mpc 500 b

Akai makes some great studio equipment, and as such, I decided to review another one of their devices the MPC 500. Like I said before though, I’m not musically inclined. So this time I enlisted my friend and music producer Vaughn Andrews.

I asked him to rate the following things on a scale of 1-10, 10 being the best and this was his take on it after playing with it for a week. Rate all questions from 1 – 10, 1 being the worst and 10 being the best.

  1. ease of use 8.5
  2. pad response 9
    1. the feel 8
    2. Does it resound immediately? Yes/ 9
  3. Does it give enough programmable spaces? 8
  4. Did it meet your expectations? 9
  5. How would you rate it over all? 8

When asked what he like the most, he had this to say, “I enjoyed the convenience of how small and space saving the MPC 500 was. I used it for more of a controller then a sample unit. I currently have a MPC 200. I would not trade mine in for the MPC 500 but I do believe it is a step up from my out dated equipment.”

Gadget-T: What did you dislike the most?

V.A.: As much as I liked how much space I saved with the 500 I enjoy the feel of the bigger units such as the 200xl or 400.
Gadget-T: What would you change if anything?
V.A.: I would install a zip drive possibly

Gadget-T: Would you recommend it, if so to beginners or pros or both?

V.A.: I do feel that it is a good tool for pros. For beginners, there might be a lot to grasp at first. I would take time before a beginner would fully understand all the units capability.

Product features:

  • Battery powered (6 AA’s) or AC powered (with included power adaptor)
  • Pattern-based 48-track sequencer with 16 MIDI channels
  • 32-voice drum/phrase sampler with up to 128MB RAM
  • Velocity and pressure sensitive pads for responsive, accurate programming
  • 12 Levels function: one sound on all pads with varied level or tuning per pad
  • Built-in Compact Flash drive and USB port (Mass Storage Class)
  • Support for standard WAV files and MIDI sequences
  • Built-in Analog I/O, headphone output, and MIDI In/Out
  • Internal sounds in Flash
  • 4-way sample layering and velocity switching per pad
  • 1 low pass filter with resonance per voice
  • On-board effects: 2 stereo effects and a Master effect

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