CME UF-8

Integrating the faders and pots with any DAW can be done, it's never intuitive, but that's with all controllers that have faders and pots. Actually with Logic and Steinberg, the templates they provide work fine. The USB driver is less than 100%, but not as bad as some people would have it. Version 1.05 is OK. What's disturbing is that they don't seem to update anything for long periods of time. So the way it is, if it's as good for you as it is for me is fine, but if you're having problems, I wouldn't hold my breath.

The velocity is very even and predictable key to key, the aftertouch is adequate (I would prefer a few more intermediate message over time of pressure, but it's smooth and no spurious messages), the breath controller is great. Release velocity is a nice extra. The faders and pots are just numerous and programmable enough, not overcomplicated.

The action? I love it. It must be very subjective, as I find it very expressive, and I see some people hate it. It's not a synth action, and not quite a piano, we all understand that, maybe a little "thick" compared to the most sensitive acoustic piano keybeds, but incomparable to M-Audio Pro 88 or any Fatar/Studiologic, much better. All pianists who've tried it in my studio love it too. Maybe the earlier ones were not as good. Mine is from 2007 production. I find it emotionally interacts with my playing. I use it for all sounds, including solo strings and percussion, as well as piano. There is a program they provide that acts as a MIDI filter and allows you to edit velocity curve, aftertouch curve, etc, but this software is crude, and the stock behavior is fine.

No problems so far. Long story with the driver and the supplied "mapper" program (it's crude). Do NOT run it on USB power alone, it works great over MIDI and with driver 1.05 it works fine over USB. USB MIDI is prone to occasional glitches on every keyboard I've tried, it seems to be an OS, DAW interaction or motherboard issue, that's how I interpret the occasional need to send a MIDI reset from the DAW. One should maybe try it with the option to return to store, but frankly, as long as I've powered it from the (beefy) in-line power supply and used a 6 ft USB 2.0 cable, it's been fine, I don't know what these people are bitching about. There's little realistic hope of driver or firmware updates, you get that feeling, that's annoying. The mechanical construction has been attacked in a review by a very knowledgeable mechanical engineer type, and the anxiety about the particle-board bottom plate etc, has since loudly reverberated in other reviews. I think too much so. This is not a very portable unit anyway. It's huge and heavy, and best sits in the studio. In a well-padded case, I'd take it on the road, people carry B-3s around, but I'd prefer not to. I might take it apart and see if a sturdier base is needed and if one might be made of solid wood, I like it enough to think in those terms. As it sits in the studio, it's just fine. The components and construction are incomparably superior to M-Audio's, but not as fine and precisely mounted as what Yamaha and Roland does, in units that cost 3-4 times as much, let's not forget. For the money, it's king of the crop, nothing under $1000 can touch it.

There's a forum on the CME site, but their server is dead slow, their drivers are never updated, the site is static, the forum support is mainly by other users, the CME staff don't seem to understand English or hang around much. I would expect near zero support, but some people have reported good communications. I'll take my chances, the way the unit works is sufficient. I can't give a rating, no idea.

This is my main/favorite keyboard. I tried the Pro 88. In the studio I have a Fatar, an M-Audio 49, an Edirol PCR-50, an acoustic baby grand, and some older synths, but the UF-8 is most rewarding. I definitely recommend it unless you can afford a top of the line Yamaha Motif or comparable Roland.

Well, if it weren't for the bugs in the driver, I'd say it's pretty damn straight forward. The buttons are labelled pretty obviously and everything does what it should except for when the software decides to stop working properly. I haven't tryed using a midi conetion to my interface instead of the USB conection, so I can't say if the ocasional bugs I'm experiencing come from the USB drivers or from the machine in its self. Most notable bugs are sustaining notes that keep on sounding after you have depressed them. You have to play that key again to stop the sound. It doesn't happen often, but it's quite annoying when it does. Over all, it would be very easy to use were it not for the buggy drivers.

The features are amazing for the price. The pots and faders work and feel great and there's plenty of them, there's an extra pedal jack appart from the sustain jack, breath controller, transport buttons and an aftertouch that works just fine. It also has killer aesthetics. I'm sick of the silvery toyish look on most keyboards today. The fact that it came with a workable, piano like, sustain pedal really thrilled me. That's a definate plus.

The keys fell ok. It's not the best I've seen but it isn't by far the worst either (M-Audio keystation, for instance, is much, much worse). I can actually play confortably on it now, after a half hour adjusting to it's rather slow action. The keys feel consistent throughout the whole keyrange. The velocity curves could have been better programed, but once you get used to them they really aren't that bad. Some reviewers really exagerate the issue. It really isn't bad at all for what it costs. Sure it's not a Doepfer, but hey, it don't cost 1500? either; sure it doesn't have a variable velocity curve adjusted to pitch, real hammers and wooden keys, but remember it only costs 500?. As I say, i'm quite confortable with it.

