Dirtywave M8 Tracker Beginner Tips and Tricks

[@RedMeansRecording]

Rituals is now out on Bandcamp, with the M8 bundles: soundvision.bandcamp.com/album/rituals Streaming will be out Friday, the 18th.

[@NyleGames]

The same say as Bogdan's new album, what an absolute treat! :D

[@manasbass]

Really enjoying listening to Rituals, beautiful music 🦋

[@mikey303]

Great video to help folks getting started digging deeper into the M8. The remote display over USB function is perfect for demos and tutorials like this! For anyone who may be concerned about screen size: if you can read this YT comment on your phone, you will have no problems reading the M8 screen. Cheers :^)

[@TWDindustries]

Note on Table Arpeggiation: if you want to repitch the arpeggio without restarting the table, put the new note in the Phrase, but remove the entry for the instrument next to it.

[@G8tr1522]

that's a game changer, thanks

[@dwdougherty]

Thank you, Jeremy. I'm absolutely gobsmacked that you would include your project files in the album content. This is such a huge boon for the M8 community. The album is awesome!

[@JoshIsMakingMusic]

Put in a preorder as I'm watching this video. LSDJ got me into making electronic music, this seems like the perfect evolution of it.

[@savnac]

i feel like this is the only device i'll ever need to just have fun with sounds, without being serious about making music. even if its far easily capable of making music as you've shown us with two albums already, i just feel like this thing is fun just to program sounds and effects and have fun with no expectations. i ordered one, and hope to fall in love with it.

[@builderchad1]

This has been the most helpful M8 video for me so far. Your sections on tables opened my eyes to them properly for the first time. I would love to see a deeper dive on tables from you. Thank you!

[@edwardmclean9051]

I can't explain in words how excited I am about this album. 0:30 "I'll be releasing an M8 album on 3/18." That's 2 days from now!!!! 4:59 "Oh and BTW, you'll be able to download the entire album as a bundle." WHAT?!?!?! Thanks so much for this! Got the headless after your first vid. Got the preorder after messing around a bit and enjoying the workflow. Wrote a song, and now I'm craving info on song building and design to develop ideas into a final, polished song. This will be a massive help. Love you, love your music, love this. And kudos to Trash80. Truly inspiring work. Taking an idea like this and developing the hardware & software to market is a monumental task for a single person to undertake. I hope this platform takes off and scales without too much (additional) stress. You deserve all the success. Ok, now I need to finish watching the rest of this. Much love, Ed / TheEJM3

[@ChumpyDumps]

Really dope you’re highlighting this little guy. Trash80 needs all the love he can get for making this beast of a device. It’s become my favorite portable device. Yeah, it’s very programmy versus “playing” but honestly that works so much better for portable situations in like a vehicle. Can’t tell you how many times I missed timing on my OP-1 cuz a car hit a bump or a plane hit turbulence.

[@medenine4828]

Great points!

[@sebastien5597]

Hi, your videos are so usefull no matter how old they are. So much straight to the point than the RTFM :) Thank for all what you're doing for us !

[@alecsbuga]

I've watched 2/3 of it and it's great, but I want to mention something so I don't forget: 1) Instead of duplicating a kick pattern, you can put a CHAnce or NTH operator on that last kick and trigger it like on the 4th repetition of the pattern, or 25% of the time. You know... Elektron style :D 2) "Tables are complicated". I thought that too, but think of it as a step lfo where you can automate pretty much anything. It's a really dope sequencer once you get the hang of it, and BOY it sounds amazing.

[@RedMeansRecording]

smart

[@alecsbuga]

@@RedMeansRecording Thanks. Also Sidechaining with tables is a dope technique.

[@simondoes]

@@alecsbuga oooo got a video for that? that sounds p o w e r f u l

[@alecsbuga]

@@simondoes Well it's in THIS video. Check the sections.

[@simondoes]

@@alecsbuga thanks m8, should've watched it first. it's in my "watch later" list so far. damn office job. have a good one!

