Convince me on why I should *NOT* buy an Octatrack

i have to keep convincing myself to not buy another and then sell it and buy another again…

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There is more pussy in playing a KEYTAR

keytar

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That :arrow_up:

I agree that it sounds really good. Even the stuff that sounds “bad” sounds good.

Ever since I started using the aux send trick and putting spatializer in front of dark reverb on the send, the stuff that has been coming out of it has sounded pretty finished mixes even before I do any mastering. It’s not going to replace a DAW or anything in that regard but I definitely feel like I could do a complete track inside the OT now and be satisfied with it.

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Dependent on what you want to use the Octatrack for you might want to buy a synth like the Blofeld or Virus TI which supports multimode to compensate the limitation of 8 sample tracks to get the most out of Octatrack‘s midi which is 8 additional tracks for it. Other than that it´s so much fun that it kills a lot of your time.

aah…and be aware that if you like the workflow you might want to have another Elekton box.

My point exactly, Mike. A instrument that takes more than a few days to learn? They must think they’ve created a guitar or a piano or something worth learning… if can’t have a sampler that takes more than ten minutes to learn or that doesn’t work exactly like my computer or something else I already know, I don’t want it.
The OT is hard to learn as a mixer, an effects unit, a sampler, a sequencer, and a coffee maker.
I hope to have enough kerosene to continue to power my OT, as it’s kinda getting scarce in my area - and ha you KNOW that Elektron and the society are secretly controlling the kerosene supply so they don’t have to update the tech to hybrid Argon / Walnut PSU like the rest of the free world.

I don’t know how you hang on, @Open_Mike. I tried drinking the Octauasca many times, but all I got was a colored light show, a subway token, and a stubbed toe.

DONT GET THE OCTATRACK

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It’s too late for me! My MKII delivery is waiting at home.

Or…convince me to send back rather than unboxing.

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My two cents on this- the most immediate way to use the OT is as an FX processor.

Some people say the FX aren’t good- I think they’re alright and capable of insanity(then again, I don’t have a distinguished ear for FX- so YMMV)

As far as using samples is concerned- once you get rolling with the machine it’s a blast all the way through. Take whatever sounds inspire you and take them to new levels. That being said- it can be quite exhausting to get everything set up. Though, I’m a bit musically immature as when I want to make music/sound I want to just turn something on and jump straight to jamming.

Another con of the machine is there’s so much you can do with the sound that it can kinda feel nihilistic. Other times when you start out with a sound that inspires you you lay down a few sequences and you might realize that you haven’t given the sound additional worth by using it

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just to play devi’s advocate, here’s another product I would consider to mangle audio (but of course this opens pandora’s box to the modular abyss)

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I was actually wondering about this device the past weeks- thank you!

I don’t have modular either, but if I go down that road- I’ll be getting this, definitely

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What is this trick of which you speak?

When the going gets tuff a stern and raspy yet reassuring Grandpa voice occasionally runs through my mind reminding me:

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MAke sure you have cue set to studio mode not normal.

Choose a track to use as your aux send (I use track 8 but it can be any track, if you use track 8 as a master then track 7 is a logical choice)

Make sure its cue level is all the way down! If you don’t do this you will get feedback.

Put a flex machine on the aux track, and set it to play from that track’s record buffer. Turn off time stretch! It’s OK to leave everything else set to default.

Open up the record parameters and set its source to cue. Put a record trig on step 1 and set the record length to the same length as the pattern.

Put a play trig on step 1. Open the microtiming for that trig and nudge forward one tick (one press of the right key).

Now you have an aux send! The cue levels of the other tracks control their send levels, and the track you just set up records from the cue and plays it back almost instantly (the microtiming adds an essentially imperceptible delay to it, but since you’ll probably be using it for reverb or delay anyhow that oesn’t matter at all; it wouldn’t work for parallel compression though - you’d get phase problems). My favorite aux chain right now is spatializer with the width set to full, the mix around 3/4 wet (at minimum), m/s on and with the center turned down a little, and the highs and lows rolled off, into Dark Reverb (full wet since this is now an aux just like on a regular mixer) with the highpass up in the 50s, the lowpass down near 100, a fair amount of high damping, predelay set to 1 or 2, and time set by ear according to the mix. Very lush sounding for the OT, without getting muddy or cluttered (turning the center down in spatializer really helps with that).

EDIT: I’m going to make a quick video tutorial on this over the weekend.

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This is exactly why you shouldn’t buy it- it will ruin your life.

You can do this in normal (not studio) mode too, if you don’t mind flashing lights and use other techniques that require normal mode…

Truth

Hahaha agreed! My neck and back are killing me :frowning:

Sorry man but you should just buy it… you know you will :wink:

To sum up you will either love it or hate it.
Only one way to find out for yourself

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Edit: already answered

…while having to wear a spacesuit and be plagued by diarrhea at the same time. You get to drop some acid every now and again, though.