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Elektron-Users Elektron Forum Sandbox writing tracks with Elektrons (1 viewing)
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TOPIC: writing tracks with Elektrons
#69199
214
Boo
Posts: 126
writing tracks with Elektrons 14 Years, 6 Months ago
Curious how everyone writes tracks with their boxes. I'm struggling to find an efficient way. Prior to picking up the Elektrons, I was strictly working in Nuendo and it was pretty easy to arrange tracks, but harder to come up with ideas. The trade off is that now I can come up with ideas much quicker on the boxes, but find it harder to actually arrange my patterns into tracks in my sequencer. I'm finding it harder working with audio than with midi and piano rolls, strictly for arranging purposes. I'm having to record multiple audio takes from the boxes to change things up, then string them together. It's especially hard when I have, for example a long decay and delay on the 15th step or so on my 4th bar where it will carry over to first bar and create interesting sounds that way.
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#69200
Killer Beez
Posts: 1128
The home of Future BASF
http://soundcloud.com/ookpikk
Re:writing tracks with Elektrons 14 Years, 6 Months ago
Use song mode, it's fantastic. You can do 90% of the writing on the Elektron, and then add the final touches in yr DAW.
As an example, check Azure ITT at http://virb.com/ookpikk - it's made out of three 2 bar patterns on the MDUW, and multitracked into Reaper.
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#69201
214
Boo
Posts: 126
Re:writing tracks with Elektrons 14 Years, 6 Months ago
that is one section in the manual i skipped initially until i got a good handled on the boxes. i think it's about time to check that section out. How does song mode work if using both a MD and MNM?
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#69202
Yoshi
Posts: 979
MDUW MKII + MnM MKII + OT DPS-1
http://soundcloud.com/earsmack
Re:writing tracks with Elektrons 14 Years, 6 Months ago
I tend to write first on the MM - lay out all my tracks and then come up with an MD pattern to match. I then play them both live into Ableton Live 8. Then I tweak the arrangement a bit in Ableton. I continue by layering additional instruments as needed. This allows me to get the joy of performance and grid-editing in each session.
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#69203
Admin
Posts: 2387
Re:writing tracks with Elektrons 14 Years, 6 Months ago
man, i still have not used song mode and i've had the MD for well over a year and the MnM for quite a while. I think it's time...

I've run into the arrange problem too. it often just leads to abandoning cool patterns or endless twekaing without actually capturing a performance or track.

i've heard some great stuff sone with it.
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#69204
214
Boo
Posts: 126
Re:writing tracks with Elektrons 14 Years, 6 Months ago
reading some of song mode, it looks like this is def the best route. question on song mode, does anyone know if during song mode you can hit function+parameter for live tweaking or does that only work in pattern mode?
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#69205
Yoshi
Posts: 979
MDUW MKII + MnM MKII + OT DPS-1
http://soundcloud.com/earsmack
Re:writing tracks with Elektrons 14 Years, 6 Months ago
You can live tweak in song mode.

In some tracks I'm doing with an acoustic guitar player I'm using the MM - have all the tunes programmed in song mode so I don't have to deal with muting and unmuting and changing patterns. However, I can still live tweak any tracks and also enable/disable arps which is nice for doing build-ups and whatnot. Song mode can take some of the work off your hands allowing you to do other things.
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#69211
GYS
Game & Watch
Posts: 1829
Do dumb shit with glow sticks.
www.soundcloud.com/gys
www.virb.com/gys
Re:writing tracks with Elektrons 14 Years, 6 Months ago
Song mode is where it's at. Love it to death. I wrote this all from the MD's song mode, sequencing the internal sounds plus external synths:

http://soundcloud.com/gys/tyrants

Did the efx and mastering using Logic, but the song structure and all sequencing was 100% from the MD.

I came from using Reason for everything. It was nice to see the "piano roll" and get a big picture, but I've found that song mode in the MD makes me work differently and get more creative with what I've got.

Try writing a few patterns, then cutting them up in song mode to create fills; for instance for a 16 step pattern, go 5-8, 1-4, 9-13, 15-16, 15-16. My track above uses a total of like 4 patterns, but cut up creatively using song mode.
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#69212
Game & Watch
Posts: 2113
Re:writing tracks with Elektrons 14 Years, 6 Months ago
Audio is my clay. I just can't get with writing a full track by sequencer. I may sequence up a few lines on the MnM or drive it with some madness from Numerology, but I render them to audio right away. More often than not though, I just prefer to play the MnM from a keyboard - again this gets moved into the audio realm immediately as I don't like working with midi either. In fact, unless it's the main melodic anchor of a track I often don't even record the midi.
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#69213
214
Boo
Posts: 126
Re:writing tracks with Elektrons 14 Years, 6 Months ago
cheers, this is great help. song mode homework reading this weekend for sure.

has anyone used song mode with both a MD and MNM simultaneously?
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