Buy or Not to buy : hardware keyboard (not midi controller)

[Zul_naluRy]

As topic above... what is your opinions...thanks!!

[adventurepants]

Buy!

ive got one keyboard synth, Novation KS4. Everything it does can be done in software, but i love tweaking the knobs and not staring at a computer screen.

[joshhunsaker]

you need one. no doubt about that.

[musikmachine]

Imo it depends on the synth.I usually buy 2nd hand anyway,full price for hardware is too much imo.So the microx cost me less than a decent rompler and a controller,thats the way i look at it

And i don't need gigs of hd space(which i don't have anyway,i use a laptop)

I think the one synth i'd pay for is a v-synth,hell i might sell everything and buy one!

If you buy one get the best you can for the money.Something thats going to last.Also do plenty of research,youtube is great for that.But if you've got the sounds you need at your fingertips why bother?Otoh it's nice to have alternatives but get stuf you can use otherwise you'll regret spending the money

Just my 2c

[musikmachine]

For some people....

Write/compose on hardware

Produce/mix/master on software

Yep!

If you decide to get one get one that integrates well with software.There are a few hardware synths with vst editors,some are listed in another thread.The god thing about them is they save the settings of your synth with the project so you don't have to muck about with sysex dumps etc and you can save patches/banks to yor hd

USB roxxors

Hi... as I'm quite newbie in synth world, may I know which one that have that features... my eye now on triton & motif line, because of their sounds. heck, I'm rarely program my own sound. just use what their have in their banks...

Afaik Virus TI,Korg Radias,X50,microX,Roland SH201..Don't know about the motif and the triton..

This is a good site for the motif http://www.motifator.com/

Are there any music store near you,there are probably new synths coming out with usb connectivity.I'll check it out when i'm down at sound control next time

[whyterabbyt]

As topic above... what is your opinions...thanks!!

you dont need one. no doubt about that. however, you may want one. if you do, think carefully as to whether it'll actually help you make music better. if you decide 'yes', then get one. if you're wrong, and it sits their gathering dust, you can always sell it again. if you go second-hand, it'll probably not have lost much of its value.

[hackenslash]

I do most of ym composition on either an acoustic 12 string or a Roland RD300SX stage piano. Very cool! 88 note with realistic graduated weighted keyboard, just like a real acoustic. Stunning sounds and less than £1000

[pschelfh]

I have PCR-80 for 3 years... Now I'm deciding either to get a used triton or motif, or just stick with PCR80 with Vsti's and reason...

I have a Triton, but I only use it as a controller. I think softsynths and -romplers are getting better and better these days.

If you're happy about the key action of the PCR, I would stick with that and maybe invest in software synths or romplers.

Are there knobs or sliders on the PCR? It's lots of fun to tweak those to control your software synths.

Peter.

[realisation]

My advice: dont spend too much, get something cheap and cheerful, hardware is a great dust collector when you've got software synths/effects

[aciddose]

some people (myself?) got into this whole scene just because they like keyboards and synthesizers. for those people the music doesnt even matter much, it's more just the means to make the synth "go", to produce sounds.

obviously you have to consider "do i have an interest in keyboard instruments".. if not, why bother?\

if you just want the sounds, a rack unit version of a synth is a much better idea.

[danbroad]

The hardware synth that doesn't integrate with your existing setup will quickly become disused - software is so much more flexible. By integrated, it could mean either an Audio input to your soundcard, with midi connections to enable master timings and controller input, or it could mean a TI-style VST/AU front end which effectively harnesses the synth engine within your DAW. Whether you want the extra cabling and hassle of Audio setup/sysex dumps is up to you.

Having said that, if you pay a little more for the integrated experience, and start using your hardware effectively as another DAW instrument possibility, then it just gets better and better. As I say often, my Virus sounds no better than good software - they're both brilliant - but I love having one instrument with permanent and dedicated master controls, that I get better at using as I grow more acquainted with it.

Sometimes it's great to play without staring at a computer screen or moving a mouse [try it for yourself - load up a softsynth and turn off the computer display, it feels liberating!]

Add to that the fact that hardware keeps much of its value, and there are no disabling licence agreements, and I'd suggest; go for it. But don't expect it to beat software - it merely complements it well.

I had a microKorg - which effectively didn't get used because it was insulated from my DAW setup. Now I have the Virus, it's used as master controller and VA synth every time I load Logic.

[blaster78]

personally i don't really want my hardware to integrate, part of what makes it special to me is the different workflow.

buy it, if it inspires you and makes you happy

[kritikon]

I don't really see how almost any h/w synth can't integrate into any DAW. I don't know of any modern synth that doesn't have a midi jack, and every synth ever made has an audio out. You just plug in the jack(s) into your soundcard inputs - how can that not integrate into the DAW? There were a handful of synths that had no CV control etc such as JENs - but you wouldn't want one of those anyway - they're not very good. And any CV controlled analogue can be controlled by a midi/CV converter and it doesn't have to be expensive to get one. Even if you only have the most basic soundcard with 2in/2out - you just record the synth to audio to negate any problems - what's the difficulty with that? Integration is a non-problem. Real instruments such as guitars, drums, harps, pianos...you name it - instrument players don't have any problems "integrating " their instruments into their DAWs - they just record them like they always used to.


So you either like a synth for how it sounds or you don't - that's the only question apart from "can I afford it?" that matters. That's entirely up to you. Many people get by with s/w entirely. Many use h/w, many use both. I like both. S/w is fun, h/w is funner.

[Goseba]

Having had hardware synths for coming up for 30 years, I sold them all during the last couple of years because I was only using software and bought an Alesis Fusion as an all in one synth.
For various reasons I haven't had much chance to use it.
A few weeks ago I realised I was really missing a hands on synth and ended up getting a Novation Nova 2 keyboard. I suddenly realised what I had been missing when I could just play around tweaking sounds and was really enjoy it again.

It has given me a boost that I needed.

[musikmachine]

Well the microX has three different modes.In one it can be used as 16 part multitimbral synth and that mode is meant to be used with your sequencer.With the editor it saves all your setting and edits with the project.It does in all three modes but to save settings for 16 tracks with fx and everything makes things a lot easier and the microX more flexible as you can recall it and change it,just like a vstPLus you have th gui which makes editing a lot easier



Thats what i meant by integration