Recording problem

Whaddup mpc forums!

Ive got a problem in my recording set up and i hope you can help me. The problem is, when i make a hot beat and i play it on my MPC, it sounds how it was intended. When i start recording there's all of a sudden some sort of 'click' in my bass drum. Also, sometimes with basslines they sound really distorted after recording.

So this is my setup, its pretty basic.

mixer: Mackie 802 VLZ3
So there are two main outputs and 1 alt. output. One of the main outs goes to my monitors (KRK RP5) the other main output goes to my interface (focusrite saffire 6 usb). The alt. output goes to my recording in on the MPC2000XL. Ive also hooked up my turntable > preamp > mackie. I havent got the 8 outs on my MPC so the mpc outputs go to a stereo input on the mackie. When i record i pan one track hard left and the other hard right. So i record all my tracks and arrange them on the computer.

When i playback the tracks on my computer they just dont sount the way they do coming from my mpc. I did some trouble shooting myself, using different channels, different cables, recording hot etc. but nothing seems to work.

Help me MPC forums, youre my only hope.

Not easy to say what the problem is... i'm just guessing here...

When you say sometimes the basslines are distorted after recording, this would indicate clipping / too much gain in most cases. It could also be bad cables, etc... but you said you already did some troubleshooting in that regard. Did you also try to connect the MPC stereo output directly to the focusrite and see if it still happens?

How do you listen to the playback from the computer? Do you run the output of the focusrite back into the mackie? Or do you connect the monitors directly to the focusrite for playback? I would do the latter.

Also, when you record into the focusrite, where do you monitor the signal? Do you listen with the monitors connected to the alt out of the mackie? When you record into the focusrite, i would highly suggest to monitor the outputs of it while you record... which again means connecting the monitors to the focusrite. This way you will hear live what you are recording, which is kind of crucial.

Ultimately, you will never capture the audio in a way that it sounds 100% the same when played back from your computer. This depends on the quality of your AD converters of your interface... some are more transparent, some actually color the sound. It should not be distorted however.

Thanks a lot Jibber! Youve actually solved a whole bunch of problems!
Hooking up the MPC directly to the interface solved the unwanted and distorted sounds. Actually feelin kinda dumb i didnt try this before...
Also hooking up the monitors to the MPC made recording so much faster and easier, thanks a lot man!

Glad you figured it out!