E-mu MP-7 Command Station

Price Paid: US $1020 used

Ease of Use: 10
This thing is very well laid out, its so straightforward. Dedicated buttons take you straight to various menus. In most menus once youre in you just scroll to what parameter you want - no need to go into second layers to find obscure parameters - it all seems to be one layer away. Im so impressed - it makes this thing seem childishly simple, yet theres a lot of power there. You have dedicated buttons to shift between multi and preset (patch) modes. There are 16 dedicated knobs to control the volume/pan of each of 16 tracks or parameters for a preset, or else user assigned functions.
The manual is fine no complaints.

Features: 10
Mine came as new with 3 extra sound ROMs, the Rob Papen Beat Garden, XL7 and something called "Proteus"?, 128 voice polyphony, velocity sensitive trigger pads whilst not as robust feeling as the Akai MPC are great for playing this thing without any keyboard, you can sit in the backyard or in bed, or take it away on trips - its so self contained.
You can also use it as a powerful sound module hooked up to a sequencer and keyboard. Multiple audio and midi outputs, so you can use it as a sequencer to control other gear.
On board pattern based sequencer, real time, step and grid programming,16 tracks, dedicated buttons to mute tracks and 16 volume knobs, independent arpegiator for each track, headphone socket, 12v lamp thingy.

Expressiveness/Sounds: 10
With the 3 expansions there is an enormous range. The XL 7 good for synth and drums, Beat Garden ROM quite diverse ranging from synth, drums, to ethnic, the "Proteus" lots of bread and butter pianos, clavs, guitar, rhodes, orchestra, wind, mine is tilted towards the synth and drum end of things but with different ROMS you could make this more orchestral for example.
Ive found lots of useful sounds, 60+drum kits, some sounds are like small licks or phrases with movement, like bass guitar licks, great filters, modulation matrix allows great programming depth.
Overall its got a warm mellow tone that sits well in my mixes. Its not a purists synth, you wouldnt buy it just for "the sound", its sensibility is the obvious and popular. The enormous range and the playability of the patches make it so useful for me.

Reliability: N/A
Mine was second hand in great condition, I havent used it long enough to tell. It appears a bit plasticy though.

Customer Support: N/A
Havent had to use this.

Overall Rating: 10
I dismissed this thing as a toy for many years. I had a so so experience with the Roland MC 505 many years ago, great interface, love those track sliders, but finding the sound on that a bit lifeless. So I was convinced only dedicated purist synths could sound interesting. I was also put off by the MP7 and XL7's "crazy" colour schemes and the marketing of this thing as being 'so hip and cutting edge etc - I thought this will be dated in no time.
But I has a chance encounter with one and now I think theyre quite underrated. The synth engine whilst sample based, is complex, the 128 voice polyphony is huge. Its very editable you can coax a huge range of sounds out of this - and so you could do most any style of pattern based compositions.
I suppose it would have even more possibilities as a sound arranging machine if it sampled but for the price I paid Im not complaining - anyway you can use it as a pattern based sequencer to control a sampler anyway and you get to have seperate audio outs for the sampled sounds.
And the interface is so straighforward, im finding myself using it all the time.
Ive got a number of more esoteric synths like the Waldorf XT which has a sublime sound but a narrow range of usefulness. This fills a gap nicely for me as a drum machine with tight timing and thousands of drum sounds, and also with natural basses guitars, licks, stabs, hits, and a broad range of synthy sounds.
The price of these second hand now makes them quite reasonable - I would get another if stolen - but only at the second hand price. Dont be put off by the cheesy marketing and colour scheme, you can use this synth for a much broader range of duties than the "mo phatt' title suggests.

Submitted by timski at 06/10/2005 02:10

Price Paid: US $330.00 used

Ease of Use: 8
Upgraded mine to the 2.0 OS. The E-MU Command Stations are the apex of their hardware romplers, before they dumped the whole lot and went to sounds cards and soft synths only. Killer machine. I dont care for the stock Mo'Phatt sound set, but only because I don't do hip hop or rap. I'm sure its great for that, the drums and bass are very good.

