Novation Circuit Tracks Tutorial (Beginner & Intermediate)

Рет қаралды 138,965

Күн бұрын

A super in-depth Novation Circuit Tracks tutorial for complete beginners and intermediate users returning from the OG Circuit, with a thorough walkthrough and demonstration of the workflow, features, and approach to making music from scratch on this groovebox.
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00:00 Intro
00:25 Circuit Basics
01:55 Synth Tracks
08:39 Drum Tracks
16:00 More about Synths
18:38 Tempo and Swing
19:36 Scales
20:21 Scenes and Sessions
23:44 Step Automation
24:48 Step Probability
25:59 Mutate
27:04 Pattern Settings
29:31 Midi Tracks and Routing
36:40 Outro
Get my $5 sample pack: gumroad.com/l/gabeoneshots
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My current favorite music production gear:
Novation Circuit: www.zzounds.com/a--3972602/it...
Korg Electribe 2: www.zzounds.com/a--3972602/it...
Roland MC-101: www.zzounds.com/a--3972602/it...
Model:Cycles: www.zzounds.com/a--3972602/it...
Arturia MicroFreak: www.zzounds.com/a--3972602/it...
ATH M40 headphones: www.zzounds.com/a--3972602/it...
Edited by Coastland Creative: www.coastlandcreative.com
Note that some of the above links are affiliate links, which give me a commission (at NO extra cost to you!) if you use them to buy something.
Social media:
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Пікірлер: 350

@blotharkheim 3 жыл бұрын

My circuit tracks didn't include a manual. Thankfully this guy exists

@keyerose 2 жыл бұрын

The manual PDF is online. Well written.

@JeighNeither 2 жыл бұрын

Yeah, none of them do, the first time you plug in to a PC, it directs you to the tutorials & manual.

@barneyadams9869 2 жыл бұрын

It would've been nice to have a solid manual but I reckon digital is a good eco friendly (and money saving) move 😊

@team_rex 2 жыл бұрын

My Circuit Tracks didn’t include drum sounds! If this happens to you, use the novation firmware updater, then reload the factory sounds 😰 then come back to Gabe

@timrizzo3941 2 жыл бұрын

Yep, printed it, and my printer has issues w duplex, but I need the hard copy in front of me, so- now I have a book. 109 pages!

@bf5765 3 жыл бұрын

As a complete and utter beginner, this is exactly what I needed!

@Darkmouse20001 3 жыл бұрын

I must confess, the tracks is excellent. The ability to sequence, add fx and mix two additional hardware synths all in one go has changed my desk entirely for the better.

@badaz Жыл бұрын

I received mine today. I watched this video after reading the manual and I think you went over almost everything in a very simple, visual and synthetic way. Thanks a lot, it was really helpful.

@buckhastings1317 Жыл бұрын

my 5 year old son and I have been having so much fun exploring our new circuit tracks. thanks so much for your helpful vids!

@johnlagreca6288 Жыл бұрын

Thank you. Not only was this a great introduction to the Tracks it is also the best video I have seen that simply demonstrated the use and power of a standalone groovebox.

@sbroadbentphoto 26 күн бұрын

Waiting for mine to come in the mail and love having this video to make sure I am not lost when I start.

@kevinanderson519 3 жыл бұрын

Awesome! I got my Tracks last Tuesday. Absolutely loving it. Still a lot to learn, but it’s so much fun. Wouldn’t have got it without your inspirational videos, so thanks for that. And, I’m away to buy your pack now. 👏

@Chinhoyi62 3 жыл бұрын

Gabe, this is the best tutorial on how to use the Circuit Tracks. I'm a complete newbie to this type of device and you have got me hooked on it. Well done!

@88Fitzy88 2 жыл бұрын

Amazing tutorial!! You got me hyped on a circuit with ur videos and it just came in the mail today! Super helpful and im in love with this thing!!

@philipsnettleton 2 жыл бұрын

Really good tutorial. You may have changed my mind about Circuit Tracks and given me a 'use case' I had not before considered. Thanks.

@nifty8327 3 жыл бұрын

I was really on the fence about this one but this has really convinced me on getting one! Love this stuff gabe.

@fivebyfivesound 3 жыл бұрын

Very helpful resource after figuring out as much as I could over a few sessions and without referring to the manual. Thanks!

