Samplers

The presence of Korg at the 127th AES show lent itself to two great opportunities: 1) to check out the new Korg MicroSAMPLER in action, and 2)to review Former Justice Souter's majority opinion in the seminal sampling case Luther R. Campbell aka Luke Skyywalker, et al., Petitioners v. Acuff-Rose Music, Incorporated. As if we needed more proof that David Souter rocks.  

The SP-404 is indeed a famous portable sampler from Roland that have given DJs a smile. Bringing in more to the table to cater to the ever expanding needs of DJs and other musicians into sampling, the Roland SP-404SX has been unveiled.  

Even for those of us not long enough in the tooth to remember when the Casio SK-1 came out, the legend of this handy device looms large, even though the thing itself is not that big. One man band Willis P. Jenkins demos the SK-1 for us, and continues to amaze us with his penchant for instruments that make multitasking seem easy.  

Samplers sure are fun, but when you're performing as a one-man-band like Willis P. Jenkins is, they're a downright necessity. Learn how the Roland SPD-S sampling drum-pad can help you avoid nearly all human contact.  

Even if you haven't fully explored the multitudinous function on the Akai MPC5000 -- and we'll understand if you haven't yet -- you'll want to check out the expanded features that the OS v2.0 firmware upgrade offers. Also, it's a free upgrade; download now and ask questions later.  

John Bechdel has played with the likes of Ministry and Fear Factory. Now, working on his own project, False Icons, he takes some time to chat about the Akai S5000.  

Get with the programming on the Korg Electribe ESX-1. Bill Holland shows you the many ways you can sequence your individual parts on this unit and all the crazy effects you can apply and tweak on the fly.  

Electric Funk and Envelope Followers. Is it any coincidence they both share the same initials? No, it is not. These two EF-ers are nearly inextricable, and in this video, Bill Holland shows you how to get the most funk-per-filter on the Korg Electribe ESX1.  

Want a single-box solution for recreating the backing tracks for your favorite early 90s dance pop tracks? Bill has your answer in the form of the Korg ESX1 Electribe and this informative walkthru video, one of three.  

No tanks allowed? I'm guessing that's what the headline on this classic Keyboard Magazine ad from 1985 means. Just take a look for yourself. If nothing else, you can drool over the PPG while learning how not to design a magazine ad.  

Jean Michel Jarre's name is synonymous with late-seventies spacey electronic music. In fact, his excursions into sprawling, multi-part synth odysseys would later inspire the mid-eighties Space Synth style of dance music. However, when I think of Jean Michel Jarre, what I really think about is: How did he create all of those sounds in 1978?  

If the perfect compromise leaves all parties dissatisfied, then the new Korg M50 is like the exact opposite of the perfect compromise! Who wouldn't be satisfied with a full featured Korg workstation that's equally suited for live performance AND is is half the price of an M3?  

Mike Huckaby has been djing in over 12 different countries in the last 12 months, has taught reaktor and ableton all over the world, and has received accolades on his recent remix work for artists including Juan Atkins. While serving for a long time as the go-to DJ at the famous Record Time, Mike now mentors Detroit youth in Ableton Live and Reaktor when not performing or producing. This week, Gearwire got a chance to talk shop and find out what Mike has been up to in the studio and out.  

It's time to get your hands dirty with a beat making tutorial on the MPC500. Bill Holland walks you through what to do with all those sweet, sweet pads.  

We welcome the Akai MPC500 into Gearwire Studio, and Bill shows all you future producers (and current producers) how to set the Akai MPC500 up for use. This includes a look at the controls, assigning your pads and fine tuning the pad sounds.  

The latest episode of Crosstalk features an interview with one of Chicago's fastest-rising (and youngest) hip-hop and R&B producers, Nael Shehade from Force One Seven. We pick his brain about his gear and production methods.  

Will we ever get tired of the "Bang Your Beats On" stock Roland Sample? The answer, of course, is no, but seeing as how Jason Donnelly concludes his look at the SP-555, you better get your fix while it's in.  

The Roland SP-555 has the effects capabilities you'd come to expect from a giant like Roland -- the audio company, not the literal giant who lives in a windmill in Holland.  

In this section of DJ Puzzle's look at the Roland SP-555, Sir Puzz-A-Lot checks out some of the preset patterns included with the unit. He also uses this opportunity to test out some of the controls as they relate to pattern manipulation.  

In part two of his SP-555 overview, DJ Puzzle gets caught in the pull of that Roland electronics staple, the D-Beam. Did you know that DJ Puzzle's Prius uses a D-Beam for it's throttle control?  

In this Roland SP-555 walkthru, DJ Puzzle Jason Donnelly gives away a tasty morsel of information: his fascination of red and blue flashing lights. All I need now is a form fitting DJ Puzzle costume to get away with the biggest bank heist in history.  

Bill Holland on creating a looped sequence from scratch with the Alesis SR18. I think Bill's finally decided to settle down with the SR18 and make an honest drum machine out of it: I've never seen him spend so much time picking out patterns.  

Now that we've gotten a taste of what the new SR18 from Alesis sounds like, Bill starts exploring some of the basic patch editing parameters, like instrument type and effects.  

The Alesis SR18 is the new beat box on the block, and Bill gets his mitts on it to see if the new kid stands up to the legacy that the SR16 has established.  

In our series of nearly-forgotten Movement footage, we came across our interview with a man who's omission from the website would have been tragic: Chicago-Based Producer / DJ Paul Anthony. Not that he necessarily needs the coverage: sounds like Mr. Anthony's been keeping plenty busy.  

DJ Puzzle Jason Donnelly has decided to school y'all on the basics of loop creation from scratch. Step one: become creative. To be honest, step one is the one step that cannot be taught. This does not stop Puzz from trying.  

Man, I wonder if Nintendo realized what a good idea it was to include a touch screen on the DS back when it was being developed: coders, hackers and circuit benders seem to be clamoring over one another to turn turn the novelty gaming system into a pocket DJ rig. Protein DSscratch gives you access to stutter, cue, loop, sample and -- of course -- scratching.  

So many things get better with age -- cheese, wine, George Clooney -- but did that Ibanez Blazer Bass really attain some magical quality once it hit the two-decade mark? Crosstalk discusses the liberal use of the "vintage" tag and its implications.  

Edirol's new P-10 is an instant video-sampler with a layout that's familiar to anyone who's ever used any of the previous audio samplers by Roland / Boss. To everyone else, I'm guessing it looks like a Gaga-Meter. I also assume that everyone is as obsessed with Ghostbusters as I am.  

Jason Donnelly aka DJ Puzzle aka Alfalfa from the "Little Rascals" heads on over to the Akai booth to check out the brand new MPC5000 before his big go-kart race.