[@donaldpriola1807]

Mine will come this summer, and I want to thank you for this. It will make my experience much easier.

[@RedMeansRecording]

Have fun!!

[@_adrienmccarthy7473]

Thanks for taking the time to make this video. I had a generally good handling of the M8 but this gave me a ton of new paths/workflow tips I would have never thought of. Really appreciate all of your stuff.

[@louhimself]

I recently watched a 40 minute long video on tables recently and learned almost nothing. This video made the whole thing make sense in a matter of minutes! Thank you!

[@SnackMorris]

I need to proof read more. There's too many "recentlys" in there. Lol.

[@jimmac]

Such a machinegun of tips! I've had the magic box for months and I've still learned a lot. Thanks, Jeremy. I'd love to see more M8 videos in the future, pwueeese!

[@Grimbakor]

I've listened through the whole album and can't believe it all came from that little device, very impressed and what a pleasant album!

[@johnhopkins6731]

This device is astounding. Excellent tips!

[@kurtafterall]

These videos get me so hyped up about this little fella. Thanks to your series I placed an order 😎

[@nickcasares]

Thanks for this tutorial. I just picked up a M8 and these tips really helped me get my head around the workflow. Loved the recap at the end of the video!

[@darksiderahb]

Thank you for this video. Your album is great. And as someone who has never used a tracker and owns a m8...this is a huge help!

[@grimbakormusic]

Just got my headless M8 setup today, thank you for this video I definitely saved myself multiple hours of troubleshooting!

[@eNikoltsios]

I love your videos where you run through tricks like this! I watched all the videos with the op-z & op-1 too multiple times! Great job

[@bclikesyou]

Wonderful job on this video, Jeremy. A significant contribution to the community!

[@els1f]

Trackers confuse the shit out of me, but they're obviously hugely powerful! I keep coming back to this little guy because of the power in such a tiny and unique package. I'm 99.9repeating% certain that this, like all trackers, isn't for me. I love that the people who love them are getting these into their hands though! 🙌❤️

[@sailortomb9307]

Dude I have been gooving so hard on your track Deep Throat while I wait for my M8 preorder and it is blowing my mind watching how you work and what you can make on this. Great video, really clear instructions and super helpful!

[@mrclaytron]

Nice video! I love this device. It's really inspiring! I never thought of the side-chain via tables trick... I'll be using that for sure! Hope you continue to do more M8 videos in future.

[@felixvega5502]

10/10 on the table tips section of the video. nice. super inspired

[@synthesauriov3195]

Great video Jeremy! Lots of useful tricks here. I’ve also learnt a lot from the meetups posted in the dirtywave KZbin channel and the discord channel they have, the community for this device is awesome!

[@mad_bad_cat]

I went ahead and preordered one knowing I'll wait sooo long for it but it's worth it if only to support the amazing person who made this thing. Such a product of love! Thanks for all the videos about this one!

[@jamieleesounds]

Your channel and music are so inspiring, thanks a lot for another great content!

[@scerifforosso]

thanks for the great tips and tricks! I appreciate the effort you put into every single one of your videos!

[@Jegkedermigmega]

Patiently waiting for my M8 (delivery has been slightly delayed, sigh) and this video just hits the spot. As always thanks a lot. Always lovely to sit back with you and watch over your shoulder as you go through the paces :) I wish you a wonderful summer, friendo.

[@pabloyaya2773]

I just ordered one today and didn’t see anything about delays. Do you know what happened with yours? I’m just impatient and hope I don’t have to wait months haha

[@Jegkedermigmega]

@@pabloyaya2773Congrats :) No this was 3 months ago, since this batch - the one you ordered - is the last batch he'll make this year, I don't think there will be any delays at all.

[@mb2776]

@@pabloyaya2773 afaik, shipping right now is every monday/thursday. I'm waiting too!

[@cinnabrad]

Watching this again waiting for my m8 02, and I can't wait. Seems there have been a lot of updates since, but great baseline. Thanks❤

[@meachyofficial]

WANT. Mr. Blake you always inspire me!

