Please share your DN track workflow.
I typically use something like the following:
trk 1: kick, percussion
trk 2: percussion
trk 3: bass, pads
trk 4: lead, arps
I am interested in what others do.
Thanks!
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T1: main idea - i start to design a sound thats the “hook” of the song here
T2: intercangable, depends on which sound is T1, can be arp, pad, bass, lead ect
T3: usually its either one of the things mentioned on the top, but also can be used as additional layer of percussion
T4: core drums
I like to arrange them in the order of importance, rather than function or category.
Drums are T4 because its the easiest button to hit quickly.
I know about voice stealing priority but i prefer to manage voice stealing if needed, without planning around it from the ground up. Usually it comes down to making sure long lasting sounds have enough dedicated voices + limiting drum tracks to 1 or 2 voices.
EDIT: im planning to use midi tracks for blackbox once i have an opportunity to get one.
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I use my DN as a synth module along side other gear. So up to 4 synth voices in what ever track im working on. There’s rarely any structure to it.
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My approach is pretty much always: DN Melody + pads > run out of tracks and draft the Digitakt for everything else.
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I use my Digitone to create cheesy accompaniments for beginning strings and band students.
Track 1: A 3-voice harmonization (closed spacing) of the melody. The highest of the 3 voices is the melodic note.
Track 2: Also 3 voices. I use roughly the same chords as in Track 1, but in a different inversion, and in a higher range. I frequently set a UFO on Track 2 to Pitch, set it to 6.0, then transpose the track down 6 half-steps. This creates texture in frequency ranges below and above the melodic range and sounds like a rhythmic ostinato. With some clever filtering, I can create a quasi-arpeggio effect on Track 2, as well. Track 2 is largely responsible for the texture of the song.
Track 3: 1 voice of bass line.
Track 4: 1 voice of drums.
That uses all 8 voices. But, anyone who’s messed around enough with the DN knows that it’s really more than 8 voices, because oscillators within each voice can behave independently when LFOs are applied to certain algorithms, and delays can be placed on the A and B oscillators.
This week, I created a set of pieces without drum tracks, entering chords and using the arpeggiator on Track 4. I have mostly avoided the arpeggiator in my projects.
IMO, the most brilliant feature of the Digitone is he ability to control how all the textural elements fit together.
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I was never able to get comfortable with sound-locking my way through the 4 track limitation of the Digitone. Drums can sound great but I always felt cramped. So I picked up a Syntakt and now I use that for all drums and percussion.
I don’t use any set structure for the tracks, I just start track 1 with whatever voice I feel like writing for first.
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