NiftyKEYZ

[Eddy Deegan]

It arrived today and it's ridiculously good

https://www.soundonsound.com/news/niftykeyz-cre8audio

I've been playing around with it for a couple of hours, trying out a few arrangements of basic modules while getting to grips with it.

There's not much to dislike here; nice velocity-sensitive keyboard with aftertouch, pitch-bend and mod wheels, built-in clock & arpeggiator (the former can sync to external sources, the latter has a repeating step sequencer mode), 4 CV/Gate outputs, built-in LFO, a couple of built-in buffered mults, key latch and glide buttons, heavily configurable, plenty of depth for deep modules, sustain and expression pedal inputs (the latter exposed as a patch point on the top), MIDI DIN in and out on the back along with USB, excellent build quality and very reasonable price.



I've got a couple of new modules on the way as a result. If I'm not back in 3 weeks or so, send food

[zenguitar]

I see it in the Juno mail shot, resisted the temptation, and am now tempted again.

Cheers mate

Andy

[Eddy Deegan]

You're welcome, and sorry, in equal measure Andy!

Considering the price compared to a normal case with power only, it's a huge step up and beautifully combines the convenience of a small synth with the power of modular.

Waldorf did the KB37 five years ago but this takes it to new levels with a longer keyboard and a host of well thought-out and solidly implemented features. Having seen your module collection I think it would be perfect for it as the nerve-centre.

I'll be evolving my modular for a while yet no doubt as the Nifty will be alongside the Arturia Rackbrutes and the Moog stack. I want the Nifty to be usable in a self-contained fashion so the modules I ordered after setting up the Nifty were space-saving utilities in the form of a 5HP 6-channel mixer that can perform stereo duties if required (especially since the Nifty makes stereo operation a breeze), a 5HP-width dual VCA and envelope generators to support a bit of polyphony without taking up too much space and a 4HP Mutable Instruments LINKS for further mult/mix/summing capabilities in a small footprint.

[The Elf]

Got my eye on this one. It would give me more space (beyond my current NiftyCase) to build my 'dream' 2500...


One more U of width and I could have re-used my existing mixer.

And Gear4Music have an offer on the noise generator...

As far as I can see it, the main crime the NK makes is having the wheels in the wrong place, but you can't have everything. I will ignore the external PSU, because only I care.

[Eddy Deegan]

I will ignore the external PSU, because only I care.

I feel your pain. I was looking for those extra modules I described above and everywhere was out of stock of pretty much everything except for Behringer stuff which seems readily available.

There were plenty of Behringer modules in stock that in theory I'd have loved to have grabbed in terms of bang for the buck but they are still on my no-no list. I've resolutely held my ground and only I (and a handful of others perhaps) care.

But for the issues we care about I think it fair to be both discerning and constructively critical. I'm in your camp on the external power supply front.

For what it's worth I just unscrewed an oscillator and peeked into the case. There is only one place an internal power supply could live in it which is at the extreme left at the bottom of the case. The Eurorack power supply in there occupies much of the upper space and there is a control board with the I/O on it also.

I think it would be possible to squeeze a small internal power supply in there under the Eurorack power supply but unless they could be combined there could be issues with heat and clearance so in this instance I'm less inclined to be harsh on them. They could have engineered it to have slightly more space horizontally to accommodate an internal unit but there is quite a lot of difference with, say, the Hydrasynth in this case (pun intended)

PS: Another plus, although an external power supply it is, is that the cable is not the usual flimsy bell-wire affair. It's reassuringly chunky; reminiscent of that on an Alesis Midiverb 4.

[Luke W]

I do like the look of these, although I'm not sure I'm quite ready to go straight from 0 to modular

[Eddy Deegan]

I do like the look of these, although I'm not sure I'm quite ready to go straight from 0 to modular

Hehe... fair point

In truth although modular is undeniably a rabbit hole it can be sensibly used to build a really good, bespoke synth. If you pick a small range of modules (a couple of oscillators, envelope generators, VCAs and filters, all of which can be dualled into single modules along with a utility module or two) to fit the NiftyKEYZ, and stick with them, you can genuinely build a very tasty custom synth as opposed to a stereotypical never-ending modular, even though there will be patch cables involved.

Edit: But if you do, then you're skirting on the edge of the abyss and it may well overcome you

[Aled Hughes]

I wouldn’t be at all surpised if on me of those made its way this way at some stage…

[zenguitar]

Just ordered mine from Juno. And added a quad VCA and a Black Corporation Rachel for good measure.

And this month I have a car and motorbike to MOT, tax, and insure. So that's enough new toys for one month.

Andy

[Luke W]

I do like the look of these, although I'm not sure I'm quite ready to go straight from 0 to modular

Hehe... fair point

In truth although modular is undeniably a rabbit hole it can be sensibly used to build a really good, bespoke synth. If you pick a small range of modules (a couple of oscillators, envelope generators, VCAs and filters, all of which can be dualled into single modules along with a utility module or two) to fit the NiftyKEYZ, and stick with them, you can genuinely build a very tasty custom synth as opposed to a stereotypical never-ending modular, even though there will be patch cables involved.

Edit: But if you do, then you're skirting on the edge of the abyss and it may well overcome you

It definitely interests me (anything modular generally does), and that's certainly the approach I'd take. I'm looking at expanding my I/O in the studio later this year and then it'll probably be synth time, although I've been eyeing up a Summit for a while now, so this may have to stay on the list for a while...

[Arpangel]

I saw this and thought that looks handy, but I can’t think of a reason to get one. Although, I want to build a four oscillator Frankenstein rack, comprising Berry Moog modules, and TipTop Buchla, this could fit the bill, although a three octave keyboard would be better, with more space for modules.

[YashN]

Great hardware, and with 4 CV/Gates too, that can be a great backbone for a composition rig.