pedal or

source, unexpected results with regard to produced output values may occur. Neither the

C15 nor the pedal/source, though, are any likely to be damaged when selecting a wrong

pedal preset (but please read the warnings with regard to control voltage sources and

battery- or mains-powered switches, at any rate).

6. Usage

6.1 Auto-Ranging of the pedal travel

Aer a pedal has been plugged in while the C15 is running, or aer selecting a dierent

pedal preset, most pedal presets require an Auto-Ranging cycle where the available

electrical travel produced by the pedal is measured and used for the corner points. Note

that until a reasonable range of movement has been detected the pedal will not produce

any output signals. The procedure is simple:

• move the pedal to one mechanical end stop, then wait about one second.

• move the pedal to the other mechanical end stop and again wait a second.

6.2 Checking the Auto-Ranging and general pedal characteristic

Aer the Auto-Ranging procedure, you might want to check if all is well, that is a) the

pedal output spans the whole 0%...100% range and b) that the output characteristic is

reasonable, producing about 50% output when the pedal is at around the mechanical

middle position. Both checks can be done by watching the pedal’s position bar graph and

the corresponding numerical display in the Pedal Editor.

Should you find that the output value at the approximate mechanical center position is

way o from the 50% mark, something like 80...90% or so, then the pedal likely requires

a dierent setup with tip and ring connections swapped. That is, if you see this behavior

and have currently selected “Pot, Tip-Active”, then select “Pot, Ring-Active”, and vice versa.

On the other hand, a unique feature of the C15 is that a pedal generally keeps working

even when selecting the wrong pin-out, you just get a somewhat skewed characteristic of

output values vs. mechanical travel.

Note: when you are using the reverse readout presets like “Pot, Tip-Active, Rev.”, “Pot,

Ring-Active, Rev.” etc, you will get a 10...20% reading for the mechanical center position in

case you have accidentally selected the swapped pin-out.

6.3 Resetting the Auto-Ranging

The current internal settings for the Auto-Ranging of a pedal are stored and kept in

non-volatile memory so there is no need to run the Auto-Ranging procedure each time

the C15 is powered up.

There are several cases, though, when a pedal might not reach the complete 0%...100%

span and a reset of the Auto-Ranging will be required:

• The pedal has a “minimum” or “range” control that has been touched, reducing the

eective electrical travel.

• The pedal has been replaced with another, dierent pedal while the C15 was o,

notably when changing between compatible types. The C15 has no way of knowing

that you changed the pedal and will continue to use the internal settings it had found

and stored for the original pedal.

• in rare cases, both the pedal hardware and/or the electronics may have developed

significant dri and the full 0%...100% range isn’t reached anymore, for continuous

output pedal presets types.

There are two ways to reset the Auto-Ranging:

• unplug and re-plug the pedal, at the C15 side (and note the need for the re-plugging

procedure be finished in less than one second), while the C15 is running.

• or simply select a dierent pedal preset temporarily, then select the original pedal

preset again.

7. Pedal / Source Types

7.1 Expression and Damper Pedals with Continuous Output

Most expression and damper pedals use a 3-wire cable and have a TRS plug. The basis

of their operation is the voltage divider principle, using a potentiometer: A voltage is

applied to the potentiometer and the wiper is moved by the pedal action. The readout is

taken from the voltage at the wiper divided by the applied voltage. The wiper is internally

attached either to the tip of the TRS plug (this is the “Tip-Active” pin-out, also known

as “Boss/Roland” pin-out) or the wiper can go to the ring contact of the TRS (the “Ring

Active” pin-out, also known as “Yamaha” pin-out).

However, there are a few pedals, for example the Korg DS-1H damper pedal, that work

internally with a simple adjustable resistor whose value changes with pedal action. Such

pedals use only 2-wires (even when a TRS plug is used at the cable end). Here, the read-

out is basically directly proportional to the resistance value. The C15 supports this type of

pedal provided that the adjustable element is connected between tip and sleeve contacts

of the TRS or TS plug (“tip active”, which is the standard case, though).

Some expression and damper pedals can be switched between “continuous” and

“switch” modes, please set such selectors to “continuous” position.

Some expression pedals, for example many Roland and Boss models, have a “minimum

volume” control on the side or the front of the base, please set this control to its lowest

position (fully counter-clockwise) for best results. The C15 can also handle those pedals

correctly even with this “minimum volume” set to other positions but resolution and

stability may be compromised (see Auto-Ranging and Auto-Hold feature descriptions).

Some expression pedals, for example some Moog models, have a “range” control on

the side or the front of the base which restricts the maximum value the output can

reach and that includes zero output if the control is set fully counter-clockwise! Please

set this control to the highest position (fully clockwise) for best results, otherwise again

resolution and stability may be compromised (see Auto-Ranging and Auto-Hold feature

descriptions).

Some expression pedals, for example some Moog and M-Audio models, have a pin-out

selector witch, typically on the bottom of the base, where the used connector pin-out can

be selected. Oen, this switch is marked with the pedal’s brand name on one side and

“other” on the other side. The provided pedal presets indicate the required setting for

some known pedals. For other pedals, please select the pedal brand name position which

typically selects the “Boss/Roland” (Tip-Active) pin-out which is the preferred pin-out.

