Sync a Volca to an Roland MC 303

PieBaron · Post by **PieBaron** » Sat Apr 01, 2017 9:46 am

Hello,
I'm thinking about getting a Roland MC 303.
This looks like it should be simple since volca has a standard midi in socket.
But I just wanted to double check.

supermel74 · Post by **supermel74** » Tue Apr 04, 2017 5:07 pm

Yes. They will sync no problem.

Damocles · Post by **Damocles** » Wed Apr 05, 2017 4:38 pm

Hi PieBaron,

The MC-303 is an underated machine. I recent rediscovered mine ( bought in 1997 I think ) and think it is really good. It's a bit quirky so to make the most of it get the manual as there are loads of layers to play with.

http://www.synthmanuals.com/manuals/rol ... rs_manual/

I don't use it as a techno machine anymore, the 01 bank and strings are very warm especially with loads of reverb.

Also, I would advice to replace the coin battery (CR2032) inside before you save any patterns/song as the unit is old - it's very easy to get inside.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ibg8gjySyFg

I hope you enjoy it and midi works fine for syncing.

Best wishes

MrJed · Post by **MrJed** » Thu Apr 06, 2017 4:56 pm

Damocles wrote:Hi PieBaron,

The MC-303 is an underated machine. I recent rediscovered mine ( bought in 1997 I think ) and think it is really good. It's a bit quirky so to make the most of it get the manual as there are loads of layers to play with.

http://www.synthmanuals.com/manuals/rol ... rs_manual/

I don't use it as a techno machine anymore, the 01 bank and strings are very warm especially with loads of reverb.

Also, I would advice to replace the coin battery (CR2032) inside before you save any patterns/song as the unit is old - it's very easy to get inside.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ibg8gjySyFg

I hope you enjoy it and midi works fine for syncing.

Best wishes

I have one of these and got it out after about 10 years - nothing seems to be saved, and I could not save anything.

Would you suggest this is down the the battery? I got it when it first came out and the battery has never been changed.

Might give it another shot if so

PieBaron · Post by **PieBaron** » Sat Apr 08, 2017 1:40 pm

Thanks everyone, I was going to buy one but I realised I can't afford anything right now. I was considering selling my volca sample though..

hoddiec · Post by **hoddiec** » Thu Nov 16, 2017 11:40 pm

PieBaron wrote:Thanks everyone, I was going to buy one but I realised I can't afford anything right now. I was considering selling my volca sample though..

Made an account just to ask you for an update lol. What did you end up deciding and was it worth it? I am literally in the exact same predicament as you at the moment (volca sample vs MC-303).

PieBaron · Post by **PieBaron** » Fri Nov 17, 2017 3:21 am

hoddiec wrote:
PieBaron wrote:Thanks everyone, I was going to buy one but I realised I can't afford anything right now. I was considering selling my volca sample though..
Made an account just to ask you for an update lol. What did you end up deciding and was it worth it? I am literally in the exact same predicament as you at the moment (volca sample vs MC-303).

I ended up moving to Montreal and never bought it, curious to see how much I could get it for around here though. It sounds like it would be a bit of an investment in time if not anything else, to learn to use it properly, but I think it would be worth it.

jbro · Post by **jbro** » Sun Nov 19, 2017 12:32 pm

I have had an MC 303 for about 8 years now. I did a fair amount of production on it the first few years until I got an MC 505. I've also owned the volca sample for the past couple years. In my opinion, I like the MC for it's practicality, and I can bang something out pretty quick that sounds good because the onboard sounds and arpeggiator are really useful. I used it mostly as songwriting/composition tool. I found that the sample was really fun to play with, and made very cool loops, but doing any kind of real production on it felt a little strained. I really love both boxes though.