Reader JL writes:

The current states of Reaktor sequencers is rather confusing: some output MIDI, some don’t, some output both note and CC data etc.  A “Reaktor sequencers demystified” article would be welcome, and might encourage more builders to do more development in this area.

An excellent idea. JL mentioned that he liked the factory SQ8 sequencer’s random playback modes, but wished that it sent MIDI instead of just gate signals. The SQ8 is a percussion sequencer with 8 rhythm channels and variable loop length as well as shuffle.

John Fisher (ricemutt) from bagger288 is the latest to be infected – erm, inspired – by Peter Dines’ sequencer parts for Reaktor. His hybrid ensemble is full of all sorts of different bits put together, some borrowed, some concocted from scratch. And, of course, that was the idea with the sequencers – to encourage people to steal stuff and make something new that we hadn’t thought of. What’s especially great about this to me is that the results can sound entirely different.

John wrote me:

I love your tutorials for reaktor, and the example ensembles.  great stuff!

I stole your sequencer and put it into a hybrid FM/additive/subtractive type synth I built in reaktor:

in addition to the synth, there’s also a distortion effect, rev6, and a custom granular effect I built, so it’s kind of an all-in-one drone synth…

please mention that the synth is much lower on CPU if you simply remove the reverb/fx modules.

I guess other info is easily seen from all the comments in there, I used a few other people’s modules.  The "FX" instrument has an A and a B panel, where you can edit the granular effects.  I made that instrument as well and am proud of how it turned out (did you check out the "rissets" preset in the fx?)

thanks for the sequencers to steal

you probably noticed that I modded the sequencer in the sequencer page to also have "gate" sequencers where there is only on/off instead of minimum to maximum fader

It’s really good stuff, and inspires me to combine some macros in new ways.

Have at it and see what you think:

ricemuttHybrid-sep08 [zipped Reaktor ensemble]

(I expect when it’s ready, it can migrate over to the NI User Library)

Wait – want more? John talks more about how he uses unique approaches to tuning (see our previous round-up) to get these distinctive sounds:

my "god chord" blogs where I explain how to use just intonation or equal temperament.

http://craprex.com/RexBlog/author/baggervance/

you probably noticed how I use ratios to define the pitches of the oscillators in my synth.  In fact, I do this with all of my synths and use just intonation a lot in my music.  This would help people understand the "wtf" about using ratios in music.

Via a story summing up what we’ve been doing with Reaktor over on CDMusic:

Joys of Reaktor: How to Build Sequenced Instruments, Free Goodies, and a New Lazyfish Creation Teaser

Last time we looked at the Roux Sequencer we examined the Snap Array module, how it retains values and how it feeds them to the Event Table module when you change snapshots. In this post we finish up by focusing on how the Mouse Area module allows you to add and change the sequencer’s values.

Let’s 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 from it. Since the Event Table has no memory associated with snapshots, builders typically use a Snap Value Array to store and recall sequences with snapshots.

Sequencers are, by definition, all about controlling sets of events. Having unlocked the mysteries of time — the clock and timing data you need to keep your sequencer in sync — Peter Dines now tackles how a table can organize a sequence of events or steps. Take it away, Chef! -PK

Here’s 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 rather than audio data.

By default, the event table holds values between zero and one, and I know I bang on about this lot, but that’s a super convenient range because it’s so easy to scale. Ed.: It’s what’s called a “normalized” range for this reason - and easy to scale, indeed. Want 0 to 127, for instance? Just multiply by 127.) -PK We dealt with scaling the output in the last post on the Roux sequencer.

Reaktor 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 project and eats a fair bit of CPU but he’s working on that. As with most programming, the thing to do is get something working, then worry about efficiency later - as the saying goes, premature optimization is the root of all evil.

As well as my Roux macro, Joshua has leveraged work by Rachmiel, Clist, and RC3, and had help from Sowari (Phil Durrant). As such, I think it’s an excellent example of the kind of code reuse and sense of community that makes the Reaktor user library great.

When I assigned “homework” for readers I don’t know someone would create something this elaborate! It makes me wonder what else is lurking out there. If you’ve cooked up something interesting, let us know here or leave a comment below.

I 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 emerge.

The values that this macro produces are between 0 and 1 by default, which is a convenient range for all sorts of applications, but sometimes you need a different range of values - for example, from 0 to 127 for MIDI note pitches. I’ve included an X+ module just before the output to make it easy to scale values:

The values emerging from the event table are multiplied by one and have zero added to them, which means they pass through unmodified. Here’s a video demonstration of what happens when you multiply and add other numbers:

Multiply / Add module in Reaktor from Create Digital Media on Vimeo.

If you’ve ever worked with electronics, think of the way the X+ is used here as being like those little mini trimpots on a circuit board - handy for adjustments but not something you mess with every day once you’ve got a contraption put together the way you like.

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.