"just means they dont know wtf they doing on they own gear"
Not true at all. My reasons for wanting to switch are mainly because (1) exporting tracks to WAV makes recording beats 1000 times faster. (2) broken volume knob on my 2500 and can't find the part to replace it *out of stock* (3) jittery fader on my 2500 (5) rotary knob starting to act up (5) USB-1 makes backups slow (6) when traveling, I'm tired of hauling a big azz bag and hoping I bought the right cables, memory cards, etc.
Notice..none of the above reasons have nothing to do with knowing how to operate the MPC.
I'm not big on software AT ALL.. in fact, I hate it, but the truth is these newer MPC are made like schyt ever since Numark bought Akai. Not to mention, these newer MPC are nothing more than re-hashed technology with different badge names. The 1000 is basically a 2500..the 2500 isn't that much different from a 5000...you can buy a used 1000 for $400, or you can spend $2000 on a 5000, and STILL have the same problems I'm experiencing. I love my MPC just like anyone else, but the truth is Native Instruments "Maschine" and Beat Kangs (corny azz name) are doing things that Numark/Akai should have done YEARS ago, or built a drum machine with features that a 3rd party programmer (JJ) shouldn't have to do. MPC1000 released in 2003 is spec wise the same as the MPC2500 released in 2006! C'mon son! They purposely dumbed the 1000 down from the very beginning. I still don't see a reason why an MPC2000 can't have 2000XL capabilities, but that's another subject.
I wouldn't spend my money on another hardware MPC, and have no reason to spend more money on older MPC that's don't have the capabilities of what I already own. Will I make a switch to the Beat Kangs? Who knows..but I will make a switch to anything that works for me. The fact that Beat Kangs offers a trial (didn't realize that) is more reason some of us should "try" it before disliking it. I might hate it, but I have to try it first, and dislike it later....in THAT order..
