Is there a way to enter the Arranger without it taking over immediately? I’ve been storing the tempo for each bank that way (based on the bank’s first pattern looping infinitely). Having made my selection to set the tempo, I leave the arranger and do lots of manual selection. The problem happens when I want to go back into the Arranger to select a specific bank/tempo - as soon as I do, it goes back to its last position. Ideally I could browse the arranger, select the row I want, activate it. Possible?
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IIRC, when you switch to arranger mode the arranger doesn’t take over immediately, you can get to choose the part you want manually. Not sure if it’s for the remainder of the playing pattern or something else.
I best do some definitive tests then, it sure seemed to work strangely when I tried it. Thanks.
I first finish my patterns and at the last step i move to the arranger…
The Arranger takes over as soon as you enter it. Well, you get until the current pattern finishes to make a selection - but in a live situation I’d just panic and select the wrong row. Unless someone knows different?
I guess I’ll just have to adapt my workflow to that… and make sure I’m 90% done with the patterns before going into arranger mode… though you only realize many things once you actually arrange them…
That’s why i play my patterns Live in order to find any missing sections and fill the gaps 
Yeah, will try that as well!
Ive spent my ti e over the past 2 years sampling and learning the different aspects of parts, patterns, scenes and banks. Ive loomed at the arranger now. I am curious as to the way you combi e these tehniques to create your songs. I can see all the ots versatility as it has so many ways to create a finished product so so e easy suggestions would be appreciated. Ie do you use the parts for the song sections for example or do you create many patterns with sample plocks. Its an odd question i know i just need some nudges as ive learned in a slow way the elements of the device so want to put these things together now.
creating a few patterns, keeping them simple and adding variation with scenes! building the track with mutes around that. never used the arranger; thats a way too static workflow for my taste.
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Because the octatrack is pattern based, and bescause i’m way too used to compose in a linear way, i had difficulties wrapping my head around the arranger at first.
But actually, i see many good point to it.
During the composition part, i usually do a group of, let’s say; 4 pattern, 64 bar each, looping several time, so i can developp a melody or a chord progression on it more easily.
Starting messing with the components for a polished song, i bring on the arranger the basic parts of my song (intro/verse/chorus or sort of) and start messing with mute in the arranger.
Actually, and this is perhaps the most interesting part as well as the “scariest”, i feel the arranger mode composing method a bit like making old school rough drawing for product design. you throw guidance lines, as well as alterations, like mutes or scene and then your first intrications, like muting/unmuting not specificaly at the beginning of the pattern… then… you take some distance, and let this self-induced creativity path leading you to fully composed piece.
Trial and errors can contribute to put on relief some odd aspect of the track. that’s what i like with the arranger. but it is also why it is not the most user friendly way of composing, for me at least
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Hi frenchy. I plan to use use Arranger more and more too. Especially to add REM notes, remember tempi.
Mon vieux Willow 
seems like our french mafia is expennding worldwide
what is REM?
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The mutes behave differently too. Opens up some possibilities…
It doesn’t say so in the manual, but you can still change patterns while the arranger plays and it will abide by the structure (MIDI, too).
So, for example, you setup the first line as pattern A01 to repeat 16 times until the second line of A02. While in the first line you can play any pattern until it’s done with its 16 repetitions and then moves onto A02.
Pretty sick improv tool while still keeping to a structure.
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Not sure if this has been answered already.
But is there a way to reset the song position pointer without having to double tap stop? My synths continues from where I pause the arrangement (like I guess it’s supposed to work). But I would like to be able to create stops between songs in a live set without having to scroll down the arrangement. One tap on the stop simply pauses the arranger for me, and double tapping stop makes the arrangement jump to the start…
There’s a Halt function. Check the manual.
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Thanks, is there no button combination to achieve this? If I would be interested in not pre arranging the stop that is, but rather to stop when it feels right depending on the occasion. Guess I could just twist a knob at the right place while it is playing. But it feels like it is prone to some unintended wrong value inputs from time to time…
When you press stop in the middle of arrangement, let’s say on A03, if you select that row/pattern and hit enter it will reset that row to start at the beginning but not the beginning of the whole arrangement.
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I’m not sure I understand: you want to stop the arrangement (whenever it feels right) but you don’t want to just pause it…then, do you want it start again at a specific place? You would then use the up/down arrow to get to the line you want to restart from and hit yes.
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