Voltage 80 user guide

01

First setup

Load to first beat

1. Load Voltage 80

Insert Voltage 80 using the CLAP, VST3 or Audio Unit format supported by your host. The three formats use the same parameters and saved state.

2. Confirm the identity

The header reads VOLTAGE 80 in the fixed MODEL display. That display has no arrows or action.

3. Pick a kit

Use the arrows beside PRESET. The eight factory kits apply complete parameter states. An asterisk after the kit name marks a changed value.

4. Play or program

Send host MIDI, click a voice label to audition it, or place hits on the sixteen-step grid and press START.

02

Sixteen synthesized voices

Panel controls and MIDI map

Machine controls

Master sets the complete Main output. Individual buses are tapped before Master.
Accent sets the lift applied by accented MIDI notes and accented sequencer steps.
BD Tune spans -12 to +12 semitones around the bass drum's measured default.
MAP / CH16 chooses the bass-drum MIDI policy described in the kick section.

Factory kits

Reference Circuit · Deep Foundation · Tight Current · Airlock Hats · Copper Claps · Tom Voltage · Sparse Start · Full Current

A preset writes every Voltage 80 sound parameter, which prevents a new kit from inheriting part of the previous one.

Voice	Panel controls	MIDI notes
BD · Bass drum	Level · Tone · Decay · BD Tune	35, 36
SD · Snare drum	Level · Tone · Snappy · early-unit revision	38, 40
LT · Low tom	Level · Low tuning	41, 45
MT · Mid tom	Level · Mid tuning	43, 47
HT · High tom	Level · High tuning	48, 50
LC / MC / HC · Congas	Level · shared Low / Mid / High tuning	64 / 63 / 62
RS · Rimshot	Level	37
CP · Handclap	Level	39
CB · Cowbell	Level	56
CY · Cymbal	Level · Tone · Decay	49, 51, 57
OH · Open hat	Level · Decay	46
CH · Closed hat	Level · closes the open-hat envelope	42, 44
MA · Maracas	Level	69, 70
CL · Claves	Level	75

VELOCITY

Velocity drives accent.

Higher note velocity increases trigger voltage according to the response of the selected voice.

CHOKE

Closed hat ends open hat.

A closed-hat trigger terminates the open-hat envelope. MIDI note-off leaves drum tails running.

RETRIGGER

Tails remain active.

Repeated bass-drum hits re-excite the current resonator state instead of replacing its tail.

03

Sixteen editable steps

Sequencer and Beat Library

01

Enter hits

Click a cell in a voice row to toggle that hit. The top ACCENT row marks a column as accented. Clicking a voice label auditions it and leaves the grid unchanged.

02

Set tempo and swing

Tempo and Swing belong to the internal clock. Swing alternates the two sixteenth-note lengths while preserving the duration of each eighth-note pair.

03

Choose the clock

Internal follows the panel START and STOP controls. Host reads transport position and tempo. Off produces no pattern hits while MIDI stays active.

04

Edit the pattern

Copy stores the grid in the editor clipboard. Paste replaces the grid from it, and Clear turns every step off.

Open the Beat Library

Double-click the Voltage Drums logo.
Select one of the twenty-four curated patterns.
Choose Play to audition it or Load to place it in the editable grid.
Choose Stop to end playback. Double-click the logo again to close the library.

Import and export MIDI

Import reads .mid files from ~/Music/VoltageDrums/imports and ~/Music/VoltageDrums/exports.
Note-ons are quantized to the nearest sixteenth and folded into the current pattern.
Export writes a format-0 MIDI file at 480 PPQ to ~/Music/VoltageDrums/exports.
Mapped notes, step positions and the normal/accent velocity classes survive the round trip.

04

Bass-drum performance

Tune the kick or follow audio

MAP and CH16

MAP uses the drum-note table on every MIDI channel. CH16 keeps that map on channels 1-15 and reserves channel 16 for chromatic bass drum. Notes 8-55 are accepted there. BD Tune is added to the incoming note offset.

Note-off never cuts a ringing kick tail.

Trigger In

Route the source track to the plug-in's Trigger In sidechain.
Turn Trigger In on, choose a voice and set Trigger Sensitivity.
For Bass Drum, select Match Slot A or B and press Match.
Play the source. A usable settled pitch updates the armed slot and reaches the next synthesized kick.

05

Stereo Main plus fourteen

Individual output routing

Signal contract

Main carries the complete stereo mix.
Individual 01-14 carry dual-mono circuit taps on stereo buses.
The taps follow voice level and precede Master.
Use Main for the complete mix, or mute it when rebuilding the mix from individual returns.

Set up the host

Enable the auxiliary outputs exposed by Voltage 80, route the required buses to tracks or channels, and process those returns independently. Host menus show the stable names Individual 01 through Individual 14.

Bus	Circuit output	Bus	Circuit output
01	Bass drum	08	High conga
02	Snare drum	09	Rimshot / claves
03	Low tom	10	Handclap
04	Mid tom	11	Cowbell
05	High tom	12	Cymbal
06	Low conga	13	Open / closed hats
07	Mid conga	14	Maracas

06

Project state

Automation and recall

SOUND

Controls return.

The host stores Voltage 80's parameters, including kit changes and Trigger In settings.

PATTERN

The grid returns.

Clock mode, play state, tempo, swing, Beat Library selection and all sixteen columns are saved.

IDENTITY

Voltage 80 stays Voltage 80.

The MODEL label is fixed. Reopening the project restores this dedicated instrument rather than a selectable model.

07

Fast checks

Troubleshooting

No sound

Check the host MIDI input, Voltage 80 Master and the selected voice level. In Host clock mode, start transport and confirm the host supplies musical position.

START does not advance the pattern

Set Sequencer Clock to Internal. Host mode follows the DAW transport, and Off keeps the pattern silent.

No sound on an individual output

Enable and route the matching auxiliary bus in the host. Confirm the pattern or MIDI note triggers the circuit assigned to that bus.

Channel 16 does not tune the kick

Set the performance control to CH16, send MIDI on channel 16 and use notes 8-55.

Trigger In does not fire

Confirm the sidechain route, turn Trigger In on and raise Trigger Sensitivity until the source transients cross the detector threshold.

MIDI import shows no files

Place .mid files in ~/Music/VoltageDrums/imports, close the import window and open it again.

For support, include your operating system, host, plug-in format and sample rate. Add the shortest sequence that reproduces the problem.

Voltage Drums supportOpen support

Trademark notice. The Roland TR-808 is referenced only to identify the hardware studied and measured. Roland and TR-808 are trademarks of Roland Corporation. Voltage 80 and Voltage Drums are independent products with no affiliation or endorsement.