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Samplers

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Abnormalbrain Abnormalbrain is a male

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I want to know a lil bit more about samplers like akai and E-MU. What makes these machines special? Whay would I whant one?

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26-01-2006 16:40

thechronic thechronic is a male

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To show off and to play live!!

They have their own typical sound characteristics, but for home studio use they have been surpassed by soft samplers.

A good soft sampler has all the functions of a hardware sampler and is easier to use. You just need a good host program and a good sound card and you're off. A good soft sampler will read sample CD's of most hardware samplers too.

If you want to play live it is nice to have a couple of hardware samplers in your setup, they have certain advantages such as very high stability, high number of separate outputs, MIDI control and built in fx processors. But for home studio production... not anymore baby, stick to your soft sampler.

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26-01-2006 17:45

Continum
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Registration Date: 25-01-2006
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I used to work with an akai MPC2000, until I discoverd N.I. Kontakt....

BUT

It's cool to have one, (an MPC) because you have MiDI drumpads on them to record your beats (or other things) while tapping them with your bare hands!!!

But if you have a MIDI controller with pads, (and a decent sound card...) you can off course do exactly the same with a software-sampler.

The only thing that makes an MPC unique is the "swing".
The MIDI clock produces a high quality clocksignal, uncomparable to a computer-emulated MIDI-clock.

If you want to know more about this unique "swing", i'm sure there are dozens of sites dedicated just to that.

I hope i'm clear enough...

Cheerz

26-01-2006 17:52

thechronic thechronic is a male

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The MPC's are very special hardware samplers btw, most hardware samplers don't have a sequencer built in, so no trigger pads, and no midi clock Wink

There are basically 3 types of hardware samplers:

- rackmounted samplers: the original and most common type. Usually just bare bone sampling, or with optional fx. Most popular were Akai S- / Z-series, Emu Emulator / ESI / E-series but also Roland S-series, Kurzweil, Ensoniq, Yamaha, Casio etc. At the moment only a few models are still in production.

- keyboard samplers: found inside a keyboard, and often with sequencer, synthesizer, fx processor etc. There have been hundreds of different models. Nowadays every major brand still makes a high end keyboard with built in sampler (eg Korg Triton, Roland Fantom & V-Synth, Yamaha Motif, Kurzweil K2600 etc)

- tabletop models: usually a combination of a sampler and a sequencer. Popular models: Akai MPC-series, Yamaha SU-700, Roland SP-series etc

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26-01-2006 18:32

Continum
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That's all correct, yeah, but you can't deny a MPC2000 is not a sampler (ànd sequencer, yes Roll Eyes

) with a unique MIDI clock signal that can't be emulated with a computer Wink

off course a pure sampler will not generate MiDI clock, cause what would be the point of it?

Cheerz

This post has been edited 3 time(s), it was last edited by Continum: 26-01-2006 18:50.

26-01-2006 18:46

Continum
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Its fun to tap the pads and you can also use it as a midi controller...

but then you can ask: why not use a software sampler with a midicontroller?

But yeah, you're right...

I just wanted to explain this bloak about the advantages of an MPC (especially the "swing") Happy

This post has been edited 1 time(s), it was last edited by Continum: 26-01-2006 19:02.

26-01-2006 18:59

Abnormalbrain Abnormalbrain is a male

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So I should stick to my software samples if I don't do live gigs. I have heard though that these samplers have a special sound, that is analog? But I think it most be digital? And that it has a crisp in the treble that is uniqe(Akai MPC). Is this true? Couse I'm a little bit interested in getting the sound from before 95. Nowdays everybody does everything in computers, and actually you can hear that. I thought that maybe if I got an old sampler I could get this oldscool sound (1990-94 somthing on the eurodance records - Captain Hollywood Project, Leila K, Culture Beat, Ace Of Base, Cappella).

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26-01-2006 21:11

Continum
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Registration Date: 25-01-2006
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quote:

Originally posted by Abnormalbrain
So I should stick to my software samples if I don't do live gigs. I have heard though that these samplers have a special sound, that is analog? But I think it most be digital?

You can off course still do live gigs with your software samplers Smile

and about the sound:

The actual sound of the MPC isn't analog, everything is stored in the (internal) RAM-memory

About MIDI:

The quantisation rate is very high quality, so if you record a drumloop live with the trigger pads for example, it will almost give swing like a real human drummer.

