[OFFICIAL] - MPC X & MPC Live Photos, Specs & Pricing

I still think that any other company like NI, Roland, Ableton, etc is not going to be putting any standalone out until they see if Akai has a hit and enough interest generated. Complaints about no vst's would be through the roof with NI and Ableton.

I just don't see Roland putting out another MV either. If they ever did, just hope its a newer version of the old one with same look and not the look of their new products with all the backlit bright lights.

Wormhelmet wrote:I still think that any other company like NI, Roland, Ableton, etc is not going to be putting any standalone out until they see if Akai has a hit and enough interest generated. Complaints about no vst's would be through the roof with NI and Ableton.

I just don't see Roland putting out another MV either. If they ever did, just hope its a newer version of the old one with same look and not the look of their new products with all the backlit bright lights.

Ableton stock filters/verb/delay/compression would be fine for standalone. NI have decent fx too. No need for vst. If people are so bent on VST's they need to buy a controller and use a computer. It's a different product/target market.... Vst won't be integrated in standalone stuff like this for a very very long time. If ever.

I'd guess the hype around the mpc Live has got at least one other company working on competition for it. It's a massive leap in terms of bang for buck and flexibility/integration. Kind of changes the landscape now...

callofthevoid wrote:

Wormhelmet wrote:I still think that any other company like NI, Roland, Ableton, etc is not going to be putting any standalone out until they see if Akai has a hit and enough interest generated. Complaints about no vst's would be through the roof with NI and Ableton.

I just don't see Roland putting out another MV either. If they ever did, just hope its a newer version of the old one with same look and not the look of their new products with all the backlit bright lights.

Ableton stock filters/verb/delay/compression would be fine for standalone. NI have decent fx too. No need for vst. If people are so bent on VST's they need to buy a controller and use a computer. It's a different product/target market.... Vst won't be integrated in standalone stuff like this for a very very long time. If ever.

I'd guess the hype around the mpc Live has got at least one other company working on competition for it. It's a massive leap in terms of bang for buck and flexibility/integration. Kind of changes the landscape now...

Yeah, I think that mpc Live is going to sell like crazy. It's fairly priced with a ton of features. The X on the other hand won't be selling too many units I think.

starmanwarz wrote:Yeah, I think that mpc Live is going to sell like crazy. It's fairly priced with a ton of features. The X on the other hand won't be selling too many units I think.

I agree, I think the X will sell but the size and cost will put off a lot of people.

IMO the future is something between the two - I still feel they could easily get a 9 screen in the Live form factor, maybe just add an inch or so to the width, but there's already enough depth and I'm sure they could squeeze some more audio ins and outs into it as well. The lack of Qlinks would still be an issue for some so they would need to look into improving that somehow, even if it's adding a touch strip or two.

There shouldn't be a rush, only competition for Akai in April is the Elektron Digitakt. No competition from Pioneer, thats already over. Roland still making SP404s and Korg became a hipster shit company.

The X is priced like a premium product, but I don't think it has any premium features over the Live other than maybe the qlink oleds. I would expect it to have features that the Live doesn't have. Heck, maybe some extra samples wouldn't hurt (not that I care).

It's pretty much the same product in a different casing and double price. The price difference can't be justified by 3 inches on the touch screen, qlinks or the extra outs, imho.

the pro studios and project studios will all get an X; the working producers will get a MPC X.

Also the MPC X is similar in size to the Ren so all the people who who brought the Ren are likely customers of the X.

Also people who were not looking for a controller when the Ren was released may be looking to get an X.

Those who were put off by the screen on the ol skool Ren will be interested in the X; also those who have old legacy units like the 4K, 2500 or 2000 or 2000xl, may also be likely buyers for the X.

Also yes the price is high but people find money to get these new toys; or people buy it or finance people always find money for thing they want.

Also wihin a year a few 100 will be knocked of the price and people will buy in later; especially if the review are good.

So both units will sell but the X is defo the one that will sell the most as was the case with studio.

Fanu wrote:I am getting a bit of a rushed vibe about Akai's doings right now...almost as if they wanted to get to the standalone market first...hence the announcements too early.

Don't forget the leaks.. They were already too late to respond to the leaks. The official anouncement was one week before NAMM.

The time frame between the anouncement and the release of the units is too large.

