Axiom 61 Pro wiht Logic -- any thoughts? Mea culpas? Etc?

I just traded my Axiom Pro 61 in and got an Akai mpk 88. Hypercontrol was such a big selling point on the Axiom but now it doesn't have 64 bit support and the keyboard doesn't feel as sturdy as any of the Akai line to me. With the Akai you do have to map everything yourself, but after you figure it out, it's not a big deal.

M-Audio gear is generally has poor build quality. Their stuff looks great on paper but has a high failure rate. Anecdotally I have found this to be true, I can't prove this the case for everyone, but has been the experience of many people that I know. I personally avoid their stuff like the plague.

I have the Novation SL61 and like it a lot. I have found their customer support to be fantastic and for me the way that it works with Logic is great. I don't actually use the Automap that much but that is because I have an X-Station and mapping controls to that is more logical for me. But with the SL you can assign keyboard commands to the controllers and that allows me to control Logic without having to go back to my computer keyboard, which is great for keeping in 'the flow'.

I've heard some complaints about Novation's build quality but my stuff has performed well. They are a little more expensive but for me it was money well spent.

The good news is that Logic makes it soooooo easy to assign controllers no matter what keyboard you use. Customizing/using keyboard command and controllers are the single best thing you can to for productivity.

I have an Axiom Pro 61 and had the "sticky keys" syndrome. You may want to google it...basically, when you press the keys down, they exhibit a flaky, crispy sound upon the first key press in your morning. The music store did contact Axiom to change the keyboard part for me, and now that problem is minimized.

The build quality is a bit funny. Some faders are stiff and some are loose. The drum pads are like the Trigger Finger and so are quite nicer than SLMKii.

Integration with Logic is good though - I like it's simplicity. And it also works well with Mainstage.

One thing I didn't like about Novation's Automap is that you have to wrap all your plugins before it can be used. It can get tedious if you go opening different versions, upgrading plugins, etc.

I think my basic complaint is that the keyboard's implementation is very good but let down by poor build quality, so I ended up using a SLMkii (but not with Automap)

Hope that helps
Ken