CobaltChorusManual.doc

COBALT CHORUS

v1.0

Created by

Leslie Sanford

http://www.lesliesanford.com/Cobalt/CobaltEffects.shtml

Graphics created by

Grymmjack

http://designermonkey.rekkerd.org/index.php

Table of Contents

1. User Interface
2. Acknowledgements
3. Introduction
4. Installation
5. Changing Parameter Values
6. Parameter Reference

Appendix A

MIDI Implementation

User Interface

Acknowledgements

Some folks I’d like to thank for helping put Cobalt Chorus together. I am very grateful for their time and effort.

Special thanks to:

Rick Christy (a/k/a grymmjack) of DesignerMonkey:

http://designermonkey.rekkerd.org

              Rick designed the UI; he did the background image as well as all of the graphical elements.

Donovan Stringer: http://vaesolis.org/f2/index.php

              Donovan set up a web forum for Cobalt beta testers to post bugs, comments, and anything else relating to Cobalt’s development. We’ve continued to use this forum for further Cobalt development as well as offshoot projects such as the Cobalt Chorus. He created several of Cobalt Chorus’s factory presets.

Roby Burgas (a/k/a sweet_trip)

                Roby beta tested Cobalt Chorus and provided many of the factory presets as well. He belongs to a band called Sweet Trip. You can check them out here and here.

Introduction

The Cobalt Chorus is based on the chorus effect in the Cobalt VSTi synthesizer. It is a straightforward and easy to use effect that is capable of creating the traditional chorus effect as well as other effects such as flanging and vibrato.

With the warm reception Cobalt received, I decided to release the chorus section as an individual effect. I have added two or three extra features to expand the chorus’s capabilities as a stand-alone effect.

Installation

Installing Cobalt is done easily by simply copying the Cobalt.dll to your VST plugin folder. You may need to tell your VST host to rescan the folder so that Cobalt shows up in your host’s list of VST plugins. Please see your host’s documentation for details.

Changing Parameter Values

Changing parameters is straightforward. To change a parameter value, first click on the control that represents the parameter with the left mouse button. In response, the cursor will disappear. This is to enhance the sense of “grabbing” the control. While keeping the left mouse button held down, move the mouse up or down for knobs and vertical sliders. For horizontal sliders, you move the mouse to the left or right.

Switches respond a bit differently in that all you need to do to toggle a switch back and forth is just click on it anywhere with the left mouse button.

As you change a knob or slider’s value, the change to the corresponding parameter is displayed in the status box. The status box is in the upper right-hand corner. Once you are done changing a control’s value, release the left mouse button (the cursor will reappear).

Fine-tuning a parameter value can be easily done by holding down the Shift key while manipulating a control. To quickly reset a control to its default value, hold down the Ctrl key while clicking once on the control with the left mouse button.

Parameter Reference

CHORUS SWITCH: Turns on/off the CHORUS effect.

DELAY: Sets the delay time in milliseconds. Smaller delay times create a more flange like effect while larger values create a traditional chorus effect.

DEPTH: Sets the CHORUS LFO modulation depth. Larger values create a vibrato effect while smaller values create a more subtle doubling effect.

FB: Sets the amount of feedback. When the DELAY time is set to a small value, larger feedback values create a flange effect.

FREQ: Sets the CHORUS LFO frequency.

QUAD: Turns on/off the QUAD MODE. When QUAD MODE is turned on, the left and right input channels are modulated by LFOs 90 degrees out of phase with each other. This enhances a stereo effect. When QUAD MODE is turned off, both left and right input channels are modulated by the same LFO.

MIX: Mixes in the CHORUS’S output with the original signal. Mixing goes from 100% dry to 100% wet with the center setting mixing equal amounts of the input with the CHORUS effect.

APPENDIX A

MIDI Implementation