9.3 EDITING A PATTERN

9. THE SEQUENCER > 9.3 EDITING A PATTERN · PDF p. 37–39 · OS 1.40A
# 9.3 EDITING A PATTERN

9. THE SEQUENCER
in the upper left corner of the screen. Once the last step of the pattern has played, the new pattern will
start, and the pattern position will cease to flash.
•	 Patterns can be changed while the sequencer is running.
•	 Patterns can be changed and queued by sending program change messages.
•	 It is possible to copy a pattern, and then paste it to one or several locations without
leaving the active pattern. You can also clear one or several non-active patterns.
- To copy, press and hold [PATTERN] + [TRIG] key to select the pattern you wish to
copy. Then press [RECORD]. Let go of the [TRIG] key and then press and hold the
[TRIG] key(s) to where you want to paste the pattern. Finally, press and hold [STOP] to
paste the pattern(s).
- To clear, press and hold [PATTERN] + [TRIG] key(s) to select the pattern(s) you wish
to clear. Then press and hold [PLAY] to clear the pattern(s).
9.2.2 PATTERN CONTROL
Press [PLAY] to start the playback of a pattern. Press [STOP] to stop the playback of all tracks. The
sound will play until the end of the settings determined by the envelopes, but effects like Delay will con
tinue to be audible until the delay repeats have faded out. Press [STOP] + [STOP] quickly to immediately
stop playback of all tracks and get just a short fade out of the send effects.
When a pattern is playing press [PLAY] to pause the playback. Press [PLAY] to resume the playback.
If a pattern contains more than 16 sequencer steps, the <PATTERN PAGE> LEDs will indicate this. When
a pattern is playing, the currently active pattern page is shown with a flashing, <PATTERN PAGE> LED.
9.3 EDITING A PATTERN
Syntakt offers three main modes of input when creating or editing a pattern, GRID RECORDING mode, LIVE
RECORDING mode, and STEP RECORDING mode. In these modes, two types of trigs can be entered: Note
trigs and Lock trigs.
9.3.1 TRIG TYPES
A trig is a sequencer event that you can place when you want the sequencer to perform an action on the
Syntakt. There are two types of trigs that you can use, note trigs and lock trigs.
•	 NOTE TRIGS trigger sounds or MIDI notes. On the FX track, they trigger the LFOs, as well as the filter
and amplifier envelopes.
•	 LOCK TRIGS trigger parameter locks (but does not trigger sounds or MIDI notes). For more informa
tion, please see “9.10.1 PARAMETER LOCKS” on page 43.
Note trigs are indicated by red [TRIG] keys and lock trigs are indicated by yellow [TRIG] keys. Unlit
[TRIG] keys indicate steps that does not contain any trigs. Read more about parameter locks in section
“9.10.1 PARAMETER LOCKS” on page 43. Trigs are added differently in the sequencer, depending on
whether GRID RECORDING, LIVE RECORDING, or STEP RECORDING mode is active.
9.3.2 GRID RECORDING MODE
GRID RECORDING is a method of composing where you use the [TRIG] keys to add trigs.
1.	 Press [RECORD] to enter GRID RECORDING mode. The [RECORD] key lights up red to indicate
that GRID RECORDING mode is active.
2.	 Select the track to which you want to add trigs by pressing and holding [TRACK] and then one of
the [TRIG] keys. A red [TRIG] key indicates the active track.
3.	 Place note trigs on the sequencer using the sixteen [TRIG] keys. To add a lock trig, press [FUNC] +
[TRIG]. Quickly pressing the [TRIG] key of any of the lock trigs entered will change it to a note trig.
4.	 Select another track, and add note trigs. Repeat the procedure for all the tracks you want to use.
5.	 Press [PLAY] to listen to the sequence.
Add micro timing to a note trig by pressing and holding the [TRIG] key, and then pressing [LEFT] or
[RIGHT]. For more information, please see “9.5 MICRO TIMING MENU” on page 40.
Set the retrig speed by pressing and holding the [TRIG] key, and then pressing keys [UP] or [DOWN].
Similarly, a pop-up menu will appear on the screen, where various retrig settings are made.
For more information, please see “9.6 RETRIG MENU” on page 40.
If the pattern contains more than 16 steps, select the pattern page you want to edit by pressing the
[PAGE] key. A fully lit <PATTERN PAGE> LED shows the active pattern page.
Press [RECORD] to exit the GRID RECORDING mode.

