SP404-MKII: is it any good for making house? | WILL IT...? Ep.4

ALL THE SAMPLES USED IN THIS BEAT ARE IN THIS PACK: www.bigumami.c... (except for the vocal sample ofc lol)
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if you're not interested in sample packs, but you think my videos are worth buying me a coffee, I'd love to have it :) www.buymeacoff...
on today’s episode we are also back on the sp404mkII for the first time after the massive 2.0 update that Roland released last July, which included, among other things, a brand new step sequencer called TR-REC. that is a hugely important development for this groovebox because it really makes things like drum programming so much easier, especially with a genre like the one we’re exploring today.
Before this, the only way to record sounds in a pattern would be to record them in real time playing them on the pads. If you made a mistake, oh well, just delete the whole thing and start again! but now, you can go in and fine tune the note that you got wrong, or, you can literally just program the whole thing from scratch on the sequencer.
needless to say, on paper, this makes the sp404mkii a much more versatile instrument. it also kind of increases my faith in it getting a good score today… but we’ll see!
As usual, I’ll go through with making a beat to the best of my abilities, and at the end of the video, I’ll give out scores from 1 to 10 to sound and usability to determine whether the sp404mkII is good enough for the job.
follow me on IG: / b.i.g.umami

[@yodabe882]

Great video! I might be missing something, but i find the easiest way to remove the kick is to just mute the pad that the kick is on (shift+reverse+kick pad)

[@BIGUMAMI]

YO ARE YOU KIDDING RIGHT NOW? YOU CAN DO PAD MUTES??? man I can't wait to try it out! this changes everything. thank you so much!

[@yodabe882]

@@BIGUMAMI yeah it was added in 2.0 😆🥳

[@BIGUMAMI]

DAAAAAAAAYUMMMMMMM gotta remake the whole video now 😂

[@BIGUMAMI]

@@artisans8521 YO THERE IS A MANUAL NOW? damn. I need to do my go***mned research! they used to redirect you to an awful online-only one. I just found the PDF manual for v2.0... hey, thank you so much guys! this is why I like making videos. it forces you to learn something new, and even when you miss someting, there's a collective effort to improve the general knowledge on the subject. love this community. truly! I'm gonna pin this post so that everyone can see it!

[@davidmaskew]

I was just watching this and I was thinking the same thing (Pad Mute) but I've only had mine 2 weeks and I'm a complete beginner so I thought maybe I was wrong. luckily you were the first comment I saw. It sometimes pays to read the updated manual 😂

[@itsdaveyes]

there is very little content about house on sp404mk2 on youtube, glad you made this video, it slaps!

[@genuinelyfranklin7051]

Fantastic Video Brother. I see a bunch of Hip Hop vids and I love those don't get me wrong. But it's really fun seeing people like yourself pumping out some house videos on the Sp 404!

[@BIGUMAMI]

I know right? I love the mkii for this genre, hell, I even loved the SX beforehand!

[@grillmeisterflash]

I was a MPC user and the old SP404 was a no go for me because of the missing visual when chopping samples, im still getting used to the MK2 but what i love most about it is the portability, drop some batterys in it and i can make a beat in the garden.

[@BIGUMAMI]

yeah there are definitely a few kinks in the user experience still, and with such a small screen it only makes sense. but once you get into the workflow, man, this thing is so much more versatile than what Roland has historically done with their samplers.

[@HeWhoSmells]

Sometimes this song gets caught in my head. Then i have to rewatch this video

[@BIGUMAMI]

your username is the best thing happened t me today. also, I guess I'll have to put it on bandcamp!

[@istvantoth7431]

Ricky Tinez made pretty good grooves on this. The vids are on YT. So it can definitely house!

[@BIGUMAMI]

ahah of course but I ain't as good as ricky. I love that dude. big inspiration for me

[@macn4u]

This is a Great Video bro keep up the excellent work and videos thanks for keeping the beat community on our toes with these informational videos and tutorials 💯🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥

[@BIGUMAMI]

it means a lot!!! thank you for the kind words!

[@kawaiipotato5450]

for less muddiness, you could pan a little bit the sound of the kick on one side and snare on the other ,so it can breathe and have more space, same with lead and bass, i haven't tried it yet but it might work prettti well.

[@thegreatsiberianitch]

Every time i try it I don't like it. Loses punch and feels weird.

[@BIGUMAMI]

I have to agree with @thegreatsiberianitch on this one, leaving the kick and most basses dead center is one of those rule of thumbs in mixing I personally don't like to upset ahahah! I mean, the beatles did it, but it was literally the very first years of stereophony. anyway, I guess the best way to solve it would be to mix it in a DAW. exporting multi tracks is a bit of a pain (hint: I use mute pads again). will do a video about it soon!

[@shifteleven]

I’ve had some success using the Super Filter. I use the pad mute trick to isolate the mud and high/low cut until it sounds better in pattern mode. Then I go back to the pads, resample the sound with the filter and use pad exchange to move the new sound in the old sounds position. Now the pattern plays the new sound and hopefully clutters up the mix less

[@DJCable]

Great video! Really tempted to pick up a 404 MK2

[@bschlegs122]

As someone new to music production I really don’t mind the way the MK2 slows you down a bit. Some of that searching for volumes and stuff makes you work with a little more intention. I also prefer that bit of mud you get in the final mix, gives it a bit of that older school house feel with a bit more personality. That personality is nice when I feel like most the new electronic tracks coming out feel so overly polished from a mix and master standpoint

[@BIGUMAMI]

I agree with everything you just said 100%!

