MpcPgmMaker MAC SND library transfer issue..pls help

I seem to be having a issue creating Programs using MPC Program Maker on a PowerMac G5 (Power PC). I have a folder of archived SND files that I want to transfer from the G5 to Compact Flash cards to use on my 3K (32MB RAM) running OS Vailixi 3.50. I am using 1 GB CF cards that have been partitioned into 24 X 33mb hybrid drives.

Here's whats happening:
1.Create new PROGRAM using MpcPgmMaker on G5 and save CF card drive.
2.Transfer card with saved PROGRAM + SOUNDS to MPC 3K.
3.Try to load the saved PROGRAM from the CF drive into 3K:
then one of two things happen--->
A.If the PROGRAM plus sounds is less than about 16MB the PROGRAM plus sounds will load just fine without issue...but
B.If the PROGRAM plus sounds is larger than about 16MB the 3K displays the message: "ATTENTION! There is not enough sound memory to perform this operation."

What is strange is that it is possible to load all of the SND files from that PROGRAM if I do it one at a time, so it doesn't seem to be an issue with either the CF card or the SND files themselves. But, I'm not positive. BTW I am using freshly formatted and partitioned CF cards following the instructions posted in another thread that says to create HYBRID PARTITIONS and then open them up individually on the MAC before saving to them. Also this is on a fresh 3K startup with no programs loaded into memory at the time i am attempting to load the PROGRAM.

I have a large library of SND files that I need to transfer to CF cards to use on the 3K so that's why I'm kinda stuck on this right now.

Any tips pointers or suggestions welcome and very much appreciated.

-AQ

Have to tried setting multi sector transfer mode to OFF?

Yeah - I tried both MULTI SECTOR TRANSFER MODE ON and OFF. Still no dice. I forgot to mention that I'm using a Microtech PCD-25b CF card reader. The card reader seems to be reliable enough, so I don't think that the problem is the card reader.
But again, can't be sure.

Is there anyone who has a similar set up who can confirm that they are able to create a program larger than 16MB using MpcPgmMaker on a Mac(running 10.4) and then can successfully load that into their 3K running 3.50?

thanks,
aq

Also forgot to mention that I was using MpcPgmMaker 1.0.6 with SAMPLS button greyed out. I did some checking over at the MPC3000 Yahoo Group archives and found a couple of threads of interest.

They can be found here (you have to be a logged in member to see the threads) :
http://launch.groups.yahoo.com/group/MP ... ssage/2490
http://launch.groups.yahoo.com/group/MP ... ssage/1257
http://launch.groups.yahoo.com/group/MP ... ssage/1975

After checking these out I downloaded a new copy of MpcPgmMaker from the home page of the developer at:
http://homepage.mac.com/seishu/ssworks/ ... maker.html

I deleted the MpcMgmMaker plist prefrence file, re-registered the software using the serial I had from the earlier copy and attempted the same process outlined in the first post. The results were the same as above. Downloading a new copy of MpcPgmMaker and deleting the old preference file did not solve the problem.

I mentioned in the first post that although I got a error message from the MPC 3K when loading a program with sounds larger than about 16MB I was able to load up the individual SND files one at a time. I was also able to load up the PGM file after loading up the SND files one at a time.

I am starting to think that this an old glitch in the way MpcPgmMaker is making the PGM files. If that is true then why is it possible to load PGM files created by MpcPgmMaker when:
A)PGM + SND files are smaller than 16MB
B)Total SND memory larger than 16MB are loaded up one at a time and PGM is loaded last.

If anybody with a similar set up can confirm or deny any of these observations it would be greatly appreciated.

I emailed the developer of MpcPgmMaker and have not gotten a reply but will post it and any other relevant findings.

aq

I guess we now know why MPC Editor is better than MpcPgmMaker.

OK - after a few more back and forth tests transferring Program and Sound flies between MPC3K(running 3.50) and PowerMac G5 (Power PC running OS 10.4.11) with MpcPgmMaker 1.0.7 here are a couple more related observations.

1. When mounting the drives of a MPC formatted and partitioned 1GB CF card not all of the drives mount most of the time. A 1GB CF card that has been partitioned into 24 X 33 HYBRID drives will only mount 23 drives most of the time. Sometimes all 24 drive will mount onto the MAC desktop but only sometimes.

2. Follow the recommended workflow for formatting and partitioning a CF card with HYBRID drives for use to transfer files between a computer and the MPC. Sample SOUNDS on the MPC. Save a PROGRAM plus SOUNDS onto one of the CF HYBRID drives. Restart MPC with Power OFF and Power ON. PROGRAM plus SOUNDS load without issue by commanding MPC to LOAD the PROGRAM. (all good as it should be)
2A---->CF card is transferred to MAC and drive is mounted onto the desktop. Drive is opened to verify that contents of drive include the PROGRAM plus SOUNDS.
---->Drive is ejected from MAC and transfered back to MPC and PROGRAM plus SOUNDS load into MPC without issue. BUT.....
2B---->CF card is transferred to MAC and drive is mounted onto the desktop. THE CONTENTS OF THE HYBRID DRIVE (PROGRAM plus SOUNDS) ARE COPIED TO THE MAC WHILE THE DRIVE IS MOUNTED. Contents appear to copy fine and PGM plus SOUNDS load and play fine on the MAC using MpcPgmMaker to test them. The contents of the drive (PROGRAM plus SOUNDS) appear unaltered when viewed on the MAC (as should be the case).
---->Drive is ejected from MAC and transfered back to MPC. When an attempt to load a file from the drive is made I can see that the name of the PROGRAM THAT WAS COPIED TO THE MAC HAS BEEN ALTERED SO THAT A PROGAM CALLED:
BLUEBOX.PGM
becomes
BLUEBOX **.PGM
---->An attempt to load the that PROGRAM into the MPC results in a message on the MPC that reads:
"Attention!
The requested file was not found on the disk. Please try again. [Error code: FD00]"
---->Sound files will load without issue one at a time and the names of the SND files are unchanged. But the PGM file will still result in the same ERROR message.

