History
The UVI Falcon/MOTU MachFive is a sampler interface for the UVI-Engine, which powers such products as Spectrasonics Atmospheres and Trilogy, and other plugins. MOTU licensed the engine and added some programming on top of it - making it a full fledged sampler-sample-playback unit.

UVI recently took the program back - and MachFive 3.2 is the last version to be produced by MOTU as of this writing. UVI is continuing to support it in a big way. Falcon - at least the first versions - is identical to MachFive 3, although they removed most of the internal "universal conversion" features.

MachFive was (and is) marketed heavily (MOTU is skilled at that), and the interface looks absolutely stunning. However, the smallness of the print and crowdedness makes it less ergonomically viable - although there are workarounds of it. Mach Five 3 is a much better interface and is actually ergonomically pleasing.

It comes in Windows and Mac versions, and is a "plugin" sampler - meaning it does not work standalone as it's own application.

One of the marketing points of Falcon/MachFive is the universality of it - saying that it works with all plugin formats and loads any type of sound. That's nice, but it's an invalid claim - a standalone sampler such as Kontakt or GigaStudio is just as universal if not moreso in that it doesn't rely on being compatible - and with conversion programs like Translator such "universality" is existant with any sampler!

Synthesis and File Structure

Saves to regular computer files, but they are arranged in a fixed folder structure. A "soundbank" is a folder called [name].M5b, with several folders within it (called "Performances", "Presets" and "Samples") The Preset folder holds the Presets (.m5p files), obviously, and the Samples folder holds the samples. Any samples the Presets reference have to be in that folder.

Performances (.m5m files) are collections of Presets, just as you'd expect, but Performances also hold the "dimensional" parameters, such as KeySwitching, Controller switching, and even crossfade parameters.

Architecture Description
As with any sampler that claims to be top-of-the-line functional, there is no limit on how many sample references you can have in a Preset (the "instrument unit" of the MachFive). That's good! Most basic parameters are included, with one filter (with many mods), ADSR envelopes, more than enough LFO's, and preset modulation capabilities (no matrix).

The current version of Falcon/MachFive streams from disk.

The Performance files allow keyswitching and other dimensional attributes to be used with Presets - in contrast to other samplers which put this info in the instrument unit/Program itself.

Native Format Support
MachFive comes with a loading utility which performs the task of loading the many formats that MachFive supports, which are the major sampler formats - with the exceptions of HALion, Ensoniq, and SampleCell 1.

Translator performs the same conversions with more accuracy and reliability ,and allows many more options than the included utility.

Translator Comments and Tips
Translator creates special EditGroups within MachFive files that aid you in further editing your sounds. Each Velocity Range gets a EditGroup (they are named appropriately) and Release Triggers get another EditGroup.

Translator also creates Performance files when necessary - when keyswitches and controller switching are implemented.

Comments
Teamed with Digital Performer, the MachFive is a great sampler, well designed, and looks great. It's one of the Top Seven samplers - with Kontakt, GigaStudio, HALion, EXS-24, EmulatorX, and Reason.

Translating and Building to Falcon / MachFive Format

Since the Fusion is a Bank format, you can convert any format into a new Fusion Bank, or you can insert a conversion into an already existing Bank.

Samples are converted into Alesis's proprietary .afs sample format. The incoming structure is arranged into the Program-Multisample-Sample Fusion structure.

Since there are restrictions on Oscillator-level programming and only 4 Oscillators, somtimes multiple Programs must be created to imitate an incoming Program. Programs like this are prefaced with an asterisk (*) and a Mix is created, which can play mutiple Programs at one time.

Parameter Tolerence can be used to reduce the need for multiple Programs; higher tolerance allows the Translator conversion engine to average programming needs and while the final result will not exactly match in the incoming source, it will be less complicated to deal with. 0% Parameter Tolerance means no averaging will take place, 100% tolerence means the first claim to a parameter will apply to all further ones.

Samples can be stereo in the Fusion.

Translating Out of Falcon / MachFive Format

The Instrument Unit on the Fusion is a Program. A Mix is a Performance type that can define multiple Programs on different or the same MIDI Channels.

Samples will be converted out of the proprietary .afs format and converted into the destination format.

You can also convert an entire Fusion Bank into a Bank-type destination such as SoundFont, Giga, Motif, etc.