41

Jesus you guys, I have and love my MPC, I just don’t consider it a groovebox because its design is not built around a step sequencer. It’s okay if it’s not considered a groovebox. It’s still a great piece of kit.

42

I only need 1 track for the noise I churn out! More than that is just obnoxious and not doing any good to anyone!!!

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43

Also, I’ve already mentioned this twice, but for those who are addicted to disagreement, I’ll copy and paste my own response–

“Totally agree. As mentioned, it’s totally up to the individual workflow/genre needs. I’m not trying to knock any piece of gear. I’d simply like to see more viable options for 16-track grooveboxes.”

44

Even if you don’t use many tracks for the main instruments involved, just your mixing style alone can require a lot of tracks for sends (if you’re into Scheps-style parallel compression mixing techniques, +delays, +reverbs).

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45

I’ve never heard that groove boxes have to be built around a step sequencer. A sequencer of some sort? Sure. Either way, the term was always a marketing gimmick by Roland. There’s not like a strict definition.

Any MPC is definitely a groove box

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46

ONE Drum Program on an MPC is that 16-track groovebox staring at you, with a Step Sequencer that is vastly underrated.
That’s the thing with the MPC, it’s extremely versatile and easy to forget you can use 1% of its features/functionality and still make tracks.

I do hear you though about wanting a simpler groovebox approach… otherwise MC707 springs to mind, but I think the TR8S is better, albeit with 12 tracks.

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47

Okay MPC is a groovebox. That means:

MPC
Deluge
ES2

Didn’t get along with the Deluge. ES2 is under powered. MPC doesn’t feel like a focused sampling groovebox. Does the MC707 sample external sources?

My point, again, "I’d simply like to see more viable options for 16-track grooveboxes.”

48

The newer MPCs have a step sequencer tho. So do the 1000/2500 if you switch to JJOS.

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49

Again, I have an MPC Key 61 and I love it. It has a step sequencer.

50

Hello void, are you hearing me? lol

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51

I looked at that Wikipedia article for the first time recently (probably while reading some other thread where people were discussing what is and what is not a groovebox), and I found it pretty enlightening. For example, I had never considered the EMS Synthi a groovebox!

A groovebox consists of three integrated elements.

  • One or more sound sources, such as a drum machine, a synthesizer, or a sampler
  • A music sequencer
  • A control surface that is a combination of knobs (potentiometers or rotary encoders), sliders, buttons, and display elements (LEDs and/or an LCD screen)

I like that definition

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52

Hey, did you know MPCs have sequencers?

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53

I had no idea! lol

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54

So sliders is a requirement in that textbook combination? That rules out a lot of grooveboxes besides Roland’s own and I guess the Octatrack. :joy:

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55

image

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56

Good point! Maybe they should have used “or” instead of “and”?

And yeah, as strange of an animal the Octatrack is, I think it’s a groovebox

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57

And at least 3 out of the 5 are snares, right?

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58

Oh good god peeps, I was kidding lol

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59

How many tracks are used in this song, for example?

60

What, you don’t believe me? MPCs do have sequencers. I have PROOF:

Screenshot_2023-10-28-14-07-50-27_e4424258c8b8649f6e67d283a50a2cbc
Screenshot_2023-10-28-14-07-50-27_e4424258c8b8649f6e67d283a50a2cbc1079×1848 309 KB

See?? I’m right! MPCs have sequencers.

2 Likes