Digitakt Quick Guide
Digitakt THANK YOU Thank you for purchasing Digitakt. Digitakt is a new compact drum machine and sampler from Elektron. It contains all the necessary tools to make people move to the beat. A digital and highly flexible sound engine, sampling capability, a live-friendly sequencer, the means to control external MIDI gear, and Overbridge support. Drum machines are something of an Elektron specialty. With the Digitakt we show why. This Quick Guide will guide you through the basic functions of this product.
FCC compliance statement This device complies with part 15 of the FCC rules. Operation is subject to the following two conditions: (1) This device may not cause harmful interference, and (2) this device must accept any interference received, including interference that may cause undesired operation. NOTE: This equipment has been tested and found to comply with the limits for a Class B digital device, pursuant to Part 15 of the FCC Rules.
European Union regulation compliance statement This product has been tested to comply with the Low Voltage Directive 2014/35/EU and the Electromagnetic Compatibility Directive 2014/30/EU. The product meets the requirements of RoHS 2 Directive 2011/65/EU. Your product must be disposed of properly according to local laws and regulations. Legal disclaimer The information in this document is subject to change without notice and should not be construed as a commitment by Elektron.
IMPORTANT SAFETY INSTRUCTIONS 1. Do not use the unit near water. 2. Never use aggressive cleaners on the casing or on the screen. Remove dust, dirt and fingerprints with a soft, dry and non-abrasive cloth. More persistent dirt can be removed with a slightly damp cloth using only water. Disconnect all cables before doing this. Only reconnect them when the product is safely dry. 3. Install in accordance with the manufacturer’s instructions. Make sure you place the unit on a stable surface before use. 4.
WARNING! TO REDUCE THE RISK OF FIRE, ELECTRICAL SHOCK OR PRODUCT DAMAGE • • • • Do not expose the unit to rain, moisture, dripping or splashing and also avoid placing objects filled with liquid, such as vases, on the unit. Do not expose the unit to direct sunlight, nor use it in ambient temperatures exceeding 40°C as this can lead to malfunction. Do not open the casing. There are no user repairable or adjustable parts inside. Leave service and repairs to trained service technicians only.
TABLE OF CONTENTS 1. INTRODUCTION ..................................................................................................................... 10 1.1 CONVENTIONS IN THIS MANUAL . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .10 2. PANEL LAYOUT AND CONNECTIONS .............................................................................. 11 2.1 FRONT PANEL CONTROLS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
6.2 THE MIDI TRACKS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23 6.3 EDITING THE TRACKS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23 7. THE SEQUENCER ..................................................................................................................24 7.1 SELECTING A PATTERN . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
1. INTRODUCTION 1.1 CONVENTIONS IN THIS MANUAL The following conventions are used throughout the manual: Key names are written in upper case, bold style and within brackets. For instance, the key labeled “FUNC” on the main panel is written as [FUNC]. Knobs are written in upper case, bold, italic letters. For instance, the knob “Level/Data” is called LEVEL/DATA. LED indicators like the Chromatic LED are written like this: . Menu names are written in upper case letters.
2. PANEL LAYOUT AND CONNECTIONS 2.
4. [SETTINGS] contains the management of projects, MIDI configuration, and the System settings. The secondary function saves the current project. 5. [SAMPLING] opens the SAMPLING menu, where you perform the sampling. The secondary function starts Direct Sampling. 6. [TEMPO] opens the TEMPO menu, where you can adjust the global/pattern tempo and also adjust the swing. The secondary function makes it possible to tap the tempo. 7. [NO] key. Used for exiting an active menu, backing one step and negating.
consists of and which pattern page is currently active. The LED flashes on the pattern page currently playing. The secondary function accesses the SCALE menu. Pressing this key also activates Fill Mode (when GRID RECORDING mode is not active). 12. [TRIG] keys are used for entering or removing sequencer trigs, and parameter locks, in combination with the DATA ENTRY knobs. They are also used to select a track, bank, and pattern, in combination with the [TRK], [PTN], and [BANK] keys.
2.2 REAR PANEL CONNECTIONS 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 1. POWER, Switch for turning the unit on and off. 2. DC In, Input for power supply. Use the included PSU-3b power adapter, connected to a power outlet. 3. USB, For connecting the unit to a computer. For MIDI-control or Overbridge use. Use the included A to B USB 2.0 connector cable to connect to a computer host. 4. MIDI THRU/SYNC B, Forwards data from MIDI IN. Can also be configured to send DIN sync to legacy instruments.
