Comparison Novation SL 61 MK3 vs Arturia KeyLab 88 MkII

The total number of keys on the keyboard.

The more keys provided in the design, the wider the instrument's own range, the more notes it can play without resorting to octave shift or transposition. On the other hand, this characteristic directly affects the dimensions and cost, and an extensive range is not required so often. Therefore, 88 -key instruments corresponding to a full-size classical piano keyboard are quite rare. But compact models with only 25 keys(2 octaves), on the contrary, are popular: for the purposes for which MIDI keyboards are used, this is often quite enough. Other common options are the 49 -key (4 octave) and 61 -key (5 octave) models; somewhat less common are 32 and 37 keys.

Type of mechanics used in keyboard keys.

— Hammer. The most advanced type of mechanics: provides a link between force and sound dynamics, as well as a characteristic tactile response — the same as on a classical piano with hammers (hence the name). In other words, these keys provide a feeling that is as close as possible to playing a traditional piano. However, hammer action is not cheap, so it is used mainly in top professional keyboards.

— Active (dynamic). Active keyboards are keyboards that provide a link between pressure and sound dynamics, but do not provide the tactile response characteristic of the hammer action keyboards described above. In other words, the faster and harder you press the key, the sharper and louder the sound will be, but the resistance to pressing is low, and the transition, for example, from a traditional piano to such a keyboard usually requires some getting used to (for more details, see "Rigidity"). At the same time, active keyboards allow you to use all the basic techniques for controlling the dynamics of sound, and are much cheaper than the same hammer action keyboards, which is why they are widely used in modern MIDI keyboards.

— Passive. The simplest type of mechanics: each key only “turns on and off” its note, the sound dynamics does not depend on the strength and speed of pressing. Passive keyboards are very i...nexpensive, but this is, in fact, their only advantage; from a musical point of view, they are very inconvenient; only the simplest melodies (or parts of instruments in which the sound cannot be dynamically changed) can be played on such an instrument. As a result, this type of mechanics is used extremely rarely and only in the simplest low-cost keyboards.

The hardness of the keys on a keyboard is the amount of resistance they provide when pressed.

— Unweighted. Very low rigidity: the keys literally "fail" under the fingers. Found mostly in entry-level keyboards; this is due to the fact that unweighted mechanics are inexpensive, but the low pressure resistance makes it difficult to select the optimal pressure and control the dynamics of the sound.

— Semi- weighted. Keyboards with medium resistance — not as high as on weighted keys, but noticeably higher than on unweighted ones. This option is considered optimal for active keyboards (see "Mechanics"): at a low cost, it gives quite good responsiveness and, with a minimum skill, allows you to accurately control the pressing force.

— Weighted. Keyboards with high resistance, which is comparable to the resistance of classical piano keys. Note that high effort in this case is an advantage: it allows you to bring the response of the keyboard as close as possible to the response of a classical piano and makes it easier to control the pressure and dynamics of the sound. Actually, by definition, all hammer-action models are made weighted (see "Mechanics"), but among active keyboards this option is rare — due to complexity and high cost.

The presence of the transposition function in the keyboard — switching the sound to a different key. When transposing, the pitch of all keys is simultaneously raised or lowered by a certain number of semitones. This function is useful in all cases when a melody learned in one key needs to be played in a different key — for example, if the original melody is too high or too low for the vocalist, if the external accompaniment differs in key, if you need to switch between keys during the song, and etc. In such situations, by transposing the sound, you can play a melody in a new key using the same familiar keys without relearning it.

The presence of an arpeggiator in the keyboard.

The name of this function comes from "arpeggio" — a technique for playing chords, in which notes are not played all at once, but in turn. Accordingly, the arpeggiator is a function that allows you to play a taken chord in the arpeggio technique: the musician presses all the keys at once, and the keyboard plays them in turn. This effect can also be achieved manually, but in some cases the arpeggiator turns out to be more convenient: it plays notes at a clearly defined speed and interval, can accompany them with various effects, and provides other additional features. These features vary depending on the model, but some instruments allow you to create entire songs with the arpeggiator by simply pressing a sequence of chords.

The number of faders provided in the design of the keyboard.

A fader is a slider control. The simplest kind of such controls is the volume setting; if there is one fader in the design, most likely it is responsible for the volume. If there are more controls, other functions can be tied to them, respectively — in particular, changing the settings in the recording programme on the computer to which the keyboard is connected.

The number of encoder controlsprovided in the design of the keyboard.

Such a knob looks like a rotary knob, with which you can control various functions of the device to which the keyboard is connected — for example, turn the virtual knobs in the programme for recording and sound processing. At the same time, we note that a full-fledged encoder is capable of rotating 360 ° and turning to any angle in any direction, however, keyboards can also contain knobs with a limited rotation sector — they can also be called encoders. None of these options has a clear advantage: in some cases, an unlimited turning sector is more convenient, in others, a limited one.

The output to which the MIDI signals received at the MIDI In input are output (see the relevant paragraph). The key feature of this output is that the signals are output to it unchanged, regardless of the impact of the musician on the keyboard. In other words, if the MIDI Out input receives signals from both MIDI In and the keyboard itself, then MIDI Thru receives only signals from MIDI In.

MIDI Thru can come in handy when using the keyboard in large musical complexes where there are other sources of MIDI signal — in some cases it is convenient to use the keyboard as an intermediate link for these signals.

The maximum number of pedals that can be connected to the keyboard at the same time.

Pedals are used as additional controls to change various keyboard settings. The “classic of the genre” in this sense is the sustain pedal (see “Sustain”) — if the device has one connector for pedals, then this will almost certainly be the input for just such a pedal. Keyboards are produced, where there are 2 or more such inputs — in addition to sustain, you can connect pedals to them for other adjustments and effects (in particular, changing the volume).