DIGITAKT: making a track from scratch
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 20 ก.ค. 2024
- This is more of a "how it's made" than a tutorial, but I did my best to be informative while making this track. There have been a few people asking me about my process, and I thought I'd try to make a whole track from scratch on camera.
00:00 Intro
01:35 neat way of loading samples and loading drum samples
05:25 Making a basic drum pattern
10:15 Adjust volume for each drum sample
11:30 How I set up patterns for making and trying out beats
13:40 Resampling the 1st drum loop
18:55 Cut and rearrange the drum loop
25:15 Replacing samples quickly to make new drum loops!
28:25 Change drumloop while a pattern is playing to compare them!
31:25 Coming up with a chord progression part 1
33:11 Setting up the first pattern in the song itself
36:15 Programming in the melody into track 8
41:45 Hihat fill trick
43:30 (off topic) how I made my favorite bass sample
45:07 Programming the bassline into track 5
48:05 Making a lead melody on track 8 (and moving the arp to track 7)
53:15 Coming up with a chord progression part 2
58:52 Changing the bassline for part 2
1:01:50 Changing the arpeggio for part 2
1:07:55 Changing the drums for part 2
1:10:40 Making the bass louder to match the louder drums
1:13:00 Figuring out how to arrange the final track
1:15:54 The finished track and final words - เพลง
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I'd definitely like more "deconstruction" videos. I find it easier to learn by watching how it done rather than reading the manual
I'm interested in doing one for the Digitone and one for the Digitakt and Digitone together, but I gotta find enough uninterrupted time and the inspiration to finish a track in one sitting =D
@@IvarTryti what about a diary :) track in a couple of sittings? Great video, glad I stumbled into it. Love your technique 👌🏼
Thank you for this! Fun to see other people’s process.
Thanks for listening, man!
Always nice to see this again👌
Thank you for sharing this. Most thing i learned in this "lesson"... to take the time that it takes...Well done. Love the "atmosphere"....
Thanks for watching! Yeah, getting very familiar with the controls really helps speed things up! When you can do basic things on autopilot, you're free to focus on the bigger picture
Incredibly well made video! I like that you are showing every single step you're doing! Your workflow on the Digitakt is 100% different than mine but that's also what makes it so interesting to watch.
Thank you! I'm glad you enjoyed it. I think it's cool how different people approach it differently =)
Great tutorial and a great track. I'm so happy i've found your channel!
Thank you! I'm glad you like it, both the track and the tutorial =D
Wow this is an amazing video. I need to watch this a few more times to fully understand all your thinking and tricks. Thanks very much for doing this 🙏
Thank you, Adi! I'm glad to hear you found it helpful :)
Wow what amazingly in-depth tutorial , this is excellent , well done :-)
Thank you SJ!
One of the coolest things to do on the DT is resampling internally like what you show here. You get such an amazing vibe. I've been studying your approach to this and really want to come up with some kind of base formula or foundation for my music composition. This is super helpful. Thank you!
Thank you very much, Bob! Internal resampling is such a nice way to just take a snapshot of what you currently have for later mangling, I love it :D
I've been going through this workflow in your video-after owning my DT a couple years now-and leaning some things I didn't know about this instrument. Things I've mostly overlooked. lol! Having the full drum section (or any samples really) sliced up on one track helps create this rhythmic vibe, and opens up the other tracks (like you say). Chikachika...lol! I'm making my own thing loosely based on what you have here, because it's a great starting place. Can I share it with you on Patreon for input, when it's done?
Sorry to sound like such a fanboy. lol! Your stuff is really good and got me interested in my DT again. I was thinking about upgrading to an Octatrack, but looking at the Digitakt in a new way has rekindled my interest :)
@@808owens Sorry about the late reply, Bob! I'm glad you the tutorial helpful. It's a really satisfying workflow once you get the hang of it, I think :D Also yeah man, post the track on discord!
I also want an OT. Not necessarily as a replacement for the DT or DN, but from what I've seen and read about it, it really is a weird, frustrating, amazing box, and I want to experience that :D
Just got my Digitakt, this vid was super helpful in getting to my samples FAST. Love your music btw, cheers!
This is dope. Thanks for this.
