http://www.synthtopia.com/content/2009/ ... er-review/

This thing looks insane. I like the 2 alternative sample modes. Chop while you sample! Sick!

This thing looks very cool. I've always wanted to use a sampler that can transpose samples over the keys.

I messed with one at AES. I wish it had traditional pitch & mod wheels on there, as well as octave switching- then it would be controller worthy. Sounds awesome though & the 'bit-crusher' turned down really emulates low sample rate style.
In other words I wish I had one.

How does the Microsampler compare to, say, an SP-505 + a midi controller? I've always wanted the "chromatic tuning" of samples function also, and I think these are the only cheap options available (I never understood why they didn't implement this on the SP-606 ).

No sure, but I believe the pitching on the 505 is limited to one 'octave' (bank) internally on the 505 and cannot be 'played' traditionally like a sampler module can. Yes I know it can be triggered by a keyboard externally, but not like a rack mount sampler or even an ASR-X, with pitch & mod being affected like a 'real' module up and down the keys.

Someone said using P-606 software you can pitch samples on the 606. I fired up P-606 once and just couldn't get into it- maybe someday when I'm bored I'll try again.

The Microsampler seems dope in it's own right. It has a simple sequencer. Overall the vibe seems really loose and freakable with high chances of a beautiful mistake happening (you know what those are right?) like you could lock yourself up with it for a week and come out with an EP.

messed with one for a bit last week at guitar center and I was pretty impressed. interface is pretty straight forward and easy to get into, although the efx are a little more involved compared to the SP's. which is good and bad i think. good because you have a little more control, but bad because it adds some menu diving to the experience...overall though, if i had the dough i wouldn't hesitate to cop one. construction and everything felt pretty solid too, and it looks pretty good in person.

I am really down to look at getting one of these
I always want a keyboard to play lines over beats/loops but i don't like most synthesized sounds. I really wanna get one of these then like sample an entire xylophone or tone chime set etc over the keys then play the keyboard like a xylophone or whatever it may be. Gonna hit up guitar center over break.

There's a mode that lets you take just one sound and spread it out across the keys, but maybe if you sample the whole thing it sounds a little better.

It seems like they've taken the idea of the Roland DJ70 with sort of different features, added a modern USB interface and took out the scratch wheel .

It's kind of cool, I was thinking of getting one, but I'll probably get an SP404sx instead. I would get one for sure if it had an extra output, but I guess that's too weird on a keyboard.

semi unrelated sidenote - but i believe that in order for hardware samplers to not die these manufactures really need to put multiple assignable outs on the back

on topic - this keyboard looks sick, but i wouldnt like doing drums on keyboard keys

I'd been saving for a 505 but this looks more like what I really want. For the last few years I hoped someone would make a new sampling keyboard for under $1000. It has the Kaoss style fx too, looks like it may just be what I need. Here's a link to the SonicLab video review, goes into a bit more detail.

http://www.sonicstate.com/news/2009/09/ ... rosampler/

you could always plug in a pad controller right? to me that would make the micro sampler a beast

Not having a pitch or mod wheel kind of ruins the keyboard aspect of it though. What the point of having keys, when you can't do modulation or pitch shifting using a nice wheel?

Somehow I don't get that design flaw of theirs.

On the other hand, it seems pretty solid apart from that, but I'd take an SP over the MicroSampler when it comes to actual sampling I think. All in all not a bad deal, but for me personally an SP seems more like a logical choice.

Soo, does anyone have this piece of gear?
Care to share your thoughts as an owner?

Yes I have had a Microsampler since November. I use it along side my SP-555. And actually allowed me to sell my MPC4000 since I found I never used it anymore.

It is my favorite piece of gear for sound creating, atmospheric type things. I used to use the ESX24 in Logic all the time to play the pitch of samples, and that does have more options. But the built in Kaoss effects, being able to tweak things in real life and running it through the SP's effects after the mS's is awesome. I love how easy it is to sample and play anything, its super cool. My favorite things to play are water samples, anythign from my minidisk and record dust.

For live, I could not ask for a better match. The Microsampler and 555 get along so well. I still use the SP for the main parts of my track like beats and bass lines but a lot of the melody/changing parts are from the micro. I also actually like the sequencer, but I never use that live, I always resample. For a few songs/sounds I record samples being played melodically (like water samples/car engines) into my 4 track heavily effecting them then taking a walkman live and playing the cassette as background sonics for stuff I cant do live.


The ability to keep loops perfectly in time is also super cool. You can either have the loops pitch to stay in time or time streached. After having my SP for years I figured it out but for a long time I had a hard time keeping samples in time. For someone new to sampling I think the microsampler would be a good choice because it is so easy to keep loops in time as well as the fact it has a lot of options and will grow with you.

Obviously re-pitching samples sounds a million times better than doing it with any SP or MPC I have owned, also better than Logics native plug ins. I have not done a comparison with Ableton Live but I would imagine the outcome would be comparable.


When I first got it I thought, wow, this is Ableton Live in clip view with a keyboard in a box, no computer. I still feel like they are similar but just like Live is so much more than clip view, this thing is so much more than a Live substitute. I honestly do love working with this machine. But I can see how if you dont know what you are doing, just like SPs and MPCs, you will not get much out of it.


I will try and check back to this thread if yall have any questions about it. I do have recordings of it but they are not going to be released until July, when they do come out I will try and remember to post them here. Unfortunately the only live videos I have since I got it are mono and poor sound quality, I dont think you can get the potential. ALL the videos on youtube of this thing are total CRAP do not trust them, this is a very usable, easy, creative sampler and it is the best piece of gear I have gotten in years.

peace,
J.

I forgot to mention about the knobs on the right and scrolling through menus.


Well, coming from a Motif and MPCs this thing is nothing, but also using 303s, 404, 505, and 555 I can totally see how someone would be turned off by this.

I view it as a compromise. It is NOTHING like the vast banks and pages of an MPC. It is simple and intuitive. If you hold the edit button, all of the different pages are laid out on the keyboard making it easy to change what you want to. This works out perfect for a live situation. Changing the Bank and Effect are the only time I have touch the edit button. But it is super easy. The backlit screen is mellow but I have never had a hard time seeing it.

ONE thing that does bother me sometimes is changing settings when I am sampling something. You can choose mono/stere, bit rate, length... a bunch of parameters on one knob, I often flip past what im looking for. BUT you will be doing this at home and not in front of an audience. And its still nothing like scrolling through banks of pages.


It is a work flow, you first get used to it, then you benefit from it. I honestly think the creative possibilities totally outweigh the negatives of the operation of the machine.