Akai MPC-2000

It's pretty straight forawrd like all the pre mpc 1000 mpc's. Easy to just sit down and make a basic beat before reading the manual.

Features are a little lack luster,but are enough to make a hot track. Chopping up samples on it takes some time to master so it's not so tedious of a process.

The sounds you sample in come out good. It's no mpc 3000,but it's the next best thing. No static. Clean signal. It sounds punchy and crystal.

It's alright. I've had it crash from time to time. It's like any peice of music equipment,it needs to be maintained. It makes a nice rattle when striking pads 13,14,and 9.

The akai support is about as frendly as a swift kick to the sack. Also about as quick as the poney express.

I enjoy it most of the time. As these machines are getting older things tend to burn out and need serviced. It's a gem when you figgured out how to chop and do other various features to make the features work for you. The 2 pad mutes takes some working around when making sample based beats,but it's a great mpc.

Latest OS v1.72 installed. Manual is OK, can be a little confusing.

Of course there is a learning curve with most electronic equipment as feature packed as the 'MPC2000 Classic' as it's now days referred to.

32 Voice Polyphony, which is good enough.

The FX board is a vey good option if you want to keep your FX setting inside the MPC but if you're happy using external FX processors theb thats also fine providing you have the 8 output board installed (it's a must).

The pads really are AWESOME it's a superb idea and they work very well.

Trust me people the sequencer is OUT OF THIS WORLD timing wise, it's sooo tight it's unbelieveable. If you're making hiphop you'll love this machine, it's a great place to start and to finish ;)

I'm not going to comment to the sounds as this unit is a drum/groove sampler. The better quality samples you use the better they will sound.

OK...

Now the more technical aspect of the MPC2000 sound engine...

This thing sounds pure analog, warm & punchy!
The same drum hit on your PC/MAC will sound thin, weak and dead!

The convertors on this machine are SICK! :P

It'll give you that classic analogue hiphop/hardware sound that you can not replice no matter what soundcard or plugins you use.

Yes, Solid as a rock :)

Yes you can use it without back up...

well akai don't stock parts for this machine so you have to go via an approved dealer or parts supplier so it depens on how that company/person is.

I've never had problems with these people but bare in mind that the MPC2000 is old so look for a good one, test it thoroughally when u buy.

If it was lost or stolen I would look for another cause it's a classic and it super value for money these days. All the great hiphop/dance producers have made hits with this machine and many are still doing it today.

I like the whole idea of the mpc2000 but I do think that the OS is slightly out-dated, but nothing to stop you making a banger ;)

I have a mpc2000xl, have had a mpc3000 in the past all are top machines but this one i'm attached to.

I do wish it had the capabilites to edit samples on board (more sample edit functions). I also wish it had the capability to read folders on zip and use more than one program at a time like the mpc2000xl does.

It helps you create a totally different groove and feel compared to using only pc's and keyboards.


BOTTOM LINE:

IF YOU LOVE HARDWARE & OLD ANALOG SOUND YOU WILL LOVE THIS!

1.72 Is the version Im using. The presets are horrible what do you expect. The MPC is really cool because it doesn't put you in a box. The MPC will do whateva you ask it too. All function are pretty easy and the more you're willin to work on your skill the better the machine is. I like others have had it for sometime and my display is rapidly fading. The only real problem is the external drive set-up. There's no USB (except on the 1000) and the scsi cable is parrallel. So Im having alot of trouble finding an external drive that will work. Yes I would buy again easy to use and a great sound. Plus nothing beats the ease of the sequencer. If anyone knows of an external drive that works please email me at emmit630@yahoo.com

Some have effects I really dont care for them I use effects thru the board

You're better off making your own samples or you could end up very disappointed. All kinds its a sampler. Effects kinda suck. Good output sound. Velocity and aftertouch right on

Yes very much so. Yes Id use it anywhere.

Akai is not really a good company to deal with however. Repairs are slow.

I AM CURENTLY USING 1.0
THE PRESET SOUNDS ARE O.K. BUT YOU SHOULD NEVER BUY A SAMPLER OF ANY KIND FOR THE PRESETS IT WOULD BE BORING IF THE SOUNDS WERE PERFECT.
EDITING PATCHES ISN'T HARD ON AN MPC 2000 BUT IT'S NOT THAT COMPLEX THOUGH I HAVE A KURZWEIL2500 AND I PROGRAM MY SOUNDS THERE YOU CAN'T DO REAL MANGLING ON AN MPC 2000 THE 4000 SOUNDS FULL OF PROMISE THOUGH
THE MANUAL FOR THE MACHINE IS FINE BUT I NEVER COMPLAIN ABOUT MANUALS IIF YOU LOOK IN THE RIGHT PLACES IN THE MANUAL YOU WILL FIND WHAT YOU
NEED IT'S A FAIR BOOK.

