Hardware Controllers Work in progress
Physical MIDI keyboards and pad grids — and the ones with dedicated transport, LED, and selection integration.
Hardware controllers serve the same purpose as the on-screen surfaces (Virtual Piano, Pads, Chord Pads): they’re how you play and drive Skene. The difference is just where they live — a physical keyboard or pad grid instead of the screen. Like the on-screen surfaces, they send notes to the selected track, so they work with the track’s instrument, scale settings, and MPE.
Any Core MIDI device works for notes and CC. On top of that, Skene ships dedicated integration profiles for a number of controllers, adding hardware-specific behavior: transport buttons, LED feedback, node and track selection, and on-screen menu navigation.
Hardware controller support is a work in progress. Mappings, LED feedback, and the list of supported devices are still expanding. Some recognized controllers are only partially mapped, and button assignments may change between releases. If your controller isn’t listed, it still works as a standard MIDI device.
What the mappings do
Controllers drive Skene through a set of named actions. The most common ones:
| Action | What it does |
|---|---|
| Play / Play-Pause | Start playback, or toggle play/pause |
| Stop | Stop playback |
| Record | Toggle recording |
| Return to start | Jump the playhead back to the beginning |
| Loop | Toggle the loop on/off |
| Metronome | Toggle the metronome on/off |
| Pre-count | Toggle the recording count-in |
| Undo / Redo | Undo or redo the last edit |
| Save | Save the current project |
| Add node | Open the node creator |
| Delete | Delete the current selection |
| DAW navigation | Move the clip/track selection (left / right / up / down) |
| Focus toggle | Switch focus between the track list and the clip detail (piano roll) |
| Menu navigation | Move the cursor / confirm / back in on-screen menus and pop-ups |
| Node-select slots | Store and recall nodes on dedicated pads (short press recalls, long press stores) |
| Context-select slots | Recall context / parameter pages |
| App-view switch | Switch between Arranger, DAW, Nodes, Mixer, and controller views |
| DAW track select | Select a track directly from a pad or button |
| Surface lock | Lock the control surface to the current target |
| Cycle node / group | Step through the controlled node or parameter group |
| Octave up / down | Shift the keyboard octave |
| Arp note rate | Set the arpeggiator / note rate |
On controllers with addressable LEDs, transport and status buttons reflect the current state — for example the Metronome key is bright when the metronome is on and dim when it is off on the Komplete Kontrol S MK2 and Launchpad Pro MK3.
Supported controllers
| Controller | Connection | Highlights |
|---|---|---|
| Arturia KeyLab 88 MkII | USB MIDI | Recognized — keyboard, pads, encoders (transport/control buttons not yet mapped) |
| Arturia KeyLab Essential | USB MIDI | Transport, loop, metronome pre-count, save/undo, DAW navigation |
| Arturia MiniLab 3 | USB MIDI | Transport, DAW navigation, focus toggle, pads |
| Komplete Kontrol S MK1 | USB (HID) | Transport, menu navigation, group cycling, key LEDs |
| Komplete Kontrol S MK2 | USB (HID) | Transport, metronome (LED feedback), node cycling, 4D navigation, key LEDs + displays |
| Novation Launchkey Mini MK2 | USB MIDI | Transport, undo, pads |
| Novation Launchkey MK2 | USB MIDI | Transport, undo, node-select slots, add node, pads |
| Novation Launchkey MK3 | USB MIDI | Transport, DAW track select, surface lock, pads |
| Novation Launchkey MK4 | USB MIDI | Transport, DAW track select, undo, pads |
| Novation Launchpad Mini MK3 | USB MIDI | Node-select slots, context slots, surface lock, 8×8 pad grid |
| Novation Launchpad Pro MK3 | USB MIDI | Transport, cursor navigation, metronome (LED feedback), node/context slots, app-view switch, 8×8 pad grid |
| Ableton Push 2 | USB MIDI | Transport, node-select slots, DAW track select, arp rate, octave shift, RGB pad grid |
Per-device mappings
Arturia KeyLab 88 MkII
Recognized as a controller, but its transport and control buttons are not yet mapped — this profile is a work in progress. The keyboard, pads, and encoders work as standard MIDI input; transport and function-button control is planned.
Arturia KeyLab Essential
- Transport: Play, Stop, Record, Return to start (Rewind)
- Editing: Save, Undo
- Loop / metronome: Loop, Metronome (pre-count)
- DAW navigation: Left, Right
Arturia MiniLab 3
- Transport: Play, Stop, Record
- Loop: Loop
- DAW navigation: Left/Right (Rewind / Fast Forward), Up/Down (Track Previous / Next)
- Focus: Main encoder click toggles track / detail focus
- Pads for note and clip input
Komplete Kontrol S MK1
Connects over HID for transport buttons and key LEDs.
- Transport: Play, Stop, Record, Loop, Return to start
- Menu navigation: Up, Down, Left, Right, Enter, Back
- Group cycling: Display Left / Right cycle the controlled parameter group
- Key LEDs reflect playback of the selected track
Komplete Kontrol S MK2
Connects over HID for transport buttons, key LEDs, and the displays.
- Transport: Play, Stop, Record, Loop
- Metronome: Metro toggles the metronome — the key LED is bright when on, dim when off
- Node cycling: Left / Right step through the controlled node
- 4D encoder: Up, Down, Left, Right, and press for menu navigation
- Key LEDs + displays reflect playback and node parameters
Novation Launchkey Mini MK2
- Transport: Play, Stop, Record, Return to start (Rewind)
- Editing: Undo (Track Right)
- Pads for note and clip input
Novation Launchkey MK2
- Transport: Play, Stop, Record, Return to start (Rewind)
- Editing: Undo (Track Right), Add node (New)
- Node-select slots: 8 pads store and recall nodes
- Pads for note and clip input
Novation Launchkey MK3
- Transport: Play, Stop, Record
- Editing: Undo (Track Right)
- Surface lock: Track Left
- DAW track select: 8 track-select buttons
- Pads for note and clip input
Novation Launchkey MK4
- Transport: Play, Stop, Record
- Editing: Undo
- DAW track select: 8 track-select buttons
- Confirm: Select / Enter
- Pads for note and clip input
Novation Launchpad Mini MK3
- Node-select slots: 8 pads store and recall nodes
- Context-select slots: 8 pads recall context pages
- Surface lock
- 8×8 RGB pad grid for note, clip, and grid input
Novation Launchpad Pro MK3
- Transport: Play, Record
- Editing: Undo, Redo
- Cursor navigation: Up, Down, Left, Right, Select
- Metronome: dedicated key toggles the metronome — the LED reflects on/off
- Node-select slots and Context-select slots
- App-view switch: 8 buttons jump to Arranger / DAW / Nodes / Mixer / controller views
- 8×8 RGB pad grid for note, clip, and grid input
Ableton Push 2
- Transport: Play, Stop, Record
- Editing: Undo, Delete, Add node (Add Device)
- Node-select slots: 8 pads store and recall nodes
- DAW track select: lower row of 8 buttons
- Arp note rate: dedicated rate buttons (1/4 … 1/32t)
- Octave: Octave Up / Down
- 8×8 RGB pad grid with velocity and pressure