Akai Introduce MPC Touch

The latest incarnation of the much-loved MPC series features a touchscreen for the first time.

Akai has announced details of the latest update to the iconic MPC range. The MPC Touch is a hybrid device, which seems to fall somewhere in between the MPC Studio and MPC Renaissance in terms of the overall feature set.

There is, though, one major difference: the Touch, as the name suggests, features a large, full-colour touchscreen for editing samples, adjusting parameters and controlling effects.

The addition of the multi-touch display is an interesting move from Akai. There are a handful of single-touch hardware units on the market – notably Roland’s TB-3 and Korg’s Kaoss series – but most manufacturers have seemed reluctant to incorporate multi-touch technology in their hardware, perhaps as a result of the dominance of Apple’s iOS devices.

The Touch works in conjunction with the MPC software and its 20GB of bundled sound content. For creating original samples, the controller also features a built-in 2-in/2-out audio interface. Akai describes it as the “most capable and user-friendly” MPC to date.

The MPC Touch will go on sale in November, priced at £499. Check out the the video introduction above and scroll down for the full set of product photos from Akai. More info can be found at Akai’s MPC Touch micro-site.