MPC Key 61: Impressive, But Frustrating

I hate making videos this critical, but you can follow my journey from optimism to remorse and see why I did.
I did reach out to Akai, btw, but only using the avenues a paying customer would. [Cricket sound]
💗 Support this channel and join an amazing community: / bennjordan
⚡Those lovely custom acoustic panels in the background: psyacoustics.com
Timestamps
00:00: - Intro
04:00: - Demoing the pianos
08:50: - 1 patch, 55% CPU usage
10:39: - Severe Bugs
13:00: - Day 2. Factory Reset
15:00: - System crash
16:37: - Recording a double bass
19:22: - List edit for glitchy beats
23:26: - THE SONG I Finally Made
26:10: - Takeaways & Thoughts
#akai #beatmaking #musicproduction

[@BennJordan]

Guess this would be a good time to link my brand loyalty video ✌: kzbin.info/www/bejne/fqKwfoWeaLuFipo 00:00: Intro 04:00: Demoing the pianos 08:50: 1 patch, 55% CPU usage 10:39: Severe Bugs 13:00: Day 2. Factory Reset 15:00: System crash 16:37: Recording a double bass 19:22: List edit for glitchy beats 23:26: THE SONG I Finally Made 26:10: Takeaways & Thoughts

[@orionswitness]

Renting a MPC61 here in Australia Having owned a Roland FA06 , and a Juno 61 , both 61 keyboard workstations of sorts , what blows me away with this unit is everything is central to the eyes and hands . If it’s about being creative and writing entire songs or instrumentals , if we can’t be happy with this unit , there is no hope of happiness. Imagine for $3200 AUD you can get something like this . I think some people are looking for a player piano end game . Painting by numbers . Personally I think this unit is unbelievable , by yourself in a room , with just your joy and gloom , wonder and blunder, all from an MPC sitting under.

[@GizzyDillespee]

The "brand loyalty" video is worth watching. Corporations might be people too, legally, but if so they're the psychopaths you'd smile and nod at, and get away from as fast as politely possible, if you met them at the beach. KZbin ads are getting bad. There's one where an earrapey computerized Brit tells you that chewing rocks is good for your teeth. I don't even block ads. I like to see what they're up to, with awareness. EDIT: I'm someone who was critical of the "how animals hear" video, and I'm no Google apologist, for context. The brand loyalty video is worthwhile. Check it out with an open mind.

[@KL-tn1xc]

as for 08:50, the cpu is still the exact same one they used in the 2013 'DAW' mpcs.

[@monsirto]

@J. C. It's a tracker so you generally need to be Gen X Amiga user or a big smartypants 😉 It's a great little machine.

[@InkyDaCaT]

Instead of making this video maybe you should get to know the people who know exactly the right people who could help? 🤪

[@joelkulesha8284]

I know you hate making negative content but I'm honestly glad you do it. This stuff costs a lot. I want to know what I pay for. If all the reviewers and KZbinrs are ignoring bad parts then I'm not going to be happy when I get a buggy horrible mess of a product. I really appreciate you doing this!

[@Feanarth]

I think people should get off the notion to see warranted criticism as "negative" content. I'm not meaning offense here - and we all love to see glaring reviews about products we love - but there is way too much sponsored "hoorah-content" for all sorts of gear on KZbin already. Having someone knowledgeable to point out the flaws is a much-needed breath of fresh air in the review space - all the better if it's someone with an amount of viewers behind as weight to throw into the ring. I'm a casual MPC Live user and even on my newbie level I encountered some of the bugs that mainly enthusiasts encounter. Their great feature-additions aside, bad software and stiff pads or other usability issues are a real blocker for me when considering future products. I definitely check the "bad rated" reviews on any gear first these days and I guess a lot of other buyers do too, because trust has become a rare thing even for big brands. If AKAI has trouble debugging the complexity of their software, they should at least handsomely reward customers that point out critical bugs AND/OR have a BETA hardware program in place to iron these things out prior to shipment - no excuses here.

[@dreamstaticsounds]

@@Feanarth They have a beta program actually. They're just... not very good at making the best use of it.

[@apislapis]

@@Feanarth I'm still waiting for AKAI to iron out the bugs on my Timbre Wolf, but seriously AKAI have for some time now, an ethos of selling gear that is half finished like the Timbre Wolf was, which is pretty shoddy imho.

[@robinr22]

@@Feanarth part of the problem is, I think, that content often isn't "sponsored" as such and so channels eg Loopop claim that their content is their own opinion and no one has any say and the channel is funded by viewers etc. And he justifies all the positivity by saying he only reviews stuff he likes. But that's quite misleading because if someone like Loopop kept saying new products from Akai were buggy and unfinished all the time, they'd stop sending him stuff to review. And then he'd lose the early access that allows him to do the day one reviews that he relies on for views. Without that, he'd lose income. So, while it might not be as direct as "here's a cheque for a positive review", that is really what's happening. That's how it is for almost all gear reviews channels. I don't think Benn Jordan is entirely exempt from that pressure either (eg his highly positive reviews for Polyend aren't surprising given his long standing relationship with them). But I do wonder if the fact that gear reviews aren't his main thing provides a bit more freedom for things like this. Which definitely are needed.

