Sonicware SMPLTREK review - Watch Before You Buy!

This is the SmplTrek from Sonicware. It is a small portable sampler & audio workstation. If you want to release your music on Spotify/Apple Music check out todays sponsor DistroKid. Use my link distrokid.com/vip/bobeats and get a discount.
Disclosure: I paid for the SmplTrek myself thru their Kickstarter but did get early access to a unit thanks to a contact over at Sonicware.
Want a SmplTrek? Use my affiliate links and support the channel in the process:
EU: thmn.to/thoprod/550898?offid=1&affid=623
US: bit.ly/smpltrekPC
Official site: sonicware.jp/pages/smpltrek
CONTENT
00:00 What is the SMPLTREK? + sound demos
07:20 How to make music with SMPLTREK
16:39 How to create a drum kit
17:54 How do midi tracks & sampling work?
21:00 Sample Edit Explained + Ways it can be improved
25:31 Global Tracks are VERY unique!
27:09 Mixer & FX explained
30:12 Improvements Needed & Final Thoughts
SYNTH MERCH
merch.bobeats.tv
Direct US link: bobeats.myspreadshop.com
Direct UK link: bobeats.myspreadshop.co.uk
PRESETS & SAMPLES
store.bobeats.tv
SOCIAL MEDIA
Instagram: bobeats
Twitter: bobeatsmusic
Facebook: bobeatsmusic
COMMUNITY
Discord: community.bobeats.tv
FB group: groups/simplysynthesizer
GEAR I USE (affiliate)
redir.love/zqWJRuDG
BUSINESS INQUIRY
bonurmimusic ( at ) gmail.com
#SmplTrek #Bobeats #Sonicware

[@BoBeats]

If you want to release your music on Spotify/Apple Music check out todays sponsor DistroKid. Use my link distrokid.com/vip/bobeats and get a discount.

[@ToyKeeper]

This looks like it's genuinely pretty cool. I'm happy it exists.

[@cecilkeebler4254]

A lot of the communications from the company lately have dealt with firmware struggles. Hopefully the known issues are resolved before they ship out (hopefully) next week. Can't wait to get my hands on it as I backed the Kickstarter campaign.

[@howlinberry1645]

Pleasantly surprised by all the features this has to offer. If I didn't already own the sp404 mkII, I'd definitely consider buying it.

[@ChrisLodyMusic]

Glad to see this in your hands Bo. Good job noticing that the micro-timing affects the whole step, I hadn't noticed that 😅 Some good ideas on workflow too

[@BoBeats]

thanks Chris and good work on your video!!

[@ChrisLodyMusic]

@@BoBeats Thank you 😁

[@trevormalcolm4328]

I’ve been waiting for a first reviews of this for months! Seems very promising so far specially with your suggestions (sampling definitely needs to be more straightforward) I’ll wait for a couple of firmware upgrades before I pull the trigger on this!

[@elsantoproductora]

Great review Bo! It has a lot of potential. I hope the bugs get ironed out with a better firmware. Thanks for the video!

[@Arkansya]

another cool use case : polyphonic chromatic samples Can be used to bring synth sounds to a live show without carrying the synths themselves, great when using rare, bulky or many synths in your music !

[@Arkansya]

with your demo i see use cases like "live lite without a computer" for stage reliability, wish I had that 10y ago :)

[@nebula0697]

Does it have samples of acoustic pianos and electromechanical keyboards as well or just synths?

[@I.O.M.]

I am sure some folks are going to rock this hard, but lots of menu diving. Thanks for the review.

[@itsJoel59]

Would love to see you revisit the SmplTrek after some firmware updates! 😊 cheers from Uppsala ❤

[@StrillLife]

Ah sh!t! Someone actually got their hands on it. I can't want to get mine from the campaign. Glad there is new content on this device because I read getting tired of watching the ones from the company. I'm super excited now!

[@StrillLife]

I hope they take a lot of your suggestions. I think they will. Great review! It's obvious the firmware isn't complete but hopefully it will be good enough to be functional and not a drag to use. It seems like the company pays attention to it's customers and is small enough and flexible enough to implement suggestions. I'm expecting this to be an awesome tool over time.

