Review: DIGITAKT II vs OG Digitakt // Everything new in Digitakt 2 // Detailed tutorial
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- čas přidán 12. 05. 2024
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TIMELINE:
0:00 Intro
1:10 New pages
1:45 KB button
2:10 Preset/Kit
2:40 128 steps
3:00 Overbridge?
3:40 16 audio tracks
4:40 Stereo
4:50 Storage
5:40 Sample pool x8
6:40 Kits
7:00 Perform kit
8:25 Stretch machine
9:55 Filter machines
11:40 Comb filter
12:30 Euclidean seq
14:10 Trig modes
16:20 Page loops
17:10 Prepare mutes
17:55 New FX
19:00 Bypass compress
19:55 Control almost all
21:00 Glide/glissando
21:25 Expression mods
22:10 MIDI learn
23:10 Name CCs
22:45 New LFOs, env
24:00 Trig conditions
25:00 Chains & misc
25:35 Pros and cons
29:00 Factory patterns
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16 cowbells in stereo, I'm ready!
128 times!
Drop that tempo down and make the ultimate drone synth
a dynamite sound 🧨
don't forget to resample them all into one track, then do the same for all 16 tracks. That way you'll have 256 layers of cowbell. You'll have all the moosic you need
We need more cowbells!
Well, time to sell my Digitakt I that I've never used to buy a Digitakt II that I'll never use.
Yeah that sums up my experience perfectly. It was a total pain in the arse, still own it and I still haven't made it integrate with anything
I need to answer this...Digitakt is great..u guys miss out all the fun and perfect for live setups...its limited, i know. But i make great tracks with it..and still one of the better samplers..great midi device too
@@tobi-y7862 I need to answer this - a fair point… I think my issue was initially the steep learning curve which I got over, but my main issue was that most track builds used all 8 slots, mono, the delay / reverb was the only way to make stereo (sensibly) and then you hit the ceiling unless midi’d to other toys. Then it becomes a mixing nightmare as it’s just 2 outputs. The new DT2 should address a lot of the issues for me, as I really want it to be standalone.
Electronic music scene in a nutshell.
I want to thank you loopie from the bottom of my heart ❤️ you are amazingly generous with your mastery of everything synth and drum machine
I love how you can choose how many midi tracks you want rather than being stuck with eight.
When we forget history, its easy to say that. They long have had the formula, now capitalism is awry at elektron HQ. This is sad.
@@bernardlindeman739 Chill out.
@@bernardlindeman739 I’m aware of that, Ive owned a MachineDrum since the first year they were produced and it had the same functionality, to which I assume you are referring.
@@bernardlindeman739 I bought a Machine Drum the first year they came out and Im aware it has the same ability, I suppose that is what you’re referring to. Now if they excluded it on the first version of the Digitakt due to greed is debatable, however I would assume it was nothing more than the fact that it was a design they thought people would like…. 8 sample and 8 midi.
An MPC60 from 1987 had four separate midi outs, each with 16 channels. Thats 64 poly midi channels. Confuses me why Elektron locks down so many machines with ultra limited midi channels.
It’s a good update. It’s almost like they’ve been listening to the community for the last 7 years.
But DT1 owners are not happy now.
@@noizekiller I’m a DT1 owner since launch. I’m fine. It doesn’t change what I can do on my DT.
It’s not an update it’s a new machine. As a DT1 owner I’d be happy if they were able to just add stereo to DT1. But they didn’t so I’m pissed off and going to angrily give them money.
@@noizekiller yeah, down with progress ✊
@@colinbrash are you sure its possible hardware wise?
That was great. Ordered.
So impressed with the usability upgrades too
And no slicing didn’t stop you? Sampler… in 2024. No slicing.
@@roman13rooms if you think about it more as a drum machine... it is still the most selling elektron ever
Loopop with the digitakt 2 scoop 🙌🏻🙌🏻
Thanks so much for the video! Very interested in this, Digitakt is so fun but the mono samples especially were a real downer.
Waw what an update!
And as always, the best reviewer!
Saw this was leaked last night, woke up to a loopop review. Everything is good in the world.
Except for the wars
Great. Can’t wait to get a used one next year!!
Standard great review. Worth being a Patreon to keep these coming...
Much appreciated!
As always, nicely done. Great comprehensive review, @loopop.
Great update, review and demo 👌🔥🤘
Great breakdown as usual! Thank you! I've owned the Digi 1 since the early days and have been quite happy with it but always had the shortcoming in the back of my mind. This 2nd version really becomes a very mature product and a very versatile tool for studio as well as live PA and amazing bang for buck in my opinion.
