Akai’s MPC line of instruments have endured and thrived as a music-production tool since the introduction of the MPC60 in the late ‘80s. Descended from its forbearers—the Linn Drum and the Sequential Circuits Studio 440—it was not the first instrument pairing a drum-machine user interface with sampling capabilities. But among the features that sustained the instrument’s lineage was a vaguely defined “feel factor” unique to the MPC line—a swing very few drum machines could achieve. Another healthy development was the availability of greater memory capacities, and so MPC instruments grew in concept beyond merely triggering one-shot drum samples. Add more sophisticated editing, higher-resolution sampling, better connectivity with computers, more convenient storage, and the MPC’s longevity becomes completely understandable.

The Akai MPC1000 ($999 street) is one of the more recent entries into the fold. It has a smaller footprint—13-inches by almost 9 inches—than my 17-inch Macbook Pro and weighs just over 7.5 lbs.

Several aspects of the instrument have not changed much over the years. Its modular, pattern-and-loop-based song construction approach remains consistent, and although many of us have been spoiled by the convenience of detailed, graphic music production and pinpoint editing afforded by computer DAWs, there is something innately satisfying about a single, solidly built box that provides a portable gateway to music production in a construction-kit format. Rather than cover the entire feature set of the MPC1000, I’ll cover some of the instruments topology, and discuss some of the underlying features.

Original Arrays
The MPC1000 is a 32-voice phrase sampler with a 64-track sequencer that supports up to 32 MIDI channels. It syncs to MIDI clock and can read MIDI-file sequences. The MPC1000 offers a four-pole filter for each of its 32 voices, as well as two global effects processors and main-output effects, all of which can be used simultaneously. Conveniently, it can also resample its outputs.

The array of 16 large-format pads for triggering sounds make it almost impossible to miss a note or drop a beat. The firm, comfortable rubber pads offer just enough resistance to keep it interesting and provide a dynamic sense when you hit them. All of this goes a long way toward building relaxed and confident grooves. If the pads feel too rigid or too trigger-happy for your taste, adjusting the Velocity-response curve can yield a more personal, dynamic playing experience. That beats programming drums from a MIDI keyboard by miles.

It’s not my thing, but if you want to program truly banging beats at their loudest, the Full Level button near the top right of the unit sends out maximum Velocity triggers, no matter how hard or soft you hit the pads. You can also set all 16 pads to trigger a single sample, each responding at a different level of Velocity, tuning, filter, attack, or release. The 16-Level Velocity setting was particularly helpful in creating dynamic hi-hat grooves.

The two plastic knobs at the top right adjust main output volume and input gain for recording. The pair of faders at the far left are Akai’s Q-Link controllers. You can assign them to control parameters such as filter cutoff frequency, resonance amount, tuning, and several other aspects of the sound. You can record Q-Link moves in real time or in step fashion, with parameters altered on the Note-On event. It was difficult to grasp the behavior of the poorly-defined After key, which sits atop each slider. (I suspect that the manual has seen several translations before an English version was released.)

Nestled beneath the LCD are six context-sensitive Function buttons. At the topmost level, they grant access to time correction (quantizing), click-track parameters, track mute and solo, and increment and decrement functions.

The pads take on programming roles in conjunction with the Mode, Shift, Window, and Numeric buttons. Color-coded stencils above the pads guide you to specific pad functions whose parameters are reflected in the display, along with relevant Function button tasks. For instance, pressing the Mode button gets you into sampling, sequence-editing, and mixing parameters. Subsequent function assignments can take you into specific operations such as sample trimming, looping, and slicing, or a function button can execute a command (such as recording a sample) with a terse “Do It” tab appearing above the button.

With the Numeric button, pads become a data-entry tool, letting you type values directly into a field or change text by hitting a pad. You can also rename items using the Data wheel, but I found typing with the pads to be more efficient.

FIG. 1: The MPC1000 has six analog outputs, two balanced analog inputs, and two sets of MIDI ports.

The rear panel of the MPC1000 offers a well rounded set of inputs and outputs (see Fig. 1). Besides a pair of unbalanced 1/4-inch main outputs, the device also features four additional 1/4-inch outputs that are user assignable, allowing you to isolate specific groups of triggered samples to inputs on your mixer or DAW. Remarkably, the two audio inputs are balanced (TRS) 1/4-inch jacks. Not only can you resample, but you can also use the MPC1000’s inputs to process an external signal with the unit’s built-in effects.

