Studiologic is a brand that regularly flies under the radar of many potential buyers, and the SL88 Studio is a prime example of that. It’s one of the best weighted keyboard MIDI controllers but doesn’t seem to get the credit it deserves. The software is a bit confusing and there's not a lot of documentation or tutorials on how to use it properly Minus the upgraded keyboard, this appears to be the exact same item as the SL88 grand that goes for twice as much and currently way out of my budget.

Looking like a stretched RD-64 stage piano, the A-88 can be powered by USB or an AC adaptor, and supports true sostenuto and half-dampering when combined with the optional RPU-3 triple pedal unit. Connections are basic: Two continuous and one switch input, plus a single MIDI Out port to supplement the USB. As well as coming pre-mapped to an excellent software bundle, it includes advanced transport controls for all major DAWs. One important note for people that buy this keyboard - in some DAWs, you might notice that when you record midi often times when a key is hit, two notes will be recorded, with the first one being the shortest midi note possible, followed by the actual intended note. This happens when you have multiple zones enabled in your controller. When you turn off all unnecessary zones the double note problem is resolved. Form factors are interesting. A piano spans seven octaves plus three notes, A to C. The VAXMIDI kit comes in four, six, or eightoctaves, Fto E. (Why didn’t they put a low Eon it?) There are two main reasons to go for an 88-key controller. One is that your playing focuses on piano; specifically, a premium software piano such as Synthogy Ivory, Modartt Pianoteq, or the Spitfire Hans Zimmer Piano (reviewed in our May 2016 issue). The other reason is, if you’re a composer and/or arranger, 88 keys give you more than enough spread to set up lots of zones for splits and layers, so you can lay out all the sounds you need to craft your counterpoint right in front of you.There are other great keyboards out there when it comes to the feel but what really impressed me was the accuracy of the touch to midi velocity, it really feels like I'm playing a good piano(after I adjusted the touch curve to my liking).

I bought this mainly as a weighted keyboard for piano/Rhodes etc. with my DAW. I prefer an un-weighted controller for most other sounds. I particularly like it for playing Rhodes/Wurli sounds. I think it is the way the keys bottom out. It just feels great. The velocity curves are useful as I found it difficult to get the harder velocities on the default setting. I'm not a great player though so YMMV. Setting the keyboard up is really easy with their PC/MAC software abit basic but good enough for my needs. The SL88 Studio has a fully weighted keyboard as well, but the plastic keys give it a slightly softer feel, with a slightly faster playability. It’s not quite an organ-like keyboard response (and certainly not synth action), but it’s also not quite as naturally acoustic feeling as the wooden keys of the SL88 Grand. When hit hard, you can just notice the memory foam at the bottom of the key throw as the keys almost dig into the keyboard itself. That’s not a complaint—just an observation of the feel. I was looking for an 88 keys midi masterkeyboard with a piano feel, that wouldn't make too much noise. I use it for my DAW (Reaper), to compose music with VST's. I'm not a well trained pianist, but took lessons for 3 years and I know how a piano feels. And if I could choose again, I would have made a different choise.

The SL Editor is a Mac/Windows software application that provides remote control over the SL88 keyboard and its configuration (though you can perform many of the software’s tasks via the hardware interface on the controller). Within the editor, you can create programs and save splits and combinations/layers, and organize them in groups, much like creating set lists in a workstation (think Korg Kronos) or plug-in host application (like Apple MainStage). You can make global changes, update firmware, customize key balance and velocity curves, etc. Usability Feel of the keyboard suits us guys who are not entirely piano players but want a piano like action (I am a synth, and organ player primarily and piano alternately) Because all of these settings mirror the keyboard, once you’ve used the editor to set up your sounds, you can then leave the computer at home and have direct control over all of your programs and groups directly from the front panel of the SL88. Happily, though, the hardware is so well conceived that we could build sounds pretty easily from the controller itself. Still, not everything is bad. You can set sensitivity of the keys, there's aftertouch, it's cheap, the build is not bad apart from being a bit noisey, and nothing broke so far. Or did it? I've got a problem with double midi notes being sent, that I could only solve by switching off one of the triple sensortechnology... First a big round of applause for anyone who can ship this amount of functional gear at this price point.

It may sport a fully weighted 88-note keyboard, but the Studiologic SL88 Studio is delightfully portable. Thanks to its lightweight Fatar TP/100LR action, it weighs in under 31 pounds – which is very much appreciated by Millionhead keyboardists. The SL88 Studio is also thoroughly professional caliber and built like a tank with a rugged all-metal casing and impact-resistant synthetic endcaps that protect the keybed and provide a sure grip when transporting. From the controller itself, we could select different velocity curves, name/save our patches, and assign them to different named groups, but some of these tasks, plus others, were more easily configured via the accompanying software editor. The keybed - it's a work of art. Fatar are very well known for making some of the most, if not the most realistic keybeds out there. The wooden keys with synthetic ivory feel fantastic to the touch. The keys are not too heavy, in fact they are slightly lighter than an actual orchestral grand, but the feel is essentially identical. Velocity response and aftertouch record flawlessly. It's an absolute joy.

What happened was that I got this one instead so I tried it out and then of course I had to buy it instead of getting the Studio version.

But at least you don't have to tune this one, and my old piano, well, sadly it's too old to tune, and my piano tuner gave up on it. Built like an absolute tank - the entire body (except the two side panels) is metal, and the whole thing is built in a very professional manner. It feels like it can really take a beating. The MK-22 has dynamic resolution of over 32,000 values. Of course MIDI can’t reproduce that, but the idea is that every MIDI value that doesresult is uniformly close to the player’s intentions. (Analogy: Recording audio at a high sample rate has value even if most listeners will hear the song as an MP3.) For software pianos that can interpret it, the MK-22 employs CC 88 to transmit high-resolution velocity. The MK-22 Studio model senses Aftertouch. The action is smooth and seems to register more realistic velocity reading for piano playing. You can literally play super soft passages and full on loud. It’s very quiet especially compared to the Keylab88.The SL88 comes in Studio and Grand flavors, differing only in their actions. Both are fully weighted with triple sensors and Aftertouch. The Studio model features a Fatar TP/100LR action with a lighter touch for piano and non-piano use, alike. The Grand goes premium with wooden keys and ivory-feel surfaces, at a trade-off of 15 additional pounds.