That comb filter looked pretty sweet
Very impressive review !
I love the clickiness of the buttons on that thing
They stick after a while
Me too, but my wife says she can hear them across the apartment and it drives her crazy 😅
@@vit41iq I could imagine! Lol I had to get the new Asus keyboard with sound dampening in it for that very purpose
Really? I think they are ridiculous. The rubber buttons on my mc909 and tr6s are much better
@@vit41iq Have your wife soundproofed. Lag her in baffles. Things are afoot.
Great review 👏🏽
Definitely buying
Once i saw the announcement, went straight to youtube. Loopop never fails 😁
You had me at the unwritten rule for the cowbell 😂. Cool stuff and thank you, as always, for your review. This helps with important decisions about wallet contents for many people. ❤
As long time octatracker mk2 I will say that whole video my eyebrows was up - so much pain and impossibilities on octatrack they solved here, and I’m not overreacting, just cold minded conclusion.
Thank you for deep tutorial!
There is SO much good stuff here.
Hmmm 🤔 instead of upgrading my Ableton license I might do this 😅 great overview as always ❤
From random rumor I didn't pay much mind too earlier this week/last week - to a Loopop video in my feed after work? Nice. On the list it goes for possible future consideration.
As usual great video and what a fantastic update to beloved Digitakt, seriously a no brainer!
Digitakt supporting stereo samples : thats enough for me.
FR, digitakt 1 seemed like the perfect sampler, but mono only turned a no-brainer in to a no-way-I'm-spending-a-grand-on-that
@@OttosTheName polyphony > stereo. Even stereo, there is no way I spent more that a grant for a monophonic sampler. Still a show stopper for me.
the future is now 🤣
@@pablobarria296no, the present is now
@@pablobarria296😂 i know & folk still aren't satisfied, i mean back in the day u were lucky to get a couple seconds of sampling!!!
Ha. I just bought an sp404mk2 thinking that was my best option for getting steel samples into my sampling rig. Excited about this but also loving the sp
Nice review and tutorial! Thanks for sharing. One thing I noticed was for the "conditions" were updated with new features however the max is still only 8:8 I was hoping to see maybe them give us a 12:12 or even 16:16, considering we can now utilize longer samples and now have up to 128 steps! 😢
I hope some of the less cpu intensive QOL changes can be ported to the digitakt 1. I will get one, but there is nothing so far that makes me NEED one right now. That pleases me and my growing debt burden.
hardware insturments in todays world is not a need.
You made this faster than I preordered it 😅
Well they sent him the unit so don't feel tooooooo bad... with your new instrument 🤤
As a Digitakt OG owner, I think the Mk2 is a great update, some of my fav features are the euclidean mode, and of course the extended pattern range to 128 steps and not to mention the 16 tracks for sampling, although, does it make me want to upgrade, probably not at this point, what would have been great is, and this is just my opinion, an internal battery, making this truly portable. I must say, the one update i am really looking forward to, if there is one, is the Octatrack v3. great video as always.
@@StatetrooperBillyBilli am definitely buying this for my syntakt right now.
@@StatetrooperBillyBillhm unfortunately the install on a syntakt would be more risky due to less space, higher power consumption and more heat. I’ll get a powerbank instead.
I got a USB to 12v cable so I can power my digitone and a controller from a battery bank, it's pretty nice and lasts many hours.
@@StatetrooperBillyBill thanks, I shall explore that for sure!
@@sunsettribe If you build one, use heat shrink and not the plastic battery holders or it won't fit. I did the battery mod. Super easy.
When he got the filter machines I started looking to see who has them for sale. WOW. I wasn't going to get one, now I have to have one.
loopop review are the only review worth watching. He goes over everything and isn't just hyping it up he's just giving us facts.
the comb filter would definitely be nice. also the ability to have a filter to play with whilst also applying a notch
Great update, truly. I'm bummed there's no SD card support though. I just want all my samples in one place. 20GB internal storage is a big improvement over the original, but I just know I'd spend too much time swapping around sample packs
Yea Bang on! an SD card slot is all i wanted! & would have clinched it for me I dont want arbitrary limits on my sounds and filtering through them to fit takes to much time....20Gigs though by electron standards is a massive upgrade so for many it will be enough for many... but an SD Slot would have solved all storage complaints!
Didn't even have to watch more than 10 mins of this before going to Thomann. Phenomenal update for a legendary machine.
It's sold on Thomann? Haven't noticed.
