Clocking Grids From Yarns

Eurorack
#1

Hi,
I am rather new to the Eurorack scene (apologizing in advance for any ignorance). I am trying to get my new Grids module to play in time with with tracks running on my DAW.
My Setup is as follows:
Logic Pro X 10.2 running on Yosemite 10.10.5
Motu 8 PRE Interface MIDI out into Yarns
Various Modules from Pittsburgh Modular, Intellijel and Mutable Instruments.

The Logic Pro Project has a very simple structure:

  1. A simple 4/4 MIDI Drum track running via a plugin sent from the MOTU 8 PRE to a Mackie Mixer and to my monitors
  2. An external MIDI track on channel 1 with a single kick on beat one of each measure. The cv for this is available on Yarns but not routed anywhere. I hear it if I do route it.

I am sending MIDI clock from Logic Pro X with the following project settings:

  1. Routing to all ports
  2. Mode: Pattern - Quantized clock based on pattern length
  3. Pattern Length = 1 Bar
  4. Start Position 111 1 no delay

Yarns Settings

  1. LA 2M
  2. TE EX
  3. Input Clock Div 1
  4. Output Clock Div 16
  5. Arpeggiator off

Grids

  1. Clock 24 ppqn

I cannot get either the clock output or the start output to synchronize with grids I’ve tried multiple combinations of Yarns output clock divisions and Grids clock resolution settings and they do not ever synchronize. I’ve tried both the Yarns clock out and start/bar out.

When I run the clock output of Yarns into my Pittsburgh Modular Time Runner clock input, the led flashes once per quarter note. When I run the start/bar output into Time Runner clock input the light flashes once per bar. Both are what I would expect.

I’m at my wits end here. Can someone with more experience please help me out.

Thanks,

Tim

#2

Use “Output Clock Div: 96” for Yarns if you want to use Grids’ 24ppqn clock input.

If you want to use “Output Clock Div: 16” for Yarns, you need to set Grids to 4ppqn.

#3

What if 3 soldering pads (as the ones dedicated to midi that Grids has) were added to Yarns in the next versions of the pcb? This way it’d be possible to sync both modules to the same external clock using only one midi cable (after routing the pcbs)…

Edit: Well, using a cable from yarns clock-out to grids clock-in it’s the same, but in layouts like 4P/4M there’s not clock out. In the other cases it’d be one extra clock output available, which is always good.

#4

Thanks for your answer, it solved my issue as well.
In order to avoid distorting Grids’ patterns, I set Yarns to /96. This does mean, however, that in order to have a usable clock for other modules, the clock from Yarns has to be divided by 6. I find this a little impractical, because I have to devote one channel of 4ms QCD to this duty. I would have expected Yarns and Grids to work together in a more practical way?!

#5

I don’t see why you have to work with /96 on yarns and 24ppqn on Grids, it would seem more practical to set Grids to 4ppqn and Yarns to /16. Modules usually expect 4ppqn anyway.

#6

That would indeed be much more practical, but I get glitches and skips in the patterns with that setting. And indeed the manual says, “…using the 4ppqn clock might distort the patterns that use 32-th
notes; and using 8ppqn or 4ppqn might distort the patterns that use triplets.”