While nicely crafted and classy in appearance, the Kontrol–S is rather unassuming... until you switch it on. With power (AC not USB, I’m afraid) a wave of colours washes across the surface as the ‘Light Guide’ key lights come to life causing grins and ‘oohs’ from geeks and non–geeks alike in our house. The touch–sensitive knobs offer just enough resistance to feel expensive, and each is accompanied by a beautifully sharp monochrome display. These displays show mapped parameters, with values indicated by a horizontal slider graphic. In place of pitch and mod wheels you’ll find touch strips with LED position indicators. This might not suit traditionalists, but I liked being able to jump directly to a value, and the option to set pitch–bend ‘springiness’. The OEM Fatar keys befit the price tag, with a solid fast semi–weighted action. I tested the mid–sized S49 version.

Logic will display the Control Surface Setup window. You can see that it has identified the Kontrol Keyboard. If you accidentally powered the controller off or unplugged the USB cable or power supply during the update process, the firmware update will fail. In this case, follow these steps: Operating System: Mac OS X 10.11 or macOS 10.12, Intel Core 2 Duo / Windows 7 or later, Intel Core 2 Duo or AMD Athlon 64 X2

Features

Select KOMPLETE KONTROL in any of the drop-down menus in the Type column to add the keyboard. The ports and MIDI channel will populate automatically. If you are using a Kontrol S MK3, set Receive From to MIDIIN2 (KONTROL S MK3) and Send To to MIDIOUT2 (KONTROL S MK3).

Assign a free Control Surface slot to Komplete Kontrol MK2 by selecting it from the drop-down list. It only works connected to a computer. It is NOT a standalone unit. If you are looking for something that carries its sounds with it, look into the Yamaha MX49 and related products. Smart Play: See scales and modes on the Light Guide, play chord progressions and arpeggios with single keys, or map any scale to white keys onlyNote: The Program Data folder may be hidden. This article explains how to display hidden files and folders in Windows. The firmware of your Native Instruments device can be updated with the Native Instruments Device Updater as explained below: Light Guide: RGB lights above each key highlight drum cells, key switches, chords, scales, and more

If you're using a Kontrol MK1 keyboard, the features described here require Apple Logic Pro 10.2.0 (or higher) as well as Komplete Kontrol 1.6.1 (or higher). Create hybrid, atmospheric soundscapes and textures from acoustic instruments with unique processing for otherworldly sonic environments. DRUMS AND PERCUSSION INSTRUMENTS DRUMLAB

If you're using a Kontrol MK2 keyboard, the features described here require Apple Logic Pro 10.3.1 (or higher) as well as Komplete Kontrol .9.0 (or higher). Kontour is a particularly playable and tweakable Phase Mod–based synth. Two oscillators with shapers can be combined and cross–modulated, and blended with a comb filter and regular filter. The result is kind of a grungy organic synth with a character somewhere between FM and Physical Modelling. The name comes from the synth’s front-panel performance view, which has four modulators, each with built–in motion sequencers. Of course these are mapped to the knobs on the KK keyboard. Logic Pro is now set up for Kontrol. Please read this article if your Kontrol keyboard is not automatically recognized by Logic. This chapter explains how to update the firmware of your Native Instruments audio interface or controller (e.g. KOMPLETE KONTROL S-Series Mk1 keyboard).