# Studio Logic SL88 Controller



## Leon (May 18, 2019)

Hi all ...

I've just bought this lovely looking and feeling 88 key controller keyboard. I was quite looking forward to using it with my DAW ( Cubase 7.5 ), but I've hit a bit of a weird problem that I can't quite figure out a solution too.

When using the controller, it makes my VST instruments sound quite muffled and dull ... Yet if I play the same VST instrument from the onscreen Cubase keyboard, they sound normal, bright and punchy. This makes no sense at all to me. The SL88 controller is set to full volume 127, so I can see no reason for this. Any advice and suggestions would be appreciated. Thanks in advance.


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## mscp (May 18, 2019)

Leon said:


> Hi all ...
> 
> Yet if I play the same VST instrument from the onscreen Cubase keyboard, they sound normal, bright and punchy. This makes no sense at all to me. The SL88 controller is set to full volume 127, so I can see no reason for this. Any advice and suggestions would be appreciated. Thanks in advance.



I have the studio sl 88 (with the black panel) - not the grand. Have you tried different velocity curves? Are you playing it via MIDI or USB? Tell me how you're running it. 

Mine runs adequately over here. I run it via MIDI. Have never tried via USB.


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## Leon (May 18, 2019)

Hi Phil ...
Thanks for the swift reply.
Yes, you have thesame version as me ( I didn't opt for the grand ). It's going into the computer via USB. I open Cubasse7.5 and fire up either a new or existing project. In an existing project, I'll select a midi track that already has a virtual instrument asigned and then use the SL88 to play. For example, Halion's own Grand Piano sounds fine when playing back, but when using the SL88, it's just very dull and quite muffled. You literally have to bang the crap out of the SL to kmake it sound half normal. The volume in the small SL88 window states that volume is set to 127, so I'm a little stumped.


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## brek (May 18, 2019)

Volume and velocity are not the same thing. Low velocities are the sound of a real piano being played softly. That sound is going to be quieter AND less bright than high velocities (which equates to someone banging away on a piano). When you use an on-screen keyboard, typically every note you click is going to be at Max velocity (127), so you really do need to whack the heck out of your SL88 to achieve the same sound. 

As previously mentioned, you can customize the velocity curves of the MIDI controller to get it more to your liking.


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## mscp (May 18, 2019)

Leon said:


> Hi Phil ...
> Thanks for the swift reply.
> Yes, you have thesame version as me ( I didn't opt for the grand ). It's going into the computer via USB. I open Cubasse7.5 and fire up either a new or existing project. In an existing project, I'll select a midi track that already has a virtual instrument asigned and then use the SL88 to play. For example, Halion's own Grand Piano sounds fine when playing back, but when using the SL88, it's just very dull and quite muffled. You literally have to bang the crap out of the SL to kmake it sound half normal. The volume in the small SL88 window states that volume is set to 127, so I'm a little stumped.



Just like Brek said, check your velocity curves on your controller. Weirdly enough, I haven't had to but I tend to whack the keys when I want my sounds to go loud and punchy - just like I would on a piano.


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## Leon (May 18, 2019)

I've never encountered anything like this before, tbh, Phil. I've had a few 88 key controllers ( Oberheim Matric 1000 MC/ Keylad 88 and an Akai MPK88 ), but never encountered a controller that, at it's basic default setting, could make an virtual instrument sounds so muffled and lifeless. Yes, I understand the velocity curves point and I'll have to look at the settings.


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## mscp (May 18, 2019)

Leon said:


> I've never encountered anything like this before, tbh, Phil. I've had a few 88 key controllers ( Oberheim Matric 1000 MC/ Keylad 88 and an Akai MPK88 ), but never encountered a controller that, at it's basic default setting, could make an virtual instrument sounds so muffled and lifeless. Yes, I understand the velocity curves point and I'll have to look at the settings.



Can you run a test for me? Use it via MIDI and see if it still reacts the same way.


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## Leon (May 18, 2019)

... I don't have a midi cable to hand, so will have to get one and then run it into my audiobox( not sure if my Focusrite box has midi input either - will have to check ) ...


