What is the MPC1000

The MPC1000 is a music production sampler made by the Japanese electronics company Akai. It uses a 16 pad workflow that is similar to the more well known SP-404 but with far more advanced sequencing capabilities, including track mixing and fx routing.

MPC stands for Music Production Centre and the initial goal of this machine was to create a fully-fledged studio in a device that was both portable and compact. 

It’s hard to think of many notable music producers that haven’t used an MPC at some point in their career, especially in the hip hop and beat-making scene. From J Dilla to Kanye West the MPC series has been at the center of how genres and sounds have been created. 

Further down we are gonna answer some of the questions that most people has about the MPC1000:

• When was the MPC1000 made?
• What is the sample rate is the MPC 1000?
• What was the first MPC?
• What can you do with the MPC 1000?
• What is the workflow of the MPC 1000
• How to sample on the MPC 1000
• Does the MPC1000 have time strech?
• Is The MPC 1000 Good for Hip Hop Beats?

When was the MPC1000 made?

The MPC 1000 first hit the shelves in 2003. Marketed as a more portable and more affordable way to take the workflow of their ever-popular MPC 2000 into home studios around the world. The MPC1000 ceased production somewhere around 2013 but that wasn’t quite the end of this sampler’s story. 

The latest Akai sampler is the MPC One which brings the same great MPC workflow but with the added benefit of modern tech.

What is the sample rate is the MPC1000?

The MPC1000 supports a sample rate of 44.1 kHz in both stereo and mono. This was an impressive feat at the time especially considering the MPC1000 is capable of 64 simultaneous tracks in one sequence.

What was the first MPC?

The original MPC was the MPC-60 which was released in 1988. SO Akai had a good 15 years of building and learning samplers before they released the MPC1000.

What can you do with the MPC 1000?

The MPC 1000 can be used to create music in a variety of styles and genres. Its limitations come only from your imagination… and the amount of RAM you have installed. While it’s famous for its use in Hip Hop it isn’t exclusively a beatmaker. Bands and artists have used this thing to make music from techno to 

What is the workflow of the MPC 1000?

The MPC1000 divides parts of songs into loops or bars called sequences. Each sequence can be made up of up to 64 separate tracks. Each track allows you to trigger different samples that have been assigned to the 64 pads, (4 banks of 16 pads). While you might rarely anywhere near 64 tracks it’s good to know you could if you wanted. 

These tracks can also be assigned to MIDI outputs to control external gear, making your MPC the center of your studio or live performance. With the upgraded JJOS installed, tracks can be used for a greater variety of uses such as audio tracks that turns your MPC into a multitrack recorder.

The pads on the MPC1000 are touch sensitive as well making your performances dynamic and lifelike. A feature not common on other brands of samplers, looking at you Roland. 

This same philosophy has been brought to their latest sampler as well. The MPC One features 16 velocity sensitive pads and lets you take your performance one them directly into your computer’s DAW, something the MPC1000 can’t do.

How to sample on the MPC 1000?

The MPC1000 makes sampling easy with a dedicated RECORD menu that can be accessed no matter where you are in the sampler. Simply press MODE then PAD5 (RECORD) and the MPC 1000 will play thru whatever is coming into it. From here you can then choose when you want to start and end your recording. 

Sampling on the MPC 1000 also gives you a lot of precision on your chops. Once you’ve got a sample recorded you can see it as a waveform. You can zoom in to chop your waveform wherever you like without having to rely entirely on your ears, although learning to trust your ears is part of the fun of learning the MPC. You can even remove sections of audio from the middle of the sample. 

While it’s a bit old school it works. The MPC One on the other hand lets you import samples in a similar way to Ableton Live. You can load audio files directly from your PC onto your MPC and back. 

Does the MPC 1000 have time strech?

Time stretch was a relatively new invention when the MPC 1000 came around but they did manage to include it although it may not be quite what you’ve come to expect. 

If you’re used to time stretching in a DAW like Ableton Live then time stretching on the MPC 1000 might leave you severely disappointed. While it does have its own unique sound to it, it is pretty lo-fi and artifacts are almost guaranteed to warp the sample’s sound. 

Then again if you’re looking at gear that’s going on 20 years old perhaps it’s exactly what you’re looking for. 

Is The MPC 1000 Good for Hip Hop Beats?

The sound of the Hip Hop beats that have been made on the MPC 1000 and its siblings are replicated to this day. There is just a magic to it that no DAW or sampler has been able to capture since.

A big part of what makes the MPC 1000 so great for Hip Hop beats is its unique style of swing to quantize your beats and how it works with the live nature of laying down samples. Unlike a DAW where quantizing is usually done after the pattern has been laid; the 1000 lets you do it on the fly. In fact, you can quickly drop in and out of quantizing what you’re playing. 

Holding down the TAP TEMPO button on the MPC1000 will put it into time correct mode. This mode can be in beats of 1/8, 1/8(3), 1/16, 1/16(3), and 1/32, (3) indicating triplets. 

What this allows you to do is time correct certain notes on the fly while letting your ears guide the rest. Time correcting the first note of every bar and leaving the rest; without having to stop your performance or go back and edit adds a level of humanity to your beats hard to emulate. 

So..Is the MPC 1000 still worth it?

There is a reason that the MPC 1000 is still not only talked about today but continuingly updated and upgraded by a rabid community of beatmakers. The MPC 1000 offers something the most advanced production software can’t, a way to make music that more about what your ears are hearing than what your eyes see. 

Despite its tiny screen and learning curve people still use it because there’s something undeniably authentic about the sounds that come out of it. While a computer will let you meticulously pick apart a song until every frequency is perfect; the MPC 1000 just sounds good from the get-go.

What it doesn’t let you see is maybe more helpful for your creativity than having complete control. On the MPC 1000 when a song bangs, it just bangs. 

The MPC 1000 is however discontinued and can be hard to find, not to mention finding one in good condition won’t be cheap. Luckily Akai has released an updated MPC called the MPC One that brings everything people love about the MPC 1000 into the modern age. 

The MPC One 

Akai are still in the game when it comes to top of the line music production hardware. Taking everything they’ve learnt about samplers and hardware since 1984, they recently released their latest production powerhouse; the MPC One.

The MPC One takes what made their legacy samplers so great and brings it into the modern age. With touch screen capabilities, 32 audio outputs as well as PC and Mac connectivity, the MPC One is the number one choice for the producer that wants the best part of old-school samplers without the hassle of analog tech.