Elektron today unleashed a ‘Double OS delight’, with free firmware updates for the Digitakt II and Digitone II.
Firmware for both devices has been updated to firmware 1.10, with some cross-pollination between the two, plus some ‘tasty new additions’.
Here’s what’s new with Digitakt and Digitone firmware 1.10:
Digitakt II:
- Comb+ Filter – Digitone II’s Comb+ filter is now also available on Digitakt II. It gives you another super versatile shade of feedback to add to your filter options, bringing additional metallic-sounding, resonant qualities to explore.
- Mono Sampling – Much requested and back again! Mono sampling returns to the Digitakt setup, alongside the existing Stereo sampling approach, giving you more choice when it comes to capturing sound.
- Routable distortion and base-width filter – Choose whether you want your overdrive distortion and your base-width filter to be placed before or after your various filter alternatives, with your decision opening up different sonic avenues to your track.
- Keytrack Modulation – Also arriving from its sibling, key tracking lets you choose from a variety of parameter destinations (and up to four of them) to be modulated depending on where you are on the keyboard. Play high notes to change the parameters in one way and low notes to modulate in another way.
Digitone II:
- Chord Mode – Rejoice in unison! Chord Mode arrives on Digitone II. And this version has even more melodic flexibility than ever. Your one-finger harmonizing power can be activated in a variety of scales, types, and root notes, but that’s only the beginning of the fun available. Choose from different modes such as Chord Root, Chord Center, and Chord Spread, and add an additional bass note; all allowing you to further tweak the kind of chord that will be played. To top it all off, use Chord Memory to store whatever wild chords you can put together, enabling instant playing of up to 16 that can be saved per pattern.
- Overbridge streaming – With 1.10, you can now multi-stream all of your Digitone II tracks separately to your computer. We’re still working on the rest of the Overbridge goods for Digitone II – the plugin is currently in BETA testing and will be available in the near future.
- Rotate arpeggiator + more speeds – Play with the arpeggiator in new ways by rotating the offsets and forming new melodic sequences. That’s not the only way you can twist things either, with a bunch of new arpeggiator speeds to experiment with. Connect it to the new Chord Modes to really open things up.
There are also a host of new features that are arriving on both machines.
- Track Swap lets you switch two tracks – with all the settings, presets and sequencer info attached – helping you organize for live shows or just keep things tidy.
- With P-lock to active trigs you can quickly edit parameters on all active trigs on your page, or track.
- Live record overdub allows notes to be recorded on top of existing trigs instead of overwriting them.
- There’s also an option for live recording Parameter Locks to active trigs only, and new track select options.
See the Elektronauts site for details.
Digitakt II still does not have auto zero cross support for samples (this update only added it to their GRID machine). So, it’s still useless as a sampler unless you like clicks/pops/etc.
Digitone II is still annoying to use without an external midi controller as you will constantly have to use button combos for note entry and knobs for adjustments. Wish it had a playing surface that was separate from the sequencer (op-xy, ableton move).
I haven’t read a comment in a while so this is my first in a long time. I’m going to go back to not reading them:)
Samplers do many things, I think you have a valid point but but I wouldn’t say its useless because you have to put in the work to adjust your start/end points. Depends on the work. My kick samples, dont care. My short sustained samples, still dont car ebut i get it. I like the character os a little tick, click, pop in the loop but again, depends on the work.
It’s the year 2025 and $1000. It’s a basic feature to have at this point. And yeah, if you just load premade one shots/loops/etc, you will never need to worry about it. But, you already knew what I meant and wanted to be pedantic.
Yes, yes I did. I dont disagree. But the whole “I bought a car but it doesnt have a cupholder so its not even drivable” thing got to me a bit if im being honest. I’ve just done a bunch of sampling in my years and there is much more to it than zero-crossings that I found it hilarius to consider that feature such a top tier sampling feature for proper functionality of sampling.
I would feel the same if the digitakt didnt have an input and you could only load samples. Thats not a sampler, its a sample player.
Again, I agree, would love the feature but it doesnt make the Digitakt inoperable.
Ya I agree with ya, it’s just annoying having to have to do it yourself if you’re a perfectionist haha.
Anyways, a sampler with a Comb plus filter is gonna be interesting. I was doing a lot of realistic strings and piano patches on Digitone II but gonna be wild to see what people come up with on DT II.
The Octatrack has had a comb filter for a long time. If you look on Youtube or Elektronauts it will give you a good idea of what sounds are possible with it. I don’t have a DTII to test but at first glance the implementation looks similar.
Its always the same with Elektron they make their devices at the beginning intentionally weak and than slowly over the years they implement features so that everyone can praise their updates. One example, when they copy features from one machine to another they dont need to write any new code. We live in a programming world that is now driven by AI its not that hard anymore to code something new.
They are different platforms when you compare Octatrack, Digitakt/Digitone I, Syntakt, Digitakt/Digitone II. It’s not that simple to just copy code over.
Though, I am in 100% agreement that Elektron deliberately holds back on their devices so they don’t compete with each other… which is silly because it’s just asking for a company to swoop in and offer a product that does a lot more in one single box.
It’s not like both devices only have sub-basic features, is it? What you mEntion is nice to have but boy are we all spoiled for everything nowadays. Imagine all the artists 10-15 years ago whining that they have to get good at sample chopping and actually putting in the work to create their music. I know, it’s easier to post comments in hope your anger will really be of importance to anyone, but yourself, but then again, you’re probably not a musician or creator, are you? Are you missing the “create my whole song” feature as well, because it’s 2025 and AI can do this? No offence, but whining about non-problems to randos is really a weird phenomenon, which never gets you taken seriously, believe me. Just my 2 cents. Now make some music.
Relax, we’re just pulling each others legs here. I own a Digitone II myself and sold my Digitakt II a while back. Thinking about picking it up again (on release there were a ton of bugs/issues the oled screen lines issue).
It’s a site about gear announcements and 95% of all people here don’t buy most of this stuff, but everyone has an opinion. What where you expecting? Don’t loose hope though, there are still creators and artists out there but you won’t find many here. The ability to buy or connect 5k of outdated electronics for your unbearable generative soundscapes hear doesn’t make you a musician, but even I fall into thinking, this is the case. It’s all just noise and there are good forums, so just go there. See you on the other side.
I’m actually surprised by how maturely people here have responded, it’s quite refreshing.
Practically anyone can be a musician, and what makes a good musician is subjective.
Dude you just set the envelope attack to like…. 4 or 5. This workaround has been known for a very, very long time.
if the samples have an ADSR envelope you can roll off a tiny bit of attack and get rid of pops. in many cases this is better than zero cross because it doesn’t always work with stereo files, you could have a zero cross on the left channel but not on the right and still have a click. rolling off a tiny bit of attack solves this.
Anyone who makes music knows this. Point made.
Yep, that’s exactly what I did to mitigate it. Good tip!
Thousands of people use the “useless” Digitakt. Do you only use looping samples?
As for the Digitone – it’s a polyphonic synth module. Hook up a MIDI controller.
Or… just don’t use these compact Elektron boxes if they don’t meet your needs.
I find the title inappropriate, no wonder music tech is full of dudes, when headings make comparisons with bra sizes.
The reason I sent mine back was because of the lack of loop crossing. I agree it’s ludicrous they haven’t implemented this!
Digitakt II is old, I’m waiting for DT III
Was I hoping for too much to want Digitakt 2 to get an arpeggiator?
Still baffles me why Elektron made an entirely new Digitakt, and didn’t make it polyphonic.
We love synthtopia