User Guide⎪Groovemate ONE

We hope you will enjoy Groovemate ONE, a small but useful addition to your rhythm section and we thank you for being a part of the UJAM community of music creators!

Many of our users asked for a percussion plug-in, designed to improve and work flawlessly with the UJAM Virtual Drummer series. This is it! When it comes to the bread-and-butter of percussion, Groovemate ONE is just what you need. The plug-in offers a combination of 30 different styles and mix presets while asking absolute minimal effort from you and lets you easily add the four essential sounds your track is probably missing. Choose a single instrument or a pattern made out of these basic instruments:

One Shot Shaker
Regular Shaker
Tambourine
Claps

With just a few clicks, Groovemate ONE delivers that special flavor which just doesn't come with most basic drum libraries, although it’s used in many popular productions these days. For example, let your mix shine simply by adding the high frequencies of a solid tambourine or a shaker. Maybe you need a bit more movement in a certain part of your song? Easy! Just let a tasty percussion groove play in the background and you’re good to go.

Why so few Controls?

We are all musicians and we know that the time for learning a user interface is better spent making music. Also, unlike many percussion plug-ins, we do not expect our users to bring in-depth knowledge about single instruments, microphones, and sound engineering – because let’s admit it: We can’t possibly know everything.

Therefore, the concept and user interface of Groovemate ONE is designed for maximum ease of use and minimum distraction. There is a lot of intelligence going on under the hood so you can focus on your music.

The user interface is also fail-proof in that no matter how you set up the controls of Groovemate ONE, the result will never be musically or technically wrong – and this is true without sacrificing any creative freedom.

You can trust in the fact that tracks produced with Groovemate ONE sound realistic and professional.

You and us

Groovemate ONE was built by musicians for musicians. We at UJAM are a pretty diverse bunch – from DJ to weekend producer to Oscar-awarded Hollywood composer. We build every product for ourselves, and, like you, we’re all users of Groovemate ONE too. That means that before we even start developing, a lot of thought and discussion goes into finding out what you, the user, will expect from the product, what problem it solves, which controls we can remove to make the product more inviting and simpler, which hurdles we can move out of the way between you and a perfect track. Every product is optimized for one clear, powerful purpose: To produce great-sounding tracks without distracting you from the complex endeavor that producing a song is. We hope that Groovemate ONE transpires that philosophy in everything you do with it. Naturally, we’re always open to new ideas and critique, and you are always encouraged and welcome to talk to us:

Submit a request to our support staff: https://support.ujam.com/
Visit our Facebook page: facebook.com/ujaminstruments
Catch us on Twitter: twitter.com/ujaminstruments
Follow us on Instagram: instagram.com/ujaminstruments

Installing Groovemate ONE on your system

Installation is straightforward – double-click the installer file you got with the free trial email or purchase the product in our shop and download the installer from your account.

We have designed the entire process of downloading, activating and authorizing Groovemate ONE with a strong focus on simplicity. It’s important to us to make it as easy as possible for you to get your hands on Groovemate ONE – and make it your own if you like it.

Where to put the Content

The actual audio content is packed into a so-called blob file named GM-ONE.blob – You can keep the blob file anywhere you like (e.g. on a separate content drive).

During standard installation, it will be put into the following locations on your main system drive:

OSX	/Library/Application/Support/UJAM/GM-ONE
Windows	/ProgramData/UJAM/GM-ONE

Installing to a different location on Mac

If you wish to install the plug-in content (blob file) to a custom folder, you can set a different installation folder during the installation process.

Open the installer and follow the procedure to step “Installation Type”.
Click “GM-ONE Location” to select it – as shown in the image below – and follow the instructions in the installer.

Mac Installer – Change Content Location

If you wish to use an external HDD, use the default location at first and move the blob file manually after the installation is finished. You can always move the blob file after you have installed Groovemate ONE:

Move your file to the desired location (different folder or different drive)
Launch your DAW and open GM-ONE. It will present you with a dialog asking for the file location.

Simply point to the new location of the blob file – done.

