First MIDI Controller - Questions / Help / Advice

Lab KeyLab
#1

I’ve been dabbling with music production software for the last few weeks (I had no idea how deep this rabbit hole would go!). After settling on a DAW (Ableton) I’m now looking to add a MIDI Controller to my setup as a better means to interact with the DAW and transfer my ideas and music into it.

I’ve had a look at several different offerings from the usual suspects (Novation, Arturia, M-Audio, Akai etc etc) and I seem to be leaning towards one of the recent releases in the space, so either the Novation Launchkey Mk4 or the Arturia KeyLab Mk3. I’d imagine both are more than capable within this space for my beginner requirements but one sticking point I’ve got is what size would be optimal. I’m not in a cramped room as such, but a full sized 88 key is most likely going to be too dominating. If I went for a 49 key would it still give me enough options and not be too restrictive in what I can achieve?

Beyond that, there’s quite the price difference between the two MIDI Controllers I’m looking at, the Novation Launchkey Mk4 in its 49 key configuration comes in at around £229 where as the Arturia KeyLab Mk3 is £379, between the two, what are the main differences and effectively is the additional price of the KeyLab Mk3 justified or would I be better putting that money elsewhere in my setup (or possibly looking at the Essential Mk3 in stead)? Would the KeyLab Essential Mk3 be a worth consideration? As far as setup goes, I currently have a SM57, Scarlett Solo, Fidelio X2HR’s/ Crinacle Zero:RED’s, Eris 3.5’s and a 2018-2019 Windows PC.

Any help or advice would be appreciated, also open to other offerings outside of the ones I’ve mentioned about (I’m still very new to this space so its quite possible I’ve overlooked something!).

Thanks :slight_smile:

TLDR:- Total beginner with a budget of around £200-400 to spend on first MIDI Controller for use with Ableton, would a 49 key be enough? Or would I see better value in getting a cheaper MIDI Controller and putting the remaining budget into my existing setup (SM57, Scarlett Solo, Fidelio X2HR’s / Crinacle Zero:RED’s, Eris 3.5’s and a 2018-2019 Windows PC)?

#2

Hi @Rookie1986 and welcome to The Sound Explorers Forum!

Lol YEP it’s a VERY deep rabbit hole as you’ve already realised, but it’s a FUN rabbit hole with enough to keep you engaged and entertained for MANY lifetimes!

You’ve said you’re a total beginner, i take it that’s a beginner with making music/playing an instrument? Or do you have some experience playing any musical instrument/s?

An 88 note keyboard is a MUST for a Pianist if they’re serious about what they’re doing, whereas there are some people who don’t use keyboards AT ALL. I don’t use ANY physical input devices other than a mouse for drum programming as i used to play drums MANY years ago and i can just ‘see’ drum patterns in the typical ‘grid’ drum editors.

I know people who use small, two or three octave controllers who make electronic dance music and some who use a full 88 key controller to make more typical rock, blues, Soul, Funk, Reggae etc…

Having 88 keys at your finger tips gives you pretty much the entire range of most instruments, MANY more than SOME instruments can make actually. Whereas a smaller 37 key controller rather limits your ability to work over multiple octaves simultaneously.

It all depends on what you’re wanting to achieve at the end of the day.

If you’re wanting to go down the pianist route, then at some point you’re going to REALLY benefit from 88 keys, whereas for most ‘mainstream’ sort of music, a 61 key controller would be more appropriate in general. I personally like 61 keys, i’d like 88 but, like you i don’t have the space.

Are you concerned with the feel of the keybed or are you not bothered? MANY keyboard players are VERY fussy about keybeds in the same way guitarists/bassists are about lacquered/unlacquered necks, steel or nickel strings… but these things tend to become relevant over time, once we become more competent.

Sorry i can’t be more specific here, if you let us know a bit more about what you’re aiming for in the next couple of years we might be able to steer you in the right direction for you.

HTH!

Ps,
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#3

One of the most significant things the extra cost of the Arturia controller buys you is Analog Lab, which offers a selection of presets from the full suite of V Collection instruments. Analog Lab is a great product on its own but really it’s a gateway product that Arturia hope will entice you to buy the full version of V Collection, which as an Analog Lab owner you would get at a slightly-discounted price (wait until there are seasonal offers on for that though).

If you JUST want a controller, and the the suite of software instruments is not for you, you may be better off buying a competitor’s controller which offers the same facilities without the focus on Analog Lab; it may also be cheaper.

#4

Hey @matjones,

Thank you for taking the time to do such a detailed reply, I’ll try my best to address the points/questions you raised below:-

I’m a total beginner in regards to making music and playing keys, I have some experience with electric, acoustic and bass guitar and have used some software to get playback through my PC (setup and software mentioned above).

Generally, I’m looking to dabble in the hobby to see if it’s something I enjoy as much as playing guitar, I’d like to be able to eventually progress to putting full tracks together at home at a good level for amateur home production (although not a priority, one element I possibly missed initially is potential resale value of whichever keyboard/controller I go for as there is a chance it doesn’t stick and I would look to offload the unused equipment without too much loss) .