[@Bestmann3n]

If anything there's too little negativity.

[@JohnSchussler]

I wish we had far more honest reviews like this. Manufacturers can't improve if people are just blowing sunshine up their asses all the time.

[@KeldonA]

And it just means people don't trust the review.

[@INeedsMoneys]

I still haven't encountered any bugs. Had it since launch. 💁

[@Jason75913]

"blowing sunshine up their asses" 🤣🤣🤣 new expression I'll be using now

[@flossondatrack8861]

@@INeedsMoneys Bro, this MPC Key 61 has been nothing but awesome for me. I keep seeing people comment, " way to be negative, Benn, we need honesty," without even trying it out for themselves. I guarantee most people would enjoy it. Or they weren’t going to buy it anyway.

[@INeedsMoneys]

@@flossondatrack8861 for sure. People just love to hate.

[@RikMaxSpeed]

The “Workstation Piano” is probably a KORG M1 - to recreate the sounds of old hits. Typically just one really hard sample with no layers and a filter applied for dynamics.

[@djtruflava]

when I was scrolling the pianos and I got to the Workstation I thought that's a Korg all day long!

[@Jason75913]

yuck

[@CottonBud]

@@Jason75913 Yum

[@projectz975]

id have labeled it "BEST piano"

[@AudioPilz]

I need it!!!

[@maxricemusic656]

Hahaha Flashbulb, loan him the MPC! We need a bad gear episode for this thing! Do it for the community lol (btw thanks for the great content both of y'all)

[@WarrenPostma]

Yes. Bad Gear MPC Key 61 edition

[@ForecastGrim]

TheMPC line is the most unreliable gear available today. It is also the most fully featured sampler/drum machine/synth and I can’t live with out it.

[@ckhgator]

Yoooo love to see the homie here

[@avace917]

Don't you DARE bring this to Bad Gear 🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣

[@VIRALBEATS360]

Looks like this comment section is about to some attention, for the next couple days...I was just saying how these companies need to stop bringing unfinished products to market, while spending the next few years, attempting to fix problems that should be worked out beforehand. I look forward to the video. As far as the comments; you're about to get all the smoke! Haha.

[@humanperson8363]

Identicaly mirrors the video game industry

[@parisdontlikeyou]

@@humanperson8363 for real. I worked for EA 10yrs ago and releasing products 60% done was the norm

[@SnareGG]

i'd kill for 60% of a game on release these days. we lucky to get 50% at this point.

[@Shasha_Mynx]

That sucks man, I'm sorry you're dealing with that. When I was younger and less financially stable I saved up for a while to get an mpc live, and when I couldn't get it to work right I just thought I sucked, and I felt bad going back to my computer because I spent so much on it. I ended up going through a pretty dry period creatively. I also saw the specs and thought it'd solve my problems. Thanks for using this as an opportunity to go into broader issues and saving the greener among us from having to learn the hard way.

[@vmppvm8763]

I really appreciate the "negative" content Benn, because 99% of KZbin channels are actively trying to sell me something or /at best/ are neutral enough to just tell me about the feature list. This is great and necessary content. My big problem with all the current Akai hardware (besides the bugs) is that even if they were perfect and bug free, the UI / UX feels like it was designed by space aliens who had an instrument described to them by some guy on Twitter, but had never actually seen or used one themselves. Why are we 5(?) years deep on this OS and the Q links still don't actually indicate what they're going to do before you touch them? Come on Akai.

[@user-mb8rf7qk5q]

So freaking accurate about the q links.

[@RobotSnake]

Q Links is a quick muscle memory thing. The layout is true to Roger Linn’s original workflow so if he is an alien then I am on board that ship. I LOVE his beat making process. I have a Tempest and it is extremely familiar as well. I think it is just well thought out and I love how It just flows. That said, I understand it is not for everyone. It’s clearly been successful for decades so the alien might be you!

[@vmppvm8763]

@@RobotSnake Not really sure what you mean about the "original workflow," the MPC60 and MPC3000 each have a single data slider. The Live, One, and Keys each have 4 Q-links, each of which has a different function, sometimes more than one, on practically every screen of the OS. You can learn anything with enough effort and time, but that's hardly "a quick muscle memory thing." When the One launched there was literally no way to know what a Q link was going to do before you started spinning the knob. Obviously I wasn't the only person who had a problem with that, because several months later, Akai released an update that included the current "pop up on touch" behavior so you at least knew what parameter you were about to change. That's better than nothing, but now once you /do/ know what they do, you have an annoying pop-up in your face every time you touch them. Again, yes, you can obviously learn this eventually, but it's just not very well thought out UI/UX. At one point I bought a Force, since it simply resolves this issue by giving each Q-link its own little screen that tells you its current function. I think X also does this, and they are both much better machines for it than the rest of the line.

