49- or 61-key midi keyboard?

• Jul 6, 2021 - 16:22

Hey all,

So I'm looking at purchasing a simple midi keyboard for notation input, and I'd like to program the bottom first octave as triggers for Musescore shortcuts. Question: does that leave me enough keys to comfortably compose in Musescore (orchestral, jazz and some choir, or would it be safer to get the 61-key keyboard?

I had hoped, for the 49-key keyboad, to be able to press some sort of button to drop or raise the current note I'm inputting by an octave, thereby doubling the range of the input; however, I understand that's not possible, so I'll only have 37 keys left to work with.

Thanks


Comments

Most keyboards have a transpose button, so it should be possible to get extra octaves. And of course,e you can always use Ctrl+Up/Down to transpose after the fact.

Which keyboard is right for you - or whether a keyboard would help at all - is very much a matter of your personal preference,s skill set, and work environment. I work in a lot of different places and would hate to have to lug around an extra keyboard, but if I did, it would be as portable as could be - just a couple of octaves. But if it's permanent use in my studio, I can't see why I'd settle for anything but 88 weighted keys. Your needs may well differ of course.

Do you still have an unanswered question? Please log in first to post your question.