Thanks everyone for your engagement in the comments below! Please consider subscribing if you enjoyed this video and want to see more reviews/comparisons, tutorials and live jams on these and other grooveboxes. Thank you!

Snyggt. Bra jämförelse. Keep em coming.

@sinewaymusic

10 ай бұрын

Tack Magnus! Time is my enemy, between job and family duties, but I have many ideas for future videos. 😊

Got an MC-101 second hand for a song. First time playing with a groovebox after being completely in the DAW for years. Enjoying the discovery process as well as having access to all the classic Roland sounds. Plus portability is pretty great. I think you're 100% right about the type of music you make suiting the type of device you write on. I don't think I'll write full songs on it but I might end up having some fun jams with some of the other desktop synths I have. Thanks for your video and insights.

@sinewaymusic

2 ай бұрын

Hey there, thanks for sharing that, and for watching. Sounds like a great entryway into the world of grooveboxes. Having access to that Roland sound in such a portable little device is a wonderful thing. My favorite is still the Syntakt though, I just posted a dedicated review of it here on the channel. 😊

Amazing comparison, please teach us more about all the goodies on both of them

@sinewaymusic

Жыл бұрын

Really appreciate the feedback and suggestion! This is definitely on the list of topics I'll be covering in the future. Hope you'll have a great 2023!

This was a very entertaining and compelling video. It also gave me some insights about the workflow of each of these instruments. Thank you!

@sinewaymusic

Жыл бұрын

I really appreciate you taking the time to watch it and post this comment, it made my day. I hope to make more videos in the future, time permitting. Will be posting many more jams in 2023 too across the Syntakt, MC-101 and the MPC. 😊

Excellent comparison thank you!

@sinewaymusic

10 ай бұрын

Thanks for watching!

I got both, I love both, and looking forward to get a MC707, ASAP!!!!!

@sinewaymusic

10 ай бұрын

So you have a 101, 707 and a Syntakt now? 😊

@koishikomeiji7878

10 ай бұрын

@@sinewaymusic Not yet, soon I realized that MC101 is already capable enough.😂 I believe there will be an upgraded version of the MC 707 in future, I looking forward to the upgrade version!

@sinewaymusic

10 ай бұрын

@@koishikomeiji7878 Yeah that was my thought. A 707 over your existing setup felt like a bit of overkill. 😊

As soon as i got the MC-101 i thought "this device has way too many features for its size". The workflow is definitely not ideal, so I'm using it as a sound module and it does a wonderful job. With the new FW update the sonic possibilities of this little device have become endless!

@sinewaymusic

Жыл бұрын

I 100% agree with you. However, I don't necessarily mind the feature density, I think it's the way they implemented the workflow that is the biggest problem. The Elektron boxes prove that you could achieve a much faster workflow by just changing how things work, without having to redesign any of the hardware. One hardware decision that I wish they would have done differently though is the encoders. Because they're not endless, values jump around when moving between tracks and parameters and that makes for a much more jarring experience.

@jaydeepalmer

9 ай бұрын

@@sinewaymusic there's a way to change that, i think it's in knob mode>catch, so the value won't change until you catch the og value with your knob 😊

@sinewaymusic

9 ай бұрын

@@jaydeepalmer Yeah, catch mode is what I use in the Elements jam. Unfortunately it comes with other side effects such as not always catching it in the moment. They really should implement a scale mode too, which is what eg Korg Minilogue XD uses and it works great in comparison to catch mode.

Awesome video, well done! I love my 101, by the way. Especially when paired with a RPi because, amongst other things, opens up the door for sampling and using scatter effects on external gear.

@sinewaymusic

Жыл бұрын

Thanks for those kind words, really appreciate it! The MC-101 is a fun little box indeed. 😊

@paulflores7322

Жыл бұрын

Do you have any videos of this?

Awesome comparison, I adore the syntakt but you really have me gassing for the MC 101 now haha Keep making awesome content!

@sinewaymusic

Жыл бұрын

Really appreciate the words of encouragement, thank you! Since you seem very comfortable with a multi-device setup, the MC-101 definitely fills in the gaps of the Syntakt nicely, mainly lush Roland pads/polys and sample playback. And, if you sequence it from the Syntakt, you really get the best of both worlds. Not that that helps you with the GAS, but yeah, you may be on to something. 😂 Hope you'll have a great 2023, thanks for stopping by and hope to see you around!

@thatmidlifevlogger4463

2 ай бұрын

Would Love to learn how I would have to set it up when combining these 2 beasts ?

Thanks. Like your style of comparing.

@sinewaymusic

Жыл бұрын

Really appreciate your feedback! Thanks for watching. I hope to make more videos like this in the future, in between the jams. 😊

Thanks for the tip about Track Select + Measure L/R! That's absolutely brilliant for on the fly variations that aren't as... ah, let's say "enthusiastic" as the Scatter fills.

@sinewaymusic

Жыл бұрын

Yeah, I use that feature way more than scatter, "enthusiastic" is a great way of putting it! 😂

Thanks for sharing. Very entertaining! :)

@sinewaymusic

Жыл бұрын

Really appreciate it! 🙏

nice video! thanks for the info 🙌

@sinewaymusic

10 ай бұрын

Thanks!

Great video bro

@sinewaymusic

Жыл бұрын

Really appreciate you taking the time to write this, have a great end of the year and hope to see you around in 2023!

I got the MC-101 because of the classic Roland synth sounds, fm capabilities , it looked easy to use and I can connect it with my Roland TR-6S drum machine! Amazing dawless setup.

@sinewaymusic

3 ай бұрын

It's a fun little box that punches way over its weight. Hope you'll have fun with it. 😊

@huntrrams

3 ай бұрын

@@sinewaymusic had it for a year now and it’s amazing

@sinewaymusic

3 ай бұрын

@@huntrrams Do you mostly use it standalone or connected with other gear?

I like the the way you did this and you did it well! thumbs up!

@sinewaymusic

10 ай бұрын

Really appreciate your comment, thank you!

@Moogulator

10 ай бұрын

I am into the groovebox thing and just liked the way you compared those unequal twins ;) (I really enjoy Digitakt and the 707 for different reasons) but fell in love with the size of the 101@@sinewaymusic

@sinewaymusic

10 ай бұрын

@@Moogulator I'm glad to hear that there are more of us who are into the groovebox thing! I've been in search for the ultimate groovebox for the past few years now and I just love how they allow me to expand my creative palette. Ironically, they also all present their own unique workflow obstacles that make you question why you aren't just doing it all in the DAW sometimes. 😂 Maybe the Push 3 is the ultimate compromise though? Or maybe I'm just GAS:ing? 🙈 Either way, the Syntakt is the best groovebox yet to me. And in many ways that's a close cousin of the Digitakt in terms of what sets it apart from the competition.

@Moogulator

10 ай бұрын

@@sinewaymusicI normally search for the "jamability" since the Electribes are very instant and you could start a session even with "an empty machine" (ok with samples loaded etc.) - Push 3 is something I had the chance to check out - it is cool but it is not a "live" tool like most of current machines - that's where I tend to the digitakt and would love it even more if it could memorize the note I had a step set to when I am just leaving this step out for a time and get it back by just toggle that step back to life - I think it might be better to set probability to 0, so it won't lose it's "content" (note, vel.) - and stuff like this, Push is cool since it all stays withing "Live" and you can do much - but you won't find any note on a polyphonic set fast enough to "mute" it just for one go or so - but sometimes the performance needs to be a bit different - the digitakt is flexible since it is a sampler - but here's another thing: polyphony - n.off 4 drums, but not n.off 4 a whole set ;) but I really like to make it "smaller" (2 tribes..)

At the start I was actually thinking “finally someone doing a reasonable comparison video.” 😂 Obviously I have my preferences but I think you gave both machines a reasonable shot, great video! And thanks a lot for the shoutout!

@sinewaymusic

Жыл бұрын

Haha, glad someone else sees their similarities. You more than deserve the shutout, thanks for your very helpful and uplifting tutorials! 🌟

Very nice video, thanks! I think the Syntakt versus MC-707 would be a better (and fair) comparison, btw. About the same price range. Also, the 707 has 8 tracks, way better I/O options, a better screen and is much more performance friendly than the 101.

@sinewaymusic

Жыл бұрын

I totally agree, but that would make the comparison go from strange to almost entirely reasonable. 😂 But you're absolutely right. It's a case of me reviewing what I have in front of me, really, although I would say that both the Syntakt and the MC-101 have an element of portability that make them interesting to compare too, and portability happens to be something I really value (haven't tried the OP-Z though, I envy you there a little). Glad to have you here Rene.

@renekasbergen

Жыл бұрын

@@sinewaymusic That’s fair. Who wants reasonable comparisons anyway? 😆 Don’t be envious; I would trade my OP-Z for a Syntakt if I could. Sound design seems much more interesting on the Syntakt. UX on the OP-Z is not great either (no built in screen, small plastic buttons, …). I just like it because it’s ridiculously small for such a powerful sequencer.

