I've been trying to use my Yamaha el-cheapo keyboard as a controller, but what I'm getting sounds awful.
"Using as a controller," to me, means you're using it generate MIDI notes, which you're recording - as MIDI - in your DAW project.
In which case saying the result "sounds awful," is a bit odd. Kind of like saying that when you use a different computer keyboard your grammar looks awful.
But it
might make some sense. If your el-cheapo doesn't even sense velocity, for example, you'll wind up with every note having exactly the same velocity which - at least for some parts - could sound pretty awful. Same thing if it is velocity sensitive, but the velocity curve is so flat in the relevant area that there's virtually no variation from note to note.
Other characteristics of a keyboard controller also affect its usability, but they'd generally be so obvious to you that you wouldn't be asking about them. For example:
- A tiny little keyboard isn't going to sound very good when you try to play keys that don't exist.
- The feel of the keys may bother you and reduce your ability to vary the dynamics or play fast passages,
e.g. if they're mushy and you're used to playing a grand piano.
In other words: if you're a trained classical pianist, you won't be able to play Chopin well on a controller with 25 mushy little key, but that fact and the reasons would be immediately apparent.
Bottom line is, it's hard to say anything specific without knowing:
- What Yamaha el-cheapo keyboard?
- Necessary for what?