I’ve been having a great time with Opal ctrl as a sequencer for my NordDrum2. Having 8 controller lanes is fantastic. I would love to be able to switch the pattern number on the fly using an external controller. I see I can automate in Arrangement, but I’m building a live set and I would like to control by Midi CC or note number. Am I right this can’t be done (yet)?
If you create “dummy clips” on a midi track with the opal parameter “pattern” automated for each clip (clip 1: Pattern=1, clip2:pattern=2 etc). Then you can map the clips to note numbers on your external controller and hence control Opal… would that work?
3 Likes
That’s a very creative workaround, thank you! I’ll try it out and report back.
Just tried your trick, works flawlessly! Thanks again!
2 Likes
Heads up, just pushed Opal v1.4. We’ll send out an email about it once I untangle the email list 
It’s a pretty nice QoL update, recommended for anyone using Live 12.3+ as it lets you drag and drop samples without using the (now broken) floating window. Figured there was no point in waiting for a fix from Ableton’s side.
Also: scale mode!
Features:
- Scale quantizer added on config page
quantizes notes to nearest neighbor in the scale
sets the scale of the random pattern generator
Improvements:
- New & improved de-clicking algorithm
retains transient, better click suppression
- Drop sample area added to the rack view of Opal pop-out version
- Click sample name in Slate to load a sample file
Bugfixes:
- Switching and/or randomizing pattern quickly could result in a crash
67 Likes
OMG thank you.
3 Likes
Thank you for the update. Is the new and improved de-clicking algorithm backwards compatible? Will old patches sound the same? And is it related to the sample-based machines or all the Amp-Envelopes?
And one general question: since 12.3 Max for Live devices are loading slower and sometimes Live is hanging when launching the program (start window says: starting Max…), I did a Max database reset as recommended in Ableton’s knowledge base. It helped with launching, but loading devices is still slow. Is this something other Live users are experiencing too?
@Ess Do you plan on releasing more machines in the future? Bought it recently and I’m really digging it.
It could be a minute difference, but should be for the better – I tried to tweak it in a way where it would be an improvement on “old” sounds. But it’s not night and day, it’s pretty subtle. The biggest difference is on transitions between a loud sound and a new trigger with high attack or something along those lines – that is now much smoother.
To me it seems that Max for Live stability and performance has gone way down since the most recent Live updates – it’s very unfortunate. I don’t know why that is, but it’s very noticeable. Hopefully Ableton will work on improving the robustness of Max for Live.
Thank you! Like new synthesis engines in Opal? I think that’s more or less out of the question, it’s already pretty much clawing the walls of what you should be building in Max for Live in terms of complexity
8 Likes
I get it. I guess playing with it made me want sort of a Digitone VST (everything seems already there, from trig conditions to locks). But the midi version is already a pretty powerful way to expand on the included machines’ sounds.
Not sure Elektron will ever be interested in building such a VST but that’s another topic entirely.
good to know it’s not only me… Opal in Vst/ Clap format would be a dream come true
3 Likes
Opal push takeover mode would be Ess groovebox completed, fingers crossed 
12 Likes
Take my money, please.
1 Like
Hi Ess, thanks for the update 
2 Likes
Hi Ess,
First of all, thank you for Opal, it is a really fun and impressive piece of M4L, and i can’t even start to imagine how complex it is inside and how many hundreds of hours you spent on its making.
I really love the fact that Opal responds so well to undo commands, even when it implies many parameters, like a randomize action. It really encourages real time exploration with the possibility to go back to a previous safe state.
I was wondering if there is a way to have Opal remember the editor windows size and location upon opening a saved set.
In a live situation on a 13 inch laptop, it is really great to be able to open a live set with the exact window size and location in order to have some optimum visual real estate, especially if you ever crash and have to rush and reopen the set.
Anyway, thank you and i am looking forward to any future developments !
Cheers
Thanks for those great instruments! Which version of Live would you suggest regarding stability & loading times of M4L devices? Oh and can we have a stand alone Fors environment (Opal / Dyad / Pivot / and a mixer) so I don’t need to use DAWs please? 
He implemented it with Pivot after requests from myself and others, but I don’t know if it’s possible with Max devices that pop out. If it is I second your request, it’s really important.
Pivot always remembered the size in the session, but later I added a default size option for all new instances – either way both options are possible in Max for Live, just more work 
I actually thought the window did store the scaling in the session, but perhaps that is missing somehow. The positioning I’m not so sure about, that’s potentially problematic to store – depends on how Max would handle coordinates that aren’t supported by the current resolution.
My experience is somewhat anecdotal of course so YMMV, but I found Max 8 with whichever Live version before the Max 9 rollout to be a bit more stable – but when performance really took a nose dive in general (again, in my experience) was whenever they rolled out Push 3 Standalone.
2 Likes
@Ess Thank you.
Would it be possible to have different themes per instance of Pivot? Basically being able to change a theme in an instance without it affecting all the others instantly. Would be helpful for me when I use many Pivots as I often do lately (it’s an amazing synth).