Why A Sampler and not a Keyboard or Drum machine?

I know a sampler 'samples' stuff, but other than that why is a better choice than say a good keyboard (with samples already in it)? or a drum machine (with samples and grooves already in it)?

What is the most powerful advantage or what is the heavy attraction?
Not a diss, I sincerely want to know why a machine like this was created and what is it's 'power'.

I am on the fence about purchasing a MPC4000. I think it is a beautiful machine and I have never owned a sampler before because I really don't know how I would use it. I would like to ditch my Drum machines if this box would be better.

Any help would be honestly appreciated! Thank you.

Fred B

Think of it like a buffet...Heres what u can eat, now eat it.....

No, sir we dont have any mayo!

The point being u are limited....

BRAVO wrote:Think of it like a buffet...Heres what u can eat, now eat it.....

No, sir we dont have any mayo!

The point being u are limited....

Thanks...I think?

Are you saying that you are limited with Drum Machines and Keyboards? Or are you limited with a sampler?

Anyone else have a hand for this question?

How u gonna be limited with a sampler....U can sample the world. In essence, theres no limit

Nothing wrong with a keyboard/module with phat sounds but its often good to pair that up with a sampler for added flexibilty

Plain and simple....A sampler (especially one like the 4k)is a drum machine,sequencer and of course sampler all in one.

Plain and simple....A sampler (especially one like the 4k)is a drum machine,sequencer and of course sampler all in one.

So is a Triton or a Roland Fantom X or S.

The MPC's are a drum / sound generator but don't have drum patterns in it right?

A quick bit of research can resolve all your questions....1st stop http://www.akaipro.com/int/

Thanks Bravo,

I am very familiar with that MPC4000 page. Like I said I am on the fence...however it say's nada about actual patterns inside the machine, so the link to the akaipro page doesn't help me.

here is exactly what it say's:
MPC4000 KEY FEATURES

All new sampling engine with a high-performance Intel™ CP
24-bit audio resolution with sample rates up to 96kHz
64-voices (32 voices at 96kHz sample rate)
16 MB on-board memory, expandable to a massive 512 M
Balanced stereo XLR-1/4-inch TRS combo inputs with reference-grade preamp
Phono inputs to allow direct connection of turntable
Four MIDI OUT ports control up to 64 independent MIDI channels
Four Q-Linkª knobs and two note variation sliders for real-time performance control
Real-time control of filter cutoff, resonance, pitch, LFO rate and depth - and more
Full sampler implementation provides compatibility with Z-Series and S-Series file
New 4-channel 24-bit/96kHz effects processor (standard)
USB host port accommodates USB floppy, CD-R, HD, MO, ZIP drives and an ASCII keyboard
USB slave port provides for ak.Sys Network and Control System software
36 filter types with up to 3 simultaneous filters per voice
Dual independent LFOs with MIDI clock sync
Internal IDE hard drive (standard in North America only) plus external SCSI connection
Built-in sample rate converter on the digital input to eliminate rate-matching problems
Large 320 x 240, multi-angle graphic LCD
FAT32 disk format is fully compatible with S5000, S6000, Z4, Z8 and most PC's
Native .WAV sample format allows data sharing with anything supporting .WAV files
ak.Sys Control & Networking software enables Mac and PC connection via on-board USB interface
Two assignable footswitch inputs
Wordclock input for sync with external digital devices (optional)
Graphical sequence event editing
Memory meters display remaining free sampler memory, sequence memory and CPU memory
Graphic editing of sample waveforms
Six pad banks provide quick access to up to 96 different sounds
SMPTE I/O Standard

Like I said, nothing about beats already loaded in like a drum machine.
Are there?

Patterns? If it dont say it, then your question is answered! It dont have any....Its not that kinda machine. The 4k is a beast...U got options to cop it loaded with samples etc but it dont run like say a boss etc

More research....Its all here

Fred B Lounge wrote:

Plain and simple....A sampler (especially one like the 4k)is a drum machine,sequencer and of course sampler all in one.

So is a Triton or a Roland Fantom X or S.

The MPC's are a drum / sound generator but don't have drum patterns in it right?

I call the MPC a drum sequencer. It can work as a standard sequencer, controlling any MIDI device, but has the Pad functionality too.

I don't think this debate is asking the right question, I'm more concerned about the difference between sampling and synthesis. Each can do things the other can't, and I hope I never have to choose between them.

Is an MPC better than a drum machine? Depends on the drum machine. Something like a Alesis SR-16 uses samples anyway, and you can get those sounds on the MPC, no problem - no advantage there.

But other drum machines use synthesis for their sounds, e.g. the Korg Electribes. You can mangle the sounds in ways you can't do with samples, change pitch in real time without changing the envelopes, and more.

The "unrealistic" drum sounds we know from come from attempts to synthesize real drum sounds: how realistic is a TR-808, a Simmons kit, or an original Linn Drum? Doesn't matter, they got interesting results, and now we sample them! So I'm glad to see plugins like Waldorf Attack that actually resynthesize drum sounds and let you beat them up.

The same with melodic sounds. I have a Kawai K5000S synth, which is basically unsampleable, though I have tried (and put the results on the web). The samples are like photographs of a real person: you can do things to the photos, but you can't make them real again: the same with samples of a powerful synth, with all its parameters and real-time control. This is why you get add-on synthesis boards for the Tritons. Motifs and Fantoms: they are sample-based by themselves, but some people want more control than samples can give.

also i think u should get a 1000 or 2000xl before the 4k, cause u will be very overwhelmed by the 4ks loads of features. If u are lookin for presets then get a sound mod, but if u want to sequnce and sample to make ur own music, instead of using the same sounds everyone and there brother is using, get a MPC