It would be great!!
Iām considering pulling the trigger on an SP404 mk2 too.
But its form factor and the hardcore menu-diving needed to operate it is maybe a bit too much for me.
I mean, Iām in the market for a simple sampler - something along the lines of Abletonās Simpler or Logicās Quick Sampler.
Trimming, quick editing, BPM sync and compression FX. Nothing too fancy.
Something in such a form factor that I could use it easily with my op1f. Cause thatās the intended use here. Since the op1f lacks internal/external memory to store a s*%#load of samples (one shots and loops), Iād need a device to store, edit and play back drums and melodic samples (both short and long).
The SP404 mk2 sure does tick many boxes and still offers the best value in its price range.
But itās bulky and requires a good bit of learning and muscle memory. Not that immediate.
But with a max budget of 450ā¬, I just canāt seem to find the perfect portable sampler for my needs.
An iPad with Koala is still bulky and not the hardware feel Iām looking for. A Volca Sampler seems like a half-baked sample sequencer (although, for the price, a nice one). The Elektron:Sample and the LivenLofi (and the soon to be LivenLofiXT) are either too big, too pricey or both.
Itās the weirdest gap in the market. You either get a crazy sampler with too many options or weird little machine that canāt handle large samples.
I love my op1f, I love my KO33. But whereās that SD-card reading, 1 to 16Go internal memory, padded with a simple interface sampler we need?!
So yeah.
The SP404 mk2 seems to pair well over USB-C with the op1f. But it is huge, has some weight (once you load it with batteries) and requires quite the invested time to make it your own. Not the most intuitive, out of the box experience.
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Have you thought about the Polyend Tracker Mini? Ticks a lot of the boxes youāre seeking.
I have the OG Tracker and itās a lot of fun to use and the Mini fixes a few things the OG couldnāt handle: Stereo Samples, audio over USB, Battery powered, portable as heck.
Dang it. I think Iām talking myself into getting one now 
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The new 1010music Tangerine?
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I considered both the Polyend Mini and the new Tangerine.
But - and you can call me picky - the Polyend Mini seems to be build a bit on the cheaper side of things and trackers workflow sometimes look like Excel pages to me.
And the new Tangerine is looking great. But itās still a touch screen with no battery operation possible.
But both made it to the list.
I even considered, for a while, going for old SPs, but the lack of USB was a no-go. I was eyeballing them 404 and 505s. And the old Boss one too.
I tried looking into the M8, the little weird Snapbeat thing, the incoming 600 quids Chompi, the new Loopstyler thatās incomingā¦but thereās always something.
The M8 is the most Excelish tracker of them all, Snapbeat was missing MIDI, Chompi is looking great but is a bit bulky and is more of a pricey gimmicky samplerish toy, the Loopstyler is not the most intuitive one to edit your samplesā¦
But then again. I know Iām looking for the perfect product. Which, in this day and age, just doesnāt exist yet.
Iām hoping - and advocating elsewhere - for the next Aira synth to be a 200ā¬ sampler that could go well with the existing J6, S1, T8 and E4. Maybe a P5 or something.
But itās hard to find the perfect sampler right now.
I still have to document a bit more the Polyend Mini. But a trusty contributor on another forum took the plundge and was oh so disappointed.
Same for the (amazing) Woovebox. A Pocket Operatorish OPZā¦but with a tiny screen and way too little storage.
I gotta say, I really thought Akai would have fixed its pocket sample player, the M8. It could have been sufficient. But this is the worst product ever. Cumbersome, tedious, working half the time.
The one thing that refrained me from pulling the trigger on a SP404 was Rolandās move to go all in with the StoneThrow 900ā¬ edition and not restocking the 450ā¬ plain edition. So now, itās basically back ordered everywhere with up to 5 months waitlist for restock.
In the meantime, if anyone has any idea, Iām all ears!
(and thanks for the cool, quick suggestions)
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I would just go for an iPad mini with either Koala Sampler or Drambo then.
It works amazing well with an OP-1F and if you add LoopyPro to your workflow the skies the limit.
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Iād be delighted if you ever got around to this!
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1010music are releasing a battery pack add-on for the nanobox format.
In my experience of the Lemondrop I use the two knobs for altering parameters and tweaking live much more than the touchscreen.
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Priced where it is, with the multiple options it offers, and with the battery addon, that might do the trick.
I was a bit worried about the lack of razzmatazzās updates - itās been discussed to length. Basically the same as Sonicwareās slow update issues.
But then again. The Tangerine is prices similar to the SP404 mk2. And, for now, I do all my sample editing inside Logic Pro for iPad. So, basically, via touchscreen. So I gotta go back and benchmark that little box again. Thanks for the heads up, @dhunterrr
Maybe thatās something for you too, @Vague_versatile
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The iPad Air in itself is not that bulky.
But thereās a je-ne-sais-quoi about iPad nowadays that just donāt talk to me anymore. Lack of innovation, I guess.
Koala and the likes are all viable options. But Iām trying to put Apple back on my desktop.
That being said, your setup looks tidy enough to make try the Air 5 again tonight!
Same but the 5 months waitlist can be good to cancel the order if Elektron releases a next gen sampler in the meantime 
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True dat!
Love the philosophy !
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Paying an extra 450 Euros for a publicity might not bring Stone Throw much love.
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Exactly my thoughts. And with all the MFDOOM notebooks nonsense, itās not STās best year either.
Worst part of it is, the ST faceplate is horrendously seizure-inducing to say the least.
And paying twice just for the ST logo is really a ridiculous move, like you said. But then, not refilling your stocks so you can try and sell at twice the price to test the marketā¦now, thatās just plain stupid.
And, in the end, Iāve already talked with a fair bunch of beatmakers that are going to shop elsewhere just because of that move. Elektron is about to sell a bunch of stuff, Iāll tell you that.
Not that Roland cares at all. Roland is Roland : not trustworthy when it comes to marketing/sales.
But still. For a second there, I had to double check there wasnāt some sort of Teenage Engineering crossover happening there. Twice the price for a vinyl, a cassette and a bunch of samples. If thatās not taking the piss, I donāt know what isā¦ā¦ohā¦waitā¦the op1 Field 2000ā¬ price tag, maybeā¦
I would not like those zebra lines indeed since I occasionally have aura migraines.
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Sp 404 mk2 ST edition is probably the worst product out this year.
Nothing is coherent on this one. Itās a miss.
And Iām guessing, Rolandās first (very) wrong move on the SP404 mk2 since its release. They had to mess it up. Itās Roland. Gotta stay true to your mess!
Hi, can you kindly explain how you connected the OP-1 to the iPad? Can you send audio to Loopy Pro as well as midi? And how does the audio then come out of the iPad again, since the USB port is occupied by the connection with the OP-1? Via any kind of USB hub? Sorry for these maybe stupid questions 
A workflow video would be very cool!
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I struggle to produce good 808 samples on the op-1 f or opz. It is very saturated
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Woah that looks amazing! Do I see right that you can drop samples on the separate L and R channels (as the one can fade between them) of each key?
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