Introducing Digitakt

This makes me sad, I preorder a month ago, and still have another month to wait. You order and get sent the same day… Australia sucks donkey dick for electronics.

I guess I should buy a synth to keep me occupied while i wait :joy::sob:

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Totally, Elektron have completely f’d their distribution of the digitakt to Australia.

Maybe they don’t want a boomerang effect…:smirk:

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If I could afford to maintain a model T i’d still use it as my daily driver to work. So I’m not seeing the point here.

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perfect circuit audio buyers, they’ve shipped!

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Hopefully not?

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Definitely :sunglasses:

One of the most limited yet expansive instruments I play is the yaylı tanbur. One main playing string and 5 sympathetic strings. Real melodic range of a little over 2 octaves. Limitless possibilities bowed or plucked.

I wonder, if you imagine the DT as a drum kit of potentially 128 wildly distinct things to hit, playing that, I’d feel as if I’d arrived as a drummer. Pour in a dose of modern science and you have a musical instrument the size of a tissue box that is that 128-piece drum kit. Maybe a rare person who intends to gig or produce whole tracks with just the DT, I think. Depends on the genre, what other instruments, if any are combined with it.

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I know, you would expect a preorder to be exclusive but you end up looking like a fool watching everyone receive theirs and you get stuck with an email saying “backorder”. I put my spot in on March 25th and my retailer says I’m pushed for mid-June. So this morning, I went online to musiciansfriend.com, saw they have Digitakts in stock, pulled the trigger and now it was shipped this evening via express mail.

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Just wish they had their act together like roland or novation who generally manage to have stock in Australian stores on the day of their ‘global’ releases!

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this thing (sq-1) sucks imo. it doubles the speed if midi clocked and can’t save a sequence. I bought one used it twice and stuck it back in the box where it still rests today. if i did modular, i might like it more. I wanted to use it for my werkststt but couldnt get anything decent out of it. anybody want to buy it or trade for a volca? I’ll throw in the cable kit. lol

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have you ever driven a car without power steering, modern suspension or fuel injection?

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yes I have, I have even driven a model T.

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Most ppl these days can’t even handle a stick lol

Back on topic (if possible). I hope the Aussie shortage gets cleared up soon :slight_smile:

finally!

I’m so glad I live 10 minutes away from them lol

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Oh gawd, I have the same problem… I just got the Digitakt first thing in the morning on my local retailer, now I will have the longest workday… and will be playing with it at night, but the question is:
How to tell the wife? any suggestions? Hahahahahahahaa

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Okay, I ordered one direct from Elektron and also:

Anyone know how long they take to ship?

I’ll tell my wife DT is for my 4 years old child, because I don’t let him play with my OT. :sweat_smile:
“Very frustrating for a young boy. We have to buy it !”

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After one day and evening with the Digitakt, here are my impressions. I’m staying away from what you’ve already been told from others, homing in on stuff that might be more subjective and not always mentioned in this or other threads.

  • The form factor encourages you to use the DigiTakt in ways previous Elektron gear hasn’t. Despite not being battery powered, everything about it just feels easier. You’re more likely to carry it around, bring it about, use it more spontaneously, to hook it into and out from all kinds of contexts where a heavier piece might’ve had a higher psychological threshold.

  • It’s not as immediate as you’d think. Compared to Elektron’s other instruments, it’s more straight forward so if you’re firmly stuck in Elektron land, then yes, this certainly is more hands on. But it’s no Circuit. It carries legacy artefacts from the A4 and Rytm in particular and a spiritual descendant from the Volca Sample, it is not. Don’t let this stop you. Just be aware that in this regard, it is not an Electribe for the ages. There’s menu diving, although shallow. There’s a confusing file structure, although not that confusing. There’s just tons of stuff going on at the screen sometimes. But it’s comprehensible. It’s Elektron, all right.

  • However - however - it does have something else going for it, when it comes to immediacy. It seems those micro moments of delay and waiting that’s especially apparent in the Octatrack, are just gone here. The UI itself and the stuff it does, seems to be optimised to come as close to a one knob per function-experience as possible. Screen updates, push to launch, saving. All that just flows in a way that’s new for Elektron. This is a subtle improvement if you break it down into numbers, but it contributes immensely to the more straight-to-the-music feel that the Digitakt has. If you’ve used an Electribe Sampler (the latest one), and then go for the DigiTakt, you’re gonna feel like you went from a Trabant to a Porsche.

  • Sampling is a treat. Within minutes, I had sampled one shots, chords and sequences from my Reface CS and Volca Sample, assigned them to tracks in the Digi and just made all kinds of sweet stuff with it. The sample workflow is really designed to just record, assign and play. And the above point, the speed of the interface, really helps in this regard. It’s not just a matter of design, cause in all honesty, as I said before, we remain in Elektron land and it’s not here they’ve made their greatest improvements. On screen, the UI’s a damn mess from time to time. But some goddam solution architect or laser developer found the Mega Optimiser Workflow Code Button and just pushed it. And more than anywhere else, you can tell in the sampling workflow. It’s a testament to how well this works, than you soon stop watching the screen and just work the buttons, knowing what’s going on without looking.

  • For a piano player such as myself, the new mechanics are seductive. I feel like I’m touching the DigiTakt in ways that makes me blush and my wife go “Hey! I’m right here!”.

  • It sounds amazing. You already knew that, but it has to be said again - record your material right, and this box can do entire sessions on its own. I don’t know about all this mono talk. I just think it sounds bloody awesome.

  • For me, it replaces the Octatrack. I won’t look back to the Octa again, other than with fond memories. But for many, it won’t. It’s not an Octatrack Light. It’s something else. I know it sounds odd to say they don’t compare, given their heritage and common origin, but I’m close to saying that they don’t. I mean, they’re both samplers, right? But maybe I should give the Digi a few more days. I had the Octa for three years, after all.

And that’s it, for now.

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Great review. This touches on all the points on why I decided to ditch the OT for the DT.

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