MPC-ONE (A/D, D/A Convertors sound quality)

Seriously . People get really protective about their MPCs lol. I get it. I used to feel really protective about my SP1200, but I made the mistake of selling it and immediately regretted it!!! now people are asking 15-20k for SP1200 and I’m afraid I’ll never be able to afford to buy an SP1200 ever again And I don’t even like the way the new Rossum SP1200 sounds but I’m not going to get into that cause I don’t want to get more people upset on this thread .

I didn’t mean to add that emoji with the middle finger. That was done in error. My bad.

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That Isla S2400 looks tempting and definitely good price point compared to the SP. I’ve never tried one but I think it sounds very similar to the SP1200 and my favorite feature is that it allows direct USB tracking into the DAW. That was one of the biggest things I didn’t like about the SP1200 was having to track 8 analogue outs. Maybe I’ll pick up an Isla Thanks, Lampdog.

Just sold my Isla.As much as i liked the machine i just was not using it in the way it was intended (SP style) and TBH i did not feel any dust or liveliness in the sound/feel as in older machines.But it does sound amazing and is a well thought out,heavily built machine.No effects,no LFO,no real time automations ect Just stone cold beats and sample sequencing.USB recording is effortless.

I hear you about selling the Isla. I like gritty-sounding instruments too. I recently woke up one day and decided to sell all my gritty samlpers: SP1200, S950, MPC60ii, Ensoniq Mirage, ASR10, EPS13, EPS16+, EMUE6400, and MPC2000, and I also had a Novation SuperNova ii which was sick on bass (Big Mistake!!!!! selling all that classic gear). I mostly regret selling the SP1200 because that machine was so fun to work on. It sounded great - it was so gritty, but what I liked most was the workflow: using the sliders and user-friendly menu, pitch shifting, and the challenge of creating beats while only using 10 seconds sample time. I would get lost for hours in my own world programming on the SP. That drum machine was the funniest machine I ever programmed on. I decided to get rid of the drum machines/samplers and buy some outboard gear and was planning to transition to making beats in the box but in a hybrid style using some outboard gear for signal processing. But I've found I'm not enjoying beat-making using just a midi controller and Daw. I miss my drum machines. The biggest problem I had with all that vintage gear was worrying about maintenance. I live in New York. When my drum machines used to break down, I used to mail them to the West Coast to get repaired (shot out to Bruce Forat!). Now I'm waiting for this rumored MPC Key 61 to drop (as seen in the above photo of Scott Storch). I hope this MPC Key workstation turns out top be a modern-day ASR-10. I'm hoping it'll give me an all-in-one workstation and the best of both worlds between producing using hardware but, similar to the ISLA, integrating well with Daw. I really hope Akai hits it out the park with the MPC Key release.

Tonyc21 wrote:I hope this MPC Key workstation turns out top be a modern-day ASR-10.

It isn't and looking at it this way you are gonna be SORELY disappointed. Either it is the Force or MPC OS and neither are in anyway like ASR10.

Tonyc21 wrote:I'm hoping it'll give me an all-in-one workstation and the best of both worlds between producing using hardware.....

Judging from the hardware diagrams floating around I'm betting the OS is the Force or MPC's and yes, it can be all-in-one if that's the case.

Tonyc21 wrote:similar to the ISLA.

Nope, not at all. I have an S2400 and MPC X, not similar AT ALL.

Tonyc21 wrote:I really hope Akai hits it out the park with the MPC Key release.

I think it will hit in the same ballpark range as the other mpc's/Force just with keys this time.

Damn I want an Isla S2400. Been so close to pulling the trigger many times... I have an X and a Live2Retro. May have to sell the Live2 asap for one, but have a hard time doing it with a S900 here, which I know does not sound like a SP1200 but has the sound I grew up. Most music I grew up loving was DJ Shadow and such which was on the MPC's from his golden era. Also I always love ThesOne. which is that 16bit sound. But overall I'd love a S2400 to make a bit of beats from and jungle music. Seems killer for dnb. Or even resampling longer samplers, or stereo. Like resampling synths with the S2400 would be primo. I honestly dont use the Live2 much anyways.