9. THE SEQUENCER
•	 If your pattern has more than one page you can easily select which page you want to
edit. Press and hold [PAGE], and then press one of the [TRIG 1–4] keys that light up to
select the active page for editing. You can also cycle through the pages with the [LEFT]
and [RIGHT] keys. For more information, please see “9.9 SCALE MENU” on page 42.
•	 You also have the possibility to select which pages of your pattern you want the se
quencer to play and loop. The selected pages are then looped on playback.
In GRID RECORDING mode, press and hold [PAGE], and then press [TRIG 9–12] to
select which patterns pages you want to play and loop. Green [TRIG] keys shows the
selected pages. The [TRIG 9–12] keys corresponds to pattern page 1–4. For example,
you have a four page pattern and you want to play and loop page 1, 2,and 4. To accom
plish this, press and hold [PAGE] and then press [TRIG 9, 10, 12]. Press and hold [PAGE]
and then press [NO] to resume normal playback of all pages in the pattern.
•	 You can use an external MIDI controller such as a keyboard to input NOTE and TRIG
VELOCITY data when you are in GRID RECORDING mode Just press and hold a [TRIG]
key, and then play a note on the external keyboard. On MIDI tracks, you can add up to a
four note chord to every trig. The first note sets the TRIG VELOCITY value for all notes
on the trig.
•	 Press [TRIG] + [YES] to preview a specific trig. The preview includes any parameter
locks you have placed on that trig.
•	 Press [TRIG] + [SONG MODE] to save the sound of a trig as a Sound, taking all parame
ter locks in consideration.
•	 If you use an external MIDI controller to record to the Syntakt MIDI tracks, the sequenc
er receives data on the Auto MIDI channel and records on the active track. For more
information, please see “14.4.3 CHANNELS” on page 77.
•	 All trigs of a track can be shifted forwards or backward on the sequencer. While in GRID
RECORDING mode, hold down [FUNC] while pressing the [LEFT] or [RIGHT] arrow
keys to perform the trig shift.
9.3.3 LIVE RECORDING MODE
LIVE RECORDING mode is the second method of adding trigs to the tracks. In this recording mode, the
[TRIG] keys are played in real time to input trigs to the tracks. You can also use KEYBOARD mode to
add note trigs chromatically. It is also possible to enter parameter locks in real time. Trigs input in LIVE
RECORDING mode can be automatically quantized or not. Non-quantized trigs can be quantized after
they are recorded, by using the QUANTIZE menu that is accessed by pressing [FUNC] + [TRIG]. For
more information, please see “9.7 QUANTIZE MENU” on page 41.
1.	 Press and hold [RECORD], then press [PLAY] to enter LIVE RECORDING mode. (Press [PLAY]
twice while keeping the [RECORD] key pressed to activate/deactivate automatic quantization.) The
sequencer starts to play, and the [RECORD] key starts to flash red.
2.	 Enter trigs in real time by tapping the [TRIG] keys. If KEYBOARD mode is active, the pitch value of
the note trig will be recorded according to which [TRIG] key is pressed. Any changes to PARAM
ETER page settings, using the DATA ENTRY knobs, will be recorded as parameter locks and add
lock trigs where needed. Trigs with applied Trig modifiers will also be recorded as played.
3.	 Press [PLAY] to exit LIVE RECORDING mode while keeping the sequencer playing. If LIVE RE
CORDING mode is active and [RECORD] is pressed, GRID RECORDING mode will be activated.
4.	 Press [STOP] to stop both recording and playback of the sequencer.
To exit LIVE RECORDING mode while keeping the sequencer playing, press [PLAY].
You can use an external MIDI controller such as a keyboard to input NOTE, TRIG
VELOCITY, and TRIG LENGTH data in LIVE RECORDING mode. Just play the notes on the
external keyboard and they will be recorded by the sequencer. On MIDI tracks, you can
add up to a four note chord to every trig. The first note sets the TRIG VELOCITY value for
all notes on the trig. The last note that is released sets the TRIG LENGTH for all notes on
the trig.
9.3.4 STEP RECORDING MODE
STEP RECORDING is a quick and straightforward method of placing trigs on the sequencer. In this re
cording mode, you insert notes by pressing the [TRIG] keys or an external MIDI controller. The sequenc
er then captures the note and automatically advances to the next step. There are two different modes
available, STANDARD mode and JUMP mode.