[@RobotSnake]

@@vmppvm8763 there is a large bit of DNA derived from the 16 Levels feature that carried over from Roger Linn’s original machine. He even kept it for the Tempest as well. For that very reason Myself and others can step in front of a Linn Influenced machine and have a general foundation of the workflow. Of course it has evolved but many basics are still the same.

[@RobotSnake]

@@vmppvm8763 Just because it does not occur for you does not mean it does not for others. Obviously something about it is working as it’s still one of the most popular samplers in the world.

[@brianrainsfordmarshall2692]

Using a Python script to check stock availability is the most Benn Jordan shit Benn Jordan has ever Benn Jordan'd.

[@WarrenPostma]

It makes me happy

[@DopamineOverload]

Your honesty and negativity is INSANELY appreciated. So sick of the shills/fanboys with the whole “this new gear is INSANE!!! A game-changer!!!” Utterly sick of the phony shill bulls-t out there. Maschine user since 2009. Bought MPC One in Sept 2020. Thankfully few bugs. Don’t trust new firmware at all. Nothing annoys me more than beta-testing expensive gear. Other than the shills out there with all the gear company butt-kissing. We need a LOT more content like this. Thank you, Benn.

[@juantran4261]

what version of the firmware are you using? i had to revert off 2.11.4 and not sure what seems the most stable

[@DopamineOverload]

@@juantran4261 2.10.1 still

[@juantran4261]

@@DopamineOverload Cool, that is what i reverted to. thank you

[@Kaffimusic]

I am totally with you. I have a MPC One, I like it so far, but I also undestood when they advertised the Key61 I knew this is not what people think it is. And Akai says it is. Just stick with a MPC non key and add any keyboard/workstation/synthesizer and you have more fun and flexibility.

[@THINJIMI]

I agree! Then I can take the MPC One over to my guitar station and add stuff or play along with something I’ve done. I actually have very little problems with it except the Ram of course which should be 10 Gigs or more.

[@Pablo668]

Brutally honest yet very even handed and fair review/assessment I thought. Perhaps I’m naive about these things but for the money you were talking I’d expect the product to be finished and close to flawless.

[@JoseVGavila]

It is refreshing to watch an HONEST video about an unfinished product. Most YT content is paid by manufacturers and they hide the truth. Kudos for that!

[@mickeythompson9537]

Customers are not just beta testers, they're quality control too!

[@Jason75913]

Very shameful of them to treat customers that way, but the corporations have learned that they can get away with it because people are sheep and will take anything in the ass and not complain, with very few individuals being exceptions.

[@TonyAndersonMusic]

Your musical ability is what shines here the most. Beautiful song.

[@keekeefries6298]

Good on you! We need more critical reviews of gear. Too many reviewers who are shills for the manufacturers…

[@Baegus]

The fact that you compared a keyboard to a THPS2 level explains perfectly why you have one of my favorite channels on KZbin. (Also, just buy some air special tricks and go to town, they get you the most points ;))

[@kelownatechkid]

Yeah, that was awesome lol. Totally unexpected

[@Blofehlt]

this reminds me of the days when I was one of the first Austrians to receive an mpc 4000. some 20 years ago. it took all my savings and then some, but I absolutely wanted it. within the first few weeks it became obvious the thing was close to being unusable because it had so many bugs, including. the dealer didn't take it back and I eventually sold it with quite a loss. it took years for the machine to finally deliver and become desirable again. I will never forgive akai for that.

[@tomesmusic]

so that's 2002! 20 years of half-baked OS - congrats akai

[@SergioMartinez-el8kg]

"will never forgive akai" lol its been 20 years youre might be a schitzo

[@csharp57]

Pay no attention to the rude ones. It’s easy for them to make those comments, it wasn’t their hard earned money

[@klownaround5464]

Yup they got me with the MPK ADVANCED61 when i bought it then they discontinued it and dumped the support for the VST PORTION software that was supposed to be the 2nd COMING but wasn’t - they won’t get anymore of my $$$ i just bought (2) ASM HYDRASYNTHS a Roland JUNO DS88 keyboard/synth and (3) Roland Boutiques the D50 clone/D-05 and the Jupiter 8 module -JP-08 and the JUNO 60/106 module JU-06A and i still have my revamped KORG M1 and rack Mount Akai S950 sampler so I’m good for plenty sounds and gonna do a hybrid studio and start learning STUDIO ONE (just got the Softube Console 1 and 2 Faders units) rant over fyi just saying

[@klownaround5464]

@Nazi Samuri ASM HYDRASYNTH

[@LukaszBieliz]

Thank you for showing me how to use this event edit screen in order to prepare my favorite type of drum beats style O_0 I believe MPC community needs more content creators exploring something else than just rap & hip hop related generes. The piece you created was perfect example.