[@manstuarta9066]

Finally one of this tools coming with a decent looper!! I don’t understand why other units like the sp404mk2 are not implementing this functionality! Will consider maybe on later firmware versions…

[@AllThatsGone]

I just picked up their xfm and my goodness is it a creative and feature packed instrument with a cumbersome interface with just terrible knobs and switches. I hope they keep turning out such innovative instruments.

[@claesvanoldenphatt9972]

I’ve had an XFM for some months and I’m totally put off by the interface. It works as a polyphonic organ with very limited flexibility. There is nothing intuitive about the controls.

[@antonliakhovitch8306]

@@claesvanoldenphatt9972 Yeah. It clearly has loads of power for its size/price and I was eager to take it around with me and use it as a groovebox, but I'm put off by the fact that I need to pull out the manual every time I sit down with that thing. Nevermind that there are sometimes three functions per knob even when you aren't in sound edit mode; the sequencer is just ridiculously unintuitive and they butchered pattern chaining

[@electro-soma]

I love the XFM. I find the knobs and buttons to be of a decent quality. The encoders are excellent. The UI takes a while to get used to but overall I think it's really well thought out.

[@antonliakhovitch8306]

@@electro-soma A few examples of where it could use some improvement: - There are some controls locked behind the shift/function keys which I might need during performance, when my other hand is busy. They clearly did their best to avoid this but still, I sometimes need to adjust track level, certain engine parameters, fx send level, etc while playing. - The sequencer doesn't allow a pattern to appear more than once in a chain. That means you can't really sequence a full song. That's fine for a monosynth, but a four-track groovebox like this should be able to play a full song without needing my attention. - Why is there both a shift and a function key, when they're used with a mutually exclusive set of controls? It should only need one. - Too easy to accidentally load instead of saving - Parameter locking is unintuitive. I keep having to go back to the manual for that. - Not related to UI, but the big obvious downside is that the voice blending isn't nearly as smooth as advertised. It's really difficult to find uses for the X-LFO and Xform modes - Some controls are grouped weirdly. Just looking at the effects settings: -- Two are main knob functions -- Track send is a shift function for a *different* knob -- Line send is an fn-key function set with the encoder I can see the engineering reasons why they did this, but it's not great for usability

[@claesvanoldenphatt9972]

@@electro-soma the money saved buying inexpensive gear may not be worth the time and trouble leading the unintuitive UI.

[@MattGreerMusic]

Nice. Looking forward to mine getting here.

[@I.O.M.]

All I want to know is how is the time stretch 😁😁😁

[@ruffark]

I am so excited. This will replace my Yamaha qy70 as small sequencer.

[@simonhornmusic]

I was thinking the same thing! Been looking for a more modern QY box for years, how is it?

[@Screenshot1015]

It seems much more of a 1010 Black Box killer than anything else. Elektron devices are so immediate and fun to use plus the sequencer is immensely better while an SP404MK2 has so many useful effects, a much better screen, and is also fairly immediate with little menu diving. I will say that this looks more fun to use than a modern MPC (just my personal taste I guess) but it doesn’t have anywhere near the firepower and sample processing abilities of anything in the MPC world.

[@Screenshot1015]

I guess what I’m trying to say is, as a sampler enthusiast myself I’m trying to tell myself I should get this but I honestly cannot come up with a reason why it would make sense. Also incomplete firmware is pretty lame I can’t stand that everyone is releasing devices for us to basically field test in beta firmwares.

[@Screenshot1015]

@@Glol91ABC black box pal. Read it again.

[@jlegitdjspider]

I don’t know about it being a 1010 Black box killer but your right look really fun and would be nice to see a comparison video between both devices

[@phatplates]

@@jlegitdjspider definitely not on the same level as the black box

[@SlickGriminals]

Why does elektrons sequencer being better than sampletreks matter but sampletreks sequencer being better than the sp 404mk2 not matter? Your take is completely unbalanced

[@JakeSweeper]

I backed their KS as well; waiting on mine to be delivered.

[@shannontravis2445]

Would you say- that this would be a good start, for someone who is a beginner and is new to music production and they want to try a hands-on dawless unit..?

