Take your cool beat, copy the pattern, mutate it with trigs and locks, remove and add stuff, change track multipliers and lengths, copy again, rinse, repeat. You should end up with a bunch of cool variations, hit up the arranger and insert them, remembering to use mutes, offsets, repeats and scene changes.
That’s one way.
Thanks everybody for your answers!
@Schnork: Very good suggestions, I have a tendency to start with the kick but I definitely want my percussions to be more sparse and “useful” that the mess that I use to put everywhere
@loa: That’s one of the routes I am contemplating, the jam and refine seems like a good option for starters
@Skypainter: I don’t know, a part of kind of want to try that though, just rendering the 8 tracks of my song to audio and loading them up to another project with an EQ and a comp on each track an a reverb on sends for mixing. I think I miss the visual feedback on the compressor though…
@Gloaming: thanks for the very supportive message 
I agree you can’t decide, it’s more a matter of sitting down every day to make some stuff. But I agree, there will be a computer involved in the end for the mastering part
@fjl: that’s exactly the part of the OT that I’m scare of, the arranger seems so intimidating, but I definitely will have to try that though, thanks for the heads up!
@sezare56: that’s what I’m thinking, really I’m just afraid that the transition from an arrangement project to a mixing project will take so much time of recording that it will just suck all the energy out of the process
@darenager: that’s what I have in mind, the process seems appealing, I’m just wondering if I record the main out of a “performance” of the track, or if I arrange internally
Anyway, all in all, I guess ultimately I will have to try both approaches to know which one works for me
Not that much if you’re really used to OT recording. You can give it a try with a simple project.
For me it’s pretty simple : I can’t stay in front of a computer screen more than half an hour!
Not even talking about the lack of pleasure / creativity with it!
Multitrack recorders are even more boring.
So I can say I’m definitely more efficient why OT! 
are you trying to record everything into the OT and just run a stereo out of the master for your final mix? sounds like people are thinking that… I assumed you just meant it’ll be the brain, like you said.
I did that for a while. OT sequenced all my external midi gear (often had all eight midi tracks in use) as well as played samples, of course. was awesome and worked very well. sometimes I used arranger mode (which is VERY powerful and easier to learn than you think), sometimes I just used patterns and recorded what I needed into a DAW for detailed arranging.
my approach for this was usually just to take an existing pattern, copy it and start changing one instrument at a time until something starts to click, and then I start changing other instruments as needed. I’m pretty melody-driven though. I used to try and use only OT for all sounds (so 100% sample based) and couldn’t do it. I hit a mental-block with samples where I can only take them so far. maybe that’s what you’re running into…?
@sezare56: You’re giving me confidence in this process, I will have to give it a try! So do you basically have arrangement projects and then mixing projects separated?
@chiasticon: That’s basically my question Do people perform their patterns and record the stereo out, or do they rather arrange and mix in a more deterministic way recording stems and using projects for arranging, mixing and mastering?
Previous discussion with more suggestions and opinions:
Alright thank you, sorry I made a duplicate, it wasn’t suggested when creating the topic.
I’ve done a few tracks which were recorded directly from OTs main out. Also a few tracks were recorded using main out and cue out.
OTs master track fx don’t affect cue outs, so I’d use tracks 1-4 as a drum machine going through master fx (making use of filter and also filter + delay or reverb for transitions) and tracks 5-7 for thru machines processing the other synths.
Arranger is great to built a basic structure and can then be used to automate scenes, mutes, transposition of midi tracks etc.
I’d say it’s definitely easier if you multitrack, though. If you run important elements on individual channels into your daw (drums on a stereo track, Digitone and modular also own their own tracks and then dial in a rough mix would let you focus more on the creative part.
Also some quality fx can go a long way!
If you entirely want to stay away from the computer, a small mixer would help, because you don’t have to pay so much attention to gain staging and mixing in OT.
Would also free OT fx slots for creative fx
OT can sound pretty flat if you don’t pay attention to headroom.
64 parts and 256 patterns. Seems enough for a few songs in a project! If you running out of slots / ram, you can mix stems in another project.
If you mean specific patterns / arrangements in Arranger for mixing yes 8 Statics, or 7 with a Master track, that is doable.
You can mix with scenes, use Arranger for scenes changes, pattern changes, mutes, transpose, etc…resample.
