French Wind Instrument

I must admit, the first time I unboxed the instrument, I was amazed at the build quality. It has some heft, the keys are properly and ergonomically placed and you know Akai really took their time to perfect this wind controller. But as a long time saxophone player, the first time I actually played some scales, I was quite disappointed - it didn't feel like a saxophone. I was beginning to regret my purchase and thought about exchanging it for the WX5. So I gave it a few more days. Days turned to weeks, and I am beginning to appreciate this instrument. Keep practicing those scales, breathing with the mouthpiece and you realize how this is such an amazing wind controller. I made a mistake thinking that this is a replacement for a saxophone in an apartment situation. In reality, you should think about how this instrument can be an extension to your musical endeavors. The possibilities you can do with the sounds and playability are endless. There are a few usable synths prebuilt, but I suggest using the Akai EWI 5000 Editor to really play and edit your sounds then save it to the user bank. Also there are synths out there that can be used if you plug the EWI as just a midi wind controller; unfortunately you can't upload other synth sounds into the controller. Definitely give it some time to get used to the instrument especially moving from one octave to another. Keep practicing and you'll appreciate that there's hardly any moving parts here. I was opposed at it first since horns have that tactile and key feedback. But with the touch sensitivity, it really felt I was playing an instrument from the future. Again, you just have to get used to it - think about when mobile phones shift from physical keyboards to the modern phones we have today. And here I am today still keeping my purchase and writing a review. I thank Akai for making a top-notch wind controller and continuing the support for the modern electronic wind musician.

Can’t beat this little instrument for the money!

Fine instrument, does what it should do and more. I recommend it.

Great quality but the package was missing the french flag

It's a nice set of filters to use in my matte box with french flag.

Wind bad, this good. Keep wind out.

Pricey..but most know going into the process of printing at home that the ink is Mickey D's french fries...it's where the money is made. Although cheaper; I've never been interested in trying an off brand. These work every time

It's a good quality instrument that I like so much

Very steady for this heavy instrument.

(Sorry for my mistakes, i speak french) I used it last weekend for a wedding ... just incredible! Since i'm a journalistic type of photographer, this one was on my camera 85% of the time because it allowed me to focus on what i wanted without sacrifying the environement of my subject, wich is very important for a lifestyle photographer. Super quality image and color for portrait or landscapes.