For me it works like this:
Project - The meal.
Bank - Course. First, Second, third etc.
Part - Ingredients
Pattern - Method
Scenes - Seasoning
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Yeah they confuse me a bit also. Best thing is to not wonder why, but work out how you could use them.
Very basic example could be :
Project = Album
Bank = Song
Part=Intro/Verse/Chorus/Breakdown
Pattern=1-4 Intro, 5-8 Verse, 9-12 Chorus, 13-16 Break
Scenes=Transition tricks, build ups, drops etc.
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I feel like the language used to describe parts is confusing.
I like to think of it like this.
You have 4 parts(kits) per Bank, you can assign them to patterns.
Also, I prefer sample locks to use a variety of samples on one track.
I use parts to change Machines and FX.
Basically my Part 1 is my default set up for Machines and FX, lots if neighbor/thru/static machines.
Part 2 is set up to re-sample, the static machines become flex machines.
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Octatrack Patterns and Parts
This is a little video I did a while back to help explain to some cats how Patterns and Parts are linked; and how changing a Part will change the samples triggered by the Pattern etc.
Itās using OctaEdit as a visual aid obviously; but the logic is what it is and thus the same on the Octatrack.
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For me, its like for example, why would you want to change a guitar in a rock song to a saxophone in the verse ?
At the moment I just see it as four kits per bank. Iāve been using four patterns for each part and it really works in a live set.
Having said that, after seeing Cenkās video with the volcas (where he has one part set up to record and another to play back the recording, switching between both on the same pattern), Iām tempted to get something similar going with my nordsā¦
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I just got an OT today, that was the first thing I tried out, also with resampling. Great stuff!
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Welcome on board. 
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Thanks, not found anything too infuriating so far, though not having the cursor buttons under the screen keeps throwing me off somewhat.
I think they have so many uses, which is why itās impossible to define what they are meant for.
Another use would be to simply have different FX slots assigned. Part 1 has LoFi and Filter, Part 2 is a copy but I switch the Filter to Dark Reverb.
Donāt forget that you can tweak the hell out of the current Part and then use [FUNCTION] + [CUE] to reload it to the saved state. Great for live use. Remember to Save the Part first though 
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One thing that I used to forget is that Parts contain pretty much everything except what steps are being triggered.
So - if you change an effect slot to use a different effect, youāve made a change to the current Part.
If you change the Start param for a track, thatās a Part change.
If you create or edit a Scene, thatās a Part change.
If you like what you did, you have to save the Part so that those changes are not lost when you change Parts.
In the beginning, I lost so many changes to Pitch/Timestretch/Start/Len parameters because I forgot to save the Part.
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Man alive! This is one of those moments I shouldnāt really share as it makes me look like a complete twat but worth the giggles. Keep in mind Iāve properly owned 3 OTās over the years hereā¦
Was mucking about with the OT this evening and no joke only just realised that selecting a different FX on pattern X changed FX on pattern Y within the same bank. I dunno why, I had always assumed it was FX per pattern haha. Itās starting to make sense now why certain changes didnt have some of the desired results and ruined previous work nowā¦
So, by falling foul of one of the noobiest mistakes and misunderstandings Iām finally starting to get the value of parts. Go meā¦ 
And when I say āproperly ownedā above I am clearly lying. Nothing āproperā about it haha!
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Within the same part, you mean? 
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Donāt confuse me nowā¦ But of course! When one has clearly been a lazy shite and not RTFM or Merlinās Guide properly Iāve only ever been using the one part to date. SHAMEFUL!
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I still only use one part per bank most of the time.
I tried using a part per 4 patterns, but it just got to be too much, especially if you want to copy and paste a bank or two.
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Iām kind of oppositeā¦
For a long time Iāve just been using patterns 1-4 of a bank each assigned to a different part, and I just forget about the 12 other patternsā¦ Lately though Iāve been adding some more patterns to the banks and using more than one pattern per partā¦
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Hi there,
I recently purchased an Octatrack MK2 after 5-6 years working with Maschine then Ableton Live and Push (wanted to get rid of my computer in music making and really get back to the live instrument feeling).
So. Iāve read the manual, seen different videos and I feel quite comfortable with the beast after a few hours of practice, which is great since the internet says āitās complicatedā 
.
However, even though parts are quite clear to me in terms of what they can control / change in the OT behavior, I donāt see clear use cases for them, except for creating build-ups or experimenting then reloading the part (the ābasecampā approach suggested by Merlin).
Would you share your own use cases and ideas ?
Thanks !
Well itās the only way to specify a midi program and bank message so thatās the main use I have for them. I setup the audio tracks as a sort of sample kit for a specific song. Set up my midi tracks with the program messages Iām going to be using. Then write the patterns for said song.
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and the search can show existing threads ā¦
https://www.elektronauts.com/search?q=parts%20%23elektron-gear%3Aoctatrack%20min_post_count%3A15