Arturia Astrolab

[Stokely]

Huh, that's pretty wild.  
 

In practical use, probably not much different from how I do things now--hold notes, hit the next patch a second or so before I need it.   I don't often switch right exactly when I need the next sound.   

Considering there have been keyboards around for a while now that have pretty big sample libraries, and don't take any time to load, having loading time seems like a step backward.

 

[Mighty Motif Max]

40 minutes ago, Stokely said:

Huh, that's pretty wild.  
 

In practical use, probably not much different from how I do things now--hold notes, hit the next patch a second or so before I need it.   I don't often switch right exactly when I need the next sound.   

Considering there have been keyboards around for a while now that have pretty big sample libraries, and don't take any time to load, having loading time seems like a step backward.

 

If the effects don’t glitch, I’d be fine with a one second switch time. That’s been a much bigger issue with past keyboards (or where there wasn’t any patch remain at all). It’s sure a lot faster than switching patches in software most of the time. Which is a more fair comparison considering this is literally a hardware version of an advanced software product. With that in mind, I’m actually very impressed with that short of a load time for many patches.

[ElmerJFudd]

57 minutes ago, Stokely said:

Huh, that's pretty wild.  
 

In practical use, probably not much different from how I do things now--hold notes, hit the next patch a second or so before I need it.   I don't often switch right exactly when I need the next sound.   

Considering there have been keyboards around for a while now that have pretty big sample libraries, and don't take any time to load, having loading time seems like a step backward.

 

hmm, 

 

Seamless sound switching seems to be implemented as we would expect.  Voices are allocated for sounds currently happening and other voices are already assigned to the incoming patch. 

 

A sample based patch with a larger library has a brief load time.  This is more similar to say, Kontakt than a stage piano or synth.   And I think that has to do with the size of the library and the read time (processor speed, storage speed, bus speed).  to be expected?  Mainstage is quite quick, depending on how quick your Mac is.  

[stoken6]

On 4/21/2024 at 10:48 PM, Paul Woodward said:

Arriving in the UK this week, and cheaper than I thought..

 

If you pinned me up against the wall and forced me to predict a price, I would probably have gone "it's worth £1399, and it will be priced at £1499". So that advertised price is actually a nice surprise.

 

Cheers, Mike.

[Paul Woodward]

13 minutes ago, stoken6 said:

If you pinned me up against the wall and forced me to predict a price, I would probably have gone "it's worth £1399, and it will be priced at £1499". So that advertised price is actually a nice surprise.

 

Cheers, Mike.

I think it's still a lot for what is in essence a preset player with a fairly standard keybed and minimal controls. My eyes are getting old so I would struggle with the screen and even then, you need to be invested in their engines for this to be a solid investment. It's not for me, but I hope those who buy are happy with it.

[stoken6]

5 minutes ago, Paul Woodward said:

I think it's still a lot for what is in essence a preset player with a fairly standard keybed and minimal controls. My eyes are getting old so I would struggle with the screen and even then, you need to be invested in their engines for this to be a solid investment. It's not for me, but I hope those who buy are happy with it.

I don't lust for one in the slightest. But I think the draw of VST-quality sounds in a portable package, no laptop needed, will attract some. Let's wait and see...

 

Cheers, Mike.

[J.F.N.]

1 hour ago, Paul Woodward said:

I think it's still a lot for what is in essence a preset player with a fairly standard keybed and minimal controls. My eyes are getting old so I would struggle with the screen and even then, you need to be invested in their engines for this to be a solid investment. It's not for me, but I hope those who buy are happy with it.

 

It's a stand-alone version of the Analog Lab virtual instrument more or less, for anyone happy enough with that... Whatever ticks your boxes, I'd never go there, way too much money and estate for what you can achieve with it.

 

I can definitely see it in a fairly strict setting, where things are basically running under show control, "manual" or actual,  but for everything in a more dynamic setting, it does feel very limited in terms of user interactions and manual control.

[ElmerJFudd]

Sounds

[mauriziodececco]

17 hours ago, AnotherScott said:

* - But it's not necessarily a second. As maurizio said (and demonstrated in the video I referred to earlier), lots of sounds are instantaneous, but ones that load samples vary... and some can even be well more than a second (again, as you can see in the video). 

 

Yes. And take in account that the loading time regards sounds from the Augmented series plugin (three on 39 instruments), a very small part of the Astrolab capabilities. Synths, organs, epianos, etc load instantaneously (well, fast enough :).

 

Maurizio

 

 

[mauriziodececco]

17 hours ago, Stokely said:

Knowing this is analog lab in a keyboard makes a bit more sense...as far as screen size, it depends on what's going to be on it.  There's very little that actually goes onto the Nord screens.  My Modx screen is way bigger but some of the things on it can be a bit hard to see because they are jamming a lot on each one.   

I still think the lack of controls is baffling if this is intended to be a live instrument.

 

There is not a lot going on here as well. The screen/wheel is used essentially to navigate a tree like menu structure, so  few line of text, to show one or two image pointing you to the instrument used by the current sound(s), to show the value of a parameter when you touch a know (without turning it), and to show and change the level of each part when you touch the part1 and part2 button. It is big enough for this work.

