MPC X, MPC Live, MPC One & MPC Key 61 Forum: Support and discussion for the MPC X, MPC Live, MPC Live II, MPC One & MPC Key 61; Akai's current generation of standalone MPCs.
By SuperKonquer Sat May 27, 2023 5:11 pm
Will it ever be possible to recreate x factor in a near perfect representation? I highly doubt it.

Can a suitable replacement be created with proper investment, of course. I'm not going to pretend like I know enough about aliasing or programming to know how difficult it would be to emulate. Other than the computational power needed and currently available in standalone, I see no obvious reason why it is impossible to emulate. Either way, I'm sure Akai has taken note of this kerfuffle.

Knowing how passionate the MPC user base can be about this issue, investing in addressing it would go a long way into building brand loyalty. And if they successfully address it by adding tools to the existing hardware, it would be a huge selling point.

Not only how they responded, but also the legend of how great the MPCX/Live/One sounded will be debated by our great great great grandkids when the MPC Infinity Ultra Omega 9700000 hits the shelves' in 200 years
By B-Wise Sat May 27, 2023 5:44 pm
BKLYN wrote:You can recreate the tone of old-school samplers using the filters on a parametric EQ, but you can't reproduce the aliasing with the onboard plugins, and any MPC expert who claims they can, is a lying liar telling a massive lie...


I also said:

"What more difficult to recreate is the unique noise that came from other sources like the converters. This is when knowing your tools will help out as well as knowing that some sounds may not be possible to recreate 100% but that 80% or whatever is good enough & be OK with that, since most listeners aren't sound nerds & won't know nor care if your beats doesn't sound 100% like a 3k."
By B-Wise Sat May 27, 2023 6:11 pm
SuperKonquer wrote:Will it ever be possible to recreate x factor in a near perfect representation? I highly doubt it.

Can a suitable replacement be created with proper investment, of course. I'm not going to pretend like I know enough about aliasing or programming to know how difficult it would be to emulate. Other than the computational power needed and currently available in standalone, I see no obvious reason why it is impossible to emulate. Either way, I'm sure Akai has taken note of this kerfuffle.

Knowing how passionate the MPC user base can be about this issue, investing in addressing it would go a long way into building brand loyalty. And if they successfully address it by adding tools to the existing hardware, it would be a huge selling point.

Not only how they responded, but also the legend of how great the MPCX/Live/One sounded will be debated by our great great great grandkids when the MPC Infinity Ultra Omega 9700000 hits the shelves' in 200 years

The problem is that no matter how much Akai caters to some of these old-school sonic fanatics they will never be satisfied & will always complain & demand more, but at some point, that users base become unprofitable to cater too because most are pass 45 & aren't the current target customers. Most young MPC customers never used the classic model & can't miss something they never had & have different demands like more plugins synths/FXs & disk-streaming...etc. The old heads that want that sound is old enough to know where to get it or should know by now how to make it from other means.

Funny thing is Akai is know for that lofi sound but, its Roland's sp404 mk2 that all the kids use more so for to make lofi beats, because hear this, they like it's unique sound & FXs & don't give sh*t about the old MPCs. Though, some my know the legacy of the 60/3k, their not demanding that sound as a top priority. Life goes on...
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By hyena Sun May 28, 2023 10:16 am
hmmm. actually i think they like the sp404mk2 for many reasons, one of them being that the sp404mk2 , like previous sp's, has a sound, has character, which current line of mpc's lack.
i don't think is fanatism, i think there is an awful lot of TRUTH in what EA-Ski has brought on the conversation. also, that discussion isn't new, it's always been there, thing is i think the more technology advances, the more cheap components are used and the more cheap ways to do things are implemented, hence we have better workflow but worse sound. but i think not everybody sees this because a lot of people don't listen to music with proper sound systems anymore. almost nobody has a decent hi-fi in their home, like we all used to have still 20-25 yrs ago. now it's just soundbars, earphones, bad headphones, or, in the case of producers, studio monitors. we are less and less educated to what "good sounding" is, and that's a fact imho. i just swapped the amplifier in my hi-fi at home, from a cheap old 70's Technics to a GREAT Sansui au777A 1970 amplifier a friend borrowed me... this thing is so beautiful i was almost crying! and i'm not a hifi nerd with gold cables or stuff like that, i always kept a good amp, big a$$ speakers, tape deck and turntable tho, because i love to listen to music in a good pleasurable way. how many people you know listen to music in a decent way? i think that's the reason why this "sonics" argument isn't interesting to many people.
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By hyena Sun May 28, 2023 10:22 am
BKLYN wrote:You can recreate the tone of old-school samplers using the filters on a parametric EQ, but you can't reproduce the aliasing with the onboard plugins, and any MPC expert who claims they can, is a lying liar telling a massive lie...

