Am I crazy for asking your opinion on midi controllers?

Ailerom

The 3 that have caught my eye are:

Korg nanoKEY Studio Mobile MIDI Keyboard w/ Bluetooth
Korg MicroKey 2 Air 37-Key Bluetooth MIDI Controller
Arturia KeyStep Portable Polyphonic Step Sequencer & Keyboard Controller

It might seem strange given how different they are but hopefully that shows some of my confusion.

1. I like the idea of Bluetooth as I would probably be more likely to use it with my iPad, but I mainly work in the PC world. Do you find Bluetooth makes it that much easier that you wouldn't use a keyboard with an iPad without it? How does that impact on it's use with a plugged in system like PC.
2. I appreciate quality and to be honest the Arturia is the only one of these that looks well built, no Bluetooth though. I want it to last a while. My Axiom49 has only made it 10 years before several keys have checked out.
3. I'm not a keyboard player but I appreciate a bit of keyboard range. 32 - 37 keys seems a minimum to me but do you think you would notice much difference with those 5 keys?
4. Obviously the simple keyboard vs all in one is a personal decision but if you have any thoughts throw them in.
5. Is Bluetooth less reliable than a lead? To the point that even with Bluetooth I might not use it a lot and regret spending the extra on a Bluetooth device.
6. How annoying are those clicky keys on the nanoKEY Studio?
7. Feel free to suggest others if you think it makes sense.

I think I like like the Arturia the most. Looks like it has nice keys, is well built. Only things that concern me are whether I will regret not having drum Bluetooth, and the absence of drum pads (handy but not really a deal breaker as I'm just as likely to use keys to enter drums). Or am I going to blow those poor keys out using them for drums.

drewinnit

I have about 5 MIDI controllers in my studio and for my iPad I use the Nano Key Studio 95% of the time because it's easy, instant and has knobs/keys/pads

You asked specifically about the build quality - for the NKS it isn't great, made from plastic and a pads and keys are far from ideal, but again - it does the job very quickly and easily and that's generally what I am seeking

wim

@drewinnit said:
I have about 5 MIDI controllers in my studio and for my iPad I use the Nano Key Studio 95% of the time because it's easy, instant and has knobs/keys/pads

You asked specifically about the build quality - for the NKS it isn't great, made from plastic and a pads and keys are far from ideal, but again - it does the job very quickly and easily and that's generally what I am seeking

My NKS has survived two pretty spectacular destructive events. The latest when the wall hanger for my Strat decided it didn’t like that job any more. The guitar fell whammy-bar straight down onto the NKS Pad, launched the keyboard into the air, and off of a shelf where it managed to land at the bottom of a stack of books, a Notebook PC, and the aforementioned guitar.

Keys and knobs were scattered everywhere. They all happily snapped back in place, and except for a dent in the XY pad that doesn’t seem to affect performance, it’s none the worse the experience. The kersploding keys and knobs prevented any real damage I guess.

I don’t have any comparative advice, but can say I’m pretty happy with the survivability of the thing.

Ailerom

That's great, thanks drewinnit. I sort of got that impression. I'm not sure how I could get along with something that feels cheaply made. I hoped it was more like the Electribe I had. From pictures I was skeptical but it was pretty robust with great pads.

Will

@wim said:

@drewinnit said:
I have about 5 MIDI controllers in my studio and for my iPad I use the Nano Key Studio 95% of the time because it's easy, instant and has knobs/keys/pads

You asked specifically about the build quality - for the NKS it isn't great, made from plastic and a pads and keys are far from ideal, but again - it does the job very quickly and easily and that's generally what I am seeking

My NKS has survived two pretty spectacular destructive events. The latest when the wall hanger for my Strat decided decided it didn’t like that job any more. The guitar fell whammy-bar down straight onto the NKS Pad, launched the keyboard into the air, and off of a shelf where it managed to land at the bottom of a stack of books, a Notebook PC, and the aforementioned guitar.

Keys and knobs were scattered everywhere. They all happily snapped back in place, and except for a dent in the XY pad that doesn’t seem to affect performance, it’s none the worse the experience. The kersploding keys and knobs prevented any real damage I guess.

I don’t have any comparative advice, but can say I’m pretty happy with the survivability of the thing.

That is amazing story. Horrifying to read but with a happy ending.

Ailerom

Thanks wim, that's also helpful. I do like pretty much everything about the NKS except how it look cheap and the clicky keys. How are the pads? Not sure I like the substitute of the XY pad for the usual mod and pitch sliders. The look great on the Arturia. Can the NKS XY Pad be configured for smooth pitch and mod behaviour?

