KORG PADKONTROL
Apr 1, 2006 12:00 PM, BY MARKKUS ROVITO
SWEET 16 >Each velocity-sensitive pad can be assigned to its own note number, Control Change message, MIDI channel, Velocity curve and more. They also glow in different twinkly patterns—very cute.
MIDI is dead. Long-live MIDI. For at least a decade, advancements in audio-manipulation technology such as Sony Acid, Ableton Live and Celemony Melodyne have threatened MIDI's relevance with expanding possibilities for raw audio control. But like rock 'n' roll, distressed jeans and Regis Philbin, MIDI has demonstrated remarkable staying power. The reliance on software in fact has made MIDI as important as ever; the still-growing number of evolving MIDI controllers amply prove this. Into this fray Korg tosses the PadKontrol, a dedicated drum-pad MIDI controller. Even though it's evident why every electronic-music and hip-hop producer would want a pad controller for drum programming, the category is still relatively new. Korg's entry is not the first, and while it doesn't include everything from some of the competition, it's sitting pretty on a higher level of customization, playability and aesthetic touches.
SURFACE LEVEL
At 2.2 pounds and with measurements of 12.4-by-9.2-by-2.1 inches, the PadKontrol makes portability a priority. Its left and right sides are indented to make little ledges for quickly and safely picking up the unit, and four rubber feet establish a base on a table or other surface. While the PadKontrol feels very solid, the plastic chassis that allows for a light weight also means that little extra care when traveling with it should be in order.
With its white faceplate, buttons that glow pink with LED backlights and a mirror backing across the top, the PadKontrol certainly rocks a unique style. By pressing one of four two-button combinations and powering up, the pads enter backlight modes that can light up in expanding patterns or domino patterns when a pad is pressed, or play a sequence of patterns after sitting idle for a couple of minutes. The fourth mode turns those lighting patterns off. While those concerns are secondary, cool lighting can be a novel touch for live performers.
Aside from the 16 Velocity-sensitive trigger pads, the PadKontrol has two knobs, assignable to any MIDI Control Change (CC) message, Aftertouch or pitch bend. The fatness of the knobs is a pleasant change of pace from often-tiny knobs on other controllers; they are comfortable and easy to grip. Two knobs may be low for some control-greedy musicians, but If you're using the PadKontrol with one of the zillions of MIDI keyboards out there tricked out with crazy knobs and sliders, it won't be a big deal.
PadKontrol's coup de gras is its x-y pad, whose two axes are assignable to any MIDI CC, Aftertouch or pitch bend. Sliding a finger the length of an axis will take that parameter from its lowest to highest setting. In addition, the x-y pad offers Flam and Roll modes, selectable via dedicated buttons, in which touching the x-y pad along with a pad will make the pad sound roll or flam (two quick hits together). The position of your finger on the pad determines the volume and speed of the roll (or tightness of the flam).
Two distinguishing hardware bonuses include a footswitch on the back that accepts a damper pedal or pedal switch (not included), so you can assign any MIDI note or CC message to activate with your foot. As a drummer, this invaluable feature made programming beats with the kick assigned to a pedal much more natural and freed up a hand to play other sounds. Whereas similar MIDI controllers have only MIDI Out, PadKontrol has both MIDI Out and In jacks, expanding its use as a full MIDI studio controller. The MIDI In jack effectively turns the PadKontrol into a USB MIDI interface, so you can incorporate non-USB MIDI devices into a computer setup.
GET IT STARTED
Despite deep programmability, the PadKontrol offers instant gratification for plug-and-play beat programming. After installing the driver off the cross-platform CD-ROM, the Apple iMac G5 2GHz test machine recognized the connected PadKontrol instantly. The controller is bus-powered, and I was able to operate with no problems from a powered USB 2.0 hub. The PadKontrol powers on in Play mode. All it took was to launch an instrument in GarageBand or Reason to instantly play beats and record MIDI tracks. There are 16 scene memories, and the PadKontrol comes pre-loaded with scenes designed for certain Korg synths and popular software such as Ableton Live, Native Instruments Battery and FXpansion BFD.
For anyone who's programmed drums only on a MIDI keyboard, the difference in using pads is stark and immediate. It's more comfortable, efficient and expressive; you'll probably never want to go back to keys again. The PadKontrol's pads feel very nice. They have a good amount of give to them but are still very sturdy. They can take a pounding without you hurting your fingers. Best of all, they respond to rapid hits all the way to the edges of the pads; I could play very fast, two-fingered triplet rolls easily.
The Fixed Velocity button sets the pads to maximum Velocity regardless of impact. The innovative Flam and Roll functions are a delight, particularly the Roll for dance music. The rolls play in sync with the tempo assigned to the software, and you can keep the roll constant while playing different pads. The response of the x-y pad was brilliant. Its effects were instant, with no latency, and that also held true for the response of the pads and MIDI knobs.
