Comments on: Akai Does Mini MIDI Keyboard, Pads, a la Korg nano – But with Real Action?

By: thepatrickrichardson

thepatrickrichardson — Sat, 19 Sep 2009 20:21:00 +0000

Any idea if the back-lighting on the backlit pads of the lpd 8 is software controllable/hi-jack-able?
I’d really like to control my own visual feedback on a unit that small.
would be Beautiful.

By: Michael Coelho

Michael Coelho — Wed, 26 Aug 2009 02:44:51 +0000

@Rocketish – I bought my Korg Nanokey on June 25th and had a key pop off that I couldn’t re-attach. I called Korg and they are replacing it. They didn’t even ask for the old unit back. I did have to email a copy of my receipt to them before they would ship a new unit.

By: Rocketish

Rocketish — Mon, 10 Aug 2009 09:35:37 +0000

I’ve got the NanoKontrol and NanoKey… I’m very happy with the Kontrol… great feel and Midi Learn works very well w/ all my NI software. The NanoKey although the velocity sensitivity and key layout are big improvements over a computer keyboard, it has terrible build quality and is still really low playability.

I’ve also had a key break off on the nanokey… the first time i was able to reattach it but it fell off shortly therafter and a microscopic plastic bit fell off and now can’t reattach… I’m going to try returning it tomorrow… hopefully they will let me pay the difference for a nanopad or at least let me keep store credit for when the akai lpk25 comes out.

By: buford t. justice

buford t. justice — Sun, 09 Aug 2009 00:55:29 +0000

heh, glad someone else is in the market for microcontrollers (did i say micro…er, mini). I’ve managed to get a acer d250 netbook running acidPRO4 and audacity with zippo latency with 12 tracks and 3 effects per ( plus master effects at mixdown). It will be nice to know that i haven’t put off buying a miniKORG for nothing. Where’s Casio with all this? and M-Aud would be nice as well. Tired of using a 12$ ebay rollup keyboard ;(

By: MarqMoz

MarqMoz — Wed, 29 Jul 2009 07:51:20 +0000

I just returned a korg nanokey, because it was really just a plastic querty keyboard. I’ve been searching for a portable quality controller for a few months now. Akai would really kill competition if they had automap. If novation jumps aboard this nano-bandwagon, it would sick!… a “nano-novation” with automapping knobs!?!

But honestly i agree with plurgid(above). The Prize goes to the company that starts creating components that can be put together to build one awesome customizable/upgradeable controller. The music equivalent of the RED camera. Imagine buying knobs/x-y pads/ faders, and attaching them to your nano keyboard as needed, like a photographer swapping lenses. Then buying a 61-key board for your home studio, and simply attaching your nano+knobs+faders to it when you get home from work. If i had the money, i’d start that company myself!

By: Poodleface

Poodleface — Mon, 20 Jul 2009 09:58:13 +0000

This Akai mini keyboard is good news, because the nanoKey has been a disappointment for me, mainly because those damn keys keep popping off. I finally had one come off that simply will not go back on. I like small crappy keyboards, but not when they don’t hold on to their keys. :-(

Thankfully, I’ll recoup the $50 when I buy the Korg Legacy Digital synths. Mmmmmmm… Wavestation.

By: tb

tb — Sat, 18 Jul 2009 11:00:30 +0000

@peterkin
controlling real hardware, they could have easily put a mini din to 2x DIN5 like the old yamahas soundcards had (and the early m-audio PCI) and it would give us, hardware users, a nice little controller for some of our machines like rack synths and samplers instead of carrying something that is just too big (25 notes keys or big mpcstyle pads)

By: sensitive pads

sensitive pads — Fri, 17 Jul 2009 15:17:34 +0000

actually the korg nanopad is total s**t. the pads are not nearly as responsive as the padkontrol pads. i thought it would be a nice replacement but I sold it right away.

really looking forward to these two

By: alhogar

alhogar — Fri, 17 Jul 2009 11:26:53 +0000

Detailed info and videos are now up at Akai:

http://www.akaipro.com/snamm09

By: Andrew Benson

Andrew Benson — Fri, 17 Jul 2009 10:48:14 +0000

It’s all about cost and size. I have been using Korg nanoKontrol and nanoPad for several months now and have been really happy with them. I have several other, nicer usb MIDI controllers lying around, but I often find myself having to travel or run around, so being cheap and small enough to toss in my bag means it actually gets used. As far as build quality goes, the mini-USB jack is the weak link for all of these. I had one bust off from leaving the cable plugged in, and it’s pretty tough to resolder the SMT component. That aside, the nanopads are very playable and I use my nanoKontrol as a video controller constantly.