There is obviously no way the 500 is as powerful as the 1000.
Why bother contemplating it. It's not trying to be a 1000.
It is a portable introduction to the mpc series.
As for hidden menus...for godness sake. It's a two row lcd, what were you expecting ? I find the 500 incredibly intuitive considering it only has two rows...I was expecting much worse. Hidden, jesus how do you find your way out the house if you can't get around this ?
I like the pad and the curve choice...I'm not getting finger ache yet.
I edit on a pc so I only ever had this for layers and seq player that I could travel with.
I haven't had any big bugs (touches wood) no doubt they will come, at which point I might reconsider.
But for SIMPLE work this thing is great.....buy it for half the selling price and it will be your friend.
Just don't buy one expecting it to be an mpc 1000.....why the hell would you ?
It is cute easy to get around, considering, and I can sit in bed grooving without catching the lead or pulling it of the bed.
Yes akai are ripping people off with it...thats why you buy second hand.
If somebody fixes the O.S that's gonna be a bonus...akai should do this but while nobody else is making mpc 1000/500 sized drum machine samplers they don't have to up their game. If you can't handle it, vote with your feet..many people seem to have, which means buying second hand 1000.
Can you see Akai, sorry Numark carrying on making the mpc series in the current midi controller and battery climate...I wonder ?, they have done to much damage to hit the serious spenders. There gonna end up trying to sell to the 14yr old market like Roland seems to do..is there really money there...I guess thats what parents are for ?
If you haven't considered this before you bought...you are either a newbee...like me, which is fine or you are lazy and what did you expect, you should know better. Roland and other larger corps all have shite aftersales experience for this sort of equipment....I've just bought enough gear to have done a bit of good research first.
I bought it second and if I get the save bug, haven't so far (touches wood) I will just sell it for the same price I got it no doubt. I probably will get the bug once I put it through it's paces..but if I don't, I have a great little friend that gets me away from the computer for a while and swings and feels great.
The pads are no mpc2000, but they do the job and I don't miss the size of them.
As for 12, personally I don't chop my samples into 16 normally anyway, although I can see the issue. What can I say, I'm new thats why a 500 is fine for me, thats who it's aimed at, don't **** cause you want it to be a 1000, it's not. I can't comment, but I find the idea of a piano roll on a mpc a bit wierd, I'm sure somebody will set me straight...I got an mpc to egt awayf rom piano roll editing, taht shit is what my pc is for.
The effects are pritty shit but better than I expected, except chorus and flanger, I think it would of been less embarrassing for akai to have left those two off.
Reverb isn't to my taste, but better than I was expecting. 6 outs are so needed but I'm just gonna track each sound out by itself and effect each track. I bought this thing as drum sampler and to seq midi drum modules and alike...not a full featured daw.
Buy it second for what it is..otherwise your kidding yourself from what I can make out so far.
