Best Keyboards and Synths of 2018

Keyboards are piano-like instruments with black and white keys. Keyboards can have synthesizers in them, but a synthesizer is more complicated than a keyboard. A synthesizer is a controller that tries to mimic the sounds of acoustic instruments.

#2
Novation Keyboards and Synths Launchkey 37 [MK3] on RigShare
Novation Keyboards and Synths
Novation Keyboards and Synths

Launchkey 37 [MK3]

Launchkey is our intuitive and fully integrated MIDI keyboard controller for making tracks in Ableton Live and with your external equipment. The Launchkey experience is designed for players of all types and abilities. With Launchkey, regardless of experience, you can create and play your music like never before. With its various musical creation features, all of which can be used standalone, Launchkey removes barriers to creativity, and expands the musical vocabulary of even the most talented keyboardists. Eight Scale modes guide you into new musical territory, by transposing keys played to notes in the scale selected. Simply choose your root note and your preferred scale, then play. Three Chord modes transform the keys and pads into an interactive surface of musical exploration, where every note played is tonally and harmonically linked. The arpeggiator lets you explore new melodies and find ideas quickly, while the mutate function reconstructs your patterns into exciting new forms. Custom Modes simplify the relationship between controller and software, with more power than ever in your hands. Programmable using the Novation Components browser-based tool, Custom Modes let you design the behaviour of your Launchkey, with control over control assignments, MIDI routing, pad colour and much more. Launchkey 37 [MK3] is equipped with a full-size five-pin MIDI DIN output, enabling simple connection to the universe of MIDI devices — new and old. Coupled with its immense standalone potential, Launchkey is now the centrepiece to your live or studio rig — computer or not. The Launchkey platform has always been about flexibility, and the MK3 revision carries this mantra at its core. Larger, improved velocity-sensitive pads provide greater control over dynamics, and eight fixed rotary knobs bring your software to life at your fingertips. The integration with Ableton Live is truly seamless, with a dedicated button for activating the Capture MIDI function, plus track arm, quantise, click and loop controls, for flying around your Session faster than ever. Not an Ableton Live user? No problem, Launchkey also has full integration with Logic and Reason, plus out of the box functionality with other DAWs including Studio One, Cubase and Pro Tools, via HUI. Whether starting out or locked in a groove, Launchkey is the controller keyboard to take you further on your musical journey. With a collection of software instruments, including Ableton Live 10 Lite, Serato Sample LE, Spitfire Audio LABS Expressive Strings, XLN Audio Addictive Keys, Klevgrand R0Verb and DAW Cassette, AAS Session Bundle, a two-month Splice Sounds membership and the Novation Sound Collective, Launchkey 37 equips you with an amazing bundle of sounds.

EDUARDO FERNANDEZ

1 Rig

#8
M-Audio Code 49 on RigShare
M-Audio
M-Audio

Code 49

M-Audio presents its Code Series keyboard controllers, a family of three full-featured models, combining all of the production power and performance you need to get the most from your music software and MIDI gear. The Code Series offers several thoughtful design touches that enable you to create and perform your best. A keyboard should not be an obstacle standing in the way of creativity. Instead, it should function as a direct extension of your thoughts ensuring that you convey musical ideas with immediacy, precision and clarity. Great Playability All Code keyboards—25, 49 and 61 key models—have an all-new keybed with action that is clean, and precise. The natural profile keys are both velocity- and pressure-sensitive, for maximum expressivity. Assignable Controllers Code controllers are equipped with everything you need to produce some serious musical creations. Extensive assignable parameter control is a breeze with multiple banks of faders, knobs, buttons, pads, and a smooth feeling pitch bend and modulation wheel on top. New to the line of M-Audio controllers is the X/Y Touchpad, which provides additional and direct interaction with effects and instrument plugin parameters across an X/Y axis. In addition, the keyboards can be split into four assignable zones to maximize the flexibility and functionality of your setup. (ie: trigger four different instruments in their own separate zone, or overlap zones and trigger two instruments at the same time). Serious Production Power Most every DAW uses keyboard shortcuts to execute common functions (like adding tracks, cut, paste, etc.). Now with support for ASCII/HID keyboard shortcut commands, you can map these commonly used shortcuts right to the controller itself, streamlining your workflow for a faster, more efficient and far more satisfying creation/production process. Code also supports Mackie Control/HUI control modes, so right out of the box you are ready to work with most DAWs with minimal setup. For an easy-to-use and portable setup, all Code controllers are USB-powered, class-compliant, and supports USB-MIDI connectivity. Plus, they support iOS connectivity with the Apple iPad Camera Connection Kit (sold separately), enabling you to perform and compose with audio apps on your iPad and other iOS devices. Backlit Drum Pads There are 16 assignable RGB backlit velocity sensitive drum pads to indicate at a quick glance exactly what function any particular pad is assigned to. The buttons, knobs and faders are also color-coded to indicate what mode they’re in. An alphanumeric LED display provides informative feedback, including on-screen display of parameters and settings. It all adds up to no confusion, no guessing, just precision control. Exclusive Software Included A comprehensive software package is included—Ableton Live Lite, full versions of AIR Music Technology’s award winning virtual instruments Loom and Hybrid 3.0—so you have unrestricted access to the best creative tools. Ableton Live Lite delivers much of the functionality of Ableton Live—the revolutionary, multi-award winning music production solution that lets you spontaneously compose, record, remix, improvise and edit your musical ideas in a seamless audio/MIDI environment. Live brings your acoustic, electronic and virtual instruments—as well as your digital audio recordings and MIDI sequences—together in a single interface with unparalleled ease of use. Touch Loops Chop up and mix 2 gigs of samples ranging from deep ambient synth pad loops to vintage drum one shots. These are all designed to inspire your music production and provide professional sounding samples that will shine in your mix. Touch Loops perfectly captures the tone and intensity of each sample, so they enhance and complement any song, wherever you use them. This incredible value can be found in your M-Audio account, ready to be downloaded and chopped to your liking! The Code Series offers the highest professional level of performance control and keybed feel, combined with an unusually comprehensive set of features and included software.

