Recreating MAX patch with MPC500 + MIDI Controller

I just got an MPC500 and am learning the basics. I got it in hopes that I could mimick a MAX/MSP patch that I use.

Below is a list of things I'm wondering can be done with an MPC500 and a MIDI controller (MPK 25 ? )
Also it should be noted that this is the only thing I would be using the MPC500 for, I would set it up to do this specific thing and only use it for that..

- Start recording a sample and end recording a sample without going through the menus. Would love to just push a button that is designated to record and stop recording a sample.

- Play sample at several different pitches using a keyboard, and having them all stay on, looping, after I take my fingers off the keys.

- Adjust sample start and end/loop point using two knobs (one for sample start and the other knob for sample end). I'm hoping to tweak this live while the samples are playing.

- I'd like to use more than one sample at once, but even if I could only use this with one sample at a time that would be fine.

- I'd like the samples to fade in and fade out so that they loop smoothly over eachother. I don't want to go into the menus to adjust the envelope, and instead just have two knobs, one for attack and the other for decay. I'm hoping this could also be tweaked as the samples are looping. (with the MAX patch sometimes I make the start and end points VERY close together and make very short envelopes which creates an almost granular synthesis kind of sound...)

- If my envelope knobs don't work out, could I have a template so that whatever I sample automatically has a nice long attack and decay already on it so that they can loop smoothly over each other without having to set the whole thing up every time?

- Changing pitch / slight detuning of each layer (its all one sample but each layer is looping at different pitches that were played on the keyboard. Is it possible to take one of the layers and slightly detune it using a knob? If that isn't possible perhaps a CHORUS effect or something else built into the MPC500 could be applied to just one of the layers. Or perhaps an effect on all three layers but each effect would have unique parameters.


I don't know too much nitty gritty yet, but I know there are some limitations to what you can do if you are in the middle of playing back a sequence or recording one. Well I don't think I will need to record or playback a sequence if I can keep those keys pressed down and looping after I take my fingers off of them. I just want to take small guitar samples and loop them at various pitches all layered on top of eachother.

If anyone thinks I have the wrong idea with the MPC500 + MPK25 then perhaps someone could steer me in the right direction. A lot of people have told me I should look into the sampling version of the Elektron Machinedrum as well..

Thanks

lionelfischer wrote:- Start recording a sample and end recording a sample without going through the menus. Would love to just push a button that is designated to record and stop recording a sample.

Nope, can't do that.

- Play sample at several different pitches using a keyboard, and having them all stay on, looping, after I take my fingers off the keys.

You can (obviously) play the samples at different pitches from a keyboard, and I believe there is a work-around for continuous looping after key release. Not 100% sure, though...

- Adjust sample start and end/loop point using two knobs (one for sample start and the other knob for sample end). I'm hoping to tweak this live while the samples are playing.

No, you can't do that. It's a shame really, as this is a feature that would be seriously useful.

- I'd like to use more than one sample at once, but even if I could only use this with one sample at a time that would be fine.

You can use as many samples as your RAM will allow - get that 128Meg in there, ASAP!

- I'd like the samples to fade in and fade out so that they loop smoothly over eachother. I don't want to go into the menus to adjust the envelope, and instead just have two knobs, one for attack and the other for decay. I'm hoping this could also be tweaked as the samples are looping. (with the MAX patch sometimes I make the start and end points VERY close together and make very short envelopes which creates an almost granular synthesis kind of sound...)

You have to set your envelope up for each sample in the program mode; there is no 'automatic' envelope control on the 500 (or any MPC AFAIK). You can set up various samples with envelopes and play them in real time to 'blend' them. There is a nice 'velocity to attack time' parameter that might help you there, too.

- If my envelope knobs don't work out, could I have a template so that whatever I sample automatically has a nice long attack and decay already on it so that they can loop smoothly over each other without having to set the whole thing up every time?

You should be able to set up a default program that will allow this.

- Changing pitch / slight detuning of each layer (its all one sample but each layer is looping at different pitches that were played on the keyboard. Is it possible to take one of the layers and slightly detune it using a knob? If that isn't possible perhaps a CHORUS effect or something else built into the MPC500 could be applied to just one of the layers. Or perhaps an effect on all three layers but each effect would have unique parameters. (the patch is often an exercise in harmonic beating..

The 500 has two separate effects banks that can be run concurrently.

You can layer up to four samples per pad, with varying velocity trigger. Quite useful if you think you might have run out of pad! You can also tune each of the layers/pads.