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## mscp (May 18, 2019)

Leon said:


> I've had a few 88 key controllers ( Oberheim Matric 1000 MC/ Keylad 88 and an Akai MPK88 )



By "Keylad 88", do you mean Arturia's Keylab 88?

Is that your first FATAR hammer-action keybed controller experience? 

FATAR keybeds are highly sensitive to the player's actions...meaning...to achieve that maximum velocity, you do need to hit those notes as hard as humanly possible (to some, that may be highly uncomfortable). That's why I generally suggest buyers to get a regular keyboard controller for synth work, and a hammer-action for piano and orchestral work. Alternatively, creating different velocity curve presets for each work, or tweaking the VST/DAW to respond to a track in a particular way will do.

The reason why I asked you to play via MIDI is simply because I want to know whether it is a playability or technical issue.


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## Leon (May 18, 2019)

Yes, Phil ... This is my first Fatar action ... and, yes, sorry, I had the Arturia Keylab 88 ( sausage fingers and small phones keys don't make for accurate messaging { lol } ).
I've check the velocity curve in the settings and changed it to 'Hard' but it's made no difference to the sound at all. On the default program of Studio SL88, you have four zones automatically active, so I went in and turned off three of them ( a bit of a nuisance ), leaving just zone 1. I changed the velocity curve, ut it's made no audible difference ? I'm feeling a lil dumb here !!


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## mscp (May 18, 2019)

Leon said:


> Yes, Phil ... This is my first Fatar action ... and, yes, sorry, I had the Arturia Keylab 88 ( sausage fingers and small phones keys don't make for accurate messaging { lol } ).
> I've check the velocity curve in the settings and changed it to 'Hard' but it's made no difference to the sound at all. On the default program of Studio SL88, you have four zones automatically active, so I went in and turned off three of them ( a bit of a nuisance ), leaving just zone 1. I changed the velocity curve, ut it's made no audible difference ? I'm feeling a lil dumb here !!



Try this trick. Arm the track, hit record, and bang any key as hard as possible. Then go to that track's midi file and check how hard it recorded at (velocity). See if it's 127. There are so many factors we need to take into account...but let's see what your experiment leads us to.


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## Leon (May 18, 2019)

... Well now, I've turned the controller off and back on and suddenly it's paying the VSTs fine ??


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## mscp (May 18, 2019)

Leon said:


> ... Well now, I've turned the controller off and back on and suddenly it's paying the VSTs fine ??



Haha. That's odd.


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## Leon (May 18, 2019)

... No idea what's happening here, unless my change to settings kicked in ... I don't recall saving those settings to a patch number, though, so I'd assume the controllerwoulddefault to what it was when I first turned it on. Bizarre


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## Leon (May 18, 2019)

Sorry for not being to add more to the understanding ... I'm just going to enjoy playing it for an hour or so before turning it off and then seeing what happens when I turn it back on again at thyat time. Lol


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## PaulieDC (Feb 9, 2021)

Leon said:


> ... Well now, I've turned the controller off and back on and suddenly it's paying the VSTs fine ??


I've owned the SL88 Grand for 4 months and I learned that you have to turn on the controller AFTER you fire up your DAW (Cubase 11 for me). I used to leave the SL88 on and just let it come on when I boot up my tower but that does not work 90% of the time. The SL88 simply doesn't work or you get weird result like what you experienced. Power it on after your DAW is running should yield good results.

One of the weird quirks of owning this controller! But we love playing it, over and above the oddities.


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## Hellfog (Apr 26, 2021)

Received my Sl88 Grand today it is great, but having some strange behavior.

The velocity curves you choose on the controller itself are wrong Normal = soft, Hard = Normal, Soft = Hard.

Are these normal?


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## quietmind (Jun 26, 2021)

Here's a fun mod for the joysticks of the SL88 Grand. It gives me a much better control ability. This is very cheap and easy to do as long as you have a drill. You can get the knobs on eBay (https://www.ebay.com/itm/274744401939) and they almost fit. You just have to drill them out ever so slightly.


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