Thanks for the kind words!
Thanks so much for this run through, pretty sure I’m gonna get one now. Also I discovered your TH-cam via your Spotify - and I’m gonna buy your stuff on Bandcamp!! Well done sir! Love your tunes and your tutorials!
Hey man, my pleasure. Thank YOU for checking out my videos! It's the first time I've heard of someone discovering me on Spotify, it's usually on a forum or subreddit. That's awesome =) and thank you for the support!
Great video man. Always cool seeing someone else's process.
Thanks, ZuluMonk!
I’ve learned so much from your Digitone videos and am starting to dive into your Digitakt videos since I just picked up one. Love your attention to detail. I’m even starting to follow along with the key commands you’re doing. Haha. Almost...
Ivar! thanks for inspiration! Your way of using DT is awesome!
Thank you very much!
This is an incredible tutorial, thank you so much and I hope you continue making more. Elektron should sponsor you like they do with Dataline.
Thank you very much! I'm glad you found it helpful =D. I really appreciate it
Good stuff, man. As a newbie this kind of content is invaluable.
Thanks a lot! Thanks to the trig+yes combo to preview trigs the workflow has improved a LOT, but I still have the same general workflow :)
Seems like Sundays are Digitakt days! Just watched Aldo’s latest masterpiece and now this! 😁 hopefully gets some new workflow ideas from this. I like the checkbox format; think I’ve seen another vid you did like this. Keep it up! Feel like theres a small Digitakt community emerging on YT! 🤘
Hah, Digitakt Sundays! I also saw it, that was a great track and video! Thanks man, I hope the tutorial was helpful :)
@@IvarTryti I'm watching it in sections, when I have free moments. Re-sampling and double tempo on different patterns is really smart! I get stuck in DAW brain a lot, so find it difficult to visualise some of these workflows. Like how you're cutting the sample up using trigs. Might have to steal that!! : D
@@samshrimpton407 Yeah, it's a bit hard to explain my workflow on the DT when so much of it is going on in my head. The whole "pre-cutting" the sample bit is very convenient, because then you can just copy-paste each trig instead of setting the start point manually :)
Great work Ivar! What a dedication to put something like this up and give so much insight. Some people seem to forget how much time goes into making stuff like this with a press on that demotivating downvote/thumbsdown button. Be sure that most of the watchers will be grateful for this so keep it up mate!
Ps. I laughed a bit when you started a new project and one of your first steps was to go full on that compressor. You tamed it down a bit though haha the end result was great though! Cheers :)
Thank you, Rephazer! Yeah, making this video has really made me appreciate the people who make tutorials even more. Way more planning involved than I expected! Clicking a downvote button takes very little effort, so I try to not to be bothered by it :)
Easing up on the compressor is hard. Almost as hard as quitting nicotine, haha
@@IvarTryti haha yeah, I can imagine.. If I would quit smoking I'd probably put up a couple of compressors in chain as a result.. so just keep the compressor fully pumping mate and certainly if that helps you quit the nicotine haha
And well videoed too 😀
thanks! great stuff as always
Thanks, man!
This is SUPER helpful and inspiring. Would love to see an updated version of this with the new firmware update, which seems to be perfect for this workflow!
Thanks a lot, man! I also want to make a track from scratch video with the new firmware update. I feel the need to rant about how amazing trig preview is =D
Wonderful :) Thank you so much for your music and breaking it down for us...
I'm glad you like it! Thanks man :)
your method is so good and easy to emulate, vs other people who kind of program from feel and kind of make everything look like magic (esp your drum process). Timbaland also explained his very similar beatboxing method in his Master Class but your breaking it down into steps really got it through my head. Thanks for all the vids!
Thank you very much! I'm glad to hear that my process is understandable. I try to structure my tutorials so that I myself will understand it myself decades later =P
I agree, Ivar is pretty generous sharing his workflow with us. Have you taken Timbalands masterclass? I saw the ad and thought it looked interesting.
thank you man don't hesitate to make another video like this !
It's harder to find enough uninterrupted time to record these nowadays, but I want to do more of these!
You do so much with a Digitakt! If you ever got your hands on an Octatrack it would be insane.
