I Made A Song Using Nature - Polyend Tracker Mini

Filmed on the DJI Mini 3 Pro.
The Polyend Tracker Mini offers a fresh and exciting way to make your music. In this video I go on a roadtrip to sample the sounds of nature at the lake to learn how this device can inspire your creativity! Learn the features, functionality, and creative possibilities of this incredible music production device.
🎵 Learn more about the Polyend Tracker Mini: link.perfectcircuit.com/t/v1/...
🎥 Thanks to Harris for helping me film this: / harrismcd
🔥 Get exclusive synth patches: bit.ly/35hVVzi
Miles Away - links.milesawayofficial.com
Join Discord Server: / discord
0:00 - intro, what is the Polyend Tracker Mini
0:54 - the roadtrip to the lake
2:35 - sampling nature for the song
4:08 - back in the studio
4:28 - trimming and processing the samples
5:45 - creating a groove
6:30 - random and chance sequencing
8:21 - writing a bassline
9:17 - making a melody and sound design
10:51 - adding hi hats
11:49 - arranging and song mode
12:55 - closing thoughts
13:19 - the final result, grand finale

[@nomad1517]

Insane example of how powerful this thing is. I'm sure that's just touching the surface with it too.

[@MilesAwayOfficial]

It really is! Thanks for watching :)

[@Wrzlprnft]

3:47 "That's a good waveform right there." good one 😆

[@MilesAwayOfficial]

😉

[@deuzdeuz8115]

Man, that was awesome 😮

[@MilesAwayOfficial]

Thanks! 😁 just posted a video on the new Polyend Play+ as well, check that out too!

[@sodiumlights]

Really superb video, and ace track. That location is just sublime!

[@MilesAwayOfficial]

Was such amazing spot, thank you so much!

[@Livguava]

This is so cool!!

[@MilesAwayOfficial]

Thanks!

[@SeanKearney]

That was excellent! ❤🎉

[@MilesAwayOfficial]

Thanks so much Sean! Stay tuned for my video on the Play+ soon as well :)

[@Iamirxclej]

Amazing ❤

[@MilesAwayOfficial]

Thank you!

Amazing video! Tracker Mini was made for such creations. Well done, and thank you 🙏🏻

[@MilesAwayOfficial]

Thanks so much!

[@marcusamaker]

incredible video. thanks for breaking it down this way. i just got a mini ~ looking forward to sampling nature, as well!

[@MilesAwayOfficial]

Thanks so much for watching and enjoy your mini! :) great choice.

[@davelee1935]

That’s fantastic

[@MilesAwayOfficial]

Thank you so much!

[@tomroche923]

Can't wait!

[@MilesAwayOfficial]

🔥

[@thomasm8077]

Awesome Job. I recently bought the tracker mini and it is a joy to use for sure.

[@MilesAwayOfficial]

Thanks so much for watching! It really is inspiring eh

[@glideform9841]

Love the track! Also whoever filmed that drone footage is a real pro 🔥

[@MilesAwayOfficial]

Ahhha thanks legend 🔥🔥

[@Jason_Drums_]

Polyend must be so pleased with this Demo 😃 Absolutely Fantastic 👌 A joy to watch you 😊 Incredible Talent 🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥 🤩 🙌

[@MilesAwayOfficial]

Thanks so much Jay! I must say this is the most fun I've had filming a demo yet, haha

[@Jason_Drums_]

@@MilesAwayOfficial haha 😄 well I'm not surprised, absolutely stunning scenery and location 👌 it was so fun to watch and I'm guessing nice to get out the studio sometimes too 😊 have a fantastic week🙏🏼🤩 🙌

[@MilesAwayOfficial]

@@Jason_Drums_thanks man!

[@herewardmitchell8576]

Fantastic 👍

[@MilesAwayOfficial]

Thanks!

[@noxuification]

Amazing track ❤

[@MilesAwayOfficial]

Thank you!

[@chambre466]

Nice Mini Tracker session. More

[@MilesAwayOfficial]

Thanks so much!

[@JohnnyBgood89]

Dude this is the best demo I’ve seen yet! I learned more from this video than any of the tutorials out there haha. Getting mine next week!

[@MilesAwayOfficial]

Glad I could help! Welcome to my channel, stick around for weekly videos like this :) enjoy your Tracker Mini!

[@yourcitysleeps]

Great video. Very inspiring as always. I just picked up a new mini to go with my tracker+ haha

[@joseblues9]

This is great! I just started looking into trackers but you might have sold me this one

[@MilesAwayOfficial]

My pleasure and thanks for watching! My Tracker + video is coming soon so maybe wait for that one to decide if you haven’t yet!

[@jedfriesen]

Saw you do something that baffled me :::: it was shift and up at top of track to select entire track or shift and two ups to select pattern. Awesome!!! Deep dive into the manual to find that one. Peace.

[@MilesAwayOfficial]

Glad I could help! Thanks for watching

[@sweatycrabthailand4262]

So, I'm gonna go ahead and........say this was a pretty amazing video.

