sticky

co-sign... and we should send Tutor a PM, since it can't hurt to ask.

since it was brought up last time,

aluminum foil is another option. you glue a square of it to the bottom of the actual pad. don't affix it TO the contacts or it will create a permanent bridge.

if you completely remove the conductive material already present and do this, you'll get full velocity all the time (which, considering i ALWAYS have the full level button on, is fine with me). i've also found that you can trigger your samples a lot quicker and with a lot less force. the pads become more pushbutton-like.

if you keep the conductive material where it was, you can still put aluminum foil on the bottom of your pads. i didn't exactly measure, but it *seemed* to make the pads a bit easier to trigger. perhaps it helps distribute current along the entire pad a bit faster. if this were true, and if your black conductive squares were fractured, the foil would effectively "unite" them by distributing charge between the pieces evenly- so you wouldn't really have to go through all the trouble of piecing them back together.

just an idea. i foiled my pads this weekend and so far so good. some have the old black conductive square + foil, but the ones with severely damaged squares are just aluminum foil now. if the pure foil pads continue to work well in the next few months i'm going to go 100% foil on all my pads.

just be careful with the foil.

i think it conducts too much.

i repaired two of my pads like that and i am thankful it worked,
but it also shorted out my 1000 cause i think at one pointed the
foil shifted and made contact with the sensor as well as one of the
screws that hold the pad in.

my 1000 works again, but if it gets shorted out a couple more times
i think my 1000 will eventually be dead....

just thought i'd throw the warning out there so people know.


----------------------------------------------
(and if i have anymore issues in the future i'm just gonna
try the circuitworks keypad repair kit instead and see
if it works better)
----------------------------

does anybody know if you can buy the conductive material from a electronics store? because if you could it would make sense to buy a sheet and cut a square that was the same size as the space underneath the pad. then just place it underneath and you dont need to glue it because it wont shift.

yeah..i also wanted to mention super glue is a bad idea, thats what i tried using...the pad is the same as it was before.

hey, hideous. thanks for the post.

What you're talking about is either buying a graphite or carbon sheet. i have no idea whether or not they sell these in electronics stores - however, i am thinking about calling vst and finding out exactly what the matl is specifically and determining a good replacement/solution for it.

example - something from http://www.graphitestore.com/index.asp

also - good tip on the superglue. the glue you're using must be as viscous as possible - one you'd refer more like a paste than a glue. you'll want a kind of tough rubbery flexibility, not cementlike rigidity in your glue choice.

Shit, I fixed my pads but can't get them back in place! The rubber edges jusst won't go back under the frame thing.

What do I do?

Stupid me I just laughed at myself, just like Mrs Forman at That '70s Show does when she gets an a-ha experience


USEFUL SVADA:

Make sure you give them 4 drops of glue pr pad enough time to dry! It's not fun when you out the pad on to early, and screw the whole thing together just to find out that the graphite fell off and you have to do it all over again

any word from vst yet?
before, i had one pad giving me problems.. now i got three, and i dont want to do a temporary repair every-so-often.

hey, info. i just got off the phone with a tired sounding stevie. get that man a tall coffee, immediately. otherwise, however, he was helpful and pleasant.

Anyway, here's my question. i've got an mpc1000 and frequent the mpc forums (on which you advertise to great effect). here's somethign i've noticed a lot of users complaining about with the mpc1000 - the pads. the pads seemed to be less responsive/less reliable/eventually go dead. this is a reoccurring theme, and one that a lot of users were REALLY frustrated with--to the point where the mpc1000 has a terrible build reputation.

i finally cracked open my mpc and took a look. i'm no electronics expert, but i immediately saw the problem - it's that simple.

the poor quality pads can be traced to one simple issue - a poor gluejob. the graphite (?) squares which go over the pad sensor have come loose from the poor quality glue job that akai initially put in there. the problem is not at all with the pad itself, or the sensor - because when the graphite is in place, the mpc1000 pads are great. however, this glue often comes loose.

i'm looking to purchase some replacement pads from vst. however, i had a few questions. if you could forward me to the right person, that'd be amazing.

1 - what type of flexible graphite/carbon sheets does VST use in MPC1000 replacement pads?
2 - are the replacement pads directly from akai? if so, has there been any difference in quality? ie, will the glue come loose from these pads as well?
3 - how is this composition different from, say, the 2500 pads?

i would REALLY appreciate a return to this email, as i think you guys rock. i'm actually looking to purchase a full 16 set of replacement pads - but i'm also looking to mod job my mpc for live use. i want to create a performance pad kit, if you will...heavy duty, built for live shows and made so i can drum the hell out of them.

anyway, thanks. i hope you're doing well.
sincerely
Allen Scaife

Nym, read my pm about the 1k perfomance pads.

thx a lot for this great post !!

it should be added to the mpc 's 1000 manual )

why keep it a secret????

Allen,

Sorry for the delayed response. We got Stvie that cup of coffee so he's more alert now.

As you know, there is a problem with the pads on the MPC1000 and we have let Akai know this from the beginning. They do cover the pads under warranty for 1 yr., and they are aware of the problem I'm not sure if they've improved the quality. As far as the materials used, I don't know, we simply order the replacements from Akai. The pads used for all the other MPC's inlcuding the MPC2500 are completely different and are all on one adhesive sheet. They are pretty solid and though they do fail sometimes they don't have any recurring problems or defects.

We can replace all your pads for you, they are $16 each, and when we replace a whole set we do our best to make sure they all have the same velocity and work well before we send the unit back. Let me know if you'd like to place an order or send your unit in, or if you have any other questions.