# Native Instruments Komplete Kontrol & Kontakt 6



## mrc (Aug 4, 2020)

Just sorry to ask this newbie question, but there is some kind soul who can explain in a few clear words the main differences between Komplete Kontrol and Kontakt 6 (paid versions)?

Thanks!


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## j_kranz (Aug 4, 2020)

Komplete Kontrol is't really an instrument itself, but more a utility used to browse your instruments (and the presets/patches made for those instruments). It can be used with one of the NI Komplete Kontrol keyboards to browse presets from the physical keyboard as well. It has other features, but these are the main ones.

Kontakt is an instrument, it's a sampler used to host many of the virtual instruments that you see advertised and discussed on this forum. Kontakt can run and be browsed through the Komplete Kontrol utility (as can the other NI instruments).

Hope that helps.


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## mrc (Aug 5, 2020)

Thanks for your reply, now I understand the differences better!

- m.



j_kranz said:


> Komplete Kontrol is't really an instrument itself, but more a utility used to browse your instruments (and the presets/patches made for those instruments). It can be used with one of the NI Komplete Kontrol keyboards to browse presets from the physical keyboard as well. It has other features, but these are the main ones.
> 
> Kontakt is an instrument, it's a sampler used to host many of the virtual instruments that you see advertised and discussed on this forum. Kontakt can run and be browsed through the Komplete Kontrol utility (as can the other NI instruments).
> 
> Hope that helps.


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## AndreasHe (Sep 6, 2020)

If you have a keyboard from NI, with Kontrol you also have the LED light guide which indicates on which keys samples are located. (often in different colors)..

But in KK you can only load one instrument. In Kontakt, you may add more at once.


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## telecode101 (Sep 7, 2020)

..


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## AndreasHe (Sep 7, 2020)

And don't forget the preview. For me it is very usefull, as there are so many different sounds and first loading them takes time. Here you can click through or use the wheel on a NI Keyboard to hear the sound before loading the instrument.

For a long time I just loaded Kontakt directly, but now I more and more go back to KK as there are so nice features in. For sure, the CPU load is a bit higher than without it. And the overview of instruments are also not good organized (no folders inside an instrument).

There is also a favorite tag you can set. I use it a lot to get a list of handselected set of "I like it" presets.

As mentioned, the highest benefit you will get out of it, if you own a NI hardware.

Check out this picture from NI, where you can see the listed and loaded instruments also in the keyboard display:






Details: https://www.native-instruments.com/de/products/komplete/keyboards/komplete-kontrol-s49-s61/


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## Reid Rosefelt (Sep 7, 2020)

Also, Komplete Kontrol is not just about browsing.

All the instruments that have the Komplete Kontrol certification NKS have the knobs on the keyboard pre-mapped to the parameters on the keyboard. Some do a better job at this than others.

KK can control many things on certain DAWs, including Cubase, from transport, quantizing, to mixing.

Finally, instruments and libraries don't need to be made by NI or even be Kontakt to get NKS. Companies like Arturia, AAS, and ujam are not Kontakt, but have some or all of their instruments in Komplete Kontrol.


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## Mrtunes666 (Jun 20, 2022)

Reid Rosefelt said:


> Also, Komplete Kontrol is not just about browsing.
> 
> All the instruments that have the Komplete Kontrol certification NKS have the knobs on the keyboard pre-mapped to the parameters on the keyboard. Some do a better job at this than others.
> 
> ...


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## Mrtunes666 (Jun 20, 2022)

Hello, just to chime in with my first post. 
If I own Kontakt 6 then Komplete Kontrol is not a requirement for me?


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## LearningToCompose:) (Jun 20, 2022)

Mrtunes666 said:


> Hello, just to chime in with my first post.
> If I own Kontakt 6 then Komplete Kontrol is not a requirement for me?


That's right. Kontakt don't need anything else, you can buy it seperatly from Komplete and use it.


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## Richard_AH (Aug 2, 2022)

I am glad this post is here. I am also quite new and struggling to understand the difference between Kontakt 6 and Komplete Control - I get that Kontakt is the place which hosts all your sample libraries and you can open them all from there. 

But Komplete Control also seems to be able to be a place to open sounds/instruments ? Is it effectively doing the same thing (i.e. just another place in order for you to open the same things ?).

For example, if you brought Komplete 13, would all the libraries/instruments be housed in Kontakt ? Or would some be in there, and some in Komplete Control ? (i.e. sample string library in Kontakt, and synthesiser in Komplete Control etc). Or would they all be available in both, and it's down to personal preference where you open them ? Sorry if this is a really dumb question to those far more experienced than me.

Thanks


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## davidson (Aug 2, 2022)

Richard_AH said:


> I am glad this post is here. I am also quite new and struggling to understand the difference between Kontakt 6 and Komplete Control - I get that Kontakt is the place which hosts all your sample libraries and you can open them all from there.
> 
> But Komplete Control also seems to be able to be a place to open sounds/instruments ? Is it effectively doing the same thing (i.e. just another place in order for you to open the same things ?).
> 
> ...


