Operation Manual

Steinberg Documentation Team: Cristina Bachmann, Martina Becker, Heiko Bischoff, Lillie Harris, Christina
Kaboth, Insa Mingers, Matthias Obrecht, Sabine Pfeifer
Translation: Ability InterBusiness Solutions (AIBS), Moon Chen, Jérémie Dal Santo, Rosa Freitag, GiEmme
Solutions, Josep Llodra Grimalt, Vadim Kupriianov, Roland Münchow, Boris Rogowski, Sergey Tamarovsky
This document provides improved access for people who are blind or have low vision. Please note that due to thecomplexity and number of images in this document, it is not possible to include text descriptions of images.
The information in this document is subject to change without notice and does not represent a commitment on
the part of Steinberg Media Technologies GmbH. The software described by this document is subject to a License
Agreement and may not be copied to other media except as specifically allowed in the License Agreement.
No part of this publication may be copied, reproduced, or otherwise transmitted or recorded, for any purpose,
without prior written permission by Steinberg Media Technologies GmbH. Registered licensees of the productdescribed herein may print one copy of this document for their personal use.
All product and company names are ™ or ® trademarks of their respective owners. For more information, please
visit www.steinberg.net/trademarks.
© Steinberg Media Technologies GmbH, 2023.
All rights reserved.
Retrologue_2.4.0_en-US_2023-07

Table of Contents
4
5
6
14
14
29
37
46
46

Retrologue
Common Editing Methods
Plug-in Functions Section
Keyboard
Synth Page
Arp Page
FX Page
Quick Controls
MIDI Controllers

48

Index

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Retrologue provides you with a highly flexible virtual analog synthesizer. It features all essential
classical synthesis features that you need to create your own synthesizer sounds.

Retrologue comes with three multi-mode oscillators, a dedicated sub oscillator, and a noise
generator. Oscillators 1-3 feature several modes that allow anything from basic synthesis
waveforms to sync and cross modulation to multi waveforms. One oscillator can be a
combination of up to eight detunable oscillator signals, which allows for very rich sounds. In
addition, you can add the ring modulated signal from the main oscillators.
The Filter section provides 24 different filter types, including low-pass, high-pass, band-pass, andband-reject filters. The integrated filter distortion can produce a variety of distortion effects.
You can send signals from your sequencer tracks to Retrologue using the Side-Chain functionin the Instruments Rack. This allows you to use the tracks as source for the oscillator mix andapply the same processing and effects to them.
The envelopes and the LFOs can be used to modulate a large number of modulation
destinations, which are accessible in the modulation matrix. The matrix features 16 freely
assignable modulations. For example, this allows you to create Note Expression modulation
assignments that can be addressed from within the Steinberg DAW. To give the sounds the final
polish, Retrologue provides an effect section that features 6 insert effects in series. With the
integrated arpeggiator and step sequencer, you can create anything from sequencer lines to
stepped chords.

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Common Editing Methods
The user interface of Retrologue is divided into 3 pages that give access to different areas of theplug-in.
●To switch between the pages, click the corresponding buttons in the plug-in function section
at the top of the window.

On the Synth page, you can find the parameters for the oscillators, the filter and amp envelopes,
the LFOs, and the modulation matrix.
The Arp page contains the arpeggiator.
The FX page allows you to edit the built-in effects and to set up the order in which the effects areprocessed.

Common Editing Methods
Some editing methods are the same throughout all pages and sections of Retrologue.

Knobs and Sliders
Knobs and sliders can be unidirectional or bidirectional. Unidirectional values, for example, levelvalues, start at a minimum value and go up to the maximum. Bidirectional controls start from the
middle position and go to the left for negative and to the right for positive values.
Most of the editing methods are the same for knobs and sliders.
●Move the mouse over a knob or its parameter name to show the current parameter value.
You can adjust the value with the mouse wheel or enter a new value manually.

●

To adjust a value, click a knob or a slider and drag up and down, or use the mouse wheel.
If you press Alt/Opt when clicking a knob, a small slider appears, allowing you to set theparameter.

●

To make fine adjustments, press Shift , and move the knob or use the mouse wheel.

●

To restore the default value for a parameter, press Ctrl/Cmd , and click on the control.

Buttons
Retrologue contains two different types of buttons: On/Off buttons and push buttons.

On/Off Buttons
These buttons have two states: on and off. If you move the mouse over an On/Off button, itchanges its appearance to show that you can click it.

Push Buttons
Push buttons trigger an action and then go back to their inactive state. These buttons open
menus or file dialogs.

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Plug-in Functions Section

Value Fields
You can enter or edit values in the available value fields using your keyboard or mouse. To enter
key ranges or the root key, for example, you can use an external MIDI keyboard.
To set a value, you have the following possibilities:●

Double-click in a value field, enter a new value, and press Return .
If the entered value exceeds the parameter range, it is automatically set to the maximum or
the minimum value, respectively.

●

Click in the value field, and drag up or down.

●

Position the mouse over a value field, and use the mouse wheel.

●

Click the up/down triangles next to the field.

●

To set the parameter to its default value, Ctrl/Cmd -click the value field.

●

To use a fader to adjust the value, Alt/Opt -click a value field.

●

To enter musical values, such as key ranges or the root key, with your MIDI keyboard,
double-click the value field, press a key on your MIDI keyboard, and press Return .

●To navigate to the next parameter, press Tab . To jump backwards to the previous
parameter, press Shift - Tab .
If no parameter is selected inside the focused view, pressing Tab always jumps to the firstparameter.

Presets
Throughout Retrologue, you can find controls for section and module presets. These presets
store and recall the setup of specific components, such as the effects on the FX page, forexample.
●To save a preset, click Save.

NOTE
You cannot overwrite factory presets. If you want to save changes made to a factory preset,
save the preset under a new name or in a new location.
●

To load a preset, click the arrow icon and select a preset from the list.

●

To step through the available presets, click Previous Preset●

To delete a preset, click Delete/Next Preset, if available.

.

NOTE
Factory presets cannot be deleted.

Plug-in Functions Section
The plug-in functions section allows you to switch between the different pages and layers, apply
global settings and functions, and obtain further information about a plug-in.

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Plug-in Functions Section
Plug-in Logo
To get information regarding the version and build number of the plug-in, click theplug-in logo. This opens the About box. To close the About box, click it or press Esc on
your computer keyboard.
Program Loader●

To load a program, click the program loader, navigate to the program in the Load
Program dialog, and double-click the program.

●

To load the previous or next program, use the left and right arrow buttons.

●

To save the current program, click Save.

Page Buttons
Allow you to switch between the Synth, Arp, and FX pages.
Options
Click the Options●

button to open the Options pop-up menu.

Show Tooltips
Activates and deactivates the tooltips.

●

Show Value Tooltips
Activates additional value tooltips for controls that do not have a value field. The
value tooltips are shown when you use the control.

●

If Polyphonic Key Mode is activated, multiple note-on messages for the samenote can be active at the same time. This allows you to trigger the samenote several times, with different parameter values, and end each note event
separately.

●

If High DPI Mode is activated, the plug-in uses high-resolution bitmaps when it isdisplayed with a scaling of 150% or higher on a high-resolution monitor, such as
4K (UHD), 5K, etc. This allows for sharper images on high-resolution displays.
NOTE
Windows systems currently only support scaling factors that are multiples of 100.
For example, if you use a scaling factor of 150%, in , the scaling factor is set to200%.
High DPI Mode may not be compatible with some combinations of software andhardware. If you experience display issues with your setup, you can deactivate
High DPI Mode.

●

If High DPI Mode is deactivated, the native monitor resolution is used.

●

Reset MIDI Controller to Factory Default
Restores the factory MIDI controller assignments.

●

Save MIDI Controller as Default
Saves the current MIDI controller assignments as default. If you add a new
instance of the plug-in, the new default settings are used.

Steinberg Logo
Click the Steinberg logo to open a pop-up menu with links to Steinberg web pages
containing information on software updates, troubleshooting, etc.

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Plug-in Functions Section

Loading Programs
You can load programs via the Load Program dialog.
The MediaBay and the File System buttons at the top allow you to choose whether to use
Steinberg’s MediaBay to look for files or to search for files by browsing through the folders inyour system.

Load Dialog–MediaBay Page
On the MediaBay page, you can search for and load files. To help you find your files more
quickly, you can define a library filter and an attribute filter, the results list, and much more.
In the top section of the page, you can specify which sounds to look for. The lower section shows
the corresponding results.

