Instruments
★ Top Pick
Native Instruments Maschine MK3
Price history
We have been recording this product's price at its dealers since July. Player members see the 90-day trend, what it has been at its highest and lowest, and whether today is actually a good day to buy it.
Velocity-sensitive pads, built-in audio interface, Komplete Select software, deep DAW integration. $489.
Why it made the list
Maschine is the machine that grows with you. Day one, you tap pads and make beats. Year three, it's a complete production center. Komplete Select gives instant access to professional sounds.
Deep Dive: Who It's Really For
The ideal buyer: Someone who wants one system for sampling, sequencing and arranging, and is happy for the computer to do the heavy lifting.
Hardware plus software, not either: The pads and screens are a front end for the Maschine software, so the sounds and the processing live on your computer. That is why the bundled library matters as much as the hardware.
Real-world use: The built-in audio interface means it can be the whole rig on a desk, headphones straight out of the box. Expect a real learning curve, and a workflow that gets fast once the pads stop needing your eyes.
▶ Featured Review
Video Reviews & Tutorials
MASCHINE MK3 Review and top 9 new features. Is it the ultimate groovebox?
Full Review
Maschine MK3 - Getting Started Tutorial For Absolute Beginners
Tutorial
Maschine Mikro MK3 Review 2021
Full Review
Is the Maschine MK3 Still Worth Buying in 2026 (Making a Beat)
Review
Pros
Velocity-sensitive pads Built-in audio interface Komplete Select included Deep DAW integration Intuitive workflowCons
$489 entry price Requires computer to use Learning curve for advanced featuresDrumBrute
Best Hands-On Feel
Arturia DrumBrute Impact
Price history
We have been recording this product's price at its dealers since July. Player members see the 90-day trend, what it has been at its highest and lowest, and whether today is actually a good day to buy it.
Fully analog synthesis, 10 drum voices, a master distortion circuit and per-instrument Color switches, immediate sequencer. Raw, warm drum tones. $299.
Why it made the list
The DrumBrute Impact is analog: every sound comes from actual circuits, not digital samples. That means raw, warm drum tones that sit differently in mixes. The sequencer is immediate, hands-on controls shape sounds while beats play.
Deep Dive: Who It's Really For
The ideal buyer: Someone who wants drum sounds made by circuits rather than samples, and who sequences with their hands rather than a mouse.
Analog means no presets: Every sound comes from the panel, so what you hear is what you set. That is immediate and fun, and it also means saving a kit for later is not part of the deal.
Real-world use: The distortion and the Color switches are performance controls, so record the knob moves rather than setting them once. Ten voices is a kit, not an orchestra, which keeps patterns focused.
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Video Reviews & Tutorials
Drumbrute impact - 5 pros & 5 cons, (more like 15 pros and 2 cons)
Full Review
Is the Arturia DrumBrute Impact an Underrated Drum Machine?
Review
Arturia DrumBrute Impact 1st-Look Review
Review
ARTURIA DRUMBRUTE IMPACT REVIEW
Full Review
Pros
All-analog synthesis Hands-on controls Steiner-Parker filter Built-in distortion Intuitive sequencerCons
Limited drum count (10 voices) No sample loading No presets $299MPC
Best for Sampling
Akai MPC One G2
Price history
We have been recording this product's price at its dealers since July. Player members see the 90-day trend, what it has been at its highest and lowest, and whether today is actually a good day to buy it.
The standalone MPC, rebuilt. Sixteen pads and a 7 inch touchscreen, but the G2 is where the hardware finally stops being the bottleneck: eight cores, 64GB of SSD storage and sixteen stereo audio tracks, running the new MPC3 OS.
Why it made the list
The MPC One G2 is the modern descendant of the machine that built hip-hop. Sample chopping, finger drumming, and a workflow that lets you build beats without leaving the hardware.
Deep Dive: Who It's Really For
The ideal buyer: A sample-based producer who wants to work away from a computer entirely, and who values a touchscreen workflow over knobs.
What the G2 actually buys you: Performance, not new features. The chassis and the connections are the same as the model it replaces, so the reason to choose it is that the hardware stops being the bottleneck on big projects.
Real-world use: Coming from an older MPC, budget a week for the rearranged buttons, because muscle memory does not carry over. One USB-C cable carries audio and MIDI to a computer when you do want one.
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Video Reviews & Tutorials
I Own Almost Every MPC… Here’s Why I’m Using the MPC One G2
Full Review
MPC One G2 vs MPC Key 37 G2 // & OS 3.9’s Wild New Oscillators // MPC G2 Review
Comparison
Can the Akai Pro MPC One G2 Replace Your DAW? | Demo and Overview with Andy Mac
Sound Demo
MPC One G2 versus MPC One Plus // The button layout 😬
Review
Pros
Eight cores, 4GB RAM and a 64GB SSD, four times the old storage Sixteen stereo audio tracks and 256 voices USB-C carries 24x24 audio and 32 MIDI channels on one cable MPC3 OS adds a linear arranger and Ableton project import and exportCons
$799 buys performance, not new features: identical chassis and identical I/O Buttons were rearranged for MPC3, so muscle memory from a One or One+ does not carry over No battery, speakers or mic, and the two TRS inputs mean no phantom power for a vocal mic Eleven plugin instruments actually ship; the headline 32 is how many can run at oncevolca sample2
Best Budget
Korg volca sample2
Price history
We have been recording this product's price at its dealers since July. Player members see the 90-day trend, what it has been at its highest and lowest, and whether today is actually a good day to buy it.
Read the name carefully, because it misleads people: the volca sample2 plays and sequences samples but it cannot record them. There is no audio input. Korg's own name for it is a digital sample sequencer, and judged as that it is the cheapest genuinely fun way into sample-based beatmaking.
Why it made the list
Everything else here starts at $299, which leaves anyone on a smaller budget with nothing to buy. This is the rung below. For $150 you get ten parts, a sixteen-step sequencer and motion sequencing on nearly every parameter, which is the feature that actually makes it addictive: you record knob movements per step and patterns start breathing instead of repeating. The analogue isolator is a real filter, not a token effect. Buy it to learn sequencing and to make things, not as a cheaper MPC.
Deep Dive: Who It's Really For
The ideal buyer: Someone who wants into sample-based beat making for the least money, and who is happy loading sounds from a computer.
Read the name carefully: It plays and sequences samples but it cannot record them, because there is no audio input. Judged as a sample sequencer it is excellent value; judged as a sampler it is the wrong purchase.
Real-world use: Motion sequencing is the feature that makes it addictive, since recorded knob moves per step turn a loop into something that breathes. It runs on batteries and syncs to almost anything, which makes it the one you take to a friend's house.
▶ Featured Review
Video Reviews & Tutorials
Take a deep dive into the Korg Volca Sample 2
Full Review
Korg Volca Sample 2 : Tips and Tricks : Best Sampler under 200$ ?!?
Review
The KORG VOLCA SAMPLE 2 complete guide walkthrough tutorial
Tutorial
First Impressions Of The Korg Volca Sample 2
Review
Pros
Ten parts and a sixteen-step sequencer for $150 Motion sequencing on nearly every parameter Analogue isolator is genuinely musical Runs on AA batteries and syncs to anythingCons
Cannot sample: there is no audio input at all 8MB and 130 seconds total, mostly filled by factory content MIDI in only, so it cannot sequence your other gear Headphone jack is the only output, and no PSU in the box