CME Xkey 37-key Mobile USB Keyboard Controller Reviews

Not being a keyboard player, this thing really works on my desk. I get such a quick response that I can do cool quick lines that sound pretty authentic. Should have gotten one a long time ago.

Terrific controller to throw in a bag and be able to compose anywhere. I'm using it with either my laptop (portable) or ipad (super portable). Incredibly thin and light. Adequate key action for composing on daw. Could play basic stuff live, but obviously not a replacement for my SL88 (how could it be).
Important: The extra octave makes a major difference if you are a keyboardist/player.

I bought it mostly because I thought it looked cool was super affordable and would look good next to my Mac keyboard. (Which it does) After playing it for several days hooked up to my Logic plugin keyboards I love it. I'm excited to be able to take it with me. My only hope is that CME comes out with a 64 key version.

What is this exactly? It looks so flat. How does it feel? What can it do? How does it work?
It's irresistible. There's so many questions here, you just HAVE to buy it and give it a try. I sure did, and golly am I glad I did. It's utterly delightful. So plastic. So clicky. But aren't those bad things? For any normal keyboard, definitely so! The Xkey not only feels right, but you'll find you can't take your fingers off it.
This is one of those alternative Midi controllers, in my opinion, like the KMI K-Board or the Roli Seaboard. The travel of the keys is so minute, you can drag your finger across the xkeys with ease, like a ribbon controller. Connect this thing to a keyboard or a computer, load up a synth sound and go to town. You're going to love it. After all these years of playing the same way, the same style on the same old keys, this Xkey might be the perfect device for you.

It comes with a Midi breakout jack so you can use a traditional Midi cable. However, you still need to power it via USB. It sends Midi data over that same USB cable anyway, so I don't see much point in using a Midi cable with this Xkey, as nice as the option is.

Did I mention how perfectly small this controller is? Yet the keys are full sized? Such a low profile! Such a great keyboard!

I was scheptical at first but having a computer keyboard style piano keyboard is perfect for midi instruments. Plug and play. Love it.

This is one of those outside-the-box paradigm shifters that comes along once in a while that raises eyebrows until folks actually see what it can do.

The short-travel keys move straight down, not hinged at the back like a traditional keyboard. They have a definite resistance, like a good computer keyboard. But have others have noted it doesn't take long to adjust. To me it feels much better than a typical non-weighted keyboard. The downloadable utility offers four user-definable velocity curves in addition to linear. Don't expect it to perform as good as a true weighted keyboard of course.

Nice feature set for the price with expression and sustain pedals, MIDI out and poly aftertouch. Feels solid and durable (we'll see, but mine will be mostly stationary). And last and maybe least but not insignificant, the minimalistic aluminum design looks cool.

Sure, buttons instead of pitch/mod wheels is a compromise, and if you depend on those I would not recommend this unit. If you only use them occasionally as I do, they're just fine.

You'll want to be careful of cable/connector strain if using on stage, including the micro USB connector (I would prefer full size).

I bought this controller to control the Kontakt organ for a gig. I wanted the aftertouch to control the rotary speed. Press down on the keys and the rotary kicks in; let off a little and the rotary slows down.
Only problem: it didn't work! Oh, it worked, but the sensitivity was so light that ANY amount of pressure engaged the rotary.
After a few days of email correspondence with tech support, I was emailed a beta firmware update that included a separate velocity curve for the aftertouch.
Voila!
Now all works perfectly.
This is a new product and is just requiring a little tweaking. Thanks to Jerome at CME to stay on top of things and provide a fast, responsive solution.
BTW, love the portability. A daisy chain option would be great to add range.

I needed a small, quick to setup, convenient controller to hook up to my MBP when I sketch ideas. I normally play on full-sized boards like the Motif XF8 so I was curious how'd I'd handle the un-piano-like feel of these little keyboards. I have to say that I am very impressed. The keys are full-sized, have a small difference in height between the black and white keys, and have great response. Key repetition (for all you classical pianists) is excellent and much better than most cheaper fully-weighted instruments. The pitch bend works surprisingly well and it is sensitive enough that you can easily control what interval you bend to (not just full on or off). It is "clicky" when playing loud, but what do you expect from a controller with such shallow keys? It doesn't bother me.

Having the CME X-key 37 has really helped me be more spontaneous and creative! I can pull it out any time and get my ideas down or improvise with other musicians. This 37 key is the perfect size and allow most two-handed playing (depending on the key you are in). It is a little too long for your backpack and probably also for tight spaces (like on the plane or in the car), but for that you have the 25-key version. The added bonus is that it perfectly matches the silver aluminum on Apple products! People keep asking me what this thing is and saying how cool it looks. I can't recommend it enough.

My first MIDI Keyboard from CMEwas the Xkey25 and i was surprised how light and usefull the Xkey25 was.
Now they continued the Xkey but this time with 37 Keys. It's still light and handy.. i can take it with me wherever i go without worrying that i could be to big for my bag. CME has done a really good Job with the new Xkey37 :)

This thing is perfect. The extra octave makes all the difference compared to a 25 key mobile keyboard. It takes a a little while to get used to the shallow key travel, but I'm completely sold on this thing now. It's solidly built and helps me get my on-the-road composing tasks done easily. I use it with Sampletank and GarageBand on my iPad. For more heavy duty recording and composing needs, it's fantastic addition to my workhorse MacBook Pro and Pro Tools rig. Will probably be using it with the bigger studio rig too.

