the best sampler combo EVER. (elektron digitakt + roland SP-404MKII)

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the sp404mkii and the elektron digitakt are often at the centre of product comparison videos, with people wondering which one they should get. but the truth is... if you can afford both, you should get both!
in my opinion, the elektron digitakt + roland SP-404MKII combo is undefeated in terms of features, workflow and sound. the advantages of the digitakt perfectly align with the SP-404MKII’s shortcomings, and viceversa.
so in this video, we're gonna talk about the digitakt's pros and cons, the SP404MKII pros and cons, how to set them up both in terms of audio and MIDI, and best practices for using them while beatmaking or performing live.
00:00 intro
00:33 pros and cons of the digitakt and the SP-404MKII
03:33 connection and setup (MIDI and audio)
06:58 beatmaking and best practices with this combo
11:40 jam

[@BIGUMAMI]

what is up greedy guts? I have a Discord server! come and chat about samplers, software, and leave some suggestions on what videos you want to see next: discord.gg/DMntZNBX

[@9NZ4]

Hey, wanted to join Discord but the invitation link expired :( FYI.

[@krazywabbit]

I was on the fence with Digitakt I but having the SP404, this makes sense vs going for D2. Excellent tutorial. Respect. Stay safe.

[@TJ-rf1xl]

This is fantastic, would love to see a redux of this video with Digitakt II and the 404!

[@HugoOri]

That’s mind blowing ! You’ve find a sweet combo here 🔥♥️

[@BIGUMAMI]

thank you very much!

[@FANKANable]

I have both and I've been dying to figure out how to incorporate both!

[@mmmmigs]

loved the jam at the end. great setup. :)

[@BIGUMAMI]

thank you!!!

[@jamesbond339]

Great video. Best from the start explanation I’ve seen!!

[@BIGUMAMI]

thank you kindly 🙏🏽

[@jezgomez]

Great tutorial 👌 And the track at the end has Spiller Groovejet vibes 🎉

[@BIGUMAMI]

glad you like it!

[@hellah216]

these 2 pieces have been on my mind for ages!!!! finally decided I needed the digitakt first and pushed the 404 down the list, but this video right here has me rethinking everything..... 🤯 dig the jam too!! 🔥🔥🔥

[@BIGUMAMI]

thank you sir! and honestly... I'd buy the 404 first... just my 2 cents!

[@hellah216]

@@BIGUMAMI took your advice... 1 down, 1 to go!!

[@remyvegamedia]

Crazy to see this. I've been considering getting a Digitakt the last few days. I've had it on my radar for the last year or so because I really wanna start getting into making IDM and I feel like it lends well to the glitchy stuff I like. I always felt like I'm able to get the sort of weird sounds I want from the SP but the sequencing falls short. Great video again, man.

[@BIGUMAMI]

dude if you ever do it, please tag me in your IDM stuff cos that was my gateway drug into electronic music and can't wait to hear what you cook up! although I'd probably look at a polyend or M8 tracker for that kinda music... I know. I'm a G.A.S. inducer!

[@coachangeln]

This is brilliant. I have both, and this is a great work flow. You just got a new sub. 🎉

[@BIGUMAMI]

thanks for the sub! I'm glad you enjoyed it!

[@yedawg7970]

thats it im gonna buy a 404 to use with my digitakt. loved the jam at the end too

[@ciaranmulhall6123]

Powerful set up !! ❤

[@BIGUMAMI]

it is yeah???

[@greysky1252]

Im trying to decide on a new sampler and i think you sold me on the 404. Very informative. Thank you.

[@BIGUMAMI]

glad I could help! now roland, let's talk about my royalties...

[@Imetalman2000]

This jam was 🔥 fire. 🙌🏼

[@BIGUMAMI]

thank you!

[@MikeSekt]

great combo! thanks man!

[@BIGUMAMI]

glad you like it! thank you for watching!

[@raysubject]

thanks for this video, this was exactly thing i was asking myself for months - if SP404 would add some handy features to my digitakt+digitone setup.. great, it literally solves all issues i have with my curent setup :-)

[@BIGUMAMI]

always glad to be of service!!

[@rick5235]

great content. I'm so close to putting an order in to go with my sp404 and then i watch videos on the syntatk and i'm lost all over again haha

[@BIGUMAMI]

thank you! in all honesty, if you have no other synths or don't use your DAW to make synth samples, the syntakt is the way to go probably!

