Akai MPC Sample Part 27 - Step Editing Breakdown

Hinzugefügt: 2026-05-09

[00:00:00]Hello again everyone. We're back again with the NPC sample and today we're going to talk about step editing. As always, if you guys happen to like my content, feel free to like and subscribe. So, we touched on this in a previous video. If you hold shift and press the sequence button, you enter stepedit mode. However, what I want to show you first is how steps are set up.

[00:00:20]So, if I in sequence mode, if I use the negative and plus signs, what you can do is you can sequence through each step.

[00:00:29]Now, notice how each of these steps has four beats. Four beats per measure because we're in four four times. So, measure number one, 1 2 3 four beats.

[00:00:40]Measure number two, 1 2 3 four beats, and so on. Right now, we're going to go into step edit mode. And what this affords us the capability of doing is editing our steps on an individual basis. So, we're going to move from a left to right, so to speak. So we have a pad selected and we have the instance of that pad selected. So here in the center the numeric display gives us the position of our sample. If I move the fader I can change the position of that particular sample. I can nudge it up and down, up and down. Right now I'm going to keep it to zero because I want it to essentially [music] I want the kick drum to start the sequence so to speak. All right, let's go back. I'm going use the encoder knob to find my step here to the far right. I can adjust the velocity of that particular sample. If I dial the velocity all the way down, [music] you don't hear that particular instance of that sample. If I hold button B1, I can change the tempo. Now, Mr. Gist Shameless taught me a trick. If you hold the tap tempo button, you can achieve the uh same effect. You can hold tap tempo and use your encoder knob to change the tempo. So, it's just up to preference. Right over here to the far left, should I say far right, button B3 erases the step.

[00:02:14][music] I can change the length of my sequence.

[00:02:20]Now, this is not to be confused with what it looks like to double the length of a sequence. Essentially, what I'm doing is I'm adding [music] more measures to the sequence in the event that I want to add something in addition. [music] So, these remaining four measures are going to be blank. So, it's not duplicating the first four measures.

[00:02:41]It's just simply adding more [music] measures to the sequence.

[00:02:46]We can quantize. Now, this is a more more of a record quantizing feature.

[00:02:52]Now, notice how I have mine divided into triplets. Knob K2 allows for me to quantize my sequence during the recording phase. So, remember, previously in sequencer mode, when I was cycling through each of my steps, there were four beats per measure. Now, this holds true. However, because we're intricately sequencing and because I'm quantized to triplets, if I turn my encoder knob, I have to turn it six times in order to get to the next measure. So, 1 2 3 4 5 6. The reason being is because my sequence is divided into triplets. Basically, two sets of three.

[00:03:43]sort of a shuffle pattern in a sense.

[00:03:46]One, two, three, one, two, three, one, two, three, one, two, three, one, two, three, one, two, three. It's that type of situation, right? I do that a lot, particularly for these two-step style sequences because it adds kind of a human element to it in conjunction with a tiny bit of swing.

[00:04:02]If you hold shift, you're given access to your time signature parameter. Uh, this comes in handy if you want to deviate from the typical common 44 time signature. Me having an orchestral background, I'm used to 68 34 22 things of that sort and even 54 if I'm feeling a little John Carpenter-ish that day.

[00:04:23]All right, guys. That pretty much does it for surgical step editing. If you guys have any questions about anything that just happened here, feel free to leave said question in the comments.

[00:04:30]I'll be sure to get back with you.

[00:04:32]Thanks.