Processor Getting Bogged Down w/ JJ OS

I'm curious if anyone is experiencing lagging response/processor slowdown. If so, what OS and what are you usually doing to cause it?

For me, the only obvious lag happens when adjusting sample start points in Trim while a sequence is playing. (Not a problem though, and thrilled to have this capability.)

This post by The Adversary is what got me wondering:

The CPU is really being tasked in XL like never before.
This is the first MPC I have ever seen bog down.
Working at 180bpm, 2 drum programs, 1 layered instrument program playing and arp type synth line (played not using JJ arp) with some OLink filter, 1 chopped sample program, about 5 sequencer variations.
This is enough to make the buttons so slow they seem almost non-respondent as you wait for a funtion.
Turning the Data wheel 4 complete revolutions gives no response but will jump the proper amount if you stop the sequence.
If you enable the second filter while the sequence is playing you can hear the the tempo drop, not see the tempo change but hear the sequence struggling thus playing at a slower speed.

just a quick thought - wonder if there could be a connection between something like this and the type/quality of the ram used to expand the machine?

i've been getting processor slow downs in the MPC for ages. i've had it lock up on me more than a few times as well. in fact, the most recent time was just a few days ago, and i was running os 1 at the time.

RAM has nothing to do with it, it basically comes down to how hard you push the machine. i'm always maxing my polyphony, using filters, fx, LFO's, 2nd sequence, etc... after a while you notice the display start to slow down, then the cursor will get sluggish, then the machine will completely become unresponsive (but your sequence will keep playing!)

i've noticed each JJ os has gotten more processor intensive than the one before it, so your chances of overloading the cpu increase as you move from os 1 -> os 2 -> os 2xl.

Sooty_G is pretty much correct.
The thing that make it bad is since the different os versions ae not accurately compatible you can't just load a project in a different os to see if it has less overhead.
If you look at all that JJ added to any of his os' compared to what Akai offers that's a lot of weight for the processor to deal.

People are complaining about things like the SIMULT function being different but they need to remember Akai felt it was totally unnecessary.
JJ has really stuffed the os and it wasn't until now that I saw it become a problem.

I have noticed the screen slow and I have also had the buttons respond sluggishly, but I have never had any problems with the sequence playing back what it is supose to. As long as the sequence plays correctly, I'm good.

i actually had way more MPC slowdown/processor boggdowns in os2 than os2xl, but not for the reasons you'd think: in os2, i was doing more in-house. in os2xl, the effort is shared.

my usage of the mpc bypasses any playback/gui slowdown by happy accident. my mpc only houses a couple stereo xfade note-per-note chopped instrument sample pgms (one or two of which play at the same time from the analog outputs) drums (digital outputs) and assorted percussion (dig outs). i brush the polyphony cap now and then but typically stay in the upper twennies because =>

<= the large brunt of layering and additional instrumentation is all VST/Reason. this is another reason why CCs beat out qrealtime data - CC is simply information, and it doesn't require any additional onboard processing that taxes the MPC's processor. likewise with FX - i never use em simply because it's askin for trouble when your sh!t gets complex.

all this is more and more evidence that these machines are NOT STANDALONE UNITS unless you're doing stuff that's basic to moderate as far as complexity - no disrespect to the music produced, but an MPC can handle boom bap hip hop effortlessly because there's not too much going on.

besides the fact that most vsts/reason stuff is more tweakable/extensible than inst pgms, this is another reason i don't really use inst pgms.

mpc > midi controller. mpc = DAW CONTROLLER.

I had the problem that OS2XL slowed down while playing when i used too much filters (especially filter 1 and filter 2 together)

Nym, I really glad you have found rebirth in the computer unfortunately for many of us the computer will always be nothing more than a point to track and edit.

Working with the computer still feels too much like Virtual Music.
The computer can offer a cost effective way to have a lot at your disposal but we are still about 2 generations away from proper interaction.
Just look at how much has gotten better since 2002 and how they are working more to give you hardware with computer ability instead of computer with a poor controller attached.

One of the main advantages of hardware always was the lack of the brickwall.
By Akai's design and usage the 1k/2500 still has plenty of unused power but since JJ has exploited it x100 it's expected that it would choke at some point.
Fortunately you can use Audio Tracks to capture elments of a sequence to reduce overhead and pretty much find a new workaround for any problem.