Much easier to edit patches than the Proteus 2000 rack unit because of all the shortcut buttons. The sequencer is very easy to use, but not perfect. I'm not a big fan of having to create a bunch of patterns and then string them together to form a song. I usually sequence a song on the computer and then download it to the MP-7 for performance. This is very easy to do with the E-Loader software. It's great as a scratchpad or for laying down quick beats, but trying to input bass or keys parts with the pads is an exercise in frustration. Connect a good controller keyboard and you're set.

A lot of people dont like the purple color. I dont mind it, I call it my "Purple Haze box". The manual is well written, like all E-MU manuals, and about two inches thick.

Features: 9
MP-7 has the same powerful synth engine as the P2K and P2500. 128 voice polyphony, 32 MIDI channels, main and sub outs, SPDIF digital out. Expandable up to 128 MB of ROMs. Two 24 bit effects processors. 12 velocity sensitive rubber input pads and also a ribbon controller. 12 realtime controller knobs, and 16 trigger buttons which can also send MIDI to external units, very cool. 16 track sequencer can record in realtime, step or grid mode. Multi-channel arpeggiators, Z-plane filters, this thing has so many features I can't list them all.

Expressiveness/Sounds: 9
I dont care for the Mo Phatt ROM it comes with. I loaded mine up with the World, Beat Garden, Protozoa and Pop ROMs and I have a huge amount of great sounds to work with for just about any style. If you have used a P2K based module, you know some presets are great and some are really bad. You have to tweak them to get the most out of it. With the 12 realtime controller knobs though, programming the MP-7 is a snap!

Responds well to velocity and also aftertouch. MIDI timing is rock solid.

Reliability: 8
Seems pretty sturdy.

Customer Support: 5
Forget about it, E-MU discontinued all their hardware synths in favor of sound cards and soft synths. Personally, I'd much rather use this thing for performance than a laptop.

Overall Rating: 9
Yeah I would buy it again, they are cheap these days! My main instrument is guitar, I play everything from ambient\experimental to world beat, rock and blues.
I use the MP-7 for two things: as a sound module in my studio, and also to provide accompaniment when I play solo. I do not use it as my main sequencer in the studio, I use Sonar for that. Computer sequencers are just so much easier to use. However, for a scratchpad, laying down quick grooves to jam over, and performance, the MP-7 sequencer works great. I wish it had a sampler, but it still is a marvelous machine for the price I paid.

Submitted by Anonymous at 01/07/2005 08:56

Price Paid: US $340 used

Ease of Use: 10
Ver 1.31
Where can i update the OS???
Very easy to use. Never looked by manual.

Features: 10
I use it in two ways: as a sound module for my software based computer sequencer and as a table top groove box! Very frendly sequencer. Made lots of phat tracks on the spot! Just like that! I put the Composer Rom in it for more sounds. Im looking for more Roms but they are hard to find.

Expressiveness/Sounds: 10
I use it to make Hip Hop. Phatt dirty sounds. Super bass. Some sounds are realistic, some are not that real but they still are sounds you hear on commercial tracks! Huge variety or drum sounds! Kicks, Snares, Hats, Shakers and more... Even Drum kits with sounds that work great together. Havnt used the onboard effects yet cos i use effects from my studio. Great Velocity and aftertouch!

Reliability: 10
I never used it live on a gig yet. But id like to play some tracks raw without mixing them at the studio.

Customer Support: 1
No customer support for me in Greece!

Overall Rating: 10
This little baby has taken my production skills to another level. For me its priceless. The one i have is at my studio. It keeps me up till late and i dont go home cos of it! I want to buy a second one for home so i can make tracks while im home. And maybe a third one as a gift for my brother. This way ill visit him more frequently and i wont be bored! LOL!

Submitted by DJ ALX at 11/09/2004 15:10

Price Paid: US $433.57 used

Ease of Use: 10
version 1.00

presets nice as hell

manual dont have one learned every thing on my own.

i dont use the patch editor i just send my tracks trough my 10 track wich has a cd burner and i mix it down live from the patern mode

Features: 9
every thing in this section is perfect i like every aspect of it

Expressiveness/Sounds: 9
yes most of them are and on the world exspansion chip its lovely \\

Reliability: 8
well its very reliable but theres one problem with mines.
maybe some one can help me with please when ever i turn it off the sound i had on track 4 changes to sublevel . every time so when i turn it on my sound thats in the trackn is gone please help me.

