Arturia Keylab MK2 - The preset browser

Hardware
#1

Arturia put this nice big dial in the middle of the Keylab 88 mk2 keyboard and I cannot get it to switch rackspaces in Gig Performer. I sent a message to their support and they want me to factory reset it, but also I have scoured the forums here, Reddit, Facebook, generic web searches, the manual, everywhere I can think of, and though I have found 1 or 2 poor souls having the same issue, I have not found a definitive response:

Can this preset browser be used to browse rackspaces, songs, and/or setlists in GigPerformer?

Iā€™ve turned on the midi monitor and nothing is coming from the preset browser in user mode and I cannot modify its function in the Arturia software. Does anyone have any experience with this? Or any other solution? Do I have to use an Ipad or something?

Iā€™d prefer not to do a program change for 100 rackspaces ā€“ I just want 1 or (if it has to be) 2 buttons to cycle back and forth through the rackspaces so at the gig I can keep hitting Next, next, and so on. :slight_smile:

Appreciate any adviceā€¦

#2

If you want to use that dial, it has to produce MIDI events (these events are registered in the Global MIDI monitor). Please contact Arturia is that possible at all.

Alternatively, you can use any other two buttons. This article will help you along the way: Gig Performer | How to change sounds and control plugins from your MIDI controller

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#3

As far as i could read in the manual, you can configure almost everything on these keyboards, but not this ā€œPreset Browserā€ dialā€¦ see also item 5.6. in the manual:

5.6. Non-assignable controls
As you can see, almost every button/pad/fader/knob on the front panel can be assigned to
transmit various types of data. Hereā€™s a list of those that canā€™t be reassigned:
ā€¢ Chord / Transpose / Octave ā€“ / Octave +
ā€¢ Pad / Chord mode buttons
ā€¢ The three Control buttons
ā€¢ Transport buttons
ā€¢ Category / Preset / Left arrow / Right arrow
ā€¢ Center knob
ā€¢ Part 1 / Part 2 / Live (they select controller banks 1-3)
ā€¢ MIDI Ch button: can only be used with the keyboard to set the User channel

So you most probably will have to use one of the smaller knobs or buttonsā€¦

3 Likes
#4

I have the Arturia Keylab MkII 61 which has pretty much the same controls as the 88. The center preset controls are not programable. They do send out some MIDI signals in DAW mode & Analog Lab mode. But it would be confusing to use these for what you want to do.

I simply programmed 4 buttons in 1 row.
Button 9 = Previous Rackspace
10= Next Rackspace
11= Previous Variation
12= Next Variation
I did have to change the options for the buttons at the bottom of the Arturia software page (see photo).

Screen Shot 2022-04-07 at 10.56.48 AM
Screen Shot 2022-04-07 at 10.56.48 AM607Ɨ544 177 KB

Assign these in your Global MIDI Options and youā€™re good to go.

4 Likes
#5

Hi @dirtforker,

it is like @schamass @jpt pointed out: in USER mode you have no access to the navigation controls on the MkII
Just use some other buttons on your MkII (e.g. out of the DAW control section)

I personally make some other use of the navigation controls: all of the controls on my 61 MkII are sending on other MIDI channels than 1 in my Gig Performer USER preset (1 is the standard Analog Lab MIDI channel).

I have some special rackspaces for rehearsals where I have a straight routing to Analog Lab (or any other V-collection instrument).

Once I have navigated to this rackspace, I can now switch from USER mode to ANALOG LAB and use the navigation on the MkII to browse through the Arturia presets and tweak them without affecting the main rig :sunglasses:

Switching back to USER I have my rig back againā€¦

3 Likes
#6

Thanks so much, everyone. This confirms my suspicions about the navigation controls. Itā€™s a bit disappointing theyā€™re proprietary and canā€™t be used. I really liked having the big dial on my Roland Fantom to spin my way through 60 or so rackspaces as needed while practicing and was hoping to do the same here but it looks like Iā€™m outta luck. I guess it really only matters to step through 1 at a time for gigging purposes.

#7

Hi @jpt thanks for your answer to this question. I am thinking about purchasing the Arturia Keylab 61 and was wondering how it integrated into Gig Performer. I guess you can load Analog Lab in Gig Performer but do you still have the same control of Analog Lab from the keyboard that you do in a DAW? What is your overall opinion of the Keylab 61? (or maybe even the Keylab Essential 61) ā€¦ thanks for any help.

#8

Hi @OldTimerBill Iā€™ve had my Keylab Mkll for about 7 months now and I have been really enjoying it. Before, I was using an older Roland RD700 and controlling GP with a Behringer FCB1010. The FCB1010 worked great but I kept finding myself looking at my feet to make sure I was hitting the correct buttonsā€¦and the Roland was just getting too heavy for my liking. So, wanting something lighter and with more onboard controls, I chose the Keylab Mkll 61.

Most of the time Iā€™m using a gigfile with a B3 in the global rackspace along with some other needed plugins such as global EQ, global reverb, etc. The sliders, buttons and knobs on the right side of the keyboard give me plenty of control over my global rackspace with spare controls left over. On the left side of the keyboard I have the buttons set up for leslie speed control, moving back and forth through Rackspaces, variations (songs and song parts), bringing up song lyrics, Panic button, Record, etc.

Since I wasnā€™t familiar with Analog Lab prior to owning the Keylab I was never used to using the keyboard in the Analog Lab mode. So, when I use any of those sounds, I usually set up my controls in the user mode anyways. I did, however, just open the Analog Lab 4 plugin and switch to the Analog Lab mode on the keyboard, and it did seem to control the plugin as it would in a stand-alone mode.

Overall right now Iā€™m fairly pleased with the Keylab Mkll 61. I love the portability and the control of GP. The only thing I miss is a nice weighted keyboard. However, this keyboard feels really nice (to me). Iā€™m getting more and more used to the feel. If I do get another keyboard at some point, Iā€™m am really leaning toward the Keylab Mkll 88ā€¦mainly because of the convenience of having identical control over GP.

#9

Hi John ā€¦ thanks for a very quick reply and lots of helpful information. I am OLD ā€¦ 73 at the end of this month ā€¦ and have never really played any music live but I am thinking about trying to find a few people in my area who would like to get together and play some oldies. For as old as I am, I am pretty good with technology and putting all of the hardware and software together is half the fun for me. I am also working on learning how to make backing tracks.

Thanks again for the info.

Bill in Woodstock Georgia

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#10

I just turned 72 myself and still gigging strong for the last 50 years! Keeps you young!!

4 Likes
#11

I have recently bought MKII 61 and I am in the process of setting it up.

I have a few questions you (or another) maybe can answer:

  • When I assign a button for ā€œnextā€ and ā€œpreviousā€ I have to press twice to switch preset. What am I doing wrong

  • have you considered using it in DAW mode with Gigperformer to have transport functionality, or maybe that isnĀ“t possible?

Best regards,ā€™
Mads Granum

#12

Hi @madsgranum

  1. you need to match your button on the KeyLab to the one in GP - i.e. check both for momentary/latching

  2. you could use your KeyLab in DAW mode to get access to the big encoder and the 4 buttons, however you need to match everything else in GP carefully. I decided to create an own USER preset for best flexibility in GP and ā€šloseā€˜ those 5 controllersā€¦