Good one, I did the same after 5-7 min I guess 🤣
The same.
yea thanks it sold out in a hurry. :P
Also legendary price nearly 1K.
Ok so questions on external input not covered:
1. Does external input go through master drive?
2. Can you use the compressor bypass on external audio?
Thanks for your great job!
Wow I really like the sound of that multimode filter.
Love that kits is add on to previous workflow. :)
OMG. I still haven't managed to update my Analog Four & Rytm to the MK2 versions, and now this thing appears. My backlog is growing.
Thanks for a killer walkthrough @loopop ! I haven't been able to find anywhere: do you know if the midi thru passes PB/AT, etc. on the new machine? That's been a weird drawback of the first model (all the "takt" machines in fact). I've tried to use my midi channels as a synth selector of sort to use my Hydrasynth as a master keybed, but I've had to do some weird workarounds with my mioXL to still pass Aftertouch to the hydrasynth....
...i fast-forwarded to the compressor section (since no multi-outs). With effective sidechain I'm In.
Totally. The sidechain compressor that also squashed the sound that triggered it was infuriating.
Great video, thanks!
@loopop
Looks really good.
One thing I find missing is an FX track.......
Since they are going all in on the machines idea, they should really implement an FX track as a selectable machine, like the sampler and midi machines.
And also I think they should have left the isolator filter as a second filter. Filter 1 is the selectable on and then filter 2 is the HP/LP isolator filter.
Anyway.... Really cool thing 🙂
It looks like what everyone wanted! Dope stuff
Awesome video man. I’ve always liked Elektron but the hardware always seemed like a riot to use. The little changes in workflow etc have clicked with my brain for some reason in the Digitakt II though so I can finally add them to my ever growing gear list!
To clarify, this is the gear wish list we all have in our heads. Not some opulent home studio set up with all the synths hahah!
Means the other boxes in line with the Digitakt MKI will also be upgraded some time soon.
I think now we can forget an Octratrack 3
does it have multiple inputs and outputs??
Its logical man. They improve on what sells
Still not for live sets so dont worry
@@rijksvoorlichtingsdienst4427 why not?
Ye I’d bet money there’s still an OTIII just beyond the horizon. The DT and OT fulfill significantly different use-cases. I just hope the next OT has full overbridge support!
I see a lot of nice things to come to my Syntakt as well..
Yes! Hopefully!
Value, value, value.... again and again. Thanks for your incomproable quality and delivery over all these all these years!
Great demo of cool new features! Does prepare mute and/or a sample trig for a longer audio sample have an option to launch on the next downbeat like ableton clips?
Thanks! No, but that's what different patterns are for - pattern swaps are "quantized"
Pretty good. I'm tempted to sell my DT to buy one of these, but I suspect in the coming weeks the price of a second hand DT will plunge.
Correction: Both Polyend machines are cheaper than DT mk2. in the US at least. Great vid as always.
Fantastic overview !
"Crossfades for loops to avoid clipping" : thx for saying that loud ;)
Really hope some of those QoL features and the chorus effect make it on to the Syntakt in a future update
Nice! It now competes with the Sp404mk2!
mind-blowing. bravo. little surprised no elk-herd-like sample&project management though
Cool review 👍I keep my mk1 but soon i go mk2 ❤
Definitely more than an update from the last version!
I wish they implemented buffers on the digitakt like they have on the OT. Live sampling into buffers and chopping/sequencing them on thr fly makes the OT a true instrument.
Thank you! You just saved me $1000. I have an original and I think these updates are great but don’t justify the cost of an upgrade. Awesome for new users though. A lot of these features could have been a firmware update. I wonder if some will make it back to the original digitakt.
My pleasure - I aim to tell it like it is! BTW I don't think stereo, double the polyphony, more RAM/storage and mods can be firmware updates... but this certainly doesn't make the original less capable
@@loopop totally agree! The new FX, Kit system and the Euclidean stuff could be back ported though.
@@ryanriley8173 Well you would need to know architecture of hardware to know that
Hoy! Thanx a lot! Your videos are reference class!
It would be hard to offer an equal major update to the octatrack. Sadly I think an granular mode will stay in my dreams and in no competition to torso S4 😢
It would be the killing factor to OT and DTmkII
Greetings and thanx lot
And I thought I wouldn't see this for a week or a month.
Hopefully they beef up the AR and make a 3 with all these extra channels and super fun stuff. I don't care if they just have 8 analog channels but 16 total.. would be amazeballs with all the extras on the new digi
All I ever wanted. Ordered
All I want is an Octatrack with 32bit sound quality and Analog heat +fx grade effect per channel.
