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Published on 07/14/11 at 12:07
The M Audio Keystation 88es is a no frills MIDI controller that essentially says to the buyer: "You need a keybed to input MIDI in a more natural way than you could with a mouse and keyboard. I am a keybed that can help you do that."
It does not really give much more. But what it gives, it gives well. First off, the M Audio Keystation 88es has a power switch on the back, a USB connector, a MIDI out connector, a sustain pedal jack, and a power jack if one is not using the Keystation 88es with the USB port but with the midi connection instead. Aside from that, nothing is remarkable about the Keystation 88es. It does have the necessary pitch bend and modulation wheels everyone should be able to expect from a MIDI controller. It has a single volume fader, which is interesting, and two octave shift buttons, as well as another button labeled advanced functions. In my short time with it, I never got to use that button to truly understand what it was, but I do not assume that the Keystation is hiding a special feature from me in any way.
UTILIZATION
I will be honest, despite the fact that the keys are advertised as semi weighted, I found the Keystation 88es's keys to be a bit too springy for my taste. I have noticed this with more M Audio controllers however, so it is not something that surprised me at all. However, it syncs up perfectly with whatever MIDI instrument you are using in whatever DAW you are using, and plays it rather flawlessly, through both the USB and the MIDI connections.
OVERALL OPINION
Overall, you cannot really beat he M Audio Keystation 88es when it comes to having an 88 key MIDI controller for the price. There is not a thing special about the Keystation, but it does its job without fail, so I would say that it is a good purchase for someone who needs to have a full keyboard. Otherwise, I would recommend some of the controllers with more functions, as those will significantly speed up a workflow in a DAW once one is used to their function and utilization.
It does not really give much more. But what it gives, it gives well. First off, the M Audio Keystation 88es has a power switch on the back, a USB connector, a MIDI out connector, a sustain pedal jack, and a power jack if one is not using the Keystation 88es with the USB port but with the midi connection instead. Aside from that, nothing is remarkable about the Keystation 88es. It does have the necessary pitch bend and modulation wheels everyone should be able to expect from a MIDI controller. It has a single volume fader, which is interesting, and two octave shift buttons, as well as another button labeled advanced functions. In my short time with it, I never got to use that button to truly understand what it was, but I do not assume that the Keystation is hiding a special feature from me in any way.
UTILIZATION
I will be honest, despite the fact that the keys are advertised as semi weighted, I found the Keystation 88es's keys to be a bit too springy for my taste. I have noticed this with more M Audio controllers however, so it is not something that surprised me at all. However, it syncs up perfectly with whatever MIDI instrument you are using in whatever DAW you are using, and plays it rather flawlessly, through both the USB and the MIDI connections.
OVERALL OPINION
Overall, you cannot really beat he M Audio Keystation 88es when it comes to having an 88 key MIDI controller for the price. There is not a thing special about the Keystation, but it does its job without fail, so I would say that it is a good purchase for someone who needs to have a full keyboard. Otherwise, I would recommend some of the controllers with more functions, as those will significantly speed up a workflow in a DAW once one is used to their function and utilization.