Synth pads hard to press

Synth
1

Had my Synth for a day or so, and I’ve noticed that no matter what sensitivity settings I choose, the pads are hard to press. I thought it was just they needed bedding in a bit, so I’ve put up with pressing them so hard, but they’re still very stiff.
I watched a chap on youtube play his and it looked much nicer to play than mine.
I paired it with a Novation Circuit Tracks, and the pads on the Tracks are like touching heaven in comparison to the Synth.

Has anyone else had this? is this a fixable firmware issue? do I have a defective unit?
Bueller?

thanks

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2

my pads are ‘stiff’ but i don’t know if they’re supposed to be squishy. velocity sensitivity seems fine tho :person_shrugging:

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3

Yep, also experiencing the same stiffness, and not noticing much (any?) difference based on settings.

Like you, much prefer the sensitivity on Circuit Tracks (also, Ableton Move — glorious sensitivity).

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4

It makes playing chords incredibly tricky, I almost always miss one note from a triad as fingering the note is so hit and miss.

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5

The pads are expected to be very responsive with minimum pressure.

To test this, it is better to leave/set the system settings > grid sensitivity to Fixed 127.

Question to troubleshoot this problem: do you miss pads with only one finger one note at a time, or with multiple fingers / chords? If it’s only the latter then maybe it has something to do with pressing more pads than synth voices available.

Also, is this about the pads not highlighting (not registering a press) or the sound being too low (press registered but somehow not much pressure, or the synth isn’t loud enough)?

To give you an idea, you should be able to do a “glissando” on each row, with just one finger, almost without having to press, and each pad should highlight as you move your finger. No need to make force to press them.

6

You can play single notes and have to smash the pad with your finger. Thanks for the tips, but this is not user error.

7

I’m not suggesting it’s user error, I’m just trying to help narrowing the cause of the problem. :slight_smile:

Do you need to smash the pad with one finger to see it highlighted, or do you see it highlighted but no sound?

8

Hey there @Krumpl. Welcome to Backstage. So great to have you join us.

That indeed doesn’t sound normal. I just have to put the lightest pressure on mine to trigger.

Could you confirm that you’re on firmware 1.0.1 please?

9

For me, when I have them set to a fixed velocity I have no issues.
Any setting where velocity changes results in some notes being so quiet they barely sound at all while others are loud, even though I ‘feel’ as though I am pressing with equal pressure.

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10

Yes, this is exactly my experience! So not just me then.
I am on the latest firmware yes.
Will try putting old firmware back on, see if it helps, then 1.0.1 and see if it’s different.

11

this sounds very much like my experience with the pads. I didn’t think much of it though, because that’s my general experience with ANY pads i’ve used sofar on any device.

I’m just not much of a pads person :joy:

12

My experience as well.
With any setting other than fixed velocity it’s completely hit or miss. I was hoping it would be more expressive with velocity.
Maybe something that can be fixed on firmware update.

13

I don’t like silicone pads, these are not as bad as some I’ve come across though. I have some weakness in my hands so expect to try soft settings, but I found that setting 40 seems usuable for me, FWIW. But still have to be aware to hold a pad down when I want to or it sees it as lifted.
(Don’t have so much problem with Play+ except for live performance.)

14

I have no issue with them when velocity is set to fixed 127. However if you go and change those settings to something else, you’re obviously going to change how it feels because now you have to press harder etc.

The only issue im getting is it seems that some pads are more sensitive then others. Lightest touch can set a lot of them off, where a few others i have to press just a tiny bit harder but not a big issue for me. I also have one pad that looks like the light isn’t shining under it as much compared to the rest.

15

Something that may be causing the inconsistent velocity may be where your finger makes contact with the pad. If you’re dead center you get a predictable response, but when you’re on the edges the velocity seems to be reduced. Maybe with practice one could learn to aim for the center of the pads better? :thinking:

16

Quoting myself but confirming that I’m using a fixed 90 when only having to use light pressure.

17

Thanks for that - makes me wonder whether I understood the settings back to front! I’ll try that out later today.

It doesn’t help, but I have played the Artiphon Orba 2 and Chorda which use a different type of pad. The devices are not as capable as the Polyend devices (although they do do a couple of things that other machines don’t) but for playability they beat silicone pad ones by a mile - and no stress on the hands at all.

18

I set mine 120 because I want all the notes to sound even. I love the aftertouch settings. It’s really cool to not having to touch a filter knob. I wish there was a setting to adjust the delayed response. Now it’s only immediate or delayed.

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