Roland MC-101 Beginner Tutorials: 4) Effects

Lesson number 4 in my beginner tutorials for the Roland MC-101, this time all about the awesome effects this groove box has to offer! Thanks for checking it out, as always leave a comment, ask questions, give critiques, all appreciated!
Table of Contents:
0:00 Intro
1:00 Effect Categories
3:30 Track Sound Source
5:45 Track Equalizer
13:10 Track MFX
15:50 Master Effects
16:30 Master Equalizer
18:00 Master MFX
22:50 Master Compressor
32:20 Send Effects
34:40 Reverb
38:00 Delay
40:15 Drum Send Effects
42:10 Outro

[@Eskodisk]

Thank you very much for the help. I never used a compressor, this video gets me started. Brilliant video all the way. Compact, lots of function efficiently explained. Wow, I keep coming back to your mc101 help.

[@JASONROHLER]

This is great for someone that falls asleep reading a physical manual. Thanks!

[@momosbreath9713]

I never fall asleep reading a manual because of too much excitement.

[@MikeH_PR]

As ever, grateful ... especially, in this case, for the clear explanation of the way we can customise the effects per pad on a drum track 👍

[@compartmentofdirections]

Very useful. Especially the live menu. Hard to watch 45 mins at a time, but I still love🙏🏼🙏🏼🙏🏼❤❤❤MAY ALL BEINGS BE FREE FROM SUFFERING AND ITS CAUSES IN PERFECT EQUANIMITY🙏🏽🙏🏽🙏🏽❤❤❤

[@thornley321]

Nice job. I particularly liked the explanation of Multi FX vs master FX. thanks. I've been confused about that for a while now!

[@BenCoeMusic]

Thank you! Glad it’s useful!

[@NeoLudditevisons]

Honestly you deserve a medal for all these vids. Im am totally sold on getting an mc101 now. What a brilliant tiny machine

[@BenCoeMusic]

Haha thanks! I really think it’s a really great device, and I still feel like I’m just scratching the surface! I’ve been working a lot on a new idea that I think is going to push some aspects even further.. I don’t want to discourage you from the MC-101 (obviously I love it) but if you’re looking you might look at the brand new MV-1 verselab. It looks like an MC-101 with a few extra tracks and a microphone input. I still like the 101 for what it is, but something to think about.

[@NeoLudditevisons]

@@BenCoeMusic sounds good on your next 101 project!! Look forward to more vids. The 101 is a VA roland synth monster and ive less interest in mv-1. My thinking is to have a super simple but maximum trio of microfreak, tr6s and mc101. Think i could live off that for some time. Stripped down raw music.

[@BenCoeMusic]

@@NeoLudditevisons sounds like a killer combo to me! I love the tr6s alongside the 101, and the microfreak is just wild! The last few years have been really fantastic for compact but hugely functional synths! Enjoy the journey

[@NeoLudditevisons]

@@BenCoeMusic oh yeah for sure musicians 30 years ago would have done anything for even half of stuff out there now. People dont really know what theyve got at their disposal imo. Im a big fan of small powerful synths and thanks to people like you i think ive found the droid im looking for...however keep doing the videos they keep fires burning!

[@Yuzuki1337]

@@BenCoeMusic Problem is that the MV-1 is rumored to be priced around the 700$ range, at that point you might as well get a MC-707 or a MC-101 and a complimentary piece of gear or cheap Laptop + DAW

[@M3urs]

thanks bro!! you just saved my life helping me to understand how the fx send work on drums!

[@PaulOrtiz]

Im such a dummy - somehow I totally missed that multi-fx is also per track. The MC just got even better. Thank you!!

[@mankismelbournejay]

Great to see your channel growing. These mc101 tutorials are ace!

[@austinengler67]

These videos have been soooo helpful. Thank you!

[@mooniz4691]

Pretty amazing content, man. Learning a lot from you videos. Appreciate it and keep it up.

