I know there are better places on the web to get this kind of advice, but I have more trust for the information I get here.
So. I’m doing some quite basic music recording using Garageband on my Mac. The purpose at the moment is just to create drum/bass/keyboard backing tracks that I can transfer to my looping pedal and then play my guitar and keyboard over for hours in the spare room. I will be upgrading to Logic X at some point so don’t let any limitations of Garageband dictate your advice.
Although I’m totally capable of putting down MIDI tracks directly into Garageband it is too clinical which translates to tedious and boring. I’m thinking that I should get a keyboard that I can connect to the computer and use to create MIDI tracks in a more natural manner. So far that’s the decision I’ve come to, need a MIDI controller. The question now is which one and will I want to use it for other things in the future? BTW I already have a keyboard with a MIDI out but it is full size with a semi-permanent stand and my computer is at the other end of the house to my music gear.
To start with I was looking at synths that could also be used as a MIDI controller, e.g., the Roland System-1. Then I decided that I would be better off just having a pure MIDI controller and using synth plugins if I wanted to play around with synths.
Then I went a bit far in the other direction and had a look at very simple MIDI keyboards that had little in the way of other controls. In the end I think I’ve settled on the type of controller that has a keyboard plus a set of faders, rotary knobs, drum pads etc so I can directly control the recording software itself not just use it as a music input device.
Some controllers that I have been looking at:
Roland A500
Korg Tactile
M-Audio Oxygen
M-Audio Axiom Air
I’ve also been browsing Akai’s website but haven’t researched enough to narrow down some specific products.
I know that some of the products I’ve listed aren’t in the same category as each other, e.g., the Axiom seems to be significantly more advanced than the others. I’ve purposely not specified the number of keys because i haven’t decided what I need yet. I know that 61 or more is too much due to desk space but am not sure if I would regret going smaller than 49. At this point 49 seems like a good compromise.
Although the current use will be pretty basic, I’ve dabbled with recording full songs before and would probably get back into it so I need this keyboard to be reasonably future proof without being overly expensive.