Korg nanoKONTROL Studio Mobile MIDI Control Surface Reviews

Works great on iOS. I set up midi learn on the IOS app Cubasis and it worked flawlessly. Unfortunately you need to connect to a Mac or PC to set it up and the light options are weak and if your on a " outdated " Mac your out of luck unless you choose a old file download to work with to update it or set it up to your preferred conditions but out of the box control is perfect.

I was able to simply map it out via midi learn to use Cubasis 3 on iOS with a iPad mine on a display stand for it. VERY VERY useful. Paired with l Volt 276 as my interface and a CME Xkey Air 25-key Bluetooth MIDI Controllerand I'm cooking up music on the go. I will try to even gran a Korg nanoKEY Studio Bluetooth/USB MIDI and Pad Controller as a substitute for when I'm traveling and such. as both use the same hard case from Amazon.

The Korg Nanokontrol Studio has been a game changer for my mix work in my home studio. Easy to setup - IF YOU READ THE MANUAL. Just depress a few buttons specific to your DAW of choice and the faders, pan knob, mute, solo, record and channel select buttons all come to life. It took me some time to realize the navigation between tracks in Studio One was achieved by using the track forward and back arrows which is different than navigating in other DAWs which is achieved using the SCENE button that gives you an LED indicator as to which set of faders you are for 5 different scenes of 8 channels of fader strips which appear not to be available and do not light up to indicate which scene you are on for Studio One users. Maybe it is possible to set this indication display to become active in the midi device edit software but I am not adept at that kind of programming at the moment. I overcome this by keeping a mental note of where I am and use the select button on the channel strip in conjunction with the track button to highlight the channel I want or at least one close to it. Hoping Korg and Studio One can address this issue and make this a little easier and work instead with the SCENE button. It also took me a little time to figure out that CYCLE is used as a toggle on/off for the loop function; but the marker buttons and SET buttons were easy enough to figure out to make and navigates between markers.

I also had an issue with the wireless bluetooth functionality even after downloading the BLE-MIDI software from Korg for Mac where I was able to connect but would lose connection every time I hit the track select button to navigate between tracks. Very frustrating but it works well enough connected by USB and at the price point for this device I was able to look past this failing.

Above everything else, the jog wheel and STOP, PLAY and RECORD buttons were the easiest to comprehend and use.

The price is very affordable and the build is light but the plastic pieces do not feel flimsy. I would highly recommend this device for budget minded DAW users who work better with a tactile experience.

I bought this to use with Cakewalk Sonar and spent several hours trying to get the bluetooth feature to work and read tons of forums and watched I don't know how many videos on Youtube but nothing I tried worked . I was about to give up when I was going through all the settings in Sonar and I saw a setting under Preferences | MIDI | Playback and Recording and I changed the MIDI driver mode from MME to UWP and then it started working. After some research I found that Korg actually worked with Cakewalk to develop the Bluetooth capability and I think it's strange that it's not mentioned in the documentation how to set this up. Anyway it works great now and I am very satisfied with it.

Sound Devices MixPre-10 is an awesome recording tool, Korg's NanoKontrol Studio makes the work-flow efficient. Will be using it in ProTools as well

This works great with Sonar. It was easy to set it to the correct mode. Really useful for the price.

The Korg nanoKONTROL Studio just joined the short list of products that have changed my life!

I was one click away from buying a Presonus FaderPort8 for much more money than I wanted to spend. While I was weighing the value of my frustration playing the wireless keyboard vs Logic ProX game - a/k/a how much was I willing to spend to work faster and smarter - I took a look on Sweetwater's website and came across the nanoKONTROL Studio. 1/3 the cost of the FaderPort8! I read the reviews and was skeptical of the negative posts from months back - I couldn't accept that that those conditions would still exist for a product on the market more than a year now. My skepticism was well-deserved, because whatever used to be wrong with it ISN'T WRONG ANYMORE.

Ordered it late aft Friday, free shipping and it got it first thing Monday - Indiana to Florida :-) Matt McKibble and the shipping department at Sweetwater ROCK!

IMPORTANT: Read the Quick Start Guide FIRST!!! Resist the urge to turn stuff on and then pout when it doesn't work :-)

The unit is super slim, light, and comfortable to use. The Quick Start Guide inside the box directed me to download ALL of the support software from Korg BEFORE I powered the unit on. I installed Korg's MIDI driver, Bluetooth app (see below), KontrolEditor software, and the custom plug-in for Logic ProX onto my Mac Mini... and THEN I turned the unit on. Guess what...