you can contact me at prorecords2004@yahoo.com thanks

Customer Support: 7
there all a bunch of ass holes the wont even help me fix my proplem they think im am a amiture or somethin dummys!!!!!!!!1

Overall Rating: 10
i couldnt make my music with out it i dont like mpcs the dont come with sounds and the dont have mo phatt modules you have to go spend a fortune like your already in the industry to even get it to the way you want

Submitted by kilian at 08/07/2004 13:22

Price Paid: US $700

Ease of Use: 10
Well, I've had this now for a year. I read the manual cover to cover. I have the latest one (revision F) printed out and inside a 2 inch binder for easy access (I recommend this to everyone). Actually, it spilled over to a 2nd binder, where I also keep all my notes on patch changes and tips. So, I definitely can say through experience: it's easy! Just RTFM (read the f*** manual). :)

Features: 10
128-voice polyphony, wonderful pad and ribbon controller action, excellent built in effects (tip...change multi mode to poly or omni to hear effects assigned by E-mu to a particular patch...). People who complain about the "lack of effects" haven't cracked the manual, obviously. Expandable (I have the Proteus Pop, ZR, and Protozoa ROMs). Too many features to mention. What a bargain! Oh, ok...microtonality. What an amazing instrument this is.

Expressiveness/Sounds: 9
Sounds are not as slick as the big Japanese three (Korg, Roland, Yamaha). Shorter loops, less memory, etc. But they are made for tweaking. If you want great sounds out of the box, get a Roland XV-5050 or a Yamaha Motif rack. The ZR piano is excellent and you can adjust the amp and filter velocities to get a softer touch (RTFM). With the ROMs I have and the tweaking I've done, all bases are covered. So..."raw" presets? An 8. Expressiveness (w/tweaking): 10. So...

Reliability: 10
Solid construction. Everyone uses these command stations live without a problem. Be sure to have the version two upgrade. But even the previous upgrade was perfectly reliable. If you have an original model, be sure to upgrade immediately. E-mu should be commended for their attention in upgrading and adding new features. Remember that they are a small company (within the larger Creative company) and so their initial quality control is not on a par with the Big Three, but they plug away with the updates and new features. So, a "10" nowadays, as opposed to when they first were released.

Customer Support: 10
Friendliest tech support I know. Never had a problem asking a question. :)

Overall Rating: 10
I think I've said everything. After a year of use, I can tell you: the E-mu command stations are classics of their kind.

Submitted by Anonymous at 03/04/2004 14:13

Price Paid: US $550

Ease of Use: 10
Well when I brought it Friday I was in the middle of a session, but later I was going threw the sounds and patterns. Same with the rest of the weekend I was flippin' threw the thibk ass book. Tell latter I got the basics I was set for mad beats. If you know how to use a simple drum machine the basic recordings is simple. Learn the rest on ya own time. YK

Features: N/A
I need to buy my Midi to Midi cable to get deep into this.

Expressiveness/Sounds: 10
There some good sounds. People say you'll run out of sounds soon that's wit any sound machine. You gotta be more creative with ya samples, plus you can buy more cards with sounds. I'm not gon do that though, this just more sounds to me, all the sounds I been missing.

Reliability: 10
Hell yeah they got the stuff I been missing.
But I wonder is there I nice software when I could send my tracks to it like wish Acid was able. Not just that E-Loader, Im not feelin that maybe there's more to it.

Customer Support: N/A
dunno

Overall Rating: 10

Submitted by YK at 03/03/2004 21:27

Price Paid: 600 (EUR)

Ease of Use: 7
well, not easy to use, but what do you expect from a more sophisticated piece of gear. i'm running on version 2.00, everything's working fine now...
editing takes quite some time, but hey, you can really go deep...
the manual is some 300 pages, but very clearly written (take note, ROLAND!)

Features: 9
polyphony 128, which should be enough for almost anybody, effects are nice, but a bit cmplicated to use...
EMU expansion cards can give you up to 128 MB of sounds...great!
MIDI is well implemented, 2 midi outs, all knobs transmit midi data, midi menu makes it quite a flexible machine, sequencer is great, 3 different types of recording, although i don't like the step mode too much...
but grid mode is really easy and very useful...