[@MilesAwayOfficial]

Thank you so much! Stick around my channel for more :)

[@RaskolnikovR]

great video

[@MilesAwayOfficial]

Thank you!

[@garyhendrie4001]

This is brilliant to watch. I've never used a tracker, never really thought of trying it. Ive just bought a play+. Really looking forward to it arriving. Maybe one day I'll try a tracker out. Great stuff regardless.

[@MilesAwayOfficial]

Thanks! Did you see my video on the Play+? I absolutely love it. Frankly if they made a portable Play+ with the mic of the tracker, it would be my dream groovebox, cause sequencing on the Play is the most fun.

[@SvenniDal]

Great video! Really dig how you set it up like a quick tutorial that captures the entire process of creating a song with the Tracker Mini. I would maybe lay down the device for that close up shot so it doesn’t get that shaky. I got some hard eyeball tickles in that part 😂 Do you feel like going to locations like the lake, inspires you to not only create different kind of foly unique to that place, but also creating a different song beat/atmo/melody wise? Do you play back what you recorded on location to make sure that you got the foly sounding exactly how you wanted, or do you feel like you can pretty much wing it most or some of the time?

[@MilesAwayOfficial]

Thank you and great questions! Recording foley I never listen back. Trust that its ok if you set your levels right. You can always normalize on the Tracker or in Daw after. And absolutely, I find going into nature I end up making much more chill music than the stuff I compose in the studio. This video below is a great example, its not sponsored for any company, its just me going to the top of a mountain to compose a song. Easily my favourite video I've ever done, just didn't grab the algorithm: kzbin.info/www/bejne/mqC0ZHtjhtprhMksi=f7_SinBpYVZe9RIO

[@jello-tarzan]

I did not like the price but this device is really designed for musician interested in a quick and portable creative process with plenty of flexibilty and possibilities. Budget version would be the Novation Circuit Rhythm.

[@MilesAwayOfficial]

Totally ! It fills a unique niche for sure

[@jedfriesen]

Another amazing video man!! I think you should be the main go to artist for all the bleep bloop groove box gadgets out there:)) quick question. Can you do a vid or just write here on how to get the best sample w built in mic etc?? How do we know ow by visual meter or by listening that we got a good one?? Thx. BE well.

[@MilesAwayOfficial]

Thanks so much! Definitely stick around, I cover lots of new gear, mostly synths and pedals but grooveboxes too :) happy to answer your question: basically, there is a visual gain reading when you record samples. You want to turn up the Tracker Mini mic gain while testing the mic until its about 2/3 full to get a good signal to noise ration. Once you record, if you still want it louder, Tracker allows you to "normalize" the sample with one click, which will bring it up to unity gain so its as loud as the factory samples. Hope that helps!

[@jedfriesen]

Thx a ton. And I’m working on slice and beat slice for the answer to my other question. All the best!!

[@jedfriesen]

Another quick question ::::: if I’ve sampled a long sample and I want to save it as a few little samples from the big one can I do that? Looking for duplicate or save as out of sample editor but not finding. Thx!

[@jaymesgonzales8566]

Did you have to dial up the gain when recording? I can't tell if that's just what needs to be done with PTM or if mine has an issue with the mic-can't hear anything unless I have the gain at about 60 and even then have to amplify the sample often via edit after. Nothing like their promo sounds around town video or what I am seeing here and clarity seems lacking with mine. I envisioned doing similar things, in the city and in nature but so far the experience is lacking. Love what you did; great stuff!

[@MilesAwayOfficial]

Yep, definitely use the built in pre-amp gain slider when recording foley like this. The only time I leave it on low/no gain is when I'm whacking the contact mic to make percussion. If that still doesn't work, then reach out to Polyend, because besides normalizing the samples inside the mini, I didn't do much to them.

[@Jornaril]

Love this!! I love both nature and electronic music. Right up my alley. Have you used the M8? I’m torn between the two..

[@MilesAwayOfficial]

Thank you so much! I haven't tried the M8 to be honest, but it looks cool. The small screen would be a bit too much of a tradeoff for me personally, but the sound engine seems incredible.

[@anteeko]

Such a cool vid! great job! Just a question on the tracker, is it not too restrictive to only have 2 effect slots per step?

[@MilesAwayOfficial]

Thanks so much! Honestly no, it doesn’t feel limiting because I prefer how fast the workflow is. The Mini is at its best when you just get in the zone and can create an entire song like this real fast. More effects lanes to me would make the UI less clean, and the only thing I’d really need more of is filter/eq control, but you can easily export stems from the Mini if you want to mix something more carefully on the computer also!

