I Was Wrong About The Arturia Astrolab

This might be the most controversial synth of the year (so far).
Join us as we reassess our first impressions of Arturia's new keyboard, the Astrolab. Known for high-quality analog synths and innovative software, Arturia surprises yet again with a hardware synthesizer that beautifully integrates their software suite. We delve into the advantages of Arturia's modeling technology over traditional sampling and why the Astrolab's streamlined interface is ideal for performers who value simplicity and quality. Remember to subscribe and hit the notification bell for updates on the latest music gear reviews!
For an in-depth look at this new instrument and check out reviews from Loopop and Sonic State:
Loopop: • Arturia AstroLab Revie...
Sonic State: • Arturia Astrolab - Ava...

[@ElectricUniverseEyes]

Great video. This is the keyboard I’ve been dreaming of since I first started using Arturia software. I absolutely love mine! GET THE WOODEN LEGS 🤜🏼⚡️🤛🏻

[@BattleOTheBrands-ef8go]

I really like Arturia's "wood" stuff, even when it's not real wood.

[@warrenbeatty9582]

I’m happy with mine! I see potential for future updating. Love the set list feature on this board. I love knobs and buttons (Nord user) but it’s nice to have the simplicity of this board.

[@BattleOTheBrands-ef8go]

this would be pretty powerful on a two-tiered stand with a Nord on the bottom!

[@SzopenOffiziell]

Thank you! xd finally a video sharing my point od view x)

[@MusicOfDreamweaver]

I was all onboard with this keyboard... until I saw the price. It was twice the price I was anticipating.

[@MrCcfly]

and u double price if u want to edit sounds for sw licences

[@The_Sonic_Oasis]

I like the idea of the Astrolab, It's obviously not perfect, but the concept is welcomed. Would love to see manufacturers like Spectrasonics create their own hardware or partner with a hardware manufacturer to create hardware versions of software. Imagine omnisphere and keyscape on a keyboard.

[@jfn467]

Like Roland, with their synths available in the cloud and on a serious number of different machines...

[@MrCcfly]

yea omni synth will kill rest of brands easy

[@lummsmusik3219]

I am not sure and I am not a professional. Lots of people hate the idea of the Astro Lab at first glance. I think this is a new, ingenious view on a stage keyboard.

[@BattleOTheBrands-ef8go]

It's definitely a decisive synth, but I think if I were just starting out and didn't already have a workstation I'd be seriously leaning into buying one.

[@thiagoborges892]

Fair bang for the buck?!?! That's the man question!!

[@BattleOTheBrands-ef8go]

I think that's a fair criticism, but compare it to the cost of a good controller and an expensive laptop and this comes out much cheaper. It's not going to be everyone's cup of tea. I think for a lot of bands who just want to add a small keyboard this could be overkill. I really like the Yamaha MX49 for that. But this is next level.

[@thiagoborges892]

@@BattleOTheBrands-ef8go the mx 61 is way cheaper! Arturia sounds might be a bit better, but the mx is way more flexible on stage! Also before you go on stage!! No aftertouch, though!! For me, the thing is forcing people to buy the software to tweak it!! That's a bit unfair, i think!!

[@MrCcfly]

@@BattleOTheBrands-ef8go but with midi and pc u can edit all u want ,and not just play presets that most of time sux ,vs this super expensive useless crap

[@tomlavelle8340]

Synthesizer gigging, simplified. Long live the Thermostat.

[@speedbird737]

I bought the Astrolab and I don't even know how to play a keyboard or read music lol - it joins my keylab mk2 61 keys.

[@asynchronicity]

Will wait for a more fleshed out interface and more programmability from the panel.

[@nicktumi]

can I play other VST instruments with this in saw Logic Pro or Abelton as a midi keyboard and map to buttons and knobs?

[@BattleOTheBrands-ef8go]

You can definitely use this as a MIDI controller to control all your software and DAWs, but if you want to use it without a computer hooked up to it you'll be stuck with Arturia's sounds.

[@jfn467]

The only caveat is the $500 on top of the AstroLab price, for the full V Collection so you can edit your sounds as you need!

[@BattleOTheBrands-ef8go]

I think this is a legitimate criticism, though I've used Analog Lab for a decade and have never felt the need to buy the full V Collection. I have unlocked a handful of the individual synths and been perfectly happy with that. There are so many presents, and you can typically tweak the envelope, filter, and effects with the default macros. On each voice the sound designers picked the parameters that they felt would be most rewarding to tweak. On a few choice synths I want to go deeper, but for the most part I'm never lacking for sound creation possibility even without the full collection. It's certainly a unique way of doing things. Personally I find the limitations make that many presets easier to navigate. Then again, the reason I prefer hardware synths is because I typically don't tweak presets, I typically start from scratch (init patch) and that's basically impossible without unlocking the synth or buying the whole collection.

[@jfn467]

I would feel pretty disappointed blasting $1500 on a synth, and not being able to edit or create sounds in full. Very expensive preset machine. Compare with paying $50 (Black Friday) for the same thing as a plugin. Perspective! On the other hand, I am sure we will see a lot of interesting "business development" around this machine, in the near future, and I am sure Black Friday will have the V Collection covered for lunch money if you own the machine...

[@OpenSource1]

Should of been 88keyd or 76 at least

[@jwillbassist]

This board needs a bigger screen

[@kbuss10]

Analoglab as a core for the hardware? It's a flat out mediocre synth, just saying...