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 Post subject: Gear recommendations request after getting 555
PostPosted: Tue Dec 03, 2019 4:31 pm 
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Hey guys, hope you’re doing well. I just picked up a 555 and I absolutely love it, I currently own a 404SX and honestly I vibe with the 555 much better and it’s improved my workflow pretty significantly. For me though it seems kind of overkill to have the 404SX and the 555 though Because their features are very similar if not almost identical. I was considering switching For a 505 for that compression and maybe a Volca or tape deck. My question is, what would you guys go for in this price range? Or is there something that SX has that I’m missing ?

My current set up is the triple 5, Yamaha reface CS, MPC 1K

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 Post subject: Re: Gear recommendations request after getting 555
PostPosted: Thu Dec 05, 2019 6:25 pm 
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since you have an MPC 1000 already, plus a 404sx & 555, why not sell the 404sx (since you like the 555 better) & instead of buying another sp, buy something you don't have that can improve your set up. If you like using synths, maybe buy another synth? Maybe a bass guitar? Especially if you like working with vinyl. You don't even need to know how to play, just sample 1 note at a time & create your bassline on the MPC or 555. I always had trouble finding bass to go with vinyl, a bass guitar solved that for me.

The MPC 1000 & sp555 have a lot of sampling potential together, but if you love samplers I don't blame you for wanting more, I have a lot of samplers, they all do something different. But if you plan on keeping the MPC & 1 of the sp's maybe check out a sampler that offers something different.

Personally I love the sx, I pair it with a MPC 2500. SX for memory, effects & quick on the go beat making. The MPC for sequencing & intricate sample chopping, ect.

It took me a while to get good making beats on just the sx, but it has a lot of tricks up it sleeves & it actually made me a better beat maker.

I also have a few Volca's, the Volca Sample is actually really impressive for the price & the analog isolator on that thing really makes it sound great. It also has a lot of tricks up it sleeves. I also got a Volca Kick for analog bass lines & sub bass, sounds really good, but a 1 trick pony.

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 Post subject: Re: Gear recommendations request after getting 555
PostPosted: Thu Dec 05, 2019 9:56 pm 
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Sharris wrote:
since you have an MPC 1000 already, plus a 404sx & 555, why not sell the 404sx (since you like the 555 better) & instead of buying another sp, buy something you don't have that can improve your set up. If you like using synths, maybe buy another synth? Maybe a bass guitar? Especially if you like working with vinyl. You don't even need to know how to play, just sample 1 note at a time & create your bassline on the MPC or 555. I always had trouble finding bass to go with vinyl, a bass guitar solved that for me.

The MPC 1000 & sp555 have a lot of sampling potential together, but if you love samplers I don't blame you for wanting more, I have a lot of samplers, they all do something different. But if you plan on keeping the MPC & 1 of the sp's maybe check out a sampler that offers something different.

Personally I love the sx, I pair it with a MPC 2500. SX for memory, effects & quick on the go beat making. The MPC for sequencing & intricate sample chopping, ect.

It took me a while to get good making beats on just the sx, but it has a lot of tricks up it sleeves & it actually made me a better beat maker.

I also have a few Volca's, the Volca Sample is actually really impressive for the price & the analog isolator on that thing really makes it sound great. It also has a lot of tricks up it sleeves. I also got a Volca Kick for analog bass lines & sub bass, sounds really good, but a 1 trick pony.



Thanks for getting back to me and writing such a thorough response, very much appreciated! You have a good point about keeping my options open before just coping another SP. As a little bit of back story it’s funny you mention that with bass guitar. I actually own a bass guitar and up until I copped the 555 I wasn’t really using live instruments at all recently. But now that I’ve been able to plug a quarter inch jack in I've been having a great time picking up my bass again and throwing down some synth. (Bit of a side note but I love my reface CS, I was never a synth guy but you get so much variety and fun factor for 200$ it’s opened my mind up to synths. Way funnier then using my computer instruments.)

