[production bible 2] MIDI Controllers

[tezifon]

yesterday my bcr2000 arrived so i spend all the day customizing the controls, my impressions

extremely customizable via software with BC manager, edited the top encoders to be faster and display the value in the leds

and i have to investigate with the mackie emulation mode in ableton live

[koo]

ESI KEYCONTROL 25 XL

Any good? Or should i go with Nanokey? The price is only 50 euros.

[grandmabastard]

just want to add that if anyone is a tightarse (like me) then there is freeware which works well with reason, to turn your mouse or keyboard into a controller

http://www.bome.com/midi/keyboard/

http://www.rempro.nl/lmk.htm

[mooseforyebs]

would like to say that the korg nanopad is a great midi controller...especially if you're on a budget. the possibilities are limitless...use it as a synth (although i wouldnt recommend doing so over a regular synth obviously) or as a dj to trigger samples. great value.

[86.]

right now I'm using a borrowed microKorg.

but I think for right now the Oxygen 8 looks good for me.

$150....shit I'll buy a tub of tobacco instead instead of actual packs, eat tuna and instant noodles for a while, drink cheap 8.6% cans of beer, and do my laundry by hand. I just gotta do that for a month, and there it is....

[stinjee]

remote sl all the way, i have the 2 octave version, love it, downloaded automap 3 but has a few issues so i went back to automap 2, really easy to use and once its mapped its done, for some reason tho the mod wheel (or stick in this case) dosent seem to work with albino 3, anyone else have this problem?

still the best £280 iv spent

[freq juggler]

Behringer BCR2000 (knobs controller) ~ 150 EUR
Pros : user friendly, cheap, 32 user presets (assign 24 knobs per instrument for up to 32 instruments)
Cons : have to do more than 1 rotation to go from 0 to 100%, cheap built

You need to correct this. If you program it right you can even make it turn 100% with a slight touch


As for adds:

CME UF 6:
Pro's:
- High quality material. Metal case, wooden sides.
- Good respons time.
- It looks really nice in any studio.

Cons:
- The faderbuttons come off real quick.
- Usb is buggy and fails alot then a reset is needed. Midi works better but then you can't use the transport buttons.
- Customer service is shitty. I wrote them about new 64bit or windows 7 drivers. They responded with saying i bought it when no windows 7 or 64bit was out yet.. So i simply had to buy one of the new controllers?!!

Price: Don't know at the moment.

MPD32:
Pro's:
- Nice built quality, looks like a real mpc cos of the size, it not "just pads" .
- Tap tempo and Note repeat are real usefull for quick tasks.
- Pads feel nice. I had a mpc 2000xl and these feel almost the same.
- Knobs and faders are excellent Perfect feel and rotation/movement.

Cons:
- A bit too expensive for a controller like this, not much though.
- Everytime i start up cubase i have to switch the usb port otherwise my second bcf isn't recognised. A pci usb card will solve this though.

Price: Around $260,-

[deadly_habit]

right now I'm using a borrowed microKorg.

but I think for right now the Oxygen 8 looks good for me.

$150....shit I'll buy a tub of tobacco instead instead of actual packs, eat tuna and instant noodles for a while, drink cheap 8.6% cans of beer, and do my laundry by hand. I just gotta do that for a month, and there it is....

heh if i can fix it i broke off a couple capicitors and spilled a beer in it back when but salvagable you can have my old gen 1 oxy 8 for shipping cost and parts which max will be like 15$

[decarles]

whats a good software for turning your keyboard into a midi controller for reason on mac? i tried one and found it a bit of a pain?
i think im just gonna pick up some hardware anyway though

[marshy]

Is there enough value in the MPK49 to warrant forking out the extra £110+ over the Axiom49?

[TDubz]

could you please add that the korg nanokey is velocity sensative?
I just thought it might be worth putting down because from pictures it doesnt look like it would be

[TDubz]

Could you add these 2 to the list?

