CME Xkey - Advice/Opinions Requested!

[Clayton Beaumont]

Hello, I'm new here and completely new to the realm of keyboards. I'm a guitar player who has started to teach himself how to play piano/keyboard - and I'm loving it!

Only problem, I go out of town for usually a week at a time once or twice a month and hate that I have to go that long without practicing -- when i'm at home I practice every day.

So that brings me to the CME Xkey. I am aware that it's not necessarily designed to be a "practice keyboard," that it doesn't have the same action as normal keys, and that it only has 25 keys. But I still feel like it is a good portable option for me since It's lightweight, can fit in a backpack, doesn't require external power, etc. And as for the limited amount of keys, I would mainly use it for practicing scales and the like.

My question to you fine people is: is there a better option for me? Do you recommend the Xkey for the purposes that I've listed? Do you NOT recommend the Xkey?

BONUS Question!!! I like the idea of being able to power it from my iPhone. Anybody have experience with using it this way? Does it sap the battery life from your phone? I've watched a lot of review videos on this instrument and haven't heard anything in reference to this topic.

Thanks so much for taking the time to read my post!

 

[happyrat1]

Don't laugh.

I use one of these for ear training and practice when I'm not at my real keyboards.

http://www.amazon.com/Casio-SA-76-M...&ie=UTF8&qid=1406573607&sr=1-1&keywords=sa-76

Sure the sounds are cheezy but they are an even tempered musical scale and for when I'm just sitting around on the couch and I want to pick out a melody off of the TV it works just fine.

Don't let the mini keys throw you. With a bit of practice it's easy enough to switch between those and full sized keys.

And I've been running mine on the same set of batteries for two years now. It's incredibly miserly on power so you don't even need the optional AC adapter.

Gary

 

[Clayton Beaumont]

Cool, thanks Gary. I'll look into those as well.

 

[SeaGtGruff]

If you aren't already an experienced keyboardist, I'd probably steer away from keyboards with mini keys, because you'll want to train your brain to move your fingers the right distance for a keyboard with regular-sized keys. Of course, once you've passed that level then you should be able to switch back and forth between keyboards having different sized keys without much trouble.

Two-octave keyboards or MIDI controllers, or keyboards having smaller keys or even "non-traditional" keys (e.g., push-buttons arranged like the white and black keys of a keyboard) can be great for composing while you're away from your home or studio-- e.g., pull out your little keyboard and start picking out the notes and/or chords of a new tune while you're sitting on a bus, or sitting in an airport, etc.

 

[Clayton Beaumont]

Michael, RE: pulling keyboard out at airport during on-the-go down time, yes this is exactly what I had in mind. Especially since I almost always fly when I travel, and I pack super light, I realize that my options are limited as far as portability while retaining actual keyboard shape and action etc. So as you said, I don't expect to hone my "technique" necessarily, but I would love to be able to work out melodies or practice scales and music theory (on something other than the little piano app on my iPhone).

Do you have any experience with the specific product I mentioned? Or perhaps any suggestions on a better similar product? Honestly, the Xkey is pretty damn inexpensive so I don't see it as too much of an investment. Unfortunately none of the music stores near me carry one for me to try it out.

 

[SeaGtGruff]

I've no experience with the XKey or any other 25-key controllers, although I've looked at them online. If I were seriously thinking of buying one, I'd search for as many reviews as I could find and pay careful attention to any negative reviews-- keeping in mind that someone's bad experience with a particular keyboard might be a fluke (or the person may just be crabby), and considering the number of negative reviews versus the number of positive reviews, but wanting to know of any potential issues.

There are two negative reviews of the XKey on Amazon. The criticisms seem to be that the keys make a "clatter" when you press them, the touch sensitivity is inconsistent, the after-touch isn't as good as claimed, the modulation and pitch-bend buttons aren't as good as wheels, there are no arpeggiator buttons, and the USB cable is an ugly color. But there are also many positive reviews.

I would personally lean towards something with more realistic keys and more controls-- e.g., the Akai Professional MPK Mini (which Amazon identifies as a "#1 Best Seller") has realistic (mini) keys and a lot of controls, but there are a lot of negative reviews that basically say it broke after less than a year of use. The newer version (the MKII) also has a joystick for pitch bend and modulation-- it has a very positive review that says it's much improved over the earlier version, but there's only one review (probably because it's only just been released).

I don't know-- the more I look at all the 25-key controllers, the more frustrated and confused I get. The ones that look the most attractive to me (based on the number of buttons, knobs, pads, sliders, and wheels) frequently have a lot of negative reviews that talk about how something broke after a short period of time-- yet they also have positive reviews, so I don't know which reviews to pay more attention to. I guess the best advice I can give you is to (1) try out a prospective keyboard beforehand if possible, (2) don't buy it if the return and/or exchange policy isn't good, and (3) buy it from a nearby store if possible so you don't have to pay shipping to return it.