2.3 SETTING UP AND STARTING DIGITAKT Make sure you place the Digitakt on a stable support, such as a sturdy table, with sufficient space for the cables. Make sure to switch off all devices before you connect the Digitakt to other devices. 1. Plug the supplied DC adapter to a power outlet and connect the small plug to the 12 V DC In on the Digitakt. 2. Connect OUTPUT L/R from the Digitakt to your mixer or amplifier. 3.
3. SOUND ARCHITECTURE The illustrations below show the Digitakt sound architecture, with its eight audio voices, two send effects (delay and reverb), and master effect (compressor). 3.1 AUDIO VOICES SAMPLE PLAYBACK ENGINE OVERDRIVE AMP BASE-WIDTH FILTER/EQ MULTIMODE FILTER PAN FILTER ENVELOPE AMP ENVELOPE TO MIXER DELAY SEND 3.
4. THE USER INTERFACE The screen shows all the information needed for real-time interaction and editing on the Digitakt. The eight DATA ENTRY knob parameters shown will vary depending on the given situation. Below is the main interface screen of the SRC page. 1 2 3 7 6 4 5 1. 2. 3. 4. The current bank and pattern. The current pattern name. The current tempo. Eight track parameters. They show what the DATA ENTRY knobs control and their current parameter values. 5.
[YES] is used to affirm, select, enter sub-menus and tick/untick boxes. [NO] is used to negate, deselect or go back one or more steps. 4.2 PARAMETER EDITING The DATA ENTRY knobs are used to change the values of the track parameters. The positions of the parameters on the screen correspond to the physical locations of the knobs on the front panel. Some of the parameters on the screen tell you what DATA ENTRY knob controls that particular parameter. For example “(E)”.
4.6 COPY, CLEAR AND PASTE Copy, clear and paste commands are available in a lot of contexts. Pressing [FUNC] + [REC] to copy. Press [FUNC] + [STOP] to paste. Press [FUNC] + [PLAY] to clear. Paste and clear operations is undone by repeating the key press combination. See the different sections in the Digitakt User Manual for more information on when these commands are available.. 4.
shaping on screen. Always find your device preset parameters in the same state as you left them when you return to your DAW project, with the convenient total recall functionality. To use Overbridge, you need a Digitakt, a USB cable, a computer running Overbridge, and a DAW. Read more about Overbridge for Digitakt on the Elektron website. Please read the Overbridge User Manual (available on the Elektron website in the Support section) to learn more about its setup, uses, and capabilities. 4.
5. EXPERIMENTING WITH PATTERNS 5.1 PLAYING THE FACTORY PRESETS You can find a number of preset patterns, Sounds, and samples in the Digitakt. Follow the instructions below to get started exploring your new instrument. 1. Press [BANK] and then press [TRIG 9] key to select bank A. The screen reads “BANK A : SELECT PTN”. 2. Press [TRIG 1] key to select the first pattern of bank A. 3. Press [PLAY] to listen to pattern A01. 4. Press [PTN] and then press [TRIG 2] key to select pattern A02.
1. Make sure a pattern is playing. 2. Press the [FUNC] + [BANK] key to enter MUTE mode. 3. Press any of the [TRIG] keys to mute the corresponding track. Press again to unmute. The color of the [TRIG] keys indicates the mute status. Unlit keys are muted tracks. Green keys are active tracks. 5.4 TEMPO To change the BPM setting, open the TEMPO menu by pressing the [TEMPO] key. Use the LEVEL/DATA knob to change tempo. Pressing the knob while turning it changes the tempo eight BPM at a time.
6. ABOUT THE TRACKS 6.1 THE AUDIO TRACKS The Digitakt has eight audio tracks. Each audio track contains one sound and the parameter settings in the PARAMETER pages TRIG, SRC, FLTR, AMP, and LFO. To select an audio track to edit, press and hold [TRK] key and then press one of the [TRIG 1–8] keys. 6.2 THE MIDI TRACKS The Digitakt also has eight dedicated MIDI tracks. The MIDI tracks are used to control external MIDI-equipped gear.
7. THE SEQUENCER The Digitakt's sequencer stores its information in patterns. A pattern controls the playback of the audio tracks and the MIDI tracks by the trigs entered on the sequencer. 7.1 SELECTING A PATTERN 1. Press [BANK] + [TRIG 9–16] key to select bank A–H. 2. Press [PTN] + [TRIG 1–16] key to select pattern 1–16. Patterns containing data are indicated with white [TRIG] keys. The currently active pattern is indicated by a red [TRIG] key. Empty pattern slots are indicated with unlit [TRIG] keys. 7.
