Once you get used to it, it is much faster than clicking steps with a mouse and, admittedly, a heck of a lot more fun especially when you’re adding 16th note hi-hats. If this is your first time using a step sequencer interface for plotting notes (or steps), it takes a bit of time to wrap your head around it: each step key corresponds to a 16th note by default, so you’re seeing one measure or bar of music at a time. Holding a step pad down while moving a rotary encoder lets you change its parameters including velocity and panning. The pads are responsive and it’s easy to see when you’ve entered a “step” because it lights up – the brighter it is, the higher the velocity of that step, and the dimmer it is, the lower the velocity. In the past you had to use a mouse or trackpad in order to do that, and that process is the main thing that the Fire seeks to replace. This step sequencer interface is what you use to input drum hits, one shots and synth notes. Get the best prices at Amazon and Guitar Center.The Akai Pro Fire has 4×16 backlit RGB pads arranged to look like FL Studio’s step sequencer. Talking on the new relationship with Image-Line, Dan Gill, Product Manager for Akai Professional had this to say: “We are extremely excited to be working with Image-Line, the production power of FL Studio 20 combined with the hands-on hardware control Akai is known for makes for a powerhouse combo.”įire is available now and retailing for $199.99. The controller will ship with a special edition of FL Studio called the Fruity Fire Edition, which has the same feature set as the Fruity edition of FL Studio that usually retails for €89 Akai has teamed up with Image-Line to create the first dedicated FL Studio Midi Controller and called it Fire! At its heart, Fire has a 4×16 velocity-sensitive RGB pad matrix, allowing you to input patterns on the Step Sequencer or switch over to Performance Mode for live playing, recording of notes and launching patterns.įire also includes four touch-capacitive knobs with four banks of settings, giving the user instant adjustment over parameter values, including control over channel, mixer settings and user-assignable parameters.

Akai fire midi controller