Reset Filter
Resets all filter settings.
Presets
You can save, load, and delete the settings of a MediaBay search, which includes
both the search mask at the top and the results list. This allows you to create searchtemplates for different search scenarios, for example.
Saving the MediaBay with active search filters allows you to create different preset
collections that can be recalled very quickly. These collections are dynamic, that is, any
new presets added to your system at a later time also appear in the results list when a
new search is performed.

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Plug-in Functions Section
Select Library
Click the library icon on the left to open the library selector, where you can specify
which library to search for content.
Factory
Activate this button to search for presets that are part of commercial or free libraries
and that are installed on your system as VST Sound libraries.
User
Activate this button to search for presets that you have created and saved in theMediaBay.
Filter Text
In the text search field, you can enter text that is part of the name or an attribute of apreset that you are looking for. For example, if you enter Piano, the results list displays
all presets whose name contains “Piano”, or presets for which the term “Piano” is usedin one of the attributes, such as the Category attribute Piano or the Subcategory
attribute Keyboard | E.Piano.
Configure Attribute Menus
Allows you to add attribute menus, where you can specify attributes for your search.
The following attribute menus are available:●

Category opens a tree view that allows you to select a Category or a
Subcategory. Subcategory tags are shown together with the corresponding
Category, in the following way: (Category | Subcategory).

●

Style opens a tree view which allows to select a Style or a Substyle. Substyle tags
are shown together with the corresponding Style, in the following way: (Style |Substyle).

●

Properties opens the Properties dialog, where you can add one or multiple
Properties attributes.
To search for a Properties attribute, enter a text string in the text field, such as
warm, for example. When you start typing, the available properties are shownand can be selected from the list. If the entered text does not match any of theexisting attribute values, all available attribute values are shown in alphabeticalorder. By adding multiple properties, you can narrow down the results to the ones
that match both properties.
Alternatively, click Show All Attribute Values
next to the text field to open a listof all Properties attributes. You can search for matching attributes by scrolling thelist. Press or click a property to add it.
To add a new Properties attribute, enter the text and press .
If you specify multiple attributes, you can change their order using drag and drop.

●

Moods opens the Moods dialog, where you can add one or more Moods
attributes.
To search for an attribute, enter a text string in the text field, such as energetic,for example. When you start typing, the available properties are shown and can

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Plug-in Functions Section
be selected from the list. If the entered text does not match any of the existing
attribute values, all available attribute values are shown in alphabetical order. By
adding multiple properties, you can narrow down the results to the ones thatmatch both properties.
Alternatively, click Show All Attribute Values
next to the text field to open a listof all attribute values. You can search for matching attribute values by scrolling thelist. Press or click an attribute value to add it.
To add a new Moods attribute, enter the text and press .
If you specify multiple attributes, you can change their order using drag and drop.
●

Articulations opens the Articulations dialog, where you can add one or more
Articulations attributes.
To search for an attribute, enter a text string in the text field, such as
Decrescendo, for example. When you start typing, the available articulations areshown and can be selected from the list. If the entered text does not match any ofthe existing attribute values, all available attribute values are shown in alphabeticalorder. By adding multiple articulations, you can narrow down the results to theones that match both articulations.
next to the text field to open a list
Alternatively, click Show All Attribute Valuesof all Articulations attributes. You can search for matching attributes by scrolling
the list. Press or click an attribute to add it.
To add a new Articulations attribute, enter the text and press .
If you specify multiple attributes, you can change their order using drag and drop.

●

Author opens a list with all available authors.

●

Key opens a list with all available keys.

●

Signature opens a list with all available signatures.

●Tempo opens the Tempo dialog, where you can select a Tempo and specify aRange in which the tempo of the result can deviate from the set tempo. Activate
the Half-Timeor Double-Timebuttons to include presets that use half or
double the tempo.

Rating Filter
Allows you to limit the results list according to the rating of the presets. Use the rating
slider to define the minimum rating.
Set up Result Columns
Allows you to select which attribute columns to display in the results list.

Browsing for Files
The MediaBay allows you to browse for and load files.
PROCEDURE
1.

Use the Factory and User buttons at the top of the window to specify whether you want tobrowse through the factory content or the content that you created yourself.
You can activate both buttons to browse through the entire content.

2.

Click the library name to open the library selector, and specify where you want to search forfiles: To select a particular library, click it. To browse through the entire content, select All
Libraries.

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NOTE
If you enter search text, the library selector shows all libraries whose names contain the text,
plus all libraries containing files whose names or attributes contain the text.
3.

Above the results list, a list of suggested filter tags is displayed, based on the mostfrequently used tags. To use a suggested tag as a filter tag, click it. You can activate several
filter tags simultaneously. The list of suggested filter tags is updated with every active filter
tag.

NOTE
Active filter tags have a blue border and are displayed to the left of the suggestions.
●

To remove a filter tag, click its Remove Filter button.

●

To remove all tags, click Remove All Filterssuggestions.

between the filter tags and the4.

Optional: Configure the MediaBay to provide multiple attribute menus to search for specifictypes of presets. To add or remove a menu, click the Configure Attribute Menus button,and select/deselect the corresponding attribute.

5.

To search for files that contain a specific text, either in their name or in any of the attributes,
enter this text in the text field.
While you type, the list of suggested filter tags is updated. This allows you to see in how
many and in which attributes your search text is used.

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The Nameand All Attributes
tags are the first suggestions. To show which attribute
another suggested filter tag belongs to, hover the mouse pointer over it to view its tooltip.
TIP
Combining tags from different attributes means that both filter criteria need to be matchedto create a result. If you add multiple tags for the same attribute, the result only needs tomatch one of them.
6.

7.

Optional: You can set the search parameters so that they include or exclude presets withspecific tags. To do so, define the Mode for the filter tag by right-clicking it and selecting an
option from the menu.

●

Default is the standard behavior. This is indicated by a blue frame.

●

Include can list presets, even if the filter tags prevent this. For example, if you specify
Category = Piano, Property = Warm and Name = Warm Piano (Mode = Include), theresults list shows presets whose Category and Property attributes match, in addition to
any presets whose names contain “Warm Piano”. Include mode is indicated by a green
frame around the filter tag.

●Exclude can exclude presets from the results list, even if their attributes match yoursettings. For example, if you specify Category = Piano and Property = Warm (Mode =Exclude), only piano presets for which the Warm tag is not set are listed. Exclude mode
is indicated by a red frame.

In the results list, double-click a file to load it.

Load Dialog–File System Page
On the File System page, you can browse for files in your system.
In the top section of the page, you can specify where to look for sounds. The lower section
displays the corresponding results.

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Navigation controls●

To step through the recent locations, click the Previous Browse Location/Next
Browse Location buttons.

●

To navigate to the folder one level up in the location tree, click the Browse
Containing Folder button.

●

The path to the current position in the hierarchy is shown on the right. To navigate
to one of these folders, click its name.

●

To open the history, click the Navigation History button on the right.

Locations

You can save folders or directories in your system as favorite locations for quick access.
●To open the list of favorite locations, click in the text field.
If you have not created any locations yet, this list is empty.

●

To add the current folder as a favorite location, click Add Selected Media Node as
Favorite Location.
You can keep the folder name or specify a new name for the location.

●

To delete the current location from the list, click Remove Favorite Location.

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Keyboard
Rating Filter
Allows you to limit the results list according to the rating of the presets. Use the rating
slider to define the minimum rating.
Set up Result Columns
Allows you to select which attribute columns to display in the results list.

Keyboard

Wheel Controls
To the left of the internal keyboard, the pitchbend wheel and the modulation wheel are located.

Previewing Notes Using the Keyboard●

To preview a note, click the corresponding key on the keyboard.
The vertical position where you click a key defines the velocity that is used to trigger thenote. Click the lower part of a key to use the highest velocity, and the upper part to use thelowest velocity.

●

To play a key and all following keys at the same velocity, for as long as you keep the mousebutton pressed, hold down , and click the key on the keyboard.

●

To play each note 10 times at increasing velocities between 1 and 127, hold down - , andclick a key.

Synth Page
On the Synth page, you can find the parameters for the oscillators, the filter and amp envelopes,
the LFOs, and the modulation matrix.
●

To show the Synth page, activate the Show Synth Page button.

Voice Section

Mono
Activates monophonic playback.
Retrigger
If this option is activated, a note that was stolen is retriggered if you still hold thestolen note when releasing the newer note. This lets you play trills by holding one noteand quickly and repeatedly pressing and releasing another note, for example.

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Synth Page
Poly
If Mono is deactivated, you can use this parameter to specify how many notes can beplayed simultaneously.
Glide
Allows you to bend the pitch between adjacent notes. You achieve the best results in
Mono mode.
●

Activate Fingered to glide the pitch only between notes that are played legato.

