Akai Professional has cemented its place in the DAW club, with the new MPC Beats boasting a 2GB sample library, three new plug-in instruments, 80 effects plug-ins and integrated hardware control.
The Japanese company has been active of late, releasing the MPC X and MPC Live in 2018 and then their followup, the MPC Live II, this May. Akai have also regularly updated their MPC2 Desktop software, culminating in the inevitable move deeper into DAW territory. This is certainly in line with the trend of all-in-one products launched by many audio developers—Universal Audio being another example with their new DAW Luna.
Built on the legacy of the MPC, Akai have shown that they are not hesitant to embrace modern trends. Their collaboration with Splice in 2018 and now the decision to offer a free DAW are indicators of this, if anything.
Praising it as the perfect choice for an entry-level beat maker, Akai describes MPC Beats as an, “ultra-intuitive, inspiring entry-point for producing professional sounding music underpinned by the renowned MPC workflow.” MPC Beats will also be able to function as a plug-in in all mainstream DAWs.
The MPC software’s latest update, firmware 2.8, had already introduced features like a 32-channel MIDI output, audio effects by AIR Music Technology and audio track recording for their hardware. It is no surprise to see that this technology and the goal of making MPC products the centre-pieces of studios has paved the way for a complete DAW.
MPC Beats Features
The new DAW, based on the MPC workflow, features two audio tracks and eight MIDI/instrument tracks, 16 pads with sample editing, a 2GB sample library, three new software instruments, 80 effects plug-ins from AIR, AU/VST plug-in support and MIDI mapping capabilities with pre-mapped functions for hardware by AKAI and certain other developers.
The fact that Akai has only provided two audio channels leads us to assume that MPC Beats is not intended as go-to recording software. These audio channels are more likely aimed at recording vocals, instruments or sound design elements for quick sampling. We’re interested to see how it plays out in practical use.
The UI includes a 4 x 4 drum sample grid with macros, a piano roll, a sample library browser and a sample edit window. There is also a smart layouts feature that is integrated with the beat templates on offer.
Of MPC Beats, Akai Professional senior product manager Dan Gill said, “We’re always looking to better understand and identify the evolving profile of music makers. With MPC Beats, we’ve created a powerful platform for a rapidly growing demographic, equipping them with every tool to eliminate barriers between their ideas and their creations. We’ve paired the best of the MPC history with comprehensive and intuitive workflows to give the next generation the best possible start to their music journey.”
MPC Beats is available as a free download on the Akai website.