Most DAW applications include an easy-to-use 'MIDI learn' function that makes assigning controllers near-effortless. Their travel of just under two inches is on the short side, but they're still quite usable. They're easy enough to find with your fingertips, and not prominent enough to be at risk of getting accidentally bent. The pitch-bend wheel is spring-loaded and produces a sticky kind of 'click' when moved up or down from its centre position, and both it and the modulation wheel are made of a hard plastic that, despite a 'ribbed' surface, still feels slightly slippery.īroad, low caps top the eight sliders, and these work well. The buttons beneath the display can be used, among other things, to save keyboard settings to one of 20 internal preset memory slots, from which they can be instantly recalled. Usefully, the keyboard can be split into three zones, which may overlap if required, and each zone can be assigned to a different MIDI channel. The QX49's keyboard has 49 full-sized keys, which feel a bit 'springy', but are basically OK, and certainly comparable to other keyboards in this price range.
ALESIS Q49 NOT WORKING UPDATE
The sliders, and pitch-bend and modulation wheels, likewise update the display when tweaked, which makes it easy to keep track of the data the keyboard is sending. Turn the fifth of the assignable knobs and the display shows 'K5 105', 105 being the MIDI CC value arrived at. For example, press the first of the percussion pads and the screen shows (for example) 'P1 93', P1 being the name of the pad and 93 the velocity value sent. This is large and easy-to-read, and provides useful real-time feedback.
One of the QX49's more attractive features is its LCD display. Those knobs work fine, but they also feel slightly wobbly, and the moulding of the plastic caps is a little uneven. It's in no danger of breaking, but it is disconcerting nonetheless, and not the kind of thing you'd find on a more expensive controller.
The top panel above the keyboard, for example, flexes quite noticeably, especially when the drum pads or knobs are in use. The QX49 manages to look more expensive than it is, but there are practical limits to the build quality achievable on a product in this price bracket. The pleasing look of the keyboard is perhaps slightly let down by its hands-on 'feel'. The QX49's back panel features a quarter-inch input for a sustain pedal, two MIDI Out sockets, a USB port, a power switch, and an input for an optional 9V power supply. Fortunately, it worked on the second attempt. My first attempt failed, however, ending in an error dialogue advising me to 'consult with your device manufacturer for assistance'. The QX49 is a 'class compliant' USB device, so installation ought to be as simple as plugging and playing. The MIDI and mains adaptor sockets allow the QX49 to be used alongside hardware sound sources in a computerless setup, or to serve as a basic MIDI interface for a computer-based studio. The back panel provides a pair of five-pin MIDI sockets ( for Keyboard MIDI Out and Computer MIDI Out), a standard USB socket for connecting to a host computer, a socket for connecting a mains adaptor (9V DC, 500mA, not supplied), a three-position power switch (the three positions being USB, Off and Power), and a quarter-inch jack socket for connecting a sustain pedal (also not supplied). At the left-hand end are pitch-bend and modulation wheels, Octave/Transpose buttons that shift the keyboard's range up or down, in octave or semitone increments, buttons to control various other keyboard functions, and a large and brightly backlit LCD screen.Īlong the top of the keyboard are, from left to right, eight assignable sliders, four assignable drum/percussion pads, eight assignable knobs, and a set of six sequencer transport buttons (loop on/off, rewind, fast forward, stop, play and record). Reasonably compact (32 x 9 x 3 inches) and lightweight, due to its all-plastic construction, it has a four-octave, 49-note keyboard. Visually, the QX49 makes a good first impression, managing to look clean and functional. It's cheap, but is it cheerful? We examine the latest controller keyboard from Alesis.
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