[ Tips & Tricks ] Afraid about the Octatrack

Are you ? Afraid about the Octatrack… DON’T !

I would like to tell you something…

You not necessarily have to see the OT as complexe device
You can use basic functionality it still the perfect device to provide you more on Loop, Chain, Groove, Effects that cannot provided by others (AR, A4, MD, MnM, AH) i see the AR more useful on one-shots, not so much with Loops (at least to me) so if you occult “Live” aspect i mean Time notion wise, and you see the OT as a dynamic sampler to root your audio and control some piece of gear aside with midi, the OT became more THE easiest device

The OT is not HARD to LEARN
it can do A LOT it’s not the same

So when people want to master it fully…

that’s where they lost themselves at the beginning because the learning curve appears to be HUGE. But guess what DON’T DO THAT.

OT can be really simple, like very easy but exploration territory will be infinite then. Don’t be afraid, be satisfied… as the futur of this device in your setup will be infinite as well. that’s how i think about it.


Edit : I would like to post there and you could read the original in this post a little lower, what @andreasroman wrote on this Topic because it’s very well written


Written by Andreas Roman (http://www.andreasroman.com)
(All credits come to him)

To anyone approaching the Octatrack, I’d like to say this:
It’s not a complex instrument. It’s not difficult to learn. Nor is it difficult to master. All it takes, is time.

This is not unique for the Octatack, but for any skill you want to learn, in any trade or craft. To understand something and get good at it, you need to put in the time. There are no exceptions to this rule.

In our day and age, we’ve come to believe that there are short cuts and quick fixes to good results. An app, a plug-in, a workflow, a hardware interface. This is not true, especially not within the creative arts. But some interfaces are deceptively easy to get into, thereby creating the illusion that they provide a faster way to quality results. They do not. They just provide another way.

The Octatrack, in this regard, is traditional in that it’s obvious right from the start that you need to put in the time to learn it.But it does’t require more time than learning the piano, or the guitar, or mixing, or composing, or the Analog Four, or the Prohet-6, or playing the harmonica, or learning kung fu, or learning to read and write.

But it’s no different from anything else. If you’re serious about it, prepare to invest the time. If not, don’t bother. You’ve probably got more important things to do with your time then, and you should do that, instead. But this is true for anything you do in life. It’s just very obvious with an instrument that offers up its deep nature right from the get go. And we might think that’s intimidating. But it’s not. It’s just a reminder that even today, if you want to learn something and get good at it, you need to invest time in it. And that’s all you need.

And I can guarantee you, it will be worth the time. I’ve not met a single musician who wouldn’t benefit from learning the Octatrack. That’s not to say you won’t write great music and never touch an Octatrack. Paul Simon’s done quite well without it. So has Jean-Michel Jarre, and Daft Punk, and Mozart did okay, too, back in the days. But just imagine if Mozart did have an Octatrack. Oh, man.
If you do decide to learn it, you will create things that no other instrument will allow you to do. It’s that good. It’s that unique. It will be worth it.

I second all the advise that you should approach it feature by feature. You don’t need a clear idea of what you want to do with it, when you learn it. When learning the piano, you first play with one hand. Then two. You play music other people wrote. First easy songs. Then, more complex songs. You move from just two fingers to chords. You move from 16ths to triplets. You move from Adagios to Allegros. You move from Allegros to Prestos. Then, you explore complex harmonics. From C Major to G# Minor. The Octatrack is the same.

If there’s a step one with the Octatrack, it’s Elektron’s demo mode. As described in the manual, once you’ve acquired your Octatrack, fire up the demo mode and just get to know the instrument from there. That is where you will know what next step is most important to you. But I second everyone here that says, take it step by step. First, one finger. Then, two. Then, chords. Then, allegros. Then, prestos. Changes in key. And so on. But always first - just the one finger. The Octatrack’s equivalent to this is the demo mode, and just triggering samples on track. That’s your first finger.

You can be 75 years old or just a kid. You can be a drummer or a DJ, a teacher or a fire fighter, a nurse or a taxi driver, a CEO or just fired from his factory. As long as you’ve got music, the Octatrack will offer you something. You will learn to trigger tracks, to sample sources, to resample, to transition, to build songs, to use scenes, to work the fx, to use the cues, to work with the MIDI sequencer. There is nothing you won’t understand, comprehend or master, in time.

Because time is all you need. And you need to want to put that in.

If there’s anything you’d rather do than invest your time in learning the Octatrack, you should do that. But if you’ve got a slot in your busy or slow or hectic or downtempo life that you can reserve for music, and you want to assign that slot to learning the Octatrack, then it will reward you back.

