Pineville, NC, United States
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Novation Launchkey 88 [MK3]: The Full-Piano-Range Controller Built Around Your DAW
The Launchkey 88 [MK3] gives you all 88 keys - the complete piano span - in a controller engineered to run your software studio without a mouse. The semi-weighted keybed has adjustable velocity curves so it responds the way you play, whether you are voicing a film score across the low octaves, comping jazz chords in the middle, or stabbing synth leads up top. For the producer who has been cramping a five-octave controller, the jump to a true 88 changes how you write: both hands land where they expect, two-handed arrangements stop fighting the edge of the keybed, and piano libraries finally feel like a piano.
A Semi-Weighted 88-Key Keybed That Players Actually Like
Reviewers consistently describe this keybed as smooth, quiet and responsive - good for synths, sample libraries and even acoustic piano patches. Semi-weighted means it sits between a synth-action board and a fully hammer-weighted digital piano: there is enough resistance to play with dynamics and control, without the heavy throw that slows down fast synth and organ parts. Adjustable velocity curves let you dial the feel from light and quick to firm and expressive, so the same board works for a delicate string pad and an aggressive bassline.
16 Pads, 9 Faders and 8 Knobs Put the Whole Studio Under Your Hands
This is more than a keyboard. Sixteen RGB velocity-sensitive pads handle finger drumming, drum-rack programming and - in Ableton - launching clips and scenes in Session View. Nine 45mm faders give you real mixer control: ride levels, balance a stem mix, or automate a filter sweep by hand. Eight rotary knobs map to device parameters and effects so you can sculpt a synth or tweak a plugin in real time. The dedicated transport row - Play, Stop, Record, Loop, Capture MIDI, Quantise and Undo - means you start, stop and capture takes without reaching for the keyboard shortcut, and Capture MIDI grabs the idea you just played even when you forgot to hit record.
The Deepest Ableton Live Integration - Plus Logic, Cubase and Every Major DAW
Plug in and Ableton Live maps itself: the pads light up to match your clips, the knobs and faders attach to devices and the mixer, and navigation just works. It is the controller Novation builds its tightest Ableton workflow around. You are not locked in, though - the Launchkey 88 ships with deep integration for Logic Pro, Cubase and Reason, and uses the HUI protocol to drive transport, mixer and navigation in Studio One, Pro Tools, Reaper and other major DAWs. Four Custom Modes, set up in the free Novation Components software, let you remap the knobs, faders and pads to control anything else in your rig exactly how you want.
Arpeggiator, Chord and Scale Modes That Turn Ideas Into Parts Fast
Hold a note and the onboard arpeggiator runs it through seven rhythmic modes - up, down, up/down, played, random and chord - with Strum to trigger arps from the mod wheel and Mutate to evolve a pattern as it plays. Three chord modes (Fixed, Scale and User) let you trigger full chords with a single finger, and Scale mode forces every note into the key you choose so you stop hitting wrong notes. For a self-taught producer or a topline writer these tools turn a simple idea into a finished part in seconds; for an experienced player they are a fast sketchpad for harmony and rhythm.
Connects to Hardware and Computers Alike - USB Bus-Powered and Class-Compliant
A full-size 5-pin DIN MIDI output drives hardware synths, drum machines and modular gear with no computer in the signal path, so the Launchkey 88 doubles as the master keyboard for a hardware setup. A 1/4-inch sustain pedal input adds natural piano sustain. Over USB the controller is class-compliant and bus-powered - one cable carries power and MIDI, and it appears instantly on Mac, Windows and USB tablets with no driver install. An LCD screen keeps parameter names, values and navigation in front of you the whole time.
Price$449.99
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