Kontrol 2024 outlook: what was, what now, what next?
Comments
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I think Lua might be a better fit for KK extensions since it already uses that internally and I've seen some of the unofficial controller scripts for it (eg the new Reason one) are also built using Lua
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The worst for me is you can't pin the browser so that when changing presets it doesn't jump to the plugin mode. They have two options to switch presets, you would think one of them would keep the browser open.
They have this huge screen and instead of making the real estate useful, they just blew up the size of the knobs and put big brand logo pictures on it. Sorry but if I wanted to look at pictures I wouldn't buy a MIDI controller for that. The browser names truncation you noted is one of the casualties of this horrible implementation. The 8 knobs should have push buttons to reset parameters.
I have to hold Shift to browse quickly, instead of the encoder up/down buttons being page up/down. Shift + encoder turn should be prev/next English letter (If I'm currently at a preset that starts with the letter B, Shift + clockwise knob turn would jump to the first preset that starts with C). The encoder left/right should be prev/next expansion pack, or bank.
There is only one level of favorites. There should be three different colours (user could customize). A "I will probably use this preset" star, a "Most favorite" star, and a "Current Setlist" star. The filter could filter by all stars, or a combination, or none. The settings and favorites should have an export button to back them up so we never lose our work.
You can't pin particular Lightguide colours to plugins. (I would make Super 8 be orange, for example). You can turn off the lightguide but not the encoder ring (you got to be kidding me). Which exists for no reason anyway, and you can't change how many of its lights are on. The MIDI button should be up at the right side with the other mode buttons. When you move the MIDI settings version knob to see what the options are it automatically applies MIDI 2.0 and tells you to reboot the keyboard (Wow is that ever FKN stupid).
I should stop thinking about this, it's making me mad. Basic common sense is apparently not common among computer programmers.
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I think there is a pin option on the GUI, not from the keyboard, tho I have used the V3 software since it was initially released. I personally just hate how the browser is a whole panel you have to now switch to and it now shows less presets with less displayed info and long preset names are now truncated as are banks (when they actually do show, that's another issue again…).
I should stop thinking about this, it's making me mad.
Yep, here that, but still it seems to be perplexing to some up there why it would affect us users to such a degree, especially some of us that have been long time users, it shows a bit of a lack of empathy and understanding rather it's seen as just another winging user who keeps making a point about the same thing/s. Eventually you just get ignored completely and messages simply go unanswered. Certainly has soured my otherwise mostly positive experience of the last 10 years and has me fixing to move on myself.
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Sincere question for the those who find the Plugin Screen to be "wasting space" by "just being a big picture" — what you rather that space be used for? The knobs and buttons are above and below the screen — so it stands to reason that the top and bottom portions would be used for those controls. But the middle strip? It's not a touchscreen, so you can't really control that portion of the screen in any meaningful way.
In some cases, I can think of some visual feedback that might be nice. In a synth, waveforms and modulators, perhaps. But in a lot of instruments? I dunno. What do you want from the "East Asia" instrument in that area? What about the Play Series instruments? In a Piano?
I agree it would be cool if this space was used in a more useful way. But when I really get to thinking about it, I can't think of much for most instruments to use it for. It's a non-controllable, oddly-shaped strip of screen. When I think about what to put there for various instruments, I can see how they landed on pretty pictures. :)
(Which may lead to the question "why that screen size, then?" Maybe there are some future plans we're not aware of. One can hope. :)
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Well (for me) the issue is the fact it was changed in such a drastic way to start with.
New users who have not really used KK before the current version will not be familiar with the efficiency it offered when everything was a neat single screen affair:
Having the preset browser on the side AND also being able to control this browser using the encoder on the keyboard while also viewing the plugin was a great way to work. You can also see from this screenshot how many presets you can see in the list, not a single one has a truncated name or anything and the tags are nice and compact.