[@rick5235]

@@BIGUMAMI thanks for the reply. I decided to go with the digitatk (should get here tomorrow!) and accept that once thats paid off I'll probably have to get a syntatk too 😅

[@firekeeper09]

I have been mulling over buying a Syntakt for this combo. I feel like that is an even better combo than the Digitakt with the SP404. You get the coveted Elektron sequencer, but also have the synth engines which the SP404 really benefits from.

[@shifteleven]

You just get 4 midi out tracks with the Syntakt though. Still enough for a lot of stuff

[@christophermatranga7778]

@@shiftelevenI think all 12 trax on the Syntakt can be midi trax, but you are limited to 4 midi notes on each of those trax, so you can’t do 5 note chords.

[@shifteleven]

@@christophermatranga7778 oooh. Ok. That’s cool

[@thriceborn4601]

I mean digitone is also a good combo don’t forget about that 8 voice fm Beast

[@BIGUMAMI]

I can't really afford a Syntakt, BUT, I do have a cheaper alternative that works incredibly well with the 404... I'll do a video about it in a few weeks for sure!

[@veracrack]

Hi, maybe, I am dumb. Where is the sound coming from? I can see the midi connection between the two units and the audio out/in from digitakt to sp404mk2 but then where is the cable feeding it to the speakers?

[@Hakucho64]

As a DT owner and lover, this video makes me feel SO much better about getting a MkII (which I was going to do anyway, lol).

[@Hakucho64]

Oh, by the way, you have a real gift for explaining things!

[@kristianmock2404]

This is so fire! A great live setup for sure. I pair my 404mk2 with Fl studio and it seems to do the producing job very well. I like this tactile alternative though.

[@BIGUMAMI]

thanks kristian! yeah I like this setup for production mostly - but given the many slots on the sp404 you can definitely do a whole live set with it!

[@owenstuckey8676]

this is a big question that I had before - which of these should I buy? bought the digitakt first and was struggling to incorporate longer samples the way that I wanted, and so saved up to get the 404mkii - so this video came at the perfect time. can't wait to put them together and this video will help me a ton in doing so. thanks sir!

[@BIGUMAMI]

honestly? go fo the sp404mkii. pound for pound it's just a better machine imho. it lacks the infcredible LFOs and Envelopes and the cool sequencer but man it's so much cheaper and it'll cover most of what you need to do, most of the times! just don't say any of this to an elektronaut or they're probably harass you forever lolol

[@aoterou]

Another con of the DT that can be compensated using the SP404 is the lack of velocity sensitivity on the digitakt if you want to record your hats live (or any drums) with some variation. Although I know in that case you need to send MIDI from the sp404 so it’s a completely different workflow… anyway, great video!

[@BIGUMAMI]

absolutely! and that's a great idea!

[@chrisegonsearlemusic]

It’s useful to see people using uncommon setups.

[@nunyyk]

an inspiration, thanks)

[@BIGUMAMI]

thank you!!!

[@sclr]

I got this combo. And it was a complete accident. I have the Digitakt and ended up with the 404mk2 in a trade. You hit all the points and I thought I was alone!

[@BIGUMAMI]

you're not alone my friend!

[@Rmspender]

Man, what FX on that drop?! So, nice.

[@happyjessus]

I've also been lucky enough to have both and I'm mostly using the SP as a mixer for my DT live sets. I recently bought a midi cable to sync them mostly because I want the time effects of the SP to be synced to the beat, which is almost always coming from the DT. Have you tried to use a midi track on DT to control bus 2 fx of the SP? I've been meaning to try that but I always postpone it..

[@BIGUMAMI]

dayum, that is a GREAT idea... might do a shorter form video about it...

[@happyjessus]

I think a lot of people would love to watch that and also you would be the first one to do it.. Believe me I've searched for it everywhere 😅

[@BIGUMAMI]

@@happyjessus damn now i have to lol

[@verbalpics]

This looks like exactly what I need to go with my Digitakt. Thank you for the video!

[@marcuunk8564]

🙏❤️🙏SuperThanks!!

[@cordlesswire]

can you apply effects of sp404 to just drum track from digitakt, or any other channel only from digitakt (e.g. i want to apply reverb from sp404 only to synths/pads channel from digitakt) or are effects from sp404 applied only to everything coming out of digitakt? thanks. subbed.

[@BIGUMAMI]

unfortunately all that comes from the digitakt will be affected the same... you can't separate the DT tracks in the sp404, only in a DAW with the elektron plugin

[@RaskolnikovR]

really interesting video !

[@BIGUMAMI]

thank you!

[@eldoggs6018]

I have a digitakt and I’m considering getting an sp404 mk2 for this reason, thank you for breaking it down. How would you record to DAW in this set up. Overbridge for the DT and then another pass muting the DT and record the sp404 master out audio over USB?

