Ask me anything: Kontrol S-Series MK3
Comments
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There you go! The mk2 is for sale if anybody is interested hahah
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I’m still using the mk1 and was about to upgrade to the mk2, glad I waited.
Having used polyphonic after touch on my Ensoniq SQ80 years ago I’m really looking forward to having it again
Regarding pads, xy controller and faders.
Personally I think pads tend to make a keyboard look cheap.
I have Maschine mk3 which have decent pads, but if I didn’t, I would rather buy some sort of pad controller than have them built in.
Not really that interested in xy controller although they can be a lot of fun. I can understand why some want it, but I guarantee you if it was included, where it was positioned wouldn’t be where I would want it.
Hence while there is a lot of dead space on the keyboard, I would rather it be like that so I can place whatever I want wherever I want.
Faders, I do like playing organs and part of me wishes there was some, but another part thinks I can place external faders wherever I want, move them around depending what I’m playing etc.
I could also imagine cheap pads, cheap faders leading to bad reviews for something that while a little pricey, is something I want and think is superb.
NI putting on expensive faders, pads etc would push the price too high, then you would have a ton of people asking if they could bring out a cheaper version without them.
What I would love (I know I’m in the minority) is a 76 or 88 note synth keyboard (have a digital piano when I need the weighted keys etc)
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You may notice the big space for the the keyboard I'm waiting on from the manufacturer...
I would add, I never have the lights on, so I should probably make it look like this more often.
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Another two questions from me before we finish:
What is the one potential thing you're most excited about in the future, that could be added to MK3 via software? There's a lot of future-proofing built in, so I'm wondering what the oppertunities you guys see are.
Secondly, not sure if this has been asked - but Clap. U-he and others have said they've discussed this with NI and it gives NI a chance to be in on the ground for the format - any chance you're looking to add Clap support in future for Komplete Kontrol/Direct suport?
Thanks again!
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Especially when it comes to price. The Console 1 Channel mk3 somehow costs more than the Kontrol S61 mk3. (It includes a bunch of Softube plugins, which is cool, but I already own all of them and there's no discount if you do.)
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Will this come with Play Assist on the hardware?
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To Matthew_NI's suggestion, here's what I'm looking at at home. I recently removed second tiers of keyboards from my studio because, as my back ages, I don't like reaching up or looking at monitors mounted higher. I *may* go back to multi-tier above the JX-8P and Wavestation, though, just to get more of the kit in play.
All that said, the S88 Mk2 is the center point of my everyday playing. You'll see the little Novation LaunchKey mini there, but it's mostly used for action triggering only since I wanted more buttons; I had it and space for it. I prefer drumming on regular keys instead of pads and can barely use those mini keys. Also, pro tip: wall mount putty works great to attach and things from moving on the keyboard. For the fader and pad people, putting something in that space is a pretty easy solution. I personally prefer endless encoders that sync to the current state (same reason I use an iPad on the Roland JX-8P in the picture for parameter control instead of a hardware programmer, although I would like physical knobs I guess).
Generally, I use templates for recording and playing that pre-load Komplete Kontrol on several tracks and, with some templates, I preload an instruments (e.g. Noire) onto track one to make it even faster. And those template shortcuts are on my desktop to make getting started really quick.
Out of view are countless other random acoustic and electric instruments that are brought into the room or mic'd from another room (I don't move the acoustic piano, lol). But ~70%+ of my own playing these days is right there at the S88.
May not be the prettiest or most elaborate setup, but it works just fine. :)
FWIW, I'm excited about polyphonic aftertouch on the Mk3 (last used on an old Ensoniq where I built some reasonable skill before moving on!) and I'm super intrigued by the workflow possibilities in NKS2. I guess I'm not asking things anymore, but I am super impressed by how the team at NI handled this AMA. Very nice!
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Hi, yes this is planned, coming likely by the end of 2023. Its one of the next biggest priorities for our teams.
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Ah. The keyboard gnomes must have come in the night!
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That makes a lot of sense.
I don't know how feasible this will be - but I'd love to explore ways and means of preserving the light guide, screen, and visual NKS experience even on smaller units.
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You'll have to tweak the new LEDs to match the colour of your mood lighting! (they can be adjusted in settings)
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Nice! I love the backlit computer keyboard to match the lit controller keyboards
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My little corner
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Mixing desks? Probably not. There are already very good ones out there (some of our team used to work on some of the best live mixers in prior jobs).
Analog only hardware? Also not. Analog components on the audio outs of gear are always fun to mess around with though..
I think we'd probably sell about 100 theremin style NKS controllers, but man would they be fun. That's the sort of thing we could do for a future hackathon - but I can't see it shipping :-D
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High quality hardware costs a lot to make!
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