MPC Live II

touchscreen is included, along with
the four Q-Link rotaries and main
browser knob. The clicky plastic
buttons don’t feel as nice as their
rubber counterparts on the Live II
but, oddly enough, the One actually
has more front panel controls, with
dedicated buttons for functions such
as Program Edit and Q-Link edit that
aren’t there on its counterpart.
The pads themselves have been
downsized a little, making them
closer in size to those found on
Novation’s Launchpad Pro, but they
still feel excellent to play and are up
there with the most responsive you’ll
fi nd on any MIDI controller.
The multicore CPU and RAM
under-the-hood is identical to that of
the MPC Live, so there’s no
difference when it comes to the
software experience itself. The two
areas where notable concessions
have been made are the onboard
storage and hardware I/O. On the
former front, the One trims the
16GB drive found in the MPC Live
down to just 2GB, with a signifi cant
reduction in pre-loaded sounds as a
a deck for sampling, odds are you
already have a mixer or amp to hand
that can act as a go-between.
Alongside these, there’s one MIDI
input and one output, and one each
of USB-A, USB-B and ethernet
network connection. Of these, it’s
the Live’s multiple USB-A ports I’d
miss most, as I like being able to use
them to load samples and run an
external MIDI device simultaneously.
On the whole though, nothing’s
missing that would be a dealbreaker
for most users. The full crop of CV
minijacks remain – a nice touch.
Soft launch
On the digital side, these MPCs –
and the previous gen Live and X –
result (although the 2GB sound
library hardly feels stingy).
Fortunately, there’s still USB and SD
card slots included, making it easy
to expand the storage options.
Elsewhere, the ins and outs have
been trimmed down to the bare
minimum needed to leave the MPC
One as a fully functioning
workstation. The additional output
from the Live have been removed,
leaving just a stereo pair master
output and headphone port. The
inputs too, are trimmed back to just
one stereo pair, losing the Live’s
phono input. This makes it slightly
more complicated to sample directly
from a vinyl turntable, but it’s not
massively problematic – if you’ve got
THE ALTERNATIVES
Roland MC-707
£755
The fl agship of
Roland’s revived
groovebox range
combines a ton of
quality synth and
drum machine
sounds, impressive
effects and
audio looping.
roland.com
Pioneer DJ Toraiz
SP-16 £850
Pioneer’s standalone
sampler borrows a
number of ideas
from the classic
MPC format but
includes features
aimed at DJs and
live performers.
pioneerdj .com
Native
Instruments
Maschine MK3
£499
If you’re not
concerned about
being bound to a
laptop, NI’s
interface-equipped
controller offers a
slick, tight music
making experience.
native-instruments.com
There’s no rival for realising
the dream of wireless, go-
anywhere music production
Native
Instruments
Maschine MK3
£499
If you’re not
concerned about
being bound to a
laptop, NI’s
interface-equipped
controller offers a
slick, tight music
making experience.
native-instruments.com
have been made are the onboard
storage and hardware I/O. On the
former front, the One trims the
16GB drive found in the MPC Live
down to just 2GB, with a signifi cant
reduction in pre-loaded sounds as a
Pioneer DJ Toraiz
Pioneer’s standalone
sampler borrows a
the dream of wireless, go-
anywhere music production
BUTTONS The clicky plastic
buttons aren’t as nice feeling as
the Live’s rubber versions, but
there are more of them
PADS The pads here are slightly
smaller than those on the Live
or X, but still feel great and are
highly responsive
I/O The One strips the
connectivity back to, in most
cases, one each of all major ports
Reviews | Akai MPC One & MPC Live II
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FMU358.rev_akai.indd 76 15/05/2020 13:47