Tag Archives: reaktor

Mixin’ it up with Konkreet Performer

I was talking to another Reaktor builder about mixing Konkreet Performer signals, so one KP parameter could control 25% of the range of a Reaktor instrument parameter, another could control 10%, and so on. It was an intriguing idea so I worked out the math and knocked this quick test ensemble together.

All it does is mix the X-value signals from the first three nodes in Konkreet Performer, then normalize the range so it’s always 0 to 1. That way you don’t have to fish around making sure everything adds up to 100%. Here’s what the structure looks like:

The output goes to a numeric display so you can see the values.

You could easily adapt this to control whatever parameter you desire, or send the result to MIDI, or even adapt it to mix incoming MIDI CCs instead of Konkreet OSC parameters.

Here’s the ensemble. Happy building!

ParamDrum for Konkreet Performer

4 Replies

Please note: though this version of ParamDrum has Konkreet Performer mappings, Konkreet Performer is not mandatory. ParamDrum works just fine with a mouse or any MIDI controller.

Hey kids! It’s time for yet another update of ParamDrum.

This time the big deal is Konkreet Performer mappings. Performer is an iPad app that gives you tactile control over anything that can receive OSC, such as Reaktor. Free utiities also let you translate it to MIDI for software and hardware that can’t receive OSC. How good is Konkreet Performer? It’s the reason I went out and bought an iPad in the first place.

Here’s a cheat sheet with the lowdown on who does what where and when in the KP interface:

For those of you who don’t have KP (go get it you fools), the new version still includes a new sample set, a whole lot of new snaps, and new features including optimized randomization.

A funny thing about the beats this thing throws down in conjunction with Konkreet – it’s so easy to make crazy fun beats that you’ll be making and saving one after another at a furious clip. That’s why this edition of ParamDrum has so many more snaps compared to earlier versions. And among the most warped of them, you will find that they only make sense early in the morning when your ears and mind are fresh. When your ears, body and mind are exhausted, late at night, you will lose the ability to follow the sickest beats. So never delete snaps late at night. True story.

ParamDrum KP is free for owners of previous versions. Did I mention that you also need a working installation of Reaktor to use it? I should mention that. You can download ParamDrum KP edition here. Don’t have ParamDrum yet but want in on the game? Buy a license here:

Update: Due to changes in default settings for the latest versions of Konkreet Performer, not all parameters are automatically mapped. Quickest way to fix that is to install this bank in Konkreet Performer via iTunes. Instructions on working with Konkreet banks can be found here.

Loupe 1.5 for Reaktor – now with bidirectional OSC mappings for TouchOSC

Leave a reply

From now on, buying Loupe on this page also gets you a copy of Loupe 2!

Here’s the release version of Loupe 1.5, with some added features, bugfixes, and a new layout for TouchOSC.

Changes include:

Added copy / paste slice (fixed since beta)
Added duplex OSC mappings for TouchOSC
Added two page OSC iPad template
Fixed release envelopes cutting off prematurely

You may download it here. Update is free for owners of Loupe 1.0 – same license info will unlock Loupe 1.5. Don’t have a license? It’s $15 USD and can be purchased here:

Loupe

Here’s a better look at the TouchOSC layout.

Above is the slice page. Each of the sliders gets updated from Reaktor when you trigger a new slice. This lets you see the loop area, filter settings, envelope settings, etc. of each slice and adjust them. Copy and paste buttons let you copy slice parameters to a different key – handy if you want the same thing on a different key except for panning, or reverse playback.

There’s no way to get the sample waveform to display in TouchOSC, but the large green XY pad works the same way as the Reaktor Loupe GUI – X position sets loop position, Y sets loop length. I actually prefer working with my ears this way instead of looking at the display – it’s a more hardware-y approach.

Above is the global page. This selects the sample, global position offset, position LFO and other global variables. You can use this as a performance view once the individual slices and keys are adjusted to your liking.

In order to get this fully working with Reaktor, it’s necessary to set up bi-direcitonal OSC addresses. Reaktor has to talk to TouchOSC. Here’s how to set that up in Reaktor:

The identifier “ipad” is necessary – that’s what all the OSC send terminals in the instrument are mapped to. Take note of the ports and addresses. Reaktor’s receive address should be TouchOSC’s send address and vice versa. Here’s what it looks like on the TouchOSC side:

That will get the OSC connection going both ways. But wait, there’s more! You also need to set up a WiFi MIDI session between your iPad and computer. Here’s what that looks like on my Mac:

Selecting your iPad and hitting “Connect” should be enough to enable the session, as long as you have CoreMIDI enabled in TouchOSC. Windows users can use rtpMIDI.

Whew! This may seem like a slog at first glance, but it becomes clearer when you sit down and set up the connections, and the result is worth it. It’s magical in a dark room late at night, just you and your headphones and the controls and samples. Let me know what you think, how it’s working for you and any suggestions for a better layout.

If this is your first look at Loupe, you might also be interested in the other two instruments in my sampler pack, Mirage and Frame 2.

Update: here is a download of the TouchOSC template on its own, if you don’t have Loupe and just want to check out the mappings and naming conventions I used. I didn’t know at first that leaving a TouchOSC control’s OSC address pattern as “auto” named it according to /pagename/controlname. Quite handy for homing in on the address you want when you’re trying to select from a long dropdown menu in Reaktor.

May 15th minor update: Loupe version 1.5.1 uploaded – fixes OSC address patterns for copy and paste buttons.

Setting up iPad OSC touch apps with Reaktor

Leave a reply

Because someone asked on a forum, I decided to write a quick note on how to set up the ports and addresses for Reaktor, Konkreet Performer and TouchOSC.

First, get Reaktor set up. This is straightforward:

This is generally as simple as activating Reaktor to receive OSC. Don’t worry about the outgoing OSC setup for now – the goal is to get Reaktor listening. Take note of the IP address and “local port”.

Now, in Konkreet Performer’s setup screen:

The outgoing address and port in Performer match the local IP address and local port in Reaktor’s OSC settings.

Similarly, in TouchOSC:

Now touch some controls in Konkreet Performer or TouchOSC and you should see messages in the OSC monitor in Reaktor’s OSC settings dialog. If not, then you may have firewall or routing problems.

I’m assuming here that you’re connecting both your computer and iDevice through a standard type of router and the IP addresses you see in these dialogs reflects that. You could also create an ad hoc network in Windows or OS X which often provides lower latency than using a router.

After you have established a connection and are seeing incoming data in Reaktor, it’s time to map some controls. Go into the properties for a knob (for example) and choose an OSC parameter from the OSC Source dropdown menu on the connection tab:

More help is available here:

Konkreet Performer

TouchOSC

Introducing Loupe 1.5 Beta

Leave a reply

I’ve added some enhancements and fixed some bugs.

Most notably, there is now a key/slice copy and paste function. If you want to start with a key/slice, copy it to a new key and modify it, here’s what you do: press the key (middle C for example) that contains the settings you want to copy, click the copy button, then press the destination key (C sharp for example) and click the paste button. Then you can make the new copy as subtly or vastly different as you please.
I’ve nailed down a crash problem that some of you may have been encountering when playing different slices very quickly from a MIDI keyboard (or the computer keyboard for that matter).
All the parameter IDs have been sorted and compressed to aid VST automation in a host.

The 1.5 beta can be downloaded here. The archive password you received previously will work with this new version. 1.5 should work perfectly but I’m calling it a beta until more people than me have tested it!

For more information and to purchase, click here.