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Waldorf Blofeld Keys £699
An excellent module becomes a fine keyboard
Future Music, Mon 23 Feb 2009, 4:09 pm UTC
The 49-note keyboard is a good compromise between portability and playability.
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Conclusion
So what to make of the new Blofeld Keyboard? Well, we like it even more than the module version. There's a great and vast array of sounds already on board, and the perfect-sized keyboard feels great to play.
While using a matrix system is always slightly less intuitive than the ideal one-knob-per-function, the Blofeld is still great fun to use. Nine times out of 10 it rewards tweaking with sonic gold, and experimenting often yields just as good results as dialling through the onboard sounds.
There is truly little to fault on this keyboard. Waldorf has excelled itself once again, taking a great product and making it greater still. The added sample memory and keyboard really place this with the big boys.
It seems that, once in a while, the villain is deservedly victorious.
Now hear what the Blofeld Keyboard can do:
Verdict
With its new keyboard and onboard memory, the Blofeld is now a thoroughly complete instrument.
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MusicRadar rating
Pros
Great feeling keyboard with aftertouch. New performance controls. 60MB of onboard sample memory for uploading your own sounds. Almost infinite sound shaping possibilites.
Cons
Headphone socket is round the back. A few more hands-on controls would have been nice.
Verdict
With its new keyboard and onboard memory, the Blofeld is now a thoroughly complete instrument.
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All MusicRadar’s reviews are by independent product specialists, who are not aligned to any gear manufacturer or retailer. Our experts also write for renowned magazines such as Guitarist, Total Guitar, Computer Music, Future Music and Rhythm. All are part of Future PLC, the biggest publisher of music making magazines in the world.
Specification Show
Blofeld Keys
- Price:
- £699
- Sampling:
- true
- Software Editor:
- true
- Weight (g) (g):
- 8
- Filters:
- 11
- Weighted Keys:
- Semi Weighted
- LCD Display:
- true
- Number of Keys:
- 49
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