[@TommiJVieno]

Akai is like your childhood's bipolar uncle. Sometimes he made the coolest shit (MPC Live's firmware updates), but you can't forget the day you found him inside your playhouse, covered in his own vomit and feces (MPX8).

[@RobotSnake]

Your childhood must have been pretty dark.

[@Talia.777]

🤣🤣👍

[@Beauc4652]

This is oddly specific...

[@GerenM63]

I always love truly honest reviews about gear -- positive or negative! Outstanding! FWIW, some of the lockups you encountered I've also seen people gripe about happening with the MPC One after the 2.10 update. So, these issues may not be limited to just the MPC Key 61.

[@allyouracid]

Benn, I really enjoy your use of the sound stage. Very inspiring, creative and some other positive adjectives I fail to come up with at 2:30 am because I'm too tired to type proper English. 😁

[@ombracle]

Woah! The list edit feature is such a discovery, worth the whole video. 💖

[@lostcoastlines86]

Thank you for this video, Benn!! Happy owner of Akai Force here, and I've also been around the Force community for long enough to know that the bugs+feature gaps are a real issue. The technique you demonstrate at 22:36 "list edit mode" -> high hat ratchets unconstrained by the bpm is absolutely brilliant. Just finished attempting a deep dive into how you pulled this off, and haven't quite figured it out; if you can offer any clues, that'd be amazing. Happy touring!

[@dustyaudio]

They are not even releasing patch notes (4 bug fixes in a few months) or simple manuals for their paid plugins at this point, I’m taking akai less seriously but I hope they turn it around somehow.

[@furiobisotti8150]

I am not an MPC user. I play live in cover bands. Some years ago with Kronos or Montage, nowadays with a MacBookPro and a long list of VSTs. IMHO this is a very brave try to build a workstation able to use plugins, during my 10 minutes test in a shop I found a lot of wonderful sounds, much better than any workstation preset (power of nice plugins). But the GUI prevented me to think at a use in my rig, obvious: I don't need MPC at all. But still, the full design is a positively innovative step. Then the truth is that it cannot have memory and cpu of modern computers, it's an embedded solution. I hope it will evolve, with serious bug check and upated firmware. But the perfect tool (plugins live without a computer) is still to be designed.

[@gurpaful]

I don't know if there's ever been a time when MusicRadar and their magazines have actually provided any real testing or critique, it's all more like a glorified product catalogue

[@caderik1386]

I don't know what to think about the bugs... I'm blown away by the drums you did in that weird list view. The controls do look unique there and the parameters on the instruments are sounding amazing.

[@stylabmusic]

Great video Ben!!! You really nailed it man. I wish more KZbinrs had your guts, but no.....You are far from the many and I'm sure this is appreciated by the serious people in the synthesizers community. Thank you for doing that!

[@endoflevelboss]

Thank you for calling out Akai Pro for doing this. I have had a similar experience with their newer MPC One+. They really need to raise their game with software quality and testing. In-music need to hire more devs and get a grip on what goes out the door. Otherwise they just lose ground to Roland/Elektron/TE etc.

[@slapeters2004]

Thank you for changing my mind on this brick…you saved me a lot of money! I’ve been looking at the Arturia 88, and I’ve seen nothing but great reviews on it. I’ll probably be going with that as a combo midi controller and sampler. Thanks!

[@Wagoo]

One good thing about this release is it hopefully means they will keep evolving their OS. I think I'm still waiting for disk streaming on the MPC Live.. was added to the Force not so long ago

[@Novalarke]

It's kind of funny - I remember say, 15 - 20 years ago people would drag these Huge Keyboards around on tour because they needed the power and it needed to be reliable. No one wants a BSOD or the chimes of death in the middle of a show. Now, I have a Mac laptop running Reaper or Ableton Live with a Novation Impulse kbd controller and have NEVER had a single crash when using audio software. And now, here's a big heavy workstation keyboard, that is less reliable than my computer. Sort of abdicates ones of the strengths of using a workstation....

[@heffe4257]

That’s an excellent point, and I love standalone gear.

[@anatolbaskak]

i had a glitch with ableton playing live an important gig this june. one-beat-long pause. to be true, quite an old windows computer. but never happened to me while rehearsing, else i would change my setup. (i also have a 2018 hp laptop that makes ableton glitch all the time, but it also fails miserably with other software. unusable.)

[@Novalarke]

@@anatolbaskak - bummer. I perform with a Mac laptop - Ableton's been solid as stone.

