MPC 2500, how to hook it up to Ableton via MIDI

I just can't figure this out, spent the past week researching and I feel like I'm just wasting money on things I don't need.

I'm using a PC

This is what I have:

MPC 2500:


Mixer:


Audio Interface:


MIDI connection:


I have a couple of 1/4" cables but at this point I'm just confused on which ones go into the assignable outputs of the MPC and etc.

Thanks for your help

The first thing you wanna do is get your drivers for your steinberg interface & your m-audio midi installed.

Once you've got this set properly, the rest will lead you to understanding what you want to do with it all. (providing you do understand what it is you're dealing with. If not, that's a whole different story that needs to be address elsewhere.)

Just remember that you have to toggle your midi in and out from within the 2500 if you're sending midi info to & fro to ableton.

I had to slip a little elderly slang on you young'ns out there. I figure most of y'all don't know what that's about.

Note: I was fortunate to spend time with my grandmother who lived to be 96 yrs old when she passed away.

I was in my mid 20's when this occured. A lot of history lives within a brutha.

dabmeister wrote:The first thing you wanna do is get your drivers for your steinberg interface & your m-audio midi installed.

Once you've got this set properly, the rest will lead you to understanding what you want to do with it all. (providing you do understand what it is you're dealing with. If not, that's a whole different story that needs to be address elsewhere.)

Just remember that you have to toggle your midi in and out from within the 2500 if you're sending midi info to & fro to ableton.

I had to slip a little elderly slang on you young'ns out there. I figure most of y'all don't know what that's about.

Note: I was fortunate to spend time with my grandmother who lived to be 96 yrs old when she passed away.

I was in my mid 20's when this occured. A lot of history lives within a brutha.

hahah I got you with the slang, unfortunately it's not enough to help me decipher this mess!

many tutorials online say that the MIDI out connects to my MPC and the MIDI in connects to an audio interface. However, my steinberg interface doesn't have any MIDI inputs. Is that fine? I really don't want to buy another interface..

So I connected the MIDI out to my MPC and the USB to my computer and followed how to synchronize the two under MIDI timecode from the akai website and on ableton the channel shows some spikes (albeit the right side only in stereo..) but I can't seem to record anything. Even when I arm the tracks on ableton and hit play on the MPC, nothing happens.

Dabmeister, Is there something additionally I have to buy/replace? Or will everything that I have right now still work with each other just fine?

I've been where you are. My advice. Break it down. Keep it simple. Start with one problem and solve it (either midi or audio but not both). In my opinion Ableton is a tough DAW to connect to so you have to isolate problems down to the very basics.

For example,

When you say you want to connect Your MPC to Ableton, what do you real want to do?

OK, you want to control a software synthesizer in Ableton from your MPC pads, do you? Then plug the round midi connectors to your midi outs on your MPC. Now connect the USB connector to your PC. Now Start Ableton. Select Settings. Select Midi tab. Select your midi device (hint: its not the control surface settings). Is it not listed? You have a driver issue. Works? Go to next step.

Fire up a vst synth and start pressing buttons. Don't hear sound? Is the monitor button selected? It needs to be in order to know to listen for input. Good. Monitor button is set, but still no sound. Does the midi receive light come on when you press a pad on your MPC? No? something isn't connected correctly.

Once you get Midi working, then set up your audio connections.

Once you get it all working, save the working set as your default start up program so you don't have to go through this all again.

MeSoHordey wrote:I've been where you are. My advice. Break it down. Keep it simple. Start with one problem and solve it (either midi or audio but not both). In my opinion Ableton is a tough DAW to connect to so you have to isolate problems down to the very basics.

For example,

When you say you want to connect Your MPC to Ableton, what do you real want to do?

OK, you want to control a software synthesizer in Ableton from your MPC pads, do you? Then plug the round midi connectors to your midi outs on your MPC. Now connect the USB connector to your PC. Now Start Ableton. Select Settings. Select Midi tab. Select your midi device (hint: its not the control surface settings). Is it not listed? You have a driver issue. Works? Go to next step.

Fire up a vst synth and start pressing buttons. Don't hear sound? Is the monitor button selected? It needs to be in order to know to listen for input. Good. Monitor button is set, but still no sound. Does the midi receive light come on when you press a pad on your MPC? No? something isn't connected correctly.

Once you get Midi working, then set up your audio connections.

Once you get it all working, save the working set as your default start up program so you don't have to go through this all again.

Actually, the main reason why I want to synchronize the two is because I want to record multiple tracks from my MPC to multiple tracks on ableton at the same time using the assignable outputs.

I'll keep trying for sure though

Then you have to set up the mpc as master and ableton as slave.

Note that you can record only two tracks at a time with this set-up, but if you have set up everything properly everything should be in sync at the end of the session.

Midi ports in the mpc, usb in the computer. That't obvious off course. Jack cables from mpc's assginable outs to the yamaha mixer's input. Mixer's rec/ main out to the interface.

Here will be explained how to set them up properly:

viewtopic.php?f=35&t=77616&start=15


Not to dickride mpc tutorials or something, but I would really recommend you to buy the 'ableton with mpc' tutorial. Gives you a nice overview of how you can use those two together, what the difference is in different set-ups and how to connect stuff. Really helped me out.

Menco wrote:Then you have to set up the mpc as master and ableton as slave.

Note that you can record only two tracks at a time with this set-up, but if you have set up everything properly everything should be in sync at the end of the session.