Awesome review as as always and Many cool things, but still no sync mode during sampling ? It would be very cool not to have to stop the sequencer to record loops 😢
Thanks and it would!
As an original Digitakt owner, this new one is definitely a nice upgrade... but the upgrades don't fix most of the issues I had with the original. It takes me forever to start, compose, and finish a song on my Digitakt, compared to other devices. So it's hard to imagine myself choosing an Elektron device again, especially considering how much more its competitors offer for the same or lower price.
Really?
I guess it's not issues then and the workflow just doesn't work for you.
For me, the killer is that the UI is basically the same. The extra stuff is nice but nothing compared to the benefit that rethinking the entire interface would have, especially if they employed a competent designer rather than the deranged lunatic with a profound hatred of Elektron customers responsible for the first one. At the end of the day, it's just a very basic tracker obfuscated by a ridiculous interface.
Think i'd rather have 5 Circuit Rhythms - cost the same, does 95% of the same stuff but with 40 individual tracks and, yay, an actual useable workflow.
Edit: Five Polyend trackers would work too, would do so much more.
To really be at home with these machines a level of discipline, preparation and determination that is unlike what is typically required (from tools that are less advanced or more streamlined) really matters. What you get in return for your energy investment is an access to a "system" that allows you to generate extremely personalized intricate results that would otherwise be effectively inaccessible. I don't believe the problem you're experiencing is due to a flaw with the machine's design itself. It seems like it might have more to do with the level of preparation that you're willing/expecting to put into your tools before actually composing. If you want to really "integrate" that machine and get a positive experience out of it, I suggest considering splitting your music making sessions entirely to focus either on your setup/preparation/building a strong cohesion with your sounds (and then taking a 30 to 60 minutes pause or calling it a day completely) OR composing. When your setup is already cared for, the next time you start your session your preparation time is basically zero and your mind can focus strictly on composing and being spontaneous, with sound design taking more of a backseat and requiring less "mental bandwidth". If you can manage to enjoy your preparation process just for the sake of it (be Zen while doing it really!), and to build a more intimate connection with each sound you choose, without the urge for "producing" something, your dynamic with your Digitakt might change dramatically for the better and over time you might become much more efficient at setting your Digitakt up. It's VERY EASY to feel like we have to absolutely "produce" something or otherwise we might feel like we didn't get the "kick" we were looking for out of our session which often causes frustration, but clinging onto such emotions is unfortunately a symptom of a slave mentality. If you can't see yourself even considering something like that, perhaps letting go of the Digitakt entirely might just be the right thing to do, as these machines definitely are not for everyone and that's neither good or bad.
@@andesneko You're right about the Elektron workflow. For me, it's work but not flow. So I switched to a Force and I'm loving it. I can go from a song idea to a demo before breakfast, while on the Digitakt the same thing would take most of the day. Then the Force has all the tools I need to finish the song, while on Digitakt I'd have to record into a DAW and do that stuff on a computer.
On a Force, I tap in a tempo, hit record, then hum or beatbox an idea into clips real-time, occasionally tapping a new row to split it into scenes during recording. Then I convert that to instrument tracks, by playing real-time while recording midi. Add drums, also real-time, and mute the original voice track. Maybe scroll through some patches to pick sounds I like, or record some tracks from external gear. Adjust mixing and fx, then perform the clips into an arranger. Then render it down to a .wav, mount the Force's hard drive over wifi from my computer, copy the .wav, and encode to .mp3. The whole process takes like 40 minutes, and it doesn't leave me stuck in a single-pattern loop wondering what to do next.
interesting.. for me its the opposite. Digitakt interface lets me jam without thinking about the interface and UI at all. One of the only bits of gear where I go in to a zone and then realise ive been making a tune for 2 or 3 hours 🤣
I was waiting for the octatrack 3 but I have to get this one
Dang, that Fabrikøren pattern was wild.
solid update, really looks great! however without some kind of decent polyphony implementation (group tracks, manipulate sample across them) it's a no from me. no manual sample slicing is also a bit of a bummer.
I'm fine with my old Digi though - it's pretty capable, I barely need more features as at the end of the day I also have Syntakt, Akai Force, Ableton and bunch of VST synths :)
There is no doubt that the MK2 has made a big step forward.
Personally, I hope that some basic functions will be available in Digitakt 1. Such as saving kits, glide or euclidean seq.
Great review and summary!
Best Regards :)
Would love to see a Granular sampler added to the machines in the future!
