I’ve been dabbling with music production software for the last few weeks (I had no idea how deep this rabbit hole would go!). After settling on a DAW (Ableton) I’m now looking to add a MIDI Controller to my setup as a better means to interact with the DAW and transfer my ideas and music into it.
I’ve had a look at several different offerings from the usual suspects (Novation, Arturia, M-Audio, Akai etc etc) and I seem to be leaning towards one of the recent releases in the space, so either the Novation Launchkey Mk4 or the Arturia KeyLab Mk3. I’d imagine both are more than capable within this space for my beginner requirements but one sticking point I’ve got is what size would be optimal. I’m not in a cramped room as such, but a full sized 88 key is most likely going to be too dominating. If I went for a 49 key would it still give me enough options and not be too restrictive in what I can achieve?
Beyond that, there’s quite the price difference between the two MIDI Controllers I’m looking at, the Novation Launchkey Mk4 in its 49 key configuration comes in at around £229 where as the Arturia KeyLab Mk3 is £379, between the two, what are the main differences and effectively is the additional price of the KeyLab Mk3 justified or would I be better putting that money elsewhere in my setup (or possibly looking at the Essential Mk3 in stead)? Would the KeyLab Essential Mk3 be a worth consideration? As far as setup goes, I currently have a SM57, Scarlett Solo, Fidelio X2HR’s/ Crinacle Zero:RED’s, Eris 3.5’s and a 2018-2019 Windows PC.
Any help or advice would be appreciated, also open to other offerings outside of the ones I’ve mentioned about (I’m still very new to this space so its quite possible I’ve overlooked something!).
Thanks
TLDR:- Total beginner with a budget of around £200-400 to spend on first MIDI Controller for use with Ableton, would a 49 key be enough? Or would I see better value in getting a cheaper MIDI Controller and putting the remaining budget into my existing setup (SM57, Scarlett Solo, Fidelio X2HR’s / Crinacle Zero:RED’s, Eris 3.5’s and a 2018-2019 Windows PC)?