As I wrote: a track is still a track (series of trigs), so it needs a sequencer to execute this sequence step by step to make sound. PLAYS FREE means it uses its own sequencer (so to speak) and not the common sequencer where all the uncool other tracks are “hanging around”.
PLAYS FREE means it can be started by its own and doesn’t start with all the others.
To play a longer stem (where you need just a single trig) is not the only use case for PLAYS FREE tracks, but just one of many.
One awesome technique is that plays free tracks can be launched quantized and looped, and if the same track number on the next pattern you switch to is also plays free, the previous patterns plays free track will keep going until you launch the current patterns plays free track of the same track number. This way you you can replace tracks one by one when switching patterns, if they are all plays free…
Edit: When you switch patterns a previous patterns track full of trigs won’t keep looping, but a sample set to loop will keep looping for a duration affected by its amp hold and release. Will loop indefinitely if either are set to inf, until you launch the new patterns plays free track.
EDIT: oh man, I can’t get over how golden this tip is! Much obliged mr Mike.
This function makes the octatrack do what I love about the Akai force, ie. disconnecting the patterns from each other, allowing mixing and matching of patterns across the tracks. The resampling transition trick just became a poor substitute to what one can do with this, assuming it works also for MIDI tracks
Yep… Every single audio and midi track for all patterns has its own setting for if its plays free, in the pattern settings menu, func+bank outside of grid recording. You have to be in the midi sequencer for midi track settings to appear…
But according to the manual ONE2 should stop playback. And I remember it did stop sometimes. Just couldn’t figure out which parameters were needed to be activated to achieve ON/OFF with trigs. Could it be a glitch?
Well, the track stops (no new trigs are executed). But when the sound is configured “wrong” you may hear it “forever”, because it never reaches the release phase of its envelope.
Looping samples are okay, when at least their envelope is correctly set. How is the AMP MAIN page configured of T1?
I’ll guess when you turn T1 back into a normal track again (for testing) it also wouldn’t stop sounding when you press just [STOP].
When you say ‘tracks’ here you really mean samples, right? Otherwise a track would be playing phantom trigs not visible on that pattern - which would be crazy (but great!).
Anyway I can’t get tracks from one patten to continue playing after switching to another pattern (with that track set to plays free on both) - but maybe I’m missing a setting somewhere?!
No, he meant tracks. And, yes, they are kind of phantom trigs, because the plays free track of the previous pattern keeps playing until you start the (matching) plays free track on the current pattern.
If the track should loop: ONESHOT TRACK=off
Additionally: maybe START SILENT=NO in the pattern settings?
Yes … hmmmmm. Are the patterns using the same part or a different one?
Since this method is on my TO-TRY list (sound really great to smoothly go from one pattern to another) since Mike has posted it I guess I’ll try it tomorrow. As far as I know @Open_Mike uses a quite old OS version. Maybe there was some change …
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