@alexcookson5662 3 жыл бұрын

Absolutely brilliant video! Good job Gabe

@Projacked1 Жыл бұрын

Very nice tutorial bruh....receiving my Tracks tomorrow . I'm getting really stoked here, so great job.

@CraftyOldGit 3 жыл бұрын

You just saved me £45 as I was about to buy a MIDI Thru Box. I didn't realise the Tracks' MIDI Thru could be switched to be a MIDI Out. (I have two synths that lack MIDI Thru). What a wonderful device the Circuit Tracks is. I'm finding your videos very helpful in learning how to use it.

@Modrunnermusic 2 жыл бұрын

Yes same! I have a TR6S and Im selling that to buy the tracks, so I dont have to buy a midi box to control my Microfreak and Volca FM. This thing is perfect!

@aretwodeetoo1181 2 жыл бұрын

Love these interactive sessions where you answer my question right after I ask it ❤️

@GabeMillerMusic 2 жыл бұрын

Ayyy glad it was helpful!

@delux.4692 3 жыл бұрын

very much needed video, thanks for that! i must say youre hands down the quickest and most easy going guy to explore this wonderful machine keep it up!!

@delux.4692 3 жыл бұрын

another detailed video on the new components and sampling could be very much of use!!

@m.leehinman Жыл бұрын

This was a really great introduction, it was very helpful for people new to synthesis like me, thanks for sharing your knowledge!

@free2muse 3 жыл бұрын

That was the best how to video I’ve seen for this unit. Really helpful. Subscribing.

@MoeShinola1 2 жыл бұрын

This is great! I already created a short project that's close to the example project here, and it's more than I though I'd learn in one night. Thanks, Gabe!

@lecliche8849 3 жыл бұрын

Really well explained. I think you'll be my new go-to guy for tutorials!

@MattGregoryGuitar Жыл бұрын

Thank you thank you thank you! You're a brilliant teacher. You've helped me so much with this awesome device.

@Dettol68 9 ай бұрын

Best tutorial for this glorious device - thank you

@joeltullemans7199 3 жыл бұрын

Absolutely great videos mate. Got my Circuit Tracks coming in the mail this week, it's gonna make love with my Novation AFX Station :D

@SummerHeart 2 жыл бұрын

Thanks a lot for this video Gabe. Hardware jamming all of a sudden became much less of a headache!

@humankapital2000 3 жыл бұрын

Learned a lot, thank you very much, Gabe!

@lecliche8849 3 жыл бұрын

I keep coming back to this. I think I've got about 80% by now so a few more return visits before I move on. Thanks!

@YOUrDEAlerwiThHell Ай бұрын

Very very well explained, thanks alot!

@jambutty2218 2 жыл бұрын

thanks so much for the upload. Having only used a Volca before. I really needed this.

@GabeMillerMusic 2 жыл бұрын

Glad it helped!

@michaelandrewlawrence9961 3 жыл бұрын

Excellent Video! Thanks for posting.

@hjalteoltmann Жыл бұрын

Thank you for some great tutorials dude, your the best 🦋🎉

@ianmitchell4745 2 жыл бұрын

One of my top favorite demonstrations of this product, thanks. I'm also looking at using the Microfreak with this.

@freeloopsandsounds9316 2 жыл бұрын

Got my original one out and started playing with it. I love sliding the thick filter knob up and down to the music!

@thrumyeyesphoto Жыл бұрын

Thanks for the tip on the Midi thru settings! It was driving me crazy as I couldn't get my 2nd synth to play notes. Appreciate your help!

@N1h1L3 3 жыл бұрын

Another quality video, thanks ! I'll revisit when I get a circuit tracks :)

@cokecl 3 жыл бұрын

Changing scales live could make a very interesting effect, nice!

@1of437 6 ай бұрын

Excellent video thank you

@DopamineOverload 2 жыл бұрын

Another great tuto, Gabe.

@ElFlow66 3 жыл бұрын

thanx, perfect start with my new toy, really well done!

@rfphotoart Жыл бұрын

Extremely helpful. Thank you! 👍

@kjetiljrve3854 3 жыл бұрын

Hi Gabe, thanks a lot for explaining the MIDI setup, that really made things clearer for me. Keep up the good work!

@misscherrypop 6 ай бұрын

praise this tutorial

@readmedottext 2 жыл бұрын

this is extremely helpful. thank you.

