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Drum Grid

The Drum Grid is MAGDA's chain-based drum machine. Each pad is a full audio chain, giving you independent processing per drum voice.

Overview

The Drum Grid maps incoming MIDI notes to individual pads. Each pad has its own sample, FX chain, and mixer controls, making it a self-contained drum kit in a single device.

Pads

  • Each pad is mapped to a specific MIDI note
  • Pads can be triggered from the Piano Roll, the Drum Grid Editor (bottom panel), or a MIDI controller
  • Click a pad to select it and view its chain in the Inspector

Per-Pad FX Chain

Each pad has its own FX chain, just like a regular track. You can add plugins, built-in devices, or racks to any pad's chain. This allows effects like distortion on a snare without affecting the kick.

Per-Pad Mix

Each pad has independent mix controls:

  • Volume — Pad output level
  • Pan — Stereo position
  • Output routing — Route individual pads to separate mixer channels for independent mixing

When a DrumGrid track is expanded in the Mixer View, each pad appears as its own sub-channel strip.

Adding Samples

  • Drag audio files from the Media Explorer onto a pad to load a sample
  • Each pad plays one sample at a time

MIDI Mapping

The default mapping assigns pads to General MIDI drum note numbers (kick = C1, snare = D1, etc.), but pads can be remapped to any MIDI note.