MPC

NAMM 2006 Winter Show: Akai announced Version 2.0 software revision for MPC1000 Music Production Center. The update, which coincides with a cosmetic change (from blue to black) for new units, is available free of charge from the company’s website and includes a number of significant enhancements that facilitates greater versatility from this popular compositional tool.

Included in the MPC1000’s V2.0 software update is the addition of a Delay effect in the unit’s effects processing capabilities. Now, musicians can add even greater realism to their sounds with this all-important sound shaping tool.

For editing and working with sample data, the V2.0 update provides several enhancements, including offline Timestretch and Pitch Shift. The Timestretch feature enables sounds to be elongated, while the Pitch Shift function makes it easy to alter the pitch of a sound, such as correcting the pitch of a sample after it has been lengthened. Another important editing feature included in the V2.0 update is the ability to reverse samples—a very popular feature with DJs. Read more…

NAMM 2006 Winter Show: Akai Professional introduced the MPC2500 Music Production Center.

The MPC2500 is the successor to the company’s highly acclaimed MPC2000XL. Featuring an inviting user interface, great-feeling velocity and pressure sensitive pads, twin onboard effects processors with a send for outboard effects, Q-Link controllers, plus 10 outputs and an S/PDIF digital output, the MPC2500 Music Production Center elevates the MPC Series to an entirely new level. Read more…

NAMM Update: Roland introduced a new member of the Roland MC family, the MC-808. The powerstation features eight motorized faders on its surface, a first for a groovebox. With Roland’s most sophisticated processor at its core, the MC-808 shares the same top-of-the-line sampling and sequencing features as its elder sibling, the MC-909.

The MC-808 shares two key attributes with the flagship MC-909: The same sampling and sequencing features that made the MC-909 popular are built into the MC-808, making it a serious tool for sampling, editing, track building, and mixing. Performers are in for an extra treat with the MC-808, however, as it is the world’s first groovebox with motorized faders. No matter what pattern is called up, the faders will snap to the proper position.

As a result, the parameter values and position of the faders always correspond, allowing the performer to see the values instantly and make changes directly. No more unexpected jumps in values when a fader is grabbed in mid-performance. It’s always in the right position.

The MC-808 allows any sounds to be sampled, edited, and added to the song WAV and AIF files can also be imported from computer via USB.

The MC-808 ships with a free Mac/PC editor for serious sample editing tasks on the luxury of a large computer monitor, and for copying files back and forth via USB.

More information is available at the Roland site.

Not hearing enough clapping at gigs? The new sample library from MPCsounds.com has you covered.

The most extensive MPC claps library available today, the Klub Klapz 1 Collection offers users a wide variety of claps styles including Bounce, Dirty South, Urban, Top 40, RnB, and more. The sound library for the Akai MPC1000/2000/XL/3000/LE/4000 drum samplers is available in many formats including MPC CD-ROM, Zip, Floppy, & Download.

Packed with over 760 modern MPC clap sounds, the Klub Klapz 1 Collection consists of 2 individual sets (Bounce & Urban sets) which can be purchased separately or together as one product.

The Bounce Set provides up to 380 hip hop clap sounds total containing a myriad of Bounce Dirty South style claps, Mellow RnB style claps, plus numerous popular Stacked style claps.

The Urban Set provides up to another 380 urban clap sounds containing large doses of aggressive Urban/Club style claps, Solo ambient style claps, plus another dose of the Stacked style claps.

All clap sounds developed in the library were recorded using Class A mic preamps with both condenser and dynamic microphones. All presets were programmed with MPCsounds’ unique signature design plus include claps modeled after popular hip hop producers such as Lil Jon, Kanye West, Trak Starz, Timbaland, Neptunes, Trackboyz, and Dr.Dre.

Prices start at just $29.95.

For more information and audio demos, visit the MPCSounds site.

MPCsounds.com has released the Ethnic Hip Hop Collection, a new sound library for the Akai MPC 1000/2000/XL/3000/LE/4000 drum machines. The library is available on MPC CD-ROM, Zip disk, Floppy, or as Downloadable sets.

The Ethnic Hip Hop Collection library is the largest MPC ethnic library offered today containing over 30 melodic ethnic instruments ranging from the Kanun to the Dagoba to the Tibetian Temple, as well as, 21 ethnic percussion instruments ranging from the Talking Drum to the Djembe to the Cajon. Both “Turbo” and “Regular” versions of the library are available.

Turbo versions include over 670 stereo percussion sounds mapped out across all MPC banks and pads. All percussion is multi-sampled by an average of 16 samples. Plus…each of the 30 melodic ethnic instruments is mapped across the MPC pads in both Major & Minor scales to create ethnic riffs easily on the MPC.

This large collection contains some programs that require expanded memory over the stock 2mb of the MPC2000, MPC2000xl, and MPC3000. Smaller 2mb versions exist to allow loading into unexpanded MPCs.

The full Ethnic Hip Hop Collection instrument list includes:

Banjo, Bass Clarinets, Brazilian Whistle, Celtic Harps, Clarinets, Dagoba, Er Hu, Glockenspiel, Guato, Hammered Dulcimers, Harmonica, Kantele, Kanun, Kotos, Lyre, Mallet, Nye, Ocarina, Oud, Su Gzheng, Tars, Tibetan Temple, Agogo Bells, Berimbau, Cabasa, Cajon, Cowbell+Woodblock, Djembe, NuBell, Sleigh Bells, Talking Drum, Tombek, Chaker, Chime, Conga, Doumbek, Gankogui, Guiro, Pandeiro, Rainstick, Timbale, Triangle, and Udu.

All samples were created from original recordings of virtuoso musicians using world class microphones and pristine Class A mic preamps. The MPC library was programmed by MPCsounds’ sound designers whose credits include MTV, Sony, Universal, Interscope, Jive, Motown, Cash Money Records, and others.

The Ethnic Hip Hop Collection is available on MPC CD-ROM, Zip disk, Floppy, or as Downloadable sets. Prices start at $29.95.

The MPCSounds.com site has more information and audio demos.