i was thinking about getting the motif xs8 but all i want from it is the sounds i was wondering am i better off with buying the rack instead, does it sound the same???? would appreciate advice

They obviously sound the same as they share the XS name. The only thing the XS lacks from the keyboard minus the obvious physical components are the sampler and sequencer both of which I'm assuming you're going to be getting via a DAW + VSTi. that being the case, the XS rack should do you fine. There's an editor that you can use for it as well. If you're not a keyboard player, there's zero point in getting the 88 key balanced hammer action unless you're going for the client wow factor.

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thanks for the reply....im just using it for in house producing so do you think i need a hammer action midi keyboard? another question i use the mpc 5000 as my main sequencer i want the sound from the rack to play in the mpc is that possible? i kno how to do it in a daw but i just want to mix in my daw afterwards and do everything in the mpc

The xs 8 is IMHO the workstation to own. If you get the rack you will miss out on a weighted keyboard ( one of the best out there) and also miss out on a very usable user interface. I own the motif 6 and cannot see my self do literally half the things I do on a rack than with the workstation. Get the xs8

You're going to be running into a bit of frustration that many hardware / software transitioning musicians run into. Especially if you're going backwards. You mentioned that you know how to do it all in software. So if you're used to stemming things out in software at the click of a button or have templates already up and running, it's a whole 'nother deal with a hardware based setup.

And when I see you saying things like "i want the sound from the rack to play in the MPC", i have a feeling maybe you're a bit new to how this all works in hardware. I don't mean any disrespect, if you started in software as many people do because of the lower cost of entry, then it's going to be foreign to you no matter how many times you've seen someone do it. The MPC is only triggering midi unless you're going to sample the Motif phrases into the MP itself. Otherwise, you're only connecting midi cables between the 2, and come time to track, you'll be doing a lot of solo-ing and doing full passes. If you have a multichannel interface, you can use the extra outputs from the Motif rack but frankly sometimes people get frustrated just setting that up and go with the solo-each-track situation.

As far as the weighted 88 keys, again unless you play or are planning on having real players come through, just save the money and get the 61 key if you're going the board route.

Seniority has a point, the larger interface is most certainly easier to dive into on the boards, but once you learn how to msb / lsb through your MPC, it's plenty fast in it's own way.

Cheers.

I must add l like to play real pianos and the xs is amazing close to the feel of a grand. the xs6 keys will be very easy to handle midi triggering for drums and simple synth lead input. i never liked the feel of trigger pads. they aren't as sensitive as l would want them to be.

Waist of money for the EX8 if you only plan to use the sounds out of it or if you are not a die-hard keyboard player but read on..........

I have a motif es8 and I have NEVER touched the sequencer in it and hardly touch the knobs on the thing in the studio.

I hate the weighted keyboard for beat making becuase the feel just isn't right. I use the ASR-10 keys for midi triggering. I also have a MPK49 that is useful for triggering. I also have a MPC that I do not sequence with either becuase it is so much easier doing it ITB but again, I use it for midi triggering and roll.

I do LOVE the sounds in the XS but really most of the sounds can be found ITB now-a-days. But I must admit that for the hammer keys, the XS8 is hard to beat and it's a good investment if you do not have a solid weighted keyboard controller. (If that's your thing)

What I love about workstations is taking them to do live performances. (Keyboard Player)

Just giving you another perspective.

thanks for all the help...I went ahead and got the motif rack xs now i ran into another problem. i want to sequence everything into logic from my mpc and motif rack. i have an mbox 2 pro all my midi is set up correctly that works but its just the audio thats not working for me. i have the spdif out of my motif going into the spdif in inside my mbox that works fine i hear the audio but now that leaves out my mpc how should i setup audio in and out from my mpc to logic can someone look at the mbox 2 pro and tell me where to put the audio in thanks

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any advice??