[@sulgypolo]

Of course it will

[@Tapepusher]

If it’ll respond to program changes from an Elektron Analog Four mk2, to sync pattern changes between the two sequencers, I’ll be so happy. The SP is on the way and I’m gona found out.

[@BIGUMAMI]

aw shit, just now reading this! let me know!!!

[@Tapepusher]

I appreciate the responses, I got the SP but it doesn't fit into my workflow the way I wanted it to so it's going back to the shop. and I didn't have my A4 with me at the time so I didn't get to test the MIDI connectivity between them anyway. I'd say it would work fine by e.g. just sending MIDI from an Elektron to the SP to trigger samples, but I was put off by the fact that the rest of the features of the SP might not fit into my current workflow. @@BIGUMAMI

[@fredh9808]

Great track, man 🔥

[@BIGUMAMI]

thank you so much! thinking about mixing it and releasing it proper...

[@wesleycarter2534]

Would you recommend a similar but different(better) device for making house music. This video was great. Thank you for sharing your knowledge.

[@brianwyse5810]

Excellence! And fun! Now, is it possible to do this with disco-nu disco?

[@BIGUMAMI]

I don't see why not... might add it to my to-do list! ✅

[@mickeyricketts6987]

It’ll house!

[@BIGUMAMI]

you're go**amn right it will!

[@djlinusmunich]

Is it possible to sync loops from the MK2 to a DJ set up, like the V10 and CDJ3000 - I would like to use it as such to pimp my sets at Pacha. Very new to this machine, and I'm liking it more and more ;)

[@BIGUMAMI]

what's up you legend! yeah there must be a way... either in pattern mode or in dj mode... unfortunately I don't own any CDJs so I can't really test it out! damn.

[@djlinusmunich]

@@BIGUMAMI Thanx for the heads up anyways mate, keep up the good work ;) PS Might be a good topic for another vid of yours, I know there are some DJs out there who will love a unique tutorial on the SP404

[@BrancoArgenta]

We need just one more little update like that locking a bar thing you mentioned, being able to save effect settings in your projects and if it's not too much an exporting audio feature would be apreciated!

[@BrancoArgenta]

Wait! I found the way to loop one section of the pattern! In " pattern edit" there is Loop Start (CTRL 2),you just need to adjust the lenght (CTRL 3) to be shorter than the pattern, for example if your pattern is 4 bar long and you want to lock only 1 bar, then you are able to scroll your loop thru each bar!

[@BIGUMAMI]

excellent!!!! I'll try it next!!!

[@velanche]

So what are good alternatives to the SP for making house? Thanks and good video!

[@BIGUMAMI]

oh, digitakt hands down! it's a bit pricier but PERFECT for house.

[@magadan4626]

I tried to do this: I created composition of 8 loops in abliton live. Then each loop was imported into wav and transferred to SP 404 mk2. Then I tried to use a TR sequencer to play these loops at the same time. But it turned out that the TR sequencer is a curve))). The loops have a slight but noticeable out of sync with each other.

[@BIGUMAMI]

that's weird! are you using the 3.0 update? cos that should be buttery smooth! check my new video about it for a full tutorial: kzbin.info/www/bejne/maKzloOnq7V0eqM

[@magadan4626]

@@BIGUMAMI Yes, after I updated to 3.0, this problem was solved. Now everything plays clearly and evenly.

[@fabe86]

great video!

[@azrajiel]

the most important question was not answered: can it do 303 basslines?

[@robtherub]

What if you wanted to turn that hi hat down?

[@AxelisK]

Hey, *tomatobreaks*, can it jungle?

[@BIGUMAMI]

of course it can, and it will! definitely in my future videos list!

[@BIGUMAMI]

what is up greedy guts? I have a Discord server! come and chat about samplers, software, and leave some suggestions on what videos you want to see next: discord.gg/DMntZNBX

[@llorenzo582]

polyend tracker next!

[@BIGUMAMI]

ahaha aw man if they send me one, absolutely yes! I just bought a digitakt so... no polyend tracker for at least next year ahahaha

[@jex8046]

Can it moombahton

[@brokechannel5168]

Try SHIFT+REVERSE

[@BIGUMAMI]

YES! somehow I missed it in the 2.0 update!!! my bad 😔 I discovered here in the comments and pinned the thread at the top! hopefully the bus routing and setup will be helpful for other things you might want to do, and hopefully you found the rest of the video entertaining!

[@jex8046]

Can it reggaeton?

[@BIGUMAMI]

funny you should ask... we'll find out 😎

[@sulgypolo]

Trouble is u play hard house if I played any of my vinyl on this bpm I’d have to go see a dj and ask what’s house n what’s hard house. And what’s the sound of house about …

[@dja.selekta]

Can it Drill ?

[@BIGUMAMI]

I believe so 🤔

[@bboymac84]

You can do anything with anything lol

[@BIGUMAMI]

yeah of course - the point of the video is more like "how much of a pain in the ass would be producing this particular genre with this particular machine" but ain't nobody got time fo that. and it wouldn't fit in the video title lol

[@bboymac84]

@@BIGUMAMI lol

[@SourDiesel69]

Terrible hi hat