Anyone using Elektron with Linnstrument?

[MilesParker]

I've always been intrigued by these. They don't support MPE per se, but it seems that you could use a mapping strategy to get expressive control. (And it is a bit intriguing to imagine subtly different timbres for each channel.) But it seems so complex I can't wrap my head around how natural that would be to do in practice.

[John the Savage]

I've certainly seen people controlling Elektron boxes with the LinnStrument:

Analog Four:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=weSZpEgRf4Q

Digitone:
https://youtu.be/Jg_N6-XKQpM

All of the Elektron synths, by default, have monophonic voices per sequence; but they allow for manual voice allocation, and so you can address each sequence/voice on separate MIDI channels, for pseudo-MPE operations. Pretty straight forward stuff really. The only caveat being that whenever you edit a synth parameter on one voice, you must then edit it for each of the other voices. To that end, however, you could set up the important ones on macros.

Gaz Williams uses an A4 in Sonicstate's original review of the LinnStrument as well (16min):

https://youtu.be/PFafNa2-uUA?t=960

And BobDog had a Digitone in his possession for a while too:
viewtopic.php?t=517452

Cheers!

[pdxindy]

I've certainly seen people controlling Elektron boxes with the LinnStrument:

yeah, it is easy to make a 4 voice MPE synth with the Analog Four (I've owned both the A4 MK2 and Keys and still have the Keys). It works well cause the Linnstrument is easy to configure. You just constrain it to the 4 midi channels and away you go! And the A4 has excellent midi support for expressive playing.

I also have a Rytm and Digitone. My recent experimentations with Channel Per Row mode could be interesting with all of them as well. For example, it would be easy to play/control all 4 Digitone tracks in realtime in Bitwig. I could have 2 rows to for one track, each doing different stuff like one an arp and the other live playing... then combine the output onto 1 midi channel for that track. On another track I could use a Linnstrument row with Note Grid so that different notes could trigger different patterns... and so on.

Linnstrument + Bitwig makes a highly capable realtime performative combination.

[MilesParker]

Cool. thanks! That all makes sense. It probably isn't the machine for me, but with the new Song mode I've been becoming more interested. I was particularly interested in the Digitone. Having the ability to have multiple timbres/patches w/ FM synthesis in a single machine would be cool.

Actually, after playing with it recently, I feel like the Linnstrument's built-in sequencing is overlooked / under-appreciated. (Do have some ninor frustrations/feedback, but that's for a different post.) Would love to be able to just sequence from Linnstrument, loop those somehow, swap for another synth/patch while that one plays. I can do that right now using Surge XT -- I've been playing around with it with a drum patch and you can do some pretty cool stuff live -- throw down a series of hits and then change the timbre / velocity etc.. in real time -- but only with two sounds, so of course at some point I will need to have a different sequencer / synth(s).

Excuse the rambling here, but I'm looking at getting a hardware synth and so given above it seems at some point I will need to have a different sequencer as I'd like to be able to do this without being tied to laptop: pretty simple, like drum track, bass and synth(s). Since I want a hardware synth anyway, I was kind of thinking that the Digitone might fill the bill. But there seems to be enough of a mismatch between the internal way that Elektron handles things and the natural way for MPE wants to work that it might be too much of a hassle for an amateur like me. (Deluge would be another option but too $$, big, complex for my needs.)

The only caveat being that whenever you edit a synth parameter on one voice, you must then edit it for each of the other voices.

I think that would disqualify for me, though I feel like I read somewhere that there is a way to change parameters for all tracks.

[Kirilligum]

Hi, I just got linnstrument in addition to my digitone (ditigakt, syntakt) and I have trouble connecting them to have the simulated MPE functionality that would allow me to do XYZ movements and slides. I can't even get slides to work.

my best trial:
Linnstrument:
midi mode: ChPerNote
view: PerNoteCha
MIDI channels: 234
digitone:
assign the same sound to all 4 tracks

note. i found that if i have 1 included into midi channels, I get an empty sound

Could you share your setup on digitone and on linnstrument. if you don't want to type things in, you can just post photos or videos. really appreciate your help. ty!!

[Kirilligum]

ps. I also read through this thread:
viewtopic.php?t=517452

[BobDog]

All my Electron gear is in the "might sell room" at the moment and is not connected so I do not have any detailed help.

I think the best first step is to put your linnstrument in "One Chan" mode, is pitchbend working on the digitone if you do this?

[Kirilligum]

no, not working.

got nymphes to use MPE but I would still like to get the digitone to work

[BobDog]

I would get the manual out and search for bend, there are a couple of sections that might help.

If I get a bit of time later I will grab the digitone and set it up and get back to you...