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Download Hermod PDF Quickstart



Hermod quickstart

Wire up

First, be sure that the supplied micro SD card (1GB) is inserted in the back of Hermod (Hermod can't work without its SD memory).

Connect Hermod to your eurorack system power with the supplied ribbon cable:



Use the 4 supplied screws to fasten Hermod to your system: your sequencer is ready to use!

Note: Hermod requires a ±12V eurorack supply, and consume 310mA from the +12V rail and 30mA from the -12V rail. If Hermod powers an USB midi device from its USB HOST port, add up to 500mA from the +12V rail.

Sequencer workflow

Each of Hermod’s 8 CV/Gate output is controlled by a track. A track can be configured to control more than 1 output for polyphonic, velocity, and aftertouch use. A track can also be used as a “modulation” track, to allow CV and CC recording/playback, gate, and clock messages.

Each of these tracks contains:
  • an effect rack with up to 8 effects,
  • a “mod matrix”, allowing you to control effect parameters using CV or CC,
  • a “pattern”, which allows you to create, record and modify a sequence of notes, gates or modulation messages.

These 8 tracks are grouped into one of Hermod’s 8 sequences. Every sequence is totally independent and contains a new set of tracks to be played with, for a total of 64 tracks in a single project:

You can save/load an unlimited number of projects without stopping Hermod, allowing you to play for hours with your patterns, tracks and sequences.

Project Hierarchy

A Hermod project includes 8 sequences. A sequence is a snapshot of Hermod’s state, it stores every track parameters and recorded patterns. You can use each sequence for individual part of a song or live project.

The behavior of Hermod depends on how you assign each voice to the tracks. By default, a track outputs monophonic notes to its corresponding output (E.G. track 1 to CV/Gate 1, …). You can configure a track behavior by changing its layout.

A track can be used in a variety of modes:
  • Monophonic
  • Monophonic + velocity
  • Monophonic + velocity + aftertouch
  • Polyphonic
  • Polyphonic + velocity
  • Unison
  • Modulation

This way, you can adjust Hermod’s settings to fit any use case in your modular system.

All the fun in Hermod resides in it’s effect system : each track contains up to 8 effects, allowing you to transform input signals, whether it is MIDI or CV. (CV signals are transformed and treated as MIDI messages internally).

Finally, a track contains a pattern of up to 64 steps. There are 2 different types of pattern:
  • A note pattern, as you would expect, is a sequence of notes.
  • A modulation pattern can be used to record and play CV or CC automation patterns, as well as recording gate sequences for drum or clock signals.
Voices colors (RGB leds)
Colors help you to know the voice layout of Hermod selected sequence, and the CV voltage outputed:
Example of a voice layout:

If the GATE is active, the led will flash with high luminosity:

By default, each voices are assigned to output CV note pitch + their associated GATE (each track layout is set to 1 voice, mono).

Please refer to the TRACK section to change eack track layout (assign voices to output mono or poly notes, velocities, aftertouches, modulations and/or gates).
Modes quick tour

Hermod user interface is laid out into 4 main modes:

  • EFFECTS mode : Add/configure effect, Mute/unmute effects, set up effect modulation using the ModMatrix.
  • STEP mode: Edit pattern, add/edit notes, gate and modulation, with step-by-step edit.
  • TRACK mode: Mute/unmute tracks, set up layout, configure midi, CV and routing.
  • SEQ mode: set the current sequence on the fly, change playback style between sequence, program a chain of sequence, and access the project manager.
 Tip  Press and Hold a mode Pad permits to visualize it temporary. As soon as you release its Pad you will return to the initial mode. If you will to enter this mode Press and Release quickly the mode pad.

Basics

Set up a track
In TRACK mode, select a track, either by scrolling or by pressing (TRACK + pad
).

Press  Y  to enter settings, select either “midi channel” or “CV source” to set up your inputs. The “active track” setting will allow you to route a channel to the currently selected track, very handy when recording sequences.

Go back to Track mode, and press  X , choose the number of voices and the layout you wish to use. For exemple, if you want 2 voices of polyphony with their associated velocity, select “4 voices”, and “Poly + Velo” when prompted. The four voices will now flash, and the display will show each voice’s role.

Setting up a track.

Start/stop
To start the sequencer, press play
. Pressing play again will stop the sequencer and return to the beginning of the sequence.
 Tip  Pressing
while holding SEQ will restart (re-sync) all your tracks.
Create / record / edit a note pattern
You can record a pattern in any mode by pressing rec
.
If the sequencer is not running, it will start it.
 Tip  In STEP mode, holding  Y  and pressing
enables a "hard rec" recording (= no overdub). Previously recorded notes will be overwritten.