[@BoBeats]

No, i dont think so… I would look at Mpc One, Maschine+ if you want an all-in-one workstation

[@cresshead]

Excellent work your video cleared up a number of questions o had after watching loopops video

[@karmatosed7211]

I have their bass & beats synthesizer, and it’s also feature packed with lots of cool sounds, but the work flow is kind of wonky and requires changing out stinsil covers over the buttons which is kind of confusing. I eventually just shelved it because I would forget how to do anything and have to dig up tutorial videos every time I wanted to use the thing. I probably need to just sell the thing but haven’t got around to it. Also in my hands the plastic form factor just makes it feel more like a toy than an actual instrument. The company shows promise, but I haven’t been all that happy with my first product of theirs.

[@koskey06]

When i first heard about this being made.....i was stoked, cuz i thought it would be under $200..... But for $450, i can get a SP or a 101 or any other sampler or groove box synthesizer.......

[@zmmmzmmmz]

How is it after updates? Worth $300 for a looper?

[@BoBeats]

I think so!

[@brainbox9219]

After the firmware updates seems like it’s a lot better, considering getting one as long as it works with beatstep pro, tbh don’t see why it wouldn’t be great with it

[@octavisions]

This thing probably can completely replace your beatstep pro. The sequencer features are far superior.

[@VT-Trailcam]

Can you make a whole song with what you had going on at 20:16? That sounds really nice!

[@livinproof718]

Bo beats flowing n freestyling is crazy 😅

[@superkeenaudio2095]

That was Boss brother ! Cheers

[@InkyDaCaT]

Good points Bo can't wait for looper myself!

[@emixbase]

Cool man ! Thanks 🍻 I just wrote Santa's letter 🤣🤣🍻

[@alecyuzhny]

Oh man your singing is amazing!

[@rjadamz9117]

Hey Bo, wondering if you know if Sonicfair has made any of these changes you noted on your video. Thanks for all the great vids.😎✌️

[@BoBeats]

Yes they have improved it alot

[@rjadamz9117]

Good to here. Thinkin I’m probably gonna go for it. Thanks for responding so quick. Have a great weekend. ( not telling you what to do)👍😉

[@hristiangeorgiev5236]

Thanks for the video, Bo. Can you please tell me what preset do you play on the minifreak in the beginning?

[@SixteenVoice]

I finally fully jumped ship from the Akai Ecosystem after owning the Force, Live 2 and Key61. InMusic was turning them into a lootbox experiences rivaling our most hated game developers out there ( Bioware, Take2, etc) Bo, you have said some very interesting things about this device and if they implemented your recommended changes, I would see this as a viable option for getting back into the standalone sampler world without trapping myself into a developers shakedown racketeering scam.

[@dzaxys4643]

Seems great btw awesome rap 🔥

[@EarJuice]

It comes down to the live looping and sync or quantise feature. My SP404 has to be pressed perfectly so it all stays in time. I just wanna play n sequence my loops. Idk maybe there is a way to do it. Wouod just like loops to quantise to nearest bar when I bring them on.

[@mast3rbug]

So After one year, any firmware update? Do you have a new video about the new firmware?

[@inputsandoutputs]

Having an Autosampler on this device would round it out to being a niche device with no competition.

[@NoxBoxdy]

Thanks for letting me know I can live with myself for not hoppin' on that 2x early bird. :-)

[@jeffblack8911]

Bo Beats you’ve been an avid Digitakt user for a while and played a major factor in me purchasing one. However does this box rival the Digi?

[@BoBeats]

this box is VERY different from the Digi and doesn’t rival it. But it also does a lot of different things like live looping, stereo sampling, good for vocal recording. But totally different kind of box

[@PFSTR]

7:02 BoBars

[@xisotopex]

is there swing/groove for each track? some type of motion sequencing?

[@BoBeats]

No. Very limited in this regard

[@animehair]

can I use this as a looper or sample playback device - I would like to trigger sampled sounds using external midi sequencer or on a keyboard - It would be nice to use one midi channel and trigger by notes

[@aariccallahan7371]

Great video. Could you suggest something for me? I really like the smpltrek feature the Global Tracks and have been searching for a groovebox that has this feature but the music I write isn't really sample based. It's more synth based w guitar and vocals. I considered the Roland Verselab but it has only 1 live track. I don't think the MPC can achieve this or, if it can, it's not a straight forward process. Is there anything you suggest? I know I can always write a song on a groovebox and take it in to StudioOne and record guitar and vocal tracks but I would love to be able to achieve it w out the use if my computer

[@BoBeats]

Im not familiar enough with mpc to say… I think this smpltrek could actually be the thing to get. I feel like they are aiming it at exactly your use case. And when live looping arrives it will be even better!

