Akai MPC X VS Akai Force

hey everyone, im sure this is a stupid question to many experts on here.... but i am struggling to make a decision...

I am trying to figure out what to buy, the MPC X or the Force.

I am new to hardware, and have only really made music on Reason previously.

I intend or hope - to take samples from everything from movies, music, live instruments and create my own music from it...

i thought the Force looked amazing, as it has way more pads to play with. but the recommendation i am getting from the stores is, the MPC X is far better...

I would also use this (whatever i buy) with my Pioneer xdjxz and ill also get the Pioneer djs 1000

any help would be REALLY appreciated!

Stat-wise both units (MPC X and MPC Force) are very close. The obvious benefit with the MPC X is the amount of inputs (and outputs if you are into that). The MPC X can easily handle audio inputs from both of your other new toys without a problem.

From a pad perspective, I would normally say get the "X" just so you have traditional "Pads" to hit, but looking at the other devices you are adding it may be pad overload already.

Perhaps having the Force would give you something different since all of the Pioneer pads are similar to traditional MPC pads.

Note: For sound quality, the MPC X wins on THD (lowest is best) with outputs 5 to 8 being at "0.1" THD. However, the MPC X outputs 1 to 4 have a THD of "0.6" making them slightly worse than the Force, which enjoys a THD of "0.3" for all outputs; not that we would notice.

Whichever you get, be sure to get lots of MIDI DIN cables, which is great for MIDI Clock to link everything up. You will want the normal 5-PIN to 5-PIN MIDI DIN (comes as a pair, with input and output). Also you will want some "USB to 5-pin MIDI DIN" so you can freely connect things that do not have MIDI DIN inputs.

If you think it will be button overload, maybe hold off on one of the pioneer devices. There is much to learn with just the MPC or Force, and from a sync perspective you should get all the benefits with just one of those connected to your MPC.

The Force didn't sell that well cause it released half baked. I don't know if akai will support it after the next update.

I have both an mpc live and Akai force. It depends on what you are using the device for, but I would suggest that an mpc is more popular, has better community support, and will probably be better in terms of updates given the larger user base.

The force theoretically could have been great but it's not a fully formed product in my view..

Here's the skinny. The Force can do everything the MPC does. Then it it does 10 times more. Its much more complicated, harder to learn but gives you options out of this world. The workflow on the MPC is more streamlined as is just a slightly modified version of what already existed for decades.

I have both and wouldn't trade either. But... I tend to mostly use the MPC just because I find I like the physical feel of it better but most importantly I get less distracted from all the incredible options the Force gives you. Every time I turn on the Force I tend to get lost for an hour or 2 trying to make the coolest multi parameter envelope following Macros that the world has ever seen.

Or pretending like I' m Beethoven using the notes mode.

But honestly it's the screen. I hate that god damn non angled screen. My choice on which I turn on at any given moment is whether I can deal with neck pain or not that day.

lukeyangel wrote:hey everyone, im sure this is a stupid question to many experts on here.... but i am struggling to make a decision...

I am trying to figure out what to buy, the MPC X or the Force.

I am new to hardware, and have only really made music on Reason previously.

I intend or hope - to take samples from everything from movies, music, live instruments and create my own music from it...

i thought the Force looked amazing, as it has way more pads to play with. but the recommendation i am getting from the stores is, the MPC X is far better...

I would also use this (whatever i buy) with my Pioneer xdjxz and ill also get the Pioneer djs 1000

any help would be REALLY appreciated!

Full disclosure: I own both an MPC Live II as well as Force.

If I had to choose between the two, though - man - that would be a tough call - but by leaps and bounds, Force is far more powerful than the current MPC could ever hope to be (with the impending update that we all know Force will get). I'm also a Reason user, but I would describe Force to being more akin to Ableton Live in a standalone box, as it has a clip-based workflow (not unlike Reason's Blocks mode, if you were able to launch Reason Blocks like Ableton Live clips).

The workflow being the defining difference, Force just tends to be "easier" to grasp when building songs IMHO. And that Arranger - basically it's a proper DAW timeline in standalone for the most part - something the MPC is sorely lacking right now (it's rumored that Arranger may eventually come to the MPC, but it's anyone's guess in what form it will turn up and whether it will be 2022 or 2023).

