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Korg padKontrol £139
Sick of recording your beats on a keyboard? With this smart addition to their Kontrol series, Korg has made drum programming fun
The MusicRadar Team, Tue 23 Oct 2007, 12:04 pm UTC
Fun and functional
As you'll have gathered, the padKontrol has plenty of tricks up its sleeve, but perhaps the best news is that it's also great fun to play. The drum pads respond superbly (and light up excitedly) when tapped, and the XY pad is a great idea that's well implemented.
When compared to The M-Audio Trigger Finger, the padKontrol comes up a little short in some respects (there's no aftertouch-style pressure sensitivity, no sliders and fewer knobs, for example), but from a performance point of view, it's at least its equal. The design and build are both top notch, and the price is reasonable when you consider the device's quality.
If you're looking for a fun and simple way to play drum patterns into your computer, check this one out.
Verdict
Though it's not the most fully-featured drum controller on teh market, the padKontrol has the performance to back up its eye-catching good looks.
MusicRadar rating:
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User comments (3)
-
I finally got it after a huge mistake I make 2 weeks a go, and this is it...
Great feeling highly customizable, Super prize, looks awesome, well built, easy to set up, fast learning curb, X/Y Pad and it does have Deferent ranges of velocity or free velocity, all my plug ins in one control. Awesome editor and a Great addition to my set up. -
In my opinion the best pad controller in the market. The illuminated pads make it easy to see, and the X/Y pad is a big plus. Oh and btw, the pads ARE VELOCITY SENSITIVE, unlike what the review said.
I recommend it for anyone in need of a fun and easy way to make drum beats, or trigger loops/samples... -
Great when combined with Korg Radias (I use X/Y pad for effect control, others for preset triggering). Illuminated pads are a big plus.
Best software bundle I've heard of (ver. 3), considering the price of the package (€130 in Croatia).
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MusicRadar rating
Pros
Easy on the eye. Great build quality. Fabulous XY pad. Easily accessible editing features. Good software bundle.
Cons
Not pressure-sensitive. Fewer knobs than the competition.
Verdict
Though it's not the most fully-featured drum controller on teh market, the padKontrol has the performance to back up its eye-catching good looks.
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User rating
Specification Show
padKontrol
- Price:
- £139
- Description:
- In addition to accessing drum sounds and samples, the padKONTROL can also control soft synths and effects, trigger loops and video clips, and even act as transport controls for DAW software programs.
- Bundled Software:
- Creative Kontrol Pack, lite versions of Reason, Live, Sampletank. MDE effects suite, UM Korg Edition and Toontracks dfh superior drum kit.
- OS Requirements:
- Apple Mac OS X 10.2 or later, Microsoft Windows XP
- Platform:
- MacOS/Windows
- Power Supply:
- USB
- Unit Power Source:
- USB
- Control/User Interface:
- MIDI Pads
- LCD Screen:
- true
- Software Editor:
- true
Buy here
Click to buy the featured product, or view similar products
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vandykingdom
34 weeks ago.
User rating 5 of 5