Session 14: Parameter Locks & Sample Locks

Objective: Master the OT's most powerful compositional feature — parameter locks. Lock any parameter on any step, swap samples per step (sample locks), and build a melody from a single sample using pitch p-locks.

Warm-Up (2 min)

In Session 10, you p-locked the filter cutoff on a few steps. That was a teaser. This session is the full method. Press [PLAY] on any pattern with at least one trig per beat. Imagine: every step could have completely different parameter values. That's what we're about to unlock.

Setup

Start from the LAB project. You need:

• Track 1: a drum kit Flex slot OR a sliced break loop (if you completed Session 06)
• Track 2: a melodic sample — single note, pitched (a synth one-shot, a sung note, a piano hit)
• Trigs already placed on both tracks (e.g., trigs on 1, 5, 9, 13)

Exercises

Exercise 1: Your First Parameter Lock (4 min)

The fundamental gesture: hold a trig, turn a knob, release.

1. Press [STOP]. Press [TRACK 1]. Place trigs on [TRIG 1, 5, 9, 13]
2. Press [FX1] to view the FX1 page (assuming Multi Mode Filter from Session 10)
3. Set FREQ = 100 (open filter). All trigs play with cutoff at 100
4. Hold [TRIG 5] — keep it pressed. The screen shows "STEP 5 LOCKED" with current parameter values
5. While still holding, turn knob B (FREQ) down to 40. The screen updates — step 5's locked FREQ value
6. Release [TRIG 5]. Step 5 LED color changes (often brighter or different hue) — that's the visual indicator of a locked step
7. Press [PLAY]. You hear: kick, kick (filtered), kick, kick. Step 5 is filtered, others are open

Exercise 2: Multiple P-Locks on One Step (4 min)

A single step can lock as many parameters as you want.

1. With step 5 already locking FREQ, hold [TRIG 5] again
2. Switch to FX2 by pressing [FX2] (still holding TRIG 5? — release and re-hold if needed; some firmware requires re-hold per parameter page)
3. While holding TRIG 5 on the FX2 page (Echo Freeze if you set it up), turn knob A (TIME) to 16 (half-note)
4. Release. Step 5 now has p-locks on FREQ (FX1) AND TIME (FX2) AND any others you add
5. Press [PLAY] — step 5 is filtered AND has a different delay time

Exercise 3: Build a Filter Sweep Across the Pattern (4 min)

P-lock the same parameter on multiple steps to create motion.

1. Stop the sequencer. On Track 1, hold [TRIG 1] + set FREQ to 30
2. Hold [TRIG 5] + set FREQ to 60
3. Hold [TRIG 9] + set FREQ to 90
4. Hold [TRIG 13] + set FREQ to 120
5. Press [PLAY]. Each kick opens the filter further — manual filter sweep without an LFO
6. Slide trig trick (from Session 13): convert each of those trigs to a slide trig — the FREQ now interpolates smoothly from one step to the next instead of jumping

Exercise 4: Sample Locks — Different Sample Per Step (5 min)

Beyond parameter locks, the OT lets you lock the SAMPLE itself per step.

1. Press [TRACK 1]. Make sure track is FLEX with a slot list (at least 4 samples loaded — kick, snare, hat, clap)
2. Trigs on 1, 5, 9, 13 with kick (slot 1) — pattern plays kicks
3. Hold [TRIG 5] — while holding, press the YES key (or in some firmware, hold + tap a different slot). The sample lock menu opens
4. Choose a different slot (say, slot 2 = snare). Confirm
5. Release. Step 5's sample is now snare instead of kick — visible by a different LED color or indicator
6. Repeat for steps 9 (= hat from slot 3), 13 (= clap from slot 4)
7. Press [PLAY]. Pattern is now: kick, snare, hat, clap — full drum pattern from a single track using sample locks

Exercise 5: Build a Melody from a Single Note Sample (6 min)

This is the OT's killer compositional move.

1. Press [TRACK 2]. Make sure it has a melodic single-note sample (e.g., a synth note in C2)
2. Set up some trigs: place trigs on [TRIG 1, 3, 5, 7, 9, 11, 13, 15] (every other step)
3. Press [SRC] to see the source page. The PITCH parameter is on this page (knob B on most firmware)
4. With trigs in place but pitch all default, you hear the same note 8 times — boring
5. Now lock pitches per step:
   • Hold [TRIG 1], set PITCH to 0 (C, root)
   • Hold [TRIG 3], set PITCH to +3 (Eb, minor 3rd)
   • Hold [TRIG 5], set PITCH to +5 (F)
   • Hold [TRIG 7], set PITCH to +7 (G, fifth)
   • Hold [TRIG 9], set PITCH to +10 (Bb, minor 7th)
   • Hold [TRIG 11], set PITCH to +12 (C, octave)
   • Hold [TRIG 13], set PITCH to +7 (G)
   • Hold [TRIG 15], set PITCH to +5 (F)
6. Press [PLAY]. You just composed a minor pentatonic melodic line from one sample
7. The point: the OT is a melodic sequencer disguised as a sampler. Pitch p-locks turn any sample into a playable instrument

Exploration (if time allows)

• Combine sample locks AND p-locks on the same step: hold [TRIG 9], change the sample to a snare AND lock the FX1 reverb wet to 80. The snare on step 9 has different sound AND different FX
• P-lock the LFO depth or destination per step (Module 6 preview) for moving modulation
• View all p-locks on a track: press [FUNC] + [TRACK] in some modes to highlight which steps have locks (firmware-dependent)
• Save the project — your p-locked patterns are valuable

Output Checklist

• I p-locked at least one parameter on at least one step
• I p-locked multiple parameters on the same step
• I built a manual filter sweep using p-locks across 4+ steps
• I sample-locked at least one step to a different slot
• I built a melody from a single sample using pitch p-locks across 8 steps
• I saved the project with my p-locked pattern

Key Takeaways

• Hold [TRIG] + turn knob = p-lock. The single most-used gesture for OT composition
• Sample locks swap the sample per step — turns one track into a multi-sample instrument
• Pitch p-locks turn a single-note sample into a melodic instrument — the OT's secret weapon
• A single step can carry many p-locks (parameter locks AND sample locks AND pitch locks AND FX locks) — full sound design per step

Next Session Preview

Next: conditional trigs and fill mode. Make patterns generative — trigs that fire every other loop, on a 50% chance, only during fills. Patterns that evolve over 32 loops without ever repeating identically.