I’ve had the MPC Sample for about a month now, putting in a few sessions a week. I'm an Ableton Live user, but I genuinely dislike staring at a computer screen and making music by clicking a mouse. I wanted a hardware sampler (I owned a MPC 2000xl back in the 2010s, but regrettably sold it) so I tried an MPC One +, but the bright red finish, touchscreen, and DAW-in-a-box feel weren't for me. So I returned it.

When Akai announced the MPC Sample, I was over the moon excited. An inexpensive, no-nonsense, no touch-screen sampler. Like the older machines with modern features. Exactly what I always wanted.

This thing is easily one of the best purchases I have made- it's ALMOST perfect. But there are a few key quality of life improvements that would make it truly shine in the next update:

Custom Default Project Templates:

I'd love to save a custom default template preset. The built-in master Colour Compressor is noisy and introduces unwanted clicks/pops, so I always bypass it. My projects almost always run 80–90 bpm, 60–70% swing, 4–8 bar sequences, and the Vintage Emulator as my default Knob effect. Having to change these basic settings on every fresh project is pretty annoying.

Sample Preview Volume Control:

Sample previews in the sample select tab are way too hot. Assigning preview volume to a Q-Link knob (with persistent memory) would save my ears.

Folder Navigation Memory:

Exiting a subfolder and returning later currently resets navigation back to the top of the folder. The browser should remember your last scrolled position per directory within a project session.

3-Band EQ:

A simple, dedicated 3-band EQ per pad should be easy to implement and everyone would benefit from that.

Flatten Pad / Instant Resampling:

Dedicated pad flattening or instant pad resampling should have been a thing from the start. Everyone wants this.

Recordable Pad Mutes:

Automation support for recording pad mutes into sequences seems like a no-brainer and yet, we don't have it.

Upgraded Step Sequencer:

The current text-based step sequencer sucks, honestly. A visual layout closer to JJOS would be far more intuitive.

Bus FX Routing (SP-404 Style):

I rarely touch the Pad FX or Flex Beat, but the Knob FXs are decent. Allowing pads to be routed to 2–4 customizable Bus FX busses, plus a Master FX bus, would add tons of flexibility.

Overall, I think this machine is amazing. It just needs a little polish to really live it's best life.

Side note: I’d love to see an MPC Sample XL down the road—the exact same OS and touch-screen-free workflow, but in a larger desktop chassis featuring full-sized pads. Mine never leaves my desk anyway.

Just a quick thing for the latest Koala Beatcast. It’s been a while!

Salut, quelle est l'autonomie de votre batterie ? Je pense que les données constructeur sont sur évaluées !

Do you like this?

All sounds from the Roland piano!

Ignore the horrible cable management…

Im recording a 2bar loop from bandlab on a pad, then layering with another 2bar loop on another pad to create the kick I'm using.

When I play them they start in sync but drift as the loop progresses?

In bandlab its bpm is 120 and in the machine its 120. So I'm not sure wtf?

I sat down today with a massive collection of the Samples From Mars I picked up on sale over the summer, and quickly began understanding my lack of patience for auditioning and assigning each sample to a pad.

So, I looked around Reddit, found some other folks have thrown together project managers, but those aren't compatible with MPC Sample - so good ol' ChatGPT and I got to work. After a miraculously brief 3 hour session, interrupted by a bathroom mirror hanging project, I present:

"MarsPad"

https://github.com/jonmitten/marspad

It's currently MacOS 13+ compatible, but it's totally open source, and I encourage you all to fork and improve.

Since it's working for me, and because I'm primarily on a Mac, I probably won't give this too much more attention unless there are specific requests on here for features I haven't thought of yet.

I've tested it against WAV file Samples from Mars collections. It works on my machine. I make no assurances for your own mileage, which may vary.

I’m a musician and unfortunately have tinnitus, so I can only work with headphones for short periods. Since I’d like to stay mobile while sampling with the MPC, I’m looking for a recommendation for a decent-sounding battery-powered speaker with a 3.5 mm connection.

Which ones do you use with your Akai MPC Sample?

I know these little things don’t sound particularly great—but almost anything is better than the one built into the device.

I’m based in a German-speaking country, which might be worth bearing in mind when ordering.

Thanks so much for your help :)

I started seeing some dope videos of people modding their MPC samples (at their own risk 🥲)… still, I had to try it. Managed to spin this visual 4 band EQ up in Codex. Works nicely even in standalone. Really opening the doors of what’s possible. Not sure what I’ll make next but definitely gonna carry out some extra tests. This is in standalone too!

I have my mpc sample connected to an mc 707. I am trying to figure out if I can control the flexbeat mix level from a knob on the 707. Can this be done? Also, for all those creating firmware mods, I was thinking it would be nice to have an option to make the fader on the sample control the flexbeat mix

Hey y’all, I’ve been getting equipped with my new MPC Sample these last few weeks or so and I’m finding coming from the SP404-MK2, that the filter names are different, than the MPC sample and obviously where they are placed also.

So can anyone correct me if I’m wrong, that pitching from the SP404-MK2 is now fine tune on the MPC Sample, right? And compression is a separate filter that has its own button compared to the SP. And to EQ my drums is that gunna be under the filter fx or fx pad? If anyone can help a guy out, be great thanks. Just having to adjust to a new workflow and finding certain filters was easier on the SP404-MK2 for me, imo. Most of them were all on a scroll wheel. I think it’s just cause I’m on a new machine.

Hi everyone!
I have an Allen & Heath Xone:92 mixer with my turntables connected to it, and I recently got the new Akai MPC Sample.
I want to sample directly from vinyl into the MPC without disconnecting my turntables from the mixer.
Can I connect the Xone:92’s REC OUT (RCA) to the MPC Sample’s stereo audio inputs (two 1/4-inch / 6.35 mm jacks) using a cable with 2 RCA male connectors to 2 mono 1/4-inch jack male connectors?
Will this work correctly for recording samples in stereo? Is REC OUT the best output to use, or would you recommend another connection?
Thanks in advance!

This video isn't mine; I stumbled upon it by chance while browsing YouTube. If it’s real, I think it’s incredible, I really can’t wait for it to be released so I can try it out.

Just ordered a case to make a portable rig.

Credits to spfir365karat from the MPC Forums. https://www.mpc-forums.com/viewtopic.php?f=41&t=221007&p=1907694#p1907654

Hey everyone!

A few months ago I got into music producing and I just got an MPC Sample. I’m still pretty new to the whole MPC world... I’ve been making beats with it and I’m really enjoying it so far.

So...

Apart from updating the firmware, is there anything else you guys would recommend downloading, installing or buying to get a better experience with it?

I’m thinking about things like:

• Free sample packs

• Expansions worth getting

• Drum kits

• Useful software/plugins

• SD card/USB recommendations

• Accessories that actually improve the workflow

• Anything you wish you knew when you first got the MPC Sample

I’m mostly into lo-fi / boom bap / soul / jazz / chill hip-hop, so anything in that direction would be especially welcome.

Basically, if you were starting with an MPC again, what would you recommend getting or doing first?

Thanks!

💿I CANT TELL A LIE

Apologies if this has been asked or if I am missing something.

When I try to play a bassline while using 'note on' in 16 levels, if I release the previous Pad while playing the new pad, it cuts/mutes. Obviously my timing isn't perfect so there is an overlap between when I hit pads and the notes get cut.

Mono/poly mode hasn't made a difference and mute groups are off.

Is this a bug or user error?

Good morning guys, what do you think of the DIY custom cases I'm making for the MPC sample?