Using pre-configured bank

That´s the way @zite909 propose, use a bank for a particular purposes with 4 variations (i.e. Drum machine with a drumkit per part).

Don´t know if this approach will have much sense for me or not, ´cause I still didn´t reached that point, but it can be very very useful for sure.

Template per bank with 3 variations sounds like a good way to go…

For my uses I do have them pretty different in bank, say ones mostly PU’s with flex remixes, the next takes just my drum loop and loads it to lots of differently warped flex’s with scenes to mix them that I uses a breakdown/interlude. The next realtime pitch shifts my vocal mic and reintroduces some of the loops, stuff like that. I do keep those parts permanently assigned to the patterns…

You just don’t really want to go changing ones that are drastically different mid pattern or your usually met with strange results. Having variations and template per bank (might) avoid that, still have to be careful and plan accordingly if the sequencer is running. I do see though if really intricately programmed you could do the most next level stuff changing to a drastically different yet still related part mid pattern, using the arranger it can be done on any given step, if you meticulous study the parameter interactions and plan both parts accordingly…

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these ways of approaching parts are great. in my limited previous experience with the OT I never used parts for anything other than as kits. never quite understood the scope of. their uses. I get it now, thanks so much :slight_smile:

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I’ve been using them for a little while now, and it happens that I do something completely different in each part. I’ve not used the OT as a drum machine so far, it’s not very essential for what I do, I use a basic beat to start sketching , and I finalize the percussion part only when I have made up some interesting content and a story to tell. Parts are really powerful, I found out. It’s like having a multitude of Octatracks in the same box. It can be somewhat overwhelming so I perfectly understand why one would note down what was going on in this or that project and create a spreadsheet template for this! (I now save a recording of the current state on the CF card and load it in the static slot list so I can always take a listen to how it was supposed to sound)

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I just use them over and over and over and over… I’ve memorized what they do…
Still on the same project after 4 years, I just add to it… 64 parts and 256 patterns is alllloooottt for me, I am a looper though so they all sound different every time I feed them different audio, I don’t need as many patterns because I just change the loops they play, switch tempo, …sounds totally different. I still have a lot of empty parts and patterns left to fill…

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With the 16 scenes in a part you get a lot more mileage, I believe you can lock every parameter. They can be almost like another part just using the same machines, fx, and anything on the setup pages depending how you use them… I use those for variations instead of another part, but also use them for audio tricks…

Of course with other patterns and plocks loads can be done with the same part for variations as well… Ooop, I’m starting to write my OT book again, it’s just fun for me I guess… :smile:

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Did you notice in that example they actually are used as parts of a song that I play. :smiley:

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That’s why I bought the OT mainly :wink:

The description you make is the environment that slowly I try to mount and memorize to be able to quickly access them live, with the tools and tricks that you may want to use prepared in banks, scenes with fast resources as glitchs, transitions …, with arrangements of bmp changes or concatenations of various patterns for mutant environments, …
Until recently I was working on a new project every time, now that I’m beginning to understand the machine I’m always in the same project and I’m looking for a way to add everything that I learn to have it accessible, so that I always have it on hand live, while I can be playing other instruments and then return with the OT, like an orchestra that you can be directing on the fly.
All these ideas that all of you give on your way of using the OT are most enriching for me at a creative level.
To start to memorize and as index, the Grumo’s sheets seems useful for me too.

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Yeah…
I do improv jams and play instruments as sound sources along with AR patterns, OT patterns are pretty much made out of the buffers… The one project is like a big bag of tricks and I just jump to whatever I’m feeling in the moment, never have to use any of them or in any particular order. They rearrange the audio I just recorded in various ways. I don’t use arranger/song mode and mix and match all the combinations of OT/AR patterns, and several AR patterns can be running at the same time, live and sampled versions, and of course buffer start point slice remixes and warped to the beyond. Loads of awesome ways to go, but that’s what suits me for loop based improv tactics… No right way to use an OT, just your way, their way, and tons of other ways… Haha… I love this box… :smile:

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First of all excuse me if I don´t explain correctly:

If a bank/part is set to be used as as a mixer it may have an unwanted limitation:

If every bank/part has to be configured with master T8 and T7 playing R8 to do the transition trick and move audio between banks, the "mixer bank/part" could never have 2 decks withs 4 stems each.

