How To Expand A Pattern?

Hi. I sometimes have the situation when it turns out that I need to put an additional note between two notes that are next to each other (for example imagine that I have notes in lines 01 and 02, and I want to put a note between them). What I usually do, is to change my pattern speed to play twice as fast as it currently is (for example if it is Speed 4, I would change it to Speed 2), double the number of lines (for example if it is 64, I would double it to 128) and then stretch the whole pattern (using “expand” from “advanced pattern editor”) so it should play exactly the same, but on the new 128 lines instead of 64.
Is it the right way to do it? Won’t it affect any VSTs or DSPs effects? Will my music always sound the same using the above technique?

How do you guys solve the problem of putting an additional note where there is no empty line between two notes? It also affects my music in a way that makes it sometimes sound too “robotic” or “fake”. I mean the interval between notes is always perfectly timed by Renoise… humans don’t play like this :) Is it possible to use “humanize” to change this? (I sometimes try to use “humanize” to change volume slightly, but I usually end up doing this manually because humanize doesn’t work too well for me (or maybe I don’t know how to use it :) ).

So if you could share your own ways of dealing with the problem of putting additional notes between existing notes residing on neighboring lines, that would be great.

I add another notecolumn, put the note parallel to it and start it with a delay offset and cut the most left note with a note-cut effect in the panning column (fx)
I have never enlarged patterns to resolve issues this way when it regarded only one note. If this kind of fixing started to become a pattern itself, then it was time to make this change.

  
000 | C-410.. F6 D-410.. 80 ---- |   
001 | --- .. .. --- .. .. ---- |   
002 | --- .. .. --- .. .. ---- |   
003 | --- .. .. --- .. .. ---- |   
  

use the delay column and put 80 in it. that’s half of the time between two lines. myself, i always try to have enough “resolution” that i can sqeeuze in most notes without using the delay column.

you can use humanize on the delay values as well… choose delay in the advanced edit>content mask and then choose “hum” in vol/pan/delay/FX.

edit: ups, vV was faster. anyways; regarding it sounding too robotic. it might actually be because you are not adding that little swing feel to the programming that you have in your head. this can be quite subtle! if you don’t play an instrument then try drumming out the rhythm on the table top and listen carefully. you might just notice that you displace the notes slighty.

it’s interesting topic and often overlooked. here’s an interesting read: http://en.wikipedia…wiki/Swung_note

Swing ratios tend to get wider at slower tempos and narrower at faster tempos. Miles Davis varied his swing ratios, frequently delaying the first note of each pair of eighth notes by some milliseconds and then synchronized the second eighth note with the drummer’s swing eighths being played on the cymbal. Advanced performers often lay back or play behind the beat when performing jazz melodies by delaying the rhythms by milliseconds.

There’s another way, but it’s slightly longer winded.
You change the LPB setting by putting F1XX (i think) in the effects column (i usually put it on the master) to double that which it is. Then select EVERYTHING, (alt x on mac) and then in adv edit, with click ‘EXPAND’.
This will basically mean you have double the resolution and means you can put more than 1 beat between the original beats.

love that :)

Thanks a lot for answers. Delay offset works like a charm. Pity I haven’t figured it out before - would have saved me some time. Maybe I should really read that manual at some point :rolleyes:

Regarding “Humanize” - I still think the variations that it introduces are too small. Is it possible to somehow configure the Humanize to make the variations bigger?