Saxophone Instrumental Wind Of Change

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.

Great little addition to any instrumental setting

it picks up all the great sound , i use it for my alto saxophone its works great ,sounds great .

The SM57 is an instrumental mic but it still works great as an interview mic as well for videos.

This cable was instrumental in helping me to setup dual monitor without buying an hub.

Very nice and well built reflector not only can it be used for recording vocals but also for saxophone too. worth the money!

Wind bad, this good. Keep wind out.

I have a little studio, and I use the mics far all sorts of stuff... this mic set is my instrumental mic set it does a good job with all my applications on musical instruments.

I've worked with many saxophone players and I played woodwind instruments. Not saying that I am an expert but I do have some experience with wind instruments. I am keyboardists with years of working with sampled saxophones. The samples have become better over the years but SWAM physical modeling is superior for duplicating the nuances and articulations of a real sax player. The only weak link is me. I need to think sax and not keyboardist when I use the SWAM plugin. My wife is a musician and when I would try to emulate a sax she would say 'that doesn't sound real'. Then I let her listen to a song with the SWAM Sax she said 'WOW, that's not you you're trying to fool me'. You won't be sorry with the SWAM Sax Virtual Instrument.

I use it with my iPad for backing tracks for vocal and saxophone solos. It works well and keeps me from having to coordinate with a sound person. I can control volume.