Keystep and keystep 37, Sequencer and arpeggiator, Scale and root – Arturia KeyStep 37 MIDI Keyboard Controller and Sequencer User Manual
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1.4. KeyStep and KeyStep 37
The KeyStep 37 has many new fascinating features. When upgrading from a KeyStep the
first thing you'll notice is a new function strip with four knobs (more about these later) and
a row of 37 LED above the keys of the keyboard.
The Keyboard LEDs will help you to check the status of notes you are playing on the
keyboard and notes the Sequencer and the Arpeggiator are currently playing. They will also
be helpful when you are editing the notes of a chord in chord mode or when you create an
Arpeggio pattern. Two LEDs at the keyboard edges inform you that there is activity (notes
playing) outside the keyboard boundaries.
What else has changed? The Tempo option is more refined; Tempo speed can now be set
in 0.01 BPM increments. There are fewer swing settings but they have changed to be more
musically relevant.
1.4.1. Sequencer and Arpeggiator
The Shift+ Key combination switches the Sequencer to Mono mode: if your sequence was
polyphonic only the lowest note in a chord will be played.
On the KeyStep 37 there's an easy way to set the length of a sequence; just hold Record and
tap one of the first 16 keys to define a length. Repeatedly pressing a key while still holding
the Record button will add its number to the length of the sequence.
In addition, the sequencer has an overdub mode that can be activated with a Shift function.
when ON new notes will be added to the existing sequence.
Two new Arpeggio modes replace the old Up x2 and Down x2 modes, they are Walk and
Pattern. In Walk mode, the sequencer digitally 'throws a dice' to decide whether to go
forward or backwards at the end of each step: there's a 50% chance it will play the next
step, a 25% chance it will play the current step and a 25% chance it will play the previous
step.
In Pattern arpeggio mode, a repeated pattern of up to 64 notes is randomized each time a
key is pressed. You can change the length of the pattern the same way you can change the
length of a sequence, by holding the Record button and pressing the first 16 keys.
1.4.2. Scale and Root
A new Scale option allows you to play notes in an existing sequence in one of five different
scales: Chromatic, Major, Minor, Blues, and User
The scale root feature enables you to define a new root for each of these scales. As a user,
you can create and recall a fifth scale.
Arturia - User Manual KeyStep 37 - Introduction and Overview
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