No Mixer...

so something i noticed while poking around on a 500 at Guitar Center was the absence of a mixer. obviously velocity controls still exist but with no mixer and 'real' track info present, meaning velocity per track, and no mixer...there are workarounds but as i am surprised that this is a feature Akai would have left out while cutting corners...hmmm

just something that really kept me from picking one up. thoughts anyone?

peace
actuel

Well i mean it is portable so some of the features wont be there as u already know. But i mean if u own an mpc500 u at least own another mpc such as the mpc1000, 2500, ect.. so some of your work can be transfered back over. I know u can open up stuff on the 1k and 2500 that u saved on the mpc500. But i aint really been looking into the mpc500 so i'll let the ones really studying it talk to you in more depth.

Nicole

actuel wrote:so something i noticed while poking around on a 500 at Guitar Center was the absence of a mixer. obviously velocity controls still exist but with no mixer and 'real' track info present, meaning velocity per track, and no mixer...there are workarounds but as i am surprised that this is a feature Akai would have left out while cutting corners...hmmm

just something that really kept me from picking one up. thoughts anyone?

peace
actuel

According to the manual...you can change velocity for multiple note events at a time ...for samples or midi. There are also a few mods you can do to samples with velocity...such as envelope attack, pitch etc. No mention of a mixer though.

I agree with mnh2410, this is a device that should mainly be used with a bigger mpc. anything that is not available in the 500 can be worked out in any of the larger mpc's.

exactly ! the mpc 500 is not standalone !!!! needs a big brother by its side

eh if people can use the 404 standalone...people can use the 500. for a loooong time i never used the mixer on my 1000, only recently have i been doing anything in there.

maybe someone can code a mixer into the os.

Antonym wrote:eh if people can use the 404 standalone...people can use the 500. for a loooong time i never used the mixer on my 1000, only recently have i been doing anything in there.

maybe someone can code a mixer into the os.

true, but i don't think you'll be able to use this machine nym...the no visual aid...i mean without that "accuracy" of seeing you'll be handicapped right?

ok enough with the clownin. i agree with the consenses everyone has drawn so far. i posted this thread because while portability is the obvious selling point here, Akai really almost have a full fledge work station. it doesn't have the i/o's of its bigger bretheren but i was thinking about how close this machine is to being a small and simple 'full' workstation.

don't get me wrong, its still fully capable and the lack of a mixer can be worked around really easily. as it is, it has an impressive feature set. i'm just commenting on the machine being an all inclusive mpc like the rest the line, and not viewing it as needing to be piggy backed to another mpc or computer to 'finish' its duties.

la, la, lah...i'm looking forward to hearing back users hands on reviews after they've had it for a few weeks. mixer or no mixer i'm still pretty intrigued by this little guy.

peace

true, but i don't think you'll be able to use this machine nym...the no visual aid...i mean without that "accuracy" of seeing you'll be handicapped right? Wink

get real man

seatown350 wrote:exactly ! the mpc 500 is not standalone !!!! needs a big brother by its side

I doubt akai will market it this way. It is meant to be a standalone. You think akai wants to sell this to a fraction of the mpc owners? Hell no. It's a stand alone device. I suggest if you want to pan, pan when sampling. Use velocity % for levels.

udenjoe wrote:
I doubt akai will market it this way. It is meant to be a standalone. You think akai wants to sell this to a fraction of the mpc owners? Hell no. It's a stand alone device. I suggest if you want to pan, pan when sampling. Use velocity % for levels.

This is quoted strait from the akaipro mpc 500 page......

"Compatible with other MPC products, the MPC500 extends users' studios to fit in with their mobile lifestyles"

Although it will function as a standalone akai is marketing it as "extending users' studios". This is definitely geared toward existing mpc owers.

No mixer inside and their still asking for 800 dollars for this thing??

Antonym wrote:

true, but i don't think you'll be able to use this machine nym...the no visual aid...i mean without that "accuracy" of seeing you'll be handicapped right? Wink

get real man

Dang, how many people are forgetting about their ears? WTF?

Kon B wrote:No mixer inside and their still asking for 800 dollars for this thing??

yea like wtf?

might as well get a used 1000 or xl

udenjoe wrote:I suggest if you want to pan, pan when sampling.

Why, when the MPC-500 can pan? Just because it doesn't have a dedicated screen for mixing...doesn't mean it doesn't have all of the features of a mixer... they are all there.

Lampdog wrote:

Antonym wrote:

true, but i don't think you'll be able to use this machine nym...the no visual aid...i mean without that "accuracy" of seeing you'll be handicapped right? Wink

get real man

Dang, how many people are forgetting about their ears? WTF?

it seems like everybody is. they also forget about the classic drum/sampler machines that had no waveform display and are still being used to this day. SP 1200!!!