HELP!! CUBASE OR A 505????

S

shiftyp

Guest
I have worked out that i can either buy new sofware for my computer and a copy of the latest Cubase, or a Roland Groovebox MC505 (second hand with sampler), of which i have past experience. i already have a midi keyboard, but can use that for both. I really cant decide.

What are the advantages/disadvantages of both?

I have around £7-800 to spend, any better recomendations?

Cheers
 
groovebox

the groovbox sounds like a kool option and also has a live element to it. Though for serious studio songs you will need cubase, though stop right there!!

If all u have is your soundcard giving you sounds, id take the groovebox option as its got some kool sounds on it and, i its a sampler as well?

Before u buy be sure to understand the MIDI spec of the groovebox as Its not always nice to find out if u get cubase later that the MIDI support on it isnt sufficient for your needs though im sure you will be kool :D

If your thinking about getting cubase try starting with an older MIDI only copy unless u plan to record huge audio tracks (not recommended if u wanna play live!)

Get the Groovebox first and then cubase when afterwards ;)
 
Can i run Cubase with the 505 if i got an old copy, what would be the advantage of this? Dont they pretty much do the same thing?
 
go for the hardware, if you have an old copy use that, if its a proper copy! u can always update at later stage
 
Finally, i will mostly be producing D&B, and have found the finding of really deep basslines on my freinds 505 fairly difficult. You can do it but have to play around a lot to get it sounding really dark. Does Cubase have a good amount of bassy sounds? I dont have any real experience on Cubase remember, if this is a silly question.

Cheers for the help.
 
u can get PHAT basses in Cubase, if u have the right Plug ins!

I am facing the same dilemna! I have been sequencing for a year with a shareware midi sequencer, and feel it is time to upgrade. I was considering whether to get a RM1x or cubase VST for a long time. I settled on the RM1x for live performance considerations. But I do also plan to get cubase, because of the indepth sequencing options. Cubase does not come with any sounds, well if u get VST it comes with a LM4 and Neon, which arent bad. The strenght of cubase is the plugin concept I think. Anyone disagree?? Its possible to get phat bass, with the right combination on plug ins (soft synths, filters, grungelizers, etc.). if you do decide on the Cubase route, I suggest that you make sure u have a upper echelon sound card and alot of ram, because the plug ins are phat no doubt, but EAT and EAt away your sys resources! For mastering work and making totally finished tracks, get cubase. If you want something you can jump right into, use live, and just bomb around with, get the groovebox. If you plan on using the groovebox with other MIDI, make sure it is compatible and has the specs you need. if not, you might want to check out the RM1x, which is I think much superior to the groovebox, though it doesnt have as cool sounds
 
if you have a very good pc that wont cut out when you play your tunes on cubase and want to press music, get cubase. you must have a good sound card. i dont have a good one so when i use different instuments and efx my sound cuts on and off because cubase is so powerfull because the efx are so strong also with the grm tools you can minipulate the sound in any way you want. so much to tell, that you probably know about it anyway. as you know the 505 is good for live sets. now what i want to do is get a good sampler and do stuff on cubase and to do a live set sample tunes and there you have best of both worlds. :)
 
soma advice do what you want with it.

Ditch the 505 it's basiclly crap. they're not exactly known for their flexebillity and sound quallity. In a studio situation when compared to a decent synth they tend to fall out rather weak. As you said yourself, deep intens basses.. forget it, only a weak emulation of..(I will get flamed for this I know, I don't care. Expect the JP8000/8080 Roland didn't made any good things in the last few years, they're just abusing their name)

If your in electronic music you'll need to get a sequencer sooner or later. since version 2 cubase does midi very good. All versions up from there only offer more audio-related options. Note that audio in the PC will use a fair amount of system resources from your PC. Cubase itself doesn't offer you any sounds. it's just a sequencer. it do offer you extensive audio possebillities such as non-destructive editing, real-time FX and since version 4 also VST instruments, wich are emulated synths. Note that a good quallity VSTi (instrument) actually do cost some money and really do eat up CPU resources quickly, but quallity of those synths is of the same as any hardware synth. If you really want to use your puter for sound-creation and FX and audio recording, see you get a fairly fast one with enough ram and a big and fast HD. If you ain't got access to that a version of cubasis or a lower version of cubase will be equally intresting. Updating can amlways happen at a later time.

So some alternatives..

Yamaha RMX1 tend to get fairly good reviews and is in a similar concept of the 505. it do sound better and it has been putted together in a rather intelligent way.

MPC2000. A sampler + sequencer. You could use this as a standalone machine. It has no onboard sounds, but you could sample whatever comes in your way. Almost ALL d&b basses are samples and filtering is not seldom done by the sampler too. and in fact 90% of the drum and bass rythms are done with a sampler.

The best option IMO: A full blown rack sampler with cubase on the puter. Something like the akai s2000/3000 or the Esi2000 or the yamaha A3000/4000..(or one of the top models of akai/emu/yamaha). well something with balls. For drum and bass a sampler is from vital importance. you also could consider a software sampler such as the ESX, but you'll need a fairly potent puter to get away with it. Alternativly there are PCI cards available with onboard DSP I think creamware pulsar and stuff can be of use too, but I'm not really at home in that kind of semi-hardware stuff.

conclusion.. get a sampler and an old version of cubase and you're off. If you have a little more money get an update of cubase, a copy of Recycle, a mixer, and a keyboard and some FX boxes etc....
 
I recently switched from sequencing with Cubase to using an RM1X. There are benefits to both. I definitely miss being able to edit on a big screen with Cubase, but I also really love being able to tweak things in real time and improvise with the RM1X. If you're looking for a hardware sequencer, the 505 isn't the best choice. It's pricey and not such a great sequencer in terms of controlling external gear. The RM1X is a good all round sequencer.

If you're not planning on doing any kind of live performance, or if you don't mind composing on a PC, then go with Cubase. Me, personally, I love tweaking the knobs on my RM1X, messing around with the groove effects, etc. If only it had a bigger screen.....
 
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