Post your questions, opinions and reviews of the MPC1000. This forum is for discussion of the OFFICIAL Akai OS (2.1). If you wish to discuss the JJ OS, please use the dedicated JJ OS forum
By hakaveli Sun Nov 26, 2006 11:06 pm
hey ive never owned an MPC1000 and have 700 dollars to spend. Im thinking about getting an MPC1000 with the JJ OS on it but the only problem is everyone says the pads are horrible. Im willing to go with the MPC1000 over the 2500 to save a grand and am pretty good with hardware hands-on. is there a definite way to get around these bad pads or is it different for every MPC1000? is there a fix so that they never become bad or do people just replace the pads everytime they go bad? i dont want to buy a mpc1000 and regret it! any helpful info will be greatly appreciated
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By 1st up Sun Nov 26, 2006 11:37 pm
i have had my 1k for about a year my #1pad is sticky but still works my #2 pad is sticking a little but there are a few ways to fix i just have really wantd to bother with it .... still a pretty cool machine
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By Antonym Mon Nov 27, 2006 3:07 am
there will be a DIY way to make the pads work happily forever, materials are available for under 20 duckets total probably.
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By krang Mon Nov 27, 2006 3:30 am
how bad are the pads on the MPC1000 ??



bad meaning bad, or bad meaning good??

By hakaveli Mon Nov 27, 2006 5:18 am
juxt wrote:
how bad are the pads on the MPC1000 ??



bad meaning bad, or bad meaning good??

bad meaning bad meaning bad meaning bad meaning not good meaning bad

By hakaveli Mon Nov 27, 2006 6:30 am
should i buy a 2000XL if i find one for 750??
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By Antonym Mon Nov 27, 2006 7:00 am
no.

that machine will be even less two years from now. it doesn't offer adequate headroom to load many long stereo samples. it has no internal harddrive, is slow by today's mpc's standards. while it's a great machine and a legend of its time, i've said before that it's better to chose a machine with a shining future than a reliable past.

the 1k is the only machine which right now has an active coding unit who does something to correct bugs and add new features which actualizes existing hardware. the same can be said of literally no other mpc -- unfortunately. we were just lucky.

the 1000 is the most sold mpc ever, which gives me an inkling that akai may release some sort of pad solution. if not, i will offer an online tutorial on making one (w/ links and pricing to all needed parts) and i'll also be offering "ready made" pad fixes for those who want less DIY stuff.

most promising is the fact that the 1k is about to get a TON more midi stuff. using midi ccs in step edit straight BLOWS no matter how you look at it. editing that information is like a blind man looking for his seeing eye dog in a glass factory.

yes, the pads are bad, but only because someone was really clumsy about designing them. the sensors themselves are decent, though, more than enough to be able to lay out some beautiful stuff. not to mention, the added timing adjustments added in the jenius os make this whole pad thing taste a little less bitter.

get the 1000. you can't carry a 2000xl in a backpack everywhere with you.

By hakaveli Mon Nov 27, 2006 8:36 am
what is an average decent price on a USED good condition 1000??

By mreilly Mon Nov 27, 2006 8:54 am
"how bad are the pads"

They dont work for long. and they are the main interface of teh machine. So bad.


"and i'll also be offering "ready made" pad fixes for those who want less DIY stuff."

Im. Down.

By electrotimba Tue Nov 28, 2006 10:11 am
hakaveli wrote:what is an average decent price on a USED good condition 1000??

Cant follow your thinking, you thnik the pads are no good, then ask about used unit. Let me be streight here. Even if mine will work fine I will sell it after 2 years and get brand new one.
MPC is the last thing I would buy second hand unless knowing it belonged to a rich kid who never really used it.
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By Chulukinat Tue Nov 28, 2006 1:33 pm
untill now the mpc 1000 is the best i think if you look at its features. ( never really got into the 4000 though)
i owned a 2000xl and i am missing the bigger pads, but this is not a very big problem it would just be nicer. but you could always use a mpd16/mpd24 or any other kind of midi controller to trigger your samples and you will spend less than you did if you would buy a 2500.

actually i was thinkin about maybe getting a 2500 if the price drops and there is a jj os, but i hate that cotdamn data wheel :evil: what in the hell where they thinkin at akai?!
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By rabulisten Tue Nov 28, 2006 1:54 pm
i bought my 1000 used.i think its a really old unit.However i have not once felt that the pads was going bad. So many people bang on those poor sensors like there is no tomorrow,but it if you use it sensitively i think they might hold quite long. And ;so many hardware malfunction topics get blown up in proportions on the net. My mpc 1000 works fine, so does my alesis micron (which is a bad knob case) so far at least. My behringer mixer is quite allright for my purposes,and for me the 404 fx is really enough. Get your hands on stuff push,turn,play. You will discover that many issues are non issues, unless youre really unlucky.
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By Antonym Tue Nov 28, 2006 3:27 pm
as the resident pad man, tehre are a couple things i need to address here.

MPC is the last thing I would buy second hand unless knowing it belonged to a rich kid who never really used it.


if you're handy and don't mind learning to solder, buying a banged up mpc 1000 could save you a couple hundred dollars if you convince the kid that he really messed it up. even if not, the odds are you're gonna have to get in there someday to fix something, so start early if it saves you money.

So many people bang on those poor sensors like there is no tomorrow,but it if you use it sensitively i think they might hold quite long. And ;so many hardware malfunction topics get blown up in proportions on the net.


the issue is not with force of playing the pads, its in the construction of most mpc1000 pads. they will go bad. the four dots of glue securing the black square to the sensor WILL loosen and the conductive square will get loose. and then you have a "broken" pad. this isn't just being blown up on the net, this is just what happens to factory mpc1000s.

You will discover that many issues are non issues, unless youre really unlucky.


THIS is the truth, though. technically, i could have been working on music for the last 2 weeks using tin foil instead of my black squares, but i've decided to wait until the materials come to fix it. that's cost me time, and had i known how much time it'd cost, i would have left the tin foil on and kept playing until it arrived.

actually i was thinkin about maybe getting a 2500 if the price drops and there is a jj os


both an absolute necessity before that machine begins to poke me with a stick

By mreilly Thu Nov 30, 2006 3:36 am
dnh nuh nuh nunu nuh nuh nuh PAD MAN!!!
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By Antonym Thu Nov 30, 2006 3:52 am
hahaahhah oh man

gonna have to ask for that to be my whatever that is, like sparq's is "mr 1000"

but only after it's all said and done.
not yet.
not yet.