Akai MPC1000 Vs Akai MPC2000XL

Buy the MPC1000 Bible Now!
The MPC 1000 is the smallest in the Akai MPC range of samplers/MIDI production centers. The MPC 1000 is certainly the most portable, cost effective MPC ever, and features a fair array of new features over our old favourite, the Akai MPC 2000XL.

What's New?

The main improvements of the MPC 1000 over the 2000XL are as follows:
  1. Smaller, lighter and more portable
  2. Re-sampling of the audio outputs
  3. Normalising
  4. USB connection to computers - allows easy transfer of sounds from computers
  5. More filters
  6. Real time control of filter and LFO
  7. Patched Phrase (internal slicing method to enhance BPM matching)
  8. More memory capacity(128mb)
  9. Effects as standard
  10. Internal Hard drive option
  11. More varied array of internal effects
  12. Total of 6 outputs plus digital as standard
  13. Compact Flash storage
On the downside, the following XL features are missing from the MPC 1000.
  1. Sequencer capacity cut from 300,000 to 100,000
  2. No MTC sync
  3. No SCSI port (had to happen at some point though and not necessarily a bad thing)
  4. No way to hook up an external storage device like CDROM or Zip
  5. Using 2000XL programs will keep most pad parameters, but filter settings, Mode, and Voice Overlap are lost
  6. Programs made on the 1000 will NOT load into an MPC2000XL (sounds will)
  7. No tilting screen
  8. Can only have 6 outs, not 10 like the XL.
  9. No autochromatic assign
  10. The pads just don't feel as good
Taking a closer look, there are some interesting differences between the XL and the MPC1000:
  1. The 1000 allows resampling of the main outputs
  2. Preview sounds directly from disk - no need to load into memory
  3. Loading of entire folders in one go
  4. Use of Q-sliders to change mixer controls (volume & panning), plus set start and end trim/loop points quickly.
  5. The 1000 has 5MB of internal Flash memory to use for your favourite sounds.
  6. 2 sliders
  7. The DRUM holder system is gone, programs are just assigned directly to a track rather than being first placed in a DRUM holder and that holder being assigned to a track.
  8. Layering is more advanced - 4 samples per layer and those samples do NOT need to be assinged to another pad (unlike the XL)
  9. Unfortunately, program params on a layered pad apply to the whole pad - you can't assign unique attack or filter to each layer.
  10. Effects now include compression, eq and bit grunging.
  11. Memory upgrade is easy due to dedicated memory entry plate on the base of the unit. Will take standard laptop memory.
  12. Step Edit now shows 4 events at once
  13. Now two types of sequence file - SEQ and MID. MID is a standard MIDI file while SEQ files also contain MPC specific events
  14. No APS file anymore. Saving all program & samples just saves each individual program with its samples.
  15. Project files save the entire memory including all sequences and effects.
  16. You can process external audio sources through your MPC - IPT files allow you record processing data.
  17. The USB connection just turns your MPC into a very expensive memory card reader - it does nothing else except lock up your MPC until the USB connection is broken. This is a bit of a pain - also, you must remove your MPC from your PC system tray otherwise just yanking it out will crash your PC
  18. The memory card slot is poor - 70% of the time the card doesn't 'like' going in, as it has to be placed in 'just right'. Patience is in order, or the internal pins could probably bend quite easily.
  19. Improved slicing feature - now you can add a timestretched decay on the end of each chop (like recycle) rather than the old XL method which just 'borrowed' a few samples from the slice in front of it (leading to clicks). You can also chop up to 64 slices.
  20. Downside to slicing is that it converts stereo to mono. Also you cannot apply edits like reverse to each slice while in the slice screen like you could with the XL.
  21. Patched phrase means you can take a loop, zone it and create a single new sample that will expand in real time to fit the BPM of the beat oyu are creating. Very nice, although like slicing, stereo samples are converted to mono.
  22. We now have LFO control which is a great addition to the MPC range
  23. Pad sensitivity is now user changeable
  24. Has pitch shifting
  25. Has very fast time stretch
  26. Usability is more complex over the XL - it can be a phaff naming samples (especially with numbers) and I keep hitting the PLAY button accidentally when performing edits (which locks the edit screen until you press STOP) and generally everything is a little cramped (but that's a smaller machine for you).

Worth Buying?

Basically, I like the MPC1000. It's dirt cheap, have most of the MPC2000XL's features and some very nice extras. If this is to be your first MPC, then yes, it's great value for money. If you intend using commercial sounds with it (sample CDROMs etc) then you'll really need to have a computer as well, otherwise you'll have difficulty getting those sounds into the MPC 1000. If you are an existing MPC2000Xl user, then it's a hard choice as to whether you'd want to convert over completely as I do feel the XL has a better build quality, has a better pad feel and is generally a more pro machine, but in the end, the 1000 addresses a lot of my gripes with the XL (better computer support, faster processor, built in effects, improved OS, LFO, more memory capability, hard drive option, etc, so my recommendation is to get the 1000 only if these new features seem important to you. If not, stick with your XL or even get both.
Buy the MPC2000XL Bible Now!