REVIEW – I recently reviewed the Synido MIDI Keyboard Controller Beat Maker Machine and the Synido TempoPAD P16 Portable Beat Pad and have thoroughly enjoyed noodling around and making music with both tools since those reviews. Out of the blue, Synido reached out wondering if I’d like to check out their new Synido TempoPAD Z-1 MIDI Controller Beat Maker, which is like a supersized version of the P16 Beat Pad, and I quickly responded I’d be happy to take a review unit off their hands.
What is it?
The Synido TempoPAD Z-1 MIDI Controller Beat Maker is a 64-key pad that connects via USB or 5-pin MIDI to a computer or MIDI compatible hardware. A variety of preset modes can be used out of the box to play drums or musical notes, and customization software opens up nearly limitless uses ranging from live-loop controlling to a multi-instrument on-the-go music maker to a live concert controller with customized functions and presets.
What’s included?
- Synido TempoPAD Z-1 MIDI Controller Beat Maker
- MIDI 5-pin Din Plug to 3.5mm (1/8″) TRS Adapter
- USB-A to USB-C cable
- USB-A to USB-C OTG Adapter
- User manual
- Travel Case
Tech specs
Click to expand
- Dimensions: 9.45 x 10.5 x 0.8 inches
- Weight: 3.27 pounds
- Compatible Devices: iPhones, PC, iPads, Phones
- Connector Type: USB
- Supported Software: Compatible with Mainstream DAW like Ableton Live, Fl Studio, Cubase, Logic Pro X, Bitwig, Reason, Studio One, Garage Band, Pro Tools
- Material Type: Aluminum
- Number of Keyboard Keys: 64
- Hardware Platform: PC (Windows/ MAC) /IOS /Android
- Connectivity: USB-A, USB-C, MIDI
Design and features
The Synido TempoPAD Z-1 MIDI Controller Beat Maker has 64 playing pads, laid out in 8 columns and 8 rows. There’s a top row and column to the right for various settings, controls, and mode switches. The left side has an LED strip that functions both as a mood light (it picks up ambient sound like your voice or playing music via a built-in microphone) and as an indicator when changing settings.
On the left side is the microphone hole, and a physical switch to turn on/off the light show. Even if you turn it off, it will still light up when changing settings (like changing octaves or transposing keys up or down).
On the top of the unit lives all the input/output ports. From left to right we have 1/8″ MIDI (which you can switch to 5-pin MIDI with the included adapter), USB-C, USB-C Power (not needed for most devices, but may be needed if you plug into an unpowered hub or don’t want to drain your mobile device’s power), and a Kensington lock hole.
The bottom of the device has two long rubbery pads that do an excellent job of preventing slippage on flat surfaces. The build of the unit is aluminum and feels sturdy and well constructed.
Assembly, Installation, Setup
The Synido TempoPAD Z-1 MIDI Controller Beat Maker is plug-and-play with the most popular DAW (digital audio workstation) software on PC/Mac/iOS (like GarageBand on iPad, where I did most of my testing). If you want to customize the lighting and/or key functions though, you’ll need to install the Synido customizer software on either a Mac or PC (hopefully iOS coming later, they have an app for the P16 controller but not the Z-1 yet). I installed the software to check it out on my Windows machine, and the first error message after installation was worrying:
My main workstation is set to 4K resolution with display scaling at 125%, and no other software has struggled like this one did. I had to change my screen to 1080P as the error message above suggested and restart the program to be able to actually use it (before changing buttons and text were incomplete and the interface near impossible to use). Hopefully Synido fixes this, as it would be very annoying to have to change my screen resolution every time if I was changing settings often.
There are two interfaces in the customization software: easy mode (shown above), and advance mode (shown below). The easy mode allows for lighting customization and uploading samples to specific pads,
…while the advanced mode lets you really get into the weeds. I’m no expert on changing MIDI channels and values for MIDI controllers yet, but I’m learning quickly, and from tutorials and forums that I perused while working on this review, it appears that the ability to map all the values, especially MIDI Channels per key, means you can map multiple instruments to the “custom” mode and be able to play 2 or more instruments at once without changing tracks while recording (depending on what your DAW supports). So, in essence, you could create a 3 or 4 instrument setup (with ~16 pads per instrument) and be able to either perform live or just streamline music creation this way. I hadn’t even considered this use case when I volunteered to do this review, but I now plan on creating a multi-instrument custom setup for messing around when I’m on the go.
Performance
The Synido TempoPAD Z-1 MIDI Controller Beat Maker was fully plug-and-play with popular software tested on iOS and Windows. I like the different modes included out of the box like the “Key” mode, which gives a 4-octave keyboard. The pads are velocity sensitive (and have multiple presets you can switch depending on if you like to really slam the pads or prefer a softer touch). The lighting effects and mood lighting along the left hand strip are fun, and the range of customization if you want to get into the weeds is pretty neat. Here’s a video of me and some nephews/nieces who are musically inclined trying it out:
What I like about the Synido TempoPAD Z-1 MIDI Controller Beat Maker
- Easy to start using but highly customizable for intermediate/expert users
- So many pads and customization means it can be used for a variety of purposes
- Nice build quality and feature set, especially for the price
What needs to be improved?
- iOS customization app missing (but may be coming – they have it for the smaller P16)
- Customization software on Windows has strange screen resolution requirements
Final thoughts
I had a blast playing around with the Synido TempoPAD Z-1 MIDI Controller Beat Maker during the review period, and look forward to many future jam sessions (especially with extended family). The kids especially loved the light show and being able to both drum and play musical notes with the different modes. I have the feeling that this beat maker will tick a lot of boxes for a variety of artists, especially for the low price they’re asking.
Price: $129.99
Where to buy: Synido or Amazon
Source: The sample of this product was provided for free by Synido. Synido did not have a final say on the review and did not preview the review before it was published.
