#mpc controller

I have a soft spot in my heart for Akai and Akai products in general; as I will always see them as the king of the live production machine.  Even when I search for controllers and other devices that aren’t related to the MPC, I will always give a little more of my attention to the Akai products versus something coming from Korg, especially if it has square pads in the device.  But maybe I’m being too one sided with this approach and maybe I shouldn’t be giving them the benefit of the doubt.  Although Akai gets credit for creating the first real button mashing music box out there, they haven’t done the best job of staying current with that technology. [embed width="656"]http://youtu.be/h5DhaYaRr6o[/embed] The guys over at Native Instruments have done the better job of making live production on a standalone machine, a thing of the past – or at least they have made it easier and cheaper.  In fact, they have even created their own “Maschine” that does what the MPC already does, and more.  I believe that Akai is struggling to reclaim their spot in the market and among the hearts and minds of music producers once again; perhaps it is time to go back to where it all started? http://www.synthtopia.com/content/2013/02/26/mpc-software-version-1-3

Does the MPC still have a place in digital production and digital DJing?  Or is it simply a staple of the past that is held onto by many who once owned one?  If you take a look at the latest MPCs, you’ll notice that they aren’t as popular and thereby aren’t selling that well.  It has more to do with the competition that it does with the MPC itself; the Maschine and other like it simply offer more at a better price.  Still, it will be a long time before Akai shuts down the MPC completely, and they’ve made better attempts at modernizing it to fit in an era of MIDI controllers and other electronic gadgets. The Akai MPC Studio Controller is a foot in the right direction.  By design, it ditches the need for bulky thickness, eliminating the internals that were once dedicated to storage and playback.  Its new design is dependent on the computer that it is plugged into, as is the case with all MIDI controllers out now.  The most striking aspect of it is its MPC like quality.  It doesn’t look cheap and the price reflects the build quality as well.  This is the direction that Akai needs to take. http://djworx.com/review-akai-mpc-studio-music-production-controller/

Most equipment companies out there know what they are good at and what they are not good at.  When they have something they do very well, they really cannot improve upon it much – except that they can keep doing what they do.  When a company lags behind on something, they sooner they fix it the sooner they can begin recouping their reputation.  Akai has been known as a hardware king, not a software giant.  They specialize in the MPC, or at least they are the first to take the idea of a pad drum machine and explore it to its fullest.  With the times changing, Akai has attempted to change with it, but they have also fallen short in certain areas. In an effort to make pad machines more affordable, they have branched off into the controller industry, where their machines are built to run on other software that isn’t located inside the units themselves.  The idea is sound, but it this has actually caused problems for the hardware guys who don’t have as much experience dealing with software.  If they could get their included software on par with their hardware, they might be on to something for themselves. http://www.musicradar.com/news/tech/akai-mpc-element-is-the-most-affordable-mpc-ever-584308