Can the Audio Tracks send sequence as MIDI?

Elektron Gear Digitakt
#11

I’m trying to make an application that receives MIDI and draws graphics based on the message received. It works correctly when I press the buttons on the Digitakt and reacts to CC perfectly. However, one detail I’m missing is how to receive triggers coming from the sample tracks on the sequencer. Is this simply not possible/not implemented?

What I’m doing right now is copying the sequence I want to listen to from the sample track to a MIDI track. This of course is very limited, as I can’t do anything with chance-based trigs and it takes up MIDI channels I could be using to sequence other gear. If this is simply not a feature of the device, is there a better way to do this that what I’m doing?

I’m on the latest firmware (1.11), and running GNU/Linux on my computer (although this shouldn’t matter AFAIK).

#12

IIRC you can assign the sample tracks to be send midi out. It’s in the settings menu somewhere.

#13

It is not implemented.

It seems as though you want to have MIDI notes sent out that exactly coincide with sample triggers?

If so, you could connect DT’s MIDI Out to its MIDI In and use the MIDI tracks to trigger the samples (this is often referred to as “MIDI loopback”). You could use the MIDI Thru port to sent the duplicate data to your computer.

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#14

This is just not a very good idea, if you copy the data from a sample track into a MIDI track, capture it with your DAW, and then send it back to the DT, you will be missing all of the data from the sample track that is not used in the MIDI track. So if you have parameter locks etc, they will not be carried over.

#15

I just test on mine. If you go to the digitakts midi menu you can assign the sample tracks to midi channels. Then just be sure to check the output settings. I was able to send note data from sample tracks so that the samples and midi notes were playing the same notes

#16

Could you help me out please?
I try so hard to make my internal sequence on audio tracks spit out the same midi as in the sequence itself, but all I could achieve so far is so that when I press an audio channel it sends out a note data based on the channel I pressed.

#17

The audio tracks do not send out midi during playback.

#18

Is this not possible or just not implemented?
I saw in another thread somewhere that midi is just simply not complex enough to translate the stuff like retrigs, but I don’t really know.
As I am seeing the actual leds flash on the audio tracks while playing a sequence respond to even the retrigs I can’t help but think that trigger information may be possible to be somehow sent out of the machine.
It would help a lot of peoples work including mine, so that while jamming we wouldn’t need to focus on both visual elements and song structure and we could just jam while triggering visual effects.

1 Like
#19

The internal sequencer does not run on midi it is elektrons proprietary system so all the flashing and what not doesn’t correlate to any midi information.

That being said I’m sure that it could be impliment like the other machines to send midi note data (not sure if they output audio when they are being used for midi though). But I would say it’s not likely because there already 8 midi tracks on the digitakt and if you want just the note data the workaround is copy an audio tracks notes and paste it to a midi track.

#20

Yeah but retrigs will not translate to a midi track sadly.
Well thank you for the quick answer anyway.

#21

I think it unlikely that the sequencer does not use MIDI considering that you can use an external MIDI keyboard to program the sequencer and that the A4 and Rytm sequencers are now capable of transmitting MIDI data!

#22

I thought it was rather common knowledge that the elektron internal audio sequencer run on elektron’s own protocol. Just because they have been able to add the very simple function of midi note out on top of what already exist in some boxes doesn’t change that.

#23

You can use MIDI data to play the audio/synth engines and you can use MIDI data to program the sequencer.

So Elektron are transforming MIDI data into some other data protocol prior to storing it in the sequencer. Doesn’t sound particularly efficient!

#24

I’m not sure whats to keep arguing. It’s been stated/confirmed by elektron that the internal audio sequencer isn’t run on midi but their own protocol. It has come up in many topics across this board

#25

I think your statements are extrapolating somewhat from these two posts:

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#26

Just found this thread as I was trying to record 1-9 tracks in my DAW.
In the beginning, I thought it was possible because MIDI notes are sent when pressing any 1-9 buttons.
So sad this couldn’t work because I like to start working drum patterns on the DT and switch to Ableton after.
I wasn’t imagining this limitation before purchasing the DT :frowning:

Hope Elektron would/could implement this functionally in a future version …

1 Like
#27

Hi, sorry to necrobump the thread but does anyone here know if this is something that is planned for a future firmware update or overbridge update?

We are using Touchdesigner to generate audioreactive visuals from multiple MIDI instruments, and this really is a game breaker (we are using the Digitakt as our main drum sequencer…)

I am so surprised this feature is still missing, while we can see the triggers from the internal sequencers in Overbridge in real time… I really hope this feature will get enabled in a future release!

#28

Welcome to the forum!

No-one outside Elektron knows their future plans. Your request is unlikely to be fulfilled.

A known alternative is to use the MIDI sequencer tracks and route them both to external equipment and back into the DT’s audio tracks.

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#29

you can also copy the audio track’s sequences and paste them into adjacent midi tracks using PAGE+copy/paste (need to be in rec mode)

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#30

I thought I was going crazy as I’ve been trying to get this working on my Digitakt this morning as I’d like to be able to capture the note on/off data to use for sidechaning an external compressor and could swear I’d seen it in the settings.

After scratching my head for an hour I think I worked out why I thought it was possible, because it is possible on the Rytm. If you go into the track settings on the AR there is a checkbox for ‘Send MIDI’ and it does exactly what’s being asked of here.

So I don’t buy the excuse about Elektron using their own protocol for the sequencer or whatever, I think this is just a feature they’ve chosen not to implement on the smaller boxes.

Annoying because it means there’s no way to do what I want to achieve (as there’s also no seperate audio out) without using a seperate MIDI track which isn’t really ideal (and won’t work for trig probability, fills etc.). I was considering working with my Digitakt more because it’s a neat box but this stuff just keeps me coming back to AR.