Expressiveness/Sounds: 10
yep. sounds. that's what is in there: sounds. really nice hip-hop sounds, also suitable for downbeat, even r'n'b. i'm going to get some expansions to make it even more versatile...
effects are good, sounds are very dynamic...

Reliability: 9
seems solidly built. definitely gonna gig without any backup...that's why i bought it...

Customer Support: 7
had e-mail contact with emu...was quite nice...

Overall Rating: 10
very good machine all in all. have been owning it for a month, but really improved the overall sound of my band. must be one of the most professional and good-sounding groove machines ever built. ok, i don't include akai mpcs, but they are something else...

the mp-7 is definitely something like a masterpiece, the concept itself as well as all the details (no wall-wart!!!)...

Submitted by lau at 01/03/2004 05:12

Price Paid: US $550 used

Ease of Use: 9
oh my god where would i be without my mp7... presests are awsome, editing patches is a snap, the manual couldnt be clearer, i think im on version 1.31? not sure...

Features: 10
you know the features, 128 note poly, velo. sensitive, great effects,(not a fan of the reverb) the effects are kinda hard to use, if can be expanded with simms, awesome sequencer

Expressiveness/Sounds: 9
all the presets are really good, but there is no piano! no harps either. all these things can be added with an expansion board though so its all good. onboard effects are great. it reacts to just about everyhting you do and it has velo and aftertouch

Reliability: N/A
so far no problems, i would use without a backup, unlike roland

Customer Support: N/A
wouldnt know, but the manual is very helpful

Overall Rating: 10
if it were lost or stolen id be eating shit cus all my beats are on it. i would most definatly buy it again becuase its name shouldnt be mp7, it should be GOD. i wish it had some pianos and harps on it, but ill just get the expansion boards. it definatly helps make music!

Submitted by mike at 07/06/2003 13:10

Price Paid: US $670

Ease of Use: 10
10 this thing is made for dumb asses that hold down a pad and a nice preset beat comes out. hold down 2 at a time and your really rockin.
record and repeat until you have all the ones you'd like arranged in your very own beat............please

Features: 1
Try stepping it up a notch. If you want to isolate just one drum ...good luck. you cant seperate drums from the drums Emu matched them with...retarted. try the crap step sequencer that plain sucks. copying patterns ..a pain in the rectum ...all the simplest tasks are menu driven buried and scattered .. i could not have fun making my own beats from scratch. no sampleing, no removeable media.

Expressiveness/Sounds: 5
they are ok for rap but they are going to be played out soon so ill give a 10 for when they 1st came out and a 0 for when they get played out.

Reliability: 7
i would say so but if something goes wrong your going to be busy in those menu's and the crowd will boo your wack ass

Customer Support: 2
Sucks they got a yahho web group and that was my best place for answers , if you made the slightest negative suggestion they wont answer your question, so you had to pretend to be "cool" with the MP-7 so they can help you F%CK THAT!!!!

Overall Rating: 1
I am so glad I got someone to buy this thing. My only regret is I should have returned it for full price. It had pretty good sounds but they will grow old. OH YEAH THE DRUMS SUCK

Submitted by hardware master at 05/21/2003 18:41

Price Paid: £400 (pounds) used

Ease of Use: 7
only paid £495. i think is is version 1.5 i have only had the machine for about 5 days but i got to know my machine. it is quite easy to use but the grid pattern only allows a minimum 1/4 notes so if you want long riffs you have to enter in real time

Features: 9
The polyphony is amazing any type of sound id possible from house to hip hop. It have many effects but i don't understand yet. The mp-7 rom is hav a lot of drums and sounds. I use the mp-7 as a sound module in cubase sx because the sequencer is to complex to program
It has too many features to mention good value for money

Expressiveness/Sounds: 10
Sounds are very good for hip hop and also any other music type.
The keypad is amazingly reponse not at all like how i thought it would be this is an amazing unit. A powerful studio in a box.

Reliability: 7
I have had it for 5 days I havent had a problem yet and i was looking for defects as I bought it used but nothing yet

Customer Support: N/A
n/a

Overall Rating: 9
If it were lost or stolen i would hustle my ass off to get it back
I have had for 5 days use with cubase sx. I compared to mpc2000xl but i was too much just for a sampler/sequecer and i was very interested when i saw rza hold an mp-7. This little machine has pushed my music to another level trust me.