Midi ports in the mpc, usb in the computer. That't obvious off course. Jack cables from mpc's assginable outs to the yamaha mixer's input. Mixer's rec/ main out to the interface.

Here will be explained how to set them up properly:

viewtopic.php?f=35&t=77616&start=15


Not to dickride mpc tutorials or something, but I would really recommend you to buy the 'ableton with mpc' tutorial. Gives you a nice overview of how you can use those two together, what the difference is in different set-ups and how to connect stuff. Really helped me out.

I'm following the steps from the link you gave but with this step right here:

"connect the mpc midi out to the midi in of your interface.
the main outs to your interface's audio input
(not necessesary for syncing, but you'll need it later for finetuning) "

I don't have a MIDI IN in my steinberg interface (I mentioned this previously)

Is there no other set up?

EDIT: I followed everything and assigned the pads to the outputs and the tracks in ableton show spikes when I hit play which is good but I don't hear any metronome and I don't see anything recording. I'm assuming this is because I don't have the MIDI IN connected to anything...

You have this right?

http://www.m-audio.com/products/en_us/Uno.html

That apparently has a MIDI IN, so that's what you plug into the MIDI OUT of your MPC. You then configure Live to use the MIDI ports from your Uno and the audio from your Steinberg interface.

One possible config for audio:

Plug your MPC main L/R outs into the line ins at the back of your interface. Then connect the 'line out' of your interface into a stereo input on your mixer. Now create a blank audio track in live, set the audio input to 1/2 and arm that track - you should hear your MPC.

Alternatively, connect your MPC audio outs directly into your mixer - that's fine until you want to record audio from your MPC, at which point, plug the audio outs into the interface again.

I cover this in great detail in my MPC-Ableton book

http://www.mpc-samples.com/product.php/ ... eton-live/

MPC-Tutor wrote:You have this right?

http://www.m-audio.com/products/en_us/Uno.html

That apparently has a MIDI IN, so that's what you plug into the MIDI OUT of your MPC. You then configure Live to use the MIDI ports from your Uno and the audio from your Steinberg interface.

One possible config for audio:

Plug your MPC main L/R outs into the line ins at the back of your interface. Then connect the 'line out' of your interface into a stereo input on your mixer. Now create a blank audio track in live, set the audio input to 1/2 and arm that track - you should hear your MPC.

Alternatively, connect your MPC audio outs directly into your mixer - that's fine until you want to record audio from your MPC, at which point, plug the audio outs into the interface again.

I cover this in great detail in my MPC-Ableton book

http://www.mpc-samples.com/product.php/ ... eton-live/

If your book can help me do what I want to with the things I currently own I will buy it right now.. hahaha

I just connected the MIDI IN to the MIDI OUT of my MPC, still not able to record anything

MPC-Tutor wrote:I cover this in great detail in my MPC-Ableton book

http://www.mpc-samples.com/product.php/ ... eton-live/

That's the one I am talking about.

What exactly are you trying to do? Record MPC MIDI data into a Live MIDI track? Track MPC audio into a Live audio track? Use the MPC pads to play a software instrument in Live (live as a sound module)?

MPC-Tutor wrote:What exactly are you trying to do? Record MPC MIDI data into a Live MIDI track? Track MPC audio into a Live audio track? Use the MPC pads to play a software instrument in Live (live as a sound module)?

Track MPC audio into a Live audio track

more specifically, record multiple mpc tracks into multiple live audio tracks at the same time.

I think first you should just concentrate on getting the main MPC L/R set up correctly, then move onto individuals. Then once you are able to manually record the audio, you can move onto the MIDI stuff. You don't need to worry about MIDI if you are only recording MPC audio (unless you want to MIDI sync that is).

If you see levels moving up and down on your Live track, it must be set up ok as far as incoming audio config is concerned. If you can't hear anything, it must be an issue with the audio output of Live.

Might be easier if you post up some screenshots of your track settings in Live, Live audio prefs etc. I take it you've assigned the correct audio output device in prefs, and have the audio outs from your interface going into your main sound system?

But yes, all this in my book

MPC-Tutor wrote:I think first you should just concentrate on getting the main MPC L/R set up correctly, then move onto individuals. Then once you are able to manually record the audio, you can move onto the MIDI stuff. You don't need to worry about MIDI if you are only recording MPC audio (unless you want to MIDI sync that is).

If you see levels moving up and down on your Live track, it must be set up ok as far as incoming audio config is concerned. If you can't hear anything, it must be an issue with the audio output of Live.

Might be easier if you post up some screenshots of your track settings in Live, Live audio prefs etc. I take it you've assigned the correct audio output device in prefs, and have the audio outs from your interface going into your main sound system?

But yes, all this in my book

hmm.. pardon me, I thought I needed a MIDI connection to do what I wanted to do but that is not the case. Recording is fine now (after I turned off all the MIDI settings) I might just return this MIDI usb connector unless there is something cool I can use this for..

kpacardo wrote:hmm.. pardon me, I thought I needed a MIDI connection to do what I wanted to do but that is not the case. Recording is fine now (after I turned off all the MIDI settings) I might just return this MIDI usb connector unless there is something cool I can use this for..

You need MIDI to sync playback between Live and your MPC (but you can do this manually and align audio later)

You can also use MIDI to trigger Live software instruments and Live clips via your MPC pads/sequencer

I'd say it's pretty much essential to have a MIDI interface, so I'd stick with what you've got and see how you get on.