If you record 64 or 128 bars for example, you can slice them, reorganise, repeat, delete some part…
I have a very similar setup to you @Martebar. Octatrack, digitone, machine drum, 4+ voice modular and a bunch of fx. No computer at all for recording. Mastering is done in ableton.
I record everything live to a zoom h4n off of my mixer. The OT is the brains that controls everything and the modular is normally routed through the OT. So your setup is very capable.
Process wise, as you see in this thread, everyone approaches things differently. More often then not I have a sound process I would like to explore (custom zoia patch, fm modular drone, sound on sound Octatrack looping) sit down, build that sound, and often a song starts to form from this voice building. But I’ll also sometimes have a melody or beat I want to explore.
The real magic is, always be making shit. Make beats. Make more beats. Make sounds, make melodies. You will figure out what works for you and what is fun to do.
Yeah, absolutely. 4 hours sleep and the cat wakes me up 4:30 am? No prob! Make coffee and switch on my synths so I can work a few hours on my stuff before my wife gets up and We’ll have to get ready.
Even if it’s late and I’m super tired, I’ll switch on my machines for at least an hour or two…
Usually at least on six days a week I can work on my stuff.
Makes a huge difference.
And the last day you sleep 24 hrs?
Some sacrifices have to be made. 
Fun fact, I am still recovering from Jamuary. I rarely get sick, but the <6 hours of sleep a night all month really threw my physiology out of whack.
Jesus, you guys need to sleep more!
Overwhelmingly it seems like the common approach is to perform the song instead of building it DAW style inside the Octa. Looks like it’s the more accessible way of doing too, so I’m gonna be pushing the record button tonight!
Yesterday I finally tried using the cue out for resampling parts through effects chains (Platform to RE-20 to RV-6) and the power it provides blows me away. I was only unsing it for a delay send during live sets before. Being able to sequence a synth, hear it with a thru machine, route it to my pedals and record the result on the same track is amazing.
I need to get into the mindset that 6-8 big sounding and moving tracks can sound as interesting as 40 highly mixed in a daw. And that you don’t need 20 percussive elements to have groove or progression.
This is going to be interesting!
Hi @Martebar,
I’m at a similar place and set up - OT and DN with peripheral gear.
It’s a great set up and with just the first two boxes that’s enough and so much already.
You could try to do a bit of both your ideas coz OT can capture some parts of a song ,especially the synth modular as it happens - the jam out a beat and record it live with whatever tweaky bits you can make on top.
I like to be able to record my gear at the touch of a button so I dont record stereo masters inside my OT but use an outboard CD recorder. Anything that records quick, maybe your PC- keep it simple, so the moment you hit a sweet spot you hit record and jam.
I’ve been trying to get quick at sampling with ot so sampling 4 ,8 or 16 bar passages of synths,which is good, but the live resampling that the heads do here may be a better way forward.
Digitone itself can do whole tracks so there is a lot to take in and options to avoid or explore.
I love @Schnork s idea of starting out writing down what notes are used already to help generate chord structures because with these complex digital machines we cant see or remember everything.
Something like OT?
QREC > Track + Rec > Track + Rec > Save
Oh yes, I have a small Tascam recorder that I’m gonna use just for that for sure!
That’s what I was thinking about recording the modular as it is the most unstable part of the whole setup, you can never be sure of the tuning when turning it off and on again. The Digitone I’m less worried about.
I also want to be able to use those patterns for possible live sets later with a simpler setup of OT + DN, so I definitely will have to record the modular.
Thanks for the input!
Yeah, it helps a lot! Going through tracks and holding each note trig on a few patterns to check which notes are used certainly isn’t fun.
I always have a track in my DAW with a notepad plugin (or a notebook on my desk when I’m working without the daw) where I write down all notes, scale and some chords.
The notepad plugin is used to write down the pattern structure, transitions, performance elements etc.
This way I can build my tracks in a jam like situation, refine patterns and key elements without losing track of the direction I had in mind.
I’d also sometimes describe in a few words what my intentions were when I started a track, where the inspiration came from etc.
I use the arranger on the OT to have a fixed structure, makes it easier to do overdubs and also helps not getting lost in endlessly tweaking sounds while the same pattern loops which then just sounds like endless boring tweaking of one pattern on the recording 
When it’s time to record, I’ll copy my arrangement/performance notes into a text editor and pull it over to the second screen.
This way of focused production really helps me to get stuff done.
Part 1 on my OT is always named with the tempo so I don’t have to dig out my notes when jamming.