WELL THE POLYPHONY IS 32-VOICES AND THAT'S FINE BUT YOU CAN'T REALLY CHANGE THE SOUND IN AN MPC-2000 IT'S STRICTLY DRUMS AND IT DOESN'T REALLY HAVE WARMTH. I OPTED FOR NO EFFECTS.YOU CAN ADD THE OUTPUTS, AND YOU CAN ADD EFFECTS BUT I DON'T CARE FOR ON BOARD EFFECTS ALL THAT MUCH ANYWAY, I ADDED MORE MEMORY, ALL STANDARD MIDI CAPABILITIES ARE HERE IT'S COOL I HAVEN'T FOUND A WAY TO HAVE BOTH A AND B SYNCED AT THE SAME TIME THIS CAN BE ANNOYING! THE ON BOARD SEQUENCER IS THE BEST PART ABOUT AN MPC BUT I NOTICED BUGS A FAR A MY SEQUENCER WAS CONCERNED IF YOU QUANITIZE ON IT THE FIRST NOTE IS NOT MOVED I FOUND A WORK AROUND BY NEVER REALLY SETTING MY MPC TO PLAY FROM THE FIRST NOTE STRICLY YOU CAN SET A BEAT THAT COMES IN BUT WILL ONLY PLAY WHEN YOU PRESS PLAY BUT LOOPING ANOTHER SECTION OF THE SONG AND THAT'S A COOL FUNCTION BUG OR NO BUG. THE SEQUENCER IS EASY ENOUGH MY ONLY PROBLEM HAS BEEN TP GET THAT REALLY TIGHT SEQUENCE I HAVE HAD TO USE THE WORK AROUND METHOD WHICH SLOWS ME DOWN A BIT BECAUSE WHEN ADD A SEQUENCE TO IT SELF YOU HAVE TO CUT IT SO THAT THE UNWANTED PARTS DON'T BECOME PART OF THE LOOP THIS CAN BE TERIBLE BUT OVER COME!

I'M NOT THE TYPE OF PRODUCER TO TELL YOU YOU CAN'T GET A GOOD DRUM SOUND OUT OF AN MPC-2000 CAUSE YOU CAN IT'S A MATTER OF KNOWING HOW TO USE CERTAIN TRICKS TO GET THE RIGHT FEEL, CAUSE SOME SAY IT SOUNDS FLAT OR DIGITAL, IT'S NOT A KURZWEIL BUT THAT'S NOT WHAT IT SHOULD BE COMPARED TO IT WILL GIVE YOU SO PRETTY TIGHT DRUMS, BUT THAT'S IT INTERNALY,YOU CAN CUSTOMIZE HOW MUCH RESPOSIVENESS YOU WANT I PRETTY MUCH WANT A SOLID HARD HITTING SOUND WITH LITTLE OR NO VELOCITY CHANGES AT ALL BUT YOU CAN CONTROL THIS FOR SOUNDS INTERNALY AND FOR SEQUENCING IT'S FINE IN THAT RESPECT, YOU CAN'T COMPLAIN, ONE PROBLEM I HAVE HAD IS THIS AND THIS IS THE NORM WHEN YOU USE MOD WHEELS YOU CAN MAKE THE SEQUENCER LOSE TIME, I PURPOSELY DON'T USE MUCH MOD WHEEL FOR THE WAY IT CAN INVITE BAD TIMING TO MY SOUND WHICH I HATE!

I HAVE HAD NO REAL PROBLEMS WITH THE MPC, AS FAR AS RELIABILITY
IS COCERNED I TURN IT ON IT WORKS, I HAVE FOUND THAT IF I DO CERTAIN THINGS I CAN ALMOST COUNT ON IT FAILING BUT I DON'T DO THOSE THINGS ANYMORE CAN'T REALLY REMEMBER WHAT I DID THAT MADE IT CRASH BUT I FOLLOWED THE EXACT FORMULA AGAIN AND IT CRASH AGAIN I DECIDED WELL DON'T DO THAT! I WOULD USE IT ON A GIG NO QUESTION WITHOUT A BACKUP BUT IF YOUR DOING A GOOD PAYING GIG I WOULD HAVE A BACKUP FOR GODS TRACKS THAT PERSONAL THOUGH I WON'T FELL YOU FOR THE MOST PART!

I DEALT WITH AKAI THEY WERE COOL! NO REAL PROBLEMS I CAN SAY BUT AS FAR AS THE MPC-2000 NOT RUNNING AS EXPECTED IT HAS NEVER DONE THAT TO THE POINT I NEEDED TO CALL AKAI, I CALLED TO COMPARE THE 2000 AND THE 3000.

IF SOMEONE STOLE MY MPC-2000 I'M SCREWED PRETTY BAD RIGHT NOW IT'S MY SEQUENCER PERIOD I DON'T USE ANYTHING ELSE TO SEQUENCE AND I HAVE HAD IT FOR FIVE YEARS NOW! I HAVEN'T MADE THAT PLUNGE TO COMPUTER BASED SEQUENCING AND I DON'T KNOW IF I WILL ANY TIME SOON I'M GOING TO GET MY HANDS ON AN MPC-4000 GOD WILLING AND THAT WILL BE IT FOR ANOTHER 4 TO 5 YEARS IT DOES WHAT I EXPECT AND WANT, WITH A FEW MINOR WORKABLE PROBLEMS HERE AND THERE BUT NOTHINGS PERFECT, AS FAR AS COMPARING THE MPC'S TO ANYTHING ELSE NO,! I HAVE NEVER THOUGHT TO HAVE ANYTHING DIFFERENT ITS THE STANDARD IN HIP-HOP LIKE MICROSOFT IS TO COMPUTERS YOU BUY OTHER HARDWARE SEQUENCERS TO BE DIFFERENT BUT NOT SMART, THIS IS AS GOOD AS IT GET'S IN HARDWARE YOU MIGHT WANT TO GET A COMPUTER IF YOU CAN STAND THEM!, BUT THIS IS THE HIP-HOP PRODUCTION STANDARD!

im using version 1.72 with out manuaul u r lost manual u will have to read a couple of times

32 voice very responsive on the key action no built in efx expasion
32mb midi 2 sets of in and out on board sequencer 64 tracks

being a sampler all music is possible reacts well

reliable yes

never called them

i wouldnt buy it again if it were stolen because i got from a pawnshop
i use to work at i have an old roland w 30 but im trying to see if
which one is best to work with see the mpc is just a sampler with a drum machine put in one so its mostly good for just sampling drum sounds and percussion and also very good phrase sampler if u like jacking for beats but please e mail me at MEHDO@AOL.COM to let me know if anyone knows about the w30 and the mpc which is better because they both are samplers.