@gattart

Жыл бұрын

@@sinewaymusic ​ Great ‘comparison’… Too bad you posted it about a week after I got a Syntakt to go with my MC-101! You hit on every advantage and ‘problem’ I have with both synths, but you opened my eyes on a few shortcuts for both machines! The more I learn about them the better they work together. I just wanted to mention that I started down this rabbit hole with an OP-Z, which is the best instrument to keep in your pocket and still be able to do nearly everything the two bigger boxes can do… though if you want to use it live, particularly when you’re playing guitar, you will need a magnifying lens or telescopic goggles to see what you’re doing on it… alternative was getting a controller keyboard that takes up more table space than the MC101/Syntakt combined… When you get down to what I’m using these for, the MC-101 is definitely just a ROMpler, small and handy to save a quick riff or pattern ideas, the Syntakt is more of a real synth (and it replaced my Analog Keys and Mopho/Evolver modules, plus I’m getting polyphony from the Syntakt with either my RK002 or one of my Blokas MIDIHubs)… The MC-707 is enormous, which is also the reason I didn’t go for one of the newer Akai MPC boxes, they take up too much space on the table… Of course a mixer isn’t enough to control all these things making sounds, so I sub-mix most of it into an Octatrack… still working on this set-up though… Anyways, thanks for this great video!

@sinewaymusic

Жыл бұрын

Congrats on a great combo there! I agree with you, the Syntakt can be used more as a live performance synth where tweaking the timbre of the sound is part of the fun, whereas the MC-101 is more of a preset machine and sample player. They are surprisingly complimentary! If you are comfortable programming simple patterns for things like chords and additional sample one shots directly in the MC-101 sequencer, you don't have to devote any of the 12 Syntakt tracks as midi tracks, meaning you get up to 16 tracks in total. Or, if you prefer, you can just designate 1 or 2 of the Syntakt tracks to the midi 'machine' and control it directly from there instead. Either way, you get the best of both worlds: great synth sounds and drums, super fast workflow, and inspiring live performance capabilites on the Syntakt - and lush pads, amazing Roland rompler presets, and sample playback from the MC-101. And it can all still be stemmed out into 16+ separate tracks for final mixing in the DAW if you're interested in that. It's a super combo, really! The only thing I'm missing is sampling and resampling - although it can technically be done on the MC-101 via the Looper tracks (at least resampling), it's a very clumsy workflow and not very practical and fun at all. So personally, I just expanded my setup with a Digitakt and I'm also eyeing the SP-404 MKII, both could do the job for me there in different ways. As always, I'm drawn towards portability so the 404 has me GASing a little at the moment. 🙈😂 Glad the video was helpful! Hope to see you around here, I do this purely for the knowledge exchange and discussions. 😊

@gattart

Жыл бұрын

@@sinewaymusic Exactly... on almost everything... I was thinking, a lot, about getting a Digitakt before actually going for an Octatrack mk2. The OP-Z really does exactly what the Digitakt does, including the MIDI sequencing, arguably as good or better than with an Electron box, but the main thing that bothers me is the lack of stereo sampling. Though the OP-Z does some useable sampling even with its own tiny internal microphone, quite a bit more than an oversized OP-33 but certainly no way near the efficiency of any SP404... And sure, the Octatrack is a lot bigger, and a gazillion times harder to learn, but it works great as a main mixer and weird effects box even before getting into it actually sampling, re-sampling and cueing out to more effects boxes (I've got a Zoia and a Blackbox in the 'loop', and the Syntakt might end up there too). Massive overkill, but that's just me...

Ultimately we could say that the MC-101 has more track than the Syntakt. The Syntakt is 12 track monophonic, where the MC-101 has 64 voices polyphonic and if we are using only drum track, it could be 4x16 samples playing in the same time. And we should not forget about the looper track allowing us to easily record tracks to then be re-used as sample... When I am using my MC-101, I have one drum track making 90% of my sound, taking care of the bassline and to play the recorded loop. Then, I use the 3 other tracks to play synth and most of the time, I don't even use all of them at the same time. So, if you know how to use the MC-101, there is doubt that you can make a full sound out of it.

@sinewaymusic

Жыл бұрын

Thanks for your input Alexandre! The MC-101 definitely has much more generous polyphony, both in terms of polyphony per track, and total voice count overall. I'd say that polyphony is different from track count though, the latter becomes more important when recording into the DAW. But polyphony leads to other opportunities and even invites you to explore different genres of music. Yes, you can totally make full songs on the MC-101. I personally don't enjoy the sequencer workflow compared to Elektron but to each their own. 😊 Thanks for stopping by!

Hello! Thank you very much for this video! It's Very very interesting 😁👍🏼🎶 I'm beginer and I think the 101 is cool... But the Electribe too... And the circuit track and his easy work flow. 🤯😅

@sinewaymusic

2 ай бұрын

Hey, glad you found the video useful! I agree, the MC-101 is cool and hits a lot of sweet spots. My favorite is the Syntakt though, I just posted a review of it here on the channel. 😊

Great comparison! The MC101 still amazes me more from day to day. The value for money is just crazy, especially since the ZenCore update! One aspect worth mentioning is that the workflow might be more suitable for keyboard and piano players (like me). I almost only record in with a keyboard and only occasionally tweak the sequence on a per-pad base, when I messed up, and don't wanna play an entire sequence again just because of a single wrong note. I just mention this, because (as you said) you are more on the programmers side and therefore obviously have a very different idea of a sequencer workflow than many keyboard or piano players. And at least from my side I can say, that the MC101 sequencer seems to be more geared towards musicians that play in, and then it works very well.

@sinewaymusic

7 ай бұрын

Thanks for the compliment on the video. You are totally right in your reflection and if you enjoy playing live, either straight up using the non-velocity sensitive pads or by plugging in a midi keyboard, then the MC-101 sequencer is more than adequate and you can avoid most of the tedious work in it. Regarding my preferences, I actually very much enjoy both live playing and programming, and what you end up doing depends very much on the workflow of the device. For example, on the MPC and MC-101, I prefer to play things live because their interfaces invite you to do it (especially the MPC with its velocity sensitive pads with polyphonic aftertouch). The Syntakt, on the other hand, has such an elegant workflow for the sequencer that programming becomes a fun exploration (eg when you press the wrong trig and stumble over interesting syncopation that enhances the track). Then there's definitely an aspect of the genre of music influencing how much your sequencing depends on "clever tricks". If you eg play a pop music melody using a piano sound on the MC-101, you probably don't need to tweak individual notes much (other than velocity), but if you are playing a techno bass line, the way you design it with per-step automation like varying the filter cutoff or the envelopes can really add to the overall interest of the bass in general. And this is where the Elektron sequencer really shines because you can create so much more than just a series of notes with a static sound. Hope that makes sense! And I agree that the MC-101 packs an incredible amount of punch. It must have the highest sound quality per gram ratio of any groovebox. 😂

@suga4all

7 ай бұрын

@@sinewaymusic Fully agreed!

1. Zen Core and access to so many parameters makes the difference! Possibilities of sound design on MC-101 are endless (but of course learning curve is much steeper than on Syntakt). If you don't like designing your sounds use the function of random sound design - MC-101 will randomize some parameters and will create new sounds for you ;) 2. Comparing 4 tracks vs 12 tracks is not fair. On MC-101 you have drum tracks (so you can play at the same time up to 16 different samples) and polyphonic synth tracks. And don't forget that the track can be up to 128 steps which is not very common thing in the world of grooveboxes. And one more thing: you can have different instrument on every single clip on one track ;) 3. Build quality of MC-101 is absolutely super-b. Lack of metal is not an issue at all (actually it is an advantage of the device because it is so light with that kind of materials). It doesn't catch any scratches. Knobs and sliders work super smooth. Pads are soft and nice (but a little too small). Lightning/illumination of MC-101 not only looks nice but also is very useful (colors gives you more/additional information) 4. With the USB cable you can export all separate tracks from MC-101 to any DAW you want. 5. You can load sound packs exported from Zenology to SD card, you can have gigabytes of samples added to MC-101... 6. Transportability! Load it with 4xAA accumulators, put it into a small case and you are ready to go! Yesterday I made a nice track while waiting for my wife in the car ;) I am a HUGE fan of MC-101. I love it in every single aspect. As I wrote - the learning curve is really steep because it gives you so many possibilities and also requires you to learn many shortcuts... but when you know what you are doing... man! It is a beast! Spend more time with MC-101! When you have "muscle memory" everything works as butter ;)

@antoineauzillaud

Жыл бұрын

Hi, how do you randomize sound parameters ? I only find randomize sound itself.

@SmallWorldBigThings

Жыл бұрын

@@antoineauzillaud Maybe I was not precize enough. MC-101 can help you to generate new sounds by randomizing (internally) Zencore parameters. You can access it by going here: INIT TONE -> RANDOM -> select what type of sound you want to have genrated

@sinewaymusic

Жыл бұрын

Great to hear that the MC-101 is working well for you! It's indeed an incredibly capable little device. I'm not sure if you watched the entire video but I covered many of the points you're raising here, such as the portability, the voice count/polyphony, the sample playback, etc. You have a good point about the random tone generator. To be honest, I didn't bring it up because I never use it. I tried it a number of times but found it to be mostly gimmicky - it often just generates a standard roland poly synth sound with a weird percussion romple, like a tom drum. But I'm sure you can sometimes stumble over gold. I personally much prefer dialing in sounds and maybe tweaking presets, which I find to be much quicker on the Syntakt since its synth engines aren't buried in deep menu structures. But there's no denying that if you put your heart into it, the Zencore engine can generate truly amazing sounds. And to me, the 3000+ presets are most of the times more than I'll ever need, especially for where I think the MC-101 shines the most, which is its pads. 😊 Thanks for adding your perspective here, hope to see you around!

@mybrighton

Жыл бұрын

Wait till you checkout the 1.8 update!!

