It’s just so annoying, coming up with amazing ideas while playing piano, but not being able to properly record them So I’d love to have some type of midi keyboard so I can directly play into BandLab or whatever. I would really appreciate if someone could give me a good BUDGET option. Thanks!

Hello! I am a composer and I was for a while borrowing my friends midi keyboard and I loved it. He needed it again so I have to buy one. I would like something less than $200 or from microcenter. Any recommendations?

Have been playing guitar for about 10 years now, and am just starting to get into making music. Just recently bought a Scarlett 2i2, mics, all that, and was interested in getting something for synth sounds. Browsed this sub for awhile and it seems like the best way to go would be a MIDI keyboard. My question is: what would be the best budget option for me? I have very little experience with keys, however I do know basic /mid-level theory. The kind of music I'd be looking to incorporate a synth into is stuff like Angels and Airwaves type music. I listen to primarily alternative rock & folk/acoustic stuff, so I have no interest in playing any EDM or anything like that. If possible, would like to keep the budget around $50, as this is something I have no idea if I'll enjoy it or not. Appreciate any help, thanks everyone.

I'm a hobbyist music producer, and I bought myself an M-Audio Keystation61 MK3 a few months back. The build quality was great and I enjoyed having a lot of keys at my disposal. Like any music producer, there are times when I'd have flashes of inspiration, open my DAW (Studio One), and start experimenting. It's at these times that I find the size of the Keystation61 to be very annoying, as I had to pull out this huge keyboard from my closet just to experiment.

It's for this reason I've been looking into buying a cheap, small MIDI keyboard I can keep on my shelf just for those moments I need to play a quick melody and don't need huge 63 key keyboard. I know a lot of keyboards include extra drum pads, knobs, etc., but I don't really need that as I already own an AKAI LPD8. I'm more looking for which keyboard has better key quality, key quantity, and preferably pitch and mod wheels. I would not like to go over $100.

If anyone has any keyboard recommendations for me, please let me know. It would be greatly appreciated. Thank you!

-------------------------------[ Some keyboards that have caught my eye so far]-------------------------------

midiplus AKM320 / AKM322 / minicontrol ($40-$50)

• (+) 32 Keys

• (+) Pitch and Mod Wheels

• (+) Very good price

• (-) Seems "too good to be true"

AKAI Professional LPK25 ($45)

• (+) Cheap

• (-) No pitch/mod controls

• (-) Only 25 keys

Nektar SE25 ($50)

• (+) Recommended by a couple "Budget MIDI keyboard" articles

• (-) Only 25 keys

• (-) No pitch/mod controls

Alesis Qmini ($55)

• (+) 32 Keys

• (-) No pitch/mod controls

Nektar Impact GX Mini ($55)

• (+) Pitch/Mod Joystick

• (-) Only 25 keys

M-Audio Keystation Mini 32 MK3 ($60)

• (+) 32 Keys

• (+) M-Audio seems to be a pretty trustworthy brand

• (-) No pitch/mod controls

Arturia Microlab 25 ($70)

• (+) I've generally heard good things about Arturia

• (+) Pitch and Mod Sliders

• (-) I've heard the capacitive pitch and mod pads aren't great

• (-) Only 25 keys

midiplus X3 mini ($80)

• (+) 37 keys (apparently)

• (+) Pitch and Mod sliders

• (-) Seems to have capacitive pick and mod sliders like Arturia, which I heard isn't great.

Arturia Keystep 32 ($130)

(I recently found this for $80 at my local used music shop, that's why it's on this list)

• (+) I've generally heard good things about Arturia

• (+) Pitch and Mod Sliders

• (+) 32 keys

• (-) I've heard the capacitive pitch and mod pads aren't great

• (-) I'm not sure how much use I'd get out of the sequencer

I'm a hobbyist music producer, and I bought myself an M-Audio Keystation61 MK3 a few months back. The build quality was great and I enjoyed having a lot of keys at my disposal. Like any music producer, there are times when I'd have flashes of inspiration, open my DAW (Studio One), and start experimenting. It's at these times that I find the size of the Keystation61 to be very annoying, as I had to pull out this huge keyboard from my closet just to experiment.

It's for this reason I've been looking into buying a cheap, small MIDI keyboard I can keep on my shelf just for those moments I need to play a quick melody and don't need huge 63 key keyboard. I know a lot of keyboards include extra drum pads, knobs, etc., but I don't really need that as I already own an AKAI LPD8. I'm more looking for which keyboard has better key quality, key quantity, and preferably pitch and mod wheels. I would not like to go over $100.

If anyone has any keyboard recommendations for me, please let me know. It would be greatly appreciated. Thank you!

