A fair bit has been lost from the Renaissance hardware to keep things compact and the price lower. MPC X is hugely powerful, it works impressively standalone and as a controller, and it’s well on the way to replacing your DAW, live or in the studio. It'll be interesting to see how both develop from this point. Oddly, some midi-mappable controls (Grid View / Waveform View) are not present with Akai's own MPC Studio (v2), MPC Touch, MPC Ren, etc.... amazing how these controls are available to learn, but not on their own hardware. Its brushed aluminium/plastic case looks slick and the pads feel much the same as the Renaissance (perhaps a little firmer) but no less responsive. Visit our corporate site. The MPC Studio's hardware feels pretty sturdy yet it's only one-inch thick. It's larger than that of my Elektron Octatrack, for example, and that copes fine with sample editing. Akai Pro takes its MPC series and Force in firmware 2.9/3.0.6 to the next level with a new drum synth engine that significantly expands the sound horizon. Its still small, sturdy, and covered in features: 16 Genuine MPC pads and 4 Q-Link control knobs with MPC Note Repeat, Full Level, and 16 Level for inspirational workflow. In my humble opinion, they're still the best pads for drum programming. Bath The biggest is the internal AIR synths: TubeSynth, Bassline and Electric, which are a real boost to the MPCs as stand-alone devices. Published: 11/24/2020, 10:30:32 AM EST . At under one-inch thin, with low-profile controls and a brushed aluminum body, its made to move. This concerned the way plug-ins were handled, which was badly. So let’s make more effort, and discover what makes the MPC Live different from its predecessor. Please refresh the page and try again. Akai Mpc Style Pads. Akai’s MPC Live II is an all-in-one portable studio in the truest sense thanks to the addition of built-in speakers. The layout is centered around the traditional, top quality pads that MPCs are well known for. The MPC Studio is Akai's latest hardware controller for a software brain that rules the plug-ins and samples of your PC or Mac. So far Akai seems to be responding to user requests well and that's the exciting thing with this new MPC software - it can be as advanced as Akai's small coding team choose to make it. Home. There's hardly any wasted space on the low-profile, brushed-aluminium panel, but the matrix of backlit drum pads grabs the lion's share, leaving a multitude of buttons jostling for what's left. To be clear, It’s a good problem, as there’s basically an MPC for every type of electronic musician. Has become a very playable MPC for your samples and plug-ins, thanks to improvements in this version. In the main, OS 1.2 (which we're testing with the Studio) is stable but there are still some bugs and missing features including broken undo functionality, no hardware sample zooming, no search/ tagging in the browser and legacy file support needs improving. MPC Studio merges real MPC pads, iconic workflow, and the same MPC Software used by MPC Renaissance to give you a fully integrated portable production solution. £1,849; By Dan 'JD73' Goldman 12 December 2017. Before You Buy The Akai MPC Studio Black: What You Need To Know Before You Buy The MPC Studio Black© 2016 - 2020 Phiah Ltd - All rights reserved. A lazy version of this review would link back to our coverage of Akai’s MPC Touch, and say “See that – it’s just like that, but standalone!” There is some truth in that, but it’d definitely be missing out on the bigger picture. Hiding unused tracks in the MPC software. There was a problem. Similarly, plug-in selection is no longer a disorganised list; you can browse by type and plug-in manufacturer. If you refer back to the Renaissance review in the February 2013 issue of SOS for the details, we can concentrate here on what came next. At under one-inch thin, with low-profile controls and a brushed aluminum body, MPC Studio made to move. Look round the … Akai MPK249 Performance packed, feature rich MIDI keyboard that offers everything a professional producer would need. Instead, Akai have fitted two 3.5mm sockets and included a couple of short conversion leads to translate them into regular five-pin females. I experienced just a couple of crashes, and on both occasions with fairly obscure plug-ins. Complete Review – Akai MPD 218. Unfortunately, this currently rules out the various vintage emulation modes, unless Akai can develop software-only versions. Far more convenient than the larger Renaissance, it's the MPC built to travel. Review: Akai MPK Mini MK3 Continuing to build on its incomparable legacy, Akai adds to its range of products that combines the aesthetics of the old with the advancements of the new. Notably, the swing options sound very close to the hardware MPC models and basic beat tracking and sampling feels much like an old MPC. The Akai Professional MPC Studio is the newest line of MPC from Akai and it came out this year. Compared to the Renaissance, the main drawback is the Studio's knob sparseness. It's a pleasure out of bounds to MPC Studio owners, though, because the vintage modes insist on the audio hardware found on the Renaissance. Furthermore, the same plug-in can be used on multiple tracks. A new track starts with the same program and plug-in as the previous one. In fact, the audio export options aren't available while the MPC software is running as a plug-in. It uses the same MPC software (minus the Renaissance's Vintage Mode) controlled by more compact and portable hardware. The contents of this article are subject to worldwide copyright protection and reproduction in whole or part, whether mechanical or electronic, is expressly forbidden without the prior written consent of the Publishers. Future Publishing Limited Quay House, The Ambury, The "Studio can also be used as a standalone production sequencer. © I had the pleasure of working with it twice. The world is now your studio. From its new batch of icons to the ongoing upgrade program for the track view and automation lanes, the host software simply looks better and more professional. As a general feeling of trustworthiness crystallises, it's safe to say that the MPC transition to a software base has finally happened. Akai MPC Live II Review: A Truly Portable All-in-one Studio. Most buttons include coloured LED-type strips, which helps. It's stable, smooth and pleasant to work with, which should make waiting for fixes, updates and favourite MPC features more bearable. Is it the perfect tools for creative, mobile beat-mak. Been using both since the late 90’s/early 