APC 40 FAQs, features and questions

rbro · Post by **rbro** » Fri Jan 30, 2009 12:09 am

Any plans for a Live 8/APC 40 upgrade bundle of some kind?

DJ Marky Marc · Post by **DJ Marky Marc** » Fri Jan 30, 2009 11:41 am

Any plans for a Live 8/APC 40 upgrade bundle of some kind

that would be perfect for me.. the upgrage from 7 to 8 and the APC all in one box...

steve-o · Post by **steve-o** » Fri Jan 30, 2009 2:42 pm

radib wrote:i don´t work much with return tracks inboard, at least not the way that i would need real control over it. people should get away, that everything has the total priority at the same time, and that a controller would be something like a 3 d abstract (of their ableton live) they could dive in and be god. there are always limitations, which rarely is a bad thing.

the price is fair for what this piece seems to deliver. that video might display its dimensions. the only thing i´m still a bit afraid of are stability/timing issues (drivers).

DAMN - LOOKS AMAZING! That's it - L8, m4l, and APC - I'm sold!

xh9o · Post by **xh9o** » Fri Jan 30, 2009 5:43 pm

lokks like, though the measurements way blow me away since i´m fuckin small person and those big controllers make me feel ashamed. but hell, its worth it this time.

friend_kami · Post by **friend_kami** » Fri Jan 30, 2009 7:08 pm

djsynchro wrote: So yeah would be cool to have return faders but by no means essential.

for you maybe.

jesse, how does it work with group tracks? someone here said that it maps the physical faders to the group faders, rather then mapping one physical to the master group fader.

glitchrock-buddha · Post by **glitchrock-buddha** » Fri Jan 30, 2009 9:56 pm

djsynchro wrote:There is control of return tracks, if you don't send it anything you don't hear anything. For performing Live you really have to keep it simple you don't want to stand there in the dark fiddling with shift modes so one know has 15 different functions. So yeah would be cool to have return faders but by no means essential.

Return Tracks don't add any layers or shifting to the controller. They are simply tracks, like the regular tracks, that go at the end of the audio/midi tracks. The remote SL does this. The returns show up after the other tracks.

Returns may not be essential for you, but for many of us, they are some of the most important parameters to control live. The filter or time on a delay? Or how about sending delay to the reverb or feed back to itself for dub style echoes? You have to control this stuff live. There aren't even any clips for returns so you can't cheat.

I wold say return channel effect parameters are even more important to control live than many instruments in a set.

friend_kami · Post by **friend_kami** » Fri Jan 30, 2009 11:11 pm

glitchrock-buddha wrote:
djsynchro wrote:There is control of return tracks, if you don't send it anything you don't hear anything. For performing Live you really have to keep it simple you don't want to stand there in the dark fiddling with shift modes so one know has 15 different functions. So yeah would be cool to have return faders but by no means essential.
Return Tracks don't add any layers or shifting to the controller. They are simply tracks, like the regular tracks, that go at the end of the audio/midi tracks. The remote SL does this. The returns show up after the other tracks.

Returns may not be essential for you, but for many of us, they are some of the most important parameters to control live. The filter or time on a delay? Or how about sending delay to the reverb or feed back to itself for dub style echoes? You have to control this stuff live. There aren't even any clips for returns so you can't cheat.

I wold say return channel effect parameters are even more important to control live than many instruments in a set.

exactly.

djsynchro · Post by **djsynchro** » Sat Jan 31, 2009 2:07 am

well i guess it sucks then

steve-o · Post by **steve-o** » Sat Jan 31, 2009 3:08 am

beatpoet wrote:
vicz wrote:This is a great thread, except for all of this carping about the price. It costs what it costs, if you don't like it, don't buy it. Stuff costs more in Europe for all kinds of reasons, mostly because generally Europeans are used to paying more for stuff, and do; but partly because of higher taxes, higher wages, higher energy and distribution costs, software and documentation localisation costs, smaller markets with diverse language, tax, employment laws, quality standards, CE mark, import duties, etc etc get the picture? Aaarggh!
Can you not read, look at the reality box above again, two products made by the same company with a lot of the same costs, taxes shipping etc. One costs 45% more the other is practically the same. Build costs aside, it cost Akai practically the same to get both these products to market.

Anyway, I've made my point and finished carping. I'll be getting my APC to when they drop, I just think these discrepancies need to be highlighted, hopefully when the next controller comes out Akai might see sense.