Gavinski

I only have the nanokontrol. Seems similar in build to the NSK. It's definitely very cheaply built. I think it's a bit overpriced for a piece of plastic with very simple electronics. It works fine though, it is super light, which is nice. I would expect it to last many years if you are just using it at home. I wouldn't choose it if I was going to be doing a lot of live gigging with it perhaps, or travelling with it a lot without a good case. In those cases something more solid would give me more peace of mind.

But I definitely love the fact it is Bluetooth.

Ailerom

Seems like Bluetooth is pretty solid. I'm pretty sure I'd be more likely to use it with the iPad on Bluetooth.

drewinnit

@wim wow that's definitely a benefit of the NKS I (luckily!) hadn't experienced yet. Glad you got it back in one piece

I do transport my NKS in my backpack between home and studio and after 3 years of doing this it's still as good as new - I think also shows that despite the plastic enclosure it is pretty sturdy.

wim

@Ailerom said:
Thanks wim, that's also helpful. I do like pretty much everything about the NKS except how it look cheap and the clicky keys. How are the pads? Not sure I like the substitute of the XY pad for the usual mod and pitch sliders. The look great on the Arturia. Can the NKS XY Pad be configured for smooth pitch and mod behaviour?

I find the XY pad next to useless. I don’t mind the keys at all, they are just fine for me. The pads are too stiff for my taste. My only other controller is the Sensel morph. I end up using the NKS more often. It’s just quick and easy and gets the job done with no hassle.

One thing I will never, ever do again though is buy another controller that can’t at least change channels on-board without hooking up to a PC. That rules out both my controllers at present. (Well, you can make each scene a different channel, technically, but I have reasons for not wanting to do it that way.)

As much as I prefer wireless, I would give that up for on-board programmability and on the fly midi channel switching any day.

supadom

If you want bluetooth but can put up with clunky keys and tiny pads with close to no dynamic range then go with Korg.

If you want quality built keyboard with sequencing go with keystep.

ToMess

Microkey is great. Keys are very good for the price and for mini keys, which usually are total crap. I have the air32 version myself. Its light weight and plastic, but doesent feel too flimsy despite being all plastic. You could combine it with some pads + knobs like beatstep for example. Also you can save some bucks on microkey by buying used, and the non bt(non air) version is cheaper if you dont need blue tooth

wim

The NKS encoders only have resolution of 64 steps, so when you turn those knobs, they increment by two cc values, not one. This has never bothered me, but it does some people.

Shabudua

@ToMess said:
Microkey is great. Keys are very good for the price and for mini keys, which usually are total crap. I have the air32 version myself. Its light weight and plastic, but doesent feel too flimsy despite being all plastic. You could combine it with some pads + knobs like beatstep for example. Also you can save some bucks on microkey by buying used, and the non bt(non air) version is cheaper if you dont need blue tooth

I’m very happy with my Microkey Air 37 as well. The Bluetooth functions flawlessly for me and really makes a difference. In the past i’ve always gotten something with lots of knobs and faders, and then never used them because they were so fiddly and junky. The MKA only has bend & mod wheels and so far I haven't missed anything else.

Gavinski

Oh yeah, I forgot about microkey air. I'm very happy with it, I got a 61 key version, cheap and good.

drewfx1

You can also add Bluetooth to most things with midi jacks with devices like the Yamaha MD-BT01.

Ailerom

ok that's a great idea. changes everything if any controller can be BT so easily.

Jes

@drewfx1 said:
You can also add Bluetooth to most things with midi jacks with devices like the Yamaha MD-BT01.

Yes but check this out carefully for any given controller as some do not supply enough power from the midi jack for the Yamaha md BT01 to function. eg Alesis Q25 and Beatstep

Ailerom

Problem, how to check that? I suppose hunting through forums?

supadom

@wim said:
The NKS encoders only have resolution of 64 steps, so when you turn those knobs, they increment by two cc values, not one. This has never bothered me, but it does some people.

Right, that's interesting. I wonder why they've made this decision alongside restricting of velocity range by about 40%. I got it to use with Drambo but when I hooked a pad up to flexi offset it would only cover part of the waveform. That was the last straw.

wim

Oooh, that Microkey 37 looks good. I always wish I had another octave or two to work with. Mite have to learn to play with two hands though. Is it OK to play with more than one finger on each hand if you use two hands? 🧐

wim

@supadom said:

@wim said:
The NKS encoders only have resolution of 64 steps, so when you turn those knobs, they increment by two cc values, not one. This has never bothered me, but it does some people.

