MPC REN- No Nuts?

A comparison between Ren and MPC 3000 is barely fair.

MPC3000 (or Akai s3000) does a lot to the sound (beefs it up, adds grit, etc.) when you sample sounds into it, which is how a lot of peeps put sounds into it, while the Ren is designed to not do anything to the sound, and I guess most peeps just load sounds into it internally, i.e., not by sampling anyways. It's clean, neutral, like DAWs of today should be.
Knowing this, I've been happy with how the Ren sounds. I don't think it does anything bad to the sound; I just find it neutral. I always enhance sounds by other means than sampling into it (TBH I've only sampled sounds into it a couple of times).

I bet if peeps who have got used to how older samplers change the sound try to work the same way with the Ren, they will be disappointed. We're not living in an age where sampling things into something changes the sound anymore.

I recently finished and released an album (FatGyver: "Talk To Strangers") I mostly did with the Ren...I've got good feedback on how it sounds.

I appreciate everyone's input on this. Thanks guys.

Hey MPC Tutor- are there any luxury audio interfaces that you recommend? I'm willing to pay for top quality. Thanks!

Check out The rme Audio interfaces.. They are good and very reliable stable drivers...

You could also go the ua apollo series.. They have their dsp plugin processing which imitates/models all the old hardware preamp/channel strip gear that you may like.

The problem being is that the higher price interfaces are trying to accomplish the most neutral cleanest conversion of the source sample..

It's almost like you should just buy a 3000 to just sample through it.....

no matter how good your interface is you won't get the genuine MPC sound without the hardware imo.

i've been using an RME UFX with mine and though i was initially impressed with the feel of the grooves etc on the Ren i gradually got fed up with the lack of thump and power that the software produces even when running it through my desk (unless i was using old sp12 or mpc samples)

other than using the ren as a sketchpad for ideas these days the 3k is my machine of choice and sounds (to my ears anyway) much more raw , coloured and dynamic

IMHO even the 2500 via spidf out has more character/sounds better than the mpc software alone or within th ren interface.
Also the sequencer feel is a lil bit different, not saying is better or worst, just apple and oranges.
BUT i would say this is a common "software relate" problem, they dont color the sound first (without fx's) and they tend to ruin sound in a not very pleasant way when you start pitching/de-tuning samples.
I mean coding an audio engine can be an art-form as sampling/producing/playing music.

My advice is make your beat standalone and when is finished open it as plug in in any good d.a.w.
Just record in real time your outs, dont bounce stems, like this the mpc software is going to summing and rendering the audio.
you dont want that, you want pro tools/reaper/live/logic to do that job.
Ive noticed when i record in realtime as mono tracks inside protools i get better "quality".

and everything sound less muffled, more defined, clear mid-range, lil bit less distortion, attacks and transients are more sharp.

Can anyone with a 3000 give their opinion about a comparison of sound for a real 3000 vs. the simulated 3000 vintage mode in the MPC Software?

sorry but glorifying the 2500 sound is just lame.I would describe the sound of the 1000 and 2500 as lifeless . colouring the sound is part of the mixing process . a kick thru a Api preamp really knock. use one of the virtual pultec clones and cut and boost a kick that colours a sound. cubase has a multiband transient shaper that can turn any break into a super knocking break.I m sure that at least 95% can t tell the difference if something is recorded with a rme or a apogee symphonies.
at the end of the day who cares ? back then many producers had the first generation mackie desk.the eq really sucked on this one but they have created hits with it.my emu emax has sound but you won t hear it mixed with 16other non emu tracks.the rme is always a good choice because of the solid build quality and the super stable drivers and good support.I m still getting driver updates for my old multiface 2. it s not the tool you define the sound.

No one here is glorifing nothing, the 2500 it is what it is, a pretty decent piece of standalone equipment, specially if you got jjos on it.

What i was saying is that IHMO even the 2500 via spidf sound more interesting/has more character than the mpc software with or without the vintage emulation swindle.

I mean just man up dude, is even more lame stating the 2500 is "lifeless" because you read it on gearslutz...or because you put the lamest breakbeak on it and it didnt turn automatically into sintetic substitution

pull-over wrote:sorry but glorifying the 2500 sound is just lame.I would describe the sound of the 1000 and 2500 as lifeless .

It is not the groovebox it 's your skillz

i had 2500 and also 1000...didn t know this gonna end as analog vs digital thread..
This is soo gearslutz all analog is good digital is bad...mix and use whatever you want there is no limitation....

I didn't intend this thread to go where it's now gone.

Just wanted to know if anyone with a 3000 or 60 thinks the vintage modes are accurate.

MPC-Tutor wrote:Those that do can just buy and use a separate pro interface and be done with it.

Yup. When I sample with the Ren, I sample through my Apogee Rosetta, where it's converted to digital there, and sent to the digital Input on the Ren.
I don't use the Ren's analog outputs to listen either... I use my Digi003. When I A/B them, there's an obvious difference for me.
I rarely just export one stereo file of a beat in the MPC software. I use the 003 and a summing mixer to maximize it's sonic potential.

To my ears the 3k emulation is miles apart from the sound you get from the real thing but what you don't have with the hardware is drag and drop, vst's, screen editing and instant recall . Everything comes at some price i guess..

SPL10 wrote:To my ears the 3k emulation is miles apart from the sound you get from the real thing but what you don't have with the hardware is drag and drop, vst's, screen editing and instant recall . Everything comes at some price i guess..

Word. +1000