Studiologic SL88 Grand

I bought the SL88 Grand two years back, when I needed a proper 88 keyboard, to emulate a piano-like playing experience. I use it in its most simple way: Take a MIDI cable, connect to a Nord Electro, and play piano/electric piano on the SL88. I had Studiologics before, so I knew they are not very "roadworthy" (external power block, cheaper materials).

The keybed, with its wood keys and triple sensor technology, is a joy to play - so far, so good.

But after a year of - light - use I noticed the first "stripes" on the TFT color screen (where the light cells don't work properly anymore). By now a second row of cells has gone, and it is basically waiting for the TFT panel to break down completely.

I can't comment on the quality of the software, but I can't recommend buying this keyboard any more, given the quality issue I have. Imagine you want to use this as a proper master keyboard and are depending on the screen to work ...

I've been using it for a few weeks now and below I'll list all the pros and cons I've come to.

Pros:
1. Built like an absolute tank - the entire body (except the two side panels) is metal, and the whole thing is built in a very professional manner. It feels like it can really take a beating.
2. Beautiful, sleek, minimalistic design
3. Plenty of connectivity options
4. The keybed - it's a work of art. Fatar are very well known for making some of the most, if not the most realistic keybeds out there. The wooden keys with synthetic ivory feel fantastic to the touch. The keys are not too heavy, in fact they are slightly lighter than an actual orchestral grand, but the feel is essentially identical. Velocity response and aftertouch record flawlessly. It's an absolute joy.

Cons:
1. The keys can be a bit loud if you play with higher velocity. The thudding sound will most definitely be an issue for a light sleeper in the same or even the next room during the quiet hours of the night
2. The software is a bit confusing and there's not a lot of documentation or tutorials on how to use it properly
3. The joystick controls do feel high-quality and pleasant to the touch, but I just find them quite inconvenient for things like controlling expression/dynamics etc - you're much better off using a separate fader controller for that

One important note for people that buy this keyboard - in some DAWs, you might notice that when you record midi often times when a key is hit, two notes will be recorded, with the first one being the shortest midi note possible, followed by the actual intended note. This happens when you have multiple zones enabled in your controller. When you turn off all unnecessary zones the double note problem is resolved.

Overall, if you're someone that can play the piano and is looking for a professional grade master midi controller that feels like a real piano, this is a very, very good choice. And even if you can't play the piano but enjoy how a real piano's keybed feels, this controller will satisfy that itch. A huge bonus is Thomann's absolutely amazing customer service and prompt delivery. I'll definitely be buying more stuff from here.

Happy playing!

So there was abit of a mixup when I ordered my SL88 Studio.
What happened was that I got this one instead so I tried it out and then of course I had to buy it instead of getting the Studio version.
I love it<3 The feeling of the keys the sensitivity you get from this keyboard is just awesome. Long time since I felt so inspired to just keep playing and enjoying myself.
There are other great keyboards out there when it comes to the feel but what really impressed me was the accuracy of the touch to midi velocity, it really feels like I'm playing a good piano(after I adjusted the touch curve to my liking).
Setting the keyboard up is really easy with their PC/MAC software abit basic but good enough for my needs.
I really can't give this keyboard more praise then saying buy it you won't regret it.
Abit of a footnote though I'm not a classical piano player anymore so your opinion migth differ from mine. Still a dang fine piece of gear! And I'm about to buy another SL88 but this time I'll try their Studio version.

I had to change the SL88 Grand to a another copy several times because of faulty / quirky keys.
Many of the keys were noisy, and they seemed to rub against something inside the instrument. Lot of clicking and rubbing noises.
Another thing was inconsistency on the key action or key playability. Some of the keys seemed to be more light than others. And these differences in playability or noisiness were arbitrary along the key bed.
Eventually I tested 3 copies of SL88 GRAND and then gave in.
I really wanted to like this instrument. And apart from keybed defects, the Sl88 GRAND would be a great instrument with nice MIDI-features.

All body made from high carbon steel S275 or S355 at least I think - very sturdy and stable. Matt painting not reflective- functionally very good. Regarding scratch resistance and corrosion protection time will show. Side cups from plastic but not so cheep or thin - sturdy. Plus they save overall length of keyboard which I think is minimal as possible for 88 keys.
Action for me ( not professional keyboard player) superb. Do not use for glissando (the same for Roland RD2000 and similar) - not very suitable keyboard action for that. In general action stiff but could be more stiff for me ( comparing with my old upright with Renner action).
Keys surface not slippy- perfect for me at least. Action very silent, if you place keyboard on HORIZONTAL FLAT AND STIFF cushioned surface.
DO NOT FORGET THAT WHITE KEYS IS SOLID WOOD SANDWICHED BETWEEN TOP AND BOTTOM PLASTIC PARTS ( not glued thin layer of wood as Roland PHA-50 or Fatar TP400W) . Its adds mass and inertia for keys, adds bending and torsional stability . BUT WOOD ABSORBING AND RELEASING MOISTURE AS ALL NATURAL WOOD INSTRUMENTS ,therefore it is better not to keep controller near heaters or in high humidity for long time.
If after buying a new controller some keys have strange rattling/scratchy sound, try to tilt controller about 30-45deg to one side and play with this key. If not help-tilt to another side an do the same. It is because hammers is not hardly fixed on the pivot strip and when shipping( throwing ,tilting etc...) can move slightly inside keys. If this happens, hammers scratches somewhere inside and you can hear it.
But in general action is heavy in weight because is made mainly from steel / solid wood - superb materials ( google fatar TP-40w for photos).
Software> For me perfect. Some factory presets i think for GM.
I use my custom presets .Some presets with 4 zones for layering or for Hammond. Some presets with one zone for single software instrument.
And I use SL MixFace - recommended.
Sticks -perfect clean design ( alluminium covers). And perfect for software synth -especially loose stick Nr.3
12 points goes for SL /Fatar :)
BUT ONLY ABOUT A MONTH IN USE ONLY AT HOME.

My impression is that the action of this controller is pretty good, although there was a little rattling key on the fast repetitions. I had an issue with some of the keys on the high pitch side, since I felt that they were not playing as clear as they they were supposed to. I did not manage to succeed in using the software tat comes with the product, and I did not find any video on the web to help in great detail. There are several velocity curves available, and this helps, but also in this case I did not manage to make them more flexible. Again, I think that the issue with this product is the lack of support online which would be instead necessary. There is online only a video by Chris Martirano that illustrates the product, which is good, but I did not find it sufficient. The manual is clearly not sufficient.
I would say, anyhow, that this is a 4-5 star product overall, for its quality, being also very quite. It can make a traditionla pianist quite happy.
Thomann handling: 5 stars, as usual. They are fantastic

Ich bin unfassbar fasziniert von dem Kontroller.
Er hat zwar ein paar gängige Features nicht, bspw keinen onboard Sound, aber dafür kann das SL88 die Features, die es hat, richtig gut! Und selbst für den fehlenden onboard Sound hat StudioLogic mit ein paar VST-Klavieren auch eine Lösung parat.

Die Klaviatur fühlt sich richtig hochwertig an und lässt spüren, dass sie aus Holz ist, die Joysticks sind pratisch angebracht und das Menu (spätestens mit PCunterstüzung) auch sehr zugänglich.

Ich finde das SL 88 ist der beste Kontroller im Preisspektrum und definitv eine Empfehlung!