[@DetroitMicroSound]

I'm a loyal Sonicware fan. Their machines are a retro simplistic adventure, that goes in deep realms.

[@FastRCToys]

The cost of a used MPC Live I’ve just bought… I’m near sighted also 😂😂😂😂

[@ErikAnders]

Can you export patterns as midi files to import into a DAW?

[@kisho2679]

does it beat the Octatrack regarding live sample mangling?

[@isham16]

❤thanks for the review, is it possible to import midi files from the sd card ?

[@easyneal]

Great question!

[@benjaminbrodie9801]

The Digitakt, Octatrack, Akai MPC Live Killer I have been looking for! Great video Bo! Keep up the great work!

[@marioaloe3628]

hi, could you explain me that about the Digitakt and the Octatrack? I didn't tried them but for what it seems they seem to have a way better and complex sequencer. Thanks

[@Screenshot1015]

@@marioaloe3628 this device is interesting but it’s sequencer simply doesn’t compare to an elektron machine. This is more of a 1010 black box killer than anything, I even think the SP404MK2 is a bad comparison because the 404 has so many great effects and it’s not really something you’d buy for the internal sequencer in the first place. Also the screen on the 404 is vastly superior.

[@Screenshot1015]

@@vjfxtheory huge point made right here. The polyphony on sample trek is extremely cool. I still think the best thing going right now is the dirtywave M8, that thing is incredible and I figured out the UI on mine in like a day or two it’s super intuitive.

[@marioaloe3628]

@@Screenshot1015 @VJ FX THEORY that's what i was thinking...elektron sequencers and capabilities are on another level...however, this thing about polyphony makes (at least for me) a big difference; one thing i still didn't saw on any of the videos/tutorials is that the Smpl Trek (apparently) cannot do Motion Sequence...

[@xisotopex]

@@vjfxtheory does the octatrack output polyphonic midi if you are using one of the tracks to sequence external instruments?

[@ketamu5946]

In the future i will be traveling a lot for work and besides all the hick-ups it really looks like something i might take on my travels paired with a volca maybe

[@BoBeats]

Not a bad choice!

[@P-S-T]

Do you still use it? 😊

[@teamphil]

How would compare the sequencer to something like the Korg sq-64 or the beststep pro?

[@zmmmzmmmz]

Sq64 is more of a pure sequencer with better midi IO but no audio

[@Jazz71572]

Looks very interesting and fun

[@abrasionequation4632]

How much?

[@TheMightyClark]

What do you think of the device with the recent FW update?

[@BoBeats]

I think its much improved!

[@marcelcontrole2948]

So in the end there is NO timestretching just like the polyend play. What is the use of playing an "instrument" that changes length at each different note?

[@BoBeats]

The reality of it is that for shorter samples you can play say an octave or even two without a problem. Its the same as on Digitakt or Play. But ofc live time stretch would have been prefered

[@dovepaige]

Maybe if they do some upgrades, finish their firmware etc...for now I'll stick to my BlackBox

[@leewightman8619]

Looks like a poor man's digitak Im thinking of getting one ...but might just get the MPC one I'm using the novation circuit rhythm at the moment for my main sampler

[@WAX_DOG]

Badass

[@JF-xk3yp]

Hello! How does it compares to the OP-Z in your opinion?

[@FastRCToys]

The OP-Z have a better screen 😊😊😊😊

[@dinogoldie9716]

As a HUGE fan of Sonicware's Liven 8bit Warps and Liven XFM (not so much their Liven Bass & Beats) backing the kickstarter for this was a no-brainer. I hope mine arrives before Christmas. I'm a little worried it's too menu-divey for my taste/accessibility needs but I'll need to have it in my hands to know for sure. Since they've designed it to be so small I don't know why they didn't opt for a screenless UX. I'm disappointed that sample-slicing doesn't automatically generate a kit or a single slicer channel.

[@antonliakhovitch8306]

A screenless UX from them would probably look something like the Liven XFM, which... isn't exactly a shining example of UX design. They tried it, and ended up with a mess of shift keys and function keys and they still have loads of menus. (Disclaimer: I own an XFM and I'm mostly impressed by it, but good God is the UI design unintuitive)

[@dinogoldie9716]

​@@antonliakhovitch8306 The XFM UX is great. The Bass & Beats on the other hand....

