mpc60 midi

i been making beats with reason, digi performer, and mpc60... when i record using my mpc60 as the controller for all my sounds... the audio levels seem to go up and down...i dont know if its cause the fact the 60 is sold old and maybe the midi ports aren't recieving that data accurately... i dont know what it is but it is driving me crazy.. anybody have any idea what this might be... im using a rme multiface... could it be my midi cables??

The MPC pads respond to velocity, so if you hit the pad softly it sends out a low velocity MIDI note, if you hit the pad hard it sends out a higher velocity MIDI note.

Could this be your issue, that the differng sound playback levels might be caused by different strength hits when playing the MPC pads?

You can press the full level button to make it so all notes sent out/recorded are at full velocity level?

yea i always make sure full level is on... its still doing it.. its reallly wierd..

Not sure what it could be.

Where are all the sounds actually being generated...inside Reason? If so, maybe something inside Reason is causing the problem.

You could try some sort of MIDI monitor software on your computer, or something built into Reason if they have something similar, to check what MIDI messages are getting into the computer and maybe see if something weird is happening with the incoming MIDI signal.

Does it happen just playing a single MPC pad over and over, or does it only happen when playing back a sequence?

could it be that the pad sensors are going..?

think it was just my soundcard settings..thanks for the help..

ive been having the same problem. even when full level is on. i need to put my mpc in the shop. i think the censors might be going out. how else can i tell if this is the case? what causes this other then my mpc being beat up and old?

i think with full level on you can't have a censor prob if it records the notes. Since it's full level it means note on or off so if the note played has been recorded and you have a velocity prob still it would be another issue.

yea.. i wiggled the midi wires in my soundcard and adjusted some settings and it started working fine.. not the mpc

I know this is an old topic.

But I'm resurrecting it because I'm trying to do the same thing Butcher is trying to do. I plan on playing my vst's and sequencing them with my MPC, then recording the midi data into Ableton Live (all while syncing Live to the 60 via midi clock).

Butcher how is it working out with your set-up? Are you finding any delays or issues with how the software is recording your midi data?

I assume you are syncing either Reason or Pro-Tools with Reason Rewired to the MPC 60 over midi clock. Correct me if I am wrong.

Is everything running smoothly and cooperating with each other?

I'm not sure that ableton can be synched to another device as the slave... you might have to double check that, but I'm sure I've heard a few people complaining about that. Their shouldn't be any real delays assuming your computer and audio interface are up to the challenge and your latency is turned down low.

Ableton Live can be sync'ed as a slave.

But I've heard of people having issues with delays with their newer MPC's.

I haven't even heard of anyone using their 60 on any of the forums (MPC and Live forums) as a master clock source and external midi sequencer for Live. This is why I'm curious about the set-up. I don't wanna be the first person to report syncing issues with Live slaved to a MPC 60.

At this point tho, I am leaning towards an MPC 2000XL. MPC 60s these days are still a bit too expensive to just use as a midi sequencer. Plus it would take up way too much space on my desk.

What the hell is live?

Haha! I may be an old mpc60 dude, but not that old.

I actually own live, and updated until 6, but I never got along with it and decided the computer thing still wasn't my cup of tea. I only used it to interface with some of the artists I was working with.

My question is though, what exactly are you getting by using an mpc to sequence live? I already hate the fact that live isn't self contained and you have to use an external sample editor. Why add an extra device? I know the mpc timing is probably more solid. I've owned every mpc to date, and while they are vastly different in plenty of ways, the sequencers are very similar and I don't mean stat wise. Why not a 500 if all you're doing is sequencing? Or best yet, an ASQ-10? Nobody wants the $350 in Japan on ebay!

After all the drum programming I've done, I've settled on the 60 and the 3000. Dead simple and very well built, but most important to me is the sound. That's why the sp1200 has a special place in my heart even though its built like shit and extremely limited. If you're not concerned about the sound, get a newer mpc.

Renoise kicks Lives ass anyway and F*CK a computer...well not a 1040!!

PS...this question would be answered faster in a forum that wasn't full of old gear enthusiasts. I hate to generalize, but I think a fair assumption is that we use old mpcs so we don't have those headaches!

Yeah I am definitely noticing that. I guess old gear heads stuck to their set-ups without adding anything they didn't truly need.

I'm still fairly green at this, so I'm trying to get the best of both worlds. I don't mind using an external sample editor with Live. Although, I've heard Live 7 now has a slicer.

I want to use the MPC as a midi sequencer because, yes the timing is "solid." I find myself making fewer mistakes with a sequencer with a lower resolution. I also just find that I am able to work much faster and more efficiently while sequencing with the MPC than with the computer.

I figure by using the MPC as the sequencer, I will have the smooth efficient workflow that I like about the MPC. Live with some vst's will add more detailed sound shaping. I can just throw samples onto Battery or Live's Drum Racks and basically just use that as a more beefed up substitue to the MPC's sampler (beefed up in terms of editing and shaping the sound).

Plus Live will provide a better interface for arranging the song and making any small edits to the midi data that's output from the MPC. I will get the added benefit of a visual representation of the song and the midi data.

And of course, I will have the benefit of vst fx and plug-ins.

The 500 is just irritating, even to look at. I think its overpriced with a cruddy tiny display screen.

Yeah I wanted to buy that ASQ-10 and I started asking the seller a bunch of questions about it. The seller only responded once to my messages with vague answers and hasn't gotten back to me with my follow-up questions about the condition of the unit and what OS is installed on it.

So I'm leaning towards the 2000XL. They seem to be inexpensive on eBay. I get the sequencer, pads, flip screen, ability to throw data back and forth with the computer, and it has enough functions and features for me to be versatile and comfortable using it by itself without being too overwhelming.