Same, but thats why I love it so much.
After a couple of years of really dialing it in, it’s become hella rewarding, fast, simple, customized, focused etc.
It really seems that it will be the approach to learning that will determine how difficult your time will be with the OT. What really blew my mind was the person I bought my OT couldn’t show me it worked. He had tried to use if for about a month and gave up, then forgot how to use it. I also have 6 or 7 friends who have an OT, most who have used it for between 3-5 years, and none of them had used it to sample. That blew my mind, considering it’s a sampler. The one friend who found it super easy to use, just bought it and loaded a bunch of samples he got from friends and off the internet. I don’t even think he used the midi capabilities. But, those people had no real problem learning it and finding their workflow because their workflow didn’t involve the more advanced functions of the machine…
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People who said that already make a mistake. The center of our studio is US
(I say that with a smile… and we all agree on that I know but I find it useful for the sake of everyone here to insist… it’s US the center of our studio)
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It’s a funny device like that, I’ve owned my OT since late 2011 and I’ve never sampled with it.
I’m still new to it compared to a lot of people on here so I always feel funny about making big, sweeping statements about it (obviously that hasn’t stopped me from making them though) but that seems like the Octatrack in a nutshell right there.
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yeah, that’s the most complicated device I ever tried to learn
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An old friend of mine worked in product development at Akai for 5 years and in the process he had contact with a lot of big deal MPC users, mostly 90s hip hop producers, who had special access and could basically call up and ask for advice or repairs whenever they wanted. He didn’t name names but one of them had burned out the screen on his MPC 3000 because he kept it turned on 24 hours a day for weeks at a time. He would turn it on when he started working on a beat and wouldn’t turn it off again until the beat was completely finished and recorded in to Pro Tools. The reason? In 20 years of being a professional producer who worked with major label artists, he had never bothered to learn how to save samples and projects, so any time he turned the MPC off he lost everything.
But he had a workflow with it that worked for him, and that was enough.
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I don’t want to denigrate or look harsh here or anything. But many of those who say that seem to be guitarists or instrumentalists. What are your goals with octatrack? Because if you bought it as a super efficient looper, it is not easy enough for this task since it’s not dedicated exclusively to this maybe ? So probably if the goal is the looper side of the octatrack maybe it’s that part the reproach… Do not you believe ? I think even more today by reading your comments that the user and what he intends to do with it results therefore from these opinions in terms of difficulties to use it for a task of instrumentalist as evolved looper.
Therefore @sezare56 seem to really gel with the OT, I wonder what he think about it ? how much time it takes for him to learn the OT as a guitarist for looping his thing etc…
For me, I came from Sampler ERA, I do electronic music but not the DANCE, EDM, IDM thing… I’m in a more melody, textures, layering some weird things with energy… (Detroit initiator called it HiTek Soul which I really like to describe it)
And to me it’s not that difficult, it’s just complex by the fact it’s do so much on its own.
And I really sure by finding what you can do with it regarding your own thing, I don’t see how the OT can’t have its place and be rewarding to any musician. But I guess it’s not a simple thing like a guitarist pedal or a Boss RC-505 without being caricatural (which I’m probably by giving this references…)
Also another thing comes in mind, when people want to make experiment and find his own way, it requires time and advanced tool. How can we be controversial about a tool when we have in essence chosen the complexity at our musical path without even talking about the machine or the tool itself ? We choose the complexity on its own at FIRST 
I have the feeling that everything mixes in fact and that we reproach a machine … while finally the complexity lies in the choice of musical paths that we took.
Personal reflexion here, I don’t try to be rude to someone, appear intelligent in your eyes, or even try to convince.
I’m just trying to understand because it seems so weird … and at the same time in this idea of use as an instrumentalist and experiment I could understand that it is not simple enough, immediate or instantly rewarding … because the octatrack can be a real studio or live experimentation tools …
Drooley - I had a mk1 and found it really tough to learn at time, more irritating to work out what I wanted to do than tough to learn though in hindsight - sold it too quickly as was getting into Eurorack at time… well, funny old world I have sold all my Eurorack for various reasons, and bought an OT MK2, Digitakt, Heat and a Modor and a spring reverb and loving it… i actually found it strangely easy to learn if you take the time… MK2 much better even with slight improvements… manual is weird but I read the fucker on a little phone as away and took Octatrack for 10 days so if I can do it that way it must be OK to learn… I am loving play free mode at minute and triggering things with the buttons but having all sequences with parameter slides etc set up ready to manually trigger… really nice… Digitakt does sound ‘better’ i think but OT adds that weirdness especially with slides on sequencer which are awesome… ok ramble over, hope it works out well for you this time.
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Sorry, I just tried to be funny
You said the center of our studio is US… I said that’s the most complicated device… (meaning ME)
I love the OT. Never had big problems with it.
And I rarely use it as a looper for guitars, I mainly use it for glitch drum stuff and midi sequencing.
(I guess my profile picture let you think I’m referring to guitar stuff)
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I don’t know how to edit posts… I was wowed straight away by Digitakt sound when I was sampling things, don’t know if I actually think it is ‘better’ for want of a better word than OT sound as really got to know OT sound in isolation away from my mixer and FX so may be a false thought… doesn’t matter at all just thought I would clarify in case someone bites my head off.
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There’s a pen icon to edit post.
@William_WiLD As you asked, I’ll try to say something interesting, even if I maybe already talked about it.
To sum up drastically, I was using loopers and grooveboxes, I had Rc 505, the most efficient looper I know, but I kept only OT as looper, wich is absolutely not an immediate looper like Rc 505.
