Octatrack as an effect unit for Ambient "Live" guitar

notoms · 2014-08-05T08:00:22.000Z

Has anyone any experience with using the Octatrack as a live guitar sound fx processor without having to rely on too many stomp boxes (ideally, except for preamp and volume pedal)

I want to create a real “wash” or texture wall of ambience, spreading out in the stereo spectrum from my guitar (and preamp) while maintaining some dry signal for note definition… Any suggestions on usage of input/neighbour tracks in order to create such a textures? what order should FX be used?
My pre-amp (tube amp) is noisy, is there any way to create a noise gate on Octatrack? For live/direct playing, not samples…

mkdsl · 2014-08-05T08:31:50.000Z

there is a noise gate, but i haven’t used it, so don’t know how it affects audio…
as for the fx chains, best to suit your own ears
(i’m guessing delay, reverb, spatializer, funky record triggers, some chorus and comb filter, with p locks and lfos…)

sicijk · 2014-08-05T09:08:39.000Z

Be careful with Noise Gate for inputs…set your guitar/amp chain in a repeatable way, otherwise you risk to get cutted first notes…

About Fx order…it is really up to you…you can try this as a scratch pad:

T1 > THRU for guitar
T2…T4 > NEIBOR

T5 > THRU (with other filtering/eqing) for guitar
T6-T7 > NEIBOR

T8 > Master for final huge reverb/delay and compression or else…

About which Fx to choose… it is really up to everyone own taste

GovernorSilver · 2014-08-05T14:21:25.000Z

I like using my OT in the mixer effects loop. I have a mixer send going to OT input, and OT main outputs going into a stereo mixer input channel.

This way, I have control over dry signal and also OT level. The OT volume knob only works on headphone output, it does not affect main volume output. I can also adjust send level.

Purusha · 2014-08-05T15:08:18.000Z

I’d be tempted to consider using an external stomp-box noise gate, even if you’re trying to cut down on stomp-boxes.

notoms · 2014-08-11T10:09:11.000Z

I actually found out (well, might have been done before…) that using a simple A/B footswitch, I could route the guitar to input A or B, and thus maintain two complete different tones/fx in OT. Quite cool

However, I really want to use a program change footswitch to be able to change patterns, but not sure if I want to invest in an expensive pedal if I don’t know if this will work well, eg… how do you control WHAT pattern you change too (ie, A01, A02, A03 might be a bit tedious to setup as I might have to skip to other patterns out of sequence), and furthermore, if OT gracefully changes the guitar sound when a pattern (and new kit) is loaded… any experience with this?

musicmagus · 2014-08-11T13:12:19.000Z

""notoms"":

… how do you control WHAT pattern you change too (ie, A01, A02, A03 might be a bit tedious to setup as I might have to skip to other patterns out of sequence), …

Send a Pr.ogram Change to change OT Patterns… PC00 is pattern A1 PC 02 is A2 etc… I just started doing this the other day… I think I was sending to the OT Autochannel.