Sarah Bergner

1 Rig

#12
M-Audio Axiom 61 2nd Gen USB MIDI Keyboard Controller on RigShare
M-Audio
M-Audio

Axiom 61 2nd Gen USB MIDI Keyboard Controller

The M-Audio Axiom 61 controller combines all the production power and performance you need to get the most from your music software and MIDI gear. More than just a data entry controller, the Axiom 61 features piano-style, semi- weighted keys for a musically satisfying experience. Large dynamic trigger pads make it easy to program beats and trigger one-shot samples”while the knobs, sliders, and buttons deliver complete realtime control over your software. DirectLink mode provides easy, automatic access to common DAW functions including transport, mixer, track pan, and virtual instrument parameters”no complicated setup required. Axiom 61 also features a sleek, angled top panel for easy viewing in any environment. Serious Production Power When inspiration strikes, you need a keyboard controller that can translate ideas into killer tracks. That's why Axiom 61 is equipped with an ultra-expressive semi-weighted keyboard and 8 Trigger Finger pads for programming beats with incredible feel. Automatically map Axiom 61 to your DAW with DirectLink”or delve deeper by assigning the pads, encoders, and fader to whatever controls you wish. Each controller can map to just about any MIDI message available, along with independent channel addressing for each. The possibilities are as endless as your imagination. Axiom Instrument Mode With other MIDI keyboards, assigning controls to virtual instruments has never been easy. Now thanks to the Axiom 61 controller's new Instrument mode, a single button instantly maps the fader, buttons, and encoders to any virtual instrument inside your DirectLink-compatible host*. You get direct access to synthesis parameters such as filter cutoff, LFO rate, and envelope settings”without having to manually configure anything. It's almost like turning Axiom 61 into a dedicated hardware synth. Intuitive Design Whether you're on stage or in the studio, your keyboard controller should fuel your creativity”providing all the right information and controls at your fingertips. That's why we designed Axiom 61 with a sleek angled top panel for easier viewing of the display and improved ergonomics. Smooth rotary encoders deliver precise, continuously variable parameter changes, giving you a hands-on feel for the mix. The backlit LCD screen provides informative feedback from DAW hosts, including on-screen display of parameters, settings, and track/VI names. It all adds up to intuitive control over your MIDI software and hardware. Mobile Operation The Axiom series is extremely compact and lightweight and all models are powered directly from your computer's USB bus. Choose the size that's best for your needs, then take your music anywhere you want to go.

