MPC5000 reviews, bug reports and fellow user support on the most recent standalone, hardware MPC from Akai
By mdiddy05 Sat Jul 19, 2008 3:10 pm
I was just trying to get some of You lucky MPC 5000 owners your opinion on the synth that come with it. now i don't know if there is a thread currently about this but want to see how the sounds compare to other synths.
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By mmcerda Sat Jul 19, 2008 10:12 pm
well, for me the synth sounds awesome you have 3 oscillators, ASDR , arpegiator and a bunch of effects to play with.
you can stick to the presets or try to create your own sounds. For this you need some basic synthesizer programing skills which is not that complicated if you know the theory. I think it's a great add on to the mpc.
By mdiddy05 Mon Jul 21, 2008 3:44 am
that's what i am saying. seeing if anyone post about it but nothing. makes me wonder if people are actually diging deep into this machine. thanks mmcerda for saying something
By 4dahaterz Tue Jul 22, 2008 12:15 am
Being that its an Virtual Analog Synth... Its kinda open to do what you wanna do with it. The Synth is cool....
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By NerdAlert Thu Jul 24, 2008 8:18 pm
Synth is dope. Preloaded Synth sounds are alright...I like to use a Motiff for premade synth sounds...but making your own synth sounds from scratch is pretty dope. I already knew when I bought the 5000 that you could alter the premade sounds, but creating my own sounds was a nice surprise.
By ritec Thu Jul 24, 2008 8:48 pm
I am loving the synth is most like the easiest synth I've ever encountered in terms of programming because everything is laid out in a very simple fashion and you can tweak two lfos or oscillators at the same time and hear the results right on the spot.
super intuitive as it should be. Plus having all the knobs for each page right to the left is a god send.

very pleased with the synth. and once you make a killer patch you can bounce that down and bring it into the sampler. can you say sonic mayhem?
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By Teknokeyz Thu Jul 24, 2008 9:41 pm
Man, I cant wait to get one... I was thinking that even though it had a synth on it I would later down the line pick up a keyboard synth but yall make it seem like I wouldnt even need one. Thanks yo...
By mdiddy05 Thu Jul 24, 2008 10:32 pm
I don't have the 5000 yet but i am really thinking about getting one. i also thought about just getting the 2500 and buying the korg R3, that is why would like to know how the synth is. and reading these post about the 5000 really want me to get one tooooo!!!!! can't wait. Teknokeyz do you have that future music mag? if so what does it say about the 5000 ( i am currently deployed halfway around the world)
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By Teknokeyz Fri Jul 25, 2008 1:05 am
mdiddy05 wrote:Teknokeyz do you have that future music mag? if so what does it say about the 5000 ( i am currently deployed halfway around the world)


Nah I just ordered it from ebay tho for like 10 bucs. Should be here in a matter of days.
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By Coz Fri Jul 25, 2008 3:13 am
I picked up Future Music last weekend so i'll give you a quick summary of what was said by the reviewer, Dan Goldman.

The bad first off...

* He loved the external build quality and layout but thought the armrest and side panels were "plasticky" compared to his beloved 3k.

* He criticised the "poor" 64Mb of included ram, and also the cd/dvd drive being optional. As a potential buyer I'm inclined to agree. :wink:

* "A significant downside with the 5000 is that the sample rate is fixed at 16-bit 44.1khz. Most people now work at 24-bit in their DAW's and the extra digital headroom definitely would benefit the HD recording, beats and synth/effects and make a more open sound. It's strange Akai have chosen a 16-bit upper limit, especially considering their own MPC 4000 was full 24/96khz capable"

* In his opinion the synth can sound slightly "harsh and grainy" in the mid/hi-mid region, plus the filter can produce stepping/quantisation at higher resonance.

* He also has a final comment that this MP should have been called the 3500! I think he must have been spending too much time in this forum!!

The good...

* "The workflow is slick with a tried and tested interface, large screen, Q-link controls and tactile velocity sensitive pads. Beat making is just more fun with an MPC!"

* He was also impressed with Chopshop, the sequencer, and Continuous Sample Track, amongst many other things.

* In concusion he writes "A worthy and versatile addition. For those that like everything in one box, the 5000 is hard to beat.

In a comparison to the 3k he said he prefered the sound and swing/feel of the 3k, but wished his MP had all the bells and whistles that the 5k has.

On the whole a pretty decent review... Oh yeah, no mention of bugs, but Future Music reviews aren't anywhere near as indepth as Sound On Sound magazine. I look forward to reading that when it comes out. Hope some of this helps... :)
By tomazzzi Fri Jul 25, 2008 11:57 am
Am i the only one who doesn t like the synth ?

I find this synth cold and without any presence

Also when you make sub bass sounds you finish with a crackle sound ...

Though it can be usefull for basics sounds ..

But i really prefer my others hardware synths...

By the way KORG r3 sound way better than the 5000 synth.
By AFF Fri Jul 25, 2008 12:51 pm
i wonder how powerful the synth is? is there room to make it ALOT better in the future?? because hard wiring in a 'possible' sub-standard synth (against stand alone competitors i mean) is a risky strategy.

don't get me wrong, it's a welcome addition but i would have preferred some upgradeable route for people who want more power to obtain a realistic all-in-one solution. i'm pretty certain that roland will have a more hard core synth in their next MV too.

hopefully i can demo the 5k soon and find out for myself.
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By jokas Fri Jul 25, 2008 1:02 pm
i also like the synth at the 5k, there are all parameters you need to program your own sound.

unfortunatly the machine has no preview button, to try the programs before you load it. that is not very userfriendly, bcause i have to load up a complete folder in my RAM to try what sound i like to get with.

i hope the next update will include a synth preview option!
By 4dahaterz Fri Jul 25, 2008 5:30 pm
jokas wrote:i also like the synth at the 5k, there are all parameters you need to program your own sound.

unfortunatly the machine has no preview button, to try the programs before you load it. that is not very userfriendly, bcause i have to load up a complete folder in my RAM to try what sound i like to get with.

i hope the next update will include a synth preview option!


yeah, thats what I hate about the synth... no d@mn preview button