Quick ??? for the MPC gurus (scsi related)
street_muzik
3,919 Posts
I've recently been organizing mpc floppies and I'm thinking an scsi drive might be nice. All these floppies are driving me batshit crazy. So does the mpc3000 use some kind of legacy scsi drive that's out of production, or will any old thing do? Thanks in advance for any help.
Comments
i'd probably go a card reader of some kind, the click of death is worth avoiding..
http://www.grc.com/tip/codfaq1.htm
I can't really talk, i'm using zips..
Should be right with any 100mb zip drive i'm assuming. I dont own a 3000, just a 2k classic. Guessing it's the same principal though.
If anyone finds somewhere significantly cheaper, please to post...
I don't know though, that's just my experience. Maybe others have had a better one with zip drives, but after 10 years of disappointment and frustration I am thankful they are out of my life.
And Lambert, your right, I had a question about how the external flash drive worked, and dude responded to my email in like 4 minutes. No joke, whens the last time that happened?? Just got paid, think I'm bout to cop....
OK, fusk a zip drive. I'm trying to get rid of disks, not replace the disk format,
scsiforsamplers looks promising. Will check it out. Any recommendations on which drives are the best? I guess I could email them.
Thanks a billion
My 3000 is maxed out with memory and i use 512K cards, partitioning to Z. They work great and have room to spare in each partition.
So, basically, don't overdo it.
SCSI zip 100s are the cheapest, and in the highest abundance. Zips are noisy, small, and notedly unreliable.
That being said, I never had many problems when I use to use them every day.
Rohan's 3.50 OS allows you to use a wider range of drives.
Talk to JD over at scsi4samplers (his site is down, but he's around). He's currently working on an internal drive kit for 3000/60. I'm rocking internal card readers in mine and I'm never going back.
Taza, if you need any help, hit me on the PM.
I would avoid Zip disks if you are a working professional who depends on your music as your livelihood - period.
There are so many ways to do things that I found myself getting caught up in the process rather than the actual beats. Between Reason, Ableton, ProTools, etc, I spent half my time deciding what to use.
When I got this MPC a year ago it was so refreshing to use a drum machine again. Coupled with my Factory Digi003 (control surface)I'm enjoying the process again.
Using the mpc as the main sequencer connected to my retrofitted 808, to pro tools for plug in samplers, etc, this is my new standard configuration.
Better to do more with less options than less with more options.
Just thought I'd share.
http://akaiscsifaq.digidude.net/
Yeah, I've done some zip research myself, and they are flat out terrible. Millions of them are still working though, and I know more people running zips with their samplers than anything else. I've lost more floppies over time then zips.
If yer a baus get a solid state card reader! Expect to pay in the neighborhood of $200 for mpc 3000 compatible solid state joint.
Also, regardless of what you use, back up anything you wanna keep 2x. I even make several floppies when I use the SP. Its common sense but always needs repeating since my dude just lost a ton of hard work a few days ago.
If your zip drive stops working, or clicking, never put another disk in it. Click of death is contagious!
my 60II with microtech pcd-15 card reader
I just got an email back from scsiforsamplers and he reccomended the CF reader, external or internal.
The internal kit is $133, external $139.
Internal sounds like the best way to go for space reasons. If it's just pop the top of the mpc and plug in the parts, adapters, etc, then it's all good, but I don't want to buy a soldering iron. haha
Do they still make 1gb CF cards?
Thinking out loud.
He has an MPC->PC program http://www.midicase.com/mpceditor that is still really the only option for the 3000/60.
I'm sure the install kits JD has are thorough, he knows his stuff. I've dealt with him a few times and he's a good dude. $150 for a drive and a kit is a steal, I'm gonna get more. They were nearly impossible to track down, I ended up finding one in Japan!
You don't technically need to solder, but you will have to change the power connector to the drive. The MPC has a 5v floppy connector that needs to be changed to a molex PC type joint. Soldering it would be better than simply twisting it together and taping it up.
They don't usually sell 1gb cards anymore, but it doesn't matter. bigger ones are damn near free, its just wasted space.
Thanks again.
http://www.scsiforsamplers.com/
Wasn't hard at all but I had to improvise a little.
Added internal scsi CF card reader and 32 mb of ram.
Now all I need is the wood side panels and a custom face paint job.
http://www.ebay.com/itm/CF-RaizinMonster-and-internal-SCSI-conversion-KIT-bundle-set-for-AKAI-MPC3000-/262004493216?hash=item3d00af4ba0
MPCstuff sells them for $100 more. Gross
I bought this kit for my 3k and it's working well. Pretty easy install. Hotswaps (with minor delay) and can still use the scsi for zip disks too. Load saves fast no ugly zip sounds and data loss.
Word of warning several small size 256-512mb off brand Compact flash cards didn't work for me. They would'nt save or format but loaded.
Sandisk Ultra/ Extreme recommended by others, 1gb or larger for some reason works better I'm assuming. Probably the 3k being fussy. The dealer sent me a test Sandisk card after my problems (stand up guy). Also bought a cheap Trascend 2gb CF, works great.
Another one to check is the Fuzzinmonster it's a SD reader by the same company. I'd assume it works.
Not affiliated, just psyched people are keeping samplers alive and up to date.
http://www.artmix.com/wordpress/