Native Instruments S49 Mk3 Smart Keyboard Controller, 49 Keys, Single High-Resolution Screen, Pitch & Mod Wheels + Touch Strip, Eight Touch-Sensitive Knobs, Arpeggiator + Scale Mapping, Black
Native Instruments
- Semiweighted Keybed with Poly Aftertouch
- Control any MIDI Software or Hardware
- Single High-Resolution Screen
- Scales Light Up on Keys via Light Guide
- Software Integration + Next Gen NKS Tech
- Pitch and Mod Wheels + Touch Strip
- Eight Touch-Sensitive Knobs
Warranty: 1 Year — effortless warranty claims with UK-wide coverage. Learn more
Key specifications
- Color
- Black
Details
- Shipping Weight
- 7.25 Kg
- Shipping Dimensions
- 38.73 cm x 85.09 cm x 15.88 cm
- Item Type
- USB/MIDI Controller Keyboard
- Keyboard
- 49 Full-Size Keys with Semi-Weighted Action
- Aftertouch
- Polyphonic Aftertouch (Destination Assignable)
- Number of Pads
- None
- Expression Controls
- - 8x Touch-Capacitive Knobs - 1x RGB Backlit Pitch Bend - 1x RGB Backlit Modulation - 1x Pressure-Sensitive/Touch-Capacitive RGB Backlit Ribbon Controller
- Transport Controls
- Record, Stop, Play, Loop, Click/Metronome
- Display
- Color LCD
- Sequencer
- None
- Audio I/O
- None
- Pedal Support
- None
- MIDI I/O
- 1x DIN 5-Pin Input 1x DIN 5-Pin Output
- USB I/O
- 1x USB-C (Bus Power) 1x USB-C (USB 2.0, Bus Power, Host Connection, MIDI)
- Wireless
- None
- OS Compatibility
- macOS 12 to 13 (64-Bit Only) Windows 10 to 11 or Later
- Included Software
- KOMPLETE LE
- Mobile App Compatible
- None
- Power Requirements
- USB Bus Power, USB Power Adapter (Not Included)
- AC/DC Power Adapter
- 5 VDC at 1.5 A (Not Included)
- Included Accessories
- USB Cable
- Dimensions
- 31.6 x 12.7 x 3.4 inches (802.2 x 323 x 86 mm)
- Weight
- 12.1 lb (5.5 kg)
4.611 reviews
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George W. Used for: Less than a month
Pros
Knobs have proper resolution for automation
Cons
No faders, which I miss from my old board
Comment
Riding a filter by hand and getting a curve rather than a staircase was the first thing I checked, and it passed! What it does not have is faders, so mixing still means reaching for the mouse.
Ella S. Used for: 1–3 months
Pros
Polyphonic aftertouch is not a gimmick
Cons
The price is eye-watering
Comment
Leaning into one held note and hearing only that note move
Oscar C. Used for: Less than a month
Pros
Bus power over one cable, nothing else to plug in
Cons
The bundled software download is enormous
Comment
Set it up on a desk that already had a laptop, a 27in screen and an interface fighting for space, and the single USB-C run is what made it work. One cable to the laptop, done, no brick hanging off the back of the desk. Downloading what comes with it took most of an evening on a fairly ordinary connection, so get that out of the way before you plan to play. Once it was in, Ableton knew what everything did without me mapping a single control.
Harry M. Used for: More than a year
Pros
Still the best keybed I have owned
Cons
Fingerprints show on the black finish
Comment
A year in and I have not once wished for heavier keys
Rosie C. Used for: More than a year
Pros
Aftertouch per key changes how you write
Cons
Plenty of instruments still ignore aftertouch entirely
Comment
Poly aftertouch is one of those things you cannot go back from. Holding a chord and pushing a single finger deeper to swell one voice out of it is expression I used to draw in with a mouse over half an hour. 18 months of near-daily use and the keybed feels identical to the first week: no wobble, no key that speaks louder than its neighbours. The catch is that a lot of instruments simply do not read it, so you end up sorting your library into things that respond and things that do not.
Henry H. Used for: 3–6 months
Pros
Aftertouch, the display, and a keybed that does not tire your hands
Cons
A big lump to gig with
Comment
Took it to two rehearsals in a padded bag and that was enough to decide it lives at home. Long, heavy, and the moment it is off a desk you notice there is no case in the box. In the studio it is a different instrument entirely. The screen means I browse with my hands still on the keys, the aftertouch gets used on nearly every pad sound I write, and after five months there is not a mark on it. Four stars only because the price assumes you already own the library. If you do not, the sums look very different.
Isla N. Used for: 1–3 months
Cons
Semi-weighted will still not satisfy a pianist
Comment
I learnt on an upright and spent thirty years with hammer action under my fingers, so the honest note is that this is a synth player's keyboard with a very good keybed, not a piano. It is even, it is quiet, it does not rattle, but a properly weighted board will always feel closer to the real thing. For writing, and for anything that responds to aftertouch, it is superb. For practising a Chopin piece it is not what you want.
Ella O. Used for: 3–6 months
Pros
Display is bright enough to read in daylight
Cons
The cable it ships with is short
Comment
Replaced a Mk2 and the keybed alone is worth the jump!
Henry E. Used for: 3–6 months
Pros
Logic mapped itself the moment it was plugged in
Cons
Wants a lot of desk
Comment
No setup evening, no manual, just plugged in and the transport worked!
Charlie L. Used for: 3–6 months
Pros
The keybed is genuinely superb
Cons
You are paying for integration that only works inside one company's world
Comment
Three stars is about the software, not the instrument under my hands. Outside the NKS list the display becomes a very expensive volume readout, and the mapping I do by hand is no better than on a controller costing a quarter of this. Four months in and I use maybe half of what I paid for. If you live in Kontakt and Massive it is a different story, and I suspect most buyers do.
Maya D. Used for: More than a year
Comment
Still the centre of the studio two years on
