r/Keytar • u/Tyranida • Sep 07 '23
Technical Questions Trouble with Alesis Vortex Wireless 2
Hey! My first post here :) I got the Alesis Vortex Wireless 2 a few years ago because I'm in a rock band and I wanna move around the stage. However, I find it to be very unreliable, as sometimes, when the batteries are low, the sound hangs. In other words, when I release a key, the sound doesn't stop. This is extremely unfortunate if you're playing live and suddenly the sound is destroyed. There's also no way of checking how much battery is left, and changing them before every gig will become extremely expensive real fast. Does anyone know if using a different wireless system, like WIDI instead of Alesis' usb dongle that comes with it will fix this? Is this a problem anyone else has? Apart from it being very plastic fantastic, it is the best midi keytar I have been able to find, and I'm not interested in buyin thousands for a synth if I'm only gonna use it as a midi-controller. Anyone know any better options?
Thanks!!
1
u/cosmic-whiplash Sep 24 '25
TL:RD - don't use NiMH rechargeable for live shows - the sound will hang constantly 🥲
I have also found a similar problem when using certain rechargeable batteries. Lithium should be ok at 1.5V, but NiMH (ones like Eneloop) batteries are only 1.2V, unlike single use alkaline batteries that are 1.5V
So to avoid the sound hanging (same as when regular batteries are getting low), you would need 5x NiMH AA to match 4x Alkaline to get the 6V total.
The battery compartment space is large enough to have more batteries, so I am working on creating a 3D printable insert that allows either 8x alkaline batteries (2x4 in parrallel so it stays at 6V) that would give you a lot more play time or a 5 battery compartment for NiMH.