REVIEW: Akai MPC Live
This isn’t just a new standalone MPC – its operating system and rechargeable battery make it potentially the most self-sufficient MPC ever. Si Truss goes off the grid...
The latest MPC packs a built-in processor and battery. How does it cope in the wild?
Akai released the first computerreliant ‘hybrid’ MPC in 2012, and immediately it divided opinion among users. There are two schools of thought – the purists, who argue that reducing the MPC to the status of a controller strips it of its essence, and the pragmatists, who acknowledge that a standalone MIDI sequencer is a bit of an anachronism in an age of cheap laptops. Both have a point.
Now, with the launch of the MPC Live and its forthcoming big sibling, the MPC X, Akai appear to have finally found a way to bridge this dichotomy. While both still rely on the software developed for the controller MPCs – and both can function as plug-and-play controllers for the desktop version – this new line keeps things self-contained by housing their own multicore processors, allowing the software to also run inside the MPC itself. In fact, the MPC Live claims the title of the most self-sufficient MPC ever, thanks to a built-in lithium ion battery that allows between four and six hours of plug-free operation.
The layout of the Live hardware itself is almost identical to last year’s MPC Touch. The main difference is size – the Live is a few centimetres longer and wider, and a good deal chunkier in depth. It’s heavier too, understandable given the inclusion of the battery and onboard processing. Despite this, it remains just the right side of the portability divide – you could happily get it into a backpack and take it as hand luggage on a flight.
Around the back Live features a decent raft of I/O. There are balanced jack and RCA inputs [see
Record And Sample] along with three pairs of assignable balanced jack outputs. These are joined by two MIDI in and two MIDI out ports, along with a pair of USB 3.0 slots that can be used to load/transfer content or host class-compliant MIDI devices. An SD card slot adds an option for loading sound content, while a final USB port allows connection to a host computer. The Live is also equipped with both
Bluetooth and WiFi – the former can be used to hook up MIDI devices, and although the latter doesn’t currently have any applications, Akai have expressed an intention to roll out wireless sync and file transfer in a future update.
Under the hood, the processor packs 2GB of RAM. There’s a 16GB hard drive onboard which comes stocked with 10GB of factory content. A SATA slot allows the built-in storage to be expanded too.
The quality of the hardware is generally very high. The rubbertopped metal chassis looks smart and feels sturdy, as do the buttons and rotaries. The 7-inch touchscreen is bright and clear, and is generally responsive under the fingers. The 16 pads remain a high-point of the MPC design – in terms of playability and feel they’re head-and-shoulders above most pad controllers on the market. The only misstep is the back panel on/off switch, which is loose and cheap-feeling; it’s a minor, albeit slightly odd, weak point in an otherwise impeccable build.
Given its size and standalone credentials, it’s impressive what the MPC Live is capable of. Sampling and sequencing remain the heart of the MPC experience and the Live is flexible in both departments – both are handled by the MIDI tracks section of the OS, which can host sampled Drum Programs, Keygroup Programs (ie, sampled instruments and kits) or output MIDI to external devices.
Patterns can be recorded via the 16 velocity- and pressure-sensitive pads. Everything can also be manually inputted and edited via a piano roll/ sequencer grid on the touchscreen. Using the screen for deep sequence edits can occasionally feel fiddly, but generally the combination of the touch interface, main rotary and Q Link controls make for a decent experience, on a par with what you’d expect from a modern DAW.
Sampled instruments can be loaded with sounds from the built-in memory, an external USB/SD, or recorded directly from the MPC Live’s inputs. A Sample Edit window allows sounds to be trimmed, looped, re-pitched and sliced across the 16 pads. A Program Edit window, meanwhile, allows up to four samples
Sampling and sequencing remain the heart of the MPC experience