Or maybe we’re both just waiting for Elektron to release a competitive product. Like combine all of the elektron boxes into one super synth. 
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Might be too late, but I’d try to reimagine using what you already have.
For instance, lately I’ve been doing things in Microtonic.
Just two stereo busses, on my laptop. Recorded each for about 30 seconds, put them into 32bar stem chain, drop into OT, add other percussion, sequence a couple synth lines with the OT MIDI tracks, and build a whole tune around that. OT EQs are fully capable, and available on each track if the stuff you bring into the OT already has some of the reverb/chorus/delay you might need. Most of my OT tracks are compressor+EQ.
You’ve got plenty of tools at your disposal to do what you want. But it looks like you’re drawn to an all-in-one solution. I like to think of a few tools constantly hooked up to each other as a single system, and it helps me get that all-in-one vibe. And it keeps me from fantasizing about that one box that can do it all. And that’s a good thing, because in the end, the single box is actually a lot less flexible.
Consider finding a combination of 2 or 3 instruments you already own that would allow you to do the things you list above. Then make a tune with only that combo. Then make 4 more before you touch your other gear. By then you’ll start using them as a system, and you’ll get the all-in-one vibe you seek.
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yea its funny how different people connect with different ways of working / interfaces. I must be an mpc head too.
used maschine studio years ago. it was fairly straight forward, sounded really good, but sequencing on screen was painful for me. as was finishing tracks.
I have no idea about mk3 or plus.
synth n sound design in deluge on the grid for me kills my flow.
instantly felt at home on mpc live2. UI is amazin imo.
learning curve for me was near non existent - a day of messing around n watching utube vids and its mostly 2nd nature. haven’t touched the manual.
won’t ever sell it.
[I have the retro edition n am never letting it out of my grasp, it’s so pretty]
looking forward to what updates it gets in the future but as is Im completely happy writing from start to finish on it.
internal fx n synths could be better, that’d be my only gripe.
would love the extra physical qlinks of the X but it’s not an issue - the battery n form factor make up for that imo.
coming back at it. I would love an Akai one if the Pads weren´t so crappy compared to Machine. Have a Machine+ almost exclusivley for the good Pads. The Rest of the Machine I think is a mess.
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I feel you. I have a Maschine mk3 and the pads are the best thing about it. But i found the mpc one software was a mess too.
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I like the pads of the Mpc one, but you don’t have to use the stock pads. and if you like the maschina pads, you could always hook up a Korg pad kontrol which are even better to the Mpc one for super cheap…
capability wise they just aren’t on the same level, and regarding the software I don’t even have it installed. The instrument is so good that if it didn’t come with desktop software, a ample library , or even FX on the unit I would still have and use it everyday with just the rest of the capabilities it does have… and the Mpc controls the rest of my instruments to great affect.
Maschine is a good idea, but Imo from the start NI’s heart was never really in it… these things are subjective though, what I thought maschine should be and what Ritchie Hawtin thought it should be are completely two different things
The MPC Live/II/One doesn’t have an arranger but you can get by chaining together sequences for this purpose. If you want an arranger you could go with the Force which has the often requested feature of macros that the MPC line lacks.
Would not bring that over my heart to connect extra pads.
This is the only thing keeping me from buying. I just expect the MPC Pads to be exceptional from the get go. Gearing from so many people that they aren‘t that good is a real bummer. I mean come on It‘s an MPC.
They are amazing… the thing is, they are from the original idea of mpc being a drum sampler. They are made to finger bang, machine’s are made to play like a instrument… machine pads are way too soft to play hard and fast, imo…
Lots of people prefer mpc pads, one is not better then the other.
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I hear you, but I do enjoy them… they’re very playable and get warn in well… if anything I wish they were larger but that’s what they had to do for that size machine I guess…
the flip side of the coin is also something to take into consideration though… I play drums so I’m good with making beats in realtime but I also enjoy programming beats and between the mpc one/live, and x I think the Mpc one feels the best for when programing beats and programing duties in general… so for me it’s a two fold win win I like the pads and also like how the form factor lends itself to programming also, kinda like my digitakt… and lastly the form factor makes it easy to envision the Mpc one like an little 4track recorder as well, albeit with more tracks… the One really pulls off these vibes well for my usage… anyways the important thing is that you try them out and go with what feels good for you
Used mpc’s are a great deal now. You can find ampc with full size pads for not much more… since like the smaller ones. I never really liked them, to me there is a difference and the big pads just feel like a mpc to me… I started on a 2000xl though, then went to the 1000 and never really liked the small pads. The pads on the one are better though, they are ok… I still love the full size ones by a big margin.
