Akai carries on the MPC’s mythos at NAMM 2026 with the announcement of the new flagship Akai Professional MPC XL, a computer-free music creation station that may very well set the benchmark for complete standalone music production machines.
Akai’s newest offering is a technical powerhouse: The MPC XL features a new 8-core processor with 16GB of RAM, boasting quadruple the power of previous MPCs. Every element of production is easily monitored and manipulated using its 10.1” HD multi-gesture touchscreen and 16 Q-link knobs, each with its own OLED display. Each one of its performance pads now has four distinct programmable quadrants allowing for unprecedented creative potential, and its 16-step RGB function button sequencer empowers superior control and complexity, whether you’re sequencing external synthesizers, arranging clips, or making beats just like how the boom-bap titans did decades ago.
Akai’s most powerful sampler yet, the Akai MPC XL, is sure to stir beat-makers, electronic music producers, finger drummers, and songwriters into a frenzy. It very well may be the most sought-after piece of gear anyone making music in a DAW-less environment will see released in quite some time.