@chooonz-1212 Жыл бұрын

Thanks Gabe

@andrij.demianczuk 2 жыл бұрын

It’s also worth noting that with one of the recent firmware updates, you can configure the microfreak’s midi out as a midi through. I run my circuit -> Microfreak -> Subharmonicon

@jthorpe4droid 3 жыл бұрын

Very cool tutorial, I learnt a few things too. One thing I've been doing is laying my samples out into 2 row drum racks it's a lot easier now we have the sequencer and patches on the same screen. So BD, SD, CP, CH, OH, CY percs then repeat with the next kit, took a few hours to do but it feels worth it.

@ville-veikkokangas5281 2 жыл бұрын

I watched the whole video and i dont even have this damn thing. Super professional stuff!

@DeathMustard Жыл бұрын

I’ve only ever used an 808 before but this video does a really good job of showing off all the Circuit’s capabilities and I’m so frickin hyped for it! Time to go spend several hundred dollars on a beep boop box

@desmondsparrs 2 жыл бұрын

I ordered this one the other night, and a bunch of sd-cards, adapter.. etc.. Im hoping Ill get Circuit this week at least.. music production used to be therapy for my mind, Im trying to get back into it.. your videos helped my research towards the best compromise of a machine for me! awsm dood!

@koma1915 2 жыл бұрын

Great! THX for this good and very fast how to.

@MaverickM1 5 ай бұрын

Great tutorial, also the instrument is so cool, I switched from the original Circuits and I am very happy with the tracks. The sd card alone worth the upgrade. Also there are a bunch of improvements. (And several downgrades as well yes like chaining limitation or the removal of the speaker but in a direct comparison the new device is much better. Also the new midi tracks are another killer feature. Adding BassStation2 or PocketOperators to the set and control them from the Circuit… yumm yumm. It really is a game changer.

@trevorbrown8737 3 жыл бұрын

Brilliant tutorial nice one!

@MrReneKonig 3 жыл бұрын

29:19 "so imagine [...] how much chaos you could create" - That´s it right there, I´m sold. Def getting one of those sweet chaos machines xD

@Zama. Жыл бұрын

your videos are so good 👏🏻

@SILVERF0X13 2 жыл бұрын

I don't have one of these, but was curious and this video goes a long way towards me actually understanding how they work and just how much can be accomplished with it. I bought a handpan a while back, so I'm not gonna be investing in new music stuff for a while, but I'll probably come back and buy one eventually.

@K24U76 3 жыл бұрын

Thanks for the tutorial. I just purchased the tracks and have no experience with groove boxes at all. I am a guitar player trying break out and experiment with EDM and guitar.. Day one of owning this unit I almost returned it out of intimidation and frustration. I am not a Manuel reader, this video was very clear and helped my get going. I absolutely love the circuit tracks now on day 2 of using it and I have some killer songs ideas. Keep up your informative videos Man. Good stuff. Next learning steps for me is using the circuit tracks to control my jdxi. Not sure what I am doing wrong but may assumption is there must be settings on the jdxi to use it as a slave.. 🤔

@JulienJolly 3 жыл бұрын

Good job! Thanks 👍

@MonkeyKing3333 2 жыл бұрын

Thanks man 😊👍

@ZekeSage3 3 жыл бұрын

Thank you

@pedropezte7382 Жыл бұрын

thank you!

@AllanVolcy 10 ай бұрын

THANK YOU!!!!❤👍

@thuggeetennessee7981 Ай бұрын

Thank God for the half-speed button! Good job.

@LauraSquirrel Жыл бұрын

Thanks a lot for this video. I got one of these today. This stuff is all brand new to me. So, I'm sure that I will need to revisit this often.

@GabeMillerMusic Жыл бұрын

Hope it helps!

@LauraSquirrel Жыл бұрын

@@GabeMillerMusic Oh, your channel has helped me a ton already. I have plans lined up to get a cool lower cost set up going. My only hurdle is figuring out a way to set it all up so that it will work ergonomically. I am confined to one small folding table since I am in an apartment. So, I need to find a way to get things situated so I can use it all at once. I am running everything out to an old Peavey PV8 mixer.

@aliciaeinstein5673 3 жыл бұрын

would love a slower more in depth walkthrough for beginners

@DJMikeron 3 жыл бұрын

yes way to fast i get the impression Gabe is paying 10 dollars the minute to you tube for talking.