[@MikeH_PR]

Been anticipating this one! Love the use of that times panel btw - I often return to a lesson and it's so helpful to know exactly where to scrub to 👍

[@SandroMassarani]

Wonderful tutorial. Thank you very much.

[@mojodrum3215]

Thanks for this in depth tutorial :)

[@123jmanc]

I just got an MC-101 today and this beginner tutorial series has made it a much more graceful learning process, thank you!

[@BenCoeMusic]

Awesome I’m glad they’re helpful, enjoy the 101!!

[@JorgeElgueraL]

Hey Ben, the NE555 means a lot to me !! Reminds me of my college days learning how to read specs, pitting circuits together and blowing components …..thank you your videos are awesome !!!

[@ancientaerials3075]

Super helpful video thank you very much!

[@cirklz]

I love your vids. The breakdown is the best on tube.

[@trevormalcolm4328]

A year ago I had the MC-707 and I didn’t really get on with it so I got rid. But I think the 101 is more my speed, thanks to your tutorials. Great work! 🙏🏽👍🏽🇬🇧

[@christiandockendorff2408]

Thank you so much! What a comprehensive tutorial.

[@BenCoeMusic]

Thanks for checking it out!

[@ademozarslan]

Very helpful, thank you.

[@davidgershwin4110]

Yo Ben! You’re still getting new subscribers cos of your super helpful videos on the MC 101. I just got a used one the other day and I already feel ahead of the game thanks to you.

[@BenCoeMusic]

Thanks! Glad it’s still useful stuff, enjoy the 101!

[@dudfaz]

Very helpful - thanks!

[@pestorer]

thank you 1000 times ben. !!!track sound source!!!. this fuction makin this device so powerfull. every clip another sound. roland give this man all ur gear.best turtorial.

[@FinlayCampbell]

You are a legend brother.

[@ALTARBEATZ]

Thanx again Ben. Still learning stuff from you..

[@Ridersoftubes]

You Rock, thanks for what you do, Ive been using the MC 101 for my surf videos.

[@BenCoeMusic]

Thank you! That sounds cool I’ll have to check them out!

[@nilesh100975]

nice one, i think it will help people a lot ☺️👍

[@LegendPhase]

Thanks for this mate !! Now I know how to adjust my reverb !

[@lumm71]

Thx! Some confusing stuff on the mc-101 ist now understanded. Please do a lot of mc-101 tutorials! In combination with my epiano I have much fun with it as an expander but I really like to use the other mighty things.

[@crushdesign]

Thanks again!

[@rabevier8071]

Good tutorials!

[@corican]

Watching these in preparation for getting my MC-101 when my bonus comes through.

[@rhysethan2264]

I guess I'm pretty off topic but do anybody know a good place to watch newly released movies online?

[@salvatorecolson9457]

@Rhys Ethan Flixportal xD

[@rhysethan2264]

@Salvatore Colson Thank you, I signed up and it seems like they got a lot of movies there :D I really appreciate it !!

[@salvatorecolson9457]

@Rhys Ethan no problem =)

[@popwa6977]

Thank you

[@_mickmccarthy]

Just wanted to say that I really appreciate the work and effort that's gone into all these videos. I was definitely one of those people who just assumed that there was only multi-fx on the master so thank you very much for that! Roland put out some great products but man do they suck at explaining them. I've got a JX-08 as well and while it's not as complex as the MC-101, the manual is just as useless at explaining its features.

[@BenCoeMusic]

Glad it’s helpful! Honestly naming them “multi fx” “master multi fx” and kind of using them interchangeably with “mfx” is definitely kind of confusing. I agree I really love the Roland products and really the designs they put in make a ton of sense to me but the manuals and marketing materials could in general be clearer I think.

[@Bullyboytattoo]

well you are a very likable guy man, but more importantly, you have a great way of explaining and making a threshold lower. keep it up

[@LuchsLater]

Thank you thank you thank you, I struggled with no reverb added to a clap on 40:40, I had to turn on the kit reverb. Also thanks for the explanation of "Master FX" and "Multi FX". I honestly thought the 101 had only one effect unit.

