Sampling question

Elektron Gear Octatrack
#1

I"m sure this has been covered in the forum…unfortunately, I cannot view any search results (really wish they would fix that).

Learning my new OT slowly but surely…wondering what you guys normally do when sampling live input.

I’m thinking either use through machines or pickup machines and parts similar to a video I saw of MrDataLine mangling some Volcas.

Not sure what he means by “pressing YES on the Octatrack” though.

Wondering if pickup machines may even work for something like that. I guess the part I’m still not real clear on is in the manual where it talk about being able to save a recorder buffer directly to a flex track…perhaps I’m misunderstanding it.

#2

thru machines won’t let you sample, they’re effectively like having mixer channels with effects
i’m not convinced a pickup machine would be the recorder of choice for a sequenced input (like a drum machine) - due to the overdubbing nature of pickup machines
i’m learning it too, my only advice would be to not listen to advice and try stuff out, see how it works and how it might work for you

the selection of an ideal recorder/sampler will probably depend on the nature of the live material you’re trying to capture, by that i mean … played live, rhythmic or if you want to layer looped sounds

try use everything, even resampling a track playing the live input !

#3

If you want to spare channels since there are 8 or 7 if you use master track and if your device has effects you don’t need a pickup machine. What i do with Virus C is i get him to play through mixer setup and open the DIR volume of AB in. That way i still own all the channels. Since i want to sample it i will sample it through master channel 8 into a flex machine on channel 4. Flex machine has a recorder 4 selected in sample slots. Then in recording page setup you must set to length 64 and source 3 to T8 or master. And do turn off all the other sources. AB and CD. Until now i still have 6 traks available for other stuff. :slight_smile: Then when you go to sampling you must set the track 4 x-volume (under amp page) to min on Scene A. On Scene B set x-volume to max and don’t forget to set on all the other tracks the opposite value than on track 4 (that means only track 4 is audible). And only on scene B. Than if you want you can copy this Scene B1 and paste to B2 and than go to mixer page and hold down the scene B button and there you can assign the DIR value to min. (That means that when you crossfade to scene B2 the volume of incoming audio will be muted.) It will become handy later. Stay with me :wink: So now that we are set we must place some sampling triggers. So go to channel 4 and go in recording mode and place the trigger on first step. Then hold Function + Bank and scroll down in the menu to recording triggers. Then hold Function + First step. The led will stay yellow. This is a one shot recording trigger (that means it will record only when armed). Ok that is almost about it. I hope you are still with me. :stuck_out_tongue_winking_eye: So when you want to sample what you are hearing on scene A put the crossfader left and hit Track 4 Button + Yes (OK) ”or just OK i think”. It will say arm track or ”arm all”. It will start sampling when the next pattern will start recording (when it hits the recording oneshot trigger). Now when you look bottom left at the track 4 number on screen there will be a little + there. That means it is sampling. So it will sample the length that we set in a recording page 64 steps. (IF YOU HAVE PATTERN LONG 64 STEPS ) When done the + will magically change into a little play arrow. NOW! Lets take a break here. :dizzy_face: I hope you can still follow me. Its quite a lot to dig. So now the sample is playing but we are on scene A and you can’t hear it but you are hearing all the tracks playing + DIR except track 4. Slide the crossfader to scene B2. As you remember we set the Scene B2 to mute the incoming audio (in mixer page-DIR) and to play only track 4. Now you hear what you sampled. Now here is the fancy part. You can resample track 4 as it is playing and when changing from Scene B2 to Scene B1 (with crossfader on scene B) you can bring incoming audio as you please and overdub it as long as you want. Just keep in mind you are sampling only 64 steps. So every time you want to resample or overdub you must hit Track4 + OK or yes. You can get crazy on this one. I spent 3 hours noodling and resampling and overdubbing without stopping the OT :imp:

This way you save tracks and when you are on scene B2 you can change the preset you have on a synth coming in OT or you can just put the cables in another synth and slide back to Scene B1 and resample it again :smiley: Well this is the idea and very fun one to play with.

