Introducing Syntakt

Got it as an early xmas present so I can take it with me on vacation!

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A bit late with updating it to the latest firmware.

I really like the two new synthmachines but is there any presets I mightā€™ve missed, I really enjoy going through presets to get a feel for the new machines before I make my own.
Is there some on Elektrons site or any soundpacks to buy on other sites?

Great !!!

Quick ā€œ10 days inā€ impression with the Syntakt. I like it more than I thought I would. One thing for sure - people who say it sounds ā€œsameyā€ havenā€™t really scratched the surface. Versatility is real and I can only imagine the type of tricks there are to unravel when it comes to the FX track and not only - just the fact you have 12 tracks allows you to be liberal in terms of layering etc. The box has a sound but the sound is substantial, thick, electronic, industrial and ā€œbreathingā€ when it comes to the analog parts. The filters and drive settings push it waay beyond the hollow plastic-y sound of the MC. Is the metallic hi-hat a bit lame? Yes for sure, but today I made great HH from the clap and also a killer bass from the snare machine of allā€¦

Not owning other analog elektrons, I was surprised by the aggressive resonance of the analog filters but thatā€™s great to have. Something I did was to audio rate modulate the reverb send of a pad sound and later send it through the same verb on the FX track which gave me this super cool crackly broken mid-range kind of sound. Also doubling parts panning them and giving them slight detuning for this chorus-type sound. Also using 3 kick sounds made from various machines for this DFAM type of sequence but much better because of plocks and lfos. Or crazy acid bass sequence out of 3 analog tracks. I was also doubling snare sounds, panning one dry to the left and one completely wet to the right for this huge sound, all tricks Iā€™ve learned with the electribe, when I had more than the 8 tracks of the Digitakt.
Is it for hip hop kind of beats? Probably not, I have the Digitakt for this, but I like where it leads me and the type if sounds it lends itself to. Iā€™ll probably spend a lot of time learning this one before I even think about pairing them, and that will be a whole another dimension. Cheers!

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ppl: ā€œElektron is so mean, they want us to collect all those boxes because none of them can do everything!ā€

Elektron: releases Syntakt, a box than can do everything

ppl:

ā€¦ but anyway, me (playlist):

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It has no arp. :point_up::nerd_face:

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This and no Polyphony. :wink:
Waiting for updates / upgrades.

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And a compressor! I just received a Finalizer, default Syntakt kit became massive! :loopy:

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As much as Iā€™m starting to adore my Syntakt, saying that it can do everything is pushing it a bit. :blush:

Crucially, it doesnā€™t sample, I really miss that and itā€™s a gap I need to fill with other gear. Beyond that, I really would like to see:

  • an arp like the Digitone
  • voice sharing / polyphony via combined tracks.

Then Iā€™d probably agree that they finally released a box that can do everything! :joy:

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Iā€™m adding a MPC Live II to my Elektron setup (incl. Syntakt). That MPC seems to be a box that can do almost everything: Stereo sampling, layering samples, layering programs, ARP, humanization, automation with graphical UI, plugins and way more than my Maschine +.
However it is workflow wise not as intuitive as an Elektron and I have to do some deep dives, e. g. reading the so-called MPC-Bible provided by the user MPC-Tutor.

Those are things that still can be sequenced (neither impossible or too hard) or done via external keyboard New Machines for your machine - #137 by ThomasJ and could still be happen in the firmware ā€¦ :wink:

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What type of finalizer do you get?

No

Finalizer Plus. Lots of dynamic fx per band, big distortion with the 26db analog inputā€¦
10 times less expensive than Stimming Mastering thing.

And midi control from Syntakt/Octatrack.

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Cool I remember wanting one of those back in the 90s, cool bit of tech, especially for live use. Not sure if I need one at the moment, mostly writing in the studio and have some nice mastering plugins ITB, only doing about one Live PA gig a year recently. Glad you like it!

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question: is the fx block worth using if you also have an AH?

or could it cause conflict as the fx block seems like a mini AH and youā€™re just coloring your sound the same, twice.

does anyone know if the fx block has a distinctive tone different from the AH (which i doubt), or are they more or less the same but the fx block having less features?

i kind of feel now that with an AH, the Syntakt fx block is wasted.

i want to use it but not sure if its worth it to color your sound with the fx block then further sculpt/ enhance with the AH.

ā€¦

i canā€™t really test the sound of the fx block with the AH rite now for various reasons.

ST Drive is really different, limited, much better / wider choices on AH, dry/wetā€¦
Day and night concerning distortion.

Concerning filters, side by side comparison would be better, seems equivalent quality to me.

AH have envelope follower, lfo, trigger with threshold or CV in (no midi to trigger lfo / envelope), ST have a sequencer with envelopes, 2 lfosā€¦
ā€¦

I prefer AH for distortions choices, dry/wet, and I prefer ST for filters with its sequencer and lfos control.

Lack of proper midi message to trigger envelopes and lfos on AH frustrated me enough to sell it.

Definitely

No, it can be cumulated with AH, and you can select track routing to it.
And in that case, you can have a post filter distortion, which generally lacks on analog Elektrons.

Also, in a hardware only setup, you can route any of the 12 tracks of the syntakt into the fx block, but the AH is an all or nothing option.

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I precised it, but twice is better. :wink:

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Hi buddies!
If I syntakt->overbridge->daw, are the tracks mono or stereo?

thxalot, love & peace!