The MiniLab meanwhile has a similar button to shift pad banks and both keyboards sport dedicated octave shift up/down buttons.

You’ll also find dedicated buttons to switch between drum pad banks A and B, and select whether the pads transmit program change messages or MIDI cc’s in addition to their regular function as drum pads. It’s also worth noting that knobs 1 and 9 on the MiniLab are push-clickable, so can also double as controls for navigating the included Analog Lab Lite software.Įlsewhere, the MPK features a built-in arpeggiator with adjustable resolution, range and modes, plus an MPC-style Note Repeat function for hi-hats or fills and a Full Level button to disable velocity sensitivity, augmenting the function of the pads, another nod back to the original MPC drum machines that veteran beat makers will appreciate. The knobs on the MPK are fairly fiddly with not much height to them, whereas those on the MiniLab are taller and more satisfying to get hold of. The pads on both machines are illuminated, and both pressure and velocity-sensitive, but Akai has a serious pedigree when it comes to pads, and these examples, derived from the famous MPC product family, offer a greater degree of sensitivity, giving the MPK the edge in this regard.Īs far as rotary controllers go, the MiniLab offers sixteen as opposed to the MPK’s eight, the main difference being that those on the MPK are knobs with end stops, while those on the MiniLab are endless, continuous pots. This layout allows the pads on the MPK to be larger than those offered by the MiniLab, despite the MPK’s smaller overall footprint. The MiniLab lays all eight pads out in a single row, while the MPK prefers a 4 x 2 layout.

Controller-wise, both keyboards offer the same amount of drum pads – eight in all, assignable in two banks for a total of sixteen – but in different layouts.

Akai mpc mpk mini