Akai Sucks! Read on for an interesting tale.

[thedreampolice]

Now that I have made so changed to my profession I can retell a few stories.

Let me tell you about the real Akai

Akai (is not the same company that made the MPC2k BTW) Numark, Alesis, Akai are all owned by the same company owned by Jack O’Donnell.

They hate there users! I actually overheard at a very large trade show in Nashville an Akai rep talking to a SR management type from another company say something to the effect of "We made products for dumbass beat maker wannabes." I have also heard them refer to there customer base a "Losers", "Punks", and DJ's as "Dumb"

Almost every interaction I had with them they talked badly about there customers. Making fun of hip-hop and DJ's along the way.

They also admitted several times that they don't pay much attention to the MPC forums. That explains allot about the 5k issues.

Also they treat there resellers like crap. They lie about ETA's to the point of absurdity. The hip-hop community needs to slowly back away, shed a tear to what was once an amazing company and MOVE ON!

 

[LDB]

If hip hop producers are the main ones using the product then I don't doubt this is how most of these company's feel. They've been getting rich off of our backs for decades and very few if any appreciate us. Does not surprise me one bit but won't stop me from buying what I like that gets what I want done!

 

[Doc Vigilanti]

I've heard horror stories about customer support, but damn that takes the cake right there. Oh well such is life.

 

[Quality]

They can talk all they want about us behind their backs, but at the end of the day we're the ones giving them their pay check..

I'm with LDB, it won't stop me from using what gets the job done.

 

[Ominous]

These may have just pushed me over to the NI MACHINE.

 

[LDB]

If you can take something that cost a couple hundred to a couple grand and spin it into a hundred grand or a million dollar career who really gives a fuck what these company's think? I don't!

Listen to 90% of the sounds that are out there that we find a way to use. Just listening to them "as is", do you think they were meant for hip hop? HELL TO THE NAWL.. Nothing was meant for hip hop if you ask me. We tore shit from old records to make our music. I look at hardware and software the same exact way. Take Ableton for instance. Go to there website...does anything you see or hear scream "hip hop" or rap. Uh uh, but I took the lady dressed her in hip hop, stuck dick in her a got me some beautiful offspring!

We find away to "make it do what it do" by any means necessary!

 

[Da IllFellaz]

FL (or even Reason) with dope sounds and imagination will CRUSH ANY MPC out there.... bottom line.... idea to end product.....

 

[Doc Vigilanti]

For sure, it's not about what you use, it's how you use it. It took me years to finally figured it out. You wouldn't believe how much money I spent because I thought If I just got this one tool I'll be the next Dr. Dre. Doesn't work like that.

I've never owned an MPC, but I have used them and I own a MPD24(It's for sale) and honestly I wouldn't buy another Akai Product. The MPD really turned me off of Akai products.

 

[thedreampolice]

Point is why use a companies products that bites the hand that feeds them?

 

[LDB]

Point is why use a companies products that bites the hand that feeds them?

Let me speak as a black man. If I refused to purchase a companies products because they talked about or didn't like black people I wouldn't own a thing! 4 seasons hotel wasn't built with me in mind but I'll still take me and the wife there for a weekend get away. A commercial for a Cruise to Alaska probably won't have a black person in sight...probably not even behind the camera but if I want to take the Cruise to Alaska I'm going.

Ain't no country music producer rolling with an MPC, no rock n roll producer etc etc. Not to make this a race thing but those guys where saying this around you, a white man. Had you been black and looked like you were into hip hop they more than likely wouldn't have.

If a product works for me I'm going to buy and use it.

 

[daproduct]

what ever happened to the "motivation" aspect of having a hater like that? aint a damn thing bout em gonna change us!

 

[2infamouz]

the dudes from all the akai videos ive seen look like the kinda cats that rarely leave their house and hack their neighbors computer

 

[thedreampolice]

"what ever happened to the "motivation" aspect of having a hater like that?"

So why are you giving the hater money?

 

[SirSedric]

"what ever happened to the "motivation" aspect of having a hater like that?"

So why are you giving the hater money?

Akai screwed me a few years back so I got a Korg padKontrol... much happier with that combined with software than I ever was on an MPC... as far as I'm concerned, Akai is kinda right about just making the MPC for the hip hop cats... it doesn't have a lot of other uses beyond sampling and sequencing... virtually no editing, no additional controls to assign... time to move on to better products from companies who actually care to make something worth buying.

 

[Sucio]

News flash people...

The people who make all this money off of us probably say the same thing about us...for every product that is put out...

This is just one example of it...

Major labels put out this dumb ass shit and people would listen to it and buy the shit...You don't think the execs are saying "these people are listening to this dumb shit...let's dumb it down more and see if it makes money" THEN IT DOES! People have been making money off of "dumb" consumers forever...and will continue to do so.....

Another news flash...the people @ Akai aren't completely wrong about what they said...A lot of people who just happen to have the money, regardless of musical talent/ability is going to buy this shit thinking they could make dope shit....Come on people...I've been to a place with an elaborate setup and the beats were dookie....Dude spent thousands upon dollars to make less than mediocre beats....And of course there's the complete opposite as well.. Tommy Hilfiger didn't like the fact black people were wearing his clothing because of the "ghettoness" his clothes were put out to be......Yet people still buy his shit......come on people...

I'm sure there's tobacco execs that don't smoke at all....yet they promote the shit out of their product...they know it does more harm than good...but people still buy them....

 

[Fade]

I'm not surprised by dreampolice's story, it makes sense though. I mean, not that they're bashing their customers, but that they're acting like they're the shit. I'd like to know what Technics thinks of scratch DJ's, for example. But Akai needs to be careful because even though the MPC line is a staple in Hip Hop production, there are lots of competitors out there, and the possibilities are almost endless when it comes to software.

 

[Relic]

Yeah, I mean Fade talks shit about his consumers all the time and like they keep logging on...
...Pause...
...What?

 

[thedreampolice]

Well I can tell you about companies that are amazing to there customers and say nothing but good things.

Ableton, Cakewalk, Line6/Props, Ibanez, Roland, Novation

Why not support these guys?

 

[Shonsteez]

I agree thats fucking retarded, but in the end I could care less if they think were all a bunch of no-talent ass holes to honest. All I care about it the tool Im using to make my music on. I mean it sucks that they dont give a shit about their user base but at the same time I dont care about them either so its whatever. Plus this is only a couple people you have reference of that think this way. Is it really fair to attach that label to the entire company due to one guys comments?

 

[thedreampolice]

"Plus this is only a couple people you have reference of that think this way. Is it really fair to attach that label to the entire company due to one guys comments?"

I don't think you understand, at least 8 of the top guys from the company have given me this kind of attitude. Every rep that ever came out from Akai or Numark.....I have good reason to believe it is a company wide issue.