MPC X, MPC Live, MPC One & MPC Key 61 Forum: Support and discussion for the MPC X, MPC Live, MPC Live II, MPC One & MPC Key 61; Akai's current generation of standalone MPCs.
By jeff lick Sat Jan 12, 2019 5:11 pm
I like the stand alone plus DAW control very much. The Advance has tight control over the DAW as does the X.
I Miss stand alone capability on the Advance however.
I was wondering if anyone knew if the Roland FA 06 could fit this bill?
The question is does the FA 06 ETC. have as good control over the DAW as the Advance? The hardware side is okay but if it does not have the full control of the DAW that is a deal breaker for me.

I ask because I can trade but not trade back.
Meanwhile I will say the X is what I wanted from the REN a few years later. This is a good pair and of course I have a lot of other gear. I am not sure if going to the Roland is an upgrade or a mess up. I mainly use things like Omnisphere, Serum and not on board. So DAW integration is of the utmost importance to me. Anyone know if the FA 06 can fill this void or leave well enough alone?

Thank you,
Jeff
By jeff lick Sat Jan 12, 2019 6:32 pm
I am guessing maybe not now that I think about it. The FA 06 is simply sending midi messages. The Advance has the VIP software running in the background. I have no idea.

It would be nice if there was something like the MPC X in a keyboard. Do not know if it exists.
Standalone plus full DAW control.

I imagine the DAW control is much tighter on the Advance due to VIP.

I bet it is Mackie protocol on the FA 06. So it is not plug and play like the Advance but it should do all the same. I have no idea just guessing. I hope someone knows for sure how this(and others) integrate. I suppose the integration is not as tight as the Advance nonetheless. Anything can just send midi sysex. Here we have the VIP doing all of the setup.

The Roland does not have aftertouch and a much lower quality feel keybed when compared to the Advance. The Advance has a Fatar keybed with Aftertouch, Pedal assignment ETC. That just made this keyboard(Roland FA 06) moot to me, at least. Nice idea of mine but no cigar here. I am sorry I even brought this up without researching more.

Anything else that is like an MPC X(keyboard)? Bet Akai does it soon. Plus can Midi the Advance to all my hardware synths. No aftertouch is a deal breaker IMO. If you play piano and many other patches you know what I am talking about!
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By Lampdog Sat Jan 12, 2019 8:24 pm
Even though Advance can control lots of different daws it was made specifically for akai software.

FA06 is a complete workstation and can midi to other gear or be used standalone.

Check out the manual of it to see the capabilities.
By jeff lick Sat Jan 12, 2019 10:17 pm
AFAIK the Advance can control any DAW as well. The FA 06 has 5 listed. The Advance has many listed. If not listed either can send sysex. The Advance is a high end Midi controller. It is designed to be a high end controller. The FA 06 is foremost a workstation with DAW control perhaps as an after thought. Nonetheless the FA 06 is a low end work station. I have a Montage so was just noticing what one is getting into without a true Midi controller. I did not know the Montage did so in 2.5 until a few hours ago. The keybed in the Advance should be better than that of the FA 06 as well. However no after touch was a deal breaker for me.

Think about it. At previous price like 2 weeks ago the Advance 61 was 75% the price of the FA 06 for just a midi controller. That might say a lot. Perhaps why the price was lowered as well. However the Komplete Kontrol remains at it's lofty price tag. The most important thing to me (and I gather many) is that the Advance is plug and play. Whereas the FA 06 will require some tweaking at a minimum. If not using one of the 4 DAW templates you are on "user" which gets complicated perhaps. Good luck getting the transport to work in user. I was ready to get a FA 06 but I feel now the Advance is better suited to being a midi controller. Which in fact is exactly what it is to begin with. There is a lot missing in the FA 06 DAW integration(per manual) as compared to the Advance.

The FA 06 is not hybrid in reality like the MPC X/Live. It is mainly hardware. Stand alone per se. Not truly both. Low end hardware at that. I read the manual and made up my mind. It was not what I was looking for in the end. To wit a keyboard incarnation of the MPC X. I would not doubt that in the future Akai goes the route I am looking for. Hats off to Akai. They are bringing to market niche devices that do not exist elsewhere. I will tell you I would take the FA 06 over a much lower end midi controller though. It simply does not have the same level of integration if one were to use it primarily with a DAW. To begin with choices of said DAW are very limited in the FA 06. Just as you cannot compare Push 2 OR Maschine MK3 to the MPC X. Their are different levels of equipment. I would not compare the FA 06 to the Montage either. Plus having just finding out it offers the same(albeit) limited DAW control.

