EL - Euclidean Sequencer
(Documenation generated by ClaudeAI - please report any errors or inconsistencies)
The Euclidean Sequencer mode (EL) runs 8 independent Euclidean rhythm generators simultaneously. Each generator distributes a number of events (trigger hits) as evenly as possible across a number of steps, following the Bjorklund/Toussaint Euclidean algorithm. Each of the 8 channels outputs its own MIDI note with independent pitch, velocity, MIDI channel, timing, swing, and MidiFX routing.
The mode abbreviation for this mode is EL. Select it from the mode select screen by long-pressing the encoder.
Key Layout
[AUX ] [F1 ] [F2 ] [MIX ] [EDT ] [PAT ] [MFX1] [MFX2] [MFX3] [MFX4] [MFX5]
[EU1 ] [EU2 ] [EU3 ] [EU4 ] [EU5 ] [EU6 ] [EU7 ] [EU8 ]
| Key(s) | Action |
|---|---|
| AUX | Toggle play / stop |
| F1 | Hold: enter Mute mode — keys EU1–EU8 toggle per-channel mute |
| F2 | Hold: enter Paste mode (Edit/Mix) or Save mode (Pattern) |
| F1 + F2 | Both held = Cut mode — keys EU1–EU8 cut (copy + reset) a channel |
| Key 3 | Switch to MIX param mode |
| Key 4 | Switch to EDIT param mode |
| Key 5 | Switch to PATTERN param mode |
| Keys 6–10 | Select/assign the active euclid channel's MidiFX group (1–5) |
| Keys 11–18 | Select / act on Euclidean channels EU1–EU8 |
Param Modes
Press keys 3, 4, or 5 to switch between three param modes. The mode key lights white when active.
MIX Mode (key 3)
A performance overview showing all 8 channels. Channels flash when triggered. Use F1-held to mute/unmute channels. MidiFX group selector (keys 6–10) is active.
LED colors in MIX mode: - Orange = channel active - Flash/pulse = channel just triggered a note - Very dark = channel muted
EDIT Mode (key 4) — default on entry
Edit all parameters for the currently selected channel. Select a channel with keys 11–18. Use the encoder to navigate parameter pages and adjust values.
LED colors in EDIT mode: - Light blue = selected channel - Dark red = other channels (unselected) - Amber = channel triggered (while playing) - Dark blue = channel muted
PATTERN Mode (key 5)
Save and recall complete snapshots of all 8 channel settings. 16 save slots, shown on keys 11–26.
- Press a key → load that slot immediately
- Hold F2 + press a key → save current state to that slot
The most recently loaded/saved slot is remembered across power cycles.
Selecting and Editing Channels
In EDIT or MIX mode, press any of keys 11–18 to select that Euclidean channel (EU1–EU8). The display and encoder will operate on the selected channel.
Use the encoder to navigate between parameter pages. Short press the encoder to toggle between page select mode (turn to change page) and value edit mode (turn to change the selected parameter's value).
Hold AUX and turn the encoder to quickly adjust the selected parameter without needing to press the encoder first.
Parameter Pages (EDIT Mode)
Page 0 — Pattern View (PAT)
Displays a graphical step-sequencer view of the selected channel's Euclidean pattern on the OLED. While playing, a playhead marker shows the current position. This page is read-only — navigate to Page 1 to edit pattern parameters.
Page 1 — Pattern Parameters
| Display | Parameter | Range | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
ROT |
Rotation | 0–32 | Shifts the pattern start position (rotates which step the first hit lands on) |
EVTS |
Events | 0–32 | Number of trigger hits in the pattern |
STEPS |
Steps | 0–32 | Total length of the pattern in steps |
LEN |
Note Length | 0–9 | Duration of each triggered note (see Note Lengths table below) |
Note Lengths:
| Index | Step Length |
|---|---|
| 0 | 0.10 |
| 1 | 0.25 |
| 2 | 0.50 |
| 3 | 0.75 |
| 4 | 1.00 |
| 5 | 1.50 |
| 6 | 2.00 |
| 7 | 4.00 |
| 8 | 8.00 |
| 9 | 16.00 |
Setting STEPS to 0 disables the channel. Setting EVTS to 0 produces a pattern of all rests (no triggers). Setting EVTS equal to STEPS produces a pattern of all hits.