[@BenCoeMusic]

Yeah the kit reverb/delay level on top of the pad levels definitely adds an extra layer of flexibility but isn’t always obvious, glad I was able to help!

[@sullycliftona]

I like your. Start up page ,, your a stereo type geek .. wich I think is brilliant… I wouldn’t share your stuff,, but I find you very interested in music and useful,,,, keep going

[@SynthPrince]

Hey Ben, great video, really useful. Are you able to explain how envelopes work for drum sounds on the 101? There's options in Sound Settings for Attack/Decay/Release but these never seem to make a difference to the drum sounds??

[@davidvochocjr1005]

I just wanted to say this video is too long, but then I watched it till the end, because it´s soo valuable, thx ;-)

[@joshw8053]

Great stuff! I'd love to see a video detailing midi sync between other devices sometime!

[@BenCoeMusic]

Thanks for the request. A few others have asked this and I know it’s a common question, I’ll hopefully get to that video shortly!

[@DavidBagshaw]

I just got my MC-101: this is perfect timing.

[@lukegregg5944]

Are you getting on with it well? With the help of these tutorials.

[@DavidBagshaw]

@@lukegregg5944 I am, abosolutely: I have tried and even purchased a number of alternatives, this does what I need, i.e. allow me to use loops I have created in Ableton live over the past 20 years to be played live without a computer. It does have a bit of learning curve, so Ben's tutorials help, as do some other youtubers.

[@jaspermolenaar1218]

Thanks Ben for sharing all this knowledge! Where is the school you went to, to become a Master of MC 101?

[@stephanelsner9391]

Thank you for you video series, helps me a lot to understand the 101! Btw. Is it somehow possible to affect the dry/wet mix of the send reverb? It seems that always 100% of the dry signal is mixed in, no matter which reverb type and settings I use.

[@bourbon]

This is great! Thanks for your hard work, sharing your knowledge, and sage advice. I’m learning a lot!!

[@danwoolven5581]

Love your video’s. roland’s manual assumes everyone is a professional producer but you explain the theory which is great. If you can do a vid on the midi settings that would be appreciated 👍

[@BenCoeMusic]

Thank you! I’m glad this series is adequately covering the ground that a lot of the manuals and their videos don’t quite reach. You’re the second one to ask for the midi video today so I’ll have to move that one up to the top of the list!

[@danwoolven5581]

I bought the Roland tr6s to go with my mc101. The explanation of how these units can work together in the manual is just a diagram of a line (midi cable) from one unit to the other 🤷‍♂️ no explanation of how to use the midi settings to interact with other hardware/daw. Thanks again

[@festivaltv]

how do you assign an multi effect on multi effect button, if i turn on fx prm nothing happens , only the fx depth buttons works ?? if i holding multi fx button i cant assign the fx prm

[@sinewaymusic]

Thanks for the tutorial. Can you add effects like distortion on a per drum sound level, or just the delay/reverb send fx is on a per-pad basis?

[@BenCoeMusic]

For the whole track aside from reverb and delay you have one MFX slot which can be any of the 90 available (distortions, choruses, phasers, etc). You can selectively send individual pads to this by changing their output settings, but there’s it’s only on or off, not like a send. So if you want say distortion on the kick and snare but not the high hats it’s no problem, but if you want distortion on the kick, chorus on the snare, and a phaser on the high hats you’d need a more intense workaround (resampling, extra drum track, etc). There are also 6 compressors available on the drum+comp tracks that you can send to selectively that can get pretty aggressive for some effecting. The output of each compressor can also be selectively send to the MFX slot or not. Hope that all makes sense!

[@sinewaymusic]

@@BenCoeMusic Thanks for the thorough answer! Very helpful. This device is insanely capable given its size, but I can't help but wish it had an easy resample method (think: "flatten pad" of the MPC). But then again, for being a portable groovebox for outside-of-studio inspiration, it's probably already too packed with features. 😊

[@manslaughterinc.9135]

Is it possible to set knob assignments to clip?

