I search and I search, for what?

Hello all......


This post is a way of voicing my frustration, but also a cal for help.......

I purchased an MPC1K a couple of weeks ago. I have no music exp outside of weekend party DJing when I was in High School. I thought I would take this on as a hobby and have some fun with it. Not so fast young man; I have yet to have fun with it...... I have read Akai's Manual and that had me so confused I purchased the MPC Tutorial offered by this site...... For Sh!ts and grins I even check out the vids on Youtube.......

I am not shy about doing research and my research is waht lead me to the MPC1K in the first place. But my life exp has told me that I am a creature of visual learning in most cases. So I have been playing with the idea of purchasing a DVD tutorial.... Just a thought.....


This site is great, but like all other forums, it seems to be illegal to ask for help or to ask simple questions (simple to exp users)..... When it comes to these types of gadgets, I usually have friends around me that have exp with them. Not with the MPC, so I am on my own. I do play with it at least an hour a day, and I try to read as much of the tutorial that I can handle in one day...... I have found and downloaded tons of break beats and samples (I also have created a few samples), but my sound library is very limited as it stands.






The Points:

1. Are the DVD tutorials worth the money, or am I falling victim to laziness?

2. Do most of you create your own drums and horns and sh!t?


I did upgrade to the JJOS 3. something, I did not want to buy the updated full version without know what I am doing.....

I am eager to learn, I think this can def be something fun to do.. It should def hel the time pass for me.... I am retired at the age of 31.... Too much time to do nothng.....

yes we have been known to be a little rough on people but thats what binds this family

seriously tho let me try to answer your questions. (these are from my point of view)


1. the dvd thing although it can be helpfull I think its more of a lazy approach. A lot of the older producers will cosign that we didnt have forums or youtube videos or dvds to teach us how to use our gear. IMO between the manual and just reading around this forum you will gain so much info. You just need to give it time.

2. This varies by person. Almost nobody is a fan of the factory sounds even though there might be a few good ones. Me personally I'm a fan of layers. Im big on the break beats too so I spend a lot of time chopping up any drum loop i can find and layering with some of the newer sounds and if it sounds good I keep it. If its wak.....to the trash it goes.

Hope that helps. Any questions feel free to PM me. Peace.

So building the library is half the battle. I think that has been what frustrates me the most. I have tunes in my head I want to blaze out, but I am limited by the sounds I have accumulated so far... I haven't gotten to a point of layering yet, but I think I get the idea of what it is.....

Thanks for the reply. It is greatly appreciated.


Something else I didn't mention is that working with the manual and doing what it says has been a problem since I use the manual to put me to sleep at nite.. I have read it 4 times in the few weeks I have had it, and I am a 3rd of the way through the Tutorial......

well for what its worth building a library takes time. I've been building since the mid 90's. you can start with this site tho....lots of loops


http://www.mhat.com/phatdrumloops/

Got that one on day one... I have downloaded all I can from there... Thanx alot though....

lol dammit! Sorry homie

Remember, I said I have searched....... lol.......

lol.....ok what about reason? there are a bunch of good drum sounds. Plus you can get the refills...tons of more drums.

reason's a good addition.
google "300breaks" for a good introduction to drum break chopping.
don't know what you're trying to make, music wise - are you looking to sample from wax and chop that up, or are you looking to write tunes from digital instrument patches?

I think the videos are great to show you the whole spectrum of what the MPC can really do, but the best way to learn is trial and error.

I started learning my way around by recording audio samples into the MPC from records, my keyboard and guitars and whatever made noise. Then i cut them up, and made a simple 4 bar loop and play with it by muting and soloing stuff out, get an idea of what you like and i record it into protools...just an idea. good luck, be creative, dont let the first few obstacles take all the fun out of the music.

tHANX GUYS FOR ALL THE INPUT SO FAR....I am new to this and the identity of my music has yet to be found... I am a fan of Hip Hop, but I am musically diverse and do not want to limit what kinds of music I make... For now my focus is cut/chopping samples (editing). I have a couple of turntables and I am in the process of joining a record pool. I have about a milk crate worth of vinyl right now, but nothing I think I can sample from. I also have a reg guitar, but I have yet to figure out what I need to connect it to my MPC, but I have not tried yet either......


As for Reason, I was going to wait until I had more of a handle on the MPC b4 I started going that route. I haven't done much research on the Production suites (is that what they are?), so I have no clue as to what I will need and what I may want to use.... Does that make the process easier?

I do not have a keyboard/controller yet, but my Bday is next week and I can probably buy it for myself from my wife..... I think that will jumpstart the process as well since i will be able to produce more than just percussion.


Thanx again guys for all the help...... Your responses have been enough of an inspiration for me to keep pushing on.

Nym that "300Breaks" was it supposed to be a file? I have tons of loops, break beats, and samples, but I do not know what to do with them at this point, but I will download all that I find and go from there..... I have read the sampling portion of my manuals and they confuse the sh!t out of me when it comes to looping start and end points..... But I will keep at it until I get it..... That is how I became an Air Traffic Controller.....


I want to be very versatile, so I know I will have to work on it like it is my job......

Is Air Traffic Controlling what allowed you to retire at 31

Yup. I stared having bad headaches (a no no in this job) and it turned out I had a brain Tumor, and since they took it out, my head hasn't been right since....

I still have really bad Headaches and some other symptoms, but I seem to be functioning pretty well for now.....

Retired at this age is no fun.... And because of my condition, working a reg 9-5 is out of the question.

Wow man,

I'm so sorry to hear that. And here I was thinking you won lotto or something. Hope the music helps with your recovery and our friend the MPC doesn't give you too much trouble.