[@robertminnis6540]

It comes with a stand up bass neck that emerges magically from the unit, what's not to love?

[@gfunkylive]

Thanks bro...I needed this 👍

[@ElectronicazMusic]

Thank you Benn. Thank you for your tips on the MPC list edit, ratchet. Thank you for introducing me to The Flashbulb. Thank you for reminding me, in the most positive ways possible, of Max Headroom. ❤🎹😎

[@kelownatechkid]

Benn, thank you. Great critique.

[@mccflo99]

Glad to see someone calling Akai out for this. It's not just the new products. My MPC-X, which is marketed as the centerpiece of the studio and the flagship product at Akai is so screwed up with bugs from "updates" they provide, that it's unusable for a lot of functions. They do not respond to support tickets. Ever since InaMusic bought them, this has gotten even worse. They release completely unstable updates that make our multi-thousand dollar pieces of gear unusable. So unprofessional.

[@pierrecharmantjr7667]

I'm still using the RENAISSANCE for that same reason.

[@noahsiekmann4275]

After my experience with the MPC Live, I'll never purchase an Akai product until it has been on the market for at least 2 years. When the Live launched, it promised to be capable of being the midi brain for a whole setup. Had 2 midi ins and two midi outs, but you could only use one each effectively. It took Akai 4 years to offer midi support that was promised on launch day. I'm still salty about it. Say what you will about Maschine+ (and there is plenty wrong with it) but it handled midi as promised on day one.

[@mattierenton701]

absolutely agree Mashine+ has bugs still but the midi implementation is right on

[@boutstaxx]

The live 2 is the truth though

[@noahsiekmann4275]

@@boutstaxx the original Live and Live 2 run the exact same software/OS. So do the X and One. I've not had any issues with the hardware. The issues have been with software and charging $1200 for a product that advertises a feature set, but the feature set is not what you get. Especially if it takes 4 years to actually get the features that were promised on day one. If you like your Live 2, that is great. I bet you'd like it less if you had to wait 4 years for it to actually work

[@boutstaxx]

@@noahsiekmann4275 no I bought it less than a year ago after it reached its true potential I can patiently wait for example I want a galaxy fold got the means to get one but ill probably wait until the 5 comes than after reading reviews I might get it so I totally understand you're frustration

[@mattierenton701]

@@defcreator187 100% agree, when it comes to pads, there's only one king on that hill !!

[@chrisdavies9143]

I have had one of these for about a month now. It's my first Akai product and I'm definitely surprised by the way the launch has progressed so far and have pretty mixed feelings about the product. On one hand, I've made quite a bit of music with it so far. The actual recording functionality is good (for me at least) and I do think they're close to that DAW-in-a-box philosophy. I have been mostly fortunate in that I've only encountered one or two bugs up to now that have not been repeated and one hard crash without losing any progress. That said, you've echoed a lot of my own thoughts about the Key here and I appreciate the honesty. It's not a finished product and I can only hope Akai provide the level and frequency of support it needs going forward. There are some really good sounds in here for sure, plenty of filler, but some very usable things. The sampling functionality is good too, very easy to use. But the interface is maddening. Not being able to preview sounds without long pauses for loading. Actually navigating through the non-Key content (other MPC sounds, expansions, key groups, samples) is pretty awful. They can't be sorted by type nor can you designate some as favourites. And I tried gigging with it and the long loads meant I had to change my set and remove some musical interludes to actually make it work for me. I could go on. The worst offence however is that there is no user manual. You get a quick start guide of a few pages in the box, and there's a fairly detailed but generic MPC software guide, but there's so much about the specific Key or hardware functionality that I've had to learn myself just by messing around. Even Akai's own tutorial content only focuses on recording. I suppose this is the potential risk of being an early adopter and as I said, I have made some stuff with it that I'm happy. But it's hard for me to think of a recent instrument/product that was this rocky at launch and it's a shame that more people aren't vocalising their concerns to Akai (that I've heard at least)

[@BiscuitsNGravy818]

Thanks for the review !

[@TheJanda777]

You are being very fair in your video. This is why when you post "negative" content it is very valuable information. Appreciate it!

[@nookcyan]

Thanks so much for share with us.

[@fluim0102]

Can anyone explain to me why (since it doesn't offer so much more control) you would want to buy this over a MPC live/one with a nice midi keyboard, since for the days when you don't need keys or want to go portable you just unplug it...

[@nigeltedbury5805]

Yup - I'd rather have a Force / Live and spend 1000 bucks on a decent controller keyboard than the keys. (I have a Force and love it.)

[@DNYLNY]

Some ppl want them in the same device. You also get the $500 sounds included at no additional cost. And it’s cheaper to get the Key instead of buying a Live, midi keyboard, and the expansion sounds

[@ildafons]

Is MPC computer software's update more stable than standalone? I have updated my computer software and it looks ok but I'm afraid to update my MPC One and wish to stay on 2.10 till further stable firmware rollout...

