Alesis VI61 5-stars Reviews

Awesome MIDI controller

This controller is my very first keys instrument in general, and honestly, I couldn't be happier about it. I use it for my home recordings/playing, and it was easy to set up with FL Studio.

I was looking specifically for a semi-weighted 61 key controller with aftertouch, pads and most importantly, without common problems. After reading a lot of reviews on similar products with various horrible issues, I was uncertain if I should pull the trigger at all. That being said, this model seemed to have the least problems, and they were not as bad as others. I can gladly report that my VI61 has no flaws whatsoever. Given that it's not the most expencive option that I considered, it's a huge plus.

The keybed feels good, the action of the keys is just right for me. Knobs and other controls work smooth and responsive. Everything feels sturdy and durable, and I'm not afraid to store it in a gigbag that is slightly big for the unit (it's hard to find perfectly fitting softcase). All the materials are pleasant to touch and don't feel cheap. Digital display shows things like octave transpose state, current preset, midi values, etc. That's not much, but it's everything I really need. After comparing drum mapping with pads vs keys, I've decided that I prefer keys, so I'm not sure if I like pads that much. They do feel good, and represent hit velocity with led lights, though.

Software works great, you can choose several key velocity curves, and save different profiles to the controller to switch between them on the fly. I didn't like default velocity curve, and changed it to more linear/synth style.

All in all it's a solid controller that feels and plays great, especially for it's price. I think that all the neat features and low risk of running into any issues make this controller an excellent choice.

Best controller keyboard I have had

I have had tens of controllers but this one seem to be the best. I have have only used it for couple of times, but the keybed is quite good and maybe not as good as I expected and drum pads are really convenient. I have used this with Mixcraft where you can easily map anything without using any editor software and I prefer working that way. Of course I would prefer sliders over knobs and the sustain pedal should have somekind of polarity switch possibility on controller - haven't found it. Time will tell about the durability, but it seems to be quite nicely structured.