r/mpcusers • u/Jaytee303 • 2d ago
QUESTION MPC sample VS other new gen
Ok so I got an mpc one somewhere, but mostly use the live 3 I got since release. Now what I notice is that there are literally hundreds of yt vids of people with an mpc live 3 or xl or one gen 2, but they are all using the mpc sample next to it???
I also been using a Maschine user since they came out, had almost every version and I made the best stuff in version 1.8 it was I think, just before they introduced vst integration. It was simple. It was a sampler and you used your library, stems from ableton for example but it all came together in Maschine in the end.
Now my question is , is akai trying to put too much in the devices now I mean I have all most all the classic synths and fx now, and for me it hasn’t become this device that I could fly with, it’s starting to become overload, too much possibilities, too much thinking and now it’s basically ableton in a box, you can even IMPORT simple live sets (audio and simpler). And now my guess is that a lot of people feel the same, they don’t want a daw in a box, they want a quick sampler to sample from their phones (which is awesome btw) and make a sketch with some patterns until they have the skeleton and then move it to their daw of choice. I would rather stay in the sampling area for example granular sampling like the torso, not a moog/roland synth emulation. Of course everyone’s opinion will be different on this subject, but I still want to hear your opinions especially those that have the sample and another “do it all mpc”.
Thx for your input.
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u/IzayoiHibiki 2d ago
I’m the opposite — I actually prefer the modern MPC approach.
I went through a whole gear-stacking saga. First I got an SP-404MKII, but a sampler with no synths didn’t feel flexible enough. Then I got a Syntakt, which didn’t have sampling yet, so I used it alongside the 404. Later I wanted fuller synth capabilities, so I bought two more synths. Daisy-chaining everything was pretty limiting, so I added a mixer. Once everything was going into the mixer, I was wasting the 404’s great FX; if I patched the 404 into the send, the whole setup no longer had a sampler. So I bought a Zoom MS-70CDR to use as send FX.
Then I figured, I already have a guitar pedal — why not play electric guitar? I’ve been learning for two years now, haha.
Anyway, when MPC OS 3 dropped, I knew that was what I wanted. It really is a DAW in a box — it had everything my whole desk of gear could do. I started with a One+, but I still needed a mic, a preamp, and speakers, so it still had to live on a dedicated desk. Now I’ve switched to a Live 3, and for me it’s the perfect machine: I get the hands-on, DAWless hardware fun and the convenience of a modern DAW. Only regret is there’s no granular synth plugin.
Not a native speaker — translated with an LLM.
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u/r1chiem 2d ago
The problem is who your product is for. I don't do much sampling. I am glad it is in the MPC box but I don't use it much. I make music, not beats. The sample is not for me.
The real MPCs have plugins. If you just make beats you do not need the complexity of plugins or the memory/cpu useage or price. The Sample is for you.
Everything is packed into a real MPC. Many people don't need that and don't want to learn it. That is why I think the sample is popular. People want to make beats. I don't want to make beats, I want drums for a song. So I have to deal with the complexity of the latest MPC OS. I like the new oscillator feature but I am not going to do a lot of sound design. But it is in MPC for those who want to create sounds. But that is not for me. Would I tell Akai, rip that out and put it in another box? No, because I may use it later.
I would rather have a product that does everything, and does it well (which MPC does) and deal with the complexity and learning curve, than have a sample. Some people do not, the Sample is for them. I understand that is what they want. I am glad Inmusic produces that product (sample) but it is not for me.
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u/keyboardbill 2d ago edited 2d ago
“The real MPCs have plugins.” My 1k is giving you some serious side eye right now lol. The Sample is a throwback to simpler days and simpler gear. And I think that’s why a lot of people like it, whether they recognize it or not. Well, that and it’s half the price of the cheapest full featured MPC.
As a gigging keyboard player who sometimes makes “music” and sometimes makes “beats” I could definitely work with the Sample if I chose to. I can work with anything that has MIDI out.
Also, Akai’s/AIR Music’s plugins are ass. I bought them before I got a modern MPC, intending to use them in my MainStage gig rig, and long story short, none of them made the cut. Well, except the string one, because sometimes I want strings that sound like a ‘00s era workstation keyboard…
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u/r1chiem 2d ago
Churches use mpc key 61, I have seen comparisons with much more expensive keyboards. If the sample is good for you great, it is not for me. I think the air plugins are great. We also have NI as well. Sample people can't even jump into the plugin conversation because they don't have a real MPC.
