Hi, just got a perkons here and absolutely love it. The only thing is that the main output volume seems really low without any compression. Is this normal or has anyone else noticed this behavior? Haven’t tried the individual outs yet as I only had time to play with it for a few minutes before work.
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Damn it. Can’t decide wether to grab a Machinedrum before things get further out of hand $$$ or go for a Perkons. The physical size of the Perkons could be a challenge for my small home studio - running out of space lol
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I don’t have one but have read several reports further up this thread of people saying with no drive/comp. the output volume is low. Try searching the thread if you need more info now…
I always line compress my percussion & add drive at the mixer. Maybe it is just me I couldn’t see it being a problem. The other end is it being too loud with so it’s a balancing act one way or the other… wouldn’t it be silly to have them and not be able to crank them up?
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Oh I have no problems about using the compression at all, I was just curious if this is normal behavior. Would hate to find out later on that I ended up with a faulty piece of gear for 2k…even more so if it were out of warranty.
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My dealer is sending me another perkons as I have been having a few issues. I will compare it with the one I have when it arrives and can let you know what is normal and what is not (I doubt I could get two faulty ones).
My main output volume is also low and the individual outputs are more than 10-15db louder (this is with voice volume knob at max, main output knob at max, and compressor knobs at 0, unbalanced TS cables). Are your individual outputs also quite a bit louder?
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I’d appreciate you letting me know! Thanks for that. Hopefully, others here can also answer this question. I only received my unit this morning and didn’t have hardly any time to play it as I had to leave for work so I did not have a chance to test the individual outs yet. From my experience with other drum machines, I’m guessing the individual outs will likely be louder. The Tanzbar 2 for example is also like this. Anyone else care to chime in on this subject? Thanks in advance!
I love the machinedrum and it has gone through the roof in cost. i got mine when it was high and it has gone up about 1000 dollars since then. Hopefully Elektron will be smart and reissue the machinedrum or come up with the next iteration of it in the original size and design with better functionality. If I were you, I’d get the machinedrum first, then the Perkons later! There’s no such thing as too many drum machines. 
Just curious, but what issues were you having specifically? I’d hate to have any, but would like to be aware of any major known issues with such an amazing (and expensive) piece of kit.
My output volume is low as well. It’s bothersome when making a satisfying kick. if i add a bunch of gain it becomes noisy. it’s annoying, and i’d like a fix to the issue, but it’s not at all a deal breaker on this otherwise excellent piece of gear.
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Thanks for answering. Would love to hear more folks answer this as well. I kind of imagined that was going to be the case. It’s definitely not a deal breaker at all for me either. From the 5 minutes I got to play it & make a pattern as I was leaving to go to work this morning, I immediately fell in love with it. It’s a fantastic piece of gear.
Will let you know about the individual outs on mine when i get home to test it.
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So after checking the individual output vs the main, they are both at the same volume.
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How does your main output compare to the individual outputs @hotdoglothario ?
i will check as soon as i get a chance.
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Has anyone found a good workflow workaround for writing fills in the 16-bar context? (In other words, without chaining patterns)?
As others have mentioned before, a logical way to “lengthen” 16 bars is to add steps that only trigger on, say, at the conclusion of every 4 or 8 bars. The choice to have 1/4 or 1/8 play the first time through (which is confusingly contrary to what the manual says) makes this impossible.
And yes, one could chain patterns to have up to 64 bars, but this makes the experience clunkier and less immediate; when performing, it’s extremely intuitive to shift to other patterns. However, it’s not intuitive to enter a new chain every time you’re switching parts. (The chaining option might be more feasible if you could somehow save those chains).
I understand that one could also do this in real-time, but I like to pre-program my drum patterns and leave my hands, brain, and ears free for tweaking of melodic aspects instead. So from a workflow standpoint, despite all the other hands-on immediacy of the device, this one aspect is preventing me from purchasing the unit; having the same static 16-bar pattern without fills or “turnarounds” at the end of every few bars is a dealbreaker.
