Probably just etsy being a twat.
I live in australia, we dont have that silly nonsense here.
The situation is a travesty. Sold every machine I had (A4II, ARII, Syntakt, Digitakt) as soon as my Digitakt started getting sticky. Tried a DNII since then but I dread the moment keycaps will start melting.
Can’t be that hard to propose double-shot non-rubberised keys, even as an addon in the store.
I send an annual email to Elektron feature request about this but they do not seem to care.
Would rebuy some of the machines if it was the case and I think it would be nice in current times if brands could be more responsible regarding obsolescence (selling more parts, replacement screens, durable keycaps)
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Just released the OTMKII set as well
Up next will be DN I/II as soon as I can get some help with a request here. I’m 99% sure, but don’t own the DN anymore.
https://www.elektronauts.com/t/my-slim-case-for-the-digitakt-digitone/225763/146
As always, can entertain all sorts of colors upon request.
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I find it amusing that viable businesses have been created to address Elektron’s design flaw. I think Elektron should offer buttonless versions of their boxes at a discount for those who know they’ll be buying better ones.
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@LaVernWinston Hi, are you planning to make keycaps for the AR MKII too? Would gladly buy them 
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Yep it’s on the to-do
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Awesome, thank you 
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Had to order keycaps from Elektron a few times and they charge 28€ in Europe to ship a 5x5cm envelope, can’t even call it a package, plus 1€ per keycap. I got cheaper shipping from the US for bigger packages. Least they could do for a problem they created is offer shipping. I’m sure they’re even making a profit in the keycaps.
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I’m certain they would make more profit from pivoting to a more eco-conscious business providing some parts that are easy to source and replace (keycaps, screens) and using materials that do not degrade in ~5 years.
I, for example, would buy again A4MKII and Syntakt on those terms. I’m satisfied with the machines themselves. I just can’t see myself storing them to find them sticky some time later.
They probably feel they don’t have to do that because as a whole the synths manufacturers haven’t yet stepped up (GAS, rapid product cycle, products that age poorly). But I’d say they have a card to play. Arturia melts (pots), Moog melts (wheels)… Ableton push used to melt but melts no more!
There’s the GAS crowd, but there are also some of us that buy instruments for life. I’ve got guitars that are 25 years old and they work as new. Why wouldn’t my synths if properly taken care of?
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They don’t even have to re-engineer the entire cap manufacturing process, just swap the final rubberized coating for some normal matte coating.
But yeah surely they are making a profit on it, they made me pay almost 100 bucks to buy replacements caps for my A4MKII, not a discount, not even free shipping, only to find out that some new caps were old and already starting to melt.
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anyone know if the e25 edition machines have buttons using the same coating?
wonder whey they do not start selling them on their webstore…
Yes they do.
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I never had issues with sticky buttons, but I know sooner or later the dreaded moment will come.
A really smart move from Elektron would be to open source the form of the caps to create the possibility for a decent aftermarket for replacements, provided they are not brave enough to admit the poor decision and start offering long lasting eco friendly replacement sets themselves.
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If anything they are worse because the brighter color below the coating would show dirt and degradation earlier than the black ones, at least that was true with A4mkII white keyboard buttons!
I’ve never had a problem with Elektron units either, but have experienced it with other products. It’s awful and disgusting when it happens.
I can see two reasons why Elektron won’t change the design and/or the material:
- The customer feedback regarding the issue simply isn’t large enough to warrant a change. I’m not sure the forum complaints reach them, so the best thing to do would be for each customer experiencing the issue to contact Elektron directly and ask them to change it.
- The available alternatives aren’t viable, either for cost reasons or design reasons. I think they used rubber surfaces for the first time on the Octatrack mk1 encoders, but I think these were true overmoulded plastic and rubber moulds. See picture below. I’ve never heard anyone complsin about stickiness in these, probably because they were made from rubber, not the polyurethane coating that gets sticky. I wish they could use this kind of material again, but I’m not sure it’s possible since this requires a different production technique. Someone in the know should chime in…
Picture of the overmoulded encoder cap on a Rytm mk1:
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Rubberized encoder knobs are another kind of construction, it is actual rubber injection molded around the plastic inner core, which is much more heavy duty, and a non issue unless you plan to store your machine in a cold dark, humid place for 20+ years.
On the contrary the buttons are (at the end of the black painting and laser etching process) sprayed with the infamous “soft touch finish” or should I say “planned obsolescence in spray form” product.
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@salami.wav Thanks. Can you think of a reason why Elektron didn’t continue with this type of manufacturing, other than cost? The design of the button is possibly more complex due to part of it being translucent, but from the little I know about overlmoulding it shouldn’t be impossible?
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Now, while having read almost every post in this and other related threads, I am at least a bit more relaxed. Mainly because I learned there’s relatively easy solutions to remove the goo without losing the paint (aka wiping with cotton cloth – might be easier if warming up the button caps in water before).
Secondly, while this rather unpleasant topic caught some attention, I would like to link again to the invaluable poll from @microtribe.
If you haven’t voted do it NOW – we do need a permanent solution in the production process to get completely rid of this disgusting greasy sh**!
Edit: You can change your vote in the poll in case your buttons are sticky now. 
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did you personally get the keycaps for free? is there someone else who didnt have to pay?