Music technology company Arturia just dropped a game-changer for performing musicians. The new AstroLab 37 crams 1,800 presets from 44 classic synthesizers into a $699 portable keyboard - making professional-grade stage sounds accessible to bedroom producers and touring acts alike. It's the same sonic firepower as Arturia's premium models, but in a package that won't break your back or bank account.
French music tech company Arturia just made professional stage keyboards a lot more accessible. The company's new AstroLab 37 delivers the same vast library of classic synthesizer emulations as its premium siblings, but at $699 - a fraction of the $1,999-$2,999 price tags on the 61 and 88-key models launched last year.
The timing couldn't be better for Arturia's aggressive pricing move. As more musicians ditch laptop-dependent setups for reliable hardware, the company is betting that portable, preset-focused instruments will capture a broader market than traditional synthesizers requiring deep programming knowledge.
What makes the AstroLab series unique is its direct connection to Arturia's beloved AnalogLab software. The hardware essentially puts decades of classic synth sounds - from Minimoog bass lines to Yamaha CS-80 pads - into a standalone instrument that won't crash mid-performance. "Most of the synths are excellent," notes The Verge's Terrence O'Brien in his hands-on review. "The Rhodes emulation is my go-to, and access to Arturia's Pigments in hardware form is great."
The AstroLab 37 ships with over 1,800 presets covering 44 instruments, spanning everything from acoustic pianos to digital lo-fi machines like the Ensoniq SQ-80. These aren't just generic patches - they're curated selections from Arturia's V Collection, which normally costs $199 and up for the full software suite. The hardware gives you instant access to sounds that would otherwise require thousands of dollars in vintage gear, if you could even find working units.
But Arturia made strategic compromises to hit that $699 price point. The AstroLab 37 swaps the premium Fatar hammer-action keybed of its 88-key sibling for a synth-action mini keybed with aftertouch. The navigation interface shrinks from a large color wheel to a separate encoder below a smaller screen. Most notably, the unit switches from metal construction to plastic, though early reviews suggest it doesn't feel cheap.
These hardware trade-offs reveal Arturia's target market - not professional keyboardists who need full-size weighted keys, but producers, electronic musicians, and budget-conscious performers who prioritize sound variety over premium feel. The company is clearly chasing the same market that made its KeyStep MIDI controllers wildly popular among bedroom producers.