[@alchemistrpm82]

Is it possible to add other effects on a per pad basis in a drum track? Like how you can adjust the reverb and delay sends for just a kick or snare… what if I wanted to add a touch of saturation, for example, to my kick drum without affecting the whole kit? Are submixes possible here?

[@didgeridoojedi]

yup, you can set the amount of Delay and Reverb send separately for each instrument/pad in the Drum Kit. This little thing is amazing :)

[@ticketstomars]

Thanx for tutorial. How may master effects can you have simultaneously?

[@BenCoeMusic]

Each track gets one MFX slot, and there’s one MFX slot for the master, so you can only use one MFX at a time. There are a few (~10?) combo MFX like guitar amp + chorus that behave like two MFX but only use the one slot. The master compressor and EQ are independent of that MFX, there’s one of each on the master. The reverb and delay are send effects and there’s only one of each but you can individually control send levels per track. If you want more MFX, there are kind of workarounds, you can use individual tracks in insert mode as of the newest firmware, where you can use the output from one track as an input for another track. That looses you some flexibility but you get an extra MFX for your track. You can also use a looper track to record with MFX on to bake it in, then export and import it to use a separate MFX on top. There’s also two MFX slots available only to the scatter effects. So you can configure scatter pads to not effect anything other than sending the audio to an MFX engine, to use the scatter pad as a punch fx. That might have been a long-winded answer, sorry about that. I think the answer you were looking for was “one master MFX, but you can find a little wiggle room if you’re creative.”

[@ticketstomars]

@@BenCoeMusic wow! Ben thanx. Also guitar amp on a masters is mono and sums your output to mono or at least does something with the stereo image. I guess thats why it takes one slot. If i choose Saturator on drums could it be another MultiFX on master? Or its the same for everything. Like one stereo guitar pedal for your mixer - example from hardware world.

[@JorgeElgueraL]

Hi Ben, when you have the track sound source as clip, does each clip gets its own FX? If so does it replace the track effect ?

[@kubaw8586]

Hi, is there possibility to remove all effects from track? Some shortcut?

[@rabevier8071]

I wish they ( roland ) would make a sample import upgade in the os that reads sp404sx files i really like this machine zen core stuff is amazing .

[@valley_robot]

Hi, any idea how you change the colour of the pads, I did it once and now I can not remember how to do it

[@valley_robot]

Never mind worked it out myself

[@paulwhiting1731]

Excellent video. I realize that a clip can contain it's own preset but can it contain its own effects . Do the effects belong to the sound preset, or do all clips share the track effects. Apoligies if you covered this but I didn't see it.

[@BenCoeMusic]

Thank you! Yeah the track mfx is saved as part of the tone so that can change per clip. There’s the single master mfx that’s always the same for the whole thing, but the track ones change with clip.

[@paulwhiting1731]

@@BenCoeMusic Thanks a lot Ben for taking time to reply. Keep up the great work.

[@RosssRoyce]

Why can’t I record a melody of a sample played on “notes”, different notes, not just the C note of the sample?

[@nxtlightdesign7440]

Is there a machine similar to this that is primarily for movie sound effects, including science fiction, space effects? Thx.

[@BenCoeMusic]

I don’t think anything really exists “primarily” for movie sound effects. Foley/cinematic sound design is really its own entire field with its own techniques and strategies. To my understanding, it uses lots of field recordings of synths and other things (engines, hydraulic machinery, random bits of things the sound designers have laying around) that are typically layered and timed in software to create the overall effects. That said, the 101 synth engine is equipped with powerful lfos and envelopes, fm, ring mod, hard sync, industrial sounding syncable pcm samples, and is totally capable of putting out sci-fi blips, bloops, and whooshes. You could look at semi modular and modular options (like the make noise 0 coast, Berlinger neutron, cre8 audio offerings, Pittsburgh Taiga) they have lots of modulations and options and I think some sound designers use modular systems for sounds like that but I personally think you’d have to spend 4-5 times the price of an mc-101 to get similar functionality. For what it’s worth I’ve also heard really impressive clinks and clanks come out of the elektron digitone, which is a purely fm synth. I think the 101 is more flexible but it’s definitely capable as well. I guess to summarize there’s certainly no one thing to do what you want, you might be better off researching the techniques you want to use (fm, sampling, analogue synthesis, etc) and then figuring out what hardware you want to use for it.

