Is the APC Mini MK2 Good for VJs?

This is my review of the brand new updated APC MINI MKii, and if I think its good for VJs. I discuss the updates to the build quality, the new full RGB buttons, and improved Faders, as well has how well it works with resolume and other considerations for travelling VJs.
APC Mini MK2: amzn.to/3kkpawB
APC Mini Case: amzn.to/3xOyETM
APC40 / Mini Color Chart: resolume.com/support/en/midi-...
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[@SeanBowes]

Have you tried this controller yet? What do you think of the updates?

[@loganuhlig9438]

I have this controller and I love playing with it! Definitely not a pro vj but this controller is fun! Learning new tricks everyday :)

[@ArjosElArtista]

I'm trying to make it work on FL Studio 21 could you make a video about it?

[@jihadnasrallah1240]

why i cant find the APC 40 MK2 anywhere new condition ?

[@SeanBowes]

I think they discontinued production sometime last year. No idea why. I think they are trying to push people to buy APC64 but they suck for VJs. We are a tiny market compared to DJs and music producers though so fuck us I guess

[@SeanBowes]

Unfortunately I do not use FL studio so I dont know how to help you with that.

[@thevisualshaman]

Love ya dude. Learned a lot from you. Been vjing for about a year now and learning everyday.

[@SeanBowes]

Thanks for watching!! I really appreciate that, its all about learning new things as you go along! Keep it up

[@jimkincaidz]

Great overview, thanks! 🙌

[@SeanBowes]

Thanks for checking it out!

[@FetzAV]

Thanks for another solid video Sean! Probably going to pick one of these up in the future. For now, the Akai Midimix is my go to! Hope to see a MK2 Midimix one day! Cheers!

[@ResolumeVJSoftware]

Great Review Sean! Keep up the good work. We wanted to let everybody know that the reduced brightness of je APC Mini MK2 in Resolume Arena & Avenue will be fixed in our upcoming 7.17 release.

[@SeanBowes]

Thanks! I am very excited for the 7.17 update. I have tested it, and the APC Mini is so convenient to use now in the upcoming release.

[@stevosteve]

The default brightness for the AKAI mk2 is output channel 0 or 1 which is only 25% brightness. Just set you MIDI mapping output to channel 6 which is 100% brightness and set the on value for your colour choice i.e. 41 for a blue button feedback. Remember to tick the box to allow feedback to the AKAI mk2 box.

[@sylvainsalamon6669]

Hi Sean, Is it possible to make the pads flash when they are activated for example ? Or do you have to use third-party software like ShowXpress ? Thanks for your videos, i love them ;-)

[@vitalisgreatest]

Do you need multiple processors to make chaser work on multiple screens?

[@guavaberry]

omg Ive been testing it out actually

[@SeanBowes]

What do you think so far?

[@Andyanddiana467]

Nice to hear they upgraded the faders. I’m on my second mini and the faders are once again starting to go…. 😫

[@muswen]

Hey sean i have an Apc40 Mk ll but i dont know how to make the lights turnn on, thanx for the video i was wondering if this controller its good for Vjs

[@SeanBowes]

Check Arena>Preferences>Midi and make sure MIDI Input and MIDI Output are checked underneath the APC40. Then when you are mapping it, in the options that pop up in the bottom right, you can change the velocity to change the colors for ON and OFF, or Empty, Unloaded, and Loaded states.

[@user-js9kp2il2h]

Can this controller be used with ipad (Touch ViZ)?

[@AudioVisionary000]

Awesome vid! Would like to see a review for both novation launch control XL and launchpad mini or X models

[@SeanBowes]

Thanks! Launch Control XL Coming soon, and I will add launchpad to my list. Thanks for the suggestions!

[@AudioVisionary000]

@@SeanBowes That would be awesome! Another topic that would be very handy is using multiple midi controllers within resolume and how to properly use different channels when using multiple midi controllers. Your vids are great. Keep up the great work.

[@Cory2G]

@@SeanBowes Any update on this? I'm trying to decided between the Launch Control XL and APC Mini MKii right now.

[@SeanBowes]

@@Cory2G I dont have the review done, but I use both controllers so if you have any questions let me know. Launch Control is a little more rugged, has a bunch of knobs, and still has a good amount of buttons and sliders, and you can get cases and decksavers for it. Both are solid controllers though, similar in size, and work with resolume so either could be a good choice depending on what you need.

[@Cory2G]

@@SeanBowes ended up picking up an APC40 MkII for a great deal. Time to go from DJ to VJ 😵‍💫

[@infinitimedia7009]

Is there any update coming for APC 40

[@SeanBowes]

I don’t know if any but if I hear about it I will let you all know!

[@justinperoff3843]

Is the mkII compatible with Live 10?

