Panel memories are alive and well. But this love affair with them has to stop. !! I'm a sound panel man.

Seriously though, the beauty of panel memories is only really applicable when using them as arranged accompaniment to live playing. They do not do you a favour when doing multi-track sequencing. So, I say 'No'.

They're too unwieldy. Too long-winded. Multi-track sequencing is, by it's nature, done in stages. From it's inception to it's finish, such recordings undergo many many changes. Volume levels for each independent track - Tempo changes - Voice changes, etc etc. If using panel memories as the basis of your arrangement, every change has to be applied to every panel memory being used. It's a time-consuming process.

But, if using sound panel voices only, and using the 'mixer' page to set various data, all changes of any nature can happily be accommodated by the simple process of 'panel-writing'. Done in a jiffy. !!

The entire subject of 'arrangement/orchestration/sequencing could easily take up 20 pages worth of explanantion. (not to be done here). So, it's my humble view, that any theories relating to this subject, may only be valid when directly applied to 'what you are doing, and how you want to do it'.

Three cheers for the sound panel.

Colin Leaney