Some expression pedals are intended to be used with external cables, therefore make

sure to use a correct cable (usually 3-wire with TRS connectors on both ends). Some

pedals are multi-function and have several output jacks. Please use the output explicitly

marked as “Expression”, “Exp” or similar.

Damper pedals (pedals which go back to their normal rest position when foot pressure

is absent) come in two varieties. The first type produces minimum output in the rest

position that increases when the pedal is pressed, and the other type does exactly the

opposite, going from maximum output to minimum output when pressing the pedal. The

C15 has pedal presets to handle either type correctly.

All continuous pedal presets of the C15 use both the Auto-Ranging and Auto-Hold feature

(see Auto-Ranging and Auto-Hold feature descriptions). There is no output from the pedal

source until the Auto-Ranging has completed which requires that the pedal is moved

across at least some fraction of its total travel.

Note: you may use a physical switch as well for a continuous output, it will just jump

between the extremes (0%, 100%) with only one or two intermediate values. When using

a physical switch, select one of the “Resistor” types of presets.

7.2 Switches with Bi-stable Output

Switches are also supported, technically a switch is handled like an adjustable resistor

with the values only jumping between zero resistance (“closed”) and infinite resistance

(“open”).

While Auto-Ranging is used for the provided Switch presets as well, a dierence is that

a switch pedal gives output to a Macro Control immediately, the Auto-Ranging does not

have to be completed. A “best guess” initial value is used for the output which is reflecting

the correct state in 99% of the cases.

The main dierence is that the output of the switch, feeding the Macro Control, is chang-

ing only between 0% and 100% endpoints and there are never any intermediate values,

that’s why it’s called bi-stable.

Note: You may perfectly use a continuous-type pedal for a switching type of response, the

Auto-Ranging feature makes that work for potentiometer as well as adjustable resistor

types of pedals. The only restriction is that the pedal must be of the “Tip Active” type.

7.3 Control Voltages

Control Voltages can be used as an additional source type. A typical example would be

the CV output of an LFO in an analog synth. Two pedal presets are available for this, one

with Auto-Ranging to automatically adapt to the voltage range the source actually sends,

creating the full 0%...100% span, and another pedal preset with a fixed range of 0V (=0%)

to 5V (=100%).

Note: The frequency of a modulated control voltage should not be larger than a few Hz,

higher frequencies might produce strange results and the Auto-Ranging (if used) might

not be working as intended.

Warning: The voltage range of the CV source must be within 0V...+5V. Never connect

sources with other output ranges (like -5V...+5V, 0V...+10V, etc) as they might damage the

C15, regardless of selected pedal preset. Also, do not apply a control voltage while the

C15 is switched o.

8. Features explained

8.1 Auto-Ranging

Many pedals don’t have their electrical output fully follow the mechanical position over

the complete travel, there are mechanical “dead zones” where the electrical output does

not follow the mechanical position anymore. There is nothing we can do about this.

But many pedals also have the additional eect that the internal element (potentiome-

ter or variable-resistor) in the first place is not used over the full range that it does have

electrically, this is depending on the construction of the pedal. We have found pedals that

don’t go any further than 70% or so, for example.

Further, some pedals have additional control knobs to intentionally limit the output

range in some way, very common is a minimum control that introduces a sort-of base

value that is added to the actual setting. For example, the minimum control on Roland

and Boss pedals can be dialed in to give a base value of 80% at the pedal’s “zero” position

and the output value will increase to 100% when moving the pedal to the “full” position,

spanning only 20% of the possible range.

Finally, the already restricted obtainable electrical output range oen is not very stable at

the range ends, this is mostly for mechanical slack and other mechanical issues, notably

on pedals with a construction that is not extremely rigid, mechanically.

The C15 is designed so that all pedals will always actually reach the full value output

from 0% to %100 regardless of the above short-comings and almost regardless of any

setting of additional minimum and range control knobs found on the pedal. By this, you

can change pedals and that won’t alter the playing experience at all just because the raw

pedal behaves dierently.

In the Auto-Ranging process running continuously in the background, the C15 measures

the maximum electrical range the pedal has produced so far and sets marker points for

the conversion (scaling) to the final 0%...%100 range (black area in below drawing).

The measured electrical range can only increase over time of usage and once it is large

enough for a successful scaling -- larger than about 1/4th of maximum range -- the pedal

actually starts to produce output values. The only way to make the used electrical range

smaller again is to reset the pedal.

Once the pedal has been operated over the full range of mechanical travel the pedal will

work with best resolution and stability.

The marker point values actually used for the computation are slightly backed o from

the measured min and max values. These “electrical dead-zones” (gray) allow that

unstable electrical end point outputs will still give stable 0% or 100% output at the end

stops but they also slightly reduce the eective range of pedal travel, so this is a trade-o.

Ranging and stability characteristics for pedals of known make and model are stored in

pedal-specific presets, for best results.

The Auto-Ranging is reset when the pedal is (re-)plugged into a running C15 or when the

pedal type is changed in the Pedal Settings.

area with unstable

electrical output

area with unstable

electrical output

output value range0 % 100 %

electrical rangestart end

mechanical range end

start

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