Ableton Forum

I'm obviously in the minority here but I'd take the ESX over the MD any day.
I've owned the ES-1, ESX and UW. They are completely different beasts though and it all depends on what you are after. In the end I just couldn't stand the sound of the Elektron anymore and I sold it (I also sold a MnM for the same reason). I probably used the Elektrons on 4 tracks in the year or so I owned them, but the ESX has been used on dozens. I find it much more inspirational and fun to use the Korg. For synthetic drums I patch those up on the G2 and sample them into the ESX. The workflows on the Elektrons are a pain in the rear if you ask me ... and yes I know my way around them like the back of my hand. I even built a custom joystick controller for the SFX60 before selling it. The param locks on the other hand are brilliant.
Your mileage may vary of course

A friend of mine just picked up the MD without the UW option about a week ago, and he is already regretting it. He loves the machine so much, but the RAM machine stuff you can do is incredible. Check it out on Youtube sometime. I find it impossible NOT to get inspired by that machine. Must... resist... buying one.

I would absolutley recommend to get the Machinedrum UW. I only played it once very briefly, but it was an amazing experience. The Electribe is fun too --- just not so refined I think, but probably more intuitive.

aber wrote:Hi,
Which is better? One is a "drum machine" the other a "sampler".
I need something that lets me to create "spontanelty". I don't like wasting time editing a kick, a snare ecc. for hours on a computer. I need something to turn on and play!
Somebody says that Elektron is limited, because you can't upload samples on it....but its sound is better, because korg plays samples (as a software) and elektron has a sound generator....
There is another problem: korg is 550 € ... Elektron 1190 € ... ....
What do you suggest?

Hav you made a decision?

i don't want to hijack the thread, but i'm really getting old or dumb (maybe both)... but i can't understand the principle of the ram option on the MD UW.
would someone be so kind and make a short explanation or point me to a page explainig how it works?
i would be full of gratidude

bip wrote:i don't want to hijack the thread, but i'm really getting old or dumb (maybe both)... but i can't understand the principle of the ram option on the MD UW.
would someone be so kind and make a short explanation or point me to a page explainig how it works?
i would be full of gratidude

basically, the UW option allows you to include .wav samples into the MD's synthesis section by using them as waveforms. You have then the possiblities
to alter the samples with the MD's synthesis parameters. In addition to sampling direct into the MD or transfer your samples via midi, you can also resample the MD's output in realtime.

Cool feature, but i'll stick to sample mangling in Live cause the price difference is not justified. All i could do with samples on the UW i can do it better in Live, so no need for a UW here.
I've gone the classic route for what i want. A superb drum synthesizer.

IMO the MDuw is a performance machine first and foremost, with an intuitive interface.

if you're just looking at it purely in terms of sound design, ya, sure, stick to ableton/software.

Whoops I just bought a mk 1 machine drum. Absolutely love it to death.
Was it just a weird dream I had, or can you send your non UW machinedrum to Electron to have it upgraded to do the whole neato RAM thing???
Otherwise, I might sell it on the bay of E to fund a UW.

jesso wrote:Whoops I just bought a mk 1 machine drum. Absolutely love it to death.
Was it just a weird dream I had, or can you send your non UW machinedrum to Electron to have it upgraded to do the whole neato RAM thing???
Otherwise, I might sell it on the bay of E to fund a UW.

ya they did that.
but it was a limited time deal.
Not sure if they are doing it right now - Email [email protected] to know for certain if they are doing it now or any time soon

jesso wrote:Whoops I just bought a mk 1 machine drum. Absolutely love it to death.
Was it just a weird dream I had, or can you send your non UW machinedrum to Electron to have it upgraded to do the whole neato RAM thing???
Otherwise, I might sell it on the bay of E to fund a UW.

this was a time limited offer. Elektron doesn't do it anymore.
I got this info from their customer support a week ago.

...doesn't matter... live's midi sync is fokked...

m:o wrote:

bip wrote:i don't want to hijack the thread, but i'm really getting old or dumb (maybe both)... but i can't understand the principle of the ram option on the MD UW.
would someone be so kind and make a short explanation or point me to a page explainig how it works?
i would be full of gratidude

basically, the UW option allows you to include .wav samples into the MD's synthesis section by using them as waveforms. You have then the possiblities
to alter the samples with the MD's synthesis parameters. In addition to sampling direct into the MD or transfer your samples via midi, you can also resample the MD's output in realtime.

Cool feature, but i'll stick to sample mangling in Live cause the price difference is not justified. All i could do with samples on the UW i can do it better in Live, so no need for a UW here.
I've gone the classic route for what i want. A superb drum synthesizer.

thanks, i have one last question:
wiht the ram autosampling can i sample loops? then transfer them to a rom slot? and how long the loops?
i can't figure out the goal of this feature

Yeah, you can sample loops, just not really long ones. I record loops in my DJ sets to the RAM machines, then use the MD to mess them up. How long of loops depends on how many samples you have in ROM already. With 50% of my UW filled with my own drum samples, I can record a 2 bar loop at 97 BPM with no issues, but that's likely filling up the rest of the memory. The UW is not a traditional sampler at all, so if you're looking to have a ton of loops in memory, this is not the machine for you. It's really ideal for short drum sounds, and resampling short segments of the internal audio or external sound sources as a performance tool.

ahaa, thanks! ok i slowly slowly get it.
i thought it was possible to resample live and then slice and assign to rom slots.
i have to put my dirty fingers on it and test by myself

You can resample internally, but there's no slice function.

All I can say is that on paper the 2MB UW option looks like a real waste of money, and a pitiful amount of memory. But once you get it and spend some time with it, you'll see just how much FUN it really is. It works in ways that no other sampler does, and yes there are some limitations, but once you get used to those it can do some really amazing things. Check out this tune, done entirely in the UW aspect of the MD:

http://www.virb.com/swiv

"Pea"