not only that: the dynamic changes a lot too, and that's something the inphonik plugin cannot address. no plugin can address that i'm afraid. no vst nor standalone plugin. it is the combination of the whole circuitry that makes a machine sound like it sounds, not just one single component, as said, it's not just the converters....
By B-Wise Sun May 28, 2023 12:40 pm
hyena wrote:hmmm. actually i think they like the sp404mk2 for many reasons, one of them being that the sp404mk2 , like previous sp's, has a sound, has character, which current line of mpc's lack.

The first thing I mentioned was the unquie sound of the 404. Anyway we're on the same page.

The other thing about the mpc classic sound is for the fanbase of the old school producers, how many people is even paying for music like that now a days & is enough for Akai to justify making it just to cater to that MPC customer base?
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By hyena Sun May 28, 2023 12:58 pm
B-Wise wrote:
hyena wrote:hmmm. actually i think they like the sp404mk2 for many reasons, one of them being that the sp404mk2 , like previous sp's, has a sound, has character, which current line of mpc's lack.

The first thing I mentioned was the unquie sound of the 404. Anyway we're on the same page.

The other thing about the mpc classic sound is for the fanbase of the old school producers, how many people is even paying for music like that now a days & is enough for Akai to justify making it just to cater to that MPC customer base?


yes, i get it, companies need to do business, but this bring us back to what i was saying about listening habits of the vast majority, which is sad in my opinion... because sound is so deeply linked with both our psychology and physiology...imagine if we all started being more and more colour blind... loosing nuances after nuances...
By Sir Snaxalot Sun May 28, 2023 1:19 pm
B-Wise wrote:
hyena wrote:hmmm. actually i think they like the sp404mk2 for many reasons, one of them being that the sp404mk2 , like previous sp's, has a sound, has character, which current line of mpc's lack.

The first thing I mentioned was the unquie sound of the 404. Anyway we're on the same page.

The other thing about the mpc classic sound is for the fanbase of the old school producers, how many people is even paying for music like that now a days & is enough for Akai to justify making it just to cater to that MPC customer base?


A lot actually, problem is that a lot MPC folks only think of hiphop. MPCs were used heavily in house and techno too. And there's a lot of people chasing that old dusty gritty house and techno vibe.
By B-Wise Sun May 28, 2023 2:16 pm
Sir Snaxalot wrote:
A lot actually, problem is that a lot MPC folks only think of hiphop. MPCs were used heavily in house and techno too. And there's a lot of people chasing that old dusty gritty house and techno vibe.


Just to be clear, I didn't ask how many producers still want that sound, but how many customers are still buying record because of the that sound today?

If it's a lot then why isn't Akai catering to those producers & hasn't been since 1994 with the release of the 3k? - & Don't tell me that it was because that was the last MPC Linn made like if he was making the MPC's alone & never told Akai how he did it & a parts he used.

Do you have current sell records of all the music being sold >because< it has the old MPC sound not just any lofi sound in general?

