My Journey:
Bought Octatrack a year ago, initially I watched Cuckoos Beginner Videos
Which gave me a great start. Later on I experimented alot with the different machines. It was more like an exploration which was fun and nerve wrecking at times. I still havr moments in my daily life where I just think up possible endaevours I want to try in the evening which keeps my brain occupied.
Mid year I found EZBOT which was very exiting. Of course I got his templates which are really fun if you connect other stuff. Recently I am destructing his effects and rebuilding them to my taste which IS a great way to learn. He also motivates people to do that If you want to understand what is behind the curtain. One thing which really helped was to constantly start from scratch. Templates can bei comfortable but if I use them to long I forget the steps which are needed to setup something.
I now use it If i want to do specific things and i still explore because all the possible ways you can use it.
If i not use it for a few days my curiosity is building and then I need to get back. So i would not sell it after frustration immidiatly.
Just dont ask me how much songs I created the past year…
Yeah, that’s a good way to learn! I never use templates. When I start a project I don’t want it to be too similar to my last one. I enjoy the process of music discovery – it’s not about efficiency for me… and TBH templates don’t really save that much time.
Using someone else’s template doesn’t really sound appealing to me. I also don’t use other people’s DAW project files. That’s not criticism of people who do, but it’s just not my thing
For me, templates are useful when you found a kind of workflow and you just want to always use the same tracks order, with their machines, routing, etc.
I made my own template with my favorite basic settings (machines, slots, lfos, fx, rec settings), time saver, comfort, but I usually start from scratch, which is good for memory indeed !
What are you trying to accomplish musically? Record ideas? Build tracks and arrangements on the machines and then mix in daw? Live jam only?
I personally write tracks and multitrack into the daw so a digitakt and digitone is a LOT already for me. I had the OT and sold it. Not because it’s not amazing but for my workflow it was not really getting used a lot and was just sitting on the shelf collecting dust. I could have still worked it on I am sure but recording 3 live boxes at once or using the ot for just a few tracks was not worth the $1k I could have back in my wallet.
Really helps to have a plan and idea going in with the ot. When I got it my workflow was clocking/sequencing and sampling hardware into it and making loops to export. It was fantastic for that.
Thank you! Given the open-endedness and what little we know about what the OP’s own tastes, there’s little advice one can give that applies.
At least saying “i do lo-fi instrumental hip-hop at coffee shops every week” would at least allow us to say “have you considered using 16 patterns to create 16 tracks and then muting and unmuting your 8 parts and mapping 4 functions to the cross-fader using Parts in order to create variations in a coffee shop gig? That is something the Digitakt cannot do!”
There’s a clear difference to asking questions that are meant to get an answer and questions that are just conversation starters for people who just want to talk. I feel like the Lounge is for the latter.
That’s a good one. I get a lot of use out of the arp. Sometimes I even set up multiple MIDI tracks with different lengths and scaling and send the arp with different timing to the same synth (even a monotimbral one) – really fun results
The OT makes for a fantastic effects box, you can chain 4 tracks (8 effects) per incoming signal so delays, reverbs, compressors, distortion, chorus whatever all chained and most importantly they can all be parameter locked in their respective tracks. And you can also draw custom LFOs for modulation as well. It’s a lot of fun and of course you can resample Using the OT simply for effects with parameter locking is a whole other side of the OT for me. I can’t fathom why Elektron hasn’t made a product based off of this functionality alone an 8 (or more) channel mixer with an equal amount of tracks with tons off effects that can be parameter locked and LFO controlled.
What part don’t you get? For each part you can have a different function for the crossfader. So you have sixteen “songs” with eight layers each. And you can unmute the parts to create variations. And then just jump to the next pattern/song and repeat the process. Then change parts when you want to change the function of the crossfader.
Not saying it’s a great idea but it’s the kind of direct answer to a direct question about things you can do with an OT.
Ok, now i understand what you meant although it seems quite hard for me to have different scenes and remember what they do. I use Parts to change machines/samples or ad a different song, not just to change FX.
Use a replacing pickup machine to feedback on itself, and applying effects/moving controls around while it does it for fun and profit. Just be sure to use a filter with the BASE set to cut off frequencies below 30Hz or whatever, otherwise the sub builds up and distorts. SRC3 set to the main output is fun because you can use the pickup track to constantly capture stuff on other tracks, and quickly erase or warp it however you like while performing.
