Introducing: Digitone Keys

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Introducing Digitone Keys

We’re delighted to announce Digitone Keys, the eight voice polyphonic synthesizer that takes you through the looking glass and back.

Unlock your sweet dreams

The 37-key velocity and pressure sensitive keyboard with aftertouch gives you a whole new level of expression and control of the Digitone’s intuitive sound engine, representing our vision of how FM synthesis can be revitalized and modernized.

Imagine the sound of whispering dunes, rolling thunder, or the twinkle of distant stars. With this ready-to-go performance machine, curiosity is all you need. Intuitive sound crafting, 8 voice polyphony, mod and pitch wheels, and brand new customizable controls. These are the things that dreams are made of.

Digitone Keys key features:

Restrictions are for the dreamless

This eight voice polyphonic synthesizer keyboard is a performance machine that can usher in soundscapes of distant dreams and worlds previously out of reach. The 37-key velocity and pressure sensitive keyboard lets you wield the Digitone’s powerful sound engine with even more control. Multimap lets you configure and assign individual sounds per region, triggering sounds or patterns with the tap of a key, while the ability to use portamento and arpeggio flourishes with the freedom of three octaves.

Sculpt your sound

With the Digitone’s powerful and easy to use FM engine you have Digitone dynamism in keyboard form. A variety of dedicated features put the power at your fingertips. Get maximum control out of the machine with eight new assignable knobs. Choose the function you want for each knob to tailor your Digitone Keys, and then let loose. The freedom to switch between tempestuous and serene soundscapes in an instant is laid out in front of you. In an Elektron first, the Digitone Keys helps you liberate your live show with a flexible mod and pitch wheel set up. Warp your sound to another world by assigning modulations.

Get connected

With separate outputs for each track, connecting to external effects mixers and pedals, audio interfaces, and modulation sources is easier than ever before. Pinpoint single Digitone Keys tracks to process independently.

Digitone Keys specifications:

Synth voice features

8 voice polyphony (4-part multitimbral)
Multiple FM algorithms
Multiple operator harmonics
1 × multimode filter per voice
1 × base-width filter per voice
1 × overdrive per voice
2 × assignable LFO per voice
Unison
Portamento
2048 patch storage capacity on the +Drive

Sequencer

4 × synth tracks
4 × MIDI tracks
Arpeggiator per synth track
Polyphonic sequencing
Individual track lengths
Parameter locks
Micro timing
Trig conditions
Sound per step change
128 × projects on the +Drive
8 × Banks 16 × patterns per project

Send & master effects

Panoramic Chorus send effect
Saturator Delay send effect
Supervoid Reverb send effect
Overdrive master effect

Hardware

37-key semi-weighted, velocity sensitive keyboard with aftertouch
Assignable pitch and modulation wheels
8 × user assignable rotary encoders
2 × 1/4” impedance balanced main out jacks
8 × 1/4” impedance balanced track out jacks
1 × 1/4” stereo headphone jack
2 × 1/4” audio in jacks
2 × 1/4” CV/Expression/Sustain jacks
128 × 64 pixel OLED screen
48 kHz, 24-bit D/A and A/D converters
Hi-Speed USB 2.0 port
MIDI In/Out/Thru with DIN Sync out

Physical specifications

Sturdy steel casing
Dimensions: W868 × D185 × H90 mm (including knobs, feet, and jacks)
Weight: approximately 6 kg

Miscellaneous

Dedicated MIDI controller mode
Overbridge enabled
3 year Elektron warranty

Included in the box

Power Supply PSU-3b
Elektron USB cable

Pricing:

The Digitone Keys is 1299 USD/1320 EUR/1180 GBP and we have a limited number available to buy now from our website. Act quickly to get one of the first machines! The next batch of units will be completed and available by the end of the month, either from the Elektron website or from retailers carrying the Elektron range of products.

Come meet the Digitone Keys at Superbooth, booth W110.

Pictures, full specs and pricing are available at Elektron.se

12 Likes

Awesome.

It’s super sexy, but…

I got a brand new Digitone and Keystep for $680 total during a sale… I think I’d rather get a second Digitone than pay double for the Keys…

Looks excellent regardless. Perhaps someday.

14 Likes

Reminds me of the current season of Game of Thrones.

Lazy.

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Assignable controller knobs = A4 performance mode?

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Portamento!

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It’s kinda nice actually, not my type of thing but nice!
Now I guess everyone wants to see ‘the digitone keys experience’ … where is @Dataline ? :okej:

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Individual outputs !!!

7 Likes

It’s already available on youtube.

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Master overdrive, nice!

Yeah just found it

would be nice to see the actual differences between keys and regular in an overview.

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This is the absolute only thing that’d make me get this.

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We gain 8 knobs, a keybed and 6 additional outs. Am I missing anything? I like the quirky form factor and I always wanted a monomachine keyboard so I am down with this.

3 Likes

8 additional outs, stereo x4 I’m sure.

image

Fine heritage.
Monomachine SFX-6

12 Likes

Some (5+1) buttons left from the additional encoders.

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Same here, but seeing the video only highlight how awkward it looks. 37 keys is definitely not a lot, especially with the multimap feature. I wonder how easy it will be to take the keybed off ! and how soon someone will try ! :rofl:

3 Likes

In Cenk’s video doesn’t look like the keyboard was used at all.

@DonovanDwyer Using any MIDI keyboard with 8 knobs gives us “performance mode” only difference being you can’t layer mappings. I would imagine if that ended up being possible on the Keys it’d be made possible on the DN via MIDI.

2 Likes