Helicon 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.

I use this for my tc helicon Play Acoustic it fits perfect. Made very well all metal. Love It!

I bought this to connect my TC HELICON GO XLR and it worked great fantastic item.

I use a TC Helicon harmonizer and my dynamic mic wasn't pushing it very hard. I actually had to turn the input gain to max. Once I put the FetHead on my mic I got plenty of signal to my Harmonizer and actually had to turn down my preamps in that signal. Thanks Triton!

I love this kit! The footprint is only as big as the bass unit, so no cumbersome stand-mounted speakers to fiddle with. I like that there are three inputs built in, so you can do more with this version than you could with the previous version without also buying an external mixer. I use this for acoustic guitar and vocals, both of which are first run through a TC Helicon. I know it sounds great that way, but have not yet tested it without the Helicon. With my current kit, I definitely sound better than I really do. For now, this is set up in my dining room, and I'm playing for an imaginary audience. But as soon as I'm up for it, I no longer have the excuse that I don't have the gear to do a proper gig. I have other excuses, but am working on those, too. Down side? The box was mangled pretty badly by the time FedEx made the delivery three days late, but nothing inside was damaged. For $1,800, it would have been nice for Bose to include a cover for the bass unit along with the very nice carrying case that was included for the stick speaker units. Also, I love the bluetooth remote controls that mimic the controls on the back of the bass unit, but it would be nice if there was a master volume control included. As it is, you have to adjust each input separately.

Can’t beat this little instrument for the money!

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

Wind bad, this good. Keep wind out.

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

Very steady for this heavy instrument.