Should the main knob be loose?

Today, I received an Arturia Keylab 49 mk3 from a major musical instrument retailer. I was so happy to order it, coming from a minilab mk2.

It arrived with in a shipping box but the retail box had no outer sleeve, showing off the details but the box didn’t appear used.

After a while, I opened the box to inspect the contents and it looked new: plastic sleeve, foam under taped keys, etc. Keeping the plastic sleeve on, I pressed a few buttons and moved a knob and fader. Satisfied with build quality, I then moved on to the main knob. I was shocked at how much it wighled side to side but not forward and backward.

Is this play normal or was I duped by the major retailer? Could this have been a return and then put back in their inventory as new? The oreder receipt shows new, not open box or used.

Thanks for your time and input! Have an awesome day, everyone!

Are you talking about the main encoder? I got a pretty crappy 61 mk3 which I’m returning tomorrow and exchanging for a new one but the main knob did not raise any concerns or anything. It definitely does feel a bit cheap but mines did not wiggle…

Yes, the main encoder. I have not read the manual, so I’m not familiar with the part names.

Thanks for your reply! I’m sorry to hear about your experience - I hope this is not normal quality controll or shoddy components.

Seems to be quality control. I’ve been thru 3 of these keyboards now and all of them have had this inconsistent keybed feel. Some keys stiffer than the rest. One of the controllers wasn’t balanced which would cause the keyboard to rock back and forth. Immediately returned that one. Just got the new one and testing out the keys and same issue, some keys stiffer than the rest. I will never buy an Arturia product again.