@sullycliftona

5 ай бұрын

I just hope I can learn the flow of my 101 , it’s so nice wen I get a few beats together but I really don’t know what I’m doing at the moment..

great video thanks … I would say best is to have both of them :-) I can see how they can complement pretty well ..

@sinewaymusic

Жыл бұрын

They definitely complement each other very well. Secretly I wish the Roland could sample mangle too, that would have been the icing on the cake of this particular combo. Thanks for the feedback on the video and have a great end of 2022!

thanks for your video

@sinewaymusic

Жыл бұрын

Thanks for your comment, appreciate it!

Great entertaining video.

@sinewaymusic

8 ай бұрын

Thanks James, I appreciate it! Hope it gave you an idea of which of these is best for you.

Get an Electribe 2 while they still make them. You get 16 polyphonic tracks, playable pads (with scale modes) + xy pad, the control knobs do the thing they're labeled to do, and the effects are pretty good too. Use it as a multitimbral synth, use it as an effects box, use it as a polyphonic multitrack sequencer, use it as a groovebox/sketchpad and export to ableton, play it live. I've never met anybody that regretted buying one. The Digitakt is better at chopping and editing samples but if you really want a sample oriented workflow, go for the Roland SP-404 mk2. The Digitone is a nice box too, but all of these Elektron boxes have really funky limitations. As for the Roland MC series: it looks good on paper, they sound fine, but they've somehow managed to improve nothing over what was already in the market.

MC101 has 90+ effects, though I suppose some of them are like...variations of others...like the multi-tap delays. But is that counter balanced by the JDMulti being a modular mix of 4 simultaneous effects? The debate continues!

@sinewaymusic

Жыл бұрын

I'd settle the debate by saying that there are more effects than you need. 😂 That said, I would have loved to see better reverbs and ideally as per-track inserts.

I think I'll use get a used MC-101 as a sound module for my MPC: all the great sounds and effects, none of the workflow issues !

@sinewaymusic

Ай бұрын

That's definitely a good way of using it! Have you considered the S-1 and doing sample groups?

@liotier

Ай бұрын

@@sinewaymusic Got a TB-3 for live acid noodling, so the S-1 would be extra redundant...

@sinewaymusic

Ай бұрын

@@liotier got it. Was thinking that the S-1 can approximate a lot of different synths from Roland including the Juno too. But then again the MC-101 can do more stuff like some rompler/JD-800 fun. And I guess a third option is to just buy the Jura plugin for the MPC. 😊

@liotier

Ай бұрын

@@sinewaymusic So far, the MPC was my everything - it is to me the complete studio in a box... But its studio leanings are also a limitation: jamming live or explaining to my young kids doesn't vibe well with pages and menus. So, I acquired cheap one-knob-per function devices for a "live fun" setup: TR-8, TB-3 and MX-1 - with the MPC clock master and sending a couple sequenced tracks to the mixer... It could just as well sequence the MC-101 for a couple more tracks to the mixer - the MX-1's USB audio compatibility is a bonus. The MPC alone already does pretty much all I want for sit-down introspective composition - but stand-up groovy noodling along and twirling knobs is all about the UI and those old, unloved and therefore now cheap Aira devices are just the ticket for that. In that spirit, maybe later add a System-1, and even a J-6 as a MIDI controller to improvise chord sequences live - those two device are just as depreciated as their cousins on the used market... Turns out that immediate accessibility doesn't show in specification comparison charts - but it is the defining feature for live play. On the other hand, a silent compact autonomous menu-divey device such as the MC-101 is fine for public transportation, where there MPC is just as impractical as Elektron devices... And used at 250€ it is great value.

@sinewaymusic

Ай бұрын

​@@liotierI 100% agree with you that it's all about the workflow/experience in the end. That's why I thought of the S-1 too because that's one Roland product that seems to be universally liked, whereas the MC-101 is often criticized of being menu divey and not having a knob-per-function interface. You're right that the MC-101 can be had very cheap in the used market and the S-1 is probably more rare, so giving an MC-101 a go to see if you enjoy it seems like a good idea. That's what I did and I got to have some fun with it without losing money. 👌

This is a great comparison. I have the mc 101 and its actually amazing sounding. I need to go back to it but I've been really into my DT and DN cause they are easier for me to sequence.

@sinewaymusic

Жыл бұрын

That's it really - the MC-101 sounds amazing, and the Elektrons are so much easier to sequence. Thanks for your feedback on the video, really appreciate it!

@SmallWorldBigThings

Жыл бұрын

Update it to the latest firmware (currently v1.81) - it adds a ton of great features! ;)

@boombap08

Жыл бұрын

@@SmallWorldBigThings I have to do this im still at 1.72, thanks

@GeorgeLocke

Жыл бұрын

@boombap08 have you tried sequencing the mc101 with your elektron boxes? Seems like you could get the benefit of the elektron sequencer and the zen core sound? I've been thinking about this as a way to add pads to my DT jams...

@boombap08

Жыл бұрын

@@GeorgeLocke yea good call dude, I've been meaning to try that out! thanks

I think you said it best at the end. The MC-101 is a sound module. It wants to be paired with a drum machine. It wants to be sequenced by midi. If you're looking to do sound design on the fly, you want to be on it's big brother, the MC-707. However, you can set the 101 up so that each clip is a different instrument on each track. That means you can have 64 different instruments available at the press of a button. So when you are using more than one device, it's actually more powerful than the syntakt, especially in a live performance. Seriously, SET YOUR SYNTAKT UP TO CONTROL THE 101. Tracks 1-4 are controlled via channel 1-4. Boom. Elektron workflow on the 101. Most of the important controls are exposed via CCs.

@sinewaymusic

Күн бұрын

Yeah, that's what we did with the MC-101 + Syntakt jam. The sequencer workflow of the Syntakt is definitely more fun. 😊

As an MC-101 owner this was fascinating to see how the Syntakt compares. I found the workflow example interesting because, as I exclusively use the 101 for hardware, it never occurred to me to copy something in that manner. Really shows how the tools we use shape what we do.

@sinewaymusic

Жыл бұрын

How do you copy steps in the MC-101 - are there faster ways? Not sure what you meant by exclusively using the MC-101 for hardware, you mean you're using the synth engine as a sound module but sequencing it from other gear?

@riffcrypt8438

Жыл бұрын

@@sinewaymusic Haha I just mean that I'm a dabbler in music production and it's the only piece of hardware kit I own. Given how copying notes in the manner you did is a pain I tend to do 1 of 2 things, either live record the additional notes onto the clip, or adjust the clip length so it just repeats where I want. So, for example, I'd probably hit record and play the notes, or just make it a 12 step clip. Both of those would be faster imo, but more so they just line up with how the MC-101 feels like it wants to be used.

@sinewaymusic

Жыл бұрын

@@riffcrypt8438 That makes sense, and yeah, you're right that re-recording is probably the easiest way to "copy" notes on the MC-101. It just assumes that you're good at playing things live, which I can't say I am. :)

@ruscular

Жыл бұрын

Interesting breakdown of the workflow. I use the polyend tracker for the composition work and the MV-1 for the sound engine. MV-1 is also by Roland and uses the same sound engine and function of the MC707,101 The copy and paste feature of the polyend is much like a modern computer, just highlight what you want copy and then paste to where you want it to be. Unlike being monophonic, you have 8 tracks of mono notes to play with, and then record to the MV-1 single track. Both the MC-101 and MV-1 are around $500 and if the Syntact is more than twice that, then maybe the polyend tracker and MC-101 combo is also another possibility.

@sinewaymusic

Жыл бұрын

@@ruscular I'm actually very intrigued by the Polyend Tracker Mini and could see myself using that around the house and even when traveling. I'm currently trying out the SP-404 MKII, but as usual, the Roland workflow isn't really fluid. 😂

The Syntakt is so much fun with the feel, workflow and the graphics. It just speaks to me and it never gets old seeing the changes you’re making. It’s the photoshop of sound to me.

@sinewaymusic

Жыл бұрын

I 100% agree! The user interface is so rewarding to use, that's actually another element of that video game analogy I talk about in the video. Thanks for sharing your thoughts, hope to see you around in 2023!

I am about to buy the 101 only to use as an external sound source. The 6000+ presets, right away from Rolands best synths of last 25 years are in this thing. Juno emulations, from JV880 to JV5050 to SHS to Fantom G and latest Fantom. Together with best drumkits. Forget about the workflow. I use other gear for that.

@sinewaymusic

Жыл бұрын

Yeah I think that's a great way of thinking about it. You really get the best sounds of Roland in a tiny little affordable box and it's dead simple to sequence externally like we did in our latest jam here on the channel. 😊

@spectralknights2

4 ай бұрын

Hi I thought it's only 3000 presets according to their website?

@thatmidlifevlogger4463

2 ай бұрын

@@spectralknights2yes I also wonder ??

Thanks. Really was looking for this kind of video, because I have MC-101 for some time and kinda hate it (im into modular) so decided to get syntakt - and your words about "it is more immidiate and you're more in control" - the same thing I love in modular, as MC-101 with it's menu diving is just ugghhh. As far as I can see syntakt is like OP-1 in the ways it approaches interface and feature

@sinewaymusic

Жыл бұрын

Thanks for the feedback and I'm glad you liked the comparison! I haven't tried the OP-1 but I'm sure they have many things in common and they're both made by Swedish companies. 😊 Yes, the MC-101 menu diving is a problem. It gets better with use, but it's never really pleasant. That said, dialing in a preset and then controlling it from the Syntakt was a surprisingly smooth experience! The latest jam showcases how well they work together. Thanks for watching!

