"Useless samplers": why do they exist?

The reason they exist, quite simply, is portability - a knock-on effect of this is greater affordability than the flagship products. E.g. push3 and Move. I also don’t think any of them are toys; it’s up to the producer to use their creativity to make good music on the device. I’ve finished more tracks on the Ableton Move in 6 weeks than 2 years of owning the MPC Live 2.

After years of using Maschine I recently started using the free MPC Beats software. It's perfect and enough for what I do. I uninstalled Maschine after making my first track with MPC Beats.

Koala sampler is dope.

Good commentary, AI beats will be a thing. (exactly what remains to be seen) I agree! that MOVE is puzzlingly underpowered, (vs 404, etc.) and yet why will we still perhaps buy it? Partly because it links to Ableton, and they aren't likely to make another for a long while. Another Question: Will MPC ever deliver a mini device also? as was rumored months ago. I wonder if I should hold off buying for more MPC options to arrive... (I will have a video all about Ableton Hardware devices soon.)

I come, from. Hardware started in the early 90s I just use software it's easier and less hassle. I do like these little toys to just make some. Kldskool house it's just fun work si work fun is fun

People fels orphaned and soulless without their devices outdoors. You showed some big devices in the beginning as being the real thing. but you shopuld have taken them outdoors to show and talk about them. That's where all these portables come in. The meet the need to have gear at hand outdoors (whether sensible or not). People pull their wallets for promises, not for actual practical purposes. Take the train, go on a boat trip, visit your famiiy with your favorite big devices and you'll see there's a market for these useless samplers

Hit 'em, man!

I've had tons of samplers, from vintage to modern. And despite all limitations, I cannot rant too much about the KO II ep-133. It's been the quickest thing to finish a track for me. I see no reason why not using it professionally. When the MPC 5000 came out, legends like DJ Muggs admitted that they didn't even use half of the features the machine provided.
I've had a similar impression from the Octatrack. It's a monster, a beast, it can do it all etc. However, I've never needed its granular synthesis, single cycle waveforms, stutter-delay-tape-stops or super time-stretching abilities, because it wasn't my taste at all. However, it still costs around 1200 Euro. Why even spend so much?

My misconception is that more midi instruments equals more productivity but I can't really operate more than two machines at once.

The limitations is what makes it great

There's a fine line between being creatively limited, and working with one hand tied behind your back just to say you did it with hardware/without a computer. Some devices tread this line better than others.

But ya know I do get it. "Toy" isn't a dirty word in the context of music. Good things can come from having fun. I think as long as we're aware of our own susceptibility to marketing, and that hardware doesn't necessarily exist to make our lives easier. Most of us can't afford to get every new, cool thing that comes out. But they're often so limited in scope that you would need a few of them to cover all your bases. At which point you've spent computer money on avoiding a computer.

There are some interesting ways to limit yourself on a computer. Even if they're artificial/self imposed restrictions. Write to a 10 minute timer. Set a track count limit. Fun to try these things out! Do like the hands on control of hardware sometimes though.

Omg Based. The new MPCs aren't good for live shows unless you have 2 of them. Everything else is gospel.

No way the sp is a heavy hitter when the P-6 has a superior sequencer lol

You never even mentioned the most useless sampler of them all, the Octatrack.

I have an akai force at home and a few synths + mac. I have a Polyend tracker mini for ideas away from home. That's about it.

With me the hardware is a good thing ,i love the pc daws its just you always end up getting a new computer something failed or crashed things wont boot up it starts running slow with the mpc just take the sd card out turn it off or reset your back in the game no beats or samples lost you got everything

It's common to hear the "it doesn't work for me, and therefore must be a failure". As someone who uses samplers out of necessity I've had to kiss a lot of frogs to find the winners but they're VERY specifically matched to my usage case and tastes. If the winning hand you're playing to flag the inadequacies of the other plastic slabs is that it's better then question why they sell and get used instead of your all-singing, all-dancing slabbage

The main strength of your "useless samplers" is accessibility. Accessibility in terms of both cost and UI. If you're rich and professionally active enough to require a production workstation that costs a thousand bucks, good for you. If you legitimately need a production workstation with all the bells and whistles for your job, have at it. Don't though disparage cheaper, more user-friendly grooveboxes and dedicated samplers. That's just snobbery. I don't nod my head to a beat because of how much your Mom and Dad paid for you to make it. I don't sort my favourite albums in ascending order of the price of the gear used to make them. As a disabled person, your MPCs/Pushes or whatever would be a very expensive and actually "useless" paperweight to me. The Circuit/KO2/Liven Lofi12 or whatever are instantly accessible and usable for me.

