Cakewalk A500 Pro MIDI Keyboard Controller
Professional 49-key USB Controller for Mac or PC

If you're looking for a keyboard controller that you can use in the studio, on-stage, or anywhere you feel inspired, look no further than the Cakewalk A500 Pro MIDI Keyboard Controller. Combining the best of Roland engineering with Cakewalk's legendary ease-of-use, the A500 Pro has the features and feel you need to get the most out of your music performances and productions. The A500 Pro is the perfect keyboard for use with a wide variety of software on Mac or PC including Ableton Live, Cubase, FL Studio, Garage Band, Logic, Nuendo, Pro Tools, SONAR and the included Production Plus Pack. Best of all, the A500 Pro is easy to set up — if you can plug-in a USB Cable, you'll be making music in no time at all.

 
Side View

Cakewalk A500 Pro MIDI Keyboard Controller Features:
-16 x 2 character, brightly lit LED display for editing controls and navigating the system menu
-8 velocity-sensitive, lighted, dynamic pads for finger drumming and triggering loops and samples, with HOLD button for latching.
-Dedicated transport section for using the A-PRO as a control surface, that can be remapped if desired
-Console-style faders for improved feel when making tweaks and adjustments
-Included Editor software makes creating new control maps and transferring them to the A-PRO simple and easy
-Production Plus Pack includes Cakewalk Sound Center, Rapture LE & Studio Instruments Drums for Mac and PC, as well as
  SONAR 8.5 LE (PC Only)

 
Left Side Controls

When you perform with the A500 Pro, you're tapping into the benefits of over 30 years of Roland keyboard development. A superior key mechanism provides aftertouch and and increased sensitivity for a wide range of expressive dynamics in your performance. Rounded key assemblies offer responsive reaction to your touch and more comfortable glissando. Plus, enhancements have been made to eliminate vertical shake and reduce the already low mechanical noise on key strokes. And with selectable Velocity curves you can fine tune the A500 Pro to match your playing style. No matter what your skill level, you'll appreciate the feel of a quality instrument when you play the A500 Pro.

 
Knobs and Buttons

The Cakewalk A500 Pro MIDI Keyboard Controller has been ergonomically designed to put everything at your fingertips. All controls are easily accessible and intelligently laid out to make performing and producing music an inspiring affair. Whether you're playing your favorite virtual instrument or working in your digital audio workstation, 9 knobs, 9 sliders, 4 buttons, and a dedicated Transport section offers fully assignable control of all the features you need. And the sure-grip, rubber-coated Pitch Bend/Modulation Stick offers expressive control of both functions at the same time.

 
Sliders and Pads

The A500 Pro Editor for Mac and PC makes it a breeze to customize the A500 Pro for use with your favorite synth or DAW. Just fire up the editor, adjust your Control Map, and hit transmit…it's that easy. And when you're working with an ACT (Active Controller Technology) enabled DAW like SONAR, parameters will remap automatically, keeping you in the flow and focused on your music.

The Cakewalk A500 Pro MIDI Keyboard Controller provides easy access connections on the side panel so that you can have a computer monitor or laptop in the ideal position behind the keyboard — a must for educational use. Connect USB, MIDI IN/OUT, Hold and Expression pedals without having to reach behind the keyboard.

The A500 Pro puts 8 velocity sensitive Dynamic Pads right within your reach. Use these pads to trigger grooves, samples, or one shots on the fly with your favorite DAW, sampler, or virtual Instrument like the included Cakewalk Sound Center or Studio Instruments Drums. Use the Hold control to “latch” the pads. Or assign aftertouch, velocity, and controller data to pads for greater expression in your performance.

Whether you're live on stage in front an audience of screaming fans, or dimming the lights in the studio to capture a mood, you can always clearly see what you're doing with the A500 Pro's ultra-bright backlit LED display and buttons. And the A-PRO works with USB bus power, so if you have your laptop you're ready to make music anywhere.