Installing to a different drive on PC

If you wish to install the blob file to a custom folder or a separate drive, you can set a different content installation folder in the installer. Just click the “Browse...” button on the “Select Content Location” page of the GM-ONE installer and point to your desired location. You can always change the location afterwards, as mentioned above.

Windows Installer – Change Content Location

Adding Groovemate ONE to your track

After installing Groovemate ONE, it will appear in the instrument plug-in menu of your VST-, AU- or AAX-compatible digital audio workstation. Here you can select it and create a new instrument track.

Controller Hardware for Groovemate ONE

Groovemate ONE requires MIDI note input for playing and recording musical performances. If you have a MIDI controller (keyboard or pad controller), this will be the easiest and most straightforward MIDI input method and it’s most fun as this way you control your Groovemate in real-time.

Of course, you can also control Groovemate ONE by using MIDI step sequencers or by entering MIDI notes manually into MIDI tracks. For getting to know Groovemate ONE and for testing purposes, you can also use the Interactive Keyboard. This works best with the Latch function enabled.

Trying, Buying, Authorizing

We only want you to spend money if you’re absolutely happy with Groovemate ONE. Therefore, we grant you a 7-day trial period, during which the plug-in will run without any limitation. When opening Groovemate ONE during the trial period (or when clicking the blue Authorize button at the top), you will see this overlay which shows:

Trial Overlay

Information about your trial status.
A link to the product page where you can purchase a Groovemate ONE license after or during the trial period.
The fields to enter your credentials and authorize Groovemate ONE once you’ve purchased it (the license has to be linked to your ujam account or else you will probably see an error message).

Basic User Interface Overview

#	Description
1	Trial overlay: Click to activate your license
2	Update notification bell
3	About screen with useful product information
4	Micro timing menu: Player Sync & Swing
5	Phrase play area & MIDI drag and drop tabs
6	Latch button: Keep on playing even although keys are released
7	Volume: Adjust the overall loudness of the plug-in
8	Ambience section: Choose mix, reverb and delay
9	Individual percussion instrument section
10	Lock the ambience section
11	Arrows for preset browsing
12	Preset list view

Quick Start

Open Groovemate ONE in your favorite DAW. Hit the Latch button, choose a soft, full or busy phrase (notes G, A and B) and browse through the presets by opening the list view beneath the GM-ONE logo. Turn the Mix and Reverb knobs to get more of whatever effect you’ve chosen, and don’t forget that you can always lock the ambience section if you only want to change the style phrases. Repeat as necessary. That’s the easiest way to get started, read along if you want more information.

Groovemate ONE Reference

Interactive keyboard

Interactive Keyboard

The keyboard is designed in the range of an octave. Use your external MIDI controller, your mouse or the MIDI editor of your DAW to trigger the keys.

Key	Description
C	One Shot Shaker (one shot)
C# or Db	Tambourine (tamb)
D	Tambourine accent (tamb acc)
D# or Eb	Tambourine (tamb)
E	Clap
F	Regular shaker (shke)
F# or Gb	Regular shaker (shke)
G	Soft phrase
G# or Ab	Fill phrase
A	Full phrase
A# or Bb	Stop
B	Busy phrase

The basic principle is simple:

MIDI notes C to F# play (and display) individual percussion hits.
When you press the keys G, A or B, Groovemate ONE will start playing a phrase – soft, full or busy. When you release the key(s), or press the stop key, playback will stop.
The upper dotted half of the keyboard keys on the right lets you drag and drop phrases into DAW tracks.

If you know these basic things and can switch presets, you know all you need to start producing with Groovemate ONE.

MIDI Drag and Drop

Groovemate ONE lets you drag phrases from the Interactive Keyboard into any track of your DAW, where it will be converted to MIDI notes.

To drag a pattern from Groovemate ONE into your song, click and hold in the dotted drag area of the phrase key on the Interactive Keyboard and drag the mouse pointer over to the target track.

MIDI regions/notes created by dragging a phrase into Presonus Studio One

Things you can do using MIDI Drag and Drop

You can edit a phrase just like any other MIDI sequence – e.g. change note positions, velocities, or add instruments.
You can combine phrases from various presets into one song. Just switch presets and drag away.
Best of all: You can even combine all of the above techniques freely to create your total custom percussion performances.