[@bashaenraets9156]

I can't wait for my M8 to come in... As usual, thank you for helping us all get the best from our synths! Love from Rotterdam...

[@ZetaCarinae]

Waiting on a preorder of this, your tips look super helpful. That repeat function is awesome. You are an excellent teacher, thanks!

[@freezerman5871]

Great tips. Thanks a lot. Enjoying the M8 even more now. The Repeat command is ill, and the deep clone ...I was completely unaware of it: super useful.

[@teyoru]

4:29 this I think clarified a lot for me. I use renoise and I’ve been writing my notes directly into patterns (roughly equivalent to phrases-as-chains). that isn’t very efficient, nor is it conducive to exploring variations over 4 (or 8 or 3 or N)-bar phrases. I should experiment with that when I get home. ngl I would love to hear more about using a tracker from a flexibility and inspiring-creativity point of view, they’re clearly powerful but easy to underutilize

[@EZBOT_]

This is excellent! Thanks Jeremy

[@IamMonvi]

You've sold me on buying one of these units. It would be a wonderful counterpoint to my current DAW based writing process. I wanna make generative music with it

[@AdrianoMuniz]

The melody used w/ portamento remember me "save a prayer" of duran duran. This machine its insane!

[@F_letc.h]

Awesome video. Super helpful. Thanks!

[@Jkeane1337]

Super helpful got a lot of great info, please continue doing these.

[@ToyKeeper]

If I ever get into trackers again, I'll definitely have to try this one. It's easily the best one I've seen in ages. The album is really impressive too.

[@calderwood9641]

M8 for President.

[@eboblin]

Great video! Would be glad to see next episode someday (;

[@MikeFilemaker]

Your videos are making dankremental progress!

[@OIP_1]

great stuff. the deep clone is so crazy fast for making variations, i love it for drum programming. picked up several new tricks from this thanks! also will freely admit elden ring has been eating heavily into M8 time lately

[@SCARTRACKS]

Maaaaaan, I've been really keeping an eye to this one; seen several vids from other people making absolute jams with it, and I've been wanting something to make music on the go with. I think I'll get this one at some point! It seems an all around interesting music-making tool!

[@jonathanwadas4928]

Just pre ordered mine! September can't come soon enough

[@7177YT]

Very helpful! Thank you!

[@Djpuzzle]

Cool! Is there a randomize for those effects slots? Might be cool to get a bunch of random parameters and effects types in that slot per event.

[@RedMeansRecording]

Yes

[@Jamslerr]

This is a great video! The M8 is the only device I haven’t packed up to sell in the near future after changing hobbies. It can be silly or professional, and everything in between. Everyone should own one. Lol.

[@tacticalgrooveorbit2379]

thanks a lot it really help. if you are in a chain and you want to work on the 3rd phrase is it possible to make the sequencer loop only on this phrase whears always reading the full phrase? (i don't know if i'm clear sorry.)

[@lwalto]

Fantastic rundown

[@itsmorphinetime]

"Does that make sense?" is actually something I'm curious about as well. As someone who had an M8 since last October, everything you're showing obviously makes sense to me as many of it is second nature, but I'm curious if I was watching this without having knowledge of how the M8 or even trackers work, if this would look super confusing to me. I only say this because the M8 introduced me to trackers and prior to making music with them, looking at how music is made on them was the equivalent of looking at a website's CSS or HTML code, ie complete gibberish. Either way, really appreciate the video on the tips as I really want more people to experience the joy of music making with this little beast of a device. It's truly one of, if not my all-time favorite piece of gear I've ever owned.

[@RedMeansRecording]

Yeah unfortunately there's a lot of stuff here that doesn't make sense without understanding trackers in some basic way.

[@vangoghsseveredear]

Can confirm, I'm largely lost watching. I feel like I'd learn quickly with it in my hands, but your analogy to looking like coding was pretty spot on. I get the gist of it, but the intricacies are lost on me at the moment

[@ChrisLincoln]

I can't get this machine out of my head. I started learning software trackers and am spending some time every day learning SunVox. I'm hoping to get good enough to justify buying a M8. AudioPilz got me interested with the Polyend Tracker, but I want more built-in synths like the M8 offers.

