Audiobus: Use your music apps together.
What is Audiobus? — Audiobus is an award-winning music app for iPhone and iPad which lets you use your other music apps together. Chain effects on your favourite synth, run the output of apps or Audio Units into an app like GarageBand or Loopy, or select a different audio interface output for each app. Route MIDI between apps — drive a synth from a MIDI sequencer, or add an arpeggiator to your MIDI keyboard — or sync with your external MIDI gear. And control your entire setup from a MIDI controller.
Download on the App StoreAudiobus is the app that makes the rest of your setup better.
Comments
Depends. What are we working with Desktop, IPad, Laptop. Is it staying in the studio? Are you a keyboard player? Does the music you create need complex melody or simple harmonies/melodic elements? Lots of factors matter in selecting the right controllers.
For me. I use Logic, Komplete, Maschine, Battery, Kontakt when in studio so Native Instruments S49-88 are my favorite.
For iPad. CME Xkey Air 25. However, honestly I don’t need a keyboard for iPad and have been using them less and less. Logic, Zenbeats and BM3 are the main tools I use and they all have great onscreen Midi controllers that allow all the expression you need from mpe to modulation.
Logic Pro on iPad has now firmly placed iPad Pro on an island in terms of true Standalone device. Nothing else is needed. Nothing. The available midi control surfaces are amazing. Together with Scaler 2 you can create Symphonies, Jazz to EDM, Ambient and Hip Hop from beat to vocals to mastered and uploaded to any Streaming site.
I really REALLY love my little Roland J-6. Not sure if it counts as a keyboard. I think so. But it’s mostly a Chorder that has keys.
Here are my favorites at two price points. These are both semi-weighted action which works best for me (I am too lazy to carry the extra weight required for hammer-action).
M-Audio Keystation 61 MK3: $200 USD. Decent semi-weighted action. Very compact (just a few buttons and one fader; no pads or knobs).
Arturia KeyLab MkII 61: $470 USD. Higher quality than the M-Audio. Slightly better semi-weighted key action. Plenty of knobs, faders, pads, buttons, etc. Aluminum body. The white version looks very nice (in my opinion).
I posted the new Arturia because it seems to be all the rage on YouTube . Great and informative comments from both of you though I must say . Thanks .