Midi Controllers

John_A

Decided rather than a synth I'll get a controller and go down the soft synth route.  Trouble is 90% of the controllers available seem to look like cheap plastic toys with the exception of :

NI Kontrol - V Expensive

Novation SL MKii - -getting a bit long n the tooth

Arturia - Apparently the keyboard is rubbish

Anyone got any recommendations?

Teetonetal

Well I have an arturia key lab 49. I had to get two as the first one was broken on delivery. Pros: Feels really nice, easy to use, nice range of knobs and sliders. Cons: Keyboard might feel nice, but is very cheaply made. The weights fall off, the connectors inside come undone. No way could you reliably use one for giving,.

I also had a Novation Sl mkii zero - which is just the controller part. Really didn't like the feel of it. Really clunky. Software didn't react very quickly. Used with Logic and reaper, just laggy.

goldtop

Arturia is rapidly getting a rep for poorly-designed/made hardware. The Beatstep Pro has a USB connector that breaks with very little use.

(Can't answer on a controller, because every time I looked into getting one with a good keybed, I found that I could get a proper '90s synth for about the same price. So that's what I've always done.)

John_A

Thought about getting a proper synth from a build quality perspective, but the DAW integration and the ability to control plugins/soft synths from the controller would be lovely.  Top of my list currently is the Akai Advance 61

Cabicular

Cme are basically the same ones used in the Motif and are pretty good

maltingsaudio

A lot of the older home keyboards like Casio  PGs and Yamaha ones have great midi implimentation but crap sounds and can be picked up for pence worth a look as long as your street buddies don't see it in your studio!

John_A

I'm not particularly looking for cheap, just somthing good.  Most controllers keyboards look like plastic toys