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Is this possible? Control surface + midi controller to ipad/itrack dock
Hi all - extreme noob here just getting started and this forum has been a fantastic resource, so thank you to all for sharing your knowledge. My question:
I currently am using an ipad air 2 and an itrack dock. I've mostly been composing with korg gadget and I'm now looking for a midi controller. As a piano player i want an 88key controller with hammer action keybed so that I could continue practicing classical, and I also wanted a wide array of knobs and faders for producing my own experimental music.
In my research the arturia keylab 88 seemed to most fit the bill, but I havn't found one to try in person and I'm hesitant to buy sight unseen. I did try an akai mpk88 and was not impressed at all with the key action.
Some years back I owned a roland fantom x-8 workstation that I felt had a great feeling keybed. This led me to discover the roland A-88 controller. By all accounts it's a great keybed, but it is woefully lacking many encoders/faders/pads etc.
TL;DR: would it be possible to connect a controller surface such as the Behringer X-Touch or Nektar panoram P1 to a Roland A-88, and then use the combo with an ipad/itrack dock/korg gadget?
I do currently have an arturia minilab and am pleased with how easy it has been to map midi controls within gadget. I need only map each gadget one time and it remembers for future use. It seems logical the keylab88 would behave the same way. However, I'm willing to spend more on the above combo for a highest quality piano feel, but obviously only if it can work!
Thank you for reading and for any help/suggestions!
Comments
If I understand you right, you should be able to have 2 midi devices (eg a keyboard and a separate midi controller) sending midi notes and CCs respectively to one Gadget. You'll need a USB hub to allow 2 midi devices to both send midi through the apple CCK.
If I get a moment I'll try it with my M Audio keyboard and my Korg NanoPad 2. I see no reason why it wouldn't work.
Thanks for your response. I should have mentioned that on the itrack dock website it says they do not support the use of usb hubs. Whether that means they just dont officially endorse the practice or if it wont work at all I'm not sure. This is what led me to the thought of connecting a control surface to a controller like the A-88 (if possible) and then to the itrack. Let me know how your combo works out!
I have used an M-Audio Axiom Air 25 and a Fatar keyboard together with the iTrack Dock. Axiom USB to the dock, Fatar Din Midi to the Axiom. Worked. No guarantee your combo will work. The iTrack is very picky. Note, the Fatar is not class compliant so I assume the Axiom took care of it.
Never heard of an iTrack working with a hub.
Ok I'm reading more and learning that this may simply be an unfortunate limitation of the itrack dock. I have plenty of time to return it for a different solution should this be the case.
I'm reading of people connecting multiple midi devices to their ipads using the apple usb camera adapter (which i have) and a usb hub. If that is so, would my best bet be to simply buy a normal audio interface into which I could plug the usb hub and play everything through my powered monitors? Losing the ability to use multiple midi instruments with the ipad isn't worth trading just for a convenient dock.
@TedBPhx said:
Interesting, so it's at least possible under certain circumstances.
@hondobro Since Roland has physical midi out, connect it to behringer's midi input and the behringer via usb to itrack...note that you must ask behringer if xtouch works with itrack dock and if it supports midi thru ( passing the input to output especially to usb port )
Thanks, I will contact the manufacturer and try to find out. To be honest, at this point I'm thinking I should probably return the itrack dock and wait for the griffin studioconnect hd or iConnectAUDIO4+ to release. Even if I lucked out and the proposed scenario worked, it seems the others would provide everything the itrack does with more room for expansion in the future and around the same price.
Edit: I'm also interested in something like the nektar panorama p1, but it is only usb, so that would put me back to square one needing a hub i think.
@Korakios said:
@hondobro said:
Depends on what you mean by "it's". It's not possible to use a hub with it. What Ted did was use one USB MIDI device and one 5Pin MIDI device. So many controllers are out today without 5pin outputs.
If yours has them, you could be in business.
I wanted the iTrack but that hub limitation put me right off of it. Seems like something that might be fixable via firmware update.
@syrupcore said:
Yes, it unfortunately seems that, currently, there is no complete solution. itrack dock is missing midi ports and hub support, the alesis io dock lacks usb-in, and the other ways don't charge the ipad. I'm definitely returning the itrack this month. It's a shame because other than this it works great and sounds great. I will miss the ability to play the ipad spotify app through my studio monitors while I wait for the griffin or iconnectivity to release.