After getting to know the DN for a bit, I am exploring moving focus from DAW and modular to maybe a 2-unit Elektron setup to cover most things. I have been struggling with the best combo and wanted to get any feedback re: whether you feel any two have a certain symbiosis. I like to work with synth heavy off-kilter beat oriented stuff interspersed w/ “generative” ambient - using a lot of randomization and conditional trigs. etc.
Being more into synthesis than sampling, the AR mkII seems like a good partner for DN and would also cover off on some sampling as needed - the playable pads are also appealing. Then I wonder if the A4 would be a better match for the AR than the DN, as I expect that it offers a wider/warmer general palette, now that drums would be handled by AR. As it stands, I only use one midi track from DN to modular, which could be replaced by cv from A4. Then there’s OT - which I could pair with DN and sample whatever modular I have left, after looting my rack to buy it - but it seems like a lot of immediacy is lost in its depths until one dedicates many hours to become proficient… Any thoughts appreciated!
I disagree to a certain extent. I think as long as you have some familiarity with elektron gear and you have a specific use case in mind, you could focus on that use case and probably learn what you need relatively quickly. There are some quirks to working with the OT that need to be learned, but more just workflow optimizations. It’s a fun machine. If you’re going to feed it Digitone and modular, you’ll have plenty of stuff to work with.
Also, if you’re going to loot the modular to pay for OT, you’d have to loot it more to pay for a Rytm!
if you really just want to do synthesis. then the A4.
it can do nice drums. and more flex-able synthesis wise then the AR. i like the AR more then the a4 personally. but i’m happy to use my computer.
honestly it just sorta sounds like maybe your over thinking everything. imo
I don’t really see how this is different from any other instrument or bit of software.
You do need to get familiar, there’s no doubt about that, but even if you just load drum samples onto it and learn how to assign samples to a flex/static machine, you’re cooking pretty quick.
To be honest with you–though I’m still learning the machine (a lifelong process)–after the first week or two of heavy duty experimenting, manual/forum reading and video watching, I had a pretty solid grasp. Then it just comes down to needing muscle memory. I’d say it took upwards of ten hours of “work” to get comfortable sampling things into it and understanding that process, another couple to get MIDI signals wired properly…
Thanks for the thoughts, all! Without ever having touched any of these, the AR looks like a ton of fun and more in line with what I usually enjoy doing than the sample based OT - but I can’t ignore the general fanaticism around the OT by those who have put in the time - it seems like the box to beat.
I have to go with OT as well. Any sound is possible with a DN and an OT.
However a DT/DN combo would be like a Swiss army knife setup. Quick, convenient and able to tackle most common issues. The OT is capable of so much more, but at the expense of the tactile approach the DT takes(also, you lose: lfo on sample slot, random(), importing an entire folder at once)
If you want to be able to immediately jump into music making the DT > OT
DN can do warm sounds, try to find them
Now with what you say :
you prefer synthesis,
you don’t use samples that much,
you could use some CV outs (and extra envelopes + LFOs)
I believe the obvious choice is A4
I recommend mk2 over mk1, for some reason I clicked immediately with the former while always struggled with the latter. But that might be due to my personal journey into synthesis territories…
The palette of sounds is so wide, you’ll have fun for years discovering the depths of it!
I digress… any combination of boxes will do the trick. The key is to just make music and not obsess about what you are missing. I am constantly thinking about setup permutations and it leads to procrastination of the highest order… just make music with what you have.
Somebody smarter than me recently said ‘Knowledge is more important than equipment ’
… and gain slices (LFO or even CC on slice number). IMHO slices are much more convenient and doesn’t waste sample slots (problematic in larger projects).
Im have OT and DN. One thing i found that I can run out of voices really fast on DN but with Octatrack i can record loops on the fly and free up DN for new sounds. Also love how sampled DN sounds with slightly decreased playback rate - OT gives you much more than just looping. Haven’t played around with AR but strongly suggest OT.
