Introducing the next Generation of Akai MPC

an interesting maschine.

Its hot and I'm definitely gonna check it out. I think it'll cost more than machine especially because of the I/Os I look at it as something I would take with me when I didn't wanna sit in front of my 4000 I got maschine for portability but MPC users already know the MP so there's no having to learn a new interface. Lets see how many bugs it ships with first

Fusing Akai Professional’s legendary MPC layout and workflow with the power of your computer, MPC Renaissance is an unrivaled instrument for music production. The new flagship is a fully integrated hardware/software system: MPC Renaissance allows you to create using classic hardware controls and an integrated pop-up display, while it’s exclusive MPC Software empowers you with unprecedented, expandable production capabilities on your Mac or PC.

Fuses legendary MPC production with the processing power of your computer
Vintage Mode changes output sound character to MPC3000, MPC60 and more
16 backlit genuine MPC pads, 16 Q-Link controls, and adjustable backlit LCD screen
Classic MPC Note Repeat, MPC Swing and MPC transport controls
MPC SOFTWARE for Mac or PC with 64-track sequencing capability
Two XLR-1/4” combo inputs and dedicated turntable input
Four-channel US B 2.0 audio interface and two-port US B 2.0 hub built in
Up to eight pad banks?more than any other MPC ever
Two MIDI inputs and four MIDI outputs
Stereo 1/4” out, stereo assignable mix 1/4” out & S/PDIF I/O

MPC SOFTWARE
64-track sequencing capability
Massive 6GB+ sound library, including all of the sounds of the classic MPC3000
Instant mapping and real-time adjustment of VST plug-ins
Record each track as an MPC drum program, Keygroup program or VST plug-in
Runs standalone and as VST, AU or RTAS plug-in
Supports WAV, MP3, AIFF, REX and SND
Supports samples and sequences from any MPC ever made
Mac and PC-compatible

So this is a rehash of a now obsolete product?

Sent from my DROID Pro using Gearslutz.com

No,it's not.
But if that's what you get out of it,that's cool bro!

Lotsa integration!
Looks promising.

Any idea of the price? It has to be at or below the price of Maschine to have a chance.

It looks nice, I know understand why they were blowing out MPC1000 for 400 Euros recently. But will it have TRx0x step recording like MPCs with the JJ OS?

Most likely around £799

Introducing the next Generation of Akai MPC

From the spec it looks like its not a standalone unit. it has got an audio interface in built though.

Pathetic .....but looks pretty ....

oh yeah advertising : "want to know when the next video will drop .."

Lol : hell no , we want to know when the PRODUCT gonna drop ....is it before 2020 or not .....and good driver before 2030 ?

I'm rude , but as a long time Akai user i'm used to big marketing and poor support and release dates never straight .....

Very interesting, how much?

Maybe that's going to be the differentiation between the MPC Renaissance and the MPC Studio? The Studio being the standalone unit? Guess we'll know in about 150 hours...

I hope this will finally be a proper implementation of the Maschine concept; great concept but they cut so many corners. Regardless how good or bad Akai is going to be, competition is good because someone will have to do some work. Maybe walk a few tables down to ask the Kontakt colleagues if you can use their time-strech algorithm? Better late than never.

At least the MPC controller LOOKS like it is a lot better, miles better from where I'm sitting. Hope this is true for the pads too, hard to tell from looking at it though.

Edit: guess not as the Studio is labeled as 'Slimline', that would probably be the 'travel' version then.

Mmmm, i want the size of something like this (vs the slimline), but have no use for the converters. I hope the slimline isn't too cut down. Every piece of hardware should have a padded wrist rest!

Also a bit nervous of Akai's software programming abilities...

I've never really gotten on with Maschine's sequencer, and it certainly is a bit basic and 90's to look at. I get annoyed that mine doesn't have a tilted screen.

I also think this is gonna be quite expensive...

True that they are not known for their best initial releases However, they took their sweet time doing this one. That could(!) mean that they put a lot of effort in it, as opposed to releasing a Maschine competitor as soon as possible. Isn't it odd that they have been this quiet until now even though they have all the MPC IP? Also, eventually they update their software/firmware to stable versions. Latest example being the 5000. The reason you usually don't hear about that is because people can finally get to work instead of spending their time posting.

