Threshold-armed sampling records incoming audio only when it crosses a set level

The Digitakt II can sample (record) audio straight into the device from an external input or its own output (resampling). The recording behaviour is shaped by a few key parameters in the SAMPLING menu: R.LEN (Record Length) fixes the capture length in sequencer steps (1–128, synced to BPM) or MAX (up to 66 seconds); THRES sets a level threshold; ARM enables triggering. With R.STRT set to THRES and ARM ON, the recorder waits and starts automatically the moment the incoming signal exceeds THRES — so the take begins on the transient, not on a manual button press. After capture the device automatically normalizes the sample, then you set TRIM START/END to crop it before naming and saving. This is how a sampler turns any sound source into a playable, sliceable sample; the threshold-arm workflow is what makes captures start cleanly without dead air.

Examples

Set SRC to the external input, THRES just above the noise floor, R.LEN=MAX, R.STRT=THRES, ARM=ON. Play a vinyl stab: sampling starts on the first transient, auto-normalizes, then you trim off the tail and save. Resample the Digitakt’s own output by setting SRC to an internal/USB source.

Assessment

Explain what R.STRT=THRES with ARM=ON does versus starting on [PLAY]. Why set THRES just above the background-noise level of the source?