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Originally Posted by WideawakE I don't think the 4K sounds that good at all man, I mean it's dope because it's is an all in one type deal, kind of a computer in itself...but it's no 60 |
I have owned 3 mpc 1000's (since Dec 2003), 2 MPC 4000's (White, and New Blue which i currently own), and also own the MPC 2000XL MCD. I have also hired an MPC 3000 LE from a UK hire shop for 1 night. I am an MPC Fanatic.
In short, this is what I think:
MPC 1000 - Nice little Blue Box, clean punchy sound, and can be quite crisp. The let down for me after going through 3 of these, was the pads not being reliable or inspiring as the traditional mpc's.
MPC 2000-XL - a standard 96 ppqn MPC with all the great things that makes an mpc famous...the swing, the nice bouncy pads and its aggressive sound. I love the sound of the XL. It had this rugged sound, with a pikey midrange and cuts thru mixes quite well, with out any muddyness on the bottom end. Its not a crisp sound, but different to the others in the MPC range. I picked this one up a year ago and love it as an alternative to the mpc 1000 (which i ended up selling after 3 swaps over a 3 month period).
The MPC 4000 - The Daddy. This beast is lovely in all aspects. I owned a white model back in 2002 (when it launched), but sold it after a year due to bugs, and moved onto software samplers instead.
I then missed the swing and the high resolution of the 4000 that i had to get it back. So last year i bought the new 'plus' version in blue (which also looks cool). This machine has to be the best MPC ever IMO. The timing is super tight and it has never crashed on me once (OS 1.71).
The timing for me is its best feature, i love it for its accuracy and mechanical timing when using 1/16th without swing. With various swings settings suited to varying tempos, i get the perfect feel with the 4k. I have also owned an MV 8000, which i returned, for many reasons (but im not going to mention them).
The sound of the 4k is super crisp and clean (nothing like the other mpcs, although the MPC 1000 and 2005 may not be far off). Its has a stunning dynamic range compared to the old skool mpcs, and it certainly makes your drums stand out. In my opinion the MPC 4000 is ideal for clynical drum programming, and sounds very professional.
Also, the sequencer feel is also a little different IMO compared to all the MPC's. Without getting too complex, the 4000 proccessor and resolution is alot more powerful than the others, which makes up for this subtle subjective difference (again IMO). I have also tested this (like somebody above has already mentioned using rex files), by creating my own groove templates in Logic (via 2 bar MPC sequenced drum loops) to analyse each waveform to where individual hits fall (early, on spot or later) with the same swing (on and off / 1/16th) settings, with the same samples in each of my mpc's.
The MPC 3000 LE:
Found it very slow to use (not the machines fault, but i got spoilt by the modern mpc's). The pads felt the same as my 2000XL. The sound was lovely, but not better IMO then the mpc's. They all have a difference in sound, no doubt, and the 3k had a smooth sound but not crisp. It was a bit lofi without being agressive, and didnt quite have the top end that my 4k gives me. The pad response is very good and the output is loud and definately knocks a little harder than the newer mpc's (including the 4k).
The 3k sequencer felt the same as my 2000xl to be all honest. But it did not sound the same (as mentioed above). the sequencer is tight and has a funky feel to it, just like the mpc 2000/xl, but IMO its not as tight as the 4k. The 4k is another level when it comes to tightness of drums (but thats my opinion).
Hope all this helps.