Keylab essential 88 key velocity issue

[Tua]

Hi there, anyone else observing key velocity issues during playing the keylab essential 88? Most of the keys are fine but it happens from time to time that if i play a key gently the velocity of this key jumps to the loudest possible velocity value. I already did a reset of the keyboard. I also installed the latest Firmware (1.1.10) and checked the velocity settings in "midi control center". I like to have the key velocity curve in "Lin", because it feels more like playing a piano.
I opened a ticket for the arturia support and after some mailing and attaching videos playing the piano and describing the issue and stuff they came back to me. The keyboard needs to be checked at the Labor and maybe needs to be repaired. Of course this service is not for free (Arturia charge me 80€) and the spare parts are not included on the bill.
But my question now is. For me it seems not to be a hardware issue. The funny thing is if i work with the standalone "analog lab 4", most of the time it's the C# key which triggers the issue. If i play with the standalone "analog lab V" it's the C. Anyone already had that problem and can confirm that letting Arturia check/repair it at the lab, fixes the issue? thx guys!

[PilotPrecise]

YES! I have this same problem. Funny enough, the keyboard firmware had to be updated to 1.1.10 because of their original velocity problem: the sharps being different than the natural notes. I can't tell you if that update was where this latest problem started or not, because the sharps/natural problem was way worse.
Now, in my case, only keys in the upper half of the bed seem affected. My easiest steps to reproduce are to play a C4 major triad at moderate volume; the E4 and G4 will randomly hit 127, with the G doing it a LOT. You can see in the attached screenshots the difference between playing in the problem area vs. a couple octaves lower.

The keyboard needs to be checked at the Labor and maybe needs to be repaired. Of course this service is not for free (Arturia charge me 80€) and the spare parts are not included on the bill.

Oh goodie! I can see my customer service nightmare future from here! Despite having fully registered through their services, I guess they need me to find the original receipt? So I'm gonna have to call the independent shop I bought this at and wade through their POS machine to get a copy, hell of a hassle. (Isn't this the point of registering the hardware with Arturia in the first place? For service?)

In addition to the old receipt, they asked for a video of the problem. Do you think that means "trash it on TikTok"? Because that seems likely to be more fun and rewarding. lol

[MajorFubar]

I have a similar problem on my old Mk1 KL88 but it seems to be linked to when I hit the Sustain pedal at the same time as a note. But not every time. It's random, yet is sure to completely ruin a performance at some point. It can be any key.

For some reason it only seems to affect the Piano V apps (all versions).
No software update to either the controller nor Piano V(s) ever fixed this issue.
It's definitely 100% a software issue, be it Piano V or the controller, and not a hardware problem.

It's so annoying I've even considered buying a different controller because of it, but there aren't many choices of 88-key midi controllers with aftertouch. The 'big guns' in this arena are Arturia, NI and Roland. That seems to be 'it'. And it's not difficult when scouring the internet to find common complaints about all three of them. It's almost like, choose the maufacturer whose commonly-accepted foibles will p*ss you off the least.

[Tua]

thank you guys for the reply. Yes @PilotPrecise what you descirbe is similar to my experience with the keylab ess 88. It seems for me the firmware update made it even worse, but I'm really not sure.
Now what i did not check is the octavation of the problematic keys. I dont know why i did not came up with this idea earlier LOL -> Result: The affected keys always stay in the same area of the bed, it does not matter in what octave Im currently playing. I think i check the hardware now for myself as i cant claim a warrenty anyway. I definitely let you know the results.

Now, in my case, only keys in the upper half of the bed seem affected. My easiest steps to reproduce are to play a C4 major triad at moderate volume; the E4 and G4 will randomly hit 127, with the G doing it a LOT. You can see in the attached screenshots the difference between playing in the problem area vs. a couple octaves lower.

ok now this sounds more like a software issue.

so frustrating @MajorFubar. yeah in this price range it seems these are the big guns. hopefully they can fix that issue with another firmware update ahah. I think this was my first and last arturia hardware device.

[vespina]

The 'big guns' in this arena are Arturia, NI and Roland. That seems to be 'it'. And it's not difficult when scouring the internet to find common complaints about all three of them.

You may try with Studio Logic. The SL88 its one of the best MIDI controllers out there, specially for piano playing.

[Tua]

a bit frustrating guys but i couldn't fix the issue. The keyboard's internal hardware is seperated in sections and each section has its own circuit board.



I checked the problematic circuit board, cleaned it and everything but it didn't help. I guess if i don't find a spare part of that section in the net or somewhere else i won't be able to get rid of that annoying problem.