[@comady25]

try the headless version! only around $30 for the board.

[@matthewdavis473]

Holy crap I’ve watched the FE/FD thing like 5 times and it finally clicked

[@itsdarklikehell]

29:22 dankrementation is the shizzle we need!

[@slakk5093]

Great video, thanks

[@КусаниеКрасногоКоня]

Well that was damn useful tips!

[@tacticalgrooveorbit2379]

Repeat effect do not work on tables?

[@DawlessHouseMusic]

I'm finally coming around on trackers. It took a while.

[@sendalunar2974]

Nice! I pre-ordered mine so hopefully late June I'll be having fun with this machine.

[@sendalunar2974]

@@mountaindue9609 Yes hopefully this year. I pre-ordered mine in February but like you said who knows really I'm not sure how many are shipped per batch. Do you already own one?

[@sendalunar2974]

@@mountaindue9609 two black boxes? Interesting . But you do realize that you can create way more than chip tune?

[@sendalunar2974]

@@mountaindue9609 i saw one on reverb for 5500 haha crazy man

[@sendalunar2974]

@@mountaindue9609 but f... Scalpers . Definitely worth the wait to support the original creator.

[@Packbat]

Got recommended this today, went to watch it, and completely lost it at 11:07 because I've been obsessed with PICO-8's tracker for years and those tables are almost a direct equivalent of PICO-8's custom SFX instruments. Like, way more powerful, obviously, but it's the same concept. I wonder if there's some older thing that inspired both.

[@madtho]

Such a sexy piece of hardware, I want it very badly. There is near zero space in my brain or life to take on learning such a foreign way of making music. Both things are true.

[@RosssRoyce]

I got two of your albums, this you mention here Rituals and Adam’s Fault, very nicely produced sounds, transitions, bleuesey voices, good sense of tidelike pads floating over some phrases, retreating from others…people make the same level of noise all the way, they should learn from you! Who are your inspirations early on? Back in the day there used to be a guy called Blockhead who made some tunes similar to yours..

[@RedMeansRecording]

All the late 90s early to mid 2k electronica, alternative, indie, idm, trance, downtempo

[@fruechtekorb]

I loved the video and I am going to try some of your tips on my nerdseq. I am still neglecting the fx section to much. Thank!

[@werelwolf]

At first glance it looks like a dedicated LSDJ box! =D

[@jkirchheimer]

Well, this is modeled after lsdj, so this more or less exactly describes the M8 ;)

[@OhHeyK3vin]

I would absolutely love to get into the M8, but they're still back-ordered through July and the ones on Reverb are going for 3x MSRP and it makes me sooo sad...

[@teolandon225]

Really sucks people are expecting to sell them for $1500. Especially when you can run this headless with a controller and get pretty much the same experience other than the portable-ness.

[@droussel7359]

Scalpers are a-holes :(

[@OhHeyK3vin]

@@mountaindue9609 I wouldn't even mind paying $100 over MSRP instead of having to wait until July, but $1500 is bananas. For that I could pre-order a July M8 and buy a new Polyend Tracker in the meantime and still have $400 left over.

[@shifteleven]

Yeah. It's rough. I have accepted the long wait time and play with the headless mode every now and then as practice. Can't wait for this little thing.

[@mad_bad_cat]

I preordered and patiently waiting. Better the creator gets the money than the lifeless bloodsuckers on Reverb and Reverb itself. The longer I wait, the sweeter it'll be when I get it.

[@heckmanofficial]

Really thinking about buying one! I have been on the search for a small one device do it all that inspires me and this really looks like it could be it. I have an OP-1 but haven't really clicked with it I hope this one does the trick!