Haha, thank you very much! I've had a few people recommend the Octatrack based on my Digitakt videos =D. I'm very interested in it, but I'm gonna have to save up for it!
Bravo!
Would love to see an updated workflow vid on the digitakt 2 🌱
wow - that tutorial seems in the beginning a little bit long winding but now it is an insider tip for me. In my opinion one of the best tutorial videos i have seen! (Think about making a short 3 second intro with the final result at the beginning of your video)
Thanks for sharing this - a lot of tricks and tips to produce a track only with the digitakt (for example i liked most the part at 1:09:00 !)
Also i never thought to make melodies by just detuning my samples ;-)
Nice track.
Thank you, Jimi! I actually thought about making a short "this is what we'll end up with" part in the beginning of the video, but I don't remember why I didn't include it =P. I'm glad you like the tutorial and the track!
This is great! Would love to see you do a video like this with the Digitakt/Digitone combo
Thanks, Adam! So far I have done one track from scratch video using the Digitakt/Digitone combo, but I didn't go as indepth as I did on this video. I'd like to do more videos like this, when I have enough uninterrupted time :D
edit: here's the link! th-cam.com/video/5w0T8VcI3M8/w-d-xo.html
This was captivating. I have no musical experience but I want to jump in, just to explore, and it seems the Digitakt has a more exploratory sound and work flow and would be more forgiving considering it is a sequencer. I'm considering the OP-1 too but the tape feature might really limit me in the beginning.
Thanks a lot, man! I'm glad you found the video entertaining. I agree, I love working with sequencers rather than live recording to 'tape', even if it's possible to go back and touch things up. The Digitakt is really satisfying to use once you get used to the workflow :)
Thank you.
Cool! Thx for this tut! But why do you speed up the tempo to record the drum loops? Just for the disc space?
Thanks, man! It's done mostly for disk space, but pitching up changes the sound, too. The amp and filter envelopes stay unchanged when pitching the samples up. The same happens with the compressor attack and decay, and the reverb length. The bit reduction sounds a bit different too, but I haven't done a proper comparison yet so I can't pinpoint how the sound is changed.
Very nice indeed!
Thanks!
At last :-) Thank you for your time Ivar, putting this one together. Much appreciated. How did you manage to import LoFi Box samples into Digitakt? I thought you need to run FL to use those libraries. Either way, this video is top notch as is your music. I wonder who could give a thumb down to this superb, one of the best DT videos on YT ???
Thank you very much, Mike! The samples I've bought from Image-Line so far have just been collections of wav files, and you can put them on the DT via Elektron Transfer like any other wav files. I'm glad you like the video!
i know that in DAW it would take 15 minutes to make this but i can't stop eyeing and lurking around Digitakt videos
DAWs are definitely way more feature rich and easier to use, but there's something about working with limited hardware that is just really fun and inspiring. I'm a lot faster with FL Studio's piano roll than with the Digitakt, but I tend to get tired quicker. I'm more patient when working on the Digitakt, and as a result I actually finish more tracks on it :)
@@IvarTryti yes and those encoders and button click sounds are so satisfying by them self already.
I was wondering if it’s possible also to program snare a bit off beat ? Kind of like j dilla drums ?
I’m pretty sure I’ll buy DT. All those MPC and Maschine samplers are all the same. DT is really different in a way I like very much.
@@IvarTryti and yes your videos have a great style and you’re a great tutor.
Thanks, man! Yeah it's possible to shift trigs off grid. You can go as far as nearly overlapping the next or previous trig. I do this a lot as part of a trick to sort of turn a 64 step pattern into a 128 step pattern.
@@IvarTryti thanks. That’s awesome. I just hope they don’t release MK2 as soon as I buy digitakt haha
relaxing.
Thanks, Paul!
That was an amazing tutorial. It helps me decide if I 'll get a Digitakt after all. I would love to see you make more tutorials with Digitone also, and something about the Overbridge. Keep it up!
THank you, Miltos! I'd like to do more tutorials too. It takes a lot more effort than just recording a new track, so I need to plan ahead and find time to record another tutorial. I'm thinking about doing a Digitone tutorial next :D
Thank you for this video Ivar, much appreciated! I'm curious why do you resample your original beat and make it twice as fast and then slow it down again?
