MPC REN the most important MPC EVER

What u reckon? the 60 and the 4k set trends and became industry standards


now the legacy is in place the expectation is so high.

ive never seen akia take this approach,


like the 2k5, 5k just came out no engagement no consultation

Expectation is very high, it's a make or break set of products no doubt. The Ren is being marketed as revolutionary and 'game changing' - these are big and bold statements and the pressure is on to back them up.

Personally I still think there's so much more that can be done with the MPC range and over the next few years Akai will need to think outside the box significantly, because I suspect NI certainly will.

I don't think many can get past the idea that the Ren cannot be used standalone. Time will tell on that one, but I think it wont be long before either Akai or NI come out with something that is a true hybrid that can be used standalone and integrated.

IMO I think it will be a while before Ren will see its true potential...just look how long it took NI to get maschine up to speed...given akais track record with MPC series OS updates I got feeln Ren wont know what it's really capable of for a long while.

I think mpc 4000 would be a good platform for them to work with for their hybrid machine, it already integrates nice with a computer using ak.sys....with major ak.sys face lift n reconstruction they could come up with something real dope if they wanted.

konc3pt wrote:IMO I think it will be a while before Ren will see its true potential...just look how long it took NI to get maschine up to speed...given akais track record with MPC series OS updates I got feeln Ren wont know what it's really capable of for a long while.

I see a big difference here. NI has never done a sampling sequencing drum machine before. Maschine was simply a groovebox that sorta transformed into a workstation.

The MPC Ren is a workstation like the MPCs before it. Akai already has 25 years of MPCs as an example of what to bring to the Ren. My biggest wish is for it to incorporate the best functions found in every legacy MPC.

MPC-Tutor wrote:I don't think many can get past the idea that the Ren cannot be used standalone.

Agreed. But many of these individuals (at least in these forums) are the same ones that complained about the retail prices of brand new MPC 2500, 4000, and 5000. I just don't think there is a huge market for a $2500-$3500 MPC. A well built, hybrid MPC with the features that most here want will not be cheap.

ren is trying to get that beat thang marketshare...

JAH wrote: A well built, hybrid MPC with the features that most here want will not be cheap.

Based on the old market, where Akai were basically the only game in town, perhaps. It's easy to get away with charging artificially inflated premium prices when no one else is proving otherwise.

I have no idea what the exact markup is on a premium MPC, I suspect it's pretty high, but most people around here are aware that the technology inside is typically not cutting edge nor premium quality.

MPC-Tutor wrote:I have no idea what the exact markup is on a premium MPC, I suspect it's pretty high, but most people around here are aware that the technology inside is typically not cutting edge nor premium quality.

true!

MPC-Tutor wrote:

JAH wrote: A well built, hybrid MPC with the features that most here want will not be cheap.

Based on the old market, where Akai were basically the only game in town, perhaps. It's easy to get away with charging artificially inflated premium prices when no one else is proving otherwise.

I have no idea what the exact markup is on a premium MPC, I suspect it's pretty high, but most people around here are aware that the technology inside is typically not cutting edge nor premium quality.

Being an MPC fanatic, I would agree that the MPC is/was the only game in town but I am sure others would say otherwise. The SP12 and SP1200 were also highly regarded/expensive...and had nearly the same production run as the MPC 60/60II and 3000. There has always been alternatives that were in the same price ranges as MPCs such as the ASR-X, SU-700, MV-8000/8800, JS30, SP-808, MC-909, Maschine drum, Beat Thang, etc...not to mention new products like the Tempest (nonsampler).

On the flip side we can also look at keyboard sampling workstations....quite a few on the market. ...typically all in the same price range....$2000-$3000+.

Based upon the prices of similar products over the years, its not a good argument to say Akai is inflating prices as MPCs have been competitively priced.

If a hybrid sampling workstation is what people actually want...and if it costs very little for a company to make them....perhaps we may see them one day at a price most people will find reasonable. But I am skeptical if many people in this forum would buy one.....

Many of the devices you list there were actually very innovative and technologically advanced for their time, hence the premium prices. My point is that something like the MPC5000 is most definitely not technologically advanced, nor innovative, nor making use of premium quality components, yet it still retains what I consider a rather premium pricing consider what is actually consists of.

And that's just the hardware - the unfinished, buggy and laggy OS is another nail in the coffin for that premium, flagship price tag. If I pay premium prices, I certainly expect the software development to have had a development cycle to reflect that. Things got very lazy for the MPC range, the MPC5000 perfectly epitomises that IMO.

MPC-Tutor wrote:Many of the devices you list there were actually very innovative and technologically advanced for their time, hence the premium prices. My point is that something like the MPC5000 is most definitely not technologically advanced, nor innovative, nor making use of premium quality components, yet it still retains what I consider a rather premium pricing consider what is actually consists of.

And that's just the hardware - the unfinished, buggy and laggy OS is another nail in the coffin for that premium, flagship price tag. If I pay premium prices, I certainly expect the software development to have had a development cycle to reflect that. Things got very lazy for the MPC range, the MPC5000 perfectly epitomises that IMO.

I have to agree to disagree as I believe we are not looking at all the pros/cons of all these products. Some of those products mentioned do not have stellar operating systems. A few of them were discontinued before the OS was perfected. Its unfair to just single out MPCs.

IMO none of those products can be looked at as having superior components when compared to any of the MPCs at the time of their release....perhaps equal in quality but certainly not superior.

As far as being innovative and technologically advanced...for every feature of those products that met that criteria, there were one or more functions which were aweful. The ASR-X/ASR-X Pro had amazing feature sets. But that tiny LCD and buggy OS hurt what could have been a nail in the coffin for MPC 2000/2000XL. Not to mention that price of the ASR-X Pro was not cheap. Those products were on the clearance rack when I was making a killing selling MPC 2000s/2000XL on eBay (and you telling me I need to remove my #1 MPC seller on eBay from my signature ).

I can agree that I am disappointed in the lack of support for the MPC 5000....I paid good money for that product as soon as it was released. I was happy that it had a huge OS update...OS 1 and 2 are nite and day. But OS2 could really use some incremental updates that I hope will happen. By the way...your comments about the quality of the MPC 5000 (which I actually don't have a problem with except for the screen)...is the same way I feel about the Korg Kronos. $3000 for what I feel is the worst built flagship keyboard I have ever seen or purchased.

JAH wrote:

konc3pt wrote:IMO I think it will be a while before Ren will see its true potential...just look how long it took NI to get maschine up to speed...given akais track record with MPC series OS updates I got feeln Ren wont know what it's really capable of for a long while.

I see a big difference here. NI has never done a sampling sequencing drum machine before. Maschine was simply a groovebox that sorta transformed into a workstation.

The MPC Ren is a workstation like the MPCs before it. Akai already has 25 years of MPCs as an example of what to bring to the Ren. My biggest wish is for it to incorporate the best functions found in every legacy MPC.

even tho NI never done workstation before they're more attentive to end user feedback than akai...is 5000 still crying for OS update ? how long has it been out ?, how long it took them to get mpc2500 os right ?....mpc ren isnt workstation even maschine isnt since they cant operate in standalone mode without need of being hooked up to mac or pc..until it can run in standalone it's a midi controller with preconfigured software

konc3pt wrote:

JAH wrote:

konc3pt wrote:IMO I think it will be a while before Ren will see its true potential...just look how long it took NI to get maschine up to speed...given akais track record with MPC series OS updates I got feeln Ren wont know what it's really capable of for a long while.

I see a big difference here. NI has never done a sampling sequencing drum machine before. Maschine was simply a groovebox that sorta transformed into a workstation.

The MPC Ren is a workstation like the MPCs before it. Akai already has 25 years of MPCs as an example of what to bring to the Ren. My biggest wish is for it to incorporate the best functions found in every legacy MPC.

even tho NI never done workstation before they're more attentive to end user feedback than akai...is 5000 still crying for OS update ? how long has it been out ?, how long it took them to get mpc2500 os right ?....mpc ren isnt workstation even maschine isnt since they cant operate in standalone mode without need of being hooked up to mac or pc..until it can run in standalone it's a midi controller with preconfigured software

I certainly won't argue about which company is more attentive. But I can point to some facts. Maschine's first OS was not highly regarded. You can look that up yourself. The past two updates were to make it more attractive to sell NI's other products. Maschine still lacks 'basic' features that I and many other users agree with in spite of all the feature requests.

The feature set of MPC 5000 OS2 were based on plenty of feedback from this very forum. Several forum members beta tested the OS. I agreed that the OS can use an update. That would be great for those that actually use/own the 5K.

FYI...workstation doesn't mean standalone hardware. And you can call the Ren what ever you see fit. But once you get it in front of you...you won't mistake it for being anything but an MPC.

konc3pt wrote:how long it took them to get mpc2500 os right ?

they never got it right. jj has

JAH wrote:But once you get it in front of you...you won't mistake it for being anything but an MPC.

does it run standalone? no? than it´s no mpc. simple as that.

**** wrote:

JAH wrote:But once you get it in front of you...you won't mistake it for being anything but an MPC.

does it run standalone? no? than it´s no mpc. simple as that.

+1