For digital connections, the MPC1000 sports two MIDI input ports and two output ports, a USB port that connects to your computer, and S/PDIF I/O on coaxial jacks.

The 1/4-inch stereo headphone jack and a pair of footswitch jacks reside on the front panel next to the CF card slot. (see Fig. 2)

FIG. 2: The headphone and footswitch jacks are conveniently located on the front.

Sample and Phrase
The MPC’s editing features have grown beyond simply truncating and looping samples. Phrase sampling is simply a way of playing a musical motif or a riff rather than a one-shot hit. However, you can make a phrase play through its entire cycle (like a one-shot) or last only as long as you hold down the pad. You can also slice up a phrase and assign each slice to its own pad.

With Patched Phrases, you playback sliced loops with additional data that will adapt to different tempos. You can slice up loops by reading amplitude peaks or by setting an arbitrary number of slices. My results were less than perfect with the former, but with a bit of practice adjusting the threshold and sensitivity parameters, I got good results with percussive loops. If you’ve ever worked with Propellerhead ReCycle, you get the picture.

Other possibilities include processing samples with pitch-shifting and time-stretching. The MPC1000 comes with a batch of different presets suitable for different instruments and frequency content.

The onboard effects the MPC1000 are quite flexible. You can apply them to a specific pad, to the overall output of the song, to samples as they are recorded, and to any real-time audio that passes through the MPC unit’s Record inputs. Furthermore, you can configure the two available effects in a parallel or serial arrangement.

Overdrawn at the Bank
Below the gain and volume controls are buttons that access the four Pad Banks, with which you can trigger different sample programs. A pad can accommodate up to four layers: Having a pad trigger a snare sample with multiple variations is no problem.

To get you started, the MPC1000 gives you a batch of programs and samples stored in Flash RAM and on a 128 MB CompactFlash card. The unit supports cards up to 2 GB in capacity, so the supplied card seems a bit stingy, especially given the price of 2 GB Compact Flash cards these days. Likewise, in view of the instrument’s 128 MB RAM capacity, the stock 16 MB is a tad disappointing.

The relatively meager off-the-shelf card and RAM capacities are somewhat offset by the unit’s ability to store and retrieve samples on your computer. When connected by USB to your Mac or PC, hit the MPC1000’s Mode button, then the Load pad, press the USB function, and the unit appears as a storage device on your desktop. Then, you just grab your mouse and load or offload data as needed—it’s that simple.

However, things are not as clear on the MPC1000 side. I had a bit of difficulty navigating though the folders I had created, and I could only access the topmost sample. This was most likely due to long file names not supported by the MPC’s operating system.

You can use programs and samples created by other MPC units, as well as samples and drum programs from several Akai samplers. The only audio-file format supported is WAV at 16-bit, 44.1 kHz, but there are tons of utilities out there for converting practically any audio file to this format, so it’s all fair game.

Feel and Function
This review wouldn’t be complete without a look at the MPC’s much-vaunted feel. You get time-correction with swing ranging from 50 to 75 percent. At the highest swing setting, the performance came out with an exaggerated, off-kilter bounce I’ve heard on many hip-hop sides: partially relaxed, and partially rushed.

However, lower settings produced a subtle push-and-pull that was more satisfying. Then again, it’s hard to stray too far afield with the MPC’s 96 PPQN note resolution. Generally, you’re either in the pocket or way out of it.

I Want My MPC
At a retail price of just under $1,000, the MPC1000 is not cheap, but it is a reasonable value. Despite the cheap-looking plastic data wheel and knobs, the unit is solidly constructed, and the backlit LCD display is clear and informative. Although the manuals are a mess, the unit’s functions are logically organized, and I found myself rooting through the manual mostly to verify what I had already figured out.

Above all, the MPC1000’s compact form factor sits neatly on the desktop, and the solid, comfortable pads invite you to beat out grooves. The USB connection opens up your computer not only as a storage facility, but a sound source and sample-editing factory, and that’s a sweet synergy.

If you enjoy making beats, maybe Akai’s got your number with the MPC1000. Check it out.

Pros: Flexible I/O. Pads feel great. Well built.
Cons: A little pricey. Poor documentation.

Marty Cutler and Kenny Kosek head up Chef of the Pasture, a bizarre and often funny amalgam of bluegrass, Electronica, performance art, and bogus mythology.