yeah i'm annoyed it doesn't advance more than an 1/8th. pretty sure if you press the >> button, it advances by whatever increment you have set, so you'll basically have to enter your note and an extra button push to advance 1/4 each time. although if it's 1/4 notes, it's quicker & easier to just play them in by hand and correct the timing, isn't it? or make a 2 bar loop and copy onto itself until it's 4, 8, 16, 32 bars long...i assume you're doing something a bit tedious, hence the shortcut? quickest way for me to enter anything repetitive is make a 1 or 2 bar loop and copy/paste until it's however many bars i need. the one major failure with step mode advance to me is it's great for entering note information like duration & velocity, so if you program drums intensely, not being able to skip around by more than an 1/8th quickly sucks.
the key to hardware is getting out what you put into it as quickly as possible, so don't concern yourself with a certain technique or working a certain way if it takes too long, just try to achieve the results you need with minimum hold up and if it works, it works.
MPC 1000 w/jjOS, Elektron Octratrack, Korg EX-8000 & MS-20 Mini, Behringer Neutron, E-mu E6400 Ultra, circuit bent Roland TR 505, Mackie 1604 VLZ3, Electrix Filter Factory, delays & compressors