Elektron should absolutely be making MIDI controllers in my opinion. I doubt it will happen though. Maybe someday.
The Novation SL Mk IV.
The Waldorf Iridium Keyboard uses a Fatar poly-AT keybed (apparently fairly new). It works wonderfully, really high quality synth action and the poly-AT is very responsive and precise. Paired with an expression pedal and the mod wheel, it’s giving my Roli Seaboard a fair challenge.
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Still can’t believe we are waiting for poly AT MIDI keyboards. If something is going to happen soon, I’m guessing it will be a new series of Komplete Kontrol keyboards from Native Instruments, with Arturia following suit.
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So they just announced their 49, 61 and 88-key polyphonic aftertouch controllers, their Komplete Kontrol S MK3 series.
The 88 keys version has hammer-action keys, and all three were developed in collaboration with Fatar.
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Yamaha, Roland, Korg, Arturia, Studiologic, Novation ( and others ) will all be at either Machina Bristronica, or Synthfest UK in a few weeks.
We’ll see if any of them will also have a new product with a poly-aftertouch keybed.
Threads for :
Machina Bristronica
Synthfest UK
Oh and ASM is at both shows too.
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Well here’s at least one!
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Korg will be showing at Synthfest UK ( thread ) in a little over a week so the official announcement is going to happen soon.
Plus it is MIDI 2.0 !! So the dam is breaking on that. It includes MPE too, a pale comparison to MIDI 2.0 though. ( Elektronaut MIDI 2.0 thread )
- MIDI 2.0 Property Exchange for unparalleled integration and control
- New keybed design with Polyphonic / Channel Aftertouch and MPE compatibility
- Powerful arpeggiator, chord modes, and streamlined workflow
- Parameter-dedicated OLED screens for instant visual feedback
- Integrated audio interface with direct stereo output for live performances
- Lightweight and portable
- Official Ableton Live integration
- Includes Korg Gadget Producer Bundle, wavestate native LE, and Ableton Live 11 Lite
New thread for this.
ADDED : The ASM Medeli Polytouch logo is on the front panel, so that means that it will have that sort of quality like the Hydrasynths, and likely include Note Off Velocity.
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The new Montage M8x from Yamaha with 88 full-sized touch-sensitive piano-style keys and GEX weighted action have polyphonic aftertouch. They have priced it at $5000 USD.
They other Montage M models do not have polyphonic aftertouch.
Poly aftertouch seems like a bit of an odd decision for just the version with weighted piano-style keys.
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The Native Instruments 88 key controller has fully weighted hammer-action keys as well. But they have PolyAT in the 61 and 49 with semi-weighted keys. Those are all Fatar keybeds.
Don’t know, but is the 88 key Yamaha PolyAT keybed their own, or are they using a Fatar too ? I kind of think it’s their own.
There is that… but also, I think that the style of play (percussive, without nearly as much focus on gated sustain) that a weighted keybed invites isn’t particularly one where I feel poly aftertouch is as important a feature. My digital piano has channel aftertouch, for instance, and I’ve never used it – it doesn’t even occur to me to do so. It just seems strange to single out that particular keybed for poly aftertouch – I know it’s the “premier” model, but it’s also the one where I think be least likely to want that feature.
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I guess what is odd to me is that Yamaha did not include poly-aftertouch with the 61 and 76 key versions.
Poly-aftertouch is something you just have to get used to using anyways. ( Unless you play a Baroque-style clavichord as a regular thing ! They are very fun to aftertouch play. ) So the keyboard action coming up to the aftertouch isn’t as much of a concern to me.
**ADDED** : Friedrich Gulda bending the Clavichord
Gulda is an amazing musician. Classical to Jazz, multiple instruments and completely original.
https://youtu.be/1JbXJl0Uu8I?t=79
Queued past the intro, but go ahead and spool it back if you have the time.
The playing difference on the Osmose compared to the Hydrasynth, is definitely ( for me ) a challenge to adapt between. I won’t know about differences between Medeli and Fatar until my Omega arrives.
Plus release velocity playing difference also can be considered – between old and newer Hydrasynths/Medeli keybeds. So there isn’t really a standard in my book.
Seems to me the $500 price difference between the Montage M7 and M8x gains more when considering the Poly-AT, compare to the $500 between the M6 and M7.
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Maybe the omission wasn’t a feature decision but one based on procurement contracts and/or on parts availability. There are also QC factors to be taken into account.
OK – Arturia, Novation, and Studiologic – the ball is in your court.
With KORG and Native Instruments all in ( both Poly AT and MIDI 2.0 ) the competitive standard for controllers is that much higher.
A version of the Arturia Keylab Mk3 has got to be in the lab somewhere. The MkII was announced in the middle of 2018. I suppose they might not implement polyphonic aftertouch with it, but that seems to be growing more and more unlikely.
And for Novation i really hope they continue with the stand alone controller ideas they have on the SL MKIII series, if they do a poly aftertouch controller. Somehow i feel less confident that Novation will do a poly aftertouch controller, in the near term.
And an Arturia Keystep poly-aftertouch version as m0ld suggested above, would be a very pleasant surprise.
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Comparison of the two new MIDI 2.0, Poly AT controllers out at the moment :
They’re quite similar price wise, given that the Native Instruments has slightly more features.
There is also a 61 key version of both, again very similar.
Detail here thanks to Sweetwater and some editing.
how about the resolution of those knobs? anything MIDI2.0 worthy?
Just a newsy tidbit :
On the ASM Technology page they say this :
Our Polytouch® technology is currently being used in the following products:
ASM Hydrasynth Keyboard
ASM Hydrasynth Deluxe
ASM Hydrasynth Explorer
KORG Keystage 49
KORG Keystage 61
With more to come…
So is that more internal products or more OEMing ?
Or both ??
If internal is it another Hydrasynth, or something else ??
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I’ve been saying it for years, they have all the lineage and expertise to bring a modern version of the ASR-10 to the world. I’d like to see them do something other than another iteration of the Hydrasynth.
What makes you say this? It’s not a challenge, just a request for more info. The only employees of ASM that I can recall are the man with the French name that used to work at Arturia (I think?) and Daniel Troberg (assuming he still works at ASM).