Regarding the SX, my one reason I was considering trading it out of my setup is because I haven’t been digging the compression. For me I’m very in the box with making beats. I like to have the whole beat done within whatever piece of gear I’m using. Over compressing my beats to create some sense of sidechain or just over compressing in general is a huge part of my sound. And for a while I found the SX’s compression to be a bit of a workflow killer. I would get tripped up trying to make it sound good. Which is my fault not the units. I was hoping that the 505/404/303 would fill my need for compression/dirt on my tracks. And the OG sound would be a good trade off for the speed of the SX.

But honestly man after some thought the SX was my first sampler ever, so I’ve been pretty hesitant, plus it’s portable which is a huge plus cuz I work overnights so I can just throw it in my bag and bring it to work. I actually had a bit of a change of heart on my shift last night. I challenged myself to just take my SX and PO-33 (for pitch shifting) and make a beat. At first I struggled but after reading thru the fourms and listening to some battles I tried using resample instead of the pattern sequencer and instead of just compressing adding vinyl sim and then compressing with effect limiter on. I actually liked the sound a lot more and the resample method can be pretty fun! so Now I’m definitely gonna stick with the SX for a little and really try to tweak it. People make amazing sounding beats on the SX so I know it’s just my mind and realm of creativity holding me back. MAYBE I would straight trade for a OG 404. Just cuz features are similar. Another plus as I think about it is the SX still has East to get parts and repair too.

Sorry for the crazy long message bro I’m tired and partially thinking out loud. Thank you for responding and the good insight man. I really appreciate it. I’m gonna really consider everything you said. Samples are an addiction bro!! The MPC/SP Workflow is mega clutch. As stated before on here they make up for each others Weaknesses . That’s cool Regarding the volca’s I didn’t know the kick could do sub bass. I’ve considering saving for the FM/sample.


Just curious what’s your favorite peice of gear?

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|555|404SX|Zoom Sampletrak|PO-33|MPC1000|Reface CS|
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 Post subject: Re: Gear recommendations request after getting 555
PostPosted: Thu Dec 05, 2019 10:43 pm 
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The 404sx is very quick to chop and a good place to save full beats . Not sure if the 555 is the same . But as stated above .. look for something that gives you diff features that you don't currently have

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 Post subject: Re: Gear recommendations request after getting 555
PostPosted: Fri Dec 06, 2019 10:59 pm 
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For the longest time I didn't know about the effects limiter & it really changes the way the compressor works as well as the other effects.

A lot of people love the compressor/vinyl sim on the og 404 & 303..... a straight up trade for the og 404 doesn't sound like a bad idea.

I love the po-33, below was the first beat I made with the po-33, nothing great, but an example of what can be done with cheap gear. The bass is a note from the Volca Kick, the melody is a note from the MicroKorg & the hi-hat that sounds kind of like a triplet is just a single hi-hat timestretched 4 times in the 404sx (an example of 1 of the tricks the sx has, timestretch can do other things :mrgreen: Played the arrangement live on the po-33 while messin with it's effects.

https://sharris.bandcamp.com/track/k-o-beat

It can be hard to decide, there is a lot of amazing gear out there & a lot for decent prices. The Volca's are a really good bang for the buck. Same with pocket operators. Look like toys & they're fun like toys, but they can also be used to make some really nice beats, especially when combining them with other gear.

Good luck with your hardware journey!

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OLD BATTLE BEATS & a few extra tracks
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 Post subject: Re: Gear recommendations request after getting 555
PostPosted: Sat Dec 07, 2019 5:15 am 
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Sharris wrote:
A lot of people love the compressor/vinyl sim on the og 404 & 303..... a straight up trade for the og 404 doesn't sound like a bad idea.


The og 404 is going to have the same sound/effects as his 555, only difference is it would be mobile.
I think you're right in the other post of thinking outside the sp realm and grabbing a whole other box or instrument.

having a 505 and 303 is pretty much just doubling up on the same machine as well.

I think the 404sx has it's place and should be a keeper. What it lacks in warmth and coloring the sound it makes up for by keeping everything crisp. No muddyness. The warmth/dirt/etc. slowly gets added bouncing between the sx an og (or 555 in this case).

But again I'm with you on grabbing a whole other machine or instrument, Yamaha SU, electribe, Volca, Pocket Operator, there is so much cheap shit out there to play with. Just something fun to add into the mix.


