AKAI Professional MPD226 – USB MIDI Controller with 16 RBG MPC Pads, Fully-Assignable Production-Ready Controls & Production Software Package Included


The Ultimate Beat Production Studio Centrepiece

The MPD226 is a MIDI-over-USB pad controller perfect for producers, programmers, musicians and DJs alike.

Its intuitive blend of MPC controls and technologies mesh with seamless USB connectivity to bring the feel of classic beat making into the world of computer music production.

  1. RGB Pads

    At the heart of MPD226 are 16 ultra-sensitive, hyper-playable Thick Fat RGB illuminated MPC pads, ideal for triggering drums, one-shots, melodic samples, basslines and more.

  2. Produce Anywhere

    At less than 5cm thick and weighing in at under 1.5kg, MPD226 provides core sample triggering and DAW control functionality, housed within an ultra-portable, lightweight and slim-line footprint.

  3. Take Control

    Whether you’re producing in the studio or performing live, MPD226’s arsenal of controls provides in-demand, fully assignable functionality that readily adapts to your needs.

  4. The MPC Legacy

    With MPD226, core MPC-style controls are present including Akai Professional’s legendary Note Repeat, MPC Swing, 16 Level and Full Level.

  5. Drum Synth 500

    Drum Synth 500 by AIR Music Tech Included

    Adding a professional edge to your production is simple with Drum Synth 500 by AIR Music Tech, an industry leader in the development of production-focused virtual instruments.

  6. Ableton Live Lite

    An intuitive DAW providing core-performance and beat-production functionality and offering an intuitive workflow, live remixing capability and professional-quality audio recording / MIDI sequencing.

MPC Beats Software

Whatever you set out to achieve, MPC Beats will get you started. Incorporating the finest parts of the legendary MPC workflow, MPC Beats features all the essential tools for pro production.

Edit samples, mixdown your tracks, find any sound with the synth engines found on the legendary MPCs, record audio and much more.

MPC Beats will host your AU/VST plugins so as you expand your arsenal, know you’ll have complete compatibility with industry standard virtual studio technology.

MPD Comparison

16 pads

4

Faders

0

Step Sequencer

4

Pad Banks

3

Rotary Encoders

LCD Display

RGB Pads

16 pads

4

Faders

8

Step Sequencer

4

Pad Banks

4

Rotary Encoders

LCD Display

RGB Pads



Weight: 1.4 kg
Dimensions: 33.22 x 25.3 x 4.88 cm; 1.4 Kilograms
Model: MPD226

150 Responses

  1. Anonymous says:

     United States

    I first purchased this product as a midi controller replacement only. The included free software has made this purchase even more enjoyable. This purchase is a great start for any beginner home studio producer. I have never seen a bundle at this price point that can have you fully up and runnning before. If you have a decent pc /laptop and headphones/speakers alreday you are set to go!

    I first purchased this product as a midi controller replacement only. The included free software has made this purchase even more enjoyable. This purchase is a great start for any beginner home studio producer. I have never seen a bundle at this price point that can have you fully up and runnning before. If you have a decent pc /laptop and headphones/speakers alreday you are set to go!

  2. Anonymous says:

     United States

    The pads work a treat. Best I’ve ever tried. The pads are arranged funny; odd places for the snare, bass, etc, but I dare not try to go in and change anything; in my experience, attempting so will confuse the unit, and it may stop working.
    The software included was a hoax. I got the drum VST onto my home screen, but it only got in as “standalone” mode, so it’s useless insofar as my DAWs.
    Disabledton Lite does what it always does every time – halfway into the load, it decides that an “error” has been made, and it aborts.
    This exact same thing happens, in exactly the same way, every single time, and no, it isn’t me; this has happened on my previous computer before upgrading to this one as well.
    I purchase/download VSTs often, and I seldom have a problem, so it isn’t me, although even knowing this still won’t soothe the butthurt of the bitter trolls who will malign me, and I expect to get “Your a idoit” , “Your stuped”, and other flat-earther “repartees” soon after posting.
    Disabledton Lite is just clickbait, designed to get you to choose this over similar offerings.

  3. Alison says:

     Italy 🇮🇹

    fantastico pad per beat maker.
    touch dei pad fantastico con ottima risposta alla sensibilit.
    consigliatissimo

  4. Samara52Gefgkoz says:

     United States

    Excelente equipo, me llego el. Empaque defectuoso pero el equipo intacto.