[@DJCJ999]

Hey Bo.. what about a follow-up review of the new firmware?

[@BoBeats]

Not a bad idea!

[@ivanskunov9166]

Thanks! And the sampling time from an external source is infinite? Akai mpc one/live and 1010 second-hand are very competitive compared to new products. I wish good luck to these guys! They need to find the golden mean of functionality.

[@BoBeats]

the sampling time is not infinite per track, i think its about 12 min max for 1 track, but you can have a large SD card and store plenty of samples on it.

[@ivanskunov9166]

Thank you for the prompt response in the form of a dialogue!A rare case of communication with other people:) 12 min.on the track, this is a very good indicator. And if the length of the sample depends on the volume of the flash drive, then this undoubtedly defeats the competition. What can we say about Alzheimer's mc 707... I will be waiting for your next resume! Thanks !

[@alexgrunde6682]

How would you say it compares to the Novation Circuit Rhythm and the Elektron Model:Samples?

[@BoBeats]

Circuit Rhythm is way more straight forward and hands on. But lacks any of the depth of this one.

[@terrytorain5364]

Hope they do some Sirois firmware updates in the next two weeks. (after then, I will have ordered the mc 707).

[@callelewander6789]

Tjena Bo! Gillar din kanal! Blev lite chockad när jag hörde svensk sång i din demo!

[@BoBeats]

Tack Calle!

[@robertsyrett1992]

it's like a micro-DAW

[@BoBeats]

Yes!

[@pcostanza]

I was a backer on Kickstarter, but for various reasons, am not interested anymore. I received my SmplTrek today, and put it on eBay.

[@CarlitoM77]

Why didn't you like it?

[@pcostanza]

@@CarlitoM77 It's not so much that I didn't like it, but rather that I wanted to focus on other instruments. Having said that, I found the screen quite small and the font difficult to read - but I'm already in my 50's, so it might be fine for younger people with better eyesight. ;)

[@boydw1]

It's an interesting unit, but I think they've wildly overshot their price point. I was expecting this to be somewhere in the territory of the Novation Circuit Rhythm or Elektron Model:Samples. That would also put it in line with the pricing of Sonicware's synth units.

[@badfeng]

It's $400, same as Novation Circuit Rhythm.

[@InkyDaCaT]

Think you can preview drums but its fiddley combo😉

[@P-S-T]

I heard “tungsynth” and not “tungsint” first time I heard you rapping. 😂 Gillar det, mer rap tack. 😊 Got mine today, it is pretty nice. Lots of everything , not particularly good at anything. 😅

[@InkyDaCaT]

Fast n fun is everything

[@telumatramenti7250]

WTF! It's 2022! Where is the USB-C port?!? Not something you can just add later via firmware you know... I couldn't care less if I didn't have to invest hundreds of $ into fixing the micro-USB ports on my gear, or, lately, didn't have to toil over it with a file and a soldering iron to replace the micro-USB with a USB-C myself. CME X-Key was just the latest of these frustrations.

[@damonhumble]

If you’re spending 100s to fix your micro usb ports when that isn’t an issue for like anyone else in the world, you are the problem lol

[@geoffclapp5280]

The looper looks interesting. That's a tiny screen. They should have made it with an OG Gameboy sized screen.

[@jackblackguard8908]

I had the same thought, especially since it seems that’s the vibe they were going for

[@eddy_sonik]

I LOVE ! 🧡

[@gullyman777]

Seems like another rushed product rather than really sitting and thinking about what they can add to the market. 1010 blackbox does pretty much all of this and is smaller was hoping this could replace 2 devices for me (drum machine and 1010as a clip launcher) but doesn’t seem so and I think it’s not right to buy a product in hopes that firmware might improve

[@Zeroblueeeee]

Is this okay for someone with ADHD adult learning as a beginner?

[@BoBeats]

Hmmm. I would suggest going with something more hands on to start: Circuit Tracks Circuit Rhythm Anything with menu will require more patience I feel

[@jboulderct]

Backed the Kickstarter, so I am very excited to get hands on with it. As a novice, I'm hoping it will fit my setup and skill level.

