Tips: Bring your sound to life with Massive X Trackers Offsets.

Denys =)

I think that Massive X is an unfairly underrated synth. It is one of the best-sounding wavetable synths. It is a real sound design beast with some unique features.

There are many ways to spice up your sounds by adding movement and variation in the Massive X . It's best to use several at once. But I'd like to draw attention to Trackers, especially my favorite Trackers feature, Offsets.

Massive X has four Trackers that are used to modulate parameters using the MIDI signal input. They respond to pitch and velocity. This allows you to add extra expressiveness if you use the Massive X with a MIDI keyboard. This will work for your Piano roll MIDI signals too.

You can modulate a parameter with the Tracker just like with any other modulator by clicking and dragging the modulator icon to the parameter you need.

You can set the parameters of Trackers in the Tracking view by clicking the T1, T2, T3 or T4 tabs.

You can create Curves here (1) to adjust the relationship between the MIDI input and the modulation. You can also choose the MIDI Source (2) that will influence the Tracker.

And you can create Offsets here.

The "classic" use of Tracker would be to assign it to control parameters like filter cutoff, wavetable position, or envelope attack. This lets you create sounds that open up when played harder or get darker and smoother when played softly. For instance, assigning velocity to the wavetable position allows different timbres to emerge depending on how hard you hit the key, great for expressive lead or pad sounds. Or assign the Velocity Tracker to an envelope’s attack or decay time. This lets you create sounds that respond to velocity by shaping their envelopes differently: hard hits could result in shorter, snappier attacks, while softer hits could produce longer, more gradual attacks. This technique works great for percussive elements like plucks, basses, or stabs that need to react dynamically to how you play. You can experiment with the result by adjusting the shape of the curve. This already adds a lot of expressiveness to your sound.

But things get even more interesting if you use Tracker's Offsets. Offsets allow you to tie modulation events to specific MIDI signal values. So in addition to the basic "rule" of how your Tracker will work, defined by Сurve, you can add specific changes that will occur at specific values ​​of the MIDI signal. This allows you to create any changes in modulation, including as complex and wild as you like.

You can draw Offsets (1) for each specific MIDI value directly on the curve editing screen of Tracking view by choosing the according edit mode on the left (2).

For instance, you can assign specific modulation changes to specific notes by choosing Note Pitch as a Tracker's Sourse. Drag and drop Tracker's icon to the parameter you want to modulate. Adjust the amount of modulation. Now set the Offset values for each note you want in the Tracker's Tracking view. The Offset value for each note can be individual, which creates more variability in the sound. Now, every time a certain note is played, the value of the modulated parameter will change as you programmed.

Some creative tips:

Combine Trackers with Performers to create modulation that reacts both to MIDI input and rhythmic patterns for highly dynamic and evolving patches. Set up a Performer to modulate a parameter, then use a Tracker (like Velocity or Key Tracking) to modulate the depth of the Performer. This allows the rhythmic modulations to change intensity based on how hard you play or where you are on the keyboard.

Use multiple Trackers on a single parameter to create highly expressive and responsive patches.

Use the Tracker to modulate oscillator pitch with note-specific Offset for microtonal variation or creative detuning. Assign the Tracker to the oscillator’s pitch and map specific notes to trigger different pitches. This is perfect for creating dynamic detuning effects, or microtonal shifts, or for experimenting with non-standard tuning systems.

Assign a Tracker to control the Pan and map it to note value. This will spread your sound across the stereo field as you play different notes, giving your sound a wide, immersive feel. This works particularly well for pads, arpeggios, or layered synths.

Modulate effects parameters like reverb or delay with Trackers. Assign Trackers to effect’s wet/dry mix, decay time, or delay feedback. Link it to note position or velocity, so each note will have a slightly different effect treatment. This creates a varied, organic sound when multiple notes are played.

Well, that's it. Have fun.

DS99

Thanks for sharing your ideas. Yes, Trackers are fantastic for these many types of modulation. I use them all the time. Keyboard splits are also possible if you modulate the two WT oscillators differently by Trackers (pitch). Endless possibilities.