Arturia's AstroLab: standalone V Assortment and Pigments level keys – CDM Create Virtual Song

Arturia has taken their V Assortment, Pigments, and Analog Tools and packed them into an exquisite level piano – no laptop required. That most likely brings some inquiries to thoughts – listed here are some solutions and nitty-gritty technical main points.

I’m certain this isn’t an surprising transfer: fashionable embedded computational energy signifies that instrument that runs as a plug-in can also be tailored to standalone operation. What I’m prepared to research at the AstroLab is how neatly this keyboard has made its transition from desktop instrument to standalone keyboard. We’ve noticed efforts from Local Tools, Akai, and Ableton, to call 3, however each and every has introduced its personal set of wrinkles. What’s promising about AstroLab is that it seems to be adore it would possibly be offering the type of accessibility of our favourite level keys through the years. They’ve even carried out some great paintings making cut up operations simple – and it seems to be beautiful. I’ve were given a check unit UPSing its method right here, however let’s duvet some technical main points.

First, take a look at the design. That is the primary of this magnificence of tools that appears front room pleasant in addition to designed for level/studio, with not obligatory legs that flip it into a pleasing house piece. And for enthusiasts of the scroll wheel (ah, authentic iPod), you get a 320px colour display embedded in a number one navigation wheel, supposed for exploring to be had sounds.

Most importantly, in all probability, that is aggressive on worth – 1600 EUR/USD for the complete package deal, that means you’re nearer to a transportable virtual synth worth than a level piano worth. And for the ones people who paintings so much with plug-ins, it’s an enormous timesaver.

So you’ll call to mind this much less as a pc alternative as a level piano or house piano or standalone studio device that doesn’t require the entire added paintings discovering presets and managing setups that level pianos do. It’s were given the capability and worth level the ones people with computer systems would be expecting. In different phrases, it guarantees to be a level piano for the ones people who didn’t in finding level pianos all that related.

It guarantees to be a level piano for the ones people who didn’t in finding level pianos all that related.

It’s truly supposed as an device for sound design, jamming, efficiency, and recording/manufacturing in equivalent measures. After all, given how neatly a pc can run nowadays, its major pageant then turns into simply the usage of your favourite controller and laptop setup, in order that’s basically what I’ll be trying out by means of comparability. What AstroLab does be offering probably is integration and accessibility that require extra paintings in a customized configuration – although that could be extra versatile or value much less. And naturally it approach you’ll ditch the pc, which onstage could be a large worry.

Questions and solutions

What tools are to be had? There are 27 tools from V Assortment and Pigments, and 1300+ onboard presets – plus an extra 10,000+ presets you’ll load from V Assortment, Analog Lab, and Pigments. (That incorporates 7,000 loose sounds from Analog Lab Professional and Arturia Sound Retailer, plus the facility to buy sounds or use a license from the opposite tools.)

So it’s only a preset device? Or can I design my very own sounds? You’ll be able to create your personal sounds with V Assortment and Pigments. So you’ve got two approaches – the browse/tweak method of doing issues, or the facility to load your personal presets. You’ll be able to prepare presets both method.

Be aware that loading customized presets out of doors the inventory assortment – or your personal – you’ll must take computational sources under consideration. Like I mentioned, the contest nowadays for standalone designs is truly your laptop.

It has audio enter capacity? Can I exploit it for results processing? Sure and sure: there are stereo XLR jacks, and because tools like Vocoder V and Pigments can procedure exterior inputs, you’ll make audio results use of this.

I’ll even have to test if the ones Pigments audio enter presets I made can run in this; that’d be amusing.

What about splits and scale mode? Neatly, as see at the S-Collection from Local Tools ,you get LEDs to suggest splits and scales.

What expressive choices do you get? Sadly, that is lovely usual – 61 semi-weighted keys, channel aftertouch, so no polyphonic aftertouch or MPE. However I do perceive that is Arturia’s personal motion, and admittedly a large number of other people don’t truly want the ones further choices. You do additionally get 8 360-degree pots with LED rings, and also you additionally give you the chance of assignable transfer/expression pedal inputs.