[@BIGUMAMI]

yes! that's probably the easiest way to do it

[@gmmigge]

This is cool! I own a MC-101 and looking to add a SP-404 soon - but I'm also trying to look into the future for a dedicated sequencing and the Digitakt looks like an ideal option. In your setup, let's say you wanted to add e.g. a MC-101 or something similiar as a synth, how would you route the midi and sound coming out of the MC-101 into your setup?

[@BIGUMAMI]

for MIDI, I would go digitakt sequences notes from the sp404, but only sends clock to MC101 (I like the 101's sequencer) audio wise I'd go 101 into digitakt, digitakt into 404!

[@gmmigge]

@@BIGUMAMI gold! Thanks man! 🤩

[@lilrogalski]

awesome video and explanation, awesome setup, but I'd still rather have my octatrack! 💕

[@BIGUMAMI]

ahah fair! but to be honest, at €1300 I'd rather hae this combo than a €1500 octatrack... BUT, if you're saying octatrack+404, that's another baaaallll game entirely ahahaha

[@DIVVES]

Any reason you are clipping your 404? Not a troll question haha just asking... Maybe you didnt notice but the EXT SOURCES is red when you are pumping to much volume into the input. It took me a minute with the mrk2 to notice this as well as the 404a had a clipping light. Question 2... When I hit play on my DT it just starts playing samples on the 404 without me sequencing anything. Even with that midi channel muted. Did this happen to anyone? Great video!

[@BIGUMAMI]

Answer 1: there is a reason... and that reason is I didn't realise I was lollllllll Answer 2: that's very strange... are you sure you're not in pattern mode on the 404? Also, other midi tracks might be on the same channel, and you didn't notice! let me know!

[@dluisvoz]

quick question for yall: I've had a lot of gain issues with this setup, others have mentioned it as well. the SP just runs hot - as you can see in this vid, homie has to crank the digitakt volume going into the SP almost to max. I know you can lower whole bank levels on the SP, but is seems to be a weird feature of the box that prevents it from playing super well with others. any thoughts?

[@BIGUMAMI]

it IS weird... I went into the global settings trying to see if there's a volume padding feature but weirdly enough I remember I found something to make it even louder lol really don't know what to think of it

[@chinmitten]

I’ve actually had both connected for a bit. Big fan. Digi is amazing with short hits and single cycle sampling. 404 adds basically a small footprint MPC

[@BIGUMAMI]

exactly!

[@dluisvoz]

quick question for yall: I've had a lot of gain issues with this setup, others have mentioned it as well. the SP just runs hot - as you can see in this vid, homie has to crank the digitakt volume going into the SP almost to max. I know you can lower whole bank levels on the SP, but is seems to be a weird feature of the box that prevents it from playing super well with others. any thoughts?

[@trigasurge]

Fantastic combo for sure. I’ve been really enjoying this combo, but I use a slightly different chaining in the audio signal. I’ve got MIDI Out from Digitakt to SP404MKII, and audio out of SP into Digitakt. Reason for that is that I use the Digitakt in Overbridge mode to send audio to Bitwig. As you pointed out, these compliment each other well and Digitakt’s sequencer & P-locks is the Elektron magic SP is missing. Together, polyphony goes to 40 and sky is the limit. The other piece I’m going to try is to use the headphones out of SP to go into the MC-707 for additional scatter fx. The only major issue I’ve run into with this combo is that i can’t use the MIDI sync and transport reliably from Digitakt to SP. just seems way too jumpy. Like playback feels to get out of sync and the B{M fluctuates like 5 full BPMs. I’ve seen fraction of a beat with other gear, but it’s extreme with this combo. Wonder if it’s my MIDi cable. What’s the cable you got? I might try it. But I don’t see a ton of value in using patterns in SP over Digitakt. Only if I want to build patterns on the go with just SP that I may want to trigger.

[@tetramputecture]

He mentioned it’s the official Boss MIDI to 3.5mm TRS cable

[@saardean4481]

Can't you simply Resample the loop to its right tempo and then have a "perfect loop" ? Then you can timestrech it as you like and it will always be locked to the grid ? Or am I thinking it wrong here?

[@cesarsjogren]

Yeah absolutely. There are workarounds for everything, but some machines do certain things with less effort

[@saardean4481]

@@cesarsjogren i was refering to the OP saying "if your loop is not perfect its unusable" which is not true in case you can resample and warp it

[@allgonewrongful]

@@saardean4481 Thats a fair point. After sampling is the only time you can edit a sample on the digitakt, so that's true.