Thanks for watching, pasz! The main reason is to save disk space. The DT only has 1gb of space, so doubling the speed halves the size. It also makes the sample a bit more lofi, which I like.
I still haven't tested this yet, but I think the bit reduction sounds different when applied to a double speed sample. Some parameters like reverb length, delay time, the compressor's attack and release, etc. remain the same when speeding up, so when you slow it back down to normal speed, it'll sound different. It's not an exact science, but I do like the messy results :).
@@IvarTryti That makes total sense, gonna try it.. muchas gracias!
Hey Ivar, thanks for yet another great tutorial. I could ask many many question but I'll keep it just samples.
1) What was the the sample pack or collection you mentioned at the beginning LofiBox?
2) What was your piano sample? it has a real cool vibe and of course sounds amazing...
I'm starting do have some success with your drum resampling workflow
Thanks man, I'm glad you found it helpful! Yep, it's The Lo-Fi Box by Image-Line. The piano sample us just a C7 note from FL Studio Mobile's piano sound. The piano sample itself could be from any piano, just pick a high note. I think pitching down a high note sounds better than pitching up a low note. Hope that helps!
Hi Ivar, why do you resample the tracks? You could just exchange the sounds also on the fly and do a save - reload pattern action to compare it.
Hello! There are a couple of reasons: first, it frees up tracks to do other things, like more drum variations or melodic stuff. Second, a resampled loop that has been chopped up and rearranged has a very hip hop/trip hop sound to it, because each drum hit contains the tail end of the previous drum. Third, it lets me switch between entire drum 'kits' easily by just changing one sample. Hope that answered your question!
Hey Ivar, any chance you can help? I'm super confused about where your compressor comes in in this process - do you compress before resampling or after? Or both? Thanks and keep up the amazing work
great tutorial! How do you record? straight from Digi to PC via overbridge? What DAW?
Thank you! I'm recording video and my voice with my phone, using a cardboard box, a stick, hammer and rubber band as a camera stand (like this: imgur.com/a/aHkD3Xv). I use the Digitakt as an audio interface which requires Overbridge to be installed, and record its audio directly into FL Studio. I'm just taking the Digitakt's main L/R out into a stereo channel in FL Studio, hit record there and on the phone, then combine them in Davinci Resolve which is a free video editing program. I made this video a while ago though, and back then I just put them together in Windows Movie Maker.
Good job! Really like the piano sample! Library? :)
Thank you, Jorge! I sampled it directly from FL Studio Mobile. The notes I use the most are C7 and C6.
Insane video. So you basically imitate old school sampling by playing the drum loop faster and pitching it down? Its all very interesting.
Thanks a lot, man! Yeah, pitching up before sampling saves space and lowers the fidelity of the sample. This is usually not good, but I think it works great for trip hop.
Thanks
Thanks for all the positive comments, theinvisibleman! Really appreciate it :)
Very nice process...how would you include voices?
Thanks, man. I haven't used voices before, but I have recorded guitar, bass and flute into the DT. I think the main thing I would focus on is making the length of the samples long enough to fill exactly 16 or 32 steps. That way I can assume that moving the start point around 15 units at a time, I'll be "on time".
Ur tutorial are fucking great ! we even learn more than just digitakt function
Thank you! I'm glad you found it helpful =D
What's the reason of resampling faster and then pitching down? Does it sound different or just done to spare memory?
It's mostly to save space on the drive, but it also affects the sound. Tha quality is lowered, which is fine because I like the lofi sound and I usually add in high end with bit reduction. If you prefer better fidelity, then you can just resample as is, but you won't save space.
@@IvarTryti thanks for the answer, that is actually very helpful info to me!
Ivar, great tutorial!
Resampled beats sound fantastic, definitely will try that out. Last month I started to get tired of making music on it, because it’s tons of very detailed programming (which sometimes is a plus) and it’s hard to come out with something melodic (for me, at least). No polyphony, no scales, just one octave and not velocity sensitive buttons. Yes, you can use step note programming pressing TRIG, but should also know music intervals. And now I finally understood, that it’s a drum computer after all 😄. It’s perfect for techno and live sets on its own though and it’s good just for jamming, not making a full track on it. Firstly, it’s limitations stimulated my creativity but now that workflow seems to slow, not making-music oriented.