[@EDMQuickTips]

Yeah Beto id stick with that

[@NatePerdomo]

Been listening to much Boards of Canada lately?

[@BoBeats]

I hate to say it: i never listen to them

[@VJFranzK]

2:10 Bo of Canada

[@DJCJ999]

.... this has the charm of the OP-1 but the song mode the OP lacked..

[@alexandertr8577]

Looks like Polyend Tracker is much better in most cases as a sampler

[@brainbox9219]

Tracker is awesome for a lot of producer styles of music, but this thing is flexible for all kinds of music imo because of the ableton like block sequencing and the ins/outs makes it way more options for songwriting but tracker is super sick for destructive sound design, I’ve got one and love it and I’m writing an EP on it currently but I’m getting this because I can do performance based stuff music better on the smpltrek and be able to connect my hardware in a much more flexible manner

[@__cal29]

Bojack Synthman

[@TigroGumi]

They’ve gone with micro usb!? The port that’s notorious for breaking or being inconsistent in connection. That’s a design fail right there. It should have been USB-C, they could have powered it with that also… imagine you have a awfully phone to connect to this? 😂… can you get micro USB to micro USB cables? Such a shame when it’s a great piece of equipment

[@jfn467]

No real-time time stretch, deal-breaker.

[@BenColemanUK]

Looked super fiddly, like a poor mans clone of a 404, Digitakt or Octatrack, they tried to do too many things but didn't focus on making any of them actually good. I have a MC-101 so I'm pretty ok with menu diving, but this looked a lot worse. I assume the cheap price is what is going to make this a possible option for some people EDIT: Oh it's £500 - yeah screw that

[@therealOXOC]

i want it

[@xisotopex]

this thing is pretty cool... wish it was a bit bigger with two midi outs and more outputs...

[@InkyDaCaT]

Ok Bo this is gonna be one time only comment...as I know alot about this device...this video was better than loopops😂😂😂😂 ok Im never saying that again...ffs never did I say this?😂😂🙌 Well done!

[@jean-pierremartineau4136]

USB-C would have been nice.

[@strangesevin]

Doesnt seem like it is a sp 404 mk2 killer . You never really said

[@sofnaji]

This doesn't do anything that my 404 mk2 can't do

[@Arkansya]

was started before Roland announced the mk2 though, it made sens at the time vs mk1

[@marantz1]

It's crazy what lengths and inconveniences people will go to just to not use a laptop.

[@Niko80s]

No it's not. When you spend hours on your laptop (or desktop PC/mac) on your daily job , at the end od the day your're pretty exhausted, and that kind of little portable boxes that you can put on your headphones, lay on the couch , twist some knobs, push buttons/pads etc. it's whole different level of relaxing aproach.

[@marantz1]

@@Niko80s products like these are just a combination of midi controllers and bad laptops with bad screens.

[@Niko80s]

@@marantz1 obviously you dont have any idea what'cha talkin about, what are you even doing on this channel?

[@marantz1]

@@defcreator187 you do realise that so many of these devices are just software in a box right? It's not like this thing is analog in any way shape or form. There is nothing more 'real' about this than the software on a laptop.

[@baqcasanke]

@@marantz1 so did you even read the comments? Lol. Some of us hate using a PC to make music. Some of us want a small portable box. Why does this anger you? What do you loose if i choose to make music on this versus a PC? I never understood the “just use a PC” crowd. Idk why it makes people so mad that some of us prefer not to use a computer to make music….

[@asynchronicity]

Needs knobs.

[@bodhi1195]

Komm, da geht doch noch mehr Werbung... 😠

[@davidbanner9001]

It looks to be a very good device. But I'm getting sick of these stupid little screens. Even one twice the size would have made a big difference.

[@DrClocktopus1]

It's cool but I think an ipad with koala sampler is still the better option since this isn't the most tactile of hardware

[@DrClocktopus1]

@@defcreator187 true for sampling from vinyl - you can use an iRig I guess but becomes more cumbersome. Something like an sp-404 is better due to its tactility in that case.

[@gazfunk]

There’s better software on the iPad.

[@baqcasanke]

Not everyone has an ipad nor wants to make music on one……

[@isabelleoesch6582]

🤤 p̳r̳o̳m̳o̳s̳m̳