●

Use the Glide Time parameter to specify the time that it takes to bend the pitch
between 2 notes.

Voice Mode
Determines which notes are stolen during playback and whether new notes are
triggered when the Poly setting is exceeded.
●

If Last is selected, new notes have playback priority over the notes that wereplayed first.
If you exceed the maximum number of notes, the notes that were played first arestolen in chronological order (first in/first out) and the new notes are triggered.

●

If First is selected, older notes have playback priority over newer notes.
If you exceed the maximum number of notes while older notes are still being held,
no notes are stolen. New notes are only triggered if a free voice is available.

●

If Low is selected, low notes have playback priority over higher notes.
If you exceed the maximum number of notes by playing a note that is lower thanthe ones being held, the highest note is stolen and the new note is triggered.
If you exceed the maximum number of notes by playing a note that is higher thanthe ones being held, no note is stolen and no new note is triggered.

●If High is selected, high notes have playback priority over lower notes.
If you exceed the maximum number of notes by playing a note that is higher thanthe ones being held, the lowest note is stolen and the new note is triggered.
If you exceed the maximum number of notes by playing a note that is lower thanthe ones being held, no note is stolen and no new note is triggered.

Trigger Mode
Defines the trigger behavior for new notes.
●

Normal triggers a new note when the previous note is stolen.

●

If Resume is selected, the envelope is retriggered, but resumes at the level of thestolen note. The pitch is set to the new note.

●

If Legato is selected, the envelopes keep playing. The pitch is set to the new note.

Main Section

OctaveAdjusts the pitch in octave steps.
Key Follow
Allows you to adjust the pitch modulation by MIDI note number.

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Synth Page●

Positive values raise the pitch the higher the note that you play.

●

Negative values lower the pitch the higher the note that you play.

●

At a setting of 100 %, the pitch follows the played note exactly.

Random Pitch
Allows you to randomly offset the pitch with each note that is played. Higher values
cause stronger variations. At a setting of 100 %, the random offsets can vary between-6 and +6 semitones.
Pitchbend Down/Up
Sets the range of the pitch modulation that is applied when you move the pitchbend
wheel.
Tune
Adjusts the main tuning of the plug-in.
VolumeAdjusts the main volume of the plug-in.

Oscillator Section
The oscillator section offers six sound sources: three main oscillators, the sub oscillator, the ring
modulation, and the noise generator. To create interesting electronic spectra, you can mix any ofthese sound sources.

For the three main oscillators, the following settings are available:
On/Off
Activates/Deactivates the oscillator.
Wave
Allows you to choose between the waveforms sine, triangle, saw, and square.
Type●

Single produces a single waveform.
If the square waveform is selected, the Shape parameter controls the pulse width,that is, the ratio between the high and low value of the square wave. A settingof 50 % produces a pure square wave. With settings below or above 50 %, theoscillator produces rectangular waves.

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Synth Page●

Sync provides different hard-sync oscillators, where each is a combination of amaster and a slave oscillator. The waveform of the slave oscillator (sine, triangle,
saw, or square) is reset with each full wave cycle of the master oscillator.
The Shape parameter adjusts the pitch of the slave oscillator, producing the typicalsync sound.

●

Cross provides a combination of two oscillators where a master oscillator ismodulating the pitch of a slave oscillator (sine, triangle, saw, or square) at audio
rate.
The Shape parameter adjusts the pitch ratio between slave and master oscillator,
resulting in a sound close to frequency modulation.

●

XOR (exclusive OR) compares two square waveforms with an XOR operation.
Depending on the outcome of the XOR operation, the waveform of a third
oscillator (sine, triangle, saw, or square) is reset.
The Shape parameter adjusts the pitch ratio of the square oscillators resulting in asound close to ring modulation of the third oscillator.

●

Multi is a multi oscillator that can play up to eight oscillators simultaneously. You
can specify the number of oscillators in the No. value field. This parameter canbe set continuously. Values in between 2 integer values mean that an additional
oscillator is mixed in at a reduced level.
If the square waveform is selected, the Shape parameter controls the pulse width,that is, the ratio between the high and low value of the square wave. A settingof 50 % produces a pure square wave. With settings below or above 50 %, theoscillator produces rectangular waves.

Phase
Determines the initial phase of the oscillator when you play a note.
●

If this is set to Free Phase, the oscillator runs freely and continuously.

●

If this is set to Random Phase, the oscillator starts with a random phase.

●

If this is set to Fixed Phase, you can specify a fixed start phase (0-360°) for theoscillator.

No.
If the oscillator type is set to Multi, this parameter determines the number ofoscillators that play back simultaneously.
You can also set fractions of numbers. For example, with a setting of 2.5, you hear two
oscillators at full level and a third oscillator at half level.
DetuneIf the oscillator type is set to Multi, this parameter specifies by how many cents the
additional oscillators are detuned.
For example, if you use 5 oscillators and set Detune to 4, you get one oscillator at theoriginal pitch, and 4 detuned oscillators at -8, -4, +4, and +8.
OctaveAdjusts the pitch in octave steps.
CoarseAdjusts the pitch in semitone steps.
Fine
Fine-tunes the pitch in cent steps.

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Synth Page

Sub Oscillator
On/Off
Activates/Deactivates the sub oscillator.
Wave
Allows you to choose between three waveforms for the sub oscillator: triangle, saw, or
square. The pitch of the sub oscillator is always one octave below the overall pitch. If
you modulate the overall pitch, the sub oscillator follows.
Fix
If this option is activated, the sub oscillator starts with a phase of 0 each time that anote is played.
If this option is deactivated, the oscillator runs freely.

Noise Generator
On/Off
Activates/Deactivates the noise generator.
The Noise parameter is used for non-pitched sounds. In addition to standard whiteand pink noise, there are also band-pass filtered versions (BPF) of white and pink noise.

Ring Modulator
On/Off
Activates/Deactivates the ring modulator.
Ring Modulation Source 1/2
Ring modulation is produced by multiplying the signals of two oscillators. On these
pop-up menus, you can select the sources for the ring modulation.
NOTE
For the ring modulation to have an effect, the corresponding oscillators must be active.

Oscillator Mix
In the Oscillator Mix section, you can adjust the levels of the different oscillators, the noise
generator, and the ring modulation.

Using Audio Input from your Steinberg DAW
If Side-Chain is activated in the Steinberg DAW, you can send the signals from your tracks to
Retrologue.

If signals are sent to Retrologue via side-chain, the Input control becomes available in theOscillator Mix section, allowing you to adjust the level of the signals that are coming in from thetracks in the DAW.

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Synth Page

Filter Section
The Filter section allows you to adjust the tone color of the sound.

Filter Shape●

LP24, 18, 12, and 6 are low-pass filters with 24, 18, 12, and 6 dB/oct. Frequencies
above the cutoff are attenuated.

●

BP12 and BP24 are band-pass filters with 12 and 24 dB/oct. Frequencies below andabove the cutoff are attenuated.

●

HP6 + LP18 and HP6 + LP12 are a combination of a high-pass filter with 6 dB/oct
and a low-pass filter with 18 and 12 dB/oct, respectively (asymmetric band-passfilter). Frequencies below and above the cutoff are attenuated. Attenuation is more
pronounced for the frequencies above the cutoff.

●

HP12 + LP6 and HP18 + LP6 are a combination of a high-pass filter with 12
and 18 dB/oct and a low-pass filter with 6 dB/oct (asymmetric band-pass filter).
Frequencies below and above the cutoff are attenuated. Attenuation is more
pronounced for the frequencies below the cutoff.

●

HP24, 18, 12, and 6 are high-pass filters with 24, 18, 12, and 6 dB/oct. Frequencies
below the cutoff are attenuated.

●

BR12 and BR24 are band-reject filters with 12 and 24 dB/oct. Frequencies aroundthe cutoff are attenuated.

●

BR12 + LP6 and BR12 + LP12 are a combination of a band-reject filter with 12
dB/oct and a low-pass filter with 6 and 12 dB/oct, respectively. Frequencies aroundand above the cutoff are attenuated.

●

BP12 + BR12 is a band-pass filter with 12 dB/oct plus a band-reject filter with 12
dB/oct. Frequencies below, above, and around the cutoff are attenuated.

●

HP6 + BR12 and HP12 + BR12 are a combination of a high-pass filter with 6 and 12
dB/oct and a band-reject filter with 12 dB/oct. Frequencies below and around thecutoff are attenuated.

