Arturia MiniLab 37 MIDI controller evaluate: playability and portability

I’ve examined extra moveable MIDI controllers than I can maintain observe of, and I’ll let you know proper now: 37 keys is the best dimension. While Arturia’s 25-key MiniLab MK3 is a strong controller that simply suits in a backpack, it feels a bit claustrophobic. The new $149 MiniLab 37 provides one other octave, supplying you with rather more room to play bass and lead concurrently, or simply play extra expansive chords.

Physically, the MiniLab 37 isn’t very totally different from its smaller sibling. It’s received the identical strong (if barely springy) keybed, eight pads, eight countless encoders, 4 faders, a pair of contact strips, USB-C, and a full-size five-pin MIDI DIN out on the again. It’s additionally received the identical rounded plastic construct. It feels a bit low cost, and it’s not gonna win any design awards, but it surely will get the job executed and feels resilient sufficient to take a couple of bumps in a backpack.

The large change is that it’s simply not as cramped as the usual MiniLab, and it’s not nearly having extra keys. With a wider expanse to work with, Arturia was in a position to rearrange the opposite controls for simpler entry; the entire controller is shallower. You now not have to succeed in over the pads to get to the knobs, or the touchstrips to alter the octave. Instead, every thing is specified by a straight line, with the first encoder and small LCD proper within the heart. It’s simply a way more pleasurable and intuitive expertise. With the MiniLab MK3, I at all times felt like I used to be looking out earlier than reaching. On the 37, issues are simply the place I’d anticipate them to be.

Integration with Arturia’s software program synths is a part of the enchantment of its controllers. The MiniLab 37 comes bundled with Arturia’s Analog Lab Intro and Ableton Live Lite so you may get straight to creating music out of the field. But maintain your expectations in verify. That tiny display screen means you continue to want to succeed in for the mouse or keyboard to flick thru presets effectively. And it additionally makes utilizing a few of the controller’s extra superior encompasses a bit cumbersome. For instance, the built-in arpeggiator is nice, with a ton of choices contemplating it is a moveable, budget-minded MIDI controller. But the speed, the mode, the gate, and many others., require scrolling and clicking via them separately. It’s a slog.

The MiniLab additionally offers you primary management over your digital audio workstation (DAW), permitting you to start out or cease recording or loop particular components of your session straight from the controller. If you’re affected person, you may manually map it for even deeper management of your recording session, but it surely’s by no means going to match one thing like Ableton’s Push and even Serato’s Slab, which have much more hands-on controls and out-of-the-box mappings for his or her respective DAWs.

You may also management {hardware} synths utilizing the MIDI port on the again. You may even construct an entire DAW-less setup with a number of devices on totally different MIDI channels. Though in case your devices don’t have MIDI out or via ports, you’ll want so as to add a MIDI splitter to your setup.

The MiniLab 37 isn’t the smallest MIDI controller. It’s not essentially the most luxurious. Nor is it the most cost effective. What it’s, is the proper stability of ergonomics, portability, and value. Especially should you’re already utilizing Arturia’s gentle synths.