One's mine, one's my BF's brother's. For the price, I'd say it's pretty hard to beat - but only if you think you would use the pads. The keys are a bit too light for my taste, but they suffice for what I need. I primarily use the keyboard part for writing synth melodies and putting in some chords here and there. I have basically an MPC style sampling setup in Reaper that I control with the pads on this, I can send you some info on how to set it up if you're interested. I use the pads for all my "live" drums to give a bit more of an organic feel. I never use the knobs or the arpeggio function, but they seem to work fine. The joystick-style mod wheel takes some getting used to, but I like it a lot.
So I actually just got back from checking out some controllers at the music store. The key feel on the Akai was a bit underwhelming, but I did like the way the keys felt on some Yamaha devices. I'm not actually looking to hook it up with a computer much, but rather use it with the volcas, so I'd like to find something with some advanced arpeggiator abilities (latch, ascend/descend scale - think Stranger Things intro arpeggio) and maybe some built-in sequencing that is a bit more user friendly and programmable than the volca FM's sequencer.
I've had an Akai LPK25 since it came free with Komplete 7. It's every bit as underwhelming as Akais have been going back to the AX60. It does have some dumb little arpeggios but it's also only USB out. By far the best controller I've ever owned is an A80 but it has fuckall for arpeggios.
Well I have my ideal controller in mind, and I've been running under the assumption that it's out there: I just need to find it. Basically what want is to control hardware by midi, I don't really need computer/software interfacing because I just can't be creative with a computer as my interface. Basically I want something with a powerful built in arpeggiator, and a powerful built in sequencer. For the sequencer I'd want something where I can save an X-bar sequence to a button, and another Y-bars of sequence to another button, and then press buttons 1-through-z in order to create a whole song structure that will play consecutively (like Y x 3, X, Z x 4, Y, etc.). To me, this seems like a basic want from a controller, but my initial forays into searching the controller world suggest this isn't a thing.
Unless I'm completely misunderstanding your quest, your yearning reflects a fundamental failure of Korg's marketing department. In a bid to stay relevant as a keyboard workstation manufacturer while the whole world went inside the box, Korg took some weird sequencing stuff from this guy named Stephen Kay, raided their stillborn OASYS workstation (not that one, the one it stole the name from) and came out with the Karma, basically a much-maligned play-by-numbers workstation that attempted to bridge two worlds that hated each other - on-stage cover musicians and basement-dwelling Ableton nerds. It lasted not very long. Either you were exactly the guy that wanted standard corporate Korg workstation sounds combined with weird-ass Ableton tweakology or you hated the abomination. They were pretty much always available at steep discount from music stores. Eventually they came out with the actual OASYS and put "Karma technology" on it because bloody hell, they were proud of it and if you were still buying keyboard workstations in 2005 you sure needed all the onboard sequencer fun'n'games you could afford. Even now, sixteen years later, the Kronos and every other big keyboard workstation you've never considered has "Karma" on it. Thing is, though, you're still talking about mashing a button and launching a string which is far more in the realm of the Akai MPC school. See also: NI Maschine. "Classical groove boxes" means MPC60. You can download it for iPhone for like $10. My buddy Dante put this song together on his phone in like half an hour.my initial forays into searching the controller world suggest this isn't a thing.
Those Korg videos. Those came out post 90s? It does the kind of thing I want, but probably a little too much menu diving for my tastes. I think what I want is a bit more bare bones even: like the sequencer built into the volca, except like 3 of them stacked together, with some more buttons. Even the arp on the volca would be fine with a couple more functionalities and a few more buttons rather than all the settings jammed in 10 positions on a 1 cm diameter knob.
Honestly? 1) Stack sequencers 2) Buy some Doepfer 3) Learn Reaktor or Bidule, which is hardly stepping out-of-the-box. The problem is MIDI is a digital protocol which means the chipbenders don't fuck with it much, but what you're looking for is pretty advanced analog behavior which means you either need to be a diehard chipbender or you need to do it in the box. In the box is so much easier.