I believe the units are done already. I think that it's the software (2.0) that is holding it back because they want a similtanious release.

They should have released the units and let them run with 1.9.6. and update them to 2.0 once they are finished..

starmanwarz wrote:The X is priced like a premium product, but I don't think it has any premium features over the Live other than maybe the qlink oleds. I would expect it to have features that the Live doesn't have. Heck, maybe some extra samples wouldn't hurt (not that I care).

It's pretty much the same product in a different casing and double price. The price difference can't be justified by 3 inches on the touch screen, qlinks or the extra outs, imho.

There's a few differences to be fair; cv/gate, more audio and MIDI, 16 q links, oled labels, cursor & Locate keys, proper hard buttons, larger screen, tilting screen, more dedicated mode buttons, meters, etc. Plus it's apparently getting additional instruments included compared to the Live.

I agree that it doesn't seem like that's worth nearly double the price though. But for some people that extra features are going to make a big difference so are worth paying over the odds for.

zangetsu01 wrote:They should have released the units and let them run with 1.9.6. and update them to 2.0 once they are finished..

Fully agree with this; they really would've hit the market when hype was at its highest (people saying "take my money, I want it now" etc).
However, I guess their reasoning for holding back with the units till 2.0 drops is that the units are not even compatible with 1.9.
That, and just trying to maximize the hype. "The new MPCs run the all new software".

Ill-Green wrote:There shouldn't be a rush, only competition for Akai in April is the Elektron Digitakt. No competition from Pioneer, thats already over. Roland still making SP404s and Korg became a hipster **** company.

Toraiz is prob more akin to the Mpc than digitakt as direct competitor? I'm not a fan of pioneer (that price was waaaay too expensive for what was offered originally) but digitakt is pretty bare bones for an Elektron box. 2 fx, 8 tracks, relatively small memory, minimal connectivity, no performance options (scenes etc), mono samples etc. Octatrack is closer to Mpc than digitakt is IMHO? Looking forward to pairing them up

Fanu wrote:

MPC-Tutor wrote:Almost makes you wish for those more innocent times 'before the internet', where we didn't really find out about products until they were actually available in the shops. Too much hype these days IMO.

I was thinking of something similar.
Easy to get the hype too early...and then get roasted by impatient customers willing to buy the device.
Would be amazing if the announcement was made when they're ready to ship....like with Push 2. I bet they sold a ton of it as the hype was strong and people were able to buy immediately. I'm sure that gains you a few impulse purchases.

From a marketing point of view it was done properly. They gave people the time to save up money to go and buy the device when its out.

A view months in advance means each month putting away 200 dollars for the live and 400 dollars for the X.

callofthevoid wrote:

Ill-Green wrote:There shouldn't be a rush, only competition for Akai in April is the Elektron Digitakt. No competition from Pioneer, thats already over. Roland still making SP404s and Korg became a hipster **** company.

Toraiz is more akin to the Mpc than digitakt as direct competitor, no? I'm not a fan of pioneer (that price was waaaay too expensive for what was offered originally) but digitakt is pretty bare bones. 2 fx, 8 tracks, relatively small memory, minimal connectivity, no performance options, mono samples etc etc. Octatrack is more comparable to the Mpc than digitakt is. Looking forward to pairing them up

Thats what I meant, the competition is lightweight right now. Akai got time to finish their monster without pressure from other companies. But thats for now. What if the X/Live drops and NI or Roland decide to announce their super standalone samplers? Thats why this release gotta be perfect and flawless for Akai because if those companies announce a new standalone and the new MPCs are below average, people who bought in will be very angry and have no problem making the switch and ending the MPC reign for good. (Yes, its that delicate).

As for the Digitakt, Elektron is slowly releasing info. Its really looking to be a mini-Octatrack. I have to see more and the machine in use of workflow.

Chillin wrote: From a marketing point of view it was done properly. They gave people the time to save up money to go and buy the device when its out.

If the decisions where made from a marketing perspective, they would have released the new MPC's during Christmas..

Chillin wrote:From a marketing point of view it was done properly. They gave people the time to save up money to go and buy the device when its out.

nah, I'm not having that.....they've woken everyone up just to tell them its bedtime...

plenty of people would've lost their head and found a way to finance their new MPC regardless of whether or not they could afford it...

now, over time people are being a bit more rational and the hype is dying down....

in my book that's shit marketing