BIG UGLY QUESTION about tracking on computer or mpc

Ive hummed and had about this for ages and i cant get it straight in my head. I have an mpc 4000, a supernova 2 aN sm58 MIC and a pretty good computer(cant remember the specs) i dont think its 1gb but its the one below that if that makes sense. But ive got a rubbish soundcard(trust). Im trying to decide whether to upgrade my mpc 4000 to 512 megabytes and do my trackin on it and then transfer the wav or buy a soundcard and do my trackin on it. I dont have much to spend so i had the emu 0404 recommended to me and i see some people are usin the tascam us122. I do a load of vocals ( like 4 verses 2 choruses that kind of thing) . Ive read on this forum about people tracking vocals onto the mpc but they had expensive focusrite malarkey that i know i cant get. The sm58 does a good job though cos i dont have a great voice. So really quality wise, money wise and ease of use wise is it much of a muchness what i do. sorry this is such a broad question but ive got a bit of overtime coming to me and i want to make best use of the dough. If there isnt enough info id gladly give more. I know i can sync the vocals with the computer and mpc but if i use midi as the record start mode for recording vocals i can do pretty much the same thing. oh i havent got cubase yet but you get a limited version with the tascam as far as i know. at the minute im putting everything together in cakewalk proaudio 8. most of the sounds apart from the drums usually arent samples so i want to just record straight songs from the supernova onto either mpc or computer.
im talking about tracking synths aswell onto the mpc,not just vocals. I know this is one of those questions from people who probably werent knowledgable or competent enough to get the mpc but ive got it now i want to make the best of it and ive done some good stuff with it . so...anybody?

I would track to the PC.
Their are alot of free effects and not so free ( But you can get them for free) effects that can put the shine on your tracks.

I use this.
http://www.waves.com/

Click on Plugins.

If you do upgrade your sound card you will also have the ability to take advantage of the wonderful world of VST's and SoundFonts.

VST
http://www.kvr-vst.com/
Soundfonts
http://www.hammersound.net/hs_soundfonts.html


This can add thousands of sounds to your setup.

I would definitely go with the PC.

This is the sound card/outbox that I have.
St Audio DSP 2000. 8 outs.


http://www.staudio.com/products/dsp2000.html

I would also track on the pc.......I also have the tascam US122...it works really well with my setup! But beware of the version of cubase that comes with it.....Its all **** up!.........Its not cubase its called cubasis....It only lets you record 8 tracks and you can't save anything you record!.....

My setup

1. mpc 4000
2. athlon pc 2500
3. m audio monitors
4. mc 307
5. casio wk 1800 (I need to upgrade to the motif)
6. tascam us122
7. mbox
8. pro tools LE
9. aw 4416 (Thinking about selling)

yea im definately gonna get a soundcard. that one blackrome has is an option.bit more than i was hoping to spend but thats usually the case. dont think i ll need 8 ins though it would be nice, maybe 4 . Dont have a lot of time on my hands and id like to record the supernova stuff on separate tracks.When im not recording il be able to hear mpc, and supernova comin out of the soundcard so ill need at least 3 i reckon.I think i might just keep doin the vocals on the mpc. I mean it has preamps . so whats the point in gettin more. Might be easier to use though.Dunno. ive been doing Scotish Football Association at work just tryin to decode the jargon. I know this is off topic but i dunno how much I should be thinkin about balanced /unbalanced connections. The mpc has balanced outs so i feel like i should be makin the most of them. Dont wanna get bogged down and be over picky but then again dont wanna get somethin dodge.Anyway thanks for the advice. Its all good. Kinda just thinkin out loud there so sorry about that.

www.philrees.co.uk/pc4music/advice_soundcards.php - 60k - 9 Aug 2004 -

hope thats a link. helpin me. mite help someone else. there should be a big chart with loads of soundcards and their specs.

im still trying to learn how to track on a pc

A local person is selling his Emagic EMI 6/2 for 200 euro. This looks like what i need and looks good value to me. Its usb powered and has RCA connections. Just wondering anyone hear anything bad about this or maybe its a dumb question but any issues with havin aksys on usb and then an interface on usb too. someone else is sellin an m-audio audiophile for 250 euro. Looks bad value to me. But what do i know. Also it has headphone outs but where would i connect my amp for monitoring without headphones. I mean are these things just for recordin or can u be hearin whats goin on when your not recordin. Do you need a mixer for that?

Science what do you mean....? Be a lil bit more brief?......

Ive changed my mind ( if anyone cares) . I think im gonna max out the RAM on the MPC and do my trackin on it. I dont know enough about this shit to get more stuff i dont know about. I think i have enough sounds . My amp keep cuttin out and it only works on 1 speaker so that should be my priority. Anyone know what specs you shold look out for in an amp like volts etc or does it matter. Also anyone reccomend good monitors for about 200 euros. After thats done i think im gonna get a Yamaha MG 10/2 mixer cos theyre on sale in the local shop. Would i need an amp so i can turn off the music when im recording vocals or is there a setting i should look for on the mixer that allows me to hear the music in the headphones only and lets me sing along.
There was a discussion about tracking vocals before on this forum . Someone did but i couldnt make out if they tracked theyre music aswell.Is it madness?

is there any reason why i shouldnt track onto the mpc?

MY friend, tracking is just another name for recording.....When people speak on tracking they are talking about what they are recording into such as a multi track recorder or some sort recording software on a pc...! Yes you can so call track a beat in the mpc but to get that beat on a disc in audio format you got to track or record it in a multi track recorder or get a some recording software.. My suggestion is spend your money on something you can record your beats into!......

Yea but if i get it on the mpc i can transfer it via aksys to my computer and burn it to cd. The mpc is supposed to be a great sampler . If i record my beats track by track into the mpc as samples assign them to parts I should be able to put it together as a sequence. Then i could pan them ( which i know nothing about and lower volumes ) God i should really just try it. It might be a bit awkward but i think i could get used to it. So it would be just like having a soundcard with i input and 1 output. If im forgetting about something please tell me. I dont want to ask for advice and then totally disregard it but at the same time i dont like doing something withou knowing why . But its cool that your replying .

what you are suggesting is retarded.

Seriously.

Are you talking about making looped sequences in another program, and simply loading those loops into the mpc and triggering the loops?

Whats the point of that? Doesnt that ruin the entire point of having a $1000+ drum machine/sampler/sequencer if you do all of your sampling and sequencing elsewhere and just use the MPC to trigger the loops?

That causes a few problems:

1) lowered sound quality, since you have to sample a loop of what you already sampled...so its a sample of a sample

2) cant quantize, cant add swing, cant program any single shot drums


To do what youre suggesting, just use Fruityloops and call it a day. You're wasting an MPC, and not making much sense.