MANDALA MK2

Thank you for purchasing the Mandala MK2, and for RTFM !

The Mandala is an eight channels sequencer with a euclidean basis.
It can sequence triggers, toggle gates, send CV and has 8 configurable modulation inputs.

The module is pretty intuitive, but reading this document will definitely help you getting the best from your brand new sequencer :)

We hope you will enjoy it, and that it will boost your creativity !

Nico & Emilie

Check the firmware updates!

Before starting, please check your firmware version. There is a good chance that it is a little outdated if you purchased your Mandala from a distributor, and upgrading is a good idea!

Follow the instructions at https://likaoninstruments.com/firmware-updates/

And if you happen to find any bug, please reach out to us at support [[at]] likaoninstruments.com.

Anatomy of the Mandala

mandala-mk2/mandala-anatomy.png

Each track (or channel) has two outputs : trigger and CV. There are 8 tracks.

A track can be selected by clicking the corresponding activator button on the bottom line of the module. Let's take a look at the buttons on the right of the ring.

Euclidean distribution (Eu)

As long as the button [Eu] is highlighted, turning the central encoder distributes euclidean steps on the current track. Arbitrary steps can be manually enabled/disabled by clicking on the ring buttons. Manually-enabled steps are lit with a slightly different color than the other ones. This color indicates that these steps are locked.

Changing the euclidean distribution on a track that contains locked steps has no effect on them. We can also toggle lock/unlock all the steps of a track by shift (⇧) + clicking the encoder.

Pattern rotation (Ro)

Clicking the [Ro] button brings you to the Rotation mode. In rotation mode, turning the central encoder will... rotate the pattern.

Track length (Le)

By default, a track is made of 16 steps, but we can extend it up to 128 steps. The number of steps can be adjusted per track, by clicking the [Le] (Length) button. In Length mode, the big ring shows the number of steps; the number of pages is on the central ring. A page contains 16 steps, so we have a maximum of 8x16 = 128 steps per track. In Length mode, turning the encoder while pressing it adds full pages, i.e. multiples of 16 steps.

Shuffling (Sh)

Randomization is so cool. You can switch to the shuffle mode by pressing the [Sh] button once. Since the [Sh] button is highlighted, every time you press it again will redistribute random steps on the current track. The step density can be adjusted from the track's options menu (SHF DENS).

If at least one step has a note or CV defined, pressing [Sh] will generate random triggers AND random CV on the current track.

If you press shift (⇧) + Sh, the current steps stay in place, but their CV value will be regenerated, according to the SHF RANGE parameter.

Rush mode (Ru)

The goal of this one is to make fills. Here is how it works now (things will evolve over time, suggestions are welcome!). Let's say we have 2 steps on the track.

  • Press and hold [Ru]. The current steps get locked.
  • While pressing [Ru], turn the encoder to the right.
  • It will sequentially add 4 steps, 8 steps and 16 temporary steps.
  • When you release [Ru], these temporary steps disappear.

Tempo, play, pause, reset

In master mode (i.e. internal clock source), you can change the tempo by pressing and holding down the Tempo button, and turning the encoder.

The play/pause button toggles the sequencer. Shift (⇧) + play/pause button resets the sequencer.

Exiting a menu

In general, when a menu is displayed, you can go back by clicking the shift (⇧) button.

Step level chance

You can adjust the probability for a specific step to be triggered. Press "Sh" button once. Hold down the step's button, and turn the encoder to adjust the chance percentage.

Track options : shift (⇧) + click on track activator

In the track options, the first option is the track mode (TRK MODE). The next options will depend on this track mode.

Track mode: Trigger + CV

In this configuration, each active step will send a trigger. Steps can have (or not) a CV information attached (see Melodic sequencing / CV).

  • Trigger output: triggers (15ms) or toggle output (0V, 5V)
  • Zero CV: by default, an active step with "note inactive" will not change the track's CV output. If Zero CV is on, the CV output is set to 0V even if the step has no CV information.
  • Scale to apply the CV output. Library from MI Braids <3
  • Transposition (-24 to +24 semitones)
  • Glide between the CV steps (linear, exponential)
  • Clock Division, track specific
  • Chance (percentage). The probability that an active step will actually trigger the output. This chance is on track level. For a step-level chance, see later in this manual.
  • Shuffle density (percentage). When you generate steps with [[Sh]], each step has this probability to get enabled.
  • Shuffle range (0 to 60 semitones around the mean): when you regenerate random CV with [Sh], the CV will be in a range of +/- this value around the mean.
  • Link to: see below.
  • Output CV calibration and input CV calibration: see procedure below.

