FUNKY 9 Posted May 5, 2019 Share Posted May 5, 2019 In the last few months my son has been hogging my ancient iPad with basic free mpc style apps. Hes surprised me with what hes made with just some of the shit sound packs so much so Ive decided to get him a gadget of his own. Hes only turning 8 but Ive been surprised how well hes taken to basic beat making. Hes had a mess around on my mpc2000xl so has a basic understanding of the akai workflow so was thinking of trying to find an mpc500. Ive also seen the teenage engineering portables and have started looking into those too. Ideally Im looking for something with a built in sequencer where I can help him sample/chop and leave him to get busy. Also need to add Im looking for it to be standalone so he can take it to my mums and make stuff there. Battery powered would be a plus but not essential. Any other beat machines I should look into? Basically just looking for something with a easy workflow that he can take with him that he can plug his headphones into. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Deft Posted May 5, 2019 Share Posted May 5, 2019 I've been pretty close to getting my 6 Yr old (i.e. me when she gets bored of it) a Novation Circuit. No sampler though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
danswift Posted May 5, 2019 Share Posted May 5, 2019 Id recommend the Roland SP-404 SX..I use an O.G. model but I'd say try the newer SX as there's more up to date features and they run on SD storage cards as opposed to compact flash ones with the O.G. The samplers are really easy to use and there's a load of cool fx on board..you get 12 pads to playback the samples and they also run on batteries so are super portable too ..you can literally just chuck it in a backpack and you're good to go!.. https://www.roland.com/uk/products/sp-404sx/ 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Flexinoodle Posted May 8, 2019 Share Posted May 8, 2019 Get him a newer iPad. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FUNKY 9 Posted May 9, 2019 Author Share Posted May 9, 2019 I ended up getting him beat maker 3 for my iPad mini. Ive not really messed with it but it seems to be working with a couple of tracks. Its actually surprised me how good it is. Should be more than enough for him and if he continues using it Ill grab him some kind of controller to go with it. I looked at a few hardware options but at this stage I think this will be the best bet for him. Hes already been asking to sample some of my drum breaks haha 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
djdiggla Posted May 9, 2019 Share Posted May 9, 2019 Man that's fresh! SP303 might be a good one. Very portable. My son (also 8) has been mostly messing around with a Kaossilator Pro. Sounds like yours is doing more advanced things and sequencing not just looping like us but might also be worth a look. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TBearOne8III Posted May 9, 2019 Share Posted May 9, 2019 Man that's fresh! SP303 might be a good one. Very portable. My son (also 8) has been mostly messing around with a Kaossilator Pro. Sounds like yours is doing more advanced things and sequencing not just looping like us but might also be worth a look. man, i just seen a 303 on the goodwill auction. i havent gotten into making beats but i was going to get it anyway. but the price kept jumping up passed what i wanted to pay for it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
danswift Posted May 10, 2019 Share Posted May 10, 2019 man, i just seen a 303 on the goodwill auction. i havent gotten into making beats but i was going to get it anyway. but the price kept jumping up passed what i wanted to pay for it. The days of finding a bargain SP-303 are long gone I should imagine...everyone seems to want to get hold of them nowadays. Those little machines are dope as hell and very unique sounding though..I would love one to team with the 404 as I've used them together in the past and the combination sounds awesome..the 303 has an absolutely amazing Vinyl Sim algorithm and adds some serious punch and toughness to sampled drum breaks especially. Highly recommended.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Flexinoodle Posted May 10, 2019 Share Posted May 10, 2019 Just buy Koala for the iPad if you have an SP fetish Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
djdiggla Posted May 10, 2019 Share Posted May 10, 2019 Your only chance is set a filter on IFTTT for craigslist with the price you want and wait. You can do ebay too of course. That's how I get most of my gear. It comes to me eventually. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FUNKY 9 Posted May 14, 2019 Author Share Posted May 14, 2019 To be honest Id like something from the sp series for my own use hahaHes took to the app pretty well. What he dont know if Im looking for a controller for it. Thinking of getting an older mpd as the latest ones seemed to be plagued with shit pads. Either that or maybe a launchpad mini for his little fingers loool 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Deft Posted May 14, 2019 Share Posted May 14, 2019 I've just ordered a Sonuus Looper microphone for my 6 yr old. Let's see if she uses it for more than 5 minutes. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Flexinoodle Posted May 15, 2019 Share Posted May 15, 2019 To be honest Id like something from the sp series for my own use hahaHes took to the app pretty well. What he dont know if Im looking for a controller for it. Thinking of getting an older mpd as the latest ones seemed to be plagued with shit pads. Either that or maybe a launchpad mini for his little fingers looolThe 218 works well on IOS. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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