I have a request for a future firmware update to Metropolix. Currently, when you hold the swing button down, you are provided with a shortcut to choose specific swing percentages. Instead of providing this shortcut, would it be possible to make it so that when you hold down the swing button, you’re able to select any of the eight stages (via the eight buttons below them), and after selecting your chosen stage, you’re given the ability to nudge this stage forward, or backward, off the grid. This would allow you to manually place notes either in front of, or behind the beat, by as much as you like. The result of this would be the ability to create a more human feel with your patterns. Basslines could especially benefit from this. Shifting notes along the grid in this way, is a great way to express oneself musically, and I would really love to see something like this implemented, if possible.
Micro-timing per-step or pulse is definitely interesting, but each stage in Metropolix has up to 8 pulses. Since editing is done at a stage-level, per-stage-nudging would offset all pulses on that stage, i think the effect would be much less musical and interesting here.
The internal sequence data that Metropolix steps through is also based on stages, applying modulation at each clock tick, and advancing to the next stage when pulse counts are hit, or when the modulation calls for it. The concept of editing a single pulse is pretty foreign to the design.
Swing is a track setting, so we can keep track of the pulses and offset every other pulse regardless of what stage they come from (odd pulses are longer, even pulses are shorter), the calculation starting at the reset point.
One thing to try is modulating Swing with a Mod lane/Aux Input to introduce momentary micro-timing adjustment. Use the Random or Shuffle orders on the Mod lane to randomize the effect, or setup the timing with the mod lanes clock division and length.
Every sequencer design will have different strengths, with the current hardware and design, I think a per-pulse/step micro-timing editing interface would be pushing against current design quite a bit. Metropolix is pretty unique in that rather than micro-adjustments on each pulse, the sequencer offers it’s own ideas to mix with yours.
Hope that make sense in the context of the design.