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 Post subject: Re: Gear recommendations request after getting 555
PostPosted: Sun Dec 08, 2019 1:22 pm 
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Hey guys I really appreciate the opinions and insight I’ve gotten, I can get very indecisive at times so it’s nice to get fresh perspectives. Honestly after playing with both the SX and the 555 they both are very similar in a lot of places. But their few differences really set them apart for me personally. The 555’s loop capture is really nice to use for track building especially with outside gear and instruments. Meanwhile the 404sx. Being portable and having a faster workflow really comes in clutch. I’m definitely gonna do some research on different gear and really feel out what I like and dislike about both of these samplers. Not to do a complete 180 but after thinking about things and considering keeping both for their individual qualities or keeping the SX and looking into a looper pedal for track building. I’ve looked through the forum and seen cats doing that or talking about it at least.

Sharris wrote:
I love the po-33, below was the first beat I made with the po-33, nothing great, but an example of what can be done with cheap gear. The bass is a note from the Volca Kick, the melody is a note from the MicroKorg & the hi-hat that sounds kind of like a triplet is just a single hi-hat timestretched 4 times in the 404sx (an example of 1 of the tricks the sx has, timestretch can do other things :mrgreen: Played the arrangement live on the po-33 while messin with it's effects.

https://sharris.bandcamp.com/track/k-o-beat


yo Sharris that beat is dope man!! I like how you used the pitch effects on the PO33. For the timestretched hi hats are you just lowering the BPM to slow it down to when it glitches to a double? Then resample repeat? Or am o missing something? Sounds cool! My favorite thing about the 33 is it’s live performance effects. Man I’m hurt my 33 is a bit older and it’s acting up a little so o might save up for another one, great plug on the volcas they seem like of the beat bang for buck pieces of gear!

And thank you Crane for your point on the trading being redundant and on the crispness of the SX matched with the dirt of an OG really does make sense. Definitely helped steer me in the direction I’m thinking now.

Hope you guys are doing well Much love.

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 Post subject: Re: Gear recommendations request after getting 555
PostPosted: Mon Dec 09, 2019 5:40 pm 
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Crane knows his sp's :mrgreen: yea I wasn't even thinking about the 555 effects, good to know the 555 has the same sound/effects as the og 404 pretty much.

Thanks for checking out that K.O. beat Usedpaperbag :D
Yea I went crazy with the pitch effects on the K.O. & you're exactly right about the timestretch on the sx, I timestretched 1 hi-hat to the lowest bpm, resampled it, then repeated. The more you timestretch down & resample the more "hits" it adds. Just an example of creative ways you can use effects on sp's. Everyone says the timestretch sucks on the sx, which is true if your goal is to timestretch a loop naturally..... it won't sound good. But there are other ways you can use the effects.

Sounds like you have a good plan as well. Use what you have & research other hardware to see what would fit you best. 2 sp's, even 3 isn't a bad idea if you really like the workflow or the sound/effects of a specific sp. Combining gear speeds up the workflow too. I see why some like to get double of the same gear or gear that's similar, you don't really have to spend time learning how to use it, they can work well together, ect, ect & even tho I prefer to buy gear that is completely different, especially samplers (sp, mpc, op-1, ect), I also have 3 MPC's :roll: It wasn't on purpose, well I purposely wanted 2, but I realized quickly I would rather have 1 MPC, sell the other 2 & use the cash for a completely different type of sampler or something else my set up needs.

Everyone creates music differently & prefers different things. I admit I went too crazy with buying gear for a while, but it really taught me what I like & what I don't like, what workflow fits me best, what sound I'm after, blah, blah.

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RECENT BATTLE BEATS
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OLD BATTLE BEATS & a few extra tracks
https://sharris.bandcamp.com/


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 Post subject: Re: Gear recommendations request after getting 555
PostPosted: Sun Dec 29, 2019 9:32 pm 
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instead of buying a sp 505 for its compressor you could buy a real compressor for the same price or cheaper on ebay.

check this one Klark Teknik 1176-KT, it has good reviews and you prob could snag one for around 250 on ebay.


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