I want an SP 1200 but damn!!

mr_debauch wrote:4) hype and lots of it. Not saying it isn't warranted in a lot of cases... but it certainly is contributing to the demand either way....

This is undoubtedly true. Because the SP is so closely tied to 'golden era' Hip Hop, it eats into the subconscious and generates its own hype.

The sound has definitely got a place but other aspects like the sequencer and sample time are tough to work with in 2013. The people making bangers with it back in the day were just great producers.

mr_debauch wrote:3) resellers. people scooping up all the 1000-1500 dollar sp-1200s not to make music, but to sell for 2000 or 2500 dollars... those people often have the edge at scooping deals because they have the cash sitting around for that purpose.

sounds like somebody I know...

But I can tell you, to get the best deals you need..

1. Immediate cash, not next month, not next week, but today.
2. Be prepared to travel and take up a whole day doing so if need be.
3. Check the most likely places for SP's every day, and every night.
4. Be friendly and a good negotiator, otherwise it will be sold to the next guy, who is.
5. Phone calls kill emails in the chase, so don't be shy, and know what to ask/say.
6. Be confident enough to go to a strange place with over a G in cash in your pocket.
7. Don't act like you're desperate or excited, you'll lose all your bargaining power in an instant.

You will rarely find the best deals on eBay, as nobody really wants to pay the fees, and many cats will never send their SP through the post and deal with potential hassles. Set up an eBay search sorted by 'Newly Listed', it can't hurt, and at least you'll get an early look at any BIN listings.

Coz wrote: The people making bangers with it back in the day were just great producers.

Yeah, they killed it on the SP12/SP1200 back then.

The people making bangers with it back in the day, had no real alternatives that were portable and self-contained, besides, the SP was often used with a S950 anyway. When the the MPC60 (Teddy Riley) and MPC3000 (Dr Dre, Dilla) came along the 'golden era' of hip-hop was all but over. It was time for a different sound for the most part.

Clint wrote:But I can tell you, to get the best deals you need..

1. Immediate cash, not next month, not next week, but today.
2. Be prepared to travel and take up a whole day doing so if need be.
3. Check the most likely places for SP's every day, and every night.
4. Be friendly and a good negotiator, otherwise it will be sold to the next guy, who is.
5. Phone calls kill emails in the chase, so don't be shy, and know what to ask/say.
6. Be confident enough to go to a strange place with over a G in cash in your pocket.
7. Don't act like you're desperate or excited, you'll lose all your bargaining power in an instant.

yep, that is what I do too... (that applies to buying anything for any reason.. so I dont view those as a service to be done for you... I have lived in places where you must have a taxi wait outside for you while you buy a case of beer or you'll get jacked for the case)

I buy pieces I think I could use for a project or to make some noise... it's always nice having another tool to explore some ideas I may otherwise never have thought to do... I try and make something unique with each piece of gear I buy... I may not use every piece of gear on every project or song, but I do use every piece of gear. (except for my drum kit, however I did a lot of recording with it.. I just dont have room for it because it's a huge studio kit with rack mounted drums)

Hey, I know you are trying to fix up some of these machines... sometimes it seems like you are trying to preserve some limited vintage equipment in some of your posts I have read... you are trying to write a book about the 60.. etc.

I didn't think you were one of those dudes buying all the 1200 dollar SP-1200s to turn around and sell them at 2500 british pounds for no reason other than to make a quick buck. You didn't really come across like that to me.. Okay, sometimes it seems like your interest in some gear mods are strictly influenced by an increase in value to said gear and not cause it's useful to your production... and that sort of suggests you are more into being able to resell gear for as high as possible... instead of actually using the said mod... but what ever... that could just be how I read it and not be the actual case.


One thing I do is when I see a good deal on an mpc or a piece of gear that I already have or I don't need (ie: I saw a cheap 2000xl the other day but I already have a 2000 classic) I told a friend who was maybe interested in going down the mpc road. He also mentions to me if he thinks I might be wanting a particular piece and links it to me... last month I found him a sequential circuits prophet and he bought that and is making stuff with it now... he is a guy who was strictly DAW until that piece... now he wants to get more into hardware. To me that is dope because he is making music I really like.

Clint wrote:

mr_debauch wrote:3) resellers. people scooping up all the 1000-1500 dollar sp-1200s not to make music, but to sell for 2000 or 2500 dollars... those people often have the edge at scooping deals because they have the cash sitting around for that purpose.

sounds like somebody I know...

But I can tell you, to get the best deals you need..

1. Immediate cash, not next month, not next week, but today.
2. Be prepared to travel and take up a whole day doing so if need be.
3. Check the most likely places for SP's every day, and every night.
4. Be friendly and a good negotiator, otherwise it will be sold to the next guy, who is.
5. Phone calls kill emails in the chase, so don't be shy, and know what to ask/say.
6. Be confident enough to go to a strange place with over a G in cash in your pocket.
7. Don't act like you're desperate or excited, you'll lose all your bargaining power in an instant.

