G'day folks. I'm a long time drummer, looking to expand my creativity/writing capabilities. I'm going to buy my 1st ever keyboard, basically just to learn on, and possibly use live down the track somewhere. I need some advice on models etc.
For starters I have seen a 'BEHRINGER U-CONTROL UMX49 USB/MIDI CONTROLLER KEYBOARD' brand new on Ebay for $195 (which is roughly my initial budget, maybe slightly higher). I'm tempted by it, is it any good? Would I be able to play live/record with it. or not? The blurb makes it sound ideal, but what are it's real capabilities?
If that model is actually not much chop, what else should I look for?
Thanks.

G'day folks. I'm a long time drummer, looking to expand my creativity/writing capabilities. I'm going to buy my 1st ever keyboard, basically just to learn on, and possibly use live down the track somewhere. I need some advice on models etc.
For starters I have seen a 'BEHRINGER U-CONTROL UMX49 USB/MIDI CONTROLLER KEYBOARD' brand new on Ebay for $195 (which is roughly my initial budget, maybe slightly higher). I'm tempted by it, is it any good? Would I be able to play live/record with it. or not? The blurb makes it sound ideal, but what are it's real capabilities?
If that model is actually not much chop, what else should I look for?
Thanks.

What software do you plan on using with it if you buy it? Midi controllers are just that....controllers. You have to get your actual sounds from additional software. Not sure if you knew....

G'day folks. I'm a long time drummer, looking to expand my creativity/writing capabilities. I'm going to buy my 1st ever keyboard,

That sounds so much like the opening to a joke.
Don't try a shoeshop.

Things to be looking for in a controller keyboard are the degree of touch/velocity sensitivity they offer. Really cheap keyboards often fall down here. If you are using it as an input device for recording and you are not a skilled player, that may not be such an issue as you can edit the dynamics later in the recording software. If you are going to be using it in a live context I would say you want as much expression at your fingertips as possible.

I recommend going to a store and try out some budget keyboard. It depends on how the keys feel and so on
and if you want to use it without a computer, then a midi controller keyboard won't do it, you need a synth or... well, depends on what sound you want

I'm guessing that most of the cheap keyboards aren't great for heavy live usage, since usually they have light plastic casings and are made mainly for home studios. if I'd have to choose one now I'd get a new M-audio Oxygen (blue one), since it has a ton of programmable sliders, knobs and buttons (with dedicated section for transport functions - i.e. you have play/stop/rec buttons for your DAW software placed conventiently on the keyboard). Also, it's compact and looks cool. Heard that M-audio keybeds aren't the best, but they're probably enough for most of us ignorant non-keyboardists:)

M-Audio Axiom controller/keyboard is what "I" would go with if your on a budget. It has velocity-sensitive semi-weighted action keys with assignable aftertouch, trigger pads, rotary encoders, sliders, and a bunch of assignable buttons. It also has 20 non-volatile memory locations; compatible with free Enigma librarian/editor software. You can get a 25 key for around $150, or a 49 for around $220 and a 61 key for around $260-280 depending on where you get it, shop around... This thing is in my opinion the best for the money, this thing is a beast!
It also comes with Ableton Live Lite

http://www.m-audio.com/products/en_us/Axiom61.html

edit: dont buy a behringer lol