Polyend Releases Tracker – Hardware Tracker Sequencing Workstation

Innovative musical instrument manufacturer, Polyend, has released Tracker, the first hardware tracker workstation based on the software from the 1980’s. Starting life as a game sound development tool released for the Commodore Amiga personal computer back in 1987, a music tracker, or simply “Tracker,” for short, is sequencing software with a distinctive computer code interface.

Polyend has released Tracker, the first hardware tracker workstation

The first tracker, Ultimate Soundtracker, supported four pitch and volume modulated channels of 8-bit PCM (Pulse Code Modulation) samples, a limitation imposed by the Amiga’s audio chipset. Classic trackers represented music as individual notes positioned in separate channels at discrete positions on a vertical timeline with a number-based user interface. Notes, parameter changes, effects, and other commands were entered via computer keyboard into a grid of fixed time slots as codes comprising letters, numbers, and hexadecimal digits — the latter being a positional system representing numbers using 16 distinct symbols.

 
Waves Brauer Motion Coupon Code
 

Now Polyend has taken the Tracker concept in a modern direction, taking the best aspects of the 80’s tracker software classics and reimagining them with forward-looking functionality in a hardware package. Polyend’s Tracker eliminates the hexadecimal ambiguity and implements a simplified system of readable decimals. Polyend also translates the original’s vertical timeline, sequencer, and computer keyboard interface and creates a new input interface paradigm, divided into several sections: a high resolution screen and associated screen keys; mechanical controls that always correspond to what is displayed on the screen directly above them; the grid — featuring 48 backlit multifunctional silicon pads for quick note and pattern value entry and visual feedback; function keys — for fast and responsive control over all functions and options; plus navigation keys and associated jog-wheel with haptic feedback — for facilitating transport control alongside arrow keys for navigation control, as well as dedicated Insert, Copy/Paste, Delete/Backspace, and Shift keys.

Polyend Tracker - Rear view connectivity

Polyend’s Tracker comes with a variety of onboard sound design tools to enhance creativity beyond the classic tracker look of showing up to 48 instruments and 256 patterns with a maximum of 128 steps per pattern per project. Let loose with:
» Instrument — a chain of tools (Volume, Tuning, Panning, Filters, Reverb Send, and ADSRs) to make an instrument from any sample
» Sampler — choose from different (1-shot, Forward, Backward, and Ping-Pong) play modes
» Slicer — slice samples manually, or let Tracker take care of it automagically at any time
» Wavetable — wavetable synthesis with variable table length to make it compatible with the most popular (Ableton Wave and Serum) standards
» Granular — single grain yet powerful granular synthesis to create dynamic and futuristic sounds from samples
» Sample Editor — built-in offline rendering sample editor with multiple effects
» Sample Recorder — records up to two minutes of 16-bit/44.1kHz samples using built-in Radio, Pattern selection, Mic or Line In inputs, all of which can be saved to the included (16GB) MicroSD card for later use or loaded directly into a project.

Tracker also plays nicely with other instruments. With its bidirectional MIDI (Musical Instrument Digital Interface) implementation, it can be used to sequence and control external gear or be controlled as a sound module by any external MIDI software or hardware devices. Whatever way anyone chooses to use it, armed as it is with an impressive arsenal of sonic weaponry — including automatic filling, randomizer, probability, selection rendering, effects per step, live recording, batch parameter editing, micro-tuning, micro-timing, rolls, and more. Compatibility with MOD files — a computer file format primarily used to represent music, made up of a set of instruments (in the form of samples), a number of patterns (indicating how and when the samples are to be played), and a list of what patterns to play in what order — allows users to import and finish tracks from way back when or export and finish their Tracker creations in modern-day software trackers.

 

 
The world’s first hardware tracker is slick, light, and portable. It is also energy efficient, so will work with any USB (Universal Serial Bus) power source.

Tracker comes complete with a USB-A power adapter, 2m USB-C cable, 3.5mm to 2x 6.3mm adapter, Minijack to MIDI DIN adapter, 16GB MicroSD card, and MicroSD to USB-A adapter.

Polyend’s Tracker is available now for $599 / €499.
 
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Author: FutureMusic

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