[@JonnyPez]

Jeremy, your videos on the M8 got me really excited-I just preordered one. Having only a Eurorack system to satisfy my music needs (thus far), I’m curious how you use your Eurorack alongside the M8? Do you pull samples from your Eurorack to the M8, use the M8 to occasionally control your Eurorack via midi, or leave them mutually exclusive? Thanks for being awesome.

[@RedMeansRecording]

I don't mix them. If I did I would use the m8 to sequence

[@JonnyPez]

@@RedMeansRecording Using the M8 to sequence is an exciting bonus option. I had my eye on the Nerseq but the idea of a handheld tracker won me over. Do you know which companion eurorack midi/cv module would take full advantage of the 8 voices the M8 can control? Most I’ve seen don’t go nearly that high, but I haven’t dug deep yet.

[@alexkidd4144]

Your partner played Elden ring?! God is good.

[@GeorgeL909]

I have a particularly challenging time applying music theory to trackers. I love the details and sound design, but coming from keyboard, I find that I get stuck and often just enter notes in the same scales over and over and have trouble keeping track of key changes and scale changes between patterns. It might be just an organizational thing, but I'm curious how others deal with this on trackers... mad respect for Amiga users back in the day, can't imagine doing that without a physical notepad and cheat sheet nearby 😅

[@SimonWollwage]

M8 has scale modes and you can even change scales via commands per track

[@G8tr1522]

I've been doodling on instruments for 15 years, but I only recently started to make full songs. I have a fair amount of theory knowledge. But I tend to just use my ears as of now, even in a DAW. Since chords are so tricky on the M8, I usually end up eschewing harmony for more complex melodies. If you want to use the synths to make complex harmonies and chord progressions, you will need to have patience with the tracker workflow. A lot of fx commands are necessary. Ie, you will need to constantly repitch and change the color parameter in the chord wavetable instrument. Not to mention that said instrument can only do 4 note chords. You will need to be creative and 'virtually' remove the 1st and 5th to get really complex. Eg, you trigger a C minor, but you have a G# in your bass instrument, thus, the C minor is effectively a G# maj9 with no G#. Alternately, if you know exactly what you want, you can always sample in. Personally, I like to fiddle and experiment, and I find that difficult to do when I use M8 synths to make chords. Hope that helps.

[@GeorgeL909]

@@SimonWollwage I didn't realize that! Super helpful for on the go composition, since I wouldn't carry a controller if I had an m8 on the move.

[@GeorgeL909]

@@G8tr1522 this is super helpful. I use Sunvox for tracker stuff, and I'll often compose in C, such as c harmonic minor, Phrygian, or whatever, then use transpose to get it where I want key wise, since I'm never gonna be doing live jazz solos using a qwerty keyboard 🤣, although I try... In C at least. For chords, honestly I get by using 2 tracks to form simple chords. I could absolutely see the m8 working based on the workflow you described, but I ended up splurging on a Syntakt, which is just an fm tracker in disguise 🥸, and I absolutely adore it, but it is far from portable. One day though... the m8 is in my predator vision/ shoulder Cannon reticle.

[@SimonWollwage]

@@GeorgeL909 the M8 is the best thing that ever happened to me. Scales support is huge..it works with external, internal midi and even with FM "chords". It is the best thing since sliced bread

[@geecen]

yay!

[@daltonjones3705]

Love this video. I was just wondering how you managed to screen capture the m8 and record clean audio at the same time? When I screen capture using touch designer and run the audio out into my focusrite, I can hear ringing, presumably from a ground loop due the the m8 being plugged into my computer for touchdesigner.

[@mikey303]

M8 can send audio over USB which will entirely remove any ground loop issues. You can also pick up a ground loop isolator for $5-10 from various online stores. Just don't play vol at max or the bass will distort

[@worldofmuu]

I would definitely make the phrases match the track number. Feels so much easier to identify things that way. Rather my fourth track be 40-41-40-42 than some jumble of letters or whatever

[@manslaughterinc.9135]

The table page sold me. This is exactly how I think of arps, in intervals instead of notes. I was going to get an SP404mk2, but now I think I want the m8. Is it possible to copy tables from one instrument to another, or do you need to clone the whole instrument?