-------------------------------[ Some keyboards that have caught my eye so far]-------------------------------

midiplus AKM320 / AKM322 / minicontrol ($40-$50)

• (+) 32 Keys

• (+) Pitch and Mod Wheels

• (+) Very good price

• (-) Seems "too good to be true"

AKAI Professional LPK25 ($45)

• (+) Cheap

• (-) No pitch/mod controls

• (-) Only 25 keys

Nektar SE25 ($50)

• (+) Recommended by a couple "Budget MIDI keyboard" articles

• (-) Only 25 keys

• (-) No pitch/mod controls

Alesis Qmini ($55)

• (+) 32 Keys

• (-) No pitch/mod controls

Nektar Impact GX Mini ($55)

• (+) Pitch/Mod Joystick

• (-) Only 25 keys

M-Audio Keystation Mini 32 MK3 ($60)

• (+) 32 Keys

• (+) M-Audio seems to be a pretty trustworthy brand

• (-) No pitch/mod controls

Arturia Microlab 25 ($70)

• (+) I've generally heard good things about Arturia

• (+) Pitch and Mod Sliders

• (-) I've heard the capacitive pitch and mod pads aren't great

• (-) Only 25 keys

midiplus X3 mini ($80)

• (+) 37 keys (apparently)

• (+) Pitch and Mod sliders

• (-) Seems to have capacitive pick and mod sliders like Arturia, which I heard isn't great.

Arturia Keystep 32 ($130)

(I recently found this for $80 at my local used music shop, that's why it's on this list)

• (+) I've generally heard good things about Arturia

• (+) Pitch and Mod Sliders

• (+) 32 keys

• (*) I'm not sure how much use I'd get out of the sequencer

• (-) I've heard the capacitive pitch and mod pads aren't great

I'm currently a indie game dev looking to expand their horizons and I love the soundtrack of Portal and Portal 2 and am looking to learn it specifically so I can make electronic music like those two games. However, I have no idea where to look or to even start to get a keyboard and my budget is rather tight. I have no specific program I use yet, but I've dabbled in the FLStudio free trial and a couple other free audio studios. I'd love to hear any and all recommendations!

Hey guys,

As the title states, I'm looking to pick up a cheap ($100 - $150) MIDI controller to play around with as a complement to my guitar playing. BUT, I have no idea what I'm looking for or what I would be doing. None. I've never even used a DAW other than goofing off in Garage Band for a couple minutes. I play my guitar through my pedalboard and into my amp.

I want a controller so I can write some basic drum, bass, and keyboard type stuff to play along with on guitar, and maybe some more ambient/lofi/hip hop type stuff if I'm feeling unusually creative haha. I'm planning to order an audio interface as well so I can eventually put everything together.

Any thoughts? There seem to be a bunch of popular options in that price range. I was hoping maybe there's a standout that's easy to use and has good free software/plugins.

Thanks!

I haven't owned a midi keyboard since... well, before cpus were dual core. It's been a while. I was young, didn't work great.

So here's my question/discussion to propose. What are some midi keyboards that work very well with controlling Reaper?

I'll say for my personal use: I don't make EDM or electronic music. No dance, house, etc. I usually just control virtual instruments, using the funny Virtual Midi Keyboard built in to Reaper (it's surprisingly good! But time for something else). I play a lot of guitar based music. Some piano with VSTi's, etc.

I'm personally looking for something in the 49-61 key range. Not full size, but more than 2 octaves. Trying to keep it under 150 USD, probably.

Basically for those of you who have that sort of situation, or just any general information, let me know if you have a strong opinion on any particular midi keyboard that works well with specifically Reaper. Thanks!

I just recently got back into music production on my PC, and now I've got an audio interface, a guitar and a mic I feel like a MIDI controller would stop me from just writing guitar riffs every night.

Can anyone recommend a cheap but reliable sub $100 controller to get started with? I think I'd like one with the 16 pads to do drum loops with, and then obviously the more piano keys the better, at least two octaves anyway. I have no idea which manufacturers are considered decent.

I’m new to making music and I’ve been using my iPhone to record my guitar and using my Mac keyboard to play along to it. My budget is $100. I’ve watched YouTube videos but all the keyboards they have links to are paid.

I'm looking for a keyboard with at least 61 keys that has nice heavy action. I play classical piano and usually play on a baby grand but I've gotten more serious about production so I'd like to get a keyboard with midi that has good weighted action. My favorite I've felt was yamaha's cp88 but that's out of my budget. I'm looking for around $600 or less. Are there any keyboards like this? Any recommendations would be greatly appreciated :)

As the title suggests. I've been using smaller controllers like Oxygen 25s for a while now but honestly can't stand non-weighted keys for playing, they don't feel musical at all like the keys on a piano.

I was wondering if anyone knew of any budget friendly MIDI keyboards that are more similar to the feel of a piano with at least 5-6 octaves. I'm not looking for having any knobs or faders (unless they don't drive up the price too much).

Wassup everybody!

I’m looking for a gift idea for my sister who misses playing the piano. I don’t have the money for a real one but I want to get her one just to play when she has free time.

I don’t need any special features. Just something she can plug into her laptop and play the basic keys you would find on a piano thats collecting dust at grandmas house.

Any recommendations?

