Customer Reviews

M-Audio iControl GarageBand Controller

5 star:		(6)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

I hooked the iControl up to my iMac and without doing anything else it functioned perfectly (well almost, see below*). I tried it out on one mixdown and it made working with GarageBand much easier than using the mouse. Contrary to what some reviews in magazines have said, the "Option" button does function and is quite helpful, just read the instructions which are rather brief. However, the device is so intuitive that the instructions are good enough. I was able to access many more GB functions with the iControl than I thought possible. Based on all of the above I would have given it five stars....
*But, one of the eight rotary knobs broke the first time I tried to turn it. The knob was actually cracked. I returned the unit to Amazon for an exchange. Amazon's exchange policy is great and I am sending it back, at their expense. Meanwhile, they are sending me another before they receive the return which is good customer policy. I must say that I was hesitant to ask for an exchange rather than a refund, but I really liked the darn thing. So, I'm going to give M-Audio the benefit of doubt and hopefully I will not have any problem with the new unit. If it is not defective than I would definitely give it five stars. But, I'll have to reserve judgement until then. When I get the new one and try and it for a few days I'll update my review.

UPDATE - Rec'd second unit in exchange from Amazon and guess what, same problem. The top rotary potentiometer knob was loose out of the box and lasted almost an entire 2 minutes before it broke off. I am sending this back for a refund, no more exchanges for me. M-Audio has a design or manufacturing defect and with the experience I had (twice) I do not trust that the iControl would even make it through the warranty period. I have other mixers and gear by Mackie, Tascam etc. for years without any problems; and that equipment has been used at home and on the road. I am going to put my refund towards a USB or Firewire mixer since the second version of GB allows true multitrack recording. I will see what Mackie or Behrlinger have available. The mixer would be useful for recording. The iControl would have been useful for post-production editing, but for that I will stick with my wireless mouse. What a major disappointment.

BTW - I tried to change my rating to ONE STAR but apparently that cannot be done while editing one's review.

At first I was a little sceptical, but after using it, I can't imagine using Garageband without it! I can finally stand up and play, fiddle with the effects, change tracks, and record without ever having to sit down and mess with stuff. I works seemlessly, no software to install, no fuss, no muss. Well worth the money!

With the price halved from its original suggested retail price, now is a great time to pick up this gem that lets you get hands on control on GarageBand mixdowns. That, by the way, is when the unit shines. From panning, to volume, to tweaking effects, you get to avoid the annoying and imprecise mousing approach and use a unit that's solidly built with intuitive, responsive controls (even the knobs offer great "click" feedback to subtle adjustments). What's especially great is the complete integration with GarageBand. iControl becomes a seamless extension of the software. I happen to think that GarageBand is a hugely underrated, and very powerful, loop and recording package. iControl takes it to the next level.

*** As of Sept 22, 2009 this review still holds true. The newest versions of GB work just as well with this controller as the one I used when I wrote this review 3 years ago ***

This is a great controller for Garageband (it should be since it was designed specifically for it) and it integrates seamlessly with the GB interface. Using the iControl is much more efficient than navigating around with a mouse all the time. The main unit itself seems pretty solid and sturdy, however, as other reviewers have pointed out, the little knobs for the track controls have a fatal design flaw that causes them to crack and break. Basically they wrap around the metal nut for the controller in a "C" shape, causing stress on the corners, which ultimately causes them to break. I suspect that if they had closed that "C" shape into a "D" shape they would be much more sturdy.

Now, unlike others I didn't return the controller, because it is great, and to disregard its usefulness simply because of a knob seemed wrong.

I called M-Audio tech support today and they are sending me some spare control knobs, free of charge, and I suspect that if others do the same they will be more than happy to send them a few extra knobs, since they probably cost M-Audio next-to-nothing, as opposed to refunding the price of the whole unit.

I'll probably end up epoxying the knobs to the spokes, since I can't see any reason why I'd need to take them off.

As a side note, the iControl is recognized by Logic too, but I can't comment on its usefulness there since I am a n00b when it comes to the more complex audio editing suites. Just an interesting tidbit I stumbled on.

This control surface is awesome if your using Garageband on your Mac. It allows you control a ton of garageband's more tedious mousing features. The jog wheel rocks. The endless rotary knobs make dialing in the right parameters a breeze, even on multiple tracks at once. You can even setup your effects and plug-in parameters with ease. The setup was nonexistent. Just plug it in and start using it. Garageband knows what it is and how its used. No fiddling with setting up faders, knobs, or buttons. Take it out of the box, plug it in, launch garageband and your done with setup. If you need a little help using it M-audio.com still has the .PDF user manual available.

The cons: Doesn't work with Logic, pro-tools, cubase, sonar, nuendo...etc. so if you want to upgrade your DAW you'll have to go back to the mouse or spend about $1000 on a bigger badder control surface to run a bigger badder program. (I'm an m-audio fan and I like their ProjectMix I/O, which controls all the above programs, right out of the box) I keep garageband in my workflow as a musical scratchpad for getting ideas down quickly while I'm working on a piece in Logic that requires some tweaking.

Another downside is that this surface ISN'T an audio interface. This is only a control surface (there is a midi-port on the back so you could route a midi device through it, but no audio gear).

Not customizable. You can't decide what each button and controller does in garageband. Everything has a defined function and its ineditable (except for the rotary encoders which always manipulate the active parameter).

Final thoughts:
I got this control surface at a pretty deep discount so it was worth it for me to buy it to control Garageband in a more natural way. If I had had to pay the original retail price for this ($180) there's no way I would've gotten this. Thankfully this product is not still made, but is new enough that if someone wants to unload one on ebay, craigslist, or amazon, you're going to get a good deal. (I paid $50) If you can get one at a good price and you'll be using garageband regularly, then this is a no brainer. Get this.

So I used this first with Garageband and then with Logic Express.

When I got mine I too had a broken knob. Glued it in place and it was fine.

Now though, it seems that certain buttons are sticking or flashing on and off and there's nothing I can do it fix it. Happens both in Logic Express and Garageband.

It's almost like there is a membrane under the buttons that has become sticky or underpressure.

Bizarre.

I'm a bit disappointed with the rotary knobs that control the track volume in Garageband. Upon rotating a few knobs, they broke instantly at the base. That sucks. I will contact M-Audio about replacement knobs in a few moments.

But other than that, everything works perfectly fine and as expected. It's totally integrated to the software and is a pleasure to use for just about everything you need. One great thing that I like is how you can select and highlight a 4-bar measure by holding down the loop button on the controller, and simultaenously turning the large navigator wheel (above the play button), thus creating a loop selection on the track plane.

anyway, good piece of gear. The knobs need to be more durable. though.
that's all i have to say.

Worked exactly like it should! And the amount of aggravation it saves while running Garageband is immeasurable. Thank you M-Audio!

This well made product is all it claims to be. Read the description and expect the best. I strongly recommend M-Audio's iConrol GarageBand Controller. It puts more fun into recording.

i just recieved my iControl via FedEx today and the first thing i checked were the knobs... paranoid me... could it have been all of the "crappy knob" reviews? possibly...
anyway, thank goodness the knobs were all fine. i hooked it up and reeeeeally like the feel of control knobs again. it helps the studio feel more authentic and less "sterile" than just a computer monitor and keyboard. nah'sayin'?
also, the price is very reasonable compared to all of the other mixer interfaces out there. i recommend this to any musician who has carpel tunnel from using their mouse to edit parameters, hahahahaha...