Controllers

You always wanted a Monome, but they were just maybe a little out of your reach costwise. With the Novation Launchpad, that is no longer the case. Just let Ollie from Novation show you how this box of buttons can streamline your workflow.  

The series name Oxygen implies that the M-Audio keyboard controllers were redesigned to be a breath of fresh air or something pure and necessary. On that note, here are three versions of the same controllers that do the same things they did before.  

Most of today’s MIDI Controllers look too cutting edge that they seem too much plastic, with a playing experience that appears to be far from its acoustic predecessors. Adding insult to injury is that most of them have colored dull like gray. More than just bringing an impressive pianistic experience, the Studiologic Numa Nero exhibits that elegant black exterior that looks as good as it can play as well as boasting of a responsiveness unseen in other MIDI controllers.  

The Nocturn and accompanying Automap technology have simplified workstations of many music makers who've had the opportunity of having one. Going two to three steps towards ultimate simplicity, the Novation Nocturn Keyboard 25 And 49 arms the Novation enthusiast with more control options and decreases studio clutter.  

Since the phrase "plug and play" came out, people have been expecting to just hook up their gear and start right away. This has not been the case for the musicians as even plug-and-play devices would often require configuration changes. The Novation SL Mk II, being armed with Automap 3 PRO, defines what plug and play really is.  

According to my son’s former favorite TV show, “small is powerful.” Indeed it is. Look at how cellular phones and laptops have become. Akai Professional LPD8 and LPK25 live up to this motto as you will see at Summer NAMM 2009.  

Compromises often lead to win-win situations. In this case, some musicians find a 49-key MIDI controller to fall short of the desired range and an 88-key to be too bulky for transport. Giving that winning compromise while retaining uncompromising control options, Akai Professional MPK61 is about to make its debut at Summer NAMM 2009.  

Enough with the competing Les Paul Jr. / Hammond B3 blues solos! Why can't guitarists and keyboardists learn to get along?. The Line 6 POD Studio KB37 picks up where the Toneport KB37 left off in this quest as shipping of these units kicked off recently, and not a moment too soon. Oh, the humanity!  

In addition to the exciting announcement about the MINIAK, Akai is bringing two new controllers to Frankfurt. The Akai MPK88 will be the company's biggest keyboard-controller, while the MPD18 will be the company's smallest pad-contrller. No judgements about folks who prefer one over the other, please.  

You might think that Bill Holland's hands only look giant in comparison to the Korg nanoKEY controller, but did you know he could palm a basketball? He's still working on his windmill jam, but this Korg nanoKEY walkthrough sure is a slam dunk!  

The M-Audio Axiom Pro 49 is kind of a conundrum. Even though it adds "Pro" to its title, its features actually make things a lot easier for the user. Shouldn't it be geared towards the novice? And shouldn't actual professionals have to prove their worth by using MIDI controllers that shock them if they play the wrong note?  

It'll be the future according to the 1980s all over again with the introduction of the Roland AX-Synth shoulder-worn keyboard. Only this time, for the first time, it's not just a MIDI controller anymore.  

Serious control freaks will flip out over the new M-Audio Axiom Pro Series. In 25-, 49- and 61-key configurations, these professional grade controller keyboards take what was good about the original Axioms and spruce up their resumes with more responsive keys and further streamlined control.  

Like Penny from the venerable Inspector Gadget animated series, the Akai MPK25 may look innocent and unassuming, but it packs some impressive technological acumen into its tiny frame.  

It comes once a year. Winter NAMM. Much like your birthday, the weeks fly by and then suddenly it is upon you. The difference at NAMM, of course, is that you cannot purchase the presents yet. Also, the last time I had a birthday, I did not have to check in at the press booth and risk getting run over by a guy in an Elmo suit.  

With 25 keys and a dozen MPC pads, the Akai MPK25 is set to make a huge impact on Winter NAMM while maintaining a small footprint. This is the controller that many wish accompanied the earlier release of the MPK49, but like Tom Cruise in Vanilla Sky, Akai knows that it's more fun when you can draw it out.  

Maestro Bill Holland calls upon the Akai MPK49 to be his enforcer. It keeps all of his audio in its best behavior thanks to its expert knowledge of control.  

Our first video on the Yamaha KX-25 barely scratched the surface of the unit's sophisticated arpeggiator. In part two, Bill digs into it so hard, he's going to have to wear a vet-ordered scratch collar.  

Looking uncannily like the Sega Master system in its design, the Yamaha KX-25 is a pretty cool little MIDI USB controller with a sophisticated, built-in arpeggiator and other nifty features. Now if only it would play as well with other DAWs as it does with Cubase.  

The CME VX8 was a big, red improvement for Mike and his band Agency of Spirits -- but only after they got that firmware thing figured out. Mike really needed 88 keys for his new orchestration, so he's glad he waited.  

Do You Want To Learn to Play Kraftwerk's Pocket Calculator? Well, Thinkgeek has made it possible again with this lovely new retro Stylophone. How does it work? Well, by simply pressing down a special key it plays a little melody.  

Bill Hollands goes all Benjamin Gates in this overview of the Novation Remote 25SL. This compact little warrior is preconfigured to work with a bevy of plugins, making configuration a thing of the past.  

Bill Holland revisits the CME UF 50 now that he has installed the CME UF 400e Driver. Now Bill taps into the software to decide his own latency and present some basic Audio and MIDI recording and playback functions.  

On Behringer's website, Behringer actually guarantees the fun that their new U-CONTROL UMA25S will cause. That's a pretty hefty statement to make, but if their guarantees are built as strongly as their products, I'm sure fun will ensue.  

While the Axiom 25 is a great feeling and well built keyboard controller, its auto-mapping isn't the greatest. Bill Holland plays marriage counselor and tries to get the Axiom and Ableton Live 7 back on speaking terms.  

Before it's even plugged into a computer, the K61P from Korg already has more sounds than most keyboard controllers. Add the included M1LE software, and you've got a pretty versatile soft-synth performance package right out of the box.  

Bill continues to wade ever deeper into the Korg K61P's on-board sound bank library, and we catch an even clearer glimpse of the music-matrix that makes up Bill's mind. Talk about your Chameleons!  

In a previous video, Bill Holland made the CME UF 50 a standalone synth by installing a Waldorf Nano board. Another option this synth affords is expansion into a full blown interface.  

The Korg K61P is a controller at heart, but without bulking it up to be as intimidating, expensive or as full-featured as a workstation, they've managed to cut the controller free from MIDI cables if desired with a handful of built in sounds and effects.  

We had to look pretty hard, but eventually we found the Korg Nano Controllers at NAMM in Nashville -- they were at the Korg booth all along! Check out these nearly-pocket-sized USB Controllers up close.