I don’t know why, but I have the feeling that I will never find the right tuning for my techno projects with the Digitone? On the Rytm Mk2 I found very nice kick and bass sounds that fit together wonderfully (by ear).
The bass sounds from the Rytm come mainly from the DVCO engine and are slightly detuned (I love that).
But when it comes to the stab or ambient sounds that I want to make to the track on the Digitone, it never really fits together.
Do you also have the problem with the two devices or an idea how I can adjust the right tuning on the Digitone?
You can adjust the tunings easier from the rytm than the other way around.
I personally have no probs getting the DN play nicely with my rytm. How are you connecting the two? Are you running the digitone into the rytm input for compressing both together? That’s how I often do it, and while this approach doesnt give a lot of headroom for the DN, the combined sound can be quite decent IME
Ok so I haven’t connected the two right now. Each instrument goes individually into the MX1.
I will try to use the Rytm input from the Digitone.
I have a DN and just got a AR(mk1). For learning purposes I sampled a ton of DN one shots© and sequences and transferred to AR to focus on my new gem. They sound so good and now I can tune and manipulate as needed. I know this is not ideal setup nor what op was asking but I was pleasantly surprised.
I would say that your issue is more down to sound design and mixing than instrument choices.
IMO, these two machines fit perfectly together. It’s a very nice and powerful combo with so many options soundwise. Here is a small track that I finished recently, using only sounds from Digitone and Rytm.
This one is also all Rytm and Digitone. With heavy use of the Dual VCO.
I think the problem is the sound I created with the DVCO.
It sounds very good with the drums and hats but doesn’t really fit with the sound of the Digitone.
I have built a similar sound on the Minilogue and tuned it to match the bass sound of the DVCO of the Rytm and it worked fine. Too bad I think I’ll have to correct the detuned bass sound a bit to make it fit or let the Digitone melody run over the minilogue.
Maybe FM simply isnt your thing because it sounds like its more of a preference problem than an actual sound design or mixing problem. Have you tried any other FM synths or VST with the Rytm and liked it? Maybe you simply enjoy the sound of a VCO more, not that its wrong, its just preference.
Also dont feel obligated to use the Digitone in everything. I love FM synths but in most cases I will use a Moog or another VCO for my basses and leave the FM to do leads or pads (which to my ears its better at that than basses) but again, that is my personal preference.
One thing that the rytm does very easily is sounding “too big”. You have to be mindful of this when programming your arrangements, or nothing extra will fit the mix anymore. Go easy with the overdrives and comp, and use filters to take stuff out from the sounds that dont contribute anything meaningful ( = remove mud )
Same is easily done with the digitone’s high and low cut filters. Use those to get rid of junk freqs and to get things cutting through the mix more.
I’ve already done well working tracks with the Digitone and other synthesizers.
But there weren’t any strong disharmonies in the game like in some techno tracks.
So far there have been more Melodic Techno and Trance productions.
Now I am producing some dark techno which works well with the Rytm and Digitakt.
Hmmm, I don’t know, I probably would have bought the analog four better back then?
If you are new to the genre maybe your ears are not used to it yet, id say give it some time. Im thinking its not as bad as you may think, ears have to adjust as well specially if you are moving into a new kind of sound.
Dark techno is no probs with DN & rytm. That sound is very much my alley, rytm & DN is a killer combo for it
Yes, I think so too, the sequences of the Rytm and Digitone sound good separately from each other, but they don’t fit on top of each other especially on this track.
I think I’ve gotten so involved with the sound that I’d like to have the sequence together in such a way.
Tomorrow I try it with another synthesizer for this track and do something new with the Digitone. But I’ll start the other way around.
I must say that I am new with Hardware synths, and FM synthesis hasn’t been my strength yet. At the beginning I was busy with the Korg Volka FM but was not quite satisfied with it and sold it.
I started to do acid and trance with Rebirth von Propellerheads in 1996 and bought me a MC303 from my first income. It was all so expensive what you needed to make music back then. Which made me concentrate more on working as DJ.
Now I have a good job and can buy the instruments but have hardly time to do anything with it.
I could cry.
The link was one of my first Projekts created without a DAW on my 1999 brought MC303 and a new TB3.
Now I only use Hardware synthesizers especially those from Elektron.
My first Elektron Device and Jam sessions.