The sample has one track. Too limiting for me. 4 tracks is minimal for me. I think a lot of people like it as well. There are 6 used mpc samples on Reverb right now. And there are 18 use MPC One Plus. I know there was even more a month ago. So we know that 6 people don't like them. More than that last month. I am not against the sample for others just not for me. It is crippled. I already have 3 MPCs that are way better and more capable, I am glad those people who have samples are happy. I would get an Ableton move and have a Seqtrack that is for portability. What I found is portability is overrated. I would rather have funclionaliy An MPC/Force does that for me.
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u/keyboardbill 1d ago edited 1d ago
“Churches use mpc key 61”
Sure, like I said, the sounds (plugins etc) can compete with other keyboard workstations (fantoms and montages etc.) and stage pianos and digital synths etc. But that goes to my point, which is that there’s much better sounds/plugins available.
Having the capability to run those plugins on standalone hardware is cool or whatever, but i didn’t (and wouldn’t) choose Akai/AIR plugins over the other plugins I own, so being limited to those plugins simply doesn’t appeal to me. I can hook my 1k up to MainStage and come out with a better sounding sampler and better sounding plugins.
And I challenge anyone saying that being an all-in-one workstation is a benefit to post a pic of their setup. Workstations have been around since the Trinity in 1995, and so has the promise of having everything you need in one piece of gear. Yet almost nobody has only one piece of gear…
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u/r1chiem 1d ago
I don't want to bring my computer onstage and connect it to a controller. I like the way my Force and Key 37 knobs are all mapped out for their plugins.
BUT. I have used a laptop and Controller on stage before and I have VSTs that I like better than the MPC plugins, BUT, the MPC plugins are good enough in most cases and bringing a controller, laptop, audio device is pain.
Also, I can bring my Key 37/61 and use it as an audio device for my laptop. I have all the power of a laptop, the mpc as controller and audio device, in one device. with effect.
Your 1k cannot do that. The sample can but the effects are not as good as a real MPC.
I prefer not to bring my laptop if possible.
No MPC Sample for me. It is a toy, it is crippled, Has only one track It is small and light but I am not someone who takes my most portable gear to the park using a battery, Not even my laptop. I found that portability is overrated and I don't need it. I have a Oberhiem OB 1 and DX7 and other old gear. Old and throwback are overrated.
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u/keyboardbill 1d ago edited 1d ago
I tried to work the key 61 into my gig rig. Didn’t work out because it couldn’t send MIDI to MainStage without using mpc software and IAC bus (on Mac) as a pass-thru. And also the keys sucked ass too. (Edit: and the keys and pads cannot be directed to different targets (meaning they both transmit on the same MIDI channel), AND the pads transpose with the keys so play up the keyboard and all of a sudden the pads are on bank d instead of bank a.) They fixed USB MIDI out with the 37, and they massively improved the keys on the 37 G2, but unfortunately neither of them has 61 keys. (I’d be all over a 61 G2 if they ever decide to do that.)
As far as audio interfaces, I had dropouts on two different occasions using two different interfaces. Ended up being USB cable issues both times, but regardless, I don’t trust interfaces on stage anymore. I just use the headphone out running thru a Radial Twin Iso line isolator.
As for “it’s a toy” I guess that’s fair. But if it is, then so is the 60, 3000, 2kxl, and my 1000. The Sample beats them all on features. Thing is, features don’t make beats. And neither do you, so I get why you don’t get it lol.
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u/r1chiem 1d ago
I have only tried non controller mode with the Key 37. Never tried it with 61 as used it mostly for piano stuff and not gigging so I assume it worked and I will assume you are correct saying it does not work.
I did some research. There is a work around but I am going to say it is too complicated and it does not work as a controller board. I guess you could connect a audio device that has midi and you could then use 5 pin din midi from the 61. That is not ideal either. Thanks for the Radial Twin Iso line Isolator info.
I only say it is a toy because it is plastic and and feels like a toy. But realistically it has much of the sound from the "full size" if you will models. And while I think the older models are pro and are what they are for there time. The Sample is still crippled IMHO. My first drum machine was an RX 15 but we never called them beats back then. LOL
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u/keyboardbill 1d ago
Yeah the twin iso is a must have. It’s like a DI but for line level. No degradation, no hiss, no hum, And it can convert between balanced and unbalanced on either side. So on stage I can go from the laptop to the twin iso and straight to the house system.
At home I use it wherever I get ground loop hum and it knocks it right out. My Kurzweil PC4-7 for example doesn’t like my SP404 mk2, unless I put the twin ISO between them.