Submitted by Anonymous at 05/10/2003 19:49

Price Paid: US $650

Ease of Use: 10
1.32, I guess I am waiting for 2.0... PHATT sounds!!! As easy as turning a knob... You may not need one... Big, but use the PDF, it makes for easy searching.

Features: 10
Lots of features, and expandable... still trying to figure things out, I like how portable this thing is. If it ran on batteries, that would make it PHATTER... for real... I can't believe this thing has pressure sensitive keys. It also has a 32track sequencer, and can control the internal and external modules... as the above statement says, Very Easy to use... I can make this thing sound like almost any of the other E-mu sound modules out there. It will take up to 3 more expansion modules.

Expressiveness/Sounds: 10
WOW!!! PHATT... nice warm sounds... go listen to it, don't take my word for it... effects processor is pretty good.

Reliability: 10
so far so good... I have taken it to 6 different places, and it fires up every time...

Customer Support: 6
Called E-mu up, no toll free number, so it gets a low score here, but they did help me out...

Overall Rating: 10
I would definitely replace it, and this would be the center of music production.

Submitted by DJ_vgrep at 03/21/2003 22:09

Price Paid: US $1000

Ease of Use: 8
I'm currently using version 1.32, but EMU promised to release a much-improved version 2.0 sometime in early 2003. Users are eagerly waiting. Not that the current one is buggy, but the EMU people, wehich are very active in the user forums btw, said there are a number of improvements to be made in the sequencer.

The MP-7 should not be difficult to learn if you have any experience with synths/drum machines. But reading the huge manual helps A LOT. BTW it's not that clear, though it still is a lot better than the ones translated from Japanese. Anyway, take your time. There's a lot you can do only tweaking the knobs on the panel, but there's much more under the hood.

The sounds are good. Some of them are very good, some a very thin. For a hip hop/rnb machine I was expecting some more beefy drum sounds. If you layer them they might get a little better. But don't expect sp1200 crunchy drum hits from it. There are a lot of bass and synth sounds and endless editing possibilities. I've owned it for five months now and only now I am starting to master the sound creation possibilities.

Features: 7
Polyphony is 128, should be more than enough (if not, hire an orchestra).
Effects are a minus. There are only two of them aboard, and to my ears they sound way too digital. There's no expansion here, so the only good news here is that you can use three sub outs to route your sounds to external processors.

Preset/wise, it does take expansion cards, but they are expensive. I've purchased Techno Synth. Some of the sounds are the same, but in general both cards (mp-7's own and techno synth) go along very well.

MIDI is prety good, though there are some complicated workarounds to be learned when controlling external gear. I've never used an MPC, but they say in this department the akai wins hands down. Still, I control a couple of synths from the MP7 and it's been fine so far. Those 16 knobs are sweet both for hardware and softsynths. To the best of my knowledge, timing is tight on the sequencer, provided you stick to some rules: the most reliable channels timing-wise are the lower numbered ones.

Expressiveness/Sounds: 8
The sounds are good. Compare to other grooveboxes, they are awesome. Compared to analog/virtual analog/fm synths they are not so good. And, as I said, the drum sounds disappointed me. Anyway, what do you expect for a machine in this price range. And then, remember you have almost endless editing/modulations possibilities. Take your time to learn how to program this thing. It's worth it.

For playing drums / percussion the pads are good, if a bit small. There are 8 response curves, but I really couldn't tell the difference among some of them. Maybe it's my playing (or my ears).
For playing chords they are not ideal. Get a cheap midi controller and you're set.

Reliability: 10
It looks and feel very solid. The knobs and the pads can take a beating.. BUT the value dial can't. Many people complain that the dial gets erratic after some time. Mine hasn't -- and I hope it doesn't, as the closest technical support is thousands of miles away. :)
I any case, be gentle with your dial.

I'd use it on a gig without backup, no problem. Mine never crashed.

Customer Support: 8
Never had to contact the customer support, but as I said, EMU people take part on the mailing lists and are very receptive to suggestions and forthcoming when users have doubts. That was a big surprise to me. They seem to be nice people.
Upgrading the OS is a breeze.