Thanks, Anton! I came from the opposite direction. I'm used to FL Studio which has practically unlimited options, and the Digitakt is really, really limited in comparison. Like you, the limitations stimulated me and I've never been more productive than now (my first DT video is from 4 months ago)! That said, I work a LOT faster in FL Studio, but right now the DT is what keeps me inspired.
Cool
Thanks!
So, how do I use the machine?
where are the sound patches samples used from ..
could you tell me that lofi sample from?
Can the ENV sync to to BPM?
Do you mean filter/amp envelopes? If so, then I don't think it's possible, unfortunately. There are a few LFO shapes you can use as a sort of extra envelope, and those can be tempo synced.
what is it that he's doing around 16:24?
I'm placing a trig on every other step, and then parameter-locking the starting point for each trig so they play different parts of the drum loop.
step 1: kick + ride
step 3: hat (with ride in it)
step 5: snare
step 7: hat
step 9: kick (without ride)
step 11: kick 2
step 13: snare 2
step 15: open hat
This gives me a sort of "template" that I can use to copy and paste trigs to wherever I need them.
Awesome job! How are you recording the audio from the Digitakt? Thanks!
Thanks, Billy! I'm using Overbridge. It let's me use the Digitakt as my audio interface when hooked up via USB, and I'm running FL Studio where I'm recording whatever audio is coming out of the Digitakt's main output.
Did anyone understood anything? Dude how you use the device?
What are the top Five things needed for a drum loop?
It depends on what genre your making the drum loops for, but for for the stuff I make it's:
1. good sounding kick
2. good sounding snare
3. good sounding closed hat
4. compression and saturation to glue the drums together
5. a simple drum pattern where each drum plays at least once by itself
The first three are hard to explain, because even weak drum sounds can be useful, it's just harder to find places to use them. The 5th reason is because I like to slice and rearrange the drum loops, and it's easier to make a new rythm when all the drum sounds are separate.
So were these digitakt samples you were using?
These samples are from a sample pack called The Lo-Fi Box by Image-Line.
@@IvarTryti thanks! I think your vid inspired me to get a digitakt haha
@@s4lome792 hehe, it's a great choice, I think!
great stuff man. a lot of interesting techniques in here.. i really dig the beat and especially the bass, the arp is nice, I just don't really like the melody lead, its a bit cheezy in my mind. the raw beat gets lost inside the piano..
Thanks, man!
Can you run me through how you film your videos, and how you get your audio from your digitakt? Pretty please! :)
Hey, that's a very good idea for a tutorial. Thanks! This is something I could see myself working on :)
Dat snare tho
Okey
do i need to check for hair if i am bald?
Haha, it's safe to skip the first step in that case :D
Specially if you're bald. Otherwise where did the stray hair came from?
All the beats on the Unison commercial suck
Thanks this is helpful..though it would be a lot easier if you slowed down and explained how to load the samples etc. This should be fundamental to a good tutorial...its the menu comands and loading that cause the problem for people. Anyone who understood how that worked would not need to watch the tutorial..because they would already understand the machine. You rush at critical times, when you need to be explaining how to actually acomplish the load etc. This would be the best I have seen if you did that...that apart its headed in the right direction for students. Think along those lines and you are on a winner I think..good effort apart from the above.
Thanks, Martin! When I made this I wasn't exactly sure if I was going to make a tutorial or just a video of me making music "live". I ended up including some tutorial-like stuff, but not enough to call it a proper tutorial. Thanks for the constructive feedback, I'm gonna spend more time on the basic operations next time :)
how bout now you go back sniffing your own farts?
Ivar Tryti - I think you’ve got this just right. It’s not about basic functionality (there are many other videos and the manual to refer to), it’s all about actually making music. And you make excellent music! Thanks.
Thank you, Left Mono! I was worried I'd spend way too much time coming up with a melody, but it went pretty well, I think!
Ivar Tryti - love how you do the melodies, I’ve always played melodies in to sequencers using a keyboard but you get stuck in a rut sometimes, same key, scales etc.
And yes, your melody turned out great! As usual.