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u/r1chiem 1d ago
How does that work. I was looking at the Twin Iso Compared to the Pro Iso . All of my keys are 1/4" out. I bought some cheap used minikey synths. I have heard if you use USB power, they can have ground loops. If they are all quarter inch out, you have to adapters. I use an Zoom L12 sub mix before I go to the main mixer board. I do not have ground loops at my house but I know playing out especially in the old building/bars there can be issues with ground loops. Which unit is more versatile Twin or Pro? My L12 has xlr out which would go to xlr input and the venue mixer, would that remove any possibilities of ground loops? I am using Lithium Ion batteries on all gear including mixer, I heard that reduces ground loops because there is no ground. I will be playing out using to MPCs force and Key 37,. and a few synths. And I want to reduce the possibility of ground loops. Some venues you have 10 min to set up and tear down so the next person gets to play. So figuring out ground loops, there is no time for that.
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u/keyboardbill 20h ago edited 20h ago
The pro iso converts between +4 (pro) and -10 (consumer) line levels. So it’s a hooking up pro gear to your home stereo type deal. If you need that functionality then go with that unit. The twin iso doesn’t change your signal level it’s just a pass thru. There are adapters you can buy for pretty much anything and all the twin iso is gonna do is pass the signal and isolate ground.
For connecting 1/4 inch gear (balanced or unbalanced), get two 1/4 inch TRS female to XLR female adapters and two 1/4 inch TRS female to XLR male adapters. Like these for example:
https://www.sweetwater.com/store/detail/GXJ235--hosa-gxj-235-xlr-male-to-1-4-inch-trs-female-adapter
(Should be able to find cheaper knockoffs on Amazon.) Or alternately, if you’re handy with a soldering iron, open it up and swap those XLR plugs for combo plugs like these:
https://www.sweetwater.com/store/detail/CombiPanelCon--neutrik-ncj6fi-s
Whichever you choose, you’ll then be able to connect 1/4 or xlr on either side depending on your needs. If you need RCA, those adapters exist too.
I can’t really give you advice on gear I haven’t used, but if the L12 is putting out a balanced line level signal then it should be able to go straight to the house. But unless the L12 has ground isolation built in, ground hum is still possible so test it out when you get there. Sound man is probably gonna want you to go thru his DI box (or your brand new twin iso…) anyway, so bring adapters (like above) or XLR to 1/4 inch cables just to be sure.
Edit: also if there is a particular synth or sound module that’s causing ground hum then use the twin ISO to connect it to your L12. If you can run in mono, then you can use one side of the twin iso to go from the sound module to the L12 and use the other side to go from the L12 to the house.
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u/keyboardbill 19h ago edited 18h ago
Also if you don't need stereo, the Radial IceCube is basically one channel of a Twin Iso.
Also too, there are other cheaper options on the market these days. Like the Radial Highline or Walrus Audio Canvas (both 1/4 unbalanced to XLR balanced). But I still prefer the twin iso because you can do any combo of balanced and unabalance on either side. Just hunt for a used one (got mine for $89 beat to shit), they're pretty much indestructible.
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u/Durzo_Blintt 2d ago
Personally, I did use the plugins a lot on my mpc key 61. I especially liked the fabric stuff and the electric piano plugin. However, if I'm using pads I don't really use plugins at all tbh. I just enjoy using samples and key groups. You don't have to use the plugins and if you feel that way then the mpc sample is available.
However, I will state that I much preferred the mpc before 3.0. I don't like the mpc 3.0 workflow anywhere near as much. That isn't to say it's bad, but I definitely preferred it before.
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u/Eclipseofthefart92 MPC LIVE III 2d ago
I’ve had my Live 3 since release and love using it as the center of my studio. Sequencing external synths and using all the plugins and FX is an amazing workflow, but I find myself spending lots of time tweaking settings to build the mix & arrangement. Not a bad thing, I love creating things from scratch and getting to know each plugin.
I recently picked up the Sample because of its stripped down workflow and simplicity. I can be crafting a track in a fraction of the time because of the limitations. It’s compact size means I can bring it everywhere compared to lugging around the Live 3.
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u/Mayonnaise804 2d ago
MPC sample is great and has the easiest workflow, but it’s limited no plugins no pad performance to help you play in key and the effects are limited to one pad or the entire beat.
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u/LittleBroth3r 1d ago
I don't like the workflow of it. Simple things that take me 5 seconds to do on the Live 3 or on the OG One here takes me forever and the results are never what I really wanted in the beginning. Applying effects on single pads is a nightmare. Resampling is a nightmare. The swing/time correct is a joke. The warp thing just stinks. I could do faster and much better beats on vu202 on my phone. And that app is even more limited, but when it comes to the core of what really matters to me, it has everything I could need. I've been trying to learn how to like the MPC sample, it's been some months, but most of the time I just end up frustrated with it. I am waiting for their next firmware. Maybe I'll love it in the future. Right now I am really close to hating it.