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Synth Page●

AP is an all-pass filter with 18 dB/oct. Frequencies around the cutoff areattenuated.

●

AP + LP6 is an all-pass filter with 18 dB/oct plus a low-pass filter with 6 dB/oct.
Frequencies around and above the cutoff are attenuated.

●

HP6 + AP is a high-pass filter with 6 dB/oct plus an all-pass filter with 18 dB/oct.
Frequencies around and below the cutoff are attenuated.

CutoffControls the cutoff frequency of the filter.
Resonance
Emphasizes the frequencies around the cutoff. At higher settings, the filter selfoscillates, which results in a ringing tone.
Distortion
Adds distortion to the signal. The following distortion types are available:●

Tube adds warm, tube-like distortion.

●

Clip adds bright, transistor-like distortion.

●

Bit Red (Bit Reduction) adds digital distortion by means of quantization noise.

●

Rate adds digital distortion by means of aliasing.

●

Rate KF adds digital distortion by means of aliasing, and it also includes Key
Follow. The rate reduction follows the keyboard, that is, the higher the note thatyou play, the higher the sample rate.

●

If this is set to Off, no filter distortion is applied.

Envelope
Adjusts the cutoff modulation of the filter envelope. Negative values invert themodulation direction.
Key Follow
Adjusts the cutoff modulation using the note number.
●If this is set to positive values, you raise the cutoff with notes above the center key.

●

If this is set to negative values, you lower the cutoff with notes above the center
key.

●

If this is set to 100 %, the cutoff follows the played pitch exactly.

The Center parameter determines the MIDI note that is used as the central position for
the Key Follow function.
Envelope and Velocity Controls
The A, D, S, and R faders below the envelope display specify the attack, decay, sustain,
and release times of the filter envelope.
The Velocity fader determines how much the envelope intensity depends on velocity. If
the fader is set to 0, the envelope is fully applied. Higher values reduce the intensity forlower velocities.

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Amplifier Section

Level
Adjusts the level of the sound.
Normally, the internal 12 dB headroom allows for polyphonic playing, without any needfor level adjustments. However, if you use higher filter distortion levels, it may become
necessary to reduce the level.
Pan
Sets the position of the sound in the stereo panorama.
Envelope and Velocity Controls
The A, D, S, and R faders below the envelope display specify the attack, decay, sustain,
and release times of the amplifier envelope.
The Velocity fader determines how much the output level depends on velocity. If thefader is set to 0, the sound is always played with its full amplitude. Higher values
reduce the level for lower velocities.

Modulators Section
LFO Tabs
The tabs LFO1 and LFO2 feature 2 monophonic LFOs, and the tabs LFO3 and LFO4 feature 2
polyphonic LFOs.
In this context, monophonic means that the LFOs are calculated once and feed multiple voices atthe same time, whereas the polyphonic LFOs are calculated per voice.

LFO Waveform and ShapeThe Wave control determines the basic type of waveform. The characteristics of theselected waveform are modified with the Shape control.
●

Sine produces smooth modulation. Shape adds additional harmonics to the
waveform.

●

Triangle is similar to Sine. Shape continuously changes the triangle waveform to a
trapezoid.

●

Saw produces a ramp cycle. Shape continuously changes the waveform from ramp
down to triangle to ramp up.

●

Pulse produces stepped modulation, where the modulation switches abruptly
between two values. Shape continuously changes the ratio between the high andlow state of the waveform. If Shape is set to 50 %, a square wave is produced.

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S & H 1 produces randomly stepped modulation, where each step is different.
Shape puts ramps between the steps and changes the S & H into a smooth
random signal when fully turned right.

●

S & H 2 is similar to S & H 1. The steps alternate between random high and low
values. Shape puts ramps between the steps and changes the S & H into a smooth
random signal when fully turned right.

Phase
Sets the initial phase of the waveform when the LFO is retriggered.
Rnd (Random Phase)
If this button is activated, each note starts with a randomized start phase.
NOTE
The Phase control cannot be used if Rnd is activated.
Freq
Controls the frequency of the modulation, that is, the speed of the LFO.
Fade In
Sets the fade in time for the polyphonic LFOs.
Retrigger
Defines whether the LFO is restarted with the specified start phase when a new note is
triggered. This parameter is available for the sync modes Off and Tempo.
For monophonic LFOs, the parameters work as follows:●

Off – The LFO is not restarted.

●

First – The LFO is restarted when a note is triggered and no other note is held.

●

Each – The LFO is restarted each time that a note is triggered.

For polyphonic LFOs, the parameters work as follows:●

Off – The LFO is not restarted.

●

On – The LFO is restarted each time that a note is triggered. This way, thepolyphonic LFOs can modulate each voice separately.

Sync Mode
Specifies how the LFO speed is set.
●

Off – The speed of the LFO is set in Hz.

●

Tempo – The speed of the LFO is set in note values. The resulting rate depends on
the tempo specified in the host sequencer.

●

Beat – The speed of the LFO is set in note values. The resulting rate depends on
the tempo specified in the host sequencer. In addition, the current start phase iscalculated based on the current position.
Select this option to synchronize the LFO restart to the transport of the hostapplication and align it to the beats of the project.

Env3 Tab
The Env3 tab provides an additional third envelope that can be routed freely in the modulation
matrix. This envelope is bipolar. Therefore, it is particularly suited to modulate destinations like
pan or pitch, for example.

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The faders below the envelope display set the following parameters:●

L0 sets the start level.

●

A sets the attack time.

●

L1 sets the attack level.

●

D sets the decay time.

●

S sets the sustain level.

●

R sets the release time.

●

L4 sets the end level.

●

Vel determines how much the envelope intensity depends on the velocity.
If this fader is set to 0, the envelope is fully applied. Higher values reduce the intensity forlower velocities.

Modulation Matrix
The concept of controlling one parameter by another one is called modulation. Retrologue offers
many fixed assigned modulations, such as the amplitude and filter envelopes, or pitch key follow.
In the modulation matrix, you can assign additional modulations.
Assigning modulations means interconnecting modulation sources, like LFOs and envelopes,with modulation destinations, like pitch, cutoff, amplitude, etc.

The modulation matrix offers you up to 16 freely assignable modulations, each with a source,
an offset parameter, a modifier, and a destination with adjustable depth. All modulation sourcesand destinations can be assigned several times.
Click the buttons labeled 1 to 4 to switch between the available modulation slots.
RELATED LINKS
Modulation Curve and Range

Creating Modulations
You create modulations by selecting a source, a modifier, and a destination from the pop-up
menus in the modulation matrix.
PROCEDURE
1.

Click the modulation Source field and select the modulation source.

2.

Optional: Specify an offset for the output of the modulation source with the Offset slider.

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3.

Optional: Click in the modulation Modifier field and select the parameter that you want to
use to modify the modulation.
This modifier is used to scale the output of the modulation source.

4.

Set the modulation intensity with the Depth parameter.

5.

Click in the modulation Destination field and select the parameter that you want tomodulate.

Combining Modulation Source and Destination Using Drag and Drop
The most important modulation sources can be assigned to the most common modulation
destinations using drag and drop.
If a parameter can be used as modulation source, this is indicated by a drag icon.

You can drag the filter envelope, the amplifier envelope, the LFOs, the assignable envelope Env 3,
and the wheel controls of the keyboard.
●

To create a modulation assignment, drag the drag icon over the parameter that you want tomodulate.
If a parameter can be used as modulation destination, this is indicated by a green overlaythat is displayed when you drag the modulation source on this parameter.

If you drop the modulation source, the modulation is created and the modulation matrix is
updated accordingly.
NOTE
If all 16 modulation rows in the matrix are used, no further assignments can be made. In thiscase, you cannot assign modulations using drag and drop.

Modulation Matrix Parameters
Modulation Sources
You set up the modulation source on the Modulation Source pop-up menu.
The following sources are available:
LFO 1/2
The LFOs 1 and 2 produce cyclic modulation signals.
These LFOs are monophonic, that is, a single signal is used for all notes.
LFO 3/4
The LFOs 3 and 4 produce cyclic modulation signals.

