MPC Studio as my first MPC. Startup questions

Hey guys,

I've been making hip hop music not so serious for a while on DAW's. I've been drumming since forever. I found making music with pc keyboard and mouse to be killing my inspiration and lust, so now I decided to get an MPC. I'm gonna go with the MPC Studio for money reasons. I've heard good stuff about it, and I can get a pretty good deal on one that have barely been used. I have a couple of questions, though.

1. The MPC Studio is purely USB powered. I have tried a maschine studio that "powers" itself (like a classic MPC), and I really like how sensitive it is. The pads responded instantly, and I could easily do a drum roll for example. Is this also the case with USB powered pads, or should I expect not being able to go too fast because of latency?

2. again, about the USB powered thing. For now, I have a decent laptop with an i5 CPU. I'm not planning on getting a sound card right away (but soon though) - do you think that this will affect the ability to run the MPC at a low enough sample rate to not get a delay? Or is it completely nuts to plug a USB powered MPC to a pc without a good soundcard?

That's about it. Also general thoughts on the MPC Studio are welcome.

Thanks in advance

I have no latency on my studio and I probably have the lowest spec laptop. im talking 2gb ram etc. its only temp until I get a decent laptop. I5 should be fine for you. I havent got a soundcard yet either but havent noticed any issues with the MPC or any delays. The USB power isnt an issue either, works perfectly.