Akai Pro launches free MPC 1.9 software update

Akai Pro has updated the free MPC software to v1.9, a major software release that provides support for Akai's new MPC Touch. You can now get hands-on with your music using MPC Touch's large multi-touch display and new hardware controls. MPC 1.9 also provides significant workflow enhancements and audio processing improvements.

New features:

• Support for the new MPC Touch. An entirely new way to interact with your music, with a rich, graphical, multi-touch workflow:
  • A refined gestural interface for instant access to your music.
  • XYFX provides realtime interactive sound shaping, with an all-new suite of built-in audio effects including tempo synchronised beat repeat, delay and modulation effects.
  • On-screen grid editor allows you to edit your beats with ease. Pinch to zoom, touch to select note events, and using the data wheel to nudge, transpose, and alter their velocities or lengths.
  • Enhanced step-sequencer provides instant beat sculpting.
  • The new sample editor allows you to view and edit your audio like never before.
  • Hardware track view - An overview of the tracks in your current sequence.
  • Support for RGB backlit pads, with comprehensive control over light behaviour.
  • Ability to use the MPC Touch screen as a desktop extender. Press SHIFT +ERASE to temporarily hide MPC's touch UI (TUI) whilst you're working.
• Significantly improved audio performance with a reworked internal audio path.
• Independent track lengths:
  • You can set a track's length (in beats) independent of the sequence length (which is set in bars).
  • If a track length is shorter than the sequence, then the track will loop itself.
  • Track view and the grid editors graphically reveal the "active" part of each track.
• Project notes (See Edit>Show Project Notes) allows you to remember any important information along with your projects. Make a note of your samples, external MIDI setup, etc.
• New project preferences allow you to select default values for a number of project properties. (See Preferences>Project).
• Individual insert bypass allows you to silence one of the inserts on a channel strip without disabling all inserts. Available in LCD, GUI and TUI:
  • Shift-click an insert in a GUI channel strip, or press the bypass button in the plugin's editor window.
  • On the LCD, press WINDOW when the cursor is over an insert.
• Vastly improved master mixer section:
  • Submixes and returns are now full channel strips, can hold four inserts per channel, allow you to adjust level and pan, and bypass individual inserts.
  • The GUI mixer has a draggable divider so you can make the master section as large or small as you require. Submixes and returns can be hidden using the filter buttons on the left-hand toolbar.
• Support for full-color (RGB) pad assignment in pad assign mode, with much deeper program pad color capabilities:
  • New GUI pad assign dialog that allows you to select "full RGB" or "classic Renaissance/Studio/Element" coloured pad light scenes.
  • Multiple pad light styles available:
    • all lights off.
    • "classic" MPC velocity-based color.
    • fixed colour.
    • pad level-based color brightness.
  • Ability to show unused (empty) pads by disabling the lights, or making the pad color dimmer.
  • You can chose whether all pads in a program use the same colour settings, or give each pad a different color.
  • The new pads scenes are saved with each program.
  • Access pad color mode in the TUI, Use Edit>Program>Pad Colour, or press PAD ASSIGN on the LCD interface. (SHIFT + PAD ASSIGN will open pad colour/assignment LCD page for keygroup/plugin/MIDI programs.).
  • Hold SHIFT while pressing a color switch to quickly assign that colour to all pads in the program.
  • Hold SHIFT while pressing/clicking on a pad to select the swatch corresponding to that pad's color.
• New pad colour available on Renaissance/Studio/Element hardware: lime green.
• New audition mode in the sample editor's "trim" mode: continuous loop sample audition. Tap pad 16 to start continuous looping playback of the current slice. You can now adjust the loop start/end using the Q-Links whilst it plays. Tap pad 16 again (or double-tap STOP) to stop the loop.
• Slice to pad: The sample editor "program" mode now has the ability to copy the current sample slice settings (e.g. the "All" slice, 1, 2, 3...) into the pad slice. (Press the "To Pad" button.).
• Pad polyphony limit. You can limit the number of simultaneous voices polyphonic pads can generate. Select Poly (unlimited voices), Mono, or a specific number of voices.
• Program polyphony limit. Available for drum and keygroup programs, you also can set the maximum number of simultaneous voices generated by all pads in a particular program. Select Poly (unlimited voices), Mono, or a specific number of voices.
• Screensaver prevention options available to prevent your computer screen for switching off (see Preferences>Other). You can chose to always defeat the screensaver when MPC software is running, to defeat the screensaver only when you have MPC hardware attached, or to leave the screensaver managed by the OS.
• Adjust event time functions allow you to modify the events on the current track to half speed or double speed. (See the Edit>Track menu.).
• Added Edit>Program submenu, providing access to program edit facilities.
• Drag pads in the GUI pad panel whilst holding Alt to swap pad contents.

Improvements:

• Sample zone cycle resets to layer 1 at the start of a sequence, and whenever the sequence loops.
• MIDI, plugin, and keygroup program pads display the note name and MIDI number.
• LCD sampler page shows selected recording duration in minutes:secs when more than 60 seconds are selected.
• SHIFT+TAP TEMPO toggles master tempo on/off. (On MPC Touch, TAP TEMPO flashes red to show master tempo is enabled.).
• Keygroup program editor improved.
• Pad mute mode pad light behavior updated: the pads flash brighter to indicate what's being played so you can visualise what to mute.
• New LCD "master" page (press SHIFT+SEQ EDIT). This contains the vintage mode state, shows inserts, mute state, level and pan for each of the master output channels.
• Enhanced "note stealing" algorithms so your projects play better.
• Updated hardware preferences (See Preferences>Hardware).
• Improved software install system.
• Bug fixes and stability enhancements.

Note:

• This version of MPC software can collect anonymous usage information that will help Akai improve the stability of the product. If you want to opt out of this service, please deselect "Collect usage statistics" in Preferences>Other.
• MPC 1.9 no longer supports the RTAS plugin format. A 32-bit AAX plugin is available for Pro Tools 10, alongside the 64-bit AAX for Pro Tools 11 and above.