Cool video! Can I ask if that’s a particular song you’re playing with the JP8 pad at 1:44? Sounds so familiar it’s driving me crazy haha

@sinewaymusic

Жыл бұрын

Interesting! I was just playing improvising, but I'm sure I'm subconsciously influenced by the sum of all the music I've listened to over the years. Let me know if you come up with the name of it!

@eiderspeggs

Жыл бұрын

Thanks! Damn, I had a really strong feeling of recognition... Maybe I’ve just played something similar myself or something like that. I’ll tell you if I figure it out!

@sinewaymusic

Жыл бұрын

@@eiderspeggs I can't tell you how often I've almost finished a song and then realized that it sounds so much like some other already published song. Sometimes it's even a song I made myself, so it turns into a remix. 😂 I guess it's inevitable that this happened from time to time - or I'm just getting old. 🙈

Syntakt is analog drum machine too. Don't forget about it. It sounds really nice. What kills MC 101 is workflow. Syntakt is also limited with it's MONO synth...

@sinewaymusic

Жыл бұрын

All good points! Agree with all of them. 😊

@meilstone

Жыл бұрын

I like the 4-voice polyphonic Midi tracks on the Syntakt.

@sinewaymusic

Жыл бұрын

@@meilstone Yeah, that's good to have indeed.

I own the MC-101 and I agree with your conclusion. I am happy with it though since I compose more than I play live. Maybe the comparison should have been made between the MC-707 and the Syntakt... I also have the Model:Cycles and I really love its workflow ; way easier and immediate than the Roland... If on a budget, the MC-101 and the Model:Cycles make a great pair imho.

@sinewaymusic

10 ай бұрын

Thanks for sharing your thoughts! That does sound like a really nice combo and you get to benefit from the workflow of Elektron together with the sounds of the Roland. I agree that an MC-707 would have been a more fair comparison, but since I didn't own it, the MC-101 had to do it. 😊

Nice comparison, I personally use the syntakt to get my tracks started quicker. It's much easier for me to pull out the Syntakt to get a track started with full time job than firing up the whole studio. A added plus is that I can take to my dj gigs and do some live performances or add nice analog drums during long breaks in a song

@sinewaymusic

10 ай бұрын

Thanks for sharing how you use it. It's such a quick idea starter for me, I love it even more today than I did when I recorded this video. 😊

OMG! I did not know that the MC101 could produce or replicate the sound of Roland synths. So basically, with an MC101 and a midi-keyboard you can have the Roland synth lineup? If that's true, sign me up for that feature alone. Even if I never used it as a grovebox, that synth engine alone (along with form factor) would be worth the price of admission. Thank you for pointing this out.

@sinewaymusic

8 ай бұрын

Yeah, that's how many people think about the MC-101, as a small little Roland sound module. It's great for that with its 4-part timbrality.

I have both, having used the Syntakt extensively and starting now with the MC101. MC101 is definitely the preferred option. Sound design-wise Syntakt is interesting (although the Roland sound is simply better), but the lack of the clips equivalent is absolutely devastating, in Syntakt essentially, you need to build an entire song out of the 16 patterns available or otherwise end up with unsync audio design parameters. MC101 with the clip based composition simply makes sense if you need to build something like a real song and not an endless repetition. Syntakt might be an option if it had the Clip Ronald mechanism. With all due respect how to copy settings is not really a workflow discussion, the workflow has to do with how you are building a song or a track not the mechanics of copying. I believe Elektron is getting away with too much nonsense due to their superior design and excellent build quality.

@sinewaymusic

Жыл бұрын

Sounds like you missed a fundamental part of how the Syntakt works! You have access to 8 banks on the Syntakt, so that's 8x16 patterns in total per project. I have yet to exceed the first 16 patterns in a song so far though, but it's good to know that you're not limited to them. Which one sounds the best is highly subjective but I'd say that the Syntakt sounds rougher and more "raw", whereas the MC-101 sounds more "polished". A lot of that probably has to do with its chorus effects that creates this fuzzy, yet crisp halo around the synth oscillators. 😊

@tks264

Жыл бұрын

@@sinewaymusic Agreeing about the sound but I am fully aware about the banks and they are not an answer to my problem. So let me describe what I am trying to accomplish - because this workflow limitation drives me crazy and I am quite amazed few people finding this as a serious limitation: I am having a bassline let'say, for the intro part of the song and then I need to have a different bassline for the verse (or vice versa). In order to accomplish that I have two options: either copying the WHOLE pattern - essentially unlinking all other tracks, just for having a new bassline, or using a different track with the same sound on the same pattern - in order not to unlink all. Essentially, you need to built a fully fledged track before starting changing something. With MC101, I am having the same sound engine (or different) and I can simply making multiple different clips for the bassline - without having to create a different pattern of ALL the tracks. I am fully aware about conditional p-locks, fills etc but this is not as straightforward or possible for all situations.

@sinewaymusic

Жыл бұрын

@@tks264 I see what you mean about patterns containing all the clips of each track. That's different from how Roland, Ableton and FL Studio do it, and I can see how that leads to more duplication. I normally write the song to a point, and then I copy the pattern to make variations. If I add something that I really like in some of those variations, I sometimes need to copy/paste those additions into the old patterns. Let's say I tweak the bass line on a b section and want to copy that to the intro, then that's a matter of going to the b section pattern and pressing track+copy to copy the sound, or rec and then func+copy to copy the bass sequence. You get used to it pretty fast. What's good about keeping the patterns separate is that you can really mess up one pattern to a wholly different vibe while not having to worry about losing that original bassline you wrote in another patterns. So, it's pros and cons really.

@tks264

Жыл бұрын

@@sinewaymusic Got it! I am taking the same approach but I really feeling like this is seriously limiting for me - with what is otherwise a great piece of hardware! Thanks for the feedback and I appreciate the comparison!

@sinewaymusic

Жыл бұрын

@@tks264 My pleasure, I'm really here on youtube mostly for the discussions in the comments. :) I still didn't quite understand what you meant with being limited to just 16 patterns? I don't find the Elektron patterns limiting, but it can for sure get tedious to copy/paste changes over to other patterns if you have a LOT of them. The latest jam that I uploaded last week is one of the more complex songs I've made on the Syntakt, with a distinct intro, a "verse", a breakdown, a buildup, a "chorus", then a b-section/bridge, another "chorus" again, and finally an ending. All of those parts required different patterns, and there I often had to go back to copy over subtle changes made in one pattern over to the other patterns. For example, at some point I dialed in another hi hat, and in order for that sound to propagate throughout the entire song, I had to copy/paste that change over to 9 other patterns. That part isn't necessarily fun, but then again the ctrl+all functionality and being able to really mess up a pattern and have it neatly jump to another "clean" pattern after a transition is really great and can lead to really interesting transitions in general. If the hi hat clip was shared across different patterns, I would still have to make hard copies of it in order to avoid messing up the hi hat when twisting the knows at a previous section of the song. I'm looking forward to exploring the clips based workflow more though. Personally, I don't find the MC-101 to be a great example of how it can be really effective, since each track is separated there and you can't get an overview of all the clips. Something like the Ableton Push seems like a more interesting implementation for this reason.

I like both and I make complete songs on the mc 101. It is not the best for live performances for me but the syntakt is. I take the mc 101 everywhere I go so for me I would go with the 101

@sinewaymusic

Жыл бұрын

Thanks for sharing! Yeah, it all depends on what you value the most. On the portability side, the MC-101 is the clear winner, so in terms of that type of immediacy of always being with you, it's unbeatable. I find that I make much more music on the Syntakt though. In the end, they complement each other VERY well, and I enjoy sequencing the MC-101 with the Syntakt!

@nosynthtofear2681

Жыл бұрын

@@sinewaymusic Can program changes be made on the mc-101 from the syntakt already? Thanks !!

@sinewaymusic

Жыл бұрын

@@nosynthtofear2681 It's possible but the program change configuration on the Midi machine page on the Syntakt causes a delay where the MC-101 doesn't change clip until after the next cycle of the MC-101 clip, which is annoying. I guess the program change message is sent exactly when the pattern changes, and the MC-101 clip change needs to be sent before it finishes playing the current clip. Luckily there's a workaround. You can program in a p-lock a few steps before the pattern change to ensure that the clip change happens in sync with the pattern change on the Syntakt. The only problem is that this requires you to know exactly how long you'll play the Syntakt pattern and which pattern to change to next, so you are more limited from a free-form jamming perspective. I guess you'd do that once you are ready to build out a more complete and fixed song structure. With conditional trigs you can eg set it so that the program change message only happens on the last bar of a Syntakt pattern after the fourth loop playing it, using the '4:4' conditional trig. I haven't tried this yet because I tend to keep the songs reasonably simple by not having the MC-101 switch sounds throughout the song, but it's pretty cool that it's possible. In theory, you could have the MC-101 cycle between 16 different sound presets in a single song, per track! One thing that would be cool is if the program change messages on the Syntakt are sent half a bar prior to the change if you're running song mode.

@nosynthtofear2681

Жыл бұрын

@@sinewaymusic Thank you for the detailed answer. Do you have a new subscriber

@sinewaymusic

Жыл бұрын

@@nosynthtofear2681 Hope to see you around this year, I love the conversations. Will be posting a jam with the MC-101 + Syntakt soon. :)

Excelente video: muy útil, claro, directo, conciso y divertido. Gracias !

