Since our last review the company would appear to have gone from strength to strength. Their electronics haven't changed, but the big news is their brand new pads. To be honest, the original ones were serviceable enough, but they did have a touch of the 'practise pad' about them. These new ones are very much better both aesthetically and functionally.

The Mark2 pads are octagonal in shape with bowls formed from ABS and a rubber playing surface is stretched across their open mouths. A piece of shaped edging-string clips the 'membrane' to the ABS. This, of course, goes a long way towards making a bouncy 'real drum' feel to the pad. There's a piece of five ply birch stuck below this rubber to stiffen the surface and since it isn't joined to the bowl itself gives a nice bouncy playing surface. There's nothing fitted below the plywood except for a Piezo transducer. (Many pads are stuffed with foam rubber to cut down their acoustic sounds, but these MFCs don't seem to warrant this attention). There's an XLR fitted into the side of the bowl (next to the tom arm receiver hole) to carry the impulses from the transducer to the brain. That, apart from the 'eye-bolt' mounting for the holder, is that.

The Bass drum pad also has eight sides with exactly the same attributes as the other smaller ones. The only real difference is that it has a couple of receiver blocks to accommodate a pair of very, very good spurs. They're made from thick tube with a sharp end, and because of their forward projection are quite the most stable I've seen. MPC use a Ludwig/Premier/Tama type tom holder for their stands. It holds the pads in the required playing position and has a cast 'T' piece at the very top of the down tube. A pair of 'L' arms are fixed to the top with eye bolts, and it's these which penetrate the side of the pad. This cast 'T' piece has something of an innovation, there's a large hole bored into it to allow the leads from the pads to be poked through to keep them tidy. (They re-appear at the bottom and go onto the brain.)

The smallest pads measure 13" from point to point and are 2½" deep; the other is 20" x 3" deep. Both have sides set at right angles to the head for the first 1¾" which then fall away at an angle until they form a smaller octagon in the centre. There are a pair of very smart red logos screened to each pad (the bass has just one) which appear to be based on an eight segment alpha-numeric style display as to be found on all the best drum machines and synthesizers.

I wrote last time that the MPC modules (which are called DSMs) are meant to be mounted in a rack which is available as an optional extra. Each 'brain' system consists of a single DSM which also houses the master power supply, and in our case another two Dual DSMs which take care of the remaining four voices. Ostensibly the dual units are exactly the same as the singles but with twice as many controls for twice as many voices. All these modules are exactly the same and undedicated so they don't have to be locked onto just bass drum or snare. According to the brochure a variety of different pitched toms are possible too, as well as cowbells and the like.

The power module has an on/off rocker switch and one set of pad controls. (MPC have thoughtfully screened some suggested control settings to the front panel to allow you to start somewhere with your sounds.) It also has 'pots' for: Input sensitivity, Decay, Bend, Pitch, Mix (noise against tone), Noise, Click and Level. There's also a small switch to change the sweep. There are also a pair of red LEDs to allow a positive or negative supply indication.

The backs of all DMSs have your usual pad input which will also accommodate the 'Bug mike' which I mentioned in my last review. It's a small acoustic transducer designed to either stick to the head of an ordinary drum or be held against the head by a clever little device which resembles an external damper for an acoustic drum. (MPC even supply you with a small plastic clip which self-adheres to the rim of the drum and stops the thinnish lead from pulling out of the transducer.) These bugs are without doubt the best that I've seen. They are, of course, meant to carry the vibrations from your acoustic drum head to the 'brain' so you may have analogue drum sounds produced by your real drum kit. There's also a trigger input so that you can operate it from a drum machine or a synthesizer. Otherwise we find a master output and an ordinary output. (The master combines the output of all connected modules). All the exact same controls are to be found on the dual DSMs too.

The sounds of these DSMs is very strong, but it doesn't harm that there's that screen printing on the front of the module to give you a start point. But once you've started it doesn't take long to get exactly the sound you're searching for.

Another little trick which MPC have up their sleeves is something officially known as DSM 32 x 4. This is a memory storage unit for MPC drum sounds, which has the capability to retain 128 sounds in four banks of 32.

The sounds control section has rotary potentiometers which control variously; Input sensitivity, Decay, Bend, FM modulation, Pitch and Pitch range to set high or low thresholds for more accurate adjustment, Mix, Noise, Filter, Click and finally Output level. All the settings for these controls may be stored in the memory except Sensitivity and Output level.

What we do then is select an available channel via a footpedal or the buttons set into the facia, which will show up as a series of red LEDs, one for Memory, one for Bank and another for Location. All this will only happen with the Manual button pressed, and once we've set up the sound we need 32 x 4 will remember it when we press Store. When we want to find that particular sound again we can either press the relevant buttons for location, or simply 'step' through the programmes for 1-A-1 to 4-d-8 with a footpedal which plugs into the rear of the unit. It is also possible to accomplish this 'stepping through' via a pad. Each time you strike it, the machine will move to the next location.

The memory section, by the way, is backed up by a rechargeable battery so you won't lose your memory (or your mind) if there's a power cut.

As far as I can ascertain, these new 'Super Live' pads are available in Black or White with a red logo at present.

I must say that MPC certainly seem to be getting their act together down there in Cambridge. They're offering several sophisticated bits and pieces these days: besides the DSM stuff we can have programmers, trigger boxes, auto toms, and now the new memory module. Not bad at all!

For: Run generator, price, spurs, hole in down tube for cables
Against: Acoustic pad noise

MPC ELECTRONIC DRUM SET — £768.85