They are in a pretty good position to claim that market, the controllers that they have been building the last few years are pretty solid. I know that not everyone likes them, but I see only one thing wrong with them: the pads. Very well catered for by the aftermarket though. GREAT to see: jog wheel, number pad and directional cursor keys. My cousin will be happy when I give him my Maschine controller.

And is this new MPC have a midi multitimbral ? Can I use Cubase for send midi to MPC. For example:

Cubase midi channel out 1 -> midi in channel 1 MPC kick (audio mono OUT1)
Cubase midi channel out 2 -> midi in channel 2 MPC bass (audio mono OUT2)

I was try this with MPC 2500SE, but no multitimbral. MPC2500 was always listen on midichannel 1...

Only MPC4000 was a multitimbral, as I know...

So far, it looks like Akais version of NI Maschine albeit running Akai's own controller and software

I am not giving up my MPC 5000 for this.

One of the great things about the 5000 is that it is completely self-reliant. It doesn't need a computer, with all of its myriad *ahem* problems that can arise in a live performance situation.
In the studio, sure, I don't mind having the 'mac ball' spin around while Ableton or Maschine tries to load a sound library (a perfect example of this is G-Force String Maschine-come back and reload a song and everyonce in a while, the library won't load. Why, who knows and I haven't time or inclination to figure it out....I am a musician first, system profiler, second (and wish I did not have to be) . anyway, Often, I have to shut down and restart Live and reload the Live Set and finally, it will load. At other time, out of the blue, *suddenly* Maschine, cannot find or load a sound file or Audio Unit or VST I was using last time I was running a set. Hmm, did I move something and forgot about it accidently? I then have to search/redirect Maschine to the folder in which the sound file resides. Is this partially my fault. Yes... Is it a deal breaker in my studio? NO. Is it a major annoyance, Yes. Is it something I want to see happen in my live set. I pray not. Would I trust this in a situation where I need stuff to load right here, right now, immediately, where time is money and my reputation on the line? HELL NO! Some guys trust their laptops and have better command over the file structure and where everything is on their computers. I am not one of them. I am also not one to trust a laptop live. Sorry, I am just not quite there yet. Well, maybe, if I Freeze and Flatten everything in Live, first....then just run audio tracks in a live situation as I bounce between two computers....

What does any of this have to do with the NEW MPC you ask? Well...EVERYTHING.

The MPC Hardware versions transfer from studio to live performance situaitons, very very well and when I save to mine, I always know that my stuff will be there, right where I left it, when I come back AND it will lreload, everytime in a live performance situtation. It just works.

Can I say this for NI Maschine that I own, or Ableton Live. NO. I don't trust them enough, yet.

The hardware MPC also integrates well into a studio DAW setup. With THE MPC 5000, I can load VST/AU plugs and softsynths in my DAW of choice till the mac can't handle anymore, then merely sequence them all off the MPC 5000 sequencer VIA MIDI. I can use plugs to sweeten the sound and tailor to perfection. If I want to play live, I simply have 8 (4 stereo) audio tracks in the MPC 5000 that I can record back into from the DAW tracks. This 'packages' the DAW audio, along with the MPC beats, patterns, songs, everything that I have programmed, into a nice nutshell and when live, I can leave the laptop at home. In essence, all audio (and sequences and patterns and songs), become a nice little package that stays within the MPC forever, regardless if my macbook won't load, can't find a library, can't find a softsynth, etc etc. In the MPC, It is there, and it loads, everytime, right where I left off. If I fill up the MPC hard drive with songs and audio, I just dump it all off onto my home computer drive for archival purposes or simply burn a CD ROM and merely start again. Its the MPC SIMPLICITY that works. Its the best of both worlds.


For some, this new MPC Rennaissance could be a God send in that they don't need a hardware MPC anymore, especially if they are working with one of the scaled down models of the 5000 and haven't the luxury of audio recording. For others, it is an alternative to NI Maschine. For most of us, it would be an addition to the MPC we already own, but most of us have already figured out how to integrate our MPC's into our setup so why do we need another one? That has me questioning the logic of the Akai marketing people. We live in a time when there is just too much stuff on offer and most of us aren't scratching the surface of the what the current crop of kit we have, can do. Instead, we Gearslut and want the latest and greatest toy.
Sad, but I am victim to this mentality as much as most of you are, too. Does it help us make better music? No...we get a new piece of kit and now have another learning curve ontop of the stuff we already have which keeps us learing how to use, rather than make music, ad finitum, if we allow it.
Having too many choices can often be a bad thing...Hmm do I write in Live today, do I integrate Machine into Live or run in standalone....or, do I write in the MPC...where do I start?

