Akai MPC Sample review: my new favorite portable beat maker

Akai MPC is among the most storied names in music historical past. But over the past decade, it’s strayed fairly removed from its roots as a humble sampler. The modern MPCs run digital synthesizers, have advanced association instruments, and sport giant touchscreens. They have extra in frequent along with your laptop working a DAW than they do with the unique MPC60. The MPC Sample is each a return to fundamentals and Akai’s triumphant foray into the rising marketplace for portable, battery-powered, and affordable music gear.

The MPC Sample has every part it is advisable make beats proper out of the field. There’s a fairly brilliant 2.4-inch coloration display screen for enhancing samples and navigating the UI, a mediocre built-in speaker, an especially delicate mic, and a chargeable battery, and it comes preloaded with tons of of samples to get you began.

Now, you’re unlikely to be deciding between the MPC Sample and different MPCs, just like the Live III or the One+. It’s partially a matter of worth (the Sample is $399, and the next-cheapest mannequin is the One+ at $699), but it surely’s additionally fully completely different from every part else within the MPC lineup. It permits you to file, edit, play again, and organize samples into patterns. That’s a bit reductive, but it surely covers many of the core options. That’s to not say the Sample is hamstrung — its limitations are a part of its enchantment.

The MPC Sample takes inspiration from the MPC 60 in each workflow and design. It sports activities the identical beigeish-gray physique, a vintage-styled Akai Professional brand, a parameter fader, and even a wrist relaxation (which is usually beauty). The distinction is that the MPC Sample is a lot smaller. It’s not fairly as portable because the Teenage Engineering KO-II or the Roland P-6, however at simply over 9 inches lengthy and 7 inches huge, and beneath two inches at its thickest, it is going to nonetheless simply slot in a backpack for some on-the-go beat making.

Of course, the pads are what make an MPC an MPC. Like every other entry within the pantheon, there are 16 velocity-sensitive pads organized in a four-by-four grid. In my opinion, Akai’s are the most effective within the enterprise. Only these on the Roland SP-404 come shut.

But, as a result of the Sample is so tiny, the pads are a lot smaller. It’s not the identical luxurious expertise you get on different Akai units. They’re higher than the pads on MIDI controllers like Novation’s Launch collection, or on the P-6 or KO-II, however they’re not as good as these on the Roland 404. I’m already a fairly crappy finger drummer, and with smaller targets, I used to be extra vulnerable to errors.

Connectivity is surprisingly sturdy. There are balanced 1/4-inch stereo ins and outs, 1/8-inch TRS MIDI out and in, analog sync, and a headphone jack, plus USB-C for energy, MIDI, audio, file transfers, and firmware updates. There’s even a microSD slot for increasing the interior 8GB of storage.

There are a number of quirks of the Sample workflow that I discovered annoying. There is resampling, which I take advantage of continually on the SP-404, however right here it simply turns the present sequence right into a new pattern. There’s no approach to resample stay enjoying or pattern manipulation for the time being. I additionally discover the step sequencer cumbersome. You should scroll by means of every step fairly than programming a four-on-the-floor beat on the pads.

Beyond that, the MPC Sample is a pleasure to make use of. It’s extremely intuitive. I used to be capable of sit down and begin making music instantly with out consulting a handbook. This isn’t as a result of I’m an skilled MPC person. In truth, I’ve solely ever used an MPC as soon as earlier than, and I discovered it fairly complicated. The Sample’s restricted characteristic set means you’re not attempting to wrap your head round advanced sequencing parameters, spending minutes diving by means of menus, or memorizing unlabeled four-button shift features (taking a look at you, Roland P-6).

One of the good joys in life is chopping up a pattern and rearranging it by banging on some pads. The MPC Sample makes this a seamless pleasure. There’s a button clearly labeled chop. The third context-sensitive knob then adjustments the chop kind from transient (which kinda sucks), to area (4, eight, or sixteen equal chops), or handbook, which additionally permits you to carry out lazy chops (faucet the pads the place you need the chop because the pattern performs).

You’ve received loads of room for samples, too. There are eight banks of 16 samples at your disposal per mission, with as many tasks because the 8GB inner storage or a microSD card will maintain. Each mission may also comprise 128 sequences, which you’ll be able to then organize in a easy music mode and export as an audio file.

The MPC Sample isn’t a whole throwback. There are fashionable facilities, like time-stretching and re-pitching, in addition to a ton of built-in results. The results are arrange in a barely complicated method, but it surely’s not too arduous to get the dangle of. There is a devoted compressor that lives in its personal menu. Then there may be Knob FX, which lets you select between 28 completely different results and apply one to any variety of pads. So if you wish to put some auto-wah on a bassline you sampled whereas leaving your drums clear, you possibly can. Or you possibly can apply it to all if you need.

Then there are Pad FX, which provides you 16 performance-focused results that you just apply to a complete sequence. The impact’s depth adjustments relying on how arduous you press the corresponding pad. This is just like how Teenage Engineering handles punch-in results on the KO-II, however Akai’s impact choice and implementation aren’t fairly nearly as good. The granulator and comb filter, as an example, really feel nearly unusable in any respect however the subtlest of settings — and people will not be significantly refined.

The most enjoyable is Flex Beat, a group of pitch- and time-based results for issues like beat repeats, scratch-like results, and even a tape cease. If used sparingly, it could actually add some spice to a efficiency, however it could actually positively get tiresome if overused.

The greatest subject for the MPC Sample is that it simply has a lot competitors. The Roland SP-404 MKII ($499.99), Roland Aira Compact P-6 ($269.99), Teenage Engineering EP-133 Okay.O. II ($329), Elektron Model:Samples ($349), the Sonicware SmplTrek ($399), Lofi-12 ($259), and Lofi-12 XT ($399) all deal with making music with samples and are all in roughly the identical worth vary.

The SP-404 is the bulkiest, most complex, and most costly of the bunch. But it’s additionally received essentially the most insane results, the most effective vinyl simulator, and the most effective pads. The Model:Samples has the most effective sequencer. The P-6 doubles as a granular synth. And the KO-II has the most effective re-pitching engine for enjoying melodic samples, in addition to the most effective efficiency results.

What the MPC has going for it’s the most intuitive workflow and the most effective steadiness of options. It’s not essentially the most effective at anyone explicit factor, but it surely’s above common at nearly every part, which makes it straightforward to advocate to most budding beat makers.