Compass

[Olivier]

My programming skills lie short of that, but I’d love to implement something along those lines. Perhaps a way to save and recall command sequences + loop points via grid too, to make it playable a la cheat codes.

[glia]

the sequences are short enough that i usually just take screenshot if i stumble on a cool patch

but obviously, buffer content will be different

[Glitcher]

Brilliant work @Olivier ! I’m still learning the Compass ropes but here’s a recording I made tonight (in lock down).

[kveye]

after the last Norns update i’m noticing bit reduction to sound differently. Prior to that it would introduce some beatiful noise around 10 bits and now i need to lower that to 7 and the noise sounds differently. Anyone else notice that?

[Olivier]

Hmm…testing a new version right now and I can’t say I’ve noticed a difference. I had bit depth midi-mapped last night and it sound the same to me. I did notice that turning down my input level has an effect on the bitcrushing quality — maybe check if it behaves the same on your end?

[Olivier]

v2.2 released!

Mostly an under-the-hood update, but a few important things to note!

• Requires norns 200323, as this version utilizes the snazzy new params system. When you head to params, you’ll see a COMPASS section beneath the globals; within that section, compass-specific params have been reorganized (see the params-gif down below).
• To remove clicks when punching in/out, recording behavior has been redesigned to rely on rec_level instead of rec (as outlined by @zebra here).
• Key/encoder behavior has changed a bit to accommodate something I’ve been meaning to implement forever. It always bugged me that selecting a command felt like a bit of a race as the sequence position approached my edit position. Now, if you hold K2 while using E3 to select your command, the sequence will ignore that step until you release K2 to prevent any unwanted commands from being fired. As a result, a couple of common gestures have changed:
  • Use K1+K2 to reset commands
  • Use K1+K3 to randomize commands
• Oh, and an arc fix!

Available via Github link in top post or in maiden’s project manager.

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params-gif

[Glitcher]

Just tried this approach with a Norns shield and a 3" stereo cable, it works well

I recorded a clip to tape with the Gemini app then played back the tape with output patched into input for use in Compass.

Loving Norns and the scripts

[infovore]

Updated Compass from maiden and got a “missing Decimatec” error. Any thoughts?

[Olivier]

Will check it out! Sorry for the troubles.

[infovore]

Nah, it’s my own fault: the rule is, reset the software after installing anything with a new Engine. System -> Reset and it all worked fine.

[Olivier]

Taking a break from packing up the house to get some basic grid functionality set up. Crude (but fun!) access to buffer heads + manual triggering of commands. So long as I get back into Canada safely next week (), I’ll try to tidy this up and get a version out during my mandatory quarantine.

[doomglue]

Here is a little thing I did today involving Compass.

The Touellskouarn Ar Merc’het Brao Stereo Filter/Drive is the only sound source; I sampled/resampled it in self osc with the Boss Sp 303, then “compassed” various takes, sent them through the Ar Mer’het Brao again with various filter and drive settings.
I arranged the result a little bit in the MPC One, very light compression settings. Random pictures of Japan and the set up.

Can’t wait for grid support!

[Olivier]

Amazing! Lovely video, terrific sounds and awesome process — thanks for sharing your notes on this!

[doomglue]

Thanks for sharing your script. It really glued it all together for me.
My favourite thing to do with the sp is to build up sounds, get lost in resampling. It is quite fun to then loosely sequence it with a looper and compass adds that extra magic.

[bereenondo]

This is lovely, and the visuals are very fitting! Did you take the photos yourself? And how are you liking the Ar Merc’het Brao?

I have to try this approach myself, i.e. the idea of using one module sent to Compass for processing and then reprocessing in itself.

[doomglue]

Thanks! I took these photos a while ago in Japan, only added the “set up” picture.
The Ar Merc’het Brao really shines late in the signal process due to its stereo output or in the send of a mixer, it is simply a module in a box with external power, TouellSkouarn offers it as module as well. It has some slight overlap for me to my beloved Oto Boum which I would always take with me when playing live as it is such a headache saver with the low/hi cut and compression capabilities, the Ar Merc’het Brao is probably more lively in the filter department (can be pinged as well) or be used serial, etc.
I cannot really use a supercomplex set up in one session but often love to layer/reprocess material over and over again, be it with the laptop (Argeiphontes Lyre + Soundhack), Norns, or the modular (ER 301 and various filters and fixed filterbanks). I love to arrange these “layers” then in a sampler. I really like the MPC One for that. Of course I could do the same with a laptop or on an iPad.

[SimonKirby]

This is truly gorgeous - both sonically and visually! It also shows off something I love about Compass - it somehow has a characteristic sound whilst still being very flexible in its uses. Like all great instruments I think!

[Olivier]

3.0

Really, really excited to share v3.0, a major update I’ve been working on for the last few weeks, and even more excited to hear what you all do with it!

Grid Control

Back in September, @swhic, @kasselvania and @yobink started offering some amazing grid-centric ideas for the script, but I felt that my coding chops just weren’t up to the task. Well, with a ton of help from the inimitable @dan_derks, I’m thrilled to say grid control is now reality.

With a grid connected, you can now:

• Move the read/write heads around in the buffers.
• Trigger commands by hand
• Toggle the internal clock on/off
• Quickly adjust the length of the command sequence

In addition, there are two banks of pattern recorders to capture all of your gestures.

Reference

Up until 3.0, a few in-app pages were included to give brief descriptions of commands. The approach to in-app reference was completely re-designed for 3.0, focusing on a single interactive page.

As you scroll through the commands with E2, a brief description of each one is printed to the screen. Simple!

But this page isn’t just there for informational purposes – it has a little trick up its sleeve. Here, you can toggle commands on or off to exclude them from your command sequence (scroll to a command and press K2). For instance, if you rarely use the rate-based commands (like me), or the crow commands, you can simply turn them off. Less scrolling!

Note: I recommend setting up your command list at the start of your session, as toggling any command on/off will reset your command sequence.

Manual

Documentation has been completely re-written and re-designed, and is hosted at compass-manual.glitch.me. Please do check it out for a much more detailed overview of the new features, especially grid control.

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Changes

New command: /

I’ve included a new (kinda weird) command in 3.0 – / – that simply toggles softcut’s level up (full volume) or down (silent). It’s completely independent of recording. There’s a new associated param – LEVEL (slew) – that you can adjust from 0s (for hard cuts) to 10s for slow fades in/out. Think of it like opening or closing a VCA. If you like it, great! If not, no worries – you can exclude it

Removing the decimator engine (for now)

During my extensive testing of this new version, I encountered some weird audio issues that took me a while to isolate. Whereas audio sources sounded fine in previous versions of Compass, I was suddenly hearing some kind of clipping/distortion/ducking issue (albeit faint) as of v2.0. Phasing also seemed more pronounced. Lo and behold, disabling the recently added decimator engine fixed things.

As a result, I’ve decided to disable it for this version. I have zero supercollider skills, but if I can work with someone to identify or fix the underlying issue, I’ll officially re-introduce the engine in a future update.

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Have fun, check out the new manual, and let me know if you’ve got any questions!

[noiserock]

Wow! Cannot wait to dive in!! Amazing work. And documentation looks ace.

[Justmat]

@Olivier, this looks incredible! Wowee, I cannot wait to dig in