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https://www.mindmeister.com/fr/310663045/elektron-octatrack-video-tutorial-index

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Read the Merlin guide
http://www.elektron-users.com/index2.php?option=com_docman&task=doc_view&gid=611&Itemid=30

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Don’t forget when you set MIDI channel to push/clic on the knob to validate your choice ! otherwise knob come back to default position. Video to MIDI LEARN useful for those who want to control external MIDI device with the Octatrack

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Use STATIC machine with things you know you won’t modulate a lot, very long materials. Use FLEX instead when your goal is massive tweaking exploration, modulation of START/LEN, Crossfader Transition but keep in mind you need to manage your amount of RAM according to SAMPLING (if you use it of course)

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[quote=“William_WiLD, post:1, topic:34534”]
Are you ? Afraid about the Octatrack…[/quote]

Yes.

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FAST shortcut shortguide


Structure
A project can be regarded as a collection of compositions (more on projects P25)
Loading Sample (P26)
Banks
Each Project hosts 16 banks, each bank 16 X 4 Parts, finally one bank can be a track but some people use not so much so it can be 2 tracks (8 + 8) or 4 tracks (4 + 4 + 4 + 4) or less… Switching between banks is seamless, audio not interrupted. (P59)
Parts
4 parts for each banks. A part contain machine assignement + samples, track parameter settings, FX assignement + 16 scenes. A pattern is always linked to one the 4 Parts. (P59)
Patterns
16 Patterns (8 tracks + 8 midi control) (P76)
Scenes Assign to A > B Crossfader (P61)
Arrangements Each Project contains 8 arrangements (P106)
Tracks 8 tracks + 8 midi tracks (P64)

Machines :
FLEX is the most powerful because it’s loaded in RAM as it’s already loaded, as there no streaming action… it doesn’t limit your creativity (85,5mb Limit shared with Recording Buffer) [128 flex samples slots]
STATIC is for long sample or things you not intend to modulate a lot. there’s no limit except the size of your card (but i lying here because it’s limited to 128go from what i’ve read) [128 static samples slots]
THRU listen the inputs AB - CD and effects then (Filter + 2 FX Slots + Master track FX if you use it)
NEIGHBOR listen the track before (so if neighbor is te on track 4 it listening the track 3) so you can make powerful FX chains
PICKUP That’s the Looper mode, good for sampling, percussionists, guitarists etc…

When you had loaded a SAMPLE, to open the AUDIO EDITOR

double click on a track, load a sample and then Press TRACK + EDIT

Then you can Trim (Start, end point), you can SLICE (like Rex file Dr Octorex if you know Reason for instance), you can Edit your sample like reverse, fade etc… acess to the ATTRIBUTE Menu You can set things like Gain, Loop mode, Timestretch mode, Original Tempo, Trim lengh, Loop lengh… File Menu (saving and option on loaded sample)

How to SLICE a Sample Loop

https://youtu.be/GngBvMRlSJ0
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZWkwO-id6So

First Error made with Single Cycle Waveform
Ok you load a SCW but it’s not working yes, a SCW is more than short you can barely heard it… that’s because you need to double click on playback-loop button and activate the Loop mode : ON

Well well, how i SAMPLE ?

I’ve heard of Polyrhythm how i’m do that ?
wow wow STOP ! First you need to understand it, ok then move on…
click on [Function] + [bank] choose SCALE mode to : PER TRACK (haven’t got that ? please unclick REC button that’s probably that…)
Then choose [Function] + [scale setup] and do your thing !

I want to use track 8 as a Master FX
[Function] + [Mixer-Project] then Control, then Audio : check Track 8 Master

I want to use Cue Outputs as a second pairs of output instead as Cue
[Function] + [Mixer-Project] then Control, then Audio : check CUE CFG Studio

How i activate the METRONOME Please ?
[Cue] + [Tempo]

How i become a P-Locker like you guys ?
Well that is the easiest part hold down a trig and affect a parameter, you should see a blackbox indicate you actually became a P-Locker star now :slight_smile:

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I don’t want to chime in and explain details … and if my post is too general, I am not offended if somebody deletes it, honestly … :wink:

  1. Consider that the OT is a very versatile machine … obviously a sampler and a midi step sequencer, but also a multichannel mixer, a multilayer FX machine, a brain for a live-setup, you name it …

  2. Pick your choice one by one. Ask yourself the question what do you need first and focus on it. It’s really a challenge to wrap your head around every feature at once, which the OT offers. So don’t get lost in the woods, take it tree by tree.

  3. It’s often overseen by us, if we get new gear, but it’s an old truth. There is a manual to be read and helping out with most of the questions. To be clear … IMO the OT-manual is quite good at explaining the various machines, modes of operation etc. When I started to learn the OT, I had the manual right on the desktop beside me and took it, when I struggled more than, let’s say, 5 to 10 minutes. That helped and after a while the manual could retire to the shelf. But I allways know, where to find it … :wink:

  4. Practise the infamous Electron way of doing things with the OT. Treat it as an instrument. Take quality time to learn it. It’s absolutely not complicated. Some things are different, some might be unusual first, but everything is logically and quite easy to learn … BUT … there is so much of it, if we look at the OT as a whole … and that might be intimidating at first glance or get us confused … BUT … see 2)

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No one will do that. You actually said valuable things.

