MPC 2000XL and a computer...

ive got two PC's and a shitload of hardware, not a problem with any of it.

every tool has its place. live in the past if you wish, but dont blame the computer if you cant keep your shit together. its that simple.


on the other hand, little kids like gema (it has to be a kid) saying "plus more programs are dropping support for the mpc. do your research. "

how can a program DROP SUPPORT for the MPC? the mpc isnt "supported" by anything. thats like saying a fruit farm is dropping support for Ferrari cars.... utter nonsense.

the trick is seeing what highlights your strengths in the studio. ive been on and offstage, and have music out and work commercially doing multimedia and for me, i cant live without computers AND my hardware samplers and synths, and i can tell you, if youre whinging about money... suck it up. you have to pay to play, and i run a business so no small talk here.

I have a custom made PC that only has music sofware and I still have the problems. All things being equal I would keep the hardware. I would have gotten a roland vs16 track and called it a day. MACs are more stable, but when your composing, tracking, using effects and vst i's all at the same time your gonna have issues and I don't care what your running. If u go to computer music boards you'll see tons of MAC issues also. My point is...After trying both....I vote for hardware. That being said....there are people who say thier MPC crashes regularly....and I've had or worked on every MPC from the first one up to the 2000xl and I've never witnessed one crash in my life, So it basically comes down to PERSONAL PREFERENCE.

gema has got to be kidding right? i mean reason? christ the cats round my was say there is a REASON reason is so cheap,

both hardware and software have advantages buy a bit of hardware and it does exactly what it says on the tin, buy a bit of software, ensure you have the right platform, enough ram, correct soundcard, realise you cant intergrate it well with another bit of software, realise you cant manipulate more than one control in realtime unless you shell extra bux for an external controller...saved some cash? perhaps....

oh and i hate fan noise.....you need extra bux for a quiet pc.....i don't need a visual display music is about hearing...i prefer my ten digits over a mouse and like the way my mpc turns on when i ask it rather than having to wait for it to boot...

of course cant imagine doing fine edits, looping etc on the mpc the pc is far quicker and more accurate but then again cant imagine composing music on a pc...been there done that...

too many peeps believe it can all be done on a pc....it can...but why should that invalidate hardware?

greg

All in all it is up to your own personal perference on what you like to use. Since I come from a computer back ground I kind of know some of the limitaions with computers. Don't belive the fu@kin hype about MACs though. They crash too. My girl as one for graphic design and that sh@$ crashes most of the time do to apps or the OS. In my opinon both are needed in the studio. They both have their own benfits. You can make a hellvah track with the MPC mix it out and everything, but when it comes to mastering or adding some effects the computer comes in handy. Not to for get that Soundforge or WaveLab are hellvah lot better editing wave files then the small lcd screen on the MPC. Just as some advice what ever you have in your studio take it to it's limits to find out how far it go for your ideas. I another musican I know once told me this personally. A MUSICAN MUST BECOME ONE WITH HIS ENVIRONMENT, AND FROM THERE THE ENVIRONMENT WILL BECOME THE IDEA. Just food for thought.

"@ gema don't forget that you need a pc to run all that software on"

don't forget some damn gooood monitors!

I'm a newbe myself here, my mpc is actually on loan from a friend who retired from the biz

...but that knowledge gema sent is crucial!

latasha

What's goin down I'm in BIG Texas and I wanted to know are u a female rapper or singer? Check my website out at rererecords.com. My manager is a female and we tryin to colabo with other tight Hip-Hop/R&B females. My name iz X-PLICIT I the only guy on the record label so far. Are u a producer as well? Holla back and let me know what's real Thanks!

"...but that knowledge gema sent is crucial!"

knowledge meaning,

if you're gonna do this...there's going to be a lot of cables purchased regardless...

use what ever tool you feel most confortable using

yes, you do need a computer to run software but so what, your using this forum so you already have one.

what i meant about programs droping support for the mpc was of propellerhead recycle 2.1 specifically. theres a lot of hardware users bitching on their forum about it. its a trend that we will see more of in the future. software replacing hardware.

no, im not kidding, i use reason. its so easy to use and works well with other programs. people buy hardware to make new sounds and process them through effect modules. but this call all be done with reason, plug ins, and vsti compatible host app for much cheaper.

pc vs mac. it the same shit. the only difference is the operating system. the reason more people perfer macs is because of their intuitive interface. im a graphic designer and i use both. i dont see one being more stable than the other. macs are more expensive. pcs can be custom built from the ground up but not macs. i built my pc for less than $1300.

