Ask me anything: Kontrol S-Series MK3

To bring back a topic that wasn't addressed, can we get some information on whether NI's stance towards openness has changed with the release of Kontrol MK3?

For instance, every version of the Ableton Push has shipped with a publicly available, comprehensive API that allows hobbyist developers to extend the hardware beyond its original intentions making it a worthwhile purchase for plenty of people that will never install Ableton. It also makes it very unlikely that owners of a Push be stuck with a paperweight, given third parties can support the device long after Ableton stops.

NI's bonafides in this area are basically non-existent, the attitude towards openness has been one of borderline hostility, and NI's reputation around product updates is awful. Both the KK MK2 and Maschine MK3 had gorgeous screens that were basically non-addressable by third parties. All of the light guide features were gated behind Komplete Kontrol, which at the time I am writing this STILL cannot be resized despite being updated to VST3 and that being part of the spec since its inception. The Maschine MK3 still doesn't function in Komplete Kontrol despite the browser being effectively a carbon copy of the Maschine one, and above all it's taken people reverse engineering your proprietary tech to allow the KK MK2 to even be functional in DAWs that you didn't write protocols for. Even in this thread, you've mentioned that KK MK2 support is "indefinite", which isn't particularly clear and offers no certainty to anyone who has purchased it.

Addressing this issue would go some way towards making users like me trust NI and make the keyboard the easiest purchase I could make since from a technology standpoint, it looks great, but until the attitude around the software improves it feels very difficult to justify spending $2000 AUD on something that I have absolutely no guarantee that NI as a platform holder will treat properly. I say that despite how much NI stuff I own.

Will NI change its stance towards openness and release an API with this product line? Or at least release a full API for the MK2 line so that people can finally make use of the screen?

Interesting for your first post, but I can answer some of this.

I would highly doubt the API is going to be made publically available, at least in the near future - that's the whole point of a closed system; it's curated for a better user experience (Apple, PlayStation etc). I'm guessing, but I would be amazed if I were wrong on this point. The main thing about NKS2, and external digital instruments, is that they'll all be better in MK3/NKS2.

Light Guide - as a registered 3rd party developer, I'm pretty sure you're able to use the light guide with 3rd party VSTs, although I'm not sure how easy/difficult it is with NKS1.

Resizing in KK - it isn't going to be an issue - redisgned (and apparently improved) browser born in Kontakt. Watch at 12:15 for a quick look at the upcoming update: https://youtu.be/G0W1jaEppBQ?si=_gnNDzPoW4UY_IvI

You'll be able to resize instruments within that browser as long as the instrument support it, I think.

I'd strongly advise you to stick around here - there's been some real improvement and engagement from NI in recent times, and I would expect Maschine SW to be next on the list, given the big updates for Kontakt and upcoming KK update.

The NI library is a complex instrument library by NI’s own design. Since there is only Kontrol and Maschine, the two devices are pressured to provide control for the entire library. Kontrol in particular needs to be complex to address the wide range of instruments and modulation options since maschine is focused on sequencing percussion and sound packs. 

Im not sure why the decision on faders is only regarding motorized or non-motorized. Remember NI Jam with its smart strips. A version of these strips has made it consistently into other NI products as various differently named controls, including kontrol mk3 with its touch strip and could have solved the requests for more modulation control without the mechanical complexity of motorized faders. If the NI instrument user experience is top priority then there has been a missed opportunity as these would allow control over multiple parameters simultaneously in a different way than knobs, movements like one hand on multiple, tapping to values, and faster movements. 

In addition, theres a subset of percussion instruments being ignored by the current limited capability in kontrol and maschine, such as Battery, Drummer series, Symphony series, etc. The light guide is appreciated but a standard keyboard is not a great interface for playing the percussion instruments within KK, which have also been ignored on the Maschine side as the instruments don’t conform to the hardware interface, hopefully this can be addressed in maschine. But if not, then another missed opportunity on kontrol for solving a long standing issue in the library. 

So if user experience is key theres a large percentage of the instrument library without a good control surface for user interaction. You are telling us that usage metrics drives the development, but these other instruments are hamstrung by the hardware and therefore will be used less, and so your metrics will reflect that, metrics are not the end all for driving decisions. 

As per your suggestions, I am trying to reach support to see if there is some sort of stopgap software to get me up and running with my S61 MK3. But when I attempt t file a case, I get a series of unhelpful screens that bing me back full circle to the beginning. Not helping "my experience". How can I get help otherwise?

i would never want a touchscreen!

these are all you own opinions, you don't speak for all consumers, neither do i.

maschine integration on the other hand, would have been obvious, but lets see what happens to the maschine departement, this and the next year...

I like this idea of complementary hardware control modules, which could integrate fairly neatly into the NKS2 environment - you could create a parameter group called "Fader" for example, and add a specific subset of parameters to that group for control by an NKS2-compatible "Fader Kontrol."