#82

I would echo @mcpepe 's reply. I’ve had the OT and I currently have the Deluge.

In terms of arrangement, which I don’t think anyone has touched upon yet, I’ve found the D to be far easier to set up and use, and flip in and out of the arrangement to improvise elements of songs.

It also loads songs instantly which makes it great as a live set brain.

Layering and manipulating samples, arranging them into kits or incorporating them into synths is a piece of cake.

I love my Deluge!

And…battery power :grin::grin:

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#83

Thanks for the reply, and apologies for delay replying.

I love the SP for live performance, but I’ve not got in to it as a compositional tool. It’s great for twisting and playing with samples though! The effects are very cool.

#84

@12eightyseven it’s those “hallelujah” moments I’m attracted to! I know a few people that have used the Octatrack, been really frustrated and ready to sell then suddenly it all drops in to place. Tying together disparate sounds, mangling them and arranging in to something unique.

Does the Digitakt have similar moments at all? I’ve understood it more appropriate for one shots and single samples etc… rather than mangling and turning in to something new etc…? What do you think?

@mcpepe Thanks for the detailed reply, really interesting to read. Sounds like a rally fast and creative tool.

How do you find it for recording jams / live playing and then mangling further for example? Does it work as well for that or is it better to pre-load the samples on to the Deluge?

How is the warping?

Is slicing just done in to equal segments or are there other options? Can you control the start and end of the slices?

That’s an awesome video, thanks for sharing it.

@sarmism great to get the feedback on arrangement, it’s a big part of what I’m looking for from my next device.

How do you find it for using like I would use an Octatrack - basically recording sounds or lines from my synths directly and mangling and arranging them? Is the Deluge more appropriate for just arranging samples or can it be more creative and generate new and surprising things like the Octatrack?

#85

You can get quite forensic with start and end points, down to single cycles, reverse, pitch shift, time stretch, eq, filter, effect. You can have a sample as long as your song as a background texture and others coming in and out of a sound scape. You can trigger them polymetrically so there is no discernable repeatability. Or you can sample fixed lengths to fit in with your underlying rhythm.

I’ve done all the above and use single shots for percussion, stabs etc. I very much enjoy sitting in public places recording with the contact mic and mangling my field recordings in almost real time.
I haven’t even got as far as live looping yet but that’s very much a thing too.

If I’m honest I can’t recall the exact depth of sample mangling in the OT, I never got as far into it as the D. I’m hopelessly biased as you can see!

It might be a case of playing with both and working out what works for you.

There is a Deluge world tour with lots of users meeting up coming in 2020…might be a venue near you?

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#86

Good question! Made me think about it… I don’t have many if any hallelujah moments with the Digitakt, because it usually does what I want it to the first time.

In this way the Octatrack feels more like when I’m deep in a modular patch and have gotten sidetracked from what I had set out to accomplish. This could be very much me though, I’ve seen plenty of videos where folks who put the time in know what they are doing and can talk through every button press, I wonder if they would say the same thing about the beautiful accident possibilities.

#87

I don’t sample live, but this Jamuary I want to try it and learn how to do it. The new 3.0 firmware from the Deluge has new live looping features and the little I have tried seemed to be easy enough. I even tried the built-in mic and it is not bad at all. On the other hand, I was never able to understand the sampling workflow with the Octatrack.
Slicing is done in equal segments, and you can move the start and end of the slices, though you cannot automate it yet. When you slice a sample, the Deluge creates a new Kit, and you can sequence and alter every slice as you want, apply fx, pitch, reverse or move the start and end… Also remember you can aply random and conditional tricks. All of these is always very easy to do.
This is another jam I recorded today. It’s great to use the Deluge outdoor on batteries, whenever you want. And also all the performance is recorded live in the SD card so you don’t need extra equipment. These are little plusses you don’t have with the OT.

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#88

I tried live sampling yesterday, but I have yet to learn it better. I was able to record, reverse and apply fx without stopping the sequencer.
I wanted to use the looper feature, but I think you have to loop sequences of the same duration and I didn’t want to do it for this track. Also, the melody I had in my mind had a pick-up note and I didn`t know how to face it.
I used a Shure SM-57 for easyness (not the best mic for recording piano) because I simply had to connect it to the mic minijack of the Deluge. It was easy and quick, and I didn’t need an external preamp. But with an external preamp I would have had a better quality recording and more control over gain. Next time maybe.