Page 2 — Note Parameters
| Display | Parameter | Range | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
NOTE |
Note Number | 0–127 | MIDI note number to send when triggered |
CHAN |
MIDI Channel | 1–16 | MIDI channel to send on |
VEL |
Velocity | 0–127 | Note velocity |
SWNG |
Swing | 0–100 | Swing amount — delays even-numbered steps (see Swing) |
Default note assignments:
| Channel | Default Note | GM Drum Equivalent |
|---|---|---|
| EU1 | 36 | Bass Drum |
| EU2 | 38 | Snare |
| EU3 | 42 | Closed Hi-Hat |
| EU4 | 46 | Open Hi-Hat |
| EU5 | 60 | C4 |
| EU6 | 64 | E4 |
| EU7 | 67 | G4 |
| EU8 | 71 | B4 |
Page 3 — Config
| Display | Parameter | Range | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
MODE |
Rhythm Mode | 0 / 1 | 0 = PolyMeter, 1 = PolyRhythm (global setting, applies to all channels) |
TRAT |
Track Rate | 0–6 | Clock multiplier/divider for the selected channel |
PRAT |
PolyRhythm Rate | 0–6 | Global clock multiplier for PolyRhythm mode (applies to all channels) |
BPM |
Tempo | 40–300 | Internal clock tempo in BPM |
Clock Multiplier / Divider values:
| Index | Multiplier |
|---|---|
| 0 | ÷4 (0.25×) |
| 1 | ÷2 (0.5×) |
| 2 | ×1 (1×) |
| 3 | ×2 |
| 4 | ×4 (default) |
| 5 | ×8 |
| 6 | ×16 |
Pot Assignments (EDIT Mode)
| Pot | Parameter | Range |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Rotation (ROT) |
0–32 |
| 2 | Events (EVTS) |
0–32 |
| 3 | Steps (STEPS) |
0–32 |
| 4 | Note Length (LEN) |
0–9 |
| 5 | Track Rate (TRAT) — or global PolyRhythm Rate (PRAT) when in PolyRhythm mode |
0–6 |
PolyMeter vs PolyRhythm
The global MODE setting (Page 3, param 1) controls how all 8 channels relate to each other rhythmically.
PolyMeter (MODE = 0, default)
Each channel advances one step per clock tick, scaled by its Track Rate (TRAT). All channels tick at the same underlying rate, but because they have different step counts they cycle at different lengths. This causes patterns to drift in and out of phase over time — the classic polymetric effect.
Example: A 3-step pattern and a 5-step pattern both running at 1× will cycle every 3 and 5 steps respectively, realigning every 15 steps.
PolyRhythm (MODE = 1)
Each channel's step interval is calculated so that it completes one full cycle per bar, regardless of how many steps it has. The formula is:
step_interval = (clock_step × 16 / steps) × PolyRhythm_Rate
More steps means more hits within the same bar — it changes the density of the rhythm. All channels stay phase-locked to the same bar length. Use the global PolyRhythm Rate (PRAT) to scale all channels up or down in tempo together.
Swing
When SWNG is greater than 0, every even-numbered step (steps 0, 2, 4…) is delayed by a time offset proportional to the swing value.
- Values 1–98: Fixed swing — larger values push even steps further behind the beat
- Value 99: Drunken swing — each even step gets a random swing offset between 1–95, creating a loose, humanized feel
Swing interacts with the channel's Track Rate multiplier. Swing is per-channel and is saved with the channel settings.
