MPC5000 reviews, bug reports and fellow user support on the most recent standalone, hardware MPC from Akai
By oneday2one Sun Nov 16, 2008 9:49 am
so if i integrate a software DAW into my setup, ....can i 'sync' the mpc 5000 through some form of midi word clock so that when i press play on one, ...the other plays as well, ...and any other added benefits, ...but predominantly, ...'play' and 'stop' in sync would be amazing to me.

'but', ....even if this is possible, ...does this work only through midi? ...i know the MPC does not have a wordclock in/out, .....but i thought maybe through either the optical or coaxial digital s/pdif or adat connections that it may also be possible?

...does anyone know about these things?

-oneday2one
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By dabmeister Thu Nov 20, 2008 2:54 pm
The 4k is the only mpc that offers a wordclock input, and that's only for stablizing the converters. Like tomazzzi said, any sequence syncing will only happen via midi only.
By Beleevah Mon Nov 24, 2008 9:21 pm
The wordclock input would only be useful in a professional digital studio with a master clock that drives all the digital gear (also with wordclock intputs) regardless of input/output configurations.

Otherwise, you have to decide which piece of gear is going to be the master and sync all your digital connections to that in a daisy-chain.

The MIDI sync is a completely separate issue. MMC commands are what you need for the most flexible transport control and arming channels for recording, etc. MTC is probably the best sync mode for use with a DAW setup as it is essentially tempo independent. But good old MIDI clock with SPP (song postion pointers) is quicker to lock on but you have to set/match your tempos right.
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By NorthernElite Mon Nov 24, 2008 11:30 pm
Beleevah wrote:The wordclock input would only be useful in a professional digital studio with a master clock that drives all the digital gear (also with wordclock intputs) regardless of input/output configurations.

Otherwise, you have to decide which piece of gear is going to be the master and sync all your digital connections to that in a daisy-chain.

The MIDI sync is a completely separate issue. MMC commands are what you need for the most flexible transport control and arming channels for recording, etc. MTC is probably the best sync mode for use with a DAW setup as it is essentially tempo independent. But good old MIDI clock with SPP (song postion pointers) is quicker to lock on but you have to set/match your tempos right.


Beleevah - I see you've only recently joined the Forum - welcome aboard.

It's nice to hear from guys that can participate in meaningful and impartial debate (without quoting from an MPC4000 spec sheet)...lol

Good to have you aboard Dude. :mrgreen: