Narrowed it down to the Novation Impulse or Akai MPK249

[Examigan]

I can't afford the newest Komplete keyboards.

Which of these two would you pick?

[thecontrolcentre]

I'd probably go for the Novation. I have a ReMote25 SL that I bought new in 2005/6 which works just as well now as the day i got it. I do like the look of the pads on the Akai (compared with the Impulse) ... but the Impulse looks more "solid". Cheaper too.

[Examigan]

I am leaning toward the Novation.

[sgreds456]

I'd probably go for the Novation. I have a ReMote25 SL that I bought new in 2005/6 which works just as well now as the day i got it. I do like the look of the pads on the Akai (compared with the Impulse) ... but the Impulse looks more "solid". Cheaper too.

I have had the Impulse 61 and now the Remote37SL. They have different feeling keyboards, especially the aftertouch. I find the Remote37 SL to be a better feeling keyboard. Build quality not much of an issue on either.

The pads on those probably a bit worse than the MPK.

[chk071]

I have the Novation. It's a good keyboard, I like the keys, but, the knobs have a bit of an issue, as the potis tend to mess up over time (they jump in values when you turn them a bit more quickly). Maybe it's not an issue for you, if you use it more frequently. I noticed that the potis are OK (or, rather, better) when I turn the knobs a few times back and forth, so, might not be that big of an issue if you use them more often.

Oh, and also read up on the firmware. There is a new firmware available here, which allows to use the controls with the Maeckie HUI protocol, so, you can control the mixer volume, pan, effect sends etc. with the faders and knobs. The old firmware uses Novation Automap, which is discontinued now though.

https://support.novationmusic.com/hc/en ... mpulse-do-

[SonicDimension]

I switched from an Impulse 61 to an MPK249 (by the way, there is a big discount on the MPK249 now). Overall, the build quality of the Akai is superior. The pots and faders feel way better, although the clicky buttons are annoying. The pads are comparable, but the Akai gives you twice as many of them.

If you're mainly concerned with the feel of the keybed, you should be aware that the Akai has a much heavier semi-weighted action. If you are accustomed to lighter synth action keybeds, you may find it uncomfortable.

Another consideration is how the MIDI setup is configured in your DAW. In my DAW (Reason), the Impulse has a very strange and inconvenient MIDI setup, whereas the MPK249 has a pre-configured MIDI map to interface with everything.

[Examigan]

Another option is to go somewhere like Reverb.com to find a used Komplete Kontrol keyboard. But I never usually buy stuff used as I'm afraid I might end up with issues down the line.

[Bunny_boy]

Impulse or Akai?

Hey Examigan, did you end up buying one of these? I'm looking at the Impulse 49, but I want to consider the other options at that price point

[chk071]

I'd be interested as well what you went for.

[Examigan]

For now I put that on hold. The funds didn't work in my favor, at least for now.
I did get some software that was a great deal.

Another thing on the plus side, I did figure how to map aftertouch to other sliders/knobs on my existing keyboard.

[Bunny_boy]

Looks like everyone got the akai for xmas, and the discount has gone That puts it out of my grasp.

The Impulse is still looking good. I'm surprised that it's the same as it was 10-odd years ago. That's a good thing?

[Examigan]

Looks like everyone got the akai for xmas, and the discount has gone That puts it out of my grasp.

The Impulse is still looking good. I'm surprised that it's the same as it was 10-odd years ago. That's a good thing?

I still see it for sale here:
https://www.sweetwater.com/store/detail ... controller

[chk071]

Looks like everyone got the akai for xmas, and the discount has gone That puts it out of my grasp.

The Impulse is still looking good. I'm surprised that it's the same as it was 10-odd years ago. That's a good thing?

At the very least, it seems like they didn't get loads of them returned for hardware failure.

Although I must say that I returned mine two times, one time for a faulty pitch wheel, the other time for faulty encoders. Both times, I got a brand new unit, which is nice. Novation have a good support for such a company.

As I mentioned, the only real issue I have with it are the encoders, whose potentiometers mess up after a while. Mostly when you haven't used it for a while. Again, though, the same happened on my M-Audio Axiom 49 2nd gen. I guess it's a common issue with endless encoders. They just stuff the 1 cent per unit encoders in there, and not the 2 cent per unit ones.

[Bunny_boy]

Looks like everyone got the akai for xmas, and the discount has gone That puts it out of my grasp.

The Impulse is still looking good. I'm surprised that it's the same as it was 10-odd years ago. That's a good thing?

I still see it for sale here:
https://www.sweetwater.com/store/detail ... controller

Ooh they are definitely comparable prices! Unfortunately for me, I'm in the UK (which I should've mentioned before) so will incur all the fun of import duty if I get it from there

[Bunny_boy]

Looks like everyone got the akai for xmas, and the discount has gone That puts it out of my grasp.

The Impulse is still looking good. I'm surprised that it's the same as it was 10-odd years ago. That's a good thing?

As I mentioned, the only real issue I have with it are the encoders, whose potentiometers mess up after a while. Mostly when you haven't used it for a while. Again, though, the same happened on my M-Audio Axiom 49 2nd gen. I guess it's a common issue with endless encoders. They just stuff the 1 cent per unit encoders in there, and not the 2 cent per unit ones.

When reading reviews of the unit, I'm sure I came across a mention of having the pots jump in value if not used for a while. However, I'm sure it said something about this being a 'feature' of endless encoders? I have no experience of using them.