Korg nanoKONTROL2 (Black) Reviews

Krystof Srebrakowski
from Florida
May 20, 2013Music Background:
Pro Musician /pianist / composer

Great little MIDI controller !

I absolutely love nanoKONTROL 2. I was looking for something small, portable, but still very functional. My goal was to control CC# messages of virtual instruments within DAW with faders, buttons and knobs. Control all parameters, including B-3 organ bars. The amount of data that you have at your fingertips to control with nano is just what you really need. The faders and knobs feel sturdy, and durable. All parameters are assigned easily within the computer ( connected via included USB cable). You can easily assign any parameter to any button, knob or fader and save your customized settings. If you are looking for a USB MIDI controller that can serve both in the studio and on the road - Korg nanoKONTROL 2 is clearly the perfect choice.

Stephen Iverson
from Camden, Delaware
April 4, 2013Music Background:
Hobbyist

It works flawlessly

The Korg nanoKontrol2 exceeds my expectations. I set it up to control my daw near my recording mic. It allows me to adjust all the necessary controls to record and re record as necessary with out going to the computer. After a little reading it was easy to program all the controls to function for my use. I use it on my Reaper software, but I'm sure it will work on others.

Larry Dunsmore
from
February 9, 2013Music Background:
composer/orchestrator/entertainer

Brilliant!

I wasn't sure if I really needed this but for Sweetwater's great deal I thought what the heck! And now I can't work without it! Great little device, does precisely what it says it does and more importantly what I hoped it would. Life is better...!

Thanks yet again to Tom Maxwell meeting the delivery deadline and getting it to me in the nick of time. Sweetwater is undoubtedly the store other companies can only aspire to be!

Randy Smith
from Northern Califronia
January 11, 2013Music Background:
Musician, hobbyist, synth crazed!

Great Product!!

For the price you cannot beat the NanoKontrol2 as both a mixer for your DAW or control surface for soft synths. With the programming software Korg puts out for their nano products the bang for the buck is stellar. All products should be designed this well. This is my second nano product purchase and both have served me well. Perfect for the desktop or laptop studio.

Paul
from W. Virginia
March 28, 2012Music Background:
Semi-Pro

Unbeliveable

If anyone can fuss about this little unit, I dont see how. For the money I have had more fun this then I have had in a long time , I am a drummer of 48 years and may never use a kit again.

Jon M
from North Carolina, USA
March 31, 2012Music Background:
Hobbyist

Great Kontrol. Unbeatable Price!!!

Consider me bias, in that, I have never been dissappionted in any Korg products that I've purchased. Not that i haven't drueled over many attractive midi controllers from Novation and Akia, which deliver a superb product as well, but i just needed some extra controls and really wanted something that was out of my price range, for now... So as cheap as the cost is for this controller, its made a great hold me over 'til I can get what my heart truely desires. I have been very pleased and will still continue to use with live performances because its compact design gives plenty of choices, when room is limited. KORG IS BASICALLY GIVING THEM AWAY AT THAT PRICE, WHY WOULDN'T YOU WANT TO GET IT? IF NOTHING ELSE, YOU COULD HAVE IT AS A BACK-UP CONTROLLER FOR WHEN YOU JUST NEED A COUPLE EXTRA HANDS ON CONTROLS. I use: hp -Envy, intel i7, 8GB RAM, windows 7, FL Studio(My Favorite Software Ever!!!), & every thing works great!! I mapped controller using downloadable "Korg Kontrol Editor" in no time. I have a Korg microKontrol & Korg Pad Kontrol, so mapping was more or less a exstention to current midi mapping set-up (to expand my microKontrols' 8 Faders,just always need more it seems like).Also includes a software pack, i already owned a lot of the stuff on it, but still makes a great added bonus. If you added up the cost of included software titles, it would probably be enough money to buy 2 nanoKontrol2's. Like I said, its pretty much a no brainer. I'd give it a 5 star rating if I could string multiple NanoKontrol2's together, like the option on nanoKEYS2.

Johnathan
from Michigan
September 9, 2011Music Background:
Active musician

Go crazy!

All kinds of fun with this bit of gear...