[@stevewoywitka3258]

What's up 🤟

[@MegaDieseldriver]

Hey Ben , there is something I need help with that I can’t figure out. When I’m recording a passage is there way to record where it doesn’t over dub what I previously played ? I usually have to play over the loops a few times to get it right . But all my takes are still in the sequences. In other words I’m trying to loop record Over my previous mistakes without just adding more notes on top of them .is that possible ?

[@BenCoeMusic]

If you hold shift+project and then hit seq, it will delete your previous takes from the track, then you can re-record what you want. I think that’s a solution to your issue, but for more granular control, you can also go into the sequencer and hold shift+project and then press individual notes to delete them from the sequence if you only want to change a couple. If you want to delete a section of your recording (say delete one whole bar out of four) while the loop is playing, you can hold down shift+project and it will delete any notes that try to play while you’re holding the buttons down. I think one of those should suit you, if that wasn’t quite what you were asking for let me know.

[@alchemistrpm82]

@@BenCoeMusic Good tips. I can’t help but wish this unit had an undo/redo function as well, though. Similar to the MPC and other workflows out there.

[@ambtax1]

Thanks for this! The manual is limited and confusing and doesn't really explain the routing or structure of song creation.

[@franciscoramoncleriguesrov7187]

Otros vídeos tienen subtítulos en español… este no ! Sabéis alguien porque?? Gracias. No tener un manual completo en español habiéndolo en inglés es un dolor 😖 de muelas, muy mal por Roland en su web.Tiene muchas opciones funciones etc.. Gracias por compartir experiencia y tu tiempo

[@FinlayCampbell]

Can I set the base tuning of A4 to 432Hz instead of 440Hz????

[@BenCoeMusic]

Yeah, the master tuning can be adjusted anywhere from 415.3Hz to 466.2Hz in 0.1Hz increments. 432 and any normal (or abnormal) values are easy.

[@BiteTheBoxer]

Changing the master reverb type was a game changer for me. The default one is a bit 'meh'

[@SynthAddict]

good stuff, thanks again however some of your time stamps are off on the video - not a big deal but thought you should know

[@aethervagrant244]

why does the reverb start sounding even when no sounds are playing. fx that seem to sound even with playing nothing drive me nuts. sometimes even the sound played makes little difference you could blow static or sine wave into the fx and it will sound the same.

[@agwmusic]

So.... You can have master overall FX. Then each track can have their FX. Then each clip (Pad FX) can have their FX. Then each note/sample (Note midi controller-parameter or Motion) can have their FX.... Is it not just mind blowing?

[@jensp2857]

🔆

[@lucgensler]

Looks like you’ve already beefed up your subscribers from 555! Lol

[@BenCoeMusic]

Haha yeah I recorded it a few days ago, just thought it was a neat tidbit.

[@lucgensler]

Definitely a neat tidbit! Thanks for explaining compression again too! For some reason this is the first explanation of that topic that ever really made sense to me.

[@aethervagrant244]

curious about the lifespan of this. build quality feels cheap and using the encoder knob for everything feels like it could fail at any time. USB port is very loose and plugs do not insert all the way. its like if daewoo tried to copy a bmw .

[@benlorence7390]

Drum Send Effects and Master Compressor! Thanks for sharing. Another quick tip for drums is to hold "1" and the drum pad you want to mute. Before I discovered this I would copy a clip and find good alternatives. Congrats on growing your community and keep up the great work! Additional content to show: the drums with "comp" or "w" don't seem to have the "comp" menu as described in this Roland Product Support Video: kzbin.info/www/bejne/pZeugZKXg7ydn8k

[@terrytorain5364]

dude, if someone dont know what e.q. is, they dont need a mc 101!