Still to easy to find resolutions without having to stare at a computer screen and click a mouse.

all i can say is the reluctance is either outdated, misplaced, or born out of a stubbornness that i can not relate to. i'm lucky enough that i had to start on a computer, maybe that made all the difference, but in 2009 it's all but inescapable for all the stuff people are trying to do with the mpc.

but be it DAW or a boat load of external synths/effects, the CPU limit of the mpc can be bypassed by sharing the workload - this really is my point, more so than "u need a PC lol"

but the last point i should make regarding computers is that my music is not made on the computer. in fact, the computer simply allows me to make more integrated use of my hardware. it's not my mpc feeding into my computer, it's more buttons, instruments, functions and controls added to my mpc. there's even a fader on my keyboard that i've assigned to control the DURATION of notes triggered from the keyboard, essentially adding a HOLD to my mpc's amp envelope.

outright, i'd be more inclined to agree the overwhelming majority of computer software i've worked with screams "IM COMPUTER SOFTWARE LET ME FCK UP YOR WORKFLOW"

especially "out of the box and into c:/Program files/" doesn't encourage "integrative" work. it's taken a LOT of tinkering to get it right, and even some fairly complex midi routing to get it somewhere where i simply don't have to constantly fiddle with daw sh!t.

but then again, the same would be the case if you were suddenly dropped into a big room full of unfamiliar equipment. the enormity of the possible ways to hook stuff up/make it talk to each other is overwhelming.

but eventually you make something that works nice with each other. building a amalgaminstrument. mine centers around the mpc/integrated midi control so that the feeling of making beats in the mpc is enhanced, not diminished.

rant is done, the post-work beez always does this to me
on some grandiose instrument building mumbo jumbo

lol you're pretty obsessed Nym

Some people just don't want to use computers with MPC. Why it's so hard to understand? Keep it simple.

I get some hiccups while using stereo x-loop and long release times relating to voice limits. Otherwise i use lots of external synths so this doesn't really affect me.

Some people just don't want to use computers with MPC. Why it's so hard to understand?

because it's 2009
if you're keeping it simple, you wouldn't be bogging the CPU down.

Nym, I guess what you don't seem to understand is unlike yourself I have a major amount of stuff on my Mac Pro and own a lot of hardware so I clearly know what works for me.
A person with limited resources or little exposure to a lot of physical pieces can't began to see or understand the difference.
As such ou really can't talk about the advantages vs disadvantanges because you simply lack the hands aspect neded to do proper comparison.
I find this akin to people talking about MPC's they have never owned.
What works for you is based on the path you have walked not because it' better.
I have 2 iLoks full of stuff at my disposal but that doesn't make them a better choice than hardware, they simply another.

I don't think it is Nym's responsibility to come in here and educate the masses about the best ways to work with the MPC, yet he does this off his own back in various ways.

I agree that if you're attempting to produce complex music then you better not rely 100% on the MP, as it doesn't cover every base you may need. A pc or mac with a few pieces of software can enhance your sound massively, as can an alternative hardware setup or MPC/computer link up.

There's lots of different ways of making tunes, so I don't see the problem in certain folks waxing lyrical about how they produce their way. It all adds to the knowledge base in my opinion.

it's not helpful when youtry to ask like your way is the right way, that,s just bs.

This thread was about how the jj machines eat resources not add a f*cking PC.
The 4k, 5k and even the MV do more complex stuff without bogging down.

Nym wrote:this is another reason why CCs beat out qrealtime data - CC is simply information, and it doesn't require any additional onboard processing that taxes the MPC's processor.

i just got to step in and correct this because this isn't true at all.

remember that project i told you about that just locked up on me a few days ago? i had played that project many times before with no problems. what was different THIS time was that i was working with recording and sending some additional MIDI note data to send to an external synth (no additional samples were being triggered). that extra overhead of having to record & playback this MIDI data was enough to push the cpu over the top & lock up the MPC.

MIDI notes & CC data definitely adds to cpu usage. i've seen a dense MIDI stream slow down an MPC. i've seen the MPC slow down when it hits a particularly dense passage in a sequence, and then pick back up again when the notes/data starts to thin out (again, without triggering any internal samples).

the denser the MIDI stream, the harder the cpu is pushed - and CC data (slider/knob movements) can get pretty dense.