The MPC sound

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The MPC sound

By emanon Mon Dec 24, 2012 3:59 pm
I'm slowly getting into the MPC, there are a lot of people who chop up samples and bash them out in a different order hitting a pad a beat, crochets.

The more people i watch online hammering out these beats the more i feel like it is a very obvious sound that derives from the MPC, it's those crochet triggered samples that give it away, not much of it feels syncopated.

Does anyone else feel the same? Do you have examples of people using it in a way that breaks the norm? Can you suggest doing certain things as a beginner to avoid sounding like everyone else equipped with an MPC?
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Re: The MPC sound

By Lampdog Mon Dec 24, 2012 4:32 pm
emanon wrote:Does anyone else feel the same?

I don't.

emanon wrote:Can you suggest doing certain things as a beginner to avoid sounding like everyone else equipped with an MPC?

Stop watching youtube vids. Stop chopping 16 equal parts like so many others do for loops. Stop doing and/or imitating what you see on vids. Stretch your brain out, do you.
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Re: The MPC sound

By sciguy Mon Dec 24, 2012 4:41 pm
just do stuff differently... we can't tell you how, you just gotta be original.


If you feel that you hear too much stuff that's not syncopated, make some stuff syncopated. If you feel that there's too much just chopped samples, don't use chopped samples.

No, I don't feel the same way, because I just make music however I want to, and I don't worry about how other people are doing it.

Re: The MPC sound

By djestouff Mon Dec 24, 2012 5:43 pm
all my stuff is made exclusively on the MPC. I sample records and myself playing on synths. there is definitely some heavy syncopation going on in some tracks.

sometimes I chop samples within the samples time signature. sometimes I dont. sometimes I quantize. usually I dont.

Most people make beats that sound "in the box" because they think "in the box". It's not a limitation of the machine.

heres a video where I play the sample straight at first but then switch it up to something a little different


http://www.soundcloud.com/itsmeelan

Re: The MPC sound

By m56p87 Mon Dec 24, 2012 6:24 pm
Turn off fuggin TC, and like lamp said chop your shit with some creativity.

Re: The MPC sound

By dreadnutz Tue Dec 25, 2012 6:49 pm
@emanon

know what you mean... stop watching vids from guys who chopping up cheesy soul loops into quarter notes and playing them from pad 1 to 16 and meaning they are the hottest producer on earth.

nothing more bores me. there is only a pitched up chipmunk voice missing to complete this garbage :wink:

i would suggest you to chop into small peaces (only single oneshots) with a lot of variations from the same instrument... snares, ghostsnares, rolls etc... and play the kit more like a drummer...

there are plenty of vids on youtube with REAL mpc action...

fe:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0jLWHKS02LI

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LmDHosdPjns

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N3boIAY-aLw

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0GxYiIg5-Ko

or:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BF8_iAtt3Ds :wink:

Re: The MPC sound

By emanon Wed Dec 26, 2012 1:18 pm
dreadnutz wrote:@emanon

know what you mean... stop watching vids from guys who chopping up cheesy soul loops into quarter notes and playing them from pad 1 to 16 and meaning they are the hottest producer on earth.

nothing more bores me. there is only a pitched up chipmunk voice missing to complete this garbage :wink:

i would suggest you to chop into small peaces (only single oneshots) with a lot of variations from the same instrument... snares, ghostsnares, rolls etc... and play the kit more like a drummer...

there are plenty of vids on youtube with REAL mpc action...

fe:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0jLWHKS02LI

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LmDHosdPjns

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N3boIAY-aLw

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0GxYiIg5-Ko

or:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BF8_iAtt3Ds :wink:


Thanks, these videos are cool. It's nice to see people using the MPC so much different

Re: The MPC sound

By Spinscott Fri Dec 28, 2012 3:11 pm
Good thread, glad everyone is thinking outside the box! On the following video, the beats are done using single one shots. I cut up various breakbeats into individual drums, and fine tuned them to match up well in any order. Hitting bass and atmos on other pads at the same time to layer the sound and fill it out. Plus, there are not many videos on Youtube with manual Jungle/Drum & Bass beats, so I think it's a bit unique. Hope you like!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E82v8V9nUrs

p.s. I am using the MPC5K in the video, but just picked up a new 1K and do the exact same thing on that one too, hence posting in the 1K area :-)

Re: The MPC sound

By dreadnutz Fri Dec 28, 2012 4:36 pm
whoaaaaaa :mrgreen:
when this isn`t an example.
absolute amazing, spinscott. on point :!:

these oneshots holding 2 sounds, right? kick with hat, snare with hats etc... ?
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Re: The MPC sound

By Lampdog Fri Dec 28, 2012 5:03 pm
Damn Spinscott, that's some good shit right there!

Re: The MPC sound

By Spinscott Fri Dec 28, 2012 10:01 pm
Thanks for watching and for the comments! Most of the one shots are actually cut from oldschool breakbeats, but then I layered the same sample over it with a heavy filter. Since many of those breaks lack low end, I added an extra copy of the same sample with just bass frequencies. It's still a single hit drum, but enhanced with more punch. A few of the drums are layered with a hat or other ghost snare.

BTW, I saw that crazy ZZ-Top cover drummer video too when I click on my vids. That guy is AMAZING! lol

Re: The MPC sound

By emanon Mon Dec 31, 2012 3:47 pm
Spinscott wrote:Good thread, glad everyone is thinking outside the box! On the following video, the beats are done using single one shots. I cut up various breakbeats into individual drums, and fine tuned them to match up well in any order. Hitting bass and atmos on other pads at the same time to layer the sound and fill it out. Plus, there are not many videos on Youtube with manual Jungle/Drum & Bass beats, so I think it's a bit unique. Hope you like!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E82v8V9nUrs

p.s. I am using the MPC5K in the video, but just picked up a new 1K and do the exact same thing on that one too, hence posting in the 1K area :-)


this is wicked. Do you do prepare all the samples on the mpc or do you use anything else to prepare everything?
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