Do I want one of these ne Akais? HELL YES. DO I NEED ONE OF THESE. NO. Reality bites hard, once one realizes they don't need another MPC that mimics the way their current MPC works and integrates the same way their NI Mascine does (reliant on the computers OS to be working the same way, day after day cause often, we all know, it won't be).

THE older genrations of MPC runs their OWN OS and are built for speed and immediate, tactile usage.

THIS is why, I will not purchase the new Akai MPC Renaissance or fall for any of the NEW GENERATION OF MPC hype (right, next month, I will probably be first in line to buy one).

It is also why I am reluctant to continue to buy into the manufacturing mentality of late, which seems to want to gain sales buy building cheaper controllers that rely on the softwatre and OS of an external computer. Sure, it costs less, increases sales in a tough market and is enticing and indeed, a much easier price point to bear for those on more limited incomes, but I am a firm believer in the philosphy 'if it ain't broke, don't fix it'....and trust my old MPC's internal OS to work time and again, much more than I can any of my DAW's, save for NI Maschine, which does seem to work well, *er*, most of the time.
But what if you don't yet own an MPC and have never used its style of sequencing?
NOW THAT IS ANOTHER STORY.
If I didn't have an MPC already, I would more than likely be all over this new MPC.

The problem lies in 'planned obsolesence'. What is it gonna be worth to us 10 years down the road when we are on Mac OS 20.2. Will Akai keep pace and continously upgrade the firmware in the Rennaissance controller to match the new OS? If not, we end up with a paperweight made to run on a 10 year old machine. MY MPC 2000xl, well, it still works to this day and I can still use it in my studio. I certainly cannot use my 1991 PC running Windows 98, with my Seasound Solo PCI audio card, now can I? You get my point.

BUT....having the luxury of owning an MPC 5000, I wouldn't take the risk with this new product, until at least the test results from the peanut gallery of guinea pigs that Akai calls its 'customer base' comes back from forums just like this. I know with the 5000 it took Akai almost two years to gets its OS right, with myriad bitch, complaints and moans, but when they did, it worked absolutely great.

With this Akai MPC Rennaisance product, its a wait and see....The jury is still out on how it will fare.....and I hope for the sake of Akai's reputation and those that will depend on it both live and the studio, it doesn't turn out to be just another limited shelf life, cheaply built consumable, meant to be thrown away in two years for the latest and greatest release of whatever knew cheap toy comes along..you know that path that all the under 500 Virtual analog synths out there (Miniak, R3, MicroKorg, M-audio Venom, all the Roland MC groove products .etc etc) have gone....Its novelty stuff, not musical instruments, in a way and It isn't fair to we musicians. I don't like the musical instrument industry following suit to what the auto industry has done in the last two decades.
Advertise it, make it flavor of the month, sell a million copies, never support upgrades, users beat the hell out of them, throw it away, make a new one, repeat process

New Akai MPC!

Fusing legendary MPC layout and workflow with the power of your computer. MPC Renaissance is an unrivaled music production instrument.

Nothing gets past Tony! heh

sure those converters will just be variations of their recent (probably low endish) EIE Pro...which isnt too exciting...

Is this a full fledged DAW that can record audio?

If they did a version without the interface and a proper DAW that worked well - might be quite cool...

I noticed there wasn't a thread yet. heh

This is like the 3rd thread so far?! hahaha
On a side note, did anyone hear that they announced a new MPC?

Yeah, unfortunately no one else decided to put the name of the company (Akai) in the title, so I didn't figure it out until after. I just did a quick scan.

I'm looking forward to hearing how the Vintage emulations sound. Why hasn't someone made a plugin that actually sounds like an MPC60?

It looks like plastic toy, I don't understand is this something like NI Mashine? or like Motif XS with sound engine fully controllable in your favorite DAW?

Was wondering when they would come w/ something like this. Actually surprised it took 'em this long. Thought they would've been the first to drop something like this but NI beat 'em to the punch.

Curious to see what the reviews will be and how it stacks up against Maschine. Also interested to hear if the Vintage mode sounds like the real thing.

I agree, the physical design of it is pretty cheap looking, although I do like the inclusion of the armrest, I wish it were real leather though. Akai's product design has really taken a turn for the worse. Too toy-ish and not professional looking at all.

Akais response to Maschine.