I think your statement was what I had originally hoped for until having read the manual. Now, if you own an FA 06 I would imagine you are partial to it. Nonetheless Akai is offering what I wish for in the MPC X and mostly in the Advance 61. Others not so much. Although different kit has different purposes. I feel Akai has nailed spot on what they intended to achieve. The FA 06 does not have the same level of DAW integration. The preset tones are okay but not Montage IMO. I was hoping for the product I was looking for. Essentially an Advance 61 with stand alone ability but AFAIK, Alas it does not currently exist. The Advance can send Midi to all my rack mount synths as well. So in that regard it is sort of stand alone to begin with. Furthermore you cannot compare 20,000+ presets of great quality in todays soft synths to the 2,000 or so in the FA 06. That is another thread however. Perhaps the Montage brings to the table better but still limited tones. I would not use the Advance live of course. The MPC X in stand alone perhaps but then there is the 5000 as well to contend with. The Advance has a lot of unique capability which was reflected in it's original pricing scheme. I do not expect much from a feature packed workstation that can be had for a mere $1,200. Something is lacking somewhere. Namely to begin with it's DAW functionality.

Sorry for getting carried away but I think I pointed out both strong suits. Mainly the FA 06 is not of plug and play DAW integration. Which is the knowledge I was seeking. Through researching it I have come to this conclusion.
By jeff lick Sat Jan 12, 2019 10:35 pm
Without reading all of that I think you did in fact say it as it is. The FA 06 is a workstation(albeit a low end one) that can control other devices via midi

That being said the Advance regardless of being designed for Akai's software is much more capable as a plug and play DAW controller. The Akai software is in fact designed to hide in the background of almost any popular DAW. It is not specifically designed to be used by itself AFAIK. Although perhaps it works better that way. that I do now know. What I do know is we are comparing a low end workstation with midi(which almost any have) Vs. a high end Midi controller. apples and oranges perhaps? I certainly did not mean to argue with you as though it may seem. I think I better explained my stance right here instead of in 10,00 words.
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By Lampdog Sun Jan 13, 2019 2:20 am
The Advance is a midi controller. It can’t make music on it’s own
It’s not stand alone.
By jeff lick Sun Jan 13, 2019 4:33 am
Indeed it is. That is why I was saying comparing apples to oranges. The Fa 06 is a workstation. Neither is similar to the MPC X with keys instead of pads.
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By Lampdog Sun Jan 13, 2019 7:59 am
I almost bought an FA06, but I read the sampling engine is based on SP and I don't like SP's.
By CharlesRandolph Sun Jan 13, 2019 8:18 am
This person uses the MPC X and Akai Advanced Vip/61 together. However it's in controller mode not standalone. So it's basically the same way they did the Touch/REN and the Advance 61. It would be nice if you could link them together via Ethernet port. This would give AKAI Pro an entire system that communicate 100% with each other.

By jeff lick Sun Jan 13, 2019 9:31 am
You could do the same thing with Touch, no? Sometimes I do think the X was a waste for me. However bigger tilt screen, more Q-links. Most importantly the workflow I enjoy. Like MPC 5000, REN. Worth 2 Grand over Touch. Not sure. It would indeed be cool if they linked. Just wait. I only use VSTI's non live and in that regard the Advance 61 is a winner for me. The X perhaps not so much. The point is I am the odd guy out. Not looking for stand alone/ workstation. Just tight midi control. I like the on board sounds solely for inspiration.

LampDog, it has limitations here and there. like no after touch too. It is not at the level of the Montage and I do not think it pretends to be at 1/3rd the cost. I tried the Montages DAW integration. Stinks for me compared to Advance. The FA 06 is probably worse? Sampling is only to the pads. It is not an ASR 10. Why I have kit from all years.
By jeff lick Sun Jan 13, 2019 3:52 pm
Here is another MPCX+Advanced. Stand alone challenge?



For my purposes in studio better fit than FA 06 after I read up. The FA 06 is not at the level of the MPC X either but again apples to oranges.
By CharlesRandolph Sun Jan 13, 2019 10:55 pm
jeff lick wrote:Here is another MPCX+Advanced. Stand alone challenge?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VQkchucf-Ug

For my purposes in studio better fit than FA 06 after I read up. The FA 06 is not at the level of the MPC X either but again apples to oranges.



Using the Advance that way, is no different than using a regular MIDI KEYBOARD. If that is how you going to use it, I would suggest, purchasing a higher quality MIDI Keyboard. Something that does not feel like a toy.
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By Danoc Mon Jan 14, 2019 1:28 am
What he said! I came out better getting a used mint condition Roland A-30 midi keyboard.

CharlesRandolph wrote:
Using the Advance that way, is no different than using a regular MIDI KEYBOARD. If that is how you going to use it, I would suggest, purchasing a higher quality MIDI Keyboard. Something that does not feel like a toy.
By jeff lick Mon Jan 14, 2019 3:16 am
I have many rackmount synths and a better midi piano. I like the DAW integration of the Advance. The FA 06 is no better either. Plus is a mediocre workstation IMO. It is not a Kronos.
By CharlesRandolph Mon Jan 14, 2019 5:06 am
jeff lick wrote:I have many rackmount synths and a better midi piano. I like the DAW integration of the Advance. The FA 06 is no better either. Plus is a mediocre workstation IMO. It is not a Kronos.


Well it sounds like you have everything figured out, so what was the purpose of the post? Because the Advance Keyboards are at their best connected to a PC, tethered to the VIP SOFTWARE. Without that, it's a pretty average midi keyboard with knobs and pads.
Last edited by CharlesRandolph on Mon Jan 14, 2019 5:19 am, edited 1 time in total.