Note: When you drag Intros, Fills and Endings, note that some of these start mid-bar, so you might sometimes have to adjust the start of the resulting MIDI region after dropping it. Also, while Groovemate ONE will internally shorten some phrases when you play a Fill, you’ll have to do it manually in dropped MIDI regions.

Ambience Section

This section is designed to allow you to tweak your sound with a minimum set of controls – but don’t be fooled: under the hood, you’re programming a complex mixing console including equalisation, compression, panning, saturation, transients and much more.

If you wish to use the different style phrases of Groovemate ONE without changing the mix and reverb settings, simply click on the lock icon.

Mix

Each Mix Preset is a total recall setting for the internal mixing console. The mix presets are selected and named according to the designed sound. Have a listen!

Reverb

The Reverb knob lets you adjust the master level for the reverb and delay effects.

Groovemate ONE offers three standard, self-explanatory reverb programs.
Click on the Reverb name to change the Reverb program or even select a Dotted Delay.

Note: Keep in mind that changing a Preset will overwrite your Reverb Type selection when the ambience section is not locked.

Global Playback Parameters

Latch

You find the Latch button above the volume control.

Screenshot_2021-04-28_at_13.32.39.png

If activated Groovemate ONE will keep playing even after keys are released, until either

Latch is switched off
the Stop button is pressed
or the DAW is stopped while it’s playing.

Latch is extremely handy when using Style phrases and a combination of single instruments. The Groovemate will fluently switch between the different grooves and fills.

Micro Timing

In the middle of the plug-in you’ll find the Micro Timing button. Clicking it opens the Micro Timing Menu, offering Player Sync and a Swing parameter to adjust.

Player Sync

You can quantize the Groovemate ONE player to match the playback, this setting can be found in the micro timing overlay. Quantize to the current grid (Song Position), 1/4, 1/8, or 1/16 notes. This new feature keeps the player always in sync with the DAW timing position to make sure you have the phrase in time and on the right beat. Give it a try!

Micro Timing Menu

Sync	Description
Note On	The phrase will play right when you start it, without any quantization.
1/16	If you trigger a phrase it will start on the next sixteenth note of the current grid.
1/8	If you trigger a phrase it will start on the next eighth note of the current grid.
1/4	If you trigger a phrase it will start on the next quarter note of the current grid.
Song Position	Depending on the current beat in the measure, the phrase will adjust its starting point. So for example, if you start a phrase on the last sixteenth note of a bar the phrase will also start on its last sixteenth note and therefore be in time.

Swing

This knob gradually applies a shuffle feel to the rhythm performance by delaying the offbeats.

Depending on the selected style, 8^th or 16^th note offbeats will be affected. At maximum position, the offbeat will have the same timing as the last note of a triplet.

Not all phrases contain 8^th or 16^th note offbeats – in these cases Swing control has no effect.

Preset List View

Groovemate ONE comes with 30 Presets organized into this list. Each preset is a combination of a style phrase and the appropriate mix and reverb settings. Scroll down and hover over the presets – you’ll see that the description changes accordingly. Let your Groovemate play using the Latch button, then go through the list and select different presets. The first half of the presets (1 to 15) include solo instrument phrases, while the other half (16 to 30) offers a combination of the included percussion sounds.

