It’s certainly light years ahead of what you used to get from small keys and feels like you’re sacrificing far less now when trading off portability for responsiveness.

These are surprisingly pleasant to play, reacting well even to more complex playing styles.

There are 37 mini keys which use a ‘2nd gen’ dynamic keybed. The keyboard is more accomplished than the unit’s size might suggest, too. Something else that’s new is proper pitch bend and mod wheels – AKAI is selling this as a performance keyboard, so tactile wheels are a great addition. Between all those you will be able to hook it up to any of your modular or other MIDI gear, using a USB power supply if no computer is involved. There’s also CV Clock I/O and CV pitch, mod and gate output.

The rear panel has a sustain pedal input jack which is essential for any kind of expressive keyboard playing, as well as full-size 5-pin MIDI in and out DIN ports. Power and data are over USB, with a USB-B to USB-A cable included, a bit retrograde in a time when USB-C is becoming firmly established but having to use an adapter isn’t the end of the world. Weighing 1.26KG and measuring 45 x 18 x 5 cm it’s sturdily built but still light enough to carry around pretty easily. The Plus is slightly bigger and heavier than its siblings but that’s not saying much since they are so small. READ MORE: EastWest String Machine Review: Classic synthesized string sounds for the 21st century.But it’s also a much more expansive controller, with a bunch more ports and its own onboard sequencer making it capable of standalone MIDI and CV triggering as well as working with computer-based software. The MPK Mini Plus expands on the Mini and Mini PLAY in a number of ways, the most obvious being its larger keyboard, fitting in 37 mini keys to their 25. AKAI’s MPK Mini family has found fans with a diverse range of musicians and producers from those needing to play and program on the move to those who just don’t want their gear taking up lots of space.

Mpc akai mini