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nice post mate, it’s going to be really useful to me

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All very good. Though one might argue, after reading your tips and tricks, you’re contradicting your basic point with an overwhelming amount of detailed advise, that makes little sense to someone unfamiliar with the Octatrack.

I’ll try to add something, rather than just
make a statement and then leave, though. Since I think this is a very good thread.

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@andreasroman that’s why i said :
THEN i will open this Post to Elektronauts OT Masters

And in other separate replied give few things come in mind on the basics of course there’s things to say, and i count on different people, point of view to make this thread better :wink:

To me it’s the basics… maybe it’s too much for newbies… you may have right.

As a new user recorder trigs keep slipping me up. Somehow they appear. But, I think, it’s too easy to start tweaking a machine without knowing all the settings as they previously were at a glance.

Is there a function to totally clear a machine and all it’s associated parameters?

Like an init function for a track? Currently I clear all pages and the pattern to try and get back to scratch.

I would say :

copying ‘empty’ track from other Part/Pattern - and Past to Reset your track (Override method…)

Or : [Function] + [Clear] on every essential pages

1 Like

To anyone approaching the Octatrack, I’d like to say this:
It’s not a complex instrument. It’s not difficult to learn. Nor is it difficult to master. All it takes, is time.

This is not unique for the Octatack, but for any skill you want to learn, in any trade or craft. To understand something and get good at it, you need to put in the time. There are no exceptions to this rule.

In our day and age, we’ve come to believe that there are short cuts and quick fixes to good results. An app, a plug-in, a workflow, a hardware interface. This is not true, especially not within the creative arts. But some interfaces are deceptively easy to get into, thereby creating the illusion that they provide a faster way to quality results. They do not. They just provide another way.

The Octatrack, in this regard, is traditional in that it’s obvious right from the start that you need to put in the time to learn it.But it does’t require more time than learning the piano, or the guitar, or mixing, or composing, or the Analog Four, or the Prohet-6, or playing the harmonica, or learning kung fu, or learning to read and write.

But it’s no different from anything else. If you’re serious about it, prepare to invest the time. If not, don’t bother. You’ve probably got more important things to do with your time then, and you should do that, instead. But this is true for anything you do in life. It’s just very obvious with an instrument that offers up its deep nature right from the get go. And we might think that’s intimidating. But it’s not. It’s just a reminder that even today, if you want to learn something and get good at it, you need to invest time in it. And that’s all you need.

And I can guarantee you, it will be worth the time. I’ve not met a single musician who wouldn’t benefit from learning the Octatrack. That’s not to say you won’t write great music and never touch an Octatrack. Paul Simon’s done quite well without it. So has Jean-Michel Jarre, and Daft Punk, and Mozart did okay, too, back in the days. But just imagine if Mozart did have an Octatrack. Oh, man.
If you do decide to learn it, you will create things that no other instrument will allow you to do. It’s that good. It’s that unique. It will be worth it.

I second all the advise that you should approach it feature by feature. You don’t need a clear idea of what you want to do with it, when you learn it. When learning the piano, you first play with one hand. Then two. You play music other people wrote. First easy songs. Then, more complex songs. You move from just two fingers to chords. You move from 16ths to triplets. You move from Adagios to Allegros. You move from Allegros to Prestos. Then, you explore complex harmonics. From C Major to G# Minor. The Octatrack is the same.

If there’s a step one with the Octatrack, it’s Elektron’s demo mode. As described in the manual, once you’ve acquired your Octatrack, fire up the demo mode and just get to know the instrument from there. That is where you will know what next step is most important to you. But I second everyone here that says, take it step by step. First, one finger. Then, two. Then, chords. Then, allegros. Then, prestos. Changes in key. And so on. But always first - just the one finger. The Octatrack’s equivalent to this is the demo mode, and just triggering samples on track. That’s your first finger.

You can be 75 years old or just a kid. You can be a drummer or a DJ, a teacher or a fire fighter, a nurse or a taxi driver, a CEO or just fired from his factory. As long as you’ve got music, the Octatrack will offer you something. You will learn to trigger tracks, to sample sources, to resample, to transition, to build songs, to use scenes, to work the fx, to use the cues, to work with the MIDI sequencer. There is nothing you won’t understand, comprehend or master, in time.

Because time is all you need. And you need to want to put that in.

If there’s anything you’d rather do than invest your time in learning the Octatrack, you should do that. But if you’ve got a slot in your busy or slow or hectic or downtempo life that you can reserve for music, and you want to assign that slot to learning the Octatrack, then it will reward you back.

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Hahaha easy but gold medal for this sentence… true :joy:
Mozart would have read the manual like every one

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That, he would’ve. At five years of age, probably.

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I think the 3 biggest problems beginners have, they dont read the Manual from start to end…

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your probably right but its hard to understand the machine fully without having it in your hands. :slight_smile:

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if you dont have it, print it :grin:

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