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OpenTracker 2.2.6

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@sandlbn sandlbn released this 06 Nov 06:43
· 2 commits to main since this release
v2.2.6
6864073

OpenTracker 2.2.6

The current stable release of the 2.x line: an open, community firmware for the original
Polyend Tracker. 2.x brings 16 tracks, three synth slots, stereo samples, Mini-format project
files and USB Storage mode to the original hardware.

OpenTracker is not affiliated with, endorsed by or supported by Polyend.

Files

  • PolyendTrackerOTv226.ptf: the firmware image.
  • OpenTracker-2.2.6-Patches.zip: the preset pack (82 patches: ACD 12, FAT 8, VAP 16, WTFM 30, PERC 16, the same as in 2.2.5). Copy Patches/ to the root of the card and merge it with what is there.
  • OpenTracker-2.2.6-Themes.zip: 12 example colour themes. Unzip it to the root of the card; the files land in /Themes.
  • OpenTracker-2.2.6-Projects.zip: the test songs. Copy them to /Projects on the card.
  • OpenTracker-2.2.6-Manual.pdf: the 2.x user manual for this release.
  • SHA256SUMS: checksums of every file. Check them with sha256sum -c SHA256SUMS.

Install

  1. Back up your SD card.
  2. Copy PolyendTrackerOTv226.ptf to /Firmware on the card. Keep the file name as it is: the updater only takes names of exactly 24 characters.
  3. Go to Config > Firmware update, select the image and confirm. If the screen stays dark after the update, press the power button once.

Going back: keep the stock 1.9.2 image in /Firmware and install it the same way. From a running OpenTracker you can also write its file name into /Firmware/ot_restore.txt and power-cycle. Keep only the image you want, plus stock, in /Firmware: the rear reset button installs a .ptf from that folder.

New in 2.2.6

  • Pattern pads with one finger (GitHub issue #153): a short tap of F1 on its own keeps the pads on patterns. Press pads to pick patterns; tap F1 again, or press another screen button, to return the pads to notes. Play and Stop keep it. The current pattern's pad blinks, a queued pattern's pad is lit full, patterns with notes are dim. Holding F1 with a pad, an arrow or the encoder works as before.
  • Resample, Place on (PR #149): tracks without notes in the current pattern are green, tracks with notes red (placing there mixes the take with them). From and Place on list tracks by their names.
  • Radio stereo: Config > General > Radio stereo = On makes the built-in radio stereo, and the Sample Recorder records it as Radio ST. Off, the default, keeps it mono as on stock (cleaner on weak stations, half the memory). Rows after it in General move down by one.
  • WAV files that peak past full scale: 32-bit float files often go above full scale when exported from a computer. Those samples are now clipped at full scale. Before, they wrapped around and the file played as harsh noise, in Preview and as an instrument.

Thanks to the testers for their reports.

New in 2.2.5

The Performance screen works as on stock 1.9.2, and its FX reach synth notes; shorter Performance names, note names (Sharps / Flats / Auto), synth release tails that follow the Track Mixer, and Sample Loader and Sample Playback fixes. See the 2.2.5 release.

If you are coming from 2.2.4 or earlier: the Performance screen

The Performance screen now works as on stock 1.9.2. If you used it in earlier 2.x releases:

  • Every track starts with its FX off. Press and release a track's screen button to turn its FX on. A pad then reaches only the tracks you picked.
  • A red label means FX on. Before, red meant off.
  • The filters start from the instrument's own cutoff, not from an open filter. Saved performances with a filter column can sound different: High-pass on an instrument with an open filter is now nearly silent, as on stock.

The 2.x line

  • 16 tracks: tracks 13-16 work like MIDI tracks.
  • Three synth slots (S1-S3) with five engines of our own sound design: ACD, VAP, PERC, FAT and WTFM. FX columns A-F drive six macros; Volume drives macro 7. A shared pool of 4 voices by default (1-8 in Config).
  • Projects in the Mini's format: 16-track patterns, the three synth slots and .patch files. Older original-Tracker projects open as they are.
  • Stereo samples in one-shot, loop, slice and beat-slice modes.
  • USB Storage mode: the SD card shows up as a drive on a computer (about 1 MB/s).
  • Live resampling (contributed by syamajala): record the mix, one track or Line In into a new instrument while the pattern plays.
  • Exports at 44.1 kHz, a CPU meter, and a voice limiter that only ever cuts synth voices.

Known limitations

  • The synths follow the Mini's parameter sets, but the sound is our own design: close, not identical.
  • The synth voice pool defaults to 4 because of the processor's speed.
  • USB Storage mode: back up the card before first use. Linux systems without a desktop may need partprobe or a re-plug to see the card.
  • Projects saved by 2.x use 16-track patterns. Stock firmware reads only tracks 1-8 of those patterns.
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