Hapax can handle two projects simultaneously. Each project contains 16 tracks. Here is an overview of the general structure of Hapax :
proA and proB are directly accessible through their dedicated buttons. Each of them contains 16 tracks and can be played at the same time.
You can seemlessly load a project on proA while proB is running, for never ending live sets!
Saving, loading or creating a project
Hold proA or proB to access the SAVE/LOAD menu, displayed on the right screen :
Note The SD card must be inserted to save or load projects.
SAVE under the current project name, or choose a new name using SAVE AS... Create a new project using NEW, or load a previously saved project by clicking LOAD.
NEW! In the LOAD list, displaying your saved projects, Hold delete and click the encoder to delete the selected project.
Tip Naming a project "DEFAULT" will make it a template, automatically loaded when using NEW. You'll have the choice between a blank new project, one based on this template, or cancelling.
Tip When editing a project name, HoldDEL with the main encoder to erase everything at once.
Tip When editing a project name, if the name is empty, select RAND to generate a 6-letter random project name.
Project transitions
Hapax is a polychronic sequencer, meaning that it can process two different projects simultaneously and independently.
Saving, loading and mixing projects won't get you out of sync: perfect for live performances.
After loading a new project while another one is already running, the loaded project will be muted :
proA is playing, proB is empty
proA is playing, proB is loaded + muted
From there, arrange your muted tracks and your patterns of both projects to prepare the transition.
When you are ready to launch project B, Hold mute and Press proB : the project B will be unmuted in sync, at the end of the bar. Both projects are now playing!
proA is playing, proB is playing
When you finally need to silence all tracks of your project A : Hold mute and press proA :
proA is muted, proB is playing
You can also save proA while the other is playing, load a new project to proA to prepare a new song transition, create a new project, ...
Note When loading a project, if this project BPM differs from the playing project BPM, you will be asked to update the tempo (the two projects must share the same BPM for proper transitions).
Tip While holding mute, you can mute/unmute tracks of a project, and while keeping mute held, select the other project and mute/unmute its tracks. Thanks to the mute group feature, the mute release will toggle the mute state of your both project, at the same time. Itʼs a great way to mix projectʼs tracks and enhance your song transitions.
Setting a project scale (pScale)
One major feature of Hapax is the ability to set a global scale for each project, which will constrain all notes to the selected pScale. It provides a simpler interface without “wrong” notes. You can set a new scale anytime and in real-time, itʼs a great studio tool to color your song.
Hold proA or proB to display the selected project settings on the left screen :
When pScale = ON, the chosen scale will be applied to all the tracks that have their respective pScale parameters enabled (located in 2ND track , enabled by default).
When this global pScale is enabled, the matrix pads only show the notes of the selected scale. There are never more than 8 notes in a scale, so the 8 rows will always show the same note.
For example, if the key note of the scale is F, the bottom row will always be the F note in the selected octave.
NEW! With pScale enabled, only in-scale notes can be added with the matrix pads. The piano roll navigation is based on octave increments.
When an incoming note is out of scale, the STICK option determines how an out of scale incoming note will be corrected:
Down (quantize note to nearest lowest note)
Up (quantize note to nearest higher note)
Filter (out of scale notes are ignored = not played)
Time signatures
Each project can hold its own time signature. By default, the TS is 4/4 common time, but you can easily and drastically change your songs grooves by using other signatures.
Hold proA or proB to enter project settings :
Rotate encoder ③ (pSignature) to set the upper numeral (number of beats in one bar)
Hold + Rotate the encoder ③ to set the lower numeral (note value that represents one beat)
Upper numeral
When a project to 7/4, each bar is made of 7 subdivisions (7), each being a quarter note (4).
Representation on the pianoroll leds will adapt accordingly:
One bar of 4/4 is displayed on 16 steps.
One bar of 7/4 is displayed on 28 steps.
As 28 steps won't fit on the 16 pads of the matrix, the first part will be displayed on page 1 and will end on page 2. Page 2 will contain only 12 steps.
Now Hold 2ND + Press to duplicate the pattern. You will end up with 2 bars of 7/4, which is 56 steps long at default zoom level (2 x 28).
By default, each beginning of a bar is displayed on a new page. This allows for easier navigation when using uncommon time signatures.
Note To disable this option, set SPLIT BARS in this section of the settings.
