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Same old Question : Which Masterkeyboard ?

Sid Francis

Senior Member
Hi guys

Since my CME Z-Key 88 translates my velocity very sloppily, and the whole midrange seems to be missing I am on the watch for a working masterkeyboard. I am working in Europes biggest music store but guess? I don´t find anything suitable. The best ones would be some electric pianos we sell, but they all lack a modwheel and I can´t live without. I finally decided to go the expensive way and get a Komplete Control 88 but I don´t need the bells and whistles, and when i tested it, it was a tad heavy for my synth fingers. If it were cheap I would live with it but being the expensive solution I want it to be more perfect. Who of you is playing a weighted or semiweighted 88 key keyboard and is satisfied with its response?
A while ago someone from this forum mentioned the "Swissonic 88" sold by Thomann/Grmany. It has lots of features and slider, knobs, pads. And I like the look very much. But when I read the first test THE one big drawback for the tester was, that it translates velocity very sloppily :shocked: hurray!
 
Sometimes you can fix velocity response problems by cleaning the contacts. You have to remove the keyboard, turn it over and remove the rubbery contact covers. Then clean the contacts with a cotton swab and alcohol. I just fixed the mod wheel in my old Roland A70 by cleaning it as well.
 
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I've just bought a Studiologic SL Studio 88 for one of the studios. So far I like it. It's also really cheap...!
 
Thank you Tracy. The mBk 88 from Akai would have been my other choice. Unfortunately both are very high/thick and would not fit where the keyboard has to be placed: halfway under my monitor/hardware shelf which has a attached mini "sub"shelf for the computer keyboard , like a drawer.

Monitor
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Hardware
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Keyboard
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Thank you Daryl. But no wheel and i love wheel. And "amazona" test (online magazine in german) says "for piano players, not so for synth soli since weighting is quite hard".So probably too heravy for my small and untrained hands....
 
I use the Roland A-88, one of the best key mechanics I ever used, feels super natural and translates your playing almost perfectly.
But no wheel , I can live with that, but if you need a wheel it might be the wrong choice.
 
I use the Roland A-88, one of the best key mechanics I ever used, feels super natural and translates your playing almost perfectly.
But no wheel , I can live with that, but if you need a wheel it might be the wrong choice.
Very good controller with great keys but it's discontinued.
 
You sent the KC88 back? I got it as well from Thomann. I'm okay with it. It's not perfect, they keybed is definitely worse than what is in my Yamaha Clavinova piano. If you're not a piano player I can imagine you'd find the keys too heavy.
 
I did not buy the KC88 but could test it in our store. Definitly too heavy. A88 was a great one, but: no wheel :-( There once was a company which offered a single assignable touch controller strip with usb connector. Would have been the perfect match for a clavinova or an Kawai ES 110 (great mid heavy action) but the strip is discontinued :-( hmpf.
 
I am a piano player, and have been working in MIDI for over 20 years as well, so I've tried many keyboards along the way. I recent;y gave in to some of the hype, and bought a very inexpensive M-Audio Hammer88 keyboard and it's absolutely fantastic!!! The velocity is effortless out of the box, from 1-127 with regular playing force...nothing extra to tweak...this has been my experience. The keys themselves are relatively cheap in "sound", if that's a thing, but once you have a VSTi, the feel and response is quite good. It's not wooden keys, and no extra bells and whistles, BUT...it does have a very nice mod wheel and pitch bend, as well as a volume slider, which you can assign to any CC you want...but defaults to volume. It even has 2 pedal inserts. I use one for sustain, and the other for a soft pedal...defaults to the correct CCs for both.

Id give it a closer look.
 
Also to add...this is probably the wrong thread to post this question. Better to post it in the GEAR section of the forum.
 
Thank you for the tip with the M-Audio: indeed it gets only great reviews. I will wait till I can test one in our store. And I need to measure the height, it also is quite "thick" and I have to make shure it will fit. But I will definitly give it a closer look.
 
Thank you for the tip with the M-Audio: indeed it gets only great reviews. I will wait till I can test one in our store. And I need to measure the height, it also is quite "thick" and I have to make shure it will fit. But I will definitly give it a closer look.

If you do test it, make sure it is with VIs and MIDI...by itself you will not be able to get a sense of how it feels while hearing the sound.

I think the height is roughly 4.5"...it's very robust, but I don't see any unnecessary bulk. Good luck.
 
I tested it today: a worthy hulk of keyboard this is! :) But it got the heaviest action of all keyboards I tested so far :eek: I will not be able to play with this quickly because my hands really are a bit weakish and I play lots of grace notes in my melodies. That would be the right one for a real pianist who is looking for a substitute. I also tested the Studiologic SL88 again: that would be the right key action for me, but it has no wheel but just three nipples (monster that!) and: it cost about 900$, definitly too much for a not ideal solution...search goes on...
 
I tested it today: a worthy hulk of keyboard this is! :) But it got the heaviest action of all keyboards I tested so far :eek: I will not be able to play with this quickly because my hands really are a bit weakish and I play lots of grace notes in my melodies. That would be the right one for a real pianist who is looking for a substitute. I also tested the Studiologic SL88 again: that would be the right key action for me, but it has no wheel but just three nipples (monster that!) and: it cost about 900$, definitly too much for a not ideal solution...search goes on...

I find the Hammer88 a medium weight compared to others. However, if you are not a pianist or used to an acoustic piano, I can see the issue...I will suggest then something like a Roland...they're fairly light if I remember correctly, and also the older Nord pianos...very light to the touch, because it doubles and triples for various instruments, not just piano.

Also, the SL88 Studio version is lighter than the Grand...which I assumed you tested because you mentioned $900...the studio is only $500...but NO wheels..LOL It is relatively flat on top, and if the feel is there, then you can add a Korg micro controller to it.
 
I found another drawback of piano-like keyboards today: I definitly need octave switches. Often. I noticed it when I was browsing today for midi controllers as you also suggested :)
 
I found another drawback of piano-like keyboards today: I definitly need octave switches. Often. I noticed it when I was browsing today for midi controllers as you also suggested :)

How much further do you need to go than 88 keys? Lol. Also most all of them have octave switches. Maudio for sure.
 
I wonder whether the newly announced Arturia Keylab Essential 88 could be an answer for all the not-appreciating-weighted-keys-for-anything-other-than-piano-sounds people? Anyone got one yet?
 
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