GREAT VIDEO ! I HAD THE DIGITAKT AND MC101 I STILL HAVE A MC101 ITS A AWESOME LITTLE BOX WITH GREAT UPDATES I LIKE THE ROLAND WORK FLOW THE ELEKTONS ARE NICE BUT THE WORK FLOW NOT MY CUP OF TEA

@sinewaymusic

Жыл бұрын

I appreciate your perspective! Workflow really is a very personal thing. One thing is certain: the two play well together. Just uploaded a jam that uses both devices. 😊

Sold all Volcas and Pocket operators. Now happy running MC101. Great machine. Great. Im so happy. Also have mono station and td3. Probably never sell mc101 i love it.

@sinewaymusic

9 ай бұрын

That's definitely a solid upgrade, congrats!

I've never thought that my syntakt was so inferior when compared to the mc101. Nice review, now maybe compared to the polyend play? I will have to keep the play, but maybe I will look into the mc101 in the future. Especially if it comes with all those old Roland devices emulated for free. If you want them all via vst through Roland is a real nightmare. I don't recommend it.

@sinewaymusic

Жыл бұрын

Interesting that your take is that the Syntakt is inferior, that's not my view. It really depends on what you value. The MC-101 punches way above its weight and the polyphony and Roland synth and drum sounds are incredibly nice to have depending on what kind of music you make. But the Syntakt wins through its workflow the way it invites you to explore and go on musical adventures. I've also learned that the Syntakt does an excellent job of sequencing the MC-101, so if you love the sequencer side of the Syntakt but miss a few nice pads and other sounds for your complete songs, the MC-101 and the Syntakt make an amazing duo. In fact, we just recorded a jam with the two earlier this week and I hope to share it on this channel soon. The Polyend Play looks like a fun device. I haven't explored it much to be honest but I may check it out in the future. Thanks for sharing your perspective and for watching my comparison review!

@jordanWAH

Жыл бұрын

@Sineway not really inferior exactly, I was merely complimenting the comparison in the video. I, myself, was dead set on selling my circuit tracks as I haven't been using it. Then I experimented with syncing the Roland j-6 and the tracks. Wow, do they ever work well with each other! I was really impressed.

@sinewaymusic

Жыл бұрын

@@jordanWAH Routing two grooveboxes together is both fun and annoying at the same time to me. :) I love the possibilities, but kind of hate all the cables. If I only had one box, I'd definitely stick with the Syntakt, but I've been eyeing the Circuit Tracks for a long time, and I've also considered the J6. I can definitely see how they play along really nicely. Thanks for the compliment, and I appreciate the discussion! Hope to see you around.

@thatmidlifevlogger4463

2 ай бұрын

What about combining syntakt with mc101? Is that complex ?

@jordanWAH

2 ай бұрын

@thatmidlifevlogger4463 I actually ended up selling my syntakt. But I use circuit tracks, polyend play and op-z in combinations with all my synths. It's nice to use one as a do it all drum machine plus whatever you want. But the cables are a bit of a pain.

one more thing about taking it to the bed or couch. due to its analog circuitry syntakt get really hot. nothing dangerous its just part of how it works. so if you are suffering a heat wave like im doing right now you just pick another piece of gear to take to bed lol. its a charm if its freezing its like having a cat that can techno

@sinewaymusic

Жыл бұрын

Yeah, good point. Right now in Sweden it's cold so it's a decent cat replacement at the moment. Still prefer a real cat though. 😻

@jevogroni4829

Жыл бұрын

this is an important feature to consider. it can keep you warmer than say a digitakt

Hi there, nice video. Would you please let me know what kind of or name reference so I can look at, for the stand that you are using at the beginning of the video? Thank you

@sinewaymusic

Жыл бұрын

The stand is Ikea OBEGRÄNSAD. 😊 Thanks for your feedback on the video!

@Capeluxo

Жыл бұрын

@@sinewaymusic nice, I’ve found it, but have you got the tablet or laptop stand. Because the laptop is sold out on the website 😩

@sinewaymusic

Жыл бұрын

@@Capeluxo I believe the laptop stand was taller. Unless I remember it wrong, I got the smaller tablet stand.

I spent a lot of time choosing my first groovebox and I've decided to get the MC-101. It has a lot of great features that are hard to find in other grooveboxes in same price range: it's possible to write a fairly complex tracks with it, and there is a lot of capabilities to create a really unique sound. And all that greatness is packed in such a compact form-factor. But the MC-101 workflow is far from perfect even with the latest firmware update, so sometimes I think it would be great to have a second groovebox with more relaxed music production process and simpler controls.

@sinewaymusic

Жыл бұрын

Congratulations! I'm sure you will have lots of fun making music with it. The more you dedicate time to learn it, the easier it will become to use. The potential problem of having two grooveboxes is that you end up with a less portable setup with lots of cables between two devices. If you have the space for it and you intend to make music mostly in one place, it's less of a problem, but if you enjoy taking your groovebox with you, the risk is that you increase the barrier for yourself by making it a chore to plug everything in. That said, I'm exposing myself more and more with setups using more than one device and you can definitely get used to it. In any case, my advice is to push yourself to the max to really learn the MC-101 inside out before considering what, if anything, you're missing. Have fun and thanks for watching the video!

@raulgorgulio9834

Жыл бұрын

​@@sinewaymusic I agree about the time investment in MC-101, I think the more I learn it, the better it gets. But still I want to try something else, because that's the only way to know what works best for me. Also complex setups are not really my cup of tea, so my main idea about second groovebox was to use it separately from the MC-101 - for example, if i'm tired from work, and I don't have an energy to deal with MC-101 workflow, I'll use second groovebox with more sim[ple/relaxing workflow. And if I have enough time and energy, I'll use the MC-101. And maybe I'll end up with using only one of the grooveboxes, so I'll sell another one to keep my setup as minimal as possible.

@sinewaymusic

Жыл бұрын

@@raulgorgulio9834 It's all an exploration and a journey. What other groovebox are you looking at?

@raulgorgulio9834

Жыл бұрын

@@sinewaymusic I'm thinking about getting the Polyend Tracker - I watched some reviews and it looks like that the Tracker has a very fast and easy to start workflow, especially with all that generative patterns and fx stuff. And I think it would be fun to play around with FM-radio sampling. I usually don't like grooveboxes with big screens, but for some reason in case of Tracker that doesn't bother me much. My other option was the Model:Cycles - it's awesome, but it lacks a proper song mode and a keyboard fold option. It might be fixed with future firmware updates, but it's a lottery, so right now the Polyend Tracker feels like a more suitable option for me.

@sinewaymusic

Жыл бұрын

@@raulgorgulio9834 The Polyend Tracker looks like fun. I haven't tried it myself but I guess the main question is whether you like the tracker workflow to begin with. Even though the Polyend makes it a bit more immediate compared to, say, an M8, it's still based on the same approach. From what I understand, once you get good at it, you can build up music really fast, and the generative aspects may lead to many happy accidents (which is my favorite thing about the Elektron workflow). Have you considered the Polyend Play at all?

Okay, lets say I wanna start making music without a DAW and I'm just starting out. I want to buy a center piece that can be "added to" by adding synths to make new sounds. What should I get, if I want as little gear as possible without upgrading it, (hopefully) ever? If money isn't an issue of course.

@sinewaymusic

Жыл бұрын

It's really hard to make a straight recommendation without knowing a little more about you and your music. What genres do you enjoy playing? And how would you describe your experience level? If you have some experiences with DAWs, you may enjoy an MPC and it could well end up being the only thing you need. But if you don't really enjoy a DAW-like workflow and want to stay away from it, then the MPC may feel too much of the same thing. If you want to have fun and enjoy samples primarily, the Digitakt is awesome. If you prefer synthesized sounds primarily, the Syntakt is equally awesome. All of these are the kind of gear that you can expand upon rather than outgrow. Hope that helps, feel free to ask more questions if not!

@Rasgore4

Жыл бұрын

@@sinewaymusic I don't have a lot of experience at all. I'm a musician, mainly a drummer who wants to make some techno beats, maybe synthwave as well. I forgot to mention that I already own a Nord Drum 3P so I'd love to add that into my workflow and yeah I don't want to work with a DAW at all if possible. Thanks for your quick response man. You're helping a lot!

@sinewaymusic

Жыл бұрын

@@Rasgore4 When you say techno, it's very easy to recommend an Elektron device as they're basically built for it, they play so nicely with other gear, and they're incredibly fun to use (once you get over the initial learning curve). I don't have experience with the Nord Drum 3p but I think it doesn't have a sequencer, and the Elektron would add that and make it really easy to program. But you're also a drummer so you could in theory perform drums and record it into the sequencer live too. As to which one to choose, I'm hesitating a bit but would pick either the Digitakt or the Digitone in this case. The Syntakt feels a bit like too much overlap with the Nord Drum given that both offer drum synthesis. Between the Digitakt and the Digitone, it depends on what kind of techno you prefer. Melodic techno with chord progressions and arps? Probably the Digitone is better. More drum oriented techno? Then I'd consider the Digitakt. One key strength of the Digitakt is obviously that it can sample too. So you could eg do a live performance on the Nord Drum for a bar or two, and then record it as a sample, chop it up and mess with it in creative ways on the Digitakt. Both the Digitone and the Digitakt have separate midi tracks and can easily control your other gear, the Digitakt has 8 midi tracks and the Digitone has 4. So it comes down to whether you want to mainly focus on melodies, chords and arps (for synthwave this will arguably be a must), in which case you pick the Digitone, or if you mainly want to focus on drums, bass and monophonic melodic lines, in which case the Digitakt will be the better choice. Keep in mind that both of these are excellent choices and they happen to pair really nicely together too, so my best advice would be to pick the one you lean the most towards and buy it in the used market. If you don't click with it, just flip it again and either pick the other one or research other gear. Hope this helps, and be sure to let me know what you end up choosing!

