Able to be used standalone or as a plug-in insert within your DAW, the most useful of improvements is that audio previews are now triggered as you scroll through instrument lists, meaning you don’t have to wait for an entire patch to load before hearing what it sounds like. The accompanying Komplete Kontrol software for Mac and PC which is used to browse and load sounds and instruments has also had a refresh since the MK 1 days.
Most of these changes are to aid better integration with your DAW (Digital Audio Workstation) recording software - more on which later.Īround the rear of the keyboard it’s much the same story as before, with twin Midi ports and two pedal controller inputs alongside the power adaptor socket and a USB 2.0 port for communication with your host computer. Alongside the array of eight rotary controllers that run the length of the two screens below the displays, there are also eight function buttons along the top, with a four-dimensional push encoder that can be turned or used joystick-like for navigating menus. The upper area of buttons has had a bit of rethink too. However, it’s a best of both worlds’ situation as a horizontal touch strip also runs beneath them which can be assigned for modulation or pitch duties as well as other functions and feels much easier to use in this orientation. NI appears to have bent to public demand and have replaced the strips with the more familiar twin wheel set up. As cool as they looked, many players bemoaned the fact that they didn’t feel as tactile as a traditional wheel. One of the biggest criticisms of the MK1 keyboards were their two LED-lit touch-sensitive vertical strips on the left which replaced the familiar mod and pitch wheels you would normally find on a Midi controller keyboard. It’s certainly hefty for those thinking of taking it out on the road for gigs, but far from excessive for a workstation-style keyboard.
Unsurprisingly, there’s a bit of added weight at 13.2kg /29.1lbs, one assumes thanks to the addition of the new screens and the overhauled weighted key bed.
Stylistically, things remain faithful to the original S88, with the same brushed metal casing, while the dimensions are pretty much the same, meaning anyone upgrading from its predecessor won’t need to adjust their desk space to fit it in.
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