Digitakt vs. Octatrack

Elektron Gear
#526

I’ve been a year without equipment and i’m at the point of buying a few things.

Technically i could buy whatever i want but the last year has enabled me to really focus and plan.

But the 1 sticking point has been wether to get another Digitakt or Octatrack.
*I am getting a couple of Op-1’s as a separate setup.

It’s probably quite telling as i tend to prefer the demos of the Digitakt. In particular those by @dustmotes & @boboter

But i can’t stop thinking about missing out if i don’t get an Octatrack. I just don’t want to go back down the road of buying and selling. I want to stick with a decision & get on with it.

I know this thread hasn’t been updated for a while but are there any user of late that have gone back to the Digitakt? Were you happy, relieved or did you regret it.

I’m battling with the choice of (relative) minimalism in terms of function & style/sound, which i think i want. But we all know the draw the Octatrack has.

When i previously owned both machines i preferred the result & performative aspect of the Octatrack. I’m not a live performer but i appreciate that aspect in a private setting. But then i like the simpler workflow of the Digitakt. I was making a different type of music back then. Something i might delve into again but not really planning to go forward with.

When i listen to @dustmotes tracks i can see & hear that there’s just the right amount of Elektron magic & tricks in the Digitakt (and his skills) Nothing overwhelming. Nothing chaotic, and that’s a good & bad thing sometimes. When i’ve watched a bunch of his demos my mind seems set. But as the day goes by thoughts of the Octatrack slowly creep back in.

@boboter did you ever consider an Octatrack? I know you had 2 Digitakts at one point. Do you still? How’s the Machine+ working out for you, in comparison to the Op-1 & Digitakt for your kind of music?

Thanks

Edit: I’ve also owned an Mpc Live & Force. Loved the workflow of both machines but hated the FX & synths. Just left me with a slightly unpleasant taste in my mouth. I just don’t feel excited about going back to those. hmmmmm…

2 Likes
#527

OT & DT both have their place in my setup.
for me OT shines for complex glitchy beats where it leads me somewhat. Live resampling to make poly rhythms and such. :heart:

then i prefer DT for certain things like ambient due to its focused interface. I can fly around on it n get things done real quick.
the OT is clearly amazing for the same jobs but personally I’m better at certain things on the DT.

tbh, I’d given up on the takt till the latest update. audio pass thru, bandpass filter n 2nd lfo were painfully needed for me.

wish DT had that midi arp tho. and a crossfader. and and, shit here we go again :rofl:

4 Likes
#528

Yes the new update makes it even more appealing and the midi feedback double stop issue was previously resolved. So there’s lots to like about it.

My musical direction for the foreseeable future is ambient, with a little touch of glitch. So I think the Digitakt is more than capable. I’m 95% certain.

Yes a crossfader would be nice but when I see @dustmotes at work I know that there’s other ways of doing things.

Thanks!

1 Like
#529

Having just gone through buying the Digitak, then selling it, then buying the Octatrack within 3 weeks.
I say hands down OT. Perfect tool, with so many possibilities.
Endless if you want it to be. Focussed if you want it to be.

2 Likes
#530

Stop it ; )

But you’re right. I don’t have to use everything every time. But it has feature & capabilities to grow into.

I just don’t like feeling daunted by the decision or choice to go with the Octatrack.

1 Like
#531

I’ve owned 2 OTs in the past (MKI and MKII) and I’m currently on my second DT. I’ve had it about a month this time around and I’m well on my way to creating an EP or album already. Could I had done something similar on OT? Probably. Would I love stereo sampling, extra FX, and that glorious crossfader? Yes. But the immediacy and the limitations of DT have been what’s really kicked my recent spate of creativity into overdrive. I’m actually being deliberately more limited than most by only using Ether as my sole sound source. And it’s working for me! I’m not comparing features or wishing that it did this, that, or the other. I’m just using what’s available and getting on with it. I might pick up OT again later on down the line, but I’m super happy with just DT right now. The 1.30 update has given me almost everything I realistically need, especially now that I can precisely sculpt sounds with the dual filters per track and having those extra LFOs. YMMV, ofc.

7 Likes
#532

As you seem to want something focussed and well integrated that just works for its intended purposes and gets out of your way, I’d say Digitakt (and I advocate the OT in this thread and across the forum HARD lol).