@sinewaymusic

Жыл бұрын

@@Rasgore4 I forgot to add, this video gives some ideas on what an Elektron sequencer can do together with the Nord Drum: kzread.info/dash/bejne/poWHsJuThKWWnsY.html. And here's another one running it with the Digitone instead: kzread.info/dash/bejne/fX9txZqEqJDIdaQ.html

@Rasgore4

Жыл бұрын

@@sinewaymusic Thank you so much! Sounds like I'm gonna get the Digitakt as soon as I find a fairly cheap one used and maybe add to it with a Digitone later if I like the workflow :D and of course I've seen Jeremy's video already :P he has some great stuff

I have neither of these, but now I'm sort of interested in the MC101... Haaha

@sinewaymusic

9 ай бұрын

It's a great sound module for sure! Still has that Roland workflow though, love it or hate it. 🙈

You can change Scatter mode behaviour and effects as well as making complete sound design, also Roland opened access to all features of synth engine. The only thing it doesn’t have is vocal, but this can be covered by samples. It has scenes and clips that are very useful for live jams, battery and USB power is awesome. Many people ignore synth engine(sad), as it’s hard to make sounds from scratch with such retro display. Syntakt has less effects, gritty sound, it’s synth only, no sampling, but interesting mod buttons and fx bus. Powerful features: ctrl+all, song mode, fill, sequencer. I’d pick 101 as all in one device. For brain bending music and fun - polyend play.

@sinewaymusic

Жыл бұрын

You pretty much summed the video up there, I think I'm covering all of your points up to your own choice in the end. 😊 Thanks for adding your thoughts to the discussion, I'd love to give the Polyend Play a try. Have a great weekend!

@wickeddubz

Жыл бұрын

@@sinewaymusic i wanted to add some extra thoughts about portability, underestimated synth engine and general impressions. Also, consider Yamaha RM1x if you want to have all in one device, or make a comparison new vs old, just to show people that old gear is still good for making music

@sinewaymusic

Жыл бұрын

I see. I tried to land the point about portability as clearly as I could, but maybe I could have done a better job at it. 😊

@wickeddubz

Жыл бұрын

@@sinewaymusic well, i made digitakt to be portable. You’ll need 18v battery from cordless drill like bosch or dewalt , adapter to 12v and diy power wire with barrel plug. It gives enough juice to power up any any square elektron =)

Haha,nice machines ✌️ cool songs also.where did u get the lil stand for the syntakt?

@sinewaymusic

Жыл бұрын

Thanks for the feedback about the songs! The stand is from Ikea, it's a limited run series called OBEGRÄNSAD. 😊

@davecurtis6930

Жыл бұрын

Your welcome,I played live once pairing the Korg ea-1 analogue synthesizer as master over the old orange Roland groovebox as slave thru midi.

@sinewaymusic

Жыл бұрын

@@davecurtis6930 The Roland D2?

@davecurtis6930

Жыл бұрын

@@sinewaymusic yes, it's been awhile since I used that one,i also have the Korg rythm synthesizer.

@sinewaymusic

Жыл бұрын

@@davecurtis6930 Never used it but it looks awesome! I started my journey on a Roland W-30 workstation. 😊

Comparing a sampler vs a synthesizer is rarely comparable

@sinewaymusic

Жыл бұрын

Hence the title using the word "strangest". 😊 Hopefully you saw my points in the video though. One note: the MC-101 is unfortunately not a sampler, it can only play back samples. It's one of my dream feature requests on it actually, but I'm sure that won't happen. Have a great week ahead!

Has to be MC-101 ! Important winning factor in my opinion is that the MC-101 sounds better than any, TR-909 clone, TR-808 clone, etc, because it can be used as a controller to roland cloud albeit with a subscription. The sound quality really is worth it. Even without a subscription the Zen Core sound packs are great also. Great vid 👍

@sinewaymusic

Жыл бұрын

It's a great little piece of gear that punches way above its weight. I 100% agree about the sound quality. I'd say if you are good at playing by ears on the pads or an attached midi keyboard, the sequencer workflow doesn't get in the way much either. But I definitely prefer the Syntakt for pure sequencing workflow. Thanks for the comment about the video!

I have a Digitakt and a TR6s as a portable drum machine I take with me. It’s really hard to get into it with menu diving and figuring out how to do things. But I love the Digitakt’s workflow that I got a Syntakt too and I feel I have no reason to hold on to the TR6s. I somehow can’t get satisfying sounds or programming. It can be irritating too. I only am attached to it now cuz it’s cheaper, has batteries, and that I have instant access to classic drums like 707 and 909. Otherwise Elektron is way more fun

@sinewaymusic

Жыл бұрын

I know what you mean, the battery, price and instant access to those kits make it hard to justify selling it. But then again, workflow matters so much to me. With a Digitakt and Syntakt, I probably wouldn't keep a TR6s, but I would probably still keep the 101 just for its amazing pad possibilities. 😊

MC-101 is insane ones you get used to the workflow. I use it all the time, everywhere and for anything. I haven’t used a Syntakt but I really don’t like the sounds people make with it.

@sinewaymusic

10 ай бұрын

Yeah you can't argue with taste! I like what *I* create myself on the Syntakt, but I largely agree that the preset sounds of it aren't great unless you really work with it. In comparison, the MC-101 spits out lush sounds with no effort at all - the effort there has more to do with wrestling its sequencer workflow. 😂

low key want to grab a syntakt just to make some dub techno

@sinewaymusic

10 ай бұрын

It's great at that!

Most people complain about short sample time on MC101/707 but if you only use for MPC style pads, makes it much better than a looper. I also have OT for looping so i use 707 for bassline and lead/pad/fx and bring a TD3 into it. and a TR8s into my Octatrack for live looping.

@isaacanthonydj4124

Жыл бұрын

i really wish the 101/707 had a VST interface, it's a huge pain arse diving deep in the synth engine.

@isaacanthonydj4124

Жыл бұрын

Why not put Your 101 audio into the ST audio input? Use the best of both. You can also put audio and midi i/o of your iPad, into 101 via USB and have tons of apps sync to 101.

@SmallWorldBigThings

Жыл бұрын

@@isaacanthonydj4124 1. Zenology is the answer. 2. Zen core in MC-101 is really not so hard to learn. Spend few evenings with it and you will catch it ;)

@sinewaymusic

Жыл бұрын

@@isaacanthonydj4124 That's why there are audio cables from the MC-101 to the Syntakt in the video, it's a great way of using the two together. 😊

@sinewaymusic

Жыл бұрын

@@SmallWorldBigThings I totally agree that it's actually surprisingly easy to navigate. My point in the video was more about how it's not particularly fun. Also, its design means it's not meant to be performed live. If you watch my jam called Oasis, you'll see how I'm changing the timbre of the lead/arp dynamically throughout the song, and that's the kind of stuff that the Syntakt synthesizer engine invited you to do with its flat design. The Partial editor on the MC-101 feels more like a tool you use to create a great preset, but then you still won't really tweak it as part of your performance other than maybe the filter cutoff and decay and things like that. To my knowledge, you can't map one of the knobs to, say, the shape of the oscillator or something like that, which would make it more interesting as a performance sequencer. But for static sound design, the Partial editor is more than adequate and straightforward enough to use. Thanks for your input!

I think Syntakt vs MC-707 would be a much fairer comparison.

@sinewaymusic

Жыл бұрын

I appreciate your input. Rene Kasbergen said the same thing below and I don't disagree. However, I do think the Syntakt and the MC-101 share some aspects like portability, which is a big reason why I purchased both of them. In comparison, the MC-707 feels more like a piece of studio equipment than a groovebox, though I admit I may be splitting hairs. 😊

@BurstupTV

9 ай бұрын

@@sinewaymusic Since you said in the video that you love the sound of the MC-101 but you're frustrated by its UI, you should really try the MC-707. It's easy to use and pure joy. The perfect groovebox in my opinion. And it's also portable - I use it with a Ripcord cable and a normal power bank (the kind you'd use for a smartphone).

@sinewaymusic

9 ай бұрын

@@BurstupTV Yeah I'm sure I'd enjoy the workflow more on the 707, but at this point I'm not sure if I could ever live without the conditional trigs and ctrl+all functionality of the Elektron boxes. I wish there was a machine that combined the sounds of Roland with the workflow of Elektron. 😊

@BurstupTV

9 ай бұрын

​@@sinewaymusic The MC-707 has conditional triggers. They were implemented more than a year ago with an update. I own several Elektron boxes, including the Model:Cycles, Model:Samples and Syntakt. I like them, but they can't compare to the MC-707. Why is every channel on the Elektron boxes monophonic? The MC-707 has 128 voice polyphony. It kicks the Syntakt's butt in my humble opinion.

@sinewaymusic

9 ай бұрын

@@BurstupTV Interesting, I didn't know that. The 101 just has probability, no conditional trigs like 1:2, 4:4, Fill, etc. The lack of polyphony sucks on the Syntakt, I don't disagree.

Wow. Using Digitakt in my bike trips, but Roland looks waaaay more portable 🤔 Thanks for comparison!

