4k vs 3k

Hi everyone!

I’m brandnew here, but not with the MPC’s! I’m a Munich based composer/producer/arranger, and I can operate the 3k blind, in sleep, in the mirror etc. Made with this machine something like 60-70 Albums (since 1996), I really don’t know, how many. And that’s my problem now- my 3k is falling apart! (and by the way nobody wants to sell me his…) So I thought, now it’s time to change to the 4k. I ordered one to check out. After a day of intensive working I had a laughing and a crying eye. Of course the 4k is modern, faster, and so on, but lacks a lot of features, or maybe better to say: solutions, the old 3k has. Here are just a few:

1., Can’t stop sequence with << >> buttons.
2., Doesn’t repeat previous location when tipping twice ‘location’-button (this feature I found out by chance, not written in the User’s Manual, but pretty important, when working longer on the same region).
3., Can’t stop sequence with ‘location’ button.
4., If sequence ‘loop’ off, doesn’t increase sequence-length automatically when in ‘record’-mode (not in ‘overdub’).
5., No extra ‘count-in’ button.
6., Erase: you have to move cursor to select note-number/pad to be erased.
7., No edit note number assignment.
8., No fixed velocity? Or I just couldn’t find it?
9., There’s no MIDI-Channel level setting?

I have to go long distances with the cursor just to do a simple operation, like switch on/off count-in (greetings to member T-Jac!). I’m afraid, it’s not only a problem just get used to the new gear, but it’s like with the new BMW 7: a fantastic car, but the old one was much easier to handle!

At the end just a question: could somebody recommend an e-mail adress of AKAI, where they would listen to my problems with the 4k? (just to reach the best of both worlds?)

PS.: please excuse my poor English, I’m a born Hungarian, first I had to learn Russian, then German, but I’m getting there…

Thanks for the shout out. just hang in there, i know it seems hard to get around, but it'll get easier to you. i really like the mpc 4k. some things are annoying, (count -in) but what are you gonna do? But this machine is so much more powerful. stay with it and you'll be happy. trust me. I'm moving on this thing now.

Hey laszlo if i was you i would seriously consider sticking to the 3k. One of these guys is bound to ship to Germany, just hit them up
http://search.ebay.com/search/search.dl ... y=mpc+3000
The reason I would say do not switch in your particular case is because since you are so used to working in 3k land, the 4k will never quite feel the same. The gui are too different and somethings about the 4k will never work the way you want them to. Since you can run that fast on the 3 you may not really need all the bells and whistles on the 4 anyways. Alot of producers are still using 3s cos they know them back and forth. There is much to be said for this type of knowledge with an MPC. Good luck and good to see a fellow Hungarian around this joint. Big up

I gotta agree with gigaton here, why switch when you obviously seem so happy with the 3k? You know it inside out and you from your post it seems the new features of the 4k doesnt appeal to you. If I were in that situation and had your opinion I'd just get myself another 3k.

I gotta say, I love the 4k. Theres always things that could be different/better featurewise, but thats true with any sampler, and as long I cant get a custom built mpc with custom features just for me (not gonna happen is it? hehe), the 4k is my #1 choice.

Like Gigaton pointed out, check eBay for 3k's, theyre not that hard to find.

Kalei

the 3000 is not hard to find because it is on ebay for way to much money , cause people are selling it and getting a 4000 for the price they are selling the 3000 for. i have never touched a 3000 but i know the 4000 is the shiznit

hey man, congrats on the 4k, hope this helps...

1., Can’t stop sequence with << >> buttons.

why would you want to stop sequenec via these buttons ? you can just hit stop and use locate buttons to go to a certain location

2., Doesn’t repeat previous location when tipping twice ‘location’-button (this feature I found out by chance, not written in the User’s Manual, but pretty important, when working longer on the same region).

not sure what you mean but once you figure out how the locate buttons works you’ll relize how usefull their setup is (much improved over the 2k modules imo

3., Can’t stop sequence with ‘location’ button.

Again just adapt to how the locate buttons work and you’ll party party

4., If sequence ‘loop’ off, doesn’t increase sequence-length automatically when in ‘record’-mode (not in ‘overdub’).

It doesn’t?, I thought if loop is turned off, the sequenec will keep recording untill you hit stop, if not just expanding the bar length

5., No extra ‘count-in’ button.

getting pikky .. dunno but you can set “count in” in the mentronome window

6., Erase: you have to move cursor to select note-number/pad to be erased.

no you can select the notes by hitting the note/pad, even a range of notes by hitting the note/s in the “to” and “from” field

7., No edit note number assignment.

