Extremely embarassing, but... how do i wrap my head around a4?

preface: this will definitely be one of the more embarrassing posts on a forum in internet history.

i’ve long romanticized over the thought of getting into synths. i’ve spent countless days and nights scouring various electronic music instrument forums reading things that i’d need an interpreter for to understand and drooling over gear i’d have no idea how to use. i come from a guitar background and have no issues admitting i’m a downright idiot when it comes to anything synth-related.

now that that’s out of the way…

last summer i kept badgering a close friend about my desire to get into electronic music production, not expecting anything more than an empathetic “cool, bro”. he also comes from a guitar background so is used to my discussing gear with him (i’m a pedal fanatic). i’d mentioned the elektron name to him. anyways, a few days after mentioning the brand to him he randomly shows up to my place and gifts me an elektron analog four. i’m not kidding.

i was, am, and always will be extremely grateful for this amazing gift, but after a few sittings with it throughout the year- all of which ended in me getting agitated at my own incompetence and inability to get a basic groove going- i still have absolutely no idea how to wrap my head around the a4…

it’s become very evident that this isn’t a toy and is in fact for long time, very well-versed, synth users (read: geniuses).

why’ve i turned to you lot?

simple: i’m hoping you can, in layman terms, explain the basics of this beautiful box to me. i’d like to at least have the most fundamental understanding of the a4 so i can start creating some minimal tracks. assume you’re teaching a ten year old who’s just seen a synth for the first time; that’s how little knowledge i’ve got on the subject- no knowledge.

i can’t even seem to do an os update (which i’d also appreciate help with!)- i’m just that dumb.

anyways, i know nobody owes me anything on here, but i’d sincerely appreciate any help. my mate always asks to hear some stuff i’ve done with the a4, but i just don’t haven’t enough heart to tell the man the situation! i do want to learn synthesis- and the a4- more than anything, but after so much time spent fetishizing over all this gear, i can’t seem to graduate past turning the thing on (okay, not giving myself enough credit here- i can scroll through and load kits and sounds; wee!).

thank you all kindly and go easy on me, i’ve a weak ego :frowning:

“Gifted” an a4?
You lucky lucky bastard.
First up dowload and read the “analog four cookbook”
A bit more digestible than the manual.
Oh, rtfm. First.
Dont beat yourself up over slow progress.
Play your benefactor a few demo patterns.
He might not know the difference. :wink:

Oops. Rtfm first, then cookbook.

Download the e-book How to Make a Noise and read the section on subtractive synthesis to get a basic understanding of how sound design on the Analog Four works.

It helps to think of sound design like sculpture or architecture. There are steps to start with and steps that follow other steps.

Everything starts with the Oscillators, this is what defines the basic character of the sound, the waveform. Things then go to the filter. In subtractive synthesis, this filters out frequencys, leaving you with the sound spectrum you want. Then things to to the Envelopes for sound shaping. The Amplitude envelope is where the basic shape of the sounds volume is created and edited. How long the sound takes to reach it’s loudest point, and how long it takes to get quiet again. For further sound design and to add movement to sound, modulation envelopes and LFOs (low frequency oscillators) are used to define what part of the sound is going to move, and how.

This stuff should all be covered in the e-book but I thought I’d give a quick guide because I believe in people playing music. :slight_smile:

Also it’s good practice to load presets you like and figure out what makes them work. Listen to the sound and try to figure out a certain element of the sound, does the pitch change? Does the filter move? Does it wobble? Try to turn that element of the sound off or change it somehow, and if you can change it, you basically just figured out how to create that element of sound from scratch.

For the sequencer works on the A4, it’s all about placement of events. You have 16, 32, 48 or 64 steps depending on how you have the sequencer setup. The speed the steps move through is determined by your tempo BPM. Just tap on the sequencer buttons while its playing to hear notes being triggered and to add melody to those notes hold down one of the chromatic keys while tapping the sequencer buttons. to change the length of notes, find what I think is the length settings in the note menu (hit the note button) and change it while holding down whatever step you want to change the length of. This is also the basics of parameter locks. Hold down a step of the sequencer while changing and sound parameter and it will set like that for now on. You can make lots of sound variations this way.

