It can change time signatures, ooh la la

I imagine this is standard MPC stuff, but I haven't ever used one.

I had an Akai Force, and you literally couldn't be in any time signature except 4/4. It was absolutely shocking.

Okay, I just updated the firmware. On Linux. In 2 minutes.

These AKAI people might know wtf they're doing. After the epic frustration-bordering-on-rage that was how I experienced the 1010music Bento, this feels like a Cadillac.

(For those not in the US, USians use "like a Cadillac" to mean the top-tier experience of something, even though that is demonstrably not true.)

Also holiest of holies the MPC Sample shows up as a working stereo audio interface on Linux. So I can record it straight into my laptop or wherever with a USB cable. How neat!!

I wouldn't be surprised to see this become one of my most-often-used pieces of gear. This combo of fun + convenience + simplicity is so so good, and although it's not particularly feature-rich, I kinda consider that a good thing.

@BorrisInABox it is almost knob per function, although there are shift functions, and certainly knobs have different functions depending on what section you have active, eg. sequencer or sampler. There's haptic feedback in the form of clicks on the main knob, although not on the small knobs at the top.

I imagine it would be possible to use eyes free, but difficult. That said, I don't have any experience with that myself, so I could be overlooking something major that would make it impossible.

@alisynthesis I would like to play with one just to see, but I have to say, the bar is exceptionally high these days with Ableton move now having an onboard screen reader thanks to Schwung, formerly Move Everything. It can easily be toggled on and off, and I quite often disable it when I want it out of the way. More stuff needs this.

When I was in high school, a piece of software was released that read out the screens from Kurzweil keyboards using MIDI strings that Kurzweil implemented years ago across their entire range. Didn't get to use it for long, but that sort of thing is what I'm talking about. Instant and immediate access to everything in a non-obtrusive way.

@BorrisInABox totally agree, it seems like something that should be thought about from day one. It's very cool that the Ableton Move has a screen reader.

I love the idea of a SysEx/MIDI tool for that. Seems like something that could easily be part of the MIDI protocol. (Okay, "easily" is doing a lot of work in that sentence. I mean, it should technically not be that difficult.)