Requires some getting used to - about 20 minutes. I'm going to be integrating this one into my onstage rig. It's amazing that such quality can be had for such a tiny price.
I've had to set the velocity and aftertouch to max, but it was easy with the software provided by CME online. (I needed max, because I'm a heavy handed piano player.)
The keyboard is so competent at what it does, you almost don't notice it - until it's time to leave, and you realize you have less to carry than the sax player. I need a tiny keyboard like this for playing outdoors, and at venues where I have less than 15 minutes to load in and out.
I will be using 3 of these, 2 Korg nanoKontrols, 2 expression pedals, 2 sustain pedals, and a breath controller, running through a USB router, and all powered by a 5 volt 20ah battery pack. The case to carry it, which doubles as the keyboard stand, is an aluminum zero-halliburton case. This all drives the Macbook Pro with UA Apollo Quad, Line6 wireless mic, and QSC K8s, mostly provided by Sweetwater. Using MainStage 3, Arturia V4 synth emulators (all the knobs work), IK Multimedia Sampletank 3, and other support software.
My entire rig fits in the trunk of my car. Thank you CME. Thank you Sweetwater.

I have had several controllers over the years: M-Audio, Yamaha, Korg,.. The CME x-Key is great for the person who doesn't need all the extra knobs and sliders. I love that it comes with a separate jack for a MIDI, Sustain, & Expression. I enjoy the extra octave as well as how slim it is on my desktop. It is so convenient! The keys are incredibly expressive and easy to use. I'd compare it to the "chicklet" style qwerty keyboards on laptops.I also purchased the case to keep it safe between work and home. Great product, highly recommended!

I used a QuNexus and an iPad with Cubasis to work on projects while in a plane, car or lounging around the house and that worked well... but I was always frustrated by only having 2 octaves to work with. I always found myself needing just 1 or 2 or 3 extra notes to do most riffs and chord changes. The CME Xkey 37 not only gives us an additional octave to work with, it also has near-full size keys for more complex chords and scales which were a bit cramped on the QuNexus. The pitch bend wasn't set to my taste and the key velocity sensitivity was a bit light out of the box, but this can be configured using the Xkey Plus App from the apple store. The build is very solid and it just fits vertically in my Everki backpack. The included XCable is helpful because I can attach sustain, expression, and midi through a single port on the left side, leaving the right side to connect to the iPad for power and midi using an Apple camera connection kit (not included). It took me a few minutes to get used to the feel, but it is so FREEing to be able to work on projects any time, anywhere, with this much CAPABILITY. Excellent engineering decisions made on the design of this product! Well done! Highly recommend for those on the go. Well worth the money imo.

This is a very sturdy little keyboard and it works very well. I wish the USB plugged into the left side so the chord didn't have to cross to plug into my MacBook Pro, and that the keys traveled just a little further to make playing softer easier. With that said, I have yet to play with the settings to see if that would improve things for me. Overall, really happy with this purchase. No regrets.

Nearly perfect for my purposes, which at this point are limited to iOS applications. I waited for the 37-key version, and really appreciate the extended range. Works well with every instrument and is quite sensitive to velocity input and touch pressure within notes. I'm even hesitant to complain about the "klacky" key noise, which of course is only acoustically audible and doesn't appear as artifacts on the digital end. A student of mine (11-year-old) offered that it was a "nice grownup toy"; sums it up pretty well. I'd recommend this to anyone for whom simplicity, portability and quality feel are important. And, as usual, Sweetwater served it up with astonishing speed!

It's very flat, but still feels natural to play. It's everything I need in a small board, and nothing I don't need. I could see myself incorporating this in a stage rig sometime. The main frustration i have is the USB Micro-B wire. I lost the one that came with it, and no other wires fit in that space. And it's especially annoying that Micro-B and Micro-A USB wires look the same, but they're not. Mini USB would have been much better. I don't even know if the board works anymore since i've tried so many micro USBs on it, and i could have potentially damaged the port due to the the weird fit.

I was looking for something to compliment my computer keyboard (Logitech K750 MAC) & my compact desk setup at home & this KB looks great next to it! I also bought this to get started in iOS music production....it works straight away(class compliant/plug and play) on my ipad (6 gen) w/lighting to usb 3 camera connection kit as well as on my mac mini running G.B. I also plugged it up to my usb 3 hub bc I use more than one controller & it works flawlessly on my ipad & mac w/no extra steps needed. I've known about this KB since like 2012, but seeing "HennyThaBizness" on this on youtube made me wanna get it & let me tell ya...I don't regret it one bit. $... well spent! The 25 key prob would've looked more flush w/my computer KB...but I like the 37's range/length!

It's great travel size & weight in its travel bag and plays well to my velocity curve. Looks good too, I have two! It has full width keys. Does not take long to get the knack of playing. The keys make a bit of noise but what a trade off!

This keyboard is fantastic for two reasons. First, you really can't find anything this thin. I keep it in my laptop backpack I drag into the studio and forget it's even there. Secondly, It;s really hard to find a portable keyboard with aftertouch and I like to use that for a modulation controller.

Now the downside is the modulation controls. These are buttons and for me, a little hard to get much finesse out of them.

Last note - These are so small, it would be reasonable to have two or three for a larger portable keyboard. Not perfect but considering the portability..... not a bad idea!

I like my purchase of the CME XKey 37. It appears to be well made. Plays well. It took me 3 minutes of playing to get use to it. It remains to be seen if the playing mechanisms will hold up for the price. I chose buying 2 Xkey 37s to give me 6 octaves of playing area. It would be great if CME would make a control-less edge 2nd controller starting with a "D" key to attach for piano use. These easily fit in your standard suitcase for travel. I bought 2 cases also for these that I like. The are well made, look nice and light weight with quality zippers. The case (actually a bag) is black with an orange edge. I'm glad to have all these so far.