MidiFX Routing
Each channel can be routed to one of 5 MidiFX groups (keys 6–10). MidiFX groups are shared signal chains — think of each group as a pedalboard for MIDI: notes enter from one end, pass through up to 8 effect slots, and exit the other end before being sent to MIDI output.
Keys 6–10 colors: - Cyan = MidiFX group currently assigned to the selected channel - Blue = other groups
Assigning a MidiFX group: - Press keys 6–10 to assign the selected channel to that group
Editing a MidiFX group: - Double-tap or hold keys 6–10 to enter that group's editor
Different channels can share the same MidiFX group, or each channel can have its own.
See the MidiFX documentation for details on available effects (arpeggiator, etc.).
Copy / Paste / Cut
These operations copy all per-channel settings (steps, events, rotation, note, velocity, etc.) between channels.
| Gesture | Action |
|---|---|
| Press a channel key (EU1–EU8) | Select that channel; its settings are auto-copied to clipboard |
| Hold F2 + press a channel key | Paste — apply clipboard settings to that channel |
| Hold F1+F2 + press a channel key | Cut — paste clipboard to that channel, then reset source to defaults |
A display message confirms paste and cut operations.
Mute
Any channel can be silenced without stopping its internal clock position.
- Hold F1 + press EU1–EU8 → toggle mute on that channel
- In MIX mode: pressing EU1–EU8 selects and toggles mute simultaneously
- Muted channels still advance their step position internally — they just don't send notes
- Mute state is saved with each pattern slot
LED colors for muted channels: - EDIT mode: very dark blue - MIX mode: very dark (near-off)
Save / Load Patterns
16 save slots each store all 8 channel settings plus the global PolyMeter/PolyRhythm mode.
Switch to PATTERN mode (key 5). Keys 11–26 represent slots 1–16. The currently loaded slot lights white; others light dark green.
| Action | Result |
|---|---|
| Press a slot key | Load that slot |
| Hold F2 + press a slot key | Save current state to slot |
Patterns are saved to persistent storage (FRAM/EEPROM) and survive power cycles. The last loaded slot is automatically restored on startup.
MIDI Clock
The Euclidean Sequencer responds to incoming MIDI clock transport messages, allowing it to sync to an external DAW or clock source:
| MIDI Message | Behavior |
|---|---|
| Start | Resets all 8 channels to step 0 and starts playing |
| Stop | Stops all channels and silences any held notes |
| Continue | Resumes all channels from their current positions |
When running from the internal clock, AUX starts and stops playback and sends MIDI clock output.
How Euclidean Patterns Work
A Euclidean pattern of E events over S steps distributes E hits as evenly as possible through S positions. For example:
| Events (E) | Steps (S) | Pattern |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | 4 | X - - - |
| 2 | 4 | X - X - |
| 3 | 8 | X - - X - - X - |
| 5 | 8 | X - X X - X X - |
| 3 | 7 | X - X - X - - |
Rotation then offsets the start of the pattern. A rotation of 1 shifts everything one step to the right:
E=3, S=8, ROT=0: X - - X - - X -
E=3, S=8, ROT=2: - X - - X - - X
Patterns can be up to 32 steps long. All 8 channels run their patterns independently.
LED Quick Reference
| LED Position | Meaning |
|---|---|
| AUX (key 0) | Blinking lime green = sequencer playing |
| F1 (key 1) | Lit = F1 held (Mute mode active) |
| F2 (key 2) | Lit = F2 held (Paste/Save mode active) |
| F1 + F2 | Both blinking = Cut mode active |
| Key 3 | White = MIX mode active; Orange = inactive |
| Key 4 | White = EDIT mode active; Dark red = inactive |
| Key 5 | White = PATTERN mode active; Dark green = inactive |
| Keys 6–10 | Cyan = active MidiFX group; Blue = others |
| Keys 11–18 | Channel status color (see per-mode color table) |