You will rarely find the best deals on eBay, as nobody really wants to pay the fees, and many cats will never send their SP through the post and deal with potential hassles. Set up an eBay search sorted by 'Newly Listed', it can't hurt, and at least you'll get an early look at any BIN listings.

Go easy with the secrets Clint, you're gonna cause people to use their common sense if you carry on

Seriously though, for me, number 2 on this list is key, I have missed out on so many bargains because I can't drive!

mr_debauch wrote:

Hey, I know you are trying to fix up some of these machines... sometimes it seems like you are trying to preserve some limited vintage equipment in some of your posts I have read... sometimes it seems like your interest in some gear mods are strictly influenced by an increase in value to said gear and not cause it's useful to your production... and that sort of suggests you are more into being able to resell gear for as high as possible...

Making beats is no longer a priority for me, but I do like to use the gear I have when I get time. It's no secret around here that I'm more dealer than user. But its because of people like me why there are good condition or mint serviced/upgraded MPC60's, MPC3000's, SP's, ASR-10's etc available to buy in the UK from people you know and trust. For the record I have never modded an MPC, but I have made stock machines become fully expanded machines. There is no point buying a stock MPC and selling it stock, thats a waste of time and money. What I do is called 'Adding Value' and 'Sourcing'. If you can do those things well, people will pay you for your financial risks, time and effort.

A lot of the UK/EU cats moan about having to import gear from the US and paying shipping and customs charges etc. Truth is, they usually dont have the money for an SP anyway! But I don't do extortion prices and dont sell on eBay, I will list on eBay to get the offers coming, but sell privately when all is said and done. A fair few UK members have come to my home and bought stuff from me at a price we're both happy with.

Regardless of what a seller advertises, if you're interested put up a reasonable cash offer, he may well come back to you if a sale falls thru. When all is said and done the laws of supply and demand often come into play, but not always. Its peaks and troughs so you have to buy at the right time and sell at the right time to maximise your profit, not sell at the highest possible price. So a recession is a great time to buy, but not to sell. So just like buying stocks and shares, there is financial risk involved in trading old fragile hardware. There could be six months between the purchase and the sale and you just have to deal with it without compromising your ability to buy more stuff. So its investment, its trading, its restoration but above all its risky business. Risk is correlated to reward.

This setup looks cool..



Studio 440
ASR-10
2 x SP1200
S-900
S-950

"Nothing sounds more punchy and raw than a real sp1200 mpc 60 or studio 440. emulations just don't do the trick. do you want that instant classic oldschool hiphop , electro or house sound on your samples or drums ? but you dont have the money for vintage samplers ? we will sample and playback any sound for you ! we will make 16 samples sound as punchy and warm as possible. (this could be 16, 2.5 sec samples containing 200 drum sounds for example) we can record the 16 sounds at different pitches so you get a wide range of sounds to play with. Instant nostalgia for only 5 bucks ! We will deliver within 1 day ! "

http://fiverr.com/pro_audio_works/give- ... studio-440

Cant knock the hustle, lol

Emax HD PCB

A good custom job.



A bad custom job (Lewis Parker).

didn't he do both of those??I received 2 pics..the other one you quoted as a good custom job..i believe was in the pic as well..

that bottom one (bad job) looks like a piece of fiber board cut with a jig saw or something... like the cuts are crooked and the upper holes are cut too large... how odd. I wonder how that turned out that way...

Clint wrote:Get an SP12 Turbo, in some ways it's better, and of course cheaper. comparison.

yep, cheaper but still though.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/E-mu-SP-12-TURB ... 3a82b2fc6b

1.3 grands? come on man..

plus I thinks it's even more rare than sp1200..

Phra*DOC wrote:

Clint wrote:Get an SP12 Turbo, in some ways it's better, and of course cheaper. comparison.

yep, cheaper but still though.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/E-mu-SP-12-TURB ... 3a82b2fc6b

1.3 grands? come on man..

plus I thinks it's even more rare than sp1200..

That SP looks proper skanky as well.

I got a mint one for 600 quid.

Phra*DOC wrote:

Clint wrote:Get an SP12 Turbo, in some ways it's better, and of course cheaper. comparison.

yep, cheaper but still though.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/E-mu-SP-12-TURB ... 3a82b2fc6b

1.3 grands? come on man..

plus I thinks it's even more rare than sp1200..

don't base your entire outlook of the used market on just a couple overzealous sellers... that SP-12 Turbo is never going to sell at that price. if anything, you should be looking at the prices on SOLD items on ebay to get an idea of the market... not the marked-up ones with high buy-it-nows... those will ALWAYS be there.

true. but besides that, turbo's sampletime's what like 5 secs?
thatd be really too few. I guess trying to cram a beat in the 1200's 10.3 secs can be also a fun part of the game.. but less than it?

I have a non expanded 950 and when i work with it i have to trim carefully, and building a drum track track with bass in it, being minimal and cautious, still eats up 2 if not 3 secs. Thatd leave me 2 secs for other samples on a turbo, hypotetically.. which again, it's too few. turbo's should be used to create the drum track alone and mix it with other sources... its nice challenge trying to use a 1200 as a standalone box but frankly i think that on a turbo this is practically impossibile.

so yea basically **** turbos