Hi,

So this in my first post, having stumbled across this place in the endless mire of google searching!

I have been after a sampler for a while and feel it's the right time to take the plunge, however I find myself confused by my options, mostly because I literally know nothing to very little about the whole thing. At first I liked the 404, then read about the 555, then there's the 606, all tres confusing!

What I do know is I would really like to be able to do the following:

- Create music similar to - Animal Collective/Panda Bear, Crystal Castles/Heartsrevolution. Justice/Girl Talk.

i.e. so I can create this http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=fxvGHQHiY70 and this http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=Y1svPxH2MbI and this http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=GsmzNB_eXek in one device - if that's possible as I don't know if it is! (I also am not savy with software stuff too heh).

The bands above are prob the most well known of the aims I have, and I mean to create awesome songs like all three types, from the indie fun weirdness of AC, to the electro-singery stuff of CC to the dance-indie fun style of GT etc.

As I said, I know not how to do this stuff so I'm lost on what's the right option for me.

I also write and record many conventional rock n roll/indie songs and it'd be great to be able to create some drums stuff so I can add drums to my guitars etc.

I have a MacBook Pro already and Logic/GB and see that the 555 has a usb interface thing, which might suggest it's the better option for me because whilst I can do the sampling stuff, it can also interface with Logic to let me record my guitars etc - is that right? Well, normally I like the 'live' sound so mic up my amp, but same deal.

Please can you direct me in the right place as it's a world I don't really know about and would appreciate the advice, I'm happy to buy whichever is the right option for me, I don;t know which one that is!

Ta

I'd say the 555 might be a better bet for what you want to do, it also has usb which is nice if you want to incorporate elements from the computer. You could probably make stuff like animal collective etc.. on both machines with some live instruments and synths.

this question is a little irritating (as expected with a "i want to sound like this band" question)

first, animal collective/panda bear really have completely different sounds, AC is live instruments and live sampled instruments usually and if you're speaking of person pitch (which I assume you are) it's made entirely of sampled records and vocals.

Second, the two styles could both be immitated with essentially any sampler as its more about how you use the instrument than which one you are using.

Finally, crystal castles isn't really sampler based..........at all
I think people often mistakenly think any electronic music is sampler accessible when really its not. I mean it's possible I suppose but really makes no sense.

um.. to the dude above me. At least add some advice.

I agree with you that it is somewhat annoying when people want to emulate another musician. But I think that he was throwing out a few artists he is inspired by, and doesn't necessarily want to emulate their music exactly.

Anyway. You seem pretty informed, so give him some advice

Here's my 2 cents. I haven't heard any of the artists you mentioned so Im not exactly sure what genre of music you are trying to do. But as far as any sampler goes, it's all what you put into the machine. As far as interfacing it with a computer, I know that the 555 is a good choice. I use a 505 and haven't tried out any of the midi options, as I've heard it's a pretty useless machine for this purpose.

I also have a lot of polyphony problems so it's hard to make really layered music. But I've learned a few ways around this by recording patterns onto my computer and then resampling the patterns back onto the pads.

Sorry if this didnt help much. ha.

That's not true. Unless you can provide a link/interview that says otherwise I refuse to believe that. I've been following panda bear and animal collective for some time and have no reason to believe that ALL of Person Pitch was made from samples off records.

OP

Having access to a mac or any kind of computer already gives you all you need to make any kind of music you can imagine. Many of the groups you listed may use samplers in their live acts but most likely the bulk of their production process is done in a software sequencer. Samplers such as the 555 or 404 are great for music production also, but live situations is where they truly shine and are favored over say a laptop.

Thanks a lot for the replies, I really appreciate your opinions, esp as I'm so clueless heh.

It seems to me that the general view is that the 555 doesn't do anything worse than the 404, and in that sense if one can afford to spring for it, it's extra features will only be just that, extras.

I think personally I really like being 'hands on' with music. For example, although I can plug my guitar directly into the computer (often through a Zoom H4), I often record it off a mic because it sounds nicer coming through my amp, i.e. the live 'sound', the act of creating the sound and capturing it, is easier for me than recording a clean signal on the pc and then fiddling with it with software amps etc.

In that sense, I don't really know how software samplers work. As I said I have Logic and know that the Ableton's of the world are popular - do they work in the same way as the samplers are to software - create a sound, load it up to a key and trigger when needed?

In which case, can one use the 555 as the physical module for this software, so send the mac created sounds to the 555's pads and trigger the song that way? I've never used a midi keyboard but I believe that's the way that works.

Oh and to harmony, I wasn't saying I want to copy those bands, I was saying that they are the most well known examples of the styles of electronic influenced music I would like to be able to extend across, a familiar reference point for people reading if you will.

man,I think that you should cop the 555 for what you want to do or a second hand sp-606 which can be found at a very cheap price.
Those are also usb interface and controllers so you could create a groove in Logic and send it back to the SP via drag n drop,then to your computer and this way,you overcome the polyphony issues especially if you want to layer a bunch of samples.
The 404 is really dope but since you have Logic get the 555 or the 606 to get the best of both worlds.

Hey,

thanks a lot for the replies, looks like the usb interface and all that jazz has swung the 555 for me, so cheers for the words!

reading the comments and doing my research i'm also wondering if i should look into getting a 2nd hand korg or something to help makes some beats.

i see you can pick up a microsynth for not too much 2nd hand, any advice on how that works with the 555? from what I can see the micro synth doesn't have a usb so I don't really know how that whole thing works - perhaps the korg into the sp into the computer, would that work?

i guess it'd also mean the sp sampling the beats i play with the korg and then creating the loops from them?