7.5 THE TRIG PAGE Press [TRIG] to specify the general trig actions for the active track. Use the DATA ENTRY knobs to change settings. Note that parameter locked trig settings will override the general settings. 7.6 GRID RECORDING MODE GRID RECORDING is a method of composing where you use the [TRIG] keys to add trigs in the pattern grid. 1. Enter GRID RECORDING mode by pressing the [REC] key. The [REC] key lights up red to indicate that GRID RECORDING mode is active. 2.
7.7 LIVE RECORDING MODE LIVE RECORDING mode is the second method of adding trigs to the tracks. In this recording mode, all the [TRIG] keys are played in real time to input trigs to the tracks. It is also possible to enter parameter locks in real time. 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.
7.9 PARAMETER LOCKS Parameter locks enable all trigs to have their own unique parameter values. The note trigs of an audio track can, for example, have different pitch, amp or filter settings. It is possible to parameter lock all parameters found on the PARAMETER pages, and you can apply parameter locks to all types of tracks. In GRID RECORDING and STEP RECORDING mode, press and hold the [TRIG] key of a trig and then adjust the parameters you want to lock using the DATA ENTRY knobs to apply parameter locks.
8. SAMPLING Digitakt can also sample audio. It can sample audio from external sources via the external inputs or USB, and it can also sample audio internally from the Digitakt itself. 8.1 SAMPLING FROM THE EXTERNAL INPUTS 1. Connect your audio source to the INPUT L/R inputs of the Digitakt. 2. Press [SAMPLING] to access the SAMPLING menu and then use DATA ENTRY knob G to set SOURCE to IN L+R. 3.
[FUNC] + [YES] to preview the sample. 9. Press [YES] to save the sample. 10. Name your sample and press [YES] again to confirm the save. 11. Press [TRACK 1–8] to select the track to where you want to assign the sample. 8.2 ASSIGNING A SAMPLE TO A TRACK FROM THE +DRIVE You can also assign samples from the +Drive storage in the Digitakt to the tracks. 1. Press [SETTINGS] to access the SETTINGS menu, and then select SAMPLES and press [YES]. 2.
8.3 SAMPLE PLAYBACK Once the sample is assigned to a track it can be triggered either by the sequencer or manually by pressing a [TRIG] key. You also have to ability to set the sample's play mode and edit what portion of the sample is played. 1. Press [SRC] to access the SOURCE page. 2. Use DATA ENTRY knob B to set the PLAY MODE behavior of the sample. • REVERSE The sample will be played back in reverse once every time it is trigged.
• STRT Start sets the start position for the playback of the sample. • LEN Length sets the length of the playback of the sample. Start + Length effectively defines the end point of the portion of the sample that is played. • LOP Loop Position sets the position in the sample to where playback will return after reaching the Length Position (defined by STRT + LEN) if PLAY MODE is set to FORWARD LOOP or REVERSE LOOP. The sample then loops between the end of LEN, and LOOP. The STRT, LEN, and LOOP parameters.
9. TECHNICAL INFORMATION ELECTRICAL SPECIFICATIONS HARDWARE Impedance balanced audio outputs Main outputs level: +22 dBu peak Output impedance: 440 Ω unbalanced Digital S/N ratio: 108 dB (20–20,000 Hz) 128 × 64 pixel OLED screen MIDI In/Out/Thru with DIN Sync out 2 × 1/4” impedance balanced audio out jacks 2 × 1/4” audio in jacks 1 × 1/4” stereo headphone jack 48 kHz, 24-bit D/A and A/D converters Electrically isolated hi-speed USB 2.0 port Power inlet: Center positive 5.5 × 2.
10. CREDITS AND CONTACT INFORMATION CREDITS CONTACT INFORMATION PRODUCT DESIGN AND DEVELOPMENT Oscar Albinsson Johannes Algelind Ali Alper Çakır Shelby Cinca Ufuk Demir Oscar Dragén Magnus Forsell Anders Gärder Fabian Hundertmark Thomas Jansson Christer Lindström Jimmy Myhrman Jon Mårtensson Viktor Nilsson Jean Michel Pepin David Revelj Mattias Rickardsson Martin Sigby Gösta Welmer ELEKTRON WEBSITE http://www.elektron.
ELEKTRON THREE YEAR WARRANTY Elektron machines are sold with a three year limited warranty, starting from the date of the original purchase. Being able to prove the date of the original purchase with an invoice or a receipt is necessary if you require warranty service. If the machine should need a repair during the warranty period no charges will be applied for parts or labor. This warranty is transferable to other owners should the Elektron machine be resold during the warranty period.
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