Your Launchkey keyboard gives you both Octave and Transposition options. You can also play with parts. Parts allow you to change on the fly, split, or layer your keys to send MIDI messages on multiple MIDI channels.
When you power on your Launchkey 88 its keyboard defaults to the note range A1 – C7 where C3 is middle C.
You can change the octave range using the Octave - and Octave + buttons. The octave shift range for the Launchkey 88 is -2 to +2 octaves.
To reset to the default octave, press both Octave - and Octave + buttons together.
When you change the Octave range, the screen temporarily shows the octave shift in a number (e.g +1) and the range the current keyboard is at, e.g. C1 – C5.
In addition to the temporary screen display, the Octave buttons light to show the octave position.
With no octave shift, the Octave buttons are dim. When you shift up an octave the Octave + button lights brighter, when you shift down an octave the Octave - button lights brighter. The button brightness shows the shift amount, the brighter the button, the more the shift.
In total, there are 128 MIDI notes. 128 is not divisible by 12 so you can shift the octave and transposition, so some keys are out of the MIDI note range. When you shift to the extreme ends of the MIDI note range, out of range keys won't play any notes.
You can transpose your Launchkey 88's keys up or down in semitone increments. The transposition range is ±12 semitones.
To transpose the keys, hold the Shift button and press Octave - or Octave +. Octave - transposes the keys down one semitone, Octave + transposes the keys up one semitone.
To reset to the default transposition, hold Shift and press both Octave - and Octave + buttons together.
When you change transposition, the screen temporarily shows the semitone shift as a number and the current keyboard range.
Your Launchkey has two Parts. The two parts play out on two configurable MIDI channels. You can set the MIDI channels for each Part in the Settings menu.
You can play the parts individually, split across the keyboard, or layer the two parts.
To select a Part mode, hold Shift and use Fader buttons 6-9. When you hold Shift, the currently selected Part mode lights bright yellow and the other options light dim yellow.
The part modes are:
|
Fader Button |
Part Mode |
Behaviour |
|---|---|---|
|
6 |
Part A |
The keyboard plays on Part A MIDI channel (default mode) |
|
7 |
Part B |
The keyboard plays on Part B MIDI channel. |
|
8 |
Split |
Keys below the Split point play on Part A MIDI channel, the Split point key and above play on Part B MIDI channel. |
|
9 (Arm/Select) |
Layer |
The notes are duplicated and play on both Part A and Part B MIDI channels |
Tip
Using the Split part mode is a really useful tool for playing bass instruments alongside lead sounds, for example you could try the following:
-
A cello/double bass on the left hand using the lower keys and a violin on the upper octaves.
-
A mono bass synth on the lower notes and polyphonic pad on the upper octaves.
-
A bass guitar sample on the left with a guitar or piano sound on your right hand.
Split point refers to the first note of Part B when your Launchkey is in Split mode. To set the Split point for the two parts:
-
Hold Shift (or double press to latch).
-
Press and hold Fader button eight (Part Mode: Split).
-
Keep holding the Shift and fader buttons, and press a key on the keyboard to choose a Split point.
-
Release the fader eight and shift buttons to save the split point.
Note
When you release the buttons, your keyboard is now in Split mode.
When you press a key, the screen shows you the current split point.
Note
The default Split point is C3. The Split point note is the first note of Part B.