I bought the MPC 2000 in '97 because I'd played with the MPC 60 and 3000 in some of the studios I used to work for. The 2000 is pretty much the same conceptually, although the sampling engine is a totally different one. I bought it mainly because it works very well for HipHop and R&B jams. It's pads are designed to make you play and think about rhythms differently then you would on a keyboard workstation, which can be a welcome change if you tire occassionally of playing drumparts on a keyboard or program them in your software-sequencer. I use Cubase for most things, but if i need to crank out a big HipHop anthem in a split second, the MPC makes my day. many have said this before, and i will say it again: the MPC concept is still unbeatable when it comes to MIDI-timing. I don't know why and I cannot back this up with actual figures, but use your ears and you will agree. On the downside, it's groove is quite characteristic and might not suit every type of music you want to make. But all in all it is still a very desirable box for those who want to move the crowd. By the way, I've owned mine for four years and the display is now deteriorating more rapidly all the time. going to need to replace it soon, which will run me about $200.

see above.

The stock sound library is bull. But hey, it is a sampler, so sample.

apart from the display as mentioned ( again) above, no problems.

The Akai people in the Netherlands are never going to be my friends.

I wouldn't buy it again, unless I had money to burn. There really isn't any good reason to buy hardware samplers anymore. The only reasons you want an MPC is the pads and the groove, as mentioned above.

V 1.72. A few rather weak preset sound disks, this baby's made to sample anyway. Editing is a breeze if your familiar with basic sequencing i.e. any modern drum machine (hardware sequencer). The manual is obviously not written by an American or speaker of English as first language. I paid someone $40 an hour a few times to figure out how to save properly.

32 voice polyphony, more than I ever use. Effects Expansion is separate but very cool. If your in to hip hop you'll love tweaking these effects(and when you hear a record using mpc effedts you'll know it!) Upgrade memory to 32 mb is a must, call akai for proper chip. 8 out expansion is good for recording. 32 midi channels, plenty. The sequencer and the intuitive pads makes this machine. I don't care how many people i hear raving about software sequencers, there is absolutely nothing like punching these pads, second to none!!

No onboard instruments, its all on you! Sequencer is great for hip hop, jungle, you can really create anything you want on this baby! Velocity and aftertouch are great. My only complaint is... when you sample say a bass guitar, and you want to tune the pads so you can play a scale, sometimes the sequencer doesn't pick up the bass notes on every beat, almost like it wont record the entire performance, not to big a of a deal though

I love this machine, never had it crash!!

Good custmer support! Can be hard to contact ive heard, but i've never had a problem.

If your thinking about producing hip hop and don't mind finding sounds or buying a rack like a trinity or proteus, this is your machine, actually nothing really even comes close, maybe an sp 1200 but its expensive and has very little memory, if your a purist i suppose............the MPC is the absolute best, hands down!!!!!

the manual is dry- and it took me a couple days to get the concepts of program, notes, etc. down. but this is my first sampler- so one would expect so much. the interface is very intuitive though- and you'll find the mpc 2000 to make great sense and be very flexible once you get it down. STICK WITH IT! presets? I got it used and it came with OK sounds. I would recommend surfing the net for sounds if you can. (I did a whole cd using drum sounds I downloaded and they're pretty good).

BE AWARE- the stock mpc 2000 does not have effects- it's got good expressive capabilities though. if you get the 8 out option you can use outboard gear to tweak indivdual voices (or you can just buy the effects upgrade you cheapskate). Also, if you expand the ram to 32 megs- you'll have enough room for a few tight kits and lots of synth/guitar/vocal hits. the midi programming is outstanding. and the sequencer is VERY in depth- meaning with time and pracice it's possible to created organic and complex beats like in R&B or good pop music. if you just want to sequence 4/4 house or dance there's other stuff out there (roland 808, 909, or the yamaha loop factory to name a few).

expressiveness in a sampler is like asking how meaty tofu is. and yet, the mpc 2000 is so complex it truly excells as an expressive tool in both studio and live settings. even the midi is involved. you can create a loop and turn voices and midi tracks on and off (great for live jamming)- or you can sequence out an entire song and use it as some sort of freakish karaoke machine. with some time spent in understanding how and why it works the way it works the mpc2000 becomes more then a computer- it becomes a musical instrument- no less an instrument then a guitar or piano.

I'd gig with it- and it's never failed me.

akai is OK. at least they post os upgrades to fix old mistakes. they ought to offer better samples to download- those canned samples they charge an arm and a leg for aren't impressive to say the least.

I LOVE this drum machine. I wish there was a little more live tweaking capability but there's many ways around this. the sequencer is amazing. the mpc2000 is expensive- remember that. there's other gear out there. that said- for *creating* expressive beats and compositions with feel and depth I haven't seen anything better out there.

I am using software version 1.50, and the preset soundz are fine, not the best though. Patch editing is good and the manual is excellent.

The MPC2000 sequencer is a good one, I use the
MPC2000 sequencer as my main sequencer. I think
the MPC2000 best feature is the sequencer. I
could never get any samples that were inspiring
enough to make a good track, so I use the MPC2000
sequencer to drive my MC505 as a sound module. The
sequencer has definately given birth to hip hop
as we know it today, it feels like no other sequencer
can.

Sounds can sound excellent on this machine, but for piano
chords I would rather play them myself rather than use samples,
that is more creative and expressive. If one does not connect a keyboard
to the Mpc2000 it is hard to play chords on the pads, but the pads are excellent
for laying down percursions.

it's reliable to me!! I find myself often depending on it to do what it
is designed to do without flaw.

Never been in touch with them.

