hey it's Patrick here from the GarageBand guide.com
and this video I'm going to be taking a look at the iRig Keys IO from Ike a
multimedia and finding out if it's good with GarageBand
I came out to media have a track record of producing excellently playable and
flexible MIDI controllers for both Mac OS and iOS at affordable prices the
latest piece of kit the iRig keys io aims to be something more than just a
plug in and play keyboard however with ike a multimedia touting it as a total
music production system in a controller I mentioned before the I K excel at
manufacturing very playable controllers and this one is really no exception the
full-size keys on the more compact 25 key aisle I have here just feel really
good to play while the keys aren't weighted that's just not really a thing
at this price point they definitely have some half to them that feel satisfying
to play even if like me you have big fat sausage fingers I have done something
really interesting with the controls in the aisle where you might find
modulation and pitch wheels on other MIDI controllers here you'll find two
programmable touch control strips to be honest I was a little skeptical before
using them at first but n use the strips are really responsive and work great I
can have also used touch sensitive buttons for the other controls here -
you've got a dual action volume knob there and programmable data knobs on top
there's also a velocity sensitive pads on the right-hand side of the aisle so
you can SAP out your drumbeats things like that
so far so what right well the really interesting stuff going on but the iRig
keys aisle is on the back of the controller and my opinion the feature
that really sets the I you apart from other MIDI controllers in its class is
the inclusion of a 24-bit 96khz audio interface built right in in fact the
pretty much just added an iRig Pro aisle onto the back of the controller you're
getting the same jack / XLR combo and put here with an excellent quality
preamp as well as 48 volt phantom power how does it sound I think it sounds
great in fact I've recorded the voiceover for this video using the
interface built into the aisle so what else is on the back here well you'll
find balanced stereo outputs for studio monitors as well as a headphone output
jack which allows you to monitor directly from the unit the isle comes
with a couple of cables depending on what you want to plug it into and it is
worth noting that in my testing I found it to be plug and play with GarageBand
in both iOS on an iPad pro and the latest version of GarageBand on a
MacBook Pro running high sierra there's a socket for an optional power supply
and a toggle switch here which lets you switch between battery power the i/o
takes for double-a batteries which are required if you want to connect to an
iOS device without the optional power cable or USB power
Aiki multimedia are renowned for bundling and versions of the homegrown
software with their physical products and the iRig Keys IO is no exception in
fact I can have to wonder if I K have gone off the deep end the Weaver here
for Mac users the throne and the full version of SampleTank 3 the T racks for
deluxe mixing and mastering suite thus ensuring pro 5 synth and provided you go
for the 49 key version of the controller you're also getting the Miroslav
Philharmonic to seee orchestral workstation iOS users can download full
versions of SampleTank the central ik pro 5 and again provided you go for the
49 key option Miroslav Philharmonic 2 collection sort you're talking hundreds
and hundreds of dollars / euros / pounds worth of software that comes free with
this thing as if that wasn't enough I could just released a new control
surface plugin that allows you to completely control GarageBand using the
knobs and touch buttons on the ivory keys aisle very very cool and it's great
to see a company of this size go above and beyond to make sure their products
are fully compatible with GarageBand
so who is the Iraqis io4 then I came Elsi media are keen to push it as an
all-in-one solution for the musician on the go and with its a noticeably smaller
form factor and weight when compared to other similarly price controllers in its
class it definitely succeeds in that and my
opinion though the are you will also suit a musician on a budget who's not
only looking for a good quality but affordable midi controller but an audio
interface as well add in the balanced stereo outputs the addition of phantom
power and the ability to control your DAW of choice direct from the controller
itself and we're actually looking at a great option for a first or compact
all-in-one studio setup if you want to find out more about the iRig keys aisle
you'll find a link to my full written review in the description below this
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I've been Patrick from the GarageBandguide.com and I'll see you next time bye
for now