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I think it might be of high value for those that are more immersed in Pattern Editor to share their Pro tips here. Now that Pattern Editor is more mature in it's development cycle and very practical, it might even intrigue more people to leverage it if they can see the more nuanced capabilities of Pattern Editor.

I'll share a tip and ask a question.

Tip: Creating a giant pattern part across an entire song and then splicing it at the points where you need a variation is an efficient workflow to structure the song's rhythm quickly.

Question: Is there a way have Midi notes fire together? I want different drum samples to fire together, but they are on different lanes of the pattern editor. It doesn't seem that you can edit multiple lanes together.

DAW: Studio One Professional 6.5
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by realto619 on Mon Oct 11, 2021 9:17 pm
Not generated any interest yet, eh? Well, I'm down. Pattern editing is a game-changer as far as I'm concerned. My biggest complaint about most DAWs is that they don't have a way to effectively enter a drum track. My all-time favorite DAW is Orion by Synapse Audio because it totally integrates drum patterns into the workflow making it sooooooooo much easier to put a working song together quickly.

Unfortunately, they stopped updating it back in 2016 so I had to find an alternative. I tried Studio One a few years ago, but it didn't really inspire me so I wound up getting a MacBook and using Logic and GarageBand for the last few years. GarageBand has a pretty solid Drummer feature that helps with song creation, but I find it to be a bit lacking as well. I was using Hydrogen to create a MIDI drum track and then importing it into GB, but it doesn't support tempo changes on import, so I had to do a lot of tweaking to get the drums sounding passable. Plus, having it on a laptop that is separate from the computer I'm on otherwise doesn't make for the best workflow either.

So I decided to give Studio One another shot and I'm making a concerted effort to get to know the whole Pattern system. The potential is enormous and I think I can make it work, but there's one issue that's currently preventing me from putting my first song together. What would that be, you might ask? I can't figure out how to insert a new pattern into the timeline at the beginning of the next measure.The only way I've found to insert a new pattern is to drag it onto the timeline or click on the timeline and insert a new pattern. But I haven't found a way to insert it so it doesn't throw the timing off. I'm sure there's a way, but I haven't found it yet. Any suggestions or solutions would be greatly appreciated!
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by waltong on Mon Oct 11, 2021 10:54 pm
realto619 wrote I can't figure out how to insert a new pattern into the timeline at the beginning of the next measure.The only way I've found to insert a new pattern is to drag it onto the timeline or click on the timeline and insert a new pattern. But I haven't found a way to insert it so it doesn't throw the timing off. I'm sure there's a way, but I haven't found it yet. Any suggestions or solutions would be greatly appreciated!


Some keyboard shortcuts to try:
(Ctrl+Shift+P) inserts a fresh pattern on the highlighted track where your cursor is
(Ctrl+Alt+arrow keys) nudges the pattern based on bars

You could also try turning off Snap to Grid by pressing N and then dragging the pattern part you've inserted to where you want it to begin. The Snap options can be customized by exploring the drop down menu below Snap.

Also, if Snap is turned off and you press D (to duplicate) after highlighting a pattern part, it will place a duplicated pattern part up against the end of the current one. (I think this is what you're looking for)

It sounds like you work with specific downbeat placement... Are you using a grid based (click track) approach, or a more feel based non-grid approach?

DAW: Studio One Professional 6.5
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by realto619 on Tue Oct 12, 2021 3:57 am
Thanks for your reply!

I just figured out how to nudge a pattern left and right, but it looks like your suggestions should give me even more flexibility to insert a pattern at the correct spot. I'm going to do some experimenting and see how they work shortly.

Actually, I just tried the Duplicate option and you are indeed correct: that's essentially what I was looking for. Thanks so much! :thumbup: :D

It sounds like you work with specific downbeat placement... Are you using a grid based (click track) approach, or a more feel based non-grid approach?
<= I'm not sure this is the answer you're looking for, but I would characterize my approach as grid-based.

