M-Audio Oxygen 8 V2 > Reviews (4)

The oxygen 8 is a midi controller device to be used with music production software.What you have is a midi keyboard used for playing your own melodies on instead of having to draw notes in to make a melody or rift.

You get 8 midi assignable knobs which you use to control all the parameters in your hardware or software.It is extremley small compared to other midi keyboards and some people dislike this fact as there is not enough keys.However its size is its advantage , it gives you the ability to use it on the go.Wheter your taking it to a friends house or using it for a live performance it is light and easy to carry.

Specifications

MIDI Data from variable controllers:
MIDI Control Number
RPN/NRPN
Program, Bank LSB, Bank MSB
Pitch Bend
GM/GM2/XG SysEx Messages
MIDI Data from buttons/switches: - Note On
Note On/Off toggle
MIDI CC On/Off toggle
Program, Bank LSB, Bank MSB presets
MIDI Machine Control functions
GM/GM2/XG SysEx messages

System Requirements

PC
Pentium 3 - 800 MHz or higher (CPU may be higher for laptops)
256 MB RAM
DirectX 9.0b or higher
Windows XP (SP2 Home or Professional Edition only, Windows 98, Me, NT, or 2000 not supported)
Mac
Macintosh G3 800/G4 733 MHz or higher (CPU may be higher for laptops)
OS X 10.2.8 w/ 256 MB RAM
OS X 10.3.4 or greater w/ 512 MB RAM
Native USB port required; G3/G4 accelerator cards not supported

It is aimed at the entry end of music production and once it is set up it is very easy to use and learn.Setting it up however is a different matter it is a pain in the arse,you have to follow the instructions to a tee otherwise you will get confused.I had to install the device drivers 3 times before i got the right settings.It does not give you much in the way of a manual either unless mine was missing from the box.It is a great product but id recommend that you are computer literate at least otherwise you could struggle with it.

The software that you are recommended to use (which is not included) is pretty useless and there is not much in the way of support.If you are going to use it is recommend you got to this website for some tutorials http://launch.groups.yahoo.com/group/M-A​udio_Enigm a/.

You can also get direct link patches to your sequencer from m-audios offical website,i only found this out after 3 hours of trying to set the thing up.

The price you can pick it up for about £50 from most music production websites brand new.
The main features of the controller seem to be compatible with all the different types of software i tried.

The main downside is the lack of help and support,which i found quite frustrating.

overall once you get it setup it is a pretty clever peice of kit,i would however not recommend it to novices,and be prepared to fiddle around with it to get the best sounds.

I would like to inform you that these have now also ceased production due to the v3 which was released this year so take that in to consideration before purchasing this item