[@bricelory9534]

I recognize how this sort of negative review can be awkward and challenging, but I found it to be extremely helpful and fair - you also showed what you did really enjoy about the gear, your complaints were legitimate: system crashes, panning bugs, etc. are things that need to be sorted before shipping out. Thank you for this video!

[@CHONK-Music]

I’ve had an mpc one since the start of the year thinking it would be the centre of my live set up. While it’s good for what I’m using it for, the terrible external midi controller support means I’m not able to use a lot of what I want live. They should fix major issues like that rather than adding new features as far as I’m concerned.

[@mikebush3834]

I went with a Roland Fantom-08 and I just got an MPC-X yesterday... I started out on the live mk1 and when I got it, it was buggy and the internal sounds took up too much ram, so I started going with outboard synths. I got the X for the 16 q-links, the cv outs, and the 4 midi outs. I thought about getting the keys61 but I wanted an 88 key keyboard for my first piano and I also seen all the bugs with the keys. So far the X is perfect for what I'm trying to do but I don't see myself taking it to a gig. It's more of an idea making setup.

[@flandriaworx4634]

Glad I watched your vid Benn. Maybe the 'all in one', solution I was thinking of purchasing ain't such a good idea now. I was literally about to 'pull the trigger' on the mpc 61 and whilst perusing the tube I came across your vid. I'm so glad I did too. Thanks for your honest appraisal of this piece of equipment. I'll go looking for some other solution now, 👍👍👍👍

[@RhythmSyndicate]

Hi! I'm just stumbling upon your video and channel. Have there been any improvements since a year ago? I want to get the MPC Key 61 but after watching this video, I'd might have to pass.

[@fredflintstone1428]

Which firmware are you on? I haven't gotten into serious programming yet with the Key 61 but initial doodling has been mighty impressive for me.

[@machinate]

it's safe to assume that Benn would IMMEDIATELY make sure to be on the latest firmware, and at the same time isn't afraid to downgrade for stability. Man's a pro, after all.

[@gonzinigonz]

Interesting take on it all, i did wonder what it was really like in the real world. I've owned a Force since late 2020, i found issues within 10 mins of first use with the firmware version as it was then. Put it down to pilot error at the time but turns out later down the road its firmware issues. I don't know what's going on at Akai but there are basic functionality features that are just plain missing on these units. They're very much half baked in some areas. I have a love / hate relationship with the Force, its all down to workflow pretty much. Lets hope the audio hardware isn't susceptible to the failures Force users have found.

[@wendigo2442]

Imagine u pay 2k for a new computer and one piano sound more than half maxes the cpu

[@Smokeslikelightningband]

This really makes me appreciate my motif es6! holy moly

[@N4505]

Thanks for the awesome "out of sync" tip at 20:55, I'm new to mpc and it would take ages to discover it myself

[@ginonicolaas7929]

Did you manage to release this track because, it could be such a wonderfull gem and i will buy it for sure!

[@danasdas6683]

Love seeing “Benn & Gear”, again! Great to see it on occasion.

[@SergeGolikov]

Brilliant! Thank you. So glad this was the next review I went to after seeing Andy Mac doing the product demonstration Sonic Lab. Great sounds, and future firmware updates will hopefully iron out the bugs. The key bed is very noisy, problem for live in a Bar situation? Many thanks for the inspiration! I am just a self taught tinkerer using the brilliant Mixcraft 9 Pro Studio DAW. Love the Tone 2 VST instruments.

[@pierrefitch]

I own a Akai Force and MPC One you think it’s worth getting the MPC 61 honestly??? I have a Arturia Keylab 61 MK2 keyboard 🎹 my force and MPC one works great. Just wondering if it’s worth the investment for MPC Key 61 ??

[@georgecoles7268]

just an off topic question about your live set and gear selection - have you tried the Kronos for your live rig? it seems like it has a lot of strong points for your needs

[@TheImaxify]

Would be great to see how you compare the workflow of making the same music to some other workstation keyboards.

[@ToyKeeper]

Have never seen anyone create sequences using the event list editor before. Crazy glitch beats!

[@ryannbakerbeats]

Crazy right!? This dude is different man, it’s genius…

[@VIRALBEATS360]

I had a similar experience with the Fantom, to where I was under the impression the sampler would work within the sequencer, but the trigger pads cannot be recorded into a project/scene. I just sold my unused MPC Live 2 because I would prefer to have both within one unit, and because Roland's flagship came without time-stretching, sampling to the keys is also a problem. If fixed, the Fantom pads are outdated, and not meant for finger drumming. You could sample from the keys to the pads, but what is the point, if they cannot be used in a project? Having these features combined is one of the reasons I was considering the MPC Key 61, but it is looking like I would just stack it on top on the Fantom, to use the sequencer, which was what the MPC Live 2 was for...also taking live performance into consideration, and already tired of lugging this hunk of metal around. However, the Fantom 0 series has the same issues as the flagship, only cheaper build, and less memory... meaning it does not power the flagship's wave table (n/zyme) expansion, which I have used in just about every project, since being released. You could clearly see why I am looking elsewhere, but it doesn't seem that the MPC Key 61 would be the solution here. I really wish it were, but like Roland, Akai brought another unfinished product to market...and we are literally paying the price for it, in more ways than one.

