Octatrack MK2 Tutorial - Gains, Volumes, and Levels (pt. 1/2)

[@kounovskymusic]

Excelent as always! Your videos are one of the most helpful Octatrack mkii resources.

[@KennyZhao]

Gruzo Beats thanks so much for watching! It’s a bit of a dry-er topic, but I do believe a fundamental one to understand before you get to the fun stuff :) too many times I’ve been frustrated by clipping or weird volume fluctuations

[@marcusbeckham3744]

i guess I am kinda randomly asking but does anybody know of a good place to stream newly released movies online?

[@marcusbeckham3744]

@Zayne Grey Thank you, signed up and it seems to work :D I appreciate it!

[@zaynegrey2219]

@Marcus Beckham You are welcome =)

[@user82938]

Thanks for continuing to make these. Didn't know some of those things you covered at the end.

[@KennyZhao]

good buddy thanks! I’m glad I sort of threw those last things in; I usually follow a bulleted list of items to cover but I remembered some things last minute that had popped up

[@RandomNoise]

excellent tutorial, can’t wait for the part 2

[@KennyZhao]

Thank you!

[@Ciudadana_Cero]

Thanks for taking the time, great run through!

[@aidanvinum]

Succinct and helpful. Thanks for this.

[@brainspoke]

many thanks :)

[@radiomorph]

So "Volume" is like gain (pre OT FX), if thinking of a traditional mixer, and "Level" is where you control the sum of it all with (post OT FX)?

[@KennyZhao]

yep pretty much!

[@chefjonsf]

Thank you for posting this. I was looking for an answer to my problem, which is why my input running in A is so low? For instance I’ll have my Op-1 plugged in, gains, dirs, etc. Op-1 is setup as a thru track. Then, when recording in a track, levels are nowhere near to as high as they actually are and there is volume fuzz. Your op-1 sounds clear, and if you can help me get there I’d appreciate it!

[@KennyZhao]

Definitely check out whether you have a mono cable or stereo. If it's stereo then it's likely only sending one half of the signal into your Octatrack, and you need an adapter that will sum that stereo to mono for you.

[@ouvi]

gracias

[@KennyZhao]

de nada, gracias por ver!

[@aidanvinum]

I have a question I can’t seem to find the answer for anywhere...Is it pointless to buy analog gear to sample into the Octatrack when there are sound files available of such gear? Thanks.

[@KennyZhao]

Ha! I enjoy your question, because in some sense if you're looking to just sample the gear, for sure do not spend the hefty price you need to pay in order to buy analog gear. At least as far as sound quality goes, I'm of the opinion that the difference is not big enough to pay such a price. On the other hand, nothing can really replace the joy of playing with a synthesizer, learning the intricacies of its design, and so on - at least in my opinion. Sure I can produce the same sounds, but I may not utilize them the same way if I'm just handling samples.

[@aidanvinum]

Kenny Zhao Thanks, partner. I want to buy a synth tomorrow to play in real time with my Octa. I- Coast...Ants!....and use trigs as keys. Not sure. :/

[@aidanvinum]

And will playing something like an O-Coast as a real-time synth vs playing “synth” in chromatic mode a big worthy difference ? In your opinion.

[@KennyZhao]

It's hard for me to say for sure, because I haven't caught the modular bug quite yet :) I've always been a classical pianist at heart, so for me having a keyboard is always a big must, and the sequencer buttons arranged like a keyboard don't quite cut it for me. I also have a Bass Station which I route into the Octatrack via MIDI and audio. My favorite part about linking analog gear into the Octatrack is not what it can sample from that gear, but what I can do on the Octatrack in connection with the gear. Triggering MIDI from the Octatrack and using the knobs on the Bass Station is a really fun experience.

[@alyeska4226]

Stuck with single cycle Waveform bits and bytes from a purchase? Or a tool to create with?

[@alyeska4226]

You have a very amicable voice to watch to

[@KennyZhao]

Thanks so much!

[@Rustik1722]

YOU ARE CORRECT! What a shame the forum for Etron is mainly arrogant private club mentality "Read the manual page 58" when someone asks something.....the point is the manual is not clear and the program is not intuitive. Shame that the forum for the product is such an unfriendly and unhelpful place due to bad attitudes and a "cool kids club fraternity" mentality. Fortunately there are helpful and kind people like yourself to do what Electronauts and the manual FAIL to do. And don't bother emailing Elektron, that is a waste of time. Because they are so busy getting the new products ready for NAMM...oh, my bad.. ..... they have no NEW products and are surviving on the backs of company member past like some musical Marley in some bad dream of a dead end vision and greed. Too much? Naawwww....great job Kenny and FU to those who disagree.

[@KennyZhao]

haha it do be like that sometimes. Thanks for the support, glad you're enjoying the videos!

[@bouguification]

One thing we can agree on is that Elektronauts is not a welcoming place. My Elektron "family" is Ricky Tinez, Cuckoo, Kenny... actual chill people.

[@karyonwhite7504]

hey maybe u can help me out. i have a problem with my individual track lengths. i cant enter pattern settings when i press func + bank. it always open track trig edit. i am not in grid rec mode. when i press rec (copy) when i am in track trick edit it switches to pattern settings mode. is this a bug ? something wrong with my octatrack mk 2 ?

[@KennyZhao]

Func+Bank is the Track Trig Edit screen, correct! But the "individual pattern length" toggle is in the "Pattern Settings" page (Func + PTN)

[@karyonwhite7504]

haha i remember ..dump mode over.. thank you

[@alyeska4226]

Func. + Page us the nenu you are looking for. The far right button under seen B

[@shatteredsquare]

also with direct through you don't have to worry about hitting stop twice and turning of the thru track audio

[@Kuronoichig01]

Hey Kenny, quick question! How do you get such a clean signal with your OP-1 specifically? All of my synths sound clear and have good volume except for the op1.. I plug op1 in with volume all the way up. Next go to mixer page on OCT and turn up gain to 63. still sounds quiet. Any other volume adjustments on any page afterwards (i.e. VOL on AMP page or DIR in MIX page) will raise the signal but with a lot of noise/hum... Do you plug your op1 into a pre amp and then have the output routed to OCT? Thanks in advance!

[@Kuronoichig01]

I'd also like to add that I've factory reset both machines and tested the output jack of op1 with headphones and it's blisteringly loud.. which is good! And when I plug into the DAW the noise hum is nearly gone! Only when routing to Octatrack do I have these issues. Your video works great for every one of my synths except the op1 :(