Proud to share my first mini jam with OP-XY:
https://www.instagram.com/reel/DD60ljNt1iq/?igsh=aGJmNXdjZzhraGxx
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I used a stereo to left and right splitter. All male connectors. CV is the left channel and gate is the right channel.
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Just been reflecting on the song arranger a bit more and feeling like it’s a slightly out of date paradigm for such a complex box. Chaining patterns (or scenes here) made sense on old drum machines and the og grooveboxes (mc303, electribe etc). But XY is a much more complex device… more below:
[details=“Summary”]
The fundamental issue for me is that sequencing patterns makes sense for drums but bass, melody, pads etc tend to follow their own independent logic when arranging songs. Combining 8 tracks plus additional punch in, tape, fx lanes etc produces complexity and the block pattern chaining is quite a blunt tool.
This system works in its own way which encourages a certain workflow, which is fine, but I feel it’s a bit clumsy for macro composition. I don’t expect TE to change the fundamentals as it’s baked into the OS now. But if you could chain different tracks independently that would possibly help loosen up the composition process.
I feel like pattern chaining means grooveboxes will always be just grooveboxes and never graduate to full composition devices. Not really criticising TE for using this fairly standard paradigm, but if TE did feel brave they could help the XY stand out from the groovebox crowd by innovating in this department. [/details]
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I guess TE’s answer to this would be to pair the XY with the OP-1 and use that for longer sections.
Another cool option would be to add an OP-1-style tape track option to the XY. If it just ran independently, like the Octatrack’s plays-free option, that would be pretty rad.
With Drambo and Koala on the iPad you don’t need an OPxy.
You only need the OPxy if you want to give yourself a gift that you can take everywhere with you in the form of hardware.
You can replicate 90% of the OPxy with Drambo…so the only reason to get the OPxy is because you believe you deserve it…life is short…and you want a portable hardware instrument that you can create cool music on.
It compliments the iPad as well as the iPad compliments the OPxy.
Bottom line:
The OPxy is a wonderful piece of kit that you will enjoy for years to come. Do you need it when you’ve already mastered Drambo?
Nope.
Master Drambo first so the OPxy makes even more sense before you splurge on it.
Trust me. You’ll thank me later.
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4track tape recorder would be incredible but won’t get my hopes up haha. Thinking about using something like Cubasis on iOS as a midi multitrack recorder, editing and playing back out through the XY.
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Loopy Pro works really well for this. It doesn’t just do loops. It can record any length of audio, and I have a midi control template on mine for controlling the mutes and sends on the XY over bluetooth
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As a standalone all-in-one device, I think it works well with lots of opportunity for variation. Most serious compositions will be tracked out to daw to scalpel further anyhow.
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True. Although I used to use a Roland mc50 sequencer and it’s incredible what you could do on those hardware sequencers with just a numeric keypad, a few function buttons and a two line lcd display. Shame such simple but powerful hw sequencers are a thing of the past.
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I say thanks but no thanks!
Ipad for making music is a disaster of dongles, tappy glass, crap battery life, 3rd party hosting apps
The only time I enjoyed the ipad fo production was with the OXI One controller
Ugh, ipad solo…the thought still makes me shudder.
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I finally got more than 2 minutes to play with mine today and connected the Pulsar and sequenced it. I do with it had another audio out, but it is really quick to get stuff going. This is all the Pulsar, except for a sample made from an out of tune thump piano:
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Drambo and Koala Sampler is thine path to joy on the iPad 
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Drambo and ios apps work great…with my Roland Gaia 2…that’s all I need. Still got the DN2 and am in love with it but If I hadn’t Ipad is a great alternative.
The think I miss most from the op1 is the fm radio. I csn use my phone to add one, but it’s definitely not the same.
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Yeah I miss the radio too, such a fun way to find random samples.
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Got a cheap radio/cassette Walkman for this, just plug audio out into line in
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Yeah miss the radio and really miss the endless sequencer. My biggest complaint about the XY is probably how limited the arpeggiator is compared to the OP-1F or Elektron synths.
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I also miss endless, but don‘t think the arp too limiting - with the second page i found everything i wished for so far. What features are missing for you?
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Kind of defeats the purpose of an all in one device for me, but thanks for the idea.
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The big one is being able to skip steps in the arp. I also like using the arp as a mini sequencer on the Elektron devices (and the endless on OP-1F) to create really complex patterns that syncopate, change directions and octaves, etc.
You can approximate the step skipping by using trigs and trig lengths that leave gaps where i want the steps skipped but it’s more tedious doing it that way that just skipping steps within the arp itself. And it means that you have to work around the arpeggiation starting over from step one at every trig.
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