M-Audio Keystation Mini 32 MK3 – Portable USB MIDI Keyboard
M-Audio Keystation Mini 32 MK3 – Portable USB MIDI Keyboard Controller for Mobile Music Production With Software Suite
| Weight: | 454 g |
| Size: | 32 Keys |
| Dimensions: | 41.76 x 1.83 x 10.67 cm; 453.59 Grams |
| Model: | KEYSTATION MINI 32 MK3 |
| Colour: | MK3 Black 32 Keys |
| Manufacture: | M-Audio |
| Dimensions: | 41.76 x 1.83 x 10.67 cm; 453.59 Grams |
| Origin: | China |
| Size: | 32 Keys |
This is really nicely made. It has full size keys which I would imagine is a bonus if you go on to play a real piano. 49 keys gives you 4 octaves (+1 key) and many YouTube piano tutorials use the same number of keys so it’s easy to follow along. It has sufficient weight to sit firmly on a desk and it also comes with a USB cable, something which is not made clear from the description. I haven’t downloaded the included software because I bought it to use with Cakewalk DAW, but it works a treat with that. Velocity sensitive keys work well. I will probably order the optional sustain pedal too once my playing improves a bit! A nice bit of kit for the money.
Thanks to its full-sized keys, it feels like a piano for this price. For those who want to learn piano, this keyboard DOES need a computer to play with, as the keyboard itself doesn’t make any sound. Don’t worry about where the middle C is, it’s easy to shift the octave.
Many DAWs, such as FL Studio and Ableton Live work fine with it. For the pitch and modulation wheel, I have to create a link in FL Studio manually. But that shouldn’t be a problem. As there is no LCD, the octave is indicated by two lights with different colours. So it may seem confusing at first.
It’s also fun to map the midi keys onto your computer’s keyboard so that you could play games with it. Especially when there are playable instruments in the game.
I needed a starter midi keyboard. It has lots of teaching materials online and comes with a host of supplementary apps including Ableton live 10. Keys feel just like most mid range workstations. And the drivers didn’t even need to b installed I plugged and pc identified immediately.
Good change octave on keys
Good feature
Ok for doing the basics
No problem and works
Don’t understand the 1* reviews. Plugged it in, and worked immediately wth Windows 11 and VMPK. Pretty sure the 1* reviewers just don’t know what they’re doing. Easy as pie.
This is far more impressive than i expected. I’m no professional piano player, but the feel and the quality of this keyboard is amazing. Very easy to set up with software. Top quality product for the money. Love it.
Really happy with product, but the far end right key was lower than the rest, it works but just looks unsightly. Other than that, great item.
Bought at discounted amount due to “damaged box” but the only damage was a small hole poked into one of the corners. The keyboard is in perfect condition. It feels sturdy and has some heft to it, so it definitely doesn’t feel like a toy.
To set up, it was as simple as plugging it in via USB, opening my DAW, enabling it as a MIDI Input Device and away I was! The keyboard can be powered by USB or a 9V DC Center Positive 0.5A barrel plug. The keys are a little clacky but when playing through speakers, you’ll barely notice. They feel nice and sturdy, with a comfortable amount of weight, but aren’t like a true hammer action. Still, they are comfortable to play and the default velocity curves, while potentially a little steep, is still pretty good. With some fine tuning, you can truly start to play expressively.
Overall, I couldn’t be happier!
After standing overnight though, the keys do get stuck in their resting position. This means that when you first start using the keyboard you must free the keys off to get rid of that initial resistance and quite loud click. A short video is attached to my review. This is quite disappointing really but using this workaround it’s manageable.
The keyboard is small enough to fit in my drawer and is nice to use so that overcomes the regrettable ‘sticky keys’.
M-Audio seemed unable to help when I contacted them, so it does seem it’s a fault that can’t be remedied.
This midi is quite small, which is fine as it is not that expensive. I have used it for creating different RnB beats and it has great sets available and good selection of softwares to choose from to create beats.
The built is very nice, the keys are a little tight which is not an issue for beginners.
It has worked well for me and I have used it for more than a month. Recommend it based on quality and price.
Its a good midi keyboard for the price. But two concerns:
The keys are little hard. But this is just my personal preference.
The settings are pretty confusing to use the first time. Once you get used to it, it is fine but its not the most intituitive system given the limited number of buttons
Needed an 88 key keyboard on the cheap. Does really well. Nice mid weight keys and action for both synths and piano. Nice feel to the key material. Overall nice solid build and feel.
Needed a budget option and this actually does the job in the home studio very well. No complaints.
Cant coment on heavy useage/longevity.
Everything about this controller is excellent except for the pitch & mod buttons which just aren’t expressive enough. They’re buttons rather than wheels or sliders so pitch bend & mod are either on or off with no in between, otherwise it’s great for the price & the extra keys (more than the standard 2 octaves) are really useful.
