Showing posts with label electronic music. Show all posts
Showing posts with label electronic music. Show all posts

7/08/2012

Akai MPD 24 USB/Midi MPC Pad Controller Review

Akai MPD 24 USB/Midi MPC Pad Controller
Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)
I just love this product. I have made so much music with it. I just love the mpc style pads. I don't understand why keyboard manufactures don't use the sensitive pad system. It just feels like how an instrument should be controlled. I have a midi key board and the only reason I use it to get at more notes. This pad set up lets you pound out rhythm lines just like you would on a bass or guitar. Ones you figure out the cro matic scale set up. I want a giant one of these with like 64 keys.
I am going to sell my mpc1000 because with the mpd24 I get the sensitivity of the mpc pad but the ease of control of my computers sequencer. Mpc software is so 1990 to me.
I just adjust the swing in the sequencer on my computer and Bam! I have an mpc!
Oh and writing drum loops is just so easy with this unit.

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Designed for use with Digital Audio Workstations (DAW), sequencing, and other software applications, the Akai MPD24 USB/MIDI pad controller enables you to program drum parts in a much more intuitive and natural way than by simply playing them on a keyboard. With its array of knobs and sliders, the MPD24 allows you to control parameters on your favorite DAW or software synths, offering incredible real-time control.


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6/29/2012

Akai MPK 49 Controller Keyboard Review

Akai MPK 49 Controller Keyboard
Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)
First of all, the pads DO suck. MPC's are known for their pads so you'd think Akai would at least be able to put the same type of pad/contact design on their MPK line. Instead they put a bunch of pads with no play that feel like buttons and make the keyboard housing vibrate when you pound them. On top of that they placed the contacts so far away it's damn near impossible to get 127 velocity on the pads without going Full Level. Even my LPD8 feels better than this thing. And even though they look like the MPC1000 pads, the 1000 pads are twice as thick as the ones here. I would have loved for them to have put the 1000 pads on this. At least then I'd be able to play back a chopped loop without feeling like I'm dialing a phone number.
The best part of the controller is the control surface. The transport keys, knobs, and sliders feel great. The LCD screen looks great.
Something unique about the controller is that it has built in MIDI settings that mimic classic MPC functions (16 level, MPC swing, note repeat). Too bad the pads keep you from fully enjoying these features.
The keys are decent but slightly noisy because they vibrate on release. The controller is also one of the few 49 key controllers out there with aftertouch. I prefer the lever-like feel of the Axiom when it comes to using aftertouch but the keys here are not a dealbreaker.
There's also a simple arpeggiator you can use. It's fairly simple in that there are only 5 settings you can use to separate notes in a chord. If you've used a more sophisticated arp (like the one on a Yamaha KX8), you'll be disappointed though.
The MPK is a good controller but Akai could have done way better than this. If you're using this for the keys and control surface it's a decent investment. But if you're thinking of buying this for the pads so you can drum and play back chopped loops, get an MPD instead.

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More than just a USB/MIDI controller, the Akai MPK49 USB/MIDI Controller Keyboard helps you maximize your musical ideas on-stage or in the studio. It combines a high-quality, 49-key, semi-weighted keyboard with aftertouch and 12 genuine MPC drum pads. It also offers 48 total accessible pads via 4 pad banks, and you can control up to 72 different parameters via 24 assignable Q-Link knobs, faders, and buttons as well as optional footswitches.


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6/21/2012

Moog Music Etherwave Theremin Review

Moog Music Etherwave Theremin
Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)
The Moog Music Etherwave has rapidly become the definitive instrument for Theremin beginners, for good reason: it's solidly made and has excellent performance. Theremins are an inherently difficult insturment to begin with, and a poorly made instrument can easily make the difference between "incredibly difficult" and "completely impossible". Unlike most cheaper Theremins, the Etherwave is definitely playable, and professional musicians do use it both on stage and in the recording studio. It has a thick, solid wood shell, and two detachable chrome antennas which seem more solid in person than they do in a photo. The unit is relatively lightweight, and I'd guess it weighs about the same as my laptop.
As for its sound, it has a fairly classic theremin sound... some people complain it's a bit thin, but I've found that depends a lot more on the amplifier and (if applicable) equalizer used than on the instrument itself. When hooked up to professional gear, my Etherwave sounds rich and fat.
My Etherwave has appeared at several major science fiction conventions. I like that I can throw it in a small bag over my shoulder, pack a small amp in another bag, and use a standard microphone stand that's borrowable at most performance venues if I don't want to carry one. (I have a folding stand I can bring along, too.) Probably over a thousand people have toyed with my Etherwave, and most of them told me they had fun with it. The instrument's difficulty does not subtract from its fun value.
Don't forget that at a minimum you'll also need to get an amplifier (a keyboard amp: the Etherwave is a bit too powerful for a guitar amp although one can be used in a pinch), a stand (a microphone stand, as I said, without a boom arm), and an audio cable to connect the Theremin to the amp (a standard inexpensive "guitar cord" with 1/4 inch male connectors at both ends).

