Which hardware sample player?

[NickMo]

Hi,

I am trying to add an electronic element to an otherwise acoustic live act. I have made some beats and basslines in Cubase and I now want to play them back through the PA as a backing track while we jam along. What is the best way to do this? I would like to avoid having to use a computer because I don't trust them not to fall over mid way through.
I was looking at the Akai Mpx8 but that seems limited to just a few loops and also is USB powered only.
I guess I could just play an MP3 but it would be nice to have something I could drop the odd sample into for a bit of 'live' playing. Or at least something that will play wavs.
Can anyone recommend any hardware. ?
Thanks

[DrGonzo]

Korg Volca Sample looks like a toy - but is really really cool. And pretty cheap.

/C

[bronxsound]

there is a wide range of apps (sample players/loopers) for ipad...

[Wormhelmet]

Why not buy one of the many hardware samplers available like the Roland SP404sx or something? 404sx will take sd card up to 32GB.

Transfer loops out of cubase onto sd card and load up the many pads with samples to trigger.

[NickMo]

Thanks all. I will check those out.

[tapper mike]

Laptop/Tablet is your best option. Followed by smart phone / mp3 player.

If you want to spend more money....Check out KVR's sponsor
http://www.museresearch.com/

Way back when I used to work as a cook for various hotels. Including Holiday Inn. HI does not have there own restaurants instead they incentivise other businesses to operate within them. One of the restrictions was ... Live music nightly. As such I got to see some great and not so great one man bands, duo's and some cover bands. The slower nights were usually guitarist/singer keyboard/singer lounge lizard types.

In the early days they had analog "rhythm machines" followed by drum machines and sequencers. The problem was they weren't the best of programmers and could only maintain a certain level of playing instrument while singing. It was like one of those bad accompianment keyboards that they sell at walmart. Absolutely terrible.

...Later around '96 the smarter ones would bring in laptops and play either backing audio tracks or midi tracks. It was the best the industry had to offer at the time and performances improved considerably simply because the performer knew that the backing tracks were playing what they should have when they should have.

Since then everything has gotten better when it comes to computer technology. All you need after that is a decent soundcard to send your computers output to the pa properly.

Unless you feel obligated to dedicating your free time mastering hw synth / rompler technologies that are expensive have little resell value and are maybe good for one song a night.

[tapper mike]

Laptop/Tablet is your best option. Followed by smart phone / mp3 player.

If you want to spend more money....Check out KVR's sponsor
http://www.museresearch.com/

Way back when I used to work as a cook for various hotels. Including Holiday Inn. HI does not have there own restaurants instead they incentivise other businesses to operate within them. One of the restrictions was ... Live music nightly. As such I got to see some great and not so great one man bands, duo's and some cover bands. The slower nights were usually guitarist/singer keyboard/singer lounge lizard types.

In the early days they had analog "rhythm machines" followed by drum machines and sequencers. The problem was they weren't the best of programmers and could only maintain a certain level of playing instrument while singing. It was like one of those bad accompaniment keyboards that they sell at walmart. Absolutely terrible.

...Later around '96 the smarter ones would bring in laptops and play either backing audio tracks or midi tracks. It was the best the industry had to offer at the time and performances improved considerably simply because the performer knew that the backing tracks were playing what they should have when they should have.

Since then everything has gotten better when it comes to computer technology. All you need after that is a decent soundcard to send your computers output to the pa properly.

Unless you feel obligated to dedicating your free time mastering hw synth / rompler technologies that are expensive have little resell value and are maybe good for one song a night.

[NickMo]

You are probably right. I guess I just suffer from snobbery as far as laptops and phones are concerned - it seems more real somehow to have a sequencer/sample player. But in essence it's the same thing. I guess what I don't like about the laptop/phone thing is that people might assume I bought a ready made backing track rather than putting it together myself. Then again, with my level of production skills it's probably obvious that it is genuinely home made!

[Wormhelmet]

If you don't feel like using a laptop or smartphone, don't.

I have been free of the PC for awhile now. Not necessary. You'll spend as much or more time learning a DAW as hardware.

You have choices. Hardware is not prone to OS updates all the time that can break software functions. It's dedicated. In most cases it is also limited compared to PC/DAW which can either be a plus or minus depending on how you look at limitations. I find them useful.

15 years multitracking and 10 with Ableton alone. i'm not missing it yet after a few years.

[tapper mike]

Well you could always tell them you did People like it when you talk to them between sets.

I'm in the same boat. I just bought a super powerful computer with the latest 17 processor and a very very large hdmi monitor. I scoff at my beat up old laptop which I keep around for emergencies. And still the next order of business for me is... more hardware in the form of a Kurzweil PC3. My favorite rompler tones where I can find them as opposed to digging through the vast collections I have on my computer. I don't even play keys.


At the super top end you could always go for a Music Computing StudioBlade5
It's a computer workstation housed in a keyboard workstation
http://musiccomputing.com/production-st ... udioblade/

Here's a nice video from a previous gen Studioblade
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8dmv8d7DnwI

[NickMo]

Thanks for all the advice. I think because this is a relatively small part of the act, an MP3 player or iPhone is the cheapest, easiest and least likely to fall over. Doesnt allow for any live manipulation but is easy enough to set up. And easy to try out without spending any cash or effort. See if the audience starts booing!

I had a look at the SP404SX - that looks like fun. I think that is what Mad Professor was playing with when I saw him perform recently.

[dformd]

Doesnt allow for any live manipulation but is easy enough to set up.

Regarding iOS apps; there are many samplers that offer MIDI control of parameters; allowing for live, external controller use; Everest, and Loopy come to mind here (although there are others) There are also quite a few apps that leverage the strength of the touchscreen to provide unique and expressive control options that non-touchscreen controllers can't... erm.. touch; Samplr springs to mind.

[taskovskig]

Hi,

Akai MPX8 is a great sample player. It's not powered via USB only. It has an adapter to power it 220VAC via it's USB connector. In such a case, you use mini jacks which are mimijack <> MIDI converter. I own one, and use it regularly. I'm looking for Akai MPX16 which has more options (Filter and envelope modification of samples in real time). MPX8 allows only modification of output level and reverb of each sample.

Regards

[werp]

Elektron Octatrack..that thing I bought that I turned on once..Who knows, I might turn it on again one day.