Hey, if you don't like this box them you just haven't put enough
time into it. If you know what this box can do you will never want
to go anywhere else for a sequencer, it tight(Step, edit,song, realtime erase,copy, paste.....).

This is actually a review for the XL model. I D/L the latest OS (1.11) from akai's website. Everything is laid out in a simple manner. I was able to kick out a beat in 5 minutes w/out the manual. Just remember to hit "open window" on every field and you will find all the little things.

32 polyphony for a 64 track seq. isn't bad. 300,000 note seq capacity, time-stretch, re-sample, note variation slide, velocity sensitive....for more go to akaipro. Not much for efx, unless you buy the board; other expansions- smpte, 8 outs + digital i/o. What I really like about this machine is the real time and step record, time correct, and sample editing.

this thing is great for all style's because you put the sounds in it.

Yup, she's crashed and froze on me. 98% of the time she is fine. Just remember to save your stuff at appropriate times.

Free OS update's!!!!!! too bad the new os's are created (mostly) to fix bugs rather than add features.

Great machine, great control. Basically you get this empty palet to paint your pictures. Bring your own paint and colors and arrange, seq anything you can come up with.

If it were lost or stolen, I would buy it again.

I'm using v1.72 right now. Its pretty good. This thing is super simple to use. Plug away at it for a week and you should have it mastered. After all, it is just a sampler. Manual is easy to read but it sucks. The cool thing about this machine is that it is almost plug and play. Load in a kit, get your bassline and whatever else you want to use and your ready to sequence.

This machine is ideal for someone producing Hip-Hop, some simple House or Techno. Getting into things like Jungle where you're layering a lot of sounds the thing will start to act funny. Panning sounds, cutting them out and then there is the digital hiccup when you're using longer samples. I got this thing packed with ram and I'm still wanting more time. It is a good machine considering it's doing 3 jobs. Just keep that in mind when you want to make really complex and trippy music. I don't have the effects unit. Sucks anyways. But it is cool the options there. They should have included some simple effect features like delay.

Sound you put in is the sound you get.

This machine is pretty dependable and live, it would be fun to use. That's it!!

They suck. They're a bunch of clueless monkeys on crack!!!

If you can get this machine cheap....buy it. Otherwise go with the E-mu sampleers. Much better. More bang for the Buck!!

Currently using v 1.72. I found the MPC pretty easy to use. It took a while at first to figure but I've had it for a year now and I find it pretty straight forward. Editing samples on the little screen is a bit hard, although you can cancel one pad with another though which is great for getting tight sounds. The manual is fine, just very long but you would expect that with this machine. You can get a pdf of the manual from the full compass site, which I read before i bought it.

To get the most out of it you need the expanded ram (32Mb with sims) and an external scsi drive (I have an iomega zip 250 which has been fine). I have used it to to midi sequence with an external synth, which was fine, although I mostly sequence samples I create myself.

I use the MPC in an experimental band and I dont actually use it as a drum machine as such. I sample all kinds of crap on it ie. piano loops, noises, whatever. The MPC is part of our line up with drums, bass and vocals and we midi sync the MPC to a drum machine which plays a click through headphones to our drummer. The MPC seems to be traditonally a hip hop/ dance machine, but works really well in a rock band if you're prepared to work with it.

Others on the site have complained it crashes a lot. I've only had it crash once in a year, and it was just a matter of switching off and reloading. I've used it live a bit and it's fine. It would have to be better than a laptop at least.

The akai site has downloadable sounds which are usually pretty good. Have not dealt with the support team directly.

It's definitetly worth it I feel. The main reasons I bought are that it's much more portable than a PC set up and it's a sampler/sequencer in a neat package. If it were lost or stolen I would most likely buy another one. I only really looked at the ensoniq ASR as another option, and the Roland SP808, which doesn't compare (dont be fooled by the D-beam). More ram capabilty would make it brilliant, but I'm really happy with it.

i'm currently using v.172. as awhole the thing is very easy to use. i've had it a few months now and i'm really fast on it.editig on the mpc isn'nt bad, the screen is small but you can zoom in on the waveform and make precise changes.the manual is pretty intimadating but on the whole easy to use.

the drum pads are totally wicked, pressure sensitive.they feel great and are very controllable.the filter isnt too great(the resonance sucks!)but it has full attack and decay also the drum pads can be turned into a 2 octave keyboard(kind of).the 64 track sequencer is o.k but not exactly mind blowing. there's no time stretcing and the effects board is expensive and shit.the output board(upgrade) is two small also.overall though you get a lot for your money, good sampler too.

i find the mpc very easy and fun to play. its extremly inviting and easy to use. i personly use it for techno and it works well. it would be shit for drum n bass though.

the mpc is a good machine in general but it is very unreliable. its crashed on me at least once a month since i bought it.

never dealt with akai but i've heard their unsupportive.you can free downloads from the akai web page though(sound disks and software updates)

its a wicked drum machine(the best) a decent sampler, not bad as a sequencer bad as an effects unit and diabolical reliablity wise.although it has some shortcomings(the os is a joke)the pros outway the cons.but it has a sound to die for.

ONLY BUY THIS IF U R SERIOUS BOUT MAKIN BEATS
This thing has a pretty tough learning curve. If you understand how media software works, you'll have a head start. To make an actual song or beat you'll have many separate files; you'll have the actual sound files or samples, you'll have a PROGRAM file that controls how the sounds mix.FX and note assignment for your controller, and the MIDI file that remembers your sequence. And there's more... It would be nice if they could condense it a little more.

