MPC 2000xl set up help

BasquiatDeLaMPC wrote:This old ass mixer apparently doesn't directly connect to any computers though, so I'm sorta stuck for now. Unless one of these outs looks like something you're familiar with:

http://picsstorage.aupedo.com/aupedoliv ... 007738.jpg

That is because it isn't a mixer, it is a standalone hard disk recorder.

Like I said, maybe you should work out exactly what you want a mixer for, what you want it to do, how you plan to use it, before you decide which mixer (or standalone hard disk recorder) is right for what you want to do, and before you waste anymore money on gear that is not what you need.

Get your MPC first, worry about a mixer for it later once you work out what you want the mixer to do.

For the record it does connect directly to your computer...

I wasn't sure of its "mixer" or "hard disk recorder" status but I know I can do what I want with it (mix beats & add vocals). After visiting my high school video class teacher today with pictures of the backs of both the MPC & 880ex, I guess the 880ex CAN connect directly to the computer like m56 said. Pretty sure via the SCSI cable. Once I get the MPC i'll use her cables to see what ones I need to buy & then I'm set! Thanx for the help guys & sorry for not researching fully

tapedeck wrote:i dont know what kind of computer / soundcard you have but this is the simplest / gnarliest way to record the mixer to the computer :



its called a 1/8" to rca cable.

use audacity to record. http://audacity.sourceforge.net/download/

your homework is to figure out where to plug each piece.

I have a Compaq Presario CS5200 or something like that. Forgot the soundcard, but I'll check this thing out when I get a bit of time.

BasquiatDeLaMPC wrote: I guess the 880ex CAN connect directly to the computer like m56 said. Pretty sure via the SCSI cable.

no no no

did you read the post where i spelled it out very clearly and with an image of exactly what you need?

edit: i see you did.
that cable should work. plug it into your computer's line-in.

ps. if you are going all this cheap old gear, you can forget about any convenience the computer will bring you. all this stuff (roland vs, mpc2k) is pre-interfacing-easily-with-computers time.

Hell no! you don't need scsi or any that stuff. You can use the hard disk recorder as a mixer by running the Red & White RCA from the master outputs into your computer. The hard disk recorder is basically a mixer that records what's being ran through it.

Just get what tapedecks said, RCA to 1/8th stereo audio cable. Record into the computer. It dosnt matter what sound card you have, every computer has a 1/8th jack in and out built in.

tapedeck wrote:

BasquiatDeLaMPC wrote: I guess the 880ex CAN connect directly to the computer like m56 said. Pretty sure via the SCSI cable.

no no no

did you read the post where i spelled it out very clearly and with an image of exactly what you need?

edit: i see you did.
that cable should work. plug it into your computer's line-in.

ps. if you are going all this cheap old gear, you can forget about any convenience the computer will bring you. all this stuff (roland vs, mpc2k) is pre-interfacing-easily-with-computers time.

Interestingly, Roland just got back to my email ticket and they said the VS880ex can't connect to it. I'll still try the RCA-1/8th cable though because I actually see where it goes in/out. Thanks again guys this forum is extremely supportive.

BasquiatDeLaMPC wrote:Interestingly, Roland just got back to my email ticket and they said the VS880ex can't connect to it. I'll still try the RCA-1/8th cable though because I actually see where it goes in/out. Thanks again guys this forum is extremely supportive.

They probably assumed since you got a hard disk recorder that you were asking about data transfer and not recording the audio out of the master output (effictively bypassing sed hard disk capabilities).

ok time to lay down the reality of the situation - quit asking for help and help yourself homey.

what a waste to call roland and have them tell you 'no', when if you had tried yourself you would realise the answer is actually 'yes'.

tapedeck wrote:ok time to lay down the reality of the situation - quit asking for help and help yourself homey.

what a waste to call roland and have them tell you 'no', when if you had tried yourself you would realise the answer is actually 'yes'.

Yeah I'm sorry man I'm just really new to this. I just wanted to get the foundation of the situation (hardware, wires, etc) figured out asap so I could make the best out of my budget. You're right though, & for the rest of this learning process I'll help myself. Sorry lol

BasquiatDeLaMPC wrote:I just wanted to get the foundation of the situation (hardware, wires, etc) figured out asap so I could make the best out of my budget.

You would have been better off putting that money towards an MPC, rather than wasting it on a POS standalone HDR.

If you want to record the MPC output and add vocals and other stuff to it, get a decent computer interface, or just use the built-in computer audio input/output to begin with, along with some free software like Audacity, as previously mentioned.

Maybe a standalone HDR is what you want, previously I think you seemed to want to add EQ to each channel, which sounds different to what the HDR might do.

Sure the HDR will perform as a basic stereo mixer, but if you want a mixer, get a real mixer, if you want to record it, get a decent computer interface. Or maybe a standalone HDR is what you are looking for, it just doesn't seem that way.

But really, get the MPC first FFS, quit worrying about any of this until you have the MPC, are making beats on it, and you have had a little time to think about what you actually want/need in terms of a mixer...a mixer for recording through, a mixer for playing live through, a computer interface to record through, or maybe even a standalone HDR like you have ended up with.

Your DJ mixer will be fine to begin with for monitoring the MPC through when making beats, you seem to be getting way ahead of yourself, with no real idea.