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#89

Im guessing most deluge users are already aware of this pack, but if youre not - its highly worth checking out. I bought it and am really impressed with what these presets get out of the synth engine. I was honestly considering selling my Delly, but now im definitely keeping it awhile longer.

and the 2nd pack just got released btw.

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#90

The first Boards of Deluge were a delight and really opened up the kinds of stuff i make with it. I do wish it was a little easier to see what these patches were doing with the synth engine, but jeez the Deluge can be a little inscrutable. I guess more time with it and making more patches from scratch will help. Thanks for the heads up on the second preset pack

#91

its inscrutability is my biggest point of contention. Ive got enough going on in my life that i dont want to spend THAT much time trying to learn its nuances. I also absolutely hate the display.

that said, these new sounds are definitely worth playing with. And I secretly love that the first preset of the 2nd pack is basically the exact synth patch for Everything In Its Right Place.

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#92

I find I can work around the lack of a real display pretty well for the most part, but there are some things that bug me, mostly due to not being super familiar with the deeper aspects of it as I’ve just had it a month and a half.

I wish there was a way to favorite synths and kits, because at current I’ve got soooo many synths in the preset that it takes forever to find what I’m looking for if i don’t know what name or number it’s under.

It’s everything I’ve wanted in a sequencer and drum machine tho, so I don’t have any regrets or pains with it by and large, but it does so much and I’m putting in time on learning how to do it all. It just takes time lol

#93

I’m thinking of a deluge to be my gear brain, was hoping the Digitakt would do that but although it sounds great I think I need to sequence it from elsewhere. Want the xox and big grid without losing trigs. Although I do wonder how you’d do parameter locks with an external sequencer, and how I’d cope without them.

I really don’t want to go back to a DAW.

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#94

I wish there was a way to favorite synths and kits, because at current I’ve got soooo many synths in the preset that it takes forever to find what I’m looking for if i don’t know what name or number it’s under.

This! I don’t mind the small display when I’m sound designing and playing, but finding the right synth and kits? I wish there was some kind of tagging or directory structure to group synth and kits into favorites, bass, pads, keys, etc…

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#95

you could add something like fav_ at the beginning of the name. When loading a synth or kit you have to type fav and then you can scroll through all your favourites. Could be a workaround

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#96

I’ve started adding “zz_” to my favorite synths so they’re at the end. Just twist the knob left and you’re there. That said, today’s task is to cut back a ton of the presets and patches I’ve accumulated the last month.

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#97

Yes, that’s a workaround. But unfortunately I can’t rename synths on the Deluge, right? I could rename them on the SD, but that would break all songs using this synth/kit.

#98

I think you won’t break all the songs using this synth/kit, because every song when is saved retains a copy of all the synths/kits used in this song. So you can have a modified version of the synth presets used that is different in every song.
Sorry, my english is not very good.

#99

There is now another synth pack from the same author. I bought the first pack and they were very very good, so I am going to buy this pack #2 too.

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#100

I think you won’t break all the songs using this synth/kit, because every song when is saved retains a copy of all the synths/kits used in this song.

Right, I got this mixed up with samples, which are referenced by filename.

#101

Just ordered one of these last week and I’m super stoked, going to be picking up the Boards of Deluge preset packs as well as some other presets and sample packs from the Synthstrom forums when mine arrives in early June. I’m also watching Loopop’s FW 3.0 walkthrough video(s) and plan to read through the official producer’s guide prior to receiving my Deluge, which I figure should give me a good head start on figuring out the workflow.

That said, I thought I’d poke my head into this Lines thread to see if all of you current owners have any insights for a newbie (this is also my third synth ever, so I have a lot of learning to do!) To that end - do you all have any wisdom to share with a Deluge newbie, such as synth preset recommendations, favorite sources for sample packs, workflow advice, or even good companion tools (MIDI controllers, other synths, effects boxes, etc.) to purchase in the future?

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