Arturia Keylab Essential 88 USB / MIDI Keyboard

General

As you might've guessed, the Arturia Keylab Essential 88 USB/MIDI keyboard features 88 keys. In addition, this master keyboard offers seamless integration with many of Arturia's virtual instruments like the Analog Lab and V-Collection. Nine faders, nine encoders and eight drum pads make controlling your DAW and software-synths much more intuitive compared to a computer mouse and it goes without saying that the Keylab Essential 88 works equally well with other software packs. Speaking of which, a free copy of Ableton Live Lite comes included to send you off on a flying start.

The Keylab Essential 88: Expression & Complex Sequences

Since the eight pads are fitted with RGB LEDs, they're not only great for drum and percussion parts but allow for complex and detailed sequences. The faders and encoders, combined with Arturia's virtual instruments, are clearly laid out and won't have you searching for the functions you need, especially because the ones that are vital to you can be customised and assigned. You might even want to throw your mouse out the window, since the Keylab Essential 88 stands for complete and seamless DAW integration, which means you can trigger the play, stop, pause and start recording functions from the keyboard.