Komplete Kontrol is a hub of sorts in which you can browse and play *all* your komplete instruments and effects (kontakt, massive, reaktor etc) as well as a lot of third party plugins; arturia and u-he synths for example. You don't have to use it, but a few nice features it adds are;

- Audio previews for all your presets as you scroll through them.
- Pre-mapped midi controls.
- The light guide on komplete kontrol keyboards (awesome!).
- Tagging and categorising of your presets.

The downsides are that it eats a bit of extra CPU and currently, the browser is a bit small.

So yeah, you dont have to use it at all and many people don't, but personally I think its pretty cool. I dont tend to use it for effects though, just instruments.


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## stigbn (Aug 2, 2022)

Richard_AH wrote:
"For example, if you brought Komplete 13, would all the libraries/instruments be housed in Kontakt ?"

Some of the instruments in Komplete, like Absynth, Massive, Massive X, Battery or FM8 runs without Kontakt, directly in your DAW.
I nearly only use Komplete Control to find samples and loops in the Komplete Extensions (like 'Halcyon Sky' or ' Deep Matter') as it seems the only way to find them (except the drumsets appear in Battery).


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## reimerpdx (Aug 2, 2022)

Reid Rosefelt said:


> Finally, instruments and libraries don't need to be made by NI or even be Kontakt to get NKS. Companies like Arturia, AAS, and ujam are not Kontakt, but have some or all of their instruments in Komplete Kontrol.


UJAM is NKS? How’d I miss this? *goes to look


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## Reid Rosefelt (Aug 2, 2022)

reimerpdx said:


> UJAM is NKS? How’d I miss this? *goes to look


To my knowledge, only the guitars are officially NKS. Maybe there are some others I don't have.

But when I load all my ujam instruments into Komplete Kontrol, the color guides work and all the pages of knobs are mapped. This is a lot more than you get with some official NKS libraries.


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## reimerpdx (Aug 2, 2022)

Reid Rosefelt said:


> To my knowledge, only the guitars are officially NKS. Maybe there are some others I don't have.


Ah yes, you're right.
I had forgotten about those (those are some of the UJAM libs I don't use that often, so forgot they were there.


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## KarenR (Aug 8, 2022)

Richard_AH said:


> I am glad this post is here. I am also quite new and struggling to understand the difference between Kontakt 6 and Komplete Control - I get that Kontakt is the place which hosts all your sample libraries and you can open them all from there.
> 
> But Komplete Control also seems to be able to be a place to open sounds/instruments ? Is it effectively doing the same thing (i.e. just another place in order for you to open the same things ?).
> 
> ...


I have these two things totally confused too. No need to be sorry - that's why there are all levels in this forum who can help out! You're not alone in your confusion lol! Someday we'll be helping out when we've gained our own experience.


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## Richard_AH (Aug 12, 2022)

KarenK said:


> I have these two things totally confused too. No need to be sorry - that's why there are all levels in this forum who can help out! You're not alone in your confusion lol! Someday we'll be helping out when we've gained our own experience.


Good to hear Karen  I now have Komplete 13, so starting to get used to what opens in Komplete Control, and how it looks etc. So starting to make sense....well, a little anyway. Like a lot of these things, only after you have brought them can you understand them a bit better. And i've barely scratched the surface


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## AcousTech (Aug 13, 2022)

Hey folks. Chiming in here with what may be some helpful links. I agree that Native Instruments hasn’t really helped themselves with their naming of things. Perhaps some of these links will help.

First some attempts at clarification:
Komplete Kontrol _hardware_ means the keyboard MIDI controllers that NI makes. 
Komplete Kontrol _software_ is the app you install that will enhance the interaction between the hardware, mentioned above, and some of the virtual instruments you install, provided they meet the NKS standard. 
NKS = Native Kontrol Standard. This is essentially an extension to the VST(Virtual Instrument Standard) that was created by Steinberg. It takes what is a standard for how to write/code/build virtual instruments, and enhances it in several ways. One of which is to better integrate software and hardware. 





This is NKS







www.native-instruments.com





Komplete 13 (Select/Ultimate/Ultimate Collector’s Edition) - are the various bundles of software that Native Instruments sells. The 13 simply means that we are on the 13th version of those bundles. There will likely be a 14 series soonish. 








Compare







www.native-instruments.com





The Komplete packages/bundles contain a large number of instruments - many of which also have their own expansions available:
For example the instruments are:

Kontakt - a “plugin” which hosts virtual instruments built to the Kontakt standard. There are two versions:
Kontakt - will be able to load and play, any instrument for which the developer has paid the distribution license fee. Basically Native Instruments charges developers for benefiting from the ecosystem they have built. If the developer wants the maximum value delivered to their customers, and the least friction, they’ll pay NI what are effectively distribution rights. 

