Push for Ableton Live was a breakthrough product allowing unimagined control over a DAW and delivering a whole heap of fun in the process. Push MKII simply improves on the original concept and takes this even further.

The Numark NS7III is a complete all-in-one control surface for Serato DJ that integrates a mixer, display and motorised platters with the Serato software. As far as hands on DJing goes only actual turntables gets any more hands on so how does this perform?

Native Instruments Komplete Kontrol range of keyboards are targeted mainly at users who already own the Komplete 9/10 packages. Competing heavily with the Akai Advance the features have been ramped up with VST support being recently added in the latest 1.5 software update. So how does it perform and what value does one get for their investment? 

For 2 weeks there have been rumours about a new version of the Ableton Push controller and on Tuesday morning I awoke to news that a new version of Push (conveniently called Push 2) was now available. 

Native Instruments and Akai are in a fight for sales with their latest Advance and Komplete Kontrol keyboards with many users drawing direct comparisons between the 2 products. Both companies offer the same selection of keyboards with NI just announcing a new 88 key version in their range and both choices are around the same cost. The other thing these both offer is advanced integration with your DAW and control over your plugins. But which is the keyboard for you? Well if you are like me you are hard pressed to decide until you actually get hands on with both so I have done exactly this and can compare both offerings for you...

Ableton Live has probably more dedicated control surfaces available for performance than any other DAW but the Push controller is the first actually designed and engineered by Ableton specifically for integration with Live and for lovers of Live (such as myself) it finally adds some much needed creativity and control that is not just aimed at "live" performance. 

MIDI keyboards and controllers are like wild flowers, found everywhere and in a variety of flavours. So to make something that actually stands out in the crowd takes some forward thinking and this is what Akai have attempted to achieve with the Advanced range of keyboard controllers. 

The BCF2000 MIDI Control Surface is a cost effective way of adding a tactile feedback device to a DAW. When you look at a professional big studio, one of the most dominating features you will always see is the huge mixing console with rows of faders and knobs and lights. For us gear heads this is a dream position to be in but there is a serious need for this kind of mixing surface.

The BCF doesn't quite (or even closely) live up to these professional devices but does bridge the gap allowing the every day hobbyist to have just a portion of that control and automation in a very small and cost effective price.

The Frontier Design Alphatrack is a single channel DAW control surface that offers channel and DAW control in a nice small footprint. One of the key features of the controller is the 100mm touch sensitive motorised fader that offers an immediate visual feedback and ability to adjust and automate a channel quickly. But is 1 fader enough?

Mackie have long been an industry standard between DAWs for mixing surfaces and many new knock offs use the Mackie protocol for talking with the DAW. The previous Mackie Control went unchanged for years and there was rarely a complaint about this as it was a great design and a winning control surface for many DAW applications. 

The latest release will have a keen eye notice that there is little that has changed apart from a new and updated style. The actual control options and layout are exactly the same. So how does it perform? Well I have updated my original review from 2 years ago to include information relevant to my last 2 years of experience with this product.