i've been watching for a good deal on a decent 61-key controller, mostly because i'm tired of not being able to properly play sample libraries that have keyswitches on my 25-key controller. right now, amazon has a marketplace vendor offering the impulse 61 for $299. they are an authorized novation dealer, and that means it is eligible for a $50 rebate that novation is currently offering. so $249 for a decent 61-key controller sounds like a great deal. are there any owners of the impulse 61 on this forum who can tell me if this is a wise purchase?

 

I use a lot of Novation gear. I have the Impulse 25 and its got a gppd keyboard action, responsive aftertouch and is easy to set up with your DAW and plugins.

 

I've got a Impulse-49 and I like it for the most part. I wish it had FL Studio fully integrated with Automap but that's not that big of a deal. It just takes time to map everything yourself but I don't really have any complaints about it that I can think of off the top of my head.

 

I owned the impulse 61, very flimsy and cheap feeling especially for the asking price. I need something solid and responsive. Don't even get me started about auto map when it works it works and when it doesn't it is not a fun experience.

 

I'm after a 61 note Contoller keyboard too.
I'm thinking of getting a Novation SL Mk II (my DAW is Studio One so not sure how well it would automap etc).
Is the SLII of similar flimsy build quality to the Impulse?

 

thank you for your input. can you tell me if you ever found a controller that you are happy with?

 

i like the novation mkii
i have the 25 version.

I feel impulse was a bit cheap design.. Except for the mini controllers. (I found those cheap/compact/easy to transport)

Downside on Mkii is the pads. They are pretty bad.


Also you gotta learn automap. It's easy to set up but it takes a little of work at the beginning. Pretty much you make a preset of your plugins and it saves forever.

Automap works fine on studio one.


Only downside of the novation mkii is that 61 version has the same ammount of sliders/knobs/etc.. as the 25 version. You would expect a few extra stuff. Also i think the keys on the 61 are different than 25 ones. I can't vouch for the 61 keys. I like the keys on the 25.

 

i've looked at the mkii as a possibility. i came very close to purchasing it. but it is the oldest keyboard in novation's lineup, and it hasn't been without its problems. i've read about many people having problems with the touch controls going crazy and changing values even when there is nobody touching them. but i almost pulled thetrigger on buying one when the price on amazon mysteriously dropped down to $299 for one day. but i missed my chance, and the price went back up to $599 the next day.