Kontakt Full - however, developers, often the smaller ones, cannot afford to do that, but still want to benefit from developing for Kontakt. That’s an option, but in that case NI makes the end-user basically pay for that privilege by making the user buy “Kontakt Full”. In other words, the version of Kontakt you need depends entirely on how the developer decides to distribute their work.

A great introduction to Kontakt is available on YouTube by Guy Michelmore:
Kontakt 6 in 20 minutes

There are other instruments in the Komplete 13 bundles:
Guitar Rig - virtual amps & effects
Battery - Virtual drums

Synthesizers:
Massive
Massive X
Absynth
FM8
Reaktor

There is some detail to explain the types of content by category here:


https://support.native-instruments.com/hc/en-us/articles/210421425-Which-Applications-do-the-KOMPLETE-11-Content-Products-Belong-To



Anyway, all of that is to say that NI has built a standard that has an enormous presence in the virtual instrument industry, but not all virtual instruments use that standard. Nevertheless, it has been widely adopted, and as they have succeeded they keep enhancing their ecosystem. So now, back to what is Komplete Kontrol? Maybe this helps:

Komplete Kontrol keyboard/MIDI controller <-> Komplete Kontrol Software <-> NKS compatible virtual instruments(like Kontakt). You don’t strictly _need_ it, because you can often just launch a Kontakt instrument and play it:
Komplete Kontrol keyboard/MIDI controller <-> Kontakt. However adding the Komplete Kontrol software to the mix really enhances the interaction between Native Instrument’s hardware and software. More here from Sanjay C:


Do you _have_ to use Native Instruments hardware to use their software? No. Are there benefits to doing so, yes. And the Komplete Kontrol software is what lights up a lot of those benefits. You can use Komplete Kontrol software without the hardware, which enables some nice features that Sanjay C highlights, but to truly get the full benefits, not surprisingly, you use Native Instruments hardware in combination with their software. 

Anyway, no one should feel demoralized by not “getting” all of this. It’s an insane amount to take in, and often not very easy to understand. Take heart knowing that in time, it will make sense. And once you’ve invested the effort in improving your understanding, a whole new world of possibilities will open up to you. It’s worth the effort!


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## Richard_AH (Aug 14, 2022)

AcousTech said:


> Hey folks. Chiming in here with what may be some helpful links. I agree that Native Instruments hasn’t really helped themselves with their naming of things. Perhaps some of these links will help.
> 
> First some attempts at clarification:
> Komplete Kontrol _hardware_ means the keyboard MIDI controllers that NI makes.
> ...



Thanks so much for this comprehensive post. Really really useful, and good to see what each part actually means or represents. I'm only one year in to this whole music DAW thing, so everything is still a but of a minefield (well, a bit is somewhat of an understatement - I don't even know if I have Kontakt player or the full version (I have Komplete 13 now though so maybe that answers that question). But this is extremely helps, so thank you for taking the time to go through it all. I have read through it a couple of times now, and everything is starting to make sense now


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## AcousTech (Aug 14, 2022)

Sure thing! It's a fun journey, and more fun with friends. And I didn't even bring up the DAW portion of this! So much to learn...

As to your Kontakt question, if 13 is what you have - with no modifiers on that title - then here is your answer:





You can also see this by checking the Kontakt version(Kontakt menu, About Kontakt if you're on a Mac):


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## Richard_AH (Aug 15, 2022)

AcousTech said:


> Sure thing! It's a fun journey, and more fun with friends. And I didn't even bring up the DAW portion of this! So much to learn...
> 
> As to your Kontakt question, if 13 is what you have - with no modifiers on that title - then here is your answer:
> 
> ...


Fantastic - so simple when you know eh  I am very much enjoying this whole musical journey. I tried years ago (before the days of the internet) and didnt leanr much and got bored. But now, with the software available, and with resources like youtube, and this forum in particular, makes it so much more enjoyable. Thanks again.


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## KarenR (Aug 26, 2022)

Richard_AH said:


> Good to hear Karen  I now have Komplete 13, so starting to get used to what opens in Komplete Control, and how it looks etc. So starting to make sense....well, a little anyway. Like a lot of these things, only after you have brought them can you understand them a bit better. And i've barely scratched the surface


A friend of mine recently introduced me to Groove 3. It’s a website where you can buy various tutorials on the cheap. I think there is one for Kontact and *possibly* one for Komplete Kontrol, I can’t remember. I’ve purchased quite a few of their videos and I’ve just started watching how to run studio one. I’m starting from the very beginning and working my way forward. They have sales a lot of times. Maybe Groove 3 has been discussed on this forum lots of times before and I am just completely out of the loop but I don’t get a check here very often, or let’s just say I don’t get to check in and be here as much as I’d like. Other life responsibilities always seem to come first! I’m hoping certain things will slow down for me by the time the end of the year comes so fingers crossed everybody!


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