#15
Dexibell Vivo H7 on RigShare
Dexibell
Dexibell

Vivo H7

VIVO home pianos match incredible sound quality perfectly with a beautiful and unique design. The idea is to buck the trend that sees digital pianos as fake copies of acoustic pianos and create a piano with a distinct soul and a superb unique design. VIVO H7 is the top model of the DEXIBELL home digital piano range with a unique and professional audio system offering unprecedented quality and power. The exclusive cutting-edge DEXIBELL technology, called "True 2 Life" (or"T2L" for short), used by the DEXIBELL VIVO digital pianos, is part of a new revolution in musical instruments specifications thanks to its: Unlimited Notes Polyphony. 24 bit and 48Khz. Over 15 seconds of Recorded Waves in 3D surround. Combination of "Sampling and Modelling" technology with unique algorithms. With its 88 keys hammer graduated action with triple contact, the VIVO H7 offers sounds and effects designed for "seamless transition" during patch change or memory recalls avoiding any unwanted interruption of current sound and effect. The complete set of sounds found on the VIVO H7, with over 80 sounds at the very highest quality possible, reach an unbelievable level of tonal pureness. VIVO H7 has a Wave Memory bank of 1.5 GB with the possibility to fully reconfigure the instrument using new sounds from the DEXIBELL library but also from standard "Sound Font" format files too, which are readily available online. Available in black, white or red polished, unique red matt painted and black or white laminated.

#19
Dexibell Combo J7 on RigShare
Dexibell
Dexibell

Combo J7

DEXIBELL COMBO J7 is the first digital organ with motorized draw-faders offering tone-wheel and transistor organ tones. The COMBOJ7 reaches a superior sound quality previously unimaginable in a portable keyboard. The introduction of the first ever Motorized Draw-Faders reinvents the "sound change" between different footage settings by "automatic morphing". This sound morphing can also be controlled by pedal, giving the player ultimate control. The exclusive cutting-edge technology, called "True 2 Life" (or "T2L" for short), used by DEXIBELL makes the Combo J7 part of a new revolution in musical instruments specifications thanks to its: Unlimited Notes Polyphony. 24 bit and 48Khz. Over 15 seconds of Recorded Waves in 3D surround. Combination of "Sampling and Modelling" technology with unique algorithms. With 73 waterfall dynamic sensitive keys and 4 simultaneous parts, COMBO J7 offers legendary high quality acoustic and electric pianos also found in the DEXIBELL VIVO digital piano range. Sounds and Effects are designed for "seamless transition" during patch change or memory recalls avoiding any unwanted interruption of current Sound and Effect. The complete set of sounds found on the COMBO J7, with over 100 sounds at the very highest quality possible, reach an unbelievable level of tonal pureness. An ageless sound set is guaranteed with the unique capability to load completely new sounds from the DEXIBELL library and also from standard "Sound Font" files too. The DSP effects power is huge on Combo J7, with the capability to simulate Rotary, Vibrato, Over-Drive effects needed for Vintage Organ sounds. There are 8 other simultaneous effects, 2 for each part, dedicated to simulate over 15 different effects. The DEXIBELL COMBO J7 is an extraordinary musical instrument for any keen musician.

#23
Dexibell SX7 on RigShare
Dexibell
Dexibell

SX7

All of the unique benefits of DEXIBELL technology but now in the best sound module ever designed, either for desktop or rack-mounted use. In beautiful ultra-compact aluminium body, weighting only 2 kg, the VIVO SX7 offers legendary high quality acoustic and electric pianos, also found in the DEXIBELL VIVO digital piano range. VIVO SX7 runs the most powerful operating system ever created for a musical instrument: the DEXIBELL OS 4.0 (called “AQUAVIVA”) with unique never-seen-before features. USB “Memory” port now also supports MIDI protocol meaning any keyboard, by any manufacturer, can be directly connected via USB without the presence of a computer. USB “Computer” port can now run MIDI data and digital audio at 24bit 48 KHz simultaneously. You can connect the VIVO SX7 directly to your computer to record and play MIDI and Audio data simultaneously without the need for an audio interface. The exclusive cutting-edge technology, called “True 2 Life” (or ‘T2L’ for short), used by DEXIBELL makes the VIVO SX7 part of a new revolution in musical instrument specifications thanks to its: – Unlimited Notes Polyphony. – 24 bit and 48Khz. – Over 15 seconds of Recorded Waves in 3D surround. – Combination of “Sampling and Modelling” technology with unique algorithms. The DSP effects power is huge on VIVO SX7, with the capability to run 6 simultaneous effects, 2 for each part, dedicated to simulate over 18 different effects. Sounds and Effects are designed for “seamless transition” during patch change or memory recalls avoiding any unwanted interruption of current Sound and Effect. The complete set of sounds found on the VIVO SX7, with over 80 sounds at the very highest quality possible, reach an unbelievable level of tonal pureness. VIVO SX7 has a Wave Memory bank of 1.5 GB with the possibility to fully reconfigure the instrument using new sounds from the DEXIBELL library but also from standard “Sound Font” format files too, which are readily available online. VIVO SX7 is an extraordinary tool for the discerning musician requiring the very best sounds in an ultra-portable module.

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