 

About the controls: it have exactly the same controls that Analog Lab have, their bet is that there enough people using Analog Lab live to show that the wrokflow is adequate and putting it in hardware make sense. 

 

Personally, i'll wait for an hardware version of the full V Collection :), but i think it make a lot sense for a preset based gig.

 

Maurizio

 

 

 

[CrossRhodes]

First review from the field that I've seen.

 

 

[J.F.N.]

16 minutes ago, CrossRhodes said:

First review from the field that I've seen.

 

 

 

And kind of concludes what has been discussed already, if you're an Arturia buff already, it's potentially a great addition, if not, you're up for a huge investment...

[Scazbot]

On 4/15/2024 at 8:11 PM, AnotherScott said:

Another way of looking at this, maybe... The Vox Continental included a set of minimally editable sounds from the Kronos engines. I always thought it would have been a lot more appealing if I could have loaded my favorite actual Kronos programs into it (within the limits of what it was capable of... i.e. sounds from the same engines, and just individual programs rather than multi-part combis, that sort of thing). The Astrolab is kind of similar to the Vox for Arturia fans, but you *can* load your sounds from the "full" version if you have it. The reason to not travel with the Kronos itself, at least for me, was largely the weight, but some people have their reasons for preferring to not travel with a Mac/Windows device, too.

I wanted to chime in here after having a chance to play an Astrolab for about 40min. I think AnotherScott has the right of it. I own a Korg Vox Continental and it's biggest appeal was the stripped down Grandstage/Kronos sound sets and minimal editing. Yes, I actually wasn't interested in lots of editing parameters. But, they made a really lovely board that did exactly what I needed in a tight and easily adjustable package. Very straightforward, with a number of excellent sounds. I've used it to play large shows covering Motown, Pink Floyd, The Bee Gees, Jazz Big Band, Weather Report (Fusion), as well as regular gigs with Rock, Country, Jazz, or Funk groups. I love that board BUT it would be nice if it had a screen and perhaps a better piano. The Astrolab has both along with solid keys that definitely feel more substantial. And while I mention the keys it is worth noting that they do not lend themselves well to organ playing. The Vox was much better at palm slides or just glissandos in general. These keys are a bit stiffer but they feel better when playing piano, rhodes, general keyboard sounds. I will say they are still light keys but they feel more solid than the Vox.

 

I'm going to buy an Astrolab for sure. It's screen is great and highly visible. The organizational capabilities are solid and will make creating lists of sounds or sets that I want to use painless. Also, I have been dreaming of a really nice 61-key board (my Vox is a 73 missed out on the 61) and I love the compact nature with such a large breadth of sounds. Also, one of the best features of the Vox was all that real estate on the side where I could put an ipad. I use it constantly and this has similar real estate. It's a well built premium feeling board and if you like the Vox you should give it a look.

[ElmerJFudd]

 

[CrossRhodes]

40 minutes ago, ElmerJFudd said:

 

 

Look three posts up. 😄

[CrossRhodes]

1 hour ago, Scazbot said:

I wanted to chime in here after having a chance to play an Astrolab for about 40min. I think AnotherScott has the right of it. I own a Korg Vox Continental and it's biggest appeal was the stripped down Grandstage/Kronos sound sets and minimal editing. Yes, I actually wasn't interested in lots of editing parameters. But, they made a really lovely board that did exactly what I needed in a tight and easily adjustable package. Very straightforward, with a number of excellent sounds. I've used it to play large shows covering Motown, Pink Floyd, The Bee Gees, Jazz Big Band, Weather Report (Fusion), as well as regular gigs with Rock, Country, Jazz, or Funk groups. I love that board BUT it would be nice if it had a screen and perhaps a better piano. The Astrolab has both along with solid keys that definitely feel more substantial. And while I mention the keys it is worth noting that they do not lend themselves well to organ playing. The Vox was much better at palm slides or just glissandos in general. These keys are a bit stiffer but they feel better when playing piano, rhodes, general keyboard sounds. I will say they are still light keys but they feel more solid than the Vox.

 

I'm going to buy an Astrolab for sure. It's screen is great and highly visible. The organizational capabilities are solid and will make creating lists of sounds or sets that I want to use painless. Also, I have been dreaming of a really nice 61-key board (my Vox is a 73 missed out on the 61) and I love the compact nature with such a large breadth of sounds. Also, one of the best features of the Vox was all that real estate on the side where I could put an ipad. I use it constantly and this has similar real estate. It's a well built premium feeling board and if you like the Vox you should give it a look.

Nice to hear so many different opinions. I actually started some photoshop mock ups of how all that empty space on the left could be used but didn't want to start bashing Arturia. Some initial thoughts were great spot for a tv dinner if the bar doesn't give you free food, a whiskey flight to keep you and your bandmates happy, a joint rolling station if your state permits that sort of thing, etc. I suppose your idea to put an iPad there is more productive though.  Look forward to hearing your review once you finally have one in your set up!

