Visiting the Elektron booth at Superbooth24
At Superbooth24 we stopped by the Elektron stand to see what’s new. Front‑and‑center was the Digitakt II, sporting upgrades that push it closer to Octatrack MKII territory and making any “Octatrack vs Digitakt II” debate a lot more interesting.
Upgraded features of the Digitakt II
The headline enhancement is stereo sampling, which opens wider sound‑design possibilities and richer, room‑filling textures. In a compact sampler, that’s a big win.
Performance Kit mode
Digitakt II introduces Performance Kit mode: keep a kit consistent across patterns while you improvise, perfect for live sets. It’s not identical to Octatrack MKII’s Parts system (which offers four slots and its own flow), but it gives Digitakt users a powerful way to manage kits on stage.
Comparison to Octatrack MKII
Octatrack MKII still has clear strengths:
- Record Trigs and true on‑the‑fly sampling
- Scenes plus the crossfader for nuanced performance morphing
- Track exclusion on Digitakt II helps, but doesn’t fully replace the depth of Octatrack Scenes
Slicing capabilities
For sample slicing, Octatrack MKII’s flexible grid remains king. Classic slice editing allows detailed, custom divisions that some workflows rely on, whereas Digitakt II’s slicing is more straightforward.
New specs at a glance
- Tracks – 16 audio/MIDI tracks, each playing stereo or mono samples
- Filters – swap between base‑width, multimode, 4‑pole low‑pass, comb, EQ, or legacy LP/HP
- LFOs – three assignable LFOs per track
- Effects – delay, reverb, chorus, bit‑reduction, sample‑rate reduction, and overdrive on every track
- Sequencer – 128‑step Elektron sequencer plus a Euclidean generator
- Memory & power – expanded compared with the original Digitakt
- Song mode – chain, edit, and play full compositions
- Machines – five SRC engines: Oneshot, Werp, Stretch, Repitch, and Grid
- Layout tweaks – quicker access to machines, effects, sends, a dedicated Mod button, and instant chromatic mode
Narrowing the gap
Stereo sampling and Performance Kit mode make Digitakt II far more capable, closing distance to the Octatrack MKII. While Octatrack’s Scenes and crossfader keep it uniquely versatile, Digitakt II now offers plenty of power in a simpler, more streamlined box.