I’m probably not explaining myself well enough because a looper on a send FX track is not even close to what’s possible on the OT. If I was a synthfluencer I’d make a video to show you what I’m talking about but instead you’ll just have to watch every Max Marco video as I did.
true, sampling into a record buffer thats already sliced and p-locked is definitely a very unique and exclusive feature of the OT, and yes, it is a lot of fun! . it s just not the only hardware that can record perfectly quantised loops anymore. I stand by my Dark Souls/Mario Kart analogy. You really have to “git gud” to make the octatrack yours, you really have to dig deep into the lore (merlins guide, the manual, elektronauts, etcpp) The OT is probably the reason for a lot of people made an account here…go get one, as long as they are still produced!
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Hey, thanks a lot for the kind words!
It’s a bit of a hassle but there are defaut positions to the parameters on the pattern I’m changing to. I think it was something like all volumes up, all filters open and all sends to 0. That way, I put my Launch Control to the default positions and I know I can switch to the following pattern without parameters changing.
Way simpler! I just use a button to CUE 
I have one setup per track on my launch control, and then I have a input level on my delay pedal, that way I can control the volume a bit more.
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Is the mic going straight into the OT on your second video, or through some other box first?
Oh thanks I really appreciate! You have helped me to think my live in a much more interactive way.
I should look a Kenton USB host or a controller with midi out, I have a launch control xl too.
Straight to the Octratrack. I don’t recommend it because those inputs aren’t preamps, they are line inputs. The gain staging is what was causing all the feedback in that video. But if you want an ultra-minimal setup it can work like that!
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Here’s the setup for my latest live set (yet to be recorded).
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Analog Four MK2 -> inputs A/B (L/R), MIDI from Octatrack (notes, sync & pattern changes)
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Korg Minilogue -> input C, MIDI to Octatrack (notes only, notes merged with other MIDI data in Octatrack and sent to A4 at a certain point)
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Vocals (SM58 with external preamp & EQ) -> input D
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Track 1: Thru A B or A B & C, depending on Part
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Track 2: Flex to play back buffer 1, or Pickup for C+D, depending on Part
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Track 3: Snare or hats/tops, depending on part
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Track 4: Kick
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Track 5: Thru D or C+D, depending on Part.
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Track 6: Melodic sequences, or Flex to play back buffer 1, or Flex to sample into and play back buffer 6, depending on Part
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Track 7: Hats or snare, depending on Part
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Track 8: Master with compressor and delay
When used to record C+D and D, Tracks 2 (Pickup) and 6 (Flex) have effects identical to Track 5 (Thru). This completely blurs the line between live and sampled audio.
Gain staging this took some time because I initially didn’t do it on the Minilogue’s terms. Its filter has a tendency to decrease the volume quickly once you start introducing resonance. Once I realized I can’t just boost it over everything else, I had to go through every track in every Part, lowering the AMP VOL or AED gain so that if I keep the Minilogue’s volume knob at 12, I have enough headroom in both directions.
I don’t use a lot of scenes because they feel so overwhelming.
Scene 1 is always “clean”, meaning that nothing is affected. Scene 16 mutes all effects on Track 5, allowing me to speak into the mic without effects.
All other scenes (only 2-3 per Part) are mostly simple transitions or buildups like low cutting the drums while adding some delay. One is more complex and is used only at a specific point, morphing the looping buffer 1 recordings into something different, and from that I can seamlessly move to another song.
One thing I could do though: a dedicated scene for sampling vocals onto Track 6. Because if the Thru track is active and the Flex track is playing the buffer with original pitch and rate, the live vocals are doubled while recording. Currently I’ve been manually starting and stopping the Thru track but I could just use a Scene to mute it.
Singing and live sampling my own voice really seems to be the magic sauce. Someone once called it “soulful electronic music”.
It is not hyperbole to say that performing with the Octatrack helped me overcome my fear of singing. I often build entire choirs with my voice.
Last year I performed with a similar setup but instead of the A4 and Minilogue, I only had a Monologue. This is the longer (and better) track out of the two:
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