Akai's MPC Key 61: review, comparison to other workstations, pros and cons

Indeed it's a great trend to see meaningful firmware updates!

P.S. I do wonder if they’ve missed a trick by not porting over the speakers from the MPC Live II! Now I’m really going back into my Porta-Studio youth, but the speakers on the MPC Live II are surprisingly good and a hell of a lot of fun — this keyboard with a set of built-in speakers would be the ultimate small gig, fun studio, take-it-anywhere creation machine…

Jeff Shuck

I wasn’t really part of the Akai world until COVID, looking for something portable and fun for the couch at home after being frustrated by the limitations of the Digitakt. I missed the MPC revolution back in the day… in any case, I jumped on board with an MPC Live II and have loved it. It’s amazing to me the power they have packed into that system. Yes, you can buy a laptop and Logic Pro, but that’s not really the point of hardware. (And I’m guessing most “standalone” users, like me, like standalone for noodling, creating, and performing, but also produce in a DAW.) I think it is cool Akai are putting it into a keyboard form factor, and although I don’t need keys at the moment I’m tempted. The sound is on par with the Fantom but the sampling and sequencing is way more advanced — and I already know the OS! (I do think that knowledge of the UI is a key selling point.) But what I really love is what seems to me to be a trend among the major manufacturers to actually support and add onto their existing gear for more than a year or two. I’d say Roland has done the same with the Fantom. It used to be that you’d get a keyboard knowing that in two years a v2-platinum-upgraded-bigger-faster version would come out. I do think Akai, Roland, Elektron and others have done a fantastic job of continually breathing new life into their instruments. A welcome trend in the industry.

Jeff Shuck