Exchange tips and tricks for the Akai MPC4000
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By dudum Mon May 03, 2004 8:47 pm
might seem kinda basic but i respect the thread so that's what it's all for i suppose: i think method is something with this beast.

something i've done for organization is build a PROGRAM around a particular instrument, assign pads for the notes that i'm going to use in a passage.

this means that if i'm playing a bass/drum part i assign only the notes i'll be using out of a passage in a sequence that works well with one hand and i assign the kick/snare/woodblock with what works well with the other hand.

this lets me run live takes for a non-quantized loop.

i'll repeat this for the guitar/horn whatever and assign for each bank of pads. with this i'll have a loop i'm pretty happy with for one 16 bar measure. i'll EQ and master till it sounds like a good lick and internally sample the whole thing. i'll keep a master CD burned with the original PROGRAM with all of the instruments seperated out on pads so i can always reference it and change things up as i need.

working with the sample i make of the original PROGRAM's loop lets me kick it on one pad and free's up a boatload of memory/cpu usage. this actually let's me keep pretty complex loops going on without the strain on my memory for samples so i can free up the 4K to work like a linear HD recorder and stream 30 minute vocal sample takes into it for further editing.

this frees up your HD which can fragment like any other electro-magnetic drive to be a source for your SEQUENCES and performance PROGRAMS only!

By RAVEN Wed May 05, 2004 2:07 am
DON'T SMOKE A LOT OF WEED BEFORE YOU TRY LEARNING ON THE 4K :lol: YOU MIGHT FORGET THAT GREAT DISCOVERY :lol:
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By ikke Wed May 05, 2004 2:08 am
RAVEN wrote:DON'T SMOKE A LOT OF WEED BEFORE YOU TRY LEARNING ON THE 4K :lol: YOU MIGHT FORGET THAT GREAT DISCOVERY :lol:



:P

By boywithpez007 Wed May 05, 2004 4:25 am
Originally posted by RAVEN:
DON'T SMOKE A LOT OF WEED BEFORE YOU TRY LEARNING ON THE 4K YOU MIGHT FORGET THAT GREAT DISCOVERY



Hehehe that my usual problem but it works with you as well as against you! creativity vs brain cell damage!!!
although yesterday I read a whole heap of tips on this forum and went home from work and put in a good 8 hour session with the mpc.
I've only had it a little while and last night managed to try out some new things that I havent really tried yet. ie utilizing the q-link gear for live performance & also twisting samples to re-sample. I also went through and learnt most of the functions on the sample 'edit' button as well as the quick fx you can apply.......
so this thread has made me want to push my mpc to its limits, or at least not sit back being lazy and be happy with a beat after 1 hrs work.
Thanx guys, keep up the good work
enjoy.boywithpez
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By Reveal Sat May 29, 2004 2:58 am
sup headz.
Why did this thread die eh?,(':o') heres a couple things 4 now,its late ya know

link to downloads (just go to 4k sections)

http://www.arbitermt.co.uk/akai/downloads.htm

1.time sinatures,
a time signature consists of two numbers one above another, the top number is the number of beats in the bar ,and the lower number tells us the type or value of the beat.
there are four beat values in common use:

minim or half note
crotchet or quarture note
Quaver or eighth note
semiquaver or sixteenth note

on the 4K, the upper number(beats in bar) can be from 1 up to 32 pending on how crazy u are!
and the lower number(value /type of beat)can range from 4,8,16,32.
also on the 4k u can have different signature for each bar.(push the window key when the cursor is on 4/4 )
most western music is written in 4/4......want to know more>>>>>>>>>>>>>
http://www.music.vt.edu/musicdictionary ... asics.html

http://ourworld.compuserve.com/homepage ... eory10.htm
Last edited by Reveal on Fri May 20, 2005 4:42 pm, edited 2 times in total.
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By Blue Haze Sat May 29, 2004 4:05 pm
A basic tip. When you are using a long sample in your sequencer turn the T/C off and go into sequencer edit and place it on the bar as you like using loop off. Adjust it in the step edit page by duration. Go to program edit amp evelope set the release to sharp go to the top lin or log curve. Back to main page set your T/C back to on and back from drums which should line up over your loop. :D
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By Blue Haze Tue Jun 01, 2004 4:20 pm
I think that the Newbie bible should continue to help all the newcomers. One basic tip in Seq edit or Step edit is with the Pad mixer you can change volume level, fade in, fade out, changing the curve, and effects(remember to press overdub to insert these changes. The Q-link effects is terrific with live improvsation of the filter and amplitude and other effects with Qlink sequence. :D
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By Reveal Tue Jun 01, 2004 5:32 pm
Sup all,
good looking haze,
thats all keep this one rolling...................(':lol:')
this is basic stuff but still good to know..................................
the way you organize your HD is vital not to HD faults but user error ,i cant tell you the amount of times ive lost things though saving whilst being mashed up at the end of a heavy session. :lol:.
So in my Hd i Have 3 main ,Root Folders =1.my music
2.Samples
3.autoload
inside the folder samples,

u can create subfolders for each type/group of instrument and sound,and inside these
you could have a different subfolder..for different Bpm's(ie 80bpm,90bpm),
kinds of genres,loops/hits etc.....
kits/key groups & chopped up samples which should each be in there own subfolder folder with program/midi file.


I like to have a chopping sesion once a week ,searching for loops and chopping them up,create a program,and midi file,then save this in its own subfolder in my drumloops folder,under the under the nearest bmp.