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These LFOs are polyphonic, that is, a new LFO signal is created with each new note.
Amp Envelope
The amplifier envelope. This modulation source is unipolar. The shape of the envelope
determines the modulation signal.
Filter Envelope
The filter envelope. The shape of the envelope determines the modulation signal.
Env 3
A freely assignable envelope. This modulation source is bipolar. It is suited for pan or
pitch modulation, for example.
Key Follow
This produces modulation in relation to the MIDI note number. For the lowest MIDI
note (C-2), the value is -1, and for the highest MIDI note (G8), the value is +1.
Velocity
Note-on velocity can be used as the modulation signal. This modulation source isunipolar.
Pitchbend
The position of the pitchbend wheel can be used as the modulation signal. This
modulation source is bipolar.
Modulation Wheel
The position of the modulation wheel can be used as the modulation signal. This
modulation source is unipolar.
Arpeggiator
This submenu allows you to use the controller lanes of the arpeggiator as modulation
sources.
Aftertouch
Aftertouch can be used as the modulation signal. This modulation source is unipolar.
Some MIDI keyboards cannot send aftertouch messages. However, most sequencer
software is able to produce such messages.
Quick Control
The quick controls can be used as the modulation signal. You can select quick control
from the corresponding submenu.
Note Expression
This submenu lists the eight Note Expression parameters that can be used as themodulation signals.
Noise
Produces a random modulation signal. This modulation source is bipolar.
Bus 1–16
Modulations that are sent to one of the 16 busses can be reused as sources. This way,
you can combine several modulations to produce more complex signals.

OffsetAllows you to specify an additional offset on the output of the modulation source.

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Modulation Modifiers (Source 2)
All modulation sources can also be used as modifiers. A modifier is used to scale the output of
the modulation source. A typical example is an LFO as a source and the modulation wheel as themodifier. This allows you to control the intensity of the LFO modulation using the wheel. You canfind the modulation modifiers on the Source 2 pop-up menu.

Modulation Depth
Adjusts the intensity of the modulation.

Modulation Destinations
Pitch
Modulates the pitch. For example, assign one of the LFOs to create a vibrato effect. If
Pitch is selected, the modulation depth is set in semitones (-60 to +60).
CutoffModulates the filter cutoff.
For example, to create rhythmic patterns in the spectral timbre, assign the Step
Modulator.
Resonance
Modulates the filter resonance. Resonance changes the character of the filter.
For example, to increasingly accent the filter the harder you hit a key, assign Velocity
to Resonance.
Distortion
Modulates the filter distortion.
Level
Adds to the level setting. It can be used to create level offsets using the modulation
wheel, for example.
Volume 1
Modulates the gain. This modulation multiplies with the level.
Volume 2
As Volume 1. Volume 1 is multiplied with Volume 2. This way, you can build more
complex modulations.
Pan
Modulates the position of the sound in the panorama.
Osc 1/2/3 Pitch
Modulates the pitch of the corresponding oscillator.
For example, to detune an oscillator cyclically, assign one of the LFOs.
Osc 1/2/3 Level
Modulates the level of the corresponding oscillator.
For example, to fade an oscillator in and out while you play, assign the modulation
wheel.
Osc 1/2/3 Shape
Modulates the shape and character of the corresponding oscillator.
For example, to change the character of an oscillator over time, assign one of theenvelopes.

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Osc 1/2/3 Multi Detune
Modulates the Detune parameter of the individual oscillator voices that are producedby the multi-oscillator mode.
Osc 1/2/3 Multi Voices
Modulates the number of oscillator voices that are produced by the multi-oscillatormode.
Sub Osc Level
Modulates the level of the sub oscillator. For example, to fade in the oscillator while
you play, assign the modulation wheel.
Ring Mod Level
Modulates the level of the ring modulation effect. For example, to fade in the ring
modulation while you play, assign the modulation wheel.
Noise Level
Modulates the level of the noise generator. For example, to fade in the noise generator
while you play, assign the modulation wheel.
Audio Input
Modulates the level of the audio input that is received via the side-chain input of theplug-in.
This allows you to use the side-chain input as an additional source for the synthesis.
LFO 3/4 Frequency
Modulates the speed of the corresponding LFO.
For example, to control the speed of a vibrato effect while you play, assign Aftertouch.
LFO 3/4 Shape
Modulates the waveform of the corresponding LFO.
For example, to vary the waveform with the playing position on the keyboard, assign
Key Follow.
Amp Attack
Modulates the attack time of the amplitude envelope. This modulation destination
cannot be modulated continuously. The time is updated only when the segment starts.
Amp Decay
Modulates the decay time of the amplitude envelope. This modulation destination
cannot be modulated continuously. The time is updated only when the segment starts.
Amp Sustain
Modulates the sustain level of the amplitude envelope. This modulation destination
cannot be modulated continuously. The level is updated only when the segment starts.
Amp Release
Modulates the release time of the amplitude envelope. This modulation destination
cannot be modulated continuously. The time is updated only when the segment starts.
Filter Attack
Modulates the attack time of the filter envelope. This modulation destination cannot be
modulated continuously. The time is updated only when the segment starts.
Filter Decay
Modulates the decay time of the filter envelope. This modulation destination cannot be
modulated continuously. The time is updated only when the segment starts.

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Filter Sustain
Modulates the sustain level of the filter envelope. This modulation destination cannot
be modulated continuously. The level is updated only when the segment starts.
Filter Release
Modulates the release time of the filter envelope. This modulation destination cannot
be modulated continuously. The time is updated only when the segment starts.
Env 3 L0
Modulates the L0 parameter of the user-definable envelope 3, that is, the level of thefirst envelope node. This modulation destination cannot be modulated continuously.
The level is updated only when the segment starts.
Env 3 Attack
Modulates the attack time of the user-definable envelope 3. This modulation
destination cannot be modulated continuously. The time is updated only when thesegment starts.
Env 3 L1
Modulates the L1 parameter of the user-definable envelope 3, that is, the levelof the second envelope node. This modulation destination cannot be modulated
continuously. The level is updated only when the segment starts.
Env 3 Decay
Modulates the decay time of the user-definable envelope 3. This modulation
destination cannot be modulated continuously. The time is updated only when thesegment starts.
Env 3 Sustain
Modulates the sustain level of the user-definable envelope 3. This modulation
destination cannot be modulated continuously. The level is updated only when thesegment starts.
Env 3 Release
Modulates the release time of the user-definable envelope 3. This modulation
destination cannot be modulated continuously. The time is updated only when thesegment starts.
Env 3 L4
Modulates the L4 parameter of the user-definable envelope 3, that is, the level of thelast envelope node. This modulation destination cannot be modulated continuously.
The level is updated only when the segment starts.
Bus 1-16
You can send any modulation to one of the 16 busses, for example, to produce more
complex modulation signals. Select the bus that you want to send the signals to as adestination. To use the modulation that was sent to a bus, assign the corresponding
bus as a modulation source.

Modulation Matrix Context Menu

Assign to New Automation
Assigns this modulation source as an automation parameter.

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Clear Modulation
Removes the modulation data from the current slot.
Clear All Modulations
Removes all modulations from all slots in the modulation matrix.

Arp PageOn the Arp page, you can find the arpeggio and phrase player of Retrologue.

●

To show the Arp page, activate the Show Arp Page button.

Main Section

On/Off
Activates/Deactivates the arpeggiator.
Mode
Specifies the playback of the notes.
●

If Step is selected, the last note that is received triggers a monophonic sequence.

●

If Chord is selected, the notes are triggered as chords.

●

If Up is selected, the notes are arpeggiated in ascending order.

●

If Down is selected, the notes are arpeggiated in descending order.

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Arp Page●

If Up/Down 1 is selected, the notes are arpeggiated first in ascending, then indescending order.

●

If Up/Down 2 is selected, the notes are arpeggiated first in ascending, then indescending order. This mode depends on the set Key Mode.
If Key Mode is set to Sort, the highest and the lowest note are repeated.
If Key Mode is set to As Played, the first and the last note are repeated.

●

If Down/Up 1 is selected, the notes are arpeggiated first in descending, then inascending order.

●

If Down/Up 2 is selected, the notes are arpeggiated first in descending, then inascending order. This mode depends on the set Key Mode.
If Key Mode is set to Sort, the highest and the lowest note are repeated.
If Key Mode is set to As Played, the first and the last note are repeated.

●

If Random is selected, the notes are arpeggiated in random order.

Trigger Mode
Determines the moment when the arpeggiator scans for new notes that you play on
the keyboard.
●

If Immediately is selected, the arpeggiator continuously scans for new notes. The
phrase changes immediately, in reaction to your playing.

●

If Next Beat is selected, the arpeggiator scans for new notes at every new beat.
The phrase changes at each new beat, in reaction to your playing.

●

If Next Measure is selected, the arpeggiator scans for new notes at the start ofnew measures. The phrase changes on each new measure, in reaction to yourplaying.

Restart Mode●

If this is set to Off, the phrase runs continuously and does not restart at chord ornote changes.

●

New Chord restarts the phrase on new chords.
NOTE
The phrase does not restart upon notes that are played legato.

