I’ll admit it: for the past few months I’ve been looking at my Maschine+ with a bit of worry. When a company changes hands, anyone who owns its hardware asks the same question: will they keep supporting it? With Maschine 3.7, Native Instruments has given a first answer, and as a producer who uses Maschine+ alongside Ableton Live, I wanted to see whether it’s a convincing one.
The Context: Native Instruments Under inMusic
In May 2026, after a few rough years of leadership changes, mergers and financial trouble, Native Instruments was acquired by inMusic, the group that already owns brands like Akai, Moog, Rane and Alesis. For Maschine users that felt a little odd: Maschine and Akai’s MPCs have always been direct rivals, and now they live under the same roof.
Maschine 3.7 is the first update with new features since the acquisition (3.6 was mostly about compatibility and fixes), and it arrives as NI celebrates its 30th anniversary. The company’s message is clear: Maschine is alive and will keep evolving.
What’s New in Maschine 3.7
The update focuses on one thing: making patterns less static. There are three new tools, and all of them are about variation.
Note generation
Maschine can now generate patterns from probability rules: percussion, melodies or chords, with control over how much the velocity of the generated notes varies. It won’t replace your idea, but it’s a great way to avoid starting from an empty grid. I’d use it for secondary percussion, shakers, tambourines and ghost notes, where controlled randomness works wonders.
Note probability
Every note in a pattern gets a percentage, and on each loop Maschine decides whether to play it or not. With Probability Lock you can freeze a pass you like and turn it into a fixed pattern. This is the feature that convinces me most: let the loop run, listen, and when the right variation comes along, lock it. It’s a very musical way to work.
Euclidean sequencer
Anyone coming from modular knows this one: you choose the number of steps and hits, and the sequencer spreads the hits as evenly as possible. Rotation shifts the starting point. Maschine 3.7 adds a live mode that lets you change steps, hits and rotation while the loop plays. It’s a fantastic tool for polyrhythms and Afro-Latin percussion, and on stage it can become a performance in itself.
What About Maschine+?
This part needs a little patience. Maschine 3.7 is already available free for Maschine 3 users on the computer, which includes Maschine+ used as a controller. For standalone mode, Native Instruments has said support is coming soon, with no exact date.
That matters for anyone who, like me, values Maschine+ precisely because it works without a computer. Also remember that getting Maschine 3 in standalone on Maschine+ required the paid Maschine 3 upgrade, which arrived with firmware 3.3.1 in summer 2025. If you skipped it, 3.7 won’t reach you.
The Three New Expansions
Alongside the update come three Expansions, all requiring Maschine 3:
| Expansion | Style | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Thirty | Sounds resampled from NI’s back catalogue (Reaktor, Play Series, Massive X and more) | $30 / €30 |
| Paris Heat | French touch and Paris house from the late ’90s and 2000s | $49 / €49 |
| Rage Circuit | Rage, hypertrap and next-gen hip hop, made with producer Snipe Young | $49 / €49 |
For my taste, Paris Heat is the most interesting: resonant filters and chopped samples are exactly the kind of material that shines on Maschine. Thirty is a nice anniversary gift, even if part of it is familiar material repackaged.
My Take as a Producer
Let’s be honest: none of these features is brand new. Ableton Live has had per-note probability since version 11, and Euclidean sequencers are standard on plenty of grooveboxes and in the modular world. Maschine is catching up, especially after a Maschine 3.0 that disappointed a lot of long-time users.
But how it’s done matters too. The features fit well into the Maschine workflow, and the Euclidean live mode, on pads and encoders, has real potential as a performance tool. Above all, after months of uncertainty, this update says something simple: Maschine hasn’t been abandoned.
What I’d like to see now is 3.7 on Maschine+ standalone as soon as possible, followed by a clear roadmap. People who invested in this hardware need to know where it’s heading.
Maschine 3.7 FAQ
Is Maschine 3.7 free?
Yes, it’s a free update for anyone who already owns Maschine 3.
Does it work on Maschine+ in standalone mode?
Not yet: Native Instruments says it’s coming soon. On the computer, including Maschine+ used as a controller, it’s already available.
Which controllers support Maschine 3?
Maschine MK3, Maschine Mikro MK3, Maschine Studio and Maschine+, in both controller and standalone mode. Maschine Jam is supported with some limitations. MK1 and MK2 models aren’t compatible.
Do the new Expansions work with Maschine 2?
No, they need Maschine 3: some file formats won’t open in earlier versions.
Maschine 3.7 doesn’t reinvent Maschine, but it gets it moving again. For daily users it’s good news; for anyone waiting for a sign after the inMusic acquisition, this is the sign. Now it’s Maschine+’s turn.
Do you use Maschine? Have you tried the update yet? Let me know in the comments.
Matthew S – producer, sound designer and music production teacher