NITTY GRITTY
Custom programming the PadKontrol's deep functionality in Setting mode takes only a little getting used to and a fairly painless perusal of the slim manual. All programming can take place through the editor/librarian software or from the hardware. For any of the 16 scenes, each pad or the footswitch pedal can be assigned to any note number (C1 to G9) or any CC number (0 to 127) and can also be assigned an individual MIDI channel, fixed Velocity level, Velocity curve, switch type and MIDI port. The switch types are either Momentary (the pad turns off when you release it) or Toggle (the pad turns off when you press it a second time). Toggle works great for triggering loops, muting tracks, etc. In the default mode, it can be frustrating trying to tap lightly enough on the pads to achieve low velocities. But the PadKontrol has that covered with eight assignable Velocity curves, which manipulate the response of a pad's Velocity related to impact on the pad. The C-3 soft curve, for example, gives low Velocity values from harder taps than the default linear curve.
Similar values (with the exception of MIDI notes and Velocity) can also be assigned to the x-y pad and the two knobs. Instead of switch type, those controllers can be set to reverse their polarity. To program controller values, press the Setting key to enter Setting mode and then press the trigger pad or dedicated assign key for the knobs or x-y pads. From there, a bank of parameter buttons lets you choose whether to assign note/CC, MIDI channel, switch type, Velocity, release value or MIDI port. With one of those keys selected, the display flashes the current setting, and turning the rotary encoder lets you quickly choose the desired setting. Trigger pads can be programmed one at a time or all at once, and you can also change the fixed Velocity level from 0 to 127.
Considering the programming potential and minimal, three-character LED display, programming custom PadKontrol scenes from the hardware is surprisingly easy. All changes must be saved with a key sequence before moving to another scene, or they will be lost. There are also some handy programming shortcuts in Play mode. The bottom eight trigger pads alternate to assign common MIDI CCs such as pitch bend, pan, resonance and more to the knobs or x-y pad when you hold down the assign keys for those controllers. In addition, the top eight trigger pads are reserved for transmitting MIDI messages, such as Panic, Note Off and five user-assignable messages.
THE SOFT SIDE
Korg includes an editor/librarian utility, as well as its valuable Creative Kontrol Pack 2 suite and a special Toontracks DFH Superior plug-in exclusive to the PadKontrol. The latter includes 2,700 total samples at a wide variety of Velocity levels. This soundset has a ton of classic and usable drum kits that make the PadKontrol a sick beatbox from the start. If you want to make a Zeppelin-esque Beastie Boys jam or re-create the Billie Jean beat, the sounds are all there.
Creative Kontrol Pack 2 contains scaled-down versions software, including Reason Adapted, Ableton Live Lite 4 and IK Multimedia SampleTank 2. Any one of them adds a little icing to the cake for musicians who don't already have them. However, the highlights of the bundle are the Korg Edition of the Ultimate Sound Bank UVI plug-in and the 19 MDE-X effects from Korg's Legacy Collection. The UVI plug-in has more than 30 drum kits spanning rock, electro and jazz. The MDE-X effects — derived from Triton technology — have quick-and-easy interfaces for adding immediate polish to sounds.
Operating the PadKontrol editor/librarian software couldn't be simpler. Select a scene from a list on the left and click on one of the controls from the PadKontrol graphic to open a Parameter window in which you set values, disable pads and so on. One of the few areas for improvement here is the Control Change field. Instead of having to blindly scroll through 128 Control Changes one-by-one, a pop-up menu with all of them listed would be better. When finished, you can name scenes, save them to disc or transmit them to the PadKontrol. Or the utility can also upload the scenes from the hardware. Unfortunately, v. 1.0 of the software had frequent problems sending and receiving data from the PadKontrol to the iMac running OS X 10.4.4. Korg is aware of the problem and was working on an update to post to its Website at press time.
KONKLUSION
Straight up, a pad controller will put a smile on beat junkie's face, and the specific merits of the PadKontrol are ample. It offers a depth of MIDI programmability not yet seen in its class, wonderful pad playability, a nice software bundle and an x-y pad with the addictive Flam and Roll functions. With its easy-to-master hardware programming and MIDI I/O ports, it's equally suited for the computer-based studio and a computer-free live setup. Other pad controllers have more assignable controls, but if you're one of the many cats who already has a MIDI controller that's ballin' out with plenty of knobs and faders, you won't mind.
KORG
PADKONTROL > $299
Pros: Excellent control response. No latency. Roll and flam functions on an x-y pad. Highly programmable. Footswitch. Sixteen memories. Presets for popular software. Useful software bundle. Cool backlit patterns. MIDI In and Out ports.
Cons: Occasional glitches in v. 1.0 editor/librarian software. Doesn't have a “road warrior” construction.
Contact: www.korg.com
SYSTEM REQUIREMENTS
Mac: Mac OS 10.2 or later; powered USB port for connection and bus power
PC: Windows XP; powered USB port for connection and bus power
| Want to use this article? Click here for options! |  |