Great video and opinion on this subject. These are boutique samplers. I think fun is the key with these samplers. I had the PO33 and also my MPC LIVE II and the PO was fun to use while I was away from home.

As for me, I am a beginner musician and I started to make music on my laptop in Ableton, simply because I was 17 and didn't have any money for hardware. Recently I ordered myself the p-6, because I really wanted to lay my hands on an actual sampler, and MPCs or even the sp-404 are still too expensive for me. And, in my opinion, I don't need a sampler to be a DAW in a box, simply because I alredy have a DAW and I can use it for whatever my sampler is not capable of. Yes, the p-6 is filled with stupid limitations like the amount of sample and low sampling time, but these are the limitations that can possibly push me to be more creative and approach beatmaking from a different perspective. So, As for me, I don't think all samplers should be capable of all the things a DAW is, simply because for the most of the producers a DAW will bi a much more affordable and convenient choice anyway.

Let's just wait a few year until AI creates the samples automatically for you through your neuralink. The kids won't understand why you use FL studio or a "mouse"😂

Clicked on this thinking the opinion was the mk2 was useless, glad not

I wouldnt put the circuit rhythm is this category.

girls just wanna have fun

For fun, timing and the sound.

Buying the OP-Z taught me that there's no way around the DAW. It's a cool little box, but one month and I realized that most of effort goes to fight device limitations, not making music. I never tried the MPC (Force / Push / etc.), but I expect even the worse experience. At least I can use OP-Z on the go, in a bed 😅or during blackouts. But in the studio, a PC with mouse, wide screen and unlimited everything leaves it no chance.

Probably there's one more thing about artificial limitations: Feeling that I'm less capable than my music setup may be uncomfortable and frustrating. I think this is better be worked with therapist.

I love my seqtrak

I have owned many of these “toys” you talk about. I learned that I should have just bought a MPC to begin with. I spent more and couldn’t do as much. Nothing beats the MPC for me.

My sampler is not useless.
And it doesn't use a DAW.
My sampler is KOALA.
For $10 USD it will do all that I need.

I am also a millennial, and I have quite a lot of "toys" - Push 2, SP404MK2, Roland MC-101, and Roland J-6. I also had a Microfreak and a couple of Volcas, but I sold them. What I noticed is that Push 2 and Ableton really boosted my productivity (I don't play piano, and Push's scale feature is very handy), but the rest of the devices actually hindered me - the learning curve and all related things. Now, they mostly collect dust. I use samples very rarely, mostly composing music myself, and maybe because of this, a laptop with Ableton is better for me - I can adjust notes, try ideas just by drawing chords, and so on. But I really enjoy the dawless process. Just jamming around without the intention to develop the idea into something else. I completely agree with you about stopping arguing with people - if you don't like dawless and prefer a laptop and Ableton - good for you!

Blah Blah Blah......what's your point?

Ha. You missed the OP-XY

I started my toy collection with the MPC One Retro. This is after not making music for like 10yrs. Before that, I only did music in Ableton and Reason which was great and I was able to complete full songs with vocals and all. But when I came back to music after 10 yrs of silence, I decided I just wanted to have FUN and not sit staring at a computer screen for days and days like I used to when I was pursuing a career in music. Now I'm a grown up with a career and money, and yes, I want ALL my toys and I don't care LOL. I got the SP404mk2 next, then the KO2, and now the Ableton Move. It's fun, its a hobby, it's a stress reliever after long days of being in a high pressure high responsibility position at work. I think the MPC is the king and it has EVERYTHING, but more limited things like the Move are just genuinely FUN to use. It's all about what you're trying to do. Hey if you have the $, go for it.

