somebedroomdj wrote:The SU is extremely fun, IMO, and the effects are good. I love the way this box sounds. It's the easiest sampler I've used when it comes to capturing loops on the fly, as long as your timing is good.
BUT
The load times border on what some would call "crippling" and that's IF you have the SCSI board + a zip, etc. If you can fit everything you need into one volume and have time to load it prior to your set, it might work for you. But if you have a decent sized set prepared and you would happen to crash (mine never has, but you never know), you're down for a good 5-10 minutes, easy.
I use an su700(base model 68 mb Ram), rs7000 and a mc808 simultaneously.
I bought the mc808 first, and later got an rs7000. When I bought the su700...it annoyed me because the MC808 really spoiled me in regards to sample size ans how fast it could process the samples.
Anyhow, long story short...after a year of owning it and letting it collect dust I had an epiphany...use it for extremely short samples and loops...and accept that my working limit would be 1.44 mb.
I checked out other people's videos...but the most inspiration came how the gear seemed to have had an influence on Speedy J.
Due to my gearlist I did not need a drum machine or a sampler that used drum sounds...I see this as different because most people use the SU700 as an MPC/beatbox.
The thing is that if you can think within the design parameters of this little beast...it can sound awesome in the mix.
a) sample everything at 11k 8 bit mono...embrace the lofi in its totality.
b) if you have other gear...then use the SU700 to sample the vsts or whatever.
c) samples short be kept as short and possible.
those are the 3 rules I go by. The data bus on a SU700 is anemic. Expecting an SU700 to handle long samples well is like expecting a stegosaurus to explain quantum mechanics...so just one shots and short samples...the sample engine will be happy to handle the rest.
the OS is swift and nippy. I love how simple it is...seriously it took me 2-7 days to feel comfortable. don't expect deep editing. expect fast is your face you want it or not operations...which is different from other desktop systems.
samples get chopped so fast...and it automatically "snaps) to zero points...good for loops, but to be honest I what the waveform in a daw as I record and then I snip it down.
The sequencers metaphor is unique and cannot be found in the RS7000. in the composed loop section, loop length = 4 by default...and that equals 1 bar...so you can set that number to anything for odd time signatures...setting it to a max value of 128 gives you the max length of 32 bars...I either sequence live, or I use the RS7000 to build up my patterns. The SU700 will record multi-timbrally...so you can use a sequencer to make 16 parts and the SU700 can record via its midi input all at once. (the MC808 cannot do this, and neither can the rs7000(so far as I know)).
Once the SU700 has its composed patterns...they will loop.
This is where things get wild.
the SU700 will loop its data, but it will simultaneously move forward on a linear time line...from 0-999:1
the best way to visualize this is to see the composed loops and the auto run loops as wheels on a car...they spin and repeat spinning when you press play.
mute/unmute, roll, loop restart, and all the other parameters are recorded on this linear time....so you can use this to make simple patterns extremely complex and dynamic. You can record from the start to bar 32 and duplicate....or you can whizzle up to bar 96 and record events there...the timing it extremely tight and fun...and lends itself to improvisation.
The autoloop features are amazing for short arpeggio samples...the groove time/velocity/gate help get your sample to fit with the rest of the composition.
The principle drawbacks of the su700 is in data storage. I do not want SCSI. I want flash, usb. So I am hoping that a floppy emulator will work...but news of it working is some-what sporadic. currently I use it to hold VA synth samples...and you can build so very interesting textures with it...I guess its just how you approach it.
Its sense of time is rock-solid, and the filters and guitar amp effect can make any sample scream for blood.
I am actually going to get another. I like it that much...because the the textural grooviness of it is just that unique...it is not an average joe sampler...it articulates grooviness everywhere...but due to its 32 bar limit of composed loops, I would not recommend it for everyone. You should really like making loops and finding the beauty of changing them without losing track of what they were originally.
In closing...it seems like the topic was derailed to electron's stuff. And while that is cool(I love there stuff), the gear is pricey. You can get an SU700 for around 150-300 max...and in the right hands it has such a warm and nimble groove to it. It is a beautiful instrument...if you can accept working within certain limitations.
The following track used the SU700 to play back some synth samples...
