BENTO RELEASE NOTES

BUILD 1.1.14

WHAT'S NEW

• Sequencer: now supports Unquantized mode for off grid sequencing
  • Set Step Mode to Off to record notes in real time without snapping to the start or end of a step.
• Rename Loop WAV files: Select Rename WAV from the Menu on the Loop Bank and Loop Dashboard screens.

WHAT'S UPDATED

• Sequencer
  • Launching a sequence using the pads now also selects the sequence
  • Smarter scrolling to display notes and follow the pad octave assignment
  • Improved sequencing for Slicer tracks
  • Launch screen now shows which sequences are cued to play.
  • Pushing Stop once will cause the sequences and loops to stop at the next quant break as defined for each sequence or loop. Pushing Stop twice will stop all audio on all tracks.
  • Pushing record while on the sequence screen will activate that sequence. It might take a moment as it waits for the next quant break to start in order to keep things in sync.
• File Browsing
  • New: Patch browsing supports Arrow buttons. Use the left/right arrows to control the Instrument selection. Use the Up/Down arrows to select a patch. Hold an arrow button to auto repeat moving in the selected direction.
  • Cleaned up knob and arrow button behavior
• Tracks
  • All Tracks respect the selected Root Note and Scale
  • Pad lights show which pads are loaded (dim lights), which are triggered (bright lights), and which is selected (White)
  • Control of the polyphony for a track or pad is controlled on the dashboard for most Track Types. For Granular, it is still controlled on the Track Config screen.
• Scenes:
  • The pads now launch the corresponding Scene and switch to that scene for editing.

WHAT GOT FIXED

• Sequencer:
  • Bug fixes related to actions on multiple notes
  • Launch screen no longer names empty sequences.
  • Fixed an issue with recording sequences for some tracks over MIDI
• Tracks:
  • Fixed an issue with persistence of parameters for slicer tracks.
• Project
  • Now remembers per track octave settings

KNOWN ISSUES

• Launch Screen
  • Snap scene doesn't reflect the correct list of sequences and loops when you paste.
  • Pad lights should reflect the playback state of the sequences
• Song & Scenes
  • Changes made to the Scene while playing do not affect playback until you push Stop and Play again.
  • Cutting a track leaves some residual selections behind on the scene screen

BUILD 1.1.4

This build has two small bug fixes:

1. Fixed: The Clear function on the Seq screen resets the seq length to 0.
2. Fixed: The sequencer for slicer tracks didn't

BUILD 1.1.1

This is an officially supported release. However, Song mode is still considered a beta feature.

These notes cover what has changed since 1.0.1.

WHAT'S NEW

• External Track mode
• Scenes
• Song mode
• WAV file previewing

WHAT'S UPDATED

• Battery charging indicator
• Launch Screen:
  • Improved Launch screen with support for 8 sequences or loops per track
  • Tap the screen to select a sequence to edit.
  • Push the pads to trigger the sequences.
  • Use the Up and Down Arrow buttons to change which sequences are controlled by the pads.
  • Swing Control for Sequences
  • Hold Launch and push a pad to stop playing the sequence for that Track.

• Push Stop once and the sequences and loops will stop at the next quant break defined for each sequence and loop. The armed sequences are remembered and will launch you push Play again.
• Push Stop twice and all scenes and loops stop immediately. The armed sequences are forgotten. Nothing will launch when you push Play until you start pushing pads.
• You can now see the progress of sequences launched by the Scenes in Song mode.
• Cut, Copy & Paste for sequences and scenes
• Rename your sequences from the Launch and Sequence screens
• Reverb and Delay Sends for Slicer tracks now work
• Output selection:
  • You select the output on the Track config screen for all tracks.
  • The Output option on the pads and loops is missing. We plan to allow you to override the output for individual pads and loops on their dashboards.

SMALL FIXES

• You can now use MIDI to record sequences
• Track Config Screens
  • You can rename a Track on the Track Config screen
  • We cleaned up the Track Config screens
  • You can now change patches on Granular tracks.
  • Changing a Patch no longer clears the sequences for the track
• Improved the hardware pad performance to reduce double hits and cross hits
• Improved support for using a single sample with a multisample track
• If you unload a Loop Pad while that pad is playing, there was a bug that played a loud buzzing sound. This has been fixed.

