Novation Launchkey Mini mk3

[xboix]

My Akai MPK mini mk2 has just died, and that's the second Akai mini keyboard to do that to me so I'm looking for a replacement and Akai are not on the list!

Current choice is the Novation Launchkey Mini mk3. Anyone use it with Reason? Any problems or funnies?

[Mike B]

Very unpractical and unpleasant with Reason. You need to lock and set the device you use it on everytime, which means you can't go from device to another unless you manually lock it in Reason. But with Ableton it works very smoothly and they highly recommend using it with Ableton (they also offer a lite version of Ableton)

[xboix]

That's not so good. Did you use the downloadable script from Novation?

[friday]

I have the Launchpad X, switching to different devices works. But the mapping is not very deep, you can play drums and melodys, not more. I have to check the scripts you mentioned!

[Mike B]

That's not so good. Did you use the downloadable script from Novation?

Yes I have

[xboix]

That's not so good. Did you use the downloadable script from Novation?

Yes I have

Now you've given me a dilemma as the Live integration was a key feature for me. At present I use Studio One and Reason but I'm heading towards Studio One and Live with Reason Rack. I'll probably only use Reason proper on my laptop, assuming we are ever allowed to leave the house again!

[Mike B]

Yes I have

Now you've given me a dilemma as the Live integration was a key feature for me. At present I use Studio One and Reason but I'm heading towards Studio One and Live with Reason Rack. I'll probably only use Reason proper on my laptop, assuming we are ever allowed to leave the house again!

Yes I was extremely disappointed when I got my launchkey and realized how counterproductive it is with Reason. My friend also got his launchkey and was also diappointed (using Reason). They say Nektar Panorama is your best bet with Reason. But honestly even that compared to the more intuitive connectivity between Live and hardware synth is still very weak.

Yes I highly encourage you using Ableton with Reason rack if you wish. I can't give my input on Studio One with hardware gear but I can assure you that you'll take fully advantage of your launchkey with Ableton.

[thedude]

Wanted to bump this as i was considering a launch key mini mk3 for use with Reason. Has anything changed or been updated, or are the gripes from the thread still present?

This video was made after the last post here, and it shows Enrique switching between the instruments and using the knobs. Seems like it all makes sense?

[honeyBadger]

At least my launchkey mini mk2 works great with reason, I can switch tracks and change patches from the controller, and a majority of the reason devices are already mapped. You can even control the Thor sequencer with the pads (turns steps on and off). Those devices that weren’t already mapped I added manually to the remote file. I did install the novation provided reason driver to get this functionality. I would be surprised if the mk3 didn’t offer at least this base level of functionality.

[thedude]

oh nice. can you tell me what the knobs usually map to for the stock synths? and is there a way to switch 'banks' for the knobs? i like to quickly tweak ADSR for the synths - not sure if that is usually default. how hard is it to add manually to the remote file for other RE?

[honeyBadger]

At least on the mk2 I don’t think you can have banks of controls, although for something like Kong and Redrum you can select a drum slot using the launchkey pads and then edit that pad’s parameters with the knobs. This document has the mappings that come out of the box with the novation script (again this is for mk2, the mk3 may have updated mappings): https://fael-downloads-prod.focusrite.c ... -guide.pdf

Editing the remote map files is pretty straightforward, so if you want them to be ADSR that just requires a little customization. Here’s a guide from : https://www.soundonsound.com/techniques ... reason?amp

[honeyBadger]

Attached is the mini mk3 map file. You can open it in any text editor or view it in something like Excel to make it a little easier to read.

[thedude]

Thanks for posting; this is super helpful!

[Steedus]

I have the mk2. Are the complaints about switching betweenpatches/instruments directly from the keyboard? (something I don't do) - because I've never had an issue.. aside from not knowing about that function it works perfectly here. Must be 5 or 6 years old by now. Only thing I miss is a mod wheel control.