Track mode: Trigger + Envelope

In this configuration, each active step of the track will send an AD envelope on the track's CV output.

  • Attack in milliseconds
  • Decay in milliseconds
  • Shape : linear, exponential
  • Range: peak of the envelope (from 1V to 5V)
  • Invert envelope: makes the envelope negative

Track mode: Quantizer

In quantizer mode, the Mandala reads from the CV inputs, applies the scale defined on the track, and outputs the quantized CV on its output.

In this configuration the inputs are fixed, so track 1 will read from CV1, track 2 from CV2, etc.

  • Quantization : sample and hold, or continuous. In Sample and hold mode, the quantization takes place on active steps of the track. In continuous mode, it happens as soon as possible.

Melodic / CV sequencing

Each active step sends a trigger (modulo the probabilities). But a step can also send CV (-5V to +5V).

To define a step's note, or CV value, press and hold the step button and turn the encoder. By default, the display shows "NOTE INACTIVE". If you turn the encoder to the right, you can set the note/CV to be sent when this step is played. If you turn the encoder to the left, you can select a negative CV.

The CV is held on the output until the sequencer encounters another step with a defined CV (i.e. not "NOTE INACTIVE"). Exception: if ZERO CV is on, the "NOTE INACTIVE" steps will set the CV output back to 0V.

Substeps

Each step can be subdivided in 4 so-called substeps.

To access them, shift (⇧) + click the step.

The first four LEDs light up on the ring, in a slightly different color than the track's color.
The first LED represents the regular step, at the upper level.
Simply click on the substeps you want to activate, and when you are done just click shift (⇧) to exit the substep mode.

If a track's length is greater than 16 steps, setting steps manually can be tricky, because only 16 steps are displayed at a time.

If you want to navigate from page to page, press the encoder. The Mandala does not stop, but auto scrolling is now disabled. Turning the encoder now changes the current page, and you can now easily toggle steps, and change CV or probabilities !

Press the encoder again to exit the navigation mode.

Quick saves

The Mandala provides four volatile memory slots for live performance.

You can, at any time, save the Mandala's full state by shift (⇧) + clicking a quick save button.

You can then recall a state by simply clicking the corresponding quick save button. If you click an empty quick save, nothing happens to prevent accidents: you need to long-press the button if you really want to load an empty quick save (i.e. clear the sequencer)

System menu

  • Clock mode master / slave (MIDI/CLK IN).
  • Clock input divider
  • Clock output divider
  • CV mappings: this is used to select the behavior of the CV inputs. See below:

Let's say that we want to modulate the rotation of track 6 with CV4. Turn the encoder and highlight the desired CV input: CV4. Press the track activator number 6. Click the encoder, and select "ROT". Press shift (⇧) to exit the menu.

  • Live mode: if enabled, trigger outputs (and potentialy envelopes on CV out) are triggered when the track buttons are clicked. The track copy (long press) is disabled when the Mandala is in Live mode, to prevent accidental overwrites while playing with the buttons.
  • Save / load presets

Saving

It requires a microSD card plugged behind the module. To save the current state of the Mandala (including the quick saves), press the SYS, button, go to "Save state" and press the encoder.

The screen displays a file browser, and you can either create a new file, or overwrite an existing one.

You can rename presets by inserting the microSD into a computer and renaming files.

Selective loading

There are two ways of loading: - Load the currently running sequence only (and keep your current quick saves) : LOAD ACTIVE - Load the quick saves only (and keep your running sequence) : LOAD QUICK - This split loading allows transitioning between saved patterns.

CV inputs mapping

When a track is in Trig+CV, you can modulate some parameters with the module's CV inputs.

Open the SYS menu, go to CV mappings.

The UI (and features) will evolve, but here is how it works right now: let's say you want to assign CV4 to modulate the rotation on track 1.

  • Turn the encoder until you reach CV4.
  • Click the track 1 activator button
  • Click the encoder
  • Turn the encoder until you reach ROT
  • Click the encoder again, or press shift (⇧) to exit the CV mapping menu.