Once that's under your belt things get easier. Moving around is slow at first, but once you get used to it, its not too bad. The most common places you'll go use a "SHIFT+BUTTON", which is counter-intuitive. The display screen works pretty well, despite its small size its pretty ez to edit on. Everything is there, the manuals will help you out, but they don't work any miracles

Sounds great. I load samples from CD's, or Records. There are a few ways to tweak out sounds (doubling, filters, and pitch shifting) without FX that work cool. The pitch shifter sounds pretty good, you can adjust notes up and down probably about 5 or 6 steps before there is any digital mucking up. Sampling converters are pretty good too.

Depends on the media your storing your stuff on. ZIP disk are probably the best way. I've had a few corrupted files, but nothing disasterous.

Upgrades are pretty EZ, you just pop in a floppy. It loads the "operating system" into its brain everytime you start up, so to upgrade the OS you use a new floppy with the new version. Haven't dealt with AKAI yet.

This is uncomparable to anything else out there, a one of a kind. Normally, it would take at least three pieces of gear, costing way more, to do what the MPC does. I don't know much about the MPC 3000 but I'm sure its the sh*t. There are better samplers out there, a PC with some MIDI software offers more flexible sequencing, and a drum pad setup is more natural to play on, but try getting it all in one box and it all working together seemlessly. I will say that this is the only drum machine you'll EVER NEED. Even though it doesn't boast a load of RAM (32 MAX), I have yet to even fill up half the memory even with songs that use samples for a majority of the music.

This is a producers dream, especially hip-hop, or r&b. You set your beat, add your loops, sync it with a digital recorder, put your vocals, live intruments. Need some obscure percussion or REAL strings? load up a sample CD. Edit and tune your samples, double them, tweak them. DJ Premier is a good example of a producer who uses the MPC to its potential, and created a unique style around what the MPC allows him to do. This is more than a piece of gear, its really an instrument.

right now I am using version 1.72. This has got to be the easiest piece of equipment to use.. I strongly suggest if your just starting out, buy this piece. It is'nt very intimidating like a computer. The manual though very big to cover everything this beast does, is very informitive. This piece can be used by all levels of producers alike.

I give it an eight on the features because of the sampler. It could use an upgrade here. The sequencer on the mpc is awesome. I control my whole studio right from my mpc. The only thing I use my computer for is recording.

You can load any sound you want in this hoss. So create sounds to your hearts content. This machine will do nothing but perform.

Don't leave it for extended periods of time. (i.e. 4-6hours) It gets a bit grumpy and starts to drop sequences or even drop sounds. so save quite frequently when working on big projects.

Never had any problems with them

overall,this machine is a midi monster. Any midi application you can think of can be applied. Don't buy it for sampler though. I'm afraid you will be dissapointed. Buy it as a sequencer first. Drum machine second, and sampler last.

I am using OS v1.72. The presets suck but who cares. If you want presets buy a keyboard workstation! Sampling is what the mpc is for and it does a great job. The thing is soo easy to use. A lot of people complain it is too complex, they must be dumb. I can lay down a track to amaze layman it 30 seconds, though a professional sounding sequence does take more effort in the various editing features. But that is what perfection is all about. If you can't get professional results from the MP, then the problem is with your talent: not the MPC.

There is nothing that I ever wanted to do (except time stretching) that the MPC, along with my yamaha CS1-x, could not do. period. Effects can be handeled my my synth during sampling. Sound crazy? to sample with effects and to get really good sample quality, use the shortest cords possible with gold plating.

If you sample correctly, the sounds will sound EXACTLY the same out as they came in. Just be a perfectionist. Sometimes I make tracks (hip-hop is my game)and record an mp3 accapallo over it and tell my friends that it is a new remix. they are folled every time and they are very picky about beats-production quality.

I've had it lock up during saving once or twice and some times it refuses to trim samples. Also sometimes the RAM I added does not register. The ram was new and I installed it correctly(I am a computer tech)but still.

Never delt with akai.

You just cant get all these features for the price. It really helps, though, to have a synth to sample from. The after market sound disks all suck. period. they all sound low-fi and hissy. If it was stolen I would crap my pants then go on a mission. The Asr series is crappy. Just look at the thing, it looks like one of those Roland grove box things. The screen don't tell you s#*t! who cares if it comes with sounds. everyone who uses it for the preset sounds, there tracks will sound the same.

I am using version 1.72. The MPC is definitely not the easiest piece of gear to learn. I lost my manual and have never bothered to get another one. Piece by piece I have picked up new tricks, and not having manual actually helped me to learn the MPC better. Not the easiest to learn, but once you do it really grows on you.

The MPC is a vital part of my setup. The features are definitely not up there with some of the rack mount samplers, but like all gear you must find the strenghts and characteristics that it has. Trust me, I found that the MPC has plenty and is definitely vital to my live setup. One main feature I would like is timestetching, but I do that on my computer and transfer it to the MPC anyways.

The expresiveness of the MPC is something that has not really amazed me, but at the same time has never dissapointed me. The pads are okay, sometimes it is hard to play certain patterns, but there are ways around that.

The MPC has done some weird stuff sometimes, but for the most part it is very dependable. With electronic gear, you can never depend 100% on anything.

If it were lost or stolen, I think I would realize how important the MPC was to my setup. I have had it for two and a half years, and it grows on me more everyday. I can really start to jam with it now that I have two and half years of work saved up on it. Classic piece of gear.

The mpc 2000 kicks ass. It is so easy to use, and no machine to date even begins to compare to it.
How do the presets sound? Who cares? If you use the presets you are lazy, and do not deserve to own a sampler.
Editing is easy, and the setup is very user friendly.

It has enough features to kill you if you if not taken in small doses!

You can do anything with this sampler. The sounds that come out of this machine sound just as good as what went in.

It has some glitches but for the most part it is very dependable.

dont know

I am buying another as soon as possible(for live performances). I compared it to just about every sampler on the market, old and new, it is the ultimate.

