New to the MPC production world? Got a music production question that's not really specific to any particular MPC? Try your luck here and get help from our experienced members.
By Kapser Tue Jun 19, 2012 7:38 pm
Hello guys, i have a question.
I've read in an interview with the producer that he samples directly from Youtube, via the headphone outlet or something??

He talks about it in this interview:
http://blogs.villagevoice.com/music/201 ... _music.php

So im a new beginner, so i do not really know exactly what he is talking about. Like what cables i need, and stuff like that.

So can anyone tell me the exact way to do what he is talking about, that would make me very happy.

/Kapser
User avatar
By Metatron72 Tue Jun 19, 2012 8:10 pm
If you're on PC a multi-client ASIO driver running would allow you to record the You Tube audio straight into any DAW like Live, Cubase, Reaper and so on.

On OS X the app Soundflower would be helpful for your needs.

If you you have no audio interface (the driver would be installed when configuring the interface), use Firefox and download one of the many You Tube downloader add-ons. The better ones let you download whatever the highest available quality stream is available on the video. 720/1080 usually nets you a file that is at or near 16 bit 44.1khz CD quality. Even if whatever downloader you use leaves you with a video file (mp4 most likely) put the file in iTunes and in preferences set your import settings to 16/44. Right click the file and press "convert to wav."

You could get a 1/8" stereo to 2 1/4" cable and use the headphone jack and sample directly to the MPC but most headphone outs on computers aren't particularly high quality.

I'll be honest I didn't watch the linked video, but everything I mentioned definitely will work.
User avatar
By Ian Canefire Tue Jun 19, 2012 9:07 pm
This schmegegge just said "it doesn't matter how f$%king sh*t sounds". he has just told you how he feels about his work product and the genre he is into. Unlike a craftsman that actually cares about the product they put into the world. This is a very telling statement about his mindset . I hope that is not the feelings of many.
I am no audophile nazi, but I mean come on. Show some respect for yourself.
Back in the day jazz musicians would out duel each other with their craft...now we have guys proudly saying f sound quality.
I will not be supporting that loser with my money. Especially his blatant disregard for IP law.

Cheers,
Ian
Last edited by Ian Canefire on Wed Jun 20, 2012 1:15 pm, edited 1 time in total.
By zippertafari Tue Jun 19, 2012 10:15 pm
Yeah, I can just imagine kids in the Bronx 30 years ago refusing to work with anything but the highest quality audio equipment.
And I wouldnt wipe my sweaty ass crack with the tenents of IP law. Rest assured, if such a diseased concept was around all those years ago, all you'd have nowadays is a much poorer hip hop legacy - and a lot of richer lawyers.
And that's not even taking into account the utter joke Jazz music would have been.
I totally understand the idea of wanting the best sound possible - but there's a point where you've got to ask if you want to ignore the stuff out there.
Z
By galganael Tue Jun 19, 2012 11:44 pm
Youtube is where i get most of my samples. As stated above, i sample directly into the mpc via 3.5mm headphone output into 1/4" jacks.
By Kapser Tue Jun 19, 2012 11:47 pm
Thanks a lot for the detailed description Metatron72!

And to the people who think it is the biggest death sin in the world to sample from something else than vinyl... well.

Im just a kid with few money, so i don't have that kind of money to go out and buy vinyls all the time..
And i do not have some long music education so i can hear the exact sound quality, and all that other things.
So for me it is fine, if i can have some fun with a little music-making at home, sampling from youtube.

And by the way, i don't know if you guys have any interest in hiphop, but party supplies have made an album called Blue Chips with Action Bronson, one of the most promising new rappers, where party supplies have produced it all. The album have received some very fine reviews, and i actually haven't heard anyone complain about the sound quality of the project, even though... yes... he samples from youtube.
By Kapser Wed Jun 20, 2012 12:00 am
But eerhm Metatron, i am just wondering.

In the interview he says:
"Every beat I ever made, I recorded out of a headphone outlet in my computer. I record right out of YouTube through the headphone outlet and into my MPC."

So it sounds like he doesn't even download it on the computer, and put it in iTunes and all that like the way you explained. Just like he take it directly like from an vinyl.
But of course I'm a newcomer, so I'm just guessing here, but do you think that would be realistic, that such a method would be possible? :)
User avatar
By Metatron72 Wed Jun 20, 2012 12:11 am
Kapser wrote:Thanks a lot for the detailed description Metatron72!

And to the people who think it is the biggest death sin in the world to sample from something else than vinyl... well.

Im just a kid with few money, so i don't have that kind of money to go out and buy vinyls all the time..
And i do not have some long music education so i can hear the exact sound quality, and all that other things.
So for me it is fine, if i can have some fun with a little music-making at home, sampling from youtube.

And by the way, i don't know if you guys have any interest in hiphop, but party supplies have made an album called Blue Chips with Action Bronson, one of the most promising new rappers, where party supplies have produced it all. The album have received some very fine reviews, and i actually haven't heard anyone complain about the sound quality of the project, even though... yes... he samples from youtube.


