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Well someone wants to buy my DX7 so i need a new MIDI controller keyboard.
I was looking at the m-audio M-Audio Keystation 61es, which fits the bill apart from the fact it is made by m-audio, which i am not very fond of.

what it needs to have:
real MIDI out, not just USB.
no knobs or displays on top, because it slides under the desk.
61 notes.
would prefer aftertouch, but not a deal breaker.

if anyone can think of one please let me know, thanks!

It is a stable cheap controller.
You can power it up w/ into a USB, which can operate even if the port has been disabled in the Device Manger of XP. It still retains enough power to avoid the DC wall wart.
MIDI is well implemented in all of their disposable controllers.......
One thing you need to know though, when you want to send a program change message, you have to hold down notes for note on/off combinations.
I hate the action of my KS88's but the MIDI/USB has always been 100% stable, and I did own the 88ES for a while, which is the same as the 61ES.
As long as developers use the MIDI 1 specs. of 0-127 it doesn't really matter how the action is. So IMHO, I use the cheapest peices of crap I can buy, knowing I can always buy another one for 2-300 bucks and it will last 24/7 for another 2-3 years.
The MIDI implementation on M Audio controllers is always pretty well laid out.

http://www.novamusik.com/search.aspx?ty ... 405&mid=54

XITE-1/4LIVE wrote:It is a stable cheap controller.
You can power it up w/ into a USB, which can operate even if the port has been disabled in the Device Manger of XP. It still retains enough power to avoid the DC wall wart.
MIDI is well implemented in all of their disposable controllers.......
One thing you need to know though, when you want to send a program change message, you have to hold down notes for note on/off combinations.
I hate the action of my KS88's but the MIDI/USB has always been 100% stable, and I did own the 88ES for a while, which is the same as the 61ES.
As long as developers use the MIDI 1 specs. of 0-127 it doesn't really matter how the action is. So IMHO, I use the cheapest peices of crap I can buy, knowing I can always buy another one for 2-300 bucks and it will last 24/7 for another 2-3 years.
The MIDI implementation on M Audio controllers is always pretty well laid out.

Ok thanks, cheap piece of crap it is then (or as we say in Canada "piece of shit")

Nova's a good place too.
Close to the border for faster delivery.
The last decent controller made was the Oberheim MC3000, and because it didn't sell as well as expected, the trend went to building cheap, worthless pieces of shit. So we can expect nothing but junk for at least 5 more years.
Many will whine about action, and wimps will snivel about the weight, blah,blah,blah, but at the end of the day, you either rock or suck, lighter/heavier action, size, etc. matters very little. It cracks me up to hear guys talk about how they like the action......really, and which library/instrument would that be with .....? 2 factors should be considered, the fake instruments being used, and the control of that instrument. In other words my 80 dollar Black Grand sounds good but when I play it on a Fatar that might have " Heavier " action, the feel will change and the sound as well. So one could sit there and tweak for hours about how I dialed in the action, etc. But then the next library loaded will require the same procedures all over again.
That is what made the Oberheim so good, programmable velocity tables, 48 of them too.
So if the said controller doesn't store the information per preset, the whole idea of " great action " becomes moot.
The industry has chosen profit over quality, so buy a peice of shit and either jam or whine...I love it when guys sit in on my boards and complain about the action......I guess they never worked in an opening act or played recitals or juries. You get no warm ups, nothing. So you play, or piss & moan............
I know you to be a warrior and developer, so I expect yopu will see and feel these deficiencies and just get down to business...

Its ok getting one, i can buy it at Moog audio locally for $166 Canadian