I like to create a complete (or at least as much as possible) drum track before laying down any audio tracks: I like having a defined starting and ending point so that I stay focused. The songs I'm working on initially are fairly well thought-out. I have the verse, chorus and bridge already written and I'm ready to put down the initial rhythm guitar and bass line. Once I have something that I'm satisfied with, then I mix it down to a track so I can start working on the vocals. I start on the melody first. Then I try to come up with a topic to write about and then I plug in words that match the melody. That's the process that I've used successfully for years and I'm anxious to get back to it and start churning out some songs. I have the music for about 5 solid songs ready to go.
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by realto619 on Tue Oct 12, 2021 4:41 am
Thanks again for your assistance!

Just wanted to post a screenshot to show how I was able to quickly apply my newly-installed pattern knowledge.

Attachments
Studio_FirstSong.jpg
This is the furthest I've ever gotten creating an actual song in Studio One.
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by realto619 on Sat Oct 23, 2021 8:03 am
Does anyone know of a way to use the Pattern editor with other instruments besides Impact? The Impact samples, IMHO, all basically suck, But I have plenty of other instruments I can use, like Battery, that have a ton of awesome samples. The problem is that it seems like the pattern editor is not available, so you have to rely on the antiquated piano roll editor. I could painstakingly go thru and set it up, but after just have gotten used to - and loving - the Pattern editor functionality I'd like to continue using it.
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by Fornicras on Mon Oct 25, 2021 3:10 am
realto619 wroteDoes anyone know of a way to use the Pattern editor with other instruments besides Impact? The Impact samples, IMHO, all basically suck, But I have plenty of other instruments I can use, like Battery, that have a ton of awesome samples. The problem is that it seems like the pattern editor is not available, so you have to rely on the antiquated piano roll editor. I could painstakingly go thru and set it up, but after just have gotten used to - and loving - the Pattern editor functionality I'd like to continue using it.


Pattern editor works with every instrument, including the Battery. Just insert pattern to Battery channel you'll see it works just like in Impact, you may need to edit the name of pads manually though. (it's easy since you have drum maps)

You can also drag and drop samples you want to Impact instead of using its default kits.

Using Studio One 6 (Always the latest version)

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by mycbeats on Tue Oct 26, 2021 5:18 am
1) One of the cool things I do is create a 4 step long pattern for say hi hats.
Assign filter or pitch to the part automation, on a separate lane, change the steps to another number maybe 5, program that automation in. The pattern repeats every 4, but the automation repeats every 5 and this makes even the simplest pattern more interesting.

2) Another trick I've discovered is say you've set a hat pattern in 1/16th grid resolution, but are using every other step (so 1/8th hats), if you try to apply a swing to this it wont do anything. The workaround is to set your pattern resolution to 1/8th, then change your pattern lane resolution back to 1/16, now if you apply swing it will do a 1/8th swing on a 1/16th based pattern.

3) Velocity and delay offset is absolutely the most important part of a groove (regardless of the sequencer). You can take this to another level with Sampleone, where you can use velocity to modulate the filter (and some other , make a hat sample softer when played quietly, or full and buzzy at max velocity.

Toronto, Canada
Project engineer by day, sound connoisseur by night.

Main Rig: Windows 11 (21H2) 64-bit, Ryzen 3900x, 32GB RAM, RTX 2060, dual 4K Monitors
Presonus 192, Faderport v2, Atom SQ, Akai Advance 49, Keystation 61 mk3, 2x Behringer X-Touch Mini + way too many synths.

Mobile Rig: MBP M1/16GB, Atom SQ, IOstation
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by realto619 on Sun Oct 31, 2021 9:30 am
mycbeats wrote1) One of the cool things I do is create a 4 step long pattern for say hi hats.
Assign filter or pitch to the part automation, on a separate lane, change the steps to another number maybe 5, program that automation in. The pattern repeats every 4, but the automation repeats every 5 and this makes even the simplest pattern more interesting.

