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By fmmood Fri Mar 03, 2017 6:51 am
Hey, sorry, I have a bunch of questions you've all probably heard 100's of times before.

I'll try to be concise. This will be my first MPC. I like making old school hip hop beats and do a lot of sample chopping. as a hobby. i probably suck- but i enjoy it.

i've been working with fruity loops, but before I used FL studio, i used this program that let me bind all my samples to keys. long story short, I'd like to be able to do that again- and not need my computer. What appeals to me about the MPC is having all my sample chops and drum kits right on there (or on the memory card) and being able to bring it around with me.

I've wanted one for a while, and am finally going to buy one. The research I've done shows that the MPC 1000 is probably my best bet. But after further- research I read that the pads on the red/blue 1000 don't feel good and they stop working after a while.

I found a blue/red 1000 on ebay for under $500- looks like it's in great shape and says that all the pads work.

Are the blue/red 1000s really inferior to the black one? is $450 for a good condition blue/redMPC1000 a good deal? and if they pads were to break how much money on average would it cost to replace them? Finally, what first time MPC would you guys recommend? which MPC is the most user friendly? I'm willing to spend a little more for something that has a quality build and will last.

Thank you, sorry for the noob questions.
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By Ill-Green Fri Mar 03, 2017 8:05 am
Depends if the original owner fixed the pads. There are red and blue 1000s with faulty pads but this was fixed by Akai a few months after the initial release. So there are red and blue 1000s with the pads fixed too.

How can you tell? The faulty pads were 16 individual pads, as if Akai took the pads and cutted them into 16 pieces. So moving a pad will help identify the difference. If all pads move around by moving a single pad, then its fixed and fine but if that single pad is moving and all other pads are not then its faulty.
By fmmood Fri Mar 03, 2017 8:03 pm
K, so If I were to get the original MPC1000 for $450.

Buy the 128 Mb upgrade and the pad upgrade - that's about a $170. so a little over $600 all and all. i guess that's not bad.

one more question- in regards to the pads "breaking". Does upgrading just the rubber pads solve this issue? Or is there some underlying issue with the actual mechanics and electronics underneath the rubber on each pad? Also, when you upgrade the pads- is it just the exchange of the plastic pads or is there anything electrical or technical that needs to be done? thanks.
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By MPC-Tutor Fri Mar 03, 2017 9:20 pm
fmmood wrote:one more question- in regards to the pads "breaking". Does upgrading just the rubber pads solve this issue? Or is there some underlying issue with the actual mechanics and electronics underneath the rubber on each pad? Also, when you upgrade the pads- is it just the exchange of the plastic pads or is there anything electrical or technical that needs to be done? thanks.


nothing technical, just plug the new board in. As for the underlying issue, that's covered in the article I posted.
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By MPC-Tutor Sat Mar 04, 2017 7:09 pm
fmmood wrote:ok, so if it just has the "fat pad" upgrade, then the underlying pad issue is not necessarily resolved?


The fat pad upgrade requires you first install the upgraded sensor kit, you cannot install fat pads on the old style sensors. Just buy this, and select a set of fat pads from the drop down:

https://www.mpcstuff.com/akai-mpc-1000- ... x-upgrade/
By fancy_pance Mon Mar 13, 2017 9:30 pm
piggybacking on this conversation...

I just bought a used 1000 myself, and although it has the upgrade kit as well as a set of mpcstuff fat pads installed, I was disappointed to find that there's still a noticeable gap between the bottom of the pad and the sensor sheet, especially in the central 4 pads. I've maxed out the sensitivity settings in JJ OS but the response still seems kind of lifeless. I feel like I really have to whack the pads to get them to a decent velocity. It's not so much an issue if I manually stabilize a pad with one hand and strike it with the other. On a side note, I'd love it if JJ OS had the ability to do MIDI velocity compression / adjustable curves.

Anyways, I've disassembled the case and inspected everything, but I can't find any obvious explanation for why it's happening. I guess my question is: do the fat pads wear out eventually? Should I order a replacement set?

On another note, I'm also kind of disappointed by the responsiveness and feel of the switches. The unit I bought had the entire right side PCB replaced, so I thought it would feel super snappy and solid, but I still need to double press sometimes and it just generally feels kind of flimsy. I've read that spraying with some Deoxit can help with responsiveness, and that replacing the OEM tact switches with ones by Omron or ALPS can help with the feel. I've got some Deoxit on the way, but does anyone else have experience with the feel of other switches, and does anyone have an of idea what a shop might charge to replace them? Thanks!