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The Moog Etherwave theremin is an authentic adaptation of inventor Leon Theremin's original design (The "theremin" is one of the oldest electronic instruments, and the only one known that you play without touching. Pitch and volume are controlled by moving your hands in the space around its antennas). The Etherwave is a quality theremin with a design that retains many characteristics of the original theremins, including a five-octave pitch range and reliable spacing between notes for sophisticated playability. Antennas are nickel-plated 3/8' brass tube and cabinets are furniture-grade hardwood, finished black. The Etherwave is fitted with an adapter for mounting on a standard microphone stand. What is a Theremin? The theremin is one of the oldest electronic instruments, and the only one known that you play without touching. Moving your hands in the space around its antennas controls pitch and volume. Like the Ethervox, the Etherwave is an authentic adaptation of inventor Leon Theremin's original design. The Etherwave The Etherwave is a quality theremin with a design that retains many characteristics of the original theremins, including a five-octave pitch range and reliable spacing between notes for sophisticated playability. Antennas are nickel-plated 3/8' brass tube and cabinets are furniture-grade hardwood, finished black. The Etherwave is fitted with an adapter for mounting on a standard microphone stand and is designed for use with a musical instrument amplifier such as the Moog TB-15. The Etherwave ships with two videotapes: Clara Rockmore: the Greatest Theremin Virtuosa, and Mastering the Theremin, featuring Lydia Kavina. Power supply is included. Understanding the Etherwave How the Etherwave Works There are several resonant circuits, or tuned circuits, in the Etherwave theremin. Since resonant circuits are not as common or accessible in today's electronic gear as they used to be

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6/15/2012

Moog Music MF102 Moogerfooger Ring Modulator Pedal Review

Moog Music MF102 Moogerfooger Ring Modulator Pedal
Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)
Got the pedal, and it is amazing. Five stars for the pedal, worth every dime. The time it took to ship it wasn't amazing, but I guess you get what you pay for. I purchased the pedal on December 24th, and received it on January 4th. It was boxed well, and is a sturdy pedal. Definitely the best pedal I have ever purchased. I have thus far ran it through a couple of different amplifiers, a Roland FP-3, a MIDI laptop setup, a 1975 Rhodes, and an electric violin and all of them were really fun to play with. I would definitely recommend the pedal but if you want it quickly, pay for the faster shipping.

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The all-analog ring modulator rebuilds your sound into two separate tones and then uses an internal carrier oscillator to spread those tones apart in the frequency spectrum. The higher the carrier frequency, the more the new tones are separated. The effects can be anything from slow, velvet-smooth tremelo, to chains jangling in a Chinese gong to classic "outer space" sounds. The LFO (Low Frequency Oscillator) imparts trills, vibratos, siren effects. You want unlimited new sounds? Here they are! Power supply included. What is a Ring Modulator? A ring modulator mixes your audio input signal with a carrier oscillator to produce sum and difference frequencies. Imagine that the ring modulator's carrier oscillator is producing a 500 Hz sine wave, and your input signal is a 100 Hz sine wave. The ring modulator's output will be a complex waveform. You will hear two pitches: 400 Hz and 600 Hz. You will not hear your original input or the carrier oscillator. The moogerfooger ring modulator is a direct descendant of the original Moog modular synthesizers. It contains three complete modular functions: a ring modulator, a voltage-controlled carrier oscillator, and voltage-contolled dual-waveform LFO. A ring modulator produces sum and difference frequencies between the audio input and a "carrier" oscillator. The ring modulator's LFO can be used to modulate the carrier frequency. The moogerfooger ring modulator can create effects ranging from subtle tremolo to harmonically rich distortion, sweeps, swoops, and divebombs. The moogerfooger ring modulator's control parameters are signal mix, carrier frequency, LFO rate, and LFO amount. All of the ring modulator's parameters can be controlled with expression pedals or external control voltages as well as by rotary panel controls. Panel switches select LFO waveform and carrier frequency range. 1/4' jacks are provided for audio input and output, pedal/control inputs, carrier input and carrier output.

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9/10/2011

AXL Solid State Keyboard Amplifier, 200 Watt Review

AXL Solid State Keyboard Amplifier, 200 Watt
Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)
this amp is wonderful easy to use has so many inputs for various equipment, mikes, keyboards
and is so easy to move on its rollers. It is the most beautiful amp I have ever owned and is so
powerful with such refined speakers and EQ's. I have used this amp to replace a variety of overhead, monitor and keyboard amps which were troublesome to connect and set up. This is the
one I've been waiting for all my life and at such a reasonable price, WOW!
Larry, from Wisconsin.

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Sonically, the amplifier has excellent bass and punch whenever needed, and nice transparent sound with little or no coloring. This amp gives you the ability to hear what you're playing and enhances the keyboard sound the PA might miss.This amplifier is easy to set up and has a vintage style cabinet with a classy maroon finish that takes players back to another time.Created by respected product designers with a great understanding for vintage style cabinets, this amp is the perfect combination of power and value.

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