As for updating the OS. It should be pretty easy. However it’s complicated a bit by C6 being buggy so if your having problems, that’s not that unusual. You should just go to I think it’s the global menu and set the A4 to receive OS update. Then launch C6 and send the OS update over. Just make sure the A4 is on already before you plug it into the USB port. C6 has a hard time sending files correctly to it otherwise. There should be a guide to the OS update in the manual. And if you’ve got a really old version of the OS look forward to added polyphony and improved bass response!

Ayy, I’ve given the manual a go several times, but it’s pretty dense for me- someone who has literally no idea what 3/4’s of the words mean :confused: I’ve downloaded the cookbook and will give that a go.

I’ve downloaded C6, but that- even with the manual- has got me going WTF.
In the “Config” window, as per the instructions; do I highlight my A4 in both midi in & out windows and just click okay, not clicking any of the other boxes? Then how do I actually upgrade the OS? I’ve downloaded the latest one and know how to get to “OS Upgrade” in the menu, but then it just says “waiting for sysex” and I’ve no idea how to go about actually transferring it there. Fuck, I’m so useless. This is the most rudimental stuff and I’m unable to do it.

Also, how do I do a factory reset? If I want to do one, should I do that first then do the OS update?

These are two things I want to get done (reset + install latest OS) before I even really “dig in”. I’m screwed.

Okay, just did a factory reset via early menu. Didn’t think it’d be that simple; took a second :confused: How do I go about this OS update business now?

Don’t worry you’ll get there.

OS update is an two stage procedure. In your C6 you’ll have to LOAD the downloaded OS file by browsing for it (as you would with any file on your computer). Unzip the downloaded file if needed. In the unzipped folder you should find an file with ending: .syx (short for SysEx, which in itself is short for System Exclusive).

When your syx-file is loaded, make sure your A4 is ‘awaiting sysex’. Then press SEND on C6. You should see progress bar in both C6 and the A4. When finished follow directions in A4 display.

This seemed to work, but now it’s been stuck on the “Success! Rebooting” screen for about 15 minutes- is this normal? Thanks!

If it doesn´t pass it by itself, just cycle the power button yourself. Look for the OS number in the lower corner (right side I think) in the display during the boot. Should be the new number/name that you had in C6.

Also:

Try to separate the different ‘parts’ of the A4. What is the core function of the parts etc.

‘Easy’ stuff first, take a look on this sheet/link and grasp the terms of waveforms/sounds. Which you probably already do but maybe with other terms/names/abbreviations found on your guitar pedals. Modulation on any of your pedals in example is mainly based on a LFO, a term which you´ll find alot of in synths. Perhaps you are able to select different types of waveforms on your pedals (abbreviated Tri/Sin/Sqr etc), which adjusts something on your guitar sound. I e a tremolo pedal could have a selection of waveforms which affects the sound of the tremoloeffect in different ways. Same thing as described in the sheet:
[url=“http://i1.wp.com/www.synthtopia.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/05/synthesis-fundamentals.jpg”]

The sequencer (lowest row of 16 trig buttons), is as mentioned 64 steps (4 x 16). As you can see on the button lowest to the right (Page/Scale), any project has an selection of how long the sequencer runs before starting over. Easy to adjust at will. Press Function + Page, menu will show a division number: max 64/64, that is full lenght in sequencer. If you want something else, navigate and adjust with the arrow buttons.

In the sequencer you can either enter ‘events’ manually (press Rec, its LED becoming steady lit ), and the LEDs above the trig buttons will show which steps that are active (if any) in the choosen track.

You can also enter the ‘events’ on the fly, aka ‘record’ them in realtime (press Play and Rec at the same time, you should see the Rec LED flashing). In realtime recording just follow the tempo (Tempo LED flashing) and hit a note (minikeyboard) when you want it, just keep an eye of when the sequencer starts over. After some notes entered you should have an melody of some sort running. If still in realtime recording, you can then start turning some knobs (i e adjusting volume, filter frequency etc).

