MPC SWING. Please help me understand!

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MPC SWING. Please help me understand!

By drumdawg Wed Jan 27, 2010 7:04 am
I have always enjoyed the 16th note swing of hip-hop. Somewhere between straight and shuffle (kind of like New Orleans second line). I don't understand how a machine could have any hand in this. Is there something speacial about the timing of the mpc compared to other machines?

Re: MPC SWING. Please help me understand!

By BGBEATS Wed Jan 27, 2010 7:16 am
smack that bad boy on 58 or 62 %

see if you don't get the nod factor


the different machines mpc, sp, asr, etc have different offsets in the swing/groove


for software version give ableton live 8 a try using the "groove pool" mpc or sp 1200 grooves
Last edited by BGBEATS on Wed Jan 27, 2010 10:30 am, edited 1 time in total.
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Re: MPC SWING. Please help me understand!

By Zukan Wed Jan 27, 2010 10:03 am
The famous 'mpc swing' died with the 60 and 3000.

The chips that run the new series mpcs, from 2k onwards, are rock solid in their timing.

Years ago we conducted some clocking tests with various mpcs and found the 60s and 3ks all had a small variance and drifted. This allowed for the so called swing.

The chips today are rock solid in their consistency and the overriding factors are more to do with the time it takes for the pad contacts to relay a note on/off message.

The quantize values are timed accurately against any DAW and it comes down to how you structure your templates.

Re: MPC SWING. Please help me understand!

By Sovereign Wed Jan 27, 2010 12:28 pm
Here we go again.
And to think some people actually believe this. :lol:
The MPC swing died with the internet since people now repeat what they hear or read.


Zukan wrote:The famous 'mpc swing' died with the 60 and 3000.

The chips that run the new series mpcs, from 2k onwards, are rock solid in their timing.

Years ago we conducted some clocking tests with various mpcs and found the 60s and 3ks all had a small variance and drifted. This allowed for the so called swing.

The chips today are rock solid in their consistency and the overriding factors are more to do with the time it takes for the pad contacts to relay a note on/off message.

The quantize values are timed accurately against any DAW and it comes down to how you structure your templates.

Re: MPC SWING. Please help me understand!

By dcook79 Wed Jan 27, 2010 2:05 pm
Zukan wrote:The famous 'mpc swing' died with the 60 and 3000.

The chips that run the new series mpcs, from 2k onwards, are rock solid in their timing.

Years ago we conducted some clocking tests with various mpcs and found the 60s and 3ks all had a small variance and drifted. This allowed for the so called swing.

The chips today are rock solid in their consistency and the overriding factors are more to do with the time it takes for the pad contacts to relay a note on/off message.

The quantize values are timed accurately against any DAW and it comes down to how you structure your templates.



while this maybe true........I can tell you from my little working with the 2KXL & 1000...there still is a distinct "groove" or swing with hardware in comparrison to software DAW and quantizing........

it may be subtle but its there
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Re: MPC SWING. Please help me understand!

By peterpiper Wed Jan 27, 2010 4:46 pm
I did a test a few months ago. generated an impulse in Audition, sampled it in the 2000, sequenced some 2 bar patterns (straight 8th, straight 16th etc) recorded this in Audition.
I checked the silence between the pulse signals. none of them got the same length.
So I wouldn't call the 2000s timing sample accurate.

You can talk as long as you want and repeat what you've heard but you are much wiser when you checked it by yourself.

peace
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Re: MPC SWING. Please help me understand!

By dabmeister Wed Jan 27, 2010 7:16 pm
MPC swing is an amount of offset you apply or gradually add (to the note/sequence data) to give you a head nodd'n experience.
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Re: MPC SWING. Please help me understand!

By punchdrunk Wed Jan 27, 2010 8:38 pm
Zukan wrote:The famous 'mpc swing' died with the 60 and 3000.

The chips that run the new series mpcs, from 2k onwards, are rock solid in their timing.

Years ago we conducted some clocking tests with various mpcs and found the 60s and 3ks all had a small variance and drifted. This allowed for the so called swing.

The chips today are rock solid in their consistency and the overriding factors are more to do with the time it takes for the pad contacts to relay a note on/off message.

The quantize values are timed accurately against any DAW and it comes down to how you structure your templates.



actually it seems to be the total opposite of what you are saying when it comes to being solid in timing.
the old machines are rock solid in comparison with the newer ones that are a bit more unstable with their timing.

check out the 3000 and the 60 results on here...
http://web.webhost4life.com/innerclock/ ... ge&name=34

the maximum the 3000 was off was only 2 samples!
i've done this test with a 1000 running JJOS and once every couple measure it would go off by 40 - 80 samples.

Re: MPC SWING. Please help me understand!

By Sovereign Wed Jan 27, 2010 9:02 pm
The more MPC's you have used the better you will understand this.

One of the biggest factors is not the sequencer, however what you will discover about the sequencers is the %'s are not mathematically equivalent.
A setting of 58% on a 60 is more like 62% on a Non Linn model ( or maybe it was around 60%) so the same settings don't match up exactly.

The next factor is how the different sample engines deal with the front portion of a sample, then don't all treat it the same.
The 60 and 3k have a little more air on the front without inserting delay.
Using the Best Start function makes it trim more like the units after Linn.

Then as mentioned you have to deal with the responsiveness of the triggers.
I preferred when MPC had a set pad aspect that you learned to use instead of this adjustable sensitivity nonsense.
All the MPC with the adjustable pads all seem to have some funny point where they aren't responsive enough.

As someone else stated you just have to work at getting the same results.
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Re: MPC SWING. Please help me understand!

By dabmeister Wed Jan 27, 2010 9:26 pm
I'll be the first to admit...I like sampling, but it ain't the main course of my music structuring technique. However, like the countless threads that I've contributed to and for those that know, I play 99% of the time so timing is crutial for someone like myself.

If you sample 99% of the time, then of course you're more reliant to depend on how your sample sounds, is it truncated or timestretched enough here or there as opposed to you dedicating yourself to different timing variants.

I wonder how many of us here actually play or structure their own drum patterns versus sampling them?

Re: MPC SWING. Please help me understand!

By Sovereign Wed Jan 27, 2010 9:34 pm
dabmeister wrote:I'll be the first to admit...I like sampling, but it ain't the main course of my music structuring technique. However, like the countless threads that I've contributed to and for those that know, I play 99% of the time so timing is crutial for someone like myself.

If you sample 99% of the time, then of course you're more reliant to depend on how your sample sounds, is it truncated or timestretched enough here or there as opposed to you dedicating yourself to different timing variants.

I wonder how many of us here actually play or structure their own drum patterns versus sampling them?


Drum loops went out a long time ago.
We are talking about sampling your drums to play as a drum pattern or other textures sounds that may be sampled.
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