Very active board/community would help. But not just that, friendly, informative people would make it that much stronger, no matter how naive or ignorant the visitors (new or old) may be. For a new people visiting, what experience should they except?

It doesn't matter if you have all the samples, loops, interviews, news articles, information in the world, a community must have heart. All it is, is making people feel welcomed and comfortable; a place where they actually can take something and learn. You want them to come back time and time again; not just to, for example, get loops and samples. Also, the key is to have good word of mouth.