I use v1.7 and it adds a lot of neat features, like muting tracks from the pads. the presets are crap. you have to get into this box. the manual is too thick and i don't read them. I used to do eveything on an Ensoniq eps 16+, but it took a nasty fall and i had to learn to make the 2000 work. I'd say two days of working with it and you'll know it basically front and back. (and this is coming off of an ensoniq o.s. which was extremely different

the sampler is great i can snatch your drums 80% of the time. if there's noise on the front or back you can clip it without clipping what u want it has a built in filter that works for basslines but not much else. i would definately recommend blowing it out to 32 meg so you can play around more. the sequencer is very 'music friendly' with all the sequences you can make alot of subtle changes and just switchc seq's. I wouldn't but the filters or the effects cuz they are crap

no internal sounds and the disks it came with are again...crap. you can get good third party samples though. if you turn off the 'full level' and play vel sens the pads really feel and sound good. I love laying drums through a whole song

crashes. not all the time but it will. luckily i don't play out so when i'm in the studio i just have to reboot, not run out crying. save often. especially if you only have 2 megs

never dealt with akai

if it were stolen i would call the police and be heartbroken. once you get over the learning curve it's a very friendly machine... it just wants you to prove your loyalty by going through 'initiation'. I can get up at 3am and as soon as my amp is ready to rock so is the MPC just hit record... oh it's got tap tempo too so you can get that groove in your head down by syncing the clicks to your brain not your brain to the clicks

I'm using OS version 1.72. I didn't get any preset sounds, for I bought it used. I found the thing to be good in some areas (such as the song mode and starting the thing up) and the rest of the setup on it was just plain dumb. Many necessary options that one uses often are found under a button called "open window" that you end up pressing all the time, but the giant display screen does not remind one of this. Sampling is sometimes difficult due to the gain and threshold settings and the fact that one has to adjust the time limit each time. The sequencer is ok in step mode, but in real-time it's a pain. It's only got 1/8 through 1/32 note quantization features (or off) and if you press solo and play something by itself, it won't stay on the same track if one moves to a track off-screen. That's a real bugger if your playing your sequences live and you wanna break it down to one track and then bring up another. And ya can't unmute two tracks at once.

32 note polyphony is decent. I've got the stripped down model with no extras such as effects. And I hear the effects are weak anyway. The machine is a "drum sampler/midi sequencer" so the midi section is decent when you can get it to work without crashing. I do feel, though, that it quantizes a little funny in real time, mostly in the 1/32 note, but others do like it. But don't ever try to use it as a phrase sampler unless you intend to build your tune around the sample. There's no timestretch option what-so-ever (the mpc 2000xl has it) and ya can't play piano or keyboard samples through a midi sequencer unless you make all twelve different notes worth, and that's only one octave worth. It does have a waveform display of your samples. This is nice if you record them at the right level, so one can see them. You can turn them up a minute bit, but not a whole tracks worth. I've inputed all my samples into the sequencer with "full level" button on, which places them all at 100. Even though you can turn up any track to 200, it doesn't do anything. The mixer is real confusing to use too (at least I found it to be). You don't turn up (I mean down. One can't turn them up unless they're already down, which is a real pain if just one sample is too soft.) individual tracks with it, yet you adjust the levels of the samples, according to their pads. Now, that's just weird.

The might work well for what it says it does. (Right below the MPC2000 label on the top.) As a drum sampler/midi sequencer. It's clearly made for (by the features) this and only this. Don't even attempt to sample anything, but drums with it, or you will fail. Sounds? Only what you put into it and save to disk, cuz it looses all onboard memory when you turn off. (Not a big deal or uncommon.)

It crashes. Use backup.

Never dealt with.

If it got lost or stolen I'd be pissed cuz I paid a grand for it, and I would not buy a new one. I wanted a box that I could do all my sampling and sequencing with, but this is not it. I use more synth and keyboard samples than drums, so it's not what I need. I was worried about getting it, but the guy at the store said I got thirty days to return it, which I will. I've only had it for a week or so, but I've worked (or tried to work) with it a lot. I hope to get an ASR-X PRO with the money I get from this. That thing looks much better for what I need it for. This is frustrating and a giant pain to use, but when it doen't crash it's ok. But it's always gonna have a worthless sampler. It's only get for it's sequencer.

I am using OS1.72-the latest. This fixes some important bugs but also adds some, eg creating glitches in your samples. Overall the unit is pretty simple to use,

Pretty basic until you add the extra boards. The sequencer section is useless though!

Uncoloured sound, as on other Akais. I suppose it's pretty good for sampling, but not very expressive as it is very basic compared to what it could be with some decent operating software for it. It is meant to have the same engine as the S2000 i think, but Akai have not implemented many of the important features eg timestretching.

Awful. The MPC is ridden with bugs, and Akai have announced that no future OS versions are planned (the MPC2000 development team is rumoured to have already split up. I would not take it out live, as it will garble your sequences, alter note durations, occassionaly mess up your samples etc. Until the latest OS, it couldn't even save midi files without messing them up.

Akai are well known for bad support. All my emails were answered with ''phone the tech support line''-not very helpful. When I told them some of the problems, Akai said they ''did not know of any similar incidents'' wwhen in fact they knew it was down to bugs in the OS which are the same in every MPC. My advice is not to even bother with Akai for support.

Very dissapointed with this. I expected a rock solid sequencer I could use instead of a computer, but this is not possible due to the bugs in the machine. I am currently trying to sell it.