Akai Pro - LPK25 - £45 ($60)
The arpeggiator is a great thing to have is such a small device. You can set the clock to internal and set the tempo by tapping the Tap Tempo button. Or you can set it to external so you get the tempo of the DAW you are using. The ARP ON/OFF button is multifunctional. When the arp is turned on, you can hold the button down and set the mode (UP, DOWN, EXCL, INCL, RAND), the arp time division (from 1/4 to 1/32T) and the octaves 1 to 4 that you want to include in your arp. You can all play with these options while the arp is sustained. It seems that AKAI put some work in this function and it’s surprisingly usable and good to have.

Akai Pro - LPD8 - £45 ($60)
It contains 8 velocity-sensitive drumpads as well as 8 rotary-knobs. The pads either send notes, program change- or control-change-signals. Each one can either be activated via toggle (stay on as long as the pad isn’t pressed a second time) or in momentary-mode (send messages while the pad is pressed). Furthermore you can assign everything in 4 different scenes. That means a lot of controls on small space. Sadly there is no indicator showing your current scene.

Picture to show size of products (LPD8 is exact same size as the LPK25)

[TDubz]

ESI KEYCONTROL 25 XL

Any good? Or should i go with Nanokey? The price is only 50 euros.

NanoKey sucks ass. really poor built quality apparently.
This might be a bias opinion because i own both the LPK25 and the LPD8 but i would say to you, go for the LPK25 and save yourself 5 pounds. the Keycoontrol 25 XL may have more knobs and a mod and pitch bend wheel but i would give up those for the arpeggiator anyday. its just so fun!

[sackley]

Just got a new (blue) oxygen 49 in the mail! loving it so far.

Came from an axiom 25, which I'll keep around for portability, but I just needed more keys...

Loving the faders and non-infinite spin knobs. Will post a more thorough review when I get some time with it.

But, for now... and this is an extremely general question...

Is it OK to leave a midi controller in the 'on' position while shutting down your computer? I think the doc for my axiom said that it could lose settings, but I almost never changed them from the preset... although I never tested this out, as I always switch my controller on and off.

[NichSmile]

I made an account to just to say this...

I got an M-Audio Axiom 49 key and the keys felt great... But I don't know how it really is... I had to send it back cause only one of the keys worked...

[Arküris]

Anyone used an Akai MPK61? Haven't found a whole lot of reviews out there. I'm looking for something with 16 pads and more than 25 keys if someone has an alternative suggestion.

[Aphile]

i have a broken oxygen 49 that I need to setup for midi (the usb is broken) but I'm thinking about buying an LPD8 are they worth it??

[Electric_Head]

ESI Neon

* 3 digit LED display
* 25 semi-weighted spring action
* 3 programmable datawheels
* sustain pedal connector
* 8 programmable endless dials / 8 programmable knobs
* encoder & fader in 2 8-groups, 16 programmable encoders
* headphone amplifier (adjustable)
* supports 32 MIDI cannels
* Hi-Z input: Mic/Inst. input
* power supplied via USB or optional external power supply
* realtime monitoring for all channels with no latency
* Windows XP, Windows 2003, Mac OS X 10.3 compatible




I know some folks have had issues with this little gem but I personally have had nothing but satisfaction.
I have used the keyboard live and in my home studio for 5 years now with no complaints.

[tezifon]

yesterday my bcr2000 arrived so i spend all the day customizing the controls, my impressions

extremely customizable via software with BC manager, edited the top encoders to be faster and display the value in the leds

and i have to investigate with the mackie emulation mode in ableton live

ok, after 2 years, good things, a bazilion rotary infinites controllers, yo can config it to whatever from mixer to synths and dj even

bad thing, usb-midi behringer driver is buggy, better use midi cables to a good interface, then its really fine

a lot of notable ppl uses the bcr, from daft punk to hans zimmer

[CrewCutz]

Whast the best Midi Keyboard i can buy for £40??? im using reason 5 cheers. Crewcutz