Turn the volume knob on the unit all the way to the left to set it at its minimum level. Push the "Power" button to turn the SPD-S on -- a power light will indicate that you have power. Tap any of the pads on the unit and slowly turn the volume knob to the right until you reach the volume you want.
Press down on the memory card slot on the left side of the unit until it pops open. Insert a compact flash card into the compartment with the receptors facing toward the machine. Press on the card until it clicks and locks into place. Close the card slot cover when finished.
Press the "Patch" button on the console; it will light up to indicate you are in patch mode. A patch is equivalent to a track that will be saved on the memory card. Press the "+" or "-" buttons to select a patch number that the track will be saved to.
Begin playing the pads on the unit. Everything you do after hitting the first pad will be recorded onto the selected patch. As you play, you can add effects to the track by pressing the "Effects" button once. It will light up to indicate effects mode is on. Use the "Effects" knob while playing to change the effects.
Press the "Stop All Sounds" button when finished to stop the track. Press the "Patch" button to exit patch mode. Hold down the "Shift" and "Card" buttons at the same time for two seconds to start the shutdown procedure. When "Shutdown OK!" appears on the screen, press the "Power" button to turn it off. It is now safe to remove the memory card.
Turn the volume on the SPD-S to minimum. Connect a CD player to the "Input" on the back of the SPD-S. Switch the "Mic/Line" switch on the back of the unit to "Line." Turn on the CD player.
Turn on the SPD-S, press the "Patch" button and select a patch following the procedure in the "Playing" section.
Press the "Sample" button on the SPD-S. When you see "select dest pad" on the screen, tap the pad you want to assign the sample to. Play the CD you want to sample so you can set the volume to the appropriate level.
Press the "Start/Stop" button to begin sampling. Play the CD, and the SPD-S will begin recording it for the sample. Press "Start/Stop" again to stop. When you see "write?" appear on the screen, use the "Page Up" and "Page Down" buttons and the "+" and "-" buttons to create a name for the sample, then press "Enter" to save.