@sinewaymusic

Жыл бұрын

It's definitely more portable, especially when considering the power brick and cords. Thanks for watching and for your comment!

The Update Firmware 1.8 on the MC101 is insane!! Now a full synth engine! oh and UNDO, REDO :)

@sinewaymusic

Жыл бұрын

It's really good indeed! And it's actually surprisingly quick to navigate once you get yourself familiar with it. I'd say it's still a sound design tool more than a performance synth. In other words, I'd never tweak the parameters live during a jam, but rather dial in a static preset and use things like the filter cutoff knob live. In contrast, the Syntakt synth engine was designed specifically for live tweaking, and it's so fun to do it!

value/price wise Syntakt is next to the roland mc-707

@sinewaymusic

8 ай бұрын

You are absolutely right. But the MC-101 was what I had at home to compare with the Syntakt. 😊 I do think many of the points made in the video are still true even if you swapped the MC-101 out with the 707.

Soild shout out for Ben Coe!

@sinewaymusic

Жыл бұрын

He's awesome!

@BenCoeMusic

Жыл бұрын

Thanks guys!

@sinewaymusic

Жыл бұрын

@@BenCoeMusic Thank YOU for making me love my MC-101 more. Hope you'll have a wonderful 2023!

@NeoLudditevisons

Жыл бұрын

@@BenCoeMusic the man himself!! All hail big Ben 😎

Never thought about the syntakt. I really like the elektron workflow which I discovered through the Model Samples, but the MC101 is just so much more. I think the 101 has some big potential for live performance, but you do need to do some good prep work and you have a much bigger sonic palette with the 101. I have made proper old school roots sounding Dub on the MC-101 which would be impossible to achieve on the Syntakt.

@sinewaymusic

Жыл бұрын

Both devices are great in very different ways. I think the same thing can be said about the Syntakt, there are things I've made on it that I'd never be able to do on the MC-101. The Elektron workflow is the key here for me, it's so fast to use. I've made more complete songs in 5 months than I made in 18 months with the MPC, just as an example. Just finished a song made with the Syntakt and the MC-101 playing together and I have to say they make an awesome combo!

@DocBolus

Жыл бұрын

@@sinewaymusic that's the thing, that is what I love getting 2 grooveboxes working in harmony to get a sound that neither could produce alone. My favourite combo is the 101 and The Model:Samples

@sinewaymusic

Жыл бұрын

@@DocBolus That does sound like a fun combo indeed!

Im definitely gonna get one of these im a hardware guy who uses a multi track with different bits of hardware like roland t8 the s1 po ko33 Yamaha djx and synth apps on my phone so this is gonna be my next purchase

@sinewaymusic

10 ай бұрын

Which one are you leaning towards?

i like the comparison. it is rich and interesting. it is possible to come away from this, at different points, wanting either or disliking either. in the end, I don't want to deal with a stupid workflow. i wish we had an elektron box that was smaller and ran on batteries, or had quiet pads, or polyphony. and rolands giant sounds collection is handy. but i can do without all of that. i dont want to be frustrated by a workflow so much.

@sinewaymusic

Жыл бұрын

Honestly, you just described my absolute dream groovebox right there. Add sampling to it too! 😂 Seriously, that would be amazing. Anyway, if workflow is important to you, I think you'd be happier with an Elektron box. Whether it's the Syntakt or something else like the Digitakt or Digitone depends on what kind of music you make. I just pulled the trigger on a Digitakt because I miss using samples for texture and ear candy. Can't wait to jam with it alongside the Syntakt to see what that brings to the table. Thank you so much for your feedback on the video! It means a lot. And sorry for replying so late, I had somehow missed your comment.

@jevogroni4829

Жыл бұрын

@@sinewaymusic the Digitakt was the "thing to try" for me too. i started small, pricewise, and built up to it. first I had the volca sample, then I got the ES-1. after a while I knew I wanted something else that could sample, but hold more patterns and more samples. the workflow (and features) of the Digitakt are great--really inspiring and good-sounding, but it could easily be improved even more. I guess there is no perfect sampler.

@sinewaymusic

Жыл бұрын

@@jevogroni4829 Samplers are the worst in that "there's no perfect x" category, I agree! Every one of them is crippled in some shape or form. However, what I like about the Digitakt is that it sort of approaches samples as synth oscillators. As someone who makes electronic music, this is what I gravitate towards. I don't use samples in the way a hiphop/lofi musician would, where the focus seems to be on sampling entire phrases of other songs and chopping them up into new creative music. For me, it's about sampling an interesting sound and make it even more interesting, whether it's some form of percussive drum, or a fat synth sound, or even a single-cycle waveform. I feel like the Digitakt is really leaning towards that kind of sampling. Sure, you can use it for the traditional long-form samples too and build really cool ambient textures and background vibes, but its real strength is in using it in electronic music where you mess with the parameters like attack, decay, filter cutoff etc just like you would on a synthesizer sound. The Digitakt and Syntakt are closerly related in that regard. Contrast this with the SP-404, which seems much more designed for that "full phrase" sampling workflow where you chop things up, apply unique effects, resample and end up with something really interesting sounding on its own, but where the focus isn't on the kind of layering of tracks as you normally do in electronic music, where the kick is separate from the snare, and where the bass is separate from the lead etc. On the SP-404, it's the sum of all parts that become mangled in the sampler and it leads to radically different results. Personally, the Digitakt is a no-brainer and although I would have loved to see polyphony, more tracks, stereo sampling and why not some proper granular synthesis, it's still the most interesting sampler out there for the kind of music and workflow *I'm* into. All this said, I really like using Syntakt in standalone, so I think of the Digitakt more as Robin, where Syntakt is Batman, if that makes sense. I'll probably mostly use the Digitakt to "fill in the blanks" in a song, by adding some texture, grit, and maybe the occasional acoustic instruments and drums. Maybe once or twice I might attempt some house-y vocals too, but that's about as far as I'd probably push the Digitakt. If I make jams using both the Syntakt and the Digitakt at the same time, I still want to retain the possibility of unplugging everything and just jamming with the Syntakt in standalone without it feeling like 50% of the track is suddenly lost. At least in the sketching phase of a song, it's very important to me that I'm still able to sketch it out without all the mess of cables between two devices hooked together. But that's just me. I take the "bedroom producer" description quite seriously sometimes. :)

For me, what make MC-101 stand out from all the other Groovebox is the scatter effect! Since I got used to it, I cannot imagine getting another Groovebox without such feature...

@sinewaymusic

Жыл бұрын

Interesting! It's probably my least used feature because I find them to be so difficult to program. How do you use them?

@alexandrepiel

Жыл бұрын

@@sinewaymusic I think it depends on the style of music your are playing. I like to play psytrance and acid tekkno, for that, scatter effect is perfect fit to make crazy sound. However, it is important to use it in combination of the master effect (MM filter), playing with the knobs in the same time that you play the scatter.

@sinewaymusic

Жыл бұрын

@@alexandrepiel Got any jams recorded? Would love to hear how you perform on it!

@alexandrepiel

Жыл бұрын

@@sinewaymusic Hehe, no sorry, I am a bit shy about my music :p

@sinewaymusic

Жыл бұрын

@@alexandrepiel Most of us are. 😊 It took me years to finally publish some jams. Let me know when you're ready! 😂

The mc101 is my beloved black metal jazz machine. The Syntakt is my post-apocalyptic Sega Genesis war machine. I can't live without either anymore. Thankfully I'm pretty much a vampire at this point, which means I don't live at all!!! 🦇 💀 *Laughs maniacally*

@sinewaymusic

Жыл бұрын

Haha that's awesome. 😂 Indeed, they do have their distinct sound. I actually wrote the Syntakt off initially because I thought it sounded too much like the Sega Genesis, but now I've both grown to appreciate that fact, and discovered that the sound palette is a lot wider than that when you push it a bit. Have a great Sunday!

Syntakt is amazing, the sounds are so deep and hearty. Roland gear is a bit tingy and often cheesy

@sinewaymusic

Жыл бұрын

I 100% agree with you about the Syntakt! When you run some sounds through the analog fx block, things can turn into magic. Roland is more of a preset box, but some of those tones are downright amazing. Cheers!

MC101= retro wave...Yes, the 808/juno bias is obvious , just for balance, it can do so much more. My main gripe with the 101 is the note stealing.....you can dig deep into the zen engine, but when it come to playiing a 4 osc sound it will glitch out...oh well best to stick to 2 osc and keep it simple.

@sinewaymusic

10 ай бұрын

I never pushed the MC-101 that hard so never experienced the issue. Kind of good to know even Roland has polyphony limits! 😂

The mc 101 was my first piece of hardware ever and I'm thankful for that. But now a days it's all Elektron gear for me.

@sinewaymusic

Жыл бұрын

Not a bad transition!

If I had to pick an Mc707 or a syntakt to complement my digitone/sp404 minimal combo for writing/live performances Looking to fill out with a few more synth tracks and an occasional drum program that isn’t sampled/midi controlled on the sp404. Leaning towards the syntakt due to the length elektron will support it and it’s pretty complete as it.

@sinewaymusic

10 ай бұрын

With the Digitone, you already have polyphony, so if you like the Elektron workflow, the Syntakt would be an easy pick.

Both are good.

Love ur videos thx for sharing xx You’re really cute btw

@sinewaymusic

10 ай бұрын

lol thanks

Why not combine them in a nice midi setup

@sinewaymusic

2 ай бұрын

Hey there! We actually did. 😊 There's one jam called Fjord on our channel that showcases this. I'll be honest though, none of us love hooking devices together other than temporarily. It's just nicer to sketch out songs with one single device at a time. But that's just us. Thanks for watching the review!