The thing is, I always compare those pads to drumheads. And Drumheads are simply not that stiff. When you want to play well you need to use your rebound. Your Tip of your Drimstick sinks in a tiny little bit. Its a moldable surface. All those stiff crappy pads never got that. Of couse you can‘t reproduce real drumming on Pads and maybe thats not the point but just hard pads to fire triggers are just plain unusable ( hi analog rytm ) . Maybe I will check the MPC One sometime but from what I ve seen I am not that hopeful to be honest.
Can you at least make them extreem sensitive in the options somehow?
recently I tried the MPC live 2 and never ever had any MPC experience, also coming from the powerful AUM and IOS.
first I thought it sucks! and it does when you‘re monitoring the pure computer attitude like saving or loading for minutes 
coming from M1 chips it’s really slow and Androidish tablet like.
this is a worklflow killer, for sure.
but:
the MPC Soul is something that has been there from the get go and after watching some reviews of the Akai S6000 Sampler (1991 Design flagship) and legacy MPCs they‘ve really grown that MPC Soul to a point where you can instantly touch a position or value to control it! watching these floppy disk loading processes and early waveform graphics gives a hint about the similarities in the whole MPC range since ^88
this perspective makes the MPC live 2 great and more or less flawlessly understandable
they‘ve never „changed“ anything and that is an interesting approach
Would love it if it had the certain sound characteristic of the earlier models.I do miss the metallic,sharp edge of the S3000xl even.Gonna work more with the different filters ect to bring out the edge of the samples.Always crave the 90s 16 bit sound.Gamechanger?probs not with the right audio routings.
Would i go back to the 90s style editing?nop………New machines make all that stuff so much quicker and pleasurable!!!
The Akai S2000 was my first sampler and i used it to death. A lot of menu diving but pretty straight forward. Later i used the MPC 2000 quite a bit and also loved it. When i gave the MPC one a try it felt like using a computer. So for me the mpc soul was lost. But that’s just my opinion. Of course you can do great stuff with it and i know some people love it.
I get ya…what do you use now if i may be so bold?
If I can’t check my email and order tacos delivered on my music making device, it has no soul and is of little use to me.
To me i prioritize sound quality / character first and then workflow. I don’t think the modern MPCs have any character and I hate the workflow. I don’t think Maschine has any character either but it does have a great workflow (though the GUI desperately needs an overhaul).
I also like the Maschine pads a lot more than the MPC ones because of their softness and ability to be more precise and I disagree strongly that somehow them being soft means you can’t “bang” on them like an MPC. If anything you can bang on them harder because you’re not gonna break your fingers hitting them (obvious exaggeration).
I think both offer interesting prospects for someone who is just starting off. Maybe someone with a mid to low tier laptop, no audio interface, no controller, no software. You get everything in one box and especially with the MPC One that’s a lot of value. I am fortunate (or possibly unfortunate) to have wasted lots of money on software and gear over the years so MPC and Maschine just both feel like worse sounding things then stuff I already have…
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I have tried so many things, I currently have about 8 grand in synth’s and stuff in my studio, which is peanuts compared to some here… but enough to have stuff that sound incredible. I have tried elektron, machine, Roland, TE, and other groovebox things… mpc is the only one I have ever felt comfortable structuring a whole song on… it is far from perfect and some things drive me crazy… but the new mpc had been the best so far for me. Also, it is the only box that I feel comfortable making a whole song on just it… I’m so used to it now that I’m ok with just it. I agree that it feels just like the old mpc’s somehow, everything is basically the same and in the same places, it is just in color now and has some extras like a looper in it. If I was starting out fresh I would get the keys and a live retro, some decent monitors, and go from there.
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I’m still somehow searching for that one sampler that ticks all my boxes. Still trying to see if i can enjoy the Maschine workflow. But it feels a bit too convoluted for me. Maybe i can learn to blend out the stuff i don’t need in there.
I like my Digitakt but it has only mono samples and no pads etc. And i also enjoy the SP-404A a bit after using the SP-303 and 404 OG for years. Its simple and straight forward but also lacks a lot of features i want in a sampler. I don’t know. I think i want all the features of the Octatrack with an easier UI and more knobs. 
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