Flex track playing back while recording

Elektron Gear Octatrack
1

Hi,

I am trying to set up the OT as a live looper. I do not need any monitoring from OT because the synths are already audible via an external mixing console.
I set up Track1 as a flex machine which connects to Recording Buffer 1. I placed a playback trig on the track and also a one shot recording track on step 1. Then I can re-arm the recording trig with Yes.
The problem is that for some reason, the flex machine seems to be playing back the recording while I am still recording it. This results in a louder and slightly phasey sound. This does not happen when I remove the playback trig, but I do need it for the recording to playback after it is finished.

Is there any way of avoiding that the machine plays back the buffer while I am still recording into it? I had supposed that the recording trig “overrules” the playback trig, because I would not know of a scenario where it makes sense to listen to the sound you are recording in that way. Maybe there is a basic setting I am missing? Because none of the methods people describe for live looping (like recording a Thru track into a flex machine track for example) would work, if the sound were always “doubled” when recording on the flex machine is engaged.

Thanks for you help!

2

Welcome Tobias.

This is normal, and can be useful!
You can avoid this by shifting Flex playback trig with - 1 microtiming.

3 Likes
3

hey Sezare56,

thanks for your quick answer. This works indeed (and is very helpful, thanks) - if the recording buffer is empty. If it is not and you want to re-record any of the tracks, you will end up having the “old recording” playing underneath what you are recording (which in live looping is probably not what you want, if f.ex. you made a mistake and just want to correct the recording by playing it again). In this case, the only way would be to clear the recording buffer before re-recording?

1 Like
4

And just out of curiousity: In what scenario would you want the recording be played back at the same time as it is being recorded? So how can this behavior be useful, as you say?

5

In order to mangle incoming audio. Example with a guitar, no samples. New recordings each 2 steps. Possible to pitch them, time stretch…

1 Like
6

Don’t. :content:
There are always caveats with OT as a live looper, with Recorders/Flex or Pickups.
I still have an Rc 505 Mkii for that.

With Rec/Flex monitoring is a problem, my workaround is to use midi processing, and send a midi note to play the buffer at the end of the recording.

You can record silence instead of clearing the buffer.

7

I bought an OT to use for live looping and experimented with it a bit but haven’t used it in a while so I may be wrong. But I think you could set something up with the arranger mode. So pattern one records you without the playback trigger and then pattern 2 plays it back and repeats however many times you need. This wouldn’t really be for the stomping-on-a-pedal style live improv but would work for a more rehearsed situation where you want to play a part and have it loop back automatically and then play the next part, etc.

8

You can have default track vol -64, then use a scene with vol locked to target (e.g 0). Then you will only hear the recording when you fade to the new scene. You can also use the scene to mute the track or input you were recording from, and so fade between the live and recorded versions.

1 Like
9

…the only ot flaw there is…

why oh why, does this realtime sampling monster does not really work easily also as a standard realtime looper for real…i mean it’s THE ot…sure there’s always a workaround for another workaround to make it actually work for u, the way u want or need it…
but oooof, if ur not working with it on absolute daily bases, it’s pretty easy to forget one of the many same same but different workaround workflows u got available…
sometimes, sooooo many roads can lead to rome, that u’ll never end up in rome without crossing the whole country at least twice, before u actually get there…
while always left with the feeling, u missed it by just one more, or mayyybeee just one less trig…

@sezare56 … ur aware of the fact, that u got to stay on here, with us, FOREVER, since without ur ot competence, pretty much all ot users will never ever be happy again… :wink:

2 Likes
10

Hey guys, thank you so much for your replies. Isn’t it wonderful, I flexible the OT is and how many option we have! @reeloy, I understand you, but one could argue that there are other machine for more simple tasks. Actually, plenty of them. For example, I recently discovered the 1010 Blackbox, which basically offers Ableton-style recording/looping/playback. It is a great little device.
In my case, “loop pedal” really goes into the wrong direction, because my setup is a bit more complicated. I will have 3 or 4 tracks playing a basic sound loop, and on top of that, I want to live record layers of synths. I will probable also send one or more of them through external pedals via the cue output. And as I might be playing with both hands, I am looking for solutions which do not include too many key strokes and stuff.
@Merv, that’s a great idea, but it will not really work in my case, because I might need both hands to play and also to play the pattern until the very end of the loop. So there will not be time to fade in the recorded stuff. But might be a good solution in other cases, and great you reminded me of the power of scenes.
dragonaut, yeah, very good idea, too. As what I am doing is quite spontaneous, such pre-planing will not be possible, though. Also difficult, if you want to record more than one track.

I mean, thinking about it, it is actually not very logical, that the track is playing back what you are recording. Ok, there are (quite esoteric, I think) use cases for this, but standard behavior should be that a recording buffer will block playback when it is recording. At least, we should have the choice. I know, this is due to the interaction between this sort of autonomous buffer and the track using it, but the way it is now implemented defies common logic. I mean, in any DAW, if you are recording on a track, it will usually not playback at the same time what is already on the track …

Ok, good inspirations, thank you. I think I will also check pickup machines for this …

11

Just thought of a better solution for your use case. Use a oneshot playback trig on step 2 microtimed all the way to the left with vol -64. Then whenever you arm your rec trig you will also arm the muted trig, so it won’t play whilst recording. Not tested but should work

12

This is orignal Octatrack raison d’être. Coming from Machinedrum Ram machines, one sequenced recorder, and one sequenced player.
That is logical, an OT strength.

With negative microtiming, Flex playback trig should be played at the end of the pattern. So if you record at the beginning of the pattern, you should play current recording, not previous one. Record silence if you want to erase.

Patterns suffice. I also used that method. One pattern for recording, another one for playback. Works well. You can record several tracks, resample them, rince and repeat…

13

Wow, this is some creative thinking! Very cool. I will give it a try, but sounds is if it should work.