Hi all, trying to choose my first MIDI keyboard. I don't need something too fancy, but I'd also like something that I won't grow out of in the near future. In particular I want something that gives me lots of hardware control over Reason and Logic Express.

I'd like a somewhat compact size and some musical flexibility, but I'm not a keyboardist (although I'd like to try learning), so I'm thinking 49 keys is the sweet spot for me. I've been searching for reviews on the Edirol PCR-50 (~$200), Evolution MK-449 (~$200), and the M-Audio Radium 49 (~$150). But I haven't really found anything that compares them so I'm having a hard time making a choice.

I like the bank of assignable buttons (in addition to knobs and sliders) that the PCR-50 and MK-449 provide, so I'm probably looking more at those instead of the Radium 49.

*** In the Evolution, I like . . .
I like how the Evolution has two separate pitch & modulation wheels, whereas the Edirol combines them into one wheel. Although on second thought, I suppose I only have two hands anyway, and one will be playing keys, so maybe it doesn't matter?

I like the back-lit LCD screen of the Evolution vs. the numeric LED of the Edirol.

I like how the Evolution clearly states it is USB MIDI class compliant, whereas the Edirol only says "plug and play compatible" but doesn't explicitly state class compliance.

*** In the Edirol, I like . . .
I like how the Edirol has not only MIDI out, which the Evolution also has, but also MIDI in, as well as a second pedal input. But then again, I'm not sure I'd ever really use two pedals since I'm not a pianist, and I don't have any other MIDI hardware and possibly won't for a long time. Scratch that, I do have a digital 4-track (Boss BR-532) which has MIDI out, but I'm not sure how I would ever use it to send MIDI.

I like the controller templates that the Edirol ships with. Although, would that matter, if I end up reassigning the controls anyway?

I like how I see more people talking about the Edirol than the Evolution. The fact that the Evolution's bundled software (which may or may not actually be useful) is for PC only worries me a little bit -- is it not fully supported on Macs?


If anyone has opinions, please jump in, I'm stuck!

Hi,
I use the Edirol PCR50 with Logic Express & Reason on an iBook and with Cubase on a pc, works vey well. Edirol have a downloadable editor so you can easily assign and save your setup.

Links: PCR Editor

Regards,
Stu

Greetings dten,

"I like how I see more people talking about the Edirol than the Evolution. The fact that the Evolution's bundled software (which may or may not actually be useful) is for PC only worries me a little bit -- is it not fully supported on Macs?"

Looks like many of the manufactures are slow to update their sites and also contain errors. I spoke with M-Audio today, and they said that the sytem editor software that they offer called Enigma works on both the PC and Mac OS X even though their site says in many places "only for pc".

Hope this helps.

Thanks rkwhitten, I ended up buying the Edirol because I read people saying its construction and keys felt like better quality construction than the Evolution.