Home Beatmaking & Production KORG padKONTROL Review: Time Marches On

KORG padKONTROL Review: Time Marches On

by Stuart Charles Black
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Greetings mate and Welcome aboard. Stuart Charles here, HomeStudioBasics.com helping YOU make sound decisions, so…

Today we’ll take a look at an ancient relic and determine whether or not it’s worth a purchase in today’s market.

If you can believe it, I first bought one of these all the way back in 2007. A more detailed, humorous explanation of the encounter with the salesman can be found in my What is MIDI? article.

It served me well for many years, but is it still relevant today?

Let’s dive in and review Korg’s venerable padKONTROL, a MIDI Controller that makes me feel a bit nostalgic for the past, but one that could be outdated in the current landscape of MIDI devices.

If it is, I’ll point you in the direction of something worthwhile!

With that, let’s dive in.

All specs, box contents, and pricing towards the end.

Introduction

Korg padKONTROL Review

The concept of playing drums with your fingers has become an odd and controversial one in recent years.

If you were to tell someone in 1975 that you were triggering sounds with a square piece of plastic and 16 rubberized pads, they would probably laugh at you.

Nowadays it has become commonplace.

Though I have received a few less-than-flattering remarks over the years, that doesn’t change the fact that I loved using the padKONTROL (for the most part).

Drum pads give musicians an easy way to vent their frustrations and stress after a long day and also happen to be incredibly therapeutic. 

For a long time, my go-to stress relief was banging out a sample on the padKONTROL.

There’s something so magical about hearing a sample come together to form a crazy beat, but as for the unit itself, where do I even begin?

The original white model lasted 9 years from 2007-2016 and was used pretty much daily.

The only reason I sold it was because the knob that you see pictured (under the 5.01), broke on a flight to Greece somewhere in luggage claim.

One of the only images of my original white padKONTROL

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Seen here with the MPD18, circa 2014

Being that it’s such a rock-solid piece of equipment, I can only surmise that the reckless handling of my bag had something to do with it.

Though it still technically worked, making songs was a lot harder because the knob that broke is what enables you to switch between keys and sounds.

So I eventually snagged another one on eBay (this time in all black) and you know what they say… never mind we won’t go there lol.

Build and Ergonomics

Korg padKONTROL Review

Weighing in at a shade over 2 lbs. (2.12), the padKONTROL is substantial enough to quell any doubts you may have about longevity.

Given it’s a MIDI Controller only, it’s not overly bulky or heavy and integrates into most setups nicely. 

One of the main reasons I kept it around so long is because of the sensitivity, response time, and overall feel of pads specifically. They feel incredible to the touch, register note hits perfectly, and light up red when you touch them.

Likewise, all of the other knobs and buttons feel fantastic as well. Dials specifically have a nice amount of give to them and don’t feel cheap.

When idle, the pads also cycle through a series of patterns that look pretty cool at night, adding an element of flare to your space.

I’m a super visual person, and I’ve always loved the look of the padKONTROL. There’s just something about it that I can’t quite.. put my finger on.

Features

Korg padKONTROL Review

The controller offers versatile features for music production and performance.

It includes 16 illuminated drum trigger pads that provide access to drum sounds, samples, and loops while also controlling virtual synthesizer effects and video clips.

The assignable KAOSS-inspired X-Y touchpad enables natural flams and rolls and adds real-time control over dynamics and effects, or it can be assigned to manage any two continuous controllers.

Two additional knobs provide extra control for MIDI parameters, while a built-in display confirms the messages or values being sent. Once configured, users can save their setup in one of 16 user scenes, with 30 preset scenes available for instant compatibility with popular music software.

Korg padKONTROL Review

Each pad supports 8 dynamic curves or can be set to a fixed level, with the flexibility to assign specific MIDI messages for advanced functionality.

Pads can also send values upon release, functioning as buttons or switches for controlling virtual instruments, DAW software, and more.

Additional features include assignable knobs, a foot-pedal input, and transport control capabilities, making it a powerful tool for creative music production.

To streamline customization, the controller comes with editor/librarian software for Windows XP and Mac OS X, but this was one of its only complete failures which you’ll see in the video later.

Back Panel

Korg padKONTROL Review

The back contains a USB Type-B Jack, 5-pin MIDI Din I/O slots, the pedal input, power switch, and the DC 5V jack.

Functionality and Ease of Use

Over the years, I’ve had a bit of a love/hate relationship with the padKONTROL. Sometimes it works wonderfully and you can’t imagine life without it. Other times it makes you want to punch a hole in some nearby sheetrock. I’ve encountered everything from Scenes not saving, samples failing to map properly/out of order, samples not mapping at all, etc.

This is largely unanimous in reviews across the internet, and yes, it can also be incredibly confusing to set up initially.

The reason for this is twofold: Korg’s terrible user manual and their awful support. Seriously, the amount of button combos it takes to assign a sample to a pad makes Mortal Kombat fatalities seem like a walk in the park. 

OK, it’s not that bad but it will make you want to pull your hair out at some point; guaranteed.

It took me quite a bit of digging around the internet to figure out how to get it set up, but was it worth it? Probably. I made a lot of good beats with this thing, but it’s not very intuitive at all and favors some programs over others.

For instance, it worked pretty seamlessly with Reason but can be fairly finicky in FL Studio.

For Reason:

  1. Go to Edit > Preferences (at the bottom)
  2. Click the drop-down menu where it says “page”
  3. Keyboards and Control Surfaces
  4. Click Auto-detect Surfaces
  5. If that doesn’t work, click Add
  6. Choose “KORG” from the Manufacturer dropdown
  7. Click “pad KONTROL” from the model drop-down menu
  8. For “In Port”, select padKONTROL 1 Midi In
  9. For “Out Port”, select padKONTROL 1 Midi Out

For FL Studio:

  1. Options > MIDI settings.

If your pad isn’t visible, click “Refresh Device List” at the bottom. You should see the pad appear.

