Thank you for working on this. I have been trying it out in Arrangement. It works when you follow the guidelines but clips longer than a bar are a little temperamental when you want to Play from a bar other than the start of the clip. It works sometimes but at times it doesn’t. The patterns I have on the MD for testing are a bar long.
Another feedback: A couple of flaws I just discovered are going to mean this is unusable for song production for the present. It doesn’t remember your Program Change / Overbridge setting and the Arrangement memory is also forgotten when you close Ableton. Those should be remembered in the device instance.
Edit: Registration of clips doesn’t seem to be working very well either… the changes happen on time, but they are frequently the wrong pattern (e.g. A2 A1 A3 instead of A1 A2 A3)
Hi,
if I change the Bank No. in the Clip from 1 to 2 the Octatrack change the patern from 1 to 9. Why?
The program change is only sent at the start of the clip. Starting from the middle of a clip wont send a program change. This is something that is hard to deal with because there is no way of knowing how long the “actual pattern” is on your Elektron device.
My only thought on how to deal with this is to make it so if there is a sudden change in the playback position it could send a program change based the start and “end” time of the clip in the database. I don’t currently track the end time in the database. I’ll try and think this through to come up with a solution for lots of jumping around in the arrangement.
It’s possible that the new positions of the clips aren’t always getting updated if you’re moving things around and changing clip locations/sizes etc… Currently its fairly easy to forget to select a clip to update the database if you’re doing a lot of re-arranging and changed something downstream from the clips you’re working on. It’s something I’d like to find a way to have update with less user interaction but It will take some more work to figure out a way that can work.
If you’re having difficulties with wrong clips it’s best just to go through and select each clip again.
If you don’t want to do a lot of mouse clicking, (with the transport stopped) place the cursor at the start of the first clip. Next hold the right arrow key on your keyboard to have the cursor move through all of the clips. This should update every clip in the database for that track instance.
Also, if your patterns (on your Elektron Device) are not the same length as your clips in Ableton you may have program changes being sent that don’t actually change on your Elektron device until later because they are not done playing the full pattern (on the Elektron Device). It doesn’t sound like thats what you’re doing but it’s something to keep in mind.
I think you’re correct on this. I never set it up to remember the selection you made for Overbridge vs Program Change. I’ll come up with a fix for this in the next beta.
The Arrangment memory, on the other hand, is supposed to be saved when you save a project. I’ll have to look and see why this wouldn’t be working.
It sound’s like you are using the built in Program change/Bank change messages in Ableton’s clips. When using this device you don’t need to set the program change or bank change messages in the Ableton Live clip.
Leave those alone and just type the Pattern name identifier in the name of the clip. So rename the clip A1 or A2 or B3 or G12 etc… When you play the clip it sends the corresponding program/bank change.
Nothing is lost in reality. Even if it doesn’t remember the database (which it should, but maybe a bug?) You can still select your clips that were saved in the correct order when you open your project again and you’ll be back where you started when you saved.
If you want to do a lot of experimenting with clip orders and re-arranging, I suggest using the session view for the pattern playback(it’s more reliable and doesn’t require a database to function). When you have your pattern clips in the order you want for the song, move them to the arrangement view.
Make sure your Ableton clip lengths match the length of your Elektron patterns.
Once the database has been updated with the arrangement clips it should playback reliably. The current difficulties come from moving and updating clips around the arrangement which requires a fair amount of user interaction to keep the database updated and clip lengths correct. I hope to make it work better. It’s already been a huge amount of work just to make the current functionality.
Thanks for the feedback and I’ll definitely get some of the fixes I mentioned in when I find some time. I have a toddler and baby to deal with so my time is somewhat limited these days (especially if I want to do anything beside work on Max projects 
)
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If you want to do a lot of experimenting with clip orders and re-arranging, I suggest using the session view for the pattern playback(it’s more reliable and doesn’t require a database to function). When you have your pattern clips in the order you want for the song, move them to the arrangement view.
