Performing musicians and music producers looking for a standalone music production system should check out the gray Akai Professional MPC X Special Edition, the latest flagship music production workstation, complete with an integrated sampler, sequencer, 10″ touchscreen, 16 velocity-sensitive RGB-backlit pads and 16 endless encoder Q-Link controls, each with an OLED display.

The MPC X SE incorporates a quad-core ARM processor, 4GB of RAM, and 48GB of storage to power the MPC 2.0 software, without the need to connect to a host computer. What’s more, the unit can operate in Control Mode, which further expands the functionality by connecting to a computer to operate the same MPC 2.0 standalone software as a plugin in your favorite DAW. The MPC 2.0 software has added some powerful features including audio track recording, real-time time-stretching (audio warping), pitch-shifting, audio and MIDI drag-and-drop, clip program mode for clip-launching, an updated mixer layout with advanced signal routing, and enhanced Q-Link control.

The MPC X SE ships preinstalled with 18GB of sounds and samples. The internal drive bay includes a 2.5″ SATA drive connector, allowing you to install an optional SSD or HDD hard drive. Content can easily be uploaded and/or recorded to the full-sized SD card or USB thumb drives. The full-color 10″ multitouch screen offers quick and easy visual feedback and editing capabilities. View samples with pinch zoom, trim start and end times, and adjust and process samples on the fly. The XYFX allows you to control multiple effect parameters simultaneously, while the sequencer and mix page make short work of entering/deleting notes, editing values, and adjusting mix parameters. The MPC X SE ships with a power supply and USB cable.