I am seeking input/tips from folks that are using the sampling/pickup machine capabilites of the OT live.
I don’t play out and probably won’t, but I do often record things ‘live in the studio’. I am comfortable with using the OT’s various recording/playback methods either manually or via trigs.
However, in the comfort of the studio setting, I tend to set my projects up in studio mode and use all 4 outputs back into my mixer for track separation and further processing. Also, I have the luxury of hearing the results of a flex recorder or pickup machine before deciding if it’s a good take or if I want to try something else. So it’s more like a science experiment – set up a bunch of audio running into the OT, grab some samples with the recorders, further manipulate that stuff, then maybe dump that mix into a pickup machine or something.
What I don’t have a good handle on is essentially previewing what’s about to be recorded and then checking what I captured before I bring it up in the mix.
So - for those of you that use sampling as part of your live setup, how do you have your projects configured to handle monitoring and previewing? I assume at a minimum I’m going to have to put the Cue outs back into Cue mode. Any other suggestions?
To be honest… I do not preview anything i sample realtime.
Its either a live-triggered but quantized sample:
as in I press the right button combo and i get 4 bars starting from next first beat.
this will more then likely just sample the main output… so i hear what i grab anyways
The icon’s on your octatrack screen will show when its recording… though is very tiny on screen…
Or its programmed triggers, that i program in such a way… they always make sense:
like using recording triggers on track 2 and 3 … on track2 record the down beats
on track3 record the upbeats… and use some flextrack to play back those samples
right after they been recorded, but before they are retriggered to record again.
I make weird cuts and breaks with that…
I use the manually recorded loop for transition-like things. and like mentioned, the triggered version more for breaks and weirdness… and use the fader and scenes to switch between realtime samples and preprogrammed things…
and hooray… I even made a video explaining these 2 things… and how i do it. kinda…
so i hope thats helpfull for ya…
well 1 nugget of wisdome that always gets me… the main volume level of the octatrack… you can change it… but your realtime sampling will stick out like a sore thumb because of level jumps… u can counteract that by changing level of the realtime sampled track…
but in the end that just frustrates me, and starts to mess up whatever i am planning…
so i say: be lazy like me… and just keep the volume of the octatrack on the standard setting… and just level out your tracks a bit less loud…
anyways… the shamefull selfpromotion / kinda educational video, enjoy:
I would keep it simple. Why do you need a preview? Just keep the filter closed when you’re trying something out, open it a bit, and if it doesn’t sound good close it again. While you’re busy with previewing the main mix sounds boring anyways. Practice more to make previewing obsolete and have fun
The most effective and fun method I found for sampling is to set up a flex recorder that is always sampling track 8 (master track) and assigning this flex machine to the crossfader! Basically, a modification of Tarekith’s transition trick setup, with a usual trig instead of an one-shot trick and not necessarily used for transitions. In this case, the OT is eating audio all the time! I think that’s the most fun part of the OT. I like how the OT soaks in whatever you’re doing, even the crossfader movements while you’re listening to the recorded audio are part of the recorded audio in the next loop.
For more specific sampling duties, I just set up flex machines and set QREC and QPL to 4/16, quick sampling on. Then you can just press one of the recording buttons to quickly capture audio.
Pickup machines are fun as well. Just connect a synth to the OT’s inputs and have some looping fun. You can still set up Flex machines on other tracks or parts to further mangle the audio stored in the pickup machine.
I guess the reason for preview is that most of the time, I’m sampling (via flex machine) into a track that had modifications to RTRG, RLEN, Pitch, Timestretch, Start, and LEN. (not to mention LFO assignments and AMP page changes)
I rarely use any OT track as a straight sample unless it’s the first stage of pulling data in for further chopping and resampling with other tracks or another OT. I’ll often get some arrangement of pitch and timestretch that I like and then sample different parts or different sources into that combination. Same with RTRG, RLEN, and Loop = PIPO. I also tend to use all 8 tracks and not have a Master track since I generally don’t use the OT effects, or if I do, it’s yet another thing tied to a track.
So sometimes what comes out of that Flex machine initially isn’t very pretty or harmonious with the other things going on at the time, but sometimes it is.
if you are altering parameters without using scenes perhaps you could reload your part when replaying the newly sampled audio. that way previous changes wouldn’t affect newly sampled material.
just a thought.
i’m going through a similar process at the moment and trying to establish best workflows. it’s tricky! so much is possible!
Hi Mate,
Sorry for the noob question but how do you have a recorded sample played back with its parameters already changed?
Ive only just got my head around the basics of the OT and its this type of sample mangling that i think is where the real power of the OT is just around the corner for me!
Thanks
B
Hi Mate,
Sorry for the noob question but how do you have a recorded sample played back with its parameters already changed?
Ive only just got my head around the basics of the OT and its this type of sample mangling that i think is where the real power of the OT is just around the corner for me!
Thanks
B[/quote]
Pick a track that you haven’t done anything with yet. Make it a Flex machine. Then doubleclick Playback, set LOOP to PIPO, set LEN to ON, set Rate to Timestretch, then exit back out. Spin Pitch to -6, Rate to +32, and LEN to 80.
Now sample into that track (use a one shot sample, set record length to 16, 32, whatever you want, loop to off in the REC 1 menu) and play it back. You won’t be hearing the same thing as the source.
The basic idea is that you can set up tracks however you want and then whatever is sampled is immediately affected by your changes.
Hi Mate,
Sorry for the noob question but how do you have a recorded sample played back with its parameters already changed?
Ive only just got my head around the basics of the OT and its this type of sample mangling that i think is where the real power of the OT is just around the corner for me!
Thanks
B[/quote]
Pick a track that you haven’t done anything with yet. Make it a Flex machine. Then doubleclick Playback, set LOOP to PIPO, set LEN to ON, set Rate to Timestretch, then exit back out. Spin Pitch to -6, Rate to +32, and LEN to 80.
Now sample into that track (use a one shot sample, set record length to 16, 32, whatever you want, loop to off in the REC 1 menu) and play it back. You won’t be hearing the same thing as the source.
The basic idea is that you can set up tracks however you want and then whatever is sampled is immediately affected by your changes.
[/quote]
That is AWESOME!!!
Thanks fopr the info mate