It seems sturdy, but it's way too heavy for giging. The aluminium casing makes me feel better about it than the plstic casing of other company's models, but there is one thing that puts me off: the DM base panel. It looks a bit cheap, but then again, DM is much stronger than plastic, so it really isn't that bad, it just doesn't look to good. Besides, nobody is gonna be looking UNDER the board.

Electronically wise, the bugs quite bother me, but you can get around them if you use a standard MIDI conection instead of the USB drivers (using the MIDI out). It really isn't what you expect from a pro board, but if there's something good about software bugs it's that they usually get fixed over time.

Haven't needed it yet, so I can't say.

People are being too rough on this board. Of course a Yamaha KX88 or a Doepfer LMK4 works much better, but the Yamaha was comparatively much more expensive when it came out (even a second hand one is more expensive than a new UF 8), and a new Doepfer goes for almost 2000?. A neve console also works better than a Mackie console, but nobody punds on Mackie for it. This board is cheap (dirt cheap, I must say), and it works great for the price you pay. I prefer it to the Fatars and it completely destroys the M-Audio Keystation in everything but software programing. The bugs will surely be fixed. I'm overall quite happy with it.

Pretty easy to use in terms of software controls. Some of its flaws make it less easy to use overall--see below for details.

The buttons feel nice, but they're so close together that I need to grip their top edges with my fingertips in order to not accidentally turn adjacent knobs...and I have slender fingers. The sliders feel cheap. Smooth, but very little resistence and a disconcerting scraping sound as they're moved. The wheels feel great, but the mod wheel rubs against something in the last 1/3 or so of its travel. If you lean it hard to the left as you move it the rubbing goes away, but that's no solution. As others have said, the pressure sensitivity is very nice.

The most important feature is the keyboard feel and response, and this was a disappointment. The keys are weighted nicely and bounce back nicely, but they feel a little cheap and clattery. The worst thing, though, is that they require a fair amount of initial force to get them moving--more force than is required to move them once they are moving, so the effect is that it's very hard to play extremely low velocities. For example, with three fingers ready to play a chord, I can press very lightly and nothing will happen. Press harder, and nothing happens, press harder still, and one of my fingers (but not the others) overcomes the keys' inertia and gets one key moving, but since the others have not moved yet, the chord does not sound. Finally, with even more pressure, the other two keys will play, but all three notes sounded louder than I wanted them to. I have a Roland RD-700sx and a real upright piano to compare this keyboard with, and the other two keyboards play much better than this one. It does indeed feel much better than the M-Audio controller, but it's still not usable to me.

Other complaints: the particleboard bottom does not bode well for durability, especially since I live in a very humid place. The line lump power supply sucks, but that won't matter to people who don't want pressure sensitivity and so will power the unit by USB. There's something rattling around in mine, and a couple of the keys make different noises than the rest. Overall, my impression is of very poor craftsmanship.

As reported, the pressure sensitivity feels great. Many of the flaws are easy to ignore when you get lost in playing because the keyboard does allow expressiveness. (...but that's no consolation for me.)

I can't say, but I wouldn't bet any money on it. My rating here is for my prediction of its reliability.

I don't know.

I returned it. The cheap feel, clattery keys, and the inability to play at very low velocities are deal-breakers for me. I'm getting a used Yamaha S-90 instead.

Very easy to use, if you like slow gravity fall keys. It changes patches very well right out of the box. No internal sounds, and namual is a few pages of nothing really. Comes with some sort of CD but keep reading, I don't think anybody will get any farther than I did.

Action is slow and heavy, some will and won't like it. Aftertouch is nice, and what I was looking for in a hammer action keyboard. It has most of the stuff I wanted like USB and DAW control, 88 weighted keys with modulation and pitchbend. BUT beware, this is no giging keyboard.

might work well for church if it doesn't move. Aftertouch is very nice, wish I could find polophonic aftertouch. Cute demo in it. Velocity is a little strange, but ok. No sounds internally, just a controller.

It's made out of cardboard. Earlier reviewer is mistaken except that it is heavy. The whole bottom of this keyboard is pressboard and all heavy components are attached to it. There is a foil coating on the cardboard inside probably to keep any noise from sneaking into the midi chain. And the weight is putting a lot of pressure on this cardboard. Do not move this keyboard. This cardboard will break sooner than later. Gravity weighted keys often get stuck when keyboard is moved or carried. At one point I had 2 that were stuck, moved it to my studio, and a different set of 3 keys decided to stick. I ripped into this thing and found that you have to remove every screw in order to just open it up. No hinged parts where you take out 2 screws and open it up. Worst design ever. DO NOT BUY THIS KEYBOARD.