You be able to record events from the MIDI port, the USB host or the USB device port. Hermod always records polyphonic notes and velocities, pitchbend and aftertouch messages, so you can record expressive performances.

If configured in the settings > CV in settings, you can even record notes from the CV inputs (CV/GATE AB, CV/GATE CD).

In STEP mode, there is a small piano roll that will display where you recorded notes and their length. You can zoom in and out by pressing  X  and scrolling, and change the pattern length (in step), by pressing  Y  and scrolling.
If you want to delete a recorded note, press the pad
where the note stands. A lit pad means that a note sits here. If you want to edit a note, press and hold the pad, you’ll see one of the 3 parameters (pitch, velocity, and length) being highlighted in the display. While holding the pad, you can scroll through the current parameter and jump to the next one by pressing the main knob. You can, of course, add a note with the parameters you want by pressing an empty pad.
Create/record/edit a modulation pattern
If you want to create a modulation automation, you need to configure a track as a MOD
pattern:
  • enter TRACK mode
  • select an empty track, that will be the modulation track
  • press  X  to launch the layout configurator
  • select 1 VOICE and MODULATION
  • enter STEP mode to see the modulation pattern
Then, you can add modulation steps by holding a pad
and selecting the value (from 0 to 127) with the encoder.
By pressing rec
, you can also record a modulation with a midi controller connected to the MIDI port, the USB host or the USB device port, using its modwheel (midi message CC1).

If configured in the settings > CV in settings, you can even record a modulation from the CV inputs (MOD A, MOD B, MOD C, MOD D).

To delete a recorded modulation, press the pad
where the MOD stands. To edit a recorded modulation, hold the the pad
and rotate the encoder.
 Tip  Like the note pitch, the modulation is outputted on the CV voice (for example, the cv#5 if you selected track 5). That means that the gate is free. You can program an independent gate pattern by holding STEP and selecting GATE
, and then pressing a pad
to add/remove a gate.
Mute/unmute a track
Enter TRACK mode, if a track pattern is not empty, its pad will be lit. Press the pad to mute/unmute the track.
Add/edit effect
Enter EFFECTS mode. Select an effect slot by scrolling and pressing the encoder, or by pressing EFFECTS + a pad
.
Select the effect you wish to use, you are now in the edit section of this effect. Set up the effect as you wish. To go back to effect, select “back” or press EFFECTS again.

Adding an effect

ModMatrix

Once you’ve added an effect, you can control one of its parameter with an external source (CV or CC message).

In EFFECTS mode, press  Y  to enter the ModMatrix. Press a pad
to select one of the four modulation routes. Select the modulation source by scrolling, press the encoder and select the modulation destination. Press again to confirm.

Creating a modulation in the modmatrix.

Switch sequences
Once you are happy with your first sequence, enter SEQ mode. Press a pad
to create/select a new sequence.

Now you have a new blank sequence to play with. By default, Hermod’s sequencer is in sequential playback mode: if the sequence is playing, the actual sequence switch will happen at the end of the selected loop length.

Tempo
Hold rec
and press play
to enter the BPM menu, scroll the encoder to edit, and press it to go back.
Once you are in the BPM menu, you can also tap the tempo by pressing rec
. The tempo will be updated after 4 taps.
To clock Hermod with an external Midi or analog clock, go to TRACK mode, press  Y  to enter settings, and navigate to clock settings.
Edit operation
In every 4 modes you can access the edit operations by pressing the encoder. You can copy, paste, and delete patterns, effects, tracks, and sequences.
Autoload

Hermod automatically loads at startup the last saved or loaded projet.

 Tip  If you name a project as "_", it will always be loaded at startup, even if you saved or loaded an other project more recently, making it easier to have a template project.

 Tip  Hold STEP at startup to direclty load a new project.

Connectivity
CV INPUTS

Hermod includes four CV inputs, that can be configured according to your needs: control effect parameters, clock, sequence change, CV/Gate note pitch, modulations.

For example, the four CV inputs can be split into one pair of CV/Gate input, a CV modulation and an analog clock input.

Use the ModMatrix (in EFFECTS mode) or SETTINGS > CV SOURCE to configure the four CV inputs.
CV/GATE OUTPUTS

The eight CV/Gate outputs can also be configured to your more complex needs, in order to sequence CV notes (mono and poly), modulations, clocks, velocities, aftertouch, ...

This configuration is called "Voices layout", please refer to TRACK section to learn more about it.

