Digitakt purpose?

@boboter made a long video for Patreons about how to use the Digitakt as a synth.

I can recommend it. Opened up a whole lot of ideas for me.

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…have a closer look into ur single cycle wave forms…
keep in mind, without LOOP ON it’s nothing but a very short click u hear at first…
but, wow, once u loop…u got also an almost full fledged synth in front of u…
plocking techniques and filters/fx are endless new sonic terretory once u open a next door on ur way to further experience…and never be afraid of lfo’s all over the place… :wink:

it’s a common thing to get stucked at first, once u’ve tried all the most obvious purposes of a certain piece of gear…
but i can assure u, with elektron gear, the deeper u dive in, the more next new sonic wonderland is waiting for u to be discovered…
too many things u just can’t be aware of yet…no worries…all is falling into their right places…next level of progress is soon to come, if u only dive further in…

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The Digitone is great but it’s an FM synthesizer. It’s similar but very different from your Digitakt. You’re still learning your Digitakt and how to use music equipment in general. You said it’s your first piece of gear. Keep practicing. The Digitakt is a sampler that does other things so focus on what it’s good at. It’s a great piece of gear that’s very capable and you’ll feel more confident and comfortable with your work if you keep practicing.

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I already learned about the LOOP play setting :-)! Thanks! That already opened up a ton of possiblities! Thanks for mentioning it though!

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I hear what you’re saying. Don’t get me wrong; I really love the DT! Being a drummer it really enables me to create nice beats very fast and easy! Just want to be sure I’m not looking for the DT to do stuff that it’s not intended to do.

This is part of the fun of DT for me, because of its synth like routing (just using samples instead of oscillators). But that kind of thing isn’t for everyone. Don’t forget that DT has 8 very capable midi tracks for controlling other gear in perfect sync with your DT beats. A desktop mono synth and a poly would round out the picture if you’d rather use things in their traditional territories. DT has two mono inputs (or one stereo) for other gear and you can add delay/reverb to these signals and everything can be sent to the compressor to glue things together. Lots of options once you’ve explored your DT to the fullest and maybe decided you would like to pair it with something.

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It’s sold as a drum machine but it’s more like a sampling groovebox really. Its capabilities are similar to oldschool trackers.

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No problem! That’s the thing, it can do ALL of that stuff. As you become more acquainted with how to use it, these things will become easier for you :grin:

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Try these as a source for looped synth sounds on the Digitakt

http://www.adventurekid.se/AKRTfiles/AKWF/AKWF.zip

Also check out the creators website here for more info and you can make a donation if you really like them

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In this perspective, the Digitone would be a nice addition I guess…?

Thanks!

If you want digital FM tones, then yes. I used to have both together and loved the combo because of the similar workflow. If you’re going for analog, then there’s Elektron’s Analog Four (4-part mono or 4-voice poly), or something like Moog Minitaur (mono), Dreadbox Typhon (mono), Dreadbox Nymphes (poly), etc etc. Lots of options (Roland, Korg, etc), but explore the DT fully first to make sure another purchase really adds something the DT can’t do and can’t do quickly enough. When researching other synths, I like to sample bits of them from YouTube demos to see if those kinds of sounds work with my DT stuff :slight_smile:

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Also have a listen to this, this is the Digitakt used as a polysynth (all 8 channels with the same sample being played as a keyboard so can play chords - can be done via maxmsp or using a retrokits special midi cable).
But the point is that the Digitakt can sound very nice as a “synth” :slightly_smiling_face:

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Many thanks! Glad you find the patreon feed helpful. :pray:

Awesome! I wanted to start a different topic on this; how to use the MIDI tracks on the Digitakt?! Do I understand it correctly? You have the Arturia plugged into the MIDI IN of the DT? O wiat…I don’t see any MIDI cables…? How…

Very nice. Thanks!

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Not my video, just an example.
Can be done with a computer with maxmsp or retrokits rk002 midi cable. I have done it using reason10 with my Digitakt also. Many ways to do it.

But sorry to confuse the subject, just wanted to show that the Digitakt can produce some great melodic sounds.

When used standalone it can produce all these sounds but only monophonic (no chords). 1 note at a time.

If you wanted to do the same without a computer you could use the retrokits midi cable in loopback mode on the Digitakt (cable plugged from the midi out of the Digitakt to the midi in of the Digitakt), or use any midi keyboard plugged in to the Digitakt (keystep is a good one!)

Here’s a video of the rk002 with the Digitakt (no computer involved):

Thanks man! Maybe I should visit Dave Mech once. I think we live in the same country ;-)… It still isn’t clear to me what I can do with a MIDI controller (I own an Novation Impulse 25) connected to the MIDI in of the DT. As I understand now, the ST MIDI channels are mostly used to control external MIDI devices (i.e. during live performances)?

The link doesn’t work

I was able to download it…