Note number assignment for pads ? its done direct via note assign button

8., No fixed velocity? Or I just couldn’t find it?

Yhea there is: just edit velocty (there are serval ways in serval modes you can do this) and select note range and select: “set value to”

9., There’s no MIDI-Channel level setting?

yhea I know, it would be nice but you set thouse via your moudules anyway and you can use the qlink knobs button/faders to automate midi level if needed ..

I’ve personally had no practice on the 3k but the 4k is is stunning!!!..

8., No fixed velocity? Or I just couldn’t find it?

If you mean when actually "recording" the midi you can set the velocity to a fixed amount through the 16 levels button.

Kalei

8., No fixed velocity? Or I just couldn’t find it?

Are you reffering to the "FULL LEVEL" button per chance?

First I’d like to thank you all for your fast and helpful returns. Now I see, I was bouncing careless into the 4k-lions’ cave, so let me start with my apologies!
Why I just refuse to stop with the ‘stop’ button? Well: how often do we stop a sequence during programming? Let’s say three times in a minute? It makes 180 times per hour, and if I work 8 hours a day, I was pushing 1440 times stop (God, what a stupid job I have!). And when pushing ‘stop’, the sequencer will stop at – let’s say – location 007.03.671, which won’t help us a lot. Starting again from this location will cause for some of us slight timing-problems Also we have to press either >> or (mostly) << to get to a useable musical point. The same thing with the ‘location’ button. With the 4 I have to press first ‘stop’, then ‘location’, then one of the soft keys, even if I just want to get back to the previous part. With the 3 just –tictic- twice ‘location’.
Erase: Let’s say I was again playing into the sequencer a sense-, brain- and useless piano solo, and I just want to get rid of it. I just press ‘Erase’, then soft key 1 and it’s gone. (of course I can select the range by pressing the pads/keys as well, if needed) Or: I still record on multitrack, transporting die MIDI data track by track, for better timing. Let’s say I have a MIDI arrangement of 15 tracks. To erase the remaining 14 tracks takes self-evident shorter with the 3.
At the latest now you’re sure: you’ve met the most hectic guy of this forum, and you’ll recommend me in your answers 3 weeks on the Maledives or to visit a time-management penal camp…
Edit note assign: I have a snare on MIDI note #38, but suddenly I like the sound of #40 better, so I want the MPC send the snare figure now on #40 (on the same track I have all the other drums-kick, HH etc. so transposing can’t help). With the 3k: ‘Seq Edit’, then 9, 2, ‘change notes #38 to #40’, done. I couldn’t find this feature on the 4k.
Fixed velocity: on the 3k I can select between ‘normal’ and ‘fixed’ velocity before recording, and when selected ‘fixed’, aside I can adjust the value (0-127). Also this one I couldn’t find.
Okay, these are just little things, and I’m sure it would be easy to build them in into future O.S., if…they weren’t some legal hassle between AKAI and Roger Linn? Isn’t it that the 4k is the further development of the 2k and NOT the 3k? Maybe some parts of the 3k software were not allowed to use in the 2k, so we miss them in the 4k as well. Or is the O.S. of the 4k from scratch new, and has nothing to do with the other MPC’s?

laszlo

PS.: is it blasphemy to say I’m planning to check out Roland’s coming up MV-8000?

do what you want mate .. if you can´t spare the time in learning the 4k inside out like you did with the 3k and are so addicted to the working method of a 3k, just get another 3k.. you can do ALL of the things you mention on the 4k exept using the location realtime!! personally if I were you I´d look at all the great things that the 4k has over the 3k rather than looking at what it dosn´t have...
ta
gg

The point is to get what does the job. People now want all in one solutions and they just don't do it all well. Christ, when people ask for sound madules people recomend the triton and Motif!! That is madness, those are full workstations, the cost and overlap is just a stupid way to spend your money! If the 3000 has everything you need, get that, just becauswe the 4000 has more doesn't mean it's better (the DX7 is a very feature packed synthesizer, but it is hidden behind cryptic menus that might as well be in Klingon.) if you need something else, then get something that does that and does it well. No need to get the tripple stuffed oreo of machines just because it has tripple the stuffing.

This is a reflection of a very american cultural tendency to want to 'supersize' everything just because you can.

get the 3000 and use the other money for the other stuff you want.