If it sounds ugly, you can just erase the contents in sequencer and go from scratch with an fresh start: Function button + ‘Clear’

(yes… the Rec, Play and Stop buttons has an secondary function as any of the buttons with texts in different colors on the panel: the Function button is your friend)

Cheers, thanks for all that incredibly useful info, Mike; greatly appreciated!

I restarted the unit manually and re-installed 1.11C (though accidentally hit “Exit” in C6 after it was done loading). Froze upon again on reboot screen, but after two manual restarts it seems to be working with the latest software. Most sounds can now be heard in poly without having to select four voices in the menu.

I’m off to catch some sleep (5am where I am), but will spend all day tomorrow trying to learn.

Thanks again, you’ve (along with everyone else who has contributed) been immensely helpful. Hopefully one day I can be there to help someone new to the community as you have me!

Cheers!

Just an note for the future (write it down if you want):

[ol]
[li]When ‘fully’ grasping the sequencer/effects/LFO´s (how to use them).[/li]
[li]Find an preamp/booster pedal, preferbly with stereo out.[/li]
[li]Connect it to Input L/R of your A4.[/li]
[li]Plug your guitar into the pedal (set appropiate levels).[/li]
[li]Have fun programming your own tremolo, chorus, delay, reverb effects by using the sequencer (pretty much like an AdrenaLinn pedal).[/li]
[/ol]

If you already have delay pedals with MIDI IN or something (i e for MIDI CLK), you can have that one connected too being in Sync with your A4 sequencer (with appropiate system parameters set of course).

Depending of what kind of pedals you have, you may very well already have much of the required knowledge to grasp synths.

hey sheriff…

if you have skype and a decent internet connection. with a cam and a micrphone (any smart phone would do it)… I am happy to give you a online skype tutorial to jump start your skills …for free off course!

i have been in your boat…coming as a beginner the A4 seems like quantum physics.

to Elektron: rewrite the goddamn manual, and finally spend 1425 euro for somebody to make video tutorials (really angry voice !!!) (as promised)

sheriff pm me, or reply to this post …welcome to the wonderful confusing world of sound design and elektron fuckery :heart: :heart: :heart:

Keep at it. Replace ‘year’ with ‘week’ and you’ll be on the right track. Just think about how long it took you to feel proficient playing guitar, and then add the time it took to understand the nuance of tone that came with pedal chain explorations. It’s a bit like that - you need to break it down into steps.

But if you approach the whole process with the attitude that you won’t be successful from the start, surprise! - you won’t be successful – so I’d also work on beating back that difficult-to-shed self-depricating vibe.

To a complete synth and sequencer novice, everything that an Analog Four can do would be overwhelming. I’d suggest you learn basic synthesis first so just forget it has a sequencer for the moment and, as R7 suggested, reverse engineer sounds. You would probably need to keep reading some good, basic, explanations of LFOs and envelopes until it properly clicks but the rest can easily be learned by experimentation and reverse engineering.

Once you properly understand synthesis you should then move on to the sequencer and, if you’ve ever done any multi-track recording, just treat it like a simple four track and record in real time over the metronome track. When you’re used to layering one track on top of the other in to four track patterns you can then learn the more exotic stuff.
Just don’t try to take it all in at once.

[quote="“panelist”"]

Keep at it. Replace ‘year’ with ‘week’ and you’ll be on the right track. Just think about how long it took you to feel proficient playing guitar, and then add the time it took to understand the nuance of tone that came with pedal chain explorations. It’s a bit like that - you need to break it down into steps.