[@monsirto]

I paired my Live with an Impact 49. It kinda looks like the same machine the way I have 'em set up 🤣

[@sawtoothwave]

I’ve had a very similar “wait, am I beta testing a supposedly finished product?” experience with the Arturia KeyStep Pro. That device is supposedly designed to be the central brain of a performance setup, but it’s also loaded with dozens of unpredictable show-stopping bugs that still aren’t fixed even a year after the last firmware update. It’s infuriating that companies aren’t held more accountable for not delivering on the basic functionality that they promised upon the launch of their products.

[@Andre.A.C.Oliveira]

Until people don't start to simply return their products or sue them for enough money to make them worth to fix their products, they won't care

[@mikabreto]

Let the flood of Teenage Engineering returns begin!

[@psynautic]

despite the frustration coming through, it was still a interesting and useful video!

[@ohmrdarcy]

What is the little bump on the left side of the headphones?

[@andywalkswithme9550]

This is a really amazing video. And I really like the song. I was about to sell my MPC One and buy a polyend tracker. But I think you made me change my mind. I still may buy a tracker but I’ll have to sell something else.

[@donjezza]

First time seeing one of your videos and I loved it :) I didn't even care about the gear review it was just so inspiring watching you make music. I did feel better about my own musical incompetence after finding out you struggle at skatestreet. Hey maybe I can make a video tutorial showing you how to get a gold medal XD

[@pyrox2518]

What a nightmare lol. I couldn't get too frustrated with gear what just ends up ruining good ideas with flaws like these. Still was super impressed with how good the piano sounds sounded. Also mad jealous on your piano playing skills, as usual.

[@casaterris4527]

OMG! I just bought the mpc 61 keys! From sweater. Already have issues with the first one. I had to send it back, and they sent me another one. The second one finally the buttons led up. Still no sound. Is this a bad sign?

[@michaels8088]

I'm still using older stuff and looking around so i appreciate you telling us it's not working for you and why..

[@MD_is_me]

I knew this was going to happen; that the Akai "flagship" was going to be sunk by their usual willful negligence. It's always "amateur hour" for them. I'm glad that, finally, someone of some note is actually calling them out instead of playing the fanboy like so many did when the Force was released. My Force was (and remains) a disaster. Had I not gotten the Force before the price hike and at a deep discount I would have been soliciting other unhappy users and looking for a hungry attorney who wanted to make a name for himself/herself. It spent a year on the shelf waiting for firmware with bugfixes that, after taking it off the shelf and updating the firmware to give it another go, have mostly not come. It's only good to me as a very large, rather expensive, "clip launcher". My 404SX can do that but is smaller, cheaper, and runs on batteries when I want to go outside and do some work on it. As for the beta testing thing... I've been saying the same thing for years. Unfortunately, the majority of people who buy musical equipment these days aren't professionals with high standards and don't know better but they now set the standards nonetheless. I'll never buy Akai again, no matter how great the marketing makes something sound. Perhaps they should take some of the marketing money and use it to hire experienced, talented, engineers. 17:50 You thought that because it's something that experienced designers and engineers have been doing for years and has become SOP.

[@MS7.7]

I agree with everything you said but I just make sick beats with my MPC not Maschine Mk3. Something about it I don't know what it is but its hate/love relationship that is hard to break.

[@davidlucero855]

had issues with MPC live 2 did not power on and the power cord had pieces missing:(

[@genghisbunny]

This is a great video, seriously. I look forward to when you can be more effusive about a product, but honesty is absolutely more important than consistency of tone.

[@shaboogen]

Watching this video makes me extremely glad that I didn't end up buying this thing, and instead decided to double down on Bitwig with a Novation SL MK3. Akai really aren't covering themselves in glory here.

[@KeirMurphy]

The SL MK3 is solid... but being a controller keyboard without sysex is absolutely bonkers. I can't control around 70% of my gear...

[@shaboogen]

That's fair. I don't use it for its hardware sequencing capabilities, I use it because the Bitwig script is incredible.

[@KeirMurphy]

@@shaboogen yeah they put a lot more effort into the InControl stuff than the midi controller parts. I adore the sequencer, ARP, Chord, swing features (many added way after release). But the Sysex is the final piece missing.