Defently not something you can just turn on and it does your dishes and bakes you a cake right out of the box. Took a few days to start exploring into it and understanding whut was going on.... I went from a Sp-12turbo to this and made a few drum patterns in a few seconds
Sound is exactly whut goes in, no discoliration to the sound... this can be good/bad depending on your personal tastes
Editing samples is ok... I would say a pc is still my choice.... the screen is 2 small for me not to strain after a few hours of stairing at it

well you should know the fetures if not there is always akai's web site!
I added the efects... i find that I don't use them much... for the cash they are ok... I feel that I was some whut cheated because I was under the impression that it was a totoal 4 bus multiefex efect card it was 2 multi's and 2 reverbs
I need the 8 outs expansion so I can use my perfered box for efects
midi capabilitys are excelent... it's a midi seqencer.... pads feel great.... alot better than whut was on my old sp-12 and the ASR-X

like all akai's no coloration on sounds that you have brought in.. works for R&B, Rap, HipHop Like I said efex are decent... hard to justify the $350 cost with the low cost of outboard efx proccesors now
it makes music production easy

dependable sometimes looses parts of my seqences..... don't really know if it's the mpc or my 18th month old son who sometimes decides to visit me in my studio
I would say I would only use it in a gig if I had to... thats based on fears of distroyed/stolen eqipment

I used to be able to ask akai via email all sorts of questions and had no problem it took them 2 weeks to awnser a simple question for a DR4d opp sys upgrade
but basicly they have done me good from that point

I would replace it with a akai Mpc of some sort I like the fact of loading *.wav so it would be a mpc-2000 or newer to replace it have used it since Feb of 98 I own a few synths and synth modulals, I always fire it up first and use it daily I compared it to a outdated but highly rated Emu sp-1200,and the new ASR-X As you can tell the Mpc standard got my cold hard cash
wish it had a few voices of multitibrial sample playback in the op sys....
It makes and I mean it does all of it and does it well for whut it is...
BTW I use it with a zip drive,ezflyer,cdrom,harddrive and has worked great besides one Rom drive didn't let me load sounds out of a B partision in a s3000 disk

There definitely is a learning curve, but this is a box that does a lot of different kinds of things, so there's always going to be a little lag time in learning. It took me a few months to realize all the little hidden tricks involved with this sampler -- for example, I had no idea I could do Velocity->Filter Sweep until someone mentioned it on the Akai mailing list. Many items are hidden under menus that you can only get at by hitting 'Open Window' -- and there's no indication which menus allow you to hit 'Open Window' for more options.
Otherwise, it is a menu-driven sampler, some cute little icons. The manual was pretty good, you can download it yourself if you want to check it out on Akai's site.
I'm using OS 1.5, the newest.

The sequencer absolutely rules. I bought this box because I was sick of making music from my computer, and I needed something for live work and also just to take to rehearsals and what not. So what you can do is take a midi rack with you and have the MPC control the synth and its sampler. So I am using it as a Main Control Center if you will, controlling all my other gear.
For effects all it has built in is filter, resonance and velocity. But if you get the EB16 board (which I did), you get crazy effects; delay, distortion, modulations (rotating speaker, pitch shifting, etc...) I also run it through an off-line effects box, but that's my own taste. You can expand it otherwise with more memory (SIMMs, real cheap, up to 32MB), a SMPTE-lock card, or a multi-out & digital in.out card.
MIDI -- could be a bit better. The only way you can control IT from external midi (outside sequencer / computer) is MIDI note-on and off messages and velocity. That's it, no filter sweeps real time like the other akais. BUT - keep in mind that you do have a choice of what to get from Akai -- either this box, which is much less a STUDIO sampler and more a 'Performance' sampler, so you're not going to get a lot of that functionality. I've played with the S series boxes, and then I played with the MPC, and I decided that I wanted the MPC. I guess you could get a S-series and then buy an external sequencer, but this all-in-one deal of the MPC appeals to me.
But MIDI-out and its sequencer -- accepts everything, The sequencer has great resolution and does quantizing stuff and you can record looping measures, arrange them into songs, whatever. Can also import .MID files.
I like the buttons, they feel nice and are velo-sensitive.
The Samper part -- I like it. Not as easy to use as a computer doing it, so you're better off sampling stuff on your big-screen system and transferring it over (easy to do if you've got a zip drive, hook your computer on one end and the MPC on the other). Once you've got your samples in there, you can add effects to them individually and start composing. I've got it set up through the effects sends of my mixer so I can grab 'incidental music' as we're playing live. You've got to stop whatever sequence you're playing while doing anything else but playing samples (adding effects, changing midi channels, sampling..) and that kinda screws the improv factor up, but what are you going to do.

The "Akai" sound. As good as your samples. The effects are pure digital and work really well if you use them with restraint.
I use it for sound collage and electronic-type stuff.

I'm not going to call it 'rock solid' cause it has crashed on me (once) but that was before I got the new OS. The actual unit is a good weight and the buttons aren't going to fall off.

People on the Akai discussion list talk about Akai as if they were the devil incarnate. I can see why -- they don't update their OSes too often and there are some great feautres that could be added to the MPC that are software based that they haven't yet (a better scsi implementation, time stretching, 'multitasking')
I wrote them once and asked them a question about SCSI transfers, got a reply within a day. Most of my questions were answered on the web or on the discussion group by other users.
Upgrades are on the web and are free to download, so are the manuals.

I've been without it for 4 weeks now (am away from home at the moment) and am going through serious withdrawal. I miss it so! It has this personality attached to it and I kinda like it. If it were lost (yikes! how could I _lose_ this?) I'd get real mad at first, then I'd settle down and get it again. But that would be after hemming and hawing about whether to buy an MPC or an S3000XL (studio sampler) with a sequencer for live stuff. Again, it's a tough decision.
But overall I am crazy happy that I own it and it's helped me a ton in my musics.
I've had it for 6 or 7 months, played with it live only 2 or 3 times I think, but I've used it for countless 'sessions' and my own just screwing around. It's a good tool to experiment with, just making stupid 4-bar loops and seeing what happens, playing with effects, muting tracks and then changing tempo real-time.
I'd be in heaven if it had: beat matching/time stretching and a good SCSI implementation. We can only wait for a new OS verison.

