Akai Professional MPK Mini Play MK3 25-Key USB MIDI Keyboard Controller | Velocity-Sensitive Mini Keys, 8 MPC Pads, 8 Knobs, Built-In Sounds, Speaker, Software Suite Included, for Beat Makers

If you're looking for a feature packed pro quality compact MIDI keyboard with a built-in speaker, built-in sounds, and battery powered to boot, this is it! Great for anyone looking for a MIDI you can use on the go, or for when space is limited. The built-in sound library and functions are actually all pretty good. The interface is very intuitive and on par with what you would find with other like MIDI keyboards. One thing that I want to note, if you find the volume of the built-in speaker low, hold the FULL LEVEL button on the left-hand side of your keyboard for about five seconds. A menu that shows v1, v2, v3, v4, and black bal with pop up. Turn black bal to 1.0 and all the rest to max. When done, hold the FULL LEVEL button again until you get to the original menu, and that should increase the volume of the built-in speaker. Connectivity and software integration is straightforward and very easy to get up and running. Great for both beginners and well-seasoned users. Battery life is also very good, and since you also have the option to plug it in, this thing is very versatile. All in all, very pleased with this device.

This MPK Mini Play MK3 is tiny and fits in my small overnight duffel along with a sustain pedal and stereo monitors (plus clothes and travel stuff)... amazing. I've owned many expensive full-size keyboards (like RD2000), and the synth sounds from this AKAI are surprisingly good and a reasonable General MIDI selection. Pianos, E-pianos, clav and harpsi are all good; organs are limited; basses are fine; string ensembles good but violin/viola not useful to me, drums are adequate, etc. The reverb is nice. The drum pads work while the keys are being played, so we've had two people playing on this tiny device... very fun. The keys are velocity sensitive (not weighted) and work fine for a 2-pound instrument. The joystick is very clever: push left to modulate volume (fade in, or volume dips for brass), right for vibrato, up and down for pitch shift. The octave transpose is essential (get the bass into the right register, get to the high strings) and designed just right. Too bad there isn't a chromatic transpose: for such a short keyboard, it would be nice to transpose on a song-by-song basis so we get the most of the keys that are here. The sustain pedal I like is item B08NSZFGC1, labeled Sovvid for $13. It works perfectly and is extremely lightweight. Most of my sustain pedals are very heavy, which is great for staying in place on stage but for travel this one is ideal. It is even lighter than a small footswitch. And it works with both electrical standards (normally open / normally closed). The lightweight speakers I carry are item B09PFGJ94L, Pyle 5.25" woofer 2-way active, though many other models (including active PC speakers with subwoofer) would work fine. Rated 300 watts (skeptica), these are plenty loud enough for a living room and they sound fine (but lacking deep powerful bass, as expected). Plug in the AKAI keyboard with a 3.5mm 15-ft stereo cable like Startech item B004G3WCNK $8. These Pyle speakers need a length of 2-conductor speaker or lamp cord to connect the passive speaker to the active one. In a pinch, the AKAI keyboard could be connected to a television analog audio input. The keyboard itself has a tiny speaker, but it's very limited.

I had this for about two weeks and I love it. I’m new to keyboards (I played a little when I was a kid), and this little guy is perfect. I leave it on the coffee table and pick it up when I’m feeling creative. The size is great and has been good for a beginner so far. The built in speaker and capability to be powered by batteries is another great plus. I also got a cord to connect with my headphones which is also great.

I love this thing. It's very good for writing away from your workstation. It is highly customizable as well with the software you can download from Akai. It connects flawlessly to my PC and DAW if I want to use it as a midi controller as well. For everything you get it is a good value as well. It's very lightweight to me, and I enjoy using it. However it does have a few problems. 1. the pads are iffy. They are very stiff, and to make them actually sound you have to tap them hard enough to sometimes hurt your fingertips. Tapping them that hard also makes them ring out other sounds from the other pads sometimes. 2. If you have big hands or fingers the keys are slightly too small to not hit other keys. 3. The built in speaker is no where near loud enough. 4. The joystick is a neat idea, but simply having the 2 expression wheels would be much better. Even two joysticks with only one function each would be better than the dual function joystick.

I love the stand-alone feature and it’s portable, so it’s fun to use anywhere

Wonderful device, as it both works as a midi controller connected to a computer, and a portable stand alone mini keyboard without a computer as it has internal sounds, drum pads, and built in speaker.

Other reviews covered the basics which make this keyboard a FANTASTIC VALUE! The big draw was the built in sounds and practice speaker with usable sounds that can be output through the headphone jack to external amp or speakers. I like the feel of these keys better than other name brands at 4 times the cost. Limited however in not having TRANSPOSE functionality on the board. Theoretically this can be adjusted through the computer and for each transposition use one of the 8 favorites. But I have other needs for those favorites! And could not get the software to complete the update to the board. Other boards in this series have an onboard transpose capability. Hoping they will add sounds and speaker to the 37 key version. Even with these limitations it’s still a 5 star value!

This is a wonderful instrument. I love being able to sit anywhere and experiment with sounds and chords. The range of the keyboard is limiting but it forces you to think more simply when creating, but that is what makes the keyboard extremely portable. The octave range buttons somewhat make up for limited keys. If I were to buy again, I would probably get the 37 key version, although it would make it less portable. Decent sounds that can be altered to your liking with good built-in speaker. So much fun.

Beautiful Easy to use and I made a remix of Final Countdown with. Anyone who follows the instructions can use properly.

I bought this akai Mpk Mini to use with my computer and ipad for songwriting. IUt does this very well. The keys have just enough weight to them to be playable and the drum pads are nice, however you have to hit them hard. The surprise with this one is that it takes batteries (not needed with computer use) because it has a full keyboard of sound onboard! This is a welcome treat because i can use it standalone for writing, and have even used it in a recording. The keyboard has several controls you dont see everywhere on a unit this small. Apeggiator, filters! and joystick pitchbend. very cool little keyboard.

All good, just hard to learn .

Parfait. Akai est une référence du domaine et celui ci ne fait pas exception. Il faut simplement penser à acheter une housse de transport en plus pour le ranger

Funciona perfectamente bien, es de un tamaño práctico, funciona con carga y a baterías. Tiene buen sonido y bastantes funciones, lo recomiendo.