Vangoa MAE-02 Digital Wind Instrument, Professional Electronic Wind Instrument Synthesizer Rechargeable EWI with Wireless MIDI, 3 Fingerings 35 Tones 7 Functions for Beginners Adults Teens, White

I have owned most of the electronic wind instruments on the market, looking for something to use for quiet practice. None of them was really right for my needs. The MAE-02 is a really good instrument for the following reasons:1.) No need to connect to a computer or other device - You can just pick it up and play. This makes me more inclined to practice.2.) Small Form Factor - Not big and bulky to hold or travel with.3.) Very Simple Controls.4.) Intuitive Fingering - Flute players should use the "Saxophone" fingering. It's just like a concert flute. The Flute fingering is good for playing a major scale, like a bamboo flute, but accidentals are a little awkward.5.) Speaker - I want to play quietly but not with headphones.6.) Decent Expressiveness - The best I've seen in an instrument of this price.7.) Decent Sounds - The flute sounds really good. Clarinet is also good. Some people are put off by the auto-vibrato on the flute, but it doesn't bother me.I think that you get a lot for the price here. One thing to note: the listing mentions Bluetooth. Mine doesn't seem to have it, or else I'm not seeing it. I don't need this functionality, so it doesn't matter.

I bought this for fun . Turns out to be a very good EWI instrument. Nice and compact to put in your travel bag. Only issue was how to turn on the Blue tooth. Press the FG key and hold it then the Blue tooth can be turned on and off. Works great with my iphone.

Each sound is off by an average of 10 cents either way. Not one of the 35 voices landed on pitch despite being an electronic instrument. It does the "vibrato trick" employed by untrained musicians. It hits the approximate pitch and then wavers around it enough that maybe it will average out to the right note. There's no way to adjust the pitch except by half steps in the transposed menu.Bluetooth function is not mentioned in the manual or any online documentation, you have to hold down the FG button to enable the Bluetooth. It works well with Garage Band on an iPad and with apps like ORG24 on Android devices.It's a decent entry level device and if you want to noodle for a bit or want to play simple melodies, for the price, it's something that you can toss in your gig bag and mess around with. I wouldn't play a concert with it though.Fingerings in sax mode are the easiest except it's missing several keys so you have to figure out how to play some of the lesser used sharps and flats. If you're in C or B or F major, you'll be fine. Once you start adding more than 2 or 3 sharps or flats, finding the right fingerings can be challenging.Image is from the clarinet voice showing how off it is. Not sure if it's tuned to something other than A440, but none of the voices are consistent.I would suggest to grab the reset button with pliers and then cut it off so you can't push the button accidentally. Second picture shows how you only need a pen tip to press it.

Ok so it’s not an Akai EWI 5000, however it’s a great beginners EWI. Solidly built. I thought it was going to feel really light, and toy like, but I was surprised at how hefty it is. Some of the sounds are not as good as others, but the main sounds are pretty good. Easy to play. Easy to navigate the settings. You will have to experiment to get the correct fingerings but with patience and practice, I don’t see that being an issue. The neck strap leaves a lot to be desired though. It’s just a regular unadjustable lanyard. I may have a different review after I learn the ins and outs, but for now, this is a good instrument.

Can’t get the Bluetooth to work?

Sound is very good. Docs are not.I’ve only had the EWI for a few days but found no mention of how to turn on Bluetooth. Then I accidentally stumbled into the trick: hold down the FG button until it says “Bluetooth on.” To turn Bluetooth off, hold down the FG button until it says “Bluetooth off.” The EWI works fine with GarageBand on my iPhone via Bluetooth.The neck strap is not the correct size for me and is not adjustable. I repurpose a spare briefcase strap.The fingering charts are only readable with a magnifying glass so I enlarged the one I needed on my copier. All is good now.The fingering is different from my last EWI which I understand is common with wind instruments.Compared to my old MIDI EWI, the Vangoa is much heavier and larger. The Vangoa has far superior buttons - much easier to find with my fingers.I particularly like that the rechargeable battery is replaceable.

Over all The shipping was great.I only use vibrato occasionally and this unit has it built and and it will not allow you toPlay without it.The key pads are very, very sensitive even getting close to them sets themIn action.I wish they would help me with this.. and return the unit.I would also like a fingering chart for the entire chromatic scale as it is not exactly like an alto sax or even a C medley sax. A simple chart to show you where each note really is in chromatic scale. Upper and lower.

Fun to learn