I didn´t tried it but i´d like to use the OT this way. How can it be done?

Let´s say we have a bank/part for:

  • sound design

  • drum machine

  • MIDI sequencing

  • single cycle monosynth

  • glitch machine

  • live looping (PUMs, Flexs…)

  • remixing

  • stem creation (please help me with this, how would you translate things to 4 stems –drums, bass, synth/lead/voice, fx–?)

  • long samples mixing (from 2 to 7 full songs, static machines…)

  • stem mixing (2 decks withs 4 stems each)

How could be the workflow to use the Octa in every step (from synthesis and sound design to performance) and produce stems ready to be picked up by the “stem mixing” bank/part?

In this “stem mixing” bank/part should the master T8 be there? Of course to have master FX it´s useful, but strictly to play the stems is here the transition trick needed?

yea i get that reading it now. so many options :slight_smile:

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You could save a track (T7) by using a Flex on the T8, as long as you do not have to use the CUEs for effects (I do not use CUE for effects). In this way, you can record in R8 + T8 Flex and use it as Master Track assigning tracks in CUE and SRC3 = CUE in R8 (without configuring it as Master Track in the Project), being able to use the effects of the Flex in T8 as well.

You can also continue using the CUE for effects or whatever you want, and use the SRC3 = Main in R8.

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I wouldn’t presume anything ever “has” to be done, that actually limits you from seeing all the other options. I never use the transition trick and make transitions all the time. I record the elements of my jams like drums, bass, guitar, vocals, synth melodies, into separate buffers. Those buffers are available to the entire project and I just bring any one or multiple ones in when I want to…

Sorry if my responses might make the situation seem more confusing as I answer a question with “well, you don’t have to do that and there’s a bunch of other ways to go”. But that’s how the OT is… If I were you I’d focus on setting some of those ideas up one at a time and working with them, figure out how to move between them later and make modifications if needed. The more time you spend with OT the more these things will become apparent.

You already have some nice ideas there of how you want your OT to work, I’d start by picking one and working with it until you’ve nailed it. One step at a time, each step you learn things along the way that makes the next step easier.

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Master track option is global so you kinda want to decide if it’s something you want to use for every single part/pattern or not… Would you prefer to have all your tracks and mixer direct signals to get shared fx, or would you rather have 8 tracks all the time…

With it turned off you can still emulate one as @Soham described or a variation of it… Your direct signals won’t get fx but there’s also other ways to get fx on your input signals…

I have to try different ways to do transitions, for now I´m thinking about the OPs approach, so maybe for me it will result in other completely different one.

Maybe I should try to emulate the Master T8, ´cause I´d like to have there a master compressor and DJ EQ, but at the same time have T8 available in some banks.

Take a look to my new template version, now with more dimensions!

Octatrack Bank Toolkit.pdf (852.3 KB)

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For now I don´t use CUEs for effects, it´s something I maybe try using Ableton as an effect module. For now I´m using CUEs to resample them, and maybe to have 4 outputs.

Maybe I´ll use the Stem Creation bank for that purpose, to bounce the four stems to Ableton, or maybe to bounce unmixed elements to Ableton and mix and “master” them before importing to the CF as stems or as full songs.

Thinking about it the master track emulation is good for transition trick and then applying fx to that, but since it’s a Src3 recoding it plays back after the recording is made unless you microtime the play trig one notch forward to get towards a realtime scenario, but then you get phasing…

Yes, phasing or maybe reproduce once the recording is done…

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OK, I just read OP again to see what you are trying to accomplish… I’ve been known to go off topic or meander into other scenarios… Haha… :slight_smile:

No problem, I like offtopics :stuck_out_tongue: .

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