Erica, if you’re listening, I FUCKING LOVE YOU GUYS, and I understand your other devices share this “first time through” ratio behavior. But what about a config option changing the default behavior to make it consistent with what the manual says? Seems like it would be feasible?
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Yeah, it’s true, but I don’t have this compressor or the bucket brigade delay. I have loads of compressors and bucket brigade delays, but none of them sound like this one… I suppose it has its place. Perhaps for a super simple live rig, it would be good.
If possible, I’m hoping the firmware update will allow me to use the FX Send to the built-in delay and to record it from the mono output. That would be pretty wonderful. It’s bizarre that it doesn’t work like this already but I’m wondering if it was not possible due to the bussing system they built.
Can someone with the unit please confirm if SHIFT can be latched for pattern and/or kit modes?
It sounds like this latching behavior is now possible with mutes (which is awesome for performance), but it would be sweet if you could switch patterns and kits with just one action as well.
(I’ve always wished the Octatrack had this feature too…like, double-click the PTN button and then all you have to do is hit the corresponding button for the pattern).
PSA: If you are having issues with your perkons, like it not turning on all the time, not saving patterns, random freezing, and other wierd stuff like that the perkons is probably fine. Turns out the micro SD cards erica synths have been using are not working very well. Just get an actual full size SD card, format it to FAT32, and everything will be fine. Found this out after having my dealer send me a new perkons.
But since I have two perkons with me for a few days I compared them and the compressor noise is normal, the low main output signal level is normal, and the individual outputs being louder is normal as well (erica synths also confirmed this in an email). If anyone else has any questions or was worried about their unit being faulty for any reason let me know in the next few days and I will test it out with the units over here to see what is normal or not.
@HotdogLothario As far as what cables to use I asked erica and they said you can use TRS or TS and there wouldn’t be in difference. This is not the case however… if you use TRS for the individual outs it doesn’t work at all (super low signal level and the signal is also not removed from the main output) so you have to use TS cables for those. The main output works with both cables, TRS is about 6db louder but also seems noisier, so I don’t know what to really use on that one…
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I’m thinking of moving on from my Rytm to a Perkons. Down for some thoughts.
Even the “shortcomings” sound right up my alley. I really only ever use <4 tracks on the Rytm. Sometimes just one and I prefer working with a single page of 16 steps with a few trig conditions to extend things.
Honestly I’ve always struggled with the Rytm. I have some magical moments, especially using it as a standalone sample based groovebox but I have a really hard time getting it in a mix with my actual music output.
It feels like there are so many possibilities and features on the Rytm that I just don’t make use of. Perfs / Scenes are cool in theory but I never set them up. Hell I barely save songs. I’m looking more for a sound source than an entire workflow center, if that makes sense.
I just turn the thing on, tweak some sounds, P-lock some wild shit, and bounce out some loops to further mangle and build into something. This is where I want to focus my workflow. Live, hands on jamming/improv and idea generation.
I absolutely LOVE parameter locking, X:X style conditional triggers, probability and differing track lengths for interesting rhythms. These are what kept me coming back to the Rytm or Digis.
I really like the design philosophy Erica took on limiting certain things like having 4 fixed mod % levels, etc. It just works for my ADD brain. Less options is better in my book, especially if it builds a familiar hands on muscle memory.
I’m not sweatin it too much. I likely will try it. It’s quite a bit of money for what it is. But I LOVE me some giant knobs and wacky / glitchy percussion sounds. The comparison to DFAM had me intrigued. I’ve had so much fun with the DFAM in store and found it to be very intuitive and easy to develop a sound and let it take you somewhere new.
That’s kind of the crux of what I’m after. If I was curating a live set built around a small handful of boxes, the Rtym would make a lot more sense for me. I mostly do film/game composition and just want an inspiring way to come up with new and experimental percussive ideas.
I take that back. I’m not looking for thoughts. Just make me feel better about the rather ludicrous amount of money I’m about to drops on blips and bloops.
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Yes, this is what I needed to see (as per my comment directly above this.)
Seems super prone to happy accidents / experimentation as opposed to a more planned and methodical approach, which is how I view a lot of elektron boxes (not that you can’t experiment or jam on them, obviously)
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