Perhaps there are additional tariffs for the import of this product. The WTO has some pretty complicated schedules for determining which and how many products get a certain kind of tariff. I've not kept up with it for a few years now to be honest, but I could imagine that the APC falls within a category for AKAI where increased tariffs were requried. Bear in mind this is all speculation - AKAI could have just as easily taken into consideration the terrible US economy and determined that there would be far fewer sales unless they priced it aggressively over here. In short there could be a lot of legitimate or not so legitimate reasons for the cost, and most of those we'll probably never know.

djsynchro · Post by **djsynchro** » Sat Jan 31, 2009 3:33 am

So how do you explain then that Thomann in Germany has all the other Akai Pro stuff for pretty much the same prices as online in the USA? It even includes VAT.

steve-o · Post by **steve-o** » Sat Jan 31, 2009 4:39 am

djsynchro wrote:So how do you explain then that Thomann in Germany has all the other Akai Pro stuff for pretty much the same prices as online in the USA? It even includes VAT.

First of all, I did say that my prior post was all based on speculation, so I wasn't trying to be a smartass, man. But, if memory serves me correctly, a GATT tariff schedule, required by all member nations of the WTO, has different tariffs applied between different nations, for different products, as long as, on the balance excessive tariffs are kept to a minimum. So, lets take the AKAI MPD 32 and the APC40. They could be classified as different products (i.e. fall under a different schedule category). If that is the case - and I'm not saying it is - then the APC may be subject to a higher tariff then the MPD, thus accounting for the price discrepancy.

I also took a look at the Thomann site, and compared it to Sweetwater using the MPC 2500 as a reference. Selecting Britain as my country, the MPC costs 1019 Euro, which I converted to $1309.36 using the XE.com converter. Sweetwater sells the MPC 2500 for $1699. 97. That's nearly a 33% difference in price - in favor of Britain.

vicz · Post by **vicz** » Sat Jan 31, 2009 10:16 am

djsynchro wrote:So how do you explain then that Thomann in Germany has all the other Akai Pro stuff for pretty much the same prices as online in the USA? It even includes VAT.

Because they prefer to sell higher volumes with smaller margins. That's their choice in a free market. And if they shift more units they will get a better price from Akai. Are you all bleedin' communists?

vicz · Post by **vicz** » Sat Jan 31, 2009 10:22 am

steve-o wrote:
djsynchro wrote:So how do you explain then that Thomann in Germany has all the other Akai Pro stuff for pretty much the same prices as online in the USA? It even includes VAT.
First of all, I did say that my prior post was all based on speculation, so I wasn't trying to be a smartass, man. But, if memory serves me correctly, a GATT tariff schedule, required by all member nations of the WTO, has different tariffs applied between different nations, for different products, as long as, on the balance excessive tariffs are kept to a minimum. So, lets take the AKAI MPD 32 and the APC40. They could be classified as different products (i.e. fall under a different schedule category). If that is the case - and I'm not saying it is - then the APC may be subject to a higher tariff then the MPD, thus accounting for the price discrepancy.

I also took a look at the Thomann site, and compared it to Sweetwater using the MPC 2500 as a reference. Selecting Britain as my country, the MPC costs 1019 Euro, which I converted to $1309.36 using the XE.com converter. Sweetwater sells the MPC 2500 for $1699. 97. That's nearly a 33% difference in price - in favor of Britain.

Import tariffs are 'harmonised' in the EU. Price differentials between EU countries tend to reflect differences in employment costs, taxes and property prices, and currency fluctuations outside of the eurozone. (Boring businessman irl)

xh9o · Post by **xh9o** » Sat Jan 31, 2009 4:19 pm

vicz wrote:Because they prefer to sell higher volumes with smaller margins. That's their choice in a free market. And if they shift more units they will get a better price from Akai.

basically they are forced to do so, to survive on the "free" market. they try to reduce the speed of their predictable downfall by finding the right price strategy. thats nothing to do with freedom, but how should a connielib know just anything about freedom? (boring think tanker stuff, sorry)

el_camello · Post by **el_camello** » Sat Jan 31, 2009 9:01 pm

i had a few questions:

1) How will group track be handled?

2) are the encoders "smooth"? they seem to move smoothly like knobs in the video (and can reach 0-127 in a 'normal' rotation), which i prefer alot!

3) how easy is it to switch the 'hacked' functions of the APC... like the step sequencer made in Max in the video... can i change back and forth through the step sequencer and the "main" APC? what dictates the change of functionality?

thanks!

APC 40 FAQs, features and questions

Re: Enough about the price already!