Your First Hour With Akai Force - A Complete Beginner's Tutorial

This video is designed to help new Akai Force users get up and running very quickly. Every process you need to know in order to start making music on the Force is covered clearly and in detail, from creating an empty project, recording clips, chopping samples, to creating an arrangement and exporting your track, all with no prior Akai knowledge required. This video will see you through the first hour of using the Force, and beyond. No manual reading required!
Subject Time codes:
00:00 - Intro, storage options
01:50 - Create an empty project
03:10 - Panel controls
06:30 - Some hidden controls
07:40 - Workflow building blocks
08:33 - Adding tracks
09:28 - Track types
10:39 - Auditioning and assigning instruments
12:50 - Changing synth plugin presets
13:55 - Scale mode
15:19 - Matrix view / Launch mode relationship
16:10 - Note repeat and Arp
17:10 - Preparing to record
19:00 - Qlink knob and Oled display modes
21:00 - Setting project tempo
21:20 - Selecting clip lengths
22:36 - Creating empty clips
23:30 - Recording methods, launch quantization, timing correction
31:00 - Copy / Paste clips, recording melodic parts
34:40 - Using scenes
37:55 - Editing midi clips
39:50 - Using effects
42:34 - Setting instrument panning
43:30 - Audio tracks and clips
46:28 - Recording, chopping, and assigning samples
53:16 - Recording into the arranger
57:00 - Saving a project
58:40 - Exporting audio

[damelos]

A godsend! This is how ALL hardware tutorials needs to be produced. Assume the new user knows NOTHING and start there. I cannot thank you enough sir! Also REALLY like the time stamps so you can jump around. Outstanding!

[AutisticCuriosity]

I’ve owned my force for about a month now and Been completely overwhelmed by doing exactly what you told me NOT to do at the start of this video just opening demos playing around with them and enjoying pressing buttons but not actually producing anything myself as I instantly got lost as I tried to record stuff.

Ive watched this now three times and honestly this video is so important video to me and I can’t thank you enough for taking the time and effort in making it I really do feel like I have a good overview, you’ve explained it at exactly the pace that I need to understand, without jumping a step or assuming knowledge I don’t have - I also much appreciate the fact that you’ve chopped it up the way that you do so that I can go to different parts again thank you for that.

[Sanjmaghera]

This is probably the single best “how to use an Akai product” video on YouTube. I hope Akai give you credit and maybe some free gear or something as you’ve been instrumental in me purchasing an Akai Force, and figuring out how to use it.

[xntricity]

I dont have the force yet but seeing what tutorials are out there before i buy. In confident after watching this that ill be able to use the force properly. Thanks for the video, excellent work 👍

[Bigfamilyhomestead]

I wish I could give you more than one thumbs up... THANK YOU!

[JyotiMishra]

Mate - Akai should employ *you* to make vids. My Force is arriving today so I've been trying to bone up on it beforehand and I can tell you, yours is the best intro vid by far! The others are either too detailed ("This is the formula for the plastic in the buttons.") or too vague ("Simply switch into Mixolydian, 32nds on the arp and bob's yer uncle!") but yours is _perfect._ THANK YOU!

[GabeMillerMusic]

This is one of the best tutorials I've ever seen. Thanks so much!

[robtronic]

Man…. Best tutorial on Force. Period. So many others gloss over the basics that are show stoppers for people like me with zero exp. I upgraded from an Electribe to the Force and have just been lost for over a year. I would just get frustrated and and not come back to it for weeks.

I can’t believe how many things you explained in this video that made no sense to me and had me stumped until now.

Thank you so much for taking the time to make this!!!

[SyntheticSan]

When the Akai Force came out I went straight to a music shop in order to test it and became quickly disappointed: On one hand because I missed some functions (but the recent firmware update changed everything). On the other hand I didn’t get the workflow as quickly as I thought to be able of. The more I see tutorials like this, the more I adore this beast. I‘m going to grab one next week.
Great tutorial! Sharp and straight to the point. Thank you so much! Like and notification buttons are on!

[just_pierre]

This is really a brilliant tutorial, thank you so much. Hoping to see the second hour soon ;)

[starflek]

Ok, so that's the tutorial I was waiting for. Many months my force was looking at me and I just couldn't pass the threshold of "I need to understand everything". So I didn't do anything at all with it.
I've seen your video and in an hour I made a very simple but finished prototype for a bigger project. Thank you !

[Andante]

Fantastic tutorial! I just literally bought my Force last night - after MUCH research & watching many vids to be sure it met my needs (after returning the MPC Live II that I realized was not what I needed.) As many here have said, most videos assume SO much prior knowledge, and move way too fast for real beginners. I think this video alone will save me untold frustration as I get started with this machine I am already in love with! P.S. I'm a lifelong keyboard player who is determined to build my own backup band, lol!

[philippepiveron]

This is not a simple tutorial; this is a masterpiece ! Thank you very much for this work ! It's great and perfectly usefull even for a non anglophone speaker like me ! -)

[wesmares]

Thank you very much for sharing!!
I own the Force for almost 2 years, and every time i learn something new when looking to video's.
your video is made very well!!
I'm Dutch, and my English is not perfect, but the way you explain is very clear for me, thanks again for learning new things today!🥰🥰🥰

[ZekeSkylar]

Excellent video for beginners. Explained very clearly. Please consider continuing this series.

[pnluther]

Finally, someone who knows how to teach. I appreciate that you explain what you are doing as you do it. Thank you very much.

[seanrobinson]

Amazing video mate. Had my force for a few months and as a (committed) newcomer to making electronic music I've found the Force quite complicated to get my head around. Most help videos out there require quite a bit of assumed prior knowledge which I don't have. This is the type of long form step-by-step help new users need.

[highcry]

Of all things I watched to try to learn how to use the Force, this video has single handedly been the best. Thank you so much for this tutorial.

[davidsteffens]

Had a force for a while, but have now returned to it. Lot of things I never knew. Great stuff, subscribed

[craz]

Great video. The part about not using the internal drive is maybe one of the most crucial parts you need to know when starting. I've got mine since 2019 and with all the updates this is such an amazing device.