I’m mostly interested in realtime recording / playing / mangling as FX, looper ability, and another level of mangling with crossfader after recording.
I think after 3 years I know every parameter of Ot (not all tricks ), but I still don’t have a workflow. No enough time for music unfortunately, so it’s not an obligation. For live, I may need a 2nd OT. Can’t be convinced by Digitakt, mono, 1 lfo per track.
It took 2 months to really understand the phylosophy of the thing and I realized the huge potential : ok, it will be long.
As said, it’s not that hard if you are really interested in OT original functionalities but it can take a lot of time, as a musical instrument playing. I understand why people can be really confused with it. It’s great for experimentations, I still think it could be my only machine.
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Hi I’m thinking about getting a mk2 but I’m still struggling to understand what the Octatrack actually is. If you wanted it to could it function as a stand alone sampler/groovebox? I know it has a lot of other functions but I seem to learn things better when I can sit with just one thing powered up and I understand grooveboxes and samplers so was thinking about using it like that in the beginning. Or is it not a good way to approach it?
that story is amazing.
my 2 cents here:
there are great insights and experiences along this posts, and I can find my own in many of them.
I’ve been an OT user for about… 3+ years I think? coming from the old Electribes (ER-1, EM-1) the OT was significantly more complex, but also much more flexible and powerful. There’s something about the immediacy of the Electribes that I somewhat still miss (and I can hear old recordings and notice how different the result is in terms of approaching composition) but that’s also because of limitations, and just and overall different workflow… of course that comes with a much lower sound quality, sound shaping possibilities, etc.
That beeing said, I really enjoy playing, and constantly rediscovering the OT.
For example - up until very recently, I used to control it with a Korg Nanokontrol + USB MIDI host (so, without a computer in between).
From there I would control mainly volumes (AMP page) AUDIO/MIDI mutes, but I would also add/change some functions from time to time - retriggers, cue send, etc.
Because of this I actually forgot that there was a QUICK MUTE mode on the machine. It’s pretty dumb, I know - it’s just that there’s so many things to re-discover, and that’s part of the appeal for me. I’m trying to ditch the Nanokontrol, and play it straight on the machine because - I also forgot that - on MIXER or QUICK MUTE mode, if you hold FUNCTION while pressing the triggers/mutes, you can “hold” the change until you let it go… this is super useful, and I can’t do it with the NanoKontrol…
Another thing: the Transition Trick, to resample the output for transitions: I’ve tried many times in the past - at least 3 or 4 - to use it since it’s super useful and it keeps me from having to add another device for that role (I’ve tried many: Kaoss Pad 3, kaosspad mini, SoundBite micro, iPhone with Loopy)… but I found it extremely frustrating/falible.
This time around I’ve learned how to properly read the small icons next to tracks, to know for sure when the track is sampling/playing… again, this might seem like an obvious thing - but after years of working with other features, it’s easy to forget or miss it.
I think I know the machine very well, and I’ve used pretty much all it’s features quite deeply (except maybe playing a lot with live resampling, wich is not something that fits my interest/music that much), and there’s a really nice reward there too. Those times when you’re navigating at super-fast speed, clicking buttons, copying and pasting stuff like crazy, or just behind a few moves ahead in your mind from what you want… you know, those “crazy scientist” moments.
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haha sorry I don’t get it in the instant you said it anyway as I read few comments from instrumentalists I would find my reply obvious … you’ve just the sparkle in my head to ask for them…
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If you understand groove box and sampler I would say go for it, as the first device and starting from your step I think it’s a very good idea.
@MonstreJumo a guy from my town who’s also there as a Nauts rock his Octatrack in no time How do you feel in terms of learning curve and pleasure with the OT ? I see you make JAM only on the OT and I really like it … How long do you have it MNSTR ?
Yes we from that’s electronic music but music genre is not that really important regarding the device I can make hiphop or punk-rock if I really want.
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When I had one, the one thing that I didn’t like was that sound assignement was done at part level, not pattern level… this and only 4 parts per bank. This single limitation was enough for it to not fit my workflow, which is mainly about jamming with lots of 1 bar patterns. I wouldn’t say the OT is hard to use, it’s more that it brings new concepts to the table that you may not grasp or even need.
Lots of great ideas in it though, like scenes xfading.
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The first couple days that I used my OT I hated it and almost returned it. I always read the manuals of new synths/samplers I buy but I initially hated reading the OT one, which I found confusing.
A year later the OT is now my favourite hardware production tool. I now have 3 Elektron Machines and I would get more of them if I had the space to.
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Hi there!
I got my OT during 2016 summer, took me one or two months to get it right, 6 months to rock it live, and now 1,5 years after I’m still discovering nice features (using MIDI to control VSTs or to automate OT’s fader or FXs while playing the arrangement for recording duties),
I now have a 2,5+ hours live set with the OT and little external synths to spice things up (T8 as a pickup / transition trick track)…
But i had worked the manual and forums very deeply before purchase, so I knew how to use it before getting it in front of me
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Blockquote “Any old school sampler?” “Way more powerful?”
Sounds a little over-hyped
I’ve actually spent a surprising amount of time thinking about this precisely because I do like the Octatrack so much. I’d venture an Ensoniq Mirage is more powerful as a sampler. I do like the Octatrack - it is most likely my favorite Elektron. Much of what I do relies on it very much. I certainly would not trade it for a computer. However as a sampler it could be so much more. The power lies in the way it all comes together.
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