Hey i hope i was of some help. Maybe i will make a video of this. Maybe :heart:
Lemajik

#4

I almost always use track 8 for master, I’ve actually thought about having one input on the OT come from my mixing board (a thru instrument for example)…that way I could just mix in what I wanted to sample. I guess what that other video I posted means by hitting “yes” is what you are talking about…you are setting one-shot recording trigs, and then just arming them when you want to sample…I assume you could also quickly save the recording buffer sample to use at a later point. Thanks…still getting the hang of the OT…the only reason I think it can be a little confusing is that there are so many options…it’s not that it is difficult in and of itself…a myriad of options can be perceived by some as difficult. :slight_smile: It will just take a little while for me to really learn the instrument.

#5

Hey man. I own this little beast for 4 months. Guess where you will be in 4 months :slight_smile: enjoy the first moments. I still have them. I hope this technique can be some of use for you.

#6

I really do prefer manual sampling to rec. trigs, also while the seq. is running.
Important: QREC (page 2 rec. menu). I set this to 16 (in all flex machines), rec. length 64, so when I hit rec. (the track&the source I want), it will start recording on the next 1, for 4 bars. For me that´s more easy than putting rec. triggers and arming them.

But I also have a question:
For my DSI P8 (input AB) I use 1 thru ( for effects, therefore DIR to 0) and 1 flex to sample and then play around with it. The only problem is the different volumes. the thru and the flex (the sampled) volume are the same, but always WHILE SAMPLING, it is much (!) louder, because both tracks play the same, in a phat, but unwanted unison.

Can I somehow manage, that while recording, the recording of the track rec. is NOT heard? this would save me some muting/unmuting, which can be risky in a live jam environment.

thanks
andajazz

#7

Well I’m guessing for it to be playing as you record you must have the flex record buffer trig in the sequencer playing? Why not just mute that track while you sample?
I had issue with sample volume because I was recording the inputs, now I record the track (the thru track) and volume is always the same but I don’t see why you would play both at the same time?

#8

hmmm, right now I have a through track that I can play live on, then I have single shot trig set, I hit track,yes to rearm and sample, I then have another track with a flex machine pointed to the recorder buffer of the through machine track…I had issues with levels too, I have a scene that plays the through machine at max and the flex machine with recorder buffer at min, and vice versa on the other scene…I just had to tweak all the levels so moving between scenes was seamless

so basically, you have a through machine and you have another track that you use to just sample the through machine track (in SRC3)?..I can see how that would fix the sampling levels, technically, that should record what you hear on the through machine

the OT isn’t complicated, there’s just so many different ways you can go about doing something :slight_smile: I read a thread with some people setting cue to studio mode and sampling off the cue output (vs the people that were sampling off the master track)

#9

i don’t find the needing to tweak levels…i did a http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EUhiMk3U8sg&feature=youtu.be to show this.
Sorry for the lack of light…my pod is pretty dark…!

this is a link to a similar thread

#10

handy tip sicijk !
& @lemajik- nice workflow tip - but i believe you can set a one shot recorder with Fn+Trig, so that’ll save you some menu diving !

#11

Eh there is no problem with levels and you still have all the channels and you decide what you want to sample… You must set a recorder oneshot trig. Not a playback oneshot trigger. I will make a video… i will post it here… Fu** it :smiley: But i wont go into explaining it as i allready did :wink:

#12

yeah, u set a one-shot recorder trig whilst in either recording setup menu page, no need for the track trig edit page (Fn+Bank) !

#13

This is how I do it as well. Works great!

#14

Ok. Thats fine. No need for the video then :wink: I didn’t know you can just set a trigger in record setup page. No need for menu diving then. Coool. Tnx for the tip.

#15

I watched the video anyway, the difference was I had a thru machine on track 1 for example, then track 2 set to the track 1 recording buffer, if I instead sample from the thru machine track instead of playback of the recording buffer on on the thru machine track…then volume levels are all as to be expected

I already use recorder trigs like some others do in the thread in order to sample, I just hit track+yes

I like the workflow of sampling the thru machine track instead of having the thru machine track sample to record buffer and then using said buffer on another track (which is how I was doing it previously)