Workflow questions

MisterX · 2015-03-16T22:16:52.000Z

Hello there!

Great comunity and forum, i must say, im just overwhelmed to say the least.

I read the OT manual about 3 times, at least the parts that were better written - it’s not the most read-craving thing in the world - that manual. I saw so many videos, im not sure which i haven’t seen… But i wish i could get the fluidity of Dataline in his videos… He seems to play something (insert any synth here), add it to the OT and keep going… Im dreaming about this…

I gave my shot at the “not so simple sampling device” contest the learning hard way and learned pretty much all the options available… Not that i know them all - so many combinations available…

BUT the OT was supposed to fix the issue where i could add and remove layers of jamming and put it all in synch and now i know how the OT works, im having a really hard time to record and mix my stuff. I know it’s not flstudio kind of canvas. I know it’s supposed to be easier but i can’t get it there…

So i got my tracks down in the CF card (cause i can’t stop jamming for just 4 bars) but i cannot get that kind of slicing i hear on the videos, let alone that rhytmic “base”…

So the big question is:

how do you record in real time? Then play with that sound (like dataline in the “octatrack - what it can do” video and add more tracks (like another track) on top? I have a kaossilator and i hate it coz you can’t undo-mute a track you added to a track)… it just gets messy… The OT seems like a lot more work than a DAW to do that…
i know about loop pedals - never tried one since i can’t get a beats right when playing live - how can you get that going with the OT even if it’s just playsynth+record until you get that track right - but then play all in synch when done? I can sample on the OT, that’s not the problem but i think im missing something essential and can’t put my finger on it…

Thanks for any inputs… I hope this is not another repeat question, sorry for the complexity of my post…

JuanSOLO · 2015-03-16T22:57:43.000Z

These 2 videos helped me understand recording/sampling on the OT.
For whatever it’s worth Dataline has probably put in countless hours of OT work. I imagine his muscle memory and workflow is second nature at this point. So if you wanna do that, you probably need to put in countless hours.

michalronin · 2015-03-17T15:11:48.000Z

About reading the manual - I’ve read it once and currently I’m in the process of reading through it 2nd time, all the while clicking through the described combinations and trying my first jams.

After first round with the manual however, I stumbled upon this article on the “old” Elektron forums:

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

It really compliments the manual in many ways and it was a head opener for me. Many useful workflow tips there as well. A definite must-read for a fresh OT owner (like myself). You should probably give it a go, if you haven’t yet.

MisterX · 2015-03-18T07:09:50.000Z

thanks - i reread the pick up and thru machines parts in the manual again yesterday but still couldn’t find the right part about it.

I’ll re-read Merlin’s manual - thanks for the clue!