Cheap Alternative to Kontrol X1?
Any cheap alternative to a kontrol x1? I was looking at the Evolution UC 33e?
Not really bothered about build quality as it will be for studio use only.
allen and heath - k2
built in audio interface as well
reloop contour
The Behringer CMD series should be out soon..
This.
That.
Dude… you can get a X1 for $175 brand new if you shop around, or around $100 used. Doesn’t get much cheaper than that.
This and that.
More precisely it’s called CMD DV-1. Check it out.
The DC-1 is also very similar.
Indeed. It also has interesting firmware similar to MIDIfighters that sends extra note if you hold all four pads in any row or colon.
Instant Gratification mapping for the MF should be compact.
remember
this post could have been made a year ago..
I’ll jump on the used x1 train.
Around $120 is the cheapest on guitar center now
Just to put a new slant on this thread I’m gonna say … a used BCD3000
Solid build with more buttons and knobs than an X1 to map and a soundcard built in too.
Just about any of the early controllers from that generation with EQ knobs and buttons can be mapped to do what the X1 does with buttons and knobs to spare tho tbqh. I still use a BCD2000 in my setup, mapped much like an X1 to control FX, timecode modes, gains, browsing, loading, key, stop/play … etc and a few silly extra FX shenanigans with the faders, cos I had no other use for them 
I wouldn’t call a BCD solid in the construction department. It’s knob are decentish but faders and buttons are rubbish, It’s soundcard is subpar on anything bigger than a small bar and I found it quite temperamental in the almost 2 years I gigged with one. It was a nice unit in it’s day but there are way better options nowadays. I’d go for a used X1 or LPD8 (with taller knob caps).
The local shop I buy from here says theyll have the cmd’s on the 27th
BCD3000 feels cheap, sounds cheap but has the smartest control layout I’ve ever seen for a device that little!
I like the Xone:K2 and all, but the OP was asking for a cheap alternative to the X1 and the K2, last I checked, costs more than the X1.
If you need a sound interface as well, then the K2 is a nice option and has lots of controls, but if you are looking for cheap, then consider something else.
A lot cheaper, and not as nice or feature packed, but the LPD8 is £30 new and does a job as an extra controller
An LPD-8 is a nice cheap alternative. Also, if you don’t mind the workflow, a Novation Launchpad is not a bad MIDI controller for the price. I had mine mapped for 2 decks with basic transport, hot cues 1-8, multiple loop sizes, 2 FX units, EQs, and a mini instant-Gratification-like mapping PLUS I had traktor sending Deck A & B levels and mapped them to 4 of the pad less (bottom 2 green, 3rd one yellow, top one red) to see the rough deck levels.
You really do get a lot of controls for the money, you just have to be willing to use a button-based workflow vs. a knobs and fader workflow.