Many feel that although we now have a full panel for the browser, the fact the tags and images are spread out and enlarged means we see less info on-screen but it takes up more space. Not to say V2 was perfect at all but it's more about how it works than how it looks. It simply feels a lot more clunky and somehow cluttered than it use to be without really bringing any benefits than a new appearance.2 -
Instead of "wasting space" with a "big picture"…. this large squarish area could be reduced to a smaller horizontal area allowing for more of everything else to be visible.
I shared this rough mockup last year with Lo-Fi Glow as an example:
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I guess it doesn't bother me that much as I've gotten used to using it to quickly isolate the preset I'm after whether a favorite or a user created one with very little scrolling. That's a BIG plus for me over the previous version.
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I would also love to join the beta if you need more help testing stuff. Is there a page to sign up for it?
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To the best of my knowledge there is no list at least not yet and Matthew_NI will be doing the inviting when :
I'm trying most of the pieces of it internally, but it's not yet in a user-feedback-ready state (e.g. a proper installer, basic feature-set complete).
When it hits beta, I will also be more openly inviting some of you to join beta if you're willing. Now that we're more
focused on fewer things, unsurprisingly, more progress results.1 -
There is some software like Winamp that has the "ticker banner" for truncated names. It will animate the text to move across its own text box field after a short delay. That might be a solution to truncated names.
I think not many people understand how frustrating this is, because not many people make music like this anymore. They just use a subscription service to grab samples and plop them on a grid and call themselves musicians. Now they are just using AI to make the music for them, which is of course twice as bad.
It's also aggravating when this company puts so much effort and investment making the best devices and plugins, then has some of the worst workflow design decisions like mmmmmMMMMGRRRRRRRR😡😡😡
Reminds me of Image Line that has invested heavily into making their DAW just a micro transaction storefront, while hundreds of the most basic workflow improvements are still broken or stuck in the Windows 95 era. The classic story of faceless corporations screwing the general public for more money than they already have.
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I think the whole hardware design is wrong. The browser has to be opened/closed because it overlaps the hardware knobs. See the pic, how I think it should be. In the plugin section the modules is just an example of how a plugin might be organized. You could go to the next page and see a whole new set of modules.
The browser should be offset from the main screen, having its own dedicated screen space. The ticky encoder below it down at the bottom, closer to where the hands are; less travel distance. The browser can be opened/closed and used however the person wants, without having to push it out of the way of the plugin GUI. It can also have a Kontakt browser mode.
If I wanted to look at pictures I would use my phone. This is a MIDI keyboard, not the Google Photos app. So using the screen to show graphic banner backgrounds is the worst possible implementation of this screen. I don't need to be entertained. I need to use my tools to entertain others. I didn't buy a ticket to a circus act, I bought a professional tool that helps me do my job better.
Almost every vst plugin is divided into sections, or modules. Filter section, Oscillator section, etc. The onboard screen could be a miniature representation of the plugin. Less detailed, but the same exact graphics, and everything can be animated the same as the plugin. You don't need a background banner at all. The plugin itself is the banner. Just have a little plugin icon at the top corner, or even just the name of it. If it's well designed the screen knobs don't have to line up with the hardware knobs. Which should have push down buttons too, as a side note.
Use the screen for what it's there for; supporting the modern music making workflow system that mitigates mundane busywork (Let the computer do the work, so you can focus on creating). This whole system of the integrated keyboard revolves around preset management and ease of using plugin parameters. My design idea is a far better fit to this end than the current system.
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If you think the whole hardware design is wrong… maybe buy something else?
I quite like it… I miss some things from mk2 but it's not too far from doing exactly what I need it to. And that's why I bought the stuff in the first place YMMV1 -
I don't want it to get too cluttered or just be used like another computer screen, but would like to see more than just knobs represented, as with the Push visuals where you can also see envelopes and even wavetable OSCs
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That would be pretty cool indeed.
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It’s very elegant, minimalistic design. Granted, the screen is underused now, but it will change in the future (hopefully).
I don’t like controllers with thousand things on them, out of which I use maybe 5 or 10 knobs and buttons. I’m also very visual person, I do like pretty pictures.
Horses for courses, I guess 😉
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