Description
The MC-4 can be programmed with the input of number values, using the control panel numeric keypad. The second concept in programming the MC-4 are time values. The step time values determine the time interval between each musical note, or pitch. To set the time values, one must first set a time base, typically 120. This means that a quarter note = 120, a sixteenth note = 30, an eighth note = 60, etc. Esoteric timings can be programmed by entering any number against whatever time base is entered. The third programming concept is the gate time. This gate time refers to the actual sounded value; whether the phrasing is legato, staccato, semidetached etc. Alternatively, the MC-4 can record live playing from a monophonic keyboard. After a sequence has been programmed it must be saved, as the memory is volatile: when the power is switched off, memory contents are lost. An optional digital cassette recorder, the Roland MTR-100 was available for this purpose. The owner’s manual shows that a programmed sequence could also be saved to a standard cassette deck. This is good news as the MTR-100 is quite rare to find. When saving or loading programs, the CMT (Cassette Memory Transfer) mode must be selected. Programs are saved using program numbers for identification.