The OT is a beast and beauty BUT it expects YOU to decide what it is for & how you want to use it. Should it act as a looper? As a mixer? As a sampler/sample mangler? Play back long samples as eg backing soundscapes? Should it function as a midi sequencer? A combination of any of these? There are a lot of (engineering) decisions to be made BEFORE you can begin to focus on those creative decisions, and from what you wrote to me it sounds like you want to mainly focus on those creative decisions — that’s why I feel the OT, despite its amazing capabilities, could lead to more paralysis than flow in your use case.

The DT is much more focused and “closed” in terms of what it is and can be. But that really frees the user up to focus on the music making entirely.

I might also be totally wrong about your aim/current state, in which case, get the OT (because it is great!), but if this resonates I’d say get what you want and don’t let your mind seduce you towards the choice with the “most potential” just because you think you “maybe might need that or use that or just imagine what I could do with all of that maybe and maybe it would hurt to not have gotten it if I finally work out that I DID need those features” :wink:

4 Likes
#533

I’ve done this twice now, owned three OTs and four DTs most recent switcheroo was in August… The DT is perfect for my but I start craving sample slicing and per-track FX. Then I get an OT again and I realise I don’t need any of it to make great sounding music that makes my head nod and the creative juices flowing. Then the cycle continues anew.

2 Likes
#534

keep both bro (if financially viable). that’s what I’m doin now (after a few switcheroos as u say).
I eventually noticed that for me anyways its a cycle. sometimes I gravitate towards what the OT brings and then after a while I’ll want what the digi offers.
right now I’m digi focused. gimme a month n I’ll be back on the OT :grinning_face_with_smiling_eyes:

3 Likes
#535

Took the words right out of my mouth for @Claid’s situation. Choose the right tool for the project. For example, after exhausting the Ether only project I’m doing, I quite fancy heading out into nature for a field recording project and that will require stereo samples and probably an OT. But I’m getting ahead of myself!

4 Likes
#536

That’s definitely the best way, to have the tools available for when the notion strikes. I’m not immediately needing the cash back for the OT though very soon I’m looking to get a new M1 MBP and the OT occupies a large chunk of the value.

Sounds amazing! I can see where stereo samples would be essential for such a project, not for percussive samples necessarily but sounds that surround the listener such as rain and water, not to mention birdsong with sound sources dotted around the stereo field. I’ve been meaning to grab a new field recorder since my trust old Zoom died of neglect in a damp basement.

3 Likes
#537

I’m in the same boat as you (though still on my first DT). I had both OT versions. They’re great machines, but I found them to not be inspirational enough most of the time to warrant the amount of cash I could get for them. With that said, though, I am kind of thinking about grabbing a MKI again when I find a good deal. I really do miss the baller arp, and longer stereo samples. Honestly, if the DT got arp out (p-lockable) of course, slicing, and stereo samples, I’d probably be ok. To be fair, though, I used the OTMKII money for a Polyend Medusa and new iPad, both of which are glorious.

2 Likes
#538

I have both and love both. The OT is stereo and stretches loops.

But the DT has the threshold sampling and OB.

They both rock!

2 Likes
#539

This is where my hearts at. There’s more than enough to make complex and detailed tracks if need be, but a simpler tool set and workflow is a blessing in my current situation.

Thanks

1 Like
#540

Everything about your post is spot on. I’m bookmarking it for when the inevitable wobble begins.

Thank you.

#541

Octatrack wins, like a baseball player wins a softball player. Or a guitar wins an ukulele.

#542

This made me consider that I can simply enjoy the tracks and demos of certain machines without the need to own one (with the OT in mind)

Thanks

1 Like
#543

Again, spot on.

Currently thinking I’m going to buy different things for separate projects, as and when my mood shifts.

Op-1
Digitakt
Maschine+

Thanks

1 Like
#544

I have both DT and octatrack. I just feed the DT into my octatrack. DT is very good at drums/ percussion etc. Works great.

1 Like
#545

Octatrack was my first Elektron unit and that was a mistake. It was overwhelming and I stalled out, eventually selling it. Digitakt is much easier to learn the Elektron way of doing things, and the Models are even easier. In addition, if you buy the Octatrack later you will keep your first unit and use it to make loops to use on the Octatrack. Now I am thinking about getting the Octatrack again.