9. THE SEQUENCER
STANDARD mode
1.	 Press [RECORD] + [STOP] to enter STEP RECORDING mode. The [RECORD] key starts to
double-blink red. (Press [STOP] twice while keeping the [RECORD] key pressed to toggle between
STANDARD and JUMP mode).
2.	 Press a [TRIG] key to select the active step to where you want to start to add note trigs. The active
step is shown with a green [TRIG] key that double-blinks. (If positioned on an earlier placed trig, it
inherits the light pattern of that trig). You can also use [LEFT]/[RIGHT] to select the active step or
skip steps.
3.	 Press and hold [FUNC] and then press [TRIG 1–12] key to add a note trig on the corresponding
track to the active step. The active step then automatically advances to the next step.

You also have the option to add note trigs chromatically on the selected active track.
4.	 Press [TRK] + [TRIG 1–12] to select the track to which you want to add trigs. A red [TRIG] key
indicates the active track.
5.	 Press [FUNC] + [TRK] to toggle the KEYBOARD mode keyboard on
6.	 Press and hold [FUNC] and then press any lit [TRIG] key to add a note trig with the corresponding
note value to the selected step. The active step then automatically advances to the next step.
7.	 To remove a trig or to add a rest (no trig), position the active step on the trig that you want to
remove or add a rest to, and then press [NO]. The active step then automatically advances to the
next step.
8.	To add a parameter lock to a trig, press and hold a [TRIG] key, and then turn the DATA ENTRY
knob that controls the parameter you want to lock and set it to the desired value. The graphics
become inverted for the locked parameter, and the locked parameter value is displayed. The [TRIG]
key of the locked trig blinks red (for note trigs) or yellow (for lock trigs) to indicate that the trig now
contains a parameter lock.
9.	 Press [RECORD] to exit STEP RECORDING mode.
JUMP mode
In JUMP mode, the LEN parameter setting on the TRIG PARAMETER page controls the note length of
the trigs you place, and advances the active step the same length. A LEN value of 1/16 adds a sixteenth
note and advances the sequencer one step. 1/8 adds an eighth note and advances the sequencer two
steps. 1/4 adds a quarter note and advances the sequencer four steps and so on. The LEN parameter is
also parameter locked on every trig you place.
•	 Press [PLAY] to listen to the sequence while you are programming it. Press [STOP] to
stop the sequencer and stay in STEP RECORDING mode.
•	 If you use an external MIDI controller, you must set it to send MIDI data on the Syntakt’s
defined AUTO CHANNEL. For more information, please see “14.4.3 CHANNELS” on
page 77.
•	 If you use an external MIDI controller, the trig’s VEL (velocity) value is determined by the
velocity sent from these and is parameter locked.
•	 If you press and hold [FUNC] while inputting notes from an external MIDI controller, the
velocity is fixed and determined by the VEL parameter setting.
•	 If you press and hold [YES] while you place a trig with [TRIG] keys or an external MIDI
controller, the trig length is locked to the time you press the [TRIG] keys or the external
MIDI controller.
•	 If you add a new note trig on a previously placed note trig, any parameter locks previ
ously placed on that trig remain as they were.
•	 In STEP RECORDING mode, to avoid accidental key presses, [FUNC] + [NO] does not
reload the pattern. [FUNC] + [YES] does not save the pattern. Instead they work as
described above.
9.4 EUCLIDEAN SEQUENCER MENU
The Euclidean sequencer mode uses two separate pulse generators to generate events (trigs) that are
placed as evenly spread out over the sequencer track as possible. In addition to this you can also set a
Boolean logic operator to combine or subtract the trigs from the two pulse generators in different ways.
When you turn on Euclidean mode for a track, the [REC] button will turn blue indicating the mode is active,
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