hey fellow sp users,
this is my first post, i just gotmy sp 555 about 2 weeks ago and ive been reading a bunch of stuff on here for advice. i did come across a post about using the sp 555 and computers but it was pretty general. i was able to set up my sp 555 and use it with fruityloops and also with cubase by setting the audio settings to use the sp 555.
does anyone know all of the different things i can do with this set up. be nice to have a list of things so i can test em out and see what works and what doesnt. i kind of like how i can control fruityloops with the sp 555. thats the reason i didnt return it after i bought it. but what are you veterans doing with the usb setup cause i know someone has figured out some cool ass "#$%&" and i just want to hop on that bandwagon and learn some cool stuff quick.
springwater!

make loops in fruity and send them to the 555, use magical effects on them

resample them...

send them back...

might be harder to send them back to FL but you could use edison to do that

theres lots you can do with usb, its kind of hard to tell you what to do in FL and Cubase specifically tho cause i use ableton
you could have loops from fl on the machine, then "perform" with effects and the effect memory mode into cubase
experimentexperimentexperimentexperiment

thanks for the tip. i started doing that and its pretty cool, back and forth is pretty easy. i didnt think to use edison, i was using cubase with fruitylops as a vsti. im hearing alot about this abelton. i bought a axion 25 midi controller and it came with a free copy of abelton, i think it was abelton live 6 or something. i installed it and didnt like how they said it was fully functional and yet all the cool stuff wasnt there, so i didnt go any further with it. are there any super benefits to abelton or is it just another program in a world of similar software.
ive messed with reason 4, cubase sx, acid, fruityloops and cakewalk back in the day. they all are the same except one always doesnt do something cool that the other does. whats abeltons deal?

you seem like you know where to get these programs "cheap"

but yea ableton live makes working with hardware and audio much much easier

all you have to do to set up a track to record the 555 is a couple of clicks, one to arm the track and one to turn off the monitor so you dont hear the 555 x2 in an echoey fashion


from there if its off time, you can "warp" it on time by sliding the wave on time, and on the new version you can even quantize actual audio files to a grid.

go to ableton.com and check out the videos describing all the functions, because there are far to many unique ones for me to list

http://www.ableton.com/movies

then tutorials or listen to what the pros say about it

but yea i love it, i play like 2 minute sessions out on my 555 recording into it and mix it with other stuff, and its damn easy to do

yeah, i get my software from the cheap software store, wink wink. but uh, i checked out some of your work and its really cool. very experimental and expressive. i feel like id need some shrooms to get that sort of sound out of me but then again, thats sort of where im reaching. that sort of aphex twin sound but closer to hip hop grooves. thats why i bought my sp 555, i thought hardware would help me be more creative. im guessing cubase is sort of the same as abelton then since all you gotta do in cubase is hit 1 button and thats to arm the track, the monitor is already off. but uh, this leads me to the question i had in the first place. when i record a track in cubase with the usb hook up, after im done with the first track, i try to do another track( you know, to layer another instrument) but im recording the first track i laid as well as the new stuff. how to i turn the output from the computer off so its only hearing the sp and not the other tracks in cubase. do you have this problem in ableton, like how would you correct it there and maybe i can figure it out in the cubase interface.

i just watched a few of those videos on abeltons site. i think i might hit up the cheap software store again. tee hee hee.

thanks for the compliment and checkin em out! yea psychedelics have probably directed my sound...but i dont do them anymore
as far as overdubbing
yea thats a problem

you can set the routing on the usb to out only, but unless you have another soundcard you wont be able to hear what you are over dubbing...i think...

look in the manual under usb or signal block for the buttons to press

the thing is, usb in/out is a special tool not found elsewhere as of now, and is very convenient but that is the one limitation.

keep in mind you can use this to GREAT advantage. play a drum track soloed with another track armed and play samples and effects like mad on top...thats kind of my secret weapon
so it seems bad at first but you can get some wild results because of it.
from limitations new styles are derived....


but sometimes i think maybe im missing something and you can actually overdub, but i haven't really tried lately

you can also do it in chunks like "i need X for X amount of bars to fit with the song" then you dont need a monitor

i think i might have to check out that ableton. the website said it has overdubbing capabilities and i liked how the guy in the video could see his midi notes and audio waves as he recorded and overdubbed. im starting to realize overdubing is where its at since i never even knew what it was till i gotmy sp 555. thanks alot for the motivation, i definitly need to be overdubbing in a miltitrack interface. and that soundcloud website is pretty cool, do you have to pay to post music?

its free account is limited to 5 songs per month

which really is enough because i cant imagine making 5 GREAT songs a month

but its definitely great for longer material too

this is a dope post.

i've wondered about similar things as well. helped a lot. thanks guys.

oh and spring i PM'd youuu homie please hit me back up

yo spring if you havent figured this out already try control panel, sounds and audio devices, audio, and set your default playback to your comp, not the 555. then plug headphones into your computer.