why not get the exlporer?
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I want the CV outputs and more encoders. But yes, I’ve considered the explorer. But keyboard is my main instrument, it feels silly to get the explorer and limit myself to 3 octaves.
Maybe hydra key or deluxe 
The Explorer has all the CV outs, on the back. It’s the CV inputs that are missing.
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Oh really? ah I didn’t catch that. I do want the inputs more than than the outputs, as I was planning on using my Deluge to add some more modulation via the CV inputs.
I guess what I’m really looking for is someone who uses the desktop and has a recommendation for a midi workstation with a great keybed that has at least channel aftertouch, that works great with a DAW, and great with hardware.
I’m finally going to be in a place this summer that has a store that stocks hydras, so I’ll be able to play the keyboard versions in person and get a feel for the keybed. But if someone has a midi controller solution that meets all their needs using the hydra desktop, that is my top choice and I’d love to hear about it.
Loopop uses the rackmounted HSD in his mega setup with a wee little KeyStep Pro and a Machine+. That is an amazing setup for other reasons than we’ll go into here. See Loopop’s video in this thread.
I’ve used a Hydrasynth as a controller plenty, and also controlled it with a channel only controller, in my case the Novation SLM3 61 keys. The trick with that is changing your patches around to respond to channel aftertouch, which is easy enough to do. You’ve seen my posts about that no doubt.
You seem doubtful of the two large HS keyboards as controllers. They’re fully capable, plus you can do amazing things making patches to do all sorts of MIDI output, with custom set up controls, or LFOs, or whatever, etc, etc. You just use the Mod-Matrix to output whatever you want as MIDI CC.
You can use the keyboard in poly-aftertouch or in MPE mode, or channel-aftertouch for that matter, depending on what you have that you are controlling. The Deluxe has keyboard split, but you could get that with MIDI processing off the HSK too.
There will be other options for keyboard controllers with MPE and poly-aftertouch coming in the next six months to a year.
You have lots of options, it all depends what you want to do.
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Yeah, that’s a main concern. Thanks for your input on this aspect. I use bitwig, so having the MPE keyboard for that would be nice.
I check out loopops set up again.
I’ve read the SLM3 doesn’t always play nice with Bitwig, which makes me wary.
I’m going for a minimalist setup. Too much gear and I lose focus. I have:
Deluge as main sequencer, AR on drum duties, and I’m looking at hydra as my main polysynth.
My question is whether to get the deluxe and use that as my workstation as well, even though it is missing transport and faders like you’d get with a standard midi workstation. Or get the desktop and a separate workstation.
It sounds like I need to play the hydra keys in person to best make this decision.
I appreciate your input.
I am using the desktop version with a Keystep (I am not a keyboard player).
You don’t get polyAT with Keystep, only mono. To enjoy MonoAT, I just go in the routing matrix and change the source of modulation from PolyAT to Mono AT 
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This
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Dig in to the HS manual first and understand what level of control is there, in particular, custom mapping the 8 macro master control to multiple MIDI outs, the Mod-Matrix, and understand that you can map things like the ribbon control to external MIDI, or do certain sorts of MIDI processing to MIDI input. There’s more to it than many people are aware of.
The Deluxe has the shelf, where you could put any outboard stuff like that you may want.
You can’t save ‘keyboard off’ setting which is really annoying when using it as a controller, every time you turn it on you need to turn local controll off in the settings.
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Yes you can on the Deluxe.
Turning MIDI Local Off when you power up is not a big deal otherwise. Plus you don’t need to be in Local Off to use it as a controller.
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oh you can on the delux, that’s interesting, i mailed them about it and they said they restricted saving of that feature because they didn’t want to deal with lots of troubleshooting requests of people saying that the keyboard doesn’t work.
Worst argument ever.
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Tell me you’ve never worked in tech support without saying you’ve never worked in tech support. 
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We would have as many messages in this thread saying, “My Hydrasynth is broken, it doesn’t make any noise”, as we have “My Hydrasynth is broken, the arpeggiator doesn’t work.”
Your synth isn’t making sounds, the natural reaction is to power cycle.
I have another controller / synth from a very large maker, and their solution was to disable the MIDI Local Off function altogether.
The Hydrasynth way works.
Extra points if you know why the arpeggiator is broken. Don’t spoil the fun for everyone else.
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I got a Hydrasynth and its probably the best synth I ever owned (and I owned a ton. from juno 60, prophet 12 to Polybrute).
I sometimes get lost for an hour with just a single preset. How can an UI interface be that good with just a few encoders?
And never felt I so expressive with poly aftertouch and the touch strip. Im really in love 
<3
I love it so much, that I consider to also get the Explorer.
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Has anyone tried MIDISynth–Hydra or Hydramorph VSTs?
Wondering which I should choose. Only the MIDISynth VST offers a trial.
Have one of these coming (desktop)… wasn’t overly impressed by the online sound examples at first but some really killer sound design potential had been demonstrated lately. These two (the later by our own @Voltagectrlr) are especially interesting.
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I played a (pre-recorded) all-Hydrasynth set for yesterday’s Flash Crash, which turned out to be the final one. No external sequencing.
(It’s not really an hour long, just the first 20 minutes, the rest is the intermission)
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