5 Best Octatrack Features for Writing Songs & Making Beats
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- Опубліковано 19 чер 2024
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The Elektron Octatrack certainly is a box of wonders with virtually unlimited features and approaches to songwriting, beat-making, and having fun in general. Here, I talk about my top 5 favorite things so far, after just about a month of playing around with it.
0:00 Intro
0:33 DistroKid Ad
1:45 The Song
4:58 Feature 1
7:50 Feature 2
9:48 Feature 3
12:50 Feature 4
16:06 Feature 5
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Loved the track. I’ve been dealing with some pretty bad bouts of anxiety over the past week, waiting to see my doc today. So I clicked on this vid because gear vids clear my head and I have to say your musical piece calmed me a bit. Great work
Sorry to hear you’re going through it right now, that’s never fun. Mental health is no joke, and I’m glad music is able to help you find respite! I find it does the same for me. Be well!
Small but useful "trick" is using the MIX button to hop in and out of track mutes if you want to keep your trigs dedicated to another function, such as freeze delay, during a performance.
Oh awesome, thanks for that sharing that!
I have the Digitakt, which I love, and generally I don't need stereo tracks, but when I do I just use Audacity to split a stereo file into two mono ones. I then transfer them to my Digitakt, put the two mono samples on two different tracks then trigger them at the same time. Works really well!
That sounds like an excellent solution!
I do that with percussive sounds like hihats. For such sounds, you don't even need to split the file, you can use two identical mono samples on different tracks, hard pan them to L and R and then change the micro timing of one track (or both) to get a stereo effect. It's the same principle as applying a chorus effect.
I don't think I've seen other videos clarify how muting is different on the Octatrack vs the Digis. Having spent the tedious time to "spread" a sample across 16 trigs so I could basically mute/unmute whenever I want I'm now really wanting an Octatrack lol. Great video!
Thanks Bryan, I appreciate it!! Glad you found it useful
Daniel, your channel is the most useful YT channel for this type of music making. You saved me some serious time opposite to zillion of other channels that just wish to sell you something. Pls. continue, many thanks.
Thanks so much, that means a lot!! I certainly plan to keep on making vids :)
Great work as usual, thanks
For another great example of the percussive synth in #2, Barker‘s album „Utility“ seems to use it a lot (and he’s a heavy octatrack user)
I’ll give it a listen!
Crossfader use around 3:45, so cool. And thanks for demo-ing the Octa in something other than synthi ambient or techno!
Thank you!! The octa can do anything you put it to!
So incredibly beautiful!!!
😎💕
the Octatrack is really out there and Im taking an extreeeemely long and unhurried approach to "making it my own". The distinction between audio mutes and midi mutes was just up for me the yesterday and this video helped it sink in.
Awesome! I agree, letting it all absorb slowly is the best method with this one.
My first time with you and I got to see you peel it off. Thanks man. LOL
Hahahh just the kind of comment I was hoping for
This was really inspirational! Love the song as well! ❤
Glad you enjoyed it!
Conversation with partner... Me: "I want to buy this mega expensive Swedish box", Partner: "What does it do", Me: "Kinda the same thing as the other mega expensive Swedish boxes I already have, just slightly different ", Partner: "Are you out of your freaking mind!" 😉
Hahah, I suppose it depends on what you’re using it for, but the OT can indeed be Big Digitakt
You’ve really put in the hours! I’m actually learning a lot about the OT, thank you for this video!
Also, one thing for differing track “scales”/lengths, you have to press func+bank when you’re not in the sequencer and you can enable per track scale like the DT and DN. Took me way too long to figure out.
Great tip, thank you kindly! Ever since I packed it I’ve been dying to play with it more :( at least I’ll have a list of things to try out once I’ve got everything set up again.
You should do a video and talk about the sound quality of the Octa. A lot of people seem to be concerned with it.
It’s fine. Just make sure to use 24 bit mode. It’s sound is part of the charm.
that was a beautiful performance!!
Thank you!
Looks like you're really getting to grips with scenes and freeze delay mate 👌 This really suits your music style, those slow haste dragging/pulsing drum vibes, great track and great video my friend, hope your doing well with the move etc 🙏🖤
Thank you so much!! We really are getting along quite well 😎
Great track but maybe a little hot outta the ocyatrak it made my speakers screech
Yeah from the opening breakdown of the video to the end it was a valuable tutorial
Thank you, glad you found it useful!
That was great! Thank you. Now I need one. ....and there are two on craigslist in my city. Happy dayzzz
Glad you enjoyed! Go for it!!!
FYI in quick mutes with func you can add or remove mutes with multiple tracks
Really cool song!
Thank ya!
this is great. thank *YOU* for the lessons. i learned alot. and YES, love the happy accidents. sometimes, i don't even know what's going on...the OT has a life on its own sometimes. haha. 😁
Hahah yep, it really does! Glad you enjoyed 😎
Nice!
Thanks!