This is only of use if you use the MPC as a Sequencer; unless you record your created drumloops etc. into another sampler

This post has been edited 2 time(s), it was last edited by Continum: 26-01-2006 22:32.

26-01-2006 22:22

Abnormalbrain Abnormalbrain is a male

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But is it true that these samplers actually have a special sound?

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30-01-2006 19:13

D2o

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from what i have been told what makes them unique is the filters and the timestreching. (well for the akai samplers anyways)

would be nice i guess but can be fiddly and annoying, as well as expensive.
and you would need a multi in/outs soundcard or a mixing desk.

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30-01-2006 20:20

Halph-Price Halph-Price is a male

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something like 10 or 12 bit distortion on them makes them also nice and crispy that's what i like. there's suppose to be a 'groove' with the swing ont he machine though.

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31-01-2006 07:29

Abnormalbrain Abnormalbrain is a male

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Then I guess you could achieve that sound by using a bitreducer, timestrech the sounds and use some filters/eq. That swing everybody seems to be talkin about has to be able to get with computers. For example if someone have a mpc they could store a midifile with a basic d'n'b-groove so that we who don't have one could use the mpc-swing in our d'n'b-tunes here on the forum. Can someone post a midifile?

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31-01-2006 12:08

Halph-Price Halph-Price is a male

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since it has midi timecode, it get's accurate midi out, unlike every other midi signal from units. there's what's called "MIDI SLOP"

the MIDICODE is esscential for the sync of midi. swing is weird. some guys like using it at double the tempo time to get a good groove out of it, and yes you can do it, but many hip-hop dudes will tell you there's nothing like it. and digital bitcrushing is different than npc, there's an electrical signal that helps give it color.

but ya, 12 bit distortion might help.

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This post has been edited 1 time(s), it was last edited by Halph-Price: 31-01-2006 21:23.

31-01-2006 21:23

Dubrain Hertz Dubrain Hertz is a male

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About the AKAI MPC2000XL:

it's not 12 bit, that's the MPC60, it's 16bit 44,1 KHz. There's several things that make the sound unique. (and yeah it's not analogue, it's digital, some people tend to think that everything that's hardware is analogue.)

1. Interface. Different interfaces will make you make things differently, simple as that. There's stuff that's easier to do on the MPC than in Cubase and vice versa.

2. MIDI Clock. Unless you have a kick ass sound card, the clocking wont be as good. These are subtle differences that are hard to hear, but you feel them still.

3. Punch. I've never figured out why, but I feel, and many with me from what I gather, that drums played with the MPC come out with a lot more punch than the same samples played from a computer.

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31-01-2006 22:25

FRESH KUTT FRESH KUTT is a male

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imo its all about the KONTAKT 2 its eats hardware samplers for breakfast !!!! but if you want the sound and the stability of a hardware sample then go for the akai s3000xl with the fx and filter boards installed, you could pick up one of those babys for next to nothing Smile

any way good luck in your choice of samplers Smile

and may the bass be with you !!!!!!

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01-02-2006 23:05

FRESH KUTT FRESH KUTT is a male

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ooops i nearly forgot, if your thinking about getting a soft sampler then you better get a top compurt to run the thing, its gonna be no good with an old computer, i fully recomend the G5 powermac with a dual procecor (thats if money is no object ofcourse) lol. i got a akai s3000xl (fully loaded) and a akai s6000 (fully loaded) but they are just collecting dust at the mo because i aint switched them on since i got the KONTAKT 2

hope that helps Smile

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01-02-2006 23:18

equipped equipped is a male

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Yup,. zee ooold mighty Kontakt twoo's be da shyte's! Drummer

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This post has been edited 1 time(s), it was last edited by equipped: 04-02-2006 04:07.

04-02-2006 01:07

Abnormalbrain Abnormalbrain is a male

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But I got the sampler that is built in Fl studio. The one that comes with the program. Why should I bother having Kontakt insteard of fruity sampler?

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05-02-2006 12:26

equipped equipped is a male

tired

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yeah the fruty sampler should do the trick,..im guessin,..never seen it,...but if you want the best there is imo,...kontakt's the way to go,..it's so god dam powerfull,..all my track's have been made with just Kontakt2,..and a hard synth,..good ol sampler end's up being the most important tool in your ars,..so a really good one is goin to pay off....cheers..

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05-02-2006 19:28

Halph-Price Halph-Price is a male

Zombie Algorithm

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FL studio 4 life

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05-02-2006 19:47

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