MPC/ MPC Forum veterans, what are your X/ Live verdicts?

@Don Blake

Its a nerd test.Not real world application...

dryad-66 wrote:Get over the 'quality' of the video and your 'taste' ectect........ The sound of the machine you can hear if listen to the whole video.That cannot be a 2000.Nor a 4000.Its clearly to my ears the later numark sound.Notably the 5000.As i said earlier.like it or in your case not but it has 'that' sound.Not the quality of the recording tho.It has a lot of character the producer is rincin that machine,kinda boxy and warm and a bit grungy/present.I cant really believe you are an MPC long time heavy user and you cant tell or think there's a difference between all those models.My god ///

The issue is not me, it's that you need to drop the Ego, obtain better ear training, more audio education, and work in better studios, along side master engineers.

Don Blake wrote: So what exactly was this test for? You cannot say that this test proves that each sampler tested sounds exactly the same.

The test was to see, how much each machine colored or altered the sounds. It was also done for a program that emulate certain machines. We did the test under very strict guidelines because not all the machines had the same capabilities. For example, only the MPC 4000 could sample at 24/96, so we had to sample at 16/44.1

dryad-66 wrote:Its a nerd test.Not real world application...

Without these so called NERD TEST...You would NOT have the machines you use.

CharlesRandolph wrote:

dryad-66 wrote:
The issue is not me, it's that you need to drop the Ego, obtain better ear training, more audio education, and work in better studios, along side master engineers.

I choose machines on how they sound to me.Ive been in sound for nearly 30 years.My ears are far better than most because they know not what they hear.I can describe sound.Most cannot.Some only know things through other peoples tests.Some say soft synths sound the same as analog synths.They have the tests to prove it.Nuff said.

Without these so called NERD TEST...You would NOT be have the machines you use.

Id rather not have them if your testing them

Anyways havent you got an mountains to go and climb Charles Randolph

I was actually agreeing with Charles but also commenting each box with full songs on them summed up might show more signs of a difference. Prolly not much.

The point I was trying to make is that when the tracks are isolated they sound ALOT differnt than summed all in one mpc. Even I just separate the tracks and run them through my mackie mixer I notice a huge difference in the sound.

Looking back I worded it kind of messed up and might not have it the best here.

dryad-66 wrote:I choose machines on how they sound to me.Ive been in sound for nearly 30 years.My ears are far better than most because they know not what they hear.I can describe sound.Most cannot.Some only know things through other peoples tests.Some say soft synths sound the same as analog synths.They have the tests to prove it.Nuff said.

Without these so called NERD TEST...You would NOT have the machines you use.

Id rather not have them if your testing them

You've been in Audio for 30 years?

Cockdiesel wrote:I was actually agreeing with Charles but also commenting each box with full songs on them summed up might show more signs of a difference. Prolly not much.

The point I was trying to make is that when the tracks are isolated they sound ALOT differnt than summed all in one mpc. Even I just separate the tracks and run them through my mackie mixer I notice a huge difference in the sound.

Looking back I worded it kind of messed up and might not have it the best here.

Yes that is true. Combining instruments does alter the sound and Yes, that did go for all the machines. However, from the what we found, the machine themselves. did not overtly color the sound. Except on the SP1200, due to the age and 12 bit/Sample rate. Wish we had a MPC 60 to test along side the SP 1200. Would have been cool to have a SP 12 as well.

CharlesRandolph wrote:
You've been in Audio for 30 years?

Well since 1994 to be precise.I buy and sell audio equipment.Thats one of my main jobs.privately.So i always have machines coming through my crib.There i test them against each other and often sound experiments get recorded for listening to later.Your kind of argument/discourse is classic gearslutz type fodder.You shed no personal light of different aspects and details of the machines (apart from spec details where your well informed) YCharles Randolph-"they all null in official tests now go back to your bedsits/mums basement" which just shows a lack of depth and relationship with them.I live and breath the friggin things just because im interested in there quirks.Ive been through hundreds of samplers.And can make a personal basic description of each.YES they are all this company or that company but they vary from the years that they are made and components ectect.Even the MPC 2000 and 2000 xl.