Right, that's interesting. I wonder why they've made this decision alongside restricting of velocity range by about 40%. I got it to use with Drambo but when I hooked a pad up to flexi offset it would only cover part of the waveform. That was the last straw.

You can set the velocity sensitivity through the Korg Editor.

supadom

@wim said:

@supadom said:

@wim said:
The NKS encoders only have resolution of 64 steps, so when you turn those knobs, they increment by two cc values, not one. This has never bothered me, but it does some people.

Right, that's interesting. I wonder why they've made this decision alongside restricting of velocity range by about 40%. I got it to use with Drambo but when I hooked a pad up to flexi offset it would only cover part of the waveform. That was the last straw.

You can set the velocity sensitivity through the Korg Editor.

So do you get the full 1 to 127 spectrum? Are you sure? I sold mine partly because neither keys nor pads would trigger velocity bellow 40. I wonder if the guy who's sold it to me set it that way or I got a dud albeit I do remember tweaking the editor. Mmmm, weird.

Jes

@Ailerom said:
Problem, how to check that? I suppose hunting through forums?

Yes, but also this site has a list of known gear that does not supply full power ie 5 volts but 3.3 vollts instead to their midi ports. I dont know how current this is but it explains the issue well.
Im interested in whether the Alesis Keystep powers a Md BT01 but have not been able to find that info.

http://www.midisolutions.com/faqs.htm#LED

Jes

Sorry, I mean Arturia Keystep.

wim

@supadom said:

@wim said:

@supadom said:

@wim said:
The NKS encoders only have resolution of 64 steps, so when you turn those knobs, they increment by two cc values, not one. This has never bothered me, but it does some people.

Right, that's interesting. I wonder why they've made this decision alongside restricting of velocity range by about 40%. I got it to use with Drambo but when I hooked a pad up to flexi offset it would only cover part of the waveform. That was the last straw.

You can set the velocity sensitivity through the Korg Editor.

So do you get the full 1 to 127 spectrum? Are you sure? I sold mine partly because neither keys nor pads would trigger velocity bellow 40. I wonder if the guy who's sold it to me set it that way or I got a dud albeit I do remember tweaking the editor. Mmmm, weird.

Pads or Keys? The key touch velocity is adjustable and I can definitely get to 127 velocity easily. There's no sensitivity setting for the pads, but I can whack in a full 127 if I really try. It would be nice if the pads had a velocity setting. They can be set to toggle mode, which I expect (haven't verified) would send 0/127.

hes

@Jes said:

@drewfx1 said:
You can also add Bluetooth to most things with midi jacks with devices like the Yamaha MD-BT01.

Yes but check this out carefully for any given controller as some do not supply enough power from the midi jack for the Yamaha md BT01 to function. eg Alesis Q25 and Beatstep

You're talking about the BT01 that connects to midi din input/output. Another option is to use the UD-BT01, which connects to usb to host port on controller. If not enough juice from controller, then you can power the BT01 from a wall charger or portable usb battery charger. Not ideal, adds some complexity, but it's an option. I think if you're powering this way your controller itself can get its juice from that charger, through the BT01 connection, so no need for two separate power connections.

Jes

@hes said:

@Jes said:

@drewfx1 said:
You can also add Bluetooth to most things with midi jacks with devices like the Yamaha MD-BT01.

Yes but check this out carefully for any given controller as some do not supply enough power from the midi jack for the Yamaha md BT01 to function. eg Alesis Q25 and Beatstep

You're talking about the BT01 that connects to midi din input/output. Another option is to use the UD-BT01, which connects to usb to host port on controller. If not enough juice from controller, then you can power the BT01 from a wall charger or portable usb battery charger. Not ideal, adds some complexity, but it's an option. I think if you're powering this way your controller itself can get its juice from that charger, through the BT01 connection, so no need for two separate power connections.

Yes I utilise a UD BT01 like this to make my Ewi USB wireless ( ie bluetooth)

Ailerom

I think I'd probably make do with the Microkey 37. I think the main thing stopping me is I am paying a very similar price but getting so much less than the other 2.

wim

I think this is what I'd try instead of the NanoKEY Studio if mine died and I didn't decide to go for more keys. It seems to have all the features I'm missing from the NKS. Its cheaper too.

M-Audio Axiom AIR Mini 32.
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B009SS6A8Q/

[edit ... oh nvm. Not Bluetooth]

Gavinski

To me definitely two octaves is very limiting. If you just want it for travel, fine, but for home use it is so worth getting more, especially as the price difference for more keys is really negligible.