It seems with the OTmk2, that there may be not just some more life left in the OT product, but hopefully some additional growth.
I realized something that may be quite easy to incorporate.
…some new Trig Control modes for the 16 main keys.
My ideas come from experiments in “PolySampling”…trying to record hit a “chord” of record-triggers write to multiple buffers at once. This was originally inspired by the KeyGate sampling mode) on the Korg MicroSampler. On the MS’s key-gate mode, holdling and releasing each piano key triggers and sets length of that key-slot’s recording start/end, much like “hold” on the OT’s Rec buttons. However, the MS can only record to one buffer at t time, but realized that the OT could record to any combination of Recorders using Recorder-Triggers via the the sequencer.
I’ve only gotten one form of this idea to work thusly…
- set up first pattern with all Track Sequencers with their Pattern Settings to PlayFree as OneShot. Clear any playback trigs, and set up each Track to have a Recorder Trig at first step, so that pressing TrigButtons 1-8 (in Track mode) starts individual tracks recording.
- from here, you can use TrigButtons 9-16 to play back your sounds directly. Note that recording latency may cut off the initial transience of your manual recording.
- if you wish to re-sequence playback trigs w/ in a pattern, you’ll need a seperate pattern WITHOUT the Recorder Trigs (lest you write over and lose your “catch”) with the tracks Sequencer set however you like (with or without PlayFree)
whatever kind of playback patterns, P-locks, and OT-sequencer goodness you want. - If you wish to use PickUp machines, you’ll have to assign those to a seperate Part, and either manually record to them per-track, …since the SampleTrig keys do not (yet) control PickUp machines.
- If you wish to polyRecord into PUs, use a Flex-based Part to polyRecord, and then switch to your PU-based part for overdubbing.
BEWARE that when switching between Flex and PickUp machines.
- while Flex machines recorders start on time, slave PU machine set to some LEN multiplier will start offset by that proportion, so you “seams” won’t line up
- there seems to be a bug that reverses playback of that buffer (regardless of the PU’s DIRection or the Flex’s Loop mode), which seems negated by restarting the Master sequencer.
…this idea seems crude and simple, but it opens some interesting options by allowing for the single sounds captured to diverge into varied playback (from mixed machines), sequences, and FX processing.
- Single notes become chords, arpeggios, melodies or anything in between, depending on Sequencer settings, lengths, P-locks and Scene locks.
- one drum hit can spawn into seperate kick/snare/hat/whatever tracks, depending on track parameters for Plackback (_Pitch and Len ) and/or Amp (Attack, Hold, Release) and FX settings for those tracks.
- capturing one pass of a melody or drum break be manually split-sliced into different Flex machines set to capture unique RecLength (from Recorder Setup) and Loop (from Playback Setup) settings, which makes for much more “hands on” chopping/remixing without having to use the sequencer to run trigs or set one-fix linear/random locks.
- Flex machines set to specific RecLenghts can have their track Playback set to unique Looping directions (Forward, Reverse, PingPong), creating instant beat-synced loops of arbitrary beat-lengths without using sequencer or it’s Scale settings.
These tricks are fun, but they feel like workarounds by having to tie up the Sequencer to control this “polyphony” of Recording-triggers.
I welcome others to explore, repeat
I’d like more deliberate control of “PolySampling,” by which the same now-sound could be live RECorded by multiple machines simultaneously, triggering each one’s the Combo Recorder (acting like MIDI note #60 without having to select/focus on just one as Active Track), using some additional/hybrid Trig Mode of the 16 Trig keys.
We already have “Track” mode which use TrigButtons 1-8 to control track Sequencers and TrigButtons 9-16 to Play track machines, but this accommodates the OT present approach to selecting and recording-to tracks individually and separately.
So, I’d propose we add the Trig Modes …with the following schemes for the 3-color LEDs
…for Flex
- "Rec / Play": keys 9-16 trig the track’s playback, but trig buttons 1-8 ComboRec their track. Flex tracks show up Red for record in 1-8 and green for playback on 9-6, and wink to the beat of their respective QRec and QPlay settings. Non-flex tracks LEDs are un-lit.
- "Seq / Rec": keys 1-8 trigger Sequencers, trigs 9-16 directly ComboRec. Eligible LEDs 1-8 blink yellow at that track’s Pattern Settings Trig Quant, while eligible LEDs 9-16 for blink at the track’s recorder RQuant
…for PickUp machines
- "Write / Run" spreading the RecAB’s Record/Dub/Replace (MIDI note 60) and RecCD’s Play/Stop (MIDI Note 64) buttons behavior of “active PU control” into discreet, simultaneous control of multiple PU machines. PickUp-eligible LEDs 1-8 are off yellow for availability (playback or stopped), red while recording, yellow while overdubbing, and alternate red/yellow while replacing. Pickup-eligble LEDs 9-16 are are red while stopped, green while playing.
While we’re making the OT faster and less screen-dependent, assign the first 2 (presently unused) octaves of MIDI notes to remote-touch these Trig keys 1-16 (leaving your MIDI controller’s momentary- or latching behavior to interact with relevant One/One2/Hold modes), and MIDI notes in the octave 10 to direct-select between the available Trig Modes (so I don’t have to use Function+up/down.
I welcome you to re-create this work-around, and share what you think, feel, discover, and desire about grasping multiple track-recorders at once right from the front panel.