Arpeggiator + Scale how to avoid repeating notes?

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thegyratinggiblet
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Joined: Wed Nov 21, 2007 8:59 pm

Arpeggiator + Scale how to avoid repeating notes?

Post by thegyratinggiblet » Wed Jun 28, 2023 10:49 pm

Hi,

What I want to do is generate arpeggiator patterns through the scale plugin that don't repeat notes.

When using the arp plus the scale plugin, when some notes are forced into whatever the chosen scale is, sometimes notes tend to repeat, for instance an a# is selected to play an a instead, meaning if an arp pattern hits both a and a#, the note of a is played twice consecutively.

What I want is a flowing sequence of notes that doesn't repeat.

I could turn off the a# in the scale plugin by turning that note 'node' off but that then leaves a gap in a sequence which sounds clunky.

Does anyone know how to utilise the scale plugin in a way that it doesn't do this, or if there is an alternative scale style plugin out there or any max for live devices out there that can do such a thing?

Thanks

chapelier fou
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Re: Arpeggiator + Scale how to avoid repeating notes?

Post by chapelier fou » Thu Jun 29, 2023 5:36 am

Seems like an unsolvable problem. You’re reducing 12 steps to X steps, there must be repetitions.
If you, for instance, add another scale FX before the scale you already have, you could avoid adjacent notes to produce repetitions, but then, some other configurations would produce repetitions.
The best I could imagine is a M4L device that would round up or down when there’s a repetition.
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siliconarc
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Re: Arpeggiator + Scale how to avoid repeating notes?

Post by siliconarc » Thu Jun 29, 2023 8:17 am

For random notes that don't repeat in clusters, you could use a Scale device > Arpeggiator's 'Random Other' style (the first two notes are sometimes the same but the rest don't repeat)

thegyratinggiblet
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Joined: Wed Nov 21, 2007 8:59 pm

Re: Arpeggiator + Scale how to avoid repeating notes?

Post by thegyratinggiblet » Tue Jul 04, 2023 9:37 pm

Many thanks guys, yes I guess I'm asking the impossible. Random Other was the option I was playing around with and have found if I use a wide spacing chord then I can reduce the frequency of repeated notes. Thanks again. : )

theophilus
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Re: Arpeggiator + Scale how to avoid repeating notes?

Post by theophilus » Thu Jul 06, 2023 2:40 pm

Is this an arp or a mini sequencer (like venomode)? Normal arps only generate notes you put into it, so putting scale before the arp should be fine, as long as you don’t press a chord with conflicts.

If this is some kind of algorithmic generator.. then hopefully it has a way to set the scale.

Seems like something you need to fix at the source (but also curious what you are using for the arp)

theophilus
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Re: Arpeggiator + Scale how to avoid repeating notes?

Post by theophilus » Thu Jul 06, 2023 2:41 pm

Also… you might find something like liquid music useful.

thegyratinggiblet
Posts: 12
Joined: Wed Nov 21, 2007 8:59 pm

Re: Arpeggiator + Scale how to avoid repeating notes?

Post by thegyratinggiblet » Thu Jul 13, 2023 5:08 pm

Hey Theo, in answer to your question, the clues in the title - I'm using the Arpeggiator and Scale - stock plugins that come with Ableton. : )

What's liquid music?

ian_h
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Joined: Sat Aug 01, 2020 11:55 am

Re: Arpeggiator + Scale how to avoid repeating notes?

Post by ian_h » Wed Jul 19, 2023 1:16 pm

Assuming you have Scale after Arpeggiator, I'm wondering what happens if you put Scale before Arpeggiator?

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