@fivebyfivesound 3 жыл бұрын

It was way too fast for me too. Then I messed around on the machine for a few days to learn as much as I could on my own, then I came back and his explanations were filling in gaps instead of teaching me every little thing. Much easier to follow. Also changing playback to a slower speed and pausing as needed….

@skawanagi 2 жыл бұрын

playback speed 0.5x solves all your problems. Or 0.25x if you really want to take notes :D

@Dolores5000 Жыл бұрын

Still obtaining nutritional value from this very fantastic tutorial thanks:)

@GabeMillerMusic Жыл бұрын

Haha glad it's being helpful!

@trevorwolfe5741 3 жыл бұрын

Thanks man

@JeighNeither 2 жыл бұрын

I'm using this for busking in the NYC subway as a one-man electro band. I play mostly guitar actually, but w/synth pedals & a lot of two-handed tapping trickery, & then sing on top of it. Think Milosh or Apparat. The control I have was unaffordable just 5 years ago, & I do all this w/portable power & 2 Cube EX's. I use the JOYO Powersupply 5 for peripherals & one for back-up in case I wanna play an hr or two past the battery life of the Circuit.

@takusanimasu 3 жыл бұрын

You are hero.

@System-1541 3 жыл бұрын

When you get the cc's down it would be interesting to see what you can do with the volca. On the volca keys you can control everything but the resonance with cc values. So theoretically if you recorded your movements with the circuit you would be able to save volca presets per project, or even per pattern using the Circuit tracks.

@DavidDeLuge 2 жыл бұрын

Excellent video. Keep them coming; especially on the Rhythm 😁

@GabeMillerMusic 2 жыл бұрын

Lots more Rhythm stuff on the way!

@DavidDeLuge 2 жыл бұрын

@@GabeMillerMusic Awesome! You're making great content. My Rhythm should arrive in early August 👍🏻😜

@mykimayhem9477 2 жыл бұрын

Holy crap! Thank you for showing me how to get the Volca Keys working on the circuit. I've been beating my head against a wall for over 2 hours. Switching the channel to 1 worked perfectly. Question: If I add a Volca Bass, what channel would I use if 1 is taken?

@glynnyadao8067 2 жыл бұрын

Gabe, thanks again always giving a solid player point review. I would say now that I have a tracks, it's a miss having the drums totally separate and having single channels split for 32 per section makes editing each bar added pain to use. something about the OG simplicity made it fun easy to lay it down quick. Maybe it needs to grow on me, and these slight complexities are worth bells and whistles. The added pack storage so far is the one. I use to lay down the idea for my daw

@billjon2732 3 жыл бұрын

Thanks man didn’t know about the note tie on my circuit ima lookup that manual as well.

@GabeMillerMusic 3 жыл бұрын

Yeah both Circuits have note tie, although it looks like you get more control over it with the Tracks.

@billjon2732 3 жыл бұрын

@@GabeMillerMusic oh ok cool I thought about getting the og circuit recently but I’m glad I waited and got the tracks, I got your sample pack for it also and Payton Carter’s. I’ve been messing around with them, very cool sounds bro thanks👌.

@eagereyes 3 жыл бұрын

Great tutorial! A note on your camera, though: it keeps trying to refocus, and your lens has some lens breathing, which is distracting. Especially for shots like this, where everything stays in one place, you might want to focus at the beginning and then switch to manual focus so it doesn't keep trying to focus (or focus on your hand and back on the synth, etc.).

@GabeMillerMusic 3 жыл бұрын

Fair, I'll do that in the future.

@hollyester 2 жыл бұрын

Did you get the info you needed? Great!

@hollyester 2 жыл бұрын

This is an EXCELLENT tutorial. I was hoping for a mic drop at the end.

@GabeMillerMusic 2 жыл бұрын

Haha glad it was helpful!

@Eric-qi9us 3 жыл бұрын

the best tutorial on the internet

@waddy707 3 жыл бұрын

Great overview. Could you please do one on creating samples/patches in projects on Novation components site. Would also like to know how to use loopops template for pitching samples. Cheers.

@MichaelMassimino 3 жыл бұрын

Great video, this sold me on getting a Circuit Tracks. Question...do you have to do the MIDI setup every time you startup or is the routing saved in the project?