How many fans/customs are arguing over if a sound in a song was sample on a 60 vs. 3k? - Also, remember that a lot of ppl was speeding up records to save space & that added to the "Old MPC-Sound" & as sample time increased the need to do that was less, not saying nobody still use that method.

I think after the success of 2k/2xl Akai released that they didn't have to make that sound for artist to still make dope grimy beats.
By Sir Snaxalot Sun May 28, 2023 3:38 pm
B-Wise wrote:
Sir Snaxalot wrote:
A lot actually, problem is that a lot MPC folks only think of hiphop. MPCs were used heavily in house and techno too. And there's a lot of people chasing that old dusty gritty house and techno vibe.


Just to be clear, I didn't ask how many producers still want that sound, but how many customers are still buying record because of the that sound today?

If it's a lot then why isn't Akai catering to those producers & hasn't been since 1994 with the release of the 3k? - & Don't tell me that it was because that was the last MPC Linn made like if he was making the MPC's alone & never told Akai how he did it & a parts he used.

Do you have current sell records of all the music being sold >because< it has the old MPC sound not just any lofi sound in general?

How many fans/customs are arguing over if a sound in a song was sample on a 60 vs. 3k? - Also, remember that a lot of ppl was speeding up records to save space & that added to the "Old MPC-Sound" & as sample time increased the need to do that was less, not saying nobody still use that method.

I think after the success of 2k/2xl Akai released that they didn't have to make that sound for artist to still make dope grimy beats.


I don't think end listeners care much about any of that. End listeners just care about how the music makes them feel when listening to it. Its those producers that chose those sounds primarily because they like the sound themselves, and because it adds to the vibe and texture that they're trying to create. Lots of things add to the seemingly infinite depth of emotional responses from humans. Most users don't know why something sounds good, only that it just does to them.

Musicians/producers are like designers, their primary job is draw delightful (or dreadful) emotional responses out of their listeners. It's the job of the musician or the producer to choose how they do that. End listeners don't have to be that discerning, thats our job. I think all of this arguing about which sounds better or real is stupid and a fools errand with no resolution.

Use whatever that you feel you need to use to convey the emotions or vibe you're trying to deliver. If you feel that you need the real thing then get the real thing, it'll cost but if you're that particular about it, then there is value in that and thats a perfectly valid approach. If you don't and feel like you can get the sound with modern tools then thats perfectly valid too.
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By BKLYN Sun May 28, 2023 6:37 pm


I think that's a reductive perspective on the Boom Bap audience.

There are music lovers who are mentally stimulated by the way music sounds, and there are casual listeners whose frontal lobes are not fully developed, so they may not necessarily understand or care about what they are listening to or why.

To go deeper, the majority of youth today versus youth of yesteryear don't necessarily like modern music; they just enjoy the social stimulation of today's music because it's a bonding tool for survival.

The record companies know and understand this and the music technology companies know this, but still, no matter what, the customer is always right, and InMusic brands and many other music tech brands ignore this essential rule.

But music lovers do care; casual listeners don't; there's a strong difference.

Boom Bap labels like Pimpire, Griselda, Shaarp, Backwoodz Studios, and Lorretta Records wouldn't have a strong foothold in modern music if their audiences didn't care about the sonic quality of music coming out of those camps.

This is why I celebrate smaller developers like Inphonik and LowHiss, who seek to provide software solutions for those of us in Boom Bap culture.

The RX1200 nails the aliasing, distortion, crunch, and filtering of the SP-1200 a lot better than whatever is supposed to be in the MPC's "Vintage Mode" and to me, that's worth the $30.

$30 is nothing.

It's 5 grams of the uncrushed flower of any of my favorite strains of cannabis, my weekly art supplies, 30 scratch-off lottery tickets, two triple bacon mushroom cheeseburgers with sweet potato fries at my favorite eatery, a DC, Marvel, Boom, Image, Dark Horse graphic novel, a vintage Cannon FD or Olympus Zuiko lens, a pack of CV cables for my synthesizers, 30 dollar bin vinyl records at any of my favorite thrift shops, a donation to the girl scouts holding the entrance and exits at my local Whole Foods hostage.