Never contacted them but their website is nasty slow. And it doesn't give you much information. I am not going to get it repaired, just sending it back.

There is no controller keyboard in this price range that offers these features. I don't know why everybody is comparing it to an M-Audio keyboard. Those don't have aftertouch, and the weighted keys are way too light. Digidesign is full of themselves as well, so I won't be bringing my business to them. If studio logic would release that VMK 188, then maybe I would go that way and spring for the extra $300.00, but they are slow to move. All their other controllers are not exactly right either and have no features. I will just keep waiting. Maybe Roland will make another A-90, or Yamaha will make a controller. I gotta have aftertouch. Manufacturers are not adding it anymore and it really is not a good thing to leave off.

logic, garage band
lousy sound...bad velocity curves make great samples sound terrible.

The keys look great..."LOOK" great...but 'play' really bad. A real shame...I was expecting so much from this keyboard.

like I said earlier, bad VC curves and touch sensitivity....bad controller. A controller with very little control.

I only had it home for 1 night, returned it in the morning...big disapointment.

never talked to anyone about this except the store and they said many uf8s have been returned...why didn't they tell me that before?

this keyboard was the mother of all let downs...I expected something decent and was really surprised a retail store would pass this bad stuff on their customers. I won't ever buy anything from CME. I wasn't thrilled with the M Audio keystation 88 but after trying out the uf8, I will be sticking with the M audio keynboard.

I am using logic and garage band. The manual is no help and you need to read message boards and forms to learn about this keyboard.

It does seem to have lots of features but i gave it a 6 because either these features don't work very well or I have no need for them....ie, breath control.

Very poor expression. Big disappointment...almost unplayable. I cannot make music with this keyboard..at least any music which has dynamics and expression...the velocity curve function is rotten. Aftertouch is also a problem. Keys also stick and are very hard to ply..although the keys themselves are nicely designed and feel like a piano...too bad they don't play like one.

I only had it for one night, returned it the next day for a refund.

never talked to them.

I wish CME would have put more finish into this thing before dumping it on the market. it is not consumer ready...they are probably going to see a lot of these things come back and it will damage consumer confidence in their product lines in the future. Big mistake guys!

If it was stolen, I would buy a M-Audio Keystation 88. I thought the UF8 would be better and I regret returning the keystation 88, now I have to return the UF8 and buy the M-Audio controller again..better safe than sorry!

What a surprise!
How many weighted controllers do we have on the market today? This one deserves your attention for several very good reasons...

VERY VERY easy of use -- Although UF8 has only 3-digit display, all functions are easily available via dedicated buttons with LEDs. No obscure menus, no breakneck button combinations, everything quick and simple -- this is the way to go.

What it has:
-- 88 weighted keys
-- nice smooooooooth channel aftertouch
-- pitch bend and mod wheel
-- 8 assignable knobs and 9 assignable faders with preset functions
-- 4 velocity curves
-- aftertouch on/off button
-- drawbar mode for faders
-- program change
-- transpose (+/- 12 semitones)
-- octave shift (+/- 3 octaves)
-- channel select button
-- dual XOR split (with assignable split point, independent setting of transpose, octave shift and channel for every zone)
-- GM, GS, XG on, all notes off messages
-- settings dump
-- data knob, inc/dec buttons
-- 6 sequencer remote buttons
-- 1 MIDI out, breath controller input (with assignable CC number), sustain and expression (with assignable CC number) pedal inputs
-- USB port
-- expansion slot (currently for UF400e - firewire audio expansion board which is mLAN compatible (!!!))
-- 23.5 kg, red, cool-looking beast with some strange drawings on the top
-- and maybe some other things

The package includes the keyboard, AC adapter, USB cable, manual (which could be more in-depth), CD-ROM with drivers and sustain pedal (UF8 only).

And what it should have (IMHO):
-- memory for storing the settings!! Although UF's saves the last user setting on power off, this is definitely not enough.
-- numeric keypad
-- advanced layering functions (dual XOR split isn't enough)
-- bank change button
-- assignable buttons
-- MIDI in port
-- and maybe some other things ;)

As you have probably noticed, UF8 is a masterkeyboard ;) -- there are no sounds inside. So let's talk about the keybed:

88 key hammer effect weighted keyboard -- to be honest, not the top (Yamaha P250, Roland 700sx for example) but also not the worst (definitely crushes the terrible M-Audio Keystation 88 pro). In fact, it feels little artificial, it's not light and you have to get used to it, but when you do, the feeling is very nice, smooth and expressive.
Velocity curves aren't adjustable, but you can find the right one for piano, synths or drums and the velocity is consistent.
The keys are likable and you can perform even a fast organ-style palm glissandos without tearing your hand.
Bad thing about the keyboard is that the keys are quite noisy (but in live situation you don't notice that).
Very very nice and smoooooooooooooooth aftertouch, smooth pitch bend and mod wheels.
And lots of other things to make your playing expressive: breath controller input, expression pedal input, all those knobs and sliders... nice.

