M-Audio Oxygen 8

This is a review for the o2, same but different.
Its easy to use but if your DAW or vsti does not have a midi learn function then its a royal pain.

I have B4 and the midi learn works quite well.
To me I wish they had a easier midi learn conformity with VSTi because some work and some nothing.
Its black magic and I guess you need a PHD to make it work if the software (enigma) does not have an included controller map.

Ask in any support forum they will gave you lip like RTFM, or no answer.
But indeed it has some issues but I managed to mysteriously fix them by using the reason template. Yo.. why cant I get more templates I know you sold thousands of these!

Velosity, 1/2 action keyboard, digital desplay, knobs,
USB powered makes this CLEAN looking.

no sounds

Works 1 week so far.

This is where I get ticked off.

I'm going to rate this ZERO because M-audio does not have a support forum and in these days its absolutely necessary. No one wants to hang for 48 hours while some guy that might not know much helps you from "tech support"

M-audio has a bad habit of pushing out a product and then screw you, if it works then fine, if not then we have a new version coming out, buy that. Lots of times the issue is minor like hardware cards but how the hell can you tell with out the help of thousands of real users?

M-audio did reply about getting a support forum next year so I guess if you want to chill for a year.. I'm guessing they are afraid of people posting "This junk sucks" and well it does suck! but its cheap and works pretty good and I imagine because of the nature of M-audio, cheap Chinese consumer stuff the forum would be flooded with thousands of whining kids because the new toy wont work on the countless different platforms and hardware out.

I love this thing, Id be on the look out for a second one and rack them up next to my work station. Its perfect for bass lines and synth pads but I find my self reaching for the missing keys.
For Hammond B4 sounds its perfect and a second one for the low bass B3 sounds would be nice, small and hell it works so well with N.I B4 its worth that price all alone for just that synth.

There is nothing wrong with buying a cheap controller and it looks great sitting next to my Alesis A6 so I can play two at once for two synths.

But this is no replacement for a real analog synth, it will just make you want a real synth where the knobs dont need to be programed.

Additionally I found this unit to hang twice now with Nuendo 4 so not sure if id use it live unless I used Live software.

25 key midi controller, with 8 parameter knobs.

I'm using this to control an old yamaha tg300 midi box, and some freeware virtual synths (minimogueVA and arp2600va). I like the idea of a short keyboard for synth - makes you think about the octaves, doesn't take up much space. I bought the oxy 8 because I thought the keys felt better than the Edirol.

I love the design of this, it's easy to use, flexible, playable, feels good...

but 2 of the 8 parameter knobs are already (2 months!) flakey - a dirty potentiometer translates into random midi controller information. So I tried to set the 2 flakey knobs to control # off,

(which you should never do while connected to a tg300, by the way, because as your turning down the value of controller number each control is getting a random number, leaving the tg300 as a shivering wreck by the time you get to zero...)

and saved this arrangement as a preset, and the thing's already forgotten my presets. I've been using this for 2 months. Lemon.

It has USB, but I'm old school midi

Sorry, I really wish this was more reliable. Maybe nobody else has my bad luck? Anyone? I could probably try to get some customer support, but what a hassle.

I use this with Ableton Live 5.
The manual so far is a bit hard to understand with all the different things you can do. Since you need both keyboard + software to really make it work, there is alot to learn for a beginner like myself because Im still learning how to also use Ableton. Basic functions however are easy and I started assigning the knobs and slider. Im primarily a guitar player. Keyboards with alot of keys intimidate me and I look at this as an equivilent to how some people prefer playing bass to guitar because its less strings to work with.
Less keys makes it easier for me and I feel more confident with it. Plus unlike guitar I get lost on a full scale keyboard.
For a small recording space, this thing fits anywhere , which is why I love it.

I personally thought the action was fine. I dont play many keyboards so I really only know the feel of the M-Audio's. I think it should have atleast 4 sliders instead of just 1. The 4 would be great for when you mixing things and need to adjust volume levels of up to maybe 4 tracks. I think for the price its lacking maybe a few additonal things but nothing to make me change my mind about it now since I havent even figured out how to do all that it is capable of. For $10 more you can always get the Radium and have the extra slider and keys. I actually returned my Oxygen for the Radium but then went back and got the Oxygen back.
Perhaps I will want more from it after Im through learning it inside and out.

Im not sure if this has aftertouch, I know the velocity isnt to bad. I wasnt one to think I would use velocity but it actually works well if you use it within certain situations. Again, its a MIDI , so all the sounds are going to come from some sort of software and not the keyboard itself so its tough to give it a rating here.

It does feel cheap. Its lightweight plastic and dosent have much guts inside of it Im sure. For now though I do depend on it. I got the 2 year full coverage warranty so I think I'll be just fine. I dont think I will be gigging with it so it really only has to stand up to being in my room.

If this was stolen I would probaly look around for something else in the same price range. The M-Audio O2 looks almost identical.
I havent been playing keys to long. I am going to school now and learning scales and chords.
I love the size of the Oxygen most, it will fit within most small work spaces and can be easily carried along with you if your a laptop'er. Also its dosent intimidate someone who may find full scale or even 49 keys to just be to much if they arent really an all around keyboard player.
I honestly chose to buy this for the deal the guy gave me. Im sure there are better 25 key MIDI controllers then this, so look around first.
We'll see over time if it stands up to normal home use. Again , if you like it and have a small workspace and perhaps dont intend to play some piano ballad then its perfect, specially for beginners. If you want more features check out E-MU or ALESIS brands.

GarageBand 1.1 is my primary software. Having worked with it using loops and recording my guitars and bass via a Griffin iMic (very effective - simple interface, full sound) I was ready to employ midi instruments.

With little space on my desk the Oxygen 8 is a boon. I'm not really a keyboardist, but it all works: Garageband mates perfectly with the Oxy8 midi-controller.

There's one issue: disconnecting the midi-keyboard from my eMac G4 and re-connecting was time-consuming and therefore a hassle. Solution: I leave the Oxy8 plugged in all the time. Now I'm always ready to create.

Being a guitarist-bassist and using a keyboard puts me in a special category (like many of you): I don't know much about keys and all I want is a quick and easy tool for bringing new voices to my recordings. The Oxy8 is entirely fine at that.

Oxy8 actually has pressure-sensitive keys though I use the feature only accidentally. I'm in my second month of use. I like the pitch-bend wheel though it's not one with a wild range. The modulation controller wheel is also quite effective with a pretty good span. I'm not sure I'm going to be able to use the 8 nice knobs w/ GB, but it doesn't matter. I've got plenty of creative options as is.

Truth is I've got quite a bit of learning ahead. This review touches upon only a portion of what I expect the Oxy8 will deliver.

As Oxy8 is a simple controller, the expressiveness evaluation falls to GarageBand. And I like its voices, especially the Hammond organ. I like using electric guitar voices with the Oxy8.

While the Oxy8 seems solid overall - nice key action, solid-feeling knobs and wheels and octave buttons - there is one item I'm wary of: the input for the USB cable. It seems cheap: the connection between cable and receptor seems wobbly. Surprising, since all else seems of solid quality. Yet there are no problems so far with the USB. My long experience with guitars and such ports says Handle with care.

Have not buzzed M-Audio. But I bought the unit through Sweetwater Sound so that I would have a tech support group that I know to be reliable and responsive. Sweetwater has proven its stuff with me on a variety of items going back to my beloved Boss BR-8.

My needs are simple and the Oxy8 - my first keyboard, first midi-controller - does what I need. Plus I believe it has room for my growth. Quite importantly, it takes up little room next to the eMac.