HOW TO USE THE NEW & UPDATED FEATURES IN 1.1.1

EXTERNAL TRACKS

An External Track is designed to allow you to include external gear in the music you compose on bento. With an External Track, you can use the bento pads or an external MIDI controller connected to bento to play and sequence an external MIDI Device. You can then bring the audio output from the external device into bento, so you can add effects and control the mix. You can also use the audio in and MIDI out functionality separately.

To create an External Track:

1. Double tap an empty Track on the Tracks screen.
2. Tap the New button at the bottom of the Patch Selection screen, then tap External in the pop-up.
3. Push Tracks. Select the new Track and push the Right Arrow button to open the Track Config screen.
4. Select options for the following:
   • a. Output – the audio output that will play this track
   • b. Input – the audio input where you will send audio to be used by this track
   • c. MIDI In Ch – the MIDI channel that can be used to record sequences for this track.
   • d. MIDI Out P: the MIDI Out port where you will connect the external device to be controlled by this channel.
   • e. MIDI Out C: The MIDI Channel that this track will use on the selected MIDI Out Port.
5. Push Tracks. Double tap the track to edit the settings for this track. Here you can also see a level meter for the input received for this track, and a MIDI In and Out indicator.

SONG MODE

A Song is a list of scenes that will be played in order when Song mode is enabled. You can specify how many times each scene will play before advancing to the next screen. Turn on Scene Hold to play the current scene until you are ready to move on. Turn on Song Loop to play the entire list of scenes in a loop until you decide to stop it. You can jump around between scenes simply by pushing the pad that corresponds to the scene. The change will happen at the next quantization break, as specified with the Quant Size on the Song Screen.

Push Song, then tap the Song button at the bottom of the screen to toggle the state of Song mode. Push Play and bento will start playing from the currently selected scene. Push Launch to watch the progress of the sequences and to swap out sequences on the fly. Turn off song mode to work with sequences on the Launch screen without playing scenes.

SCENES

A scene is a group of sequences that will be launched together when bento is in Song mode. The list of Scenes is displayed on the Song Screen. Select a scene on the Song screen, then push Scene to edit this scene. Tap to select the sequence or loop you want to play for each track for this scene.

You can also copy a Scene from the Launch screen. Go to the Launch screen and use the pads to trigger the sequences you want in your scene. When you have the combination you want, tap the menu icon in the lower right, then tap Snap Scene. Push Song and select the Scene you want to paste into. Tap the menu icon, then tap Paste Scene. The list of scenes for this Song has been updated to match what you copied from the Launch screen.

You can also rename your scenes so you can keep track of how you plan to use them. You can find Rename Scene on the menu for the Song and Scene screens.

BATTERY CHARGING

The battery icon is now updated in the lower right to show when the battery is being charged. A lightning icon appears on the left side of the battery icon while charging. Allow up to 10 seconds for the icon to refresh when plugging and unplugging the device.

LAUNCH

The Launch screen now supports 8 sequences or loops for each track. Use the touch screen to select sequences to edit. Use the pads to launch the sequences.

You can launch one sequence or loop for each track at a time. The white frame around two rows of sequences is the focus ring that shows you which sequences are currently controlled by the pads. Tap a pad to activate the selected sequence for that track, and deactivate the previously active sequence. Push play and watch the progress of the sequences and loops. Tap the menu icon, then tap Snap Scene. You now have a scene on the clipboard that you can paste on the Song or Scene screen.

If the Launch screen is not behaving the way you expect, make sure Song mode is off:

1. Push Song or Launch.
2. Look at the Song button at the bottom of the screen, next to the battery icon. If it has a white background and black text, song mode is enabled. If it has a black background and white text, song mode is disabled.
3. Tap the Song button on the screen to toggle the state of song mode.

For Loop tracks, the Launch screen displays the top row of loops for the track. You can also use the Instrument screen to play Loops on top of what is active on the Launch screen.

While sequences are playing, you can also play along on other tracks to improvise or explore additions to your composition. You can even record new sequences.

CLIPBOARD FUNCTIONS

On the Launch and Sequence screens, you can now copy and paste the full contents of a sequence. You will find the Copy and Paste options on the menu for these screens. The Launch screen menu also includes a Snap Scene option. Use the option to copy the current set of sequences and then paste them into a scene on the Song screen.

SWING

On the Launch and Scene screens, you can now control the Swing for the sequences.