🎹M-Audio Keystation 88 MKII MIDI Controller Review & Demo - Semi-Weighted 88-Keys🎹

0:00 - Intro
2:25 - Overview
9:52 - Kawai Novus NV5 Playing
12:52 - MIDI Data Comparisons
14:20 - Kawai NV5 MIDI Test
15:55 - Reviewing MIDI Data

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#Keystation88 #MAudio #Keyboard

Hi everyone! Welcome to another video at the Merriam Pianos YouTube channel. We’re going to be checking out an instrument today that’s part of a greater category of instruments that we haven’t yet explored on this channel - MIDI controllers - as we dive into the M-Audio Keystation 88 II.

This is an 88-key, semi-weighted, velocity sensitive MIDI controller. It’s easy to set up and it interfaces very well with all of the standard DAW’s that are out there.

We’re going to walk through what this controller has to offer, what the playing experience is like, and we’ll do a quick comparison between this and the Kawai NOVUS 5 hybrid piano to see how the MIDI output stacks up.

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First Impressions

The first thing we’ll highlight here is just so simple the Keystation 88 II is to set up, plugin and start using. Some controllers are incredibly complex to set up with a ton of parameters and routing options, whereas this one is the opposite.

There’s transport controls at the top which may need to be assigned, but that’s easy to do. You can also assign certain MIDI commands to the modulation wheel, pitch wheel and volume wheel.

Other controls include basics like which MIDI channel to output from, transpose, faders and create program changes.

Overall, the controls are basic, but everything you’d want in a simple MIDI controller are here.

Action

Right when you start playing, the limitations of the instrument start to pop up, but it shouldn’t be shocking given the competitive price point the Keystation 88 II is available for.

The 88 keys are semi-weighted, so they won’t feel totally foreign to someone with acoustic piano experience, but the level of expression available is limited.

It’s difficult to get an even MIDI performance, which could be a problem if you were working on a fairly exposed solo piano or Rhodes track.

For things like laying down bass tracks, pads, or anything of this nature, you’ll be just fine with this action.

Summary

For a superlight weight, affordable 88 key MIDI controller, the M-Audio Keystation 88 II is a fine option for general MIDI inputting.

It’s not the right choice if you’re going to be working on projects with isolated piano or e piano tracks, but there are other options out there for that anyway.

MIDI Comparison

Now, kick back and enjoy the MIDI comparison between the M-Audio Keystation 88 II and the Kawai NOVUS 5 hybrid piano.

The audio you’re hearing is the Ravenscroft 275 VST by UVI.

For the most part, the Keystation 88 II’s performance is reasonably sensitive. But, when we dig into the actual MIDI data, it becomes quite clear that the output is much more nuanced from the NOVUS 5.

There’s a lot more spikes and variations with the Keystation 88 II, while the NOVUS 5 has a much more balanced curve.

Now, you could always go back and edit the performance manually to improve the performance of the Keystation 88 II, so keep that in mind!

Thanks for watching!

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