WHY BUY AN MPC? (MPC vs. just using computer software...)

OK, to this point I have used:
-A laptop
-Sonic Foundry, Fruity Loops, Cubase SX, and Sonar 2.0
-Microkorg
-A turntable
-Vestax PMC 05 Pro II
-Sample CDs, and Thousands of Records

...this is a hard question to ask because I just want an MPC really just to have it, but WHY BUY AN MPC?

What does it have to offer that these things dont, besides nestalgia?

Ok, I am ready for the attack.

An MPC by itself cannot compete with the whole list you just mentioned. The only one to compete would be the 4k.. The reason why so many peeps have MPC's is plain and simple, the pads give you power.. The sequencer carresses your soul and your mind lifts with every track.

Well put.

can you borrow an MPC for a few days?


lampdog puts it great.


to sound a little more pragmatic though... there is a unique workflow and feel to the MPC. its fun to get fanatic over it, but essentially give it a go. it sits well in most setups.

id not have a live gig without it.

And they just look cool.

Hidalgo, cop an MPD16 and add it to your set. You'll get the feel of the pads, and you can use it to program drums in your software programs. You may be able to appreciate why many people have MPCs then.

Average, I heard recently that you did production for Nappy's W, C & G album. Respect on that work seen. That some solid sh!t. I'll have to holla at you sometime.

Peace.

I had that product, and I think that pissed me off the most. It verified that using the pads, with the set up I had, took more work and effort and made the tracks very difficult to get precise. The problem I see with the Akai line of MPC products is this, why not just set the kicks, snares, samples into the programs of the computer and work off that? The results I personally have had from doing this in Acid Pro 4.0, Cubase SX, and Fruity Studio have sounded great, there was no hassel of loading it to an external machine just to hit a pad thats velocity driven and did not always produce the kick or sound that I wanted, then put it right back into the computers studio? That was just Goofy. I dont mean to bash the MPC's, but its just difficult for me to grasp producing in this method. Peace

Borrow one of your buddies MPC's for just a couple of days, put some sounds in it and bang the pads into a sequence and you will see what the big deal is..

HIDALGO wrote:
...this is a hard question to ask because I just want an MPC really just to have it, but WHY BUY AN MPC?

What does it have to offer that these things dont, besides nestalgia?

Ok, I am ready for the attack.

I was asking the same question a few months back before i got mine, i was using Reason 2.0 and all the gear you have actually, except the sample CD's.
Everyone told me "its the feel man, the feel. MPC has just got so much more feel than computer software"

I sort of understood them but now after using a lot of other samplers and owning an MPC for about 5 months, I'd like to put it in my words - The MPC lets you produce music WITHOUT LIMITATIONS.
The only 'feel' you get from the MPC is the 'feel' you put into it.
Now, for a metaphorical version, If you were travelling somewhere, would you rather be on rails like a train, or be able to travel and search anywhere you want?
It works with you, not against you.
peace
ess.

ess kode NZ wrote:I sort of understood them but now after using a lot of other samplers and owning an MPC for about 5 months, I'd like to put it in my words - The MPC lets you produce music WITHOUT LIMITATIONS.
The only 'feel' you get from the MPC is the 'feel' you put into it.
Now, for a metaphorical version, If you were travelling somewhere, would you rather be on rails like a train, or be able to travel and search anywhere you want? It works with you, not against you.
peace ess.

Like the great Itchy once said, "It's a blank canvas" and you paint what you please. When you press play it shows your skills, expressions and feelings, it only gives what you put in, that' true.
PC on the other hand, I just can't get into creating/making music on the computer. I'll use it for everything else like mastering, processing, multitracking and burning BUT the actual laying the notes and drums down, nah, I can't swing it..

ess kode NZ wrote:I sort of understood them but now after using a lot of other samplers and owning an MPC for about 5 months, I'd like to put it in my words - The MPC lets you produce music WITHOUT LIMITATIONS.
The only 'feel' you get from the MPC is the 'feel' you put into it.
Now, for a metaphorical version, If you were travelling somewhere, would you rather be on rails like a train, or be able to travel and search anywhere you want? It works with you, not against you.
peace ess.

Like the great Itchy once said, "It's a blank canvas" and you paint what you please. When you press play it shows your skills, expressions and feelings, it only gives what you put in, that' true.
PC on the other hand, I just can't get into creating/making music on the computer. I'll use it for everything else like mastering, processing, multitracking and burning BUT the actual laying the notes and drums down, nah, I can't swing it..

Lampdog wrote:Like the great Itchy once said, "It's a blank canvas" and you paint what you please.

Come on now...."the great Itchy"??
I'm just trying to tap out beats like yall.

Producing on an MPC can change the way you structure your music. Its more time consuming than working on a PC. On the 60 there is limited sample time.. You will dig smarter. Computers nurture the lazy bastard in all of us.....

I think its the feeling that your actually doing something on the mpc. On the computer, all you are doing is clickin a mouse. I think anybody can use a computer to make beats, but an mpc, you really have to actually learn.

I appreciate you guys shring your passion for production. Like me, I see that is a common bond here on this forum which I find extremely cool and comforting. If and when I do buy an MPC, I guess the question really is this, which is better with the setup I have, the 2000 XL (which from what I read seems to offer the most) or the MPC 1000 which is still in the process of being releases and restocked and seems to offer new technology with less features than the 2000 XL.

The 2000 XL seems to need a lot of upgrades, a reverb card, expanded memory, and a zip drive. But that seems to be adequate seeing how it utilizes midi still, and files can still easily be transfered to a computer by simply plugging a external zip into the USB of a computer. Form what I hear and read, the 2000 XL with upgrades is the way to go.
ANY INPUTS HERE is apreciated.
Peace, God Bless!
HIDALGO