I don't know too much nitty gritty yet, but I know there are some limitations to what you can do if you are in the middle of playing back a sequence or recording one. Well I don't think I will need to record or playback a sequence if I can keep those keys pressed down and looping after I take my fingers off of them. I would use this setup to make ambient music, I just want to take small guitar reverby samples and loop them at various pitches all layered on top of eachother.

There are a few more things I hope I can do, and some questions, but I think this is a good starting off point. I hope that everyone on the forum can help me, or if I have chosen incorrectly with the MPC500 + MPK25 then perhaps someone could steer me in the right direction. A lot of people have told me I should look into the sampling version of the Elektron Machinedrum as well..

The machine drum is a nice machine (it's on my lust list). You have to remember, though; the 500 is a £400 bit o' kit, whereas the sampling MachineDrum is £1200 worth of gear. I would strongly recommend reading the 500's manual, learned the sequencer inside out (you can achieve ALOT with some crafty sequencing & resampling tricks), and try to find out 'work arounds' for what you want to do. Don't be put off by some of the stuff that the 500 can't do; work out how to turn this to your advantage and get that mother rocking!

Hope this helps a bit.

Thank you so much for that info.

more questions:=]

-you said i could tune each of the layers/pads. does that mean that while i have a few keys held down and i have 3 or 4 samples all looping over eachother, i can adjust the tuning of multiple pads simultaneously in real time while everything is still looping? (tweaking a few knobs at once, each one assigned to only change tuning of a certain pad. is this doable?

lionelfischer wrote:Thank you so much for that info.

more questions:=]

-you said i could tune each of the layers/pads. does that mean that while i have a few keys held down and i have 3 or 4 samples all looping over eachother, i can adjust the tuning of multiple pads simultaneously in real time while everything is still looping? (tweaking a few knobs at once, each one assigned to only change tuning of a certain pad. is this doable?

No problems, my friend. You can't adjust the tuning of multiple pads at once, but you can tweak one at a time with the Q-Link slider (can also 'do' volume and filter control). There's not masses that can be controlled in real time, but with a bit of forethought (and resampling of stuff) you can achieve some pretty monstrous results.

Give that manual a read, then throw it out the window and make the 500 work! Anything else, give us a shout.

reading it now =]


but uh, can you switch between what the slider controls without stopping playback? so i can adjust one then another then another all while everything is still looping?

Is there an easy way to record a sample live and then play it at various pitches using a MIDI keyboard? So far the only way I have found to do this is making a separate sample for each pitch, and assigning each pitched sample to it's own unique key on the keyboard. Is there no other way to do this? Is this something the mpc 1000 can do and the 500 can not?

lionelfischer wrote:reading it now =]


but uh, can you switch between what the slider controls without stopping playback? so i can adjust one then another then another all while everything is still looping?

Yup. [MODE] + [Pad 1] will bring up the Q-Link menu. Hit the pad you want to control and you're away!

lionelfischer wrote:Is there an easy way to record a sample live and then play it at various pitches using a MIDI keyboard? So far the only way I have found to do this is making a separate sample for each pitch, and assigning each pitched sample to it's own unique key on the keyboard. Is there no other way to do this? Is this something the mpc 1000 can do and the 500 can not?

You can't sample 'on the fly', no. That isn't what the MPC does. How's that manual coming on?

ive been reading it for the past two hours, but i couldnt find in the manual how to play back a sample at various pitches with a keyboard. i also searched the forum and found some posts where people said it was impossible, and the only way to do it was to make several samples already pitched, and then assign them to different keys on the midi keyboard, which sounds like such a pain in the ass, so then i decided to ask the question on the board...

so you can't sample on the fly, thats okay, but what about playing the sample on the keyboard, is that something relatively easy to setup or is that something that you would need the mpc1000 for?

lionelfischer wrote:ive been reading it for the past two hours, but i couldnt find in the manual how to play back a sample at various pitches with a keyboard. i also searched the forum and found some posts where people said it was impossible, and the only way to do it was to make several samples already pitched, and then assign them to different keys on the midi keyboard, which sounds like such a pain in the ass, so then i decided to ask the question on the board...

so you can't sample on the fly, thats okay, but what about playing the sample on the keyboard, is that something relatively easy to setup or is that something that you would need the mpc1000 for?

It should be! If you hit the '12 Levels' button, you can use the pads to play back the sample at various pitches. I don't believe you can assign a MIDI key span per pad, however, you can set the trigger note for each pad (in program mode) and then assign your samples to each pad & re-tune (you don't need to use loads of samples; one will do!). Obviously, re-pitching the sample will result in the sample time increasing or decreasing, as the MP's sampler works in 'classic' mode only.

Hope that helps some. If you find another way around it, let me know!