News

Roland’s infamous SP-404 sampler has been given its first major update since the original release back in 2005. The unit is famous for making lo-fi beats and has been the go-to sampler for the likes of Flying Lotus, James Blake and many more. 

The news was leaked last week on a Reddit thread, as reported by DJ Mag. Keeping with the lo-fi theme, the MKII has added a cassette simulator, as well as more FX like vinyl simulator and resonator and for the audio inputs, there’s a guitar amp sim, vocoder and auto-pitch. There’s a new OLED screen for crisper editing and 17 velocity-sensitive pads, faster boot and loading times as well as sample import. There’s 16GB internal storage preloaded with samples and the unit can be powered by AA batteries for ultimate portability. There’s USB-C for connecting to a computer and two headphones ports for collaborating on the go. 

For arranging you can chain patterns together, as well as link pads to trigger multiple samples at once. There’s also a new app for desktop available via Roland Cloud that lets you dive deeper into editing and unlocks some other features and easier project management. Roland Cloud will also be adding some Beatmaker Sample Packs specifically for the SP-404 MKII. 

The new unit will cost $499 and is available in the US from November. 

Watch the video below for more of the SP-404 MKII, or visit the official Roland website.