Samples From Mars MPC1 From Mars [MULTiFORMAT]

FULL INFO BELOW:

A Rare, Early 80s Analog Drum Synth
The MPC1 is a rare drum synth and sequencer developed in 1982 by MPC Electronics. In contrast to Akais more famous line of digital MPC samplers, this MPC is a short-lived, 100% analog drum synthesizer that sounds something like an 808 crossed with a 606 and a Simmons. But due to its lack of commercial success, these sounds have gone largely unused in modern music - making the MPC1 a perfect opportunity to use vintage, analog drum hits while standing out from the more popularized sounds of that era like the 808 and 909. And it looks just as unique as it sounds:

The History
MPC Electronics was formed in Cambridge, England, the early 80s, when drum computers like the LM1 were just starting to gain momentum and there was still room for true innovation in the drum machine world. The company initially developed a small, single prototype of a drum machine that you could play with your fingers, called The Kit. With just one working unit, they packed it in a small suitcase, and headed for NAMM.

Even though the unit barely functioned (every so often theyd duck behind the curtains to repair it, telling on-lookers they were showing it to press), The Kit was met with a massive amount of interest, winning Product of the Show award, securing a distribution deal and about ? 250,000 in orders!

Unfortunately, the company was inexperienced when it came to mass manufacturing and hadnt yet figured out how to scale the production of this unique drum synth. While they managed to produce a small amount of working units, The Kit was shortlived, and it wasnt long until focused their efforts on a new and more advanced follow up: the MPC1.

In contrast to The Kit, The MPC1 boasted larger pads which could now be played with drum sticks. It also featured a plethora of tweak-able knobs, direct outs, din sync, and a fully functioning sequencer that could be tapped into live. It was, and is still, unlike any other drum machine out there.

But like the Kit, The MPC1 never quite reached the commercial success it deserved and eventually the company folded, and was sold to Akai in 1984, who continued to develop the foundation of ideas laid out by MPC Electronics. Without enough info to properly verify, we can only assume that some of these ideas are what ultimately led to the more famous line of MPC samplers we all know so well today. While technically speaking the MPC1 (Music Percussion Computer) couldnt be further from Roger Linns MPCs (Music Production Center), it is very likely that it nonetheless inspired and informed Akais most classic line of drum samplers.

The Sounds
The MPC1 sounds as analog as it looks. At the heart of every drum sound is a VCO, which is followed by various filters, pitch modulation, white noise, decay, and cutely named parameters like Tightn. With so many knobs, its no wonder the machine sounds so expressive:

The bass drum is reminiscent of an 808 at certain settings, with a super punchy attack transient, and a thumping low end (best brought out with a touch of processing). Like the 808, the decay is adjustable, but unlike the 808, the BD can be tuned higher, which allows it to be paired nicely with lower toms.

The toms can range from flat and tonal 808-style, to pointy, pitch modulated syn-toms. And by adjusting the (downright confusing!) noise parameters, you can get powerful white noise bursts. Lay down a sequence, start tweaking the toms, and youll get you some of the most expressive and varied sounds out of any drum synth weve heard.

The Clap, although lacking parameters, is one of the coolest sounds on the machine, and is instantly reminiscent of Kraftwerk. Being fully analog, every clap is unique, so it is quite expressive when sequenced. To capture this, we multi-sampled 5 claps which can be triggered via round robin.

The hi hats and cymbals, when combined with the sequencer, are easily the grooviest part of this machine. Set the parameters conservatively and they sound close to a 606; at more extreme settings (turning the ?tone? knob to max) they can be transformed into metallic and almost harsh but deeply analog cymbals.

The snare is also quite unique. At closed filter settings its almost identical to an 808, but start opening up the noise and decay parameters, and a bright, punchy and brittle white noise drum hit is revealed. It almost sounds like a broken 909 snare - but once you warm it up with some EQ it sounds wonderful.

The Sampling Process
The amount of knobs on the MPC makes it exciting for producing but quite overwhelming for sampling! So we asked ourselves - how can we capture all of these parameters without going overboard? This proved extremely challenging and began with a complete oversampling the unit. We captured all of the parameter combinations for every voice - pitch, decay, noise, bend, tightn, you name it - cleanly, with no processing. Then, we mapped everything and spent months narrowing down the sample groups to only the most useable hits, while still providing the dynamic range and depth of the MPC1s