So I picked up a 505 a month or two ago and have been playing around with it. I have some nice ideas on there, but I am having trouble getting them to sound finished. Part of it is because I am used to using a DAW for music ideas, and I think I am thinking of the SP in the same way. Let me explain.

So I have the card expansion in which gives me 32 banks of 16 samples, 4 of which are preset and I can't change. I've filled up about 7 or so banks with drum samples (one shots) I had from a pack, and maybe 10 with various other samples (everything is disorganized in there), most of which are just for one song idea. I have about 1-4ish minutes left of sampling left, depending on the quality I record in. The way I do things now is I start up a 1-2 bar pattern, layer the beat and various other elements in the 4 parts I have for each pattern, and sometimes copy that to a second pattern to add a variation. This means that each pattern is drawing from all of the banks in the SP to make each beat I have set up.

Is this normal? How do y'all do it? To each his own, yadda yadda, but does anybody have pointers on a better workflow?

Can the 505 record the external out while you're resampling another pad?

I never owned or used a 505 :/

Can you somehow get a 303 or 555?

They may be more fun!

Actually... yeah. I didn't think that would work, tbh.

From what I read before I got this unit it is like the 303, but with more features and geared more towards the studio than live.

I am saving up and looking out for a deal on an MPC. I'm enjoying this box, but I just feel like I am missing something in my workflow t get a finished beat on it.

Just swap it for a SP 404 0.G.

Chop up some drums.

Find samples.

Resample everything (at least twice)

Hit record.

Smash that shit out on the pads.

Job done. ..

yeah man that sounds fine!! if you have the space, might as well use it!
when i make beats on my 303, you can only work on one track at a time, really, because of the limited storage capability. and it has driven my OCD fucking insane have to perfect and finish the beat before i save it to my computer and have to delete it off the 303 to move on to the next. same with my 202

Ext. source button.
The 505 is a little slow dealing with long samples, but otherwise one of the better sp's.

Boss/Roland has been making these things for a long time now, (202’s, 303’s, 404’s, 555’s, 606 & 808). And each of them has their pros & cons. Sometimes a great feature that one had, totally either got skipped, changed, or didn’t get included at all. And sometimes it’s even the sound of these units that people here choose to use over a newer model.

The SP303/505 were released the same year, but both don’t use batteries, one has less pads than the other, share the same FX, but oddly enough, 303’s are worth more than 505’s, due to the fact that their favorite MC/Producer would use them.

The great thing is, there’s no reason you can’t use 1 or more different models as a tag team in your beat. Maybe you find a good deal on a 202, and pick it up for the lo fi sample rate, and how you have to limit yourself to 8 pads, & 2 banks. Maybe you score a 808, but you have to learn how to bounce 4 tracks onto the 1 zip disc it uses. So just do your homework and read about the other members of the SP samplers. And newer isn’t always a guarantee it solves all the problems of the one you currently own. Because they might have horse traded away a feature you come to love, but isn’t there with the other.