This sounds interesting. I haven't done anything with automation yet, but that's definitely something that I want to get into, in-depth. Any videos you would recommend on this? Something that I think may be along these same lines is using macros to speed up the pattern workflow. I'm a developer by trade and programming is something that I have a keen interest in applying to S1, which is why the macros seem like something I should be able to use to my advantage. I'll look for some videos on part automation too. I'm trying to get ahead of the learning curve by immersing myself in S1 as much as possible and I've made considerable progress.

mycbeats wrote 2) Another trick I've discovered is say you've set a hat pattern in 1/16th grid resolution, but are using every other step (so 1/8th hats), if you try to apply a swing to this it wont do anything. The workaround is to set your pattern resolution to 1/8th, then change your pattern lane resolution back to 1/16, now if you apply swing it will do a 1/8th swing on a 1/16th based pattern.

Would you have an example of this that I could hear? Swing is something that I've intentionally steered away from programming drums over the years because I've never found it to be very realistic, But honestly, that opinion was formed a long time ago and I've never really given it another chance. If you have something that you're happy with I would definitely like to hear it. I always try to be open minded, but not really seeking it out or being exposed to it has kept me from delving into it much.

mycbeats wrote3) Velocity and delay offset is absolutely the most important part of a groove (regardless of the sequencer). You can take this to another level with Sampleone, where you can use velocity to modulate the filter (and some other , make a hat sample softer when played quietly, or full and buzzy at max velocity.

We're totally in agreement on the use of velocity in making patterns more realistic and interesting. I've been playing drums off and on for almost as long as I've been playing guitar, and I know how to construct a beat that mimics an actual drummer pretty well. As an actual drummer, I'm not very advanced because it never became second nature like it needs to in order to be really good, but that was never my goal either. Creating realistic drums on my songs has always been my goal.
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by mycbeats on Sun Oct 31, 2021 7:04 pm
realto619 wroteThis sounds interesting. I haven't done anything with automation yet, but that's definitely something that I want to get into, in-depth. Any videos you would recommend on this? Something that I think may be along these same lines is using macros to speed up the pattern workflow. I'm a developer by trade and programming is something that I have a keen interest in applying to S1, which is why the macros seem like something I should be able to use to my advantage. I'll look for some videos on part automation too. I'm trying to get ahead of the learning curve by immersing myself in S1 as much as possible and I've made considerable progress.

Would you have an example of this that I could hear? Swing is something that I've intentionally steered away from programming drums over the years because I've never found it to be very realistic, But honestly, that opinion was formed a long time ago and I've never really given it another chance. If you have something that you're happy with I would definitely like to hear it. I always try to be open minded, but not really seeking it out or being exposed to it has kept me from delving into it much.

We're totally in agreement on the use of velocity in making patterns more realistic and interesting. I've been playing drums off and on for almost as long as I've been playing guitar, and I know how to construct a beat that mimics an actual drummer pretty well. As an actual drummer, I'm not very advanced because it never became second nature like it needs to in order to be really good, but that was never my goal either. Creating realistic drums on my songs has always been my goal.


Right click on a parameter in your instrument, you can create automation which will be like regular on the timeline, or part/pattern automation which will add an extra tab in your piano roll.
Macros are essentially just a sequence of Studio Ones functions with some room for arguements.
If you really want to script you'd have to do it in JS. The Color Tool bar is a great example of a 3rd party script. A tip is most of S1's proprietary file formats are just containers that can be unzipped. You can take a peak at their guts.

Swing shifts the off beats later in time. 0 is right on the grid 50% (or whatever the max is) is basically reggae. 10-20% gives a looser human feel.

Toronto, Canada
Project engineer by day, sound connoisseur by night.

Main Rig: Windows 11 (21H2) 64-bit, Ryzen 3900x, 32GB RAM, RTX 2060, dual 4K Monitors
Presonus 192, Faderport v2, Atom SQ, Akai Advance 49, Keystation 61 mk3, 2x Behringer X-Touch Mini + way too many synths.

Mobile Rig: MBP M1/16GB, Atom SQ, IOstation

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