So I’m currently using a Launchpad X which is so far the best pad controller I’ve tried (sensitive enough pads, no double triggers). However, I’d prefer a 16 pad controller so I’m still on the lookout for an upgrade…
I don’t care about the software or workflow or anything. I just want good pads. If they had a controller out there with just 16 great pads, no buttons or knobs, I would snap it up in an instant.
Maschine Mikro looked like what I wanted, but I’ve literally tried 4 different units and they all have double triggering issues (double triggering seriously drives my OCD mad). Also the pad sensitivity between the 4 units varied wildly, seemed like a crapshoot of what you were getting when you ordered one.
After many many hours of research, I’m now down to Nektar Aura or Maschine MK3. Apparently the Maschine MK3 has better pads than the Mikro, but also the Aura’s are highly customizable. I’m just wondering, if anyone has tried, which one has the better pads: Aura or Maschine MK3? And do either of them have double triggering issues?
If you have any other suggestions, I’d like to know. Budget is not an issue for me.
I personally prefer the Maschine mk3 pads over the aura, mainly because the pads are bigger and seem to respond well also if you hit them more on the sides.
Bummer about the 4 mikro units. I’ll make a note of this and see if more similar reports come in because this sounds very bad… wouldn’t be the first time I’d have to adjust my recommendation again
Actually, I tried 5 Mikros. 3 from Amazon, 1 from Sweetwater, and 1 from Guitar Center
The one from Sweetwater had the best pads. I was able to set the sensitivity to 100 and all of the pads worked perfectly with full sensitivity. Honestly, I should’ve just kept that one because those pads were perfect besides the double triggering.
Amazon seems to have sent me used ones a couple of times, 2 of them were OK (but had unresponsive/problematic pads when sensitivity was set over 80%), 1 of them just had terrible pads (significantly less sensitive than my Launchpad X even when set at 100%).
Guitar Center one was decent, but again had issues when sensitivity was set to 100%.
So yeah, wildly inconsistent quality control on the Mikros based on my sample size of 5.
Thanks for your input. I was hoping that the Aura had the better pads… I might just wait until a proper 16 pad standalone controller with great, consistent quality pads comes out, as I’m pretty okay with my Launchpad X for now.
Just to make sure: You did mess around with the “Sensitivity” slider in controller editor right? Not to be confused with the Maschine software itself. I’m talking about this app. Where you can specifically target the midi standalone sensitivity.
Ok, good to know. The Nektar Aura is a pretty good device, but I have to admit I only tested one unit… So unfortunately the same thing applies where you might get a bad unit if you’re unlucky. I’m sorry to hear about the insane amount of problems you’re having with that many units. It gives finger drumming a bad rep… so frustrating. I cannot imagine that your search will last much longer tough. If you order a big Maschine mk3 and/ or a nektar aura you gotta finally hit the jackpot
I have same issue with my Maschine Mikro, double triggering for some pads and some pads are unresponsive. I didn’t have a chance to test more than one unit, this is the only one I got. Will have to find time to get it replaced while guaranty is still active. I was thinking about trying Presonus Atom as alternative.
For what it’s worth, I got the nektar aura as my first and only pad controller. I’ve had it for about a month now so I’ve had time to really get to set it up and use it. Not sure how the pads compare to the Maschine, but they feel great to me. As far as double triggers go, i am able to adjust pad sensitivity to control it (if the sensitivity is too high i get some double triggers). I will note however the double triggers were never audible and i only noticed them when looking back at recorded MIDI. Occasionally I saw an extra hit with a velocity of 0 or 1, so nothing is audible. Then I went back and turned down the sensitivity of the one pad that was doing this and all the double triggers went away. In my case anyway, it was completely a matter of adjustment.