[@anteeko]

Thanks for your feedback, can't wait for your follow up video!@@MilesAwayOfficial

[@iamYork_]

Yeah coming from Renoise which offers endless FX tracks i felt i would of rather had 3 fx slots sometimes on the Polyend tracker because some FX need two slots to be used and if you want FX on the whole pattern that also takes away a slot... But i also feel having limits leads to less creative rabbit holes or getting too far into the deep... Back when all i had was a piano I felt i wrote a lot more music as opposed to now having a lab full of synths alongside a computer full of DAWs and soft synths... I prefer the full size tracker over the mini though... I returned my mini within a week but the partial portability is nice if you dont mind lacking the pads... But everyone's workflow is different... I love these types of videos and this one is especially well made but always be wary when basing your purchases from influencers... They rarely are 100% honest because well... They want more free gear haha... But out of the 20 or so people who arnt influencers that purchased the mini... I think one or two of them are 80% satisfied with it... but dont get me wrong I am big fan of Polyend and I own the OG tracker and the Play... The mini just seems a bit rushed maybe in my opinion...

[@neb2612]

@@iamYork_ Its good to hear from someone who uses Renoise. I dont think enough people who are interested or own hadware trackers actually seem to care about perfectly good tracker software like Renoise. Its an example of how consumeristic this generation is around hardware.

[@jatsajatsa]

Serious question. Apart from vertical workflow, what can this do that an ipad running Logic Pro (or even Garage Band) can't?

[@MilesAwayOfficial]

Good question, I think tactile buttons is a big thing. I hate producing on my ipad personally, but love producing on my laptop. The physical layout of things makes a big difference. Also the Polyend effects and built in mic sound better than garageband. But you could definitely do a budget setup with Garageband achieving the same thing :)

[@HelicopterRidesForCommunists]

Will we get the polyend play+ mini?

[@MilesAwayOfficial]

I don’t know for sure but I was chatting with them and they mentioned the difficulty of shrinking down the Play UI to this size, so I wouldn’t count on it. I would love if they added a mic to the Play, cause sampling stuff is just too fun on the Tracker series!

[@HelicopterRidesForCommunists]

@@MilesAwayOfficial Yeah I want everything to have an included mic lol

[@ameeqalli8115]

Is this Vancouver canad?

[@MilesAwayOfficial]

Good eyes, yep, north van!

[@0bsolet]

There might be a Sasquatch grooving in that area.

[@MilesAwayOfficial]

If I see it next time I will sample its roar!

[@AlexanderCook87]

haha not sure you needed to drive so far to scratch a rock with a stick. Mot sure if it picks up much background stuff like traffic in the distance but still i enjohyed watching you kick dirt lol.

[@MilesAwayOfficial]

LOL, yea the rock scratch sound was meant to be a shaker. But the mic is a contact mic so it actually works great for close up hits/whacks to pick up the full impact and not much background noise.

[@HelicopterRidesForCommunists]

Was my guy Al Cid in the area? Tell me you didn’t forget to pick him and Mary up.

[@iamYork_]

Great video and sounds... Sadly the mini wasn't for me ... The OG tracker is still one of favourites though...

[@MilesAwayOfficial]

Thanks so much! That’s totally fair, I think if you got used to the jog wheel and keyboard it might feel weird switching to the mini

[@iamYork_]

@@MilesAwayOfficial not having the pads was my biggest gripe... The + & - keys actually worked really well so didn't miss the wheel... I considered keeping the mini but feared it might just end up in my GAS drawer haha... I see the potential but for my workflow it was implausible unfortunately... I always loved Polyend's lure into experimental algorithmic work flows with their machines and i found myself less of in creative rabbit holes and more of in fits of frustration with the Mini... About every tenth person i talked to who purchased one seems to be slightly above wary with keeping it... the other 9 also returned it... but maybe I'm asking the wrong people... haha... If the cost was slightly lower or if Polyend gifted me one, I feel I would of held onto it though and eventually adjusted...

[@MilesAwayOfficial]

totally fair, there's so much great gear out there we have to go with what works for us. Play is still my fave groovebox they or anyone for that matter has made, love the algorithmic stuff too. The Mini is unlike anything else I have in the studio, so I am definitely keeping it for travelling, jamming on the road etc :) @@iamYork_

[@sweatycrabthailand4262]

was about to order and....it cost double of what i could afford.....

[@MilesAwayOfficial]

Hope you can get one! Maybe a sale, or a good deal used :)

[@russellwoodstechno]

IT'S STILL TOO CHEAP IS AMAZING

[@paullay9869]

"I'm gonna go ahead....." 🤦 Great track though!

[@MilesAwayOfficial]

Glad you liked the track! I do an original demo song for every review video, check em out!

[@paullay9869]

@@MilesAwayOfficial will do. I do honestly, as a new og tracker user myself, appreciate your style. I've learned a lot just from watching. Good stuff 👌

[@RiazBordie]

I find the promo videos (and Polyend albums) on the Tracker Mini product page rather lame. Your KZbin video / song should be what they show! Solid bit of work.

[@MilesAwayOfficial]

Thank you so much! I’m working on a tracker + video so keep posted!

[@protogroup.iggyinsky]

nice)

[@MilesAwayOfficial]

Thank you!