Pre-purchase SP-404 Laundry List of questions...

earwolf · Post by **earwolf** » Mon Aug 11, 2008 10:02 pm

Hi

Ok I been saving up my cash, and my 18 questions. Thanks to anyone and everyone that can chip in with replies/opinions:

In no particular order:

1. Anyone have any news of a likely 404 replacement coming out anytime soon? I guess Summer NAMM would have been the place for launch, so I reckon it's 'safe'?

2. Anyone got a link for a reliable supplier of 1gb (or smaller) CF cards? I see Lexar and Integral ones on Ebay UK - has anyone tried them? (I would paste the link but it breaks the forum width, and ppl dont trust tinyURLs these days...)

3. Will midi notes played from my microkorg get recorded in the sp404 sequencer?

4. Is the aluminium cover a 'skin'? Or actual aluminium?

5. Is the black/gold skin an official Roland product? Is it metal?

6. Can you turn off the blue light if it annoys you?

7. Sub roll - is it like note repeat on an MPC?

8. Can you record long live 'jams' where you are playing patterns and tweaking fx as one big new sample via the resample function?

9. Is there a way to fake a solo function as in a mixing desk? I saw the youtube track mutes thing (multi pad full isolator)

10. Does the 404 have the 'Effect memory mode' that the 555 does?

11. Noise - is there any acoustic noise from the unit?

12. Heat - does it heat up after being switched on for a while?

13. How long in seconds from powering the unit to playing back samples?

14. What gets reloaded automatically on power up? Samples? Patterns? FX settings? Can you specify an 'autoload' setup like the MPC 1000?

15. What is the load time for a 3 minute sample from the CF card?

16. Mic sensitivity - do you have to talk into the mic or will it pick up what is going on in the room?

17. Does a new 404 come with a CF card? What size?

18. Is anyone here dj mixing with their 404 like Warren the Roland demonstrator does in the 555 demo vid? I don't get that - is there a bpm detection/lock feature?

Thanks y'all
E

axiom gates · Post by **axiom gates** » Mon Aug 11, 2008 10:59 pm

1. nothing has been officially announced
2. i would recommend amazon they have everything
3. yes
5. not official, don't know about it being metal
6. yes, the answer is somewhere on these forums, try a search
10. no

sorry i couldn't answer all your questions, i'm still a noob around these parts lol

earwolf · Post by **earwolf** » Mon Aug 11, 2008 11:08 pm

thats a positive start thank you

Platypus Beird · Post by **Platypus Beird** » Mon Aug 11, 2008 11:58 pm

Earwolf in the house!

earwolf · Post by **earwolf** » Mon Aug 11, 2008 11:59 pm

what up detail, don't rat me out to the 'other place'

iG9 · Post by **iG9** » Tue Aug 12, 2008 5:43 am

earwolf wrote: 1. Anyone have any news of a likely 404 replacement coming out anytime soon? I guess Summer NAMM would have been the place for launch, so I reckon it's 'safe'?

no

earwolf wrote:3. Will midi notes played from my microkorg get recorded in the sp404 sequencer?

umm... if you mean will it record patterns of its own sounds being triggered from an external device, yes it will.

earwolf wrote:4. Is the aluminium cover a 'skin'? Or actual aluminium?

it's aluminum (afaik, it's metal anyway) and if you take off the screws you can remove it. the body underneath is plastic.[/quote]

earwolf wrote:6. Can you turn off the blue light if it annoys you?

look i'm not gonna sit here and let you defame the blue light. all hail the blue light! =)

earwolf wrote:8. Can you record long live 'jams' where you are playing patterns and tweaking fx as one big new sample via the resample function?

yes, but you can't have more than 2 pads playing at a time while resampling. ::sigh::

earwolf wrote:9. Is there a way to fake a solo function as in a mixing desk? I saw the youtube track mutes thing (multi pad full isolator)

yeah, the way you just said.

earwolf wrote:11. Noise - is there any acoustic noise from the unit?

sometimes, especially with dirty power. running off batteries helps.

earwolf wrote:12. Heat - does it heat up after being switched on for a while?

not really.

earwolf wrote:13. How long in seconds from powering the unit to playing back samples?

6 seconds.

earwolf wrote:14. What gets reloaded automatically on power up? Samples? Patterns? FX settings? Can you specify an 'autoload' setup like the MPC 1000?

patterns and samples, not fx settings. never used an mpc.

earwolf wrote:15. What is the load time for a 3 minute sample from the CF card?

if you mean import time for a new wav, no idea. if you record a sound directly into the machine it plays back immediately.

earwolf wrote:17. Does a new 404 come with a CF card? What size?

not generally, but hey, you might get lucky.

hope this helps...

balazs · Post by **balazs** » Tue Aug 12, 2008 11:59 am

14. What gets reloaded automatically on power up? Samples? Patterns? FX settings? Can you specify an 'autoload' setup like the MPC 1000?

to add to what ig9 wrote it also doesnt save the BPM.

Dj Frantic · Post by **Dj Frantic** » Tue Aug 12, 2008 3:45 pm

for resampling you get 4 voice polyphony. So, you can resample with only 2 notes if your sampling using stereo. And as you know, stereo sampling is from the pit of hell and smells like smoke !

earwolf · Post by **earwolf** » Tue Aug 12, 2008 3:59 pm

great replies. props to iG9 for taking the time, appreciate that!

iG9 · Post by **iG9** » Wed Aug 13, 2008 1:10 am

no problem. good lookin out frantic & juxt on the clarifications.

Euclid Ov Oåklånd · Post by **Euclid Ov Oåklånd** » Wed Aug 13, 2008 6:15 am

Since I'm random as hell, I'll just add that EarWolf is a fresh name and we won't tell MPC-forums your cheating on her. Plenty of people here have used or do still use the MPC.

iG9 · Post by **iG9** » Wed Aug 13, 2008 5:31 pm

there's a group called "wolf eyes". i've never heard them but i love the name...

kel · Post by **kel** » Wed Aug 13, 2008 6:19 pm

would anyone mind telling me how to turn off the blue light? can't find it anywhere.

Euclid Ov Oåklånd · Post by **Euclid Ov Oåklånd** » Wed Aug 13, 2008 6:26 pm

I have a 303 so I don't know, but I think the blue light looks cool.
I know it has to be in the manual.

earwolf · Post by **earwolf** » Wed Aug 13, 2008 8:19 pm

From the sp-404 pdf manual, page 42:

Here’s how you can adjust the speed at which the blue illumination
around the edge of the display will blink.

1. Hold down [TAP TEMPO] and turn on the power. “LEd” appears in the display.

2. Turn the CTRL 1 knob to adjust the speed. [REC] will blink as you turn the knob.

3. Press [REC] to confirm the blinking speed you specified.

If you decide to cancel, press [CANCEL].

This setting is remembered even after you turn off the power.

Adjusting the Blinking Speed of the Display Illumination

Setting Explanation

“oFF” No blinking. The illumination will not blink even during pattern playback.

“1–9” The illumination will blink at a fixed speed. Higher values produce faster blinking.

During pattern playback, the illumination will blink in synchronization with the pattern tempo.

“Ptn” The illumination will blink in synchronization with the pattern tempo.

SP-FORUMS

Pre-purchase SP-404 Laundry List of questions...

Pre-purchase SP-404 Laundry List of questions...

Re: Pre-purchase SP-404 Laundry List of questions...