Space is one of my biggest concerns as I’m setup in a spare box-room (16.93 m³) so although not “tiny” it’s small, limited on setup options and far from ideal (the room doubles as my home office and also has a pull-out for guests).

A little, as a lot of what I read seems to focus on the keybed and feel (and like said, as a guitarist I know how important feel can be, especially after reaching a point of proficiency), although I’d guess that “most” reasonable entry level keyboards/controllers would offer a good enough experience to get through my first few years?

Hope that helps.

#5

Hey @Jon_Vincent,

The software is more a “nice to have” I guess, although some of the included stuff looks great!

If I was to shop outside of the Arturia range what else would be the competition at this price point? Are we talking stuff like the Native Instruments Kontrol S49 Mk3 or would that be something different?

#6

Hi @Rookie1986. Welcome to the community from me too.

I think, you ask some questions nobody really can answer for you, even if i understand why you ask.

When it come to prize differences, then keybed quality and aftertouch option often have something to do with it.
Arturias Essential serie for example do not have aftertouch. The keylab have channel aftertouch (unfortunately not with a polyphonic aftertouch option) and it also have more ways to user adjust the velocity and aftertouch.
Novation launch keys afaik also do not have aftertouch.
Many sounds are programmed using aftertouch as a modulator. That said, then many do not like to use aftertouch at all, while others want much much more control in the keys.
BTW: Some controllers have much more noisy keys than others.

Keylab MK3 have Release Velocity. That’s not common. Some synths actually have this modulator like Synclavier V and Matrix 12 V of Arturias.

If you only want to play organ like sounds, then you perhaps don’t even need velocity in the keys or a very good one. But if you use velocity like for piano sounds or other sounds, then you will be happy with as good as possible. Bad velocity can be very annoying and in some cases rather useless.

It’s all rather personal too.

When it come to the number of keys, then you need the number you need. It really depend.
I find that 61 keys can do very well also for Piano. Some software use low keys as sound variation keys. That’s where 88 keys perhaps can be handy too. 49 keys or less perhaps is very good for less playing and more portability.

When it comes to controls, then i like Arturias have 9 faders instead of 8. For example a Hammond organ have 9 drawbars per manual.
But again you need the controls you need. That might not be the same as someone else. It might also depend on other the functionality of the controller.

Connectivity also is something that can give a price difference. Keylab MK3 for example have 3 modulator inputs. Some only need for the hold pedal. Others do need for Expression pedal too. And others need even more for more modulators. A Piano player might need 3 pedals for the piano alone namely Hold, Soft and Sostenuto. 3 inputs can soon be useful.

Build quality is also something that make a price difference. This include modwheel, knobs and fader quality.

Controllers have more or less further functionality options. The question is how often the options really are used.

I’m not sure why you will use Ableton Live. It can be both good and bad to have a controller build for a certain DAW.

I would not shop a controller based on the software package it has unless everything else does’nt matter.

If you for example want good keys, controls, modulator connectivity, channel aftertouch and Release velocity, then it’s Keylab MK3.

In the end it’s about your needs and abilities. Also when it comes to Komplete Kontrol. Komplete Kontrol is mostly about using NKS files and thus the Komplete Kontrol software to wrap each instrument to have it working.

#7

Hey, @LBH thank you for the detailed reply :slight_smile:

Yeah, I guess some elements are specific to me (budget, space etc are my problems to overcome).

I’m not overly familiar with Aftertouch, but after watching some YouTube videos I can see both its positives and negatives depending on what you as a player want to achieve. I don’t believe it’s a deal breaker for me at this point in my journey into learning Keys or starting to use a Keyboard-based MIDI Controller.

I guess I’m the same for velocity, again I’ve watched an explanation of this on YouTube and how it works on a keyboard, listening to the music I have where a piano is present this is probably something I’d be more likely to require to achieve that type of sound.

So the keyboard will be “fixed” and isn’t intended for travel, so maybe the 49 is the wrong choice for my needs, I’ll have to double-check some measurements to see if 61 is possible, although I fear its going to just be too big.

This is probably something I’ll only come to realise in time, as it’s hard to say what I will and won’t need in the controls with such little/limited experience in playing, and its probably the same when it comes to the inputs, I guess I’ve got a lot of learning and growing to do over the next few years.

Oh right, that’s unfamiliar to me, as an engineer I would usually select the appropriate tool based on its ability to interface with the task required (suitability check), so I’m not at risk of buying something to then find it can’t be used with/for my intended use, so is DAW integration not as much of an issue as it seems to be mentioned in every keyboard/controller review?

Maybe I’m a little bit too out of my depth and lack the knowledge around this area and I should give it a skip for now as I’m worried I’d waste my money by purchasing the wrong thing.

Cheers,

#8

Given your space limitations and newness to playing keys, it might even be good to start with a small controller like an Arturia MiniLab or Keystep, NI M32, or something similar. This will let you get your feet wet in production and if you enjoy it, you can look at something more sizable later on. Since you don’t have any experience playing piano, there’s probably no immediate need to go any larger than 49 keys either.