A C0 note will output -5V, C1 note will output -4V, ..., C5 note will output 0V, ..., C10 note will output +5V. If you want to output only positive voltages, play only C5 to C10 notes.

It's possible to calibrate the CV output voltages by holding REC while powering on Hermod, but thanks to the high resolution of the DAC (16-bit), the pitch precision is always perfect.

MIDI INPUT
Control Hermod (with a controller or a sequencer) and receive midi notes, CC messages, pitch, aftertouch, play/stop and clock.

Use SETTINGS > MIDI CHANNEL to set the channel controlling each track. The parameter ACTIVE TRACK allows you to control the active track and the STEP note learn.

MIDI OUTPUT

Control and sequence a mono/poly synthesizer, a drum machine, a sequencer, ... with this midi output.

In EFFECTS mode, add the effect MIDI OUT to route midi events to a selected midi output channel. You can also use SETTINGS > MIDI THRU to route all incoming events to a midi output.
USB DEVICE (bi-directionnal)


Connect Hermod to your computer with a standard USB cable and Hermod will receive midi notes, CC messages, pitch, aftertouch, play/stop and clock. It works like the MIDI INPUT: use SETTINGS > MIDI CHANNEL to set the channel controlling each track.

Hermod can also control and sequence virtual instruments (VST) on your computer, and sync your DAW via MIDI clock. It works like the MIDI OUTPUT.

Hermod is compatible with all computer operating systems (Windows and Mac OS).

USB HOST (bi-directionnal)

This second USB port allows you to connect and power any kind of USB device, for example:
- a midi USB controller (e.g. Keith McMillen K-Board)
- a midi USB sequencer (e.g. Squarp Pyramid)
- ...

It is possible to receive midi data in order to control and/or sync Hermod, or to send midi data to control and/or sync other devices.

Compatible and tested midi USB controllers on the Hermod USB port (non-exhaustive list):
  • Akai devices
  • Arturia devices
  • Expressive E Touché
  • Joué
  • Keith Macmillen devices
  • Kawai VPC
  • Keith Macmillen devices
  • Kordbot
  • Korg devices
  • Miditech devices
  • Nektar devices
  • Novation devices
  • Roland K25M
  • Roli devices
  • Sensel Morph
  • Squarp Instruments devices
  • Teenage Engineering devices
  • Waldorf devices
  • Yamaha YDP
  • Dave Smith instruments
  • Sequential devices

Hermod is not compatible with some Elektron units like the Digitakt, but it's always possible to use Hermod midi input/output. You can't connect an iOS device directly to USB host, but can use adapters like any Lightning to USB (Camera Adapter). Moreover, Hermod is not compatible with USB hubs, so you can't connect more than one USB device on the USB host port.

How to pair Hermod with Pyramid

You can increase the potential of Hermod by pairing it with the Pyramid sequencer, or you can to use Hermod as a CV/Gate interface for Pyramid midi outputs.

Syncing Hermod with Pyramid works exactly the same as syncing Hermod with any kind of hardware/software sequencers. Connect Pyramid's MIDI or USB output to Hermod's MIDI or USB HOST input. Then you will be able to perform with the Pyramid interface, while its midi notes will be converted to CV/Gate standard thanks to Hermod. You can even use Hermod internal midi effects (e.g. add glides to notes), and use Hermod's sequences and projects as "layout scenes" for your setup.

Note that Hermod is a 100% standalone sequencer, and works beautifuly without any master.


Connectivity examples

Eurorack master sequencer

Hermod can fully sequence your eurorack system, from the smallest to the more complex setup.

Midi + USB host + USB device interface

You can use Hermod as a simple CV interface, like a hub.
All worlds are connected: MIDI, USB and CV.

You don't need any software to configure Hermod: the user interface allows you to route MIDI + USB to CV in a flash.

When using USB (host/device) to CV, Hermod's powerful CPU (Cortex-M7 216MHz) allows you to convert midi notes to CV/Gate with an ultra-low latency.

Eurorack sequencer (with CV inputs)
+ midi sequencer + USB host

Your eurorack system can communicate with Hermod in many ways. The CV inputs are great to add complexity to your songs.

Hermod can be also used as "midi sequencer", to control your synthesizers and your computer.

Multiple Hermods system

To extend the number of inputs/outputs, it's possible to "daisy chain" 2 Hermods or more, via USB.

Because the USB host and the USB device ports are bi-directionnal, you can easily set hermod to either receive or send MIDI clock for inter-device syncing.

You can even use multiple Hermods as MIDI/USB to CV interfaces for your computer or your tabletop sequencer: