Technical questions for the MPC2000xl and the MPC2000
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By edengrill Thu Feb 23, 2017 7:15 am
MPC200xl
8 outs
Os: "1.2 (July. 15,2004)"
Non hot-swapable CF reader

I bought my mpc2000xl used a few years ago in perfect condition.
It's been good to me.

When I purchase it, it had came with a hot-swapable CF reader in it.
Never had any issues with it until today.

Today I was working on it just like any other day.
I have 2 CF cards which contain a bunch of beats on them (all saved correctly in individual folders containing .aps and .all for each beat)

After 20 minutes of working on it, I turned the machine off so I could remove my CF card and swap it out for a different one. I inserted the other CF card in, and when I tried to load it my mpc suddenly didn't recognise that I have a CF card inserted!

I thought that perhaps that card was bust (which would be odd, as it was working fine last night) so I turned the machine off and inserted the CF card I was initially using. Suddenly it didn't recognise that card either!


Now if I try insert any of my 2 CF cards this is what I'm faced with:
On the load screen the "file" section is blank, "Device" is set to ATAPI, "Size" is blank, and "Type"= ? ? ? ? ? ? ?


Did my CF reader suddenly die? Could it be a matter of opening the MPC up, disconnecting the reader, blowing out any dust and reconnecting? :roll:

If I need to purchase a new reader, can you guys recommend a particular make?
What is the most reliable, safest reader I can purchase?
Any links to a particular site to purchase from would be great.
I live in Sydney, Australia so it's hard to find parts around here.



Please click the bellow link to view a few photos I took of my screen and reader to better understand the situation.

(All the needles on the reader are straight, so this is not the issue)

https://www.dropbox.com/sh/idi52bayl2f5 ... Wh4pa?dl=0


Any assistance would mean a lot :worthy: :worthy: :worthy:


Sincerely,



Eden
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By JUKE 179r Thu Feb 23, 2017 8:41 am
Sounds like it's the card reader.
Just open up the bottom of the mpc and check all of your connections to and from the card reader.
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By edengrill Fri Feb 24, 2017 1:15 am
Yep so I opened it up and inspected all the connections.
Please see link for image: https://www.dropbox.com/sh/8hxfkqcyeijy ... 07hia?dl=0

I disconnected the ribbon and reconnected it, same with the power/ground connector.
I inspected all the pins.

On the card reader, it is set to 1-2 (Master/Slave)

For about half an hour I would try power the machine on and it would be stuck on the either "detecting memory" or "loading".

finally after removing and reattaching the ribbon cable a few times the mpc powered on and got through 'detecting memory' and 'loading' and recognised ATAPI - however whilst it is recognising ATAPI it is still not reading/recognising my CF cards.

As I write this I am turning the machine on and off a few times seeing if it will get through the "loading" screen,
Now it works!

Both my CF cards are being read

It is detecting the card and everything seems to work fine.
What is going on inside this machine that one minute it can’t detect a CF card and the next minute it can?


What can I do to the mpc to make it a little more reliable, As I use this machine for live purposes and need to be confident that when I turn it on it will read my cards?
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By JUKE 179r Fri Feb 24, 2017 1:00 pm
Get the Addonics/Star Tech brand of card reader. you already have OS1.2 installed so the card reader should be a even swap.
Keep in mind you will have to drill holes in the card reader to mount inside the MPC.
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By edengrill Mon Feb 27, 2017 3:34 pm
Thank you for the recommendation, I've gone ahead and purchased the following: http://www.techbuy.com.au/p/128818/I_OC ... DIDECF.asp
*AUSTRALIANS TAKE NOTE*
I found an Aussie online shop selling the addonics cf reader for $45 Aus. I'm heading there today to pick up direct from their shop to save on shipping.

I will post photos to update my installation process, in the hope that my process perhaps helps someone else out (I know that this has been well documented before but couldn't hurt).

Thanks Juke for the support. Greatly appreciated!
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By JUKE 179r Tue Feb 28, 2017 12:33 pm
Excellent! Now go make some beats! :-D
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By edengrill Wed Mar 01, 2017 12:37 am
One Last thing! :worthy: :worthy: :worthy: :worthy: :worthy: :worthy:

When I turn the mpc on I see that "type" = PC

Does this determine the format the card has been formatted to?

I formatted this card on the MPC and not on a computer.

Am I able to simple plug my mpc into my computer now and backup my files?
Or must the card have been initially formatted on my computer to do so?
As my card is already filled with heaps of beats I can't format it. And am also super cautious on plugging it into any computer until I know for sure what to do (as I don't want to corrupt any of my beats)

I've done quiet a bit of research on this matter through the forum but still struggling to understand if it is safe for me to insert the card into my computer if it says type=PC

Juke, I've read a post of yours in a thread where you say the you haven't had any problems with using your Mac, as opposed to a PC? There are a few posts I've read warning of hidden files that it creates? I'm considering purchasing a simple PC laptop for $50 or installing windows XP on my new MacBook.

I have heaps of music on two CF cards that I am desperate to backup asap.
Once, I figure out how to backup my files, I could theoretically have multiple backups stored on a hard rive keeping everything safe?
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By JUKE 179r Thu Mar 09, 2017 2:18 pm
edengrill wrote:When I turn the mpc on I see that "type" = PC
Does this determine the format the card has been formatted to?
I formatted this card on the MPC and not on a computer.

If you formatted it in your MPC, it should say "TYPE= MPC2000XL".
If you formatted it in your MAC/PC, it should say "TYPE= PC".
If you formatted the CF card in your MAC and it still says "PC", it sounds like a bad CF card.

edengrill wrote:Am I able to simple plug my mpc into my computer now and backup my files?

No and Yes.
No if you just have an internal PATA/IDE card reader.
Yes you can if you have an internal SCSI card reader/hard drive and have OS 1.14. Most important is that you need the correct external SCSI cables to connect the MPC to your Mac/PC. This will identify the MPC's SCSI card reader/hard drive. I've been meaning to do a video on this process. :oops:

edengrill wrote:I've done quiet a bit of research on this matter through the forum but still struggling to understand if it is safe for me to insert the card into my computer if it says type=PC

This is true especially if you want to back up your files.
NOTE... this is probably more information than you need ... If your CF card is partitioned, the Mac/PC will only "see" the first partition of the card and none of the other partitions.

edengrill wrote:Juke, I've read a post of yours in a thread where you say the you haven't had any problems with using your Mac, as opposed to a PC? There are a few posts I've read warning of hidden files that it creates?

There are the hidden Mac files that can fill up on any removable storage device connected to the Mac.
I use the amazing Mac app CleanUp smb mess v2.2 to remove the hidden mac files on removable devices. I put the app on my desktop, drag the removable device (CF card) icon onto the CleanUpsmbmess.app, pop up window is shown and the click on "CLEAN". After cleaning the CF card, the app amounts the CF card from the system.

edengrill wrote:I'm considering purchasing a simple PC laptop for $50 or installing windows XP on my new MacBook.

No need to buy a PC laptop. Just do a Bootcamp partition on your Mac and add WinXP. I have a Win7 Pro partition on my MBP but I might go back to WinXP.

edengrill wrote:Once, I figure out how to backup my files, I could theoretically have multiple backups stored on a hard rive keeping everything safe?

Industry Rule 4081... always back up your files... period. :smoker:
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By edengrill Fri Apr 21, 2017 11:13 am
Thanks for clearing all that up Juke!

Unfortunately my MPC is once again not recognising that there is a CF Reader plugged in.

Last time this happened (a month or so ago) I purchased a new Addonics CF Reader (http://www.techbuy.com.au/p/128818/I_OC ... DIDECF.asp)

suddenly, I'm receiving the same message.

So it's not the CF Reader. I know for sure that it isn't the CF cards I use because I've never had a problem with them.

Any advice :(
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By edengrill Fri Apr 21, 2017 9:58 pm
I've tried it with multiple cards which have both been working without a hitch for +2 yrs.
I've checked all connections and everything is sitting where it should be and how it should be.

Is something else in the machine possibly shorting the reader?