But if you approach the whole process with the attitude that you won’t be successful from the start, surprise! - you won’t be successful – so I’d also work on beating back that difficult-to-shed self-depricating vibe.[/quote]
yeah, this is it i think.

dunno i’m not very good at guitar, but i taught myself… somewhat. :slight_smile: those finger shapes are way harder than anything you have to do on a synth imo. i think it’s important to have confidence that if you can get that you can get this…and i bet you can. :slight_smile:

one thing i find cool about elektron boxes and the analog4 is they reward your muscle memory in a similar way to any other instrument. most of the button have dual purposes and a lot of them respond to double taps. i find just practicing navigating, clearing/loading saving, changing patterns and getting comfortable with all that is helpful whenever i get new gear. tbh, the sounds and sequencing i just fool around with until it sounds good. it gets faster and easier the more you do it.

for sequencing and where to place the triggers it helps to study drumming, i think. i usually make percussive hits and tonal drum sounds to learn a synth at 1st because it’s easy to make those sound without too much work and then you can just start getting into playing and figuring it out. working with monophonic sounds are easier to start with as well, i think.

a rhythm is also good “background music” to make it easy to get into playing around with other sounds and lose track of time. :slight_smile: you could try using tracks 1-3 to get a groove going and then work on making a sound to play on top of that in the 4th track.

Sheriff,
I must apologise if my earlier post seemed arrogant or insensitive.
I personally always start with the manuals. Reading and re-reading, hoping that as i progress with using a machine that the little lights in my memory will switch on.
The concept of breaking the processes down to fundamental principles in simply brilliant.
The setup of guitar as oscillator, leads as routing, pedals as modulation is not far removed from how a synth really works.
This forum is a goldmine of information and the members really just want everyone to get the most from these machines.
Im proud to be an elektron owner and every time i power up my studio, i get a little thrill for the amazing things that can be done. Even by accident, good sounds come out.
I think the most important thing is to just have fun.
Good luck.

Hi!

I have just been in the exact same situation!
My personal approach was to consume as many video series i could about basic synthesis and such.

I found these pretty helpful explaining everything from a pretty basic starting point.
http://moogfoundation.org/learning-synthesis/the-foundation-of-synthesis-videos/

I also joined https://www.askvideo.com for a month and consumed their beginner videos on synthesis.

After all this, I had a basic understanding of oscillators, noise generators, filtering, resonance, LFO’s. bus routing, arpeggiators and so on. Looking at a hardware synth was less stressful now :).

A good thing i aslo if you have the possibility: Look at the explanatory videos and after a while, pause the video and try to recreate the same effect on your A4.

Good luck and have fun learning!

This site has some video tutorials that could be useful for learning general synthesis:

http://www.groove3.com/str/

If you enter this promo code after registering: eventide30day you’ll get 30 days for free (it mentions payment at one point in the process but it doesn’t need any card details as it’s free).

There aren’t any specific Elektron tutorials but there are loads of others for popular hardware & software.

:slight_smile:

I’m sorry to say, but RTFM hardly seems applicable in this case, as the OP seems to be new to synthesis. The A4 “manual” is certainly not going to help, as it is not a course in subtractive synthesis. I mean, it’s hardly a course in anything, and this is one of my biggest pet peeves with Elektron. They have this elitist approach about their kit, that makes it LOOK really difficult to approach.

Here’s the thing, though. It’s NOT difficult to approach. It’s just being taught badly, or not at all. There are way more cryptic pieces out there (spectralis and jomox off the top of my head…hell, even a K2000). Elektron gear is very straight forward, when taught properly.
I wish they would take a page from Waldorf, Novation or Access when it comes to writing actual manuals. Those companies actually care about educating their user base, giving background knowledge about synthesis, and plethora of real life examples of how to put the synth’s parameters to use. Their manuals are a joy to read (at least for a synth geek like me), and provide invaluable info and knowledge.
Not like Elektron’s manuals, where the explanation for the volume envelope is that it applies an envelope to the volume. Really now ? How fascinating ! :slight_smile:

This is why I started doing tutorials for the OT, and a few A4 ones. Sure, they assume that you have a basic knowledge of synthesis, and this is why I won’t link them in this thread. I find it really disheartening that Elektron are relying on their users to educate themselves and each other. Clearly, it does create a sense of community, and I really do enjoy that. I love helping others, teaching, and hearing people make cool, fresh music, so it gives me the opportunity to “spread the word” and watch people grow, and get a big smile on their face when they discover something new. However, I believe that if Elektron made an effort to communicate, educate and teach, they could become an iconic, forward thinking brand, instead of a cool, hip, boutique synth maker. The ball is in their camp, really.

Cheers !