[ElmerJFudd]

6 minutes ago, CrossRhodes said:

 

Look three posts up. 😄

I’m late today.  Not much times for keys. 😫

[pjd]

I had a chance to play one today. Wrang it out for an hour at GC Lynnwood, WA.

 

Not bad. Short story, it's Analog Lab in a box with a decent keybed. I enjoyed playing the EPs especially. As to my own use, I need the Augmented Brass and Augmented Woodwinds which are not part of the current content load.

 

A lot more comments here: https://sandsoftwaresound.net/arturia-astrolab-yes-i-played-one/

 

Concerns about price vs. competition have already been discussed and I share the concerns.

 

Have fun -- pj

 

P.S. Thanks to the folks at GC. It's a lot more sane to try an instrument on a Wednesday morning with nobody around ...

 

[ElmerJFudd]

6 minutes ago, pjd said:

I had a chance to play one today. Wrang it out for an hour at GC Lynnwood, WA.

 

Not bad. Short story, it's Analog Lab in a box with a decent keybed. I enjoyed playing the EPs especially. As to my own use, I need the Augmented Brass and Augmented Woodwinds which are not part of the current content load.

 

A lot more comments here: https://sandsoftwaresound.net/arturia-astrolab-yes-i-played-one/

 

Concerns about price vs. competition have already been discussed and I share the concerns.

 

Have fun -- pj

 

P.S. Thanks to the folks at GC. It's a lot more sane to try an instrument on a Wednesday morning with nobody around ...

 

Additional engines might be forthcoming, more possibilities for those that can edit on the software version.   And I wonder if they’ll do a 73/76 or an 88k weighted (not a stretch from their controller offering).  

[J.F.N.]

8 hours ago, ElmerJFudd said:

Additional engines might be forthcoming, more possibilities for those that can edit on the software version.   And I wonder if they’ll do a 73/76 or an 88k weighted (not a stretch from their controller offering).  

 

There seem to be an 88 in the works:
 

https://device.report/arturia/astrolab-88

[ABECK]

On 4/23/2024 at 11:53 AM, CrossRhodes said:

First review from the field that I've seen.

 

 

 

 

This was a well done review from a gigging perspective.  Nothing we haven't heard or read already, but it was a good honest overview of the capabilities and limitations.  If you prep everything in advance, it can be a great tool from a gigging perspective.  If you need to go beyond a pre-planned set and change things on the fly, you may run into frustrations.  For $999, this would be great (considering the potential additional spend on software).

[Paul Woodward]

This is what niggles me…so many compromises on a brand new (and not exactly cheap) board. You should be seeing the best keybed, lots of flexibility and room for upgrades, controls, great visual interface etc.  but instead it’s almost like a list of apologies from the R&D department for what they could manage and, for a board that is Arturia sounds only, you would expect fully editable software bundled in at that price (and even at a lower price). Still, if it appeals to you, then you will buy into it I guess.

[J.F.N.]

7 minutes ago, Paul Woodward said:

This is what niggles me…so many compromises on a brand new (and not exactly cheap) board. You should be seeing the best keybed, lots of flexibility and room for upgrades, controls, great visual interface etc.  but instead it’s almost like a list of apologies from the R&D department for what they could manage and, for a board that is Arturia sounds only, you would expect fully editable software bundled in at that price (and even at a lower price). Still, if it appeals to you, then you will buy into it I guess.

 

Looking at how the eco system seems to work, it pretty much feels like it's designed as an upsell product, first towards all who already own the software (Analog Lab and V Collection), and on the other side, upsell from AstroTurf to V Collection (I assume Analog Lab is included with the Astro...). And then of course, the bundle combo, Black Friday here we go!

[mauriziodececco]

By the way, nobody here remember the Arturia Origini https://www.soundonsound.com/reviews/arturia-origin, i think a 2009 exemple of what an hardware V Collection could be ?

 

Maurizio

[johnchop]

Absolutely remember the Origin … talk about flying close to the sun!

 

I do like the suggestion that owning Astrolab should come with some entitlement to Vcollection, or rather a Vcollection bundle that contains the currently supported Astrolab instruments.  That makes the pricing much easier to swallow, and brings in a host of new users.

 

Even having that bundle locked to hardware is better than nothing, provided there’s an “upgrade to full” collection should you ever sell the keyboard. 
 

Maybe they are working on something like that.  

[J.F.N.]

1 hour ago, mauriziodececco said:

By the way, nobody here remember the Arturia Origini https://www.soundonsound.com/reviews/arturia-origin, i think a 2009 exemple of what an hardware V Collection could be ?

 

Maurizio

 

That was something, they were having a good vision with Origin, though neither technology or the structure of the company was ready for that back then...

 

30 minutes ago, johnchop said:

Absolutely remember the Origin … talk about flying close to the sun!

 

I do like the suggestion that owning Astrolab should come with some entitlement to Vcollection, or rather a Vcollection bundle that contains the currently supported Astrolab instruments.  That makes the pricing much easier to swallow, and brings in a host of new users.

 

Even having that bundle locked to hardware is better than nothing, provided there’s an “upgrade to full” collection should you ever sell the keyboard. 
 

Maybe they are working on something like that.  

 

Wait for Black Friday...