Live with the 2000xl & Known producers that use the MPC

what if the mpc is holding a nice multisample, and being triggered from a keyboard? its not an instrument, its a grey box.

If your saying that the MPC is not an instrument. You might as well say that Hip Hop AIN'T music.

You guys are tho thilly. Get so angry over the smallest thing. Hip-Hop IS music. An MPC is NOT an instrument. It's almost insulting to those of us who can play an actual instrument for you to consider an MPC one.

Just listen. You tap a pad and you can have any sound come out. Now, granted you can have a shit load of one-shots and some 2-3 second samples and put together a live beat -- that's not easy, I know. But take into consideration some things. One of those snare hits you are playing, or that super fast 16th pattern on the hi-hats you record; it would take a real drummer years and years just to be able to hit the snare in a way that sounds good or to be able to hit the hi-hats steadily and consistently. This is called articulation. MPCs have no articulation (ADSR doesn't count... that's not you, it's the computer).

Now, this same idea doesn't apply simply to articulation, but much of the skill it takes to play an instrument is completely stripped on an MPC.

I play and instrument, and I consider myself to be pretty damn good on the MPC. I see both ends of the spectrum. I'm not bitter that someone out there in the world is better than me on an MPC so, therefor, I don't consider it an instrument. No. It's just that I've played a real instrument for a very long time and I know the work that goes into it. It's way more than what goes into an MPC.

P.S.: Real drummers don't have a Note Repeat button.

Most of the people in here are seriously confusing the classic with the 2kxl. Divinci is rocking a classic on the infamous Hendrix solo video. He later uses an MCD on stage. The same goes for Dj Numark and Cut Chemist.

Alchemist, previously addicted to the ASR-10, is now rocking the 2500. Dre was always rocking the 3000. And Shadow the 60.

The only ones I know for producing on the 2kxl for a long time is Pete Rock and Mathematics. Still, PR has made all his classics on the SP and Mathematics on the ASR.

Alistar wrote:You guys are tho thilly. Get so angry over the smallest thing. Hip-Hop IS music. An MPC is NOT an instrument. It's almost insulting to those of us who can play an actual instrument for you to consider an MPC one.

Just listen. You tap a pad and you can have any sound come out. Now, granted you can have a **** load of one-shots and some 2-3 second samples and put together a live beat -- that's not easy, I know. But take into consideration some things. One of those snare hits you are playing, or that super fast 16th pattern on the hi-hats you record; it would take a real drummer years and years just to be able to hit the snare in a way that sounds good or to be able to hit the hi-hats steadily and consistently. This is called articulation. MPCs have no articulation (ADSR doesn't count... that's not you, it's the computer).

Now, this same idea doesn't apply simply to articulation, but much of the skill it takes to play an instrument is completely stripped on an MPC.

I play and instrument, and I consider myself to be pretty damn good on the MPC. I see both ends of the spectrum. I'm not bitter that someone out there in the world is better than me on an MPC so, therefor, I don't consider it an instrument. No. It's just that I've played a real instrument for a very long time and I know the work that goes into it. It's way more than what goes into an MPC.

P.S.: Real drummers don't have a Note Repeat button.

I disagree.

you can use articulation on an mpc, such as velocity. pitch bending and what not.
I'm not angry over this, i just disagree because i play the mpc at shows behind a band or dj sessions.
And doesn't the 2000xl have a chromatic function? same as a piano.
your getting it confused when making a beat on the mpc as opposed to live use.
yes it's not considered an instrument when using it to make a beat. but if you pull it off by playing it as an instrument at live use through using chromatics, pitch bending, triggering percussion, etc. then yes.
also. if you wanna buy an mpc, don't they sell it at a websites that sells "musical instruments"?
yes.

i play real instruments also (drums mostly) and i can say that an mpc can pass as one.
btw, I DON'T use NOTE REPEAT when playing live. hell no. i might aswell press play and sequence. that's not my style at a live show. like what other people said, you'd pretty much pissed dj's off if you said a turntable is not an instrument. also with Divinci and his mpc guitar effect.
same how I could offend some one if I say mpc's are instruments and you yourself play a real instrument.
it's all the same. you create/play music with them. its technically an instrument. It's all on your creativity. if you can pull it off as an instrument, then it is an instrument. if you can't, then its not.
no pun intended.
this is my opinion about it and that is your opinion about it.

on a side note, a lot of well known producers uses the 2000xl. too much to name. but what i know is that manny fresh, neo the matrix, black milk (as mentioned before), that guy from M.O.P, Marco Polo, and a whole lot of others uses it.
if you read the past issues of "Scratch magazine" you'd be suprised on how popular the 2000xl is.

All depends what you define as a musical instrument, but really if a digital keyboard is one so is an MPC. To me, if it makes noise when you touch/hit it and stops making noise when you take your hands away, that's all I need it to do to be a musical instrument.
But without musicality a musical instrument isn't much, is it

This is for playing the pads live, at least. Sequencing is a different story. Don't get the two confused.

Definition of a musical instrument...

"A musical instrument is a device constructed or modified for the purpose of making music. In principle, anything that produces sound can serve as a musical instrument."

