I’ve found the Goldilocks of portable MIDI controllers

I person tested much portable MIDI controllers than I tin support way of, and I will show you correct now: 37 keys is the perfect size. While Arturia’s 25-key MiniLab MK3 is simply a coagulated controller that easy fits successful a backpack, it feels a spot claustrophobic. The caller $149 MiniLab 37 adds different octave, giving you overmuch much room to play bass and lead simultaneously, aliases conscionable play much expansive chords.

Physically, the MiniLab 37 isn’t very different from its smaller sibling. It’s sewage the aforesaid coagulated (if somewhat springy) keybed, 8 pads, 8 endless encoders, 4 faders, a brace of touch strips, USB-C, and a full-size five-pin MIDI DIN retired connected the back. It’s besides sewage the aforesaid rounded integrative build. It feels a spot cheap, and it’s not gonna triumph immoderate creation awards, but it gets the occupation done and feels resilient capable to return a fewer bumps successful a backpack.

The large alteration is that it’s conscionable not arsenic cramped arsenic the modular MiniLab, and it’s not conscionable astir having much keys. With a wider expanse to activity with, Arturia was capable to rearrange the different controls for easier access; the full controller is shallower. You nary longer person to scope complete the pads to get to the knobs, aliases the touchstrips to alteration the octave. Instead, everything is laid retired successful a consecutive line, pinch the superior encoder and mini LCD correct successful the center. It’s conscionable a overmuch much pleasurable and intuitive experience. With the MiniLab MK3, I ever felt for illustration I was searching earlier reaching. On the 37, things are conscionable wherever I’d expect them to be.

Integration pinch Arturia’s software synths is portion of the entreaty of its controllers. The MiniLab 37 comes bundled pinch Arturia’s Analog Lab Intro and Ableton Live Lite truthful you tin get consecutive to making euphony retired of the box. But support your expectations successful check. That mini surface intends you still request to scope for the rodent aliases keyboard to browse done presets efficiently. And it besides makes utilizing immoderate of the controller’s much precocious features a spot cumbersome. For example, the built-in arpeggiator is great, pinch a ton of options considering this is simply a portable, budget-minded MIDI controller. But the rate, the mode, the gate, etc., require scrolling and clicking done them 1 astatine a time. It’s a slog.

The MiniLab besides gives you basal power complete your integer audio workstation (DAW), allowing you to commencement aliases extremity signaling aliases loop circumstantial parts of your convention consecutive from the controller. If you’re patient, you tin manually representation it for moreover deeper power of your signaling session, but it’s ne'er going to lucifer thing for illustration Ableton’s Push aliases moreover Serato’s Slab, which person acold much hands-on controls and out-of-the-box mappings for their respective DAWs.

You tin besides power hardware synths utilizing the MIDI larboard connected the back. You could moreover build a full DAW-less setup pinch aggregate instruments connected different MIDI channels. Though if your instruments don’t person MIDI retired aliases thru ports, you’ll request to adhd a MIDI splitter to your setup.

The MiniLab 37 isn’t the smallest MIDI controller. It’s not the astir luxurious. Nor is it the cheapest. What it is, is the cleanable equilibrium of ergonomics, portability, and price. Especially if you’re already utilizing Arturia’s soft synths.