Yes! And a looper!
Really want to hear more examples of the stretch machine. With the extra storage capacity and sample length, can this stretch longer samples similar to the OT, Blackbox, etc?
Nice upgrades.
Would be cool for a few mkii things like Compressor Routings to find their way into a future Digitakt mki update but I'm guessing Elektron won't be doing any more updates for original Digitakt.
Great upgrade, but honestly i prefer the green on black screen, might just scoop up two old ones in the inevitable, ebay surge 😃
I like the werp mode. I do that sometimes in Ableton to simulate tremolo.
I plan on keeping my OG Digitakt, and eventually adding this to my collection. I'll probably wait to get one used, or a sale, though. I'm not seeing anything that makes me need it now. It's still a cool addition to Elektron's collection. I own more Elektron gear, than any other manufacturer. I'm still waiting on them to make an AnalogHeat mixer, or even multi-track recorder/looper. It would be awesome to have a 6-12 track AnalogHeat+FX.
The pattern at 40:21 shows that Elektron recognizes the need for longer sequences which play themselves, where some parts repeat while others change, like clips placed in an arranger... but unfortunately, that sort of thing still requires some pretty awkward workarounds. It's impressive when demonstrated on a Digitakt, but it _shouldn't_ be impressive. It should be default.
Thanks Loopop for the video i am wondering something i see with the pitchbend, breath control, velocity , mod wheel ,aftertouch MODS an opportunity to get PERF mod like the rytm.... Midi out in midi in and then use a midi track to control them but i am wondering if the four parameters that you can assign could be over different tracks or only one ? (i read the manual but cannot figure it out).
Cheers !
As far as I could see it's only in the current track
@@loopop oki thanks a lot
I managed to resist the upgrade for 2 days, before faltering. I am proud of my achievement. :-D
Let’s hope another analog keys in the future!! 🤞🏼🤞🏼🤞🏼
For the Euclidean sequencer, is it “true” Euclidean? The Synthstrom is amazing but, for its Euclidean sequencing, the notes are quantized to a grid - meaning the spacing isn’t actually exactly equal between each of the notes.
Fantastic video, as always!
Thanks! I've not seen a modern implementation of Euclidean sequencing that isn't quantized. I think it gets really messy and non musical without quantization (though that's of course subjective and may be seen as a good thing)
@@loopop Ah, yah that makes sense. I’d seen videos on the Torso T1 and had assumed it was doing perfect even splits. Thanks for the reply! And thanks for how much effort you put into your videos - I’ve poured hours into watching them and they’re always super helpful
@@jacksonmeeks9313 my pleasure - and indeed T1 Euclidean is quantized too
Hope some stuff will be ported to the old one, not the things that requires more power of course but at least some ergonomics and features. Elektron used to be very nice updating the Mk1 firmwares ( AR A4, OT) to every new feature so lets hope
Hype!
The MIDI being able to name CC’s is sweet. Did they make it so a configured MIDI track could be saved as a preset and loaded into another pattern later?
Yes!
@@loopop that’s great. I’ve been wanting to do this for my external synths and midi capable effects!
I’m just wondering. If the factory presets are ever good enough/considered good enough to make it onto an official recording, or whether they’re disregarded in favour of original sound design(?)
A lot of important features for sure. Assuming the effects can apply to line input so I could route Syntakt into it. Might not need AnalogHeat.
the send fx, compressor and master drive apply to the line inputs (not SRR, BR and per track drive)
I hope they offer some of these new functions to the mk1
I just told my boss to direct deposit my paycheck this week to Digitakt
Definitely needs better polyphonic functionality with all these extra tracks! Voice stealing setup like digitone would be amazing.
so nice that now we can have 16 one shots on stereo
daaamn, flexible kits is my favourite thing, with 3 LFOs, life performance heaven
Bought immediately
I bought the ot because I wanted to have stereo samples and I would never regret it, still one of my all time favorites ❤ but the new timestretch on the DT compared to push 3 which was a on sale for only 500€ more is a joke 😂 sounds like they couldn’t afford the zplane algorithms
The compressor update ... finally proper ducking
and it's still just f*cking sidechain taking away the only compressor you have
Thanks for the rundown. A question about audio in: is it now possible to sample from usb?
You're welcome, the answer is yes, but you could sample from USB on the original Digitakt too
@@loopop haha, wait what? you can sample a youtube video for example only by connecting digitakt 1/2 to your pc usb and set it as your main audio interface?
@@nerdsinparties absolutely - computer or phone