So my advice is - if you're truly into "hip hop" and want to work on break beats and stuff, maybe MPC will be up your ally. But for everything else and that, Force is a true powerhouse and a force to be reckoned with. You can also treat your Force like an MPC, as it has virtually all of the features that MPC has - and then some (smaller pads notwithstanding).

The Force does not do everything the MPC X does. One example is the omission of pad tap sampling. I'm on the beta community for Force and I keep requesting similar features that the MPC X/Live has and it's always a no go. Akai clearly wants the Force to be a separate groove box but I honestly don't know what type of future the Force has. I kind of feel like there needs to be a Force II where Akai starts from scratch and rethink this thing. Also, you can't use the MPC software with Force other than to download and transfer the expansion packs. So if you purchase an Akai Force then be committed to depending on Ableton Live for final editing and recording. I had a MPC Live and sold it when I got the Force. Sometimes I regret it because of how easy it was to sample with MPC Live. But I do like the 64 pads and many other features of the Force but man the year long wait to receive a firmware update was brutal.

J-Fly wrote:I kind of feel like there needs to be a Force II where Akai starts from scratch and rethink this thing.

If I had any request in regards to a "Force II" (assuming there will be one, which I highly suspect there never will be), it's to have a larger 10" touch screen display just like the X that can be angled/moved. I'd also prefer full-size MIDI DIN ports instead of the minis, and more than just 2 USB ports. Aside from that (and maybe a few more specialized buttons), I'm totally good with gen 1. I don't need/want it smaller like some have asked, and I am assuming the existing SoC (RAM and CPU and mobo) are here to stay for now, so unless it's an entire platform redo with more RAM and faster CPU (that the MPC's would obviously get as well), then I'm good with what can be done currently with just a firmware update.

J-Fly wrote:Also, you can't use the MPC software with Force other than to download and transfer the expansion packs. So if you purchase an Akai Force then be committed to depending on Ableton Live for final editing and recording. I had a MPC Live and sold it when I got the Force. Sometimes I regret it because of how easy it was to sample with MPC Live. But I do like the 64 pads and many other features of the Force but man the year long wait to receive a firmware update was brutal.

I have no desire to use the MPC Software with Force (I don't even use it much with my MPC). And you aren't committed to using Ableton Live at all for final editing and recording - I use Reason just fine. Export as stems and/or clips and you're right as rain.

I do hope the wait for the "next" firmware update for Force isn't as long as it was for Arranger to appear!

I'm really on a crossroad atm. Thinking about selling my live MK1 and getting a force. But on the other hand I like the portability and that would be a reason to keep it.

64hz wrote:I'm really on a crossroad atm. Thinking about selling my live MK1 and getting a force. But on the other hand I like the portability and that would be a reason to keep it.

If you can afford it, I’d keep them both. I still love my MPC Live II for the portability - my Force stays in the studio though.

I dont think you can really put them head to head they are both neat devices. If you own one, you dont need the other though. If I could go back, i'd have bought the force because imho it has a nicer tactile input interface. The force sw is actually kind of goofy feeling though.

Question for the guys who have both units …. What’s your advice / best method to export work / projects you have done on the MPC Live to the Force ? The idea of have the portability of an MPC Live & the ‘static’ performance capability of the Force appeals , $$$ allowing !!! Thank you

I feel like the keys aspect is way more important then is being said here.. it really is a game changer.. I don't have a keys but wish I did. If I was looking now and didn't need portability, it would be keys all day.. Personally I think the best units are live 2, keys, x, force in that order.
And I understand how freaking cool force is too!!

Before I got my MPC X 2.5 years ago I first looked at the Force because it was much more appealing to me but lacked features I find important. The last two updates to the Force made me unsure whether the X is still the right device for me or if I should sell my X and finally get a Force. I love everything about the MPCs except the way arrangement works. 2.5 years and 1 track weekly or bi-weekly and I just cannot get used to the way the MPC works here. I'd much more prefer the way the Force works here but then I would miss the I/O of plenty the X offers and probably some parts of the classic MPC workflow. I also don't need and MPC AND a Force. So the paralysis is real for me, too.

karlroe wrote:Question for the guys who have both units …. What’s your advice / best method to export work / projects you have done on the MPC Live to the Force ? The idea of have the portability of an MPC Live & the ‘static’ performance capability of the Force appeals , $$$ allowing !!! Thank you

I don't do this often, but when I do - I just export my MPC project as stems and open them in Force, and continue to build there. I do wish there was a proper "MPC Project Import" function on Force, though.