Plays free track question

Elektron Gear Octatrack
#1

Hi,

I have the following behaviour I do not understand.

I want play an 8 bar sample on a plays free track using a flex machine. I have set scale per pattern, track scale 64/64, multiplier 1/2; master track scale 128 (otherwise the sample will not play the full 8 bars)

Pattern settings are plays free, trig mode = one2, trig quant= track length

I set a normal trig on bar 1/beat 1.

I start the sequencer.

When I hit the track play trig to launch the plays free track during the first (or any odd) run of 64 bars, it’ll start on the 65th, and the sample will retrigger each time the track loops, until I push the track play trig again. That’s what I expected.

When I hit the track play trig to launch the plays free track during the second (or any even) run of 64 bars, it’ll start at beat 129, the sample is played only once, the track keeps on running but the sample isn’t retriggered anymore on successive loops. I see the sequencer running (the trig button animation runs, as well as the page leds) but the track status has the “stopped” square. I can see the sequencer running past the trig and not firing the sample.

It’s just like if I had set a one-shot trig at beat 1, but I didn’t.

What am I doing wrong?

Thanks!

EDIT: I tried all sort of settings for the trig quant in pattern settings: all work as expected, EXCEPT if I have the track start on the 1st beat of every even (2nd, 4th, 6th) loop of 64 beats . Example: if I set trig quant to 16/16 and hit the track play trig during the last 4 beats of an odd (1st, 3rd, 5th) loop, the track will start and play as expected, but the sample will behave as a one-shot

EDIT 2: When I set the trig on the second beat, no problem. When I microtime the trig -/384, no problem. I’ll use that as a workaround. It works OK as long as the sequencer is running but it’s a bit strange and looks like a bug…

#2

What are you trying to do? It seems odd to use a trig to trigger the sample when using plays-free, and also to manually trigger the same sample.

Tell us, what is the end-result you want?

#3

I don’t understand your question. What is it you don’t understand in my post? I though it was as clear as possible…I did my best to formulate the issue :wink:

Why? A plays free track is a track with triggers on it like any other track, what else would we use it for? Without any trigs, a track does nothing (it wouldn’t even run)

I didn’t mention that, it’s not relevant

(In tracks mode trigs 1 to 8 trigger and stop the plays free tracks and 9 to 16 trigger the track samples.)

EDIT: I admit that the Elektron language with all the trigs, trigless trigs, trigs that trigger tracks generates some confusion every once in a while ;-).

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#4

Every now and then it’s nice to able to solve a problem for someone! [ish]

I’ve been working on a set that requires exactly what you are implementing - a 4 bar flex track playing an 8 bar long loop that I want to launch “free” - and I hadn’t encountered your issue until I tried your exact scenario. My Flex track is playing an un-looped piece of audio (so it dies moving to a new pattern if I don’t trigger it in that pattern, but will “bleed” into that pattern if with my “START SILENT” set to auto)…

I was able to reproduce your problem copying your settings, finding that an attempt to launch my 8 bar (64 beats @ half time, or 128 master sequencer beats) loop on beat 129 would only play one 8-bar round then stop.

I noticed that reloading my project to my original settings cleared the issue, and through trial and error I identified the pattern’s “MASTER” scale setting needs to be “inf” in order to allow triggering your loop safely at any point, Be it an “even” or “odd” round.

As long as your other pattern elements don’t depend on that reset (to restart polyrhythms etc) and you “USE PRJ. SET” for the chain mode, set to “16/16” if you like to pattern switch at the end of any given bar. Set it to any numeric value other than “PAT.LEN” and you’re golden.

My settings for reference:
PROJ SETTINGS->CONTROL->SEQUENCER
CHAIN AFTER: 16/16
SILENCE TRACKS: no
LFO AUTO CHANGE: no

PATTERN SETTINGS:
PAT:
SCALE MODE: PER TRACK
CHAIN BEHAVIOUR:
USE PAT. SET: N/A
USE PRJ. SET: yes

T3 (or whatever track the 8 Bar flex loop is on)
START SILENT: auto
PLAYS FREE: yes
ONESHOT TRK: no
TRIG MODE ONE2
TRIG QUANT: 16/16

SCALE SETTINGS for T3:

64/64, @1/2x
MASTER: INF @ 1x

I tested this a lot here and works perfectly while in that first pattern, and jumping to another pattern works fine too. Jumping back to your “plays free” pattern might throw up odd behaviour if you don’t come back to it after a round number of 8 bars, but nothing that isn’t “correct” behaviour.

Hope this sorts you out!
P

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#5

Yesss! Great! That was it! I appreciate a lot, this helped me out indeed, thanks for taking your time for this!

Cheers!

EDIT: looks like a bug, doesn’t it?

1 Like