How are the pots mapped? Those have fastened mappings – brightness, timbre, time, motion, plus FX A, FX B, lengthen, and reverb. Brightness is after all parameters like clear out cutoff; motion applies to tremolos, sequenced results, and the like. Having those have a unmarried set of labels and mappings approach you get constant operation and will practice your muscle reminiscence. You’ll be able to reassign those or use them freely on your personal patch designs as you with, even though.

Further specifications:

Display screen encoder / ring allows you to navigate via press, tools, results, and settings, dialing them up jog-style. Flip to scroll, press down to make a choice, and shift-press or lengthy press to edit.

2-part multitimbral – layer or cut up

2 insert results: refrain, flanger, distortion

Extend (analog, virtual, or tape)

Reverb (virtual, plate, spring, room, corridor)

320px colour display

10 preset buttons for fast recall

Arpeggiator

Sequencer/looper

Chord and Scale modes (sadly no tuning choices at the keyboard itself; I’ll must learn how that maps to presets, and so on.)

Mono mic enter for vocoder

XLR/TRS stereo inputs

USB-A bunch (for each exterior garage and exterior MIDI connection – powered)

USB-C connection for laptop – or telephone, or pill – for knowledge connectivity/MIDI

Maintain and expression pedal inputs

Assignable aux 1, aux 2 inputs for extra pedal, expression inputs

Polyphony: 8 voices for polyphonic synth, 1 voice for mono synths, 48 voices for pianos and organs (restricted to make sure reliability)

MIDI enter / output (output is configurable; it’s a blended out/via port)

Balanced stereo output and devoted headphone out

USB and MIDI sync

Integrated metronome

<7 ms latency from key press to output. (That complete distance can also be method better than that on a pc setup; for the reason that audio interface latency isn’t the full-time period from keypress to output.)

WiFi and USB-C verbal exchange (no longer simply WiFi, cough, Ableton, come on already)

Octave shift buttons

10 kg (with out the ones legs)

AstroLab is the main interface for operating with the keyboard, together with library control, and adapting your personal presets to be used at the keyboard in standalone mode. And sure, you’ll use this as a controller along with your laptop if you wish to have – that means then you definately’re loose to blow via the entire aforementioned polyphony limits and whatnot, even though with the standard added overhead of your laptop.

Capability and function functions

There are every other artful options right here:

Filtering lets you briefly in finding presets you wish to have via device, kind, your personal library, or sound financial institution.

Playlists will let you construct teams of presets or set lists for are living efficiency, editable from Analog Lab Professional. Those have a hierarchy, too, so you’ll team presets into songs.

Saving presets at the fly signifies that you’ll tweak and design sounds and convey them again for your laptop later – for extra standalone probabilities. There’s additionally a Fast Save possibility (which leaves Sort/Subtype the place it’s). Simply get able to dial in letters with that jog wheel since there’s no keyboard, arcade online game genre (children, ask your oldsters, who will let you know how AAA received at Q*bert).

Oh, and yet one more factor – and it’s a large one. You’ll be able to change sounds whilst protecting keys and also you received’t get any clicks, pops, or minimize in sound, Arturia says. (That may additionally provide an explanation for why they restricted this to two-part multitimbral operation.)

There’s additionally wi-fi operation, together with Bluetooth audio streaming out of your telephone – fascinating. You’ve gotten more than one choices right here:

Arrange AstroLab as a WiFi hotspot

Paintings with presets, tools, playlists by way of WiFi (instead of USB, even though fortunately you’ll additionally use USB should you desire)

Bluetooth MIDI operation (or USB, or 5-pin)

AstroLab Attach telephone/pill sync – which offers you further surfing and sound loading choices

However conserving the straightforward 2-part design, constant parameter construction, and stuck results construction stay all of this manageable and simple, which on AstroLab is truly the purpose. That suggests it’s quite simple to stay observe of your two portions and what you’re controlling. There are indubitably keyboards with extra advanced cut up/layer choices, however I think Arturia has carried out a excellent activity of creating some settings maximum gamers will in reality use (to cite a previous product identify from them).