the answer to the question of why they keep making limited samplers is probably that they have overproduced components for stuff like that in the past. and now they try to sell them off as new tech. same for synths and other gadgets probably

I have had my fair share of samplers and have tried out many different workflows over the years. I agree with many of the points you make here, but the fact is that everyone is different and people will vibe with different devices. I'fe been making music for half of my life, sample-based music is my jam and I make many different genres, I personally can't stand the MPC's. I've given them a try on several occasions, most recently the MPC One, I owned an MPC Live 2 sometime last year, an MPC 1000 a long time ago....I've never felt less creative than when sitting in front of one of those machines. I don't know why, and believe me, I really wanted to love the MPC, especially with all the recent developments. MPC's are on fire right now, but again, I couldn't even bring myself to want to turn it on most days. I used Maschine for several years and made a lot of music, played a lot of shows, generally loved my time with Maschine. I got bored with that though as well and sold it a couple years ago. Since then I have been trying several different samplers and music production devices and I've landed on so many that I never would have thought I'd ever like, but that I will now never sell. I think it's important for people to try new things. Surprisingly, in my opinion, the best music I've ever made has been with Koala Sampler alone on my iPad. I also love the Async Sampler app. Two of my most recent songs were recorded in just that app, and they're my best sounding songs. It is all about having fun though, which is why I keep my hardware, and why I can never tell someone that my devices are better than theirs. It's all about how they're used. Thanks for your video bro, I appreciate you.

Because consumerism… gotta buy them shiny gear brah

.. and why is our attention drawn so much to them? Er.. Because of videos like yours?

EP133 is the most immediately powerful and accessible MIDI sequencer I've ever used (and i have ableton live 12, arturia krystek pro and beatstep pro; also had but sent back the MPC X software version 2 as the workflow was not for me). I always try to learn more and maybe I will use the bastl MIDI looper soon (have owned it for a couple of years now.

Yea, Circuit Rhythm is definitely NOT in the useless category. Maybe to you, but have you even checked Gabe Miller Music’s channel? This dude certainly makes the Rhythm no so useless.

I find an irony that you're wearing a Gangstarr shirt...considering that many of Premier's best beats are the simplest. "Ex to the Next" is literally 3 samples total. Or "Take it Personal" from that same album is an extremely simple arrangement. The power in limits is that it requires a user to think differently about the nature of sampling-instead of sampling 'phrases' you are looking for 'loops,' which will take up less space and show off not nnly your creativity, but also maximize what you, the producer is capable of. EVERYTHING is useless if you don't use it. In order to commit tracks from an SP-12 to a digital medium? It has to be recorded in real time. In the audio realm. That workflow may seem just simple 'nostalgia,' but it also pushing back on the idea of unlimited sample time (which I'd have fought someone for in 1993) and it fights the notion of having everything without limits. Sometimes, those guardrails/boundaries are how new things get made.

they exist because people buy them obviously. 🤷🏽‍♂️

if you have a box that you are creative with - that's a result worth the price of entry.
i have
MPC ONE
SP-404mkii
EP-133 KOii
all are very very creative/fun to use and i get songs finished on them all.

SP404 was a big game changer for me. I use it everyday and plug all my instruments into it. Band in a box lol. But it's true when I have a good paying job I went nuts and bought the stuff I could never have when I was a kid. Now im done, found what I liked and will be getting rid of the rest.

A lot of gear specs today are worse than specs in the 90s. It's inexcusable.

Price and owning hardware. The End.

Wearing a Gangstarr t-shirt in a video called useless samplers? Should have worn a different shirt:)

Not sure you mentioned the performance potential of these devices. It's not just the merit of a production tool (although it is fun to produce with limitations and different workflows. I only have 1 hardware sampler (SP404) although some synths i own can also act as samplers. The SP404 is a fantastic creative tool, you can also line up music and perform with it, not just in terms of mixing tracks, which it can also do. You only need to carry the SP404 and a lead once you've set it up how you want it... And the on board effects are exceptionally good.