●

New Note restarts the phrase with each new note that you play.

●

Sync to Host aligns the phrase with the beats and measures of your hostapplication each time that you start the transport.

Key Mode
Determines if and how the playback of the phrase is affected by the order of the notes,
as played on the keyboard.
●

If Sort is selected, the notes are played in the order of the selected phrase,
regardless of the chronological order.

●

If As Played is selected, the notes are played in the order in which you play themon the keyboard.

●

If Direct is selected, the phrase creates controller events instead of notes. You
hear the notes that you play plus any controller events of the phrase, such as pitch
bend, volume, pan, etc.

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NOTE
Direct only has an effect if you have set up and activated a controller lane in the
arpeggiator and if a modulation destination is assigned to it.
Vel Mode●

If Original is selected, the notes of the phrase play with the velocity that is saved in
the phrase.

●

If Vel Controller is selected, you can choose a velocity controller to generate or
modulate the velocities of the notes.

●

If Original + Vel Controller is selected, the phrase velocity is determined by the
combination of the velocity saved in the phrase and the velocity derived from thevelocity controller.

Vel Controller
If the Vel Mode pop-up menu is set to Vel Controller or Original + Vel Ctrl., theVel Controller pop-up menu is available. It allows you to generate or modulate thevelocities of the notes using the incoming controller values.
●

If Velocity is selected, the triggered notes inherit the velocity of the note that you
play.

●

If Aftertouch is selected, the triggered notes receive their velocity from theaftertouch controller.

●

If Poly Pressure is selected, the triggered notes receive their velocity from the polypressure controller. This allows you to control the velocity via the keys.

●

Selecting MIDI Controller opens a submenu, where you can select a MIDI
controller.
The value of this MIDI controller is used as the velocity for the triggered notes.

Fetch
If the Vel Controller pop-up menu is set to Aftertouch, Poly Pressure, or a MIDI
controller, you can use the Fetch option to change the way that the notes are
generated.
●

If Fetch is activated, the first note that you play defines the initial velocity. As soon
as the controller value exceeds this velocity, new notes receive their velocity fromthe controller.

●

If Fetch is deactivated, the generated notes receive their velocity from the current
controller value.

NOTE
Fetch is not available if the Vel Controller pop-up menu is set to Velocity.
Hold
Allows you to prevent the phrase from stopping or changing when the keys are
released.
●

If Off is selected, the phrase changes as soon as you release a key. The phrase
stops immediately when you release all keys.

●

If On is selected, the phrase plays to the end, even if the keys are released. If Loopis activated, the phrase is repeated continuously.

●

If Gated is selected, the phrase starts to play when the first key is played. It plays
silently in the background, even if the keys are released, and resumes playback at

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Arp Pagethe current position when you press any of the keys again. This way, you can gate
the playback of the phrase.
Wrap
For all modes except Step and Chord, you can use this parameter to restart thearpeggio after a specified number of steps.
NOTE
Deactivated steps are taken into account.
In Step and Chord mode, this parameter only affects the Octaves setting.
If the Octaves parameter is active, the arpeggio traverses the octaves and restarts
from the original octave after the specified number of steps.
Key Replace
With this parameter, you can deactivate the Key Select function or specify how to
replace missing keys.
For example, if Key Select is set to 1 - 2 - 3 - 4 and you play a chord with 3 notes, key 4
is considered missing.
●

Off deactivates Key Replace and Key Select. The selected arpeggio plays backwithout modifications.

●

Arp replaces the missing keys with the note that the arpeggio would normally play.

●

Rest does not replace any missing keys. The arpeggio inserts a rest instead.

●1st replaces the missing keys with the first note in the note buffer.

●

Last replaces the missing keys with the last note in the note buffer.

●

All replaces the missing keys with all notes in the note buffer. The notes are played
as a chord.

Steps Section

PhraseTo load a phrase, select it from the Phrase pop-up menu.
Step LEDs
The step LEDs light up when the corresponding step is played.
Step On/Off buttons
Activate/Deactivate the steps.
Legato buttons
The Legato buttons below the step buttons allow you to introduce a legato between
two steps.
●

To create a legato, click the Legato button below the first step, so that a small
arrow is shown.

Show Pitch Row
Displays the Transpose value fields under the steps, which allow you to enter
individual transpose values for the steps.

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Arp PageShow Key Row
Displays the Key Select value fields under the steps, which allow you to specify which
key in the note buffer to play for each step.

Key SelectThe arpeggiator scans the keyboard and writes the keys that are pressed into a note buffer.
Depending on the selected Key Mode, this note buffer is sorted either by pitch or in the order inwhich you play the keys.
Key Select allows you to play back a defined key from the note buffer. You can set up Key Selectfor each step individually, which allows you to create very elaborate phrases.
NOTE
Key Select cannot be used in Step or Chord mode.
●

To access the Key Select values of the steps, click KEY on the right.

●

To switch between the available Key Select values for a step, click the value and drag up/
down, or use the scroll wheel.
The following options are available:●

P (Phrase) plays the note of the user phrase, according to the selected mode, forexample, Up, Down, Up/Down 1, etc.

●

The settings 1 - 8 play the corresponding keys from the note list. Which key is played
depends on the Key Mode setting. For example, if Key Mode is set to Sort, the setting 1
plays the lowest key.

●

L (Last) always plays the last key from the note buffer. Depending on the Key Mode, thisis the highest note or the last note in the note buffer.

●

A (All) plays all keys from the note buffer as a chord.

Step Editing
The height of a step represents its value.
You can edit the steps in the following way:●

To activate all steps, select Enable All Steps from the context menu.

●

To adjust a value, click a step, and drag up or down.

●

To adjust multiple steps, click and draw a curve.

●

To adjust the velocity of all steps relatively, -click and drag.

●To draw a ramp with steps, hold down , and draw a line.

●

To draw symmetric ramps at the beginning and the end of the sequence, hold down - , anddraw a line.

●

To reset the velocity of a step to 127, -click the step.

●

To reset the velocity of all steps to 127, hold - , and click a step.

●

To introduce a legato between two steps, activate Step Legato for the first of these steps, sothat a small arrow is shown.

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If Legato is activated, the Gate Scale parameter is not taken into account.
●

To transpose a step, click in the Step Transpose field, and enter the number of semitones forthe transposition.

Adjusting the Phrase●

To shift the rhythm of the phrase, click Shift Phrase Rightor Shift Phrase Left.

If you shift the rhythm of the phrase to the left, the first step is moved to the end. If you shift
the phrase to the right, the last step is moved to the beginning.
●

To reverse the phrase, click Reverse Phrase●

To duplicate short phrases, click Duplicate Phrase

.
.

NOTE
The maximum number of steps is 32. Therefore, phrases that contain more than 16 steps
cannot be duplicated as a whole.

Vel and Ctrl Sections
The Vel section is where you set up the steps of the arpeggio and specify their velocities. In the
Ctrl sections, you can edit three MIDI controller sequences for the phrase.
The MIDI controllers 110, 111, and 112 from the three controller lanes are sent to the modulation
destinations. When you export a recorded sequence, these controller values are also exported.
This means that once you add the exported MIDI sequence to the sequencer, you can deactivate
the arpeggiator and play the notes and controller values using the sequencer.
NOTE
Even if you deactivate the arpeggiator in Retrologue, its controller lanes are still available in themodulation matrix and can be used to modify the modulation using the incoming MIDI controller
messages.

Specifying the Pattern Lenght●

To specify the number of steps for the pattern, drag the Number of Steps handle in the Vel
section to the right or the left.

Activating Steps
A phrase can contain up to 32 steps. Only activated steps are played.
●

To activate a step, activate its On/Off button in the Steps section or click it in the Vel section.

Editing Steps
The height of a step represents its value. You can edit the steps in the following ways:

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Arp Page●To activate all steps, select Enable All Steps from the context menu.

●

To adjust a value, click a step, and drag up or down.

●

To adjust multiple steps, click and draw a curve.

●

To adjust the velocity of all steps relatively, -click and drag.

●To draw a ramp with steps, hold down , and draw a line.

●

To draw symmetric ramps at the beginning and the end of the sequence, hold down - , anddraw a line.

●

To transpose a step, click in the field below it, and enter the number of semitones for thetransposition.
NOTE
You can only transpose steps if Show Pitch Row is activated.

●

To reset the velocity of a step to 127, -click the step.

●

To reset the velocity of all steps to 127, hold - , and click a step.

●

To introduce a legato between two steps, click the number below the first of these steps, sothat a small arrow is shown.
If Legato is activated, the Gate Scale parameter is not taken into account.