[@BIGUMAMI]

it's not really a matter of having a perfect loop in terms of start and end - if the individual notes within the loop are not perfectly on grid, they'll be spliced up all wrong! I sould've probably explained that part better...

[@saardean4481]

@@BIGUMAMI A ha . I hear ya. So in a nutshell it basically chops in symmetrical beat subdivisions but does not really have the ability to chop at transients

[@ekwatts]

What about a Syntakt/SP404MKII combo?

[@BIGUMAMI]

oh yes, that'd be great if I could afford one ahaha

[@JSprayaEntertainment]

elektron makes good Gear for SURE , but i put the TWO Circuit units next to my SP-404 ... so for a little more money , i added 16 tracks instead of 8 ( plus the Circuits have a shorter learning curve i would imagine ) kzbin.info/www/bejne/Z3-9YXd-rZ5-qac feedback loops

[@keenmux5708]

I find it to be a huge flaw that the sp404 does not accept tempo sync when not running in pattern mode. It requires a whole lot more preperation and makes a lot of cool features like time stretch unusable. And I really don't want to use the sp404 sequencer, every layer underneath the surface of sp404 is a mess

[@BIGUMAMI]

I actually came around to understand and like it, BUT! the lack of a play button does my F***ING head in

[@wuhnder]

Is that Trish from Broadcast on your wall? I miss her 😪

[@BIGUMAMI]

no, it's victoria and alex from beach house, BUT, we all miss Trish ☹️ may she RIP

[@SONWU]

The title is misleading, because I don't see an Octatrack anywhere 😉 Just kidding, nice video!

[@BIGUMAMI]

ahaha true! but to be honest, at €1300 I'd rather hae this combo than a €1500 octatrack... BUT, if you're saying octatrack+404, that's another baaaallll game entirely ahahaha

[@Dubious_George]

Yin & Yang

[@BIGUMAMI]

eeexactly

[@scottlerocin]

Just get an Octatrack ?

[@BIGUMAMI]

here's my thought process... this combo is still cheaper than just buying the octatrack by itself, plus I get two very different workflows that can lead to very different results and open up different creative possibilities. also, the sp404mkii's effects are just irreplaceable (to me at least). but I mean, yeah, I till would if I could afford that as well lol

[@DavidAcosta-ki3oq]

Digitakt would make any other sampler or drum machine better

[@BIGUMAMI]

it's that sequencer ✨✨

[@Kaje05]

Two samplers? I’d rather take one of these and a synth.

[@cesarsjogren]

Two very different samplers! Haha

[@Kaje05]

@@cesarsjogren maybe, but basically do the same things

[@joythief]

TWO SAMPLERS TWO SAMPLERS TWO SAMPLERS TWO SAMPLERS TWO SAMPLERS

[@BIGUMAMI]

I'll do that soon, don't worry!

[@michaelbell9026]

Digitakt + Analog four 😮 crazy good

[@Epicfuzz]

The new Korg may challenge the SP404 if they lower the price

[@BIGUMAMI]

they gotta lower the price to AT LEAST 699 and add a sequencer otherwise I'm just not interested...

[@Hakucho64]

What new Korg?

[@bullet0657]

I dont think so

[@BIGUMAMI]

ok! no need to elaborate further.

[@HalfBakedBeats]

Agreed. DT = amazing sequencer. SP = amazing for longer loops (without the worry of running out of space). Equally enjoying both. 😁 🎛️🎵🎛️🎵🎛️ I must admit I also use the SP in pattern mode along with other devices to be able to switch prepped patterns on the fly. Here is a little something just like that with the SP having 4 or so patterns (+ 1 that's a dead quiet one): kzbin.info/www/bejne/l5jSe5Ktetp3ppYsi=ShZZ6-eIAszEmbO0 Your video is making me wanted to sequence SP samples from the DT. Still never tried that. :)

[@BIGUMAMI]

man, I love the sequencer on the digi of course, but I must admit, once you get used to the sp404mkii, it's actually not bad AT ALL. you just need to get out of the "parameter locking" mentality and get into the "resample and save in a new pad" mentality, and with 160 pads at your disposal, honestly it's so good...

[@HalfBakedBeats]

@@BIGUMAMII also like using both, but the thing that frustrates me on the SP is not being able to see the sequenced parameters (sample length, volume). And of course the lack of ability to copy particular steps. So more often then not, it's more difficult to edit sequences after a while (after a few days when coming back to edit a piece, or with too many patterns). So on the SP, beats dry up and solidify quicker on it I guess, for better or for worse. :)