Cycle Random and Round Robin - Sample Triggering

Sample Triggering

When composing electronic music, chances are, you’ll play samples more than once, especially with drums like cymbals and high hats. However, songs can sound monotonous and computer-generated if the same sample is used every time a trigger occurs. After all, no two sounds are the same in real life. There is always some subtle difference between every hit a drummer makes differences in level, pitch, timbre, image, and duration. Simply mapping your samples to different velocity ranges can help, but it won’t produce that “organic” sound in the best drum and bass music. Fear not; cycle random and round-robin will save your music from mindless repetition.   Cycle random and round robin are sample triggering (called “cell activation”) options. They are provided by many samplers, including NI Battery 4 and Kontakt.  

Cycle Random 

In short, it cycles randomly through all samples mapped to the same MIDI note. In other words, you can map multiple pieces to the same note, and instead of all playing at once when you press it, they’ll be chosen randomly, one at a time.  

Round Robin 

Allows samples mapped to the same note to be played in an assigned order, one at a time. You’ll find the Cycle Random and Round Robin options here in Battery 4. They are in the “setup” tab under “cell activation.”  

 

If you select round robin (called cycle RR in Battery), you can assign the order in which your samples will cycle using the “position” box. Keep in mind if there are more numbers assigned than samples in the system, silence will be triggered. For example, if you map just one sample to C3 on position 4, it will only play every fourth triggering of C3.

 

You’ll find cycle random and round-robin here in Kontakt. The menu is within the “group editor” tab under “group start options.”  

 

Setting up round robin and cycle random is a little trickier in Kontakt than in Battery because it is done on a “group level.” In order to have samples cycle correctly, they have to be in their groups. To do this, create new groups by clicking the “Create empty group” button in the top right of the group editor. I would recommend renaming the groups.   Below is an example of how I used the Cycle Random method to improve a ride cymbal part   

 

~ Ride cymbal part, no cycle random 

~ Ride cymbal part with cycle random  

~ Ride cymbal part with cycle random, in context  

But these cell activation methods are helpful for more than just drums...  

Using Round Robin and Cycle Random for Footsteps

I have had great experiences using them to cycle through footstep samples for short animated clips.   I first collected four good footstep samples (2 for the left foot, 2 for the right*) and treated them to suit the character’s size and weight. Next, I loaded them into Kontakt. Then, I set up a round-robin activation method within each foot. Finally, I “walked” on my MIDI controller with two fingers!   This was simple and quick, contrary to recording Foley, which is VERY difficult and requires a tranquil space with A LOT of professional gear. *It is a good idea to stay consistent with what samples are on the left foot and the right foot because, if you listen carefully to natural footsteps, you’ll notice they are consistently distinct.  

Using CR and Rr to Develop New Melodic Ideas

Cycle Random and Round Robin can be used for more than percussion and sound effects. Try this... Create several short melodic ideas for a song. Bounce them separately, trim them, and quantize them to the time signature. Load them into Battery or Kontakt (make sure tracking is off**). Please set up a cell activation method for triggering them (CR, RR). Perform them as “one-shots” over a groove. Improvise and create new composite patterns. In the end, Re-Record your new exotic melody!   ** Keyboard tracking in Kontakt automatically changes the pitch (sample rate) of the sample in an attempt to match the note it is being triggered by. This is a great feature for making melodic and harmonic instruments out of samples, but it will ruin the rhythmic integrity of your bounces. Therefore, it should not be enabled when re-sampling something clocked and in tune.