Overall Rating: 8
It's a nive piece of gear. I use it with an MS2000r and an SP505. I think I'd get another one, as I can't bear sitting in front of a PC to do music.

Submitted by Sergio at 01/20/2003 11:53

Price Paid: US $1000 new

Ease of Use: 10
The MP-7 is very easy to use.
Editing patches is also where the power of the Proteus 2500 engine comes to life. The patching possibilities are endless, reminds me of an Oberheim Matrix-12 for it's flexibility. The coolest programming feature is the Random Patch Generation!!
Manual is very clear.

Features: 10
The MP-7 has 128 voice polyphony and is built like a tank!
The 40 assignable knobs and buttons are very durable.It can really take a beating on stage, like the MPC's.
Expandibility is huge on the MP-7. I added the excellent BeatGarden ROM and Techno ROM. Great sounds!

I also added the 32meg FLASHRAM to it. This allowed me to take 32 megs of my own stereo drum samples from my Emu e-6400 Ultra and use them in my MP-7. So I can have all of my own drums and sounds in the MP-7.

Having the e-6400 sampling hardware in an MP-7 would of been great though... perhaps in the future? the E-Mu SP-2400???

The Real-time/Grid/Step sequencer is as easy to program as a TR-909 or DMX. Speaking of Sequencing, the timing of the sequencer surpasses the MPC2000xl/MPC60.
Has Groove/Swing Quantize too. You have 32 internal midi channels and 32 external midi channels. So 64 channels in all, within the 1 sequencer, which is great.
It has 6 outputs and a Spdif out too...

Expressiveness/Sounds: 8
Sounds for the stock MP-7 model are ok.
But once you add in the expansion cards, it really shines!
Great sounding synth!! It has 50 different!! 6/12th pole Filters!
With the Techno/BeatGarden ROMS... this box can easily do Down-Tempo, Hip-Hop, RnB, Techno and more...

Once you add in your own samples, it becomes even better!, via the FlashRAM and E-mu Samplers.

The 13 velocity-sensitive pads with aftertouch are excellent. Same as the MPC's.
Oh yeah, it has 16 syncable arpeggiators too...

Reliability: 10
100% reliable hardware. The software is also rock solid, version 1.31.

Customer Support: 9
friendly fast detailed response

Overall Rating: 10
If it was stolen, I'd buy another for sure!
I sold my MPC 2000xl becuase the MP-7 gave me everything my MPC had, in conjunction with my Emu e-6400 sampler!
No need for an MPC...

There is no other box out there that gives me the flexibility to compose music as fast the the MP-7. Having a 3rd midi OUT would of been nice though...

Submitted by Anonymous at 10/22/2002 13:16

Price Paid: 1400 euro

Ease of Use: 8
I find the presets sound great (must say I work in combination with the proteus sounds built into the MP-7). Editing patches is very easy, especially the filtering with all those controller knobs.The manual is quite clear, of course you need creativity to use what is explained in the manual

Features: 8
128 note polyphony. I'm very satisfied with the keyboard actions, enough possibilties. Also there's enough room for expansion, 4 expansion slots. Though the expansions are quite expensive, I believe emu's sounds are of quality. The onboard sequencer is easy to use. Though I still prefer sequencing in Cubase, just gives more options and control.

Expressiveness/Sounds: 9
the instruments are very realistic. Combining the MP-7 sounds and the proteus, you can make some great hiphop/RnB music. I like the effects to, some of them give a special touch especially on the beats

Reliability: N/A

Customer Support: N/A

Overall Rating: 8
I would buy it again if my house were to be burnt down. I paid a lot, but in europe instruments are more expensive then in US anyways.

Submitted by Anonymous at 10/21/2002 02:26

Price Paid: US $600 used

Ease of Use: 10
Don't be fooled. This is a PRO instrument. Learning to use it can be difficult. But once you figure out how to get around on it, it's powerful features will dust any "groovebox" toy on the market. The preset editing is phenominal!