I wanted a midi keyboard with full-sized keys because when the keys aren’t the right size it becomes too difficult to play with my adult-sized hands. I’m a total beginner, but I wanted something that I would find useful for a while. A full-sized piano is 88 keys, and this is only 49, but I haven’t come across a piece of music yet that needs all those keys. At some point, I will, but as a beginner, this is perfect, and it does have octave buttons. I measured it before I bought it and it fits perfectly on my desk. This means that it’s ideal for me to use with my DAW. It doesn’t take up too much space, and that is a bonus and something I needed to consider. It is a great midi keyboard. I practice using Flow Key and it means that I can attach it to the computer and play through the webpage. It’s a midi keyboard, so it does need a computer to be played. The choice of sounds becomes endless because it’s midi. I’ve become very attached to it.
In terms of features, you’re getting exactly what you pay for – very little.
It’s a keyboard with a couple of perfunctory function buttons and wheels (that feel totally fine), and all you have to do is plug it in (I use it with my iPad via a camera adaptor) and you’re basically set up.
I will say I’m not a fan of the keybed on the 49 (MK3). There’s a lot of velocity inconsistency between the white and black keys, more specifically, playing with consistent pressure results in considerably lower volumes from the black keys. The blacks just take a tremendous whack to reach 80+% velocity, where it’s almost half that on the white keys. The blacks feel tight and unyielding, where the whites feel considerably more loose. Overall it’s just kinda mushy. I give it a pass because it was cheap and it will only be used in casual mobile jamming sessions, where sonic consistency matters a lot less.
So yeah, in all, it’s not too bad. Cheap, does exactly what it says it does, and not much more. If you don’t go in expecting amazing results, you may be pleasantly surprised by it.
This is quite good for the price you are paying for it, it functions like a regular keyboard (which I would hope for considering that’s what it’s meant to be), and it is quite easy to use with only 1 USB wire being required for full usage. It is very slim which helps with portability when making music on the move, and it fits nicely with my pc setup. Talking about setups, it is really easy to set up, because of the one wire system I mentioned before. It also has a modulation controller for if you want to effect the sound played in certain ways easily. The only concern I have is that the keys feel a bit cheap. Not a bad type of cheap but you can tell it is a bit cheap. All in all, a very good product. Will be buying again in the future.
1) The construction of the keyboard is such that, if you have it spanned unsupported across a stand, between two desks, only supported on the ends, etc.. the keyboard flexes quite a bit when you play it. This makes it feel a bit strange to play. It feels a bit cheap and fragile.
2) The construction of the key action is such that it makes a kind of “plastic” sound as you play.
These two points are simply due to this being a budget version of these kinds of keyboards. If you can live with it feeling a bit cheap, then it will certainly do the job.
I’ve only been using this keyboard for about 10 minutes and I had to jump on and review it.
I’ll start by saying I was initially skeptical when it arrived as it wasn’t the best packaged and the box reveals the contents (worth noting for gifts)
Then I took it out the box, not much to see there, just an instruction manual and a USB A to B cable.
The keyboard itself seems well-built enough if a little cheap but what you’d expect for the price. On first impression the keys felt quite spongy, very quiet though.
Now the good bit, I plugged in my M-Audio sustain pedal and opened up a piano in Ableton Live, to my pleasant surprise it is plug and play (once I remembered to actually turn it on at the back 😉
I can now tell you that this keyboard plays like and absolute dream, better than any other keyboard for the price, the keys have a decent weight to them and the velocity works well.
That’s pretty much all I’ve done so far, I’ll update this review once I see what the durability is like over time.
Overall very happy with this keyboard, don’t believe the bad reviews, most of them don’t know what a midi keyboard is 😉
I’m no piano player but I bought this to mess around with string arrangements and even bass lines for songs I was recording with my guitar on garageband. It doesn’t scream quality in terms of build or the key press but it’s exactly what I wanted for a very good price. Works really well in garageband (literally plug and play) and has opened up a world of possibilities when using your DAW. I looked at lots of midi keyboards from this price range upto 100 and although you don’t get all the pads and extra dials that you find on others, I figured I didn’t really need them and the extra keys (as most small keyboards only pack 25) are really worth having. If I continue to use it as much as I have I would consider upgrading to something with better keys and maybe a few more functions but this is great to start out with and small and light enough to keep as a backup or to travel with.
I bought this as a strictly amateur player wanting to learn keys, and having joined a band needing a larger keyboard to control my YC.
I tried the YC with my Technics full size piano keyboard with MIDI out, and it worked straight away. The problem is it weighs a ton!
So seeing this was a nice size and weight, and having the 61 keys I would need along with a MIDI out, I bought it.
I felt the keys, while being nowhere near the quality of the Technics keyboard, felt decent enough. The casing I didn’t really inspect but felt robust enough too.
The problem I had was, try as I might, I could not get it to trigger the YC at all! I changed MIDI channels (even though the YC was set at 1) and nothing.
After calling technical support – who were fantastic – all you need to do is enter ADVANCED then MIDI then (crucially, as it doesn’t say this in the manual!) the ENTER key to the left of the MIDI key. Voila!
I’m really enjoying playing this keyboard!