Roland P-6 AIRA Compact Creative Sampler

It took a long time for Roland to make a serious play in the portable budget synth space that Korg supercharged with its Volca lineup. One thing that had been missing from the Aira Compact series until now, however, was a sampler.

Considering Roland is behind the iconic SP-404, it seemed a foregone conclusion that, eventually, the company would build a scaled-down version for its Compact line. The P-6 Creative Sampler is the inevitable marriage of the SP-404 soul and Aira Compact form factor. If you’ve been eyeing the 404, but have been hesitant to drop $500 on one, the P-6 might seem pretty compelling. It’s tiny, packs a surprising amount of features, and costs only $220. But, as you might expect, there are some pretty significant trade-offs. I don’t hate it, but you can find easier-to-use and better-made instruments for this price, so you’ll want to read on to see if the P-6 is right for you.

An Archaic Interface

The P-6 is a surprisingly powerful and feature-rich device. Unfortunately, the limited hands-on controls are crammed into a very tiny space. This leads to a lot of finger gymnastics and basically demands you keep the manual handy.

Roland’s Aira Compact line continues to have perhaps the most infuriating interface I’ve ever encountered in a musical instrument. The four-character, seven-segment display is almost inexcusable in 2024. Just give us a display that we can understand.