Great video Dan, thanks. I think I need to watch some basic tutorials on this box, I'm still mastering the DN and DT so adding this will just add to the confusion for me :). I love the way it can also do external midi, I'd imagine it would be great to use it arp on external midi gear like a Typhon Dreadbox, or a 303 clone. Shame it's so expensive.
Thanks Andy! Definitely planning to do a sort of beginner tutorial on this. I have a feeling it will be pretty dry, but very useful!
They are a bit pricey considering how long it’s been out/some of the competition, but they show up for a pretty good deal every now and then (esp on Reverb)! I’m not sure what availability is like in the UK though
is there any person in 2022 who doesn't know Jai Paul!? Shame you don't know!! ;-D He's a genius! Plus the album is from 2013.🤯
Oh my goodness I always always come back to the leak. I keep a burned cd of the og in my car at all times.
The most difficult part about the OT is to resist using the freeze delay
Lol yep, I got a bit carried away here hahah
Great tips, I actually have an DT but the OT is in my mind from a while now, but I fill it can’t replace it…
They definitely both have their perks! I want to do a full on “vs.” video once I’ve spent more time with the OT
@@SlowHaste great hope you’ll do it soon, I hesitated to go in elektron workflow and I bought a deluge that I love, cause you got almost same sequencing possibilities it’s a mobile DAW in the box but less Fx than Ot less immediate sample mangling etc…, but now I have a DT, that I really love cause extremely powerful and clearly addictive and the Ot still look like an holy grale, thanks for sharing!
Best part about the OT is resampling your tracks, slicing them in real time and laying down the slices, and then letting it arrange the trigs randomly. Just magic
I definitely need to mess around with live resampling more! That’s one of the things that drew me to it in the first place
@@SlowHaste not only resampling though. You can practically do the same with say your guitar loop and let the OT rearrange the slices randomly on 16 or 32 steps. With that and removing trigs randomly, you can get instant melody or pattern generation
I m¹
That kick though! Maybe a vid on your layering, filtering, and reverb used to make that ELITE kick drum!?
Thanks!! I’ll add it to the idea list :)
@@SlowHaste Anytime! Have the A4 and Rytm and even with the new digitakt im looking at the OT MK2!
The guitar sounds so good. What was your recording setup for that? Into DAW and then load the samples into Octatrack??
Thanks! I actually just recording straight into the OT buffers from my pedalboard (I have an amp sim pedal at the end of my chain, the Neunaber Iconoclast).
Great video!! I’ve just been dusting off my Octa again after nearly giving up on it, and this gave me so many ideas of new things to try.
Awesome, that’s great to hear! Thanks for watching
Amazing video. What tool would you suggest for creating long ambient dreamy songs, the Octatrack mk2 or Syntakt?
Thanks!! Honestly, it could be done with either! Check out jogginghouse for some great ambient Syntakt stuff. Since the Octatrack is a sampler, it’s really more a matter of what sort of samples you’re using, and how you sequence them :)
A consumer of taste, I see
I don’t think anyone needs help finding a reason to get the octatrack. I think it’s just the money lol. I definitely plan on it
Hahah, fair point indeed!
Im considering buying Octatrack but im afraid that lack of Overbridge will be too hard to overcome in order to polish tracks. BTW nice jam, probably the best ive seen so far on Octa. Cheers!
Wow, thanks a ton!!
I am hoping to get Octatrack one day but it is not an easy one to learn I think…. Would it help to get the Digitakt first, learn it properly and then?
Knowing the digitakt first definitely helped me, but that’s not to say it’s necessary!
I really want an Octatrack, but I've been seeing some pretty cryptic comments over the past few months.. possibly an MK3 incoming? Last thing I want to do is pull the trigger on one and then see a new version announced. It's all speculation, though. I should just get a used one on Reverb. 😅
I haven’t heard anything in regards to an mk3 but it’s certainly fun to think about! Buying used is always a good idea, and it’s always easy enough to pass it along if the mk3 day ever does come
Yikes. What a track!!!
Thank you!!
Can you do sidechaining on OT ?
You can assign an LFO to the amp volume of individual tracks, and rhythmically pump the volume to get that effect - I do it all the time! But there is no true “sidechain” option
maan, why they do not du simple sidechain@@SlowHaste
wait for the mk3. this is already old
Good for you. Wait then
Mk3 is something we'll never get, let's be realistic. Elektron didn't even give OT access to overbridge, all we got is a black makeover.
You can wait for Syntakt, but it won't replace OT.
and only 1 stupid reason not to get it. Can't afford it...
Hah I totally feel that - there are plenty of used options out there though if that helps! Lots of people also let the mki go for much less, too
Im discombobulated by digguhtakt
This is worse than pronouncing .gif as Jiff.
Thanks for watching!
If you want to learn about new and inspiring workflows, I recommend EZBOT's channel.
Especially if you are new to the OT.
He is a wealth of knowledge
I’ve caught a vid or two of his but haven’t done a true UA-cam rabbit hole dive on his channel - I’ll have to get on that!