Heavy metal, literally.
Almost entire chassis is made of aluminium (!!!) -- built like a tank, made for the road (but get some casing with wheels for it).
Looks trustworthy, has solid controls and buttons.

Other thing is the firmware and USB drivers -- first series of UF's had some firmware bugs which had to be solved by replacing the ROM (yes, no firmware flashing, you had to open it and replace the chip on the mainboard). Also, the USB driver needs to be debugged.
However, CME is new to the business and UF is their very first product, so I would be benevolent about these issues. And once you have the right ROM and stable drivers, the unit is rock-solid and very reliable.

Excellent, outstanding and brilliant!





Really.

Just visit the CME forum where very very helpful and competent CME employees wait for your query. They listen to user suggestions and bug reports, immediately deal with their problems and even send them replacement parts with small present (!!!) (personal experience).

Yes, incredibly kind and helpful.
Example for other manufacturers.

I ordered my UF8 via internet just to try it (then I planned to return it), but after a few days I fell in love with it.
This thing has an incredible price/value ratio.
I consider myself a pianist and I don't like the unweighted keys (although I often play synth or organ parts), so I've been looking for a new 88-key weighted controller. My considerations were Fatar (lack of controls, arguable quality of electronics), Doepfer (again, lack of controls and it is a bit overpriced) and M-Audio (terrible quality of keyboard), but UF8 has it all: nice and expressive feel, plenty of controls, user-friendly interface and a cool look too.

So: big and pleasant surprise, masterkeyboard that surely deserves your attention. You should definitely give it a try!

This Master-keyboard is Chinese made and is a brand new model and a brand new Chinese company on the market.

I mainly bought it (it has no sounds only midi-control) to use it as a substitution for a real piano so the only importaint thing for me was the action of the keyboard and of course a midi-out so i could use the pianosounds from my computer. So the importaint thing for med wasn't all the controllers on the keyboard to adjust attack etc. but of course real nice instead of going to the computer and change all the settings.

The good thing about the keyboard is that it has a wheel that controls everyfeature for example the different sound on the computer.
I don't know much about new midi-controllers in generel so I won't rate it since I have nothing to compare to.

Thad said what I don't like is that if you have chosen a specific attack value (on the attack wheel) and you change sound (still on the same channel) then the keyboard doesn't memorize the old attack value and you have to adjust again every time you change sound. That is the case for all adjustable settings like volume, pan, reverb etc.
On the keyboard is a play button, record, rewind and forward buttons from used to control sequencers transport bar. Thats is very usefull when you are recording or listening to a track etc.
The keyboard is made in a metal case because the chinese "developers" wouldn't make a plastic case but a "beautiful" metal case as a giant breakthrough for midi-keybords...Hmm I would have preferred they had made some decent keys instead of making a metal case. And its not metal all over. Under the keyboard it has some kind of cardboard or something so that saved them some money there. But you can off course live with that.

The keyboard is heavy like an elephant so it's not something you want to carry around if you care for your back.

The bad thing about this keyboard is the keys. The weighted keyboard supposed to "give a grand feeling" which it doesnt but it does give a horibble instead.

If you compare the UF-8 to the minor model UF-7 the only reason to buy UF-8 is the full-weighted keys to use for piano players. Else you could just buy one of the minor models if you just use it for recording and not for practising etc.

When you push a key down you dont feel control over the sound. And its not because of adjustings with velocity or attack or anything. No its the weighting of they keys. It gives you a very bad resistense and it feels like it doesnt react smoothly but suddenly goes from a very light attack to hammering the key down (even though you are not doing that). It also gives too much restistence instead of giving some restistense to let you gain control but go smoothly down as you press the key. Its very hard to play...not my cup of tea.

If I should say something good about the features it must be that the UF-8 has a monophonic aftertouch to gain some realism with piano sounds and thats good.

On the keyboard there is a button with some different velocity preset settings (not adjustable) which i find useless. Its only the normal mode that has a decent velocity.

No sounds.

I guess it could last but I think the buttons doesnt seem solid and neither the keys. But I just had it for one week so havent got the experience.

Haven't tried

If it was stolen I would feel sorry for the thief.
I have returned this keyboard after playing it for one week and bought a Yamaha P90 which I can recommend. The action is 1000 times better it is much smaller and not as heavy as the UF-8. It has onboard sounds also. If you are a piano player go for the P90 even though you only use it as a masterkeyboard and not use the sounds. The keys are just so much better on the yamaha.

For the price paid I would say its a fair price but not more than that. The Yamaha P90 is a bit less than double the price of the UF-8 but its worth every penny.