It seems that copying a PGM file created on a MPC onto a MAC from a HYBRID drive RESULTS IN A CORRUPT PGM file that is no longer accessible to the MPC.

Based on my initial observations at the beginning of this thread it seems that there are problems when moving PROGRAM files between the MPC 3K a MAC running OS 10.4. Programs created using MpcPgmMaker that are larger than 16 MB will result in one error message and can be loaded but only after loading individual SOUND files one by one first. Also it seems that when copying a fully functioning PGM file created on the MPC onto a MAC renders the said PGM file CORRUPTED and UNUSABLE.

I know that a couple other heads out there are rocking a similar set up as me and if so any info would be appreciated.

aq

aq2 wrote:1. When mounting the drives of a MPC formatted and partitioned 1GB CF card not all of the drives mount most of the time.

This has never happened to me.

I could be wrong, but this sounds like "finder turd's"

aq2 wrote: ---->Drive is ejected from MAC and transfered back to MPC. When an attempt to load a file from the drive is made I can see that the name of the PROGRAM THAT WAS COPIED TO THE MAC HAS BEEN ALTERED SO THAT A PROGAM CALLED:
BLUEBOX.PGM
becomes
BLUEBOX **.PGM

Again...turds

I can verify that transferring programs between MPC3000 <=> MAC (OS 10.4.11) works flawlessly, except for the 16MB limit within MpcPgmMaker.

Here is the "turd" thread:
viewtopic.php?f=4&t=92564

somebody should put up a youtube clip showing the two programs in action
and maybe a how to for MPC 2000 Users
I just have a zip drive no cd mod on my 2000
I have dreams of organizing my sample library that I have
all on zips and floppys

But it would be great to watch an insightful video made
by one of the scholars on here who may have done this

Here's a thought on that - use Translator Free to burn CDs of all your files. Then get a SCSI CDROM drive to load them all in. Or you could again use Translator to put all your files onto one or more CF cards and get a SCSI card reader drive to load them in. Either of those solutions would get your files organized and on a "safer" medium than floppy or zip disk.

Feel free to contact me directly if you want to discuss these possibilities.

Thanks for the reply zeusmajor. It is good to know that you are not experiencing the same strange glitch regarding the drives not all mounting to the desktop. What is strange is that the drives that don't mount seem to be random. For instance the first time the C DRIVE fails to mount and the second time the D and R DRIVES fail to mount and then the third time all drives mount. I have tried using different brand CF cards and also plugging the CARD READER into the PowerMac tower instead of going through a USB hub but the problem still persists. zeusmajor does your MAC use a POWER PC chip or a INTEL chip? I am going to try to get my hands on a different card reader and see if that has any effect.

Thanks for the link to that other thread, I missed that specific one.

Although I am pretty certain I followed the workflow outlined in that thread when I formatted a bunch of CF cards I got I am reformatting a couple of CF cards and following the ANTI-TURD procedure to a T so I will report back when I have a chance.

aq

zeusmajor - what brand and model card reader are you using? What brand and model CF cards are you using?

My setup:

1.33GHz PPC G4 ( 10.4.11 )

MpcPgmMaker 1.0.7 (build070412)

SanDisk ImageMate CF Reader ( Connceted to USB Hub )

MPC3000 LE Vailixi 3.50

Microtech PCD-25b

SanDisk ultra II 2GB CF card

cool thanks for the details zeusmajor-

It's just a pain in the a** to have to mount and eject the card 15 times before all disks mount correctly.

I'm using a BELKIN card reader with SANDISK 1GB ULTRA II cards. I borrowed a different model BELKIN card reader but the issue persisted. I'm gonna see if I can if I can find the same SANDISK reader you use to see if that helps. Can you tell me the specific model of the reader because there are a few different SANDISK IMAGEMATES (12 in 1, 8 in 1, 5 in 1)?

Also I have had a chance to reformat other CF cards using the ANTITURD procedure and have not been encountered the issue that I detailed above concerning PGM files that became corrupted when they were copied to the MAC. So I believe that the corrupted PGM files were a result of FINDER TURDS that resulted from not following the ANTI TURD workflow when formatting the CF card.

So I am still trying to figure out why all drives don't mount properly when a MPC formatted CF card is connected to my MAC.


THANKS
aq

Just wanted to update this thread because I just got a Sandisk Imagemate Compact Flash Memory Card Reader (MODEL # SDDR-92) in the mail that I picked up for like $20 including S&H from ADORAMA. It works perfectly and all drives mount correctly unlike the BELKIN multi-card readers that I had tried. Thanks to zeusmajor for the help. So if you are using a similar set up and using a 3K with 3.50 and using a MICROTECH PCD-25b to move sounds and programs between the MPC and a mac running OS10.4 I would suggest you stay away from Belkin and pick up a Sandisk Imagemate.

Damn , I was happy to see that there was a program that would allow me to create programs for my 3000 on my Mac but as I read on I saw alll the problems you've had. It's a shame cuz that would of been usel=full but I really dont want to have to invest any money in a Sandisk or whatnot.