E-MU Xboard 25 Pro

Adam Coltman
March 1, 2009

Rating: 9/10

The E-Mu XBoard is a great instrument and the best MIDI controller in this price range.

The unit is solid enough - it has a tiny bit of flex under quite a lot of pressure, but it would definitely survive if you dropped it onto a hard floor. The keys are also very solid, responsive, and the aftertouch is a nice feature for live performance (although I turn it off for studio recording). The knobs probably feel the least secure part of the board, but still definitely sturdy enough to survive a few knocks. The MOD wheels have a nice resistance too them and are crafted from non-slip rubber. All in all, the X-Board is a pleasure to play with, and doesn\'t feel cheap like other controllers in this price range.

It\'s size makes it easy to incorporate into any recording studio - you can stick it nearly anywhere, and is light enough to be carried around to a different studio/gig with no problems.

The USB drivers that come with the X-Board install easily and I actually ended up using the controller through USB rather than MIDI, to save on cables and because it was easily fast enough. Some USB controllers at this level suffer from latency.

The ability to assign all the knobs to different controls is a great feature, but at the same time it can be hard to remember what does what due to the lack of labels. I recommend assigning the dials to the 16 controls you use most often and sticking with it.

In conclusion this is a fantastic buy and I recommend it to anyone who wants a small affordable MIDI controller. If you work alot with soft-synths in your studio then this really is great to lay down some melodies with speed and ease.

Lukasz Stasinski
August 14, 2007

Rating: 8/10

This will be a very short review because my english isn\'t perfect.
Why would any1 buy this little thing? To be ready to action on the road but not only...
The keys of this controller are very fine, the aftertouch feature (that\'s why I got this but not only because of that) is working gr8. Placement of the modulation/pitch wheels is ideal for me.
The knobs are working perfectly and the lcd screen is showing what it should be showing for good and easy work with the controller - it shows for example a midi CC number of the knob that was touched...
besides aftertouch I got this controller for normal sized keys... because I\'m gonna use it along with my 6 octave yamaha syntheswizer and will give me additional 2 octaves at the bottom for KSwitching the samples.
3rd reason: Included sounds... they are very fine on the road for making sketches of music...and there is really plenty of them.
Controller is conneted via USB and there is now problem with it in Windows. Not a single glitch.
I rate it 9 of 10 because to my taste keys would be a little more silent - if I stike them to achieve fortissimo they make a bit to much noise... on the road I\'m using mainly headhones but other people suffer from this noise....
if Yuo don\'t give a damn about others then it\'s 10 out of 10 for You for sure :D
Great piece of gear.

Patrick Weston
August 2, 2007

Rating: 8/10

Ok this is really a fast review as I'm quite new to the controller scene, having used only the full set of ivories in the past. So far though for a beginner I'm impressed. The touch sensitivity works very well and the keys certainly feel sturdy enough to last the course. The pitch wheel and the octave keys are equally well placed and easy enough to use on the fly. I'd say more on the control knobs but not had enough chance to learn up on them, since most tweaking I do through the computer itself. The board though is really well made and pretty darn sturdy...but with E-MU stuff ya kinda gotta expect it. But yeah...I saw it in the B-stock, took the chance and certainly so far has payed off.....also try not to stare right at the LED's...them blue boys are right royally bright. And yeah I know I said this would be a fast review...ma apolagies.

If ya a real ol' newbie like moi and ya not sure as the reviews a mere skim, might be an idea to ring up or try the forums for the extra info I've devilishly missed...but ya wanna take a risk at a good ol' set of keys...this is ya pup.