2000… The MPC has a generous 128 tracks, and although I'm the last person to obsess about tidiness, I really appreciated being able to pack away those that weren't in use. The panel layout is conducive to fast workflow and owes much to hardware MPC's. Occasionally, I received a message ordering me to attach the controller, even though I'd been happily using it all afternoon. Audio export has been fleshed out, too, and now supports export of submixes and of consolidated WAVs from multiple plug-in tracks. "OS 1.3 is a major update, addressing a lot of the main user concerns and thankfully Akai does appear to be listening". Provided you don't misplace them at a vital moment, they should do the job admirably. For example, stopping the music to save the project seems (just about) acceptable, but it's restrictive to have to hit stop before entering Song mode. MPC Studio offers the most streamlined MPC experience yet. "The MPC Studio's hardware feels pretty sturdy yet it's only one-inch thick". It comes stocked with over 6GB of sounds and it supports VST plug ins. Not that tradition is everything: branching off for the sake of portability opens up fun new avenues and, in the Studio, you have the functionality of the larger machine in a seriously portable package. Native Instruments' Maschine is the well-established alternative, its second generation of hardware making great use of colour and emphasising simplicity and live performance over full song production. Since 1.3, the software no longer generates separate copies of each plug-in for every sequence, saving resources by the bucketload. Rounding up this batch of OS tweaks, Akai's bundled plug-ins have been born again to make them directly accessible from the Program Edit page. It's USB-powered with low-profile knobs and brushed aluminum body, and includes MPC Software for Mac and PC with 128-track sequencing capability. The hardware's display looks capable of zooming. Pros Audio engine and interface sound excellent. The MPC Studio's layout is straightforward and easy to learn, whether you're a new or longtime MPC user. At this point, I began to feel a bit left out, because there's a new vintage emulation mode, too — exclusively for MPC Renaissance users. Wow! They aren't standard, though, because the unit isn't deep enough. The Akai MPK249 is a proven performer and comes with all the features you need to be a “pro” in the studio. Looking for a Multitrack Recorder – Any Recommendations... How this is possible and are my headphones good? In one sense, this threatens to become a triumph of style over common sense, because the five stunted encoders are never particularly grippable, even though their action is smooth enough. Fortunately, these are the most useful two (The Bank and The 809), and there's also that large collection of classic MPC samples and loops to wade through — plus all your plug-ins and effects, too: don't forget those! Many times I have been working on a drum pattern and found it easier to just open some plugins, build … There are also functional quirks to address, assuming the aim is to convey a hardware-like experience. Indeed, this is the expected behaviour. The 1.3 update (out on 15th Feb) is a major update, addressing a lot of the main user concerns and thankfully Akai does appear to be listening, with updates coming every couple of months. Is it the perfect tools for creative, mobile beat-mak. Akai resisted the obvious trick of positioning knobs under the screen, like NI's you-know-what, but that idea might have worked nicely. England and Wales company registration number 2008885. I couldn't test the improved MPC3000 file handling either. There's no tilting screen or audio interface, only four Q-links instead of 16, and no ring LEDs (to name a few). This mainly occurred while running under Logic, the software informing me that it would run in demo mode even though it continued to be fully functional. To accommodate the functionality of the much larger Renaissance, the buttons have had to shrink down and huddle together, but with practice you should hit the correct one more often than not. How does it perform? All contents copyright © SOS Publications Group and/or its licensors, 1985-2021. The Studio also lacks the immediacy and ruggedness of MPCs of yore; the buttons don't inspire massive confidence, although the pads take a good whacking with no suggestion of compromise. Don't miss the latest deals, news, reviews, features and tutorials. The hardware has a few downsides but its size, price, and improving software makes it a winner. Akai Pro got off to a difficult start with its new MPC range. We covered in our MPC Live and MPC X by Akai Pro Review (2019) the previously released MPC machines. You will receive a verification email shortly. Hiding unused tracks in the MPC software. Complete Review – Akai MPD 232. It also has improved knobs, scroll wheel, and the MPC Renaissance's spun aluminum data dial, so it will hold up even longer and give you a better feel during your performances. The software remains 32-bit (64-bit is scheduled for the 1.4 release) and classic MPC features such as Step Edit are yet to be seen. Music Computers. Recent years have seen Akai go back to […] It doesn't seem more than five minutes since I was exploring the hefty chunk of real-estate that is Akai's MPC Renaissance. Simple And Functional Design Despite all of the technology that’s been packed into this MPC, the Akai One has a stylish yet simple and tactile design. Increased compatibility with earlier MPCs. The rear panel is super-minimal, but finds room for an on/off switch and a single set of MIDI ports. Akai has an MPC problem. We hope Akai can implement a feature so that it's easier to keep track of the actual quantise values used on a per track basis in the future to further improve workflow, plus implement a proper undo history. Now newbies can get hooked in without having to spend a penny. The same goes for the four touch-sensitive Q-link dials and scroll wheel (which is used to scroll through the software functions) - they are also quite slippery and hard to grip and would have been better with a rubberised surface. Welcome to your studio. Even if it runs counter to MPC 'workflow', I'd have liked dedicated buttons for mute and solo, as well as at least one volume control, but I guess there was simply no room on the Studio. Thank you for signing up to Musicradar. Welcome to production anywhere. Turning next to features demanded by users of various legacy MPCs, I can report but can't verify that the import of MPC2000 and 2000XL files has been added.