Eight faders, eight knobs and a row of channel switches, all running on a single USB cable. That is the whole proposition behind Korg's nanoKONTROL2, and at this footprint it will share a desk with a laptop and a small keyboard without a fight. Here it comes in black.
Faders where the mouse used to be
Every channel gets a knob, a fader and three switches of its own. Out of the box the rotary handles pan, the fader handles level, and the switches cover solo, mute and record arm. Writing automation on several tracks in one pass is where that layout earns its place. A marker button flags the parts of an arrangement you keep coming back to.
Turn it into a synth panel
None of these assignments are locked to a mixer. Aim the faders at a software instrument and they become envelope controls from attack through to release, with filter cutoff and resonance falling naturally to the knobs. Moves captured by hand carry a shape that drawn curves rarely match.
Bus powered, cable light
One lead carries the power and the MIDI traffic together. Nothing else needs plugging in. Anyone working from a cramped desk, or packing down after a gig at midnight, will notice how little there is to coil up.
Tablet rigs and the caveats
Apple's Camera Connection Kit lets an iPad talk to the controller without an external supply, which opens up Core MIDI apps such as iMS-20. Korg is upfront that it cannot promise this keeps working as Apple revises its hardware and operating system. Run a long session, or attach a second nanoSERIES2 unit, and a powered hub is worth having on the desk.
Kontrol Editor for the details
Deeper configuration happens in the Kontrol Editor, a free download from Korg. Each control can be pointed at a different message, and the range it sends can be narrowed by setting minimum and maximum values. That second option matters when a plugin only responds across part of the scale.
Where black earns its keep
A dark finish hides scuffs, disappears against a black console and photographs kindly under stage lighting. Beyond the paint, nothing separates it from the white unit. Pick whichever suits your desk.