For velocity steps, the width of a step represents its gate length.

●

To adjust the gate length of a step, drag its right border.

●

To adjust the gate length of all steps, hold down , and drag the right border of a step.
You can only adjust the length this way until a step reaches the next step. If you increase thegate length of a step so that it overlaps with the following step, the latter step is deactivated.

●

To reset the length of a step to 1, -click its highlighted right border.

●

To reset the length of all steps, hold down - , and click on a highlighted right border.

●

To fill the gaps between consecutive steps, select Fill Gap or Fill All Gaps from the context
menu.

The 3 MIDI controller lanes send the MIDI controllers 110, 111, and 112. By selecting an arp
controller lane as a source in the modulation matrix, you can modulate any of the destinations
with the MIDI controller sequence.

●

To assign a controller, open the MIDI Controller pop-up menu, and select the controller, or
use the corresponding control on your hardware.

Controller Lane Parameters
Bi
This button switches the modulation signal to bipolar, to modulate destinations like
pitch or pan, for example.

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Depth
Adjusts the intensity of the influence of the controller lane on the specified modulation
destination.
Dest
Specifies the destination that is modulated by the controller lane.
Mod
Allows you to specify a second source that is used to scale the modulation intensity. For
example, select the modulation wheel to control the intensity.

Tempo Section
Sync
Synchronizes the phrase to the tempo of your host application.
NOTE
In addition, you can set Restart Mode to Sync to Host. This aligns the phrase with thebeats and measures of your host application.

Loop
Allows you to play the phrase in a loop.
Tempo Scale
Defines the rate at which notes are triggered, that is, the speed at which the phrase isrunning. In addition to the Tempo parameter, this gives you further control over the
playback speed. You can specify a value in fractions of beats. You can also set dotted
and triplet note values.
For example, if you change the Tempo Scale setting from 1/16 to 1/8, the speed is cut
in half. If you set it to 1/32, the speed is doubled.
Groove Q
To adapt the timing of a phrase to an external MIDI file, you can drop this MIDI file on
the Groove Quantize drop field.
The Groove Quantize Depth parameter to the right of the drop field determines how
accurately the phrase follows the timing of the MIDI file.

Performance Section

Swing
Shifts the timing of notes on even-numbered beats, which results in a “swing feeling”.
Negative values shift the timing backward, and the notes are played earlier. Positive
values shift the timing forward, and the notes are played later.

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FX Page
Gate Scale
Allows you to shorten or lengthen the notes of the phrase. At a value of 100%, thenotes play with their original gate length.
Vel Scale
Allows you to raise or lower the note-on velocities of the phrase. At a value of 100%, thenotes are played with their original velocity.
Octaves
Extends the phrase playback to include higher or lower octaves. Positive settings
extend the playback to higher octaves, and negative settings to lower octaves. For
example, a value of +1 first plays the phrase in the octave range that you originallyplayed. Then, it repeats the phrase one octave higher.

Export Section
This section contains the MIDI export functions. You can export the phrases created with thearpeggiator by recording them and then dragging them onto a track in your DAW.

Record Output
Allows you to record the MIDI output of the arpeggiator.
Drag MIDI Phrase to Host Sequencer
Allows you to drag the recorded MIDI phrase to your host sequencer.

Locking the Arp Page
You can lock the Arp page to play the same arpeggio for different sounds.

●

To lock the Arp page, click the padlock icon on the Arp page button.
Now, you can switch presets to try out different sounds.

FX Page
Retrologue features 6 insert effects in series: a resonator, a phaser, modulation effects, a delay, areverb, and an equalizer.
●

To show the FX page, activate the Show FX Page button.

Chain Section
In the Chain section of the FX page, you can see and edit the routing of the effects.
The Chain section contains a segment for each effect section that is available on the FX page.

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FX Page●

To change the order of the effect chain, drag the segments to new positions.

●To activate/deactivate an effect, click the corresponding segment in the chain.

Resonator
The Resonator effect comes with 14 predefined filter shapes that determine the basic soundcharacter. In addition to this, three LFOs can be used to modulate each filter individually, whichallows for adding extra motion to the sound.
The sound of the human voice or of acoustic instruments is characterized by distinctive formant
regions, that is, by resonances in the frequency spectrum that are typical for a particularsound. For example, the vowel “ah” (as in father) sung by a male singer has three characteristic
formants: F1 = 570 Hz, F2 = 840 Hz, and F3 = 2410 Hz. The Resonator effect allows you to inducesuch formant regions to a sound by using three filters that are connected in parallel. You canspecify the positions and levels of the formant regions by adjusting the Cutoff, Resonance, andGain parameters of the filters.
Resonator ShapeDefines the basic sound character of the effect. Each shape is a unique combination ofdifferent filter types for the low, mid, and high frequency bands.
OptionFilter Low/Mid/High

Low-Pass 1

LP6/LP6/LP6

Low-Pass 2

LP12/LP12/LP12

Band-Pass 1

BP12/(-1)BP12/BP12*

Band-Pass 2

BP12/BP12/BP12

High-Pass 1

HP6/HP6/HP6High-Pass 2

HP12/HP12/HP12

Peak 1

LP6/(-1)BP12/HP6*

Peak 2

LP6/BP12/HP6

Bat 1

HP12/BP12/LP12

Bat 2

HP6/BP12/LP6

Wings 1

LP6/BR12/HP6

Wings 2

HP12/BR12/LP12

Wings 3

LP6/(-1)BR12/HP6*

Wings 4

HP12/(-1)BR12/LP12**(-1) means that the phase is inverted

Mix
Sets the ratio between the dry and the wet signal.

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FX Page

Filter Page

CutoffAdjusts the cutoff frequency of the filter, that is, the center frequency of the formant
region.
Resonance
Adjusts the resonance of the filter. The resonance determines how much the formant
region is emphasized. With higher settings, the filter self-oscillates, which results in aringing tone.
Gain
Adjusts the input gain of the filter. The gain determines the level of the formant region.
LFO Modulation Source
Allows you to select the LFO that modulates the cutoff.
LFO Modulation Depth
Adjusts the cutoff modulation of the LFO.
Arp Modulation Source
Allows you to select a controller lane from the Arp page as modulation source.
This determines which MIDI controller is used to modulate the cutoff.
Arp Modulation Depth
Specifies the intensity of the controller lane modulation.
This adjusts the cutoff modulation from the MIDI controller.

LFO Page

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FX Page
LFO Wave Shape
Waveform selects the basic type of waveform. Shape changes the characteristics of
the waveform.
●

Sine produces smooth modulation, suitable for vibrato or tremolo. Shape adds
additional harmonics to the waveform.

●

Triangle is similar to Sine. Shape continuously changes the triangle waveform to a
trapezoid.

●

Saw produces a ramp cycle. Shape continuously changes the waveform from ramp
down to triangle to ramp up.

●

Pulse produces stepped modulation, where the modulation switches abruptly
between two values. Shape continuously changes the ratio between the high andlow state of the waveform. If Shape is set to 50%, a square wave is generated.

●

Ramp is similar to the Saw waveform. Shape adds a gradually increasing amountof silence before the sawtooth ramp up begins.

●

Log produces a logarithmic modulation. Shape continuously changes thelogarithmic curvature from negative to positive.

●

S & H 1 produces random stepped modulation, where each step is different. Shapeputs ramps between the steps and changes the S & H into a smooth random
signal, with the control set fully to the right.

●

S & H 2 is similar to S & H 1. The steps alternate between random high and low
values. Shape puts ramps between the steps and changes the S & H into a smooth
random signal, with the control set fully to the right.

SpreadFor each channel of the effect, there is a separate LFO signal. This parameter spreads
the phase of the LFO signals across the different channels.
For example, if the effect is used in stereo, positive values shift the LFO phase forward
on the left channel and backward on the right channel.
Sync
Allows you to set the Freq parameter in fractions of beats.
Freq
Determines the frequency of the cutoff modulation.

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FX PagePhaser and Modulation FX
The phaser effect and the modulation effects share the same window section. To show thesettings for one of these effects, click the corresponding label at the top of the section.

PhaserRate
Specifies the frequency of the phase modulation.
Sync
Allows you to set the Rate value in fractions of beats.
Depth
Sets the intensity of the phase modulation.
Shift
Shifts the phase modulation upwards to higher frequencies of the spectrum.
Phase
Widens the sound image of the effect from mono to stereo.
Feedback
Adds resonances to the effect. Higher settings produce a more pronounced effect.
Low Cut
Attenuates the low frequencies.
High Cut
Attenuates the high frequencies.
Mix
Sets the ratio between the dry and the wet signal.