  5. EzekielFIW says:

     United States

    Easy to use on Fl studio (FPC) very simple controls.

  6. Anonymous says:

     United Kingdom

    Still have a few things to figure out with this but so far its really great, easy to use!! I havent tried the software that comes with them yet, comes with instruction videos which is great.

    So far Ived used it in FL Studio FPC and works great. It was lagging at first which I was worried about but I changed the audio settings to Realtek asio and it fixed the lag straight away. Solid piece of equipment, seems really great quality and you can do so much with it!

  7. Anonymous says:

     United Kingdom

    Bought this for my husband. He loves it, but struggled with the software for it. He’s had it a few months now and after troubleshooting and some modifications on buttons triggering twice, he’s cracked it and loves it.
    I wouldn’t buy if you’re not confident with computers or handling software mods. If you’re tech savvy, go for it but get ready for some googling on how to fix certain issues!

  8. JeanneConrad says:

     Canada 🇨🇦

    Love this product, super easy to use if you know what you’re doing.

  9. LashundQQL says:

     United States 🇺🇸

    I like everything about the 226…..i only wish this and other packages i didn’t get…..and paid for…get replaced.

  10. BridgetChism says:

     United Kingdom

    other than the occasional double tap I’ve had no issues and for the price I’d say it’s worth i

  11. Anonymous says:

     United Kingdom

    It’s not bad, but 4 faders/encoders is just not enough. There are 3 control banks so you could use 3 x 4 faders but I find it rather difficult to use it this way. If I had to buy it again I would have opted for the MPD232.

  12. Anonymous says:

     United States

    It not for beginners it was not easy to lea

  13. Anonymous says:

     United States 🇺🇸

    We purchased this for our son who is interested in learning about music production. The software is extremely easy to download onto your laptop/computer. The company has amazing customer service. I reached out via Instagram with a few beginner questions and they answered all of them right away in a timely fashion!

  14. AshelyCasiano says:

     United Kingdom

    Great product for music creation, the touch pads are force sensitive so its really easy to use.

  15. Anonymous says:

     United States 🇺🇸

    I bought it as a gift for my boyfriend and he absolutely loves it. He was able to attach it on his DJ board and had no issues with it. I saw lots of complaints about double tapping and did a lot of research on buying it. Just for my boyfriend to say there was a button for taking double tap off or something

  16. Robert Steele says:

     France 🇫🇷

    Golden Review Award: 2 From Our UsersPour faire des morceaux de musique tout seul et cela fonctionne trs bien.

    Très bon produit.

  17. Anonymous says:

     United States 🇺🇸

    I’m not seeing any double notes like other reviews. I just figured out how to make mine work with FL Studio today and had a great time jamming. Does exactly what I need it to do for pads. I need to figure out how to assign effects to the knobs but, I’ll get there. Love the light up on button press too.

  18. Anonymous says:

     United States

    Product works great like it should from akai but the only problem I have is with the seller. The product looks used which isnt a huge deal but it wasn’t advertised as used so I’m a little bummed out but it work great so …

  19. Anonymous says:

     United States

    KOALA SAMPLER friendly. Worked just fine. Mapping in app was great. Just couldn’t map the tap tempo. Haven’t tried it on pc yet. So far so good. Does what i wanted it to do. Map all 64 pads and effects knobs and sliders.

  20. Outlaw Vern says:

     United States 🇺🇸

    Great machine to make beats. I’m still learning I have like three programs she just have to get the right program in your computer to use this other than that it works great. I never got the first one that I ordered but Amazon took care of that and send me one right away thanks Amazon.

  21. Mark Rechtin says:

     United States 🇺🇸

    Like others have mentioned with the double tap, I had the same issue on a few pads…but all I did was loosen the screws on the back of the unit just a little bit. Now no double tap!
    Pads feel great, leds look cool too. But I hate red, would be cool if you could change colors but no big deal. It works great and that’s what matters.

  22. Anonymous says:

     United Kingdom

    This is a nice little drum pad for beginners or those who only need a cheap pad for some basic studio drum work.
    As others have stated, its main drawback is the tendency for “double hits” and some slight sensitivity issues. This really isn’t much of an issue if you’re only using it for casual work.
    If you’re really into drum work, it might be worth getting a slightly more accurate pad as the “double hit” issue might frustrate you.

