Six-string-man Posted September 22, 2013 Share Posted September 22, 2013 Hi everyone. Thanks to the help previously received on this forum, I am now looking for an Ios dock. I have an iPad 4 (lightening connector) and am looking to connect it to a Nord Electro 4 - at least, for the moment. Having been warned off the IK Multimedia stuff (thanks Miden). I was looking at an Alesis IO Dock, but their forum speaks of lots of problems, so I shifted focus to an iConnectMIDI2, or a Griffin Studio Connect. The iConnect is 30% cheaper, so I will go with this, unless there are compelling reasons not to. Does anyone have any in depth experience with these, or can anyone suggest a better alternative? Many thanks. Occasionally, do something nice for a total stranger. They'll wonder what the hell is going on! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
miden Posted September 22, 2013 Share Posted September 22, 2013 The Griffin gear is rock solid and neither unit will disappoint. The MIDI Connect is a simple midi only in/out interface (although I was not aware they had released a lightning connector version as yet) whereas the Studio has audio I/O capability as well as being able to charge the Ipad as you are using it. And with the iPad now having inter app audio/midi, that could be very handy. Especially when running two or three apps concurrently. As we know a few of these apps (softsynths especially) have a large power need. The only reason I did not buy the Studio was that I could not find a place to have the base unit mounted. Further, to get the iPad in portrait mode on my rig, meant using an extension cable. The Griffin tech I spoke with said such an extension MAY work, but Griffin would not guarantee the reliability of such a connection. The unit that has caught my eye of late though is the iConnect Midi 4 (or even the iConnect Midi 2+). Still a bit pricey but they look pretty solid bits of kit! PS: YVW re the iRig MIDI - good operation, dodgy connector There is no luck - luck is simply the confluence of circumstance and co-incidence... Time is the final arbiter for all things Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
brenner13 Posted September 22, 2013 Share Posted September 22, 2013 I love my Alesis I/O Dock, but it only has the 30-pin connector for ipad1,2,&3. I suppose you could use a 30-pin to lighting adapter but then your iP4 would kind of hang out over the side and only be secured by the cable. Got my Dock used through ebay nearly a year ago and it was pretty unstable with lots of hung up MIDI notes until I installed the latest firmware update from Alesis' website about a month after I got it. Still works flawlessly, now Since you need lightning connection, Griffin might work better...with an adapter. I've heard lots of praise for the thing, but have not used one myself. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Six-string-man Posted September 22, 2013 Author Share Posted September 22, 2013 The unit that has caught my eye of late though is the iConnect Midi 4 (or even the iConnect Midi 2+). Still a bit pricey but they look pretty solid bits of kit! Thomann have the iConnect 2 for 69 Euros, and the 4 at 179. The 2 seems good value to me. Occasionally, do something nice for a total stranger. They'll wonder what the hell is going on! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
omvibes Posted September 22, 2013 Share Posted September 22, 2013 You should also check out the Behringer IS202. Very similar to the Alesis IO dock, but it works! I bought an Alesis Io dock originally, but had terrible problems with it doing even the simplest things, even after updating the os. Switched to the Behringer, and no problems so far, although I haven't pushed it that hard. Don't know about lpad4 compatibility though, you will need an adaptor cable I guess, RE the Griffin mentioned above, I also had that in my sights, but the lack of high-level inputs/ outputs put me off, plus the 'angled' ipad docking concept didn't seem the most practical to me - ymmv. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
miden Posted September 22, 2013 Share Posted September 22, 2013 Yes that is good value - I am talking prices in Australia - it is rather a smaller market than Europe or the US ...if it were not for shipping costs I might buy the 2 from there (Thomann) as well Out here they are still pretty exxy. A great unit though and would certainly serve your needs well. There is no luck - luck is simply the confluence of circumstance and co-incidence... Time is the final arbiter for all things Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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