Akai S20

Hey guys! I posted a topic a few days ago about the MPC Renaissance and the gear I wanted to get to make old hip hop music and I found an Akai S20 in my garage and I just wanted to know if anyone has tips or tricks on using this?

you just scored - it is an awesome machine, though incredibly limited.

a very good first sampler.

tips:
1) first and foremost forget the sequencer - it is more like a linear 4 track recorder that can't remember when you played each note. just use midi or the pads.

2) understand the difference between setting programs up for midi, and using the machine in midi control mode where a midi note controls EVERY BUTTON on the machine - awesome feature.

3) don't go crazy throwing huge samples at it if it has the respectable 32mb - yer still stuck with a floppy drive so that'd be a lot of floppies if you end up filling the memory.

just use it to tide you over while you figure out what you like / dont like.

what kind of garage is it where you just randomly find a sampler you didnt know about? yer parents / grandparents / uncle must be pretty cool.

I'm gonna be straight up honest with you, I didn't understand the first 2 points you told me LOL. I have no idea how to use this and my dad is a big musician and he doesn't mind me taking away his old stuff for my own use

then my number one tip - get off the internet and start using the machine.

you will learn a whole lot more that way.

you won't break it - dont worry.
it will piss you off at first - get used to it.
have fun - thats the point.

tapedeck wrote:then my number one tip - get off the internet and start using the machine.

you will learn a whole lot more that way.

you won't break it - dont worry.
it will piss you off at first - get used to it.
have fun - thats the point.

I'm trying but I don't know all the functions and I have no idea what all these damn buttons do -_-

that was my first sampler. wanted an mpc but only had enough for a s20. used it to death. hate the psuedo pads aka wack ass buttons. but the sound is the key. the sound is so good. and back then i didnt know why. 16 bit, 32 kHz, 16 kHz, 8 kHz. 4th order delta/sigma 64 times oversampling. so its 16 bit but not full 44.1 khz so its a bit more warm and slightly crunchy.

I ran into illmind once and brought it up cause i knew he had one and we both agreed it was the poor man's MPC. he actually still runs/samples his drums thru it for warmth.

i sadly and stupidly gave it away because it wasnt an mpc. the sequencer is basically none existant in contrast to an mpc

Ozymandias wrote:

tapedeck wrote:then my number one tip - get off the internet and start using the machine.

you will learn a whole lot more that way.

you won't break it - dont worry.
it will piss you off at first - get used to it.
have fun - thats the point.

I'm trying but I don't know all the functions and I have no idea what all these damn buttons do -_-

that doesn't matter. do it. dont make excuses. i didnt have the internet or a manual when i got mine - you too have the capability in you. get off the internet and onto the machine - you can talk / read about it or you can do it.

Or ask your Dad?

Lampdog wrote:http://mypdfmanuals.com/dref/2169736

TFM!

Even though this thing doesn't have effects, you can sorta get around that if you have a Korg Kaoss pad, or any other effect processor to sprinkle a little bit of reverb, delay, flang, chorus, etc to what you sample.

I still can't figure out how to chop samples on this unit though.

But I did manage to figure out how to pitch samples up or down with it, so that's fun to do at least.