Im looking at buying a midi controller such as the novation launchpad. The problem im having is that they only seem to be supported on XP or Vista operatings sytems. My PC runs windows 7 64bit - i cant seemt find anything that is supported in windows 7.
Can any one help - it doesn’t need to be the launchpad it can be anything else as long as its supported. I already have a behringer BCD2000 that wont work as they dont provide the drivers, also have a midi keyboard that wont work as the midi to usb that i use to conect is also not supported - so fed up with this!
really depends what you’d like to do with it mate,
i have a ni maschine and a novation sl mk2 to be honnest i barely use the novation sl mk2 for anything other than a midi keyboard,
key questions you have to ask are you looking for a controller for producing or performing
what are you looking to control? i.e. samples, channels etc?
and what budget do you have
Mate if your looking at getting the novation launchpad, DON’T! Get yourself the Akai apc20 it’s so much better to use and i have had loads of fun with mine since getting it:cool:
As for it working on windows I am unsure on that but I say your best bet would be to email Akai or ableton and ask them, that or go on to the ableton forum as there should be a few geeks in the know there!
I read on Akai website that APC40 is plug & play which means no drivers needed… just launch ableton, plug in the APC40, go to the settings and select APC40 as a midi controller and you’re good to go… so, it must be the same for APC20.
But i thought APC20 was an extension to the APC40… i was not aware that you can use APC20 as a “standalone” controller.
The APC20 can work by itself.
I am a big fan of Akai products personally. They are well built, have alot of features, and wont break the bank. Get whatever you want, but you should do your research first. Don’t buy something because someone else says you should.
You should get something with keys (midi keyboard) for sure. Drum pads as well. Everything else is just secondary (ala launchpad…ala APC).
Hi Guys,
Thanks for the help. My main concern at the moment is to find out which controllers, keyboards etc will be recognised with my windows 7 64 bit system. As i mentioned previously i already have a 64key studiologic midi keyboard that wont work because the midi to usb lead im using is not supported in 7 64 bit, also my Berhinger BCD 2000 controller is not supported. Previously when i was on XP all these worked fine and there would have been no need to buy anything new.
However now i have no controller or midi keyboard which i consider to be an essential part of my productions. I have been on the berhinger website and there are no drivers available they only go to 32 bit versions. I suppose the suggestion of ableton forums or contacting the manufacturers is a good idead.
Does anyone know of a midi to usb convertor that will work with windows 7 64 bit at least i would be able to get my keyboard working then?
[quote]
You should get something with keys (midi keyboard) for sure. Drum pads as well. Everything else is just secondary (ala launchpad…ala APC).[/quote]
I used to think this but I disagree now. I used to own NI’s Maschine together with a Novation SL25 Mk II, and, much like the poster above, found myself mainly using Maschine. I’ve since sold the keyboard and input everything via Maschine (either as a plugin or straight MIDI controller. I’ve found it liberating getting away from the keyboard.
[quote]mejaques_uk@hotmail.com (11/05/2010)[hr]Does anyone know of a midi to usb convertor that will work with windows 7 64 bit at least i would be able to get my keyboard working then?[/quote]
Not yet… I also have Windows 7 Pro x64 and experienced the same problem. A friend gave me his midi to usb convertor and it was not recognized…
Since then, i bought an external sound card (M-Audio Fast Track Pro), downloaded the Windows 7 x64 drivers from the website, plugged my Yamaha RS7000 in the midi IN and now, i can use it as a midi controller… 
But at the moment, i don’t know any windows 7 x64 compatible “midi to usb converter” …
Thanks Mike, Think i will have a look at soundcards to solve the issue. 