MPC Thread : MPC Live - MPC X - MPC One (Part 3)

Now I do too! :sweat_smile:

My music is not so sophisticated, but your solution is so elegant that it makes me realize they offer flexibility in unexpected ways. Time go fast, time go slow! :laughing:

Anybody have any grid mode tips? I’m loving everything else about this thing but soon as I’m editing MIDI or the arrangement I get cranky lol

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Bring patience or rerecord. I have gotten used to it, and built up some facility with it just through use, but it can be a less than ideal experience depending on the task.

:grimacing:

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I might do a video where I show the process of copying and pasting a note on the MPC and then on the Octatrack haha

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Lol - well, mechanical/physical UIs will always win over touchscreen, IMO.

Might be a bit like replaying Jordan highlights dunking on everyone - everyone knows hardware interactions are the GOAT! :slight_smile:

It’s hardly as mini as it gets. Even the One+ is smaller. Imagine something even a bit smaller, thinner, with longer battery and with the same screen size. That would be the Mini.

I agree the screen can’t be made smaller. Everything else could.

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I sequenced two albums with the MPC One, heavily using Grid Mode. The things that made it easier were: If possible practice the part until I can nail it, record it in, and make minor edits. As @papertiger says, be very patient - even once you feel kind of ā€œfastā€ at it, it’s still painful. Make liberal use of copy/paste, and remember it’ll paste where the playhead currently is. If working with long or complex patterns, it can be quicker to copy/paste notes (or add single short notes with the pencil tool) and then adjust the length/ transposition by selecting that option and adjusting with the jogwheel as needed than to re-play it in. I edited a lot of chords that way, moving individual notes around as needed to get new chords/shapes.

With some practice, you can get relatively fluid with it, but it always feels clunky.

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I know what I want. :slight_smile: Not something crazy mini like a handheld version. Something that retains all buttons and knobs, but are just built to be a bit smaller. There’s a huge difference between the Live 2’s Dub Rec button and the Rec button on the Roland MC-101. Point being, not everyone needs buttons to be as large as those on the Live 2 and I’d happily trade slightly smaller buttons and smaller pads (the size of the SP-404 pads would be more than sufficient for my non-finger drumming needs). Imagine something the size of the Polyend Tracker+… that gives you a good idea of what I’d imagine their Mini would look like. Still with 4-links, still with 16 pads, maybe with less I/O (not everyone needs photo inputs - I’ve never used it).

Now, imagine throwing that into a backpack, pulling it out and jamming with it on the couch, in bed, etc. Something that weighs less than 1 kg rather than over 3 kg.

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I’m not so sure, the screen and Pads are 80% of the unit, unless you drop the Q links and buttons etc you wont gain much…it just doesn’t need to be much smaller than the One+, you need to out it down to hit the pads, so it will never be ā€˜hand held’ like the tracker mini for example. Just build a battery (and ā€˜maybe’ a speaker) into the One+, job done…but for me the Live II with speaker is the ultimate ā€˜transportable’ studio.

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I adore my Live II. The battery and the speaker make it 99.9% more likely I will turn it on and use it anywhere and everywhere, even if it is to make something I don’t save, to just mess around or learn a quick something.

I am sadly almost never at the desk I have for music, but I can and do always have the Live II with me.

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Again, look at the Polyend Tracker+. It’s substantially smaller, yet has a similarly sized screen. Imagine four q-links on that somewhere. Perhaps it becomes just a tad larger than the Tracker+.

True, not that much smaller. But still, smaller. :slight_smile: And much thinner and lighter.

Absolutely, that’s what I’m saying too. That would be the MPC Micro and not something I’d consider buying.

Yeah, really I’m the same. The speaker is truly useful and that would be the main thing that would have to give if you made it small like a Tracker+. But then again, my MacBook Pro speakers sound pretty good (though not very bass heavy) so maybe there’s a happy compromise to be made.

To be clear, it’s not like I need there to be an MPC Mini. I’m very happy with my Live 2. But if there was something that matched the Live 2 with less bulk (I personally find the pads and buttons to be excessively large - the One+ buttons are more than large enough), I would happily switch to it.

That’s what I feared. Seems a little hamfisted to shove what is clearly a program meant for mouse control into a sampler with a touch screen. Ideally you should be able to do everything without touching the screen at all.

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I feel like suppressing the mouse tool is a bit like disney mascots being forced to keep the head on for 10 hours at a time, so as not to shatter the illusion of hardware.

I’m cool with it, I bought a big rectangular laptop that can only run MPC beats, no worries. Just let me use the mouse please Akai, thank you.

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I have a tracker OG (looking at it now :-)) of course it doesn’t have a battery or big velocity and AT sensitive pads (not sure I have seen anything that thin with pads like that?) It also has a stupid 3.5mm stereo jacks for audio that needs a splitter and 3.5mm midi that need special adaptors (and very little IO in general), I would much rather it was fatter and had 2 full sized TRS and Midi jacks- this is what makes the ONE a bit fatter…but its no heavier! Ultimately I just don’t see where you could trim from this form factor, but I do think you can squeeze a battery in…


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Yup, use the scroll wheel to replace the Data Entry knob and the right click to cycle through cursors. Thanks

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Fold those L/R inputs/outputs down to horizontal, ditch the CV ports and you could substantially reduce thickness of the One+. I agree I wouldn’t want to compromise down to 3.5mm outputs, they’re too prone to break.

I think we’re pretty much on the same page. I wouldn’t want to make too many tradeoffs and the Tracker’s pads are admittedly too small for finger drumming so wouldn’t be appealing to those who do that, but the SP-404 pads are considered acceptable by those finger drummers so my point is still that they can certainly make it smaller and thinner and lighter than the One+. Maybe not more than 30% smaller though.

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Ditch the CV ouputs at your peril, I use 'em all the time :slight_smile:

There is always fat to trim, but personally I would be happy if it was that size (its only 2kg) but they added more stuff like a battery and a speaker and more CV outputs :slight_smile:

That said, I own a tracker mini and an OP-ZF so I have very portable covered…but I still end up using my ā€˜big’ Live II as portable far more than you would think (its the speaker!), its only really flights I go for the OP or Mini…

I’ve had at least 8 MPC’s the past few years…always try em, always sell em…just wanted to check out 3.0 to see if it makes any difference for me. Did a bit but not enough so back to the store it went.

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The MPC Live II is a perfect size. Big enough to be playable and not cramped (wish it had a few more knobs but it’s fine) but also easy to just put on your lap and play.

An MPC mini sounds a lot like an ipad and I think there are plenty of ipad apps better than the MPC if you just have the touchscreen part of the MPC.

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