$30 is nothing...
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By EnochLight Sun May 28, 2023 8:53 pm
One must ask - what does it all matter? Literally most commercially released music is finished in a DAW/ProTools before printing so literally - what does it matter? This “sound” that us geezers seem to obsess over can be replicated during that stage.

Akai knows this - the industry has changed.
By Certified Beatz Sun May 28, 2023 9:49 pm
EnochLight wrote:One must ask - what does it all matter? Literally most commercially released music is finished in a DAW/ProTools before printing so literally - what does it matter? This “sound” that us geezers seem to obsess over can be replicated during that stage.

Akai knows this - the industry has changed.


I see all points really it's anyone preference us old folks love to talk about.. :o
By B-Wise Sun May 28, 2023 10:10 pm
B-Wise wrote:Just to be clear, I didn't ask how many producers still want that sound, but how many customers are still buying record because of the that sound today?

If it's a lot then why isn't Akai catering to those producers & hasn't been since 1994 with the release of the 3k? - & Don't tell me that it was because that was the last MPC Linn made like if he was making the MPC's alone & never told Akai how he did it & a parts he used.

Do you have current sell records of all the music being sold >because< it has the old MPC sound not just any lofi sound in general?

How many fans/customs are arguing over if a sound in a song was sample on a 60 vs. 3k? - Also, remember that a lot of ppl was speeding up records to save space & that added to the "Old MPC-Sound" & as sample time increased the need to do that was less, not saying nobody still use that method.

I think after the success of 2k/2xl Akai released that they didn't have to make that sound for artist to still make dope grimy beats.


Sir Snaxalot wrote:I don't think end listeners care much about any of that. End listeners just care about how the music makes them feel when listening to it. Its those producers that chose those sounds primarily because they like the sound themselves, and because it adds to the vibe and texture that they're trying to create. Lots of things add to the seemingly infinite depth of emotional responses from humans. Most users don't know why something sounds good, only that it just does to them.

Musicians/producers are like designers, their primary job is draw delightful (or dreadful) emotional responses out of their listeners. It's the job of the musician or the producer to choose how they do that. End listeners don't have to be that discerning, thats our job. I think all of this arguing about which sounds better or real is stupid and a fools errand with no resolution.

Use whatever that you feel you need to use to convey the emotions or vibe you're trying to deliver. If you feel that you need the real thing then get the real thing, it'll cost but if you're that particular about it, then there is value in that and thats a perfectly valid approach. If you don't and feel like you can get the sound with modern tools then thats perfectly valid too.


This didn't answer most of my questions. To be specific, the "sound" that I'm talking about is the old MPC sound, not just the low quality boombap lofi sound that can be produced by other gear like a sp12 or whatever.

You said most can't tell & that my point, & it was proven in 1997 with the poor man's 3k via the 2k which was the MPC that Akai didn't even want to make based on what Marco Albert said, but Akai was glad that they did make it because at time it became the best selling MPC. Fan's wasn't complaining that the dope beats being made on the 2k wasn't banging as hard or w/e like on the 3k.

There are so many other way to add dirt to your beats & still have them sonically pleasing without the aid of the s900/60/3k/sp12 or any of that. We, as the sound designers, may notice differences & desire certain machines over another. At the end of the day, the listeners may prefer a beat made on a SP-505 over 1 made on the SP1200. I commend Dave for remaking the SP in this modern day, but look how expensive it is & most fans don't care how authentic it sounds to the og.

It's like some of us suffer from the "curse of knowledge" which is knowing a subject so well that you forgot what it's like for someone that doesn't know much in that subject. In this case many suffer from the "curse of sound-design knowledge" most won't admit :smh: but it's valid :nod: