Trigger Finger Pro

[cmreal04]

So I pre-ordered the M-audio trigger finger pro, which was a pretty big gamble on my part considering I usually avoid M products, although this one just really appealed to me so I jumped in. And so it began:

- the unit arrives and all the included software is downloadable, but I can't seem to get the email from m audio to download it. Long story short it takes 4 days to rectify (I received it the day before the long weekend)
- the downloads are small but they manage to crash my system multiple time, a rare occasion to say the least.
-there's no registration code to activate hybrid 3 instrument included ( had to do it through online support)

And the icing on the cake, one of the pads is defective and I have to mail it back!!!

So 3 weeks have passed now and I finally have a chance to sit down and start learning this thing, and I'm like wait a minute, how do I import my own drum samples??? I don't want to use there crummy included drums.... I look in the manual nothing, so I call support and sit on the phone for an obscene amount of time to be told "huh that's a good question I don't see a way to do that" and he takes my email and says he'll be back in touch within 24hrs. How is that even possible???? The basic of basic features!

Be fore warned, and if you decide to take the plunge I hope you fare better than I did.

[muthafunka]

thanks for this, please let us know how it goes.

this thing is looking really good....on paper but if it's a POS in real-life then who needs it

edit : did you try asking on their support forum thing? http://community.m-audio.com/m-audio

edit2: certainly looks like you can as both the webpage and manual for AirDrums talk about loading custom as well as factory sounds.
Also please tell us about the sequencer, being able to 'sequence up to 16 tracks independantly' sounds like just what I want.

[cmreal04]

thanks for this, please let us know how it goes.

this thing is looking really good....on paper but if it's a POS in real-life then who needs it

edit : did you try asking on their support forum thing? http://community.m-audio.com/m-audio

edit2: certainly looks like you can as both the webpage and manual for AirDrums talk about loading custom as well as factory sounds.
Also please tell us about the sequencer, being able to 'sequence up to 16 tracks independantly' sounds like just what I want.

- I didn't post anything in the support forum yet. The guy I talked to in M tech support didn't know and hasn't emailed an answer back yet.

- the only thing mentioned in the manual is about loading vst's / custom presets you save, or triggering samples using the pads within your daw's software.

- I'll get back to you on the sequencer.

[muthafunka]

thanks for that.

What is it you actually want to do? I checked with their forum and you can def. play, chop etc your own samples. What I'm super stoked on with this is 16 patterns of up to 64 notes in the sequencer XoX style. TFP is a controller, it doesn't hold onboard sounds. When they mention standalone it means using it WITH a pc to playback sounds outside of a DAW, not standalone as sit with it on your lap in the park with some headfones and no pc.

[cmreal04]

thanks for that.

What is it you actually want to do? I checked with their forum and you can def. play, chop etc your own samples. What I'm super stoked on with this is 16 patterns of up to 64 notes in the sequencer XoX style. TFP is a controller, it doesn't hold onboard sounds. When they mention standalone it means using it WITH a pc to playback sounds outside of a DAW, not standalone as sit with it on your lap in the park with some headphones and no pc.

I just want to import my drum library into arsenal, so I can use it with their step sequencer. I don't see a way to do this, and the guy from tech support said he would get back to me within 24hrs and of course he didn't. If it can be done I'll figure it out, but this will be my last M product, nothings worth wasting this much time…

Side note: I hate the included drum library
The included Hybrid 3 instrument is great!

[cmreal04]

Ahhhh just saw the post in the support forum, good news!

[muthafunka]

Cool, did it make sense? Feel free to add and ask in that thread.... as much for my benefit as yours
Even reading your hassles I'm still kinda stoked on it.

[Big Tick]

Arsenal doesn't play samples - it plays virtual instruments. So you will need to load your samples into a virtual instrument - you can use the included AIRDrums to assign the samples to pads, and save the assignments as presets in Arsenal.

[cmreal04]

Arsenal doesn't play samples - it plays virtual instruments. So you will need to load your samples into a virtual instrument - you can use the included AIRDrums to assign the samples to pads, and save the assignments as presets in Arsenal.

First off - Rhino's awesome!

2nd - I had to get rid of the Trigger finger. I wish you all the best if you purchase one, but I was completely dissatisfied with the purchase including the build quality. I flipped it on eBay and came up with enough cash to buy a 49key keyboard controller, mpd18, condenser mic, and a free software instrument -with my purchase Ahhh great deal...

[muthafunka]

Really? What didn't you like? I just got one and it seems totally fine build-wise. Sure it's not Livid but it's certainly pretty good.

Usage-wise, finding it great fun, spent a couple of hours with manual/youtube and it all pretty much makes sense once you've imported plugs. 64 pads each with a PHYSICAL step sequence of up to 64 hits...what's not to love? Just playing around learning it I had more fun and probably constructed made more beats than I have for ages instead of dropping and chopping loops. Really good to use ears/brain and hands rather than just mousing around and craning the neck into the screen all the time.
For me the included sounds are not much interest (heard it called 'shovelware' haha) and but I'll go through them and grab the goodies. The Hybrid synth isn't bad but I have anough synths to be going on with anyway. I loaded up a stack of Goldbaby hits and some D16 stuff and just rocked out in XoX heaven for a while.

Anyone else got/thinking about one? I have a few questions and maybe some answers.

First up, is there any way to transfer midi directly as a file without just recording it?

[Buleriachk]

It seems like each sequence has four bars of 16 steps each (so in 4/4 time signature, that is 4 sixteenth notes for each bar. I would like to create sequences in 3/4 time signature, and I believe this is possible by assigning each bar to 12 steps instead of 16.

Do I understand this correctly?

And if I load a sequence containing bars of 16 steps, and then reduce the number of steps to 12, will it just play the first 12 steps of each bar (effectively, 4 bars of 3/4 time? (If you set Live to 3/4 as a host, you can play 4/4 patterns from Maschine that way, but just plays the first three beats before looping again...

Hope I phrased my question coherently; I have one on order from Sweetwater, but would like a warm fuzzy feeling before my credit card gets dinged...