[@TepidBean]

I don't think im ever going to get my head around this fully

[@vangoghsseveredear]

Trying to understand this thing makes my brain hurt. I've never used trackers before. But it makes such good noises, and is in such a great package, I want one nonetheless. Seems everyone who has one loves it.

[@DrChavezMR]

Loving your content! would you choose an OP1 or an M8 as first Synth/on the go music production?

[@louadmurphy2587]

As an lsdj user and lover the m8 is absolute porn to me. Can't wait to get one

[@jamescigler]

MY TRAINING IS NOW COMPLETE

[@MisterMajister]

Wow what a great album! Will it be available on Spotify? I can't seem to access your song there atm

[@RedMeansRecording]

Friday

[@MisterMajister]

@@RedMeansRecording Niiiiiice! I was temporarily unable to access your other songs on Spotify for some reason and was worried you were leaving :O

[@villagenumerique9085]

thanks so much for your videos on M8 .. how do we get the M8 on an external screen ?

[@megahozer13]

Just a question on what I'm doing wrong mine freezes and overloads on a 4 track song loop

[@eeclarkutube]

The best MicroSD Card for this is the 128GB Lexar 1800x ... super hard to find though.

[@乂ou]

Hi Jeremy! I've got some question/idea ;) Could you make a video about how to make some money with music? I mean, of course I want to upgrade my hardware, to buy new plugins, to simply invest in music equipment - and yet I do have my regular job like I suppose most of us. But in close future, it will be nice to use skills/knowledge which I acquired and get some financial benefits with music :) Of course there is mix & mastering, maybe making samples - some packs, you can teach something, sell your beats.. I know you have tried some of them so you got some experience, and you know more people that actually lives from music. Could you tell something more about it? At least some hints or experience that you got with it :) Thank you for your content, it made me content :)

[@LostStylus]

Is there any way to adjust enveloper release for instruments?

[@droussel7359]

September seems so far away for my order to come in 😭 But hopefully I'll be a tad less lost why your help Jeremy 😅

[@dawgboybinley6128]

Great video as always! Once you have all of these tracks, is there an easy way to upload them up to a daw if you needed to?

[@RedMeansRecording]

Yes. With the render function

[@RaverOperatorGeeza]

Where do the samples need to be saved in order for a headless to see the files? I currently have an external card plugged in...

[@LostStylus]

11:57 - why is it better to use a table to create arps than just using arp fx in the phrase?

[@RedMeansRecording]

Control

[@charliemopps4926]

Is this a project that will come in kit form at all? I'm interested but the price is a bit rich for my blood... and it runs on a teensy... I'm very familiar with that sort of thing

[@BIG1TOWER]

I’m getting one

[@phazerbrains]

This demo really puts me off from the M8 - it looks like a headache to program. Seems very powerful for such a little box, though.

[@pierremarty5056]

I know that it's not really that comparable, but which one would you pick as a first portable studio machine between OP-1 field and Dirtywave m8 ? I am in love from what I am hearing coming from m8 but the workflow of the field seems more appealing. Thx

[@RedMeansRecording]

M8, no question

[@DavidDeLuge]

Great video with lots of useful tips. Why FE and not FF for a blank chain? My M8 arrives later in the year and I'm so glad I ordered it. It looks awesome. 👍🏻

[@robotmeadows]

FE is the highest number for a chain i believe, tho im not sure why, its the same on LSDj (which the m8 is inspired by)

[@not-on-pizza]

@@robotmeadows I believe it's that FF is used internally as "there's actually nothing here", which is shown as a dimmed "--".

[@lebronsinclair8012]

Digitakt or M8 tracker? Trying to decide which one to buy.

[@RedMeansRecording]

M8 can do more. Digitakt is more performance oriented

[@jupitor919]

How do you put samples into the M8?:-0 can you record them live to the track your creating?:-/

[@RedMeansRecording]

There is sampling yes