Basic Sequencer for Anything in Reaktor: The Roux, Part 1
In French cooking, there’s a sauce base called a roux (pronounced “roo”) that is the foundation of bechamel and other sauces. This is a sequencer macro that is the equivalent for programming sequenced instruments in Reaktor - you can take it in any direction from here. In its most basic form it can send velocity information to trigger percussion, or modulate instrument parameters like cutoff and resonance. With a few simple changes it becomes a pitch sequencer, suitable for use in something like the Frankenloop device.
I decided to teach how to use the roux step sequencer before diving into the guts of the Frankenloop because understanding this will make that much easier to untangle. Besides, this is a more modular-ready macro, easily popped into anything else you happen to be building or toying with - like the granular delay we’ve been working on. Anything that could use some sauce, really.
In part one, we look at two uses of this versatile basic ingredient. Download the ensemble and follow along with the video tutorial.
Roux Sequencer Macro for Reaktor from Create Digital Media on Vimeo.
In part two, we’ll study the internal structure of the roux macro and look at some more uses for it.
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Peter Kirn
Jaymis Loveday
ni
Eoin Rossney
Peter Dines
djchima
17 Comments
Leave a Commentchris
Thanks for these tutorials and macros, very useful. After searching around endlessly for plugins that do exactly wanted I decided it was time to bite the bullet and buy reaktor, and just try to build them myself. These are definitely useful in getting over the beginners hump.
July 30, 2008 @ 5:43 am
Peter Dines
Hi Chris. Since you already have ideas about what you want to do with Reaktor, I think you’ll find it easier to learn. It’s good to have a goal in mind as motivation. What kinds of contraptions are you looking to build?
July 30, 2008 @ 7:05 am
Jordan
Nice colors
July 31, 2008 @ 2:09 am
Peter Dines
I’ve liked bright colors for Reaktor instruments since about a year and a half ago when I was using a neutral putty-blue theme that I thought was serene and restful on the eyes. Got totally sick of it one day and went for bubblegum colors. You’d be surprised the difference it makes in your approach to music.
Ah, but you’re the guy behind Brick, Jordan? Then I don’t need to lecture you on the importance of interface design.
July 31, 2008 @ 6:22 am
Native Instruments Kore, Komplete, Reaktor @ Create Digital Music » Roux Step Sequencer’s Guts Explained: Reaktor’s X+ Module
[...] decided the best way to tackle teaching the guts of the Roux step sequencer is to blog one piece at a time, and work backwards from the business end where the values [...]
August 4, 2008 @ 8:36 am
Native Instruments Kore, Komplete, Reaktor @ Create Digital Music » Boombox: Reaktor Drum Machine Made with Roux Sequencer
[...] user Joshua Kern has built and uploaded the first third-party instrument made with the Roux sequencer macro we’re discussing and dissecting here at Noisepages. It’s an ambitious drum machine [...]
August 13, 2008 @ 12:06 am
Jordan
Once you go bubblegum, you don’t back,
Like making food or deserts, appearing and interface design definitely make it taste better, or sound better.
Owen (the other half of Brick) and I think about this a lot with Brick. We realized out first table sort of subconsciously looks like a giant iPod. Soon we will release pictures of the new interface, code named Brick 2.0, and this time, we went for something a little different.
Maybe one day we’ll have a bubblegum colored touch table and plop it in urban outfitters, next to a bunch of psychedelic Nikes
For now I’ll get my fix by looking at your nice reaktor patch…
August 16, 2008 @ 8:33 pm
Native Instruments Kore, Komplete, Reaktor @ Create Digital Music » Roux Step Sequencer’s Guts Explained: Reaktor’s Event Table Module
[...] the next puzzle piece in our series dissecting the guts of the Roux step sequencer macro - the event table. As you might guess from the name, the event table receives and sends event [...]
August 18, 2008 @ 7:32 am
Native Instruments Kore, Komplete, Reaktor @ Create Digital Music » Roux Step Sequencer’s Guts Explained: Reaktor’s Snap Array Module
[...] continue learning about the Roux sequencer macro. Last time we looked at the Event Table module in Reaktor and how a clock signal can read values [...]
August 28, 2008 @ 10:21 am
Create Digital Music » Joys of Reaktor: How to Build Sequenced Instruments, Free Goodies, and a New Lazyfish Creation Teaser
[...] Part 1 - introduction Part 2 - the X+ module Part 3 - the event table Part 4 - the snap array Part 5 - the mouse area [...]
September 30, 2008 @ 11:11 am
Native Instruments Kore, Komplete, Reaktor @ Create Digital Music » Reaktor Sequencers Pt. 1, and Download Free SQ4 Percussion Sequencer
[...] to let it go at that, so I decided to put together a four channel version of the SQ8 using my Roux sequencer macros. They may not be as pretty as the poly-object based SQ8’s step sequencers but I know they [...]
October 14, 2008 @ 9:09 am
Morpher
Hi Peter Dines,
Thank you ever so much for posting these little reaktor golden nuggets
I have a question slightly unrelated to this post. How do I play an entire loop inside beatslicer? Is that possible?
-Apologies in advance for the silly question
October 20, 2008 @ 10:34 pm
Morpher
-ie is there a way to hear the loop playing through together with the modified slices? (Like in ReCycle, for example) I can’t seem to find ant documentation explaining this…
October 20, 2008 @ 10:37 pm
Peter Dines
Hi Morpher - unfortunately no, I don’t think there’s a way to do that with Beatslicer. You’d have to manually lay out the notes sequentially in a host sequencer.
Instead, check out the L3 ensemble. It might be more what you’re looking for.
Also, if you happen to have Kontakt, it can either play through the loop or map slices to individual keys, and allows you to drag MIDI to the host with properly timed beats.
October 21, 2008 @ 8:24 am
Morpher
Hi Pete,
Thank you for the prompt reply.
-That’s a shame as I really like the things one can do with individual slices in beatslicer. Oh well… I do realize that it’s mainly a live tool and yeah, you are right, I can do a similar thing in Kontakt. Oh by the way I have instantly fallen in love with HaasCheezburger!! Very handy!
October 21, 2008 @ 9:01 am
Mike
I’ve been using Reaktor for 5 years.
Built some simple synths.
Never could figure out sequencers.
Excellent tutorials here.
March 27, 2009 @ 6:00 am
Peter Dines
Thanks Mike! I’m very pleased with how this sequencer tutorial series has been received and hope that it encourages people to push beyond the synth building and start creating things that have behavior as well as sound.
March 27, 2009 @ 8:57 am
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