    I mainly got this pad for the light work I do with drums, so it really does the job well for my needs.
    The build quality seems sturdy enough, it’s a good size and weight, and has enough features for the price.

  23. Anonymous says:

     United Kingdom

    Golden Review Award: 2 From Our UsersWorks like a charm. I use it for triggering my samples in Rekordbox and it works perfectly.

  24. Anonymous says:

     United Kingdom

    Great addition to my home studio nice and easy to use

  25. Anonymous says:

     United Kingdom

    Great addition to my home studio nice and easy to use

  26. Hester52Hcnl says:

     United Kingdom

    Great addition to my home studio nice and easy to use

  27. Anonymous says:

     United Kingdom

    Brilliant and budget friendly for people who want to get into beatmaking using a pad controller or machine once you get to grips with this you can then spend more money on a machine instead of controller AKAI are best for pads on the market 100%

  28. Anonymous says:

     United States

    I really did like it but I hate that I had to send it back I wish I can get it again but I don’t have the money right now but I enjoyed it I liked it it’s enjoyable

  29. Anonymous says:

     United Kingdom

    Really good beginners pad. Plenty of pads to assign sounds too. Ideal atarting machine.

  30. Anonymous says:

     United States 🇺🇸

    Initially I was worried about the double triggering issue that others mentioned here but it hasn’t happened to me a single time & I didn’t have to adjust anything, it played great right out of the box. I’m very happy with the size & feel of the pads. The included software package is good for beginners.

  31. Yuri@iPodder says:

     United States 🇺🇸

    It’s all been said. Had to unscrew and adjust the screws, now works great. If you’re even looking at this in 2021 you should know about the pads needing adjustment. If you don’t Google it.

  32. Anonymous says:

     United Kingdom

    Great sensitivity of the pads love the software it came with

  33. MindyKulakowski says:

     Canada

    he delivery was ackward. the package was not wrap, it was deliver as is… everybody on the street would see the product…

  34. Anonymous says:

     Mexico 🇲🇽

    La calidad de Akai no falla, le pongo cuatro estrellas porque un pad no enciende luz, pero no afecta su funcionamiento.

  35. Anonymous says:

     United Kingdom

    A good bit of kit for a fair price.

    I have used it with logic pro and it connects straight away. This is my first sequencer so cannot compare to others but i trusted the brand and they have not let me down

    At times there is a lag, however i restart the mac and it has gone so more than likely a computer issue.

    I havent used it with any other DAWS but i imagine it would be the same case of plug it in and its good to go. ( did not need to install any software)

    The keys are sensitive enough and the unit feels sturdy.

    I did not read the instructions and got to grips with it within seconds, however i recommend reading as theres a fair bit this hardware can do if you take the time to actually learn i

  36. LinnieSeibert says:

     United Kingdom

    Dope connects to iPad Via camera connection kit and works with beatmaker 3

  37. EmelyZweig says:

     France

    le pad est doux progressif jolie mais les logiciels fournie sont compliquer pour dbutant.perso j ai telecharger d autre plus simple

  38. KathrynHuskey says:

     United States 🇺🇸

    The Akai MPD 218 is Awesome! It’s compact, lightweight, and the build quality is Superb! I have owned several MPC machines, so the fact that the 218 has the 16 World Famous MPC lighted ‘Thick Fat’ pads is simply Awesome! Also, the price is right. Of course it comes with plenty of drum sounds, kits and other sounds and software to get you up and running making great beats! A definite Buy!

  39. Anonymous says:

     Italy 🇮🇹

    Prodotto molto semplice da usare. Molto intuitivo e fatto con ottimi materiali. Nessun problema dal lato di installazioni e campionamenti vari.

    Unica piccola pecca, ma sono abitudini, i tasti mi risultano troppo “duri” ed ho dovuto fare una piccola e semplice modifica per rendere il tutto pi semplice all’utilizzo

  40. Anonymous says:

     United States

    Mine came open, and not in a box, no tape seal just packaging labels. but the product is great and worked out the box for my phone and tablet.

  41. Anonymous says:

     Australia

    Happy with the product. It was a bit funny that there there was no packaging around the box. Postage stickers went straight onto the box itself. However, no damage to the unit. So all good.

    Happy with the product. It was a bit funny that there there was no packaging around the box. Postage stickers went straight onto the box itself. However, no damage to the unit. So all good.