IT JUST WORKS!!!

Completely seemless working with Logic. The jog wheel ALONE makes this unit a worthy investment, but overall - it's the perfect control surface for any project studio where you're playing/singing and driving Logic at the same time.

One small hitch in the road which wasn't Korg or Sweetwater's fault: I installed Korg's bluetooth app from Apple app store, only to find out my MacMini (mid 2010) doesn't support BT 4.0, which the nanoKONTROL Studio requires to be wireless. No problemo, I went online and ordered a BT 4.0 USB dongle for $7.00 :-)
Meanwhile, I'm up and running via USB (fyi-it's advisable to take the batteries out when using usb, just like the friendly documentation says), and a few days away from running the show inside my vocal booth! That makes me VERY HAPPY.

After a week of trying to get FaderPort Classic to work with Sonar Platinum, and a frustrating experience dealing with slow and unresponsive support from PreSonus, I bought the Korg nanoKontrol Studio. I'm really glad I did. Installation was as easy pushing a few buttons on the Korg and telling Sonar to recognize it as a MIDI device and control surface. For those comparing FaderPort Classic to the Korg, here are some key differences. The Korg is preconfigured for Cubase, Digital Performer, Garage Band/Logic, Live, Pro Tools and Sonar without downloads (FaderPort requires two). Since the Korg uses Mackie Control and has easy to use control software available, it can be configured for other DAW's. Korg has a jog wheel, making it very easy to quickly scroll through tracks. Korg has faders, pans, and record, solo, mute and select buttons for each of eight tracks (and the faders are not upside down as another reviewer said). The buttons have a nice soft touch instead of the hard and clicky buttons on the FaderPort. And a huge feature for those who record alone, the Korg has Bluetooth so you can control your DAW from across the room. I've been missing that since Tranzport. Numerous instructions are available on the Korg site, including a quick start guide and 20-page manual. It also comes with a lot of free software including UVI's Digital Synsations, four retro synths with over 9 GB of samples. Purchased separately, the software would cost more than the Korg. Could Korg have put a metal cover on the Studio for more money instead of nice plastic? Sure, but I'd much rather have a functional and portable product that meets my needs and just works when it is supposed to. Overall, a super product with great value for the money.

Works great with Pro Tools. faders are precise and all buttons light up...

I found the NanoKontrol easy to set up and use.
I like the bluetooth keeps my desk a lot neater.
Would have given a five star rating if it had motorized faders but at this price point i can see why not.

Plays like a dream out of the box with logic. Excellent support targeting logic users.

absolutely beautiful piece.

Works with well with Cakewalk by Bandlab. Had to make some tweaks to windows for the driver to be recognized properly by Korg App & any DAWs. Needs to be one of the 1st 10 midi drivers on the system. other wise I would have given 5 stars.

I got this in conjunction with the nano pad, this turned out to be way more useful. Recording automation with it is awesome and smooth. I dont remember but i think this one or the nano pad came with some VST synths that i use all the time now.
Few things though, it wont auto map the transport controls to your daw, you have to download free ware from korgs website and even after fiddling with that for an hour i couldnt get it mapped to my daw (using fl studio 12)
Same thing with the solo/mute/record/select/scene/cycle. Which is not cool because that is primarily why i bought it. So i pretty much only use the knobs and the faders to record midi. Its worth the 150 if you can get the rest of the buttons to work though.

I've tried several controllers, all with limited success. So far this unit is the best value I have found.
The NanoKontrol Studio is of reasonable build quality considering features and price.
The documentation is almost non-existant, so set up took a while to figure out, but was simple in the end. I have used it with Digital Performer, Logic, Studio One and Pro Tools. You have to download the set up app and go to Global to configure the unit for each of those DAWs. You do not have to install batteries if you are using USB. On my system the Bluetooth operation worked, but compromised the wireless mouse performance, so I am using USB only. Personally I hate mixing with a mouse, and this at least lets you rough in a mix without touching the mouse. The throws are small, so fine adjustments aren't really possible. That said, the small foot print makes it easy to add to a crowded workstation.
Over all given the price and general performance it is worth considering.

Pros: it works, Has Bluetooth, lights up with one color. White
Would be cool if it had the rgb spectrum of led like everyother gadget.
Cons: cheap plastic construction, of the 8 channels 4 are
Upside down ( meaning the text on the channels and buttons) I guess to please people who like the faders on top?? Also may work with pro tools but not pro tools first!