I'm not a vinyl purist although truly nothing in the world sounds better. I do feel in a general sense that we should aim for the best quality possible even if a grungy sound is what we desire. A higher resolution doesn't automatically mean no grit, it's just more to work with.

In a lot of cases people will be coupling the samples with VST's or sounds from a sample library which will always be at least 16/44. If all your sounds are in that quality range it's just easier to gel them together with less chance of one element sounding thinner than the others. Also regarding volume and impendence, the higher resolution files make life easier there. You won't have to use as much gain and avoid digital clipping more easily. In my experience a lower bit rate MP3 if recorded from an original vinyl source holds up much better than a digital rip dithered to the lower compressed bit rate.

This is easy to see if you listen to golden age hip hop You Tube videos from 1988-1994 or so. Tons of these are vinyl rips and it's the best you'll ever here a 240p stream sound. I'm talking mostly hip hop records here. To me it's a combination of the character of vinyl coming through even at a low bit rate and that the drums on most of these records came out of MPC60/3000's and SP1200's the 2 basic definitions of golden age hip hop drums.

Like most things the truth of this stuff is somewhere in the middle. Sometimes an mp3 will sound full and good enough. But I can't fully co-sign the attitude the guy in the video had that no one cares about sound quality so why bother.

Sounds like you feel where I;m coming from Kasper. Just wanted to show that even with no dough the options still exist to get a good source recording.
User avatar
By Metatron72 Wed Jun 20, 2012 12:19 am
Kapser wrote:But eerhm Metatron, i am just wondering.

In the interview he says:
"Every beat I ever made, I recorded out of a headphone outlet in my computer. I record right out of YouTube through the headphone outlet and into my MPC."

So it sounds like he doesn't even download it on the computer, and put it in iTunes and all that like the way you explained. Just like he take it directly like from an vinyl.
But of course I'm a newcomer, so I'm just guessing here, but do you think that would be realistic, that such a method would be possible? :)


I mentioned that method in case the MPC isn't hooked up or you just wanted to make a bunch of recordings for later uploading into the MPC. And you could leave the files in a playlist for example just for organizational purposes.

His method would work just as well, although personally I'd rather get the file digitally (downloader) and put it on a CF card and load it that way. As I said 1/8" pc outs aren't the best and often are a little low on volume. When you use his method you add an extra analog to digital conversion stage. On an older MPC this would likely be preferable as they colored what went into the record jacks quite nicely. But a 500/1000/2500/5000 have no real coloration or character to the sound.

But yeah to sum it up you have options, just trying to shed some light on why someone might choose one method over the other.
User avatar
By sirparksalot Wed Jun 20, 2012 2:03 am
Kapser wrote:and i actually haven't heard anyone complain about the sound quality of the project, even though... yes... he samples from youtube.


Actually, the whole time that I listened to it I kept thinking "wow these beats are nice, but they sound TERRIBLE". My friend told me later that they sampled off of youtube....everything made sense then.
User avatar
By peeping tom Wed Jun 20, 2012 4:15 am
sample from anywhere, use the methods below above

i understand your broke, but so were old school producers, and in the end the bill you run up on from browsing on your internet provider will outweigh the cost of a cheap turntable and some dollar bin records.
User avatar
By Metatron72 Wed Jun 20, 2012 4:34 am
peeping tom wrote:sample from anywhere, use the methods below above

i understand your broke, but so were old school producers, and in the end the bill you run up on from browsing on your internet provider will outweigh the cost of a cheap turntable and some dollar bin records.


If he's in the US that won't happen. Our bandwidth is not capped generally as it is in the UK/EU/AUS/NZ. If not, yeah man that's gonna add up.
User avatar
By peeping tom Wed Jun 20, 2012 4:42 am
Metatron72 wrote:
peeping tom wrote:sample from anywhere, use the methods below above

i understand your broke, but so were old school producers, and in the end the bill you run up on from browsing on your internet provider will outweigh the cost of a cheap turntable and some dollar bin records.


If he's in the US that won't happen. Our bandwidth is not capped generally as it is in the UK/EU/AUS/NZ. If not, yeah man that's gonna add up.


cheap tt is 40 bucks. bunch of records about 10. your looking at 50 bucks to start sampling.

Not that expensive considering a internet dongle over here is 30 bucks.

Also, whats our dollar worth there now just out of interest?
By MMV Wed Jun 20, 2012 4:45 am
I was trying it earlier and the sound quality wasn't too bad, i guess it varies from songs on youtube though.. So basically I found this two-way 3.5mm jack or a two-way 1/8th inch cable (I'm not sure if those are the same) and plugged one end into the back of my computer where the speakers plug in (not the headphone jack) and the other end into an 1/8th inch adapter that is in the left input on the MPC. Then in recording mode on the main screen on the top where it says mode at the top, switch it from stereo to mono L which is mono left because it is one cable, and it will play on both sides of the headphones or monitors (not sure if you already know this or not). I keep the main volume on my computer up pretty high and the rec gain on mpc at about half +/-