AKAI Professional MIDImix - USB MIDI Controller Mixer with Assignable Faders & Master Fader, 24 Knobs and 16 Buttons, 1 to 1 Mapping With Ableton Live

I use this for ableton coupled with a launchpad mini and I find it is a good combination.Ableton 11 recognises it without any work on my part. The faders and knobs are sturdy and the unit has a nice solid feel. It is very compact and takes up very little room. The knobs are not infinite so you will need to set up your MIDI inputs accordingly. It makes for a very nice workflow when playing or recording live. With so many assignable knobs and faders it is very versatile and great when mapped to VST instruments or effects and I use it with Koala sampler on iPad occasionally to control effects. There are other controllers that are more professional but I can’t fault this if you are on a budget and want to get some bit away from dragging a mouse.Minor gripe about the size of the text on the channels but I have poor eyesight. Online you can find template overlays for the Midimix but I just use a label maker when I want to customise the setup.Mine was bundled with Ableton Live Lite 11 so if you haven’t tried Ableton it is a nice bonus as it is as a great DAW and I never looked back once having tried Reaper, Cubase, FL etc. before.Not much else in the software included (trial of Reason which I haven’t activated)

I read some reviews about avoiding this product of you use Cubase.Well I use Cubase 14 and with some thought, found I could easily import the Akai Cubase mapping script without issue. You have to import as a generic remote which is now a legacy feature in Cubase. Doing it this way however, is not compatible with the midi signal feedback that operates the light control for each button.If you want it to work properly, you need to add it as a new custom controller surface. If you know how Cubase handles this, it doesn't take that long to set up and configure the sliders/buttons and knobs, and after adding it this way, the button lights work also.Would agree with other reviews about the fiddly knobs. Not the best for thick fingers but still they are responsive and do the job well.

[EDIT]The bank left/right buttons, rec and mute buttons all work properly in Ardour on Linux. Setup is somewhat easy but I would never have figured it out on my own (deep googling required), but now I know, I know 😃[ENDEDIT]I bought this controller to help me manipulate parameters in synthesizers, effects processors etc as I experiment my way in to electronic music production in Linux. I was encouraged by the sight of the "BANK LEFT/RIGHT" buttons as I believed this would shift the controls across to give more parameter control than there are physical controls. I thought this might be the case, as I have Akai MPD218 which has this feature and works perfectly in Linux. The documentation suggested this as well. BUT THESE WERE FALSE TRUTHS! In actuality, these buttons, as well as ALL the buttons on the MIDIMIX (except the "SEND ALL" button, which does nothing as far as I can tell) actually send MIDI "note" events, rather than "cc". What does this mean? It means that when connected to a synthesizer, the buttons will trigger sounds rathet than toggles. The buttons work like the keys of a MIDI keyboard rather than parameter controls. This is frustrating. Other than this, it's a great tool for Linux MIDI control! I love it and will actually be getting another.In Linux it is Plug 'n' Play, is detected by Linux, ALSA and Jack automatically (Debian 10 "Buster") and is "OMG" so useful. Being able to physically adjust synth parameters rather than using a mouse makes the process of sound exploration REALLY fun.It works in Amsynth, ZynAddSubFX, Helm as well as mappable to effects plugins in Carla ... anything that has MIDI Learn, this will work. And provided it's not connected to a synth, the buttons CAN be used to trigger on/off events (I tested this with SooperLooper).Great! Love it! Will get another (maybe even a third?)!

This is great for programming soft synths. Most DAWs (I use Reaper) allow the parameters of a soft synth to be altered by mapping Midi CC messages. Well this device has 24 knobs and 9 sliders that send CC messages and can be mapped to synth controls.I have 5 different synths mapped and have created some overlays to put over the controller so I know which knob controls which parameter - Oscillators, LFO, Filter, Envelope etc. - it gives the convenience and cost of soft synths but with the feel (almost) and ergonomics of programming a hardware device.This does take some tinkering - it is easy to do but takes time because there are 33 controls to map and it is worth taking time to plan out how to layout the controls.There are also 20 buttons on the MidiMix - but I haven't found a use for those yet.Also comes with Ableton Live Lite - loaded it and tried it but gave up so that I could program some synths in Reaper.

5* for the product, 1* for delivery. Seems to be working fine. Amazon should really instruct their couriers not to leave electronics at the doorstep in heavy rain without any cover.

Although this integrates perfectly with Ableton Live as a control surface (ie: an 8 channel fader, mute, arm, pan & fx send controller), what I wanted was a midi controller with as many assignable items as possible. The Midimix does this really well. I use it to control Ableton stock synths and VST plugin Synths (Cherry Audio and IK Multimedia stuff and others). The 9 sliders, 20 buttons and 24 knobs are all assignable and you can really take control of a VST synth (or whatever) and leave the mouse alone. One gripe - the knobs are a little shallow, fine in the studio but a bit of a worry live I would imagine. It feels like a good quality item and is reassuringly weighty. Seventy quid! Just get one!

Nice piece of kit but couldn't get Cubase 13 pro to accept the Akai downloaded midi script.After a bit of youtube instruction managed to successfully programme it myself with the Cubase tool.Now working exactly as I needed.