Lower numeral
A common 4/4 TS means 4 beats per bar, each beat representing a quarter note.
A 4/8 TS means 4 beats per bar, each beat representing an eight note (quaver). Your bar will end up being twice as fast as when a common 4/4 TS is used.
4/2 means 4 beats per bar, each beat representing a half note. Your bar will end up being twice as slow as when a common 4/4 TS is used.
Tip Common Time Signatures: quadruples (4/4, 12/8), triples (3/4, 9/8), duple (2/4 - 6/8), irregulars (5/4, 7/8)
Transpose track (TRSP)
The transpose track is a unique track which leads the transposition of other tracks. This role is devoted to track 16.
Hold proA or proB to enter the project settings. Rotate encoder ⑧ to enable track 16 as the transpose leader (track 16 will start to blink).
Notes played in track 16 will be used as reference for transposing all other tracks (1 to 15). Drum tracks are never transposed.
Tip You can disable the transposition on some particular tracks. This option is accessible under track's advanced settings. Hold 2ND + Press a track button to enter advanced settings.
Track 16 can be used in the same way as any other track. You can play notes in live mode or with an external controller, write notes in step mode or use MIDI effects.
Tip If you need your transpose leader track to remain silent, you can route it to any unused output.
There are 2 different modes of pTRSP :
TRSP - Transpose
The simplest transpose: once you play a new note in the leader track (track 16), the other track's notes will be transposed in real-time, accordingly to the track 16 note.
Note By default, the change is instantly applied. To enable synchronized changes, set the pTRSP SYNC option in this section of the settings.
Tip To change the default transpose center note (the note defining a "+0" transpose), set the TRANSPOSE ROOT option in this section of the settings. By default, the C5 note is the note "resetting" the transpose amount.
CHRD - Match Chord
NEW! Match Chord is a fun and musical feature, opening the way to live scale changes and new harmonization possibilities.
Once Match Chord is set on Track 16, it will listen for a note or a chord. Every other tracks (1 to 15) will have their own notes quantized accordingly. This allows you to transpose everything to a new scale, a new chord or even a single note and thus change your entire project harmony in real-time.
On the bottom of the right screen, you will be able to view the chromatic scale used thanks to the small piano roll (played keys are white):
Tip Use HOLD or RELATCH on track 16 to lock played notes when pTRSP SYNC is enabled for live transpositions.
Note When using Match Chord, note octaves have no effect. Only the chromatic scale (the set of twelve pitches, from C to B) will be used to quantize the other tracks.
Note By default, the change is instantly applied. To enable synchronized changes, set the pTRSP SYNC option in this section of the settings. The chord needs to be held until the synchronized change has been processed. If the new played chord (or note) is released before the sync, Match Chord will be reset to the default chromatic scale. On the bottom of the right screen, a progress bar helps you to visualize the sync:
TRSP Transpose in practice
On track 1, let’s add a simple chord progression : Cmin - Dmin
On track 16, with pTRSP = TRANSPOSE, let's play some notes either with the live mode keypads, with an external keyboard, or by adding notes in step mode:
Each new note will define a transposition amount. If you use the default setting (transpose root = C5), the first note in the example above won't have any effect as it is a C5, and the transposition amount will be “+0”.
The second note (D) will transpose the following tracks (track 1 to 15) by “+2”. The third note will transpose by “+3”.
Upon playing, track 1 will therefore be transposed according to track 16 notes:
TRSP Match chord in practice
On track 1, let’s add a simple chord progression : Cmin - Dmin
On track 16, with pTRSP = MATCH CHORD, let's play a chord either with the live mode keypads, with an external keyboard, or by adding notes in step mode:
This chord defines a new scale to match for every other following tracks. If an existing note from tracks 1 to 15 is equal to a note from the track 16 reference chord, it will remain unchanged. If a note differs, it will be forced to the closest note contained in the track 16 reference chord.
When running, the track 1 will therefore be harmonized to a new scale when track 16 is playing its chord:
A few other examples:
If track 16 is playing only 1 note (e.g. C), as the other track’s notes must match the track 16 chord, track 1 to 15 will only output C notes.
If track 16 is playing the 12 chromatic notes, the other tracks notes will remain unchanged.
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to duplicate the pattern. You will end up with 2 bars of 7/4, which is 56 steps long at default zoom level (2 x 28).