@kubburdigital 3 жыл бұрын

you can change the midi in on the volca keys by powering it down, holding function button while powering it up, choose the channel you want and press rec on the volca keys

@GabeMillerMusic 3 жыл бұрын

Good to know! I'm just lazy and figured this was a good excuse to show how midi routing works on the Tracks.

@kubburdigital 3 жыл бұрын

Ah good point

@beirtipol 3 жыл бұрын

A link to this video needs to be included in the box! Thank you

@peterwojtek8468 3 жыл бұрын

Great tutorial Gabe. Somehow I couldn't get to control my external synth's volume through the circuit's mixer and all external gear is sounding pretty low as a result. This is puzzling, as the master filter does its job on the external synth. Any idea of what's going wrong here ? (note that my setup is almost identical to yours, I'm also using the microfreak).

@gianerosssales 2 жыл бұрын

Thanks for this very helpful video! Can i ask? Can we connect a guitar or mic directly to circuit tracks input and will it recognize it as input of guitar and vox?

@grmusicnyc Жыл бұрын

Is that amazing lead included in your microfreak patches pack? Your oneshot pack is dope. Thanks!

@jorgerezg3686 Жыл бұрын

Great tutorial!!!! thanks!! A question, sync outputs of all synthsare useful for sync? are neccesary to connect? Cheers!!

@Johnatomy 3 жыл бұрын

I wish you could forcibly assign tone differences with samples instead of having to live record them as envelopes. Also, not sure if this has been covered but I love hitting note expand while on a sample track so you can see all four sample tracks on a pad and you can work out your whole beat in a practce/ live environment.

@incaroads001 3 жыл бұрын

Gabe, any advice on syncing the Circuit tracks to a multitrack recorder without midi? I'm just wondering if it can lay down a sync track and then read it back. Can that sync port be set to write (output a sync signal) and then to read (input a sync signal)? Maybe this is pointless, but I was thinking about possibly doing overdubs on a friend's tascam machine. If it can't be done then I'll just have to go back to the DAW. Thanks. BTW it was very smart of Novation to send you one of these things. They seem to know where their bread is buttered. Great video.

@OYNG 3 жыл бұрын

Hey Gabe! Loving your content! I'm running into a bit of a brickwall with my circuit. I've connected my keystep as a controller into the circuit, and used the midi thru port + midi merger to connect to my two synths. the synths receives note info from the keystep, and when recording notes into the circuit the notes show up but doesn't play back! I've tried everything and novation support isn't any help either, I was wondering if you had any clue on how i could get it working. hope to hear back from you :)

@ernesto4118 Жыл бұрын

HI Gabe, the last part on the set up is great. I just have one question: the MIDI cables you have there, are those going into your laptop? Basically, is it possible to then route the 3 devices, say, to Ableton via MIDI? thanks so much

@bhaktabilly4669 3 жыл бұрын

Please go over the Components synth editor!

@minimal.camera 3 жыл бұрын

Thanks for another great video! What are your thoughts on the quality of effects that the circuit tracks can apply to external synths? Sidechain compression is great, but how about the rest?

@GabeMillerMusic 3 жыл бұрын

The others effects are the send effects, reveb and delay. In my opinion, they're pretty good, and they can definitely bring synths with no built in effects to life.

@olonoli Жыл бұрын

Cool tutorial !! Is there any way i could use this as a guitar looper ? I mean some beat, bass n play some chords with a guitar ? Maybe with some helix or something?

@8superben 3 жыл бұрын

Hey gabe, id reccomend the MPC one, it's so much better than a circuit IMO it competes with the Roland ones very well too! I've owned a circuit,circuit tracks,MC101,mc707. The best is the MPC one or the 707. Thanks.

@pandalilpig Ай бұрын

@marciolimongi Жыл бұрын

Thank you for the video, very informative! I have those same instruments, and I would like to add a drum machine to the setup, like a TR-8S or a drumbrute impact. Is there a way for me to connect the drum machine to those three devices, so that all four devices are on the same clock? I am very new to midi and would appreciate the info from anyone, including how you would route the audio and midi cables to connect all four instruments. Thanks!

@lecliche8849 3 жыл бұрын

Hi Gabe (and everyone). Any ideas on how to use one of the midi channels to control the OPZ? I've tried with a usb cable and with the OPZ OpLab module but haven't had any luck so far.