I've read so many great reviews of this product which also warned that it was difficult to set up. But I figured I would be able to if other people have. I guess those people were a bit more tech-savvy than me, because it was a nightmare... and ultimately only partially successful. Firstly forget any notions of bluetooth ability if you have an up to date Mac. (Apparently Apple doesn't care about outside companies trying to keep up with constantly changing op-systems.) It does work on some older models, but my older Mac is running Logic 9, and guess what — it doesn't work with Logic 9. Or it may do... if I can find an older version of the Korg drive software... IF I can find it on the web somewhere. This came directly from a Korg tech guy who informed me that he doesn't know anything about Macs.

And don't think Sweetwater techs are going to help you with this either, as lovely as they are, and as much as they may try to be helpful, (I must give Keaton a gold star for really trying and working hard for me)— but you will be directed through a circular logic maze of badly constructed manuals with bass-ackward descriptions of how to get it working, which will ultimately lead you back to the original article you started at, being now none the wiser as to your original goal.

So... did I get it working. Well... yes... and no. I've decide to forget about Logic 9, and just continue using my mouse and keyboard for that. I did get it working on Logic X on the newer Mac, but only with a USB cable, and using a Mac USB driver. And I'm just about to upgrade to Big Sur, so please keep your fingers crossed for me, because I have no idea what's in store.

In terms of functionality, it works fine. It seems well made and the buttons are good. The only thing it could probably use is a master volume fader, but hey I knew that going in.

So if you're really comfortable with computer idiosyncracies, and love a challenge, I day go right ahead. But if you're mainly a musician for who the computer is a necessary work tool, and you don't want to waste precious music making time futzing around with technology, you may want to reconsider this, and spend a few more bucks getting something else.

Huge disappointment, because this could be such a perfect product. Physically it's a great, small, light weight, device gives you awesome daw control for 8 channels at a time of volume and panning, with a great transport control and jog wheel for navigation. Minus automated faders, it's comparable to the X-touch or Faderport at a fraction of the price. Probably the cheapest way to get into physical daw control. Unfortunately, if you use logic and have an updated Mac none of that will matter because the drivers won't download, and the Bluetooth capability is worthless.

If they ever updated this product, and cooperated with Mac on their stingy OS updating frequencies, it could be an incredibly vital product. It was the only product I knew of that allows for studio console-like control of your computer through Bluetooth functionality. If they updated this product with a rechargeable battery or some way to plug the device in to an outlet while still using its Bluetooth capabilities, and fixed whatever is preventing it from working universally for all daws, it would definitely be a huge seller. Until then it's a solid cheap utility daw controller if you happen to have a computer old enough to use it.

Oh, and if you ever email Korgs support asking about this product, expect them to never email you back. Hopefully this review saves you some time.

I bought this 3 years ago when it first came out. It's very cheap looking in real life and the instructions for setup at that time were horrible, Please keep in mind, you don't have motorized faders so for $100 more you can have true automation. You could do a whole lot better buying a Icon or Behringer controller in that price range, I would say, don't waste your money. Save up an extra $100 and get something that has more functionality and is better made.

This nanoKONTROL Studio cuts out after using it for about 30 seconds. I thought that this was a problem with Bluetooth but it does the same thing on wired. Too late to send it back, don't get this. It needs to be updated. Absolute trash.

Connecting the device was impossible. Would not connect on a MacPro (Late 2013) running Montery to Digital Performer 10.

I even got assistance from Sweetwater and they were helpful but we could not find a solution.

If you intend to use this product with an iphone or ipad do not buy it. Korg has a known issue with IOS 13 in bluetooth connectivity and many users cannot implement the fix. Korg only provides email support and the support is very slow and terrible. I tried to fix this problem last December and gave up. It is trash. I would give it zero stars if i could.

The instructions for setting the unit up for use with my DAW were non existent, so after quite a few tries at setting up, I have decided to return this unit for one that is already pre-mapped for REASON. I am sure it works like a champ with other DAWs.

LOGIC USERS -Buyer beware, This product looks as cheap as the pictures. You get what you paid for.
Setup seemed easy but the product did not work. There was very little documentation to help with setup.
product will not work without plugin from website but trying to find the plugin requires the skills of Sherlock Holmes. Installed plugin after 35 minutes of searching the web. and after following directions product would not function.
Customer service is 3-5 days email only. Korg clearly is not behind this product
The whole feel of the product is cheap.

IF you are a person who likes for things to work you will be frustrated. there is a reason that you will find very little info on this product online. IT SUCKS. don't waste your time