[@TheCleveland1987]

i wonder if the roland fa 06 would still be a better workstation thin this? its also cheaper

[@alphabeets]

Fantastic keyboard!

[@firesidefire]

I wish people would do more honest reviews like this

[@Ub3rMario]

Benn, i could have sworn the mpc live systems had a step sequence mode...but maybe you tried it and it didn't let you use a fine enough resolution (subdivisions)?

[@psynautic]

there absolutely is a step sequencer; kzbin.info/www/bejne/q6axqn-CnJKWjtU

[@terrancejohnson277]

Whats weird is, some ppl have all sorts of problems and yet some ppl have few or no problems at all. Theres a quality control issue because everyone should have the same issues. I use it as a workstation and I've never had a crash or freeze up. But Akai needs to stop releasing products if they are not 100% ready. I think users would like to have usability over expediency.

[@HobbertSharp]

21:56 man, I need to take notes. It's like magic, the way the rhythms come alive. You make hard work look so easy, even when you show how laborious it can be.

[@baileycarthew4381]

Can you share the script? I am waiting on a behringer eurorack module to be available :)

[@Bthelick]

when was the mpc4000 released? like 20 years ago now? it feels like they're still on the same software. that was also a clunky, buggy mess.

[@Neuri]

Benn “this is awful” also Benn *makes world class sick beat* love you man ❤️

[@caleykelly]

This 10000X!!!! Had some major issues with a few items. The Arturia Matrixbrute was the worst offender for me. Without major public shaming, I doubt it would have been patched. Tha k you for sharing this!!

[@mouldypretzel]

One might appreciate the straight up honesty and the fact that despite working with a challenging piece of gear, however frustratingly, you still managed to create a track with it. I am one of those people. It's just a shame that it couldn't go smoother. Something like this isn't in my budget for now anyway, maybe if/when I'm in the market for this kind of thing, it'll have all the bugs fixed

[@senior_ranger]

I don't know anything about music. I have no idea what you're doing or talking about. Yet, it's so fascinating to see an artist doing creative work!!! Thanks.

[@treyconnet8181]

19:24 I’m confused, is there not a step sequencer mode? They got rid of it for the Key?

[@monsirto]

Akai do release hardware with what is effectively beta software. I remember buying my Live and being very frustrated for a month or two until they updated firmware. The thing I will say about Akai is that they are the best when it comes to supporting older gear and providing updates in response to feedback. I own hardware from most of the other big manufacturers and the only other company with the same dedication or close to it is Novation. Benn, I am sure Akai will take your critique onboard and actually address the issues you and many others have brought up. Personally, I would recommend the One and a good Midi keyboard over the Key61 or the Live/2 or X. I like the Live these days but the CV options on the One are attractive . The paid plugins are not a good option for 99.5% of us (including moi). All the best!

[@playcapturereplay9371]

What's the latest now based on the most recent firmware updates?

[@TranscendingVibrations]

Do you like the sounds of Keyscape?

[@JUNO-69]

The Qlinks have 4 different pages of settings btw. Hit that button that says qlink and you’ll see the led change between 1-4. No idea what extra settings are available for list edit as I’ve never used it but usually you can customise what each knob does.

[@AYALI444]

Ive had problems with the akai advance, i got a new MacBook Pro and now the advance is just a big studio ornament now because it doesn’t work

[@grizcuz]

Thanks for your honesty, it's actually refreshing to see a KZbin music tech video that isn't basically an advert disguised as a review. I'm a long time Akai user (as far back as the S950) but I don't think I've ever been a particularly early adopter (I've always had to save before buying, because I was young and they were expensive back in the late 80's - mid 90's) So perhaps the bugs had been ironed out by the time I'd bought one of their samplers (S950, 1100, 3200). So I'm wondering if this early users being practically beta testers situation has beplagued Akai for some time, or it's only started happening relatively recently?

[@snubdawg1386]

you can't compare things from 80s-90s with things after 2000 ....even humanity degenerated alot since back then ...also akai was sold in 2005

[@Palooka37]

Benn, this is the most positive negative feedback video I've ever watched. Thank you for the quality content. FWIW I would pay pretty decent money for tutorials of your workflow for this kind of music, particularly with FL Studio. Peace!

[@musella974]

At the right of the screen, there's 4 encoders. The last is pan, but when you turn it, it changes pan but the visual logo on the screen don't move. Very difficult to have the real position ! It exactly the same problem for the encoder above the pan one !

[@flossondatrack8861]

The MPC key has been awesome for me, I love it. I'm sorry that you had a bad experience with it.

[@anonymous_friend]

Who makes a great key controller? I'm seeing issues with nearly everything, and most of them came out 4 years ago.

[@jammystraub488]

Korg Kronos? 🙂

[@MegaSpenceman]

Excited for those Fractalfest sets!

[@Tigerex966]

Can you upgrade the ram or arm CPU.?