16 levels (sorry noob question)

so ive always been intimidated by the 16 levels function because it assigns one sample to 16 pads. i dont want it to erase everything i have in a drum program or something like that.

ive been messing aroudn with it today with a hi hat sample.
could you guys clear something up for me?

so i have my open hat set to a1 with the sustain set to zero in the pgm mode. then i push 16 levels and set it to "decay"

so now my first row of hats sounds like a closed hat and as i go to the top, it gradually opens more and more.

so i recorded a 4 bar loop with this on, played a few different pads, then played it back and it sounds good.
then i turned the 16 levels button off and it played back as if it were still on.

i then added a snare to another pad, and applied16 levels to my pitch, recorded it, and the hi hat samples played fine with it.

so my question is, if i had a bunch of samples on my pads, and i applied 16 levels to one of them, then turned it off (so i could hear the other pads after recording again)i would think it would act like it just did in my expiremnent.

so in the end, 16 levels seems to be a tactile way to use 'extra data' in this example that extra data being decay levels, and the pitch.
i have found that 16 levels is non destructive. and i can edit it later in grid edit or step edit (as long as i remember which track has the 16 levels feature turned on)

so today i learned that 16 levels wont overwrite your other pads, and even when its turned off, the recording acts as if it was still on.

i just want to make sure im not mising anything major here, like if i did it on an actual project i was working on, i wouldent want it to somehow **** something up that i didnt think of.

but it seems like i can just embrace the 16 levels function for what it is...badass. am i correct?

thanks

anyone? is this how 16 levels is supposed to work? am i correct in assuming that its a way you can have your single sample effected 16 times without manually going in and adding that sample to 16 different pads?

its just on one pad, then when i push 16 levels, its spread across all 16, and when i take it out my other samples stay there like it was before.

for example, this enables me to have a pitched snare without adding the same snare sample on 3 pads (up to 16) in program mode?

damien907 wrote:anyone? is this how 16 levels is supposed to work? am i correct in assuming that its a way you can have your single sample effected 16 times without manually going in and adding that sample to 16 different pads?

its just on one pad, then when i push 16 levels, its spread across all 16, and when i take it out my other samples stay there like it was before.

for example, this enables me to have a pitched snare without adding the same snare sample on 3 pads (up to 16) in program mode?

Yes.And you have answered your own question the right way by experimenting.Peace TYPO

dope, thanks for the reply, i just wanted some confirmation. looks like ill be usin 16 levels quite a bit more from now on

Basically, 16 levels isn't doing anything magic. It's not assigning the sample to all the pads.

All it does is divide whatever parameter (pitch, decay, velocity, etc) into 16 steps (such as 0,8,16,24,32...etc) and then when you push a pad it places that sample with that parameter value. You can even go in and change that later.

You figured it out already, but just trying to clear up misunderstandings later readers might have.

thats a good way to explain it, thanks.

exactley ya. it does not effect your programm.

Just remember that each original pad can only have 1 type of 16 level per strike. For example , if pad 1 is played on beat 1, 16 levels can adjust the pitch, but trying to add 16 levels to adjust decay will overwrite the original pitch data.

^thats good to know.

and keep in mind that none of the 16 levels modes will send MIDI data out the mpc... sometimes i really wish it would though...

crossings wrote:and keep in mind that none of the 16 levels modes will send MIDI data out the mpc... sometimes i really wish it would though...

Is this with all MPCs?

What about after it is recorded, will that recoded data be sent via midi out?

to my knowledge it's the case with all MPCs. just try it.

16 levels affects a parameter called 'note variation'. this can be thought of much like velocity - it is available on every note in the sequencer, and can be adjusted non-destructively just like velocity.

unlike velocity, it will not transmit as a midi message - it is mpc-specific.

newer mpcs i think have more than one 'note variation' parameter, so you can do multiple effects at once.