What’s in there

Complete insert results checklist:

AstroLab – Product Temporary

Refrain

Flanger

Phaser

Overdrive

Bit Crusher

Wave Folder

Waveshaper

Low Move / Top Move / Band Move / Comb filters

Equalizer

Stereo Pan

Wah

Compressor

Dual Amp

Rotary

And the tools – get able [picture from the mobile app]:

ARP 2600 V3

Augmented Piano

Augmented Strings

Augmented Voices

B-3 V2

Buchla Easel V

Clavinet V

CMI V

CS-80 V4

CZ V

DX7 V

Emulator II V

Farfisa V

Jun-6 V

Jup-8 V4

Korg MS-20 V

Matrix-12 V2

Mellotron V

Mini V3

Modular V3

OP-Xa V

Piano V3

Pigments

Prophet-5 V

Prophet-VS V

SEM V2

Solina V2

SQ80 V

Level-73 V2

Synclavier V

Synthi V

Vocoder V

Vox Continental V2

Wurli V2

The entire instrument is incorporated, too – you get the complete Analog Lab Professional and all the ones hundreds of presets. You’ll handiest want separate Pigments or V Assortment device licenses if you wish to edit your sounds for your laptop the usage of the ones interfaces. However you don’t want some other license for the {hardware} (cough, Ableton once more).

What’s lacking? You don’t get some older legacy variations of tools. You change out Analog Lab’s convolution reverb instead of the inner convolution reverb in Augmented Collection, Piano V, and others. And also you’ll see some polyphony obstacles – call to mind unison and granular choices on Pigments and Augmented Collection, for example. I’ll be trying out that.

Additionally, we’re ready on compatibility with Mini V4, CP-70, Augmented Brass and Woodwinds, Wurli V3, and MiniFreak V, even though the ones are all coming. And yeah, that’ll be particularly humorous, the ultimate one – you’ll be capable to use the instrument MiniFreak V at the {hardware} AstroLab, negating the will for devoted MiniFreak {hardware} (possibly).

Loading your personal sounds is straightforward, even though. You’ll do exactly it by way of Analog Lab Professional, the place you’ll map macros, arrange playlists, the works.

Facet observe: I’m lovely unhappy at the tuning query – grasp tuning is there (400 – 480 Hz) however no longer different tuning choices. (Additionally, are we able to please prevent the usage of the doubtless racist, for sure not-accurate time period “Gypsy,” now and eternally, to mention not anything of “Arabic” simply being categorized incorrectly right here for the reason that 12-TET tuning isn’t correct – which to be pedantic is theoretically additionally true of one thing categorized “Freygish.”) On the brink of “Gypsy” scales, one truly easy objection is, you don’t truly know which scale you’re even getting.

However Arturia has extra tuning reinforce on desktop, and I’m nonetheless unclear on whether or not you’ll in reality bake tunings from the desktop into presets and paintings that method, which might resolve the issue.

A uniquely centered standalone device

Possibly what’s price announcing about AstroLab – and what I’m curious to check – is this doesn’t do the whole lot a pc does. NI, Akai, and Ableton all replicated a large number of the instrument revel in in {hardware}. Because of this, the ones gadgets aren’t truly a lot more effective to make use of than their laptop similar.

Arturia has obviously mentioned no to a couple issues right here – no bells and whistles like CV in/out, no longer too many controls, no polyphonic aftertouch, no large touchscreen, two-part multitimbral operation, restricted polyphony. However in consequence, AstroLab has a combating exchange to do the item nice keyboards do, which is to be simple to make use of and play as an device, reliably. And it nonetheless does that at a worth that’s not up to a large number of devoted tools, with the variability of sounds you are expecting from a pc – together with the facility to load your personal.

That might assist it in spite of everything bridge the arena of devoted keyboards and the intensity of instrument, moderately than form of seeking to be each immediately and failing.

Stay up for our hands-on quickly – and tell us should you’ve were given extra questions.

Arturia AstroLab

Critiques in other places (c’mon UPS, transfer alongside… heh my supply date simply moved)

Tags: apps, Arturia, equipment, {Hardware}, keyboards, are living efficiency, MIDI, Pigments, previews, Q&A, level, level keyboard, standalone, V Assortment, wifi, wi-fi