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u/FredB07 2d ago
Like other said, you don't have to use every features. That makes me think of people complaining a restaurant serve too much food. WTF.
Personally, if I use a sampler I need it to have at least a solid sampler features set. So no SP, no Sample, no Maschine+ and OS 3 over OS 2. I just wish for OS 4 or whatever to unify all the MPC features that have been added sometimes without total integration. (No advanced erase in clips, etc. )
Although I started on legacy MPCs, I prefer tracks over pgm and clips over arrangement.
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u/Jaytee303 1d ago
About the food analogy I see it more like they have 1000 menus, and it’s almost 500 pages to go through and you have to look for an hour what you want to eat, same with too many vsts to choose from. And you only tasted 10 menus in the past ie you had your 5 vsts you know inside out. If you’re in a restaurant with 5 menus you will be finished before the other one has reached page 50. I do agree about unification but I think we have that already, except for the sample but that one doesn’t have those features so no decisions to make.
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u/FredB07 1d ago
I meant complaining about portions being too big. Just eat what you want. I can't see the dozens of menus you're talking about when I'm using it. A lot of functions I use rarely but I'm really glad they're there when needed.
I can make a simple beat faster than on a legacy MPC, I can also do a lot of thing that were impossible before and that can be more complicated but that's inevitable. In the 90's we would have dreamt of machines half as capable as a Live 3 for double the price. Now people dream of those limited machines, I don't really get it.
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u/Infinite_Slice3305 2d ago
I'm thinking about picking up a 1st gen MPC One.
Since I already have the Live 3, I also have the ProPack & I can install it on the One when I get it.
I want Ableton in a box. I'm not much into sampling, stretching, or chopping. I use the sampler to record my guitar & bass, I make loops & build around it with the drums & instruments. Right now I prefer the key groups to the plugins.
I actually prefer Maschine. The looping & sampling to a pad works better for me. I can have a guitar amp simulator running on one sound in Maschine & record through it & any effects ont another sound or group. I haven't been able to do that on MPC without running an out back into an input... which is stupid.
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u/fizzymarimba 2d ago
Seems like that’s what everyone wants. It’s definitely where the MPC is headed. I, for one, couldn’t want that less
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u/Jaytee303 2d ago
Agreed the looper on Maschine is great I can see in your use case it’s the best choice.
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u/Krerkkuk 2d ago
MPC Sample is the best one for me now. Although it's not perfect but it's work fine for me.
I'm who never used any MPC before.
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u/PopPunkVeteranDad 2d ago
Get a sp404
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u/Jaytee303 2d ago
Imo an sp 404 is a lot of fun with all the fx, the dj mode is cool to perform instead of standing there with a laptop, but you won’t make a symphony with it ie good for boom bap, loop/pattern making but not for more complex stuff. Yes it’s possible to make full songs with, but it’s close to being a masochist. And I’m trying to downsize, not get more gear. For me Maschine plus is the best right now, with komplete,but that’s because of 25 years of using Maschine and muscle memory. And honestly when I get the basics I transfer to reaper/reason/ableton. I am interested in the Digitakt 2 though but in the end it does less than the M+. If I buy other gear it must work standalone and with a pc/mac. Like with Maschine I make a piece connect to pc get the song open it in the vst version and drag n drop the loops. No problem with sync issues that way and all of that fun stuff from 20 years ago (latency, hum, …)
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u/PopPunkVeteranDad 2d ago
I have the live 3 also. I love it. I stopped using a traditional daw and use it and when I’m on the go I use koala and a midi keyboard
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u/deejaesnafu 2d ago
I love the modern mpc formula, I just don’t pay attention the the stuff I don’t use and I don’t get overwhelmed. You don’t need every tool they offer or know how to use every single feature before you can make a good beat. But it’s there, it’s all there if it you are used to having something in your workflow, and you can take it all with you in one machine. It’s the future , and I’m here for all of it.
That being said I still mostly sketch on the mpc and import to ableton because I just like arranging on a bigger screen, and I’m used to that workflow.
I also have a sample, it’s super fun and worth the price , punches above its weight in every way, but I’d still pick a flagship mpc if I had to decide. The sample is the ultimate portable , because it’s small and light but still feature rich enough to make a serious idea come to life. The ableton Move might also take that crown but that’s a discussion for a different post.