  42. Anonymous says:

     Canada

    I’ve been wanting either an Ableton Push 2 or something smaller and the MPD218 is perfect. Some novice might find it difficult to set up, but once connected with the right software it is pretty straight forward. I suggest anyone getting for the first time, get a Melodics membership, it is quite fun and instructive.

  43. Daniel25Neemjd says:

     France

    L appareil se branche en USB, je l’utilise en complment d’un synth, sur cubase, ableton et autres, pas de souci, pas de marche arrt, sinon RAS, son akai

  44. AnnabelIeh says:

     United Kingdom

    Golden Review Award: 3 From Our UsersI wanted to start learning to make music, and was immediately presented with a stumbling block: drum programming sux (unless you’re already familiar enough you xan work past it). This meant that I could not design a beat as I had already forgotten it before I could get anywhere near what I had imagined. So the logical progression is that with a finger drum pad, I could tap out what’s in my head instead of failing to design the pattern.

    But, I use Linux and am extremely stubborn about this. And whilst evidence exists, information is hard to find about the MPD218 and Linux.

    I hereby confirm that the MPD218 works in Linux with the Hydrogen drum synthesiser. That said not all functions of the pad seem to be supported, but all of the important ones are.
    – Cycling between the three banks of pads works without configuration
    – Mapping and cycling through the three banks of control knobs works in the MIDI learn function (I have all three banks of six knobs set to adjust the gain of each instrument in the mixer)
    – Velocity sensitivity works automatically
    – “FULL LEVEL” button turns off velocity sensitivity (no configuration needed)
    – Note Repeat and “NR CONFIG” work without configuration

    What doesn’t work:
    – PROG SELECT does things, not useful things and I haven’t been able to configure Hydrogen otherwise
    – SWING settings do nothing that I’ve been able to figure out

    And lastly: Hydrogen doesn’t record MIDI events so output will either need to be recorded as a sample in another utility or an external MIDI recording sequencer can be used to record the events and subsequently trigger Hydrogen as a soft-synth on playback (I have tested this with seq24).

    The unit itself is Plug ‘n’ Play and class compliant within Linux: it will appear as a properly labelled ALSA MIDI device, but JACKD will also assign a generic “capture_N” identifier in QJackCtl’s MIDI tab: watch the messages in QJackCtl to be sure which capture device represents the MPD218. Alternatively, a2jmidid utility can be used to reroute ALSA MIDI through JACK MIDI, but I have found this to not be 100% predictable.

    Finally, a product review: the unit itself is sturdy and weighty. It feels very solid which was a surprise. The pads are comfortable, silicone material which light up when tapped. The pads are prone to double triggering, which many other people have found but a change in playing style resolves this (don’t let your fingers rest on the pad but rather recoil immediately; think pistol-shrimp). The control knobs, too feel very solid with a lot of resistance to prevent accidental adjustment. The 6 function buttons are the only parts of this device that don’t feel high quality, but they do feel sturdy enough to not warrant concern.

    I am 101% happy with this product; the extra 1% because I wasn’t expecting it to work quite as well with Linux/Hydrogen as it does; I was prepared for a 90% at best. So very happy me. It’s also worth noting I’ve only had it a couple of days, so I might be tempting fate … we’ll see.

  45. Srikanth Voruganti says:

     Canada

    I purchased this to create beats myself for my music. Just got in this morning only took 3 days and works amazing the sound quality and touch sensitivity is on point really happy with this product.

  46. GudrunOuellette says:

     Germany

    perfect for beginners with a low budget to start with but for a very short period of time. as for the pads, I do not recommend them for professional recording for their pad insensitivity and double hitting. as for the price, i think its more than fair.

  47. MandyWooten says:

     United Kingdom

    Good product. Had a few scuff marks around the frontside of the product that are barely noticeable. Product works fine.

  48. Anonymous says:

     United Kingdom

    Good product. Had a few scuff marks around the frontside of the product that are barely noticeable. Product works fine.

  49. Anonymous says:

     United States 🇺🇸

    The Pad was awesome yo ! If you’re like me and don’t really want to spend time reading manuals then this could work for you ! Although there are plenty of more features I am missing out on I am totally satisfied with what I can do with the mpc now.

  50. SanfordAbdul says:

     Canada 🇨🇦

    Got this for my boyfriend and he never gets off the item work amazing for his work