Difficult time doing arpeggios (JJOS2XL)

To do arpeggios with the MPC1K/JJOS2XL I have had to press several pads at the same time for the arpeggio to be recorded.

I find that not very easy. For example pressing simultaneously pads 1, 7, 13 while pressing PLAY /REC is quite difficult for me finger-wise.
And also during recording it seems that I often accidentally release one of the pads before finishing the recording.

Is there an easier way to record an arpeggio ?

thanks !

Hit "Rec + Stop" and it waits for a key

Bugfix wrote:Hit "Rec + Stop" and it waits for a key

thanks this is helping a bit, but the major problem is that it is quite hard to keep say 3 or more pads pressed at the same time and during the whole time of recording the arpeggio.

I thought of using the simult pads function which would have been great : by pressing only 1 pad I could trigger 3 or more other pads. But as far I can tell, it is available only in DRUM programs not INST programs which I use for these arpeggios.

The only solution is to get a small 25 key MIDI keyboard.
I have used both the cheaper units like the Oxygen as well as the MPK25.

You are fortunate that we now also have the laptop size keyboards from Akai and Korg that are extremely cost effective and require little space.

ntalec wrote:The only solution is to get a small 25 key MIDI keyboard.
I have used both the cheaper units like the Oxygen as well as the MPK25.

You are fortunate that we now also have the laptop size keyboards from Akai and Korg that are extremely cost effective and require little space.

thanks, I was just hoping that somehow I could trigger several INST pads by just hitting one pad, without having to rely on a MIDI keyboard which for me complicates a bit the set up ...

converter wrote:I thought of using the simult pads function which would have been great : by pressing only 1 pad I could trigger 3 or more other pads. But as far I can tell, it is available only in DRUM programs not INST programs which I use for these arpeggios.

Why can't you use drum type program?

Bugfix wrote:

converter wrote:I thought of using the simult pads function which would have been great : by pressing only 1 pad I could trigger 3 or more other pads. But as far I can tell, it is available only in DRUM programs not INST programs which I use for these arpeggios.

Why can't you use drum type program?

As far as I know, working with OS2XL one can only do a ARPEGGIO track with a sample (or several samples) belonging to a INST program. With a DRUM program sample, it won't work.
( By the way, I believe there is the same limitation for a CHORD track : it needs a INST program).

I don't believe so I turned on mine, set drum program packed with drums, and set track type to arp and then chord.. both work. There is no really big difference between type of program you use. INST just have portamento, and settings are "per program", that's it. I used to set some intrument programs with DRUM program to have control over single notes (every setting is per pad here). If you don't use portamento in this program, you can easily use DRUM type. You don't have to belive me, check it out yourself.

Bugfix wrote:I don't believe so I turned on mine, set drum program packed with drums, and set track type to arp and then chord.. both work. There is no really big difference between type of program you use. INST just have portamento, and settings are "per program", that's it. I used to set some intrument programs with DRUM program to have control over single notes (every setting is per pad here). If you don't use portamento in this program, you can easily use DRUM type. You don't have to belive me, check it out yourself.

What I meant when I said that DRUM progs don't work for ARPEGGIO/CHORDS tracks is that from my experience one can't get a DRUM voice going through pitch changes in ARPEGGIO/CHORDS tracks which for me is severely limiting.
If I try for example doing an arpeggio with a DRUM voice I get just one pitch. And so if I select for example a up/down arpeggio I won't get it : I'll just get a "flat" grid with one pitch repeating itself like a sort of a "note repeat".
And I get the same thing with a CHORD track : a DRUM prog voice will produce a single chord of that voice.

But if you get that voice and insert it in a new INST prog, and use that INST prog in that ARPEGGIO track, you'll be able to change the pitch of that voice up and down just by hitting different pads , and get a typical ARPEGGIO/CHORDS situation : that's to me real cool.

(I am really talking here about pitch changes, independently of portamento settings).
But plse let me know if I am missing something .

I didn't check extensively, but ARP works the same on DRUM as INST for sure (there is a pitch variation between pads). Have you set a chromatic tuning on this DRUM pgm (shift +F6 on tune column)? Second, I didn't get CHORD track to work this way, but will check more later as I never really used it. And third.. SIMULT didn't work as I expected, but I just played 1 minute to check that all (maybe I missed some setting or it's a limitation) I'll get back to you tomorrow.

ok, I checked and both arp and chord tracks work with drum programs the same as instrument, you have to set it to chromatic tuning shift +F5, yesterday I loaded a bass sample which plays only 1 octave so I didn't heard a chord.. but anyway I didn't found a way to chain few samples on one pad in those modes.

The problem with using CHORD for arps, at least in my experience, is that the first note is delayed by one note-interval. So it messes up your timing. So if you select 12 ticks as the note interval, the chord-arp won't start playing until 12 ticks after you hit the pad.

Bugfix wrote:ok, I checked and both arp and chord tracks work with drum programs the same as instrument, you have to set it to chromatic tuning shift +F5, yesterday I loaded a bass sample which plays only 1 octave so I didn't heard a chord.. but anyway I didn't found a way to chain few samples on one pad in those modes.

So as I understand the point is to set chromatic tuning for the DRUM voice, otherwise ARPEGGIO/CHORD tracks won't work with "non chromated" DRUM voices. I'll try that, thanks !

BUT I'll have to check that chromatic tuning let's me set and use SIMULT pads. In other words : for example pressing pad X (say note C) will also trigger pad Y (say note E) and pad Z (say note G) at the same time.
(which was my initial problem : triggering at the same time several pads, and keeping them pressed for the duration of the ARPEGGIO track recording).

converter wrote:BUT I'll have to check that chromatic tuning let's me set and use SIMULT pads. In other words : for example pressing pad X (say note C) will also trigger pad Y (say note E) and pad Z (say note G) at the same time.
(which was my initial problem : triggering at the same time several pads, and keeping them pressed for the duration of the ARPEGGIO track recording).

It will sound the same as setting up additional (detuned )sample on INST pgm in overlap mode, well check it out

Bugfix wrote:

converter wrote:BUT I'll have to check that chromatic tuning let's me set and use SIMULT pads. In other words : for example pressing pad X (say note C) will also trigger pad Y (say note E) and pad Z (say note G) at the same time.
(which was my initial problem : triggering at the same time several pads, and keeping them pressed for the duration of the ARPEGGIO track recording).

It will sound the same as setting up additional (detuned )sample on INST pgm in overlap mode, well check it out

Thanks for the information. I tried yesterday to use SIMULT after doing an autochromatic assignmt (SHIFT F5), but after that the SIMULT setting did not work for me. In other words I could not trigger at the same time several target samples/pads generated by the chromatic tuning by pressing one of the samples/pads.
Did you try this ? If yes did it work for you ?