go ahead and call me a kid for having my point of view but let this kid tell ya one more thing . . . "if you want to make music in the future, you better get use to embracing technology."

i'll give you that gema, and moreso to noble5

i think people are suckers if they are STILL debating hardware vs software, mac vs pc. while they whinge, im paying my rent but more importantly, am having fun making ANYTHING possible.

if you LOVE MUSIC and love music technology i dont think youde limit yourself so much.

i think most of the kids on here must be hiphop kids (though there doesnt seem to be many REAL hiphop cats, ie crate diggers etc), and dont seem to be too ambitious with their music. ive heard a lot of the "beats" a lot of you cats have and its pretty bland, though theres some awesome stuff, but no names just yet while im playing devils advocate.

the whole "get an MPC and a sp1200" thing is passe, played out, and tragic. part of why usa hiphop is so shit right now. get on the Ninja Tune tip and explore some new techniques.

if you wanna raise the bar, keep up with the game. broaden your horizons. half of these kids on here cant even comment, theyre buying sample cds and living with their mums an dads.... wtf is up with that?

Thanks a lot guys many many informations, and goog news my MPC 2000XL ihas arrived !!!!! Not the colour I ordered, fx board missing... but it looks really cool and it sounds nicely !!! Before I had a SP 505 from Roland and the MPC seems far more powerful !!!!! I plan to buy a computer later mainly to work on sounds and then transfer it on my MPC to sequence it and finally retransfer it in the PC to do the final mix.
Thanks a lot again to all the persons who took time to answer me and be prepared to answer again and again, and again... to all the questions I will have because at the moment when my machine arrived I became a member of you community !!!!!!
See you guys !!

D_Samp wrote: the whole "get an MPC and a sp1200" thing is passe, played out, and tragic. part of why usa hiphop is so **** right now. get on the Ninja Tune tip and explore some new techniques.

I thought you said in your other post, "im a fan of the MPC2000XL & SP1200 combo."

I'll say this...if you are PC literate or have a PC literate friend, a PC is a great investment for music production, with or without the MPC. I spent about $1000 on a P4 2.6ghz processor...me and my buddy built it...no crashes, no nothing. WinXP=solid. Just a rock solid machine to do endless audio tracks, midi stuff, tons of effects that actually sound quite good, etc. I was skeptical too but after struggling for a month or so, it's just unbelievable. I mean, I can drop a sequence on the mpc, dump it to logic - and then to copy and paste huge sections of the song in like 2 seconds...it's like a whole other universe. As far as that famous timing and feel of the MPC - yes, it does have it's own particluar swing. All you do is record a midi sequence, and then save that groove as a template, which you can apply to any sequence you want. Cake! I used to use the mpc to do huge productions...like sampling 60 second guitar solos with a metronome, etc. and using it like a tracker - so if your productions are ambitious as far as long song forms and changes, go with a good PC, if you are more into the boom-bap, simple changes, you don't need a computer. A great site for PC advice is www.audioforums.com Also, there ARE benefits to 24-bit recording...just cause a CD is 16bit doesn't mean 24-bit doesn't give you advantages...you do attain higher sound quality when dithering down from 24 bit, though it's a bit more complicated then that.

I know jontakiff, I was being a smart a$$ when I posted that I record 24 bit also.

D_Samp wrote:if you LOVE MUSIC and love music technology i dont think youde limit yourself so much.

I agree, I do some crate diggin, some CD jackin, some mp3 manipulation, anything to get my vision out and sounding the way I want. I'm all about whatever is workable then it will happen. Never limit myself.. I'm not hardcore crate digger, hardcore analog sampling, not to take away from anyone who is cause that's cool for them, but I'm none of that. I'm hardcore MUSIC plain and simple..

Ask yourself the question, What do I wanna do with my music?

If you just wanna make beats and you like banging on a Pad then get an MPC? If you wanna edit your sounds a bit more get a Computer? If you wanna master and arrange and add some High Tech wizzardry then cop Logic/Cubase/Protools on a high end computer system..... If you allready know what you are trying to achive and you are on a budget there is no reason why an old analoge mixer, a DAT tape, some hardware and a simple sequencer will not do what you need.... Ask yourself the question what do I need? Don't get more than you need, especially if your starting out, you may never end up using half the kit you bought 'cause you never ended up going down that path!!!