Before chopping the sample name it, and i put the tempo in the name as well and use,instead of sample1,sample2 and so on...
name the program/midi/folder the same of similar names as the original sample including the sample tempo. And its good to make there names as descriptive as possible,you can also use empty folders like post it notes,using the names a little reminders.(':lol:')

When saving into "mymusic",
I create a new subfolder for each new tune, and save all files inside this at the end of each session.
And inside there i create another folder for samples and what i do is every time i add a new sample to my song i save this sample to my sample folder because that allows u to use replace same files again & again without worring about overwriting anything i want and still having all the original samples as reference in one place.
And theres nothing stopping you from doing this for this for different versions of midi/allseq&song/mutlis/programs files if you like.
Again using empty folders like post it notes is a good way to keep track of ur beats,listing session info on so on.


what happens alot when learning to use the 4k is incorrect loading and saving .
when u power your unit up u can use auto to load the last song u were working on automaticly.
To do this go to the "Global page" and turn "on" "auto load",then create a folder in your root directory and name it "autoload" and save the song u want to load on bootup inside this folder.
I.e my music
samples
autoload

Also when loading if "default items" is on in the Gobal page,and you load your song up,without pushing "clear all memory" and "replace same items" is set to off, a multi or program which have the same name as the default items will not replace the default items.
or if u dont "clear all memory" and "replace same items" is set to on a default multi and program will be in memory as well if your not laoding up anything with the same names,which may mean u have the wrong multi/programs selected,check by going to the multi page.

options when saving and loading..................
Load= select what files to load
Replace same files=this replaces same files in memory or on HD when saving and loading.
Load with =select what files to load with multi/prog/all
Save=select which files to save with
Seq=load one sequence out of a .all
Clear =clears current memory and loads selection
do it=loads file
and when loading samples u can add samples to programs and create a new ones...etc .etc.etc

1.so if u save with replace same files set to "yes" and save "entire memory"
all your files will will be saved in the selected folder overwriting existing files with same names

2.save the multi with "replace same files" set to "yes" and "save=with programs and samples" ,
then save "allseq&song"
and all your sequences will be saved but only the one multi you choose to save along with all the programs it uses and all samples the programs use ,not the entire memory.
You can also have the option to rename or replace when saving indervidual files ,if the filename already exists.

You can use purge samples&programs not in use in the gobal page>F2 memory>operation and scroll to purge samples/prgrams before u save to cear out the unwanted.....but use with care, because any sample not assigned to a program will be deleted/and any program not assgined to a multi will be deleted.

when loading go the multi ,push "Doit" then select "Load"="with programs and samples" and set "replace same files" to "yes" .
push "f3" clear all memory".

but if you have files in memory you want to keep select "Doit"F5" but make sure u have the right multi selected after loading,
and that your not going to load samples with the same file names as thoses in memory,
as the ones in memory will be wiped or, if "replace same files" is set to off your song will not load up as saved ,the solution to this is to rename the files with the same name in memory.

then after loading up "allseq&songs" ".ALL" and you should be ready to go,
also u can load up one sequence out of a .ALL files by pushing F6 the F3Seq instead of F5Doit or load enitire folders,.....etc.
........refer to all the manuals as well..


HTH
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By Blue Haze Wed Jun 02, 2004 5:25 pm
Small basic tip after you chopped a sample and you want to control the number of notes that can be played in poly. Go to the Program page press misc button now change the poly field from 64 to 1 thru 3 to control the notes. And if you are using a keygroup program you can use the portamento or glide function on to smooth the transition between the notes.

Also concerning duration of a note in a synth the key is basically set note on and note off. In this case no loop which plays the sound until the key is release note off. Thus is is very easy to change the duration of a note in a sequence. You can change the note live in main page on a track using the duration or velocity field and record it. Or you can go to step edit or seq edit highlight the note press edit and change away. In the reference manual on page 5 there is a list of the note ticks 1/4 is 960ppqs and 1/8 is 480 ppq and etc. Once you have the list of ticks it is easy to change in the Step edit mode because all of the information is sequential. Afterwards you can move the note and heard it back in real time. Drum notes however I usually leave at one shot.

P.S. it is easier to play chops using a midi keyboard.

Have fun :D

By murw Wed Jun 02, 2004 7:31 pm
i love this thread! thanks for the great input!
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By Reveal Mon Jun 07, 2004 12:51 pm
^ahhhhhhhhhhhh!

Heres lil tip,

The block of white keys above the jog dial have the qwerty keyboard shortcut letters under them for quick reference.

i.e MAIN=u
RECORD= i

to get the complete list, check

http://www.akaipro.com/int/mpc4k/MPC4000_QWERTY.zip
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By Reveal Wed Jun 09, 2004 2:59 pm
Heres another little tip,

Are ya always reaching for a piece of paper to remind yourself of the note duration length(measured in ticks).

When ur in the main page/seq edit/set edit..the note duration is next to or underneath in brackets for the current TC value.

i.e

TC:1/16th(3) (160)<<<<duration of a note at that Tc value

TC1/8 (480)<<<<<

Also while in seq edit/step edit u can push F1(option) and set the "duration of recorded" notes to be a percentage of the current Tc value.

I.e Duration of recorded notes: TC VALUE 100%. and so on

p.s.dont forget to turn it off, after use!
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By Blue Haze Thu Jun 10, 2004 4:49 pm
Little tip when playing samples use a keyboard with the samples set at no loop to get realistic piano feel. :D Lets keep this newbie bible going.
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By Reveal Thu Jun 10, 2004 5:58 pm
Blue Haze wrote: :D Lets keep this newbie bible going.


word up haze,

Mute groups are a cool little feature, If u assign more than one sample to the same mute group I.e program page>>> pitch(F3),mute groups.

Any sample u trigger in that group will mute any samples currently playing that are assgined to the same group.

Mute groups are set individually for each program.