HI
I have been offered the Maschine controller and it looks amazing. I don't know much about these things ( I use an old m-audio axiom keyboard at the moment). Was wondering if anyone has any opinions. Or is there another device that may be better? It all comes down to money but would love some views to help me decide.

 

When it comes to buying used gear and looking for good deals, that's exactly what it comes down to. Which is better for the price, because the prices are not the same. They also are not normally static, and you can often haggle. That's why you should include the prices in your post to see which is a better deal. Otherwise you could just look up the MSRP and spec pages.

 

I have both. If you're an Ableton Live user then I would get the Push 2 or if you could afford it, Push 3. I bought Maschine cheap at a pawn shop. Maschine is fun, and the NI libraries for Maschine 2 are excellent for making beats, but to be honest, I haven't turned it on in months simply because the Push was made for Live. I also don't feel like learning the Maschine 2 app.

 

Have you considered using Maschine as a plugin inside Live to have the best of both?

 

I have both as well (Push 2, not 3) and I've utilized a Maschine-within-Ableton workflow extensively in the past, complete with a killer template with routings and all. It's a fine way to make music ITB, but for me personally, I found it felt redundant. Unless you're using Maschine as your primary audio interface, I suppose. The expansion content is the best reason to go this route. However, you can use an app like Kitmaker to convert those Maschine groups to .adgs. You can also just load up Battery and use them that way. It's a simpler workflow, tbh. But there's nothing wrong with using both Ableton and Maschine - you're simply juggling 2 pad controllers when you could be using just one (freeing up desk space at the same time). Just get or make a good template.

 

My main DAW is Ableton, but I prefer Maschine HW (vs Push). As a Piano/Keys player I wanted something completely different, like a 16 pad groovebox/ctrl. Push for me is too much 'something in between'. But if (e.g.) a guitar player wouldn't want a keyboard or for live Live looping, I'd suggest the Push. So imo it depends on many factors.

Also a good point. Personally, I use it as a plugin for a quick drum groove to get going, but in most cases I'd use it side by side - you can just drag your 'idea' from Maschine SW into Ableton (audio will render on the fly). It's fun, especially when I'm fed up with Ableton. ;)

And then there's quite a big price difference..