Currently running v1.50, which is the first version worth using. You can download OS updates for free from the Akai web site - http:www.akai.com/akaipro/
You get 4 disks of sounds with the machine. They are ok, but nothing special. Remember that this machine is a decent sampler, and it can read .WAV files from a PC format disk... you can put any sound it it, and tweak it with very basic parameters (i.e. AR amp envelope, resonant filter, etc.). The manual is a little better than other japanese products on the market, but is somewhat obscure on basic operational guidelines. Not a good quick reference, but more of a take a few days to read it slowly type of thing. But in the MPC2000's defense, it is mostly very easy to figure out, and very useable right off the bat.

32 note polyphony, monotimbral (only responds to 1 or all channels). Great rubber pads for triggering sounds - they feel great, and work fairly well. They do get dirty easily. Pads produce aftertouch, which can be mapped to velocity using the note repeat function. Very handy for organic-sounding fills and rolls.
The effects option adds 4-buss effects - 2 reverb channels, and 2 multi-effects. The effects are serviceable, nothing completely amazing, but a good value for the price of the board (<>$320.00). No external control to speak of, but it does expand the capabilities of the MPC quite a bit. The effects only work with internal sounds - you are not able to process the inputs, like on Akai's other samplers.
Decent amount of options (flashROM, SMPTE, digital/multiple outs, effects) Uses standard (cheap) 72-pin mac-style simms, and standard SCSI HDs. Compatibility with PC-format drives is a big plus, since you can use your computer to format, organize, copy, and in case of emergencies, attempt to recover your MPC's drive.
The sequencer kicks ass. 64 tracks, 32 midi channels + 1 internal channel. 100,000 notes, reads standard midi files (type 1 and 0). Very flexible for live performance - you can create a very dynamic arrangement by selectively muting and unmuting tracks using the pads. Very easy to read display, even in pitch-dark clubs (mine is bright enought that I don't need any other lighting!).

It's a sampler - you basically get out whatever you put in. You do have some basic dynamically-adjustable parameters (pitch, filter, sample start, sample crossfade).

Very dependable, and relatively solid, for a cheap pice of gear. I have used mine a lot in the last year, with absolutely no problems. I have not had a single crash since updating to OS 1.5.

Akai - get your act together! I created the Protolab MPC2000 page in response to Akai's lackluster customer support.
Please visit:
http:www.protolab.com/akai.html
For MPC2000-related links, sounds, tips, tricks, and a user buglist.

This is my second MPC. I returned the first one out of frustration with the OS, and Akai's inability to answer basic questions, or to even acknowledge any problems. Six months later, they released a new OS, which was solid enough to convince me to buy another one for live performance.
It is an imperfect, but very useful piece - essential for live electronic music performance, but not that useful in the studio.
See <http://www.protolab.com/akai.html> for more info.

I am currently using version 1.50 software. The sounds on the factory supplied are ok but you have to get your own to appreciate it. The editing is ok and the manual was well written

It is good for what it does, however I think the R&D guys dropped the ball on the one I have. I have had a lot of trouble with the sequencer. If you use it for a sound source it can't be beat.

This pice of gear has not been reliable at all! it has crashed several times and the sequencer flakes out most of the time. I would never use it live without some other sequecer.

I have dealt with the customer support however they were no help. My problem is that my unit would not sync to an Alesis BRC. These guys could not figure out the problem. the upgrade did not help either. When I finally figured it out, they told me that they would try and send me some sounds for helping them out and they faked on me.

If it were lost or stolen I would not but another 2000. I hear that the 3000 is mush better so I think that I would go with that one. I just hate the fact that the 2000 is not reliable.

version1.5-love the functions. sometimes the unit freezes up.unit freeks out using paramiter copy.unit will not recognize my scsi zip.(zip works on my vs880)zip must be between the mpc and my jazz drive to be recognized.when jazz goes into sleep mode, mpc will not awake jazz.(have to eject &re-load) manual is ok.sequencing and sampling are great with this unit.i have 18 meg internal.

i worry about reliability of this unit for live.

I am running Software Version 1.5, which is the latest version. The machine comes with a few disks with preset sounds which are fair. The manual is excellent, a big improvement over the MPC 3000 manual. The manual seems to be written in english (although it is probably not) as opposed to other manuals which are obviously translated.

It has (I think, but you can verify at www.akai.com) 16 polyphony. The pads are pressure sensitive. It is expandable up to 32 Meg Ram. Has optional flash Rom. Has a great sequencer. Only come with a basic effects, but does have an optional FX card.

I think it can work well with most types of music, but especially R&B, Hip Hop, Dance, etc. It has the same sound processor of the S2000, which is a pretty high quality sampler.

Based on my experience with this and other Akai samplers, I would say it is relaiable enough to not need a back-up (although if possible, a backup is never a bad idea).

Customer support is EXCELLENT. I have dealt with other companies and have been on hold for 15-30 min +. All on my nickel. I have called Akai a couple of times with problems and each time I waited no more than three minutes! Once, while the technician was loading up the software load I had, he offered to call me back. Incredible.

I would definetly recommend this product.

It took a little time to get use to it but it was not that difficult.

check out the features on akia web site.

the sampling quality is great. although to record in digital, the 8 outboard expander is must.

I have only hade it for 1 month. no problems yet

i have not had to call yet.

i am very pleased with the unit.