GUIDE
Custom MPC 1000: the complete build guide
JJOS versions and real prices, the pad fix, screen swaps, paint and skins, CF cards, RAM, and what each mod costs today.
Builds
Guides for modding your own machine and features on the people who take it further. Real part numbers, real prices, photos of the actual work.
GUIDE
MOD
SCSI to SD card mod for vintage MPCs: what it actually fixes
What SCSI2SD and ZuluSCSI do for an MPC60, MPC3000, MPC2000/XL, or MPC4000, which machines really need it, and the honest difficulty and compatibility caveats.
MOD
Gotek floppy emulator mod: what it actually replaces on a vintage MPC
What a Gotek plus HxC firmware actually replaces on an MPC60, MPC3000, or MPC2000/XL, why the three machines use three different floppy formats, and the real flashing caveats.
MAINTENANCE
MPC battery backup replacement: what actually keeps your sequences alive
What Akai's own service manuals say the MPC60 and MPC3000 backup battery actually is, what happens when it dies or leaks, and the honest gap in what's documented for the MPC2000XL.
REPAIR
MPC pad repair and sensitivity calibration: MPC60, MPC3000, MPC2000XL
Diagnosing dead and false-triggering pads, what Akai's own manuals do and do not document about pad calibration, and the real parts and prices to fix it.
MAINTENANCE
MPC power supply and capacitor aging: what actually goes wrong on the MPC60, MPC3000, and MPC2000XL
What actually ages inside a 25 to 35 year old MPC power supply, real symptoms to recognize, and what Akai's own service manuals do and don't document about the capacitors.
MOD
MPC2000 and MPC2000XL memory expansion: the complete SIMM install guide
Both machines cap out at 32MB, but the case comes apart two different ways, the configuration tables aren't the same shape, and there's a built-in screen that confirms the upgrade actually registered.
Builder directory
A working list of the people who paint, mod, and repair MPCs is coming. If that's you, get in early.