I bought the Analog Four last week, and have been delving into how to use it. First impressions weren’t good… the preset patterns and samples didn’t jump out and throttle me like the Electribe 2 did. However, I do prefer the A4’s grid system of entering notes.
I watched a couple of Rytm videos and noted the following:
[ul]
[li]As well as drums, it has samples. It’s not an Octatrack though.[/li]
[li]It has 8 tracks (twelve pads, but shared voices).[/li]
[li]It doesn’t have transpose like the A4 (neither does the Electribe 2).[/li]
[/ul]
On my A4, I typically dedicate one track to drum and bass, which it does but I can see the Rytm has a better way of muting individual drum parts - possible on the A4 but only by turning off trigs, not ideal.
I could stick with the Electribe 2 for drums - it does have 16 pads (24 note polyphony); I must try that out.
Try not to judge a synth by its presets. While an electribe 2’s presets may sound more polished and ready to wear out of the box, that sound will wear off once you try to go deeper into sound design.
A4, with its (all p-lockable) feedback osc, neighbor osc, pwm, sync, and sub-oscillators will keep you happy for years and years of synthesis.
On my A4, I typically dedicate one track to drum and bass, which it does but I can see the Rytm has a better way of muting individual drum parts - possible on the A4 but only by turning off trigs, not ideal.
I could stick with the Electribe 2 for drums - it does have 16 pads (24 note polyphony); I must try that out.
Have you considered a Nord Drum for your A4? You can sequence it on the CV track via the 4 CV outputs. All 4 outputs can send a note/trigger at the same time too, so there’s 4 more drum voices with either ND1 or ND2. ND1 goes for about $150-$200 lately.
Send the ND audio output back to the external input on the A4, and then use the FX track for p-locked FX sends and pans of the ND.
I was right there with you on the Analog Four, feeling very limited by the 4 voices. Then I added the ND and it really opened things up. Best of all, I was able to keep all 8 voices on that one Elektron sequencer.
For me the good thing About having an A4. And ar, is that their workflow is very similar. This makes it easy to use, and to combine, and forces me to focus on synthesis.
I think i Will not buy anything else for a very long time, and just make music
I’ve got an MPC 1000 as well - had it for some time but rarely used it. I got into using piano rolls in DAWs.
Since I bought an OP-1 and an Analog Four, I’ve been digging into sequencers and gone back to my MPC 1000. The grid sequencer on there is way ahead of the OP-1 or Elektron in terms of capacity.
NickD
5
Capacity, definitely. But if you want to quickly add some hits or throw in a precise filter tweak or reverb send, Elektron have you covered. The MPC excels as a master sequencer for building a song, and of course as a beat construction tool it’s very refined.
I don’t think Elektron have really tried to compete with the MPC’s strengths - twelve pads, machines tied to pads and predefined choke groups all attest to that. I think the Rytm has a very focused and integrated / cohesive design, while the MPC is more of a blank canvas. Elektron have nailed - arguably revolutionised - pattern sequencing, so having an MPC and a Rytm, I’d say, gives you a very robust sequencing setup - with a powerful combination of full-on sampling and analogue synthesis to boot.
4.33
6
To OP - don’t judge A4 by presets. If you are intimidated by amount of controls and most importantly their interaction, may I suggest you taking a course in synthesis basics, the best of which is Syntorial. Not free, but hands-on and comprehensive and it will unlock your mind of what this fucker, A4 that is, is capable of
I’ve an MPC1000 running JJOS 2XL, as well as Live with Push, an A4 and a Rytm. If I had to sell one, it’d be the MPC. Easily. While I like it for a change of workflow, I really don’t use it all that much these days.
The thing about the Rytm is the intangibles imho - it sounds great, can really smush up samples or do MPC60 boom-bap, but more than that, it’s the feel. I know some people think the elektron workflow is intimidating, but I took to it right away on the Rytm for whatever reason - much more than the A4 - it just sounds and feels right to me. In fact, it feels like a future classic.
Haven’t quite warmed to the A4 to the same extent as yet, then again I’ve only had it a few weeks. Agree 100% on the presets, but I’ve started to get some good sounds - particularly poly keys/pads and unison basses - and I find it quite immediate, even if it takes a couple of button pushes to get at certain parameters. Haven’t really gotten in to using it as more than a sound module for Live as yet, I’m sure once I get in to the sequencer and p-locks it’ll all click.
+1 to AdamJay and 4.33 - judging any actual synthesizer (as opposed to the mentioned Electribe, which is a KingKorg (I think?) synth engine packed into a preset box with a few values to tweak) by its presets is the worst insult for the synthesizer.
From the 1000 foot view all kinds of other drum machines/work stations seem better than the AR.
But when you dive into what the AR actually does, nothing else compares - IMO
I was on the fence for a long while, tried all kinds of weird interim solutions. Then one day bit the bullet.
It’s irreplacable now. You won’t run out of drums. You might run out of p-locks for scenes and performance mode, but never drums.
Unless your building a montage of heck. See if you catch that reference 
Great movie btw. I love my city.
Heh, I know some basics (I’ve created a few soft synths) but an actual course that might help me figure some of the more interesting stuff? Thanks, I see there’s a few free lessons to start.
I bought syntorial, it helps me a lot to understand synthesis.
I agree… When I first bought the AR I was not particularly thrilled. It mostly sat there for a few months while I was really into my Analog Keys. Then one day I unplugged the Keys, put the AR at the center of my desk and just focused on it…
Holy F***** S*** This box is amazing!
If you just want a standard drum kit and play back a few patterns as a background for something else, you can spend a lot less money on something that will fulfill that task.
However, if you want a machine that opens up a vast landscape of flowing evolving percussive magic then get the Rytm. The sound quality is fantastic and the low end is endless. Between the analog machines and layered samples through the analog circuits the sonic range is enormous and bursting with creative potential and along with Scene mode, Performance mode, Chromatic mode, p-locks, individual track lengths, micro-timing etc, there is nothing like it.
Try not to judge a synth by its presets. While an electribe 2’s presets may sound more polished and ready to wear out of the box, that sound will wear off once you try to go deeper into sound design.
A4, with its (all p-lockable) feedback osc, neighbor osc, pwm, sync, and sub-oscillators will keep you happy for years and years of synthesis.
[/quote]
2nd that. I’ve never tried the A4 but when I got the Sub 37 I thought the presents were crappy sounding for the most part (and still do) but the more I delved into creating my own sounds, the more I fell in love with it. I’s what analog synthesis is all about after all.
imekon
14
So I bought an Analog Rytm. I figured I’d get on with the sequencer as well as the A4.
I briefly looked at my Electribe 2 but find it’s sequencer limiting. I also looked at the MPC 1000. Tried to save a pattern plus samples but lost the pattern. 8(
So I’ve got my A4 sitting next to the Rytm and hooked the two up via MIDI.
