Introduction
Choosing a Midi Controller for the first time can be difficult, especially if you have not used one before. Among many choices, there seems to be endless combinations of keys, knobs, faders and pads, and it can be hard to predict what combination of control surfaces you will need. In this article I will give a brief explanation of each of these Midi Controller elements, and how they are typically used, to help you decide what you need.

Section 1: Keys
The easiest part to figure out might be the amount of keys you'd like, or if you'll need keys at all. Below are explanations about the most offered amounts of keys.

25 Keys
While it may seem like a small amount of keys, it's very portable and can save you money to get a 25-key two octave keyboard. The only problem with such a small amount of keys is if you see yourself playing melodies with a large range of notes. With this size of keyboard, you will find yourself needing to use the octave plus and minus buttons often, which is very easy, unless you have to do it in the middle of a recording take. This could very well be enough keys for most situations--especially in sample-based music--but if you plan on playing keys with both hands at the same time, or if you want to learn classical piano, you will want a bigger keyboard. On the other hand, if you can go for it, I recommend the portability of a 25-key.

49 Keys
A popular choice in home studios and in synth designs, the next step up from a two-octave keyboard is a four-octave keyboard. This size offers more than enough space to play with both hands at the same time, and is still somewhat portable. For many musicians with a casual piano background, 49 Keys seems to be just right. If you're not sure what direction your music will take and want to be flexible, 49 Keys is a good choice, but unlike the 25-Keys designs, you won't be able to carry it in a backpack.

61+ Keys
Keyboards with this many keys or more are great if you are into classical or jazz piano and need space for large flourishes of notes. If you plan on playing in a band or making pieces of music that use keys extensively, then a 61+ keyboard may be what you're looking for.

Zero Keys
Some producers produce entirely without keys and have been doing so for a very long time. For example, if someone is making beats exclusively on an MPC unit, there's no keyboard. If most of your work will be with recorded audio and not working much with MIDI notes, or if you prefer painting your notes in a virtual piano roll one-by-one, you might not need keys at all.

Weighted or Synth-Action?
Weighted keys are meant to feel like a piano, whereas unweighted, synth-action keys have springy action not unlike a synthesizer's keys. Sometimes keyboard designs have semi-weighted keys which attempt to be somewhere in the middle. This is a matter of taste.

Section 2: Sliders/Faders
Sliders are the preferred control surface for volume on mixing desks, so it's no surprise that they have come to Midi Controllers as well. In fact, there are some Midi Controllers that are only a set of sliders. They are useful for precise and easy adjustments and you might want a Midi Controller with sliders if you'd like to change a setting in a song over time. For example, in a lot of electronica songs, you hear sounds getting louder and quieter and changing throughout the song, and while you can draw this automation in most DAWS, a lot of people prefer to use sliders to record these changes.

The amount of sliders depends on how many things you would like to change at once. If you're not interested in performing live, one or two sliders may be enough because if you can always reassign the sliders to new things when you need to automate something else.

Section 3: Knobs
Knobs serve a very similar function that Sliders do, the main difference is that you must pinch them to turn them, so each knob requires a hand (you can only turn two knobs at once). In contrast, many sliders can be moved at once because each slider requires only one finger. In the issue of Sliders versus Knobs, it really is up to the musician to decide what works best, and some controllers have both.

Some knobs, though, called "Rotary Encoders" are a little different than other knobs because they can be turned infinitely in either direction. The advantage to this is that when you assign something to a Rotary Encoder and turn the encoder, it simply adds or subtracts based on how you turn it. With normal knobs and sliders, when you move the slider, the virtual parameter will snap to the location of the slider.

For example, if you have the volume of kick drum at 100, and you assign it to a slider that happens to be sitting at 50, when you move the slider down 25, the kick drum will snap to 50 and then move down to 25. With a Rotary Encoder however, the kick drum would have simply gone smoothly from 100 down to 75.

Section 4: Drum Pads
Pads are instantly sensitive to touch and feel more natural to some people when programming drums. I've also seen Pads used to play a chopped sample and to trigger "events" like a sound or activating an effect plugin. For some people it's a luxury and for others it's a necessity, it just depends on what you like and what you're used to.

Section 5: Previewing Opportunities
If you can't try these surfaces out for yourself, I recommend checking out videos of producers and seeing how they use the surfaces. In many cases, only keys and one slider that you reassign are necessary, but for other producers, drum pads are the main surface, and for some people a Midi Controller isn't needed at all. Reviews of Midi Controllers are all over magazines and the internet and are worth a look, but the best thing to do is to try it out for yourself. Some music stores like Guitar Center have demonstrations where you can try the product.

Section 6: Extra Features to Consider
With some controllers having so many knobs, sliders, and pads, it can be somewhat time-consuming to assign them. Some Midi Controllers come with programs that help you assign your knobs, and different companies have their different approaches to midi assignment.

While it's not absolutely necessary, something to factor in is if the DAW you're using has a template for your Midi Controller, or vice-versa. For example, FLStudio has templates for certain controllers that make it a little bit easier to use. I am currently using a Midi Controller that FLStudio does not have a template for, but it works just fine. Alternatively, some Midi Controllers have templates for DAWs, and taken to the extreme there are Midi Controllers made specifically for a certain DAW, and if that's the case it will be clearly mentioned in the product description.

While there are many types of midi controllers, hopefully this article will help you sort out and narrow down your short list, as you look for a Midi Controller that suits your needs.

 

You can find many MIDI Controllers and reviews from the Warbeats Store at Amazon.com.

 

This article was written by Sean Duncan for warbeats.com.