Guessing like this, and buying random cheap gear that may or may not do what you want, cause you don't seem to know what you actually want, or what the gear does, seems like a waste of your limited budget to me.

SimonInAustralia wrote:

BasquiatDeLaMPC wrote:I just wanted to get the foundation of the situation (hardware, wires, etc) figured out asap so I could make the best out of my budget.

You would have been better off putting that money towards an MPC, rather than wasting it on a POS standalone HDR.

If you want to record the MPC output and add vocals and other stuff to it, get a decent computer interface, or just use the built-in computer audio input/output to begin with, along with some free software like Audacity, as previously mentioned.

Maybe a standalone HDR is what you want, previously I think you seemed to want to add EQ to each channel, which sounds different to what the HDR might do.

Sure the HDR will perform as a basic stereo mixer, but if you want a mixer, get a real mixer, if you want to record it, get a decent computer interface. Or maybe a standalone HDR is what you are looking for, it just doesn't seem that way.

But really, get the MPC first FFS, quit worrying about any of this until you have the MPC, are making beats on it, and you have had a little time to think about what you actually want/need in terms of a mixer...a mixer for recording through, a mixer for playing live through, a computer interface to record through, or maybe even a standalone HDR like you have ended up with.

Your DJ mixer will be fine to begin with for monitoring the MPC through when making beats, you seem to be getting way ahead of yourself, with no real idea.

Guessing like this, and buying random cheap gear that may or may not do what you want, cause you don't seem to know what you actually want, or what the gear does, seems like a waste of your limited budget to me.

I may be wrong but I'm pretty sure the 880ex can add effects to each individual channel. I think it lacks EQ (doesn't mention it on the website's effect list) but it has plenty other effects, so if I wanted I could just do the EQ in Cubase.

The whole reason I got it was I needed a cheap hardware mixer, since I can't stand computer based production. I can't afford whatever a "real" mixer would be, hence why this was a better decision imo. I just figured this could mix & transfer the beats I want to make to the computer efficiently, and I'm pretty sure thats what I got.

You're sort of right about my "guessing", and I don't know exactly what I want, but this should do what I want it to. Thanks for the criticism Simon

Basquita, man please PM me if you have any questions. And to others, its obvious this is a young cat that is trying to learn how things work. He doesnt know what questions to ask yet. Quit being so "hard" and cut him some slack.

Feel free to ask all the questions you need to. Some of us are here to help you get going. With that said, I would strongly suggest you not get an MPC2000 anytime soon. If you dont know what you are doing, you will fustrate yourself. I would highly recommend if you have an ipad to download the MPC app. If you dont have one, look into getting one used for around the same amount you are looking to pay for a used MPC2000. You should be able to find one for around $200 which would give you enough money left over to get a few apps to record with.

BasquiatDeLaMPC wrote:You're sort of right about my "guessing", and I don't know exactly what I want, but this should do what I want it to. Thanks for the criticism Simon

You should take it as constructive criticism, seriously, put all your $ towards the MPC first, get it, make some beats, work up some tunes, and research what else you might need while doing that.

I think you should have put your $67 with the $250 you have for the MPC, for example, rather than wasting it on an HDR first.

Though if a standalone HDR is really what you need, why not, lots of goods tunes are made on limited gear due to limited budget, due to pushing the gear harder and working within it's limitations, rather than getting lost in a maze of options and never producing anything of value.

But I'm not going to sugar coat it, quit wasting your $ on other sh it until you get enough $ together to buy an MPC, and start using it. Obviously take that as the opinion of one of the resident aggressive asshats, you will get plenty of opinions that are not so hard on you, and which will cut you some slack.

SimonInAustralia wrote:

BasquiatDeLaMPC wrote:You're sort of right about my "guessing", and I don't know exactly what I want, but this should do what I want it to. Thanks for the criticism Simon

You should take it as constructive criticism, seriously, put all your $ towards the MPC first, get it, make some beats, work up some tunes, and research what else you might need while doing that.

I think you should have put your $67 with the $250 you have for the MPC, for example, rather than wasting it on an HDR first.

Though if a standalone HDR is really what you need, why not, lots of goods tunes are made on limited gear due to limited budget, due to pushing the gear harder and working within it's limitations, rather than getting lost in a maze of options and never producing anything of value.

But I'm not going to sugar coat it, quit wasting your $ on other sh it until you get enough $ together to buy an MPC, and start using it. Obviously take that as the opinion of one of the resident aggressive asshats, you will get plenty of opinions that are not so hard on you, and which will cut you some slack.

yeah I understand. the mixer/hdr might've been a mistake, but I'll probably end up using it now anyways for the better.

dccarson wrote:Basquita, man please PM me if you have any questions. And to others, its obvious this is a young cat that is trying to learn how things work. He doesnt know what questions to ask yet. Quit being so "hard" and cut him some slack.

Feel free to ask all the questions you need to. Some of us are here to help you get going. With that said, I would strongly suggest you not get an MPC2000 anytime soon. If you dont know what you are doing, you will frustrate yourself. I would highly recommend if you have an ipad to download the MPC app. If you dont have one, look into getting one used for around the same amount you are looking to pay for a used MPC2000. You should be able to find one for around $200 which would give you enough money left over to get a few apps to record with.

Definitely bro I'll pm you right now. I still have time for the decision but I'm pretty focused on that 2k.