Do You Love Your MIDI Controller?

[jeffb01]

I use the Digitone keys as my midi controller and I love it. I had been looking for a long time for a 3 octave keyboard with aftertouch with some knobs and a real mod wheel (not touch-based). My biggest issue is space - it needed to fit between my keyboard and my monitor. Well, the Digitone keys is perfect. it fits right between my keyboard and my monitor. The aftertouch is not polyphonic, but that's okay. It has 16 knobs. and most importantly, it works like a dream in Bitwig. I haven't had a lot of luck with getting midi controllers (knobs) to work in Bitwig. I'm sure it was user error, but this is pretty much plug and play. I also like that is has a synth in there to play with, too.

[Roboman20000]

I recently bought an MPK249. I'm not sure I love it yet but I'm not trained or practiced with a keyboard. I like using it. I have it set up fairly well and I'm glad I bought it but I'm still a little intimidated by the keyboard. I need to practice playing more so that I can get more comfortable playing things at full speed rather than at half speed. I was also very disappointed to find that the two VST synths I was supposed to receive with it where actually 15 day trials rather than full keys but those where icing on the cake rather than the reason I got the MPK.

[Tj Shredder]

I absolutely love my LinnStrument. Nothing can get even close to it. Maybe the small version I programmed on to my Sensel, but Sensel has no working support/development...

[GaryG]

Maybe still in the honeymoon period but I love my arturia microlab. I don't really like encoders so passed on the minilab, would rather have a separate box of knobs (currently being built...).

I've had a few keyboards over the years and found full size keys aren't for me, I just don't seem to have the stretch in my left hand. I really like my korg nanokeys too so tried a cme xkey but found it severely lacking in the velocity sensitivity front, shame as the aftertouch was cool. I've found the microlab a perfect compromise, keys seem to fall naturally under my fingers and feel great.

Edit: for reference, guess it's obvious I'm not a trained pianist or anything, another guitarist bashing in a few chords occasionally.

[Hewitt Huntwork]

Edit: for reference, guess it's obvious I'm not a trained pianist or anything, another guitarist bashing in a few chords occasionally.

Same here! Only I can't play guitar right now because of nerve damage to my hands and feet. So I'm looking around at every MIDI controller under the sun. I bought a Kordbot, which is EXTREMELY nifty, but 99% of the time it only outputs 2 velocities - 127 and 0. So I'm on the hunt for something different. I use Studio One so I'm leaning heavily toward an Atom because of how well they integrate. But I also need a keyboard of some sort because the Atom won't let Presonus users manually determine which pad mode they're in. So if it thinks the instrument you fed it is a drum instrument, you will always be limited to 16 pads with no octave control. Hrmph!

[chk071]

Since I had my M-Audio Oxygen 25 mkII, I've always had kind of a love/hate relationship with my controllers... they all had flaws, but also good sides. I'm pretty happy with my Novation Impulse 49 now though. Had some smaller keyboards in the meantime, but, I got rid of them, because I want to concentrate on a single keyboard, and, I also appreciate the 4 octaves.

[Hewitt Huntwork]

... Sensel has no working support/development...

Thanks for sharing that! I didn't know and Sensel is one of the (many) things I was looking at.

[Tj Shredder]

I would love they‘d open source the editor, and firmware. Then we could fix it ourself. There are bugs waiting to be fixed for years...
On the other hand what works isn‘t that bad. Unfortunately I got the useless innovators overlay, and it does the same as no overlay. If I would have known that before... The basic idea is brilliant, and with Max I can go nuts...

[clipnotic]

Simple question. I know a concert pianist and an EDM producer have completely different needs. I'm not asking what's best or for whom.

I'm asking you: Do you LOVE your MIDI controller? If so, what is it?

I don't love them, because I still not found a really optimal midi controller. I want good 88 light weighted keys with many NOT endless knobs and with really working USB drivers and without much software crap. And the height must be not more than 12 cm, because I want to place it in my table drawer

[.jon]

Yes, I do.



Great feeling and untypical 44-key keybed with actually playable aftertouch, excellent wheels, metal and wood and high end pots. Analog synth included

[CapnLockheed]

I do.....but I generally prefer women.

[rod_zero]

Push 2 is my main controller, I love the integration and the ease of use. The pads are not perfect but that's my only complain.

I have had a bunch of other controllers and all of them had biggest flaws in some other way.

[tapper mike]

I absolutely love my LinnStrument. Nothing can get even close to it. Maybe the small version I programmed on to my Sensel, but Sensel has no working support/development...

Ditto

[nix808]

my MIDI guitar controller looks like this atm->

circuit.png

[dr_loop]

I absolutely love my LinnStrument. Nothing can get even close to it.

..I'll second that! Though my finger joints have a somewhat different opinion, so I don't really play it that often