I might use Elektron Pattern Clips for performance / jamming / ideas and then when arranging use my delay compensation based technique, which I just posted here: How I switch patterns using program change in Ableton
I’ll be watching to see how EPC evolves in the Arrangement department. Have you considered just exposing the “database” as a list, and just have people edit the list directly? Like a Song Mode in Ableton, heh… could even jump to the appropriate row when you transport.
Could work?
I have actually thought of this and will probably (very likely) implement something like this in a future beta. The first though was simply allowing people to see that their clips were correct. The second thought was allowing users to directly interact with the list.
You’re on the same brainwave with this 
It’s not too hard to implement functionality wise. The UI is the hardest part of implementing that type of feature but it can be done.
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Bumping to say thanks for this
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Thanks! I’ll find the time to come back around to this again eventually. Session mode is solid. Arrangement needs some work but it’s “usable” for now (with some bugs).
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this works with the cirklon as well!!!
a1 = scene 1, a2 = scene 2, etc
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Oh snap
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Awesome Mate! Thanks a lot for this great work!!! <3 <3 <3
Same graphic issues as @DanJamesAUS but has no influence on the function!
Roll on bro 
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Thanks for the kind words! The graphics thing is simply a Max version issue. Once you update (if ever) to a newer version you’ll see the graphics.
I do plan to revisit this again when things calm down a little here at home. Too many projects to juggle ATM.
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Does the Cirklon have the same bank naming scheme? A1 - A16 etc?
It should essentially work with any device that has a sequencer which needs program changes early.
I could potentially add different naming schemes as an option in a future version to cover more instruments.
i literally just name the scenes in the cirklon to a1… to correspond with their elektron counter parts.
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This device doesn’t change the functionality of your Digitakt.
It won’t give your Digitakt direct jump. It won’t make your Digitakt change to a new pattern in the middle of a playing pattern.
Those videos show your follow actions flipping through clips within a beat or so. Is your pattern on the Digitakt 1 beat long? If not, it won’t work. You need to have your clip changes quantized to change at the same length of the playing pattern on the Digitakt. Your next clip will arm just before the pattern on the Digitakt finishes, giving it time to change to the next pattern right as the next clip starts playing.
Pattern clips simply sends a program change when you arm a new clip to play. You still have to time your clips to change near the end of a pattern.
Normally sending a program change right when your new Ableton clip starts playing isn’t fast enough to have the pattern change until it has played one more time. This device makes it so it sends when you arm the clip, rather than when it starts playing.
The first issue you’re seeing where you start and it misses the first clip is because the clip is never “armed” to play. The clip just starts playing because the transport is stopped. When you start from stopped you need to have the pattern set to whatever pattern you want to start on.
Try something more simple to start.
Use the default clip settings and patterns that are only 16 beats long on your Digitakt. Click on the next clip or scene just before your Digitakt pattern is going to loop around to the beginning again. If that works for you, then you can start trying to make more complex changes. Just be aware of your pattern length on your Digitakt and set your clips quantized to change accordingly.
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I think I understand it now. Thanks for your help!
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Ok I think I got it working! I think my workflow was just too complex for my brain. I am using follow scene xl (m4l device to follow action but with scenes) and the pattern clips together and it is working well now after much user error :o
This device is great . As a safety measure I am adding 1 extra step to each clip with the matching midi note for the pattern, which seems to be working but I don’t know if it is necessary.
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Glad you got it working! The MIDI note isn’t necessary. It will just send the same note twice. The pattern name (A1…etc) in the clip sends the corresponding MIDI note for you (in Overbridge mode).
this is fantastic, thank you very much!
I get the same problem with the UI but it all works.
Only thing I wish it behaved like the direct change on my rytm, instant pattern jump rather than having to wait for the pattern to finish would be a game changer for me
still, great device thanks again
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