The fact that you have to put sounds into the MPC to create music doesn't make it any less of an instrument. This then follows on that some people can create incredible things with this machine that would leave others scratching their heads. Is that not a sign that this is indeed an instrument, and to use it to its full potential you have to be a very talented musician?? Ok, you may simply see the MPC as a 'tool', but I think it cuts a little deeper than that.

After owning the 2Kxl for a few months I managed to have a jam on a real drum kit for the first time and I totally ripped it! Who knows, I may be a natural, but I know that bashing out beats on my MPC (with articulation) helped massively. I also disagree with the notion that it ceases to be an instrument once it is sequenced. That's like saying a guitar is no longer an instrument once a performance is recorded! Sounds silly doesn't it?!

Coz wrote:Definition of a musical instrument...

"A musical instrument is a device constructed or modified for the purpose of making music. In principle, anything that produces sound can serve as a musical instrument."

The fact that you have to put sounds into the MPC to create music doesn't make it any less of an instrument. This then follows on that some people can create incredible things with this machine that would leave others scratching their heads. Is that not a sign that this is indeed an instrument, and to use it to its full potential you have to be a very talented musician?? Ok, you may simply see the MPC as a 'tool', but I think it cuts a little deeper than that.

After owning the 2Kxl for a few months I managed to have a jam on a real drum kit for the first time and I totally ripped it! Who knows, I may be a natural, but I know that bashing out beats on my MPC (with articulation) helped massively. I also disagree with the notion that it ceases to be an instrument once it is sequenced. That's like saying a guitar is no longer an instrument once a performance is recorded! Sounds silly doesn't it?!

thank you!

indeed, very true on that last sentence.

Alistar wrote:You guys are tho thilly. Get so angry over the smallest thing. Hip-Hop IS music. An MPC is NOT an instrument. It's almost insulting to those of us who can play an actual instrument for you to consider an MPC one.

Just listen. You tap a pad and you can have any sound come out. Now, granted you can have a **** load of one-shots and some 2-3 second samples and put together a live beat -- that's not easy, I know. But take into consideration some things. One of those snare hits you are playing, or that super fast 16th pattern on the hi-hats you record; it would take a real drummer years and years just to be able to hit the snare in a way that sounds good or to be able to hit the hi-hats steadily and consistently. This is called articulation. MPCs have no articulation (ADSR doesn't count... that's not you, it's the computer).

Now, this same idea doesn't apply simply to articulation, but much of the skill it takes to play an instrument is completely stripped on an MPC.

I play and instrument, and I consider myself to be pretty damn good on the MPC. I see both ends of the spectrum. I'm not bitter that someone out there in the world is better than me on an MPC so, therefor, I don't consider it an instrument. No. It's just that I've played a real instrument for a very long time and I know the work that goes into it. It's way more than what goes into an MPC.

P.S.: Real drummers don't have a Note Repeat button.

point taken, however you say that it requires more work to master a "real" instrument than an mpc where i think both require the same attention.

through repetition and quality practice you adopt the necessary fundamentals of any instrument, either it be drums, electric bass, upright bass, guitar, piano, MPCs, sp1200, heck - the oboe, you must put in the time and to say that you can put less time on the MPC than a "real" instrument is a bit ignorant dont you think? the mpc is a drum computer, yes, but its a sequencer, sampler, it has all the tools you need to create and organize music. just cause there aren't built in sounds doesnt make it a grey box.

its sounds like you are comparing the MPC very much to drums. note repeat i see as PRE production technique, somewhat like the timing/quantize (1/8,1/16 etc). however, if someone used note repeat in a live setting i wouldnt be mad. getting that note repeat on a hi pitched hi-hat and some crazy FX sounds pretty dope dude!

i seen q-tip recently play out some percussion live well on what looked to be a 1000 w/flip screen, it looked real small like a 1k but might have been an xl.

also supernat does a very basic make a beat on stage thing, kick/ snare/ 1 note sub line..

Who not?

also Katalyst uses 2kxl live, jus flippin sequences i think..

freddy fresh wrote:I have used MPC 2000 and 2000XL and SP1200 in at least 5 different countries on stage and the MPCs are the most solid

Are you THE Freddy Fresh??

Well I was impressed when I first heard davinci with his guitar solo... not so much the sound.... rather it was because I never heard anyone use an mpc that way before. I like the creativity.



as for the instument bit... well a pair of coconuts clacking together is considered a percussive instument.

the MPC is in no way an ACOUSTIC instrument... but neither is a theremin.

I'm lucky enough to have supported many of the acts mentioned here, sadly not Shadow though as I'd love to see his MPC bashing live!. I play the MPC live in a band and with a loopstation/turntable for a solo set. I'd say that Jel is the dopest with it, the stuff he does is nuts. Themselves said my set was 'great' too, which made my day!

And LOL @ the chap saying it's not a real instrument.. I play 'real' instruments aswell famalam and I'm telling you that when it's used to it's fullest it is a 'proper' instrument.

Anyway, sorry to butt in on your topic, it's probabaly years old anyway, I was just checcking shit on the web and thought I'd add my two cents