Now click the “Enable” button and you’re ready.

You can also look for yours in the drop-down menu where it says “Controller type”, but generally speaking it should just appear under Input.

Mapping Sounds

  1. Hold the scene button, and tap a pad.
  2. Press the setting button (to the left of the scene button)
  3. turn the knob to any key you desire (G, C, A, etc.)

Tutorial

Assigning sounds in Reason

  1. Open up Redrum. Create > Redrum Drum computer.
  2. Click on a folder icon
  3. Find a Kick, snare, or hat in your sound pack.
  4. It should automatically be assigned to the padKONTROL in Scene 16.

Reason Tutorial

This is the best video I found for quickly getting started.

Assigning Samples in FL Studio

Once you’ve chopped your sample in Edison, navigate toward the top left and click Add > FPC.

Now go to the top right of the FPC and you’ll see 2 arrows pointing away from each other.

Right-click one of them and hit “empty.”

Alternatively, you can click on each pad and press “delete” to dump the sound, but who wants to waste time doing that?

In any event, now we can put our own sounds in. 

Before doing so, press F6 to bring up your channel rack, and note where it says “Empty.”

Right-click the button and hit “Rename, color and icon.”

Rename it to “FPC.”

On the very left where it shows the pad numbers, there’s an arrow pointing down.

Click that, and then hit “Map notes for entire bank.”

Shift your attention to the padKONTROL.

Hold “Scene” and press the first pad. Hit the setting button to arm the bank for samples.

Now physically press each pad on the padKONTROL, from left to right starting at the bottom left corner.

Now go back to Edison and on the very bottom left corner there’s an arrow.

Click it, scroll down to snap > snap to regions.

Now highlight the entire first slice in Edison with your mouse and drag it onto the first pad using the “Drag / copy sample / selection arrow that we used in Part 2 on the top right of Edison.

Do the same for the rest of the chops!

When you’re finished, the pads should look something like this:

Upon hitting one of the pads, you may notice the sample plays over itself and results in a terrible mess.

To fix this, use the Cut By feature (shown with the arrow above).

Near the top right of the FPC, you’ll notice it says “Midi Note” “Cut” “Cut by” and “Output.”

Both the cut and cut by are set to 0. Using your mouse, raise them each to 1 and repeat for all of the samples.

Now when you play a sample and hit it more than once in succession, it won’t overlap.

X-Y Pad

Korg padKONTROL Review

The coolest and most useful thing about the padKONTROL was the X-Y pad, allowing you to perform filter sweeps, resonance adjustments, cutoffs, pitch, speed, and modulation.

Here’s a great overview highlighting some of its features:

I can’t even begin to tell you how much fun I had playing around with the X-Y pad over the years, but I believe it’s time to say goodbye.

Final Verdict

Korg padKONTROL Review

Korg’s padKONTROL was a well-built, solid product that had a bit of a learning curve and could be a pain to use at times. That said, it still may be worth a look if you can find one at a good price. It has been discontinued, but I still have mine and plan to keep it in case I feel like messing around in Reason for old times sake.

If you need a more simplistic MIDI controller for Reason, try the Novation Launch Key Mini.

For users working in FL Studio, I recommend the Novation FL Key Mini; an incredible pad that’s been a Godsend for me since I primarily work in FL Studio nowadays.

Learn More:

 

Video Discussion

Take a trip down memory lane

 

Korg padKONTROL

Price: Discontinued

In The Box

Korg padKONTROL – MIDI Studio Controller

USB Cable

Power Adapter

Software CD-ROM (Not Pictured)

One (1) Year Warranty (Not Pictured)

Korg padKONTROL Review

Specifications

  • Connection: USB
  • Faders: No
  • Trigger Pads: 16
  • Transport Controls: Can be programmed for transport control functioning
  • Jog/Shuttle: No
  • Rotary Controls: 2 Assignable, 1x Settings
  • Numeric Keypad: No
  • Display: 7-segment, 3-digit LED
  • Multiple Units: Not specified by manufacturer
  • Included Software: Editor Librarian
  • Power Requirements: USB
  • System Requirements: Apple Mac with USB port, satisfying the operating requirements of Mac OS X (PowerPC supported) Computer with USB port, satisfying the operating requirements of Windows XP/Vista (Intel USB chipset recommended)
  • Dimensions: 12.4 x 9.2 x 2.2″ (315 x 234 x 55mm)
  • Weight: 2.12 lbs (0.96kg)
  • Specialties: X-Y pad
  • Package Weight: 3.7 lb
  • Box Dimensions (LxWxH): 14.5 x 10 x 3.1″

Well, that’s about it for today my friend! I hope you’ve enjoyed this Korg padKONTROL Review and came away with some valuable insight.

Questions? Comments? Requests? Did I miss the mark on something? Please let me know down below or Contact me!!

If you love what I do here and want to support the blog and channel in a more personal way, check me out on Patreon and discover all the value I have to offer you.

Any experience with the padKONTROL? I would love to hear from you. Until next time…

All the best and God bless,

 

 

-Stu

[Xtr@Ba$eHitZ]

Be sure to check out my Reviews and Resources page for more helpful and informative articles!

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KORG padKONTROL

4.8

Ease of Use

4.5/5

Aesthetic

5.0/5

Build Quality

4.8/5

Longevity

5.0/5

Pros

  • Nice features
  • Beautiful
  • Extremely sensitive pads. Nice to touch
  • Relatively easy to use
  • Build quality outstanding

Cons

  • Slight learning curve according to some.

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