Modulation Effects
On the Type pop-up menu, you can specify which modulation effect to use: Chorus, Flanger, or
Ensemble.
For Flanger and Chorus, the following parameters are available:

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FX Page

Rate
Specifies the frequency of the pitch modulation in Hertz.
Sync
Allows you to set the Rate value in fractions of beats.
Depth
Sets the intensity of the pitch modulation.
Phase
Widens the sound image of the effect from mono to stereo.
Feedback
Adds resonances to the effect.
Mix
Sets the ratio between the dry and the wet signal.
For Ensemble, the following parameters are available:

Rate
Sets the frequency of the LFO.
Sync
Allows you to set the Rate value in fractions of beats.
Depth
Sets the intensity of the delay time modulation by the LFO.
Shimmer
Sets the intensity of a secondary faster delay time modulation.

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FX Page
Shimmer Rate
Determines the relation between the speed of the primary and the secondary delay
modulation. For example, at a value of 10, the secondary modulation is 10 times faster.

Delay

Delay Mode●

Stereo has two delays in parallel, one for the left and one for the right audio
channel, each with a feedback path of its own.

●

Cross has two delay lines with cross feedback, where the delay of the left channel
is fed back into the delay of the right channel, and vice versa.

●

Ping-Pong mixes the left and right input channels and sends the mixed signal tohard-panned left and right delays. This way, the echoes bounce from left to right,
like a ping-pong ball, in the stereo panorama.

Mix
Sets the ratio between the dry and the wet signal.
Delay Time
Sets the overall time for the left and right delay. Use the Delay L/R parameter toshorten the time for the left or right delay.
Sync
Allows you to synchronize the delay time to the host tempo. If Sync is activated, thetime is set as a note value.
NOTE
The maximum delay time is 5000 ms. If the note length exceeds this value, it isautomatically shortened.
Delay L/R
Offsets the time of the left or right delay from the overall delay time. At a factor of 1,
the right or left delay time has the same length as the overall delay time. At a factor of
0.5, the time is half as long as the overall delay time.
●

To offset the left delay time, turn the control to the left.

●

To offset the right delay time, turn the control to the right.

High Freq
Attenuates the high frequencies of the delays.

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FX PageFeedback
Sets the overall amount of feedback for the left and right delay. Feedback means theoutput of the delay is fed back to its input. Set to 0%, you hear only one echo. With asetting of 100%, the echoes are continuously repeated.
Feedback L/R
Offsets the amount of feedback of the left or right delay from the overall feedback. A
factor of 1 means that the amount of feedback corresponds to the overall feedback. A
factor of 0.5 means that the amount is half the overall feedback.
●To offset the left feedback, turn the control to the left.

●

To offset the right feedback, turn the control to the right.

NOTE
This parameter is only available in Stereo mode.

Reverb

Mix
Sets the ratio between the dry and the wet signal.
High Time
Controls the reverb time for the high frequencies of the reverb tail. With positive
values, the decay time of the high frequencies is longer. With negative values, it isshorter.
Which frequencies are affected depends on the High Freq parameter.
High Freq
Sets the cross-over frequency between the mid and the high band of the reverb tail.
You can offset the reverb time for frequencies above this value from the main reverbtime with the High Time parameter.
Low Time
Controls the reverb time for the low frequencies of the reverb tail. With positive values,
the decay time of the low frequencies is longer. With negative values, it is shorter.
Which frequencies are affected depends on the Low Freq parameter.
Low Freq
Sets the cross-over frequency between the low and the mid band of the reverb tail. The
reverb time for frequencies below this value can be offset from the main reverb timewith the Low Time parameter.

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FX Page
Predelay
Determines how much time passes before the reverb is applied. This allows you tosimulate larger rooms by increasing the time it takes for the first reflections to reachthe listener.
Room Size
Controls the dimensions of the simulated room. At a setting of 100 %, the dimensions
correspond to a cathedral or a large concert hall. At a setting of 50 %, the dimensions
correspond to a medium-sized room or studio. Settings below 50 % simulate thedimensions of small rooms or a booth.
High Cut
Attenuates the high frequencies of the reverb tail. The lower this value, the less highfrequencies are contained in the reverb tail.
Chorusing On/Off
Activates/Deactivates the chorusing effect.
Chorusing Rate
Specifies the frequency of the pitch modulation.
Chorusing Depth
Sets the intensity of the pitch modulation.

Equalizer Section
The Equalizer section contains a 4-band parametric equalizer.

With the four frequency bands, you can shape the tone color, to create a brighter or darker
sound, for example. The two mid-range bands act as peak filters, and the low and high bands act
as shelving filters. All bands are fully parametric with adjustable gain, frequency, and Q factor.
Each frequency band offers the following controls:
Click one of the numbered buttons to show the settings for the corresponding frequency band.
The two mid-range bands act as peak filters, and the low and high bands act as shelving filters.
Each frequency band offers the following controls:
On/Off
Activates/Deactivates the corresponding frequency band.
Gain
Sets the amount of cut or boost for the corresponding band.
Freq
Sets the frequency that is cut or boosted with the Gain parameter.
Q (Quality)
Adjusts the bandwidth of the mid-range peak filters from wide to narrow. By increasing
the Q value on the low and high shelving filters, you can add a dip to their shape.
The buttons to the left and the right of the numbered buttons allow you to show the settings
for the low-cut and the high-cut filter, respectively. For these filters, the following parameters areavailable:

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Quick Controls
Low-Cut On/Off
Activates/Deactivates the low-cut filter.
High-Cut On/Off
Activates/Deactivates the high-cut filter.
Slope
Sets the slope for the filter. You can choose from 6, 12, 24, 36, and 48 dB per octave.
Freq
Sets the frequency for the filter.
Output meter
Allows you to monitor the output level. The peak level is shown below the meter.

Quick Controls
Retrologue provides a predefined set of 8 quick controls that can be controlled directly fromwithin your Steinberg DAW.
By default, these quick controls are assigned to the following parameters:●

1 is assigned to Filter Cutoff.

●

2 is assigned to Resonance.

●

3 is assigned to Distortion.

●

4 is assigned to Filter Envelope.

●

5 is assigned to Filter Attack.

●6 is assigned to Filter Decay.

●

7 is assigned to Amp Attack.

●8 is assigned to Amp Decay.

NOTE
You can also change the default quick controls assignments. For more information, see the
Operation Manual of your Steinberg DAW.

MIDI Controllers
Most of the parameters in Retrologue can be adjusted via MIDI controllers.
The MIDI controller assignments are saved globally for the plug-in, with one exception: The modwheel assignment is saved with each preset. This allows you to control effect parameters using
the mod wheel, which would otherwise not be controllable, because they are not available as
modulation destinations in the modulation matrix.
NOTE●

Volume and pan are assigned to controllers 7 and 10 by default, and are therefore always
available.

●

If you use Retrologue in a Steinberg DAW, the MIDI controller assignments are saved withthe project.

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MIDI Controllers

Assigning MIDI Controllers
PROCEDURE
1.

Right-click the control that you want to control remotely.

2.

On the context menu, select Learn CC.
NOTEThe mod wheel cannot be assigned using the Learn function.

3.

On your MIDI keyboard or controller, use the potentiometer, fader, or button.
NOTE
You can assign the same MIDI controller several times to different parameters. However, you
cannot assign different MIDI controllers to the same parameter.

Removing a MIDI Controller Assignment
PROCEDURE●

To remove a MIDI controller assignment, right-click the corresponding control and selectForget CC.

Parameter Range
You can set the parameter range for each parameter assignment by defining the minimum andthe maximum value.
●

To define the minimum value, set the parameter to the value, right-click the control, andselect Set Minimum.

●

To define the maximum value, set the parameter to the value, right-click the control, andselect Set Maximum.

Assigning the Mod Wheel
PROCEDURE
1.

Right-click the control for which you want to assign the mod wheel.

2.

On the Modulation Wheel submenu, select Enable Mod Wheel.

3.

Set the minimum and maximum values for the mod wheel using the Set Minimum and Set
Maximum commands.

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IndexA
Arp Page 29
Arpeggiator 29

F
FX Page 37
Delay 43
Equalizer 45
Modulation Effects 41
Phaser 41
Resonator 38
Reverb 44

K
Keyboard 14

M
MIDI Controllers
About 46
Assigning 47
Modulation Matrix 23

P
Phrase Player 29
Presets 6

Q
Quick Controls 46

S
Synth Page 1448
Retrologue 2.4.0