The announcement of Roland’s new SP-404 MKII sampler took a lot of beatmakers by surprise last month, as there’d been no hint at all that the celebrated beatmachine was about to see a brand new iteration.And what a new iteration it is, a version of the machine that clearly lives up to its MKII nomenclature (unlike previous versions like the 404A and 404SX which added little in the way of new functionality). With the 404 MKII, Roland have kept their promise to ensure a simple, easy-to-pick-up workflow but they’ve added a few key additions to the 404 that really expand what it’s capable of. Quick start-up and load time, 32-voice polyphony, 160 samples per project, 16 projects all mean a greatly expanded SP.