[@louismccoy9066]

After using the apc mini for multiple gigs I would caution against using this for anything other than practice. I have found that the apc mini can crash resolume when it simultaneously sends and receives the same midi value. First the lights will no longer react when pressing the buttons, then shortly after resolume has crashed for me. If anyone as any tips please let me know below. Im upgrading to the apc 40 :)

[@SeanBowes]

I have not had this issue, but I recommend documenting the issue and checking in with both AKAI support and Resolume support so that it can be resolved. Always good to have a backup option for your controller though just in case some sort of failure happens! Thanks for sharing

[@farhanbadru6441]

Please review Traktor F1 for VJ-ing

[@SeanBowes]

Will do. Until then, here's what I know about it: Lots of VJs I know are using it lately and enjoying it. Its very sturdy and relatively small which is good for travel. It also has a few of everything - knobs, buttons, and sliders, so it is somewhat versatile. On the other hand it is a little pricy for the amount of controls that you get. You are paying extra for the higher build quality and probably some Traktor-specific features that aren't as useful for VJs. Let me know if you have any specific questions and I will make a full video on it soon! thanks for the suggestion

[@luistorresnaval3623]

Hello, I just bought an APC MINI MKII to use with Resolume 7, I am new to the subject, but although the MIDI mapping works perfectly with both buttons and faders, I CANNOT GET ANY COLOR ON THE CONTROLLER. The LEDs work perfectly with Ableton Live. HELP!!!

[@SeanBowes]

Which version of resolume are you using? Beyond just 7: is it 7.15, 7.16, 7.17? In 7.17 and beyond it should just work, in versions 7.16 and before follow the instructions in this video to enter Drum Mode. Make sure you are setting a velocity when midi mapping to specify the color either way.

[@luistorresnaval3623]

@@SeanBowes 7.17.1 And not a single LED ever lights up. I have also tried the Bitwig software and RGB works perfectly.

[@SeanBowes]

You do not need to enter Drum Mode after version 7.17. So check that you are not in drum mode. You can verify this by Checking Arena > Preferences > MIDI, untwirling the triangle at the top right to see the midi monitor, and pressing some buttons to make sure that you are operating on Channel 1 and not Channel 10. You can also see this when midi mapping, if your notes have a 1/ or 10/ before them. Also, make sure that MIDI Output is checked under APC mini mk2 in your device list in addition to MIDI Input

[@littlejay2233]

I want a regular apc 40 mkII but they’re on back order everywhere.

[@SeanBowes]

Yeah it’s tough trying to get one recently. Lots of controller companies are having trouble getting parts over the last couple years.

[@littlejay2233]

@@SeanBowes hey thanks, I was starting to wonder if they were not going to make more and just redesign, I can wait another month or so

[@MS7.7]

@@littlejay2233it was related 9 years ago I wouldn't even bother to wait for brand new. Hop in the used market you will find it immediately. Anyway I received my APC Mini mk2 today and I'm already extremely disappointed. I will return it for a launchpad. I'm not sure why akai is living in the 90s who needs scripts for basic operation or even brightness adjustment. Novation components is x10 times better for tweaking qnd settings. The build quality is of APC is great though but functionality wise is little painful and the lights kn the function keys are almost useless.

[@fulgenciomartinez_AEC]

Is the new APC 64 any good for resolume?

[@SeanBowes]

I havent tried it yet. i feel like the touch strips might be a little odd to use, and I'm not sure how well all the extra buttons work outside of the grid. Id say its a bit pricey too.

[@rodrigocompres]

The trick to use full RGB colors is mapping in drum mode.

[@SeanBowes]

Does that function work with Resolume? Or is that an Ableton-only function

[@rodrigocompres]

@@SeanBowes Works with Resolume, the only thing it's that you can't see the colors on the screen like APC40.

[@SeanBowes]

Yes, I have been playing around with it a little more and can see that I can switch it to drum mode and it changes to Channel 10 and is much brighter that way. Also read in the documentation that you can manually set channels to different values for different brightness and Blinking options. Going to keep playing with the options and probably post an update video soon. Thanks so much for commenting!

[@stevosteve]

​@@SeanBowes agreed. Going into drum mode (i.e. holding shift and press drum button once) puts all the 64 pads onto channel 10 (instead of channel 1, pad 0 to 63, value 0=pad 1 bottom left, 63=pad 64 top right corner) which means you can in fact set up another full set of DIFFERENT MIDI maps whilst in this mode. When in drum mode the pads ident is 64 to 127, value 64=pad 65 bottom left, 127=pad 128 top right corner) ) and they will only react to the mapping setup whilst in that drum mode. To return to the original setup, Hold shift and drum button once again and you will return back to the original 64 pad mappings. Great if you have two styles of gig scenes for different events. All the the AKIA mk2 configuration values are in the documentation at their website support download page. Oh and BTW the reason the brightness is better when in drum mode is because the output channel number automatically copies the input channel number during mapping, and 10 is a full brightness value (it is in fact a '1:1 ration blinking channel but unless you have an external time clock the blinking may not happen). In converse, the reason the brightness is low out of the box is because the default is channel 1 and when the output copies it as channel 1 it means the brightness is only at 25%. Hope that make a little sense.

[@dzhzs]

There is no knobs ): we need few of them anyway

[@SeanBowes]

Knobs are good. I wish it had a few too that would make this one a killer

[@donuzoka8858]

Nah I'ma make beats with this, 4 some reason I feel this nice asf

[@yang5616]

color nice，knob ohno

[@VJzihao]

Are you interested in doing bar VJ in China? ha-ha 😂 Our Chinese bar VJ has a bad market, high competitive pressure and low wages

[@SeanBowes]

Lots of bar gigs can be tough lol. I've definitely done some gigs like that early on, getting paid in beer for working all night long.

[@BlockchainBlueprint2]

Wtf a VJ

[@SeanBowes]

A VJ is the person that puts visuals on screen at a concert. What we do is similar to DJing, but with Video. We mix and effect video clips to match the music live