It totally can. I’ll post a vid to show MPD232 standalone with AR in the next few days : )
@notechnotech
Hey there. Did you get to upload a video of the new MPD with OT or AR by any chance ? I’m interested in hooking one up to the OT, and hoping I could trigger slices from the pads, and operate channel levels and mutes from the faders / buttons ?
Thanks
also eagerly awaiting that vid 
How’s the overall sensitivity of the pads? My mpd24 is on it’s final leg.
I would love to know the compatibility of the Elektron Octatrack with the AKAI MPD232. I am debating between using this or Arturia Beatstep Pro to trigger slices.
Slice trigging will most probably be a no-go, on any MIDI controller. The implementation is a bit fouled up, and it would require exotic CC wizardry to achieve slice playability from an external controller.
I just started using the octatrack, I am not familiar with the correct words. I mean to say, “externally trigger loaded samples.”
http://www.bauerindustries.com/akai-mpd32-control-map-for-octatrack/
Apparently it is compatible. I would like to see it in action before I buy one.
Nevermind, that map is for the old one (MPD32). I might just have to go it alone and get one and figure it out.
I just started using the octatrack, I am not familiar with the correct words. I mean to say, “externally trigger loaded samples.”[/quote]
Oh, okay!
Trigging the samples is definitely doable. What many of us have been hoping for is that you could slice up an individual sample, and then trigger the slices of this sample using a MIDI controller. So that’s what I was going on about 
Before you buy make sure you research carefully. I haven’t seen anything so far from AKAI that would trigger slices. Page 8 of the manual for that unit says the pads will handle Note, Program Change, and Program Bank. According to the OT manual, you have to send multiple CCs in order to trigger a specific slice.
I’m pretty sure that’s the case. But there’s always room for me to be wrong.
Okay correct me if I’m wrong, but can’t you just create a new sample from one of your previously sliced samples (I’m BRAND NEW to using the octatrack and it feels a lot like my first week in Calculus II)?
In which case the MPD232 would achieve the goal. I don’t expect some external MIDI controller to do absolutely all of the features of the octatrack, just something with huge buttons to do real time drum beats and faders, etc. to use the menu less.
Alternatively, do you have any nice drum pad accessory you recommend in lieu of the MPD232? I’m debating between this and the Novation Launchpad Pro. Different beasts, but I’d settle for either.
The octatrack really does completely eliminate my interest in most of my synths at this point because it seems to be able to do absolutely everything. I’m getting rid of everything (even Sub 37!) for the smallest most portable instruments I can get now (JP-08 / Mother-32).
I don’t intend to derail the subject, I’m certainly interested in using the MPD232 as my main controller along with Launchpad/QuNexus for keys. Thats my ideal setup and thats where I’m expecting the MPD232 to fit in.
I hope this discussion continues and we get that video!
glaciertree
According to the OT manual, you have to send multiple CCs in order to trigger a specific slice.
I can’t find anything about it in the manuals MIDI commands section. Which CCs would that be? Sorry if this has been asked before. I am also new to the OT. Has anyone ever gotten any external controller to trigger slices at all? I was also considering this one or the Launchpad Pro. The Launchpad Pro is also kind of hackable with an open API so anything might be possible there.
Maybe my wording wasn’t precise, but the effect is the same. Somebody correct me if I’m wrong… I don’t have a controller that can trigger different slices. I believe you need to send CC 17 (Playback param #2) to select the Slice, followed by the note.
I thought I remember reading that multiman and maybe others were able to trigger slices with a quneo.
Found it:
http://www.elektronauts.com/t/quneo-octatrack-template/7770
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Hey, Sorry i took forever. Elektron released over bridge, or an over bridge update during that week, and i just sorta went into over bridge fun time mode.
Anyways, the video i was intending to post was more to show that you can trigger the AR via the MPD232, as a standalone unit(which was what was originally being questioned)…
This just shows the pads doing some polyphony on 4 pads. The pad bank determines the pad. All the pads on a bank send over a specific MIDI channel corresponding to the track.
Towards the end i pointed to a button, then played the pads again, here’s what is happening there:
- on the A4, i set the velocity mod. you can set this to almost any parameter track parameter, I set it to the sample selection. This means that the velocity value determines what sample is being played.
When you press the ‘16 level’ button on the MPD232/226 it makes it so that the last pad you played is now spread across the 16 pads, at different velocities (the lower the pad the lower the velocity) this means each time you hit that pad, it would always play that same velocity, so you can use that as a way to always play the intended sample. I’m sure your imaginations can find plenty of uses for this and also the Aftertouch modulation !
sorry about this being incredibly late and not too inspiring. I mostly wanted to just show that it could be done.
-Bryan
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Thanks Bryan
Thanks man. I just tried this with an MPD218. There is no MIDI out, haha. Returning tomorrow! I don’t want some huge thing with tons of faders, I need to figure out how to make my own. Time to research.
I’m torn between the Beatstep Pro and the MPD232.
It would be mostly sequencing the Nord Drum 2, which would then be resampled on the Octatrack, so I guess the MPD232 would be best, as it would give me sliders for the OT and ND2, but the Beatstep Pro has a much smaller footprint and it has scales…
Any updates on the OT - MPD232 pairing?
I’m currently tempted to go in on this combo.