don’t have much to add here, but last time i looked into this, it was to use a nord lead a1 as a controller. it may be possible, but folks in the forums pointed to the meager capabilities in the manual and basically said it is not worth it. by the same token, it’s always funny to see matt johnson’s videos where he uses a prophet 6 as a controller. it would probably be worth looking into some of the dedicated controllers already mentioned here and elsewhere in threads unless you really need another synth with keys.
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Thanks a lot, I guess I’m sold on the Explorer.
For the price it seems to be a really cool synth and pretty straight forward to sound design on it, and the added keybed quality and aftertouch possibilities makes it a no brainer to replace my wavestate.
Love the guy’s tattoos and accent too! 
Edit to add, DSI and Clavia stuff is really really great but we’re speaking of a totally different tier, either price and sizewise,
I would play on it first before making the conclusion it has a better keybed quality. I played on it a few times and wasn’t really keen on the keybed, I liked the keybed of the Minilogue XD better for instance. And they still are mini keys, not comparable to a high quality (semi) weighted keybed.
Youtube also states that the review contains paid promotion, so probably has a slightly more positive outcome of the hydrasynth capabilities.
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Aren’t the Explorer keys semi weighted as well?
The consensus around the web seems to praise the Explorer keybed as a really good one, clearly a step above Arturia’s controllers, at least from some random skimming over forum/reddit threads.
I guess other contenders could be the Argon8/Cobalt8 with Fatar full size keys, don’t know if weighted/semi weighted or neither the two.
They’ve got aftertouch too, but not poly.
They are probably better on the keyboard aspect, I don’t know about sound and UI, relative to the Hydra.
Fact is I’ve got a few synths, including also a Peak, so maybe something completely different like an Hydra could make more sense as an addition to my setup compared to other gear similar to what I have* already
*(Peak, Micromonsta2, Microfreak, Sh01a)
If I had enough space I’ll probably sell the Peak too, and buy a Summit, but it’s really too big for my space
They are, but they still are mini keys, so not really comparable to semi weighted regular sized keys.
I ended up with little cutie!
I’m in the honeymoon phase, but guys, this thing really delivers!
I didn’t believe it could have such a deep, beefy lowend, and the pads… Loving it already!
The keys are a bit weird at first, I guess I have to be used to the minikeys, but the poly AT is nuts!
I was able to drive Peak, Micromonsta2 and Microfreak in minutes, without even open the hydra manual, the setup/menus are really straightforward and make completely sense to me.
Thinking that I basically flipped a slightly used Wavestate for this thing brand new sounds like a steal. Incredible value
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Could you get more specific with this ? Weird, how so ?
I am used to the Wavestate keys that are bigger, this are tinier but I guess same as every minikeys keyboard like Arturia Keystep for example.
I’m not a keyboard player, but the keys feels better to me than the Wavestate ones, more “alive”. I guess that’s because they’re semi-weighted and more refined from a pure build quality perspective.
But you have to be more precise 'cause of the smaller dimension. The black keys seems to have a rather short throw.
All in all it’s a an enjoyable keybed to me, and really pleasant to the touch, just not something I’d buy if your serious about shredding or proper piano work.
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I’m gonna have to give the hydrasynth explorer a go at some point… I do have to say on the regular hydrasynth I found the keys to be a bit of a let down in feel coming for a dsi semi weighted fatar board, personally I would take a good feeling board over polyaftertouch but I’m willing to forgive more in minikeys. I wanna give they hydrasynth deluxe board a go also at some point even though I have no room for it.