Features: 9
128 Polyphany never get's overrun. The built in effects are nice, but i did hope to see compressors. The sounds are good, but I would like to see more/better drum kits. It's MIDI capability is awesome. I've noticed a slight lag sometimes, but it's very tiny. The Sequencer is nice too, but there are some more features i would like to see. Word from EMU is that they are going to update the OS soon

Expressiveness/Sounds: 8
Sounds in it are ok. As far as building your own presets/sounds, this is what I bought the machine for overall. The capability is great. My only complaint is the drum sets. they are good, but there needs to be more variety...

Reliability: 10
Very reliable...

Customer Support: 10
Excellent

Overall Rating: 9
THIS IS A PRO UNIT, NOT A TOY.

Submitted by David DeciBel at 10/15/2002 12:44

Price Paid: US $800 used

Ease of Use: 8
Easy to use? Not really. I'm on version 1.31 of this box, and it's very powerful, but there is a lot to learn. Once you learn it, moving around is quite easy

Features: 8
So many features to mention. There are a lot of really creative ideas in this machine. The ability to expand sequences is very powerful. The ability to sequence up to 64 MIDI channels is AMAZING (throw away those mmt-8's) - The sequencer is pretty nice, though there are some features i hope they add. The "pads" are a bit tricky to figure out, but they do help in drumming as you can kind of "hit them" instead of "play them) Even for scaling, its' pretty easy to use. I haven't used the MID import function yet, but Its a great idea. I do wish the USB port doubled as a midi port so I wouldn'thave to use up a port to sequence with... ah well...
In song mode, you can't mute tracks in the middle of a pattern. Which is slightly annoying. You do however have 2 tracks to play with for solos, fills, and all sorts of other goodies....

Expressiveness/Sounds: 10
The pure phat rom is cool, but there really just aren't enough sounds in it in my opinion. This may be just for my case. The drums are kind of thin.... But thats why they offer expansion slots, right?

Reliability: 10
seems pretty stable, though i'd heat to see the thing over heat.

Customer Support: 10
Great!

Overall Rating: 9
overal this unit is awesome. it's a pro piece and can replace a lot in a person's studio. The FX leave a little bit to be desired, but they're alright. There are some routing issues that i'd like to take up with emu as well.

Submitted by david jones at 07/24/2002 07:34

Price Paid: US $1299

Ease of Use: 9
MP-7 is a blast to use. The only real annoying thing is when you are working on a pattern in the sequencer, you MUST save it all the time. Because if you don't, you can accidentally lose all your changes if you switch patterns. Which in the heat of creativity can happen.

Overall I think there are TOO many features and you can easily get overwhelmed by them.
The only real qualm i have is that it is heavy and is uncomfortable to hold in your lab! LOL

Features: 10
As above, there is a huge list of features. The best are the built in keyboard/drum pads. Very espressive, too bad they dont have two octaves!
There is a s/pdif out that is great. I plug mine into my ezbus and get great sound, with no noise.
The fact that you can easily grab a knob and edit almost anything is spectacular.
Another great feature is the expandibility. You can stick in ROM boards and double the sounds. I added the XL board and it rocks.

Expressiveness/Sounds: 9
the sounds are great right out of the box. They are aimed at the R&B or hiphop makret. Overall they are fantastic. They are easy to manipulate and by using categories, easy to find.

Reliability: 8
So far great

Customer Support: N/A
Not dealt with them

Overall Rating: 9
I have this with along with a LOT of stuff and it is great. It's as easy as fruity loops for laying down quick tracks.

Submitted by Anonymous at 07/04/2002 12:49

Price Paid: US $999

Ease of Use: 9
OS Version 1.31 (came with 1.17 I think). I have only had the MP7 for a few days and so far it seems very easy to use. Other sequencers I have used - Logic, Fruity Loops, Cakewalk. While Logic is way more configurable the MP7 gives me what I need in a sequencer wihout the hassle of using a computer. The manual seems ok so far, but their are many addendums due to the OS upgrades. If you know how to use other sequencers and want to check it out, play with it in a music store for a bit. I was amazed at the simplicity of the system. I cannot compare it to the RM1X as I have not used it however, it sounds much better than the RM1X and the current $999 price tag (as opposed to the $500 - $600 tag on the RM1X) is justified.

