As someone who’s spent countless hours behind the glow of my computer screen, weaving retro-futuristic textures and creating beats on FL Studio, music production isn’t new to me (even if I am not that good at it). So, when I decided to step out of my comfort zone and into the world of physical music production hardware with the Akai MPC Live 2, I knew I was in for an interesting ride.
These days I mainly focus on producing synthwave, a genre that thrives in the digital domain, so using a piece of physical hardware like the MPC Live 2 felt exciting and a little daunting. But, hey, who doesn’t love a good challenge, right?
The Akai MPC Live 2 is a beast of a machine, a standalone music production centre that promised to take me places that my faithful VST plugins and MIDI keyboards couldn’t reach. My initial interaction with the device was a mixture of awe and confusion. I felt like a seasoned spaceship pilot suddenly sitting in the cockpit of a new alien spacecraft. It was different, but it felt like an adventure waiting to happen.
With a little help from YouTube tutorials (which, by the way, are an absolute godsend for newcomers to the MPC), I was able to get a hang of the device. The first day was a whirlwind of knobs, buttons, and touchscreen interactions, and I was thrilled when I managed to craft not one but two beats. The first synthwave beat I created I ended up putting on Soundcloud:
It’s not a perfect track. But, considering that this took me about 30 minutes to make (most of which was working out where the heck everything is), it’s a lot faster than it has taken me using FL Studio.
The MPC Live 2 felt like a natural extension of my musical mind. Its pads were responsive and expressive, and the built-in 7-inch multi-touch display was a revelation. It allowed me to manipulate my samples and sequences with an immediacy that I had not experienced before. There was something incredibly satisfying about the tactile nature of the device. Each pad hit, each knob turn, felt like an intimate conversation with my music.
Being a synthwave producer, I was initially sceptical about how well the MPC Live 2 would accommodate my style. But the device didn’t disappoint. It had a range of sounds and effects that allowed me to keep my synthwave identity intact. The built-in synth engines delivered incredibly lush and wide sounds, perfect for crafting those atmospheric synthwave pads and leads.
However, if you want to produce synthwave/retrowave or other styles like it, you will want to buy the paid plugin: Air Jura. This is an essential purchase, in my opinion. While the device itself does come with some synths you can adjust to get a similar sound, nothing comes close to that authentic eighties sound than Jura.
While I primarily produce synthwave, I also tried my hand at some trap beats on the MPC Live II. I love the simplicity of a trap beat, how you can build it up and layer it into something complex. I’ve done trap beats in FL Studio before, but making them on the MPC was a more interactive and fun experience using the pads.
Once you get used to the workflow of the MPC, you have this “a ha!” moment where things start to click. Once you work out sequences and tracks to organise your songs, how to use programs and key groups and work with samples, it’s actually amazing how fast you get with this. I can turn out a basic beat in less than ten minutes now.
The device also has a myriad of shortcuts that make you even faster. For example, holding down the menu key and pressing pad two will take you to the program edit screen. Menu and pad four will take you to the file browser.
Something to keep in mind is there is a learning curve. Once you get the workflow down-pat, there is also the secondary layer beneath that of plugins (delays, reverbs, compression and every other type of audio plugin you would expect). You can mix and master your tracks right on the device. I still find myself exporting my stem tracks and doing the final mix on my computer, but I am learning to mix on the device too.
Perhaps my favourite feature of all is splice.com integration. I have had a splice.com account for years and amassed a treasure trove of samples. So, logging in to my account and syncing all of my Splice samples to the MPC Live II made me so happy.
I bought the MPC Live II over the MPC One (despite running the same software) because of the inbuilt speaker and battery. You can sit this on your lap while seated on the sofa, take it out in public and produce some beats without worrying about a power adapter. I haven’t tested the battery life yet, but it seems to last a while. It can last up to six hours (allegedly), which is impressive for a device like this.
Talking about the speaker, it is a lot better than you realise. It has awesome bass, and the overall tonality of the speaker is really good. I’ve noticed if my tracks sound good on the inbuilt speakers of the MPC Live II, they will sound good everywhere else too. You can hear a snippet from the inbuilt speakers caught on camera here.
My biggest gripe with the MPC Live II is how easily it shows up fingerprints, dust and muck. The pads attract dust easily (because they’re rubber), as does the touchscreen and the enclosure. You will find yourself wiping it down a lot. It’s a minor thing, mostly attributed to the fact it’s a dark device and touchscreens, by nature, shows fingerprints.
The Akai MPC Live 2 has been a delightful detour from my DAW-centric production routine. It has challenged, surprised, and inspired me to make music in ways I hadn’t imagined before. If you’re a producer looking to break out of the confines of your DAW, or just someone looking for a new, tactile way to interact with your music, the MPC Live 2 is a worthy contender. It’s a device that respects your musical roots and encourages you to branch out and explore new sonic landscapes. Best of all, you can produce music without needing to use a computer.