Eight sliders, eight knobs, 24 buttons, and as many possibilities as you can shake a DAW at. I use mine with PropellerHead Reason. Making the map for Reason for this controller wasn't hard, but buyer beware: Reason only comes with a map for the old nanoKontrol, and the CC#'s are different with this one. As long as you don't mind digging into your program and programming it for your new nanoKontrol if it's not already supported, go for it.

For being small and plastic-y, it feels remarkably solid. The knobs have a respectable amount of resistance - not so much that you can't turn them quickly, but not so little that you can't make smooth adjustments. The sliders have less resistance, but it fits with the size of the slider and the throw length. Love it or hate it, all the buttons are rubbery silicon-type buttons, and almost all of them light up (the ones that are lit in the pic are the only ones that'll light up).

Only negative thing is that the knobs markers (to show which direction it's pointing) are very dark and you probably won't be able to tell unless you twiddle them, see a reference to the direction in your DAW, or are in a well lit studio. For stage use, it's easily fixed with a dab of bright gaff tape and a pen mark on the tape in the groove where the pointer is. Not really a condemning point, but take notice if you don't have access to something bright to mark it with.

Ralph
from Bronx N.Y.
August 20, 2012Music Background:
Recording Engineer/ Semi Pro Musician

Korg nanoKontrol 2

If you like the feel of actual controls (ie: Faders / Pan knobs ) when you Mix rather than a mouse ,then this is for you.
It speeds up my work flow , and is small enough to sit on top of your keyboard when your done.
I gave it only 4 stars because you can't pan a stereo track with it.
But for the price it's perfect for any Progect Studio.

Ralph
from Bronx N.Y.
August 20, 2012Music Background:
Recording Engineer/ Semi Pro Musician

Korg nanoKontrol 2

If you like the feel of actual controls (ie: Faders / Pan knobs ) when you Mix rather than a mouse ,then this is for you.
It speeds up my work flow , and is small enough to sit on top of your keyboard when your done.
I gave it only 4 stars because you can't pan a stereo track with it.
But for the price it's perfect for any Progect Studio.

from L.A.
June 28, 2012Music Background:
Composer, Producer, Recording Engineer, Keyboardist

Sturdy Inexpensive Controller

Not great for controlling your DAW. The sliders control volume faders in the mixer, but since they are not motor controlled you can't do smooth volume moves. If you accidentally bump one in mix mode you can wreck the automation.

Great in CC mode for controlling drawbars, knobs, etc. via programming with the included editor.

For Logic, you must use "Other DAW software" instructions to set Kontrol2 to CC.

Scott Sundberg
from Spring Arbor, MI
May 26, 2012Music Background:
Mr. Muckabout

Simple And Effective!

Not much more to say than my title! You plug it in, select it from your DAW's profile, and away you go. A terrific controller for very little money.

Rufus Johnson
from Richmond, VA
October 28, 2011Music Background:
Singer, Songwriter, Producer, Musician

Nice piece!!

This thing is very handy when trying to record without having to always reach for the mouse and keyboard...really makes the workflow easier. For the price, you can't go wrong!!

Matt McNair
from Santa Cruz CA,
May 25, 2011Music Background:
Recording Eng, Guitarist and Loop Freak.

Little faders and knobs (Way cool)

The good

1. For the price you can't possibly go wrong
2. Even for the price the functionality is great
3.It's built really well and is compact but useful
4.The included MIDI editor is half of the functionality and is eazy to understand.

The Bad

1. The faders seem a bit sensitive but I think that has to do with the small through
2. The pots would be much more useful if they were encoders instead. Especially if it is used in managing synth and/or sampler controls. They jump when activated to what ever position the pot is at.

I got two for my live set up... I use one as a dedicated DAW control for Live, and the other to map to customer VST controls. If you have mixing requirements for your live setup but need to minimize your footprint, this is a must have. Not for serious mixing due to the fader size.

All and all a great value and a must have.

davis salks
from hamburg, pa
July 9, 2012Music Background:
music software development, amateur music production

very good units, some USB quirkyness

everything works as expected. USB is somewhat quirky via USB hub. I'm connecting four Korg nano's through korg's own USB hub, and experiencing loose connections. When this happens, all nano's go down requiring a PC reboot and sometimes a notification that the USB driver needs to be installed. I tied-down all physical connections to the hub on a piece of egg-crateing which helps a lot. Will be looking to use a powered USB hub next. Otherwise, the nano controllers work very well and have very good response, and will continue to purchase more of these units.

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