At this time, one input can modulate one function on one track. Later, we will be able to do more complex mappings!

All the inputs are bipolar, from -5V to +5V.

The functions that can be modulated are: - STP : euclidean step count - ROT : pattern rotation - SHF : Shuffle regeneration - TRAN : CV transposition

Global clock dividers

To make interoperability with other modules easier, two clock dividers are available in the SYS menu:

  • CLOCK IN DIV: divider applied to the CLK IN.
  • CLOCK OUT DIV: divider applied to CLK OUT.

Mute switches and tracks LEDs

The bottom part of the Mandala offers clickable, backlit switches, toggle switches and color LEDs, each track having its own color.

When a track is not muted (toggle switch to the top), each active step triggers a white light on the track button. In this state, the color LED is steady.

When a track is muted, the white button stops flashing, and the color LED flashes instead. This is a visual help to build rythms on a muted track.

You can also clear the current track with one gesture: with the track button pressed, mute and unmute, done!

Copying a track onto another

Do you like your pattern on track 6? Think it would be nice to clone it onto track 7? Easy: show the track 6, and then press the track 7 activator button during 2 seconds. Done.

The track copy is disabled when the Mandala is in Live mode, to prevent accidental overwrites while playing with the buttons.

MIDI

Physical configuration

In the bottom-left corner of the module, you can see two black sockets, for TRS MIDI I/O. As usual, the big question: TRS type A or B ?

Give a look at the back of your Mandala. You can move the jumpers in A or B position, for input and output individually.

mandala-mk2/mandala-midi-physical-configuration.png

MIDI output

Whether in master or slave mode, the Mandala emits a MIDI clock at the output. - The triggers are mapped to channel 10, notes 24 to 32. - The notes are mapped to channels 1 to 8, and sent with a velocity of 127.

MIDI input

At this point, the only input signals handled by the Mandala are clock, start and stop.

CV outputs and inputs calibration

CV in and out are calibrated during the module testing in our labs (== in our kitchen), but if at some point you feel the need to recalibrate, here is the procedure.

Calibrating a track's CV output

  • Patch a cable in the CV output and connect it to a voltmeter (or Data's voltage monitor)
  • Shift (⇧) + click the track button.
  • Scroll down to "Output calibr." and click the encoder.

From now on, the Mandala will ask you to turn the encoder until you get, successively, -5V, -4V, -3V, ... +5V.

Turn the encoder until you get -5V on the voltmeter. Click the encoder. Now it asks you to adjust it to -4V. Click it. As soon as -5V and -4V are defined, the next steps will get closer to the target, so you will not need big adjustments.

Once +5V is validated, the calibration is saved.

Repeat the process on all the tracks you want to calibrate !

Calibrating a track's CV input

As the outputs are now calibrated, we will use them to calibrate the inputs.

Let's calibrate the CV1 input:

  • Patch a cable between CV out 1 and CV in 1
  • Shift (⇧) + click the track 1 button.
  • Scroll down to "Input calibr." and click the encoder.

Repeat the process on all the inputs you want to calibrate !

Track linking

You can link a track to another. If you link track 2 to track 1, the track 2 will be a 1:1 copy of track 1. You can still lock some steps on track 2, they will not be affected by the linking.

Linking is very useful to synchronize an envelope track with a melodic track, for example.

Saved information

Quick saves

In the quick saves, the steps and some track information are saved:

  • Track information

    • Euclidean steps count
    • Rotation
    • Length
    • Clock divider
    • Envelope voltage range
    • Envelope inversion
    • Attack
    • Decay
    • Track linking

  • Step information

    • Position
    • CV info

Micro SD

The micro SD card stores:

  • Your saves presets, and each preset file contains the running pattern AND the quick saves
  • The CV mappings
  • The global settings: input and output clock dividers, live mode configuration, tempo.

Screen saving

The OLED display goes to sleep after 5 minutes without touching the module to avoid wearing. Pressing any button will wake it up immediately.

Technical information

  • Module size: 30hp
  • Module depth: 42mm
  • Power consumption:
    • +5V: 180mA
    • +12V: 14mA
    • -12V: 18mA

FAQ

Q: Sometimes, when I press a track button, not hing happens. Is it a bug or a mechanical issue?

A: Track buttons handle long presses, so their action is linked to the click duration. To activate a track or open its options, the click must be relatively fast, like on a computer mouse for example.