Lest we forget the Pioneer SP16 is a. Great sounding box as well.SP16,S2400 will sound far more like a Ensoniq than a modern Akai product.But they also have far more limitations.As many of us will know by now there is no 1 solution.

Edit-imo if you want the sound and feel of a Ensoniq ASR10 you have to get (another) one.There is no substitute for this old classic sound.The Isla is amazing tho.Its got a nice dark/metallic edge to it.

Man, you guys got me seriously considering picking up an ASR10. I think the ASR10 has a unique was of rounding out and smoothing out the sound. I love sampling kick drums into the ASR10. I feel like the sound coming out of the ASR 10 sounds like punchy like it’s already been mastered (I’m exaggerating a bit). There’s an ASR10 for sale around my area in a pawnshop in pretty good condition which I could buy for 1900. If just having a hard time justifying spending so much on an ASR10. I’ve owned 3 ASR10 in the past (two keyboard and one rack) and I paid between $700 -$900 for them. I think the price hikes on all the vintage/classic gear is getting ridiculous.

I had to create an account here just to reply on the “enclosure material” affecting sound quality…

I have owned all sort of synths, samplers and studio gear for way more than 20 years… I’m a sound engineer, I do mix and mastering as a living and worked with quite a few brands as product specialist, doing NAMM show and Musikmesse demos.

I have also work as mechanical and electronics engineer building synths, FX and controllers for a German manufacturer and I can assure you, metal enclosure has absolutely nothing to do with sound quality…

What is clear here is the “placebo effect”, which is scientifically proven, and something a “blind test” could demonstrate.

Saying an enclosure can affect the sound character of an electronic device… is like saying that red cars are faster due to the color…
Peace out

I’ll take your word for it that an instrument case material does not have any affect on the sound. As I stated before, I’m not a sound engineer or instrument designer, so I can’t speak on that. However, my complaints about the converters on the MPC Live and MPC One have nothing to do with placebo affect. I suspect the AD converters on those two machines are probably of lesser quality than the MPC X and some of the other models. The AD conversion on the MPC X sounds good to me. I don’t know for sure but I doubt the X uses the same converters are the Love and One. These cheap budget MPCs sound like crap to me. I’m saying this not to be a troll, but because I hope Akai sees my complaint and steps up their game with regards to build quality of future MPCs. The Old Akai and Numark are not created equal for the young producers who think all MPCs by default will sound great. Every time I listen to music made on the MPC Live and MPC one, the music sounds smeared and muffled to me. It sounds like the instruments have no separation. There is a lack of clarity.

There is a difference, I hear clarity coming out of the MPX X, but the One and Live are in my opinion the worst sounding MPCs I ever heard. Definitely not placebo effect! Anyone trying to take a shot at me saying my opinion is due to placebo affect or lack of talent of skill, this is not the case. I can clearly hear the difference on how most of the different MPCs sound. I’m not talking about comparing a short clip like a one shot kick between different MPCs. If you play me an 8 bar loop AB comparison played on the MPC 60, 2000, 3000, 4000, 2500 (which sounds like shitty too); comparing those to the Live and One, I can pick out probably with 99 percent accuracy which MPC was playing the 8 bar sample.

All the MPC are distinguishable by a unique characteristic of the sound engine, AD converters, and any other instrument build components affecting sound. I’m pretty sure I am not the only person in the world who does not like the way the MPC One and Live converters sound. Just as an example, I recently purchased a Roland SP 404 SX which is a small portable and inexpensive sampler. The sound coming out of the SP404 SX in my opinion sounds warm, lush, fat, I could hear clarity and separation between the instruments, and the music coming out of the 404 doesn’t sound smeared and two dimensional. Not sure if it is solely due to the AD conversion or something else, but the 404 sounds worlds better than the Live and One.

I’ve owned dozens of samplers and tons of audio gear all of which impart their own unique sonic signature and artifacts onto the audio. I think the MPC Live and One are two of the worst sounding music making instruments I’ve ever heard. The audio coming out of those machines sound smeared, muffled, muddy, under water-sounding, flat, two dimensional, and dry. Just my opinion. I literally purchased an MPC One because I liked the small form factor but returned it to Sweetwater the same day it arrived on my doorstep. Peace out everyone.