TIA!

i just started using logic pro recently , the only gear i have is a solid microphone but i definitely feel held back being restricted to using primarily library loops. with that being said are they any good budget midi keyboards that go well with logic ? idk if this is useful but im very into synthy electronic production and would like to be able to use a vocoder . i appreciate your time reading , thank you:)

I want to get back into recording and I'm looking for a decent MIDI controller to program drums. In the past, I used to draw them manually with the mouse, which was easy enough for simple parts, but more parts tended to kill my flow because it was very slow to write/draw. I like to think I have feeling for drums so it would be much more efficient to actually play them in (in layers or all at once).

I use Reaper and have no experience with other DAWs, so I'd prefer whichever pads/keyboard I end up with to be easily set up in Reaper. Do some controllers simply not work with Reaper, or are some just easier to set up?

Main point: pads vs keys. I don't know yet which I prefer. I get that pads can make finger drumming a bit more intuitive, but I'm hesitant to get just pads since it's very likely I'll also want to record actual keyed instruments (synth, piano etc). So I'm leaning towards either something with keys and pads, or just keys. Dedicated pad controllers like Novation Launchpad Mini would allow me to have more instruments readily available, but 25 keys would also be able to cover virtually everything.

On the one hand, I like simplicity and I'm not sure if I'd miss anything with just a 25 key controller without pads or physical knobs. On the other hand, I don't need it to be portable so maybe it's smarter to get something with more options in case I need them. Or is this false logic?

My shortlist:

• Nektar LX25+, best/easiest Reaper integretion?

• Arturia MiniLab 3, this was my first choice until I read about it (and others) being more problematic to set up in Reaper

• Akai MPK Mini mk3

• Novation Launchkey Mini mk3

• Akai APC key 25 mk2 Noob question: are the 45 clip buttons actual pads or not at all?

• Arturia Microlab

• Akai LPK25

• Nektar GX25

• Akai MPD 218

• Akai APC Mini mk2

• Novation Launchpad Mini mk3

Can I really go wrong with any of these or is it just a matter of deciding on one that has what I really need and nothing more?

I wan to know the best midi keyboard under a 100$ I am not looking for anything spectacular. My dream would be a usb plugin and some keys.

Is Akai really a GOOD brand??

61 Keys

NOT weighted like trying to emulate a piano, but "synth like" - I know I'm not going to get Fatar like on the S61, but can I get something decent (see below)? All reviews are always like "these are not true weighted keys" - well neither are Moog Minis nor SY77s and so on.

At least 8 Pads, 8 Sliders, 8 Knobs, 8 Buttons, Transport (16 pads, 9 of the others cool too). So no A61 for example.

Aftertouch would be nice, but not a deal-breaker.

How do these 3 compare:

• The Arturia Keylab Essential MK II

• Novation LaunchKey 61 MK3

• Nektar Panaroma T3

After that, things jump up $100 - is a Novation Impulse 61 really worth the extra coin?

After that, things jump up another $150 (I'm looking at Sweetwater, so I'm sure there are others out there, but just keeping it simple).

So I have to double my spending to go from a Keylab Essential to a Keylab not-essential!

But, if the Keylab non-essential is where I need to be, I may just go there.

After that, I'm just going to get an MX61 and have tons of synth sounds too :-)

And for reference, I have a Roland A-800 Pro that I'm 100% fine on that action. I also have a Roland FA-06 that I'm fine with the action on except that the keys trigger a 127 velocity way too easily, especially the black keys.

What I don't like about both of them are the "shaved keys" dimensions - the white keys are too short, and the surface area on the black keys is not as wide - more sloped sides - I want "squarer" keys.

If none of the above are as good as the A-800 Pro - which has velocity curves, aftertouch (again not a dealbreaker) and a feel I think is "synth like" and perfectly acceptable - which I think I paid closer to $500 for - that makes the non-essential Arturia the go to. But if the Essential will do it (or the other 2) that'd be good to know.

Worst case, I'll order an Essential, try it, and if it's fine, keep it, if not, realize I'll probably have to go up to the non-essential.

But if any of the other of the first 3 are significantly better, or one of them is clearly "the best in that $200-$300 range given my other needs, which one is it?

Thanks

I finally want to get myself a MIDI keyboard and I’m looking here for suggestions. I’ve looked at Amazon briefly but I can’t really say which ones I liked. I make house music also.

Let me know and thank you in advanced for taking your time :)

I know questions like this must get asked on a rotating wheel basis so I apologize for being redundant, but I haven't been able to find an answer for what I'm looking for.

Basically I want a midi keyboard for the sole purpose of playing midi notes into a daw. Pads, knobs, whatever, are all unimportant to me since I work best with a mouse and have limited desk space anyway. I had a Launchkey 49 mki for a while which was okay, but didn't feel quite right. I need 49 keys, and I'd like something with semi weighting, but I haven't read about anything that for sure has that besides the Komplete Kontrol series, which are a little expensive, (partially) because of all the extra features I don't need. I know that cheap can only get you so far, so I'm not expecting great quality.

TLDR - what's the best cheapish ($200 or so) 49key controller for actual playability (weighted keys, key size, etc)? Don't need knobs, sliders, or pads.