sleepersriddle wrote:i agree you should just save your in-mpc mix for reference, then go back and boost up each track as hot as possible without clipping for tracking purposes. Then remix it inside the Daw.
Unless..
it would be less flexible, but it seems to me that if you tracked out each track separately via digital out, and kept the mixed levels, the sound wouldn't suffer too much. But it would give you less room for changing levels on the DAW, ie if you boosted up a quiet track you have then lost resolution.
Let a professional step in here. What sleeper said is absolutely 100% incorrect. You'll lose resolution by NOT turning up the tracks to their fullest volume. You can ALWAYS adjust volume levels in a DAW after you finish but once you've recorded the signal you can't do anything to change the quality of the recording.
I don't want to get into a lecture but basically, the louder a sound is recorded the more bits it will make use of thus giving you a more accurate depiction of the sound itself. If you record at a low level, the sound won't take advantage of the bit depth and sound quality can suffer.
Mixing inside the MPC is difficult if not downright impossible. If you want to do a real mix, then track it into your DAW no questions asked. As far as recording it goes, I wouldn't use the SPIF connectors only because you won't have 6 seperate outs like with analog. You CAN synch up the mpc via MMC to track each individually through SPIF but it will LOSE THE FEEL!!! I've done this many times and notice not only a loss in feel on a 1000 but a 2000 as well. Try to track it all at once if possible, if not use one track with a hit that comes a bar before the sequence even starts to synch everything up with.
If your budget permits run the 6 outs to some preamp/EQ/compressors first then into your DAW. The 1000 sounds too clean so whatever you can put on it before it goes into the digital realm is gold. I work in a professional recording studio so you know I run my shit through preamps, EQs, and compressors before the A/D conversion into Protools.
Of course if a beat sounds good coming from the MPC and I don't have anything to add, I dont even **** with tracking it out into single tracks and take the two track straight out of the box.
And if you can make shit sound good through SPIF synched to your DAW with MMC, then by all means do your thing.
EDIT: Also, when recording, make sure that your tracks aren't overloading the mic pre as well as not clipping. A lot of people get caught up in the signal not clipping and forget that preamps distort just as easy.