I will be rockin the SW for the next 6 months and using my backlog of 23 years as sample material so makes no real odds.Its certainly easier.To knock up a beat and edit it there.As i said to keep on the subject matter i would go for the live but dont really see the point as i have 2 laptops.And controllers ect.I like the big screen.

dryad-66 wrote:Well since 1994 to be precise.I buy and sell audio equipment.Thats one of my main jobs.privately.So i always have machines coming through my crib.There i test them against each other and often sound experiments get recorded for listening to later.Your kind of argument/discourse is classic gearslutz type fodder.You shed no personal light of different aspects and details of the machines (apart from spec details where your well informed) YCharles Randolph-"they all null in official tests now go back to your bedsits/mums basement" which just shows a lack of depth and relationship with them.I live and breath the friggin things just because im interested in there quirks.Ive been through hundreds of samplers.And can make a personal basic description of each.YES they are all this company or that company but they vary from the years that they are made and components ectect.Even the MPC 2000 and 2000 xl.

I will be rockin the SW for the next 6 months and using my backlog of 23 years as sample material so makes no real odds.Its certainly easier.To knock up a beat and edit it there.As i said to keep on the subject matter i would go for the live but dont really see the point as i have 2 laptops.And controllers ect.I like the big screen.

Personal preference was removed with that test, because it wasn't modeling a particular composer drum machine settings. If you take what I say like that, then that is your interpretation not my intentions. The truth is, if you make WACK music, with no soul and life experiences, no matter what machine they use it going to be WACK music with no soul and life experiences.

I'm not the get OFF MY LAWN type of person. I embrace all music and workflows. I also believe that all people can learn. No one is perfect and we all are evolving. Like I said you chose a poor peice of audio to make your point about the MPC 5000 sound. Perhaps you should upload a sample of the audio you've created on the 5000 along with a list of gear you've use.

That way we all can learn and understand your audio chain and how you've achieved that sound.

You make no sense to me charles.Just a lot of hot air.Ive gleaned nothing about any machine from your discourse.Just words on a forum.good luck wit dat.

dryad-66 wrote:You make no sense to me charles.Just a lot of hot air.Ive gleaned nothing about any machine from your discourse.Just words on a forum.good luck wit dat.

That just means my words, were not meant for you. Nevertheless, I await a sample of the music, you've created on the MPC 5000 with a list of attached gear, audio chain, and settings that helped you achieve that MPC 5000 sound.

Lampdog wrote:Wuddup man!

I wanted a replacement for my 4k and was REALLY hoping an X was it, it's not.

In what ways/ features were you disappointed or were you missing compared to the 4000?

Not this debate how this MPC sounds better than that MPC/ sampler
Like people hear the difference between a MPC2000 or MPC3000 when they hear a finished song. Off course a 2015 Kev Brown beat sounds different than a 1994 Jay D/ DIlla beat. And it's not (mainly) because of the difference in the MPC's they used, but the other gear and processes they run their music through divided by 2 decades.

The only time I can really here a certain machine was used on a track because it really has a distinguished sound is in some cases the SP1200 and the S950.
I'v owned the S950 and in my experience you really had to work it to make it 'sound like a S950'. It 's actually quite a clean and good sounding sampler for a 12bit machine. Drumsamples and bass had to be recorded hot. Loops had to be sampled in a smaller bandwidth from a pitched up turntable to get 'that' sound.

The 'typical MPC ....' sound is overrated IMO. The way a machine is set up internally (onboard filters, how well the time stretching works etc.), processing and post production has more influence on the sound of the end results. Especially with todays technology. Think what you like and act accordingly to it as you please. But I'm not going to hold on to this MPC, or go out and buy that MPC for the way the converters sound.

Last word from me and advise to anyone who is interested-if like me ,you often work just with a single box to crate your 'beats' the Live.X and SW are generally very clean and without any grunge and therefore MPC so called character (from there dodgy converters that i quite like) You will have to work for that.The 1000 has that in spades imo.Its clean but pretty raw.Especially the master eq and compressor really funks that lil box.Same with the other models.The Live is kinda perfect as far as reproducing the sound.Maybe adds a little mojo.But samples seem very static with this system.Its just the nature of the beast.But something happened to akai when they went all disney with there lights and screens ect.Its a hybrid,really software in a box.Very little 'distortion happening.Which is maybe what you want !!!!!!!