Features: 10
128 note polyphony, 32 midi channels, 2 midi outs and 1 in, ability to store 16 channels per track, 3 free emu sound rom slots (current rebate for a free rom!), 6 analog outs and digital out, 2 pedal jacks, USB (I have not used USB yet), records CC data easily, sends knob CC data to other midi gear, arps galore, knobs galore, filters galore, effects, too much to mention...read the manual online at emu.com - The price vs feature raio is excellent.

Expressiveness/Sounds: 9
The Mo Phatt soundset contains mostly persussion sounds and these are excellent. Some of the voice samples suck and the sounds were not designed to accurately represent real instruments however with the extensive sound molding capabilities in this box you get out what you put in. I use this box with a sampler, a Yamaha DX200, and a Korg EA1, mixers and effects. Adding other cards will help greatly of course I am adding the free composer rom and the world expedition rom.
For hip hop/rap the Mo Phatt sounds are excellent compared to other things I have heard and the rating I give is based on what they were designed for. I am currently using the MP7 with a sampler, DX200, EA-1, and guitar and bass. It is quickly replacing the software sequencers I use.

Reliability: N/A
I have not owned the MP7 long enough to have an opinion on the reliability. It feels solid though.

Customer Support: N/A
I have not dealt with customer service and hopefully I will never have the need to call.

Overall Rating: 10
It is well worth the price. If I had known the MP7 was as versatile as it is I would have bought it previously for a much higher price. Right now, I would buy it again if it was lost or stolen.

Submitted by Cris at 05/04/2002 15:18

Price Paid: US $999.99

Ease of Use: 7
Took me a little longer than the MC-505 to learn but the sounds and features dust it....a more sophisticated piece of gear.

Not for children.

Features: 8
No other groovebox can touch it......all those arpegiators and filters?!?!....not to mention the fresh sounds!

Sampling expansion way to pricey:(

Expressiveness/Sounds: 10
Wicked sounds.
Very cool for liveness now that the initial sequencer bug is fixed in the new OS....you can trigger on and off 16 arpeggiators!!
Effects so so.

Reliability: 6
Still noticing minor bugs in 1.18 OS but when they get it together completely I'll probably have to start sleeping with it.

Physically solid as a tank.

Customer Support: 7
Support is good.........everyone in QA (Quality Assurance) should be fired however....big time.....all the inital bugs.....absolutely inexcusable.

Course I never experienced the sequencer bug because the first thing I did was check for updates.

Overall Rating: 9
When a solid OS comes out I'm gonna take the thing to Vegas and marry it.

Submitted by Bobby LeMat at 01/03/2002 01:43

Price Paid: US $1000.00

Ease of Use: 9
Ultra intuitive..Instant satisfaction within minute out of the box.

The thing about this unit is that it is so deep in its features. The stuff on the surface is just mind blowing and that will sedate you for a long time.
I have been using this for almost a month now and have decided to post a review.
The manual is very thick, but intuitive, easy to read.
Presets are very informative in showing the dynamic range of this machine.

Features: 9
This is basically a 16 track sequencer with proteus sounds. Amazing drum tones and bass tones.
The 'key' tones are limited but you can get several beautiful 24 bit rom cards of most any sounds you want.
All of the typical midi capabilities plus WAY more midi flexiblities in it's routing functions.
Touch sensitive,
Massive filters, and surprisingly tranparent 24bit effects.

Expressiveness/Sounds: 9
I was searching for a cool sequencer and had just returned the Yamaha RMx-1 because it was such a pain to program and because the sounds were terrible (which seems to be the consensus)
The MP-7 sounds sold me on it in seconds. Pure, clean, polished and very professional. It makes the RMX-1 sound like a toy. Of course you pay for it.

Reliability: 9
Hard to say, only had it for a month but it is built well. Big rubber pads, typical of EMU. Nice products.

Customer Support: N/A
N/A haven't need it yet.

Overall Rating: 9
Well it replaced all of my drum machines, instantly.
I would indeed buy it again if I lost it or it was stolen, It has literally changed the way I produce.It has made my life in the studio absolutely awesome.
I think I only hate is the fact that it is purple and seemingly aimed towards a hip-hop 'crowd' in its design.
It is a major step up from anything in it's class.
If it had sampling it would be the end-all.
I don't do hip-hop but love the tones

Submitted by Anonymous at 12/04/2001 11:34