Don't trust your MIDI to anything else! The A500 Pro offers MIDI Transmission using Roland's proprietary FPT (Fast Processing Technology). You can rely on FPT for stable, high speed, low latency, and low jitter MIDI transmission. In layman's terms, that means that subtleties of your performance are going to be captured regardless of the music application you are using. And when working with virtual instruments, FPT provides lower latencies to give you the inspiring feel of playing a real instrument.

Production Plus Pack
The Production Plus Pack is a powerful suite of music creation softwarethat ships with the A500 Pro. It includes SONAR 8.5 LE recording software (PC only) and three high-quality and versatile virtual instruments for Mac and PC: Rapture LE, Cakewalk Sound Center, and Studio Instruments Drums.

Cakewalk A500 Pro MIDI Keyboard Controller Specifications:
-49 Velocity-sensitive keys
-Inspiring feel & response for serious players
-45 assignable controls: knobs, sliders, buttons, transport & more
-8 Dynamic Pads for finger drumming & MIDI triggering
-Sure-grip Pitch Bend/Modulation Stick
-Expand playability with Sustain & Expression Pedals (available separately)
-USB Bus Powered—no AC adaptor required
-Durable Roland-quality manufacturing & craftsmanship
-Ready to play with 3 included virtual instruments
-Works with any DAW on Mac or PC
-Supports Windows 7 & Mac OS X Snow Leopard
-Includes the Production Plus Pack music creation software
-Keyboard: 49 keys (with velocity and channel aftertouch)
-Controllers
  -Pads (A1-A8, Buttons (B1-4, L1-L9)
  -Knobs (R1-R9)
  -Sliders (S1-S9)
  -Foot Pedals (P1, P2)
  -Mod/Pitch Stick (BEND, MOD)
  -Keyboard Aftertouch (AFTERTOUCH)
-Display: Backlit 16 x 2 character LCD
-Left Side Panel
  -Power Switch (USB Bus/OFF/DC IN)
  -MIDI Merge Switch (ON/OFF)
-Connection Jacks
  -Hold Pedal: 1/4 inch phone
  -Expression Pedal: 1/4 inch TRS phone
  -MIDI Connectors: (IN, OUT)
  -USB Connector
  -DC IN
-Power Supply: USB Bus Power or DC 9 V (AC Adaptor, sold separately)
-Current Draw
  -300 mA (AC Adaptor)
  -300 mA (USB Bus Power)
-Dimensions
  -mm: 838.9 (W) × 250.8 (D) × 91.4 (H)
  -inches: 33-1/16 (W) × 9-7/8 (D) × 3-5/8(H)

Cakewalk A500 Pro MIDI Keyboard Controller System Requirements
-Windows:
  -Windows-compatible computer equipped with a USB 1.1 port
  -Microsoft Windows 7 / Windows Vista / Windows XP SP2** or later
  -Intel-compatible Processors 1GHz or higher
  -512MB RAM or higher
  -100MB or more free hard disk space
-Macintosh***
  -Apple Macintosh series with on-board USB port
  -Mac OS X v10.4 or later
  -Intel Processor or PowerPC G4 1GHz or higher
  -512MB RAM or higher
  -100MB or more free hard disk space

Production Plus Pack 3 System Requirements:
-Windows:
  - Microsoft Windows 7 / Windows Vista / Windows XP SP2** or later
  - Intel-compatible Processor 2GHz (3GHz or higher recommended)
  -1GB RAM (2GB or higher recommended)
  -8GB or more free hard disk space (EIDE /Ultra DMA 7200 RPM or SATA recommended)
  -WDM or ASIO compatible audio interface, DVD-ROM drive for installation
-Macintosh***
  -Mac OS X v10.4 or later
  -Intel Core Duo processor
  -1GB RAM (2GB or higher recommended)
  -6GB or more of free hard disk space, EIDE / Ultra DMA (7200 RPM or SATA recommended)
  -Core Audio compatible Audio Interface, DVD-ROM Drive for installation

**This product does not support Windows XP Media Center Edition or XP Professional x64.
***This product does not support Macintosh computers running Microsoft Windows.