DO THAT KNOB ALLWAYS FLASH LIKE THAT ?

@sinewaymusic

10 ай бұрын

Sadly, yes it does. It's one of those mysterious Roland UI decisions. It doesn't even blink to the current bpm. 🙈

@sinewaymusic

10 ай бұрын

My bad, it doesn't always flash like that. I think it flashes when you're in Note mode, mainly. Don't ask me why.

You should have compared the synatkt with the mc707. Same price. Only the mc707 blows the syntakt out the water !

@sinewaymusic

Жыл бұрын

I totally agree, but that would make the comparison go from strange to almost entirely reasonable. 😂 But you're absolutely right. It's a case of me reviewing what I have in front of me, really, although I would say that both the Syntakt and the MC-101 have an element of portability that make them interesting to compare too, and portability happens to be something I really value. Regarding which one is superior, let's agree that that's highly subjective. 😊 Thanks for sharing your thoughts!

@williamwallace6508

Жыл бұрын

@@sinewaymusic true. i suppose on that basis that makes the 101 ridiculously cheap given its size and power.

@sinewaymusic

Жыл бұрын

@@williamwallace6508 It definitely punches way above its weight, especially as a sound module. As a groovebox, I find it to be a bit too fiddly and limited though.

@williamwallace6508

Жыл бұрын

@@sinewaymusic Thats because they packed too much into making it as small as possible:) On the other hand the mc707 isnt fiddly and extremely deep. If you go into the sound scaping possibilities its frightening how deep it goes! And i no longer need a mixer....

i like them best as a combo

@sinewaymusic

Жыл бұрын

Had a great session yesterday with my friend and we made progress on a future jam using both. I'm sequencing the MC-101 from the Syntakt, that addresses my main complaint about the MC-101 really. It's easy enough to set up a project across the two and you can even theoretically still jam with just the Syntakt in your lap and with the MC-101 on the side, if you can stand the cables. 😊

Should had compared to digitakt

@sinewaymusic

Жыл бұрын

I'd love to at some point, but I don't own a Digitakt. :) That said, a Syntakt vs Digitakt decision really comes down to whether you enjoy working with samples or synthesis. Although the process of tweaking sounds is somewhat similar on them, the sound source is inherently different. In a way, the Digitakt would be more versatile if, for example, you want to add a piano, or a flute, or even a vocal phrase to a song. Whereas the Syntakt is purely synthesized sounds. On the other hand, the Syntakt has 12 tracks so it can offer a bit more flexibility in song/track arrangement.

@digitalsublime

Жыл бұрын

@@sinewaymusic Sintakt + Digitakt 💸

I mean I guess technically you can make a music on a PlayStation 4, but the tools that are available aren't really that great for it.

@sinewaymusic

Жыл бұрын

Indeed, you can make music on almost anything these days. What's your favorite tool yourself?

@donnydarko7624

Жыл бұрын

@@sinewaymusic currently the sp404 mk2. I wouldn't personally suggest it for everyone, but it has me excited about it's potential for sound design

@sinewaymusic

Жыл бұрын

@@donnydarko7624 Just bought one myself. 😊 Haven't had a chance to play with it much yet though.

@donnydarko7624

Жыл бұрын

@@sinewaymusic oh man, the learning curve is a little steep. maybe not first-time elelktron steep, but I swear I thought I knew what I was doing at some points and all of a sudden had absolutely no idea what it was doing. I don't know if I'd say that its character is that complimentary with other hardware that at least I personally would choose to write techno. But even if you were to use it only as your performance effects and your mastering chain I think it's awesome just for that alone I think it's a reasonably priced solution for that as well, the next option being the analog heat pricewise, but then you lose the 404 for performance effects. There's a good amount of effects

You gotta peel that piece of plastic off your Syntakt's screen, you just have to do it.

@sinewaymusic

9 ай бұрын

Haha yeah you're totally right, it was getting ridiculous didn’t it. 🙈 Watch the jam called Fjord on this channel and you'll see it getting peeled off. 😊 Thanks for watching!

Syntakt is Much more modern and dirty in its sounds ,, mc is more classic and sweet …

@sinewaymusic

Жыл бұрын

Great way of putting it, Mikael! Agreed 100%.

just peel the sticker already

@sinewaymusic

Жыл бұрын

You're right. Will do. 😊

apples vs pears

@sinewaymusic

Жыл бұрын

That was the idea, yeah. But as you can see, there are aspects where they are still comparable. Btw, in Swedish, it's apples and pears just like you say. 😊

it's hilarious that the syntakt is literally analog, yet the mc-101 is digital and has so much more warmth. I owned a digitakt at one point and while I do love the workflow, the character is just flat and sterile to me, the reverb is garbage. The Electron character is very European, very stiff and kind of uninteresting.

@sinewaymusic

Жыл бұрын

I haven't heard the word 'European' to mean stiff and uninteresting before, but it just goes to show how subjective these things are in the end. 😊 I agree that Roland generally has lots of warmth though, but it has little to do with analog vs digital to me. The Digitakt is often described as having a warm/dark character as a sampler. Thanks for sharing your thoughts!

@donnydarko7624

Жыл бұрын

@@sinewaymusic I mean I think if you talk to a lot of people from Detroit that we're making techno and house before it crossed the Pacific you might hear some of that sentiment

@sinewaymusic

Жыл бұрын

@@donnydarko7624 I'm sure you aren't the only one with that opinion. Personally, I think the Digitakt has a dark sound to it, it degrades samples in a pleasant way, its filter and compressor brings out the best of them - and the reverb is one of my favorite reverbs! No reverbs on my MC-101 come close to it, and my MPC Live 2 reverb (Air Reverb) sounds awful in comparison. The Elektron isn't my favorite reverb though by any means, I prefer the ones in the Hydrasynth and of course the one in Reason 10, but out of all grooveboxes I've owned, the Digitakt/Syntakt reverb sounds the most pleasing. Just goes to show that it's all a matter of taste. 😊

@donnydarko7624

Жыл бұрын

@@sinewaymusic don't get me wrong I'm not saying everybody over there is that way but I feel a lot of European techno. Doesn't seem to have the soul element that Detroit techno has.

@sinewaymusic

10 ай бұрын

​@@donnydarko7624I think the 'soul' of my genres of music (whatever they'd be called - you'd have to listen to my jams to make a suggestion) is in how you perform them. There's something magical that happens when you perform something live, with small mistakes and the touch of a real human being. A lot of the produced music today is made entirely in the daw with perfectly shaped automation curves etc. When I perform my Syntakt jams, I do it live. Sure, I rehearse quite a bit before so it's not exactly spontaneous (at least not in the final take that gets posted on KZread), but it's definitely not perfectly shaped automation curves in a DAW. It makes me appreciate the music more. I guess that's what I'd call soul in music. So to me, it has little to do with Europe vs America and more to do with the performance.

Blah Blah Blah

@sinewaymusic

Жыл бұрын

More jams, less talking you say? 😉

Just get an MPC. Problem solved.

@sinewaymusic

Жыл бұрын

As someone who has spent the past 18 months or so making music on the MPC, I both agree and disagree with you. 😊 That's the subject of a much deeper conversation though, and maybe I'll make a video about it at some point down the line, but I'd say that the MPC is much more of a production center (it's even in the name) and it's not particularly jam friendly. So it goes back to the core question about what your goals are with your music. I've had lots of fun with the MPC, but to me it feels more like a DAW, and not at all like a groovebox. It rarely inspires me by surprise, it's more of a linear approach - with one big exception, which is (re-)sample mangling.

@renekasbergen

Жыл бұрын

Also, new problem introduced: horrible user experience.

@sinewaymusic

Жыл бұрын

@@renekasbergen I personally think the user experience is a lot smoother on the MPC if I compare it with the MC-101. But it's so different that the apples and oranges analogy here isn't enough. 😂 What I mean is, you don't need to use 90% of what the MPC offers if you want to use it as a groovebox, and for that, it's really not that bad. As a step sequencer, it's terrible, but as a live recording tool (with or without quantization) it's actually great and so limitless with its generous track count and endless list of presets across multiple synth engines.

@renekasbergen

Жыл бұрын

@@sinewaymusic Having never owned an MC-101, I can't speak for its UX. I just know I sold my MPC One for an MC-707 and I'm really glad I did. I love its UX. And yes, it's still apples and oranges. The MPC One is a powerful DAW in a box. The MC-101 and 707 are "just" grooveboxes. But that's the whole point: one day I was hunched over the MPC's touchscreen and pushing its hard plastic, noisy buttons when my MPC crashed (which it sometimes did - joy!). Power cycling that thing takes a long time, so I looked over at my large computer screen running a vastly more powerful DAW just 1m away from my MPC and remember thinking: what the hell am I doing?! If I want a direct, performance based, tactile experience, I need hardware with a lot of physical controls. If I need to seriously produce music, I need a computer with a DAW. I don't need anything in between...

@sinewaymusic

Жыл бұрын

@@renekasbergen Haha, I had that exact same feeling about two months ago. Why am I going through all this pain when I have a daw 10x more powerful on my laptop? That's when it finally clicked to me that the limitations of having "just" a groovebox is exactly what makes them so special. Glad we're on similar paths - I really appreciate your perspective and would love to try the MC-707 one day, even though I think it's too big for my taste (as is the MPC Live 2).