The S1100 took the industry-standard S1000 and added onboard effects, SCSI, and a hard-disk option, the sampler that defined pro 16-bit sound at the turn of the 90s. This one carries the full back panel: eight individual outputs, SCSI, and digital out. Pair it with the S1100EX expander (also in the shop) and you have a seriously deep rig.

FEATURES & PROS:

• Onboard effects: The upgrade that set the S1100 apart from the S1000, reverb and modulation built in.
• Eight outputs + digital: Multitrack your samples to the desk, or stay in the digital domain.
• SCSI loading: Hook up a drive and load libraries in seconds instead of shuffling floppies.
• Industry-standard sound: The 16-bit/44.1 Akai engine that became the studio default for a decade.
• Expander-ready: Built to pair with the S1100EX for double the voices and polyphony.

AS USED BY

• David Sylvian, who used it across Tin Drum and The First Day
• Alan Wilder of Recoil and Depeche Mode
• Brian Eno, who kept one among his samplers
• The Prodigy's Liam Howlett, who ran a pair live and in the studio

THE WORD: Writing in Sound on Sound, Chris Carter called the S1100 a superbly specified industry-standard sampler with one of the largest sample libraries in the world, and a genuine bargain second-hand. Read more at Sound on Sound.

SPECIFICATIONS

• MIDI stereo digital sampler, 16-bit / 44.1kHz
• 16-voice polyphony, onboard effects
• 8 individual outputs + stereo, expandable RAM
• SCSI, digital out, MIDI In/Out/Thru
• 3U rackmount

Further reading: S612 to S5000: Which Akai Sampler Do You Actually Want?