Doepfer Dark Time Red Sequencer

Dark Time is an 2 x8 steps analog sequencer with CV/Gate, USB and Midi interface. It is planned in the first place as an add-on for the Dark Energy but may be used even in combination with other Midi, USB or CV/Gate equipment too.

Features overview

• two rows with 8 controls each
• for each step:
  • - rotary control (same knob type as Dark Energy)
  • - red LED
  • - three-position switch On/Off/Skip
    • On = trigger signal is active for this step
    • Off = no trigger for this step
    • Skip = step is skipped
  • - three-position switch Stop/Continue/Jump
  • Stop = sequence stops here
  • Continue = sequence continues
  • Jump/Reset:
    • If only one of the 16 toggle switches is in the Jump position a Reset is carried out (i.e. sequence jumps to stage 1)
    • If two or more of the switches are in the Jump position the sequence jumps to the next step with the switch in the Jump position and then continues from this position (until another step with the switch in the Jump position is reached and then the same procedure is carried out again)
• several operating modes:
• 1x16 (i.e. the two rows are daisy-chained)
• 2x8 (i.e. both rows run in parallel)
• 1-8 Combi (lower row set individual gate lenght of the upper row)
• forward
• backward
• random
• several running directions:
• CV scaling: 1V/Octave standard (note: not suitable to control devices with Hz/V scale !)
• several voltage / tuning ranges: 1V, 2V, 5V (corresponding to 1/2/5 octaves)
• gate voltage 0/+5V (please refer to the remarks below concerning devices with S-Trigger or Korg MS10/MS20)
• for units manufactured later than early 2012 (from serial number 120240) the output voltage for Gate/Clock/Reset/Start-Stop can be set to +12V by means of an internal jumper (the corresponding interface boards are marked V2/2011 or V3/2012). The following document describes the modification procedure in detail: Dark_Time_12V_Gate.pdf.
• quantization on/off/custom scale  (custom scale not yet available in the first firmware version)
  when quantization is "off" the resolution is still 10 bit (i.e. 1024 steps over the full rotating range of each potentiometer), from this the term "quantization off" is not fully correct, with quantization "on" the resolution is 13/25/61 steps for 1/2/5 octaves
• internal via built-in clock oscillator with frequency and pulsewidth controls
• external via Midi/USB
• external via analog clock/start/stop
• transpose via switch (-1/0/+1 octave), Midi/USB or external CV input
• timing control, selected by a three position switch:
• analog interface for CV/gate/clock/Start-Stop (inputs and outputs, 3.5 mm miniature jack sockets)
• Midi interface
• USB interface (power supply via USB is not possible)
• optically adapted to Dark Energy (same knobs, same depth and height, same wooden side plates and so on)
• Powered via external power supply (12V AC/min. 400mA) for 230V
• powering the device via USB is not possible, because the analog circuits require a dual voltage (+/-12V).

Additional remarks and specs:

• for devices with S-Trigger inputs (e.g. Moog) or the Korg synthesizers MS-10/MS-20 a special S-Trig cable is required to connect the gate output of the Dark Time to the Gate/S-Trig input of the synth, details on the FAQ page of our website. You find the price of the special cable in our price list in the accessories section.

• Dark Time cannot be used to control synthesizers which use the Hz/V standard for the pitch CV (unless the quantization of the Dark Time is not used). Only for the Korg MS-10 and MS-20 there is a solution to use 1V/Oct control voltage. A corresponding note can be found on our FAQ page: Controlling Synthesizers with Hz/V standard

• Distance between the knobs (center - center): ~ 25 mm, diameter of the knobs: ~ 16 mm

• Distance between the toggle switches (center - center): ~ 12.5 mm

• Distance between knobs and switches (center - center): ~ 20 mm

• The metal case is made of 1 mm steel, black coated with white printing

• Overall dimensions: about 248 x 145 x 75 mm

• Dimension of the metal case only (without side plates and knobs): about 223 x 135 x 55 mm

• Side plates dimensions: about 145 x 65 x 12.5 mm (same as Dark Energy)

• Weight: about 1.5 kg (without power supply)

• The wooden side plates can be removed if desired. They are mounted by means of two screws to the metal box. The holes in the metal box can be used also to mount several devices together (e.g. with common wooden side plates on both ends) or to mount the Dark Time to one or two Dark Energy.

• The device can be positioned horizontal (desk top) or vertical

• These parts are included: power supply (12V AC/min. 400mA) for 230V mains voltage with European mains plug, one USB cable (type A-B, 2 m length) and four A-100 patch cables

• Powering the device via USB is not possible, because the analog circuits require a dual voltage (+/-12V).

Modular version of Dark Time: A modular version of the Dark Time is not planned. Because of the available space in the A-100 frame there is not sufficient space for the Dark Time controls (A-100 height ~ 100 mm, Dark Time height ~ 135 mm). It would be necessary to change the arrangement of the Dark Time controls completely (e.g. smaller switches, lower section of the controls to the right or left). Our experience with the Dark Energy/A-111-5 sales does not justify this effort (one A-111-5 corresponds to about 25 Dark Energy units).

Additional documents and notes:

• User's manual (English): Dark_Time_Manual.pdf
• User's manual (French): http://dark.energy.lounge.free.fr/mde/dark_time_manuel_fr.pdf (many thanks to Nathalie & Pascal Fournet who translated the user manual of Dark Time into French)
• User's manual (German): Dark_Time_Anleitung.pdf 
• Latest Firmware Updates  , User Manual Adds, FAQ, Tips & Tricks. Troubleshooting
• Template for Dark Time settings (by our customer Chris Palmieri): Dark_Time_template.pdf