#	Name	Description
1	Pop Standard	This is what the plug-in is for. Verse, Bridge, Chorus, done.
2	Shaker Standard	The most commonly used basic shaker patterns.
3	Tambourine Standard	Same thing, just for the tambourine.
4	One Shot Standard	Same thing, but for a slightly lower shaker with tighter attack.
5	Claps Standard	Add some claps. The American, German or Spanish way (this joke approved by UJAM Germany).
6	Quarter Feel Shake 1	Subtle shaker quarter pulse to add a little flavor to your hihat.
7	Quarter Feel Tambourine 1	Quarter tambourines rarely fail to give a beat a bit of human touch.
8	Quarter Feel One Shots	A good counterpart for the shaker quarters, especially when panned left and right.
9	Quarter Feel Shake 2	Still remains in the quarter feel universe, but adds some variations.
10	Quarter Feel Tambourine 2	More variations, bordering on quaver feel.
11	Quaver Feel Shake	One of the most popular engineering moves is to pan this on the opposite side of your hihat.
12	Quaver Feel Tambourine	The three most common quaver note accents. Fun fact: much harder to play IRL than 16th notes.
13	Offbeat Shaker	Did you know that subtle offbeat shaker accents make your track sound like it's 1 BPM faster?
14	Offbeat Tambourine	And did you know that the same trick adds a perceived 2 BPM when you use a tambourine instead?
15	Make My Snare Brighter	A popular trick to brighten a snare is to skip the eq and just add a subtle treble impulse.
16	Build And Rise	Put this on your rise, turn the Mix knob and it shall never disappoint you.
17	Dotted 1	3 over 4. Such a simple concept, but like many simple concepts, it just never fails to entertain.
18	Dotted 2	Another way of doing 3 over 4.
19	Beach Boy	The classic 60s backbeat pattern.
20	In Your Face	Even more backbeat beating.
21	Not In Your Face	Consider this the slightly more artsy, subdued sibling of the Pop Standard.
22	Halftime	The real life percussion equivalent of a programmed trap hihat.
23	Elementary School	Hypothetical scenario: Teacher tells class to play at will, and chaos doesn't ensue.
24	Lost Son 3/4	To maybe 3 percent of users, this is a Waltz. To the remaining 97 percent, it's another 3 over 4 approach.
25	Ballads Dream 6/8	Its a 6/8 pattern. Doesn't mean that you could not also use it as syncopated 4/4 fun though.
26	Odd Feeling 5/4	You will never hear the full pattern unless you set your metre to 5/4. Consider this an encouragement.
27	Hossa Bossa	For those moments when attractive people from Ipanema cross your path.
28	Hold Your Breath	Smart people from Andalusia invented this approach to do percussion with no instruments around.
29	Dancing Boomer	Known as both a carribean pattern as well as a particularly spicy sauce.
30	Rio's Passion	Microtiming adapted from classic brasilian recordings in hopes of sufficient authenticity.

Managing the plug-in

Resizable Interface

The user interface is resizable to fit on small screens. To resize, simply drag the three stripes in the bottom right corner of the user interface.

Update

The little Bell icon in the menu bar of Groovemate ONE informs you about available updates. When an update is waiting, the Icon will show a dot and a dialog is opened where you can choose to download now or later.

Note: Although we do our best to ensure that updates do not break any existing projects, we usually recommend to keep your previous installer in case you’ve updated in the middle of a project and something went wrong.

About Page

The circled “i” symbol in the upper right corner of the interface gives you access to various types of important information:

Version and Build number: Helpful information for our support team.
Trial time: Tells you how much time you have left to test this plug-in.
Visit Product Site: Product Page with demos, information and more
Contact Support: When you have a problem with Groovemate ONE, we’re here to help!
Read User Manual: Opens this manual.
License Agreement: Opens the license agreement (if you ever need to know).
Acknowledgments: The people behind Groovemate ONE

Automatable Parameters

The following parameters can be automated via DAW Automation, using MIDI Control Change events:

Screenshot_2021-04-25_at_12.44.24.png

*Style phrase automation is implemented as an experimental bonus, not a feature complying to UJAMs high UX standards. Please handle with care! When automating the Style, please be aware that not all changes get properly displayed on the UI.

MIDI Learn

Using MIDI Learn, you can assign any Groovemate ONE control to hardware controls of MIDI keyboards or other controllers. To assign a control, you usually right-click or ctrl-click a control in Groovemate ONE to open the MIDI Learn context menu of your DAW.

MIDI Learn

I have questions! Where can I send them?

Please submit a request to our support staff! Don’t hesitate, we’re eager to help you out and learn about your opinion and suggestions. Many improvements and even products have been influenced by our user community.

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Table Of Content

Welcome to Groovemate ONE!